For Pride Month, Hasbro decided to put out a video on YouTube. You know, something nice and positive, something that really makes you feel better about humanity…
Then you get to the comments. Holy FUCK. I weep for humanity, I do not kid. It’s ridiculous. But it’s the entitlement that’s truly getting to me.
So many straight, cisgender, white males were howling what about them. When do they get representation. When’s straight pride month. When is it okay to be a straight white guy. And on and on and on…
No offense, guys: but the fandom isn’t all about you. There are a lot of fans. Not all of them are straight. Not all of them are white. Not all of them are male.
Yes, there are gay, transgender, non-binary, women and BIPOC fans. Just like in all the other fandoms. Hell, Transformers might be even more inclined to such diversity: we’re dealing with shape shifting mechanoids from outer space and not many humans. Don’t even get me started on the personalities of some of the more well known characters either!
(Seriously, Bumblebee is loyal to his friends and wouldn’t hesitate to make the ultimate sacrifice for them. Some fans are more inclined to say Bumblebee is more feminine than masculine due to his protective nature. Optimus Prime has been compared to Abraham Lincoln and the Autobots are willing to walk through the fires of hell itself for him, they love him that much. Just to name a couple of examples.)
But apparently, a lot of fans turned their brains off, said “Space lasers go pew pew pew” and called it good. Or something.
The thing is, we’ve always been here. Since the very beginning, we’ve been here. Even if we collected a few of the toys, or only read the comics, or watched the cartoon on a daily basis, we were there. We were always there. It’s taken Hasbro a decent number of years, but they’re now acknowledging that we’re here. That we exist. That we’re fans. That we’re part of this fandom and it bothers certain people. They don’t like to be reminded that they’re not the only ones who happen to Like A Thing.
They can throw tantrums. They can scream helplessly into the void. They can shout out that only they matter, that their voices are the most important but what answers back is small. Fading. Because they realize that their numbers are dwindling.
That scares them. More than anything.
Iacon East 