How We Can Make the Godzilla Fandom Better

I know the Godzilla fandom has been rocked by recent events. So, I decided to make a video follow-up responding to some criticisms and discussing some ways we can make the Godzilla fandom better!
00:00 - Reactions to Recent Events
03:35 - Responding to Criticisms
10:18 - Ways We Can Make the Godzilla Fandom Better
Alyssa's Video: • Why I Left the Godzill...
Calling Monster Island Podcast: podcasters.spotify.com/pod/sh...
Outro Music: "Dream Culture"
Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
#Godzilla #Community

[@damselpramsel]

We can’t always expect Godzilla to do all the work, it’s only up to us to make sure we keep the fandom in balance

[@DonnyWinter]

Perfectly said!

[@nilocalayag4387]

@@DonnyWinterit was great to see you in Monster_Zro’s LWWS.

[@CeeyaKing]

Agree, and the community and the men and women who run the event need to acknowledge it and handle problems when they occur.

[@kaijugalaxy8756]

there's already a change happening in the fandom as a result of this conversation. thank you all for being persistent

[@DonnyWinter]

we're gonna make it better!

[@CeeyaKing]

I'd like to see the people who run gfest need to discuss how to include many of the suggestions made in this video and the men in the community need to acknowledge these issues and decide to talk to the men they know who aren't treating or speaking respectfully towards females and other groups at gfest and online, and speak up and support individuals/victims of these inappropriate behaviors from people.

[@kaijugalaxy8756]

@@CeeyaKing i agree

[@KaijuKim]

Another excellent video, twin! At this point when I see the “all fandoms are like this” argument my eyes roll so far back I can see my brain. It’s so dismissive and completely misses the point. As for the “attention seeking” argument, I literally just wanted to get some stuff off my chest like I do on my channel from time to time. I wasn’t expecting it to explode the way it did. But if it’s leading to conversations that need to be had then so be it! Thank you for continuing the conversation and for providing solutions. Keep up the great work! ❤

[@DonnyWinter]

You too, dear twin!! The "attention seeking" argument is a cop out that these haters make when they feel called out by all the important work we've been doing. Threatened people always say the worst things. Thank YOU for starting this conversation and standing up for others. That is the hardest step to the process and you helped our fandom by doing it. ❤

[@streamofawareness]

I agree with everything you said. I’m glad this conversation is continuing because this kind of behavior needs to get called out and handled. Fandom should be safer not another avenue for people to be bullies to each other.

[@DonnyWinter]

Absolutely, and thank you! I feel like part of the problem is that the fandom moves on so quickly when conversations like these happen. We gotta keep it going.

[@alyssacharpentier_author]

A great video for addressing (diplomatically and in good faith) the criticisms of this conversation and for offering practical solutions. I hope things improve for people moving forward!

[@DonnyWinter]

You're wonderful!

[@Cryptic-Cryo]

Man it was certainly an eye opener with everything you’ve said, honestly well done for not only call-out the negative but also follow up with how this community can be a better place. All to often I see people just say “this community is toxic” but never talk if there’s ways to improve. So it’s nice seeing done for constructive reasons instead of views.

[@DonnyWinter]

I'm one of those people who often noted the community's toxicity. Back then, I didn't have the bandwidth to focus on solution-making as I do now. The first step is pointing out that toxicity because if we don't, then we don't have a jump off point for making things better. ❤

[@MusicOfAdam]

It's probably because I'm a jerk, but I think one of the best solutions is to call these things out when we see it happening. The more that happens, the more the hate will get drowned out.

[@DonnyWinter]

No, that is an excellent solution too! I consider that as part of the "stand up for other fans" solution in a way. If someone is going to be horrible to someone else publicly, call it out!

[@Portman1984]

First off, this video should have way more likes than it has. I agree 100%, Donny. Having tough conversations is part of life and part of the human experience. Why should that be a bad thing to some? The common “this happens in every fandom” is a typical response, but it’s important to be self aware and acknowledge that just because that may be true, it doesn’t excuse the toxic behaviors of some. We need to do better as human beings and as a community because the advantage that we have is being a still fairly niche fandom. It’s certainly growing, but still so intimate in size. We have the power together, to make things better! To those who have been affected by these toxic behaviors, just know that many of us, if not most of us, hear you and we see you. Much love everyone!

[@DonnyWinter]

I appreciate your response! You make some amazing points. Thank you for your role in helping make this fandom a better place ♥️

[@DiogenesofMashad]

I'm honestly quite glad to see that you're managing to take a positive perspective of "How can we solve these issues?" Often people will fall into a sort of doomeristic, "Why even bother?" mindset that prevents any sort of meaningful progress from ever occuring and I hope this video will help deal with that mindset. I'll admit that I've not fully seen through the video, and you probably end up addressing this, but in my opinion the solution to the issue at hand is just... Don't tolerate this behavior. Call anyone with this type of behavior out. Yeah, I can understand the sensation of not wanting to see a creator that you really like getting outed and leaving the platform, but you just have to draw a line in the sand somewhere. You have to understand that these are more than just buzzwords, under different circumstances you or some you care for could be abused by these people or people like them. That's all I have to say.

[@blueravenfire]

well done video. yeah, I can agree big issues like this are no longer things we can just ignore, especially when it greatly affects people within the fandom. I know it is probably going to take a lot of effort to make this fandom better then the dumpster fire it is now, but if we all work together I believe it can be done. we really need to do better if everyone in this fandom is going to feel safe.

[@moviebuffer93]

Good video. I do really appreciate you looking for actual solutions rather than just pointing the finger at the next guy . I wish I had your same positive outlook on how to deal with fandom issues , but it honestly just gets so old . Like if you say you actually enjoy any of the lesser liked films in the franchise, people just come at you like a lynch mob . It’s like people aren’t even allowed to have their own opinions anymore. I remember I commented on one video that a KZbinr had posted talking about the 98 Godzilla and when I mentioned I liked it one user immediately attacked me and posted a nasty comment with like 10 laughing emojis at the end. Like wow could you be any more passive aggressive about it? The unfortunate truth is that some people are just assholes and don’t care to or just don’t know how to respectfully disagree with another person or just let that person have their own opinion and take on a film. It’s ridiculous and this is why I don’t go on any Facebook groups or discussion forums anymore.

[@lautaroasis60]

People getting defensive about this are so self-centered, its disgusting. Just people looking for ways to cope and avoid the main issue

[@DonnyWinter]

Exactly! To me, the people getting defensive about it are probably feeling guilty that they've acted on this horrible behavior.

[@lautaroasis60]

@@DonnyWinter its always that type of people

[@kasaibouF29]

I've seen people acknowledge that there is a problem, but are choosing to do nothing about it.

[@Godzillakingofkaiju1]

My solution: Just make it clear to the more toxic fans that they are not welcome.

[@DonnyWinter]

Absolutely!

[@Ezilla82]

Those are some pretty sound solutions, Donny. Oh, yeah you got my support, but you already know that.

[@DonnyWinter]

Thank you, friend!

[@erikpearl6885]

Thank you so much for both videos! This is absolutely a step forward in the right direction and its past time this was taken more seriously 👏

[@ethanreynolds3522]

I have an idea. It's called the "Toxic Fandom Elimination Operation". We gather all of the toxic fans on a beach somewhere and let Godzilla do his thing. Or, we could create a team of people that can handle these situation and they have a robot Godzilla to fight them.

[@josephgibson5902]

These things happen in every fandom because these are basic patterns of humans. The conversation is important in every context and outlet, especially the ones where it is implicit, because for me, it has been best to examine my own biases previously in passive and implicit representations. I think it's definitely a very important conversation for every member of the community to hear or have, and I am regretful to learn that bigotry and abuse have been undercurrents of the fandom I hadn't heard about until finding this channel for the people hurt and those who weren't aware enough of the problem to try to do anything about it (I don't mean to say it would have ended if cishetwhite male allies joined the fray but just that it being a known topic of conversation about the franchise would have helped everyone's awareness in navigating these situations previously) If there wasn't a constant humanist fight corresponding to many of the people that are disproportionately affected by the seeming systemic issues you and others have brought up, maybe it would be easier to say that X film franchise fandom doesn't need to be all inclusive (but even then, I myself, a young adult Westerner, have so little in common culturally with the creators and intended audience of most of these films, and their ability to reach me means that they can reach anybody, so I think the very idea of this fandom calls for inclusivity) I agree that it is important to call out, because, as I've said, this fandom itself is a marriage of vastly different cultures, and, if someone is incapable of respecting people different than them, then they don't really belong in the fandom devoted to that (not a no true Scotsman fallacy, just literally the tools to be here) I don't think there is much else I can say, and if I crept back into any counterproductive thinking in this comment, anyone please point it out. We need to start and continue these important discussions.

[@Godzilla2000Zero]

It's great to have this conversation now while we're still growing and can improve thanks. Subbed

[@DonnyWinter]

Thanks for the support!

[@Godzilla2000Zero]

@@DonnyWinter No problem my love for Godzilla has helped me in life as well and I want it to be very welcoming for everyone. Thanks again.

[@tubby1833]

Great video man. I love this hopeful go-get-'em attitude. One of the key points that I'm glad you highlighted is that criticism of something you like isn't a criticism of you. It's ok to like certain things in the Godzilla franchise and not like others. In my opinion, at least, we need to take this lesson to heart and be willing to engage with one another to identify the reasons we like or dislike certain films, come to some sort of consensus regarding them, and encourage Legendary and Toho to constantly focus on making better and better movies while incorporating our preferred elements. All that being said, I'd like to inject two pieces of important nuance that I think we need to be aware of. 1. -We need to be very careful to not course correct too hard. Toxic positivity is a thing too and we need to be careful to not fall victim to it. A lot of people have the tendency to conflate criticism of what they like, even if it is legitimate, as a personal attack. Therefore qualifying it as bullying and harassment. Social media sites like Reddit skew towards becoming echo chambers very easily, so we need to be sure not to conflate criticism of the Godzilla franchise with bullying so we can continue to share ideas and remain ideologically balanced. 2. -Toxic and awful people will always exist. I believe wholeheartedly that it is important to immediately shoot down legitimate harassment of others. I would take that a step further and get the police involved for monsters like child predators. However, we must acknowledge that toxic people will never disappear and will continue to plague this fandom till the end of time. Because of that, we need to encourage people to shoot down toxicity while simultaneously emboldening them to develop skin thick enough to weather it. If we don't motivate people to adopt the emotional fortitude meant to weather insults, we risk creating a fandom so sensitive that anything remotely negative will be perceived as harassment.

[@DonnyWinter]

Excellent added points! Thank you!

[@universaljourneys7448]

very comprehensive. i think these are great solutions

[@DonnyWinter]

Thank you!

[@Alzilla09]

Great video! I completely agree with everything you’ve said. I’m glad there are people who are finding solutions in order to assess the situation. Hopefully things can calm down soon.

[@theYokoHiguchi]

Always a true champ of the Godzilla fandom. Thank you so much for this video and for making the community a better place!

[@BackstreetGlambert]

You make great points and glad you made this video.

[@DonnyWinter]

Thank you!

[@Valenquill]

Thanks for sticking up for the neurodivergent people, Donny. That's part of the reason why it was hard to reach out to the community. Im on the spectrum and was always afraid of bullying. So I was always quiet.

[@DonnyWinter]

Thank you for the thoughtful comment! We're all in this together and I feel that neurodivergent communities ESPECIALLY deserve a seat at the table. ❤

[@jedigrandvelle8844]

That criticism of getting attention is a good one. If I or anyone else was seeking validation, we wouldn't even make videos like this. Because the simple fact is if it has impact yourself or others, it needs to be addressed. Because this environment should be a safe haven for all who are love this platform. And as I mentioned to others, if this isn't the same arena as one who felt it was before, then why am I here? Because I don't want to be part of something that seriously leaves a bad taste in one's view.

[@DonnyWinter]

Absolutely well put my friend! 👏👏

[@lincolnsmithtbp]

Ive never even noticed any toxicity in the fans of godzilla. But im pretty new here. That reallt sucks for her.

[@DonnyWinter]

I hope that you're able to avoid any toxicity if possible! It sounds like you may be in some good communities where people support one another.

[@CeeyaKing]

@@lincolnsmithtbp because you're a white male and you haven't gotten to know the core group of regulars that are there, including two of the dealers in the dealers room.

[@pugachev86]

After watching this video, I am so pro-gatekeeping the Godzilla fandom it's absolutely unreal.

[@DonnyWinter]

@@pugachev86 how come?

[@pugachev86]

@@DonnyWinter Because the fandom is not about you elbowing in to make things about you.

[@Chadzilla_the_Keyblade_welder]

Video of the YEAR

[@DonnyWinter]

Thank you!! ♥️♥️♥️

[@Chadzilla_the_Keyblade_welder]

@@DonnyWinter Your welcome 👍😊

[@user-hy1dk6ey1z]

Every godzilla is good in the end. If we like a different godzilla, then that's ok. Godzilla isnt just one type of character, but he is multiple different incarnations of a character thay still gets changes to this day...and thats a good thing, we need to accept and live these types.

[@DonnyWinter]

Absolutely agree!

[@nilocalayag4387]

Just tell Them this word: Phak Yoo

[@DonnyWinter]

@@nilocalayag4387 yessss

[@MonsterKidCory]

I agree that we should all call out racist, sexist, homophobic, and bigoted behaviour in all directions (right against left, left against right, white against poc, poc against white, this religion against that religion, Godzilla fans against Kong fans, etc.), as well as predation of minors and so forth. But I don't think anyone is interested in Godzilla to have deep and difficult conversations about diversity, equity, and inclusion. So one should be careful about how one goes about that kind of thing or else it's going to have the opposite effect and make everyone even more hostile as they react against their silly giant monster escapism trying to position itself as an unsolicited moral force. There needs to be a limit between calling out and shunning bad behaviour vs. seeing Godzilla fandom as a new continent to evangelize.

[@DonnyWinter]

@MonsterKidCory I'm posing this purely out of curiosity, but I'm not really sure what you're suggesting. So, you're arguing that people shouldn't share how characters/films impact them because it may cause others to get hostile over "unsolicited moral force"? I think you mean well, but it's coming off as, "don't talk about how Godzilla helped you find self-acceptance because it may virtue signal others into empathy?" Please tell me if I'm misinterpreting this, because why should we (in various unrepesented communities) minimize ourselves because unempathetic people may get offended? Our existence/presence isn't something to evangelize. It simply is literal existence. 😅

[@MonsterKidCory]

@@DonnyWinter I think I have a slightly different perspective on this sort of thing because of my personal history. On the one hand, I've been a nonconformist for most of my life, from being bullied and beaten up as a dweeby, nerdy kid in the 80's and 90's, to getting assaulted and harassed as a gender-bending queer Goth in the 00's and 10's, to being consistently dehumanized today for having the "privileged" skin colour and genitals. So I'm not coming at this as an "outsider" trying to restrict the voice of minorities and nonconformists. But I am saying this as someone who has had his nonconformity weaponized against him, and experienced shifts in what about him is considered nonconformist, and having to learn what is or isn't appropriate in different situations concerning it. On the other hand, I am a Christian and we have been very much trained to keep our mouths shut about our beliefs, opinions, and even our identities. I've literally worked with people for YEARS before finding out that they were also Christian. Not only is simply talking about our perspectives considered "aggressive" and socially inappropriate, but even DEFENDING ourselves from attack is considered "aggressive," "intolerant," and shoving our religion down people's throats. Simply to be intolerant of intolerance against us is not only evidence of our intolerance, but ACTIONABLE by human resources. And no, I'm not talking about being homophobic or anything - as per my first hand above - but simply contradicting someone saying bigoted things about Christians as people. I'm even aware that I have to make that distinction, because it's so engrained to believe that Christians bring intolerance upon themselves and deserve it. So my point is that, yes, there are boundaries of what are appropriate conversations to have in different venues and I honestly don't understand thinking otherwise. I think a key is this: "I think you mean well but it's coming off as, "don't talk about how Godzilla helped you find self-acceptance because it may virtue signal others into empathy?"" It's absolutely fine to discuss what Godzilla has meant to you. Of course it is. Do it! But it runs into potentially hazardous territory in the latter half there, about "virtue signal[ling] others into empathy." That's not a job that anybody who hasn't been asked to do should take on. People react strongly against even the PERCEPTION that someone else is taking on an unsolicited role as a moral teacher. That's actually what a lot of so-called "culture war" issues boil down to as well... It's not that the "good side" is defending "empathy" and the "bad side" is defending bigotry. It's that nobody likes being talked down to about what they should think by people they didn't ask. The result is bitterness, resentment, and steadily increasing animosity. To pick the most relevant issue to both of us, I was an LGBT rights activist in college in the 00's (prior to marriage equality here in Canada in 2005) and if you told me that in 20 years tolerance for LGBT people would be DECLINING, I wouldn't have believed you. But here we are, and if one looks at the statistics, it's not actually that people are particularly intolerant of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and even transgender people necessarily... They're reacting against what they perceive as the overreach of "queer politics" into their lives, entertainment, schools, and families. I can't even explain the rage I feel when I hear people chanting things like "we're here, we're queer, we're coming for your children" at Pride, because 20 years ago I had to assuage that ACCUSATION from homophobic conservatives. But then we tell ourselves that we're just innocently teaching "empathy" and anyone who doesn't like it is a bigot. Like yeah, I WANT us to go back to just asking to be accepted and left alone rather than thinking we're on a crusade to deconstruct gender and be the moral guardians of other people's children. Undoubtedly I'm reading far more into your video than you actually meant and I apologize for that. But I've seen this dynamic play out so much over the last ten years in everything from micro-fandoms to macro-scale cultural trends that I felt like I needed to caution that, yes, we SHOULD call out bigotry, racism, sexism, actual grooming, and other actively criminal behaviour, but NO, nobody is into Godzilla to feel lectured on morality. My TACTICAL advice is that this will have to opposite effect if we don't respect that distinction.

[@kaijubattle3677]

Donny while I agree with what you are saying and suggesting we need to realize the harassment is happening not to just select groups of people but anyone can be a victim. Charles Dunphey has posted harassment he has faced, and it actually came from a woman. I am supporting all that have been harassed Alyssa Charpentier, Kaiju Kim, you, and Charles as well as anyone else who has been harassed. And final Kaiju Battle is a safe haven as well.

[@DonnyWinter]

Are you able to link me to this event happening with Charles Dunphey? I don't think we're connected anywhere on social media. I'd like to read up on it if possible. Thank you for supporting all who've been harassed and for emphasizing your safe haven community!

[@godzillabebravethetrexretu1381]

Easy 1. Handle peoples opinion on who the best and strongest Godzilla incarnation is and what the best era in the series is 2. No inappropriate fanart shipping is fine as long as it’s canon or makes since

[@moodshadow5611]

You say that as if those are the main problems that plague this community lmfao💀

[@godzillabebravethetrexretu1381]

@@moodshadow5611 yeah they are especially the first one

[@NeoMonsterIsland]

Let people ship what they want. Being a slave to canon is stifling.

[@user-sn1hi7my7x]

Let Japan make the movies

[@DonnyWinter]

@@user-sn1hi7my7x fair 🤣

[@NeoMonsterIsland]

That's a creatively stifling position, especially when Toho LOVES the Monsterverse.

[@user-sn1hi7my7x]

@@NeoMonsterIsland I prefer the classic Godzilla movies is all. The Monster Verse isn't bad, but after seeing Minus One, there's a clear distinction between the 2. One feels like a money grab and the other feels like a lot of thought was put into the story.

[@CeeyaKing]

Why are you talking about this when it's completely off-topic? Seriously insulting as I'm also a victim of bullying and sexual predators at gfest

[@matteomastrodomenico1231]

​@@user-sn1hi7my7x The hell has that to do with anything though? Did you even need Minus One to know it was a cashgrab?