Welcome Home - When Fandom Gets Carried Away

[@Peppmintleaf]

Sometimes I forget that Welcome home is supposed to be a horror project, I'm honestly just so used to the fandom's rendition of Wally being such a polite lil goober that if he's somehow anything but that, the whiplash would be felt for miles across the fandom.

[@Eeveeswhimsicalwonders]

I’m honestly waiting for the whiplash EDIT: but that’s okay, Imma stay regardless

[@jack_stone]

That's probably going to doom the project. Because if whatever the creator wants to do with Wally doesn't mesh up with that common interpretation there's going to be fandom backlash.

[@CassiusStelar]

Naw, tons of creators make gorey fanart.

[@JT5555]

i'm actually kind of interested in seeing how much of the fandom is in it as fans of the "show" rather than fans of the actual horror project. it feels like it would be really easy for people to look at these characters and totally forget that there is something darker going on...and when that darkness shows itself in full,i wonder how those people will take being reminded.

[@piretiris8223]

It reminds me of what happened to indie horror games

[@clydestuff3199]

Undertale is also a huge example of a fandom that got out of control. Now n' days the fandom has cold down, but looking back at it all it feels like some sort of nightmare.

[@forkalamari6093]

Yeah. Thank god we got better with Deltarune, but Undertale was… something

[@ReesesBees]

I was there when the Undertale fandom began going downhill. It was absolute *MAYHEM.*

[@rubyred6608760]

Any fandom that is majority made up of children is going to be very chaotic.

[@LocalLazyStove]

I feel like when Deltarune came out, the people that were part of the Undertale fandom just looked at what happen with the fandom and how insane it got and went “Okay people, let’s just be chill and not repeat the same mistake with did with Undertale”,

[@Mad-Goose]

@@ReesesBees What exactly happened with the Undertale fandom? Like, I've heard it was bad but never anything beyond that.

[@PeriluneStar]

When I first saw the website, I thought that Welcome Home was a real show, just goes to show how much work and care went into the project!

[@alchemistofsteel8099]

It reminds me of the Boz the Bear website or Jumpstart website. Do you remember that?

[@tostadafangirl]

Same happend to me but with Valle Verde, at the time I didn't know that it was an arg or what was an arg, but still looks very cool!

[@PeriluneStar]

@@alchemistofsteel8099 Never heard of it

[@PeriluneStar]

@@tostadafangirl Oh what's that?

[@JkUnderConstruction]

I still know that this is still a horror arg but I still love the Eddie x Frank ship and my fave are Julie and Sally

[@DestructionatorWitch]

When I first discovered Welcome Home, I just had an instant bad feeling that it would attract the wrong kind of fandom. It's just... too good for people to handle :/

[@Eepop_stuffs]

SAME I immediately got the vibe that people would become rabid dogs over it

[@FrahdChikun]

The moment I learned about it from a friend and after she explained it was a lost kids' media horror project, I instantaneously knew it would develop one of THOSE communities. Glad I'm not the only one who thought about it too.

[@starjellyfishh]

My thoughts exactly

[@ArtisanAsteroid]

This type of stuff never goes uncorrupted.

[@dorkchops]

i had a similar feeling as soon as i saw it “ohno ohgod the internet”

[@jellygirljude]

As someone who followed Clown’s tumblr in 2018 when Welcome Home was in its “infancy,” it’s crazy to see how popular it’s gotten the past few months. These kinds of projects don’t usually get this much attention. I’m happy that Clown is getting all of the recognition as it’s such a well thought out and produced project, but what I’m most concerned about is the “post blow-up fallout.” Basically when people start to decide that something is “cringe” (think MLP, Undertale, FNAF) and start to slander it because of some toxic fans. Which it hurts even more considering it’s a one-creator ordeal. I really hope the best for Clown and their project.

[@callistoballist0]

Agreed, it's so sad when theres a creator of something and then it gets popular and toxic people start invading it then people start assuming the thing is "cringe". and enjoying said media makes you a "cringe" or "bad person", it's so weird to me :( and this is also why i dislike cringe culture a lot.

[@ayo2851]

Yeah… So many good games with unique plotlines like Undertale, Welcome Home, FNAF, and others have been casted out like they were bad games just because of their fandoms.. It hurts. A prime example of this is Undertale, or in other non-game aituations for those who don’t get it, DREAM. I won’t go too into the situation of the dude since people will scream at me for doing the good ol’ “bro likes dream he’s fatherless L 💀💀” but the whole reason people don’t like dream beside cheating is litterally the fanbase.

[@ayo2851]

Also he’s been bullied about his appearance to the point of going faceless again.. How cruel the internet is. (Not to mention that one minor who tried to send Dream to jail on the pretense of predatory behavior only because he didn’t look what she expected

[@somethingwithbungalows]

⁠​⁠​⁠​⁠@@ayo2851honestly felt really bad at first but then people’s mean comments started to make an impression on me. Nowadays I just have no idea what to think.. I know it’s wrong though.. and I still feel bad for them all mocking his appearance but.. ugh.. And a little unrelated but people keep making jokes (which are kinda not really all that funny) about anyone or character with a speech impediment or lisp even more so lately and it just straight up feels like bullying in a way They’ll usually post the emoji 🤓 with it lol Ik they’re trolls n spammers so I never feed them but they’re so annoying I swear People preach so much about not bullying others for their looks n stuff and then immediately proceed to do things like this afterwards all the time 💀

[@ayo2851]

@@somethingwithbungalows Y e a h, Idk how to feel about the way current people respond or try to be menacing. They add the 🤓 to try and be mean but like… ??????????

[@fennelfin]

17:35 that same thing happened with The Owl House. It was common knowledge that Dana Terrace didn't like happy endings at all, until she came out and said she meant the "happily ever after" endings, with no conflict at all, and in fact she liked a lot of happy endings as long as they were not that.

[@misterdewott8766]

Judging from the actual ending of The Owl House, I can only guess that Dana's comment on endings was just a jab at Steven Universe's ending hahahahaha

[@Tjnovakart]

Insanely based take on her part I’m ngl

[@authorlacey]

Me and my GF watching the finale were so confused my GF thinking Luz was going to die the whole time. Can confirm we fell for that.

[@matt0044]

Mister Dewott - Hardly. Most creators actually respect each other. Plus, SU? No conflict? Really? Do the words “I’m a fraud…” mean nothing?

[@daelen.cclark]

@@matt0044 I feel like most people were too angry to think about that at the time.

[@jibrilthethingart]

I love Welcome Home And nothing will convince me to leave the fandom, but some of the fans need to chill out

[@allisonwhatthe4862]

I agree. I also don't want to leave the fandom either. I just wish that people would respect Clown's boundaries and let them take their own time.

[@jibrilthethingart]

@@allisonwhatthe4862 yes! I agree with you wholeheartedly!

[@JkUnderConstruction]

I saw someone comment on a tiktok vid with Wally in it saying "ra1l me" WTF👁️👄👁️

[@tangerine_ren]

​@@JkUnderConstruction bloody hell 😭 I feel like ditching tiktok at this point, I rarely use it anyway

[@NotEmilio]

agreed

[@Whatisthisgremlin]

I agree with the “wholesome media getting bad crazy fan base” because there are a lot of fandoms of horror media that get the most WHOLESOME fandoms

[@baimhakani]

A good example I could think of would be the Blue Archive fanbase Everyone are thirsting for girls that looks absolutely underaged, and they knows it. This is also why I immediately identify anyone who claims to be a chill community to be the most sterile asylum where you couldn't even make a snarky joke without getting into trouble

[@salaartariq2103]

well except fnaf :(

[@Whatisthisgremlin]

@@salaartariq2103 touché

[@flowervibe7110]

@@baimhakani " that look " they are all canon minor since its a high school the most old character that i saw was 17 and the MC that goes to date with them is their teatcher wich is a adult and the game was made for that it was made by yostar so its was never mean to be a wholesome game like sekai but more a wholesome because of purity of little girl character in a CP game ( the art is good wich is sad tho )

[@spotlightanimation6719]

Omori

[@skrunklyscrimblo383]

I think the worst thing I saw in the WH fandom was when ppl were losing their goddamn minds over the fact that MatPat had an interest in the project. They were gatekeeping him and his fans so much on twitter, it was such a miserable few days on Twitter that it caused me to leave the fandom and just become an orbiter of WH. It’s really cool that you’re talking abt these issues bc I often see them glossed over

[@haleyhersh3850]

That sucks man

[@thepalmerfamily6277]

Honestly, im open to any theory abt WH anyone has. O would.honestly love to hear matpats theory. Some people in the fandom are crazy man

[@Wwhdduendjdhhfmwosdn]

Fr? Come one man T.T I’m only on pintrest. I thought the memes were just making fun of how popular the story was becoming.

[@1doctorworm]

honestly the whole overreaction to matpat finding out about welcome home was insane like i guess i understand getting a little upset about it seeing that matpat has, over the years, done some weird stuff sometimes… but the whole panic was so unnecessary… im so dissapointed in these people tbh

[@ghoulchan7525]

@@1doctorworm i think they are worried that if Matpat covers it a whole new wave of people will come in. i mean look at FNAF.

[@ChronoTriggerHappy]

as a horror creator you know you did something cool if Night Mind takes notice. As a follower of Night Mind, anything that catches his interest is usually something to look into and Welcome Home has been really cool. Kinda sad the horror things get derailed by, frankly, crazy people. My personally, I think that no matter what you do there is also going to be "that" section of a fandom and honestly they just need to be ignored. 0 interaction tends to really cool those people down.

[@Fionapollo]

Night mind popped up to me immediately after seeing WH on tiktok & that's when i knew it was good achsbhvndc It depends on the fandom tbh, but generally you're right, the best reaction is no reaction

[@JT5555]

i think i saw a couple videos on it pop up so i'm not sure if he was the FIRST to pop up in my feed but night mind's was the one i decided to watch to find out what the fuck welcome home was. i can't say that i'm really part of the FANDOM but i find it interesting enough that i wanna know what fucked up shit is gonna happen later on.XD

[@MissPickleson4773]

@@Fionapollo i’ve been into fandoms a year ago before I got into other interests. I was overboard with characters I like. It was a horror story for me to tell… I’ve been doing some bad things over the past until, I stopped and stepped forward to a new path to create and share my own ideas for the community. I wanted to make friends and fit in with them.. but they got me in trouble and got me banned or kicked out from spooky month servers! I love Sr Pelo, and he inspires me to keep me going! But when it comes to making friends, They knew that I was lying or drawing inappropriate stuff online. I was heartbroken hearing those words coming from their mouths. all I want to do is support others and make them happy. (Even showing them my creations) But it’s a good thing I’m not in the “Welcome Home Fandom” it takes ALOT of guts to explain everything in the past.

[@heath6802]

It’s gamejacking and that’s pretty upsetting

[@sanai97]

It was his fault that the creator was harasses. Very cool guy.

[@drowsy7921]

I don't think NSFW art is inherently bad (as long as it isn't CP), but because the creator of Welcome Home has expressed that they greatly dislike that kind of stuff, then I think the fans should probably listen to their wishes.

[@bunnymandhonesydips]

I actually tried to tell several artists who do draw that type of content to stop and respect the creators wishes and they immediately harassed me and told me that I’m taking away their “freedom of expression” in art. 🫠

[@ReesesBees]

Unfortunately, a lot of NSFW artists will still go against an artists' wishes and continue to make explicit art. And as PoppbUnnnCakkkee said, if you try to tell them that the original artist has asked people to stop drawing NSFW of their work, the NSFW artist will attack you or harass you.

[@nashderohn2341]

Lowkey agree but you can’t stop and police ppl but yea nah man this shit is wrong it needs to stop especially if it’s CP 🛑

[@chadharger9323]

Copyright law and fan art are a mess. The big issue to me is that fan artists can charge money under the guise of donation via patreon or whatever. But if a fan fiction writer tried that then that writer would have a bunch cease & desist orders thrown at them.

[@Shimamon27]

I think it's impossible to evade such cases. If people have the means and the will, they'll just do it... Either due to passion alone, or, because it'll probably sell, due to risen popularity and probable demand. Of course, seeing your own personal project turned into some demorphed monstrosity... Yeah, sounds terrible, but, I think an healthier approach would be to have some training videos for creators to learn how to handle the weird side of getting too much positive feedback. It does result with people ending up in bed with what the creator made... As sick as it sounds, that's an eventuality of too much affection.

[@charliejones7512]

Ever since hearing about Welcome Home from Night Mind and hearing it’s only 5% finished, I’ve deliberately kept away from anything that remotely mentions theories of it since most horror things we’ve all seen have more or less been finished, but we barely have crumbs of Welcome Home and would like to see how the story unfolds. I’m quite worried for Clown and hope they’ll be able to carry on with this.

[@elusiveFalsehoods]

For real, honestly I just stepped back from it almost immediately, because it deserves to tell its own story w/o fan lenses. People took the crumbs and started running, and I really hope Clown doesn't crumble under the pressure.

[@buliontro]

I stopped consuming the content from the fandom, I've just grown distane bc of how people twist Wally's character. As this ooh spooky Tumblr sexy man is coming after you!~ It absolutely makes me cringe to the stratosphere. Maybe that's Wally's character but I highly doubt it and there's barely any info on any character or plot.

[@sevenlexar]

Their tumblr posts make it sound that while they're a bit overwhelmed (which is fair, who WOULDNT be), they're still very eager to continue their project. I also saw them make a comparison, regarding the fandom vs the project itself, that it's like they're 'writing invitations to a party, but everyone is already in their house'.

[@grimaussiewitch]

Yeah same here. I decided to step back and wait for updates when Clown first announced a short hiatus due to it growing so quickly. I did the same with genloss because the fandom creation that was made first WAY before any proper teasers or trailers is vastly different to the finished product. I’ll be reblogging some fanart on tumblr but staying away from theories and au’s for a story that has barely begun. Plus the amount of au’s is giving me major undertale au vibes. Good old “way too many au’s surrounding sans to the point it’s just skeleton oc’s” and I’m seeing that with Wally himself.

[@heath6802]

Most stories like these take years to full flesh out, tragic to see people jump right in and derail

[@KiyoshiArts]

I honestly don’t know a single think about the fandom, but I do think that the fandom is just going through it’s “high point”. I do believe that a lot of the toxic aspects will drop and/or disappear when the fandom settles down

[@jasperjazzie]

same, it's a new fandom and i imagine a lot of these people are just hopping on the bandwagon, and once it's not a hot new thing anymore it'll die down a lot and the more reasonable fans will stick around

[@daelen.cclark]

It’s new, it’s uncharted, let the toxic ones screech themselves away so that the newer fans learn what not to do.

[@lyn292]

​@daelen.cclark Hopefully you're right

[@daelen.cclark]

@@lyn292 I’m hoping, too.

[@jacelight4350]

I participated in both the Steven Universe and Voltron fandoms as a teen and honestly those experiences have made me realized that fandoms are not the way to thoughtfully and respectfully interact with media. Being a causal fan and supporting creators without forming your entire identity or creative output around something that ultimately you have no control over will be healthier for everyone involved in the long run.

[@puppytree6343]

Nothing wrong with getting more involved with discussion and fan projects but I 100% agree. But I agree, moderation is key to enjoying fiction

[@mcstabbins4501]

The stans from those fandoms honestly scare me

[@meh8396]

Im someone who’s been into FNaF from the first game and joined the FNaF amino 5 years ago, ngl, my main creative output is FNaF yet I still draw other things like my friend’s characters from a story he writes, animals and humans. I’ve seen how some of the old fans such as myself literally berate new fans which makes me sick, I get FNaF was there from the first game for you but hell you don’t need to treat it like it’s yours alone, it’s an expanding property that belongs to Scott and SteelWool, its a property Scott allowed his Fandom to expand. Don’t abuse it nor keep it to yourself, a fandom is a place to share, expand, create, learn, develop, you can find your passion within a fandom but you should never treat it like it’s yours because it never will be nor get upset once it changes because its an expanding property that will never stay the same

[@shibadawn]

Tbf it depends on the person. For some people, they don’t know how to respect ppl and the original work. For others, it’s perfectly fine for them to dedicate work to a fandom, if they know how to respect others and all that. Not everyone gets completely carried away, and maybe that original work is important to them in some way.

[@tergivesup6783]

what youre missing here is that the vast VAST majority of people invested in "fandom culture" are children to young adults. most of them don't think this way or take media literacy into consideration

[@Jess-dm8hl]

As someone who has survived some of the most toxic and infamous fandoms ( Homestuck, FNAF, Steven Universe, Voltron, Miraculous Ladybug, Attack on Titan, My Hero Academia, She-RA, Undertale, Hazbin Hotel/ Helluva Boss, and just animation in general) I think that it’s honestly just the internet. Most fans of things are generally pretty chill and the internet just exemplifies that really toxic/crazy 1%. I’ve found that most casual fans of things tend to not post much about them online and just tend to lurk. I think the saddest thing is that these few toxic people are ruining the things they are fans of for others. I won’t lie, some of those fans have made me lose interest in lots of shows/games/movies over the years. I’ve also heard other people say the same or that they won’t watch a specific show because “the fans are toxic”. What’s sad is that most of them are kids too. I think people need to learn a healthy balance between liking something and being a fan and obsessing over it and enforcing their own toxic behavior onto others. And I know that’s not easy! I hyper fixate on shows/movies/games/books too! It’s hard for us neurodivergent people to just “let go” sometimes. There are definitely ways to hyper fixate on something and not become a toxic fan. Most aren’t to begin with. So to tldr, enjoy what you love. Post about it, draw fanart, make music, talk about it with others! Don’t let toxic fans ruin things for you!

[@initech-employee]

@Pink Girl yeahh definitely, i'm currently in the hetalia fandom and the fans have definitely calmed down a lot. but the past fandom still haunts us (as well as randos calling us racist (most of the fandom nowadays is people who actively educate themselves on history and countries) and telling us to "kys" which is uhh.... me and my friends in the fandom are all bipoc.. so like.. fdghjklsshgfdy ????!?)

[@allieg.5143]

Friend, you have like the infinity gauntlet of toxic fan bases are you OK

[@Jess-dm8hl]

@@allieg.5143 hahaha multiple people have asked me this already! I’m doing alright actually. I don’t tend to get very involved in fandoms other than drawing some fan art here and there. I’m a lurker lol

[@tropicaldisaster8135]

@Pink Girl Oh my gosh, 2010s Hetalia fandom was SCARY!!

[@xstar4698]

Gravity Falls is also kinda toxic Ppl shipping a trillion year old triangle dorito man with a 12 year old boy-

[@MaeArt725]

I think the worst thing with the Steven universe one was people harassing the artist even when they were in the hospital. I honestly hope Clown will be okay despite all of this :/

[@Cyber-Hexagon]

Oh yeah, Cami… That shit was fucking wild and horrible, truly the worst representation of Tumblr and SU.

[@tintedpalette653]

The vast majority of people in the SU fandom were supportive of the artist when they were harmed, but yes there was a very small minority using it as an opportunity to troll.

[@senamation]

the shitty people legit were GLAD she tried to yknow and that always pisses me off. I sent her keychains once.

[@MaeArt725]

@@senamation weren’t some of them making fun of her for failing or something? Honestly people are sick and twisted sometimes.

[@senamation]

@@MaeArt725 yeah they were like "she couldn't even succeed" "I wish she succeeded" truly psychopathic behavior.

[@ea_sports__]

I remember being harassed because me and my fiancé were cosplaying two characters from a fandom, and we were giving eachother a kiss and interacting like a couple should. And they just couldn't handle it because "their relationship is toxic, and it's literally so wrong" and all that. And, even when I tried to explain to them that me and my fiancé are just a couple and actually together, they still went on and even got their friends involved. It was hell

[@YourNameHere]

bro whattt 💀💀 that’s insane how can someone be so chronically online irl

[@ea_sports__]

@@YourNameHere It was wild, took a solid minute to realize they were being serious and not just doing it as a joke

[@the-NightStar]

I mean if it was Joker and Harley Quinn..... than I am on the side of the other people.

[@ea_sports__]

@@the-NightStar no but that's the entire point, we weren't even in-character (we weren't those two characters, either). I can understand misunderstanding, and thinking we're in-character, but some people need to remember that we're not actually these characters irl

[@sanai97]

Why would you glorify a toxic relationship lmao

[@archerinspace]

The best statement I read about this is from a tumblr post saying "the fandom speedran the fandom experience and dropped its rotting corpse at the creator's doorstep" Edit/Addition: It's been recent in fandom culture that people just get a tunnel vision and refuse to branch out of their comfort zone which causes them to get their morals from things like kid shows that can't entirely get the right point across because at the end of the day they expect the audience to have some common sense to think about things or have other sources of morality. I really don't like it cause its just created an entire group of people that refuse to enjoy anything else or when critiqued they dont have emotional maturity to handle the situation.

[@tankerthomas9749]

Dear god, you summed it up perfectly. I caught the initial wave but I can only describe the events as “holy fuck” Im dedicated to observing and documenting fandom activity but everything happened so fast even i got nearly burnt out just by observing. I cant even say how much i hate modern fandom culture (especially those on tiktok) it feels like everyone is scouting for something with even a little potential to destroy like vultures. Leaving nothing but a corpse of a fandom and its potential. But im rambling.

[@SheHulk-jg2jc]

You're totally right. Manchildren are everywhere! They throw temper tantrums when someone tells them to grow up. I've found a 40 y/o on a comment section that watches MLP for comfort bruh .....

[@SheHulk-jg2jc]

​@@tankerthomas9749 Or these vultures milk tf out of the corpse to the point that the fandom because the image of a culture in the eyes of shallow minded basements-dwellers. Chronically online people be shivering rn when they discover that furries didn't create anthropomorphic animals lmao

[@aff77141]

WOW that is raw but accurate

[@aff77141]

​@@SheHulk-jg2jc chronically online people are the type that will call anybody a furry without even really knowing what a furry is

[@bugginonthewall]

though it’s not a creator project, Rupaul’s Drag Race has a terrifyingly powerful fanbase. the fights, the rumours, the stalking, harassing, abuse, racism, transphobia, online armies & leaks. the way drag fans will defend their favourite queen (trixie mattel for example) tooth and nail with spam harassing, fanfics and worshipping makes me truly realise the fandom crazies never left online

[@phantafrown]

i never knew that show had a fanbase, woah

[@bugginonthewall]

@@phantafrown yeah it has one of the biggest reddits ever, to the point queens deactivate mere monthly from fan harassment. i love the show but the fans are batshit insane

[@herpderp3916]

I'm not surprised that attracts such deranged people.

[@rinina]

Yeahh and also the fact that most of the popular queens (ie. Trixie and Katya, especially) have expressed they're uncomfortable with the way some fans treat them. People really do forget they are real people and not characters

[@B0NEM4RROW]

oh god yeah its awful. I absolutely love rpdr & many of the queens, but the fanbase is _awful_

[@hoshiworks_aster]

A small note on the SU artist you mentioned: Even after their s/icide attempt failed, once the internet found out they harassed the artist even more *because it failed.*

[@Fionapollo]

Yeah, i thought it might be best to leave that out bc I was so angry when it happened that i might have started ranting in the video

[@hoshiworks_aster]

@@Fionapollo Honestly I get that, that shit's infuriating.

[@Wheeinpaint]

What. The poor dude..

[@starwaves1631]

Not helping matters is the fact that the artist was a MINOR at the time.

[@daelen.cclark]

@@starwaves1631 The nerve of some so-called fans. That’s just wrong. I hope they’ve gone away.

[@justrenderin1279]

"Is there any way we can prevent this from happening in fandoms?" That's honestly something I've thought about for a long time. Despite being in Fandom for decades, I have no idea how to resolve this problem. You can't police everyone and when it comes to the truly reprehensible people, they won't listen. Self Police-ing would have it's own problem as people would abuse the self righteous authority. It's a tough thing to balance. We can't gatekeep something open to the public. All we can do is openly shame and avoid people who openly act like this. We're in a Fandom for a fun, it's a shame some people want to join to cause problems

[@Nakia11798]

Self-policing is policing oneself, which EVERYONE should do. Like if someone asks you to respect their boundaries, it is up to you to choose to respect those

[@ProfessorJake]

It is very stressful especially when Clown specifically stated no public nsfw art

[@spadonking]

You literally can't control what people draw , that's a dumb rule and you shouldn't publicly create a source if you don't want anything to be drawn of it 😂 suck it up

[@MollyMargolisBillCipherIsBae]

⁠This is actually a misconception. Clown never said “don’t draw NSFW”, they said “if you draw it, tag it properly”, as they don’t want to see it. Regardless, because of this misconception, there are many fans that are enjoying the act of “reminding people what clown said”, which usually involves a pile-up of comments bordering on harassment. There are also many people who are just not tagging their NSFW correctly or making fun of people for disliking NSFW. Or even both.

[@MollyMargolisBillCipherIsBae]

@@missfrubby7814 Yes, but the fact still stands that NSFW art is not banned by them. They simply wish for people to tag it properly. Most people are uncomfortable when they see NSFW without expecting to do so. Kind of like if you tried to play a sfw online game and it redirected to a porn site. It’s the same concept.

[@mozzapple]

"ARG" or "alternate reality game" doesn't refer to video games, though some ARGs have videogames associated with them. ARG just means it's an interactive horror media, which Welcome Home falls under. Other popular ARGs like Mandela Catalogue, SCP Foundation, The Backrooms, The Sun Vanished, Crow 64, Dad (youtube channel), I am Sophie, etc. are all pieces of media that don't originate from a video game. Most don't even have videogames associated with them. The reason they're called games is because games are puzzles, and all ARGs have puzzles one way or another. You need to think and dig deep to see everything

[@ashleyk.ballinger191]

My sibling and I have a theory about how fandom develops: it’s all about balance. Like you said, some fans want to indulge in wholesomeness and others are edgelords. Therefore, the more wholesome the base work is, the more edgy fan content you’re going to find. Likewise, the more edgy the work, the more wholesome the fan content. That’s why works such as Welcome Home or Undertale are so interesting; they have a mix of both edginess and wholesomeness in the base work, so the fan content gets a mix of both as well.

[@pinky_pepper]

it's really funny how fandom can create a whole new dimension to something out of nowhere. like my little pony is a little girl show about how friendship is magic. but fans can take a really small thing and make it gory or even horny (bronies cough cough)

[@xmancook529]

taking this theory in context it makes sense, compare happy tree friends at its peak during tumblr vs a certain animated gem show at its peak during tumblr. The polarity of the fandoms couldn’t have been more confusing

[@geneveandersson]

That's actually a really interesting theory!

[@mint_marigold1229]

Most people in the Welcome Home fandom are amazing and I've greatly enjoyed my time so far. But as I've learned throughout my life, the minority tends to speak the loudest, and there's a minority of people out there who have blatantly broken Clown's guidelines, making him so uncomfortable to the point where they had to step back and take a break from the public eye for the sake of his mental health. Clown seems like such an upbeat, joyful, and sweet person and I genuinely wish the best for them. PLEASE donate to their Ko-Fi if you can.

[@daelen.cclark]

How far do fandoms have to go before they ruin it for everyone? & how far does it have to go before the “guilty by association” reactionaries come in?

[@Man-wolf-]

That happened to me with megaman-that game franchize was a massive special interest of mine but i had to drop it entirly bcus of my ex friends and ex boyfriend who were in the fandom, i couldnt even say i liked the idea of zero being taller then x (i shipped those two toghter) or my friends would treat it as creepy cus for some reason they think being height differences in gay male couples is creepy even tho they have no issue with it when its with straight couples, they even went ahead and talked about me being biphobic behind my back because i ranted about zeroiris even tho my posts were about homophobes whom liked the pairing not bi people!! Its so diffcult for me to even look at media featuring megaman or itd trigger bad memorise of mine

@@Man-wolf- ‘‘for some reason they think being height differences in gay male couples is creepy even tho they have no issue with it when its with straight couples,’’ I am sorry, _what?_

[@JT5555]

*let me tell you about homestuck*

[@SheHulk-jg2jc]

I'm against fandoms for a reason. They always ruin it for everyone, to the point that liking something makes you target of blind harassment. No, I shouldn't be guilty of liking anthros, as I am not part of the fandom. But people like to think that fandoms are the absolute representative of every culture in existence, which is extremely ignorant. But because fandoms do exist, if someone is willing to join one of them, they need to take responsible precautions to avoid becoming a target, such as blocking trolls and etc, which makes life much more stressful. Moral of the story: the internet is not supposed to be someone's entire social world. Fandoms are not socially important _yet_ , so there is no need to get mad over stuff like "guilty by association", as it's's super easy to not be part of a fandom. Jeez

[@lena3659]

*looks at the Voltron fandom*

[@twoczents]

An example of fandom getting carried away? Miraculous Ladybug. I send my condolences to the poor girl was bullied for liking a character.

[@twoczents]

@@danjoredd The appeal is both the creative concept and the shipping. The show's writing after S2 is so bad, it makes Velma look like Arcane.

[@Ruby-lu3xb]

@@danjoredd I think it's BECAUSE the show is imperfect. If a show is too perfect, then it'll hardly have any fanfic because there's not a lot to work with. Miraculous Ladybug is so imperfect, but it has so much potential, that fans go crazy.

[@cheyblake2475]

@@Ruby-lu3xb what do you mean if a show is too perfect?

[@Ruby-lu3xb]

@@cheyblake2475 If the writing is really good, there's not as much of a sandbox to play around in. For example, Bojack Horseman is a show I really love, but I never feel the need to read fanfic because it's already pretty much perfect in my opinion. There's not as much of a sandbox to play around in. On the other hand, Miraculous Ladybug has so many issues that fans want to fix. I'm not fully caught up, but I watched the first three seasons of the show. I loved the concept, but I hated how the show used its characters. Fanfic writers strive to fix that about shows, and therefore there's more fanfic. That's my theory anyway.

[@omega9216]

@@Ruby-lu3xb kinda like the WebNovel "A Practical Guide to Evil" , it is so well writen the fanbase just has no idea how to write a generic fanfic The fandom is almost as big as Worm fandom yet has bearly any fanfiction There is no way to write a fix it fic when a protagonist is so fucking competent (without being a Mary Sue) that even thier mistakes make perfect sense and any fix it fic that deals with some of the losses would essencialy be breaking the rules of that universe

[@Akitsunesceilingfan]

The only exception to the “the more wholesome the media the more hellish the fanbase” is FNAF. That fandom was hellish regardless LOL.

[@haleyhersh3850]

Despite me in the FNaF fandom, I agree I just want to make drawings and my own story with the characters cuz the actual lore kinda sucks now

[@lordhellstrande2763]

I would never have considered myself part of the fandom per se, but I loved to sit back with friends irl and online to discuss our theories

[@da_purple_lizard]

The Nintendo community, too. From what I've seen, Nintendo enjoyers are pretty chill although most of the games (which are mainly the Mario series, obviously) are bright and lively.

[@SlapstickGenius23]

I’ve seen Dragon Ball fans selling their stuff at the Penrith collector con and they’re pretty chill. Unfortunately, the super hardcore DB minority speaks the loudest because it’s also got the biggest amount of attention.

[@sk_lxr2920]

I discovered WH through Night Mind's video and it honestly surprised me to hear that it wasn't really an ARG but just someone's passion project. I really love the fandom's level of enthusiasm because, just like you, it's been a while since I saw something like that happening. I just hope that doesn't bother the creator too much. Great insight on the topic!

[@BloodySkullx]

I honestly shouldn't have been surprised at how out of control things got but the blatant disregard for someones, Clown's, comfort is absolute absurd. He didn't even bar anyone FROM making NSFW. All he asked was that it wasn't posted or at least tagged properly. I tried to talk to someone who planned to draw and post said content in the main tags but refused to listen because 'they aren't hurting anyone i can do what i want.' which is honestly so selfish. I keep seeing the mindset of 'If they put it out there they have no say in what we do with it', which isn't how it works. Companies can quite literally strike you down. Clown has every right to file a DMCA against anyone. Just because it's online doesn't mean you can do whatever when there are clear guidelines. Welcome Home was a passion project that was very close to Clown as he's expressed, personally if it was me I'd probably take the whole thing down if people said something like that to my face. The fandom luckily is very fun and nice but it's those little groups who need to control themselves, they're always there in the fandom and takes things way too far. I don't get how anyone doesn't understand that acting like that isn't fun. I can't wait till the next update but the fandom needs to cool it off.

[@cheyblake2475]

What's DMCA?

[@schlrp]

​@@cheyblake2475 digital millenium copyright act. Basically internet copyright

[@JewelWildmoon]

Ohh I didn't know that part tbh. I thought he said not to do it at all since that's what people kept saying. Didn't know he said you can, but either tag properly or keep it private.

[@NahNo-xy2kq]

@@JewelWildmoon yeah, he said to just not post it because younger audiences may accidentally stumble upon it.

[@JewelWildmoon]

@@NahNo-xy2kq That's reasonable. The creator sounds like a chill person tbh 😆

[@RWAsur]

The two fandoms I can most think of guilty of insane toxicity is Genshin Impact and My Hero Academia. The GI drama breeches containment and spills outside of their fandom which keeps me away from ever consuming the media since they're turned me sour to it. MHA is not as bad but it's constantly at war and I'm so exhausted, it makes me wish I wasn't a fan at times. Edit: someone pointed out Pokemon and that is 100% valid if that is your only exposure to the Pokemon fandom lol. Pokemon is a "big" enough franchise and space to have secluded areas, but sadly you kind of have to work for them. It's valid criticism regardless

[@avian8923]

I play genshin and couldnt get into mha (i have watched some of it but couldnt see the hype). I do agree with you though from what ik of the genshin fandom. I refuse to interact with anyone from the fandom knowing how sadly toxic they are instead of just enjoying the game. I feel like people have forgotten this little saying "you get what you get and you dont get upset". I personally enjoy the game and enjoy the characters and so on. I like the story it interests me. I dont understand why people and fandoms have to be batshit insane though. Like dude its a work of FICTION its not real for one thing and two just enjoy it and stop complaing. Yall ruining everything for the few actually tryna enjoy said intrest. (Idk if this made sense and i had to use genshin as my example cause its one im most familiar with)

[@m4rshm3ll0wb0b4]

as a genshin fan i stopped interacting with the fandom and just play with irl friends and other close mutuals, best decision ever

[@mochalatte8362]

I hate that the anniversary controversy of Genshin Impact spilled into the Cookie Run fandom, now it's all chaos 😔

[@ma.2089]

@@bingusbongus8348 lmao I feel like the Pokémon fandom is way worse than MHA’s so there’s a good chance you’re wrong. Cuz if they were part of the fandom, they’d likely mention it lol

[@ChibiCrunchy]

To be completely fair, people hate on the BNHA fandom because they are homophobic and can't accept gay ships. Literally. There is no other reason. And the people complaining about how ''toxic'' the fandom is its usually (and ironically) the part that turns the fandom toxic because ''DEKU CANT BE GAY ARRRRGH'' and start doxxing and sending d3ath thr3ats to artists lmao. Also its usually called toxic because teenagers doing cringe things, but let's face it who wasn't cringe in high school? Because I know I sure as hell was cringe af when I was younger lmfao.

[@NoiseDay]

I have little experience with fandom so take my words with a grain of salt. A lot of people are claiming entire fandoms as toxic and crazy. I wonder... how many people, proportionally, are actually behaving irrationally in these fandoms? Don't get me wrong, I believe in the power of mob mentality. But who is starting these mobs, leading them, and encouraging the toxic behavior? It's disheartening to think that an artist can say "Don't behave like this" only to be ignored. Were those people ever really fans to begin with? It's hard to ignore the vocal minority on the internet, where silence is tantamount to approval. But realistically, I wonder how many people are enjoying Welcome Home respectfully and just choose not to engage in the toxic behavior. This would make the behavior seem a lot more pervasive. Doxxing, of course, is it's own separate and much more severe issue. We need more psychological dives into why people behave this way and what we (as average internet citizens) can do about it.

[@lilwoofs]

I am more into fandoms and I completely agree and thought about what you’ve said, there’s been times when I’ve been in fandoms and then left and then heard people talk about all the toxic things that fandom did in the past when I was in it, and I’ll think back and realize that I didn’t see any of that, not that it didn’t happen of course it did, but like, sense the fandom is so big I was just stuck in the parts where there was no conflict, and that’s only looking at people who create stuff for the things like fanart or fics or animations or whatever else, I’m sure there’s a lot of other people who don’t post anything about it who are just respecting everything as fans. I think the reason fandoms are so quick to get labeled as toxic is because a lot of the time when you are out of the fandom you’re more likely to hear something bad the fandom did rather then good, and the bigger the fandom the bigger the bad. Something like ‘the creator said not to do this and people are doing this’ is much more likely to get said to spread awareness to people who even might not know the fandom then something like ‘someone drew something respectful and neat’ because then people won’t really care because they aren’t in that fandom. I could be wrong, that’s just my own thoughts on it, sorry if it’s long, it’s just something I’ve thought about for a while as well and i thought maybe it’d be interesting to share!

[@Man-wolf-]

Idk about the really extreme cases like doxxing but in my expirence-people love to act like their superior for having more friends in the fandom, being in the fandom longer, being popular in it , etc, they act like their the spokesperson I expirenced this with mainly megaman and the doll community(only honestly with megaman it was worse since it involved having my own friends treat me like a dog and dictate what i can and cant like/think about the franchize) i begin collecting dolls recently and its so weird to me how so many people in it are just massive jerks for no reason-espically monster high even the influencers act like they can do whatever they want cause their influencers and get free things from the companies, i had two really popular influencers just straight out lash at me and be rude for no reason just cause i said something minor they didnt like-they acted like five year olds My better expirences honestly tend to be with the more horror themed fandoms ironically-i dont feel like im walking on eggshells if i try to talk to a creepypasta or analog horror fan in the comments lol

[@Wwhdduendjdhhfmwosdn]

I’m in a few fandoms, and I couldn’t agree more. I’ve even been in dreaded fandoms like my hero academia or genshin impact, and 90% of the people I met because we were both in that fandom were lovely. Our brains do tend to remember negative more, so it makes sense that most people would associate a fandom with negative as apposed to positive experiences

[@TheDoomBlueShell]

Most fandoms only 1% of people cause problems on purpose so if a fandom is made of 100 people and 1 causes problems they can easily be ignored but when a fandom is like 10.000 people and you have 100 people causing trouble things can get nasty really fast, now imagine a fandom with one million people so these fandoms have 1000 people causing problems, this is why any big fandom tends to be toxic even when 99% is just chill.

[@lilwoofs]

@@TheDoomBlueShell honestly I couldn’t say it better that that!

[@Drawceress]

I feel bad for the creators as well as the people who enjoy fandoms casually. But whenever I hear about fandoms like these, it makes me happy to be part of a more niche community. MegaMan battle network has gotten a little spike in popularity due to the release of the legacy collection, but not enough to make it explode. Being in the battle network community has helped me improve my art skills massively and helped me understand some basic animation. For most of my life I've felt pretty unhappy, and I may still have a lot to work on, but I now feel like I actually have a purpose, and accept myself far more than I used to. Sorry that this became a bit of an oversharing tangent, but I feel like it's a good example of how fandoms can be a great thing. So seeing things like this happen is a shame, especially since it will definitely scare some people off from it entirely

[@Man-wolf-]

Honestly even niche fandoms can be traumtizing, i was in the mmx fandom and the people there had no respect towerds others , i had my friends talk about me behind my back spreading rumors about me for the stupidest reasons i couldnt even share headcanons of mine if they werent the popular ones , it made me avoid the franchize entirely now

[@CassiusStelar]

A shocking number of mega man fans ship classic Rock and Roll. I fucking love MegaMan, but I fucking hate the fandom because we're so fucking quiet so we don't know who the weirdos are.

[@Cyber-Hexagon]

@@CassiusStelar That’s unfortunately the good and bad of a small quiet fandom. You don’t know who the hell is the *creep* among us.

[@Man-wolf-]

@@CassiusStelar alot of things tend to get swiped away in small fandoms like megaman i noticed-you can have someone be so blatently homophobic yet everyone stays quiet and keep supporting them regardless

[@jacksonbarkerthebluehairedfox]

Space Engineers / Starbound fandoms anyone?

[@spaghettiwarrior1573]

I've studied numerous different fandoms, and it seems like the safest, most positive communities are those surrounding dead creations. By that, I mean communities around shows that have been canceled, games with no sequel in sight, sites that have be retired. There are many positive communities: Earthbound and Mother 3 are great examples for video games, ATLA for shows, and since it's recent conclusion as of late, the WOF community in terms of books. The excitement has died down around them, and this has helped foster stronger, safer fandoms. As for Welcome Home, it will become a healthy fandom once it comes to a conclusion.

[@thestrangecutie4590]

As someone who is in the Rayman fandom I can confirm that your studies are most likely right. Ubisoft refuses to do so much with the Rayman ip and the community is positive by coming together to make fan made projects and letting our voices be heard for Rayman to be back in the mainstream. Overall we're all pretty chill and there is rarely any drama in the Rayman community.

[@Its_Brigid_at_it_again]

As a Thunderbirds enjoyer, I agree. My fandom interaction is hunting down old model kits at this point. Its so niche that it's not crazy

[@Elystelle_]

Ahh, the MOTHER fandom. A very short and sweet hyperfixation I had during the pandemic that would eventually get me into OMORI. It was indeed, very wholesome, and I wish other fandoms would follow their footsteps

[@Elystelle_]

@@bilbobaggins352 Precure!! I used to be very big into it during the Hugtto days and it has kept a special place in my heart for essentially being my gateway drug to anime (aside from Pokémon, but that's another story). Sadly I grew out of it a year later, but after the pandemic I've been checking on the fandom time and time again for a quick retreat and have regained interest after Hirogaru Sky came out. I dunno, its premise was enough to hook me back in (Sorry for the sudden ramble, I just get excited when someone mentions my past interests ;--;)

[@spaghettiwarrior1573]

@@bilbobaggins352 You make a really interesting point. Maybe a fandoms toxicity partly stems from its size, along with its age. I don't know of any communities that are both small and toxic. But I know of plenty of large fandoms that are cesspools of hatred.

[@SpoiIedMilk]

Honestly, you can see why it got carried away in the first place. I mean, with Welcome Home it's horror based yet fun and colourful. Which can quickly spark hearts in an instant. Not to mention the characters are LGBTQ+, which everyone loves to see. But the main thing is that Welcome Home made you so comfortable. Everyone had a voice and nobody was fighting each other. Clown was talking to fans and headcanons were made which he didn't mind. I think Welcome Home was so loved because Clown was so relatable and so are his characters. It's just comforting to see a soft spot on the internet where everyone just gets along because some puppet guy is staring at the screen.

[@Mediados]

I have to say, I don't think it's a problem in 80% of cases, but sometimes shipping can get so, so much worse. Worse even if the creators start to listen.

[@LocalLazyStove]

For me, it reminds me of Undertale and the unholy amounts of shipping drama that was going, even to the point that there was an incident where someone attempted to almost murder a fanartist that drew a certain ship (I don’t remember which was it) by giving them cookies that had needles inside them- this happened over a ship-

[@Man-wolf-]

I remeber how my ex friends in the mmx fandom once spoke about me behind my back and talked about how im biphobic for making posts ranting about zeroiris shippers because alot of lgbt people like that pairing Those said rants i made specificly stated i was talking about homophobic cishet fans only not lgbt people Both zero and iris arent even bi-their straight, them being bi is just a popular headcanon, they litrealy assumed i must hate bi people because i didnt like a generic straight pairing as if every bi person is in a male/female relationship 😂

[@comyuse9103]

@@LocalLazyStove no no no, that was just the higurashi fandom leaking of course

[@veggsbacon1891]

RWBY is a recent and notorious example.

[@manymantids]

​​@@LocalLazyStove iirc it was a pedophilic ship. (frans) so i dont feel very bad for them.

[@blingusboi1847]

I LOVED welcome home, the colors, the passion, and how I love horror and was super hyped for it but as sad as it is... I saw it coming once I saw the characters and how FAST it blew up in popularity I don't get into Fandom because of this and I know I shouldn't blame anything but alot of the "stuff" is genuinely repulsive to me so it makes it hard to get into Fandoms I usually just enjoy the content but sometimes it's unavoidable so I just end up avoiding anything to do with it But I really hope the creator is able to really show their vision and everyone has a fun time! :)

[@munamunna3917]

16:30 the person has said MULTIPLE times to stop using their suicide attempt as a 'gotcha' to toxic fandoms, it was not because of the fanart. The harrasment made them feel worse during the time, but it was something in their personal life that caused them to break. Edit: just to be clear, the people who harrased them still suck ass and it was wrong obviously. But you get what I mean

[@rbfloat]

I remember when they made a video, asking specifically for people to stop using her as some 'gotcha.' They couldn't even respect her wishes

[@xxfree-forevloverxx9325]

the fans were happy that she attempted though and harrassed her even more

[@Nakia11798]

Most people don't know that, so you can't really blame them for continuing to use it.

[@Theoneandonly._.]

What 'gotcha' you mean about?

[@coelhati2365]

omg the fandom's "experimentation" period is SO REAL, I remember being in the undertale fandom since the start and oh boy the fans experimented A LOT with the lore, to the point some of the "alternative universes" they created didn't even had anything to do with the game anymore, poor sans was almost always out of character LMAO. And then some time passed, the game turned a bit old and now the fandom is a lot more chill (loved the video btw!!)

[@howtodrinkwaterin5simplesteps]

Yeah it got like 2% more chill😭

[@pinky_pepper]

this is more true for the brony fandom than anything else. they were sexualizing HORSES 😭. bronies were literally characterizing princess celestia as slutty dommy mommy and calling her MOLESTIA (???) when in the show she's like "Hello Twilight Sparkle, my favored student! What did you learn about friendship today?". this is a kids show... and let's not forget the onceler fandom. it's not even called the "lorax fandom" they just made a whole fandom surrounding a singular sexyman lol

[@BrightWulph]

Ugh yeah, I stopped trying ot keep up with all the UT AU's because so many of them were so far beyond the original game that they might as well have been separate properties.

[@JebSvS]

I knew this would happen with Welcome Home, it's really unfortunate that this happened before the series was able to start adding more horror elements. I'm glad Clown is doing fine, but watching a bunch of people tear the goddamn thing apart so early in its debut was really upsetting.

[@cuteiswa3140]

the undertale fandom taught me as a young kid participating in like (like, freshman year or so) that no matter how much time i spent creating, nobody gave a single damn about the time i spent writing and drawing. i'm appreciative for the attention my fanfiction and fan-art retrieves in the welcome home fandom, but i'm also pretty fucking cautious since tiktok has rapidly accelerated its deterioration... n i'm speaking as an original creator, too... the infighting and policing i've seen in the wh fandom is SCARY & it's making me want to run turn-tail back to my smaller fandoms... fuck, i've even seen grown ADULTS encourage a thirteen year old kid to browse r34 and "fix" welcome home nsfw on tiktok... and nobody's pointing out how awful that is in the comments section. just adults and other minors (who shouldn't be SEEING such content in the first place) encouraging this kid to do /that./ what i wanted was a calm horror-focused fandom in an unfiction story that i can thoroughly enjoy maturely and have discussions about the very thing i love without any of the madness. :{ not saying i can't! but, the stuff attached to the fandom already is making it hard when i get flashbacks to ut fandom haha...

[@falconeshield]

Ewww

[@Cyber-Hexagon]

BRUUUUUUUUH. That’s gross.

[@cuteiswa3140]

@@Cyber-Hexagon VERY gross, i can't fucking believe some folks have the gall to do that.

[@phantafrown]

tiktok is such a hellscape for fanbases 😭 i've never seen so much hostility and toxicity on one app

[@cuteiswa3140]

@@phantafrown FRRRRR it makes me angry that tiktok users enable each others toxicity and hostility so much, its insane

[@Elystelle_]

This reminds me of a fandom that I've been in for almost two years (which you can probably guess based on the kind of content I make): the Cookie Run fandom. I vividly remember getting into the game at the height of its popularity (around late 2021) after my brother convinced me to play it thanks to its quote-unquote "beginner's luck", and was shocked when I checked out the fandom for the first time through a few fan art and memes on Pinterest. Looking back, I expected the Cookie Run community to be as wholesome as chill as the last fandom I was in (OMORI) due to its nature as a a cute and niche mobile game about cookies, but was awe-struck by the amount of crap going down between its fans almost every darn day. Artists getting harassed for drawing a character's skin slightly different, people getting overly defensive or rabid on certain characters to the point of mischaracterizing them, constant arguments about a cookie's pronouns that could've been resolved in a flash, and lots, and LOTS of shipping wars. It was here that I was reminded of how feisty fandoms can be, especially when they skyrocket in popularity and are centered around wholesome content. Cookie Run, just like many other communities, is a poster girl for what happens when a fandom gets *too* carried away. Like, there's nothing inherently wrong with thirsting over some sentient pieces of dough (in fact, I've been guilty of this myself, unfortunately...) as long as it doesn't involve crossing moral boundaries, but the problem comes when fans begin to indulge in their comfort zones a little too much, to the point where they do things they shouldnt be doing (*cough* *cough* that one person on TikTok who openly admitted to fawning over a character who's canonically under legal age *cough* *cough*) and give the community they're in a horrible reputation. This brings me back to the traumatising things I saw when I was an MLP fan in elementary school, and I do not want anyone to repeat what happened back then to today's generation of kids. And I DEFINITELY, do not want to here another incident involving the creators of a certain media getting harassed over things they cannot control, like ships and headcanons. It's horrible, I cannot explain it.

[@mochalatte8362]

The worst part is that it isn't even the game's fault, people only came for the gacha system 💀💀💀

[@Elystelle_]

@@mochalatte8362 And the fact that they were only playing it out of spite thanks to Genshin's 1st anniversary update. It's sad really, seeing how horrid this fandom has become ever since that fad, but as a friend of mine once said: "it comes and it goes".

[@TindraSan]

I will say, I find it kinda funny that you thought a simple gatcha runner phone game would have a similar fandom to a story-heavy RPG about mental health and trauma, just bc both look cute. I find that media with darker and grittier elements (not just spooky FnAF stuff but like, the real dark shit) tend to have kinder and more chill fandoms, going the complete opposite way of how fandoms of more wholesome shows tend to get. My current theory as to why this is is that most ppl who are fans of darker and grittier media are more adjusted to, and sometimes even attracted to, the feeling of discomfort. So they don't absolutely lose their shit the moment something makes them uncomfortable, and the definitely don't view their own sense of comfort as an objective morality radar.

[@Elystelle_]

@@TindraSan That, and the fact that they tend to be older and more mature, thus making them more experienced with topics others may find complicated.

[@tropicaldisaster8135]

@@Elystelle_ LMAO those people still play genshin and complain about every single event too

[@mk-aka-morgan8386]

I had seen a lot of welcome home fanart and assumed it was a video game, so when I found out it was a website I was super surprised. I’ve never seen a fandom pop up from a website before, but Welcome Home is really cool so far so I understand why people have gotten really interested in it.

[@NostalgiaUnicorn]

All online fandoms are toxic. Yes, all of them. I pulled back from all fandoms and refused to get heavily involved with them again over ten years ago and have never been happier. I wasted a lot of time thinking they were great and I must just be finding the bad eggs but no, that's what fandom is. Being doxxed, harassed, and stalked online over refusing to play a popular ship or not agreeing with a popular ship/headcanon is what online fandom is. People claiming they're soulbonded to characters and actually are them is what online fandom is. People using the original creation as a weapon to hurt people is exactly what online fandom is. People not giving a crap what the original creator wants is online fandom. Clown doesn't deserve this. In fact, no one does. I love Welcome Home but I've stayed as far away from the fandom as I can. The moment Clown had to announce to not sell merch of his characters, I knew it was starting to go into the spiral.

[@sunsetboulevard356]

Honestly I came to the same conclusion too a while back, and it made me realize that fandoms are inherently unhealthy social circles. Even if all the unpleasantness that circulates in fandoms is the result of a toxic minority, that doesn't change the fact that said minority is the one defining and polluting the community - thus the fandom is still an unhealthy place to be regardless. If there is any piece of advice I have for people who are currently involved in fandom culture, it's to disengage and seperate your favorite artists and pieces of media from the fandoms that surround them. Don't let these communities ruin the things you love. Don't base your identity around blind loyalty to others who happen to share an interest. Don't waste your time or energy on fandom drama. Learn to live without fandoms, and instead focus on forming real friendships with people you feel safe and happy around and share your interests with them. Focus kn the original art and it's creator. You'll be much happier in the long run.

[@JuicedCorn]

The fact there’s people out here making NSFW art of other’s OCs against the creator’s wishes really rubs me the wrong way. As someone who also draws NSFW, we should wait or keep it private, I genuinely feel terrible for Clown and I hope he’s doing okay!

[@Quinhala11]

"Sex bad"

[@giantpinkcat]

​@@Quinhala11 Oh Boohoo a creator doesn't like thing that's considered taboo

[@Quinhala11]

@@giantpinkcat I can't tell if you're agreeing with me or not

[@mjangelvortex]

​@@Quinhala11 Did you even bother to read the full comment? OP makes NSFW art.

[@shadowknight1990o]

From what I understand, it isn't even that. He's fine with NSFW if tagged properly.

[@Man-wolf-]

Honestly you pointing out how the more wholesome a media is the more hellish the fandom is perfecyly describes my own expirences with fandoms lol even with all the drama going around with creepypastas and even anlog horror my interactions with both fandom was pretty great so far-i even bonded w my boyfriend due to how much we both loved ARGS and anlog horror Yet meanwhile with monster high i cant even say one negative thing about its reboot or i will have a bunch of its stans snapping at me-i even had one monster high influencer call me “toxic” for calling out the racism in the reboot and had antoer influencer snap at me and be rude for no reason just cause i politely corrected them on something Like its so weird how the more messed up a media is the less bad the fandom interaction is

[@LocalLazyStove]

It’s kinda funny to me that fandoms that are usually like have a wholesome vibe are usually the ones that end up being very toxic, while the ones that have more of a, not so wholesome vibe are for some reason the most chill. I’m a huge fan of horror and been and still am part of various fandoms that are horror related, like Analog Horror (The Mandela Catalogue, Vita Carnis, Walten Files, The Smiles Tapes, etc.) and, psychological horror (Omori) and occasionally come back to the Creepypasta fandom how to see how it’s been, in those fandoms people are usually more chill. However fandoms like My Little Pony, Warrior Cats, My Hero Academia, Undertale and few other fandoms I been or still in, the people in those are… let’s just say be careful what you say or prepare to get into a argument with someone. This isn’t for every single fandom, like for example FNAF, oh boy- I’m scare of it. All fandoms have a toxic side, but some are more apparent then others.

[@Lucien_M]

I assume it's because fans of more wholesome entertainment want to keep it "wholesome", to the point of toxic positivity

[@itsflappletime]

I personally think that the problem lies with these shows being for kids, and kids being edgy. Anti-SJW 12 year olds are a dime a dozen

[@Man-wolf-]

@@LocalLazyStove for real tho 😭 my favorite creepypasta is mouse.avi , its a big special interest of mine and so far interscting with its fans was fine-you can just talk about your interuption of its story and what not snd its all fine Meanwhile with monster high i had a white cishet influencer go all “so you think hair length is more important then represention??” Just cause i said its weird and hypercritical how the new monster dolls would give every female character with short hair long hair instead even tho mattel said represention is an important part of their brand-like im litrealy a poc and lgbt myself while they arent 😭 Honestly the only chill fnaf fan i ever met was my boyfriend lol i avoid that fandom like the plague

[@theavootar]

anyone who think that mh would probably be drama free are morons, stop listening to morons, you know mh can suck anyone can understand why 0:02

[@ComradeCloddd]

I've been in so many fandoms that have had some type of big boom that lead to the entire fan base getting a negative wrap for a long period of time and it's honestly sad that even new fandoms now haven't yet learned that this repeat of the same behaviors isn't a good thing. I wasn't around for the huge boom of Hetalia, undertake, my little pony, or eddsworld but I sadly was around for fans, country humans and despite people (including myself I hate country humans.) view the fandoms behaviors as horrible... they all partake in that exact same behavior, and it's honestly horrifying sitting around while it happens around you

[@Elystelle_]

It's worse now that social media sites like Tiktok are more accessible than ever, and more and more young and unsuspecting children are logging in every day and exposing themselves to these toxic behaviors. It's wildly upsetting to look back on most of the fates these communities go through, especially those that have existed for as long as one can remember and lost all of their reputation thanks to a few bad apples online.

[@WilKelly_]

The Mcyt community had a similar problem with NSFW art, which grosses me out so much cuz they drew stuff with real people who were minors

[@baimhakani]

1. There's a fanbase for mushrooms? 2. People are drawing real people fucking _mushrooms?_

[@WilKelly_]

@@baimhakani Mcyt is Minecraft KZbinrs, I have no clue what you’re talking abt lol

[@baimhakani]

@@WilKelly_ Yeah, myco It's a greek word for mushrooms Why are Minecraft youtubers fucking mushrooms

[@writercat_deadsquidstudios]

They probably assume you meant something along the terms of Mycology, which is the study of mushrooms.

[@pinky_pepper]

@@WilKelly_ i would join the shroom fandom lmao

[@skyrimlover777]

When it comes to recent bad fandoms, while I did miss out on this thankfully I can say for sure I am a part of the FNF fandom where I feel the creator also feels some sort of fear of what they have created. The development of fnf has been held tighter than cia secrets for good reason.

[@guyferrari8124]

To be fair the fnf fandom is mostly pedophiles

[@daelen.cclark]

I can imagine it has, and I never got into it that much.

[@manifestationsofasort]

"Do you know of any fandoms who are known for getting carried away?" Me, a veteran Tumblr user: *Takes a deep breath*

[@falconeshield]

Voltron?

[@ichigomochi]

Fandom getting carried away is the main reason I stopped interacting and just keep to myself. People get WAY too over protective and sucked into what they're a fandom of they don't realize how toxic they've become.

[@lordhellstrande2763]

I love what I love and am very open minded that what I love is not for everyone like Shadow of the Colossus...but fans have pushed me away from both stuff I like and could've been interested in (RWBY and JJBA respectively)

[@Tenshi_Eirian]

Same most of the time I just keep back and watch

[@AlexDayz]

The older I’ve grown the more I’ve learn that something you just have to let things go. Sure you may not agree with how someone is depicting a certain character you like but you have to remember that everyone consumed the fandom in different and unique ways. Some will make fanart, some will make animations, heck some might even learn robotics (probably some of the coolest stuff to come from the FNaF fandom). As long as they’re not hurting anyone or the creator then they should just be allowed to enjoy what they enjoy

[@TheKarishi]

The MLP:FIM fandom was wild, and put the creators in a strange position where by the numbers it seemed like, for financial and even outreach reasons, the show needed to be written for an older audience. Because it had an older audience. But at the same time, whether a bunch of thirtysomething men had laid claim to it or not, it was perfectly within the showrunners' rights to declare it was a kids' show made for kids and if those men wanted to enjoy it that was great But They Didn't Own It. There were a few times when jokes were put in as a wink-and-nod to the older fans, and frankly they're the least interesting things in the whole show in my opinion. The attraction was to the purity, earnestness, and genuine kindness, and all the best parts of the show adhered to those principles. And maybe I'm a curmudgeon but I could have gone my whole life without ever seeing an anthropomorphic pony-girl body pillow.

[@Eepop_stuffs]

The rainbow dash jar was the most repulsive thing I've seen in my life

[@uncannyvalentine]

[disclaimer: i havent finished watching this video yet] the worst part about this whole thing to me is that welcome home literally consists of some random dude's ocs. like you can say that about anything i guess but most media has a team behind it at least. afaik clown has been working on this project completely or nearly alone. i cannot even FATHOM the way i'd feel if my oc content suddenly skyrocketed in popularity, then people started drawing weird art of my characters... i think i would literally make a statement gainst it and just... delete my entire account. that sounds like a personal nightmare of mine. i hope people can learn to respect his boundaries.

[@9yxie]

As another Frank enjoyer, It was nice to see someone address how crazy things have gotten with this fandom!

[@aviastic]

I really wanna watch this vid, but unfortunately the website for welcome home has been down so I haven't read/experienced it yet. I do however feel for the creator and hope they take however long they need to get it back up and running

[@Fionapollo]

Oh don't worry, i give a basic rundown of the premise but do my best not to spoil anything! This is moreso talking about fandom rowdiness with Welcome Home as the most recent expample ^^

[@aviastic]

@@Fionapollo Ahhh okey I didn't wanna risk it, but now I have something to watch while crocheting! Btw I have been binging your videos lately and have been loving every video so far

[@mozzyspurt]

if it helps the website will be back up! it just has to be fixed because of the recent rampant traffic on the site

[@Fionapollo]

​@aviastic AAAAA that's so sweet to hear!! Thank you, I'm glad you like them 💖

[@Kittyboi.]

I love welcome home and a lot of the characters have become comfort characters of mine, especially Wally, I love the silly little puppet man so much. It made me really sad when people ignored or disrespected Clowns boundries, I absolutly loved seeing how much love and heart he put into the project and I’m glad he´s taking a break cause he deserves it.

[@turkeybeard2010]

Like you said it's the creators decision what they want to do or don't do with their creation, but it's a lot of fun to see if your fan theories are right or not as long as it's all in good fun.

[@grecia3146]

I like being part of fandoms but people need to realize it's supposed to be fun and not take everything seriusly (of course there are things you need to look out for) and you shouldn't getting in fights over characters, ships, headcanons, or harass others it's just not okay.

[@cyberprime9355]

"Welcome Home" is a case study for what happens when a fandom suddenly gets thrown onto your lap and their expectations, which they are supposed to keep in check, are willingly set sky high. Fandoms are perhaps on the best way to talk about something that is considered a shared interest....until the toxin becomes becomes a drop of ink and pollute the beaker of water. The size is of the toxicity is usually proportional the size of a fandom. Usually, but not always. From my understanding, for every 500 people that join a community, at least 150-250 are gonna be bad apples. If a fandom is lucky, it would be around 20-30 or even 50

[@KaitheYoutuber-]

Me, part of the WH fandom, "Theres going to be a few bad apples. No pun intended."

[@TerLoki]

Oy vey, fans can be like rabid wild animals at times. Of course, while the internet has definitely exacerbated this by making things more accessible, none of these are by ANY MEANS new phenomena. I'm a big Star Trek fan, and I know what nitpicky nerds we can be, so I'd like to share two stories from the franchise that showcase the power and mindset of fandom have always existed. Firstly, the canon of Star Trek actually contains a paradox concerning the name of the iconic USS Enterprise. At some point, I want to say during the series Enterprise, it was revealed that the Federation starship Enterprise was named after the US space shuttle orbiter OV-101, aka: The Enterprise. The thing is, that was not its intended name. Way back when NASA was working on their next big project after the Apollo program they announced the brand new, state of the art, reusable* space shuttle. It was going to revolutionize space travel and make space much more accessible. And Star Trek fans LOVED this. Being big space nerds the fans of the original Star Trek series started a letter writing campaign to congress and actually convinced them that the name of the prototype shuttle OV-101 should be Enterprise instead of Constitution. So according to Star Trek lore, the USS Enterprise is named for itself. :P Another one that was actually the first that popped into my head concerns NSFW fan work. There's a story that one time at an event or convention a fan ran into Star Trek's creator Gene Roddenberry and asked him to read their fan fiction. To Gene's credit, he did, and it was a story about Kirk and Spock *ahem* "getting down to business" so to speak. Well Gene said that he liked it! Fortunately for this fan Gene Roddenberry was always an incredibly sex positive person (much to the studio's and his editors' chagrin) and was also a big proponent of LGBT causes (remember, this happened in like the 70s). There was, however, one thing that he absolutely hated about the story, and it's the most hilarious thing possible. Because said fan had described the whole "encounter" in extensive detail, including Kirk and Spock getting undressed, and including something about how their clothes were fastened. Well Gene had an absolute HATRED of buttons and zippers or any mention of them on clothes in Star Trek, to the point that the ridiculous uniforms of Star Trek The Motion Picture were his idea and were SO awkward to get in and out of that the cast needed assistance to use the bathroom and they were only ever used in that one movie. It's just endlessly funny to me that this man hated something as simple as the concept of ZIPPERS so much because they weren't sci-fi enough, yet was enthusiastically on board with Kirk and Spock banging all the way back in the 60s at the same time.

[@quaiids]

i aspire to be as bold as the person showing their nsfw spirk fanfic to roddenberry

[@kikothedragoncat]

I absolutely love welcome home. Everywhere you look you can really see the passion Clown puts into their work. I’m so so glad I’ve not actually seen any of this rotten crap myself and that I’ve managed to stay on the nice side of the fandom. It’s actually quite sad that people feel the need to make this kind of stuff, especially of someone’s literal OCs (not even a company’s throwaway money grab) after he’s stated multiple times not to. I hope we don’t lose such an amazing project due to people’s weird sense of entitlement and selfishness. It literally takes no effort to not do something. I hope Clown is okay and that he doesn’t lose his love for his own characters because of this..

[@nyannyan8402]

That’s what I’m saying I haven’t seen anything weird at all maybe I am on chill side of the fandom

[@Theoneandonly._.]

Someone's OCs? What OCs do you mean?

[@beebs4283]

This isn’t the first or last time we’ll see this, I’m sure. The unfortunate truth is that once a fandom reaches a critical threshold of people, it becomes impossible for the community to properly moderate itself. I’m really sad that’s the truth, and that it’s affected Clown so much, but I’m glad they seem to be doing a bit better now. Hopefully all that popularity at least translates to enough monetary support for Clown to get themselves into a better home situation.

[@giant_internet_nerd]

Sometimes I forget that we're still in the prologue because the fandom is acting like we know so much more about it than we actually do. I've been following Clown since 2018 and it seems crazy how big the fandom has gotten in a few weeks.

[@LathropLdST]

Living in the fringes of fandom and never interacting with other fans... has truly saved my life.

[@derpkipper]

4:00 I think ppl generally tend to get unfiction mixed up with ARGs honestly 🤔

[@MidnightCapricorn2696]

That, and a lot of ARGs start with something like video recordings or mock games (think Catastrophe Crow, for an example, pretty sure that was an ARG)

[@Man-wolf-]

@@MidnightCapricorn2696 i know there is muse arg by alex bale which actually started with him making spongebob theories-i still find that halliruise

[@Man-wolf-]

I still love how clown still proceded to make a post on his tumblr saying “arg stands for ahh really good!!”

[@wubbypeep]

it makes me sad that people are leaving because of the toxic part of the fandom and not of the good and caring one, i feel so bad for clown.

[@LunNightMoonLight]

I don’t like the fans who go rabid thirsty for the characters and become possessive over them, I feel like the fans really just took clowns characters away from them and are running wild, but it’s into just a internet fandom thing sports fandoms are wild too, and the whole it’s an arg thing came from when night mind (a popular horror channel) covered the website.

[@antyss]

that's why when I first saw Welcome Home, I thought it better not get any more popular than it was at time. It just started gaining fans (middle of April, maybe?) and It felt really nice to be in small community that's appreciating the artwork, which is made with love, time and passion i've been in fandoms, that grew VERY FAST (like dream smp, for example), and getting too much attention ruined them. there were weird and creepy people coming, drama (not fun drama when CCs are participating in it and having fun also, but with doxxing, leaks of personal info, harassment and lots of bad stuff) and I'm very terrified that Welcome home will become so popular it will stop being a cozy safe space for all folks who are here to be inspired and creative and enjoy silly little puppets

[@baronreeves9232]

I hope Welcome Home persevere through the awful part of the fandom:( and those kind of people learn how to not be overstepping the creator's boundaries.

[@peonyflowerking]

God damn it, I just wanted a save haven from the chaotics fandoms I have been. But it doesn't matter there will always be rotten apples ruining amazing creative works. This won't make me leave the fandom I am enjoying the story so far and I'm waiting for more stories and artworks to come.

[@alchemistofsteel8099]

Why can't people just be like "that's nice" and then move on. That's what I do. Welcome home just doesn't make sense to hyperfixate on, especially because there's so little of it

[@JDReC100]

@@alchemistofsteel8099 and thats part of the problem. theres a foundation, and others use that foundation for themselves to project and buildoff of.

[@jack_stone]

​@@alchemistofsteel8099 That's exactly why it's so easy to hyperfixate on. The lack of definite and absolute canon so far causes a cycle. There's so much it can and there's just enough content to go off of. It makes us curious, think about it, share interpretations or out there idea which fuels more.

[@Elystelle_]

@@danjoredd As someone who had a really short hyperfixation on the MOTHER/Earthbound series back in 2020, and has branched out my interest into OMORI a year later, I can confirm this is true

[@MuffytheSlime]

In the Mha fandom. The shit I’ve seen and heard about is absolutely heinous. Mha is a prime example of what happens when a fandom gets too big. And the treatment towards the creator is actually disgusting sometimes-

[@ma.2089]

It sucks cuz we know the creator actually pays attention to the fandom. He changed the story in the worst way due to reader polls.

[@exaltedfalcheon1793]

​@@ma.2089 What happened?

[@anubis7457]

@@exaltedfalcheon1793 I’m presuming they’re referring to a rumor that the author made a character gay in response to fan pressure. This is of course not true, as why the hell would a JAPANESE AUTHOR IN JAPAN give two shits about what an AMERICAN audience wants, when the American audience is not the primary audience.

[@cheyblake2475]

@@anubis7457 if they want to make a character gay, the creator can do it because they want to, you don't always have to do thing just to appeal the audience

[@exaltedfalcheon1793]

@@cheyblake2475 That's why Manga surpassed Comics

[@GAL-CAKE]

I'm absolutely happy that a horror project like Welcome Home is getting so much attention that it rightfully deserves! People forget that this is Clown's passion project, his baby! And gave the most magnificent effort to make this project something special! If you are someone who disrespects the creator of something you claim you like, YOU ARE NOT A FAN and that is truly disgusting behavior. Remember these are children show puppets, remember that they are comfort characters, and remember Clown's boundaries.

[@CelticBotansDigitalArt]

Seeing in the coments people discussing the worst fandoms, and its sad to say that all fandoms are like that; I'm an "elder" for Internet standards (I'm 30+) and I've been in all sorts of fandoms - tv shows (Rizzoli&Isles), books (HP - which went sour in more ways than one as you all know, yikes), games (Genshin Impact), bands (metal bands, specially female fronted ones). I've seen it all, the level of petiness and disrespect between other fans, and towards the creators is tiring AF, and the reason why I dont get directly involved with fandoms anymore besides sharing fanarts or commenting on videos sometimes. It's always been like this, maybe only got worse; back in Orkut days (yeah, like I said, elder. Also very Brazilian here), there was literally two separate big communities dedicated to the band Nightwish, the "Black" and the "White" communities (I'm not joking, that's what they were called), cause it was pretty much one community that got split into two by fandom drama and petty shit. That was literally in like, 2007 lol. I've met great people interacting in fandoms back then, but now I just stay in my alley, drawing the things I like and RT/RB'ing them from other people and that's that, it's just not worth getting this involved. :/

[@snowthewolf4536]

It's important to remember that in any community or fandom, there will always be people whose opinions and behavior we may not agree with. It's up to us to decide how we engage and interact with these communities. If you feel like the fandom is becoming too toxic for your comfort, it's perfectly fine to step away and explore other interests or communities. At the end of the day, your well-being and happiness should always be a top priority.

[@funkyfunkers_]

honestly i really enjoy welcome home. i’ve been obsessed with it ever since i searched the website and stuff. then it started invading my fyp, which honestly i don’t mind. but i started seeing just how crazy it got and how fast. it’s insane people can’t simply respect clowns boundaries and stuff. it’s upsetting. there is so much good in this fandom (art memes etc.) but a lot of questionable stuff has also happened so far. idk. i’m excited to see where welcome home goes, but also scared. there’s a lot more i could say but i don’t want this comment to be 5 years long lol

[@ACursedDemon]

I’m aware that this is a horror project but I honestly just like the goofy vibes and colorful designs that the characters have. The horror was a nice bonus for me So when I saw the *other* side of the fandom, gosh darn the whiplash from the “Ah yes, fun characters for me to hyperfixate on” to “hey, let’s absolutely ignore the creator’s boundaries” blew my mind. I did expect it, with how fast the fandom grabbed hold of people, but I didn’t think it was that bad until I saw it.

[@Iwokeupinthebackrooms]

Don’t be surprised every fandom acts like this.

[@candicraveingcloude2822]

One thing about ARG's that I do to help keep myself in check (and honestly I think others could do too) is using the phrase "It's always a good thing to respect PIP" (PIP being an adjective for People, Information and Places), You respect people, by following through with the creator's wishes, and not going past their boundaries, as well as respecting other people involved in the ARG You respect information by sticking to publically available information, and not trying to find personal information, or leaked information You respect places by sticking to public property if an ARG asks you to explore a real world area, and by keeping the discussion of the ARG in a central, relevant area, where not only are people safe and allowed to discuss it, but that discussing the ARG is the only or main reason to be there. Following these rules basically helps to keep me in check, but sadly the internet is the internet and people like breaking rules.

[@infsm27]

by "adjective" you mean acronym

[@jddi1527]

Yep

[@norskicola7097]

I'm going to talk about one fandom that I'm still in since I was 10 years old which is "Eddsworld". It started off as a sweet thing until the fandom got too obsessive with one of the characters (tord). They ended up harassing the actual guy that the character was based off of, and also voiced the character(tord larsson). To the point that he had to delete all his social media, leave the show, and ask for his character to be written out. But the harassment didn't stop though (irl)Tord is still hidden till this day since 2005. The character did come back in 2016 to end an era of eddsworld. The original voice actor didn't come back. Fans are still obsessed with the character but not as much as they were before. There's also some latest things that fans have done. But this was one of the worst things that they ever did.

[@WaifuMaker]

I gotten into Welcome Home like a month ago where the start of the drama started appearing People were blaming and pointing fingers at one specific artist that made NSFW content (not of Welcome Home from what I remember) and they had to private there Twitter. Understanding and respecting Clown's boundaries is a good thing but there is a limit from asking politely to harassing someone who makes NSFW just wanting to be apart of the fandom without making anything or wanting to make wholesome/silly content without anything suggestive. It was even stated by Clown that they didn't want any public NSFW of Welcome Home. People are aloud to make it, just not show it. They also said to not harass anyone who already posted NSFW of the project As an artist that has made NSFW content before (not of Welcome Home) I found it appalling at how everyone was treating each other and how they were going about dealing with NSFW artist Hopefully the fandom calms down but goodness, I just wanted to draw a spoopy 3ft muppet man being silly

[@sonic8005]

I think this is the double edged sword of what happens when art gets a lot of attention. In both cases of the big company or the indy artist, the work of the actual artist and the creative vision of them can often times be.... somewhat or completely ignored or best a little misconstrued by fans or just other people in general. Looking back on beloved comic strip "Calvin and Hobbes" for instance shows us an artist who refused to sacrifice his principles for the sake of making more money (think merchandising, making an animated series with some big company, tie in video games... basically think what Garfield or The Simpsons did) and part of the *push* used by said people who were wanting him to sell out his characters and ideas was using the *bootleg merchandise* of Calvin on t-shirts and decals and such using artwork that was either fan made or was an alteration of Bill Waterson's own works. All this being said, I myself admit to being very fond of Clown's work and the whole concept of Welcome Home. My heart *sank* when I saw the page wasn't online and I sincerely hope to see more from Clown very soon, wishing him the absolute best of luck going forward and all...

[@FeatheredCreature]

This kinda stuff is why I tend to just enjoy things I like on my own, without looking at any community that it could have. Fandoms kinda scare me.

[@Dantalliumsolarium]

GET THEMMMM!!! CLOWN DESERVES LOVE AND RESPECT FOR THE AMAZING AND HEARTFELT PROJECT THEYRE MAKING!! not actually mad mad but just :< what an amazing art project

[@guiltyartisian5395]

I feel like Wally has been getting sort of Sans’d (his character and his AU’s getting more popular than the canon characters and creator)

[@style.exe.]

i typed in indie animation and found ur channel! love the vids 💜 been binging them

[@floodattendant002]

This was a great vid, as usual. I definitely see some of the impatience you were speaking about in one of my fandoms, madcom. the episodes take years to make, and new fans can get mad at the slow production. but when the episodes do come out, they are always exceptional. as of right now, we are waiting for a follow up episode to confirm if a seemingly killed off beloved character (no spoilers!) will return, so we're all kind of anticipating. this video was a good reminder not to take it too seriously. it is insane that people will go to this degree to harass creators and others. thank you for talking about this!

[@seal8092]

I think this is just what happens to new familiar properties. They get popular, they have similar concepts to other popular media, (Think, FNAF or Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared) people from those spaces get into the new blossoming fandom, and it explodes. Especially something like Welcome Home, it’s got the checklist that a lot of big fandoms like, Childlike aesthetic that can be twisted into something spooky. ✔️ Engaging story and lore. (Enough to get a game theory!) ✔️ Fun designs. ✔️ A gold mine for fan interpretation. ✔️ I assume, that eventually it will seep out of the lime light, and it’s fandom will calm down. That’s how it is with fandoms sometimes. I hope the creator is ok, this whole thing is stressful, especially for their passion project.

[@guyferrari8124]

I’m pretty sure DHMIS didn’t get this treatment anywhere near as bad as the others

[@JkUnderConstruction]

Why tf are people SIMPING on Elvis Presley with blue hair and jaundice?

[@whatever_he_wants]

FR

[@luminous.iolite]

NO BUT I SAW SOMEONE SAY WALLY WAS THE GUY WHO SAVED JOSUKE 😭😭

[@bezoticallyyours83]

No idea

[@cosmicspirals]

Your video is fun and informative both on the topic at hand and also in your artistic process! As a bit of an internet veteran (like, early Homestuck-era Tumblr, physically witnessing things like Dashcon in real time), a lot of this stuff is kinda old hat to me, but I think it’s extremely important to keep reiterating the respect of boundaries for people who may be new to or less experienced with internet fandom. I also really appreciate your emphasis on both the bad AND the good; I think when someone from the outside sees how destructive fandom can become, they can just dismiss the work or the concept of fandom entirely, but fanbases really do have a ton of creative potential! What I am less experienced with is digital art, as it’s something I’ve only picked up in earnest in the last couple of weeks, so watching you work with Clip Studio Paint had me mentally taking notes the whole time, heh. So, all-in-all, excellent video! I hope more folks new to the fandom (or new to fandom in general) see this!

[@kaiserdragon7233]

6:30 fangirl alert XD. But yeah, you can see the love and passion the fanbase can do. Unfortunately it can also do alot more harm. Steven universe and rwby are two examples of a toxic fanbase. Then we have gravity falls and murder drones who thankfully has put a cap on it. Then we have outliers. A fanbase that went beyond. Undertale. The massive rabbit hole that fanbase went through. There's also something I want to point out, while you already said about the trolls, the general nice fans and fanatics. There's two other groups that are worth discussing. One group for the moment is the locusts. They go from fanbase to fanbase trying their hardest to ruin it for everyone. If you see people going a bit too far, it's more than likely them. Call them out and tell the rest of fandom about them. They aren't worth the trouble. The next group will be the anti fans of the project. Either they don't agree with it, (like the situation of Hogwarts) or the fans push them in it. They can get a bit much at times

[@ElectraPrime]

Just found your channel and I really like this video. Everything you said and explained has made me feel validated about my own experiences. I think people need to learn how to identify when their fixation is going to far and how to come back from it before it creates chaos. I’ve had to leave fandoms myself because of the environments becoming so toxic and unhealthy, and honestly now it scares me to even get involved in any fandom. You shouldn’t have to sacrifice your mental health or stability to enjoy something ❤

[@DonutToast]

I've been holding off on checking out what Welcome Home is, incorrectly assuming it being an ARG and not wanting to get too invested because of my own ARG project, but the way the welcome home community has been treating these characters makes me so sad! In fact, the way I got introduced to the project was THROUGH these lewd art pieces being mass reblogged on my dash. I can imagine it being a really difficult position to be in :o( like on one hand it's great people find and love your original work! that's already hard enough as it is! but to then have people make all this uncomfortable fanart... To me that'd honestly be like a nightmare. Good luck to Clown and their project. Sending them lots of love!!

[@birthdayfruitecake8158]

I hope you get/feel better! Thank you for making this video. I've not been been a content creator but for some reason this video put me at ease.

[@andrewgoss7763]

You provide such a nuanced and empathetic explanation for this. Thank you. The only bit of information I would add would be how you mentioned young fans tend to flock to these properties and find friends and outlets to learn new concepts about life. This is 1000% true, a long with this though, school culture adds to this escapism children associate with these shows. Many school age children in the US (mainly 10-18yr olds) will use these properties as an extension of their “identity” because they have yet to really find an answer to the questions “who am I and what do I like and what do I believe?” Basically, kiddos don’t have an identity yet and project their desired identity on to these properties and get very emotional regarding these properties as such.

[@radiotowereee8816]

right when i discovered welcome home had adult drawings I was immediately like "aw man why" and I felt sad. I already could tell that the creator probably wouldn't want this because stuff like this happens all the time. Once i learned that it was true they didnt want that i felt worse

[@devofficialchannel]

@SparklesOrStarz I unfortunately see a lot of questionable stuff with Alphabet Lore (unsurprisingly on Reddit).

[@stick5958]

Dude i literally leave a fandom for a month and everything goes off of the rails 💀💀💀

[@sharkenjoyer]

you were holding everything together, and now look what the fandom has become without you in it smh

[@mystoxxiide9043]

@@sharkenjoyer LMAO

[@DoubleRainbows667]

Same, I go in and out of fandoms sometimes and then I come back to this Like, what, how did this happen? 😭😭

[@sillycookie]

I dont engage in fandoms anymore lol. I really like enjoying media without people in my ear saying nonsense and wearing down my love for things. In regards to creators being kinda hated by fandoms, i remember seeing people call Rebecca Sugar, a Jewish person, a n4zi sympathizer and antisemitic slurs. They also went after their husband Ian Jones Quartey and called him a LOT of antiblack slurs and colorist insults (SOMETIMES BY OTHER BLACK PEOPLE mind you) and had hate blogs dedicated to """criticism""" towards SU and OKKO. They were the biggest losers on earth. Imagine being so miserable in your day to day life that you go online and spend all day trashing shows and deciding you can tell people what to think. Fandoms are definitely not for me anymore. Never again!

[@SpinningAround-sy9ri]

This kind of reminds me a bit of a specific that's more popular with Japanese-based fandoms like anime, japanese based-games, etc.. Which are yume's/self-inserts. And I dont mean like the normal self inserts, I mean the kind that are so infatuated with a specfic fictional character they consider themselves as a character's canon signicant other. I have met some kind yumes that are okay with "sharing", but others that will block you if you ship yourself or ocs with their fave character and/or even send their friends to harass you or others.

[@gothicGumshoe]

A friend of mine introduced me to Welcome Home before it attracted such a large fanbase and I instantly thought it was just so cool. Both of us were super enamoured by Wally and would not stop talking to each other about how cute he was. Then it got popular. Then more people started to think Wally was cute. It started getting so extreme that I genuinely felt disgusted with myself for liking Wally at ALL and basically icked myself out of enjoying WH. It is such a cool project and I wish I could feel half the excitement that I did prior to its popularity. It's seriously a shame that it took off so early - let the damn thing develop a little!!! We know so little about it and it's half the reason the fans are going so nuts making their own content for it I feel.