AnimeSuki Forums

Kaioshin Sama · 2012-04-22, 12:04

I don't usually think about making these sorts of posts since I think all discussion should be free and what not, but I'm kind of noticing this season that just about every thread is kind of getting taken over by shipping discussion. While I appreciate that some people might really be into this manner of discussion and that romance can play a big part in the appeal of certain shows it's starting to feel a little aggressive in how it's being pursued by some users and it's IMO starting to distract from other discussion about the actual content of shows this season since I'm finding a lot of threads keep coming back to it time after time thanks to the active discussions of a few users.

I seem to recall hearing that shipping was supposed to be a limited discussion topic or was supposed to be forbidden altogether and while I don't see any reason why the latter should be the case I can't help but wonder if maybe there should be a more general seasonal discussion thread for this sort of discussion in general anime so that people that want to actually discuss the shows can have a little more breathing room so to speak. At the very least I wouldn't mind seeing just a little less of it or it being a little more limited to private discussions between shipping fans.

james0246 · 2012-04-22, 13:04

Shipping threads are definitely forbidden. And, within Character based threads, shipping is completely forbidden. But, general discussion threads, episode/chapter threads, and other non-character based threads can be used to discuss the possibilities of romantic entanglements. So, Shipping in, say, the Legend of Korra thread is allowable, though not necessarily encouraged. (At least this is how I treat the matter.)

***relentlessflame*** · 2012-04-22, 13:43

Creating safe-havens for shipping is exactly what we don't want to do, because it results in much more militant and organized campaigning. So, even though it annoys you that the topic keeps coming up in threads you want to participate in, I think you'll just have to bear it. If it really gets too far out of hand and turns into a shipping war, you can report it and the mods will intervene. But as james0246 said, discussing potential pairings isn't forbidden or off-topic.

If you want to combat it, the main thing I would suggest would be to provide more interesting conversation points that will catch people's attention instead. Sometimes I think shipping is partly-perpetuated by boredom or lack of other interesting topics to discuss. (And, I'm sure, there are some people who care only about their ship, and keep the topic alive by their passion for that pairing. You can always put these people on your ignore list if they're too annoying.)

**Solace** · 2012-04-22, 18:15

Chalk some of that up to a lack of romance anime this season. If you have some examples of places where you feel it has gone overboard, report them and we'll investigate.

Westlo · 2012-04-24, 23:22

I've always found it funny that people complaining about shipping spend more time whining about it than actually trying to bring up other topics that could replace or co-exist along with the shipping talk. Unless the fanbase is behaving well over the top... if the talk about a show is dominated by shipping than it means the show itself lacks interesting stuff to discuss apart from that.

Vexx · 2012-04-24, 23:36

I haven't seen much 'shipping (so far)... though the Ore Imouto novel thread gets a bit eye-rolling at times as people reach for the sky or thin air to justify their flag-waving

Does KS have specific threads that he thinks are drifting into the Sargasso Sea of shipping? I'd just offer the idea of reporting specific posts that may be over-the-line.?

~~Pocari_Sweat~~ · 2012-04-25, 00:33

One question regards to shipping though. What if it's a major part of the series. I mean Aquarion EVOL has been one of the most discussed series on AS in recent times and that show like it or not, is a total shipping trolling fest. It's integrated in the plot. I mean you have Kawamori/Okada as the head director/writer, who are notorious for doing so.

I guess I'm one of the rarer people who actually likes "shipping trolling" and don't attach themselves to a certain pairing, so I don't mind it at all.

Last Sinner · 2012-04-25, 02:40

Er...really? Maybe it's just that the 4-5 shows I'm watching this season have no shipping talk, but I never seemed to think it was a problem, as long as those wanting to ship don't get bloody about it. When you attend a weekly club where there are yaoi fangirls present but are able to be sensible about their fandom and not pushy, I guess I've just found it to be part of the culture.

Which threads in particular are you finding it a problem in?

james0246 · 2012-04-25, 07:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by DemiSoda

One question regards to shipping though. What if it's a major part of the series. I mean Aquarion EVOL has been one of the most discussed series on AS in recent times and that show like it or not, is a total shipping trolling fest. It's integrated in the plot. I mean you have Kawamori/Okada as the head director/writer, who are notorious for doing so.

I guess I'm one of the rarer people who actually likes "shipping trolling" and don't attach themselves to a certain pairing, so I don't mind it at all.

As I, and others, have said, discussions of romantic couples (or potential romantic couples) is allowed. This constitutes a "shipping" discussion (though, shipping is generally given a slightly negative connotation, especially when the fans of canon pairings attack non-canon pairings (it is hilarious to browse Glee tumblr pages just for this)).

I also do not mind shipping discussion, as so long as they are kept civil. And that is the key thing. Any discussion that gets too heated needs to be brought to a moderators attention.

(To date myself, I still remember the Daria shipping wars...those were fun

.)

Triple_R · 2012-04-25, 08:23

I'm with Demi Soda on this.

Like it or not, romance conflict is a huge part of a lot of anime shows (such as Aquarion EVOL, as Demi Soda rightly points out). To tell people they can't engage in shipping discussion for anime shows like that would be like saying you can't talk about how time travel is handled in Steins;Gate, or you can't talk about yuri in Saki.

I get where Kaioshin is coming from, and no doubt shipping discussion can occasionally get out of hand for shows where it's just a minor element of the show, but romance conflict really is a core element of some shows, so for that reason alone, I think that shipping discussion should be accepted (as long as it doesn't descend into flame-wars of course).

***relentlessflame*** · 2012-04-25, 11:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple_R

I think that shipping discussion should be accepted (as long as it doesn't descend into flame-wars of course).

Just to be clear, I don't think any of the staff have ever implied anything different. (In fact, we're repeated this very point many times.)

I'm going to close this thread because basically I think it's a non-issue. If there's a specific thread that's going out of hand, please feel free to report it.

2012-04-22, 12:04	Link #1
Kaioshin Sama Banned Join Date: May 2004 Location: Neither Here nor There Age: 39	What Exactly is the current status of shipping? I don't usually think about making these sorts of posts since I think all discussion should be free and what not, but I'm kind of noticing this season that just about every thread is kind of getting taken over by shipping discussion. While I appreciate that some people might really be into this manner of discussion and that romance can play a big part in the appeal of certain shows it's starting to feel a little aggressive in how it's being pursued by some users and it's IMO starting to distract from other discussion about the actual content of shows this season since I'm finding a lot of threads keep coming back to it time after time thanks to the active discussions of a few users. I seem to recall hearing that shipping was supposed to be a limited discussion topic or was supposed to be forbidden altogether and while I don't see any reason why the latter should be the case I can't help but wonder if maybe there should be a more general seasonal discussion thread for this sort of discussion in general anime so that people that want to actually discuss the shows can have a little more breathing room so to speak. At the very least I wouldn't mind seeing just a little less of it or it being a little more limited to private discussions between shipping fans.

2012-04-22, 13:43	Link #3
*relentlessflame* 　 Administrator Join Date: Dec 2003 Age: 41	Creating safe-havens for shipping is exactly what we don't want to do, because it results in much more militant and organized campaigning. So, even though it annoys you that the topic keeps coming up in threads you want to participate in, I think you'll just have to bear it. If it really gets too far out of hand and turns into a shipping war, you can report it and the mods will intervene. But as james0246 said, discussing potential pairings isn't forbidden or off-topic. If you want to combat it, the main thing I would suggest would be to provide more interesting conversation points that will catch people's attention instead. Sometimes I think shipping is partly-perpetuated by boredom or lack of other interesting topics to discuss. (And, I'm sure, there are some people who care only about their ship, and keep the topic alive by their passion for that pairing. You can always put these people on your ignore list if they're too annoying.) __________________ [...]

2012-04-22, 18:15	Link #4
Solace (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻ Moderator Join Date: Mar 2006	Chalk some of that up to a lack of romance anime this season. If you have some examples of places where you feel it has gone overboard, report them and we'll investigate. __________________

2012-04-24, 23:36	Link #6
Vexx Obey the Darkly Cute ... Author Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: On the whole, I'd rather be in Kyoto ... Age: 66	I haven't seen much 'shipping (so far)... though the Ore Imouto novel thread gets a bit eye-rolling at times as people reach for the sky or thin air to justify their flag-waving Does KS have specific threads that he thinks are drifting into the Sargasso Sea of shipping? I'd just offer the idea of reporting specific posts that may be over-the-line.? __________________ "It Really IS Rocket Science", Novel series rough drafts; vol. 1 thru vol. 3 complete Volume 4 in work, Visit the thread for short stories!

2012-04-25, 02:40	Link #8
Last Sinner You're Hot, Cupcake Join Date: Aug 2008 Age: 42	Er...really? Maybe it's just that the 4-5 shows I'm watching this season have no shipping talk, but I never seemed to think it was a problem, as long as those wanting to ship don't get bloody about it. When you attend a weekly club where there are yaoi fangirls present but are able to be sensible about their fandom and not pushy, I guess I've just found it to be part of the culture. Which threads in particular are you finding it a problem in? __________________

2012-04-22, 13:04	Link #2
james0246 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: East Cupcake	Shipping threads are definitely forbidden. And, within Character based threads, shipping is completely forbidden. But, general discussion threads, episode/chapter threads, and other non-character based threads can be used to discuss the possibilities of romantic entanglements. So, Shipping in, say, the Legend of Korra thread is allowable, though not necessarily encouraged. (At least this is how I treat the matter.)

2012-04-24, 23:22	Link #5
Westlo Lets be reality Join Date: May 2007	I've always found it funny that people complaining about shipping spend more time whining about it than actually trying to bring up other topics that could replace or co-exist along with the shipping talk. Unless the fanbase is behaving well over the top... if the talk about a show is dominated by shipping than it means the show itself lacks interesting stuff to discuss apart from that.

2012-04-25, 00:33	Link #7
~~Pocari_Sweat~~ <em style="color:#808080;">Disabled By Request</em> Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Australia	One question regards to shipping though. What if it's a major part of the series. I mean Aquarion EVOL has been one of the most discussed series on AS in recent times and that show like it or not, is a total shipping trolling fest. It's integrated in the plot. I mean you have Kawamori/Okada as the head director/writer, who are notorious for doing so. I guess I'm one of the rarer people who actually likes "shipping trolling" and don't attach themselves to a certain pairing, so I don't mind it at all.

2012-04-25, 08:23	Link #10
Triple_R Senior Member Author Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Age: 42	I'm with Demi Soda on this. Like it or not, romance conflict is a huge part of a lot of anime shows (such as Aquarion EVOL, as Demi Soda rightly points out). To tell people they can't engage in shipping discussion for anime shows like that would be like saying you can't talk about how time travel is handled in Steins;Gate, or you can't talk about yuri in Saki. I get where Kaioshin is coming from, and no doubt shipping discussion can occasionally get out of hand for shows where it's just a minor element of the show, but romance conflict really is a core element of some shows, so for that reason alone, I think that shipping discussion should be accepted (as long as it doesn't descend into flame-wars of course). __________________