Proposal: "Fans Retreat" subforum below General Anime subforum

[Triple_R]

After reading Felix's recent petition, I came up with a counter-proposal that I think might be worth considering.

My idea is that Anime Suki would create a "Fans Retreat" subforum right below where "General Anime" currently is. On this "Fans Retreat" subforum, fans could create anime series threads expressly for dedicated fans of that anime show.

So the idea here is that while the proper series threads/subforums already in the "Current Series" and "Older Series" sections would certainly remain there for all anime fans (including everybody from the biggest fan to the harshest critic), the "Fans Retreat" subforum would be there purely for dedicated fans of various anime shows.

What I mean by "dedicated fans" of the show are people who love the show, or like it a lot. The "Fans Retreat" section would exist purely for people to express their shared love and appreciation for particular anime shows amongst themselves.


Every now and then you'll get an anime show like Gundam Age, Gundam Seed Destiny, or Guilty Crown where the show comes under heavy criticism, which of course can make discussions less pleasant for people who would prefer to discuss the show just with other people who like it. Now I strongly believe that everybody here should be welcomed to voice their opinions, both positive and negative, on each and every anime show on its proper series thread or series subforum. However, I do empathize with those who wish they could have a "Fans Retreat" place on AS in order to discuss the show just amongst other fans, because I've been there myself with Guilty Crown.

I think that having a "Fans Retreat" subforum, for this express purpose, would be very beneficial here. AS members could start threads on any anime show that they wish on this hypothetical "Fans Retreat" subforum, and it would be understood that this would be for fans of the show.


Now, I also see some benefits here for critics, and as an anime critic myself at times, I admittedly would like to take advantage of such benefits.

If fans of a show knew that they had an "exit strategy" of sorts whenever one of their more well-liked anime shows comes under a lot of attack, I think they'd be more accepting of criticism on proper series threads and series forums. Eventually, I think you'd see a common understanding that proper series threads/subforums are for dynamic, free-wheeling discussion on anime shows open to all opinions, while the "Fans Retreat" section is for dedicated fans who would like to spend some time talking about an anime show amongst other people who love the show.


Another added benefit here is that the "Fans Retreat" subforum could also be a neat place for facilitating discussion on older anime shows. You could have a thread for Ranma ½ on it. Or NGE. Or Sailor Moon. Or Cowboy Bebop. Or my own personal favorite of 90s anime, El Hazard.

So this "Fans Retreat" subforum could double as a nice place for older anime fans to discuss anime shows from past decades. This in turn could even attract more members to Anime Suki.


Anyway, this is an idea that I'm just throwing out there for public discussion. I'm certainly open to refining the idea as desired.

What do people think of this idea?

[felix]

/support this

[hyl]

So this proposal is like the same idea but using different means of the previous proposal by felix. So instead of booting out all the ranters to a different part of the forum, we allocate all the fanboy/girls.
Wouldn't this kind of hurt the normal topics, if the fans of the shows will start expressing their opinions of the current episodes or the show overall in the new threads? Thus making the original threads kind of redundant.
I am not against or for this proposal yet, but that's the first thing that i thought.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by hyl

So this proposal is like the same idea but using different means of the previous proposal by felix. So instead of booting out all the ranters to a different part of the forum, we allocate all the fanboy/girls.
Wouldn't this kind of hurt the normal topics, if the fans of the shows will start expressing their opinions of the current episodes or the show overall in the new threads? Thus making the original threads kind of redundant.
I am not against or for this proposal yet, but that's the first thing that i thought.

Well, it's a bit different in that it's not suggesting one place for fans and one place for critics, but rather it's suggesting one place for everybody and an added place for dedicated fans (if they so choose).

Now, many anime shows likely would never get a series thread in my proposed "Fans Retreat" subforum.

For example, it would be redundant to have Another series thread in a "Fans Retreat" subforum because the proper series thread for Another is very positive and fan-friendly as it is.


If you want an example of a currently airing anime show (and its fans) that would probably benefit from my proposal then I point to Papa no Iu Koto wo Kikinasai! There's been significant butting of heads on that thread between critics and fans of the show. In this case, I'm with the critics. However, I can tell that some of the fans of Papa no Iu Koto would like to be able to discuss the show just amongst themselves without having to deal with Usagi Drop comparisons, criticisms of fanservice, etc...

Well, with a "Fans Retreat" subforum, those fans of Papa no Iu Koto could create a series thread for it there, enabling them to talk about it just amongst fellow fans when they so choose.

Now as a critic of this anime, I'd like this as well as I think it would enable us who have issues with Papa no Iu Koto to more readily voice them without having to face considerable backlash over every critical post.


tl;dr My proposed "Fans Retreat" wouldn't divide fans and critics for all shows, but just create a bit more disengagement between both sides for more contentious shows, as this would probably be beneficial to the overall level of decorum on this site. It's something that could improve the overall atmosphere for fans and critics alike, making both feel more free to say what they want to say about the show. As an added bonus, we could post threads for older anime shows.

[ninryu]

I think it's pretty pointless, since all the possible discussions and threads are already at the anime forum. Creating a separate forum for something already present seems pointless to me.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by ninryu

I think it's pretty pointless, since all the possible discussions and threads are already at the anime forum. Creating a separate forum for something already present seems pointless to me.

Well it would be pointless for any series that already has a very fan-friendly series thread (which is probably most of them). It's usefulness would be in those situations when series threads descend into fan vs. critic battles.

I can tell you that if there was a "Fans Retreat" section back around Episode 5 of Guilty Crown, I myself would have created a Guilty Crown series thread there, and I think many fans of that show would have joined me on it. Fans of that show were looking for a way to get fan-based discussions that could shift away from fan vs. critic.

[relentlessflame]

I'm sorry to inform you that the staff are not interested in this proposal for the same reasons outlined in the previous related thread. If fans would like to create a safe-haven, they may use the Social Groups feature of this website. The staff are not interested in creating an official forum section that separates the fans from the non-fans, because (among other reasons) you might as well paint a target for the trolls to descend. Have two separate threads on the same topic runs counter to every other principle we have about topic moderation on this site.

We will not segregate posters according to their opinions about a show. I'm afraid that no future proposals along these lines will be entertained, so this thread is now also closed.

[Klashikari]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

tl;dr My proposed "Fans Retreat" wouldn't divide fans and critics for all shows, but just create a bit more disengagement between both sides for more contentious shows, as this would probably be beneficial to the overall level of decorum on this site. It's something that could improve the overall atmosphere for fans and critics alike, making both feel more free to say what they want to say about the show. As an added bonus, we could post threads for older anime shows.

I'm afraid it does divide them. Your proposition doesn't have the potential effect you are describing: it discards completely the purpose of -discussion thread-, and makes the original thread themselves extremely redundant, from a fan perspective, especially those who "feels the need" for it.

Furthermore, I will really question the need of discussing about a series in a closed ring, as simply put, it is already possible the way it is.
Far too often, people seems to think critics are overbearing, but actually a good deal of the issues between "both sides" is that some fans have the "urge" to defend their favorite series without knowing when to quit (that can be said for some people nearly bashing series as well).
Suffice to say, a lot of these critics do not object people enjoying a series, but explain why they do not. That doesn't mean they have to question fans why they like the show, and thus, they do not go after such praises either.

Conversily, why do you have to pay attention to critics if you are really "that" bothered by them? As skyfall already explained in this previous thread: AS is not a fansite. Anime fans are welcome to discuss about the series they are following, but by no means we promote "plain positive discussions" whatsoever.

Segregating a portion of the fans this way is not only ineffective, but completely non intuitive and inane for sake of discussion.
Those who don't need such "retreat" will have to go all the way to that thread to have other input about those who post over there. It doesn't make any sense that such people would have to follow -2- threads for opinions they initially read in the single same thread.

Also, I'm sorry for the following bluntness but: if you -really- can't deal with critics and negative opinion (provided they are not on the bash category), why aren't you looking for actual sites promoting such type of discussions?
Even social groups can be used for that.

As it stands, the previous and current suggestions are basically going against the very essence of "discussion" we have set here.

*Edit: damn, it is my turn to be ninja'ed