Hey guys, I have a bit of a conundrum here, so I thought I'd turn to the fair people here at Everypony for advice. So, here's the deal, I want an MLP T-shirt, but I'm almost positive my parents are going to be opposed to it. I've been watching the show since March, and they're well aware of it. So far, they've been fine (if a bit suspicious) with me watching and enjoying it, but I don't think they'll take me actually buying the merchandise too well. How do I know? Well, I already mentioned it to my mom, and at first she thought I was joking, but when I persisted and she realized I was serious, she began to get a bit angry with me. She outright said no several times, saying that people will think I'm gay and "it's a show for little girls". Honestly, I think the problem is that they still see the show as the cutesy wootesy cuddly wuddly mush for toddlers that it used to be. They have no idea how FiM is like, so when they picture My Little Pony, they picture the Gen 1 characters having tea parties and giggling their heads off. I've gotten through to my mother, though. She agreed to look at designs with me, but I still think she's sort of against it. It's honestly my dad I'm worried about. I wouldn't be surprised if he just straight up told me no and shut the door on the conversation. And even if I did convince him to let me buy the shirt, I doubt he'd be happy with it. He'd probably say something every time I wore it. I mean, I don't want to paint my parents as neo-Nazi dictators or anything, because they're not. It's just, I think it's a combination of them not understanding the structure of the show, and their over protectiveness of me (which, by the way, I have no idea where it comes from; for crying out loud I played school football for two years). I just come to you for advice. Yeah, yeah, I know, seems a bit tl;dr. But the reason I post all this is not just advice on the shirts, but on how to improve their acceptance of the show in general as well. Thanks for reading, Sparkz
All I'm gonna say is that it's your fate to decide what you do, regarding the shirt, regarding your parents, regarding everything really. Make conclusions from that however you wish. As for improving acceptance, it's a fine line between advertising and forcing upon. The latter is a bad idea in general, and tends to lose more people than it gains. The former, of course, is much slower and harder, but tends to work better. I don't know your parents well enough to help you there, since everypony is different, but I can tell you that everypony sees the world differently, and one must understand how they see with their mind to understand how to show something in a positive light. Sadly, there aren't too many people who we know well enough to do so upon, but for the few we do, it is these people we can truly call close.
As for me, I asked my mother and she gladly payed for my first batch of five shirts. I'm looking forward to another batch of shirts. It really depends on how they look at it. If you mother allows you to get them, hopefully she will pay for it. Then when your father looks at the shirt you wear, they could be indifferent or something else. ____ For improving, I would say that you should show them the previous generations and show this generation and see why that is one reason that you actually like the show and what not. You could go on with specific details to tell them why MLP:FiM is not stereotypically for girls. Good luck on getting a shirt. If your anywhere near Hot Topic check it out. Some ok designs but I get mine from WeLoveFine and many other sites. ~DRD :derpe:
I was talking to Sparkz earlier over Skype and WeLoveFine is actually the site he's hoping to use! lol.
A shame so many bronies have to suffer under the "Son, I am dissapoint"-phenomena... :/ It's kind of understandable parents don't know how to deal with it at first, but they should at least give you a chance to explain why you suddenly become a huge fan of MLP. I'm sorry but I can't really give you any advice. If your father won't budge, that's just a darn shame... Do what you deem best. Good luck. EDIT: I just had to make this...
I can't stand when people look at us like freaks. I haven't told any of my parents yet, but if I were to try to explain it, I would use a quote someone here typed up. I can't remember who, but here's the message: "When we all watched the first episode of this show, something sparked to life inside us. We looked at this microcosm of happiness, fun, excitement and adventure and immediately noticed that something was missing from it. Would you believe the something missing was our own shock and disgust? How is it that a show meant for little girls, ages 5-9 could reach out and touch the lives of thick skinned emotionally reserved men ages 13-30 and remind us that we used to feel just like that. We were always kind to others and acted properly because it was good to do. Somehow that got perverted in us as we aged. Society is to blame but mom and pop aren't too far from that circle of responsibility either. MLP didn't give us anything new. There's nothing in this show that's new under the sun. What MLP has done for Bronies is remind us what we were, what we have always been and what we want to be towards others. We haven't stopped being men nor have we become infantile in our world views; we've just stopped behaving like fools. To that end, we gathered together and created a site where we could unite under our common banner of Love and Tolerance for everyone Brony and otherwise. This is ours because it has always belonged to us. We've just found the courage to express it openly through the convenient rule set of the show and its characters. And because it is ours, we have the obligation to protect it from those who would polute it with their own agendas and poor behaviors. We have the right to protect it and must administer just and adequate changes to our community policies and services to reflect our position. The greatest cruelty is to have something precious stolen by a thief welcomed in as a friend. This is why, with vigilant eye, I have helped to identify these recent intrusions into our movement by those who want to use us as a vehicle for their LULZ or their fetish fantasies. That is not who we are and it certainly is not what Bronies are. One year ago, a woman of incredible skill and vision gifted us with a show so well put together that it turned the cold heart of the hacker, made the cynic cry and galvanized the good and kind little man inside all of us that we'd locked away deep down in the depths of our hearts just to get through our miserable lives. He's only had a breath of fresh air for a year. Are we ready to give up on that now, so soon after finding this freedom? I refuse to give up on you, Bronies." I think this show may even be able to touch the cold-hearted. Luckily, my brother has my side on this and he's the family favorite, but he's not nearly as hardcore a brony as me. He likes the show mostly because of the funny, but not much of the heart-warming stuff like me.
well, to start of: I'd suggest you just talk to your parents about the show and tell them that many many different kind of people like it, around the world, and they probably aren't so much fans without reason. also point out that G1 has almost no fans. Also, saying that say that show is totally different than it appears (point out SpongeBob Square pants which is also kids show with lot of adult fans). Finally, show them S02E03 (lucky they made it way they did because that show's best that mlp:fim is all age cartoon). After showing them that episode ask them: "still only little girls cartoon?" as for t-shirt: try picking up some that isn't looking girly, and that matches your personality.
Thanks a lot guys. I knew I could count on Everypony for help. Now, like I said in the OP, my parents aren't really THAT bad; they don't hold anything against me for liking ponies, but they just think it's odd, and I think wanting to buy a shirt would get some negative feedback. I'll talk to them about it. I don't think convincing them will be too much of a problem (heck, my mom's actually sort of into the idea), they're not very closed-minded people, so, who knows. Also, I am probably going to use WeLoveFine. I really have my eye on some of the Rainbow Dash shirts, and the Led Zeppelin themed one is on my list as well.
Rainbow Dash + Led Zeppelin, that really sound awesome. Though Rainbow Dash is always awesome. I wonder if they will ever make a shirt from the same motive as Double Rainbow Dash's avatar, that would look great, and no one would possibly call that one girlish. All know sunglasses equals macho.
I am lucky that I have such open minded parents, plus I have been living out of my parents roof for many years now. I bought a Pink and Yellow Fluttershy shirt and I wear it proudly. I have never gotten negative reactions, only indifferent and positive ones. It's hard to give advice to you without knowing anymore about you parents then you have told us. I will just say that being about out being a brony is a liberating experience and I have been happier ever since and although my friends and even though my friends, mother grandmother were shocked at first. They have become more and more accepting of it especially now that I have been attending meetups and showing them photos of just how many other grown men love this show too. But they are all very tolerant people so I was lucky.
I did actually see a shirt somewhere other than WLF, it had a picture of Rainbow Dash flying through a prism and recreating the Dark Side of the Moon album cover. It was great.
Just placed an order of 5 shirts right now. [size=-2]*Hopefully Pixel doesn't see this.*[/size] Now to wait 5-8 Business days.
For UK purchasers of WeLoveFine tees: I live in the UK & recently got some tees from welovefine. Tees cost $25 each (about £17-18), but if you register, you'll get a 10% discount code to use on your 1st purchase. However, here are some caveats: 1) expect to pay at least $46 (£31) for shipping 2) you have to pay 20% VAT on BOTH tees AND shipping 3) £8 clearance fee. My 3 tees cost me a total of about £100 4) Parcel is not delivered directly to door, & can take up to 2 weeks. You will receive an invoice from ParcelForce with reference no. & VAT payment details. You can then make payment online & arrange delivery date. 5) check with your bank for currency exchange rates/fees. I did check beforehand, so at least I knew (roughly) the final cost. Small orders will be very expensive per tee, so best to get as many as you can in one go. Hope this helps.
