fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #2245

[ SECRET POST #2245

⌈ Secret Post #2245 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 04 pages, 098 secrets from Secret Submission Post #321.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 1 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ], [ 1 2 3 4 - come on, troll with a little more subtlety ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

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How exactly did this character become a fandom representative of POSITIVE portrayals of people with intellectual disabilities? Sure, there are some great fics starring her, but the show itself has only used her as a punchline. I find it bizarre that fans seem to think removing her from the show would be contrary to positive representation of the intellectually disabled.

Erasure. Though I'm first to say she never should have had a speaking role in the first place.

Edited 2013-02-24 22:06 (UTC)

THIS. I love her (because I have lazy eyes), but she should've just stayed as an 'Easter Egg' in the background.

This is why I love to hate you. But I give you a little respect.

Stop, who needs love like that?

Its a heavenly action!

I lot of people hate you. But, you know what? You're consistent in your views, and you're generally on target. I think the real reason they hate you is because you make logical arguments in favor of positions that make them uncomfortable. And for that, I think you're fucking bangin'.

I imagine because the fandom wants her to be one, when she really isn't. From what I remember, Derpy was so big because fandom made her such, so she couldn't possibly be a negative portrayal, right? (Well at least in most of fandom's eyes.)

I think some people said that it would be like pretending people with disabilities didn't exist. I thought the voice was ...not good (apparently her VA thought she was a boy) and I felt that really they could have introduced her in a better way it would have come off better. Even if she had been introduced as mailmare who was just slightly ditzy and loved muffins because...honestly that seems a lot like what they do with Pinkie Pie almost all of the time. *shrug*

If the punch line to that scene hadn't been "it's funny because the pony with Down syndrome thinks that she can help," I would have been fine with it. Probably.

AYRT

I understand.

I think there's a big difference between joking about disorders and joking about people WITH disorders. One is okay when the focus of the joke isn't mocking or hurting the people behind the jokes. I have severe OCD and I joke about my symptoms a lot because thinking about them in a funny light helps me cope and stay cheerful rather than always thinking about what a crippling disorder it is and how the mini anxiety attacks I get make me miserable.

But mocking the person with the disorders and saying for example "you are autistic and that's bad/wrong" and "lol ass burger" is not cool at all. It's why I hate the term "retarded" being used as an insult.

I'm really disturbed at the automatic "SHE HAS DOWN SYNDROME" reaction - I always just saw her as an awkward and adorably klutzy pony o_O Her earnestness in that scene was really cute, IMO...

Have you heard the original voice? That's what says "Down syndrome" about the character. It wasn't even the slightest bit subtle

The original voice was because the VA thought she was a boy.

If no one knows that the voice is supposed to telecast "Down syndrome," including the voice actor, then does the voice really telecast "Down syndrome?"

If people listen/look at it and think "this pony has down syndrome/a mental disorder"

then yes.

Which is okay until you make her the butt of a joke and have the main characters get angry at her.

especially notable when even the boy ponies don't sound like that.

Re: Possibly off-topic

(Anonymous) - 2013-02-25 02:06 (UTC) - Expand

because if one person with a cause thinks it then they must be right and shame on anyone else for thinking different they're obviously just ableist and in denial/s

Re: Possibly off-topic

(Anonymous) - 2013-02-25 02:06 (UTC) - Expand

Re: Possibly off-topic

(Anonymous) - 2013-02-25 02:24 (UTC) - Expand

See now, I just saw her more as the MLP equivalent of Goofy. Behold the uberklutz, destroyer of all they touch. One part overestimation of competence, one part murphy's law in mortal form.

I mean old school Goofy. Think this (there's even falling through the floor):

http://youtu.be/6jKzr143K8U

I was expecting "dohoho, that Derpy" and "Oh this kinda slapstick is just stupid" to be the conflict. I was honestly shocked when people started saying she was mentally handicapped, though I can see it now.

Though I suppose people might say Goofy is abelist now too.

Edited 2013-02-25 00:43 (UTC)

Actually, no. Old!School Goofy MIGHT have a case for that, but New!School Goofy, while dorky, is usually the one who tends to have the most insight with regards to situations than even Mickey or Donald have. Plus, after A Goofy Movie? Anyone who thinks he's an abelist stereotype is fucking reaching and just pulling shit out of their ass to be angry about. All he was, was that awkward parent who wanted to do right by their kid, but didn't automatically realize that their kid was growing up. Which realistically happens.

Ditzy Doo was a straight up stereotype, intentional or not.

Even if you believe Goofy has some variety of cognitive disability, that and his propensity for screwing up aren't the whole of his characterization. (Same for Snips, Snails, Spongebob, and most of the other characters who keep getting cited in these discussions- but Goofy especially, after Goof Troop and the related movies).

Derpy/Ditzy/Bubbles/etc may be given characterization and respect in some of the fan-created content out there, but none of that made it to the screen. To someone who doesn't run in 'brony' spaces, she isn't a loving mother or a competent mailmare or a person with hidden depths, she's just a pony with a voice running uncomfortably close to playground mockery who seems oblivious to the fact that she's repeatedly ruining everything.

This.

Someone's reaching.

I know. I was just saying why some people were against her removal.

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