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Overshadowed By Controversy Cleanup

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Overshadowed by Controversy has several examples, particularly under the Fan Works, Webcomics, and Web Original folders, that don't fit the trope as described. The controversy is supposed to overshadow the work, so if it doesn't do that it shouldn't count as a valid example.

The media folders, such as Anime or Western Animation, could also use a look, as some entries deal with shows, while others deal with actors, fans, or creators. Additionally, some of the entries are not controversial anymore or are not known enough to overshadow the show completely, and others seem closer to Never Live It Down.

Some examples even point out that the controversy was debunked or died down eventually, which doesn't fit the trope, as well as examples saying things like "time will tell if [x] can recover." I originally tried the Real-Life cleanup section, and then a TRS thread, but I hope this is the right section to help us clean up this trope's examples. ^^

MOD NOTE: For something to be overshadowed by controversy; it has to have a significant, arguably overwhelming impact on that work/creator/thing that’s provable by pointing to actual evidence beyond social media likes or a news report. The controversy has to be bigger than the thing for it to overshadow the thing.

For a work, did it bomb directly due to the controversy? Was it pulled from shelves or streaming services? Nothing like this? Then it most likely doesn’t count.

For a creator, did they lose their job/get banned or lose all of their sponsorships or are unable to get any work directly due to the controversy? Did they at least retire directly because of the controversy? Nothing like this? Then it most likely doesn’t count.

Valid examples would be people like Gina Carano or Louie CK. As they were both fired and black listed for their controversies. Or Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are now more known for those controversies than their actual careers. Clearly being overshadowed by it.

If only chronically online people like us are going to be aware of something, it definitely doesn’t count. The controversy has to be so big that even people who are rarely online or know very little about something, would still have heard of the controversy.

Edited by kory on Oct 4th 2025 at 10:21:54 AM

SkylaNoivern Since: Sep, 2016
#1601: Apr 25th 2021 at 12:22:25 PM

On Western Animation:

"It is impossible to talk about the show without bringing up the fact that it has one of the biggest and most (in)famous cases of Periphery Demographic, the Bronies. As with any large fandom, there are also lots of mature fanworks, including pornography and Gorn such as Cupcakes, which is especially shocking to the unfamiliar due to the source material's perceived childishness and has often sparked panic about the show's actual target audience accidentally stumbling upon said fanworks (a more pressing concern than you'd think, as bronies produced so much porn that it was nigh-impossible to look up anything from the show without being exposed to it). Two factors cemented bronies as a fandom scourge: their typically incredibly hostile responses to being asked to let up on the porn or even place it under cuts where possible, and rampant, intense bigotry (to the point where the brony community is viewed in hindsight as a test run for the alt-right). Because of that, on some sites, identifying yourself as a fan of the show or merely speaking positively of it might get you labeled as a Manchild, pervert, or worse."

I'm not a brony, but a lot of this entry doesn't really seem like a controversy, more "the show's fandom is well-known for having a vocal NSFW section".

NoUsername she's only programmed to be very nice Since: May, 2012
she's only programmed to be very nice
#1602: Apr 25th 2021 at 12:30:08 PM

i would say "bronies are overshadowed by the NSFW side of the fanbase causing outsiders to assume they're all disturbed and/or child predators" is a valid example, it's a similar case as with furries. but the way this is written comes dangerously close to violating ROCEJ ("the brony community is viewed as a test run for the alt-right"??). it should be written less like "the show itself is overshadowed by the fact that bronies exist".

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1603: Apr 25th 2021 at 12:32:49 PM

I do think MLP:FIM is overshadowed by the inappropriate section of the brony fandom, or at least the fandom is overshadowed by that vocal minority and the associated controversies (like the Molestia clusterfuck). Other adult fandoms for children's shows have managed to exist without a reputation like this.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
themayorofsimpleton Short-Term Projects Herald | he/him from the Island of Koridai (Captain) Relationship Status: I won't say I'm in love
Short-Term Projects Herald | he/him
#1604: Apr 25th 2021 at 12:34:38 PM

I don't think bronies were a test run for the alt-right. I'm an ex-brony (and I do not like bronies currently, mind you,) and alt-right content was not, at least in my experience, something that was as common as, say, the NSFW stuff. The bronies were not the beginning of the alt-right, they weren't anything like Gamergate was. There were alt-right elements, yes, but I don't think they ran the show the way they did with GG.

Edited by themayorofsimpleton on Apr 25th 2021 at 3:38:40 PM

Works That Require Cleanup of Complaining | Troper Wall
mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1605: Apr 25th 2021 at 12:39:46 PM

There has been....some controversy regarding brony content and neo-Nazi stuff, including a sorta-recent Recurring Fanon Character named "Aryanne," but I don't think that's what most people think of when they think of bronies, especially because it's relatively recent and I don't know how prominent it actually is outside of certain hellscapes (I haven't been involved in brony stuff for years). I think the Rule 34 and the culture clash between bronies and the intended young fandom is more infamous.

[down] I didn't see much about her until very recently, but apparently she dates back to 2014. I saw an analysis once that theorized the alt-right thing might be due to the /mlpol/ merged-board 4chan prank from a few years back. I think it's just issues with 4chan that leak into the brony reputation because bronies began on 4chan, but have obviously branched out beyond that.

Edited by mightymewtron on Apr 25th 2021 at 4:06:09 AM

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
DDRMASTERM do you wanna have a bad time? from Someplace, Utah, USA Since: Apr, 2013 Relationship Status: You cannot grasp the true form
do you wanna have a bad time?
#1606: Apr 25th 2021 at 12:52:59 PM

Another Ex-Brony here, one who was even (and maybe still technically am) an admin of a Fimfiction group. It probably did overshadow the MLP:FIM show itself, as it's one of the most bizarre cases of Periphery Demographic out there with some extremely infamous (though hardly atypical) adult elements. And there was definitely some gatekeeping elements to the community. But to call it a "test run for the alt-right" is horrendously unfair and probably should be cut or downgraded to accusations instead of acting like it's an indisputable fact.
[up] That Fanon Character has been around for years, since I was active in the Brony fandom.

Edited by DDRMASTERM on Apr 25th 2021 at 2:47:48 AM

jandn2014 SMILE! from somewhere in Connecticut Since: Aug, 2017 Relationship Status: Hiding
SMILE!
#1607: Apr 25th 2021 at 2:18:46 PM

Is the show really overshadowed by its fandom anymore, though? I haven’t seen many self-identifying bronies in a while outside of dedicated fan sites, with many of the fans I’ve seen being either not male and/or teens/young adults. Besides, the show ended in 2019, and the fandom has long passed its zenith of popularity from 2011 to 2015.

Nevertheless, the fandom itself might still being Overshadowed by Controversy, especially due to its relationship with the alt-right. I remember seeing a news article not long ago about a mass shooter that was part of the alt-right that mentioned that the shooter was a fan of the show in its title (likely for sensationalist reasons).

Edited by jandn2014 on Apr 25th 2021 at 5:18:52 AM

RallyBot2 (Elder Troper) Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
#1608: Apr 25th 2021 at 2:58:35 PM

...Hold on, you're actually being serious about this?

I have a hard time believing that a children's cartoon would be overshadowed by its Periphery Demographic (though if any cartoon would be, this is the one.) Regardless, "bronies exist" is not a controversy.

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1609: Apr 25th 2021 at 3:05:55 PM

[up] As somebody who's been in the MLP fandom before and has seen not just the online backlash, but the mainstream reception to the show and its fandom, yeah, it is worth discussing?

It's hard to say whether the backlash stems from the actual controversial issue of Rule 34 or just a tendency to mock the very fact an adult male fandom for MLP exists, but can you talk about MLP:FIM outside of a dedicated fandom space without somebody bringing up weird brony porn at some point?

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
NoUsername she's only programmed to be very nice Since: May, 2012
she's only programmed to be very nice
#1610: Apr 25th 2021 at 3:32:18 PM

at least at their peak, bronies were definitely a major example of Periphery Demographic essentially unprecedented by any other work of children's media; they had media coverage, the show's promotional material and producers interacted with them regularly, a lot of merchandise was made specifically for them, etc. the closest i can think of is maybe Transformers, but even then they didn't receive the level of media coverage on the "culture" that bronies did (likely because of the double standard of a "boys' cartoon" versus a "girls' cartoon", i'd imagine). as i mentioned before, the media treatment of bronies was on a level only comparable to furries, and there was more than one instance of people conflating the two, or otherwise assuming the grosser side of the fanbase made up the majority of it. again, i wouldn't say the show itself was overshadowed by bronies—it was a still a major success with the target demographic, after all—but that bronies were overshadowed by the reaction to them and especially with how people assumed the porn/shock content was the majority of it, rather than just being harmlessly "adults enjoying a childrens' show". the way the entry phrases it as "bronies overshadow MLP because they made NSFW content and were a test run for the alt-right" is certainly unfair and inaccurate.

HamburgerTime Since: Apr, 2010
#1611: Apr 25th 2021 at 5:33:01 PM

Similar to MLP, here's another entry where I'm not sure on where it falls on OBC vs. "controversy exists but doesn't overshadow:" H.P. Lovecraft, who is listed for his extreme-even-for-his-time racist views.

In the "is OBC" pile, virtually every introduction to a collection of his stories will mention his views, even his most die-hard fans will admit that at least some of his stories are clear white supremacist allegories (Horror at Red Hook, Medusa's Coils, probably Shadow Over Innsmouth), and there was that hubbub a few years back where some sci-fi award (can't recall the name) stopped using a bust of his head to avoid implying that they endorsed his views.

In the "is not OBC" pile, his work is still enormously influential, adaptations from films to video games to humorous parody musicals are made to this day, despite his views there are many creators of color who have been inspired by him, to the point that "anti-racist Lovecraft" is sort of a subgenera of its own that has cropped up in recent years (ie. Get Out, Overlord, and of course Lovecraft Country) and in general I don't really hear people talk about him in the same "just the idea of partaking in his work makes my skin crawl" way as people like Roman Polanski and Orson Scott Card... though that may be because he's dead, and indeed died long before most people cared much about these issues.

Opinions?

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1612: Apr 25th 2021 at 5:38:08 PM

While it does sound like a muddy situation, I'd argue that the existence of "anti-racist Lovecraft" as a genre could support the idea of Lovecraft being OBC, because his own works are overshadowed by his racism to the degree that there needs to be a specific effort to reclaim the genre he codified. Lovecraft as a genre being overshadowed seems different than Lovecraft as a creator being overshadowed.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
DDRMASTERM do you wanna have a bad time? from Someplace, Utah, USA Since: Apr, 2013 Relationship Status: You cannot grasp the true form
do you wanna have a bad time?
#1613: Apr 25th 2021 at 5:52:37 PM

Yeah, there’s no getting around the fact that Lovecraft was extremely racist even by the standards of his time.

WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (8,356/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (8,356/50,000)
#1614: Apr 25th 2021 at 5:54:10 PM

Yeah, I think Lovecraft as a writer is definitely overshadowed, but the actual Lovecraftian Horror genre lives on.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
NoUsername she's only programmed to be very nice Since: May, 2012
she's only programmed to be very nice
#1615: Apr 25th 2021 at 6:22:41 PM

i would say lovecraft is a similar example to J.K. rowling or notch where they as creators have been overshadowed by their controversy even when their work itself lives on, yeah. there's no getting around that lovecraft was incredibly racist and even his own work was painted by his racism and fear of the "other", but in the modern day people work to separate the creation from the creator and make that an important distinction

chasemaddigan I'm Sad Frogerson. Since: Oct, 2011
I'm Sad Frogerson.
#1616: Apr 25th 2021 at 6:50:03 PM

Yeah, some of the racism in Lovecraft's work isn't so much subtext but... text. Like, there's one story where the protagonist literally names his cat after the N-word. He was not subtle about it, at all.

Nen_desharu Nintendo Fanatic Extraordinaire from Greater Smash Bros. Universe or Toronto Since: Aug, 2020 Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Nintendo Fanatic Extraordinaire
#1617: Apr 25th 2021 at 7:55:50 PM

Let me chime in about the MLP:FiM controversy.

I'm not a Brony, though I am a huge fan of the Kirby games ever since I played Kirby's Adventure on the NES back when it was new. I originally wanted to be a Brony (given the similarity to Kirby in aesthetics), but I was turned off by the increasingly toxic fanbase.

I must say that the show itself isn't the problem. The fanbase is the problem (though not all Bronies are toxic). It is inevitable that the larger the fanbase, the more toxic it becomes. The Kirby fanbase is nowhere as controversial, despite Kirby being among the major Nintendo franchises.

Regarding Lovecraft, he was racist, even during his time.

Edited by Nen_desharu on Apr 25th 2021 at 11:02:06 AM

Kirby is awesome.
mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1618: Apr 25th 2021 at 9:40:34 PM

[up] That doesn't really explain if the fandom is overshadowed by controversy though.

As for Lovecraft, we seem to agree that yes, the man was horribly racist, and his own works are overshadowed by that in recent years, but the genre he codified is not.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
magnumtropus Since: Aug, 2020
#1619: Apr 25th 2021 at 10:17:58 PM

Obviously, way too early to bring it up but... I think the 93rd Academy Awards could have a spot here in 6 months.

  • The first major complaint was how they handled the In Memoriam Section, where they went with a rapid slideshow, not giving people time to see names.
  • The second was them announcing Best Actor as the last award of the night instead of Best Picture. It appeared that they were banking on a posthumous win by Chadwick Boseman, but ended with Hopkins victory

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1620: Apr 25th 2021 at 10:28:39 PM

[up] It literally happened a few hours ago. Come back in October and we'll see if anybody still cares that much. Maybe it will, but we gotta remember that the internet has a collective short term memory.

Edited by mightymewtron on Apr 25th 2021 at 1:29:26 PM

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
Delibirda from Splatsville Since: Sep, 2020 Relationship Status: I wanna be your dog
#1621: Apr 25th 2021 at 11:57:56 PM

I agree we can cut the MLP thing. It is more like a general discussion of the fanbase than any kinda OBC. Plus, it is bashy.

Edited by Delibirda on Apr 26th 2021 at 9:03:32 PM

"Listen up, Marina, because this is SUPER important. Whatever you do, don't eat th“ “DON'T EAT WHAT?! Your text box ran out of space!”
mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1622: Apr 26th 2021 at 12:00:09 AM

[up] Even if it's not the truth, if the perception based on controversy precedes the reality then it's worth mentioning.

I just don't know if this is truly controversy or just your everyday stigma.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#1623: Apr 26th 2021 at 1:24:51 AM

I am rather dubious about Lovecraft being overshadowed by his racism. Most times when the man is mentioned it's about his works and the tentacled monsters, not about his attitudes to race.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
DDRMASTERM do you wanna have a bad time? from Someplace, Utah, USA Since: Apr, 2013 Relationship Status: You cannot grasp the true form
do you wanna have a bad time?
#1624: Apr 26th 2021 at 6:20:54 AM

[up] I stand by it personally, I literally can’t think of a time where Lovecraft is discussed or mentioned these days where the issue of his racism didn’t come up.

SkylaNoivern Since: Sep, 2016
#1625: Apr 26th 2021 at 8:30:11 AM

I do think Lovecraft as a writer is better known for how bigoted he was and its one of the few things that pops up when I think of him. I see a lot of memes about the fact his cat was called a slur, for instance.


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