[ALDUB Fanaticism featured image from Eat Bulaga screengrabs.] Been bothered with my timeline lately on Twitter. I admit. I occasionally snap whenever some tweet gets taken out of context. Then again I restrain myself at the thought of the other person on the other end is a human being too. I try to be less snarky about what I see and hear. And more into the positive or cheery side of what comes along. Some fans knew me for the quotes I “stole” from Spirit Science and The Mind Unleashed. Others knew me for transcribing the dialogue in the best way I could do so. In short, less time for negativity for the sake of positive ALDUB fanaticism.
But negativity is something that doesn’t go away overnight. Especially when comments keep getting worse. Whatever Rich Ilustre’s reason is behind that dog twitpic, only he knew. And he is entitled to defend himself if he didn’t think he didn’t do anything wrong. I am just bothered at how other people interpreted the picture. They even fed the perception through the term ALDOG. Some tweets even went to the extent of saying that YayaDUB is Alden’s pet dog in retaliation to the ALDUB fanaticism. Again, a reference to Rich Ilustre’s tweet.
So it was like some haters were just waiting for the right tool to use in bashing Maine Mendoza a.k.a. YayaDUB. Because apparently picking on her not-so-flattering features from her teeth to her elastic face aren’t enough.Truth be told, they will spot anything wrong with Maine’s face just so they have something to critique with. There are some quips done for the sake of fun because other people have nothing better to do with the ALDUB fanaticism. But most of the time, the intention or motive behind the tweet becomes a factor too.
But is the blame solely on these haters? No. You can quote me on that. There is a reason why the internet is one rowdy place long before the rise of ALDUB fanaticism. There are trolls as there are people that are easily offended no matter what your intention is. Imagine the energy it generates on the internet. It’s the kind of energy that can easily dispel an energy crisis. I have to admit that there are ALDUB fans that went overboard in petitioning for Rich Ilustre to be fired from his job as Sunday PinaSaya director. Others would rather see him take the dog twitpics taken down.
Well I get into slip-ups myself on Twitter. Every time I participate in ALDUB Twitter parties and I get the hashtag wrong. In less than 2 minutes, somebody replies to my tweet pointing out the misspelled hashtag. Anyone who has joined any ALDUB Twitter party can attest to that. And most of the time. I don’t know these people. It only happened once that someone I personally know has corrected me. Now this happens when you are a little too dependent on Twitter. Not always AutoCorrect but that AutoFill feature on Twitter regarding hashtags. But whenever I misspell some words I transcribe on Twitter, it easily gets ignored. Proof that there is forgiveness in the ALDUB fanaticism after all.
Then the proverbial “Walang magmo-move on” (Nobody moves on) adage in ALDUB fanaticism takes a negative turn. Of course, most fans would find it hard to move on from the “kilig” (giddy) moments. The same things applies when some negative issues pop up. If some fans could preserve some of the negative tweets in a fossilized manner for archiving purposes, they would. Just so some people would know that there is no moving on from past grudges. So you can’t blame Ms. Ai Ai delas Alas on speaking up in defense of their director against some overzealous fans.
Remember how some hecklers were howling happily online when Ms. Ai Ai’s concert was cancelled? It led to rumors about her contract with ABS-CBN not getting renewed for allegedly having “masamang ugali” (bad attitude). If she really had attitude problems, how come she keeps getting projects even in a different network? She even got a slot at the ALDUB KalyeSerye as Alden Richards’ fictional grandmother Donya Babah. And why is the Primetime Queen Marian Rivera proud to call her “kambal” (twin sister) even months after their film “Kung Fu Divas”?
Because Ms. Ai Ai delas Alas has reached a point in her career that she has proven herself. She does not give a hoot about what other people has to say. She got away with such stuff in the past since she’s a comedian. And she used this clout to unravel the inconvenient truth on Instagram in defense of Rick Ilustre AND Alden Richards. That would put some sense into the erratic side of the ALDUB fanaticism. (Thank you, Ms. A.)
Everyone is free to get angry at anyone for reasons that they understand. But the adage “Think before you click” does not apply on a few people only. It applies to everyone including ME. Because internet etiquette is everyone’s responsibility whether you’re into the ALDUB fanaticism or not. Cussing once in awhile online happens. Just don’t make it a habit. I have a dirty mouth myself so no need to proselytize on everyone else that can’t restrain themselves.
I still find it hard to shut up whenever I see the ALDOG tweets. Or any social media post that bashed Maine Mendoza. The poor girl hasn’t done anything to them. But they make it sound like she’s everything that’s wrong with GMA Network. (It’s not her fault that GMA Entertainment is grasping at straws in trying to manufacture the next global sensation. They are still pretty clueless at how massively unique the ALDUB fanaticism is.) I just blocked some of them. In case someone else tweets their hate tweets. I won’t see them anymore.
This is the illusion of freedom generated in social media. Just because you can hide behind a fake name and any random default pic that isn’t your face, you can say whatever you want and not be responsible for any after effects. Like an unsolicited Twitter war. Blocking them is easier than participating in the shame campaign that other overzealous fans has generated. Also, Rich Ilustre has taken the fall for anyone else that refused to apologize for their “honesty”. And this brings me to another pitfall in the ALDUB fanaticism.
Fanatical overzealousness is not limited to ALDUB fanaticism. But the so-called ALDUB Nation would still be the proverbial whipping boy (or girl) when it comes to social media mob mentality. Years after the threats of physical harm in the days of Kimerald (Kim Chiu and Gerard Anderson), fan threats are still taken seriously. No matter how trivial because who knows if they make true on their threats? Just when you thought religion is the only thing that can bring out the worst in people, fanatical devotions to phenomenal celebrities like Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza bring out the worst in some fans too.
I find it hard to shut up when I know some people earn the hatred that they don’t deserve. It was the same analogy I had in mind whenever I remember the great fan base divide that occurred in the Marian Rivera fanbase at PinoyExchange.com. To everyone unfamiliar with that website, it consisted of messageboards tackling various things about the Philippines. Of course, most of the traffic is generated by the celebrity forums. And so the fan base was divided into 2 – those who like Dingdong Dantes and those who hate Dingdong Dantes. He will be used as an example to demonstrate what might happen to the ALDUB fanaticism if left unchecked.
Some fans find it easy to hate on Dingdong Dantes even if he hasn’t done anything wrong to those haters. If ever he did anything wrong, he is accountable to whatever he does as a person (and now as a husband) to Marian Rivera. Not to the fans. Sorry to say it to your face. But their first baby, Maria Letizia, is already born, and some hasn’t gotten over their hatred on the poor guy. But even if the power couple known as DongYan owed their careers to their rabid fanbase, fans still should know their place in the world. So I don’t get the hatred poured on Maine Mendoza either in contrast to the still strong ALDUB fanaticism online.
If ever, it’s some of Maine’s fans that go overzealous in their admiration for her. Maine herself tried to remind her fans too about keeping the timeline positive. She already told some netizens to take their negativity elsewhere. Good for her. Some netizens pretend or evolve into haters for the sake of getting their 15 minutes of fame. Been a fan long enough online to identify the haters from the fame whores. For lack of a better term in observing the ALDUB fanaticism online.
You realize then how some of these “haters” started out as fans. And then evolve into bashers simply because their “photo-op” or selfie request was denied. Or some other similar request that got turned down. Are you really doing it because you’re into the ALDUB fanaticism? Or you’re just soliciting/chasing bragging rights in search for your own 15 minutes of fame?
I need to say that before the real rabid fans of Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza swarm on any random netizen that tweet something perceived or misinterpreted as offensive. Welcome to the internet! The place where the “balat-sibuyas” outnumbered the sarcastic people. You need to be welcomed over and over again into the internet to realize what have you gotten yourselves into. And you need to know this before you become a pawn in somebody else’s mind games. It’s easy to get carried away into an idea when you’re highly emotional or angry. It also applies when you belong to any fan group within ALDUB fanaticism territory. You think they can vouch for your atrocious behavior when shit hits the fan? Think again.
Several fan clubs online within the ALDUB fanaticism network have condemned misdemeanor done in the name of ALDUB. If you are really watching the hit KalyeSerye, how come you have forgotten the lessons imparted by Lola Nidora for months now? She may have been tempted to go back to her power-tripping ways especially when YayaDUB is at the wrong side of Donya Babah’s tactless behavior. But she tries to keep her cool. She even restrained herself from making true her uppercut threat to Donya Babah. She’s gotten nice now in order to add credence to the words of wisdom that she keeps on imparting to the audience.
Lola Nidora has become the walking public service announcement for the KalyeSerye. As opposed to Gasgas becoming the walking call-to-action advertising feature for the KalyeSerye. Both earned special spots in the ALDUB fanaticism generated on mainstream media. Writers have tweaked Lola Nidora’s character, yes. But the parental instincts remain because every mother knew how children can easily go back to their bad habits whenever the reminders stop. Have we, as a fanbase, forgotten the things she taught us about humility, patience and hard work?
Hopefully, the Rich Ilustre brouhaha served as a wake-up call for the ALDUB fanaticism. While we can never change other people’s opinion about Maine Mendoza and Alden Richards, we can choose to ignore the naysayers. Like what YayaDUB told Alden before, you always have a choice. Because it says more about them and less about us.
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