GEEWUN
GEEWUN is a snarky fan term for people who seem to have knee-jerk negative reactions to, and continuing difficulty in tolerating any of the post-Generation 1 (aka "G1") incarnations of the Transformers property (keeping in mind that for some, "post-G1" means "anything after 1985"). Although by no means universal, a few GEEWUNNERS also tend to enjoy Beast Wars, the only true (Western) sequel series to their beloved original series.
The earliest recorded use of the term "Geewun" (spelled as a normal word, not in all caps) originated with a TFArchive.com user named Cliffjumper, who first used it in January of 2003.[1] Since he has a tendency of coming up with mocking puns based on existing names and fandom terms, it's possible that he did indeed coin the term. The term didn't see widespread use until 2004, when it was apparently spread to other parts of the fandom (including alt.toys.transformers) by Nevermore, himself a regular member of TF Archive. Mark Bristow (aka "Bodycount") presumably also helped popularize the term.
While the phenomenon of placing Generation 1 above everything else is nothing new, when the 2007 live-action movie was in production, the fandom experienced an ongoing influx of mindlessly angry "Generation X" members who seemed to regard Transformers not as a still-evolving cultural institution and business property, but as a sacred relic of their halcyon, Reagan-era childhoods. These bitter young people made their voices heard by preemptively denouncing the movie... not because it would ruin Transformers forever, but because it would "rape their childhoods" by deviating from their rose-colored—and often incorrect—memories of the first two seasons of the original cartoon. The singularly unfortunate phrase "[so-and-so] RAPED MY CHILDHOOD!!!!!" quickly became one of the more memorable used by this group, and used in criticism by this group's detractors, in which it seems to have taken on a life of its own and overtaken the original usage... so it goes.
For some reason, many GEEWUNNERS were particularly incensed by the fact that Optimus Prime (the truck guy, not the tape guy) had flames painted on him, a detail that Michael Bay claims to have received death threats over. It probably would have been okay if the flames were burning down some forests, though.
The term is not intended as a catch-all nickname for anybody who likes Generation 1, only those who refuse to accept anything other than it (or at least how they remember it, correctly or not). It is, alas, often used in this way by those who do not like Generation 1 and are seeking to insult those who do. Additionally, "Geewunners" themselves sometimes trot the term around as evidence of "persecution", in the process misconstruing the term to make it appear worse (i.e., claiming that people that use the term hate Generation 1 and everyone who likes it).
Much like how Ruined FOREVER spread to other fandoms, the Pokémon fandom uses the term "Genwunner" to describe fans who only like the original set of games (and occasionally Gold and Silver, the first pair of sequels). In fact, the similarities don't end there:
- Genwunners hold Red and Blue in the highest regard despite having features overshadowed by later incarnations/games (be it a shallow storyline or off-model graphics and glitches).
- The most popular character with Genwunners is believed to be a big, red-colored badass dragon that was one of the most prominently featured Pokémon at the time, and was also the most powerful "good guy" on the heroes' team in his cartoon series. (Also, Pikachu, the kid-appeal character who tended to be the closest to the main human character in the same series, doesn't seem to get quite as much attention - but that's a different story.)
- The only other games that Genwunners sometimes like are Gold and Silver. These are immediate sequels to the original games that are considered superior, but are not as widely recognized, and also feature a slew of new, unique beloved Pokémon and characters , which are again not as widely recognized as the originals.
- The games that gets the most hate from Genwunners are Black and White, which are radical re-imaginings of the franchise that prominently feature and revolve around the human characters, and various Pokémon incorporate vulgar elements in their stories and designs (for example, one Pokémon is based on a walking pile of garbage, and another Pokémon has feces that ancient people used to keep warm). Furthermore, the cover legendaries are a peaceful-looking, blue-eyed dragon with flames and a mechanical-looking dragon with red eyes, sharp teeth and a complicated design.
