There’s a certain kind of loneliness that comes with loving something deeply and then realising not many people around you appreciate it too. I’m talking about non-mainstream fandoms, sometimes so niche it feels like a miracle if anyone even knows what you’re talking about, let alone gets the reference.
I personally felt it with my favourite anime most of all—Beelzebub. It’s no Naruto with its neverending saga or even Attack on Titan with all the hype around it. I enjoy it and unfortunately for me, nobody else knows this anime even exists.
Don’t get me started on one of my favourite TV shows of all time, Preacher, or my long-time favourite singer, Adam Lambert. Yeah, 💅I’m not like other girls 💅 because I’m lonelier and sadder.
These fandoms feel like a ghost town.
One of the biggest cons of being in any niche fandom is the silence. There’s no constant buzz, trending hashtags, or people interacting with you on them. This severely limits the fangirling that comes with being in a fandom.
Merch? Just forget it. It’s either going to be limited, overpriced, discontinued, or all of the above. I once paid RM50 for a 1000-piece Beelzebub jigsaw puzzle because the shop didn’t have posters, only to find out the pieces didn’t even stick well together (so low quality hmmm).
Events? Adam Lambert’s first, last, and only concert here in Malaysia was in 2010 and though I was already a fan then, my parents didn’t want to bring a 12-year-old to her first concert.
Fan discussions? Buried in old forums, Tumblr archives, or tweets that were sent out in pre-Covid times by accounts that are no longer active. Yeah, I sometimes dive into old posts and reblog them just to feel something.
Sometimes it feels like screaming into the void, except the void occasionally whispers back with a single like or reaction from a stranger halfway across the world who may or may not speak your language.
But when you find your people, it hits different.
When the stars finally align and you do find someone who shares the same love, the ecstasy you’ll feel is on a whole other level.
Niche fandom connections are often deeper, more intentional. You’re not bonding over what’s popular, but over something that shaped you: a character arc that ruined you, an album that carried you through a weird phase in your life, or even a show that saved your life.
There’s more sincerity and genuine appreciation and less clout chasing because let’s face it, it is so hard to find people who share the same interests!
It may be hard, but your love is pure.
Being in a niche fandom teaches you how to like things without the need for external validation. You stop waiting for approval or needing things to be cool or mainstream to justify your enjoyment.
You love it because it resonates and means something to you. Perhaps it found you at the right time? Honestly, that love is so pure and real, I can’t even begin to explain it.
So yeah, it can be frustrating and isolating like 95% of the time. But there’s also a certain quiet joy in being part of something so small and specific. And maybe that’s the thing about being in niche fandoms.