Where is everyone?

[Markness]

Do people still intend to post here when they have more time? I have a backlog of late replies I need to actually do, especially the Excel Saga references in the latest Koukaku no Pandora book and my recent fondness of Aspen, Titan, and AWA comics. It's just that activity dropped and that was discouraging to see. 

[Daikun]

Some of us are still here. Active membership isn't as big as it used to be.

[Avaitor]

Between message boards increasingly becoming a relic of the "old internet"- Reddit more or less covers a lot of that market nowadays- and the core userbase growing up and having their responsibilities expand, it does seem like it's harder to help this site grow. We have one or two things in the works that will hopefully bring some attention, and ideally some new blood over, but I don't expect this forum to get much busier than this.

I'll admit, I sometimes struggle to come up with posts nowadays. For instance, I've been wanting to reply to Marquis' recent post in The Boondocks thread, but I just haven't really had the chance to put into words what I want to say. I know I could probably do more to help AR grow, but there's only so much that can really happen IMO.

But hey, please don't stop posting and making new threads. I always like reading them, even if I can't always come up with the right response.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I lurk on these boards just about every day, and am usually keeping up with what people are saying in the topics that I'm interested in. That said, yeah, like was mentioned above, most of us have become increasingly busier in our day-to-day lives. I still hold a lot of value for this site, and it's really the only place I can come to in order to share my thoughts on stuff that I'm interested in, but it's hard for me to actually write as often as I used to given how taxing my work schedule can be.

[Mustang]

I'm usually lurking everyday as well. Always in the videogame section. This week I've been lacking due to being sick unfortunately.

[LumRanmaYasha]

I lurk and visit regularly, I just don't have much time to post and participate in discussions as much these days. I tend to be more active on Twitter and Discord, but I try not to spend too much time posting on there either.

[Foggle]

Pretty much the same for me as everyone else. I still try to check out the forums at least once a day, but I don't have a lot of time to post unfortunately. I also feel like I really don't have much to add in most discussions. Despite my absence, I don't want to see the board shut down and I'm happy to keep it running as long as people enjoy it, even if it's less active now than it used to be.

[Daxdiv]

I just like to check in from time to time as well. Nothing much, there are at least some gems posted here and there.

[talonmalon333]

I haven't been around as much (in fact, my last post was 2021), but I still love coming back here and seeing things are still running. I'm 31 years old now and I've known some people here since I was 15. That's half of my lifespan so far. A lot has definitely happened. In fact, my brother just got married a few weeks ago! But no matter how much time passes between visits, logging onto this website always has a "coming home" feeling.

I hope you guys are doing well! I'm going to check out some of the threads.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Congrats to your brother, and always great to see you back here!

And yeah, it's wild to think about how long we've been a community for. I don't really use social media and have never joined any other forums (and I don't use reddit), so this is the only online interaction that I ever have. I'm always checking in every day even if I don't always post.

[Avaitor]

Oh wow, congrats to your brother! Speaking of which, my sister just got engaged last night herself. It's kind of funny, I was the one that was expected to be married first when I was still with my ex, but that just didn't happen, and I'm happy that she's found someone when she's been so worried about ending up alone.

And like EK, I check the site every day, sometimes even going through old threads. I miss some of our older members, but I'm glad that it's around even if it's not as busy as it used to be.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Congrats on your brother's marriage Talon and your sister's engagement Avaitor!  My sister is actually getting married in December herself!

Even though I don't comment on here as much anymore, I do still check the site regularly and keep up with convos happening. AR was the first close-knit community I was apart of so these forums and you guys will always have a special place in my heart. <3

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I do miss having someone to discuss weekly manga and other series with on a regular basis, so it's always nice to see you drop by, Lum.

Was curious if you had any particular favorite(s) among the weekly WSJ line-up currently. I haven't had time to get around to everything, myself, but Akane-Banashi has helped fill a hole for me left by the cancelation of Act-Age (which was sadly justified due to the gross actions of the author), and is easily my personal favorite of any current series that are still in their first year of publication.

[Mustang]

Congrats to your brother talon.

I'm pretty in the same boat as Ensatsu. I don't do social media. I have a facebook account but I don't remember my password and don't feel like creating a new one or going through the hassle of resetting. I'm on Twitch a lot if that counts as social media. Twitter, Instagram and Reddit? Oh dear God, no.

I'm old school all the way. Forums/message boards for life.

I'm always here talking to myself. 

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I'm always here talking to myself. 

I do actually read your video game posts, for the record. I just tend to not comment as much since I'm usually too burned out from work to feel like typing as much as I used to and generally I don't have too much to say or add unless I happen to be knowledgeable enough about the game or topic that you're talking about.