Buffyverse Top 5 Community to Close

[yourlibrarian]

Today wraps up Top 5's 2023 session. This will also be buffyversetop5's final session. Petzi and I have discussed it and, while we appreciate everyone who has contributed posts to the community, particularly in the last 5 years as the fandoms have gotten quieter, we feel that there isn't sufficient interest to keep it going.

Top 5 has just completed its 19th year and there is a wealth of recs that have been shared during that time, which will remain accessible here through tags, and browsing the Library year by year. There is also the collection at AO3, which has seen changes this year. Due to the new "opt-in" default for having onsite works added to collections, there isn't even the possibility of inviting most creators to have their works included in the collection, as the invitation button is no longer showing on most people's accounts.

While bookmarks have been used for adding external works (those not on AO3) to the collection, now even works on the site need to be bookmarked. This means that if you want to browse all works in Top 5 you must now check both works in the collection and also the bookmarks.

It has been a real joy seeing the variety of works shared here over the years, not to mention discovering fanworks we might never have seen otherwise! There have also been changes in fanwork formats, new areas that were explored in them, and new names that have hit everyone's radar.

Thanks to everyone who shared in the fun of exploring the Buffyverse, and the various other Whedon fandoms with us. We hope you'll keep Top 5 in mind as a resource to share with others in the years to come.

yourlibrarian and petzipellepingo

Comments

[afrikate]

Thank you for running this year after year. I'm always delighted when the buffyverse top 5 start showing up on my reading page. I definitely understand your decision to end after this year, but I want to thank you for the joy you and all the reccers have brought.

[yourlibrarian]

Aw, thanks so much ❤️

[thenewbuzwuzz]

Understandable. Thank you for all your work over the years!

"We hope you'll keep Top 5 in mind as a resource to share with others in the years to come."
I do that all the time. 💙 It's such an amazing resource!

[yourlibrarian]

Thanks for that, we hope it'll keep getting used 🙂

[sparrow2000]

Sad news, but understandable. Sincere thanks again to both of you for keeping the community running for so long and for leaving such a wonderful legacy of recommendations as a resource for people to discover and rediscover great work across our fandoms. Huge round of applause for all your hard work through the years and thank you again. :)

[yourlibrarian]

Thanks so much to you for helping it run a few more years with your contributions ❤️

[sparrow2000]

My pleasure. It was always great fun coming up with the lists and a great impetus to make sense of my bookmarks! :)

[double_dutchess]

I can see why, but I'm still sorry to hear you are calling it a day. (And I know it wouldn't have made any difference, but I still feel a bit guilty for not managing to share any Top Fives this year -- it was lack of time, not interest, I promise!)
I am using Buffyverse Top 5 a lot as a resource and will definitely keep doing so. Thank you both so much for having run this wonderful event for so many years!

[yourlibrarian]

Thank you, and we're glad to hear you'll keep utilizing and sharing it 🙂 We can understand the time issue too, I know I would have liked to do more this year but it's particularly bad timing for me.

I think everyone realizes the community has gotten fewer contributions overall as each year passed, and all good things have to come to an end at some point. We've had a good run!

[nondenomifan]

We all owe a debt of gratitude for all the effort you two put into running everything involved with this community! I have had difficulty just running a community with one moderator to assist me in the past, let alone running one with an accompanying web site to maintain! You're pretty darned awesome! You both have earned a reprieve.

[yourlibrarian]

Thanks so much for this 💌 It's always good to hear that people are still utilizing the community even if it's no longer open to new recs.

Unsurprisingly, it was actually less and less work in recent years with few posts to add. But the end point became clear due to the changes at AO3 as well as the near absence of contributions. As it turned out, not long after my co-mod's health issues had her leaving Dreamwidth so Top 5 would have ended anyhow.