Is goth becoming more mainstream? If so, is it necessarily bad? (Part I)

The background for what I have to say is this excerpt from a panel from Dragon*Con 2009 in which Holly Hasty, Jessica Lackey, and Rogue from The Crüxshadows, DJ Ichabod, Michelle Belanger, and DJ Spider participated. The questions presented are about how goth culture elements are meandering their way into the mainstream.

The first part is mostly about Twilight and the ilk becoming mainstream hits and making elements that were originally part of the niche goth subculture into things that were accessible to everyone. I felt the first video rambled a bit, so I won't focus too much on it. But in short, the point seems to be that by having gothic elements become part of the the mainstream, it makes goth more acceptable and goth things won't be as likely to be singled out as bad, unacceptable, or deviant because they're goth. Although I agree with that sentiment from a logical standpoint, I feel we need to be careful about the general premise of what "goth" is. Can "goth" be broken down to a set of elements, or is it more complicated than that?

I remember the South Park episode in which the brooding goth kids went completely insane when everyone else in the school started getting into Twilight and wearing goth fashion, as prescribed by Hot Topic. At the end of the show, the goth kids burned down the Hot Topic and everything went back to its previous status quo. Obviously, South Park isn't going to give us a deep insider's understanding of the goth subculture, but I do think that they give an excellent portrayal of what people on the outside think goths are. Of course, Matt and Trey portrayed the goth kids as a number of the stereotypes that much of the mainstream does for goths, such as making them prone to substance abuse. I think the key idea that is at the center of that episode though is the set of interactions based on inclusion and exclusion.

Based on the perceptions of the writers, the goths not only feel like they have been scorned by the mainstream society, but they also feel territorial about their place within it. The goth kids feel like their boundaries have been breached and seek to assimilate with the prior status quo as a means of rebellion. They end up feeling completely directionless and decide to take matters into their own hands to accelerate the end of the wave of mainstream goth.

Although I do not suggest that South Park is a bastion of enlightenment, I do think they bring up a good talking point that goes back to the talk of the panel. Is the concept of goth a boundary that self-proclaimed goths establish? Is there an unacceptable price to be paid by acceptance into the mainstream? Much of the gothic subculture revolves around feelings of self-expression, but one could argue that self-expression that aligns itself to the status quo really doesn't express anything at all. Or if something is expressed, it's not novel or interesting.

If goth is considered to be "deviant" by the mainstream, then when gothic elements become wrapped up into the mainstream, an impasse is created. It leads to a slew of conflicting messages about the attitudes and identities of the subculture. I think a significant amount of the backlash that sometimes gets created by mainstream goth is because people who self-identify within the subculture begin to feel confused about their identity. Many goths care so much about their identity as "goth", and when something threatens the definitions of what they think they are, these people panic. In short, backlash against mainstream goth is a reaction of fear.

Do goths have anything to fear by mainstream usage of gothic elements? Do you think there is a threat to identity? I'd like to hear your thoughts on this.