Oldfag here.
Irisfags existed back then, but back then, every fucking one hated and shat on Iris 24/7 and the BW anime as a whole so they had no recourse but to shut the fuck up and huddle on their own little corner wary and scared of everyone and everything. They had nothing to latch on to be able to argue against or fight back. They were a minority within a minority.
Not even Iris becoming Champion in BW2 helped them because Games =/= Anime and they couldn't be any more different.
So as you can imagine, Shitneys making Iris a Champion, gave them all the validation they desperately sought, they were finally given a "weapon" with which to fight back. Now? Now they can play the victim, they were martyrs, all their suffering was "rewarded".
Personally, I would be offended if my favorite character was subject to such shoddy writing but if Irisfags had any standards then they wouldn't be Irisfags in the first place.
It's honestly downright embarrassing to watch.
