My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

Originally posted by Byrd
And I like it that the idea of problem solving doesn't come down to "who can swear the loudest, snarl the loudest, strut the best, or wave the biggest weapon." That "let's think about this" works.

Gah, jeeze, how did I forget to mention that?! yes, that's a big appeal to the show as well.

In most children's cartoons, the "brainy" character is, by dint of their own existence, always wrong and more often than not, pedantic and obnoxious while being wrong. Rather than use learning or intelligence to save the day, these cartoons tell kids to just doof around and hope that their random actions or, perhaps "faith" will show them the right way.

Twilight Sparkle however, breaks that mold. She's intelligent without being annoying about it, and more often than not, actually does know what she's talking about - not always, but usually. "Book" is not a four-letter word in FiM (well... it is... but... you know what I mean.) While most any other cartoon would have her friends constantly trying to "rescue" her from her reading, as if it were an intervention for an alcoholic, in this show they accept, even admire the character for her studies.

Rarity also breaks the mold in this way, though it can be hard to tell sometimes. In most any kid's show, the female who's interested in fashion and looking good is invariably shallow, superficial, dumb as a bowl of frogurt, and very often, Bitchy McBitchenpants (this mold applies in adult media to any male who's interested in fashion, with the addition that he's a flaming gay caricature. Always. Thus we'll probably never see that guy in a kid's cartoon)

Rarity, however, doesn't really fit that. She has occasional bouts of snootiness, but they tend to get her nowhere - or else she overcomes them and is better for it. And of course she dislikes getting dirty, but really, who doesn't? She's portrayed as intelligent and clever, generous to a fault, and as mentioned before, she's not a shopaholic; she's a craftspers...pony.

The characters do have faults and strengths. The faults get them clunked in the head, strengths advance the day. This is generally unlike the competition, where a character's fauklts exist solely until they don't and then never have any consequence.

It all blends together to make a show about, you know, ponies far more immersive and interesting than a show about, for example, a sponge.it makes a point to not insult the viewer's intelligence; and trust me, kids know when they're being spoken down to by a glorified flipbook. I think that fact is part of theappeal to older audiences.

It's like how our parents could enjoy a show about a crossdressing rabbit and his anvil-dropping companions without flinching - that guy didn't treat the audience like dips, either.

Originally posted by TheWalkingFox
Twilight Sparkle however, breaks that mold. She's intelligent without being annoying about it, and more often than not, actually does know what she's talking about - not always, but usually. "Book" is not a four-letter word in FiM (well... it is... but... you know what I mean.) While most any other cartoon would have her friends constantly trying to "rescue" her from her reading, as if it were an intervention for an alcoholic, in this show they accept, even admire the character for her studies.

I find that the cartoon has often hit a number of my "painful wince buttons."

Like a lot of geeks, I'm not really good with socializing (I miss all the cues.) I have often been criticized for seeming to be too "uppity" or "know it all", by folks who aren't aware that I'm just blown away by the amount of knowledge others have. I had gotten to the point where I hated to speak up and hated to talk about myself, even to family and friends (which feels pretty lonely.) That particular episode reminded me that if someone's my friend, they aren't really going to be disturbed by my latest interest (or that I can casually toss out the names of dragonfly species and so forth).

I think the storytelling addresses a lot of minor but interesting social points. The "moral at the end" is good reinforcement for the story (even if it sometimes seems painfully obvious) -- it's really just good storytelling.

Are you a Terry Pratchett fan as well?

Originally posted by Byrd
Are you a Terry Pratchett fan as well?

If I were, would you finally accept that marriage proposal?

I've read one of his books. I enjoyed it. Main problem is I simply lack shelf space for 'em, so... yeah. Gotta keep those shelves well-stocked with biology and history texts!

I'm guessing you're talking about hte Boat Busters episode in particular? Please tell me I'm not alone in hoping Snips and Snails suffer a horrible death involving fire ants in season two.

Dots And Dashes

Here's a rather random bit of pony-related Internet lore. If you see this emoticon...

/)^3^(\

...it refers to this:

Fig. 1: Fangirl powers... ACTIVATE!

Its exact meaning varies depending on context, ranging from the more obvious "Squee!" to "Worst. Hangover. Ever." to "Summon medical attention immediately, I'm suffering from anaphylactic shock".

Hip, savvy pony insiders use this emoticon a lot, so don't be left out of the Herd. Use liberally.

Which reminds me, Season Two is just a little over two weeks away.

Squee! /)^3^(\

Hehehehe

People all discussing the intellectual merit of a remake of a TV show designed to sell toys. Oh internet this is why I love you.

I love the Internet because of the irony.

reply to post by FEDec


Well, when you get down to it, every movie or TV show is designed to sell something to the audience. And a great many of them are designed to sell things far more harmful to the consumer than toy ponies. Even with that being a given, a good number of these feature-length advertisements still have some value all on their own, in regards to entertainment and even intellectual discourse.

Part of the "catch" of this particular instance is that it's good despite being a marketing ploy trying to get little girls to want toys (especially given that the toys only superficially resemble the characters in the show. Yeesh). a lot of that is of course attributable to the producer, who in my exoerience, seems as interested in quality as in getting material out there.

And also?
Stop the hatin', bro

Im fully aware of the marketing tactics TV uses. I am just also aware that the pony fanbase seem to spend an inordinate amount of time rationalizing their love of the show.

"Oh dudebro just so many facets and depth to it how can you not like it?" Pfft come on people you don't like it for the depth you like it cause its cute and silly. That's fine just admit it and stop trying to make like it's the second coming rolled in bacon.

"Mmmm... Bacon..."

Originally posted by FEDec
That's fine just admit it and stop trying to make like it's the second coming rolled in bacon.

Ahh, but therein lies the irony, because it IS the second coming rolled in bacon. Mark my words, on that fateful day when the ponies come for you, all will be revealed.

Meanwhile, here...

Fig. 1: Filly Fluttershy. Cute and silly, or proof of the Second Coming?

Have a pony.

reply to post by FEDec


Oh, absolutely I love it because it's cute and silly. But if it were just cute and silly, i'd quickly grow bored of it and find something else o occupy my time.

Lolcats are cute and silly. I haven't intentionally looked at them since 2008.

Originally posted by TheWalkingFox
reply to post by FEDec

 

Lolcats are cute and silly. I haven't intentionally looked at them since 2008.

Who intentionally looks at lolcats? Seriously? They're just something that once popped up on forums until the people posting them got tired of being made fun of ruthlessly. I think I get the message though some people's excitement threshold is significantly lower than others.

"Oh ahaha cats with words, could anything be better? OMG they made a show about ponies? THIS IS LITERALLY THE MOST GENIUS THING EVER!!! Uh... I mean really guys it actually has depth and the characters are developed really well, yeah... That's why I watch it. Yeah that's the ticket."

Originally posted by FEDec
"Oh ahaha cats with words, could anything be better? OMG they made a show about ponies? THIS IS LITERALLY THE MOST GENIUS THING EVER!!! Uh... I mean really guys it actually has depth and the characters are developed really well, yeah... That's why I watch it. Yeah that's the ticket."

Lemme give you a different perspective (WARNING: IT'S A "TRIP TO PLANET BYRD" MOMENT)

I'm a member of the Healing Story Alliance -- a professional storyteller in many venues. As a storyteller, I'm VERY aware of how the stories a culture tells itself shape it. Stories involve news stories, songs, folktales, urban legends, fiction, biographies, movies, tv shows.

Most of the ones we have nowadays aren't healing. They go over the top and model "this broken person survives" but they don't actually model HOW things should be. We don't see "perfect families" or "role model families" that aren't toxic on some level. The "comedies" involve family members putting each other down to make the audience laugh -- but in real life, if you lived with that kind of constant sniping against you, you become bitter or broken.

I don't watch much tv, but my favorite shows involve healthy stories which deal with consequences and relationships. I like the new Dr. Who, for example. I can't stand "Lost" (my husband is working through all the episodes and the lame plots and everything else) -- it's "edge of the seat" storytelling and it's relationships but everything's managed via deus ex machina (the "traveling through time" and "constant flashbacks" were the "jump the shark" moment for me.) I like Laurie Berkner's songs (a musician who specializes in children's songs) and Raffi and Jim Croce (and similar.)

These stories heal and model behavior that improves relationships. The "in your face" stuff or shallow friendship stuff (like "Scooby Doo") may be fun but they're not healing and they don't model anything.

So, from the storyteller's standpoint this is the kind of story I want to bring to my own audiences and I sometimes use these twists when I'm telling Coyote stories or Wild West stories to audiences.

[THIS IS THE END OF THE TRIP TO PLANET BYRD. WE NOW RETURN YOU TO YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED REALITY.]

Originally posted by TheWalkingFox

Originally posted by Byrd
Are you a Terry Pratchett fan as well?

If I were, would you finally accept that marriage proposal?

Lemme check with my husband!

I've read one of his books. I enjoyed it. Main problem is I simply lack shelf space for 'em, so... yeah. Gotta keep those shelves well-stocked with biology and history texts!

....Kindle.... come over to the DARK KINDLE side! They're available in black... just like mine! And you can find a MLP skin for it, too, I believe.

(gestures hypnotically... Kindle... Kindle...)

reply to post by Byrd


Fair enough. Also I totally agree with you that Lost is bogus. It's a populist nightmare that has to keep nudging you and saying "aren't these storylines WIERD and OUT-THERE?

reply to post by FEDec

If I may be so bold as to pry... have you seen the show?

I'm not trying to be a smart aleck or anything; I'm just curious.

Originally posted by Majic
reply to post by FEDec

 

If I may be so bold as to pry... have you seen the show?

I'm not trying to be a smart aleck or anything; I'm just curious.

I was curious about the whole brony phenomenon so I watched the first episode. I expected it to be funnier, though maybe it picks up or just isn't my sense of humour. Truth be told for reasons I can't quite explain I find it a little creepy when people my age get into stuff like this.

Wow. I can't believe there are bronies on a serious site like ATS.

I am eagerly anticipating Season Two. Ten days!

Role Reversal

reply to post by FEDec

It's not for everybody, but I do think its appeal grows as one works through the series.

The first two episodes are the "establishing shots" of the series, so to speak, and while I like them, a lot of fans prefer the tenor of the subsequent shows, which are more episodic and tend to have a more whimsical quality.

Or, if you prefer, cuter and sillier.

As far as being creeped out, I can understand that. My first impression when the show was recommended to me was to look somewhat askance at that. It's a girls' show, right? What kind of perv watches those?

The more I've seen of the series, though, the more it reminds me of other cartoons featuring talking animals, like Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse and so on.

It's a lot less "girly" than anyone would expect, given the name and nature of the franchise. So much so, in fact, that one of the more ironic memes surrounding the show (and quite popular among YouTube commentators) is to say:

"Girls watch this show?!?"

Byrd,

Every time you buy a Kindle, Amazon kills a book store. So no thanks.

FEDec,

The first three episodes are a little slow and formulaic. The first two are basically a remake of the original ponies feature, "Escape from Midnight Castle."

(before you ask, I only know that because of a friend practically making me watch it. Not bad for a 22-minute toy advertisement. I mean... Satan-centaur turns them into dragons, and it's very metal.)

Anyway. Your mileage may vary.

As for being creepy, well, at least the vast majority of Bronies do not cosplay. Which is more than can be said of an uncomfortable number of anime fans. I'm sure we've all seen a 33 year old man with dimensions best measured in cubic units dressed as Sailor Moon. THAT'S creepy.

As for being creepy, well, at least the vast majority of Bronies do not cosplay. Which is more than can be said of an uncomfortable number of anime fans. I'm sure we've all seen a 33 year old man with dimensions best measured in cubic units dressed as Sailor Moon. THAT'S creepy.

Cosplay is a part of this?!?! Even a small part? No way Im out for realz. My bizarre fascination with foreign films and 70's German electronica is already doing me no favours in the relationship department.