We have a healthy amount of soapbox entries coming in, so I'm increasing the number this week. If you have no idea what this is, we have started a series where you, the reader, can submit your feedback for the fandom to directly judge in a post! The article can be anything at all involving either ponies or the brony fandom.
Anyway, your headlines:
- (Don't Fear) The Hiatus
- The CMC Have the Potential to Finally Show Us Zebra Culture
- Why Season 5 and 6 are a Step Backwards
- They're Like Me - Lyra and Bonbon LGBT
- Entitlement and Mirroring the Universe
- More Respect for Scootaloo!
- In Defense of Background and Secondary Ponies
Go get them below!
(Don't Fear) The Hiatus
By: Phonic Boom
Sue me. I watched the finale early. I regret nothing. Part one set up central characters and circumstances that had me chomping at the bit for part two. Part two... kinda disappointed due to not-so-gripping action and not much humor, BUT I'm still happy with this episode for how it leaves us for the hiatus. The character interactions and lore development leave us, the bronies, with LOTS to work with -- fanfic authors have plenty of new lore and what-ifs to build on; shippers have fuel for a couple new pairings of old characters who hadn't previously shared any screentime; artists have some incredible new locations and character designs to draw; and we may even see a new OC trend. While the finale wasn't the most entertaining episode (and frankly, there were several episodes this season that are gonna be hard to top anyway!) it definitely has me looking forward to the waves of fan content we'll be producing during the hiatus, and I think that's the real mark of a successful season finale.
So there. No spoilers, but if you still wanna egg my house for watching early, you can direct your angry tweets to @phonicboomunltd. <3 p="">
<3 p="">
The CMC Have The Potential to Finally Show us What Zebra Culture is Like
By: selfproclaimed
By: selfproclaimed
One of the most promising things that occurred this season is showing what direction the Cutie Mark Crusaders are taking now that they’ve finally gotten their cutie marks. While it was hardly a question that they could individually hold their own in an episode, one could wonder what direction the three could possibly go now. Thanks in particular to The Fault in Our Cutie Marks we now see the group solving Cutie Mark problems (paralleling how the Mane Six are now solving friendship problems).
Why Seasons 5 and 6 are a Step Backwards
By: Kifstopher
I get asked why I think Seasons 5 and 6 aren't as good as 4 or 2 often, so let’s talk about why.
Now, The M6 have had their (un)fair share of episodes throughout the series, some good, some bad, but as the series has progressed, there’s been a disappointing trend. In earlier seasons, the scope of an episode generally was to establish something new about Ponyville, like holidays, how things work, new friendships, etc., because it would affect the characters directly. Worldbuilding is a popular term for it.
But as of Season 5 and 6, the show has begun to spend the M6’s (and Spike’s) episodes less on these things and more on stories about traveling to distant lands or doing minor conflicts for comedy. The problem with this is that the show is no longer taking risks in its stories. If Twilight and Fluttershy go off to save Whogivesacrapville from the dangers of Whateverthefart, then the writers basically have told us nothing relevant to the overall series. They’re not required to bring Whogivesacrapville back, or even reference it ever again, and that’s what’s wrong with Seasons 5 and 6.
(You’ll notice that I’ve left the CMC out of this, and that’s because their episodes almost always deal with new information and new lessons, which stay relevant to the show. It seems having them be restricted to Ponyville isn’t as bad as it seems. It’s too bad that they only got 3 this season.)"
They're Like Me
By: Sirius Face
Would it have mattered to your younger self if your favorite cartoon had a positive representation of an LGBT character, clearly in a relationship? I believe MLP can and should show a positive acknowledgment of same-sex couples to a young audience.
In 2013, the William’s Institute published an article titled LGBT Parenting in the United States, which stated, “more than 110,000 same-sex couples are raising an estimated 170,000 biological, step, and adopted children”. The article continued with, “as many as 6,000,000 American children and adults have an LGBT parent”. It is reasonable to assume those numbers have grown three years later.
A wide audience watches MLP. Now consider Lyra and Bon Bon, showcased in episode 100 as being ‘best friends’. What if their first speaking appearance had been a Korrasami moment, presenting a quiet, respectful acknowledgement of their mutual attraction to each other? Again, what if your younger self watched that play out, and saw that it was completely normal?
Entitlement and Mirroring the Universe
By: Alex I
This is a wake-up call for the pony fandom. In the wake of recent entitled behavior on Twitter, "Big Jim" Miller, supervising director of Friendship is Magic, tweeted that he is "deliberating shutting [his Twitter account] down for good."
In that moment, I thought about the Steven Universe fandom which drove one of that show’s storyboard artists off of Twitter because she sketched a character pairing that a few very vocals fans disliked. Her final tweet read: "I decided I don’t want to be accessible to thousands of people who think because I work on a TV show that I owe them myself all the time."
Sound familiar?
Remember: We are all people. No one wants to be asked "Why don’t you listen to me?" by complete strangers every hour of the day. Jim and his team work their butts off throughout the year to produce the best possible entertainment that they can also feel proud of and enjoy.
No one can replace Lauren, but at the minimum we should be able to accept the show for what it is now. If you can’t, then stay in seasons 1 and 2 and leave the rest of us alone.
#ToughLoveAndTolerance
More respect for Scootaloo
By: Rocket Punk
I know some of you will laugh at me, but I don’t really care. I’m getting more and more pissed off about people calling Scootaloo by a specific bird name. While it could have been fun for 2 weeks, Scoots is still called “chicken”, and because of that, it appears in the show.
Seriously, guys, grow old a little, for Luna’s sake! Yes, she can’t fly (yet), but she’s cool, not that afraid of anything, so please, stop call her chicken. Maybe thanks to that, we’ll finally get another Scootaloo episode, since the one and only we got was “Look Before You Sleep”, way back in Season 4, while Season 6 is coming to an end.
I have a dream where this orange and magenta filly gets the place she deserves. I really dream of an episode where she finally learns to fly, with all CMCs cheering her up, and maybe even stuns Rainbow Dash when she sees how fast she has learned.
Scootaloo deserves our respect. Show her your Scootalove, guys, and we’ll get a really kick-ass episode.
In Defense of Background and Secondary Ponies
By: Litrojia
Our fandom has a reputation for making personalities out of random ponies. Background ponies like Lyra, Derpy, and Octavia along with secondary characters like Trixie and Coco Pommel have attracted so much attention that they've become fixtures in both the fandom and the show.
While the classic "background ponies" hold a special place in our hearts, new characters have trouble reaching similar levels of popularity. This season alone, we've had a handful of new secondary characters, such as Ember, Zephyr Breeze, Saffron Masala, and Gabby. While these characters got a whole lotta love when they were introduced, they mostly faded into obscurity after the next week's episode. This season featured a lot of pretty cool background ponies too, but hardly any of them were even named, and none of them attracted more than afterthoughts.
So here's my plea: don't just glance over underappreciated ponies. While cartoon horses may not have feelings, you can always breathe a bit of life into them. If you're a content creator, maybe give a forgotten pony a chance and write a story or make a blog about them.
