spoiler Why the Hiatus is so long

[TheJLeeTeam 914]

So currently we're still in the hiatus for MLP:FiM which started in May and it's been going on for 10 months now. Season 5 starts in Spring though it's technically Spring already and we still don't have a date. At this rate Season 5 will start in April or May which would make the hiatus a year long. There might even be another long hiatus after Season 5 hopefully not as long though. So here are my theories to why the hiatus is so long and could even apply to future hiatuses as well:

 

1. For one an episode for an animated show takes a while to make, usually several weeks or months and DHX wants to make 26 of them as good as they can. Not to mention they also have other shows to work on too.
2. Kids watch this show too, and kids don't really have as much time to watch TV as adults do. So it can be hard to keep up with an episode every week and you missed a bunch. With a hiatus you have enough time to catch up on missed episodes without worrying about keeping up to date on a new episode every week. And if you got into the show during hiatus, you would have enough time to watch each episode before the next season. It just seems a little easier and I actually like hiatuses for that reason.
3. Hasbro just wants to drag out the Rainbow Power toy line as long as they can like until the Holiday Season was over, then they would move on to their next theme.
4. Even when an episode or Season of any show is completed they usually don't air it right after they complete it. They pick an airdate which works best for the network which might be a few weeks or months after completion.

That's just why I think the hiatus is so long. And since Season 5 comes out Spring and it's technically Spring already, we should get an air date really soon.

Edited March 2, 2015 by TheJLeeTeam

[Jeric 46,834]

I'm thinking that we will have a solid date by 3/20. This is technically my first Pony hiatus and as a fan of both Sopranos and Breaking Bad I know how to deal with long breaks. It also helps having years of content to sift through in the off-season. 

 

As far as why the hiatus is so long, it is likely a business decision from Hasbro as you pointed out. The showrunners have noted several times that it's up to Hasbro, so I inferred that they were ready - Hasbro wasn't. 

[NuclearBurg (Dawn) 622]

Hmm... Kind of like the wait between season one and two of SAO. Jesus that was long.

[Bourbon Brisk 84]

I'm a kingdom hearts fan so i can wait for a pretty long time.

[Cloud Strife 928]

I waited ten years for a sequel to Luigi's Mansion. I can do this.

 

It's probably a corporate mandate of some sort. They have a schedule that they want to keep by for business reasons. After all, they're ultimately a toy corporation.

[Silver Letter 1,830]

 

 

Season 5 starts in Spring though it's technically Spring already

Technically, Spring starts March 20.

 

 

 

That's just why I think the hiatus is so long.

It's possible that it could be the case. I am not really sure myself though. I just hope they're doing their best and that the hiatus exists for a good reason.

[Marimo 555]

It's essentially that it just takes longer than a year to finish a season. I've followed enough tweets to figure that the writing process from getting the writers together at the start to finalizing the last script takes over a year, and director Jim Miller told me himself that the animation process, from storyboarding the first episode to animating the very last of a season, takes between a year to a year and a half. Then there's still going to be a gap, however small it ends up being, between when they wrap up one season and when they start up a new one.

 

So if takes longer than a year to finish up on a season, that's also going to mean they're going to have to push back the start of a new season farther than when they started the last season.

[Mesme Rize 15,681]

It's actually a test. Hasbro wants to test the loyalty of this fandom.

 

Seriously though, the thing about the Rainbow Rocks toys isn't too farfetched. As much as we love the show, at the end of the day, MLP is a buisness. Hasbro is getting left and right money for this and they want to get as much money from this, until they move to the next marketing thing.

 

Meanwhile, at Hasbro:

 

[Pastel 7,627]

I think this hiatus is longer because the show has become very popular, so they don't want to disappoint the fans.

Plus, the plots are getting more complex and the animation has gotten better (compared to the first seasons)...

[ArcheoPony 76]

I really falls down to two things. DHX now also have to do the EQG movies, plus LPS, that takes away time from working on MLP. This trend basically started with the S3-S4 hiatus. Second thing is the change in channel management, AKA the death of the Hub. The new Discovery network has it's own ideas and plans and probably have their reasons for whatever date they give the S5 premiere.

[Marimo 555]

I really falls down to two things. DHX now also have to do the EQG movies, plus LPS, that takes away time from working on MLP. This trend basically started with the S3-S4 hiatus. Second thing is the change in channel management, AKA the death of the Hub. The new Discovery network has it's own ideas and plans and probably have their reasons for whatever date they give the S5 premiere.

DHX did not do FiM exclusively before either of those, nor does the entirety of the studio work on FiM. They're worked on by different teams, with Jim Miller saying that the EqG movies have absolutely no affect on the show.

 

And the trend did not start with the S3-S4 hiatus. The S2-S3 hiatus was already longer than the S1-S2 hiatus.

Edited March 2, 2015 by Marimo

[Buck Testa 5,503]

I'm a kingdom hearts fan so i can wait for a pretty long time.

The patients of Kh fans are only second to Half life fans 

 

To answer the question though, I do believe a Goat ate the original script so they had to start over

Silly goat.

Edited March 2, 2015 by Buck Testa

[ManaMinori 4,143]

it's not so much a hiatus than it is more an interim

 

just be patient. It's a virtue

 

and better a longer wait and higher quality than a shorter wait and lower quality

[Dark Horse 12,795]

I'll wait as long as I have to, I know all too well what happens when something is rushed.. I'd rather they take the time they need and release it when they feel ready.

[AlbaTross 1,581]

So currently we're still in the hiatus for MLP:FiM which started in May and it's been going on for 10 months now. Season 5 starts in Spring though it's technically Spring already and we still don't have a date. At this rate Season 5 will start in April or May which would make the hiatus a year long. There might even be another long hiatus after Season 5 hopefully not as long though. So here are my theories to why the hiatus is so long and could even apply to future hiatuses as well:

 

 

• For one an episode for an animated show takes a while to make, usually several weeks or months and DHX wants to make 26 of them as good as they can. Not to mention they also have other shows to work on too.
• Kids watch this show too, and kids don't really have as much time to watch TV as adults do. So it can be hard to keep up with an episode every week and you missed a bunch. With a hiatus you have enough time to catch up on missed episodes without worrying about keeping up to date on a new episode every week. And if you got into the show during hiatus, you would have enough time to watch each episode before the next season. It just seems a little easier and I actually like hiatuses for that reason.
• Hasbro just wants to drag out the Rainbow Power toy line as long as they can like until the Holiday Season was over, then they would move on to their next theme.
• Even when an episode or Season of any show is completed they usually don't air it right after they complete it. They pick an airdate which works best for the network which might be a few weeks or months after completion.

That's just why I think the hiatus is so long. And since Season 5 comes out Spring and it's technically Spring already, we should get an air date really soon.

From what I've heard, point 1 is very much true. Apparently a lot more goes into making an episode than one might think. I'm sure other shows have different teams working on them though. There are actually two movies in development mind you, if we are to believe that an in universe film is due out in 2017, so even if different teams handle them some time and resources still need to be allocated to them. Number 2 doesn't make a lot of sense. It's doubtful most kids are that dedicated to the show, and the ones that are can have their parents PVR it in this day and age. Also, FiM is not an anime. It is possible to miss episodes without feeling lost. I think adult fans are more likely to care about having long hiatuses to catch up with the show, so I doubt point number 2 holds true.

 

Number 3 is possible, but given that Rainbow Power is this show's equivalent of Super Sayans and is a replacement for the Elements of Harmony, I'm sure we'll see this power again, especially during a major story arc such as a season intro or finale. Number 4 is a definite possibility and I know for a fact that a season is not aired immediately upon completion, though there may be more than one possible explanation for why that is.

 

I think I agree with Blobulle's point too. Not so much that not wanting to disappoint fans is delaying the show since a company is sure to meet deadlines regardless, but because maybe more went into the writing of this season in order to craft the best series of story arcs possible. Season 5 sounds like it might just one up season 4 in terms of having an over arching story arc while still allowing for regular slice of life episodes along with the special 100th episode, the Pie family episode and that guest star episode with Lena Hall. Ok, it's doubtful she can top Weird Al, but I'm definitely looking forward to what this next season holds and the wait shouldn't be too much longer now, I hope. Oh, and improvements in animation might mean that a little more time goes into animating the show. Don't quote me on that since I know very little about the art of animation.

Edited March 3, 2015 by Tross

[cuteycindyhoney 13,282]

Spring? That's nothin'! Whovians have to wait until FALL for the new season of Doctor Who!

[uml4mj4m 133]

Give them some time, let them think about their episodes.

 

 

 

 

 

9 effing years since the last Tool album.

 

[TheJLeeTeam 914]

I'm not being impatient I'm just giving my theories as to why the hiatus is so long.

[Cleverclover 1,525]

Oh, well this is interesting. Apparently the first DVD set for season 5 already has a release date: June 30. 

 

https://sneakpeek.shoutfactory.com/kids/kids-animation/my-little-pony-friendship-is-magic-cutie-mark-quests

 

So....I think it's fair to say that season 5 will start before then.

 

Possibly.

[Yoshi89 5,289]

So currently we're still in the hiatus for MLP:FiM which started in May and it's been going on for 10 months now. Season 5 starts in Spring though it's technically Spring already and we still don't have a date. At this rate Season 5 will start in April or May which would make the hiatus a year long. There might even be another long hiatus after Season 5 hopefully not as long though. So here are my theories to why the hiatus is so long and could even apply to future hiatuses as well:

That's just why I think the hiatus is so long. And since Season 5 comes out Spring and it's technically Spring already, we should get an air date really soon.

 

I think they prefer to stick with actual seasons of the year, not "technical" seasons considering it's still winter. Even still, I wouldn't hold my breath for a March season premiere as it is March already. They'll probably announce it some time in advance. I also don't think they'd make it too late in spring since the target audience is a few months from summer vacation and may not have time to watch the show.

[Jangocoolguy 433]

As a surviving Young Justice(not to mention Shantae) fan, I have no qualms with this. They can take all the time they need just as long as its good.

 

Heck, I'll bet even money they're trying to use it as a summer show...

(and that this will be one of the precious few shows on Disc-Fam people actually WATCH (with all due respect & apologies to the other Disc-Fam shows))

[Sidral Mundet 1,666]

The premier will probably be sometime in mid-April to mid-May. ($10 says they'll tell us the release date on April 1st just to mess with us  )

But as for the reason why it's so long has to do about when the show was renewed.  Until the production company has the go ahead they can't make more episodes so I think they only started working on the new episodes as soon as it was announced season 5 was in the woodworks cause , for example, the last two season of The Legend of Korra came out around the same time because they were already in production at the same time so there was only a month interim between books three and four. 

[Neon Fire 473]

Being a fan of Sherlock on the BBC, this is like a baby hiatus. =P

[ArcheoPony 76]

DHX did not do FiM exclusively before either of those, nor does the entirety of the studio work on FiM. They're worked on by different teams, with Jim Miller saying that the EqG movies have absolutely no affect on the show.

 

I know that. At one point, there was a second studio that provided animation for the show if I recall (possibly still is?). Regardless of that, it's one studio in charge of scheduling the different projects, and while each project tends to have their own team, comments by storyboard artists, Thiessen and Miller hint that they overlap several talent into various projects. Also the timeline points otherwise, it wasn't until LSP and the EQG projects began production that we started to see longer hiatuses. Things hint that the managing of various projects since S3 could be of influence of why the longer hiatuses.

 

Effect on the production of the show? Because again, things kind of make it look like it does have an effect on production. However small. Also, it was Jim himself who said we shouldn't take what they say to seriously, because they could be wrong as handling a corporate brand leaves limited creative control.

 

 

And the trend did not start with the S3-S4 hiatus. The S2-S3 hiatus was already longer than the S1-S2 hiatus.

 

You didn't catch what I was saying. There was a really short wait between S1 to S2 compared to what seems to be the norm now. During the S1 to S2 wait DHX wasn't handling as many active projects as they are now. That handling began during the S2 to S3 hiatus. As that was around the time LPS and the first EQG went into production.

[Looking Glass 197]

Its mostly the production period. It takes them 8-10 months on average just to produce the episodes. That doesn't account for scheduling, delays, marketing, and all the final work that goes into it. Once you figure the other factors, thats why it takes over a year.<br />The toys have very little effect on it, cause they have their own schedule and are produced in another division of the company. The toys can be made at the same time as the show.<br />