Should the My Little Pony show just continuously timeskip instead of reboot?

[GuillermoGage 246]

One fear that a lot of us have, now that FiM is confirmed for between 130 and 143 episodes and a theatrical movie that is expected to be something of a wide release.... is the eventual end of the series, especially since we know that successful kid friendly-brands or any successful brand usually doesn't end perfectly with that full artistic integrity.

 

In years past people would make threads talking about the inevitable SpongeBob/Simpsons/what-have-you doom, but now that we are approaching 100 episodes with a fairly small ratio of content that was utter duds (as well as comics and book merchandise that is halfway decent that expands the lore), I think we can actually be more optimistic even tho we have apparently become closer to the "inevitable end"

 

Here's my point:

What if instead of faltering starting with Season 7 (post-movie) and becoming a total embarrassment in Season 8 with all of the Mane 6 regressing into caricatures and Twilight becoming some bored advice column guru for other ponies and basically turning into a mortal genie with Spike becoming her pet parrot, and the CMCs getting their cutie marks and becoming adolescents concerned with THE PROM'S TOMORROW!... before finally being put out of it's misery and then five to six years later (possibly even less) A CGI series (Possibly simply called "My Little Pony") will come out, like, on Disney Junior that may or may not care one ounce about the Brony demographic....

 

What if instead of going down that scenario: (Which many of us have settled on as a real possibility years ago and still today)

 

Friendship is Magic just evolves step by step into follow-up series, using pretty much the same Flash animation and character designs? If it were to do the Pony equivalent of Naruto Shippuden? After the Mane 6 reach a point where it feels to the writers that they have all done as many story ideas as they can do with the girls and have pretty much exhausted their character growth, start to subtly shift to the CMCs, (which by then will have their cutie marks) Be transparent with the existing fans and let them know that, the next time you see Equestria, the Mane 6 will pretty much be full-blown cameo characters by the end of the season, and Sweetie Belle or something will be a major character, with episodes about Spike going out and about doing stuff. Eventually, Twilight Sparkle's adventures will become so mundane to her that they will have to do an entirely new theme song that does not involve Rebecca Shoichet singing "I used to wonder what friendship could be".

 

Perhaps Michelle Creber could sing the new theme song, which will possibly have almost the exact same tune, but have lyrics that are more in second-person (addressing the audience, welcoming them to the life of Equestria).

 

Honestly, the Mane 6 being the embodiments of the Elements of Harmony was really just a plot device and other characters can be solid protagonists without being the superhero knights that the Mane 6 are. After all Equestria is full of celebrities and talented magical ponies and creatures that are somehow more famous than the Mane 6.

 

Remember, the Mane 6 only represent six character archetypes that we've all seen in fiction before. Even with how well-nuanced they are, they are limited in that it would be silly to just tack on new hobbies for them (which the series has already dabbled in) so that they can be more than just "fashion pony" and "country pony" and "athletic pony" and so on. When there are reoccurring characters that already exist that can be fully developed even moreso.

 

What would this do to the adventure aspect of the show? Would it fall more into slice-of-life because of CMC characters not having the ability to make monsters TASTE THE RAINBOW?

 

Maybe there will be a respectable answer to that.

 

Here's the thing. If little kids/little girls get too bored or scared of the show when it dips into TV-Y7 territory in this "evolved incarnation of the same series by name" or "sequel series"... remember that old media is marketed to little kids all the time. Little kids tend not to care if media is outdated or not current so long as they have access to it, and what is currently on live TV hardly matters anymore. MLP can have the potential to grow with the audience the same way the Harry Potter did, hopefully ("even") better. Do you really think that six-year-old girls in 2015 should "grow out" of My Little Pony in a few years,? I think that the series just continue to keep them interested (and without going "teen") to make the issue of "outgrowing" a non-issue.

 

With this approach, I think that they might be able to end "Friendship is Magic" with a TV-Y7 rating a the end of Season 9 on their own terms and do a second movie around late 2020 with hardly any Mane 6 presence at all.

 

Then the whole brand will take a chill pill and be on indefinite hiatus. Meaning, not "reboot" itself in like five or even three years like some superhero thing.

 

The market would do well to remember that there are actually more than just the "little girl" and "Brony" demographics out there. There's shades in between. This journey of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic can conclude respectfully during a time that it happens to be marketing around this area.

 

Remember that people have a tendency to start watching cartoons with established characters and long histories and then travel back to "older episodes", this is a perfectly valid way to enjoy media that was never severely a serial show to begin with and still not that much even now.

 

Even then, even little kids can develop the initiative to watch a series "from the beginning", especially if the current events and entertainment provided from the series as they are seeing it at this future point in time (or even now*) fascinates them enough where they will look into the beginnings of the series.

 

It's only a matter of time before wingless Twilight Sparkle becomes entirely absent from merchandise and promotional material. I don't know how exactly little kids tend to follow TV series (my nieces and nephews tend to select Netflix and will start new series presumably from episode 1),

 

...but even in the event that a "little girl's" initial perception of Twilight is some sage nerd guru protagonist that just, for all they know, already has these friends by default (probably overlooking the theme song and opening if it remains as it is now)... good material will make them interested in the older episodes and how these characters got to be.

 

okay, I'm done with this post now. Can you see the future of MLP coming up with a solution to its "the characters can only develop so much and there are only so many different decent slice-of-life situation story ideas we can come up with without scraping the bottom of the barrel" issue?

[JamesBobbyDReed 103]

Oh man....this is a lot, im sharing this 

[Sidral Mundet 1,666]

I love time skips in TV shows, they aren't done often enough, at least in Western Animation, though I'd rather not see it star the CMC, not to say they're bad, but more so to introduce new characters so as not to potentially alienate new viewers.  This way you could do something like The Legend of Korra, new cast and conflicts yet still in the same universe as the previous show, so that previous cameos are more of a bonus for older fans and hopefully not create a continuity lockout for new viewers. 

[Lektra Bolt 2,336]

The thing is though, and as much as I like the idea of time skips and other characters picking up the baton so to speak, it isn't really and truly about the show. Maybe I haven't been a fan long enough of MLP, but for Transformers which is also owned by Hasbro, it's about the toys first and foremost. To sell toys is the driving force behind Hasbro. I figure if they can keep coming up with new toy concepts that are fresh and not rehashes while hiring new writers who won't reuse ideas, the show really can continue forever or even receive reboots (Gens) like Transformers did. Transformers just became more awesome in the reboots/sequels, even if it wasn't all good in each reboot. Prime for example was amazing, and Rescue Bots is still going strong even though it's obvious that it's in the same universe as Prime and they never did explain how O.P. is still around in Rescue Bots. There's actually a Prime sequel on CN which I'll never be able to watch where O.P. is actually dead and I hear it has good ratings with high toy sales.

Edited April 14, 2015 by bronislav84

[Rainblow H. Ash 5,090]

Interesting idea, and I sort of support it.

 

It'd be a tough sell though. The characters in MLP are finally becoming recognizable and I find it hard to believe that Hasbro would be willing to throw them out to transition to the Cutie Mark Crusaders or any other side characters.

[spade 88]

The worst thing that could happen is an indefinite loop of exhausted characters and plot devices. We have already seen the use of thematically similar content it would be sad to see this go the way of land before time or star wars where a once great franchise has traded great content quality for quantity.

 

I would offer that truly great works simply end. There is nothing wrong with the entire series comming to a conclusion. In fact that may be the best thing that could happen. This series has set a new benchmark for both toy based kids shows and also proven that demographic differences can actualy be overcome. That is historic. Let the merits of that bring the show into ledgend by letting it run its course and end with dignity rather than loop into obscurity. A new MLP will come a year or two latter Maybe not (preferably) even in ponyville.

 

P.s. I'm still going to see star wars opening night regardless of how bad it might be.

Edited April 14, 2015 by spade

[cuteycindyhoney 13,282]

How about something like "My Little Pony: Friendship Crusaders". We could have the CMC, now older with their Cutie Marks, on an epic quest to find out what happened to a now not so nice Equestria, and how they can somehow find and restore Princess Twilight and her missing friends to help make things right.

[HailTrixie 239]

How about something like "My Little Pony: Friendship Crusaders". We could have the CMC, now older with their Cutie Marks, on an epic quest to find out what happened to a now not so nice Equestria, and how they can somehow find and restore Princess Twilight and her missing friends to help make things right.

Yep. That's it, right here. Pack up guys, this is the perfect show. Somebody send this to Hasbro.

[spade 88]

How about something like "My Little Pony: Friendship Crusaders". We could have the CMC, now older with their Cutie Marks, on an epic quest to find out what happened to a now not so nice Equestria, and how they can somehow find and restore Princess Twilight and her missing friends to help make things right.

Maybe TS takes on the princess c role.

[Saroth 102]

Yep. That's it, right here. Pack up guys, this is the perfect show. Somebody send this to Hasbro.

Your profile pic fits perfectly with what you just said.

[The Crimson Cross 7,532]

The thing about shows such as this, is that they're very fluid. The developers can add and subtract things at their will. FiM might not last forever, but in my opinion I think they're more inclined to release an Equestria Girls spin-off if anything.

 

I myself wouldn't mind a conclusion. Though that's not to say further brony works will not live on!

[GuillermoGage 246]

I would offer that truly great works simply end. There is nothing wrong with the entire series comming to a conclusion. In fact that may be the best thing that could happen.

As long as my opening post was, and how excited I may have sounded, what you just posted is still my preference for the ultimate fate of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.

 

I'm not sure if it's appropriate to be a negative nelly and say "that's not realistic", but I just cannot find any example of anything as commercialized and toy/cartoon based having a dignified ending. If FiM does have a formal series finale on it's own terms while it is still a good show, it will be an unprecedented event in the history of the "family-friendly television" industry.

 

What I was suggesting is the only halfway okayish (but still very much a gamble) alternative to running the show into the ground in the traditional manner (altho some people would define what I suggested as simply another form of running the show into the ground).

 

I would still much rather prefer that the show end when they run out of ideas for the existing characters. I don't know how they are gonna even have enough ideas to keep the Mane 6 afloat for a (literally confirmed on the Hasbro press release site) sixth season, especially if it is a 26-episode season (most likely), but the writers of this show are more talented than us.

 

Any television series with over 100 episodes (or even less, more like 65) can earn money through syndication, home media sales, and merchandise even if there are no new episodes being made.

 

Little kids who weren't even conceived or were too young to even watch MLP or weren't exposed to it until later don't require new episodes after enough have been made. Releasing crappy new episodes does not reel in little kids, and even if it did, syndicating and promoting old episodes does just as good a job for a lot less money.

 

For the grownups, releasing crap episodes damages a reputation severely enough that people won't bother do dive in if they hear through an overwhelming consensus of pop-culture osmosis that their hearts are pretty much guaranteed to be crushed when the show takes a nosedive, especially considering that not all shows have a solid cut-off point (such as the season finale of a certain season or a Movie) and adults hate hopscotching around episodes they hear are crap when they could be good to them.

 

I can understand why it was a good business decision to keep making SpongeBob episodes.

 

The earlier episodes were not as merchandise-driven (to such a strong degree that in a scene where the live-action Patchy the Pirate gets rid of all his SpongeBob merchandise "SpongeBob betrayed us!", none of his stuff is real merchandise that you can actually buy. SpongeBob's tie is a bowtie, and his eyes are more off-model and an old-school larger pupils.)

 

... and little kids don't get the humor of Rock Bottom, Employee of the Month, Band Geeks, Shanghaied, and Texas.

 

You might think that "well little kids will watch anything as long as it is colorful and you park them in front of they TV" but remember that they have so many more options and they will gravitate and ask mom and dad for stuff they can relate to.

 

As backwards as it seems to us, they can relate to New SpongeBob more than Old SpongeBob. When Krusty Krab Training Video comes on, they don't desire Krabby Patty themed toys, they flip the channel to Ninjago or Ninja Turtles or whip out their kiddie tablets to play Candy Crush. 

 

This is a non-issue with My Little Pony because Season 1 is every bit as relatable to little girls and little kids if not moreso than what's happening now. Of course, since little girls also like Frozen, Wreck-It Ralph, and Toy Story (with equal intensity as little boys) which are similarly adventurous as the adventure themed MLP episodes, S4 did not alienate them in the slightest.

 

I don't even know if it is possible to alienate little girls away from MLP, even if it was rated TV-PG and starred Derpy being in an offensive manner and literally being named Derpy. The only thing stopping them would be their parents, and that's if their parents notice it or are even bothered.

[Steve Piranha 28,752]

In my opinion, a timeskip would be a good move to avoid making G4 stale without transcending to G5. Said timeskip opens new posibilities to it, either focusing on teenagers CMCs or switching to new characters. By the time the pony movie comes out, most of the target audience will be grownup by then. 

[Silver Letter 1,830]

I would be more partial to a new generation of My Little Pony rather than a spinoff, especially for characters whose stories should have concluded by then. The Cutie Mark Crusaders, if their cutie marks are obtained, might not add much more to a narrative than they have already added. If there will be a new generation, it might not happen for a long time. I hope then that this series can conclude well. As best as possible. The reason being that most fans now probably won't wait for a new generation. Their fans will be new fans who had likely never seen Friendship is Magic at all.

Edited April 14, 2015 by Silver Letter

[AlbaTross 1,581]

I think we're getting way ahead of ourselves as there's no indication that the show is ending anytime soon, and the writing seems to be decent enough for the time being. However, I would rather Friendship is Magic end before it ends up like shows like The Simpsons, meaning that I would rather it end on a high note than continue on for an eternity as a shadow of what it formerly was. Then again, I would probably still watch it if it did continue on forever, as much as I hate to admit it. If a time skip were to happen, I would say that it should probably be the start of a new series starring different characters with cameos from the older characters. As some have mentioned, a series about the CMCs when they're a little older might be ok. Of course, it could also be a total disaster if handled wrong.

 

To be completely honest, an entirely new series might be a better idea. It doesn't have to coincide with G5. Perhaps a G4.5 show could work just as well if G4 is still going on, and much like Pony Tales, it could incorporate G5 characters into the show if need be. Of course, Friendship is Magic could just as easily do that as well, so I don't think G5 will need to mark the end of FiM if the writers choose to continue it. But, I'm thinking that if the writers could come up with a series as good as FiM, they have a good shot at making another great series. I don't know what the odds are of matching the unbelievable success of FiM with a new show, but lightning can strike twice, and I think FiM will be the show all future MLP shows are modelled after, not G1-3, since FiM has had more success than all of them combined.

[cuteycindyhoney 13,282]

In my opinion, a timeskip would be a good move to avoid making G4 stale without transcending to G5. Said timeskip opens new posibilities to it, either focusing on teenagers CMCs or switching to new characters. By the time the pony movie comes out, most of the target audience will be grownup by then. 

New children are tuning in all the time. By the time the movie is out, the demographic will still be primarily the same. It's not like one group started watching, and then the doors were closed.

[Steve Piranha 28,752]

New children are tuning in all the time. By the time the movie is out, the demographic will still be primarily the same. It's not like one group started watching, and then the doors were closed.

SI true, new kids withing the targed demographic will watch FiM, but the audience who where within the target demographic when the show started, will be close to teens at least, by the time the pony movie comes at 2017

Edited April 14, 2015 by Steve Piranha

[spade 88]

I think a big aspect that has eluded this conversation is changing media in the 21st century.

 

When we were all very young the programming accessibility was limited to live tv (that is if you were not in frot of the tv at 7 you missed the 7 o'clock show Period) or vcr or very expensive video cassettes of shows which were hard to find for all but the most popular few shows and even then very expensive.

 

YouTube, Netflix, hulu, etc are how we get libraries of vedio now.

 

We are all talking as if new shows presuppositions the audience to not be fully vested in the show.

 

I for example didn't get into mlp unrtill the third season were I Binge watched entire series to date in a few days. A feat unimaginable 15 years ago.

This changes the Relationship between generations of people and of seires.

 

TV production would be wise to consider the implications of this. Now forever adding content to an established universe is possible while a new generation is likely to watch every past episode.

 

In my day if I started watching a show in the third season I'd of had to pit together the past story arch by deduction now I can just watch from S:1-E:1 to the current episode as fast as I want to.

Edited April 15, 2015 by spade

[ArcheoPony 76]

Basically "G5" could branch off from G4. The FiM world is so flexible they pretty much can set a new story, cast and characters anytime and anyplace within the continuity. We could get a cast and adventures from before Twilight's time, after Twilight's time, maybe in another country. Who knows. There really is no limit to what they could be because FiM is just so perfect for worldbuilding.