Should this show have a more prominent male in the line up?

[MidnightBloom 84]

I like the characters as they are now. It would be quite disappointing to have them add more male characters for the sake of satisfying a demographic even though it doesn't add anything to the show. one reason i like MLP because it teaches the audience of morals that are beyond barriers (gender or another). 

 

though i would love more flash sentry. his character has a lot of potential

[Azureth 687]

I think some here misunderstand where I am getting at. Of course there is no issue with it being a primarily female show, nor by having a more prominent male character am i suggesting he has to be a MAIN character on the same level as the Mane Six. What I am saying is a male character that is quite recognizable and really helps out the Mane Six maybe 5 ore 6 episodes a season. Yes we have spike but he's more of a butler than anything else.

[Coco before Pommel 678]

Just because he doesn't act like a male macho stereotype, doesn't mean he is not a male character

He might be metrosexual and way far from Iron Will type of guy but he still keep his identity as male Q

 

hdu not respect his identity as a fabulous alicorn princess (jk, jk. I mean, I definitely think the show is writing him as male, but there's plenty of room for interpretation there if people want to see him as more genderfluid or whatever - if anyone is all about breaking the status quo, it's Discord~)

 

But to answer the question...personally, no, I don't think FiM needs more male characters. As others have pointed out, it's doing well as it is. And for me, a lot of the appeal of the show is that it has so many awesome female characters - characters with different and complex personalities and motivations, and who aren't defined primarily by their role in a male character's story instead. A lot of other shows, including those I love, tend to be dominated by male characters, while females are both fewer and less developed/more stereotypical (usually falling into either the "girly girl" or "tomboy/one of the guys" categories), so it's just really refreshing for me to have a show with so many, different but all awesome in their own right and that never implies there's a "right" way to be a girl. Considered that a good deal - most? - media is male-dominated, I don't think "male representation" is really a massive issue - if boys don't like FiM because there's too many girls/they can't relate, they can go watch any number of shows with lots of boys being awesome and having adventures. It's not the same for girls, so I do think having at least a few shows that are female-dominated helps redress the balance a little. (There's also a point to be made about male being the "default" - girls are expected to relate to male characters, but the reverse is weird or bad in some way because female = weak)

 

It'd be one thing if FiM constantly had messages that girls were superior to boys, but it's the exact opposite - though there may be fewer male characters, they don't get treated as "lesser" or props for the girls in the same way female ones often are in male-dominated media. Spike may often be used for comic relief, but that's far from all he is - he has episodes focused on him and also gets to drive the plot at times (Crystal Empire?), and his relationship with Twilight is arguably just as important/central to the show's overall message as any between the M6. There's also Discord, who IMO has one of the strongest character arcs on the show - he goes from being straight-up villain to actually showing vulnerability, becoming more complex and arguably more relatable. (Somewhat related to the first point, none of that is in any way related to his being male - Discord's arc would be the exact same if he was genderswapped, because none of his character, or interactions with other characters, is dependent on masculine (or feminine) stereotypes, compared to, say, Iron Will, who I think would come across quite differently if he was female.) I'm not opposed to them introducing more male characters, or focusing on existing ones every now and then - I would love a Big Mac episode! - but it should be because they're interesting characters/stories to tell, not out of fulfilling some gender obligations.

 

/feels quite strongly about this, apparently?

Edited November 11, 2014 by Coco before Pommel

[Wind Chaser 4,768]

One of the concerns people have been raising is that many television shows that target themselves towards male viewers only incorporate prominent male characters. Even in so called 'gender neutral' shows the cast is often slanted towards the male spectrum because masculine targeting is considered to have a wider appeal than feminine. Reversing this situation with an overwhelmingly female cast does not resolve the issue but simply reinforces the 'pink and blue' status quo.

The creators and fans of MLP:FIM often pride themselves on the show's history of challenging stereotypes and changing perceptions. Yet it still follows many of the same tropes and patterns of thinking that it likes to criticize. Even though the primary demographic is young girls that shouldn't necessitate that other characters who aren't female should be given such little attention simply on the basis that members of the main audience don't share their gender. This isn't even considering the fact that the show makes virtually no attempt to introduce characters that maybe don't fall on one side or the other of the gender spectrum, such as those that might identify with the LGBTQ community.

I like MLP for lots of reasons, but the fact that most of the cast is female is not one of them. Although it's not such a big issue that it prevents me from enjoying the show or any other aspects of the franchise or fandom. However when I see that male characters are often only included so they can be used as little more than comic relief, bland villains or one dimensional love interests it really makes me wish they tried a little harder and broadened their horizons. This great show really shouldn't be restricted like that.

This exactly.

 

There's nothing wrong with having a show with strong female leads. That's one of the strengths of MLP. I'd love to think of these characters as characters first and their genders second.

 

However, the belief that this show is "egalitarian" and "gender-neutral" like some contend is simply not the case. There's strong evidence that the show is flipping the traditional script. Instead, the females are the developed characters and the males are marginalized and forgotten. While it's a great thing to put out strong female characters that males can relate to, doing this at the expense of good male representation sends the wrong messages to the males who watch this show and may inadvertently be giving young girls an unfair and wrong impression about boys. By marginalizing their strong male characters and denying the more prominent ones good character development, they're unfortunately implying that most males in this world are comic relief, slow, ineffectual, easily replaceable by females, and cannot be allowed to achieve as much as females.

 

Though it's hard to make a show that can dodge all criticisms of gender bias, the issue here is that we don't want to see unfortunate implications of preferential treatment. A truly great show transcends sterotypes and tropes and treats this as not an issue of pink or blue, or boys or girls, but as an issue of people.

[Azatrot 66]

I don't think that male characters should be added just to make the show more egalitarian. But they shouldn't actively avoid adding males either. I think that people who want more males in the show (or people that want more females in other shows to, for that matter) places way to much importance on something that doesn't seem particularly relevant. I personally care more about the personalities of the characters. A well written character is a well written character, no matter the gender, and that's what's important.

[Zoraxe 546]

One way to solve thing, there should be a 'Bigmac, Fancy Pants, and Shining Armor' episode.

[duidamasterXD 9,626]

I'd be pretty psyched if they gave Spike a little more screentime. Even with what relatively little he's got, he's already brought the show some of its funniest moments, along with some of its saddest and most heart-wrenching. At this point, I don't think it'd be possible for the writers to start from scratch and make a male character who feels like he belongs more than our lovable little dragon.

 

Only thing he really needs is more time with the group as a whole and more one on one time with characters he hasn't interacted with as much. His two biggest connections are to Rarity, as an admirer, and to Twilight as a son/brother/fire-breathing secretary, and they've both done amazing things for his characterization and for theirs, but there's plenty of room for more to be done. Just throw in a few Pinkie Apple Pie/Hurricane Fluttershyish episodes developing his relationship with Flutters/RD/the gang and bam. More prominent male character and loads of silliness to boot

 

As far as male representation goes in the show, I generally don't have an issue with it. I'm more concerned with the quality of characters than their gender, and MLP's doing just fine in that regard.

[Celli 4,336]

I think one of the main aspects of Lauren's vision was to have a show with strong-willed females at the forefront, so I don't think we need another male lead. Spike is enough, though I think they could write him a lot better more consistently.

[ThatOneComrade 1,091]

Yeah, a new male character in a supporting role would not only add what you asked for, but it would also not mess up the main dynamic. At least, not much, I think. The only problem would be, "What would he do?"

[Applejackbumper 13]

It's a show aimed for young girls, but there is male characters. Big Mac is probably most prominent though.

Well, we have to remember spike as well, but as for the ponies, big mac

[Nature's Spell 526]

I'll make it simple. I don't think the show needs anymore prominent ponies of either sex. Perhaps more bad guy, but we have six in the mane cast and several important supporting characters. Why make things more complex?

[Everleaf 541]

List

 

Spike

 

Discord

 

Big mac

 

shining armor)

 

 

and likely more I have missed...

 

 

so we DO have a few males which have a fair lot of screen time so personally I'm not worrying...

[Roughshod 719]

@@Everleaf, The main point isn't just how many male characters there are but what kind of prominence they have. Most of the males in the line up have little to do with the story lines of the show's episodes. I personally don't think more characters are needed so much as better developed ones. This applies to both male and female roles but especially male since they're inadequately represented in a franchise that has abundant support from both genders.

 

I think one of the main aspects of Lauren's vision was to have a show with strong-willed females at the forefront, so I don't think we need another male lead. Spike is enough, though I think they could write him a lot better more consistently.

 

Maybe... I have no problem with strong female characters in a show, in fact I welcome it and appreciate its importance for my interest in MLP. With that said I do take some issue when male characters like Spike, Snips and Snails(among others) are used as means to promote oversimplified and regressive stereotypes in order to better reflect on female characters by comparison or garner a few giggles from a less mature part of the audience. Some humour at a characters' expense is fine and often necessary to relieve tension, but it can also become a detriment to the overall message of the show and belittle its potential.

 

In actuality Spike can hardly be called a male lead anyway, he's predominantly a supporting character in the series even referring to himself as an assistant. This is made even more explicit in the Equestria Girls movies when he's symbolically relegated to the status of a pet - although he does seem to become much more mature and sensible in the human world for some reason, mostly to act as a counter and support for Twilight's thinking and moments of personal doubt. An exception to this might be the few episodes dedicated to him; but even these have often resulted in short lived characterization that is typically discarded he next time he appears in his standard role.

Edited January 24, 2015 by Roughshod

[RainbowTashie 378]

I wouldn't exactly call Spike "prominent".  He is like Twilight's little brother.  Beloved, but a pain.  Sometimes he has been useful to them, but he is like Xander in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"  (Or whatever his name was.  Been awhile & I can't recall)

 

My advice is "The show is working.  It ain't broke, don't fix it." 

Good old Spike/humdrum  don't hate if i haven't spelt it right

[Pastel 7,630]

More male characters would be great, but they shouldn't take too much place in the episodes.

 

@@Everleaf, The main point isn't just how many male characters there are but what kind of prominence they have. Most of the males in the line up have little to do with the story lines of the show's episodes. I personally don't think more characters are needed so much as better developed ones. This applies to both male and female roles but especially male since they're inadequately represented in a franchise that has abundant support from both genders.

The show was originally created for girls, I don't think they'll add prominent male characters because men started to watch the show as well. Edited January 25, 2015 by Blobulle

[Roughshod 719]

The show was originally created for girls, I don't think they'll add prominent male characters because some men started to watch the show as well.

Okay... So what? You haven't given any reason why your opinion should hold any weight besides a rather dull interpretation. It seems you have little regard for the importance of the Brony community in relation to the show despite both being a member of this forum and(supposedly) a witness to the way the series has progressed already.

Edited January 25, 2015 by Roughshod

[Pastel 7,630]

Okay... So what? You haven't given any reason why your opinion should hold any weight besides a rather dull interpretation. It seems you have little regard for the importance of the Brony community in relation to the show despite both being a member of this forum and(supposedly) a witness to the way the series has progressed already.

Yeah I'm not sure the brony community has much influence on the show. I don't see many differences between the season 1 and 4: even after 4 years most of the characters are female (of course they've added some male characters, but not that much) and the main characters are still 6 mares and 0 stallion (I'm totally fine with that). Edited January 25, 2015 by Blobulle

[Roughshod 719]

Yeah I'm not sure the brony community has much influence on the show. I don't see many differences between the season 1 and 4: even after 4 years most of the characters are female (of course they've added some male characters, but not that much) and the main characters are still 6 mares and 0 stallion (I'm totally fine with that).

True, such a change in the cast has not yet come about and in all likelihood won't. A change to the main characters this far into the show would be off putting for much of the fan base and I would prefer just to see the current male roles given better light instead of being artificially inflated or propped up for the sake of some trivial marketing appeal. Not that Hasbro hasn't done this before *cough* Equestria Girls *cough*.

 

When I mentioned changes in the show I was referring to more subtle aspects, chiefly how it has somewhat matured and become more complicated in order to appeal to an older, more diverse audience. A prime example of this is the violent nature fight between Twilight and Tirek during the season four finale. Nothing like this would have been expected during the first season at all. You may not agree with that diagnosis but at least now you know more clearly what I was alluding to.

Edited January 25, 2015 by Roughshod