Let's be honest, is FiM a preschool show?

[SteveMorison 404]

It's far more entertaining and well written than the likes of Dora The Explorer, Blues Clues, Teletubbies etc. but I don't think it's able to get away with as much "questionable content" as a kids show like Spongebob or Gravity Falls. It's pretty hard to categorise.

[Cirrus. 1,089]

I think the age group that probably could get the most out of MLP would be kids from about 5-12. It's definitely NOT a preschool show. Shows in that category would be Dora, Thomas the Train, Blues Clues, Sesame Street etc.

Kids that age just aren't going to grasp what's happening in some MLP episodes.

Edited October 7, 2015 by Cirrus.

[Daring_Do 552]

Aren't 8 year old girls the target audience? So a little older than preschool, but not by much.

[Will Guide 21,360]

Not only is it not a preschool show, I do not even consider it to have a specific target audience. The morals present in the show are morals that anyone can learn from, no matter what gender, age, or anything. The theme of friendship and happiness is something we all can embrace. Plus, it still presents challenges for the characters, some of which we can actually relate to as well.

 

I really don't like thinking that this show was intended for a specific group of people, because anyone can enjoy it and learn from it. The moral aspect of FiM is surprisingly one of my favorite parts of it. It can either teach something or remind us of it. That goes for any age.

 

Couldn't have said it better myself. When I first started watching this (starting with the Pilot) 2 or 3 years ago, I said to myself, even grown adults sometime need to be reminded of what make good morals. Even if some of the morals are not executed well. 

[Moony the Cat 3,702]

Preschool shows for me, are those shows that teach you very basic stuff, like what 2 + 2 is or how certain words are spelled.

 

Or like these really weird shows like Teletubbies where im just completely confused and just ask myself : ...what? 

 

And My Little Pony is more about adventuring, fighting villains sometimes and has a lot of Fantasy elements to it.

So its a normal Adventure cartoon like any other normal Family Cartoons, like Darkwing Duck, Transformers, Disney Movies and stuff like that.

 

Its Family entertainment. I mean, yeah the show is targeted at younger kids, but its not preschool, not at all 

Edited October 7, 2015 by PsychoShy

[Red Wrath Zer0RC36 42]

As a man of very few words and reformed AB, I wouldn't know because I don't normally watch much TV, The only chance I get

of that is through Youtube and or Dailymotion.

 

In all other words, I have not the slightest clue.

[best poni 1,519]

No, I think it's meant for kids ages 4-10

[Daring_Do 552]

As a man of very few words and reformed AB, I wouldn't know because I don't normally watch much TV, The only chance I get

of that is through Youtube and or Dailymotion.

 

In all other words, I have not the slightest clue.

8 year old girls are the target audience iirc. So a little older than preschool, but not by much. So now you know! (Can also confirm from watching other kids' cartoons that FiM is still a lot more childish/saccharine/innocent than most of them - but not as much so as a typical preschooler show.)

Edited October 7, 2015 by Daring_Do

[Red Wrath Zer0RC36 42]

8 year old girls are the target audience iirc. So a little older than preschool, but not by much. So now you know! (Can also confirm from watching other kids' cartoons that FiM is still a lot more childish/saccharine/innocent than most of them - but not as much so as a typical preschooler show.)

Guess it's just pretty much same thing with others, COD black ops was targeted for a much older crowd.

Pokemon for younger.

Edited October 7, 2015 by MegaLunaMan 4.7

[AmberDust 1,118]

There's been some debate as to how much can FiM exactly get away with. People then say, the target audience is very young. To witch I say, how young exactly? I'm starting to think some people believe FiM is a preschool show. The answer IMO, is no. While it was intended to skew a broad audience, Faust said she intended it to be for girls in general, not just 2-5 year olds, more like 2-11 year olds. 

 

However, I will say this. The show is most likely growing with its audience, the 2-11 year old girls who watched the show almost 4 years ago, are now probably 6-14 years old, part of that age range has already grew out of the original target audience. So if the writers want those older girls to tune in, as well as keep the younger kids happy, then they're going to have to tweak the show's scale and structure a bit. And if the Season 4 finalle and Season 5 preview are anything to go by, then we may see just that. 

 

So do you consider FiM a preschool show?

 

I watched it on Treehouse once (a preschool channel) and it was the Lost Griffonstone episode. They actually censored the word "dweeb". That level of sensitivity makes me think that maybe it shouldn't have been on a preschool channel. ^^'

[Wonderbolt 68]

I guess its for all ages really, its a good show enjoyed by all sorts of people.

 

  But its age target is around maybe 5-12? younger kids would stuggle with the story content, but would still enjoy the pritty colours.

[BlinkZ 1,151]

And yet Angel could slap Fluttershy in the face in a domestic-abuse-like fashion.

 

Oh, Hasbro, you!

lol

Angel : hasbro

Fluttershy: DHX

 

I rest my case

[NeonCobalt 256]

Eh, not really. Usually, in a preschool show, the characters talk to the audience, trying to involve them in what's going on. Also, considering some of the things we have seen in Season 5 (The Cutie Map and, well, certain scenes in Rarity Investigates), I don't think that it's aimed THAT young.

[Rawzy 1,302]

well first you kinda have to think....what are the crucial things that preschoolers may need to learn at that age? I don't think they would need to learn how to fight a giant demon from tartarus by using giant laser beams... (Although...I would love to see Dora emit a hyper beam from her mouth towards swiper...)

[flutterbard 55]

No. Unlike 90% of pre-school shows, there is no audience interaction (although I think it would be a good one-time gag)

[Redacted321 105]

From what i've seen on a few sites it says "For kids 2-4" even though i don't agree with that i have no reason to care. I enjoy it so...

I also feel like the episodes/seasons grew with the community given it was only 5 years i feel like the shows matured compared to the first season.

 

Edited October 8, 2015 by Dxnill

[Trixie Heartstrings 434]

Last time I commented on this was almost a year ago. Something I should add is that TV-Y is a pretty broad rating. Sure preschool shows have this rating, but also shows aimed at older audiences have this rating too. Hell, Invader Zim(a show I really like) had a TV-Y rating at one point, and there was an episode where Zim goes around the school removing people's organs(it was later rated TV-Y7).

[Ruddboy Olaf 10,628]

If it wasn't,why would it have such cringeworthy morality speeches? Don't get me wrong,I like the show,but the morality speeches are really really bad. The writers even played with this,by making Starlight interrupt Twilight.

[zombienixon 330]

No. Unlike 90% of pre-school shows, there is no audience interaction (although I think it would be a good one-time gag)

 

Yeah, the prompts for the kid to shout at the screen is a hallmark of preschool shows. Most are also some kind of educational. FiM is aimed at the age group right above it, maybe with some overlap, about from 3-8 years old. Equestria Girls (the toys, at least) was meant to aim a little higher, maybe 6-12.

[Knightgem 158]

Ya know, when I started watching, out of curiosity my mind was just "yeah, this is without a doubt a kids show", by mid season  2 I was thinking "Why am I still watching this?" and by the time I hit season 5 I was just" This is a KIDS show?!". Especially ep 1 and 2 of season 5. My thoughts have essentially been "There is no way in the land of Equestria that this is a kids show!" And now every time I rewatch certain episodes or just entire seasons, the more I seem to enjoy them. Picking out Popculture refrences, or indeed playing (with our favourite cross-eyed pony)'Spot Derpy'

Edited June 27, 2016 by Unicornecious

[Konsumo 151]

MLP is part of a rather new trend in animated shows. Its toys may be marketed towards a very young audience but the show itself is designed for a far greater audience. Good entertainment does not necessarily need a very narrow target audience.

 

 

 

The basic thought was to create a show for kids (not pre-school) and their parents as well. The culture changes as well. People today are more likely to watch a whole show if they like it rather than an occasional episode on the TV randomly when it’s on.

 

 

 

You can see this change very good if you look at a show like the Powerpuff Girls. The Powerpuff Girls is in many ways similar to MLP (marketed at both children and adults) but never had big arcs over the course of a whole season. Shows like MLP or Gravity Falls can do this because the behavior of its viewers changed in that direction.

 

[cider float 2,538]

Children's show but not preschool.

[cmarston1 5,959]

Well season one did have that awkward moment where the characters defined what Hibernation was and was rated EI.

But besides that I don't really think so.

Children's cartoon but not a preschool show.

Edited June 27, 2016 by cmarston1

[TheAnimatorOfficial 567]

The first season or so wasn't a preschool show but was obviously for young kids. HOWEVER, as the seasons went on it became more like Adventure Time than Sophia the First.

Edited June 28, 2016 by TheAnimatorOfficial

[Swifty 249]

It's a show for teenagers like Spongebob.