Could Gen. 5 ever live up to 4?

[MysticShine 529]

Personally, I think MLP as a franchise lends well to SoL episodes because of the target audience that it has. Action-oriented episodes are great, but we do have to keep in mind that it's geared toward little girls, and too much action might become boring for them to watch. MLP garnered a lot of its popularity due to the feel-good vibe that the show has which is due in part to those episodes. That doesn't mean I would be against an increase in those kinds of episodes but rather that I think that SoL is part of the core of what makes MLP the kind of girly show that it is.

I guess you're right. Maybe I'm in the wrong fandom or something.

[yeet 2,027]

i dont think they will make a gen 5. id be surprised if they do. id rather they didnt, because it gives a lot of people reason to complain why a completely different show doesnt live up to the one they liked about 7 years before. 

though i think it could be alright, though it wouldnt be the same. it isnt supposed to be the same though.

[NotoriousSMALL 1,984]

Hopefully by that time it will still be in capable hands. I can't really predict the future, I heard that FiM was confirmed for another 5 seasons, which means another 5 years. And I don't think they'll make a new series right away but maybe they will... and on top of that a lot can happen in that time, so who knows what kind of writers and animators they will have.

We'll just have to wait and see, if it does come around future me might check it out and see if it can live up to it's predecessor.

[Taviscratch 453]

YES! Gen 4 is good, but it is far from perfect. There is no reason why Gen 5 can't be as good as, if not better than, Gen 4. There may not even be a Gen 5.

[Cloud Strife 928]

I guess you're right. Maybe I'm in the wrong fandom or something.

 

I wouldn't say that. If you like MLP for its action-oriented episodes, all the power to you. Ultimately you don't have to justify what it is that you like about the show, and by no means is my opinion the absolute correct one. You seek and like what you like about the show, and don't let having a minority opinion (that actually, a lot of people in this fandom share with you, mind you!) deter you from that.

[MysticShine 529]

I wouldn't say that. If you like MLP for its action-oriented episodes, all the power to you. Ultimately you don't have to justify what it is that you like about the show, and by no means is my opinion the absolute correct one. You seek and like what you like about the show, and don't let having a minority opinion (that actually, a lot of people in this fandom share with you, mind you!) deter you from that.

I'd honestly prefer MLP FIM G4 to have Slice of Life episodes, as the action episodes are usually poorly written.

 

I don't know what I'm looking for honestly. I usually have the same problem with everything I'm a fan of; whether it's Sonic the Hedgehog, Super Mario, or MLP FIM, I'm always wanting more. It's not a bad thing really, but it's the things that I want are things that will never happen in the show, and I know that.

 

I'd probably be better off creating my own hypothetical series, where I call the shots about anything.

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,161]

It will largely depend on expectations of the fandom itself. G5 has every chance to be better than G4, but it also has potential to be an utter disaster.

 

If I was to guess I would think'd try something different while the fandom would be a little too judgmental on it. Why do I say this?

 

I say this from experience as other fandoms do this very thing. I remember when "The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning" came out and a fair number of classic Spyro fans were fairly critical of it. I love fit personally, and I even like the first Skylanders.

 

But yeah; we'll just have to wait and see at this point.

[Cwanky 17,598]

I know people love speculation and hype, but can we please focus on Generation 4 we have still thriving now, before we decide to delve into an unknown future we know next to nothing about? 

[Drunkfrank 1,125]

I don't get it, it seems like EVERY.SINGLE.DAY there is another thread about "Show ending this, gen 5 that" and I simply don't get it, we have years of pony gen 4 still and we should focus COMPLETELY on that, staring into the future is fine, but refusing to look away and admire the present is foolish.

 

 

Damn, I should be famous for dat quote 

I know people love speculation and hype, but can we please focus on Generation 4 we have still thriving now, before we decide to delve into an unknown future we know next to nothing about? 

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[Sobana 100]

Waiting for generation five has become to main stream. Instead I'm going to wait for generation six.

[LordDiscord 289]

I don't get it, it seems like EVERY.SINGLE.DAY there is another thread about "Show ending this, gen 5 that" and I simply don't get it, we have years of pony gen 4 still and we should focus COMPLETELY on that, staring into the future is fine, but refusing to look away and admire the present is foolish.

 

 

Damn, I should be famous for dat quote 

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Whether or not you feel you shouldn't worry, it still brings up the question: Was G4 a "One Hit Wonder"? I by no means want G4 to end but I can't help but to wonder if future generations of MLP will display the same care G4 has or will they degrade back into the animated commercials they once were.

[Arctofire 227]

I want to see Gen5 a fusion of Gen1 and 4.  Like an adventure serial with tons of bad guys and stakes, but up to the writing quality of 4.

Less slice of life.  Would be different but if written well could stand well on it's own as a pony series.

 

Yeah, that would be awesome. I would really like to see that, as long as it still used G4 characters and general lore.

 

Who else agrees that this would be a good move? I mean it would still be about friendship, but the plots would revolve around them learning this through adventure, instead of learning through normal affairs. I know many people prefer the slice of life, but this would open more opportunities for world building, and it would be very Tolkien like I feel, if it was done right.

Edited February 23, 2015 by Arctofire

[Drunkfrank 1,125]

Whether or not you feel you shouldn't worry, it still brings up the question: Was G4 a "One Hit Wonder"? I by no means want G4 to end but I can't help but to wonder if future generations of MLP will display the same care G4 has or will they degrade back into the animated commercials they once were.

Well in that case, it is absolutely impossible to tell, it all depends on who the writers are.

[Nerdy Luigi 2,065]

I have three questions, and if they are all answered no, potentially G5 could be better than G4:

 

1. Will it look like G3?

2. Will it be educational?

3. Will they abandon their winning formula?

 

(Whoops all my S's needed to be G's).

Edited February 24, 2015 by TwillyFSniper

[ShadOBabe 18,997]

I'm really not sure it could.

I think if they planned on making a gen 5, they'd need to give an extended break between them so people don't come fresh from gen 4 and make a ton of comparisons.

 

If you're going to end gen 4, end it with a huge glorious bang and then let the fans just stew in the memories for a while. And then when they start REALLY missing their pony content, announce the making of Gen 5 in progress.

[Jangocoolguy 433]

Will they even make G5? Maybe they'll continue G4 for a long time or create a "G4.5"...

I hope not. As bad Gen 3.5 was, I'd hate to see that happen here <.<

 

Though has been said, they'll probably milk this for all its worth before moving onto the next series.

 

Whether or not the Herd like Gen 5 or not is a different story all together...

[Silver Letter 1,832]

If there is a generation five series, we'll have to think about whether it can be better than the prior show. Is the animation style the best as it's going to get? What about the quality of the writing? This show has a solid premise. What other concepts can a generation five revolve around? What is as good or even better than friendship? I know that generation four can't live on forever. At least in its current state but a future generation might not amount to more than a generation 4.5. New settings, ponies and ideas but it would not be a huge departure from what we have now.

[Sobana 100]

Originally Lauren Faust wanted the show to be more action packed like a cross between G1 and Sailor Moon. But Hasbro thought little girls wouldn't like that kind of stuff, much like the princess thing, so she had to add in more slice of life episodes.

 

But no worries, G4 will be here for a while. G4 is making a billion in retail a year and it costs less then five million to produce a season. If Hasbro invested a tenth of the profits back into the show that is at least another dozen seasons we will get.

[Singe 2,111]

I was thinking one approach would be to take any other ponies in FIM that are popular and promote them to the main cast of G5. Some the new Mane cast could have disabilities and the show can focus on their struggles. For example one could be mute and communicates by clopping sounds with subtitles or the notepad draw.

Edited February 24, 2015 by Singe

[Rainboom Dash 1,056]

G4's so successful I don't foresee G5 for at least 10 years or so.

[Sobana 100]

If they did make G5, or even G4.5, I think the best choice would be to feature the CMC as adults going on their own adventures with the mane six acting as mentors in the background.

[AlbaTross 1,586]

The possibility always exists that Hasbro can do better, but G4 has had such incredible success that it's hard to say if lightning can strike twice. That said, if the next series is in capable hands like this one, and if they are mindful that MLP shows can be more than just mindless background noise for little girls, then we can at least infer that the new show would be better than past gens even if it doesn't live up to FiM.

 

For what it's worth a new gen in the toys doesn't actually necessitate a new show. Apparently Pony Tales came out when G2 had started, but features primarily G1 ponies though also supposedly has some G2 ponies in it as well. Given FiM's success I imagine a G5 in the toys will simply mean more characters showing up in Equestria, and I actually think G5 versions of the mane six toys are possible too. Obviously the purpose of MLP TV series is to sell MLP toys, but as long as FiM accomplishes that end Hasbro would be foolish to axe it unless DHX reaches the point where they feel they've told all the stories with the mane six and friends that they want to tell, in which case I would hope they would end it on a high note rather than keep it on life support, which can ruin even the best of series.

 

Sure, I realize all good things come to an end whether the continuation of FiM is tied to G4 or not. I think the sky's the limit for possibilities, so I can't say what the setting or theme of a new show would be like. I imagine it would be fairly slice of lifey, but there could be some good action mixed in too, just like FiM. I'm sure the writers could come up with some good characters for a new series but whether or not they have the same charm as the FiM is anyone's guess. A new show would have big boots to fill, but I have to give it the benefit of the doubt. That said, it isn't even on the horizon so I'll just enjoy FiM in the meantime. I can't wait for season 5 though.

[Mirror Silver Spoon 125]

Um, My Little Pony generation 5, that is a interest thing to think about.

[pocketshotgun 39]

I completely agree, these characters have become too well loved and known for them to ever be replaced. These are the MLP leads now, and I will not be interested in G5 if the mane 6 don't make a return like in Transformers.

 

I'm open for a G5 if it follows basic reboot rules, just depends if it's well written and if it's a good show. 

Hasbro may try to change the characters which will most likely fail, they tried this with generation 2 of transformers with rodimus and galvitron, personally I hated those characters nad I hope this will never happen again.