Do you think this show would be as popular had the Mane Six been Male?

[Azureth 686]

Now I am perfectly fine with it being a female cast and even find it refreshing to have a show with mostly females that is good quality, however, just how much does the Mane Six being female add to the show? What if we had the same story lines but from the beginning the were all Male? Do you think it would make that big a difference?

[JonasDarkmane 19,777]

I don't think it would be as popular. No, I don't believe so. I can't really explain why though :T. 

[Silver Letter 1,830]

I don't think it would be as popular and wouldn't attract so many new fans.

[Rainbow Dash Fan 82]

No... plus the Mane 6 would look hideous as stallions!

[碇 シンジン 27,427]

Nope there are too many male centered shows today, this show found its place=)

[Zerbu 72]

A lot of it would depend on if the characters kept their personalities or not. If the characters were made more masculine, it would be no different than most other shows. If not, it would get a fair bit of attention for going outside the macho-man stereotype. I can't guage exactly how popular it would be, but I definitely think it would have a different fanbase than the current one does.

[SteveMorison 404]

It would be quite strange for a show called "my little pony" to have a predominantly male cast.

[Sunset's Shimmer 394]

There's a lot of variables. In general though, No, I don't even think the show would be created in the first place. -_-

 

See... the show's target audience is towards small girls. I believe the show wouldn't even be possible due to the media's portrayal of gender stereotypes. There's no money in making an effeminate male children's show. As we all know, Hasbro is all about the money and since the show's underlying purpose is to be a commercial towards buying toys, it wouldn't make sense.

 

I personally don't agree with how the world see gender labeling and stereotypes, but it is what it is... for now. :okiedokielokie: 

[Megas 27,114]

Nah, the show wouldn't be nearly as loved if the mane 6 were male. Hell for a lot of people, some of the traits of the mane 6 wouldn't wouldn't translate as well if they were male......

 

 

That said, I'd love it if they made more male characters like Rarity

Edited August 19, 2015 by Megas75

[Christmasy Britty 2,553]

I think with a cast of all male characters it probably would have become more masculine, so instead of pinkie pie working at a bakery making sweets maybe she'd be a bbq griller or something, Twilight would be the same I feel, though Rarity would definitely be a different character from what she is now

[GuyNamedEarl 1,332]

Probably not because the brony community wouldn't be as attached

[cider float 2,536]

The strongest point of MLP S4 is that it's a feminine show that doesn't suck. It's an anomaly and people love that sort of stuff. If they were male characters it would not have carried on with a feminine vibe so I can see it having half of the fandom but not the whole of today's time.

[Razege 6]

Heh... eheheh... oh the thoughts~

[Trixio 443]

some of the traits of the mane 6 wouldn't wouldn't translate as well if they were male......

In fact, the male characters would be very different.

Simply it would not have been the same, so I have not the faintest idea how successful it might have had.

[RattPitt 172]

No. I'd be willing to bet money that it wouldn't have been.

 

Why? Simple. It wouldn't be very surprising to see a bunch of males being interested in a show that had male protagonists. The media wouldn't have brought this up nearly as much as they did when the fandom was just in its early days. Did the media ever bring up the male fans of Dragon Ball Z? What about Power Rangers? Transformers?

[Jeremiah 1,586]

I am not sure, the show itself would loose it 'touch' and it just wouldnt be the same... I don't know.

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

No. I'd be willing to bet money that it wouldn't have been.

 

Why? Simple. It wouldn't be very surprising to see a bunch of males being interested in a show that had male protagonists. The media wouldn't have brought this up nearly as much as they did when the fandom was just in its early days. Did the media ever bring up the male fans of Dragon Ball Z? What about Power Rangers? Transformers?

On the one hand, if the mane 6 were male, the show wouldn't have been as popular as it was. On the other hand, there wouldn't be as many people in the media reporting about it or bringing it up.

[Commissar Alexer 763]

If most bronies were homosexual, then probably yes.

 

Jokes aside, i think perhaps yes. If the same style is kept and the show still has the friendship theme then there is a possibilty.

[cider float 2,536]

If they were male than there would be male voice actors.

 

No Tara Strong.

[Mad Cyantist 30]

No, I think the feminine cuteness is a big part of the appeal for many fans.

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

If they were male than there would be male voice actors.

 

No Tara Strong.

She's played plenty of male characters in other shows.

[SquipyCheetah 449]

Probably not in my honest opinion. Maybe them being female just makes them cuter? I dunno.

[Zerbu 72]

Why does everyone seem to assume "male" automatically means "uber-masculine macho man stereotypes"?

 

A show with male characters with similar personalities to MLP's Mane Six could actually break gender stereotypes in a whole different way. There's no way to gauge how successful such a show would be, but it would probably have a totally different fanbase to the one MLP has.

[Cirrus. 1,088]

I  just don't think it would have worked out if the main cast was male. It possibly could have worked for a show, but I just don't think it would have been anywhere as popular.

 

The female aspect has a lot to do with it. Listen to some of Lauren Faust's interviews or look at her twitter feed and you'll see what I mean.

 

I think Lauren Faust's motivation in developing it being, "Just because it's about girls doesn't mean it has to be lame or suck."  definitely has a lot to do with why it's so popular.

Edited August 20, 2015 by Cirrus.

[cider float 2,536]

No, I think the feminine cuteness is a big part of the appeal for many fans.

Yes like Tabitha Germain