Why does Equestria have fat unicorns?

[Guest]

 

 

Honestly I thought the fat pony in Rarity's new boutique at the end was a litttttle offensive. It was funny, but pretty mean and i'm actually shocked that made the cut. 

 

 

Not everyone is all about supporting the "positive body image" movement. I kind of always felt MLP has been pretty neutral on the subject. I always felt the fourth Ponytone was pretty chubby in a cute way: http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/mlp/images/7/7f/The_Ponytones_harmonizing_S4E14.png/revision/latest?cb=20140217113603

 

There was another chubby pony in the background in the same episode.

[Raven Rawne 1,381]

I was under the impression that learning spells was like learning different academic subjects. Some people are better at math and science than others, and some are more knowledgeable about history. Twilight just happens to be one of those rare individuals who learn very quickly and happen to be good at everything. I don't think that other ponies are necessarily incapable of learning the same spells that she can; only that it takes some extensive training to perform them, and most unicorns are only invested in learning a few of them. 

As far as I'm concerned, You may very well be right. We have little concrete information about unicorn magic in general.

 

My take is that each pony has a base value of magical power (as if engine horsepower, rather than battery stored power) in them since birth, witch they use in daily tasks, and in case of unicorns and pegasi, also in magic spells and flight. So when a unicorn discovers their special talent and refines their "natural" spells, they're free to learn new ones as well, but some are too complex for them to handle. Also, it is said in "Boast Busters" that most unicorns never learn anything outside their natural skillset. Maybe learning new spells is hard? And keep in mind that magic is an academic subject on it's own in Equestria, so there's bound to be boatloads of information to take before attempting anything more complex and out of one's natural skillset.

 

Well, maybe we're thinking about the same thing, but just formulate it differently. I don't know. With so many blind spots there are just so many possible answers. All I can tell for sure is that we're both not wrong. That's a good place to start, if anything.

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 41,866]

The thing is, I don't think that one pony was 'fat', I think she might have just had a different body type than other ponies. It is a very crazy magical world of colorful ponies so I think that is possible. Super marshmallow pony. :3  There is nothing wrong with her being 'fat' though, unless it was negatively impacting her health. 

[Mez 244]

Equestria probably has fat people the same reason earth does, Lazy people, crappy genetics and shoddy medicinal side effects.

 

Imagine if someone cast a dispel... spell on rarity and it turned out she was a few pounds larger then every thought. XD I'd lose it at that point.

I just imagined that, oh my, Rarity would be devastated.

 

Edited October 16, 2015 by Mezcass

[sweetolebob18 728]

As to Unicorns learning spells.  Look at Rarity in Cutie Mark Chronicles (S1E23), you get a few instinctive spells, most probably related to your Cutie Mark.  But, like Twilight (in Chronicles & elsewhere) you can also study & learn more.  Most Unicorns learn TK because it is so useful but otherwise don't bother.

 

As to their primitive tech level meaning they get more exercise.  IMO, yes.  Ponies seem to have few motor vehicles & walk or fly by wing to get most places.  Walking burns ICR how many calories per hour & walking more is 1 of the things recommended for losing weight.

Edited October 16, 2015 by sweetolebob18

[cider float 2,538]

This question honestly is like asking why there is evil in Equestria when they can use magic to eliminate it.

[Lucky Star 972]

Maybe they like a little meat on their bones. 

Chubby chasers are every where, so you have to pander to your chosen audience. 

 

Or maybe the spell is too high level for some unicorns. I mean if they have spells to time travel and ones that change the age of a pony, I'm positive they got spells for this. I'm sure if you wanted this spell done, you would have to go to unicorn trained to do the spell and pay them a crap ton of bits. 

This question honestly is like asking why there is evil in Equestria when they can use magic to eliminate it.

*whispers* Because they have free will, peeps choosing to be evil only need to be dealt with when they try harming peeps or destroyong other peoples crap. 

Outright destroying things because of something they might do would be evil.

so in that case they would have to destroy themselves too.

 

So, no, it's not not like asking that.

Is it a problem that there are chubby or fat ponies in Equestria?

No, there is no problem.

I'd rather think that Equestria doesn't have a body image to be honest. 

Honestly I thought the fat pony in Rarity's new boutique at the end was a litttttle offensive. It was funny, but pretty mean and i'm actually shocked that made the cut. 
*ahem*
Pony society is similar to ours. Look at Fleur de lis! She's a supermodel. And just like supermodels here on Earth.. She's tall and skinny. Based on that, I'd imagine that being overweight is a negative thing in Equestria as well.
So if ponies could just poof their fat away, i'm sure they would have by now. Nopony likes being made fun of for their appearance. I can assure you, fat-shaming probably happens in Equestria too.

Sure makes sense to me, goodness. 

Maybe they'll do an ep on body image one day, I mean it couldn't hurt.

People of every age go through trouble like that, so it wouldn't be bad morel for the kiddie fans either.

 

an ep about loving yourself for who you are, or one about healthy diets and exercise and not taking the easy way with magic (instead of A.K.A sugery and puking). not that I'm saying puking is easy, I've had the flu before, dat horse pie sucks.

 

I'm honeslty curious about which kind of ep we would get. 

MLP Pony fat doesn't work that way. Look at Pinkie Pie, with the amount of cake she eats she would not only be obese by now, she'd also have died from severe organ failure by now. XD

 

Also some ponies are kinda chubby but still look ok, such as Mrs Cake. XD

Fool, do you see the way Pinkie runs around and the way she bounces? 

dat gurl work dem calories away just livin they way she does. XDDD

Edited October 16, 2015 by Lucky Star

[cider float 2,538]

Maybe they like a little meat on their bones.

Chubby chasers are every where, so you have to pander to your chosen audience.

 

Or maybe the spell is too high level for some unicorns. I mean if they have spells to time travel and ones that change the age of a pony, I'm positive they got spells for this. I'm sure if you wanted this spell done, you would have to go to unicorn trained to do the spell and pay them a crap ton of bits.

 

*whispers* Because they have free will, peeps choosing to be evil only need to be dealt with when they try harming peeps or destroyong other peoples crap.

Outright destroying things because of something they might do would be evil.

so in that case they would have to destroy themselves too.

 

So, no, it's not not like asking that.

 

No, there is no problem.

I'd rather think that Equestria doesn't have a body image to be honest.

 

Sure makes sense to me, goodness.

Maybe they'll do an ep on body image one day, I mean it couldn't hurt.

People of every age go through trouble like that, so it wouldn't be bad morel for the kiddie fans either.

 

an ep about loving yourself for who you are, or one about healthy diets and exercise and not taking the easy way with magic (instead of A.K.A sugery and puking). not that I'm saying puking is easy, I've had the flu before, dat horse pie sucks.

 

I'm honeslty curious about which kind of ep we would get.

Yes it is. It's asking why magic can't do this and that with the thought that magic can do anything in a snap with no effort.

 

Exercise is magic.

Edited October 16, 2015 by cider float

[Lucky Star 972]

Yes it is. It's asking why magic can't do this and that with the thought that magic can do anything in a snap with no effort.

 

Exercise is magic.

Why didn't you get rid of all the other stuff I typed for other people? that looks messy as buck 

[Luna the Great of all the Russias 3,015]

Because when one eats too much food, becoming overweight is something that can happen. However...

The thing is, I don't think that one pony was 'fat', I think she might have just had a different body type than other ponies. It is a very crazy magical world of colorful ponies so I think that is possible. Super marshmallow pony. :3  There is nothing wrong with her being 'fat' though, unless it was negatively impacting her health. 

...considering that Pinkie consumes quite a bit of sweets regularly, it's not known how that sort of thing works in MLPFIM universe. However, it could very well be that Pinkie is exception to this or she actually must consume so many calories to keep up with her energetic self.

[Stardust* 3,302]

Is this seriously a question???

[ShadOBabe 19,013]

There was never a spell that reduces one's body fat and I find it very rare to find an obese pony because the ponies have primitive technology and do a lot of hard labor.

I certainly wouldn't call pony technology "primitive". They have electricity, video games, cameras... No it's not as advanced as human tech, but then again, humans don't have magic to pick up the slack.

Edited October 17, 2015 by ShadOBabe

[Unlikeable Pony 2,699]

There are probably spells that can alter one's weight in the universe, but they most likely can only be cast by the most high ranking and studied of unicorns.

That's like walking up to steven hawkings and demanding that he stop doing what he's doing and spend his time being a dietician for everyone with a self image problem, their time is WAY more valuable than that.

[ManaMinori 4,145]

Diversity. Why should thee just be one set body type?

And what should it matter? So long as the pony is comfortable with their body, and judging from "Big Blue"'s cutie mark, she is.

[Foliha 395]

 

We've seen more complicated spells than that. Twilight's turned animals into oranges. I'm sure that spells for gaining or losing weight isn't unreasonable. It would just take some studying and practice to use it efficiently.

 

Come to think of it, Zecora gave Applebloom a potion to fix a chipped tooth. If there was a potion that could control weight, then that's something all ponies could benefit from. 

 

 

You know, poisoning the well does nothing. I'll have you know I used to be 80 pounds overweight. You can't tell me I'm not accepting of other people being bigger.   

 

What I DON'T accept is self-destructive behavior. I didn't start losing weight until kidney stones kicked in and forced me to change my diet. Looking back at that trip to the hospital still makes me feel like an idiot because since then, I found that keeping track of calories, monitoring my salt and water intake and ditching the sodas took next to no effort at all. It just seemed so goddamned easy, and now I'm getting obese people at work asking me how I did it. And they continue to disappoint me because all they can do is make excuses for themselves, even after they end up seeing a doctor. 

 

Understandably, not everyone can lose weight due to some inherent health problem. That's one thing. But if losing weight IS within your ability, but you instead choose to let yourself go and then bitch about having a bad heart or diabetes, that speaks volumes about your character. How can anyone in their right mind say that THAT's something we should accept? That's like saying we should accept alcoholism or drug addiction.

 

But who am I kidding? Some people must be predisposed towards dumping toxins into their bodies, so I guess that makes me a bigot for saying anything about them.

 

 

So I guess alcoholics, drug addicts, etc. just need to "suck it up?"  Why is this thread even happening?  It seems to me like idle trolling.

[Snake 516]

 

 

Not everyone is all about supporting the "positive body image" movement. I kind of always felt MLP has been pretty neutral on the subject. I always felt the fourth Ponytone was pretty chubby in a cute way: http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/mlp/images/7/7f/The_Ponytones_harmonizing_S4E14.png/revision/latest?cb=20140217113603

 

There was another chubby pony in the background in the same episode.

 

(I absolutely adore that Ponytone girl. She has one of my favorite designs in MLP to this day tbh.)

 

As for MLP being neutral on the subject, I feel it would probably be less of a problem than it is here, but i'm sure it exists. To me, Fleur de lis proves that weight/height DOES matter, even if only in high-end places like Canterlot.

[ShadOBabe 19,013]

As for MLP being neutral on the subject, I feel it would probably be less of a problem than it is here, but i'm sure it exists. To me, Fleur de lis proves that weight/height DOES matter, even if only in high-end places like Canterlot.

 

But see, I think that happens because that's the body type of the celestial sisters.

The power, beautiful, eternal alicorn rulers are very tall and thin. Looking like them is certain to be stylish.

Edited October 17, 2015 by ShadOBabe

[CookieK 74]

Some people and ponies just have a bigger build not everyone wants to or can be model skinny. Why is that such a big deal for you some people just have a bigger build not everyone is suppose to look like a fashion model. Did you bronies learn anything from the episode with starlight glimmer, the differences of the ponies is what makes them special it would be boring if everyone looked and acted the same. Stop trying to shove your toxic ideas into my show about ponies. 

Edited October 17, 2015 by CookieK

[prfan93 123]

I'm afraid it's more complicated. First, we have no actual evidence of any "cosmetical" spells (for example, Rarity could just magically grow her eylashes rather than use fake ones), so it would be safer to assume weight reduction works the same way it does on Earth. I guess plastic surgery would heavily rely on magic, so there is a possibility for magically assisted liposuction and stomach shrinking. Secondly, here on Earth obesity is a major public health scare (witch, as a public health specialist, I partially approve) AND there's lots of plain wrong "fat shaming". Education about risk of obesity is ok, firing people from jobs and shaming them like it's 15th century and there's a plague in town just after they moved there - isn't.

We already know that pony society is founded upon the base of accepting each other's differences, since there are 3 races of ponies, but also donkeys, mules, griffons, you name it. And even though there has to be some common canon of beauty among ponies, their tolerant nature prevents them from picking up torches and pitchforks just because somepony is obese. And since there is no evidence of any organised healthcare going on (the whole sector may be running on commercial rules), the risk of excessive care costs and possible premature death is their own alone. I think the average pony thinks "not my stomach, not my purse, not my problem".

 

...I agree with this. It would take expert-level magic to "melt away" unicorn fat.

[ggg-2 3,553]

My friend on Deviantart and i have a headcanon that, despite the amount of sugar a pony consumes, there is no such thing as Diabetes or heart disease in Equestria. Furthermore, the biggest hindrance come from being overweight/fat/obese would just be limited physical ability. While there is a slight social stigma of "thin is beautiful", it is nowhere as bad as our world.Therefore, if a pony were to say, enjoy being overweight, it would be considered unusual, but they wouldn't be ostracized. And if said pony were to happen to identify themselves as a "gainer" it would raise a few eyebrows, but it wouldn't be anything that anypony would lose sleep over, and CERTAINLY not anything that they would think anything less of that pony for.

Edited October 17, 2015 by ggg-2

[KillerKingBakudan 702]

So I guess alcoholics, drug addicts, etc. just need to "suck it up?"  Why is this thread even happening?  It seems to me like idle trolling.

In an environment that's as politically-correct as this forum, what ISN'T considered trolling?

 

That's not why I started this thread. I was genuinely curious and asking an honest question. If being fat wasn't linked to life-threatening conditions, I wouldn't care. You'd know that if you actually bothered to read anything I said.

 

And I'm pretty sure that any doctor reading through this discussion would agree there's something wrong with you, if you think it's trolling to say people should change their weight.

[Scion of Arcadia 69]

 

 

Sure makes sense to me, goodness. Maybe they'll do an ep on body image one day, I mean it couldn't hurt. People of every age go through trouble like that, so it wouldn't be bad morel for the kiddie fans either. an ep about loving yourself for who you are, or one about healthy diets and exercise and not taking the easy way with magic (instead of A.K.A sugery and puking). not that I'm saying puking is easy, I've had the flu before, dat horse pie sucks. I'm honeslty curious about which kind of ep we would get.

 

I feel that's an inevitable possibility, episodes about being ok with your body are endemic to shows with morals in them and it's only a matter of time 'til one shows up in MLP. I'm a little worried about it, though. Such episodes don't tend to be well liked and come across as heavy-handed. Still, if there's any show that could pull it off, it's this one. They have a pretty good track record of not making morals sound too forced.

 

 

 

Snake, on 16 Oct 2015 - 07:20 AM, said: Honestly I thought the fat pony in Rarity's new boutique at the end was a litttttle offensive. It was funny, but pretty mean and i'm actually shocked that made the cut. Not everyone is all about supporting the "positive body image" movement. I kind of always felt MLP has been pretty neutral on the subject. I always felt the fourth Ponytone was pretty chubby in a cute way: http://vignette1.wik...=20140217113603There was another chubby pony in the background in the same episode.

 

You know, I never noticed that fourth Ponytone before, but I agree with your opinion completely. As to the surprise pony at the end of Rarity's New Boutique, though, I feel incorporating her was a mistake. Not because she's fat, mind you, but because she doesn't even look like a pony. Her body is a rectangle, for Luna's sake, and she's bigger than Celestia. She just doesn't look like she belongs in the slightest.

 

The thing I find most curious is that this seems to be shown more with colts than the usual ponies. There's Snails, Truffle Shuffle, and that pony with an abacus Cutie Mark in Crusaders of the Lost Mark. And though that's only three, I feel they stand out due to less colts being seen than ponies, making it a larger percentage. I suppose you can account for it, though, as a lot of colts have more unique body shapes than the standard background ponies. They can get more varied with them.

[cuteycindyhoney 13,316]

MLP Pony fat doesn't work that way. Look at Pinkie Pie, with the amount of cake she eats she would not only be obese by now, she'd also have died from severe organ failure by now. XD

 

Also some ponies are kinda chubby but still look ok, such as Mrs Cake. XD

I love Torch Song. I think she looks really nice.

[MLPFanatic34 3,235]

Some ponies just have a bigger build compared to other ponies.

[Foliha 395]

People in real life wish they could just magically melt all their fat away. The unicorns in MLP have that ability, yet some like the puppeteer from Season 4, and the fat pony from Canterlot Boutique are still carrying all that excess weight for no reason. What's their excuse? Are they really just that lazy, or are they so depressed that they stopped caring about clogging their arteries?

 

 

 

We've seen more complicated spells than that. Twilight's turned animals into oranges. I'm sure that spells for gaining or losing weight isn't unreasonable. It would just take some studying and practice to use it efficiently.

 

Come to think of it, Zecora gave Applebloom a potion to fix a chipped tooth. If there was a potion that could control weight, then that's something all ponies could benefit from. 

 

 

You know, poisoning the well does nothing. I'll have you know I used to be 80 pounds overweight. You can't tell me I'm not accepting of other people being bigger.   

 

What I DON'T accept is self-destructive behavior. I didn't start losing weight until kidney stones kicked in and forced me to change my diet. Looking back at that trip to the hospital still makes me feel like an idiot because since then, I found that keeping track of calories, monitoring my salt and water intake and ditching the sodas took next to no effort at all. It just seemed so goddamned easy, and now I'm getting obese people at work asking me how I did it. And they continue to disappoint me because all they can do is make excuses for themselves, even after they end up seeing a doctor. 

 

Understandably, not everyone can lose weight due to some inherent health problem. That's one thing. But if losing weight IS within your ability, but you instead choose to let yourself go and then bitch about having a bad heart or diabetes, that speaks volumes about your character. How can anyone in their right mind say that THAT's something we should accept? That's like saying we should accept alcoholism or drug addiction.

 

But who am I kidding? Some people must be predisposed towards dumping toxins into their bodies, so I guess that makes me a bigot for saying anything about them.

 

(bolding and italics in the quoted posts is mine)

 

I did read your posts, and they seem very judgmental to me.  The tone, although tone can be difficult to assess online, seems to imply a very judgmental attitude.  

 

A person's difficulty controlling a, say, sugar addiction does not necessarily equate to a character defect.  Body image is a tricky thing.  Everyone has their own way of seeing themselves and others. 

 

I congratulate you on having shed 80lbs.  But please consider that the same process may involve very different things for others, and not be easy, especially if the struggle has been going on for a long time.  And comments using the words "lazy" and "character defect" don't help, and can be very hurtful.  It isn't about being politically correct, it's about being considerate.

 

Personally, I think that it's a good thing there are fat ponies.  Fat is a thing that young people often have a lot of charge about.  Losing weight, being criticized and considered lazy or spineless, or ridiculed for not having a body-type which is the TV norm are all things which a viewing audience of young people (I'm 63, so someone in their 30s is still young to me) could appreciate seeing discussed and handled in a helpful way.  I would love to see a show about that.

 

Pinkie Pie eats, uh, like a horse - and she never seems to get fat - except momentarily. (I've known people like that...  very annoying!) What if Pinkie Pie went to another town, where ponies didn't know her, and had some huge cake orgy and got her usual temporary fatness, except that this time it doesn't go away.  How would other ponies see her?  How would she see herself? 

 

With no Twilight Sparkle or Celestia nearby to make it go away immediately with magic, she's be in a pickle.  What if she believed people who told her she was lazy or of poor character?  Poor Pinkie!  Suddenly gobbling cupcakes would be a crime - a crime against herself.  Our wonderful, bouncing, cupcake-munching Pinkie-Pie would be in a big, fat, world of hurt. 

 

ETA.  I just saw your latest post, about your dad.  I am so sorry that you have to deal with the constant fear and anger that your dad's condition brings to you.  That would indeed be a hard thing to witness.  I understand why you are so angry about it now.  I had a similar experience, watching my parents destroying their lives with alcohol, and putting major dents in mine as well. 

 

All I can say is try and find a way to forgive your dad for being who and what he is.  When he's gone, you won't be able to give him that.  And you will hurt even more, needlessly.  Take it from someone who knows. 

Edited October 17, 2015 by Foliha