EqG or FiM?

[Shoobedoo 44]

I prefer FiM except R.R. takes the #1 spot overall.

[KatonRyu 1,033]

I like both, because for me EQG is much more Sunset's story than it is Twilight's. I slightly prefer the pony versions, but I really enjoy bot FiM and EQG.

[Dark Qiviut 22,430]

Easily FIM.

1. Friendship Is Magic is about subverting clichés and stereotypes and does it in its own unique way. FIM's villains include Discord, NMM, Chrysalis, and Starlight Glimmer (the latter the most complex in the show).
   
   What does EQG do? Embrace high school stereotypes. Canterlot High and Crystal Prep are stereotypical versions of high school. Each of the villains are one-dimensional and stereotypical. On top of that, EQG lazily rips off other better franchises: Monster High for the overall and EQG1, Jem and the Holograms for Rainbow Rocks, and Goblet of Fire for Friendship Games.
2. The storytelling quality in FIM is superior than EQG. Several great episodes exist, including Slice of Life, Suited for Success, Lesson Zero, and Sleepless in Ponyville.
   
   EQG's best work? Music to My Ears, Fall of Sunset Shimmer, and all three RR sequel shorts.
   
   Equestria Girls is the worst-written "episode" of the whole series. Friendship Games is broken with very immoral implications, like forcing teens to saw wood and perform motocross without any practice beforehand. Only Rainbow Rocks doesn't suck so much, and even the most average episodes are better.
3. EQG's characterization quality is very terrible. In Equestria, all of the Mane Six are likable and complex. Great characters are complex. None of EQG's characters have any layers except Pinkie Pie from EQG1 and Spike from FG. The Dazzlings are flat. The HuMane Five broke up because they had no damn clue that Sunset Shimmer sent forged messages to them. Flash Sentry and the Shadow Five are quarter-dimensional stereotypes. Sunset is flatter than them; her whole development is framed by the Elements of Harmony brainwashing her, and RR and FG retcon it as her own choice to redeem. Sunset today is Sunset-in-name-only, not the true Sunset from EQG.
4. The sexist toyline. 'Nuff said.

In short, I like FIM more because it's objectively better than EQG in nearly every way. Spike (both the Equestrian and Pedestrian versions) is one of the few instances where EQG outperforms the main series.

Edited January 8, 2016 by Dark Qiviut

[Clawdeen 14,320]

I love Equestria Girls but I like Friendship is Magic better.

[Gestum 2,493]

In short, I like FIM more because it's objectively better than EQG in nearly every way.

I think that you mean subjective and not objectively. All you base your statement on is your opinion. I mean it's great that you like fim more but you don't have to act like your opinion is worth more than someone else opinion.

[Discordian 6,015]

I don't hate Equestria Girls but I don't understand why Twilight, a full-grown woman out in the working world in Ponyville, has to go back to a school setting. She should be like "fuck this, find me a job at this school. I'm no student."

[K1NG_NAZARA 15]

I like both.

 

EqG is still "new-ish" so the characters could still be refined and fine tuned and add new development arcs. World is still fairly unexplored and they could make some drastic direction changes considering the longer runtime (not quite true, but roll with it). Since RR EqG have been more of a "hit" so we can expect new ones semi-often (after MLP 2017)

[baba_booey 4,303]

Definitely going with FiM on this one. The EQGirls movies tend to have poor writing and bad characterization in my views. Even the best movies of the series are "okay" at best imo.

[Starflite527 24]

I honestly prefer FIM because we've gotten to know the characters a lot better, and they've had more time to grow.  The EQG series for some reason still needs to pretty much re-introduce the characters or elements of harmony every time, which doesn't really leave a whole lot of time for the story to progress. In the Friendship Games, I was really looking forward to meeting the mane 6's Crystal Prep counterparts, but I only even remember the names of 2 of them (besides Twilight, obviously). All in all, I think EQG leaves a lot more to be desired to contend with the likes of FIM.

 

[Comic Sans 401]

I definitely prefer FiM. I do still like the designs of the characters and such in EQG, but overall I prefer them in their former pony glory.

[OG CHUCK 64]

i like both EQG and FIM but i prefer the FIM

[Dark Qiviut 22,430]

I think that you mean subjective and not objectively.

No, I mean objectively.

 

Equestria Girls is a very terrible film.

1. The setting, Flash, Sunset, Snips & Snails, and plot fall for clichéd, stereotypical forms of high-school drama.
2. Every single side plot is pure filler (including the interrogation scene). Cut them all out, streamline the plot, and proofread the script, and you have a much more solid story.
3. The ReMane Five were split up because of a really stupid reason and needed Twilight (who operated on a wild hunch) to figure out that Sunset framed them. Hello! You have cellphones. You can text, call, and email them!
4. Sunset claims she knows about the Element of Magic, Crystal Empire, its powers, and Twilight when she hadn't stepped foot in Equestria since running away. When she left, The Crystal Empire and EoMagic were still legends.
5. This film panders to the core fandom so many times. In the entire animated series, it's the only time it does it. (No, Slice of Life isn't fan pandering. It's fan service. The fandom references are justified, have a purpose in the plot, and don't drag the story quality.)
6. The climax is based on a Diabolus Ex Machina and Deus Ex Machina. Continuity, even within the same film, established that none of the Elements work when they're separated nor when someone else wears it. The climax contradicts it.
7. Sunset's whole personality was forcibly changed by the Elements. There are a lot of parallels to the pilot here, and this is no exception. The major difference, however, is Nightmare Moon's jealousy and anger over her older sister consumed her personality, and the Elements of Harmony reverted her to normal. Sunset Shimmer's villainy is pure, and she wasn't interested in friendship at all. She didn't change herself, the Elements changed her for her.
8. So little of EQG1 makes any sense whatsoever, but the whole film treats everything so seriously. It ain't a parody of high school stereotypes, but a celebration of them.

Rainbow Rocks is nowhere close to being as bad as EQG1, but has several flaws.

1. The villains' personalities vary and have some level of charisma, but they're still flat.
2. Flash Sentry is still filler.
3. The portal is open based on a DEM. The portal only opens once every thirty moons, but Twilight forcibly opens it and backs it up by comedy.
4. The ReMane Five are still flat and very antagonistic to one another, especially Dash and Applejack.
5. Sunset's redemption is backed by her character reset. A lot of the humor towards Sunset is very mean-spirited and got dated the first time around.
6. They offer absolutely no explanation why the characters began to pony up whenever they played music. When the question was asked in the beginning, Dash said, "Who cares why it happens!" You should care, and your audience should, too. You're building a world, and your worldbuilding must make sense.
7. But it's partially balanced by a very solid climax, more solid animation, and a tighter plot. While EQG1 and Friendship Games have so much padding, Rainbow Rocks is more streamlined with one solid goal throughout. The kitchen scene where Twilight and Sunset reveal their struggle to one another is excellent, because it drives the conflict, feels real, and gives the audience something to connect to.

Friendship Games is several steps back.

1. Outside of Sci-Twi, all of Crystal Prep's students are arrogant, antagonistic, one-dimensional bullies. Principal Cinch is a very flat villain.
2. "Shadowbolts" is as obvious an antagonistic name as "Bad Guys." It doesn't matter if Pedestria's supposed to loosely mirror Equestria. It's very possible to come up with an antagonistic name that isn't so on the nose.
3. The whole ripoff of Goblet of Fire has a clichéd "Us vs. Them" mentality. Canterlot High is painted as passionate, pure, and good. Their rivals are evil, complacent bullies from the other school. To quote Goliath from Gargoyles, "There's good and evil in all of us." To paint sides so blatantly and show this so obviously stereotypes the schools.
4. The whole competition is called the Friendship Games, but there's nothing friendship about it besides the name.
5. The gags with Flash Sentry are pure filler.
6. Sunset's retconned reset is still there, except this time a side plot revolves around her introducing Equestrian magic to Pedestria. Uh, no. In fact, it was introduced when the Sirens showed up long ago.
7. A good chunk of the plot revolves around exposition, filler, or both. You have seventy minutes to pace the script. Chop off most of the unnecessary exposition, explore the FGs more, and don't paint the whole school rivalry as good vs evil. Chances are you'll have a better-paced film.
8. It's daft for the script to make the audience believe the characters should perform very dangerous tasks, like saw wood and perform motocross, without obvious supervision and have the school boards and the kids' families be okay with it. Saws used to chop off wood have to be treated with so much care, because you can lose a limb and possibly die from blood loss. Motocross requires a license to drive a motorcycle or off-road bike, hours of rigorous training, and a bunch of knowledge about it. One mistake can paralyze or kill you, and no sane family will ever treat this as okay.

    

   This isn't Spongebob Squarepants or Looney Tunes. Both of these are comedies, and cartoon logic drives the story. As the plots are lighter, they get away with bending and sometimes abandoning real-world logic. But Friendship Is Magic is story- and character-driven, and the characters are grounded into reality. Everything in Friendship Games is treated very seriously, and legitimate stakes are up for grabs.

9. Then during the games, interdimensional monsters put everyone's lives at risk, but everyone ignores them and focuses on the race. Heck, after the chaos ends, both sides ignore Twilight's out-of-control spectrometer and treat its dangers as secondary compared to winning cleanly.
10. On top of that, they offer no logical explanation for why Sci-Twi's spectrometer sucks up any magic, creates Midnight Sparkle, and creates Sunset Paladin.
11. You're trying to build a world. Equestria Girls thrusts in magic in the story "just because" as a contrivance. One of its side-plots is figuring out why the Mane Six pony up. The answer given (they pony up when they reveal their truest selves) only creates more questions rather than answers.

There's a major difference between enjoying the film and reviewing its quality. Music to My Ears, My Past, Runway, and Through the Ages are fantastic, but they're bonuses. The films are the bulk of EQG and the factor determining the spinoff's quality. The flaws hugely impact each of the films' stories. All three are poorly crafted. I like FIM's main series over the EQG spinoff because the main series is a superior product.

Edited January 9, 2016 by Dark Qiviut

[Rarity Is Best Pony 634]

I'll always prefer FiM over EqG. But that is not say that I don't absolutely adore EqG because I do.

[Emerald Claus 24,872]

Well, I believe Equestria Girls is just one of those movies that didn't need a sequel. The first movie was good on it's own. The last two kind of went downhill & dented the whole idea of the first one.

 Friendship is Magic is much better. It is the original, and there is a new fun and creative episode every week.

[Na11 100]

Both, i hate how they compete against each other. :okiedokielokie: 

[Sidral Mundet 1,666]

I like both. FIM has more episodes and therefore more opportunities (as well as much more entertainment per captia) as well as nails the SoL catagory , while EQG has serialization or at the very least far more of a continuity connection and the later two movies completely own all the two-parters the show has aired with the exception of Return of Harmony. Also I look forward to more EQG material while dreading what FIM might bring up during the hiatuses.  So yeah both are pretty good. 

Edited January 10, 2016 by Sidral Mundet

[----- 477]

I like FIM and EQG equally. 

[CharlesT 24]

To be honest, I couldn't really pick between the two. They're both amazing.

[Dynamo Pad 11,349]

I really like both Equestria Girls and Friendship is Magic. If I had to pick one I would definitely have to go with Friendship is Magic. 

[Anonymous Old User Who Has Left 599]

I like both, though I prefer the characters as ponies. As humans they are bordering on the sexually inducing aspect that Barbie got into if y'all reckon back

[Ankha 35]

Seasons 1-4 of MLP > Equestria Girls > Seasons 5 & 6 of MLP

[Wind Chaser 4,768]

FiM is better all around. There's just more to like and more that goes into differentiating it from everything else out there, from the characters to the stories to the settings.

 

EqG is, by definition, a conformist turn for the franchise, with facsimile characters, an overused setting, and mostly retreaded stories. I'll at least give the crew credit for not laying down on it, and for creating the Dazzlings and Sunset Shimmer, but there's only so much you can do given the concept. It's My Little Pony without the "pony".

Edited August 4, 2016 by Wind Chaser

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,161]

I prefer FiM by a longshot, but I am also a believer in the phrase "why not both?" I say this because I have a general love for the FiM franchise as a whole and that includes other media like the comics as well. As such while I do prefer FiM, I give plenty of love to EqG as well.

 

As for reasons for preferring FiM, there is just more to enjoy and the world & characters are more thoroughly fleshed out. Additionally I prefer the more fantasy-rich setting of Equestria over the modern look of EqG.