Does the fandom put too much focus on the secondary six?

[ManaMinori 4,149]

There are hundreds, if not thousands of background characters in FiM, a lot of them with pretty interesting designs-

http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_ponies/Foals

http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_ponies/Unicorn_ponies

http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_ponies/Pegasus_ponies

http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_ponies/Earth_ponies

http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_non-pony_characters

 

Yet, the fandom seems to only give attention and personality/backstory to Lyra, Bon Bon, Dr Whooves, Vinyl Scratch, Derpy, and Octavia. Is there potential with these hundreds of other characters, for the fans to breathe life into? How does the fandom focusing only on 6 background ponies to give the breath of life to make you feel?

Edited February 14, 2017 by Nightmare Muffin

[LeafFerret 3,382]

Octavia and Vinyl aren't even background ponies to begin with. They were only one shot ponies, it was the fandom that gave them more appearances, also I have no idea how the Sweetie Drops and Lyra friendship started, last I checked it was Shoeshine who was next to Lyra in that episode, Derpy was because of a animation error and it wasn't even her real name and Time Turner, like the show, the hype sort of died off after 2014.

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 42,202]

These ponies have a ton of nostalgia attached to them, is my guess. They were essentially the original background ponies to get a lot of attention and it has stuck around. It is the fandom cherishing another part of the show they have adored since it began. For me, that is still a good thing. With a lot of doubt and uncertainty circulating in the fandom about the movie and upcoming season, it is nice to think about what the fandom still cherishes.

[KrazyDashie 1,847]

to be fair, these are the most famous backround ponies in the fandom.. right? (correct me if wrong) :wat:and I agree with kyoshi and rdashie 

[ManaMinori 4,149]

to be fair, these are the most famous backround ponies in the fandom.. right? (correct me if wrong) :wat:and I agree with kyoshi and rdashie

but they're not the only ones in the background. Why do ponies have to be famous to get even a smidgen of fan speculation and characterization?

[cmarston1 5,964]

I find it more ridiculous that they get more love and attention than characters with actual personalities like Celestia or Cheerilee or even Zecora.

[KrazyDashie 1,847]

but they're not the only ones in the background. Why do ponies have to be famous to get even a smidgen of fan speculation and characterization?

 

because they seem to stand out more than the others and the fandom made them famous.. I mean these ponies have been getting a lot of attention for the last couple of years, plus the show has been leaning towards fan service episodes, so that could explain some of it

[StormBlaze 993]

i though it was because (except Octi and Vinyl) they kept turning up in the background of each S1 episode. so the fandom started noticing them, kinda like easter eggs. They were just generic background crowd characters.

 

Derpy was because of the animation error. 

 

Vinyl was a one shot, but I think its because shes A DJ and has a unique look to her, she stood out and the fandom latched onto her.

 

Octavia.... ummm... i dont really remember, but I do remember there being a LOT of theories that she was one of Pinkie's Sisters after the Cutiemark chronicles episode due to similar colours and straight hair. so I think she was loved because of that?  

Edited February 15, 2017 by StormBlaze

[Attack of the Pwns 894]

The simple answer is, even though they were just background ponies, they didn't look or act like the other background ponies. They stood out.

 

Lyra: First pony to sit like a human outside of the classroom (desks)

 

Bon Bon: Voice changed with each successive voice role, often seen next to Lyra

 

DJ Pon3/Vinyl: Clean-sheet design, unique occupation

 

Octavia: Plays an instrument that is comically unsuited to pony anatomy,Pinkie directly interacts with her in Gala episode

 

Derpy: Animation error, Derpygate drama

 

Time Turner: Direct nod to another fandom, pop culture icon

 

The rest of the season one BG ponies generally didn't have this going for them, they were just average Joes and Janes. The show has since introduced some more interesting background characters, but the classics were already established at that point. So partially the fact that the secondary six had star quality, partially a "monkey see, monkey do" situation in the fandom.

[ManaMinori 4,149]

The simple answer is, even though they were just background ponies, they didn't look or act like the other background ponies. They stood out.

 

Lyra: First pony to sit like a human outside of the classroom (desks)

 

Bon Bon: Voice changed with each successive voice role, often seen next to Lyra

 

DJ Pon3/Vinyl: Clean-sheet design, unique occupation

 

Octavia: Plays an instrument that is comically unsuited to pony anatomy,Pinkie directly interacts with her in Gala episode

 

Derpy: Animation error, Derpygate drama

 

Time Turner: Direct nod to another fandom, pop culture icon

 

The rest of the season one BG ponies generally didn't have this going for them, they were just average Joes and Janes. The show has since introduced some more interesting background characters, but the classics were already established at that point. So partially the fact that the secondary six had star quality, partially a "monkey see, monkey do" situation in the fandom.

the question wasn't why they give those characters attention. I asked if they put too much focus on them. (Why even have any other background characters at all, if 6 are literally all the focus is on)?

[TBD 17,274]

Sound to me they are just giving what the fans wants because they ran out of ideas..even when it heads south. (lyra and bon bon)

[Violet_S 785]

I think it could be because since we already knew who the main characters were since the first episode aired, we wanted to know who the other ones were... At least that's how I felt, and its been a good thing because I'm pretty sure that if it weren't for us giving them so much attention they wouldn't be as known as they are nowadays

[Mesme Rize 15,692]

While i never cared for them that much, i can say that all of these 6 characters have been there since the very beginning, so most people in the fandom do give them the most attention because they feel alot of nostalgia coming from them.

 

Maybe they give them too much attention, but i think i am the wrong guy to ask.

[Oleks 1,994]

That's the problem that concerns me too. I've even started a BG ponies fun club here, but, confirming your statement, the fandom does not care much about most of the BG characters, especially the recently introduced ones. Even though the new BG ponies often have great and unique designs and are references to some other shows (like Sherlock or Steven Universe), they do not get much appreciation. 

The same can be said about some of the old BG ponies, like Cherry Berry (an earth pony who likes to fly) or Sea Swirl (I want to see her training dolphins!).

I guess we just have to deal with it - the BG 6 will remain the fan favorites.

[GrimGrimoire 4,973]

It does not bother me at all. People like the characters they like.... whether they are main, background, one-shot, guests or whatever. Everyone has their reasons for liking whatever characters they do. Those particular 6 have just been around so very long and have enough background appearances that they have built up a pretty devout following. Several newer characters are slowly growing their own following, but with few actual appearances and not nearly as much time... it is pretty hard for them to amass the following of the "side 6". There are just too many background characters out there for all of them to get the attention that some of their fans might prefer. That is why I would have really loved them to continue the Friends Forever comics and maybe explore some of those characters instead of always doing the same ones over and over.

[Attack of the Pwns 894]

the question wasn't why they give those characters attention. I asked if they put too much focus on them. (Why even have any other background characters at all, if 6 are literally all the focus is on)?

From that viewpoint, I think we could definetly the fandom should put effort into developing some of the other background characters in the show.

[KillerKingBakudan 702]

I don't think they have too much focus. They became popular for a reason, and they deserve all the appreciation they get. 

I do think there are other background ponies that deserve just as much from the fandom though. The spa twins especially. 

Oh, and Thunderlane and Cloudchaser. These two badly need more appearances.

 

[PacificGreen 1,163]

Too much? Yeah, maybe a bit...

I'd say there's a pretty neat mix of love for the other BG ponies (Pacific Glow & the rave ponies, spa ponies, Berry Punch, Thunderlane, Flitter & Cloudchaser etc), but I agree with some of the other posters...a lot of others don't get enough appreciation.

I think this mostly has to do with the fact that, as Attack of the Pwns said, the secondary six had already "filled up the spots" as the fandom's favorite BG ponies, so there's little room for focus on other BG characters.

This is partially the reason why I started my comic strip; I'm a big fan of some of the BG ponies from Season 5 (especially the Princess Spike ones, as bad as that episode was), and, despite the fact that a lot of them only had 5-10 lines, sometimes less, they seemed like interesting characters to further expand on in a story. So yeah, making a comic strip about some of those underappreciated ponies was sort of my way of giving them some attention.

[Hierok 11,833]

I think it is because there is something special on their characters where we can relate to, or just love the scenes where they are there.

[Pr0m4NV14 839]

I don't know why the fans are so focused on Dizty Doo. There are plenty of other background characters, so why focus on that particular one?

I kinda want to see more of spikes origin story.