Could the franchise benefit from having its original creator back?

[ManaMinori 4,149]

Could MLP be a stronger show, whether with a reboot or a new season, if Hasbro got the original pony mother, Bonnie Zacherle, involved, whether in storyboarding, direcion, or design? I think it would be charming if the oldest creator of our beloved equines had some significant part in creating a new generation, or steering the ongoing generation in a different way, under her vision. And while I would adore seeing both Bonnie Zachele and Lauren Faust, who had been inspired by Bonnie, working side by side in creating something fabulous,  Faust has long since burned bridges with Hasbro and their IP. But Bonnie has not. 

Does anyone else really want to see her having an impact and role on mlp?

[Mesme Rize 15,692]

Isn't she like 70 at this point? I think she wants to enjoy the autumns of her years and i think she is already happy with her lifes work, considering she built a franchise that made millions of people happy all over the world.

[blackstarraven 142]

I think it could get some new and nice input from her. But no, I don't really see any thing that would benefit from it with a reboot with her.

I would not mind seeing her on the creative team.

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If anything I think they would benefit more from Lauren's Real Return.

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Gen 1 Ponies was actually much better then people remember. It had real bad guys and real stories. But that being said, Gen2-3 where terrible 'pink is pretty' drivel. So bad that girls above 4 normally can't stand it (In my experience)

And in modern terms, the farther from those gens they are the better.

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As a side note. There is a really interesting marketing study done on when IP's reach self sustaning followings. (The point that a fandom can live through a IP going quite for a long period of time, ether because of secondary sources -comics and so on- and fan works... and FiM is WELL past that....

Simply put, FiM Will likely be like buffy and still be profitable a decade or more after it 'ends' and this is very interesting to me because of the way that pop culture works now...

Like.. Are we going to see a netflix / croudfunding option when Hasbro moves on from the Show? (It would make some sense because I'm pretty sure you could actually crowd fund the cost of a season pretty easy at this point.

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I actually would like to see companies do this at some point. Actually just come out and say. "This show costs X$ per season" We need X$ for a new season. I would not mind seeing Hasbro try something like this with FiM When they want to move on from the IP to.. what ever if after it.

Because we should also remember that MLP was basically dead as a fish before FiM came along. Yes there where Strait to Video things being put out.. but they where basically worthless from a business standpoint.

Edited June 3, 2017 by blackstarraven

[Prospekt 11,037]

I could maybe see Bonnie Zacherle working with someone like Meghan McCarthy in this scenario, not so sure about Lauren Faust though. Hasbro lost Faust with the creative restrictions. It would be a huge task to try to get her back.

[simba86 1,541]

if I remember from an interview of her I saw she was less than thrilled when hasbro had her make them in pastel colors, her original design was for regular horse colors. 

[ManaMinori 4,149]

11 minutes ago, simba86 said:

if I remember from an interview of her I saw she was less than thrilled when hasbro had her make them in pastel colors, her original design was for regular horse colors. 

that was way back in gen 1 that she said that. You don't think her thoughts toward that could've altered slightly, since then?

[Steve Piranha 29,496]

I doubt it. First, she was an illustrator and designer, storyboard is not her expertise. Second, I think she's happy for just create MLP, and spend her remaning years out of the spotlight save for the occasional pony invites 

[Jeric 46,889]

35 minutes ago, Steve Piranha said:

I doubt it. First, she was an illustrator and designer, storyboard is not her expertise. Second, I think she's happy for just create MLP, and spend her remaning years out of the spotlight save for the occasional pony invites 

 

 

This is why I say no. A showrunner needs to have experience in crafting a story in a narrative medium -- animation in FiM's case. Bonnie has no experience in that, so she would likely fail. Running a show takes more effort than jotting down a few ideas on a notebook.

That is the same line of thinking that makes some on the internet believe they could do a better job when there are substandard episodes or films. The truth is that it's rarely the case (with some notable exceptions like Star Trek Axanar). 

She would not create a show that we would enjoy. 

1 hour ago, Nightmare Muffin said:

that was way back in gen 1 that she said that. You don't think her thoughts toward that could've altered slightly, since then?

This shows that her instincts are not completely in line with what works. If her notable achievement was having her creation retooled to be marketable ... then it means that her original idea was off. Her other product she is known for is completely forgotten for a reason.

[Gestum 2,493]

I don't really think that the show would benefit from having a toy designer working on it.

[cmarston1 5,965]

I don't she really needs to be brought back, and like what others have said during this period of her life, I think she should just be allowed to enjoy her retirement.

[Black Sabbath 2,488]

7 minutes ago, Gestum said:

I don't really think that the show would benefit from having a toy designer working on it.

She could help design the characters, for example.  

[cuteycindyhoney 13,339]

Wouldn't bringing the original creator back drastically change the show? Everything the fans like could be altered beyond recognition.

[AlbaTross 1,586]

Umm...the original creator of MLP is a toy maker, not a show producer.  She deserves credit for creating the franchise but I don't think she ever had direct involvement in any of its related media (though I could be wrong).  I also don't get the sense that she would want to get involved in a show.  Plus she has to be retired at this point so I'm sure she'd much rather just enjoy life.  Besides, it's debatable whether it would be a good idea for Lauren Faust to come back and I'm more or less neutral on that idea.

[Tiny Hoofs 201]

I think Bonnie is retired...right?

I wouldn't mind having Lauren Faust back if she ever could. I loved the emphasis on adventure stories during her run. But I still like a lot of stuff from the Mccarthy era, like the Castle of Friendship and the Cutie Map.

Edited June 8, 2017 by Tiny Hoofs

[ManaMinori 4,149]

On 6/6/2017 at 10:18 AM, AlbaTross said:

Umm...the original creator of MLP is a toy maker, not a show producer.  She deserves credit for creating the franchise but I don't think she ever had direct involvement in any of its related media (though I could be wrong).  I also don't get the sense that she would want to get involved in a show.  Plus she has to be retired at this point so I'm sure she'd much rather just enjoy life.  Besides, it's debatable whether it would be a good idea for Lauren Faust to come back and I'm more or less neutral on that idea.

I am well aware that she is. I mentioned in the op the possibility of a complete gen reboot, or a new g4 season with them taking the reins. And yes while Bonnie is retired,  Hayao Miyazaki was too, several times in fac, yet he came back to work on projects again and again. Bonnie, if she wanted to, could as well. And if she was granted the opportunity for a new gen, it would obviously need new character designs than the former generations, and a writer, which Lauren, hypothetically,  would o. 

[Jeric 46,889]

On 6/6/2017 at 0:41 PM, Yamet said:

She could help design the characters, for example.  

Not well. Ever seen her concept sketches? Look at them. Then look at any animation concept sketch. Do you see the difference in style between a toy proof of concept sketch and an animation proof of concept sketch? 

I mean, this was someone who's design style is practical and invokes utilitarian elements over whimsical. She had to be convinced to even have them brightly colored over her initial idea of natural colors and markings. She even threw the person out of her office when they suggested colors pink and purple. 

She is a one hit wonder toy designer. She has no proven skill-set for creating modern animation friendly designs. 

And a few of the ideas that we saw in G1 didn't even come from her. She even officially shares credit. However, the executive's wife that gave some ideas was not one of them.

 

[ManaMinori 4,149]

15 minutes ago, Blue Diamond said:

Not well. Ever seen her concept sketches? Look at them. Then look at any animation concept sketch. Do you see the difference in style between a toy proof of concept sketch and an animation proof of concept sketch? 

I mean, this was someone who's design style is practical and invokes utilitarian elements over whimsical. She had to be convinced to even have them brightly colored over her initial idea of natural colors and markings. She even threw the person out of her office when they suggested colors pink and purple. 

She is a one hit wonder toy designer. She has no proven skill-set for creating modern animation friendly designs. 

And a few of the ideas that we saw in G1 didn't even come from her. She even officially shares credit. However, the executive's wife that gave some ideas was not one of them.

 

dude, this was over 30 years ago. You act like she still has the same mindset, after seeing how well her franchise took off. Give the woman a break. People change. Opinions change.

[Jeric 46,889]

2 minutes ago, Nightmare Muffin said:

dude, this was over 30 years ago. You act like she still has the same mindset, after seeing how well her franchise took off. Give the woman a break. People change. Opinions change.

Ok. What ... uh ... what big success has she had in the 30 years since? Sorry I can't hear you of the deafening sound of nothing. 

I think you just made my point for me. She is the toy equivalent of a one-hit wonder. 

 

And that son, is how Hasbro executives think. What have you done recently?