Hasbro and Takara Tomy

[ManaMinori 4,145]

a long, long time ago, some My Little Ponies arrived in Japan under the brand name of Takara, who were licensed by Hasbro, while Transformers were licensed by Takara under the brand name " Mai Ritoru Ponii - Osharena Ponii" ) or My Little Pony- Stylish Pony". Its 4 characters, Milky, Pinky, Lily, and Popo were the only ponies ever produced. Much of the merch, unfortunately never made it past the prototype stage.

Though these  Takara ponies were Japan only, and only distributed in generation 1, they became pretty rare for those of  us outside of Japan. Eventually, Takara rebranded under then name Takara Tomy, and has since made a handful of generation 4 figures.

So could there be hope on the horizon that Takara Tomy will, possibly, reissue some of the original g1 ponies, when My Little Pony's franchise reaches its 50th  anniversary milestone (or hopefully before then?)

 

[Megas 27,780]

If these never made it passed prototypes than I doubt we'll see these ever again

[ManaMinori 4,145]

1 hour ago, Whompy Whomperson said:

If these never made it passed prototypes than I doubt we'll see these ever again

I said much of what was listed in Takara's catalog was never made. Not ALL. It seems like you cherrypicked what you wanted out of the op, because I clearly stated that 4 ponies have been made, and are super rare today.

these threads can be seen as proof that Takara ponies actually exist and are not prototypes:

here

here

here

here too

and here

and here

Edited August 1, 2017 by Nightmare Muffin

[Megas 27,780]

Perhaps it just wasn't very successful for either company? I doubt they had a falling out since they still work together on Transformers. I doubt that Takara is interested in doing more Pony, especially since Hasbro released the MLP toys themselves in Japan(I think)

[ManaMinori 4,145]

On 7/31/2017 at 6:25 PM, Prowl said:

If these never made it passed prototypes than I doubt we'll see these ever again

Also, not a prototype

http://www.ebay.com/itm/My-Little-Pony-Takara-Adult-Pinky-Excellent-Condition-Rare-Japan-/222600730678?hash=item33d4099836:g:ftsAAOSwCkZZPrD~

 

On 7/31/2017 at 8:20 PM, Prowl said:

Perhaps it just wasn't very successful for either company? I doubt they had a falling out since they still work together on Transformers. I doubt that Takara is interested in doing more Pony, especially since Hasbro released the MLP toys themselves in Japan(I think)

Perhaps, but things change in 30 years. Plus, they are still wiling to make pony things, as seen by their very limited g4 merch. So its not as if  all hope for pony is lost.

[Merion 783]

These little guys have always been a mystery to me! I thought they were Japanese knockoffs with no connection to Hasbro whatsoever!

~* the more you know*~ 

But anyway, seeing how sought-after they are, it would be pretty sensible to make more. A regular toyline targeted at kids, or a G4-themed limited edition for collectors, maybe? (Depending on how big MLP is in Japan.) Either way, it would bs great to see them hit the shelves again!

And while we're discussing Takaras... If they were licensed by Hasbro (sort of, kind of), how come their designs are SO different from the western ponies? How come Takara was given so much artistic freedom? I'm just really curious about that license! 

AND ANOTHER THING. I had to check out Takara Tomy's current pony offerings and I'm quite disappointed with their quality. They are one of the derpiest pony figures I've seen! Meanwhile the TT Pokemon merch I collect is perfectly game-accurate and overall top-notch. So... What the hell? Does it mean MLP is not that big in Japan, after all?

[StormBlaze 992]

kinda an odd one, considering Tomy do amazingly well with things like Pokemon. 

Their figures tend to be really high quality, but I guess with guardians of harmony and the mini figure sets, Hasbro don't need another toy company to partner with for MLP.