Does MLP being a toy commercial hold it back?

[CastletonSnob 3,068]

Will the show ever be considered something truly great, maybe one of the best cartoons ever made, or does the fact that it's intended to sell toys to little girls hold it back from reaching its full potential for storytelling and lore?

[ShootingStar159 2,155]

‘Greatness’ is fleeting, and it isn’t something to be overly concerned with. There are a great many stories, movies, and tv shows that won’t survive recognition outside their generation. And that’s okay. At least, MLP has a greater chance for recognition, since it is a franchise that continually renews itself. We’ll have to wait and see what happens.

Edited March 19, 2018 by ShootingStar159

[DonMaguz 1,023]

I don't think that the toy selling is a main concern regarding FiM's reputation as a show, most shows I watched as a kid had toys, cards, sticker albums, pogs, and a variety of merchandising that allowed them to remain in the mind of its followers.

Having said that, it cannot be compared with shows originally planned as a full story (at least per season) with detailed attention to the development of the plot and characters. (I'm thinking about shows like Avatar, BoJack Horseman and a few anime)

 

[Thrond 3,262]

I don't think being meant to sell toys is that much of a problem, though maybe it impacts the things which I do feel limit this show, which are its time limit, its target age range, and its need to moralize. Though sometimes it can do pretty well even with those things considered. I don't think it's consistently entertaining, but there are plenty of people who would say the same for truly iconic shows like Star Trek. Not that My Little Pony warrants the reputation of Star Trek, per se, but then again, it is a well-known brand. 

Edited March 19, 2018 by AlexanderThrond

[Drunkfrank 1,125]

It's already considered by many people as one of the best cartoons of all time. I don't think it is held back but it could be better if it wasn't meant to sell toys.

[SharpWit 2,568]

The only thing holding it back is its rating as a cartoon intended for children. The only issue the commercialized aspect has is that the mandatory inclusion of something for what will be a toy can be difficult for the writers since it may offer little to nothing for the events in the episode, such as when twilight first became a princess and her everyday life was relatively the same and still is sometimes when her title isn't acknowledged as anything significant by background characters.

[Ganondorf8 11,241]

I see the whole toy angle as a minor issue that only exists because the company that owns the rights to MLP makes toys for a living. Generation four will be remembered for many things--too many to mention--though being a twenty-two minute toy commercial isn't one of them.

[Guest]

You're asking that question while on a fansite for said show that has thousands of users, in a fandom with hundreds of thousands of fans...

[Lambdadelta 1,462]

Toy commercial definitely has a lot of influence to the show that result some silly decision like The Castle, Flurry Heart, Rainbow Power... People argued about their  ridiculous design back then and thanks to some good writting from writting staffs, people started to tolerate them (even now some people still hate Fluryy Heart).

If not the toy commercial, the story could flow better, some design decisions could be more ... faithful to the universe. If Hasbro want even more alicorn, the writers have to find a way to shove that crap to the show and messing with the lore.

This show is just so great inspite of being a toy commercial show, i appreciated that, but it could be even better if not for the Toy company pulling the strings.

 

[Rhythm Red 6,484]

I already consider it to be one of the best cartoons of all time in my eyes.  Though many may disagree. I sometimes forget that it’s a show for little girls to be honest with you. And no, the commercials don’t change the way I view the show.  

[Mesme Rize 15,683]

Alot of cartoons since the dawn of animation, have been made with the goal to make a profit and one of the best ways is to sell them through toys and merchandise.

Animation is at the end of the day a business and the idea of a business is to make money. Yes, these people still have a passion for their jobs, but passion alone does not pay the rent.

[CastletonSnob 3,068]

But imagine this show with worldbuilding like LOTR or Game of Thrones. 

[Megas 27,497]

16 minutes ago, VG_Addict said:

But imagine this show with worldbuilding like LOTR or Game of Thrones. 

No reasonable human being goes into a My Little Pony show expecting fucking Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings, nor should they. 

You can make any TV show or universe interesting as long as you give a shit about what you're making, which is already apparent in FiM

Edited March 19, 2018 by Alvin Yakitori

[CastletonSnob 3,068]

2 minutes ago, Alvin Yakitori said:

No reasonable human being goes into a My Little Pony show expecting fucking Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings, nor should they. 

I'm just saying the show is dripping with lore and worldbuilding potential. 

[Kadeda 178]

It's already considered top tier cartoon ever made already. That's why so many people are worried about G5... cause G4 is so good.

[Castle Bleck 19,296]

1 hour ago, Alvin Yakitori said:

You can make any TV show or universe interesting as long as you give a shit about what you're making, which is already apparent in FiM

 

And that's why we're all here in the first place.

[Hierok 11,831]

4 hours ago, VG_Addict said:

I'm just saying the show is dripping with lore and worldbuilding potential. 

Definitly agree with you on that. The fact it is kidshow is holding it back for the most part. 

[Here No Longer 5,276]

Hasbro is a TOY company. Keep that in mind.

[Number62 1,258]

I think you asked a similar question a while back.

And my answer remains the same.

No, being a toy commercial doesn't hold the show back because the toys, commercials, and everything else related to merchandising can't produce, write, or edit the show.

Yeah, the creative team gets plenty of demands from Hasbro and possibly others to create certain things in the show for the sake of toys, but the creative team is still the one who decides how those things will be implemented. And I think a competent storyteller can work with the imposed "limitations" because execution will always trump idea in my book. If anything, those limitations can test the skills and imagination of the storyteller.

19 hours ago, VG_Addict said:

I'm just saying the show is dripping with lore and worldbuilding potential. 

Why exactly do you think the show is being held back? I do agree that the show has a lot of lore and worldbuilding potential and that the show hasn't lived up to its potential, but I'd hardly blame the toy commercial bullshit for the same reasons I explained earlier. If there's a lot of interesting concepts and ideas that don't get explored, that's on the creative team, not Hasbro.

[Thrond 3,262]

On 3/19/2018 at 5:56 AM, VG_Addict said:

But imagine this show with worldbuilding like LOTR or Game of Thrones. 

I feel like that would be a very different show. Given the target audience and all, I think it should take a lighter approach to worldbuilding, though I wouldn't mind if it were more imaginative and consistent. 

Plus, those worlds were both meticulously detailed in lengthy novels which took ages to write, whereas My Little Pony is pumped out on a yearly basis with most of the production time going into the technical aspects of the show. If anything is holding the show back, it's probably that production time. Which may in turn be due to the target demographic and the need to sell toys, but I don't think either of those directly affect the amount of care that goes into the final product.  

Edited March 21, 2018 by AlexanderThrond

[cmarston1 5,958]

I actually feel like the show's rating is what it holds it back at times.  I mean Transformers Prime was also a toy commercial, but was able to get away with some pretty heavy subjects for a children's cartoon.  If FiM was to be rated TVPG or just even a TVY7 rating instead of being a TV program, the show could have a bit more room to handle more complex topics.  Examples being digging a bit deeper into how the death of the Apple parents impacted Applejack, which could have allowed for her to receive much more character development than the show on it's current state would be able to.

 

[Drunkfrank 1,125]

1 hour ago, cmarston1 said:

I actually feel like the show's rating is what it holds it back at times.  I mean Transformers Prime was also a toy commercial, but was able to get away with some pretty heavy subjects for a children's cartoon.  If FiM was to be rated TVPG or just even a TVY7 rating instead of being a TV program, the show could have a bit more room to handle more complex topics.  Examples being digging a bit deeper into how the death of the Apple parents impacted Applejack, which could have allowed for her to receive much more character development than the show on it's current state would be able to.

 

Eh, even MLP has dealt with heavy stuff before.

[Steve Piranha 29,411]

Actually, I think being a comercial for a (successful) toy line is one of the reasons it'll be ending ON IT'S NINTH SEASON. Yeah, it's not easy for an animated show to last that long, and not rotting, much less one tied to a toy line 

[AlbaTross 1,586]

Considering that FiM made MLP worth watching and even won over all of us Bronies, I'm going to say, no.  FiM is well and above what something called My Little Pony has any right to be.  There are boundaries it will never cross and never should, but it's still well beyond what was expected of a series like this.

[Nyactis Mewcis Catlum 670]

I do think corporate mandating led to some questionable decisions in the show needing to be justified by the writers (and of course, it being reasonable that the writers were unable to justify all of it). That being said, lore-building was never the primary focus of MLP: FiM, nor should it be; that's just not the kind of show it is. Lore-building is great, but MLP: FiM is primarily a Slice of Life show, which makes sense given its target demographic. If you're looking for LOTR world-building, there are already series existing that do just that, like...well, LOTR itself, for one.