Was the show really worth it (especially after the epilogue)?

[Splashee 28,577]

Is this thread from the spoiler forum? I never saw it before.

 

I need to read though this in detail. I still don't understand why a few members got so crazy about the ending of the show (around the time it got leaked), and since I didn't want to be spoiled at that time, I couldn't check it out.

[Prince Doopliss 2,351]

On 10/8/2019 at 9:14 PM, SparklingSwirls said:

I've watched MLP since February of 2012. Sure the epilogue was a bit of a letdown (I think anything would be a letdown considering how high all our expectations were/are.)

I started watching in June or July of 2011 and joined the fandom in November of 2011. I enjoyed the show as well it had taught me things like it should. I mean honestly there had been certain episodes that have disappointed me more so then The Last Problem. I mean okay Last Problem disappointed, but I still enjoyed it regardless and saw it as a perfect send off for the show.

In fact while I haven't watched the Ending of the End, it was more of a let down from spoilers I saw of it. I mean it it just went down offensive and not punishing Discord for trying to destroy Equestria. He shouldn't have been left off the hook and live happily with Fluttershy . 

Okay the show have had some more worst episodes, however it usually makes up for every disappointing thing for it. I mean granted I haven't seen episodes beyond the first half of season five, though I kind of regret it at times . I mean because of the show I want to be a positive person and it has made me a slightly more positive person to some degree, I can't let something like Ending of the End and The Last Problem take that away from me.

 Just can't have me forget a line like this. I mean to me this is single handed the best quote the series has. I mean sure the moment is shipping fuel, but the quote it self has more meaning to it to me 

[Latecomer 440]

9 hours ago, PCutter said:

I find it unbelievably amazing that people like him/her (nothing against you) can just choose to pretend that things don't exist. I ABSOLUTELY HATE when people use the denial of reality excuse just because they hate it.

Season 9 exists? Then it does exist. Why should we pretend that it's something that it clearly isn't? It won't just disappear just because of someone's whim.

Entertainment media exits for our pleasure. Why should we be forced to accept it in a "raw" form rather than applying our own optimizng edits? Of course, you have to remember that you are editing it, or there will be confusion when talking to others.

9 hours ago, PCutter said:

And tell me why my feelings shouldn't be affected by it?

Because if you think the show is good, it doesn't matter if other people don't agree. Unless you only liked it in the first place becuse it was popular?

Of course, that doesn't mean you can't try to convince them of it's merits, but your own liking shouldn't rely on that.

 

[Justin_Case001 4,907]

Well, I for one loved the ending, but for those who didn't, it doesn't mean that a decade of your life was wasted.  Did you enjoy much/most of your time spent watching the show?  Then it wasn't a waste.  Doesn't matter if the ending was soured for you.  You didn't waste your life or your time.  This is a rather perverse mindset that humans often tend to have.  We place all of our importance on the ending and not the journey.  If you took a vacation to a beautiful resort, and it was the absolute best vacation of your entire life, but then you had a rotten plane ride home and the airline lost your luggage, you might think that the vacation was a total waste, but did the misfortune on your last day cancel the fact that you had the most enjoyable time of your life during the rest of the trip?

I'm not above this bias, either.  I place more importance on the destination than I should while often discounting the journey.  I often feel like playing a video game is a complete waste of time unless I back up and preserve my save files for all time.  If my files are ever lost, then I feel like the entire endeavor was for naught.  But that just isn't true.  I still had the enjoyable experience, and it's the sum of your conscious experiences that make up the totality of your life.  If something was enjoyable, then it was worth it.

[Latecomer 440]

2 hours ago, Justin_Case001 said:

Well, I for one loved the ending, but for those who didn't, it doesn't mean that a decade of your life was wasted.  Did you enjoy much/most of your time spent watching the show?  Then it wasn't a waste.  Doesn't matter if the ending was soured for you.  You didn't waste your life or your time.  This is a rather perverse mindset that humans often tend to have.  We place all of our importance on the ending and not the journey.  If you took a vacation to a beautiful resort, and it was the absolute best vacation of your entire life, but then you had a rotten plane ride home and the airline lost your luggage, you might think that the vacation was a total waste, but did the misfortune on your last day cancel the fact that you had the most enjoyable time of your life during the rest of the trip?

I'm not above this bias, either.  I place more importance on the destination than I should while often discounting the journey.  I often feel like playing a video game is a complete waste of time unless I back up and preserve my save files for all time.  If my files are ever lost, then I feel like the entire endeavor was for naught.  But that just isn't true.  I still had the enjoyable experience, and it's the sum of your conscious experiences that make up the totality of your life.  If something was enjoyable, then it was worth it.

To be a bit more cynical... is an experience that has faded form memory and left no physical legacy part of that totality? Our minds lose and confuse so much - without something to trigger recall, an experince is easily lost. Is it's value lost with it?

[Justin_Case001 4,907]

On 12/12/2019 at 12:42 PM, Latecomer said:

To be a bit more cynical... is an experience that has faded form memory and left no physical legacy part of that totality? Our minds lose and confuse so much - without something to trigger recall, an experince is easily lost. Is it's value lost with it?

Interesting philosophical question.  I will have to say... yes, the experience still has value because whether we remember it or not, every single moment and influence on your conscious experience made you who you are right now and brought you to this very moment.  Change one experience, and everything unravels.  Butterfly effect and all.  That's why it all has value, whether we remember it or not, or whether we recognize it or not.

Of course, the nihilist in me also wants to point out that in the grand scheme, nothing matters at all in the end, as one day our species will be extinct, and the atoms from our bones scattered to the endless sea of stars.  Things only matter in the present moment when there's someone to experience something.

[Latecomer 440]

9 hours ago, Justin_Case001 said:

Interesting philosophical question.  I will have to say... yes, the experience still has value because whether we remember it or not, every single moment and influence on your conscious experience made you who you are right now and brought you to this very moment.  Change one experience, and everything unravels.  Butterfly effect and all.  That's why it all has value, whether we remember it or not, or whether we recognize it or not.

Of course, the nihilist in me also wants to point out that in the grand scheme, nothing matters at all in the end, as one day our species will be extinct, and the atoms from our bones scattered to the endless sea of stars.  Things only matter in the present moment when there's someone to experience something.

How did we get here from ponies?

[fare67t 243]

I personally find the whole attitude of "Oh, the show is total utter shit BECAUSE I DIDN'T LIKE THE ENDING" to be rather stupid.

I think Nostalgia Critic did a video about that subject: people suddenly dumping on a movie or show because they didn't like the ending.

Did I like the epilogue? sort of, there are some things that could be better, but I enjoyed it none-the-less...between crying my eyes out that is.

[Dark Qiviut 22,500]

On 10/8/2019 at 2:02 PM, PCutter said:

Some accuse the epilogue of being "worse than fanfiction."

Not accusing you of this, but the “this is a fanfic” complaint I read here and there is monumentally stupid. Why? Because it automatically associates fan fiction with being worthless time to read or write. Why should I listen to an explanation of criticism that stereotypes fan fiction and the creativity of those authors?

As for your OP, the show’s more than worth it! I watched this show since almost the beginning of season 2. From the last three seasons, it was better than it had ever been, and it was good already with the fifth becoming my favorite. If I didn’t enjoy it, why would I even bother?

[Latecomer 440]

5 hours ago, Dark Qiviut said:

Not accusing you of this, but the “this is a fanfic” complaint I read here and there is monumentally stupid. Why? Because it automatically associates fan fiction with being worthless time to read or write. Why should I listen to an explanation of criticism that stereotypes fan fiction and the creativity of those authors?

As for your OP, the show’s more than worth it! I watched this show since almost the beginning of season 2. From the last three seasons, it was better than it had ever been, and it was good already with the fifth becoming my favorite. If I didn’t enjoy it, why would I even bother?

I do think it is applicable in some cases, and not just as a complaint. For instance, when I call the comics "published fanfic", it's due to a number of siimlarites, like the heavy use of references and semi-dependent sub-continuity vulnerable to contradiction.

[PCutter 127]

@Dark Qiviut

If you don't mind, I'd like you to look at this one's words on the series finale. https://disqus.com/by/stormspark1/

As much as I try to remain civil and go right up to this one and say "I disagree with everything you said," I am so tempted to go all werewolf because I myself am personally outraged that after 9 years of the creators putting in effort to these final episodes, stormspark basically says it's the shittiest final episodes in the history of mankind. And I've been around too many ungrateful persons in my life.

Is s/he right? Because I loved the finale yet I feel s/he'll say "your opinion is idiotic, like you are" to me.

[SBaby 660]

16 hours ago, PCutter said:

@Dark Qiviut

If you don't mind, I'd like you to look at this one's words on the series finale. https://disqus.com/by/stormspark1/

As much as I try to remain civil and go right up to this one and say "I disagree with everything you said," I am so tempted to go all werewolf because I myself am personally outraged that after 9 years of the creators putting in effort to these final episodes, stormspark basically says it's the shittiest final episodes in the history of mankind. And I've been around too many ungrateful persons in my life.

Is s/he right? Because I loved the finale yet I feel s/he'll say "your opinion is idiotic, like you are" to me.

I wouldn't take anything that person said seriously, because based on some other posts he's made, he seems like either a huge hypocrite, or that he was speaking impulsively in the moment without thinking.  Because based on recent posts, he's clearly still a fan even though he claims he isn't anymore.

As it is, I don't let people tell me what I can and can't like.  I'm going to like some things that other people aren't going to like, and I'm going to not like some things that other people DO like.  For instance, I liked the remake of Secret of Mana, even though alot of people didn't.  And by that same token, I wasn't crazy about Game of Thrones, even though many people were.  I'm not going to like something just because alot of people like it.  Likewise, I'm not going to stop being a fan of something just because one part of it isn't what some people envisioned it to be.

If I were to so easily stop being a fan of something simply because one part of it didn't please me, then I was probably never really a fan to begin with.  Obviously, that's not the case with this show because I still enjoy it.

Edited January 8, 2020 by SBaby

[Kings&Hooves14 616]

Of course it was worth it! The show made me happy for seven seasons, and the fandom still makes me happy--good enough for me! 

[Paleopony 707]

Of course it was worth it! Why would I be here then if I thought it was just a waste of time? Sure, there were a few bad episodes here and there but the positives far outweigh the negatives.

[AppleButt 8,679]

I haven't seen the final season tbh, but even if it did suck it wouldn't matter.  It wouldn't change what ponies mean to me, and all the positive things it did for me.  It also doesn't suddenly take away all the awesome people I've met within this fandom along the way.  Every bit of it was worth it, no matter the outcome of the show towards the end.  

[JMTV99 1,358]

Despite it's bad moments, the show is still and definitely worth it! I wouldn't be who I am today if it weren't for this show and I'll continue to love and cherish it until the day I die.

[Tom Gallagher 33,603]

Of course it’s worth it! If it wasn’t, I don’t know where I’d be and I certainly wouldn’t have made the amount of friends I’ve made through it. 

[Astralshy 28,041]

In my humble opinion: Yes, it is. I still love and adore this show. There were a handful of episodes with problems and some which were okay, but the the most episodes are really great. Despites my personal feelings of this show .. it has spawned a whole fandom with lots of artworks. So this show has apparently inspired many people over a long time. If this makes a show not worth it, I really don't know what would.

[Landi 601]

Yeah, I'd say it was still worth it. I wasn't really all that impressed with the finale, and I dislike season 9 and especially season 8, but that doesn't change all the enjoyment I was able to get out of the first seven seasons. From the great characters, the  interesting setting, to the fun stories, there are a lot of good aspects to this show which help make it such a great one. To this day I still go back and rewatch some of the great episodes of the first seven seasons. Plus, the fandom that this show has created can be very fun and creative, so even if the show itself was lacking towards the end, I could still find enjoyment out of the fandom. Overall I'm really glad that Friendship is Magic came out, and that it was able to bring so much enjoyment to me and many others.

[abronymouse 6,130]

Weird question in the OP  

Is having fun watching random Youtube things 'worth it'? Was watching Game of Thrones 'worth it'? Is playing RPGs worth it?

Pony and these other things are fun! If I wasn't doing pony stuff I would find other fun things in my leisure time, they would probably be be less cuddly and silly I suppose. 

There are some things I do that as leisure activities that are beneficial eg I like historical fiction which sometimes helps me learn things that are worthwhile. On the other hoof, the stress relief of watching the show is also beneficial and occasionally while watching the show and especially doing the RP I have come across things that lead to looking up worthwhile things (eg the other day I looked up Plato's Apology due to it coming up in a RP - I love random stuff coming up like that  ).

Overall though, watching a fun thing because it's fun has been a good experience  I'm glad there's almost unlimited content that I can reliably tune into and find fun and that I can share those experiences with other bronies :3

[RDDash 19,232]

The show is part of my life, whether I liked the ending or not. Honestly, by now it's doesn't seem to make a huge difference because of G5

[Evil Pink One 13,517]

It's the fandoms fault.

[Metemponychosis 1,262]

9 minutes ago, Kujamih said:

It's the fandoms fault.

Elaborate?

[Megas 27,871]

If I ignore the Haber era of the show entirely than yes. S6 and S9 are still shit, but S1-5 are still there, I still enjoyed EQG(enough to watch the final special, which is still some thing I hold over the main shows), I enjoyed some of the comics(even if S10 was hot trash), I still enjoyed Pony Life

[Evil Pink One 13,517]

I only joined the fandom when I got to finish the whole show loved every second of it.... Then re watching it with the knowledge of the fandom made some of it fun and ruined some of it.

Negativity brings more negativity.... Introduction of the fandom's thoughts sometimes influence others... Sometimes Even if you try  not to be bias... Once the influence is there... It's there.

Like the haters... They haven't watched it yet. But once they do they enjoy it and be greatful and what not.

I was a mehher (not really a hater)

 

So in a way in the long run the lover becomes a hater and the hater becomes a lover effect happens.

Take things granted and what not.

And you can't please everyone. But today's youth mentality is you have to please me.... Me mentality.....

Sure some of the episodes where bad... But come on you gotta hate the whole show for it?...

Long story short 

The fandom will always be the reason of a shows downfall...