One reason MLP is popular.

[wartorious 31]

Hello. I'm writing a book and I was thinking; a really great way to make a story interesting is to have diametrically opposed characters and personality traits, like in MLP. 

 

Fluttershy - Rainbow dash  (shy vs outgoing )

 

Apple jack - Rarity (tom boy vs girly girl)

 

Pinkie pie - Twilight (party animal vs studious bookworm)

 

Twilight - Spike (diligant, hard working vs chilled out)

 

Flutters - angel bunny (passive vs aggressive)

 

Can you think of any more?

 

Do you think this could be true? Additionally what elements make the show good?

 

Thanks!

 

- David

www.dwbeck.com

Edited April 1, 2013 by wartorious

[DeiStar 248]

Replace Rainbow Dash with Applejack.

 

Rainbow Dash is the tomboy, while Applejack is the outgoing one.

 

Yes, they're both tomboyish and outgoing.

[Blue Moon 6,341]

Yes, the conflicting personalities make great moments in the show. It's fun to see how each character reacts to the situation. 

[wartorious 31]

Replace Rainbow Dash with Applejack.

 

Rainbow Dash is the tomboy, while Applejack is the outgoing one.

 

Yes, they're both tomboyish and outgoing.

 

Yeah I guess you're right, I guess it's easy to create story lines by bouncing characters off each other, two aplha-females competing for superiority:

 

I also love how MLP placed females into the key roles (if not all the roles), I still think a lot of writing is somewhat sexist with males having the most flamboyant and interesting personalities. What if Bart and Homer were women and Lisa and Marge were men..? Would that be strange?

 

Also, do you think writers need to be somewhat schizophrenic to understand and correctly portray other people in texts? Certainly good actors create new personalities... but they do have a script. 

Edited April 1, 2013 by wartorious

[Le Kvlt Dawn 2,364]

I too would switch Applejack and Rainbow Dash.

 

Another one I could think of,

Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie - Introversion and Extroversion

Edited April 1, 2013 by Neighvana666

[Neptunebyte 22]

I enjoy the fact that unlike many other shows aimed at a certain demographic, MLP:FiM tries to stay in its demographic while trying to attract those from other areas. I know a lot of kids shows that are aimed solely for kids, and make no attempt to impress adults. FiM is like some of my other favorite shows like the Animaniacs, which were aimed to attract kids, but also tried to appeal to adults.

[Zygen 6,066]

The conflicting of the character personality's does make interactions within the show much more enjoyable and funny at times.

 

It also is because of the fact that the animation is well done, and the art style is adorable, however both of those won't matter in a book.

 

I guess as far as writing goes the overall quality of the stories are well done. They even teach lessons, and have funny moments in them. Along with believable character writing. And not just cookie cuter personalities of a character. The characters also have a lot of depth to them. And because of the depth and the believable personalities the characters have they are easier to relate to.

 

Plus they're adorable ponies .

 

Then theres the shout outs to older cartoons and such, and the randomness of it sometimes. And its just.. well written .

 

I can't think of many other qualities of the show that would directly matter in a book really. Maybe partly its the innocence if it being meant for younger crowds. Of course I don't know if you'll be going that direction for your story, so again probably useful info there.

 

Good luck btw .

[Scootalove 10,689]

The one reason MLP is popular is because, of the fandom making content from the show like art,music, and fan fictions. Plus the fandom as a whole is made up of adults, kids, and children. Bronies and Pegasisters basically make up the entire fandom, and it shows that both genders can be together as one and not just one gender group. So I'd say the fandom is why MLP is popular.

[Guest]

Also, do you think writers need to be somewhat schizophrenic to understand and correctly portray other people in texts? Certainly good actors create new personalities... but they do have a script.

Oooh... but there is more to acting than a script. I have drama in school and my teacher always goes on about how important it is to sometimes improvise things that isn't necessarily in the script but something that just feels right.

I think that actor-feeling of what a person would or wouldn't do is all that is needed to create (at least somewhat) realistic characters. Everyone has a little actor in themselves though some may show it more than others. Actors aren't schizophrenic as long as they can distinguish real persons and unreal characters.

I think the important thing for the "actor gene" is that you have a certain level of empathy, a sense of how other people feel. That allows the actor, or author in your case, to realistically predict (or come up with I guess) what a person will do in a given situation.

 

To return to the main topic, the great thing about the characters from MLP is not only their differences between each other but also their own internal conflicts. Quirky or negative things about a character, say, Twilight being very orderly and organizing but getting anxious and outright insane when things doesn't go that way. Rarity being a fine lady with good manners but is an enormous drama queen about issues that others would find minuscule.

Putting different characters together to see how they react can be both funny and interesting but so can putting a characters own preferences against a certain tough situation that goes against that.

[King 5,625]

Replace Rainbow Dash with Applejack.

 

Rainbow Dash is the tomboy, while Applejack is the outgoing one.

 

Yes, they're both tomboyish and outgoing.

Actually if you remember Applejack hates wearing dresses and such, whereas Rainbow is fine with it so long as it's cool.

Id say they both have a little tomboy in them, but Applejack is more so then Rainbow...

[hawkflame 3,310]

I remember seeing the following picture in another post and I think it speaks volumes about this particular subject:

 

 

 

 

 

Really spells out the fascinating personality dynamics between the characters, don't you think?

Replace Rainbow Dash with Applejack.

 

Rainbow Dash is the tomboy, while Applejack is the outgoing one.

 

Yes, they're both tomboyish and outgoing.

 

I think that Applejack is more outwardly *friendly*, but Rainbow Dash is much more outspoken and in your face, which makes for a strong contrast with Fluttershy.  She certainly has less of a mental filter than any other pony.  Rather than "shy vs outgoing" for Rainbow/Flutters, I'd go with "Aggressive vs. demure"/

 

There's also a slight difference between them in that AJ looks at things from a more utilitarian perspective (there's no style points in apple bucking, after all) whereas RD is much more about flash and image. 

 

Actually if you remember Applejack hates wearing dresses and such, whereas Rainbow is fine with it so long as it's cool.

Id say they both have a little tomboy in them, but Applejack is more so then Rainbow...

 

I think that the difference is that Applejack considers fashion kind of wasteful and frivolous, whereas RD doesn't really care as long as she looks awesome.  Rainbow makes up for the difference, though, with her in your face attitude.  Notice she's usually the first one to suggest physical violence as the solution to a problem. 

[Dr. Nefarious 195]

I honestly think 30% of this fandom wouldn't even be remotely interested in this show if it didn't have this kind of fandom to go with it. I'm sorry to say, but I do think a large portion of this fandom are just bandwagoners that only watch the show because they feel like they're a part of something.

[Dusty Soul 2,611]

This is very true.  The conflicting personalities make for great character interaction.  I also think another reason this works is the voice actors that do the voices.  

[Righteous Fury 344]

Spike/Rarity = Greed/Generosity

 

Applejack/Rainbow = Caution/Daring

 

Twilight/Rainbow = Analysis/Empiricism

 

Pinkie/Fluttershy = Excitement/Tranquility

 

Twilight/Fluttershy = Logic/Emotion

The dynamics between the characters are interesting, but I don't think they account for the show's popularity. You can find similar interactions on many shows (Community is the first I think of). I think MLP's found success because it offers an alternative to the kind of dark, cynical, bloody television we normally watch. (Avatar related.) It's a nice change to have a show that offers hope and love, that not only believes in positive morals, but shows us that in a well-made show that's smart and funny.

 

There are kids' shows that have adult humour thrown in, and there are shows that are truly funny for all ages. MLP is the latter.

[Hodni 7]

other elements that made the show interesting hmmm can't speak for everyone so this is from my personal views. I'd say alot has to do with aesthetics too.

-Character designs were appealing. They look more like puppies with really big eyes. Well to me that is. (Perhaps one of the reasons why I don't like the earlier generations. They looked too much like horses despite being cartoonified.)

-Animation was cute. Smooth and simple yet balanced. It wasn't over the top or trying too hard. It wasn't overly detailed. (personally I found it quite refreshing at the time too. I was getting tired of anime style.)

 

-Witty dialogues on certain situations.

-Fan content. Honestly I would never even have bothered knowing or even checking out MLP:FiM if it weren't fan stuff that appeared almost everywhere. From image macro's to fan arts. Curiosity made me look for it and I liked what I watched.

-Breaking the Stigma of MLP in general. I remember telling myself "hmm that was strangely interesting" after watching the 1st three episodes.
I expected overly shallow plot lines and excessive girly stuff but it was nice for FiM to get rid of that.

-Alot of the audiences are more liberated and open-minded nowadays. As each decade passes by, each generation is becoming more accepting and tolerant of things they don't initially understand. Though this isn't the case for most of the world's population, unfortunately. But its still nice to see that there is a slow change.

-Bandwagon. Like any other fandom, some or perhaps alot are in simply because they see their friends and everyone else being in it. Whether they truly like the show or not, their very presence contributes to the show's popularity and the fandom's population.

I'm sure there are more reasons out there

Edited April 7, 2013 by Hodni