General Chat Thread

[Starshine 16,333]

 

test

 

Edited June 29, 2012 by Dreamwalker

[Dark Qiviut 22,396]

I bumped into a thread on a forum that briefly previewed "BronyCon Summer 2012" and occasionally dissed the fandom. Well, I decided to step in and write a post in defense of both the show and brony fandom:

 

I'm a proud brony, and I am going to BronyCon this weekend.

 

Now, as for the true "brony" definition, a brony is a portmanteau of the words "bro" and "pony." Initially, the term is for male fans of MLP:FIM from their teens to adulthood, but it's now expanded to female fans, too, some of them ditching the term "Pegasister."

 

Like any fandom, this one is really great. We help contribute to the show in any capacity we can, from discussing it on forums to writing fanfic to drawing art. It actually began as a small show, but after it was slammed, members of 4Chan began to advertise the animation via word-of-mouth promotion (such as demotivational memes, fanart, and dialogue). Since then, the fandom boomed into one that is passionate and dedicated. While some fans can be overzealous (then again, EVERY fandom has them), most of the fanbase is very creative and intelligent who just want to contribute to the show in some facet as a means of telling the creators how much they love it.

 

And WHY does the fandom love My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic so much?

 

1. Excellent writing of the stories and characters. These characters don't resort to gender stereotypes. Each character has a personality that fans can relate to. They have strengths and weaknesses, and they slowly develop their characterizations into maturer beings. This development isn't sacrificed from one episode to another; they're constantly developing. And each story is simple enough to tell, but allows breathing room for the characters to become deeper.

 

2. Great quality flash animation that's since gotten better. Most companies resort to Flash as a means to preserve money at the expense of quality drawing. In this show, the flash animation is utilized as a means to tell a story rather than being there for budget sakes. This show treats Flash with respect, and the animators aren't afraid to toy with creative solutions to make the vector more alive.

 

3. Solid worldbuilding that continues to grow. It's a fantasy slapstick world, but is grounded by realism. In addition, the staff continues to research fantasy creatures and properly insert them into the MLP:FIM universe, from manticores in the second episode to changelings in Season 2's finale. The atmosphere is completely saccharine and pastel to the point of it being "girly," but it doesn't sacrifice quality nor insult viewers' and genders' intelligence. Instead, they use the pastel environment as a means to break the mold and thoroughly tell a story.

 

3A. Because the worldbuilding is flexible, pop culture references can be inserted without it being bothersome. The song Art of the Dress is sung in-tune to Putting It Together. Here's the song in particular:

 

http-~~-//www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSbXGsysAAk

 

4. Speaking of writing, the humor is very solid and doesn't insult the viewer's intelligence. There are no flatulence jokes in the series so far and instead focus it on how the characters behave and say, such as Twilight feeling anxious, Rarity being greedy occasionally, and Pinkie Pie breaking the fourth wall with her bubbly antics.

 

5. The orchestra carries a deep personality for the show. The composer, Daniel Ingram, uses a variety of tracks to not only fit the scope of the show's atmosphere, but the characters, too. From Rainbow Dash's hurrying to Pinkie Pie's more relaxed, joyful bouncing.

 

6. Excellent songs. Almost all of these songs are incredibly well-written and don't insult the viewer's intelligence. I just showed you Art of the Dress, but there are so many great songs, such as Smile, Smile, Smile, Winter Wrap-Up, and This Day Aria.

 

7. It demonstrates the morals of friendship, but doesn't shove it down your gullet. Anime shows like Yu-Gi-Oh's 4Kids dub tends to plug in "friendship" at inopportune times to the point of it being very awkward. My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic doesn't do that. Instead, it takes each lesson and allows them to flow naturally from the beginning to the end.

 

Many of the people who work(ed) on this show have excellent reputations. The creator, Lauren Faust, worked on the storyboards for her eventual husband Craig McCracken's The Powerpuff Girls, who have nearly the same demographic as MLP:FIM. Faust was a big fan of the first generation cartoon and wanted to recreate the cartoon in her perspective. Her goal was to provide quality animation for people of both sexes and all ages to enjoy and break through the gender and age stereotypes. It worked, and it revived a struggling franchise that's been a major laughingstock.

 

That's why we as a fandom adore this show. There have been only two seasons, but they've kept a consistent quality, and the fandom loves the team for doing this. The creative staff and fans communicate each other almost all the time; some of the staff has a close relationship with the bronies and pegasisters, one of them being Tara Strong (Twilight Sparkle's voice actress).

 

And when you look at the current family-friendly cartoon lineup, most of it just hasn't been very good. Several companies have sacrificed quality shows for bucks. There have only been a few bright spots since 2000: SpongeBob Squarepants, The Powerpuff Girls, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Adventure Time, Phineus and Ferb, and Avatar: The Last Airbender. And many of those cartoons have either ended their runs or declined in quality. DHX and Hasbro have done a tremendous job producing a quality animation show, and with the Internet this big and quick, the popularity has risen for great reasons. My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic provides a huge breath of fresh air because it's not just great, it's consistently great.

[Starshine 16,333]

What's the matter with Bronycon?

[be my waifu 2,842]

People are afraid of the spaghetti avalanches

 

I would go, but you know... Time, money, location.

[Starshine 16,333]

I would go, but you know... Time, money, location.

 

Lucky those Americans. I got like a whole pacific ocean standing between me and the BronyCon

[Rochambo 88]

Brony conventions...eugh....

 

I'm too socially awkward and have no one to go with anyway.

 

:L

[Monstermistress 8]

Brony conventions...eugh....

 

I'm too socially awkward and have no one to go with anyway.

 

:L

 

 

Hello Rochambo.

 

It's nice to see you here too Rochambo.

[Starshine 16,333]

Brony conventions...eugh....

 

I'm too socially awkward and have no one to go with anyway.

 

:L

 

Aw come on, what could go wrong?

 

The entire crowd share the same interest with you, and apparently at least half of them indoctrinated themselves with "Love and Tolerate"!

[NewCalamity 3,454]

Lucky those Americans. I got like a whole pacific ocean standing between me and the BronyCon

 

Hmm, at least you have Galacon in Stuttgart to look forward to, no?

[Starshine 16,333]

Hmm, at least you have Galacon in Stuttgart to look forward to, no?

 

Nope, I live in South East Asia.Unless I somehow gain a Teleportation Scroll, I'll have to sell both of my lungs.

[NewCalamity 3,454]

Nope, I live in South East Asia.Unless I somehow gain a Teleportation Scroll, I'll have to sell both of my lungs.

 

Oh whoups, didn't take into account you said "Pacific Ocean as opposed to the Atlantic. Guess I'm a little slow tonight.

 

Well, I'm not going to it either despite my 10 hour drive and border crossing to get there. Don't quite have the funds.

[Starshine 16,333]

[be my waifu 2,842]

Nope, I live in South East Asia.

 

I figured you were foreign, sometimes you can't into English.

[sleepyhead. 174]

How many other Canadians here?

[Starshine 16,333]

The only anti-engrish tool I got here is the browser's check spelling

 

Yeah, sometimes I fails to get my point across.

[be my waifu 2,842]

The only anti-engrish tool I got here is the browser's check spelling

 

Yeah, sometimes I fails to get my point across.

 

Browser spell checks usually aren't the best, sadly.

 

And I can usually understand you, it's just that you make some unfortunate (yet hilarious) typos sometimes

[Starshine 16,333]

uh... Care to give any example of these seemingly disastrous typo?

[be my waifu 2,842]

uh... Care to give any example of these seemingly disastrous typo?

 

*ffrrrt* "Sorry, I got chilly for breakfast"

 

So being cold during breakfast gave you gas?

 

They're not disastrous, just sometimes kinda funny

[Starshine 16,333]

Ah

 

Should've been a "chili"

 

Oh well, what done is done

[Key Gear 6,663]

How many other Canadians here?

 

Well, I'm not Canadian, but the owner of this site is actually Canadian.

 

I think we have quite a few Canadians on the site.

[Nightfall 3,950]

This picture has over 1,000 shares on FB and, by the comments, is faked and not in Hawaii. And I'm in it. (Look for the hat!)

 

 

Epic, yeah?

[Starshine 16,333]

Dunno whether that was legit or not, but that shore was way too shallow for that ship

[Nightfall 3,950]

It was legit. I was there. The sandbar has a massive drop off.

[Starshine 16,333]

Then why did you sound like you were unsure in the earlier post?

 

If you were really there, why do you have to rely on the 1,000+ shares and facebook comments to ensure its validity and its location?

[Nightfall 3,950]

I didn't... I was stating that I am in it and trying (and obviously failing) to show-off.

It was in Hawaii, and it wasn't faked.