Allow me to introduce myself

[Princess Lona 382]

Hi, I just registered and I'm excited to start posting and hopefully make some new friends. I learned about Friendship is Magic in what I think is a rather unique way. Let me tell you the tale.

 

I have always liked cartoons. When I was a kid they were all I watched on television and as I grew up I never got tired of them even when I started branching out into non-animated shows too. So it's no surprise I've been a fan of flash cartoons for as long as they have been around. About this time last year I saw an advertisement on a flash site calling for female voice actors for a parody of something called My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. I'm an actor and since I love cartoons so much I have always wanted to do voice work, so even though I knew nothing about the series, I jumped at the chance to be a part of this parody. The ad said that the project would be making fun of the show. That was another reason I wanted to be a part of it, because I have a serious beef with the earlier incarnations of the My Little Pony franchise.

 

Without going into too much ranting I'll just say that I think the original My Little Pony (along with most young girl-targeted marketing of the 1980s) set a very bad example for young girls. I watched that show when I was a little girl, and I loved it because I loved horses and I loved the idea of talking, flying, magic horses. But along with those talking, flying, magic horses came a lot of unhealthy gender stereotyping which I didn't even realize was affecting me. Once I grew up and realized this I felt angry that a toy company would try to manipulate me like that just so that they could sell some plastic ponies. I'm lucky I escaped being overly influenced by that show. Thankfully my love of cartoons in general meant that I got a healthy dose of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to even me out. Anyway, because of this grudge I had against the My Little Pony franchise, I was salivating to make fun of it. But first I had to watch some episodes of the new show so that I could learn the voices I would have to imitate. I punched MLP FIM into YouTube.

 

And that was when my life changed.

 

What were all these intricate plotlines? This highbrow vocabulary ("we are on the precipice of disaster")? and best of all, these strong and complex female characters! Even Rarity, the most traditionally "girly" pony of them all is passionate about fashion, not shallow and frivolous like the fashion ponies of my generation. Not to mention all of the delicious Greek Mythology. I could talk at length about all the reasons Friendship is Magic is in my opinion one of the best shows for developing confident, self-loving women out of today's girls, but I'll leave that for another thread.

 

Within a month of learning about the show I had watched every episode to date and I am still hooked. I ended up getting two parts in that parody cartoon: Celestia and Spike. After reading the script I found that it doesn't make fun of the show in a mean way, but more of a celebratory way so I'm glad to be on board.

 

Well that was quite a long introduction. If you made it this far, thanks for reading! I would have added a disclaimer apologizing for the length at the beginning, but that would have just made the whole thing longer.

[NavelColt 22,881]

A great intro, it's nice to learn a fair bit about you Welcome to MLPF, the fastest growing brony community out there I hope you enjoy yourself and your stay. if you have any questions, feel free to consult the Site Questions & Tech Support forum, and its' two linked subforums, the Resource Map and the Forum FAQ. Both are large repositories of information, and the forum itself is for any general questions for issues you encounter that aren't explained elsewhere

 

Happy posting~

[Sweet Dreams 1,893]

Hi there! Welcome to the forums!

That's a very interesting story you have there. When I was younger I hated the My Little Pony franchise as a whole.

Pokemon was more my thing. XD

Anyways, glad to see some more girls on this forum. (Like me! )

I'm sure you'll fit in just nicely. See you around!

[Tollhouse 79]

Wow, that's got to be one of the best comparisons I've read about FiM from the other MLP generations. Awesome. And welcome to Ponyville.

[IridscentNionios 1,420]

Could you perhaps link us to the parody? I wish to see it for myself. Also on another note i am greek and consider myself quite proud that the show has so many greek mythology references. I am curious... would they be willing to include the Alicorn King Proteas or Flutterpony King Proteas to cure the changelings? Anyways if you are interested in talking about it then i am here available just message me.

[Bigmethod 239]

Hi, I just registered and I'm excited to start posting and hopefully make some new friends. I learned about Friendship is Magic in what I think is a rather unique way. Let me tell you the tale.

 

I have always liked cartoons. When I was a kid they were all I watched on television and as I grew up I never got tired of them even when I started branching out into non-animated shows too. So it's no surprise I've been a fan of flash cartoons for as long as they have been around. About this time last year I saw an advertisement on a flash site calling for female voice actors for a parody of something called My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. I'm an actor and since I love cartoons so much I have always wanted to do voice work, so even though I knew nothing about the series, I jumped at the chance to be a part of this parody. The ad said that the project would be making fun of the show. That was another reason I wanted to be a part of it, because I have a serious beef with the earlier incarnations of the My Little Pony franchise.

 

Without going into too much ranting I'll just say that I think the original My Little Pony (along with most young girl-targeted marketing of the 1980s) set a very bad example for young girls. I watched that show when I was a little girl, and I loved it because I loved horses and I loved the idea of talking, flying, magic horses. But along with those talking, flying, magic horses came a lot of unhealthy gender stereotyping which I didn't even realize was affecting me. Once I grew up and realized this I felt angry that a toy company would try to manipulate me like that just so that they could sell some plastic ponies. I'm lucky I escaped being overly influenced by that show. Thankfully my love of cartoons in general meant that I got a healthy dose of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to even me out. Anyway, because of this grudge I had against the My Little Pony franchise, I was salivating to make fun of it. But first I had to watch some episodes of the new show so that I could learn the voices I would have to imitate. I punched MLP FIM into YouTube.

 

And that was when my life changed.

 

What were all these intricate plotlines? This highbrow vocabulary ("we are on the precipice of disaster")? and best of all, these strong and complex female characters! Even Rarity, the most traditionally "girly" pony of them all is passionate about fashion, not shallow and frivolous like the fashion ponies of my generation. Not to mention all of the delicious Greek Mythology. I could talk at length about all the reasons Friendship is Magic is in my opinion one of the best shows for developing confident, self-loving women out of today's girls, but I'll leave that for another thread.

 

Within a month of learning about the show I had watched every episode to date and I am still hooked. I ended up getting two parts in that parody cartoon: Celestia and Spike. After reading the script I found that it doesn't make fun of the show in a mean way, but more of a celebratory way so I'm glad to be on board.

 

Well that was quite a long introduction. If you made it this far, thanks for reading! I would have added a disclaimer apologizing for the length at the beginning, but that would have just made the whole thing longer.

Glad your with us!!! I was driven by plain curiosity when I heard bout this show, and I started watching it last week. It is majorly entertaining!!

 

Have a great time here!

[Princess Lona 382]

Could you perhaps link us to the parody? I wish to see it for myself. Also on another note i am greek and consider myself quite proud that the show has so many greek mythology references. I am curious... would they be willing to include the Alicorn King Proteas or Flutterpony King Proteas to cure the changelings? Anyways if you are interested in talking about it then i am here available just message me.

The parody isn't actually finished yet. The best I can do is link the website of the guy who is making the cartoon. However, it's nsfw and the rules say not to post anything like that. I suppose I could send it in a private message to anyone who wants it.

[Wingnut 7,000]

Welcome to the forums, sugarcube.   It sounds like you're a child of the '80s.  So am I.  While I was always aware of MLP, I didn't get into previous generations for the most obvious reason:  I'm a dude.    I'll give credit where credit is due.  I think the G1 cartoon had its moments, but it was much more shallow and cliche than MLP:FiM is. 

 

But anyway, it is always good to see other fans who also had familiarity with the old cartoons and toys join the forum and share their thoughts on that stuff in addition to talking about our favorite TV show of today. 

Edited April 20, 2013 by Wingnut

[Starlight Song 43]

Forums are place where bronies go, be welcomed, comforted, shared, and above all, united in friendship.

Okay, I know that sounds really cheesy, but I love going to the forums and getting a virtual hug. So here you go.

Your story was awesome!! One of the best "how I became a bronie" stories ever!

WELCOME TO THE FORUMMMMS! YOU SHALL BE LOVELY HERE!!!

Edited April 20, 2013 by Starlight Song

[Princess Lona 382]

Thanks for the warm welcome! I'm feeling the love and tolerence already.

[MyLittlePonyTales 273]

Hi there, welcome to the site! Personally, even though MLP might have had girl stereotypes, I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I mean, they make Barbie movies and Strawberry shortcake tv series, and those are totally girly. I think the problem is not with the shows, but with parents. Like, if parents only let their little girl watch Strawberry Shortcake, but not Transformers. Shows have and always will have gender stereotypes. Not ALL shows, mind you, but I don't think there's anything wrong with those that do. I mean, I watched My Little Pony and The Powerpuff Girls when I was little, and I grew up to be a tomboy. I don't think it's really the shows that force the stereotypes on people, everyone is going to follow their own path and have their own likes and dislikes. Watching a girly or boyish show doesn't make a person extra girly or extra boyish, it just means they like that show. Again, I think it's parents that force stereotypes, if they only let their boy or girl watch what they would deem boy or girl geared kids shows.

[Fluttershyfan94 5,742]

Welcome to the forum

 

 

 

Welcome, this is a nice and a friendly forum, hopefully you'll like it here.

That was a nice and a long story, good read.

 

See you around the forum.

Edited April 27, 2013 by Fluttershyfan94

[Princess Lona 382]

Hi there, welcome to the site! Personally, even though MLP might have had girl stereotypes, I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I mean, they make Barbie movies and Strawberry shortcake tv series, and those are totally girly. I think the problem is not with the shows, but with parents. Like, if parents only let their little girl watch Strawberry Shortcake, but not Transformers. Shows have and always will have gender stereotypes. Not ALL shows, mind you, but I don't think there's anything wrong with those that do. I mean, I watched My Little Pony and The Powerpuff Girls when I was little, and I grew up to be a tomboy. I don't think it's really the shows that force the stereotypes on people, everyone is going to follow their own path and have their own likes and dislikes. Watching a girly or boyish show doesn't make a person extra girly or extra boyish, it just means they like that show. Again, I think it's parents that force stereotypes, if they only let their boy or girl watch what they would deem boy or girl geared kids shows.

I agree with you that parents play a bigger role in a child's development than the television the child watches, but I disagree with the idea that there is nothing wrong with girl stereotypes. I used to consider myself a tomboy, I was even proud of the title. But lately I've been thinking about what the word tomboy means. It means a girl who acts like a boy. And that definition, I believe, sends a bad message. It sends the message that there are some behaviours which are appropriate for boys but not girls and vice versa. When I was a child I played in mud puddles, I gladly picked up handfuls of worms, I didn't like to brush my hair, I climbed trees, I wanted to be a pirate and I roughhoused with my friends. And people said I was a tomboy. A girl who acts like a boy. But if you look at it logically, I was not in fact acting like a boy. Since I was a girl, my behaviours were the behaviours of a girl. I was acting like myself and since myself was a girl I was acting like a girl. It's that simple. TV shows with gender stereotypes make it difficult for viewers to understand this logic. They set down very narrow definitions of what is "boy" and what is "girl". If we didn't have these definitions running rampant in our culture, no one would have thought there was anything different or boyish about who I am.

Similarly I had a friend growing up who was a boy. He was into rainbows, carebears, and playing at being a parent. He got called a tomgirl (and a lot worse). But he wasn't acting like a girl. He was a boy, therefore he was acting like a boy.

As for the Power Puff girls, I would hardly call them girly stereotypes. Maybe Bubbles, but she is only one of three.

Anyway, thanks for the welcome and the civil debate. Usually when I bring up gender issues I get called a whiny feminist and told to shut up.