Who came up with the idea for Twilicorn, Hasbro or the writers?

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

Judging by the way the writers presented us with Princess Twilight, that seemed highly unlikely.  I thought the writers were trying to stay true to Lauren's vision for Twilight, even if not everything matched it.

 

But really, should Lauren's plans for Twilight really matter?  Should I accept executive meddling, where every time we have art, there is always corporate morons interfering with that art?

Well, to me, Twilight's alicorn transformation was rushed. I was thinking it would come around season 6 or the end of the series. But MLP:FIM won't be ending for a long while. This is why I say hasbro dictated the transformation, which forced the writers to do it early. 

[MadPointer 75]

Hasbro. I knew that Twilicorn was going to happen before it was confirmed on EQD. I got information from someone who was involved  in a convention. About 40 users turned into a live podcast when the interview took place and that particular podcast was never posted on the internet. People in the chat agreed to not share the information. Even though someone end up sharing it, it was swiftly dismissed as a rumor.

 

I don't remember much of it. The guy shared some information on how convention and toy business work. He obliviously didn't like Twilicorn but he still defended Hasbro's position from a business standpoint. Basically, Hasbro need to sell new or different ponies because if they keep selling the same ponies all the time, the market will be saturated very soon. In the grand scheme of things, bronies don't contribute to Hasbro's income as much as we think. Hasbro wasn't expecting WeLoveFine to be popular so Hasbro licenced MLP to them for a flat price. All extra income goes to WeLoveFine, not Hasbro.

 

It was a very heavy burden for us to know what was going to happen and having no idea what will happen to the show and the fandom. I didn't know if it was best to keep it secret for us long as possible and let people enjoy it for a bit longer or do something about it. I ended up contacting Seth and letting him know about that guy so that he could talk to him and prepare the EQD audience for what was about to happen.

 

I'd like to believe the writers are trying their best to make terrible ideas work but I'm not sure how much freedom they have. Looking at the past experience, the executive meddling already affected the show and the changes stayed. As for EqG and Season 4, I don't have any information from creditable sources. But, honestly, my interest in MLP:FIM is waning since Twilicorn and I find myself forcing to stay updated so that I don't miss any information. I already stopped following some users and podcasts.

 

I'm not sure anymore why I need to know it if I can't share it and I can't do anything about it. Due to long production cycles, by the time we became aware of something, it's already too late do anything but to brace yourself for the inevitable.

 

EDIT: updated the second paragraph.

Edited May 28, 2013 by MadPointer

[MLPFan14 73]

Well I think that the writers made Twilight a n Alicorn because they are the ones who make and write the show itself and hasbro is the one who sponsors the show.

~MLPFan14

Edited May 29, 2013 by MLPFan14

[DJRainbowDash 724]

I'll say that both of the choices had the idea of turning Twilight into an alicorn, however, I think Hasbro is responsible for how early and how quick the whole thing was done. If left to the writers, I imagine it would have not happened yet, and when it finally did, would be a more drawn out process, possibly spanning multiple episodes.

[Princess Lona 382]

Alicorn Twilight is yet another example of the writers taking a crappy Hasbro merchandising idea and making something better out of it.

 

When Faust was asked to reboot My Little Pony, Hasbro wouldn't have cared if G4 was just another brainless, sparkly, stereotype-riddled insult to its target audience. And that's probably what they were expecting. Producers don't like to try new things, new things are dangerous because they might not work. Producers like to see the same tried and true, yet incredibly boring stories, characters, and settings rehashed over and over because it brings in the dough. Hasbro would have been perfectly happy if Twilight had no hero's journey, no important quest, and no character depth, so long as somewhere down the line a fairy godmother or a magic wishing coin gave her wings so that they could sell that purple, plastic injection alicorn dolly (with matching hairbrush!) that's been in their plans since day one.

 

I say kudos to the writers for doing their best to make Twilight's transformation meaningful.

[hawkflame 3,310]

This is a toy driven show.  You really think that DHX is going to dictate something like this?  That an animation studio is going to give a billion dollar company like Hasbro ideas on what toys to make? 

 

This is Hasbro's idea.  To suggest otherwise flies in the face of history with every other toy line that had an animated series. 

[Nohbdy 4,108]

If it had been the writers' call, Twilight wouldn't have become an alicorn so early. I think one of the biggest reasons for the backlash was the abruptness of the transformation, rather than the transformation itself. Many fans are worried about what the future has in store for Twilight and her friends. It's very likely that the writers share this sentiment; if they had intended for Twilight to become a princess, they would have put it at the very end. It would still have stayed "true to Lauren's vision."

 

So, like most have said, I'm pretty certain that Twilicorn is Hasbro's idea. They don't give a damn about the story or the characters. It makes too little sense for the writers to have done it themselves. No, it's all about toy sales and money, and the writers did what they could to accommodate it. 

[MadPointer 75]

Have you ever though why the pink aisle is so... pink?

 

 

If you're a girl the pink color must be your favorite color. If it is not, good luck finding anything that isn't pink. Boys can have toys in any color but pink.

 

Hasbro might not want to limit their selection but they also have to fulfill obligations to their investors.

[Anadu Kune 668]

Man you are on a whole... thing with this aren't you? Why obess over the marketing? The writting team takes silly concepts and makes or tries to make them awesome. You know like magical ponies in a fantasy world promoting the values of friendship. Doesnt that sound stupid. Or didnt it before MLP FIM. I know it did to me. Large marketing influences have been present since the show began. Who came up with the idea to put Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle into the show? 

In any case if you want a really long look into my thoughts on the matter of MMM and Alicorn Twilight here is a seven page overview on the episode. 

http://mlpforums.com/topic/49755-s03e13-magical-mystery-cure/?p=1440962

[Commander_PonyShep 349]

If it had been the writers' call, Twilight wouldn't have become an alicorn so early. I think one of the biggest reasons for the backlash was the abruptness of the transformation, rather than the transformation itself. Many fans are worried about what the future has in store for Twilight and her friends. It's very likely that the writers share this sentiment; if they had intended for Twilight to become a princess, they would have put it at the very end. It would still have stayed "true to Lauren's vision."

 

So, like most have said, I'm pretty certain that Twilicorn is Hasbro's idea. They don't give a damn about the story or the characters. It makes too little sense for the writers to have done it themselves. No, it's all about toy sales and money, and the writers did what they could to accommodate it. 

Actually, I felt the writers were the ones who came up with the idea for Princess Twilicorn, and that Hasbro didn't want them to save it for the series finale, but rather as early as the S3 finale, just so that they could sell toys as early, quickly, and aggressively as possible.

[Nohbdy 4,108]

Actually, I felt the writers were the ones who came up with the idea for Princess Twilicorn, and that Hasbro didn't want them to save it for the series finale, but rather as early as the S3 finale, just so that they could sell toys as early, quickly, and aggressively as possible.

That Twilight would eventually become a princess was a commonly speculated event, and it's not a stretch to think that the writers may have planned it for the very end. I acknowledge the idea, and it's one that makes very much sense, but I feel that, ultimately, it was Hasbro that really pushed for Twilicorn to become reality. In essence, however, I do agree with you. 

[Scootalove 10,689]

I think initially it was the writers idea to come up with Twilicorn but, Hasbro influenced them and told them to write the episode revolving around Twilight Sparkle being a princess and how her friends helped her along the way.

[Commander_PonyShep 349]

Now, I'm not going to say it's an inherently bad thing, but what I noticed in the poll was that the "Hasbro execs" choice in the poll is beating the "writers" choice by nine votes.  It almost makes me wonder what Meghan and her writing team would've turned Twilight into, had it not been for the execs' interference.  Or, if Meghan and her team was building upon Lauren's vision of Twilight becoming Celestia's "successor," but couldn't save it for the series finale because of executive meddling.

[himanuts 165]

As much as it pains me. 

 

Lauren actually had this/something along this lines planned.

 

http://i.imgur.com/Hj6im5j.png?1

 

People keep overlooking this little comment of her's during her recent visit to /mlp/.

[MadPointer 75]

@@himanuts,

You should be spreading this instead because I can't be sure that I'll be around to do it myself.

 

It wasn't the real Faust. Everyone can post anything on 4chan using any name(most post as Anonymous) unless someone is using a secure tripcode.

I wish people weren't so gullible and I didn't have to make this presentation.

It’s also not possible to post faster than every 30 seconds to the same board, and that was a 16 second gap.

Edited June 1, 2013 by MadPointer

[Jokuc 8,173]

If I would guess, I would say that it is Hasbro who made Twilicorn. I guess they wanted some changes, plus it sells more toys. And honestly I do not think the writers had anything against making twilight an Alicorn.

[Commander_PonyShep 349]

If I would guess, I would say that it is Hasbro who made Twilicorn. I guess they wanted some changes, plus it sells more toys. And honestly I do not think the writers had anything against making twilight an Alicorn.

Really, I keep beating everyone on the head that it was Meghan McCarthy and her writing staff that created Princess Twilight, not Hasbro, just to build upon what Lauren Faust said when she called Twilight Celestia's "successor".  So why are there more people who believe it was Hasbro's idea than people who thought it was the writers'?

 

In fact, why the Hell should it matter anymore over whose idea was it to make Princess Twilight?  Her rise to alicorn princesshood is a sign of Twilight's rite of passage into true adulthood.  Yes, Hasbro could've let the writers save this for the series finale, but instead forced them to introduce her sooner to sell more toys.  However, the writers also took the original foundations Faust left behind for Twilight Sparkle, and built upon it from there on their own!  It's like when they turned Rainbow Dash into a full-fledged Wonderbolt without Faust's supervision in the episode, Wonderbolt Academy.  And, I highly doubt they received her supervision for Sweet and Elite, either, which turned Rarity into a Canterlot pony, and look how that episode turned out.

 

My point here is that, even if the timing was awful, the writers took what we originally thought would've been toy bait, and turned it into a coming-of-age moment for Twilight.  So right now, I'm over this nonsense yet again.

Edited June 1, 2013 by Commander_PonyShep

[Shanks 10,816]

While it is possible that the writers may have eventually made her an alicorn if they were left to their own devices they probably would have developed Twilight's character a bit more and maybe added another phase or two to her training before this happened like studying dark magic or other alternate forms of magic and would have handled it's introduction alot better. I know Twilight as the main character has gotten more overall attention than any other but the more drastic a change the more character development it takes to make it work. As premature and flawed as its introduction was it can thankfully still work as since we know far less about it than we do know there is plenty of room for the writers to fine tune this and hopefully turn a bad situation into a good one.

[WishingtotheStars 15]

I'm pretty sure Hasbro made Twilight a alicorn because supposedly the main writer left because she was getting sick of Hasbro or something like that. And she didn't intend for that to happen.

[Cwanky 17,571]

Yes and no for several key reasons. There were talks by Lauren Faust in the past about making Twilight a princess, I'm not sure about the whole alicorn deal, but certainly a lot of the writers had that planned as well in the show's foreseeable future. Its thus arguable that Hasbro merely adopted the idea from show writers and promoted it.

 

In my mind, clearly Hasbro had fully intended though not necessarily the writers, who merely had to adapt to Hasbro's demands to meet the quota, keep their jobs and consequently also the show alive, to make Twilight an alicorn this early into the show's history. Lauren Faust while probably planning to make Twilight a princess and perhaps alicorn of sorts, in past interviews lately indicated that this wasn't the direction she had intended the show to follow, so we could rule out the idea of her pushing for alicorn Twilight this early, or at least in the fashion that Magical Mystery Cure presented the transformation as. 

 

Truth be told, had Hasbro and the writers actually made Season 3 a full season as opposed to cropping it to half that size, I probably would have been more willing to embrace alicorn Twilight. As it was, too many questions and surprises sprung up for the wrong reasons and though there was plenty of good development throughout the season, the finale didn't do the season nor Twilight's transformation any real justice.

Edited June 8, 2013 by Cwanky

[duidamasterXD 9,627]

@@Commander_PonyShep,

 

Hello there. We already happened to have a thread for the purpose of speculating whether Alicorn Twilight was the result of executive meddling or whether the timing was entirely the choice of the writing staff, so for convenience, your topic has been merged with the older one. This threads bears the name of the newer topic though, as it seemed to clarify the point of discussion slightly better.

[Casbyness 48]

Hmm.

 

Am I the only one who suspects this is Celestia pulling off her greatest troll ever?

 

It's not unheard of in cartoons/comics/fantasy to have an episode where the hero gets their wish "early", as a sort of test, only for them to either prove themselves not ready or refuse the power and keep their wish until a later time.

 

I know that it was never part of the original plan of the show to have princesses other than Celestia and Luna. The whole alicorn thing was supposed to be Goddess status and until Cadence (and Chrysalis!) appeared there was no hint of other multi-ponies being part of the overall story.

 

However, once the writers threw that rule out of the window, it made a lot of sense for all of Celestia's tests of Twilight to be building up to something. Although the episode itself was ridiculously rushed (with the entire "first act" essentially missing) the end result wasn't really a surprise.

 

It as obviously pushed on the writers by Hasbro, from a toy sales perspective, but I think they did as good a job with it as they could. Now they can score points for the Bronies too, when for one reason or another Celestia takes back Twilight's princess-ship..."for now"...and things return to normal.

 

Personally I am rooting for a storyline where Twilight is forced to do something to save her friends that Alicorns are "forbidden" to do, returns to normal while fearing how Celestia will react, then rolls her eyes when Celestia explains that this was all a test and Twilight passed by doing exactly what Celestia had expected.

 

And in my absolute brightest dreams, the forbidden "thing" she does would be to rescue her friends from the changlings, by transferring her Alicorn power to Chrysalis, restoring the Changling Queen to being a princess instead of Twilie.

Edited July 9, 2013 by Casbyness

[chloe16 5]

I bet they add alicorn twilight for 1000 gems in MLP app.   I am affraid of alicorn twilight, both because she looks very different, but also because Royalty does not run around in danger with their friends.