was that a brony reference in Lesson Zero?

[skylights 127]

When I noticed this I did a quick google search and it didn't seem like was anything out there about it (from ten seconds of looking anyway), so I thought I'd see if any of you all had any thoughts on this. Sorry if it's been done to death in the past, but I haven't heard of it before.

 

So I was just watching Lesson Zero (season 2, episode 3) and something caught my eye that I must have missed before now. After Celestia breaks Twilight's love spell and everyone abandons the doll, we see Big Mcintosh pick up the doll and gallop away.

 

It made me wonder if this is a reference to brony fandom. He's probably the show's most visible male pony, usually portrayed as strong, quiet, and reserved, and falling in love with a girl's doll is a pretty unexpected thing coming from him. It seems to me like it parallels what MLP had become by that point in the series.

 

Or am I insane?

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 42,202]

Woah....Even if this is not true, say, if the writers denied it or something, this still makes tons of sense regardless. It really does look like that given the fact that Lesson Zero was basically at the beginning of season two and that was after the Brony fandom became super popular as far as I know. Still, this is neato. I should have noticed this before because it is kinda random and out of place. It could have been just that though, a random and out of place thing, but come on! It makes so much sense!

[Rinkitty 589]

Ummmm, no. I don't think so.

 

It's a cute little theory, but I don't think it's meant to be anything significant. 

[Dark Qiviut 22,583]

I REALLY doubt it. Back when the final draft of Lesson Zero's script was submitted (most likely the summer of 2010), no one from the studio had even heard of the brony fandom, and it takes at least a year from the script's final draft to the episode's airing, with voice acting, storyboarding, and animating in the middle. Chances are the "brony reference" here is a mere coincidence.

Edited November 17, 2013 by Dark Qiviut

[Argumedies 1,748]

I noticed it right off the bat and had always felt that it was kind of a shout out to bronys.

 

They didn't start work on the official season 2 (S2 E1&2 dont count) until they found out how popular it had become

[n1029 229]

Occam's razor. They thought the idea of Big Mac liking a doll was amusing and ran with it.

[Princess Lona 382]

I REALLY doubt it. Back when the final draft of Lesson Zero's script was submitted (most likely the summer of 2010), no one from the studio had even heard of the brony fandom, and it takes at least a year from the script's final draft to the episode's airing, with voice acting, storyboarding, and animating in the middle. Chances are the "brony reference" here is a mere coincidence.

It was a minor little side gag that didn't require any voicing so they could have stuck it in there closer to the air date.

 

I never thought this could be a brony reference before, but I guess it could be. Intentional or not though, I think it's a good example of how this show is really challenging the spectrum of what is considered gender-appropriate behaviours. Big Mac wasn't exactly out of the closet about his liking the doll (if I recall correctly, he looks around kind of shifty before running off with it), but he does genuinely want it, and that says something.

[Theo 24]

It's actually pretty likely that they made this reference, and even if it wasn't done on purpose, it turned out to be a reference to the fandom.

 

And I know a video about that but you may certainly have missed it because it's in French

[Malinter 3,064]

Occam's razor. They thought the idea of Big Mac liking a doll was amusing and ran with it.

 

Probably that. After all fandom or not. the idea of the biggest stallion in ponyville liking the doll would be amusing.

 

I'd have thought half the weird stuff in magic duel would be more of a reference, specially that brief shining moment R63 was canon.

Edited November 17, 2013 by Malinter

[SasQ 1,380]

@@Dark Qiviut, although I generally agree with you about the writing schedules (that's the reason for my brohoof), I'd like to point out that there are many little details which doesn't come from the script directly, but they are there in the final footage nevertheless. They're being added by storyboard artists or animators, very late in the production process, so it is still possible that that was the case with this detail too.

 

@@skylights: interesting theory :-) I've never seen this in that light before.

Edited November 17, 2013 by SasQ