mega thread Your favourite pony and why?

[Mightyena 53]

Sunset Shimmer if she were a "pony" she has deductive reason and "people skills" she is a critical thinker, very flexible and adaptable but she isnt as "scholastic" as Twilight Sparkle. She is incredibly intelligent and naturally gifted but doesn't hone in on being a "star pupil" or discovering herself, more or less than creating a identity among her peers.

Edited August 16, 2024 by Mightyena

[Selph1ne 16]

On 2011-10-03 at 10:54 AM, Vinyl Scratch said:

I was born a Pinkie man! I've always been the oddball among my friends who does the "randomest" things. If you showed them an episode, they'd associate her with me. I'm sure of it.

 

Favorite CMC: Sweetie Bell

Background Ponies

Earth: Berry Punch

Pegasus: Derpy. Was there ever any doubt?

Unicorn: Vinyl Scratch/DJ PON-3!!!

Do a random thing ! Do a random thing ! DO A RANDOM THING NOOOOWW !!!

[Fanstar1 7]

My favorite by far is Starlight Glimmer! I love how real she feels in terms of making mistakes and dealing with social anxiety and the like. I also love how she is not only a character who was a former villain who became redeemed, but that this redemption also did not come from some magical and instant change in her character. It was through persuasion and realizing what she was doing was wrong, and endeavoring to change for the better. The main thing I would've wished to be different is that there'd be more starlight in season 6 specifically, as that contains some of my favorite episodes with starlight and it would've been interesting to see more of the dynamic of starlight being a pupil under twilight.

[Snoopy Fan 453]

My favorite pony is Fluttershy, she’s so kind and cute, and I can relate to her because I used to be afraid of a lot of things.

[Magitronique 57]

Trixie!

I’ve been a fan of her since her debut, I thought her being a regular traveling stage magician in a world full of rainbow lasers and telekinesis was cute and fun! I appreciate her overall character arc a lot, from falling on hard times after Boast Busters and taking that villainous turn in Magic Duel (evidently it’s Not Great™ for a pony’s sense of self to be unable to practice their special talent because they’re something of a pariah!), to working since then to be better and get her life back together. She makes genuine friends, becomes a national hero and even ends up as the guidance counselor at the School of Friendship! 

Of course, despite all of that growth, she’s far from perfect. Even by the end of the series she can be terribly annoying, rude, and egotistical; she certainly wouldn’t win, like, the Princess Twilight Sparkle Award for Excellence in Friendship if it existed. But she does her best to be a good pony and better friend regardless of her shortcomings, and that’s very human, I think! Very relatable!

[Slumberlumber 157]

For favourite pony, I'm torn between Rainbow Dash (Who at one episode was shown to have some LD traits, as I do, and is blue) or Twilight Sparkle (who seems an awful lot to be on the spectrum, as I am!) It's a close race between those two. I love the heavy ND presence in the show! It's form of representation that I don't see much else where in media. Not in the positive light anyways.

[Dawnshine Wonder 5]

I like Mane Six and Royal Princesses, but if I had to say a favourite? well since they're not real, I guess favouritism doesn't hurt since there are no feelings to be hurt. It's a tie between Princess Luna and Fluttershy for me, Fluttershy's adorable, but Princess Luna in her own way is too.

Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? episode from season 5 of MLP FIM is one I remember as being a standout episode that featured her character, and while it is a controversial episode for some people, a lot of the flack that episode has been getting was a misunderstanding about the problems she was dealing with, and I say this as somebody with depression and anxiety disorders myself, now on two different medications related to both this, are people like myself and several others in this situation invisible for some reason? does our opinion not matter as far as critics are concerned who went out of their way to dismiss us as some "whiny" emo or goth stereotype? Only so far have I been willing to adhere to the principle of free speech before I consider it crossing the line into discrimination territory. Warning, if people don't like criticism, then depending on which side of this topic you are on, you may want to avoid this post.

About that episode some people complained about Princess Luna's creation of Tantabus being reckless, and they seem to focus too much on what could have happened instead of the why it happened. Princess Luna did not want to destroy Equestria, her intention, was self harm, not to bring Armageddon to other Ponies, some people even claimed this did not make sense, but let me tell you something, self harm, never does, but people who self harm, do it anyway because of their mental pain with the mistaken belief self punishing helps or is what they deserve, and yes it does happen as a result of guilt, sometimes, if it made sense to do, it would be advocated for, but it does not, to say there is logic in self harm is poppycock and harmful. The correct way to deal with others mental health problems is from a place of empathy, not fear or prejudice, responding to this with fear, accusation and punitive measures, only makes matters much worse.

There have been times in my life where I felt like self harming, even ending my own existence, and they don't make sense either.

Kicking the bucket would end my suffering, but it would cause suffering for someone else, a no win situation. A similar problem is being conveyed in that MLP episode. My gripe about the episode is not so much how it was handled by Hasbro then, but after the fact when Ponies in Equestria seemed to forget Princess Luna's mental health crisis even existed, if they took appropriate action, Starlight Glimmer would not have had to deal with another issue related to Luna's emotional problems in season 7 episode Royal Problem, the spat between Princess Celestia and Princess Luna could have been avoided if they acted sooner, I'm not saying Princess Celestia is cruel to her sister, or incompetent as a ruler of her kingdom, however one thing to note is she does make questionable choices sometimes, she should have had enough foresight to see this coming, but for some reason, she did not, big mistake on her part. I'm not a hater of Princess Celestia, I like her, I think on the whole she has been benevolent to her kingdom, however her neglect of Princess Luna's needs was not helping.

Could that episode had been handled differently? I suppose, but what good would that do? if Hasbro had opted to show Luna depressed but not self harming, all it's really doing is trivializing the seriousness of what she was going through at best and burying our heads in the sand about the issue worst, and as hard as it is to take for people who prefer their cartoons to be cutsy cuddly, both children and adults need to learn important lessons about this matter. I would not appreciate My Little Pony Friendship is Magic as much as I do now, if it wasn't for lessons like this, stories like Princess Luna's are engaging for the audience.

What I don't find engaging, is seeing Discord's redemption arc unfold, as I feel it was poorly written, and even in season 9 he made bad choices which put others at risk. I'm not suggesting he deserved to be turned to stone again, but my goodness does he push it, after all that he is fortunate Fluttershy still respects him. Discord should have been redeemed by season 4, and his chaotic antics should have gradually morphed from reckless to playful, more like Pinkie Pie's. If you think Discord's redemption was better than Princess Luna's, I cannot help you there, just know that your opinion is in the minority and not supported by the show.

DRWolf's review of this episode was spot on, he wasn't tactless in his assessment to this contrary to some other reviewers, recognized that we don't always know what's best for ourselves, and he did admit the episode about Princess Luna's depression possibly could have benefit from another episode or a part two, but for the limited screen time of one episode, it works, people who called it "oversimplified" while blaming Princess Luna for the Tantabus self torment routine that inadvertently threatened others, miss the point of the episode, and if a person's idea of dealing with an individual's depression is blame and punishment, they should not even be a healthcare professional let alone talking about it. I'm not a mental healthcare professional either, but I have enough self awareness to know that empathy and wisdom is the best way to go about dealing with this.

 

My only issue with that episode Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? is Princess Luna's mental health crisis wasn't addressed in later episodes, where Princess Luna still showed signs of depression, but other Ponies did not deal with this for her, which built up negativity between Princess Celestia and Princess Luna again, which tells me that particular problem wasn't solved, which goes against the premise of what the show was going for, solving problems through friendship and understanding, most of the criticisms against Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? came about as a misunderstanding or were made on the assumption that Princess Luna's depression was cured overnight simply because of that one episode's conclusion, she absorbed Tantabus into herself, not only because of nice words from her friends, but also by necessity to protect others she cared deeply about, but the pain did not go away, not completely, and that scene at the end with her sleeping next to what appears to be a lake proves nothing to the contrary, all it means is she learned to make peace with it as best she could, although in later episodes some of that pain did manifest in arguments with her sister, yes, becoming irritable or intolerant of others can be a symptom of depression, shocker. There may have been bad episodes, but I cannot say this was one of them, not if people engage some analytical thought for once into what it was conveying, while thinking about themselves in her situation. If I didn't speak up about this, who else will? we need a detailed analysis on what could be improved upon but pretending Princess Luna is not going to carry some guilt from her past as Nightmare Moon, is not helping to improve her character, and making My Little Pony more childish and simplified is the last thing the franchise needs right now IMHO, one reason I miss the 90's when animation studios weren't afraid to go hard, like on Cartoon Network, we seem to be getting less of that as time goes on. Even in a story as whimsical as MLP, we can agree that some tension and drama is needed, yes? MLP was based to sell toys, but so was Transformers, and that didn't stop Hasbro from going with complex storytelling.

 

In closing, I hope I helped encourage a different perspective to some people who thought differently and perhaps give this episode another thought with a more nuanced understanding of mental health, self forgiveness isn't something that happens overnight, true, but just as it is possible to talk someone out of jumping off a bridge or wasting themselves to a train or a bus, finding ways to avert the worst possible outcome when dealing with depression can be done, it takes encouragement, sometimes it can be done by friends or a complete stranger, but it's not unheard of. Responding to self harm with kindness is a must, and of course seeking professional help. Thank you all, and pleasant life, stay healthy.

 

 

Edited Monday at 11:11 PM by Dawnshine Wonder

[Slumberlumber 157]

9 hours ago, Dawnshine Wonder said:

I like Mane Six and Royal Princesses, but if I had to say a favourite? well since they're not real, I guess favouritism doesn't hurt since there are no feelings to be hurt. It's a tie between Princess Luna and Fluttershy for me, Fluttershy's adorable, but Princess Luna in her own way is too.

Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? episode from season 5 of MLP FIM is one I remember as being a standout episode that featured her character, and while it is a controversial episode for some people, a lot of the flack that episode has been getting was a misunderstanding about the problems she was dealing with, and I say this as somebody with depression and anxiety disorders myself, now on two different medications related to both this, are people like myself and several others in this situation invisible for some reason? does our opinion not matter as far as critics are concerned who went out of their way to dismiss us as some "whiny" emo or goth stereotype? Only so far have I been willing to adhere to the principle of free speech before I consider it crossing the line into discrimination territory. Warning, if people don't like criticism, then depending on which side of this topic you are on, you may want to avoid this post.

About that episode some people complained about Princess Luna's creation of Tantabus being reckless, and they seem to focus too much on what could have happened instead of the why it happened. Princess Luna did not want to destroy Equestria, her intention, was self harm, not to bring Armageddon to other Ponies, some people even claimed this did not make sense, but let me tell you something, self harm, never does, but people who self harm, do it anyway because of their mental pain with the mistaken belief self punishing helps or is what they deserve, and yes it does happen as a result of guilt, sometimes, if it made sense to do, it would be advocated for, but it does not, to say there is logic in self harm is poppycock and harmful. The correct way to deal with others mental health problems is from a place of empathy, not fear or prejudice, responding to this with fear, accusation and punitive measures, only makes matters much worse.

There have been times in my life where I felt like self harming, even ending my own existence, and they don't make sense either.

Kicking the bucket would end my suffering, but it would cause suffering for someone else, a no win situation. A similar problem is being conveyed in that MLP episode. My gripe about the episode is not so much how it was handled by Hasbro then, but after the fact when Ponies in Equestria seemed to forget Princess Luna's mental health crisis even existed, if they took appropriate action, Starlight Glimmer would not have had to deal with another issue related to Luna's emotional problems in season 7 episode Royal Problem, the spat between Princess Celestia and Princess Luna could have been avoided if they acted sooner, I'm not saying Princess Celestia is cruel to her sister, or incompetent as a ruler of her kingdom, however one thing to note is she does make questionable choices sometimes, she should have had enough foresight to see this coming, but for some reason, she did not, big mistake on her part. I'm not a hater of Princess Celestia, I like her, I think on the whole she has been benevolent to her kingdom, however her neglect of Princess Luna's needs was not helping.

Could that episode had been handled differently? I suppose, but what good would that do? if Hasbro had opted to show Luna depressed but not self harming, all it's really doing is trivializing the seriousness of what she was going through at best and burying our heads in the sand about the issue in the sand at worst, and as hard as it is to take for people who prefer their cartoons to be cutsy cuddly, both children and adults need to learn important lessons about this matter. I would not appreciate My Little Pony Friendship is Magic as much as I do now, if it wasn't for lessons like this, stories like Princess Luna's are engaging for the audience.

What I don't find engaging, is seeing Discord's redemption arc unfold, as I feel it was poorly written, and even in season 9 he made bad choices which put others at risk. I'm not suggesting he deserved to be turned to stone again, but my goodness does he push it, after all that he is fortunate Fluttershy still respects him. Discord should have been redeemed by season 4, and his chaotic antics should have gradually morphed from reckless to playful, more like Pinkie Pie's. If you think Discord's redemption was better than Princess Luna's, I cannot help you there, just know that your opinion is in the minority and not supported by the show.

DRWolf's review of this episode was spot on, he wasn't tactless in his assessment to this contrary to some other reviewers, recognized that we don't always know what's best for ourselves, and he did admit the episode about Princess Luna's depression possibly could have benefit from another episode or a part two, but for the limited screen time of one episode, it works, people who called it "oversimplified" while blaming Princess Luna for the Tantabus self torment routine that inadvertently threatened others, miss the point of the episode, and if a person's idea of dealing with an individual's depression is blame and punishment, they should not even be a healthcare professional let alone talking about it. I'm not a mental healthcare professional either, but I have enough self awareness to know that empathy and wisdom is the best way to go about dealing with this.

 

My only issue with that episode Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? is Princess Luna's mental health crisis wasn't addressed in later episodes, where Princess Luna still showed signs of depression, but other Ponies did not deal with this for her, which built up negativity between Princess Celestia and Princess Luna again, which tells me that particular problem wasn't solved, which goes against the premise of what the show was going for, solving problems through friendship and understanding, most of the criticisms against Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? came about as a misunderstanding or were made on the assumption that Princess Luna's depression was cured overnight simply because of that one episode's conclusion, she absorbed Tantabus into herself, not only because of nice words from her friends, but also by necessity to protect others she cared deeply about, but the pain did not go away, not completely, and that scene at the end with her sleeping next to what appears to be a lake proves nothing to the contrary, all it means is she learned to make peace with it as best she could, although in later episodes some of that pain did manifest in arguments with her sister, yes, becoming irritable or intolerant of others can be a symptom of depression, shocker. There may have been bad episodes, but I cannot say this was one of them, not if people engage some analytical thought for once into what it was conveying, while thinking about themselves in her situation. If I didn't speak up about this, who else will? we need a detailed analysis on what could be improved upon but pretending Princess Luna is not going to carry some guilt from her past as Nightmare Moon, is not helping to improve her character, and making My Little Pony more childish and simplified is the last thing the franchise needs right now IMHO, one reason I miss the 90's when animation studios weren't afraid to go hard, like on Cartoon Network, we seem to be getting less of that as time goes on. Even in a story as whimsical as MLP, we can agree that some tension and drama is needed, yes? MLP was based to sell toys, but so was Transformers, and that didn't stop Hasbro from going with complex storytelling.

 

In closing, I hope I helped encourage a different perspective to some people who thought differently and perhaps give this episode another thought with a more nuanced understanding of mental health, self forgiveness isn't something that happens overnight, true, but just as it is possible to talk someone out of jumping off a bridge or wasting themselves to a train or a bus, finding ways to avert the worst possible outcome when dealing with depression can be done, it takes encouragement, sometimes it can be done by friends or a complete stranger, but it's not unheard of. Responding to self harm with kindness is a must, and of course seeking professional help. Thank you all, and pleasant life, stay healthy.

 

 

As someone with high social anxiety and went through depression myself, I know that feeling only too well (Just this morning the anxiety hit hard. Taking meds myself, as will as some spiritual practices, to help keep it under control.) I loved how they portrayed the best Luna manifists into a giant destructive thing, which is often how, for me, depression and anxiety feels like, with the other ponies telling her that she can end it by seeing how much the whole town, plus her sister, is out in support for her. Despite what she's done and how she still holds the guilt of it all over her own head. What breaks the immersion for me is how the WHOLE town goes out to help her, while in my experience for me it was only close family and friends. The actual town I was in didn't like us all that much. Though I know that if the show showed only the mane 6 plus Celestia going to bat for her, that'd ruin or lessen the message of all for one and one for all, so I'm willing to suspend my disbelief for that. And true, how the ponies dealt with her depression and anxiety maybe wasn't exactly positive, let us be honest: such things don't disappear over night, do they? Depression and anxiety if a life long battle, so for me it makes sense for it to come up again and again in episodes with her (sorry if I read that wrong, being autistic along with the other stuff can mean that what a persons types/says, and what I read/hear, can be two different things).

Not sure how I feel about Discords redemption arc, but your right: He REALLY did push it in the End of the end two parter. Free the three big baddies that Twilight and co worked so hard to bring down, THAN encourage them to work together, THAN tell them of Grogars bell and set it as a task for them to work together and accomplish it (without somehow believing they'd try and back stab him, using the bell against him. HELLO! VILLAINS!). He's lucky not to be put on the Equistrian version of forced community service, while still being tolerated by Fluttershy alone, with the rest (especially Apple Jack) hating his guts for essentially betraying them and trying to ruin Equistrias future. Could the writers have not brought back the actual Grogar, and make it work that way? But, like your view of the dreaming sheep episode, maybe there are those who identify with Discord and his redemption arc, and understand why he did what he did? Like Fluttershy says, every creature deserves to feel hear. (Even if they push our tolerance and empathy to the breaking point lol).

[Dawnshine Wonder 5]

2 hours ago, Slumberlumber said:

As someone with high social anxiety and went through depression myself, I know that feeling only too well (Just this morning the anxiety hit hard. Taking meds myself, as will as some spiritual practices, to help keep it under control.) I loved how they portrayed the best Luna manifists into a giant destructive thing, which is often how, for me, depression and anxiety feels like, with the other ponies telling her that she can end it by seeing how much the whole town, plus her sister, is out in support for her. Despite what she's done and how she still holds the guilt of it all over her own head. What breaks the immersion for me is how the WHOLE town goes out to help her, while in my experience for me it was only close family and friends. The actual town I was in didn't like us all that much. Though I know that if the show showed only the mane 6 plus Celestia going to bat for her, that'd ruin or lessen the message of all for one and one for all, so I'm willing to suspend my disbelief for that. And true, how the ponies dealt with her depression and anxiety maybe wasn't exactly positive, let us be honest: such things don't disappear over night, do they? Depression and anxiety if a life long battle, so for me it makes sense for it to come up again and again in episodes with her (sorry if I read that wrong, being autistic along with the other stuff can mean that what a persons types/says, and what I read/hear, can be two different things).

Not sure how I feel about Discords redemption arc, but your right: He REALLY did push it in the End of the end two parter. Free the three big baddies that Twilight and co worked so hard to bring down, THAN encourage them to work together, THAN tell them of Grogars bell and set it as a task for them to work together and accomplish it (without somehow believing they'd try and back stab him, using the bell against him. HELLO! VILLAINS!). He's lucky not to be put on the Equistrian version of forced community service, while still being tolerated by Fluttershy alone, with the rest (especially Apple Jack) hating his guts for essentially betraying them and trying to ruin Equistrias future. Could the writers have not brought back the actual Grogar, and make it work that way? But, like your view of the dreaming sheep episode, maybe there are those who identify with Discord and his redemption arc, and understand why he did what he did? Like Fluttershy says, every creature deserves to feel hear. (Even if they push our tolerance and empathy to the breaking point lol).

Oh definitely, it is a long term health problem, and that was not emphasized well enough in the show, but it wasn't the Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? episode itself, it was how the story was handled afterward where it became a problem, despite the fact Princess Luna's pain was still present.

About Discord, I don't hate him as a character, I think his recklessness in the later half of the show came from lazy writing, I think he was supposed to be made into a good person, but something went wrong with how Hasbro handled his story, making him set up pointless tests for Twilight Sparkle and her friends.

Twilight Sparkle gets unfairly hated on for her nerdy ways, but why is it a bad thing that she reads books? I consider it a good thing that she likes to inform herself, or even read a good story, it is her being her usual analytical self and keeping her mind active, discouraging reading books is not helpful.

Pinkie Pie's playfulness and innocence makes her cute.

Rainbow Dash has moments of arrogance and can be a show off sometimes, but even then, during the Wonderbolts Academy episode, she proved she valued her friends more than her life long ambition, by being willing to resign as a result of the Academy refusing to sanction Lightning Dust for endangering RD's friends, that to me solidified the fact she earned her element, loyalty, she makes self sacrifices to help others. People need to understand that friendship means sometimes accepting others and helping each other work through their problems, as no one is perfect, if people lack the capacity to forgive and help other improve their behavior, that's not friendship anymore, that is being judgmental. No one represents this ethos more strongly in MLP verse than Mane Six, they have arguments from time to time, but after giving each other their space, they apologize and make amends, like Fluttershy did in episode Putting Your Hoof Down.

[Clawdeen 14,301]

My favorite out of the main group is our queen of fabulosity Rarity. My second favorite out of the main group I would say….is probably Twlight Sparkle.

My other favorites are Inky Rose, Vinyl Scratch, The Great and Powerful Trixie, Octavia, Pacific Glow, Sweetie Belle, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, Starlight Glimmer, Radiant Hope, Photo Finish, Rara and Maud Pie.

If we’re including EG than The Dazzlings and Sunset Shimmer as well.

[Dawnshine Wonder 5]

30 minutes ago, Clawdeen said:

My favorite out of the main group is our queen of fabulosity Rarity. My second favorite out of the main group I would say….is probably Twlight Sparkle.

My other favorites are Inky Rose, Vinyl Scratch, The Great and Powerful Trixie, Octavia, Pacific Glow, Sweetie Belle, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, Starlight Glimmer, Radiant Hope, Photo Finish, Rara and Maud Pie.

If we’re including EG than The Dazzlings and Sunset Shimmer as well.

Yes, Rarity can be hilarious sometimes, and be a bit of a softy around Spike.

 

Fluttershy's best episode I'd say it's either Hurricane Fluttershy or Stare Master, some people accused her stare ability not making any sense, but if they bothered to research they would be surprised to find out that animals would sometimes glare at other animals as a way to assert their dominance and intimidate another, in a similar way Fluttershy utilized it on a cockatrice who is a much smaller animal. Fluttershy being somewhat of an animal expert herself, knows some animals glare at another as a warning, it is in character for her to do it. But we're dealing with individuals who equated Twilight Sparkle's petrification to death, like a certain Youtuber who compared gameplay mechanics. By that person's logic, petrification from Dabura in Dragonball Z should have killed Piccolo and Krillin outright, it only becomes death if they are shattered beyond repair. Some of the critics of the Stare Master episode make up false claims. Compared to several fictions I've seen on Cartoon Network, Twilight Sparkle getting turned to stone is tame if you ask me, and it was hinted that she would be okay when Fluttershy knocked her statue over without breaking her, a clear indication to the audience she wasn't going to die.

[Slumberlumber 157]

2 hours ago, Dawnshine Wonder said:

Oh definitely, it is a long term health problem, and that was not emphasized well enough in the show, but it wasn't the Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? episode itself, it was how the story was handled afterward where it became a problem, despite the fact Princess Luna's pain was still present.

About Discord, I don't hate him as a character, I think his recklessness in the later half of the show came from lazy writing, I think he was supposed to be made into a good person, but something went wrong with how Hasbro handled his story, making him set up pointless tests for Twilight Sparkle and her friends.

Twilight Sparkle gets unfairly hated on for her nerdy ways, but why is it a bad thing that she reads books? I consider it a good thing that she likes to inform herself, or even read a good story, it is her being her usual analytical self and keeping her mind active, discouraging reading books is not helpful.

Pinkie Pie's playfulness and innocence makes her cute.

Rainbow Dash has moments of arrogance and can be a show off sometimes, but even then, during the Wonderbolts Academy episode, she proved she valued her friends more than her life long ambition, by being willing to resign as a result of the Academy refusing to sanction Lightning Dust for endangering RD's friends, that to me solidified the fact she earned her element, loyalty, she makes self sacrifices to help others. People need to understand that friendship means sometimes accepting others and helping each other work through their problems, as no one is perfect, if people lack the capacity to forgive and help other improve their behavior, that's not friendship anymore, that is being judgmental. No one represents this ethos more strongly in MLP verse than Mane Six, they have arguments from time to time, but after giving each other their space, they apologize and make amends, like Fluttershy did in episode Putting Your Hoof Down.

They did give Discord a massive brainfart at the End of end episodes it seemed like, having him make dumb decisions (as stated earlier) that he wouldn't have made. I felt that they spent years building him up as a beneficial trickster god whose helping the mane 6 in his own way, too what we saw at the end. Shame too, he was a good character.

My favs are Rainbow Dash cause she's blue (I love the colour blue), brave and, something I value highly in others, loyal to her friends. Something you see time and time again, culminating in the second last episode were it looks like they're about to be blown up, she says "Whatever happens, we face it together." And they all huddle closer together. I love that. Should we all be so lucky to have a friend in out corner whose willing to get into fisticuffs for us and us them, no questions asked. Plus, she had the same trouble in school as I did. Hard time focusing, difficulty learning what I call the mainstream way, feeling stupid because of it (that hit me hard).

My other favourite (I don't have just one, it's impossible for me to pick one) is Twilight Sparkle. She's nerdy, like me. Has, or at least had trouble making friends, as I still do. Acts VERY autistic (saw a video where almost every pony acts a bit like their on the spectrum too, on top of LD, ADD and others, which I freaking love) and I myself am diagnosed. Never heard any complaints from her about being too nerdy or such. Than again, these days particularly, people will fight about anything. Her love of lists, analytical mind, and obsession with magic (or obsessions at all?) I see a lot of me in her.

Rarity gets some unfair flack for being arrogant too or selfish. We see her though playing into her whole generosity thing by handing out gifts (gems, clothes, herself) to other's time and time again. She might seem all high and mighty? But she's actually very nice.

I see a lot of myself in Fluttershy to. Quiet, kind, empathetic (to a point.) She seems to be the heart of the group, and boy do they need her.

The ONLY toxic (to me) character that, like the baddies they fight, is bad BUT: for some reason they consider to be a friend at the end, is Iron Will. I get that I guess he's supposed to represent a strong backbone and no-back-down personality? But to be honest, he just seemed like Rainbow Dash if she was actually uber arrogant and left her friends for her dream alone. He seemed more like those "alpha males" you hear about than anyone worth imitating. That's just my feelings on him though.

[Dawnshine Wonder 5]

28 minutes ago, Slumberlumber said:

They did give Discord a massive brainfart at the End of end episodes it seemed like, having him make dumb decisions (as stated earlier) that he wouldn't have made. I felt that they spent years building him up as a beneficial trickster god whose helping the mane 6 in his own way, too what we saw at the end. Shame too, he was a good character.

My favs are Rainbow Dash cause she's blue (I love the colour blue), brave and, something I value highly in others, loyal to her friends. Something you see time and time again, culminating in the second last episode were it looks like they're about to be blown up, she says "Whatever happens, we face it together." And they all huddle closer together. I love that. Should we all be so lucky to have a friend in out corner whose willing to get into fisticuffs for us and us them, no questions asked. Plus, she had the same trouble in school as I did. Hard time focusing, difficulty learning what I call the mainstream way, feeling stupid because of it (that hit me hard).

My other favourite (I don't have just one, it's impossible for me to pick one) is Twilight Sparkle. She's nerdy, like me. Has, or at least had trouble making friends, as I still do. Acts VERY autistic (saw a video where almost every pony acts a bit like their on the spectrum too, on top of LD, ADD and others, which I freaking love) and I myself am diagnosed. Never heard any complaints from her about being too nerdy or such. Than again, these days particularly, people will fight about anything. Her love of lists, analytical mind, and obsession with magic (or obsessions at all?) I see a lot of me in her.

Rarity gets some unfair flack for being arrogant too or selfish. We see her though playing into her whole generosity thing by handing out gifts (gems, clothes, herself) to other's time and time again. She might seem all high and mighty? But she's actually very nice.

I see a lot of myself in Fluttershy to. Quiet, kind, empathetic (to a point.) She seems to be the heart of the group, and boy do they need her.

The ONLY toxic (to me) character that, like the baddies they fight, is bad BUT: for some reason they consider to be a friend at the end, is Iron Will. I get that I guess he's supposed to represent a strong backbone and no-back-down personality? But to be honest, he just seemed like Rainbow Dash if she was actually uber arrogant and left her friends for her dream alone. He seemed more like those "alpha males" you hear about than anyone worth imitating. That's just my feelings on him though.

I don't know why Iron Will gets hanged out with, it became clear he was a toxic influence after manipulating Fluttershy into becoming aggressive and rude to her friends, preyed on her vulnerabilities and made a bad situation for her, worse, in episode Putting Your Hoof Down.

 

Fluttershy represents unconditional love, as shown in episode Stare Master when she was foalsitting Cutie Mark Crusaders, she remained calm and collected even with their antics in her house, which I can imagine would test anyone's patience.

 

I wished I was as kind as her, I haven't always been, I literally wrote an MLP FIM fan fiction in ChatGPT about my imaginary self reincarnating into Equestria alternate timeline, not to seek wealth or power, only to become a kinder person, or pegasi in this case named Dawnshine Wonder, to be both giver and receiver of compassion in a world where acceptance and unity is the norm, after requesting nurturing early in the next life from Luna there in the Bardo, another fictional realm. I must admit I have been rude to people, gotten into fights with some in the past, not something I'm proud of, others may have forgiven me but my conscience tells me otherwise, and it's really something I should be telling a therapist about. In some ways the fictional character from My Little Pony Friendship is Magic, Princess Luna, reminds me a little about myself, and that episode with Tantabus, seeing her cry, I could imagine if I were in that fantasy world witnessing this, I'd cry too, I know what the pain of guilt can do to somebody, or to hold deep regrets about things we cannot change, no matter how much we want to turn back time. I know how isolation can mess with someone's mind, too much toxicity exists in our world and it can be hard to be open about our feelings. I'm not saying toxicity doesn't exist in the Brony and Pegasister community, but I've noticed a lot of thoughtful people here. Our world does need to be kinder in general, the ethical principles lived by Mane Six, of compassion, gentleness and forgiveness, they're not as common as they should be in real life. About fan opinions on MLP episode Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep I can see both sides of the argument, but I think it's unfair of people to suggest Princess Luna does not have any legitimate reasoning behind her tears and emotional pain, I mean, she did try to kill her sister when she was Nightmare Moon. Yes, bullying and child abuse are common reasons for self harming, but I think it's important to consider guilt plays a role in that too, whether perceived wrongdoing or actual wrongdoing.

[Slumberlumber 157]

1 hour ago, Dawnshine Wonder said:

I don't know why Iron Will gets hanged out with, it became clear he was a toxic influence after manipulating Fluttershy into becoming aggressive and rude to her friends, preyed on her vulnerabilities and made a bad situation for her, worse, in episode Putting Your Hoof Down.

 

Fluttershy represents unconditional love, as shown in episode Stare Master when she was foalsitting Cutie Mark Crusaders, she remained calm and collected even with their antics in her house, which I can imagine would test anyone's patience.

 

I wished I was as kind as her, I haven't always been, I literally wrote an MLP FIM fan fiction in ChatGPT about my imaginary self reincarnating into Equestria alternate timeline, not to seek wealth or power, only to become a kinder person, or pegasi in this case named Dawnshine Wonder, to be both giver and receiver of compassion in a world where acceptance and unity is the norm, after requesting nurturing early in the next life from Luna there in the Bardo, another fictional realm. I must admit I have been rude to people, gotten into fights with some in the past, not something I'm proud of, others may have forgiven me but my conscience tells me otherwise, and it's really something I should be telling a therapist about. In some ways the fictional character from My Little Pony Friendship is Magic, Princess Luna, reminds me a little about myself, and that episode with Tantabus, seeing her cry, I could imagine if I were in that fantasy world witnessing this, I'd cry too, I know what the pain of guilt can do to somebody, or to hold deep regrets about things we cannot change, no matter how much we want to turn back time. I know how isolation can mess with someone's mind, too much toxicity exists in our world and it can be hard to be open about our feelings. I'm not saying toxicity doesn't exist in the Brony and Pegasister community, but I've noticed a lot of thoughtful people here. Our world does need to be kinder in general, the ethical principles lived by Mane Six, of compassion, gentleness and forgiveness, they're not as common as they should be in real life. About fan opinions on MLP episode Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep I can see both sides of the argument, but I think it's unfair of people to suggest Princess Luna does not have any legitimate reasoning behind her tears and emotional pain, I mean, she did try to kill her sister when she was Nightmare Moon. Yes, bullying and child abuse are common reasons for self harming, but I think it's important to consider guilt plays a role in that too, whether perceived wrongdoing or actual wrongdoing.

I dunno, maybe to please the ultra-mascline fans they think they have?
 

I don't like kids at the best of times, but being cool and collected during stresful situations is a super power. I was able too after an older woman hit my car in the middle of the night, taking out a door handle and totalling the vehicle. We had to replace it once the body shop refused to fix it. It was tough, but.....yeah.

I just wish I felt more comfortable speaking out like Rainbow Dash or Twilight. Public speaking, indeed speaking in general, is hard for me. I'm very introverted, so it's difficult to put myself out there in any context, but I do. Practice makes perfect.

[Dawnshine Wonder 5]

16 hours ago, Slumberlumber said:

I dunno, maybe to please the ultra-mascline fans they think they have?
 

I don't like kids at the best of times, but being cool and collected during stresful situations is a super power. I was able too after an older woman hit my car in the middle of the night, taking out a door handle and totalling the vehicle. We had to replace it once the body shop refused to fix it. It was tough, but.....yeah.

I just wish I felt more comfortable speaking out like Rainbow Dash or Twilight. Public speaking, indeed speaking in general, is hard for me. I'm very introverted, so it's difficult to put myself out there in any context, but I do. Practice makes perfect.

Possibly, but it's just as well creators of the show wanted to show what toxic masculinity does to society, which I think is an important lesson.

 

even in a kingdom as whimsical as Equestria, prejudices do exist, Iron Will fits that alpha male stereotype, another character, or should I say duo of characters that annoyed me, is Flim Flam, not only did they try to put Applejack and her family out of business, but they were underhanded about it as well, they were more concerned about buying out competition than providing quality products their customers paid for. Things got worse from that point on when they sold a fake miracle tonic which put Granny Smith's life at risk. All in all, I don't feel like I hate Flim Flam Brothers unjustly, they put on a fake happy face and then sell you dodgy products that could kill you, try to destroy the livelihoods of honest businesses, all the while knowing they are pulling a fast one on others, placebo and all that. These episodes did well to showcase why profit over morals is wrong.

 

I haven't watched all of the movie yet, but the clips from it I've seen on Youtube depicting slavery show that there was a history of oppression going on in that fictional world by beings outside the land of Equestria. It kind of annoys me that fans oversimplify this as being an issue of Equestria being culturally racist, because from what I've seen, Ponies in the fictional world of MLP FIM did have a good reason to fear invasion and violence from outsiders, the Movie showed people the deeper motivations behind Ponies being so protective of their beloved kingdom, in the same way we would be in real life if there was a country whose authoritarian system was a threat to us. People forget sometimes that fear is driven by survival instinct, and it's not always as simple as saying one side is racist and the other is not, more to the point, when people abuse the terminology racism, it loses its meaning.

[Slumberlumber 157]

9 hours ago, Dawnshine Wonder said:

Possibly, but it's just as well creators of the show wanted to show what toxic masculinity does to society, which I think is an important lesson.

 

even in a kingdom as whimsical as Equestria, prejudices do exist, Iron Will fits that alpha male stereotype, another character, or should I say duo of characters that annoyed me, is Flim Flam, not only did they try to put Applejack and her family out of business, but they were underhanded about it as well, they were more concerned about buying out competition than providing quality products their customers paid for. Things got worse from that point on when they sold a fake miracle tonic which put Granny Smith's life at risk. All in all, I don't feel like I hate Flim Flam Brothers unjustly, they put on a fake happy face and then sell you dodgy products that could kill you, try to destroy the livelihoods of honest businesses, all the while knowing they are pulling a fast one on others, placebo and all that. These episodes did well to showcase why profit over morals is wrong.

 

I haven't watched all of the movie yet, but the clips from it I've seen on Youtube depicting slavery show that there was a history of oppression going on in that fictional world by beings outside the land of Equestria. It kind of annoys me that fans oversimplify this as being an issue of Equestria being culturally racist, because from what I've seen, Ponies in the fictional world of MLP FIM did have a good reason to fear invasion and violence from outsiders, the Movie showed people the deeper motivations behind Ponies being so protective of their beloved kingdom, in the same way we would be in real life if there was a country whose authoritarian system was a threat to us. People forget sometimes that fear is driven by survival instinct, and it's not always as simple as saying one side is racist and the other is not, more to the point, when people abuse the terminology racism, it loses its meaning.

It is an important lesson, one which we havent seem to learn. I'm not gonna get too much into politics here (I don't know how you lean), but I do now that with a certain election in the US, a chant soon came up with "Your body, my choice.", which terrified all of the women that I know. My own sister was so scared she made an appointment to have her tubes tied in case something similar happens where I am in Canada. And it's increasingly looks like it might. I'm one of the few lucky guys to have his social circle consist almost entirely of women, inoculating me against such phenomenon unless I wanna commit social and professional suicide. Boggels my mind still why the ponies still associate with him. Not sure what we're supposed to take from that. I don't hate Flim and Flam, I know they're supposed to be sleaze bag characters, grifters to a core. Minor baddies to thwart by he likes of Apple Jack and co. Least they always get there com uppance unlike Iron Will.....

I'm not too deep in the lore yet (only on comic #6 or so) but I did detect a pony supremacist underline in their society. Made sense to me, they feared dragons for eating them and the yaks are, least to them, barbareous creatures with little or no culture (to them). Didn't know about them being enslaved and threatened from another power unless you mean the changelings, which makes sense and further supports their pony-supremacist views. Having threats seemingly on all side and no allies. I'td be the same for us humans if we were surrounded by alien threats and only had ourselves to rely on. Makes the actions of Counsellor Neighsay even more understandable of trying to keep the other creatures out, even if the show refused to go into detail of his reasoning for some reason. Fear is driven by survival, even hate sometimes. Hard to fight what you're only afraid off, as opposed to viscerally want to destroy....

[Dawnshine Wonder 5]

13 hours ago, Slumberlumber said:

It is an important lesson, one which we havent seem to learn. I'm not gonna get too much into politics here (I don't know how you lean), but I do now that with a certain election in the US, a chant soon came up with "Your body, my choice.", which terrified all of the women that I know. My own sister was so scared she made an appointment to have her tubes tied in case something similar happens where I am in Canada. And it's increasingly looks like it might. I'm one of the few lucky guys to have his social circle consist almost entirely of women, inoculating me against such phenomenon unless I wanna commit social and professional suicide. Boggels my mind still why the ponies still associate with him. Not sure what we're supposed to take from that. I don't hate Flim and Flam, I know they're supposed to be sleaze bag characters, grifters to a core. Minor baddies to thwart by he likes of Apple Jack and co. Least they always get there com uppance unlike Iron Will.....

I'm not too deep in the lore yet (only on comic #6 or so) but I did detect a pony supremacist underline in their society. Made sense to me, they feared dragons for eating them and the yaks are, least to them, barbareous creatures with little or no culture (to them). Didn't know about them being enslaved and threatened from another power unless you mean the changelings, which makes sense and further supports their pony-supremacist views. Having threats seemingly on all side and no allies. I'td be the same for us humans if we were surrounded by alien threats and only had ourselves to rely on. Makes the actions of Counsellor Neighsay even more understandable of trying to keep the other creatures out, even if the show refused to go into detail of his reasoning for some reason. Fear is driven by survival, even hate sometimes. Hard to fight what you're only afraid off, as opposed to viscerally want to destroy....

I know who you're talking about, right to abortion is a controversial topic, it's unfortunate but I can do nothing about it sadly, things will be rough for the next 4 years in the US I'd imagine, and it isn't just because of the wildfire in California, but the rest of the world has problems too, with the threat of mass extinction and what not, and people wonder why some MLP fans write self insert stories? I won't get into what my politics are here, but about what I said earlier about fan fiction, I am aware there are some cringy and dark fan fictions out there, but the rest of fan fiction writers get tarred with the same brush with a certain individual who made that Stockholm fanfic who is known to be toxic to others in everyday interactions or at least on the internet, and people who made deceptive creepypastas. As for harmless types of fan fiction, so long as they respect IP owners and don't commercialize or claim they own something they do not, I couldn't care less about others self-expression. I would imagine some Bronies and Pegasisters, do want to live in a kinder world, but due to people being shamed for showing any vulnerability, they're unable to express this openly or at the very least outside of an anonymous internet handle, even admitting we like My Little Pony Friendship is Magic as an adult can be enough to get us bullied, fans write self insert MLP stories, like I did, a human reincarnated as a pegasi, you get people accusing people having these fantasies as this simply being a matter of ego, self-expression gets shamed and while bullying does happen outside MLP fandom, some of it goes on in this community as well. And while the fictional land of Equestria with cute Ponies and magical rainbows does have its imperfections, Bridle Gossip episode showed examples where racism did happen, Mane Six accusing Zecora of cursing them, we cannot deny that prejudices are more of a problem in the real world than this, whether people like to admit it or not, humans have a long history of cruelty to each other and other species, rodeos, horse riding and bullfighting for example in the US are still not banned, people still think it's acceptable to exploit animals for entertainment and profit.

I made it explicitly obvious in ChatGPT that my MLP FIM non commercial fan fiction about my imaginary self reborn, is not about domineering over others, or to exploit others for material or personal gain, if anything I'd want my persona to be more like Fluttershy's, she's not perfect, but she is a pleasant individual to be around in that fantasy world, I even imagined myself wearing flower crowns with her, appreciating the simple things in life, not for romance which depending on context can be a sign of an ego, the flower crown thing is only for the appreciation of innocence and friendship. Shyness, nurturing, sensitivity and empathy, these are the traits I'd want to be raised with in this fantasy world, not to be a jerk like Iron Will. If having these personality traits would make me easier to take advantage of, that would be the price I'd be willing to pay for this if I were reborn in that fantasy world, of course it is important to be assertive when necessary, helping others, doesn't always have to mean heroics but it does mean being treat others how we would want to be treated, or even setting our own boundaries, but being too assertive is a bad thing and it causes problems, as that Putting Your Hoof Down episode showed. Fluttershy shows signs of social anxiety too, something I can relate to, I experience this already in real life, the social anxiety part.

I know everyone I've seen in this thread up until now has made thoughtful responses to each other, however I've seen other threads where people get shamed for self-expression, no matter how benign they are, and if wanting less pain for everyone is considered a matter of "ego", that's an insult on graves to anyone who has ever committed suicide. Hate of this magnitude should not be normalized, but it is, and that's a problem I am not sure humans as a collective, will ever overcome. Of course MLP FIM fans are going to disagree with each other on what is or isn't the best episode, though still popular not everyone likes Twilight's Kingdom and its DBZ style battle, that is not a problem, but when they start name calling and using slurs against people who disagree with them, even harassing them, or making over generalizations about what story qualifies for self-harm like with Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep, or act like MLP FIM show should just pretend these issues don't even exist, that puts me off.

 

Edited yesterday at 04:17 PM by Dawnshine Wonder