Expectations of future seasons

[ZStrike37 107]

**For those who have not seen the season finale, dont' worry.  I don't plan on there being spoilers.**

 

And so it ends.  Season 4 is done and went out with a bang.  And it was pretty beastly.  I watched it on Youtube (in HD of course!)  Then the credits started rolling after all was said and done.  I scrolled down to check the comments and see what others thought of it.  Comments were mostly along the lines of "OMG EPICNESS!!!"  and "HOLY CELESTIA BEST SEASON FINALE EVAR!!1" and you get the point.  But one comment stopped me and started getting me thinking.

 

"That was so awesome!  How can they possibly top this!?"

 

This comment made start thinking about the expectations we as a fandom have for this show.  Now don't get me wrong, I'm well aware the fandom is comprised of multiple people all with different perspectives and ideas of what constitutes a "good" episode.  So I know there is no unified/unanimous voice of the brony community but I'm coming from a majority side of things so bear with me. 

 

Season 4 and its finale was great.  But does season 5 necessarily have to exceed it and do we as a fandom naturally expect it to be grander and more epic in scale?  And does it really have to?  This kind of thinking seems to occur in any kind of series, whether it be TV, movie, video game, or book.  The next one in the line should be better than the last, right?  Isn't that the general feel?  And if it isn't as good, then there's mass disappointment that it didn't reach our self-set goals of awesomeness, even if the episode or finale or whatever is good on its own merit.

 

Take Boast Busters or Mysterious Mare-Do-Well for examples.  I think it's generally accepted by most that these episodes are "bad" or at least "not good".  To start, I am NOT telling you that you are wrong for thinking so.  We all like and dislike different episodes for different reasons.  But I still enjoyed them just fine.  Maybe I'm not as refined or deep-thinking as others are, but I still re-watch those episodes from time to time because it still made me smile to watch them, despite some characters acting a bit "out there". 

 

That brings me to my main point of this long-winded... whatever you call it.  I enjoyed those no-so-popular episodes.  And it's just because it was still the same show.  They may not have been as good as others or as epic or deep or whatever!  But I don't care.  I love the show the staff has created.  And even if season 5 does "fall short of expectations", it won't bother me.

 

As long season 5 still brings me Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Spike, Twilight, and (my personal fav!) Applejack; as long as the art style is still charming and sweet; as long as the music is fun, lively, and (at times) deeply moving; as long as it's My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, I will enjoy it. 

 

I guess this wasn't much of a question, but I just wanted to voice my thoughts on this.  Brony on, you fine ponyfolk, brony on.

[Megas 27,676]

I'm gonna set my expectations super high and bitch and moan over every insignificant detail(and probably take out of context) everytime it doesn't meet my highly unreasonable standards

[Away 2,077]

I'm not saying the quality of this show isn't high, but I think it's best not to expect too much. The reason why is because whenever something doesn't exactly meet someone expectations, they're left disappointed. They focus on what they didn't get, as opposed to focusing on whatever they did get.

Edited May 12, 2014 by LatinoChurro

[windy_prance 114]

I think that since the finale concluded with Twilight wanting to spread the magic of friendship to others, I'm guessing that Season Five will have a ton of background ponies given the spotlight for the Mane Six to solve their episodic problems.

 

That's my bet anyway.

[Mitchell 45]

I'm afraid they're going to start running out of ideas when it comes to villains because like many have said, how can they possibly top that? I'm sure the next season will be good but I can't imagine it being as epic as this one was seeing as there was a lot of hype for the finale to find out what was inside the box since the premiere and keeping us on the edge of our seat throughout the season to find out how each pony would receive their key.

 

I can see season 5 getting more into background stories and showing us more about the unknown such as Star Swirl the bearded, some background characters, more history, and of course the occasional random episodes.

 

I still have high hopes but I can't help but think MLP has just hit it's peak. I hope I'm wrong.

[Khaoios 1,970]

I'm afraid they're going to start running out of ideas when it comes to villains because like many have said, how can they possibly top that? I'm sure the next season will be good but I can't imagine it being as epic as this one was seeing as there was a lot of hype for the finale to find out what was inside the box since the premiere and keeping us on the edge of our seat throughout the season to find out how each pony would receive their key.

 

I can see season 5 getting more into background stories and showing us more about the unknown such as Star Swirl the bearded, some background characters, more history, and of course the occasional random episodes.

 

I still have high hopes but I can't help but think MLP has just hit it's peak. I hope I'm wrong.

 

Well..........i think they'll disapprove, but it would be cool to have "male" alicorns as villains, having some sort of a similarity to mythological "Gods".........yes, Gods.   Like Prometheus (nvm, i already called him for a fan film appearance), Hades, Apophis, Death, Nemesis, Loki, Chernabog, etc.   But that would be way too dark.

[Egghead 46]

Season 4 was definitely a very strong season, but I believe what the writers have in store for season 5 is going to be just as amazing (or more) than what we already got in season 4! 

On that note I do hope they do another story arc throughout the season or make more slice of life episodes about episodes and the history of Equestria. 

[Pastel 7,630]

"That was so awesome!  How can they possibly top this!?"

I thought exactly the same thing after watching A Canterlot Wedding.

[ReverseFaller 2,483]

I'm not sure what to expect. If Rainbow Power can beat Tirek so easily, can any villain ever pose a threat to Ponyville again?

[Pastel 7,630]

I'm not sure what to expect. If Rainbow Power can beat Tirek so easily, can any villain ever pose a threat to Ponyville again?

But I don't think they can use them again.

[ReverseFaller 2,483]

But I don't think they can use them again.

 

I hope they can use them again. Hasbro has been pumping out a lot of Rainbow Power toys lately, so I hope it wasn't just a one time transformation made to sells toys. (And to defeat Tirek of course)

[Scootalove 10,689]

Season 4 definitely impressed me, but I'll keep my expectations at a normal level to avoid disappointment.

[Hovershy 3,814]

Im hoping we meet Scorpan in season 5!

 

I do have high expectations for season 5, because season 4 was superb.

Edited May 12, 2014 by Hovershy