Calling all "Bronies"...

[Xprimentyl]

I'm fairly new to the escapist (just broke 200 posts!) and am not a huge internet presence in the form of monitoring every forum and website of repute; I'm not on Facebook, I don't "tweet," etc, so forgive me in advance for my ignorance, but please understand it is my genuine curiosity and not a passing of judgement:

What is the deal with the My Little Pony thing?

When I first got here, I saw several of the MLP avatars, saw the groups, saw the word "Bronie" thrown about; I thought it was a select few being ironic. But as I began to realize the phenomenon was a bit more prolific than innocent fun, I did a little searching to discover that indeed, there is a near cult following of adults, in particular males, for this apparently "girly" kids' show. No, I've never seen the show, but what I uncovered in my admittedly limited time spent snooping the interwebz, the show was intended for kids, girls in fact, as a re-imagining of the classic and iconic line of toys.

So how did guys end up as "Bronies?"

I can't stress it enough, I'M NOT JUDGING. I'll clarify further with some theories I've posited: is it like a Spongebob thing wherein the writing is litered with inuendo and occasional humor slightly above a child's reasoning? Are there people involved with the show and its production who have vested interest or stake in industries outside of children's television and the online community is showing support? Or is the show truly that genuinely GOOD and intriguing that it garners the attention of the exactly opposite intended demographic?

 

[Colour Scientist]

I hate when people do this but I think this time it's necessary.
If you type 'Brony' into the search bar you will find 8,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,034 threads on this exact topic. Each thread has several hundred replies answering your question.

I don't mean to sound like a ***** but this thread has been done to death over the past year and the same replies have been repeated ad nauseum.

 

[Melon Hunter]

Before anyone posts a 'Oh look, it's this thread again' image, there have been dozens of threads asking this same question before. Look 'em up. I think 'Why Little Pony?' was a pretty common title.

However, as for why people like the show, I'd say all three reasons you've postulated in your last paragraph are all valid. That and the astounding size of the creative community surrounding it. The episodes are up on YouTube if you want to see for yourself.

 

[Xprimentyl]

I hate when people do this but I think this time it's necessary.
If you type 'Brony' into the search bar you will find 8,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,034 threads on this exact topic. Each thread has several hundred replies answering your question.

I don't mean to sound like a ***** but this thread has been done to death over the past year and the same replies have been repeated ad nauseum.

So, forums are not a place for discussion? Is every question only allowed to be asked once? If you are familiar with the topic and it is old hat to you, simply DON'T READ IT. If everyone agrees, it will pass to the second page of topics and into obscurity for someone else to find with an impersonal Internet search.

As I said, I've not been here for +2000 post and have not read every topic in the archives; neither will I just to ensure that people like you are not offended by a simple question or topic that may or may not have been covered before.

 

[Colour Scientist]

So, forums are not a place for discussion? Is every question only allowed to be asked once? If you are familiar with the topic and it is old hat to you, simply DON'T READ IT. If everyone agrees, it will pass to the second page of topics and into obscurity for someone else to find with an impersonal Internet search.

As I said, I've not been here for +2000 post and have not read every topic in the archives; neither will I just to ensure that people like you are not offended by a simple question or topic that may or may not have been covered before.

Dude, relax. No need to get so uptight about it.

I don't know how you gathered that I was offended by your post, that seems a little dramatic.

By and large, I have no problem with repeat threads, it happens all of the time but this particular thread has been made at least once a week for the last year. The reason I asked you to use the search bar is to try to curb the amount of times this thread is made. That 'DON'T READ IT' argument is getting tiresome, I enjoy reading threads on this site but if the first page is swamped with repeat threads it cuts out the room for new ones and they often get overlooked.

I'm sorry it's not what you wanted the first post on your thread to be but there's no reason to get so defensive.

 

[Melon Hunter]

I was unsure of what the fuss was all about, I thought people were being ironic, or that maybe they just liked the show for quotable images, but as I explored it a little further I began to understand these people actually were fans of the series. Their justification being that it's an original show with good animation, solid comedy, voice acting, and good characterization.

I respected that, but never got into it.

Until I saw this that is.


Such an awesome AMV, tells a cool little story, and inspired me to give the show a try, I loved it and the rest was history. I'm a very quiet fan though and not as pronounced as others, but I do love it to bits.

You know, I first saw that AMV in July and thought it was pretty awesome. And then I actually saw The Offspring at the Reading Festival a month later. You have no idea how confusing it is to hear the song played live properly, and have the sped up version in your mind at the same time. That was a weird experience.

Also, have you ever seen John Funk's list of the best PMVs? It was put up in May, so it's a little out of date, but there are still some great ones on there. Actually, come to think of it, that thread got me into the show.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

It's a show, people watch it, they like it. It isn't any different from other fandoms centered around shows.

Use the search bar. This question has been going on for over a fucking year.

 

[PsychedelicDiamond]

It's just a good show... you know, funny, well characterized, well written, has a lot of talented people working on it... it's fun to watch.

 

[CrazyGirl17]

I like this show... but not to the extent of other people. Not all Bronies/Pegasisters are like that, y'know...

 

[Esotera]

What I find strangest is that I'll get called out for saying there are better ways to spend your time than watching a kids cartoon about ponies. This trend can be observed on most major sites on the internet.

I'll be happy when it dies off in a few months, mainly because all these pony avatars & images/threads just register in my brain as spam. I genuinely don't see the attraction.

 

[Berithil]

Spoiler: someone had to do it

Anyway, the reason we like it is because its genuinely a good show. It's well written, has great animation, and has a ton of references that would fly over the head of any 5 year old girl. It's more of a family show than it is a little girl show. Lauren Faust has said that herself. Yes, its cute and cuddly and very optimistic, but it manages to do so without be overtly sacharine. Anyways, sometimes you need a little bit of unrelenting joy. The world is a gloomy place.

Here's a couple videos that got me watching the show.

Spoiler

Jeez, I sound like I'm pushing a relegion.

Spoiler

 

[Buzz Killington_v1legacy]

Spoiler: someone had to do it

While we're here, much like with ponies, the singular form is "brony". Now you know...and knowing is half the battle. (Oh, wait. Wrong cartoon.)

 

[Vanbael]

The show is fun, Lauren Faust is an awesome person, and thats it in a nutshell. Now if you excuse me, I have a Derpy Hooves skin to apply in minecraft.

 

[Lunar Templar]

that was awesome XD, out of character, but not

but back OT:
its a fun, well written show with a bit more substance then most every thing else around it.
the ponies and allowed to be, human to the extent ALL of them of a complex that at some point causes a full on mental break down, which is really the mane draw for my, the characterization

Spoiler: that and ...

Luna is awesome

 

[Aidinthel]

It's a tv show that we like. The most important thing to me is that the characters are relatable and actually relatively complex, but I could also cite the quality of the animation and the fact that it's just very refreshing to enjoy something good and wholesome as a break from all the grimdark that forms my usual fare.

You weren't around when this really blew up, but suffice to say that around May and June everyone got really sick of threads like these. Not your fault, of course, but that's why this thread drew the reaction it did. Feel free to drop by the user group if you have further questions:
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/MLP-Friendship-is-Magic
If you do, I recommend turning chat notifications off when it prompts you as group chat tends to be very active.

 

[Worgen]

I dont know much about the whatever drama but this seems as good an excuse to link things as any

my work here is done.

 

[imnot]

Jesus christ, how many times have we had this bloody thread!

Because people like the cartoon, there happy now, can we stop with the bloody 'why is mlp os popular' shit now!

YEAH I AM IN A BAD MOOD

 

[Aidinthel]

YEAH I AM IN A BAD MOOD

A least you're not as destructive as Fluttershy when she gets mad.The horror, the horror!

 

[imnot]

YEAH I AM IN A BAD MOOD

A least you're not as destructive as Fluttershy when she gets mad.The horror, the horror!

GRR FLUTTERHULK SMASH! GWAAAAAR!

 

[Otaku World Order]

Before anyone posts a 'Oh look, it's this thread again' image, there have been dozens of threads asking this same question before. Look 'em up. I think 'Why Little Pony?' was a pretty common title.

However, as for why people like the show, I'd say all three reasons you've postulated in your last paragraph are all valid. That and the astounding size of the creative community surrounding it. The episodes are up on YouTube if you want to see for yourself.

You know a subject has been done to death when complaining about how it's been done to death has also been done to death. I've only been here since late November, and I've already seen a dozen variations of this topic come and go.

What is it about My Little Pony fandom that confuses so many people anyway? I don't remember anyone making this big a deal about adults being fans of the Powerpuff Girls.