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My Little Pony FiM Community [OT3] Surely You Saw This Coming

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
Friends Forever 16 is going to be about Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.

MLP 30/31 will be about a Ponyville founding celebration.
 
What, not even going to post the cover arts and synopses?

Friendship is Magic #30
Cover A
Subscription cover
My Little Pony Friendship is Magic #30
(W) Christina Rice (A/CA) Agnes Garbowska
“Ponyville Days,” Part 1. A massive event celebrating Ponyville’s founding is nearing but an argument between friends splits the town into two argumentative factions!

Friends Forever #16
Cover A
My Little Pony Friends Forever #16
(W) Jeremy Whitley (A) Jenn Blake (CA) Amy Mebberson
When Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon see those obnoxious blank flanks, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, threaten to win a school contest, they decide go all out to make sure the best ponies win! (Being themselves, of course!)

Not really interested in either story. Twilight looks really odd with a swim cap in the former issue's subscription cover.

In other news, some weird licensed toys from the Toy Fair. ED provided the best caption for this picture.
Capture.PNG
[whale sounds]
 

PaulloDEC

Member
That Rainbow Dash... thing is uh, interesting.

I think both of those comics could be fun. I'll be interested to see what they've got planned for DT/SS.

Oh, and we got a couple of preview pages for the Sombra "Fiendship" issue:

Page 1
Page 2

Spoilers, obviously. I like what I'm seeing.
 
News roundup post.

First, Nurse Redheart is appearing prominently on some merchandise, surprisingly.

Similarly, Doctor Whooves randomly in a blanket otherwise covered in main characters and the already-prolific Derpy. Also, black-colored Pinkie Pie plushie that looks like an OC.

Interview with a Japanese fan. I don't like the post's atmosphere of treating this one guy's opinion as if it represented all Japanese fans, but still, it's nice to get some perspective, including the unfortunate fact that the Japanese dub is largely seen as a failure.

And some larger news companies cover PonyCon. The second article claiming that female fans are treated with reverence doesn't feel true (as someone who doesn't go to cons), but maybe that's true in contrast to other fandoms. I am amused that the link in that article used to provide more info about Twilight is a video of the Tirek fight.
 

brian577

Banned
New details about season 5 and the movie. Major Spoilers
Episode 100:

No mane 6, all background/minor ponies
Doctor Whooves, and very heavily hinted that he is similar to the actual Doctor Who version
Some fan-established background pony personalities will be seen, while others will have entirely new ones.
As many background ponies crammed into it as they can, while still having a fun story
While they aren't allowed to read fanfiction to avoid a conflict of ideas, they are still very aware at what is popular.


MAUD PIE:
Maud Pie returns in a Hearths Warming (Christmas) episode

Pony Movie:
It is completely 100% Pony, no Equestria Girls
They are going all out on it, to make sure it doesn't just feel like an extended episode

http://www.equestriadaily.com/2015/02/more-season-5-reveals-including-episode.html#more
 

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
Episode 100: The Pandering.

I think the show was a lot better before they started trying to make the bronies happy. Show was just fine without us.

And I really think a landmark episode should be celebrating the characters who got the show this far.
 

UberTag

Member
Episode 100: The Pandering.

I think the show was a lot better before they started trying to make the bronies happy. Show was just fine without us.

And I really think a landmark episode should be celebrating the characters who got the show this far.
So a Celestia-centric episode then? ;)
 

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
So a Celestia-centric episode then? ;)

I've kind of come to peace that with Meghan in charge, that is never going to happen. Most I hope for now is that she stop treating Celestia (and the other two Princesses) as Damsels in Distress every time a bad guys shows up.
 

PaulloDEC

Member
Episode 100: The Pandering.

I think the show was a lot better before they started trying to make the bronies happy. Show was just fine without us.

And I really think a landmark episode should be celebrating the characters who got the show this far.

It's just one episode. It'll come and go, and the only people who'll feel any lasting effects are the ones most heavily invested in fanon.

My stance has always been that I just want the production team to make the show that they want to make, and if that includes an episode about background characters, I say go nuts.

I like to think of every other episode of the show as a celebration of the characters who got the show this far.
 

Psxphile

Member
New details about season 5 and the movie. Major Spoilers
Episode 100:

No mane 6, all background/minor ponies
Doctor Whooves, and very heavily hinted that he is similar to the actual Doctor Who version
Some fan-established background pony personalities will be seen, while others will have entirely new ones.
As many background ponies crammed into it as they can, while still having a fun story
While they aren't allowed to read fanfiction to avoid a conflict of ideas, they are still very aware at what is popular.

If done right this could be the
22 Short Tales of Ponyville
I've always wanted.

But I'm not holding out hope.
 
Really nice to get some more details.

Concerning episode 100,
"Ship in a Bottle" is considered a classic Star Trek: TNG episode, so I see no issue with the idea of focusing on background characters. Pandering isn't a bad thing, in any case, especially since this is just one episode, and from what I can tell, many of the fan-popular characters are also popular with the little girl target audience. At least popular enough for Dr. Whooves to appear on random merchandise not targeted at adult fans, like what I posted earlier.

And in other news, ED has a collection of Andy Price sketches, many of which have been posted here before.

First image of the upcoming Castles of Equestria book, and I'm much less interested than I was before... and I'm not just saying that because Flash Sentry is on the preview page.
 

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
Really nice to get some more details.

Concerning episode 100,
"Ship in a Bottle" is considered a classic Star Trek: TNG episode, so I see no issue with the idea of focusing on background characters. Pandering isn't a bad thing, in any case, especially since this is just one episode, and from what I can tell, many of the fan-popular characters are also popular with the little girl target audience. At least popular enough for Dr. Whooves to appear on random merchandise not targeted at adult fans, like what I posted earlier.

I think you meant to say "Lower Decks". And in that episode, the main cast still had important roles to fill in the episode.
 

draetenth

Member
Episode 100: The Pandering.

I think the show was a lot better before they started trying to make the bronies happy. Show was just fine without us.

And I really think a landmark episode should be celebrating the characters who got the show this far.

Unless of course it's a certain sun princess to pander to a certain fan...

Are you just upset that Celestia might not even be considered a background pony? :p
 

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
Unless of course it's a certain sun princess to pander to a certain fan...

Are you just upset that Celestia might not even be considered a background pony? :p

I would much rather see an episode with the supporting cast that has been largely ignored these last two seasons, and that would include Celestia and several others.
 

draetenth

Member
I would much rather see an episode with the supporting cast that has been largely ignored these last two seasons, and that would include Celestia and several others.

Just curious, but who would you like to see besides Celestia?

Anyway, I don't care who they use myself. I know they frequently use Lyra + Bon Bon during the show (iirc a storyboarder who used to post on the Allspark forums under the name Nayuki said he is/was responsible for that as he like the pair) and Derpy was back in her where's waldo type role so I doubt they are included (or maybe they are). It looks like
Doctor Whooves
will be in. I don't follow the fandom that closely so I don't really know who else is big. Octavia maybe? Vinyl Scratch
she did have a role in EQG 2
? Could this be Big Macs time to shine? Cherilee?

I'm just hyping myself up even more now...
 

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
Just curious, but who would you like to see besides Celestia?

Zecora, Cheerileee, The Cakes, Cadance and Shining Armor, Luna (an episode with actually character development, not just her doing her job with such a lack of emotion). With characters like Trixie having a followup episode, I would love to see one for Gilda.
 

BDGAME

Member
I really hope say don't ruin Lyra and Bonbon. Let then in the background doing what they usually do. Other characters can have more space. The list that DrForester put is more than enough for me.
 

Cheerilee

Member
Zecora, Cheerileee, The Cakes, Cadance and Shining Armor, Luna (an episode with actually character development, not just her doing her job with such a lack of emotion). With characters like Trixie having a followup episode, I would love to see one for Gilda.

Trixie's followup episode and Equestria Girls appearances have mostly been parodies of her original appearance, so I kind of don't want them to bring Gilda back. Although Gilda could probably have some good interactions with Lightning Dust.

Zecora's more of a loner (aside from Apple Bloom) and an excuse for the writers to write rhymes, and a too-easy solution to problems (they give Zecora too many of the answers without having anyone work for them).

Cheerilee is rooted in her teaching job.

The Cakes are stuck with parenting and Pinkie Pie.


IMO, the best shot for a lesser-character episode would be Cadence/Shining Armor/Luna/Celestia. That one practically writes itself. You could also include anyone who could reasonably appear in Canterlot and push the plot, and my suggestion for the best pony for that role is... Trixie.

Second best idea is Zecora/Apple Bloom/Cheerilee. You could include Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle for more characters, but that would immediately turn it into a CMC episode, and episodes don't need to be overloaded with characters. Some of the best episodes come from focus on just a few characters interacting with each other.
 
Concerning which characters we'll see in episode 100, I believe it was already confirmed that Coco Pommel would be in it. Given that, I don't think it's a stretch to imagine that the other key-givers will be in it; I don't think getting Weird Al back for some lines would be too much of a problem.

First of all, ABC Nightline ran their PonyCon piece, and it's surprisingly good.

In very odd news, Canada's surveillance agency calls their secret email collecting program Pony Express, and used MLP (G3) images for it.

And lastly, interview with the crew of the Tirek issue of Fiendship is Magic, with some interesting details.
 
Episode 100 sounds like a dream episode that I have been waiting for a long while. Who cares if it's pandering. Why is that even a bad thing? Seems to me like it's the creators of show giving the fans something special, by making an episode of the characters that the fans helped create.

I am hoping for a series of small short stories, like they have done before in the Simpsons. One about Lyra and Bon Bon, Derpy (it can be silent), Octavia and Vinyl Scratch, Dr. Whooves and Rose and whoever else. But those are the ones I want to see the most.

One thing I hope they do in season five is give Luna her personality back. Katie Cook and Andy Prices make Luna and Celestia so lovable and distinct that it kind of bums me out that they are sort of generic in the show. Please give the sisters some development! They are so cool!
 

HUELEN10

Member
The fact that episode 100 seems like bring pandering makes me go UGH, but then again, perhaps it only seems like that; maybe it won't be that at all!

I remain optimistic.
 

brian577

Banned
I don't understand these pandering complaints. It is the 100th episode, the writers are getting a chance to cut loose and go a little crazy. The episode will probably have no real impact on the series. It's a tribute to the fans, and I just can't help but feel some people are being ungrateful.
 

McNum

Member
Very few cartoons even make it to 100, so I'm all for them just having fun with this one. Five seasons is big in cartoons, and also kind of big in TV in general.
 

Village

Member
I don't need reminders of zecora's existance.

Its always like

" oh yeah that thing that makes me kind of hate this show as a black person "
 
I don't need reminders of zecora's existance.

Its always like

" oh yeah that thing that makes me kind of hate this show as a black person "

Yeah, Zecora's existence has always been something that bothered me a bit about the show, though the fact that non-zebra characters like Twilight and Sapphire Shores are often depicted by fans as being black did a lot to alleviate that.
 

Village

Member
It did, my favorite is rarity being black. Because I know a girl that goes to my uni that sounds like rarity is black and is in the fashion part of the school.


That said though, its sad someone thought that was cool. In whatever year this show came out, like who though that was fine?
 
I think I know what they were going for with Zecora, a Yoda type figure that dispenses wisdom and advice in a somewhat mysterious manner. Instead of speaking backwards like Yoda, they had Zecora speak in rhyme. The problem with this is that for a good long while cartoon characters that were black or were representing a black person often (and stupidly) spoke in rhyme. Characters like Jazz from Transformers or Road Block from G.I. Joe are good examples of this. So Zecora, being the one character that can easily be identified as being black speaks like a stereotype from the 1980's. Having her speak like that just brings a negative connotation that most shows left behind decades a go. A poor choice. At least she is underutilized.
 

PaulloDEC

Member
I don't need reminders of zecora's existance.

Its always like

" oh yeah that thing that makes me kind of hate this show as a black person "

That's interesting, I'd never considered that Zecora might be a problem for some people.

Is it the fact that she's depicted as both a black stereotype (of some kind I guess, though I wasn't familiar with the rhyming as being an example of that) and as being separate from the other characters as a zebra? For example, would making her a pony have alleviated the issue somewhat? How about if there were other zebras in the show? Or is it just that she's depicted as the most (and with the possible exception of a couple of guest characters, only) definitively black character on the show?
 

Village

Member
The only character with identifiable black stereotypes is zebra saying "no black people young girls and boys watching this show you have to be zebras rarely seen stereotyped rhyming witchdoctors that live in the woods" so good job isolating an entire group of people. Whats worse not can zebras nor be like regular ponies zebra's the animal as they have depicted them in the show like actual zebras look exactly the damn same. So not only are you isolated stereotyped forced to live in jungly areas. You all look alike too. You cant be majestic princesses with unique designs you aren't ponies like everyone else,you are zebras. You are different and isolated

Its odd her episode was meant to teach children not to isolate their peers without any information on them. When that episode does just that
 

Cheerilee

Member
I liked Jazz and Roadblock from G1 of Transformers/GI Joe (still do).

And then I started reading "Groo the Wanderer". Mark Evanier (the writer) always opened the comic with a rhyming poem, like this example, and he did that more than once a month for ten years/120 issues. He complained about it a lot in the comic (note that he listed his occupation as "fed up with writing poems"), but I think deep down he really loved the challenge, otherwise why would he keep doing it?

So whenever Zecora starts rhyming, I think "the writers are trying to flex their muscles/show off".


Edit: That particular complaint from Mark Evanier was 4 years into a 10 year run, LOL.
 

Orcastar

Member
The only character with identifiable black stereotypes is zebra saying "no black people young girls and boys watching this show you have to be zebras rarely seen stereotyped rhyming witchdoctors that live in the woods" so good job isolating an entire group of people. Whats worse not can zebras nor be like regular ponies zebra's the animal as they have depicted them in the show like actual zebras look exactly the damn same. So not only are you isolated stereotyped forced to live in jungly areas. You all look alike too. You cant be majestic princesses with unique designs you aren't ponies like everyone else,you are zebras. You are different and isolated

Its odd her episode was meant to teach children not to isolate their peers without any information on them. When that episode does just that

Why are you assuming that zebras = black people? Seems like a bit of an overgeneralisation to me.

And how is Zecora "forced" to live in jungly areas? Seems to me that she prefers living there, much like Fluttershy prefers to live in a small cottage at the edge of the forest.

And zebras all look alike? I don't remember seeing any other zebras in the show besides Zecora.

Equestria is a fantasy world. Zebras are one sentient species in that world. The fact that they're inspired by African cultures doesn't make them racist.
 

Village

Member
Why are you assuming that zebras = black people? Seems like a bit of an overgeneralisation to me.
She is the only character with black sterotypes, while i would like to believe other characters can be black other than fan artists nothing official besides that character has suggested otherwise. Like you can fix it, its not that hard. Like you can fix in a throwaway scene but they have yet to fix it

And how is Zecora "forced" to live in jungly areas? Seems to me that she prefers living there, much like Fluttershy prefers to live in a small cottage at the edge of the forest.
The writers did that, No character that we have based on african sterotypes, you rhyme and live in the woods.

And zebras all look alike? I don't remember seeing any other zebras in the show besides Zecora.
Pretty sure there is an episode with a zebra dude in it, who also rhymed actually.

Equestria is a fantasy world. Zebras are one sentient species in that world. The fact that they're inspired by African cultures doesn't make them racist.

There is a difference between culture and stereotypes.
Stop, Stop.

If you wish to be inspired by African culture you can do better than witchdoctor.
 

Orcastar

Member
She is the only character with black sterotypes, while i would like to believe other characters can be black other than fan artists nothing official besides that character has suggested otherwise. Like you can fix it, its not that hard. Like you can fix in a throwaway scene but they have yet to fix it
Again, she's another species. She's a zebra, on Earth zebras come from Africa, therefore she's based on aspects of African cultures that would be recognizable to most viewers. This is not an issue of skin colour.

The writers did that, No character that we have based on african sterotypes, you rhyme and live in the woods.
Yes, the writers decided that since she's basically a witch doctor who brews potions out of herbs and palnts, she prefers living in the forest, where herbs and plants are plentiful. She is not "forced" to live there.

Pretty sure there is an episode with a zebra dude in it, who also rhymed actually.
I don't remember ever seeing another zebra in the show. Please provide the title of the episode and the scene in which this character appears.

There is a difference between culture and stereotypes.
Stop, Stop.

If you wish to be inspired by African culture you can do better than witchdoctor.
You could do different, sure, but a witch doctor works perfectly fine in a fantasy setting.
 

Village

Member
Again, she's another species. She's a zebra, on Earth zebras come from Africa, therefore she's based on aspects of African cultures that would be recognizable to most viewers. This is not an issue of skin colour.
I would argue that not only is being a witch doctor not the most recognizable aspects of African culture.

There other aspects of africaan culture they could have done. Africa has a wide breath of culture they could have taken from, and they chose outdated stereo type.

What is your argument here? They are lazy so its ok?

no fuck that , they can try harder.
Yes, the writers decided that since she's basically a witch doctor who brews potions out of herbs and palnts, she prefers living in the forest, where herbs and plants are plentiful. She is not "forced" to live there.
She is forced by the writters, yes.
I don't remember ever seeing another zebra in the show. Please provide the title of the episode and the scene in which this character appears.

While i was mistaken about the show there is record of celesti and luna meeting zebra's and them doing the exact same thing

You could do different, sure, but a witch doctor works perfectly fine in a fantasy setting.
No its not when there are plenty of other aspects of african culture aren't steeped in horrible stereotypes. There bunches of fantsy stuff doing it right now, do not excuse their laziness.
 

Orcastar

Member
I would argue that not only is being a witch doctor not the most recognizable aspects of African culture.

There other aspects of africaan culture they could have done. Africa has a wide breath of culture they could have taken from, and they chose outdated stereo type.

What is your argument here? They are lazy so its ok?

no fuck that , they can try harder.
My argument is that there's nothing inherently bad or offensive about the fact that Zecora is depicted as a witch doctor. In my opinion her character is always depicted in a positive manner.

She is forced by the writters, yes.
I don't understand what you're trying to say anymore. As I already argued above, Zecora living in the forest is perfectly in line with her character and personality. I don't understand how she is forced to live there or how this is supposedly a bad thing.

While i was mistaken about the show there is record of celesti and luna meeting zebra's and them doing the exact same thing
Your argument was that the zebras depicted in the show all look the same. Zecora is the only zebra that's ever been depicted in the show thus far. Your argument doesn't make any sense.

No its not when there are plenty of other aspects of african culture aren't steeped in horrible stereotypes. There bunches of fantsy stuff doing it right now, do not excuse their laziness.
I don't see why witch doctors are such a horrible stereotype.
 

Orcastar

Member
Oh, were done.

If you say so. If witch doctors were such a horrible stereotype, I would think that there would have been a bigger backlash over Zecora or other depictions, such as Diablo 3. They don't even use the term in the show. As I already said, she is depicted in a positive manner. As it stands, you're the first person I remember having a problem with Zecora.
 

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
Zecora would fit the Magic Negro stereotype. It's one of the reasons I would like to see more of her. I think they could break out of that with a more well rounded character. It's not a negative stereotype, but why not do more and break free of it altogether? I think someone on the show said ( might of been Faust) that they wanted Zecora to be like a second teacher to Twilight, and I think that would have been quite interesting.

As for the rhyming, I never knew that was a thing in old films and TV. I would give the show credit about it though, at least they are not using it to make her sound unintelligent. While I don't remember rhyming, I do remember that people of African decent were often written to sound less intelligent than the white folk.
 

Village

Member
If you say so. If witch doctors were such a horrible stereotype, I would think that there would have been a bigger backlash over Zecora or other depictions, such as Diablo 3. They don't even use the term in the show. As I already said, she is depicted in a positive manner. As it stands, you're the first person I remember having a problem with Zecora.

I wouldn't use backlash as a measure of things being messed up. Human history would provide evidence of people dealing or ignoring shit that doesn't apply to them to still like things as people. From things as ignorable as zecora is to, horrific acts against humans.

Also the me being the first person is anecdotal at best.

But again i said i was done i'm sorry.
 
I had previously skipped over Jean-Claude Van Damme Meets My Little Pony, thinking it would be one of those dumb "X Meets My Little Pony" videos with the bad jokes and such, but it turns out the actor had uploaded a bunch of videos of himself in front of a green screen, and this uses those to great effect. It's quite funny, and the editing is good too.

Also, I haven't actually played it yet, but a new Derpy platformer, Mystery of the Apple Thief came out, and it may be fun.
 
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