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You know what I understand even less than this My Little Pony resurgence? The male fans (aka “bronies”) who really get into it. The artwork is cute and stylized, sure… I watched half an episode and although it had a decent message for girls, I just don’t get why adults (male adults at that) are so into it. Nevermind my little pet peeve over uber-girly shows and toys, enforcing that stereotype for girls…. I know there’s plenty of girly girls out there who would love this…. I just don’t get it personally.
but I do “get” this…. go ‘head Miss Riley!
httpv://youtu.be/-CU040Hqbas
Discussion (36) ¬
The thing about having an axe to grind is that you often find yourself looking for opportunities to use it instead of taking each new situation somewhat objectively. Maybe if you watched more than “half an episode” you’d have a more balanced perspective on the show instead of condemning it for what you assume it is.
keep in mind Zorphie’s point of view is an exaggerated distortion of my own. It’s a cute show, the personalities are varied which is good… my biggest reaction to it still is why there’s a ton of dudes who go crazy over it. I’m just exaggerating Z’s reaction for comedic value… and his opinion is based only on the first glance.
feel free to disagree, it just didn’t hold my attention for longer than half an episode.
I was really addressing your commentary below the comic rather than the comic itself. I’m happy to take the latter for what it is, and there are plenty of fans of the show who poke fun at it as well. Satire and parody I get, but the mockery of something one doesn’t understand is one of my own pet peeves.
MLP isn’t for everyone, and if it doesn’t hold your interest there’s no reason you should watch it. Just don’t be surprised not to know why other people would watch it, in that case.
well, I’m sorry if I offended you, I didn’t think I was outwardly mocking the show and giving it a terrible review… just saying it wasn’t for me. Obviously, the show has some good things about it, for it to have such devout fans. I don’t like a lot of shows/movies/music that a lot of the population does.. or even my group of friends or comic buddies. Doesn’t mean they’re a worthless waste of time. I did my research and read reviews (as well as watched half an episode) of MLP to see what the fuss was about.. and to properly write this storyline- knowing why people enjoy the show is important. I understand why young girls would enjoy it, or even grown women who used to love the old show or enjoy the adorable animation (PowerPuff Girls) or the quirky humor. It’s just peculiar/surprising to me why men (and I’m not talking feminine gay men) find it so intriguing. I see nothing wrong with admitting I don’t understand why a certain group enjoy something that is “typically” not geared towards them. If you want to shed some light on why this group enjoys the show, feel free.
No, I’m not offended, just really surprised that someone who grew up dealing with constant persecution for “enjoying things not typically geared for them” would have such trouble empathizing with other people who are doing exactly that.
Fair enough. I think I empathize with “bronies” more than I understand it, in the “comprehension” sense of the word. If a slew of women suddenly liked, say, a new Michael-Bay-Esque rendition of GI Joe.. enough so to give the cult following a nickname, I would be intrigued as well.
Maybe I figured “hey, if a bunch of men love MLP… and I typically like stuff more geared towards men… I will like it too!”.. and that wasn’t the case. Which is also what I don’t .. erm… comprehend.
Ah, but it’s not geared toward guys, which is why you’re kind of – for lack of a better idiom – in no man’s land. It was and is designed for girls, but it’s not exclusive to girls in its content or message. (And I have to disagree slightly with Chalupatime in saying the fanbase makes the show so popular; it’s a symbiotic relationship, with the show engendering such passion in the people who enjoy it, who then feel compelled to share it and promote it to others, with the effect cycling and building on itself. You don’t see a fanbase as solid as this for shows that are mediocre at best.)
For myself personally, the fans of the show add to the fun of it, but I’d enjoy it just as much without them. The characters are depicted as down-to-earth and realistic, not exaggerated caricatures as you find in most TV. They’re more believable people than anyone on Jersey Shore, that’s for certain. Each one has flaws as well as virtues, motivation and purpose as well as insecurities and fears. The lessons they learn each show are not heavy-handed for the most part (do this or else bad things, etc.) but rather more a journey the characters take that get them to that moment of realization. In short, it’s not mindless empty time nor is it a morality play. It’s genuinely worthwhile entertainment.
I’d be curious to know what part of what episode you saw, as not every episode is created equal.
I’ll tell ya what, if I had to choose between the Jersey Shore and MLP— I’d go for MLP hands-down ;0)
that said, I digress before my commenting system explodes and pony avatars fly everywhere.
That was actually a good one, though not the episode I’d recommend upon introducing the show to someone. If you are truly interested in giving it a chance, I can recommend a few episodes with which to start, but no obligation of course. I’m not going to hold it against you or anything, especially since I don’t expect you have the time to really get into it anyway. 🙂
as you know, time is at a minimum for me. If I have to reserve a smidgen of time dedicated to TV, I have Big Bang Theory and American Horror Story and that’s about my limit. But we’ll see — seeing the ponies dressed up like the cast of Big Lebowski would be totally bizarre blend of worlds…
System error made a double post, so I deleted it as best I could.
What show is this?
I’ll re-read the comment section.
Is it any good?
http://www.hasbro.com/mylittlepony/en_US/media/browse.cfm?type=videos
(unless you were joking…)
btw.. “undead undrelict” is a nice touch and welcome back! Brains are in the back next to the cooler.
I noticed Zorphbert isn’t necessarily running from the room, I think he might find himself a bit drawn into it as well. 🙂
I remember when My Little Pony was big when I was a kid, then I heard about these new ones and decided to check them out. Yeah, the art is really good and I’m sure the story lines are good as well but I definitely don’t understand the draw to adult men. I could see where some boys might like it just because it does have some elements that might grab their attention, but grown men…come on guys, go find your man card and turn the dial, surely Thundercats is on some where if you just need a dose of talking animal animation.
my sentiments exactly… except that if i can indulge in Thundercats as girl, I shouldn’t criticize guys who want to watch MLP or another girl-type show. I don’t have to understand why, I just shouldn’t be a hypocrite is all. I understand you’re just joking Todd, I just don’t want to offend the Bronies out there reading. Thundercats may be as unamusing to them as MLP is to me.
Yes, my response is definitely tongue-in-cheek. I’m a huge fan of animation and I understand that mainstream animation is not intended to serve only one gender or another, and that’s what is so cool about today’s shows. So whether you consider yourself a “Bronie” or a “Trekkie”, or a “Starwarsian”, we all have one thing in common….Zorphbert things we’re nuts. 🙂
well said, my friend. We humans may see each other as independently different, but to Zorphie we all look the same: W-E-I-R-D.
Just a pony fan who wandered in here off of Google. Obviously there’s nothing wrong with not feeling a particular show (I’m not interested in watching most of the critically acclaimed TV out there, personally). I always say that for me the show hits a lot of the same points as Pixar movies and it’s a sweet, uplifting break from watching adult cartoons like Archer or dark, cynical dramas. I do want to question your opinion that the show is uber-girly or enforces stereotypes. Compared to other media for little girls there’s a remarkable diversity in the main cast and lots of rough and tumble behavior. Even the “fashion” episodes have been about topics like building a business or compromising one’s artistic vision.
Hiya Nissl! Thanks for dropping in, leaving an opinion on MLP. Nice to meet ya! I like your comment about the break from adult dark cartoons, I can understand that much (and I DO love Pixar, doesn’t everyone?). I loved Angry Beavers and Animaniacs for the same reason! I want to clarify that my comment about uber-girl shows and steroetypes didn’t necessarily apply to MLP in particular– that’s why I said “nevermind my pet peeve”. My bigger issue is with shows/brands like The Bratz or Barbie or all the Disney Princess fluff… and on the surface, I’ll admit MLP appeared to be similar to me. In watching parts of the show, I saw the varied characters (as mentioned in an comment below) and some of them being tougher/tomboyish, which was, like you said, a change. Reviews I read in favor of the show said similar things. Do I think it’s still more of a “feminine” show? Yes, which is probably why I’m not into it. So, in the end all I intended was to say “It’s not a terrible show but it’s not my thing… and I don’t quite understand why grown men who don’t typically like “girly” shows/brands/etc. enjoy it… and are so passionate about it.”
I didn’t intend to offend anyone. Keep watching this storyline to see the bigger message, I think you’ll enjoy it.
Cool comic, I’ll spread it around.
I don’t think the show is feminine or girly at all, in fact it’s quite the opposite. The last few episodes in particular I keep thinking “is this really a show for little girls?”.
As for why it’s so popular with male fans?
Most Bronies will give you the “it’s a great show, great characterizations yada-yada-yada” explanation which I don’t disagree with, it is a great show, but I think the incredible popularity is mostly due to the fan community.
For example: If you just watch a episode by yourself it’s just a cartoon. Pretty well written and done but nothing special about it (from a new viewers POV). But when you start reading the youtube comments and really getting into the inside jokes and memes it almost becomes a entirely different show. I’m sure this happens all the time with other tv shows (You watch, you interpret it a certain way then you go online and after hearing everyone’s thoughts you see the episode in a whole different light) but with this show since it’s a cartoon for little kids there is a ton more room for creative interpretation by the adult fans.
Then there’s the other aspects of the fandom like the incredible creative fan labor (fanart, parody videos, trailer mashups, video games).
In a nutshell the show by itself is good but the social media aspect of the fandom takes it to another level.
that’s a very interesting point, Chalupatime. While I have seen the fanart (it’s EVERYWHERE!), I haven’t dabbled in the “full experience” of watching MLP- with social media and community. I just watched whatever shows I could find for free online, to do some basic research for this story line. Like everything else, the more you watch and embrace it, the more of the details you see. I felt that way about Whose Line is it Anyway– such a hit-or-miss show that one episode can’t do it justice… just depends how much you enjoy improv comedy, to give it a longer chance…. after you know the inside jokes and such… it becomes that much MORE hilarious.
Funny how this storyline is starting off… and how I see it ending with a completely different message. (ie: the idea behind this isn’t to blast MLP in the end.) But keep up to see what I have in store for the next couple weeks… :0)
haha this thread is epic
i awoke the monster apparently lol
You have no idea. Bronies can reckon with /b/tards on (website deliberately omitted). I pray you stay on their good side, although by and large it’s a well-meaning group. 🙂
LOL! This is the Balrog of topics, for my site. RUN!
What show is everyone talking about? Is it good?
Hey, I rode a motorcycle in the Army, and I played with dolls as a kid. No conflict here.
I say, if it is cool and you like it, so be it.
precisely my good friend!
I was honestly never into the original series. I saw a bit of G1 and G2 here and there but just wasn’t interested. I was more into Care Bears and TMNT. *lol* G3 I’ve only seen a review on and ugh…it’s horrid.
However My Little Pony Friendship is Magic is just pure AWESOME. There are TONS of inside jokes and adult things that kids just wouldn’t understand. There was a recent ep that had an homage to I Love Lucy, another ep had the cast of The Big Labowski as ponies! The most recent ep was an homage to The Simpson’s Monorail ep (but it was about Cider *lol*)..
There’s even been an ep that had a Batman-esque type character and at one point the background music was the Batman TAS theme!
There’s 2 fave background characters. They just started as random background ponies but the fans picked em up. One is called Derpy. For the longest time she was just there in a couple shots but in a recent ep Derpy was officially named by one of the characters and she spoke. Well the ep was about Applejack (who’s grandmother basically FOUNDED Ponyville some 200 years back) but once Derpy talked…. Applejack who?…the internet EXPLODED…Bronies (male fans) and Pegasisters (female fans) basically geeked out.
Another background character has been dubbed Doctor Whooves. He’s got an hourglass cutie mark (the images on their butts are called Cutie marks. When a pony is of age and know what they want to do in life they get a cutie mark based on their talent.) and looks like David Tennant (the 10th Doctor).
man there’s a lot of geek references in there… I had never heard of any of these and the episode I watched contained nothing of the sort. I was wondering what the fan GIRLS were called so thanks for mentioning that. Interesting… I wonder if the main fanbase is more young girls or adults!
Thanks for the full review, Dierna… and kudos on the avatar!
One of the most hilarious moments for me was when a trio of familiar-looking ponies made a cameo at the bowling alley. Ponies, dude!
“Watch party at my house” .. Success is when everyone has a different opinion than yours, because yours is wrong or your joke is not funny… I watched Robocop the other day. I’m changing the tide of the comments. Remember the scene where the guy falls into the toxic waste and he’s all… “help me” then he gets run over by the car..*splat* .. wasn’t he on E.R.? And yea, I’m watching for the research, yea, research .
I’m… uh…. confused as to what is going on here…. you off your meds again Johannsone? LOL!
I was a My Little Pony fan…and a GI Joe Fan…and a Transformers fan… and a Strawberry Shortcake/Jem/Punky Brewster/Silver Spoons/[insert 80s show that lets on I watched way too much tv here]… And yes, I occasionally like the explosion-heavy Michael Bay flicks. I didn’t know “Bronies” existed, and even though I have young ones/a young daughter, I didn’t even know they had a new generation My Little Pony show. But I like strips and comments like these, because [apparently] they open a dialogue and I always find out something new and love getting different perspectives.
’tis true, I am finding out more than I could ever fully digest about MLP… who knew?! Amazing to me what gets attention in the webcomics world and what doesn’t. I figured by the time this comic went live, the MLP fad would have passed and I’d look like a fool who was trying to jump on it’s defunct bangwagon for page views, lol. Which is always my fear when I tackle a pop-culture topic or current news.
I think, the broader your interests as a kid… dipping into “boys” stuff and “girls” stuff.. the more rounded you are as an adult. For me, “rounded” just means my rear end, LOL