Poll: Who's your favorite male G1 pony?

[orangepeachmango]

That's a mountain out of a molehill if I've ever seen one! We're talking about 30 year old ponies, not oppressed minorities. It was Nobody's intention to "draw lines in the sand", certainly not Harunas. It's just a poll here on the fun and friendly arena, and putting Haruna down and feeling crappy about herself for not including every single boy pony is messed up.  These are toys, and we are adults. No need to make a big deal about it, I have a really really hard time believing it's all a conspiracy.

[Taffeta]

Nobody is making out that it's a conspiracy. It evolved this way from the manner in which UK and European ponies first emerged into the pony community. I'm not blaming anyone for it being there (and I said clearly I wasn't attacking Haruna), but I just think that it's time that it wasn't there. The poll didn't create this, it illustrated something that is already here. As I think I said first of all, I was offended that they were not included because they were part of my childhood and it meant I couldn't participate in the poll. It's absolutely not ok for Haruna to be made to feel crappy, and if I did that then I apologise to her in all sincerity - but I also want to emphasise that their exclusion made me feel bad too, and that ought to matter as well.

The UK and European ponies are no longer the new and shiny exciting things they once were, which is fine. The problem is that what happened is people jumped from US mainstream to Nirvana and I would bet that more people here know more about Nirvana ponies than they do about what was sold in other countries in the mainstream lines.

My angle has always been that there ought not be divisions. The divisions have been put there by prior old websites such as DV, who divided ponies into US line and International, and that mentality has stuck. At the time DV was created those lines made sense, but they don't make sense any more. It's out of date to think that way, but it has proven a hard habit to break.

 I think it would be nicer and more friendly if we just looked at HK and China ponies as composite parts of  mainstream MLP. If nothing else, we'd get a better idea of the full MLP line and we'd know a lot more about variations and inconsistencies if we looked at things that way.

I know I am not the only person who feels this is an issue, because I have had so many conversations with other UK people about this exact thing, but I am the one who made it my project to compile the history of ponies in the UK, so I'm also the one who's most likely to speak up about this. Even though a lot of that UK and European information has been available for a very long time, people still ask things for which information is readily available. Even the wiki is missing a huge amount of information about ponies and accessories from Europe, the UK, etc, even though it has a very competent database on Nirvana stuff.

Nobody on the Arena actually thinks that UK and European ponies matter less than US or Canada release ponies, but there is an information void. Haruna didn't include the MBs because she didn't know they weren't Nirvana ponies. I think that's a problem - not because Haruna did something wrong, but because she didn't know. For some years now the UK and European ponies have been falling into this information black hole between the imagined mainstream of US release and the variant world of the Nirvana and I worry that they will eventually lose their place completely. You might be okay with that, but that was my childhood, so I'm just not.

There are a lot of people here from different places in the world. I think we ought to have outgrown by now the DV template from 96 that US ponies and "Int'l" ponies are somehow distinct. They're not. There's no melodrama, no conspiracy, nothing silly like that in what I said. As you said, we're adults. I'm not interesting in starting any drama or arguments. I simply want to know where those ponies belong, if they don't belong in mainstream and they don't belong in Nirvana. I think they belong here, and that's the point I'm trying to get across

[Carrehz]

That's a mountain out of a molehill if I've ever seen one! We're talking about 30 year old ponies, not oppressed minorities. It was Nobody's intention to "draw lines in the sand", certainly not Harunas. It's just a poll here on the fun and friendly arena, and putting Haruna down and feeling crappy about herself for not including every single boy pony is messed up.  These are toys, and we are adults. No need to make a big deal about it, I have a really really hard time believing it's all a conspiracy.

[Cswift]

Nobody is making out that it's a conspiracy. It evolved this way from the manner in which UK and European ponies first emerged into the pony community. I'm not blaming anyone for it being there (and I said clearly I wasn't attacking Haruna), but I just think that it's time that it wasn't there. The poll didn't create this, it illustrated something that is already here. As I think I said first of all, I was offended that they were not included because they were part of my childhood and it meant I couldn't participate in the poll. It's absolutely not ok for Haruna to be made to feel crappy, and if I did that then I apologise to her in all sincerity - but I also want to emphasise that their exclusion made me feel bad too, and that ought to matter as well.

I definitely don't think anyone wants you to feel like your opinions or feelings are irrelevant. It's mostly the dogged insistence on proving your point via sprawling walls of text even after Haruna has apologized multiple times and made it clear that she feels bad that is upsetting people at this point. We understand the issue you have and why your feelings are hurt, but at this point it'd probably be better to just make another thread -- possibly with its own poll. I say this as someone who has Ice Crystal as my favorite boy pony and would love to vote for him!

[Taffeta]

Nobody is making out that it's a conspiracy. It evolved this way from the manner in which UK and European ponies first emerged into the pony community. I'm not blaming anyone for it being there (and I said clearly I wasn't attacking Haruna), but I just think that it's time that it wasn't there. The poll didn't create this, it illustrated something that is already here. As I think I said first of all, I was offended that they were not included because they were part of my childhood and it meant I couldn't participate in the poll. It's absolutely not ok for Haruna to be made to feel crappy, and if I did that then I apologise to her in all sincerity - but I also want to emphasise that their exclusion made me feel bad too, and that ought to matter as well.

I definitely don't think anyone wants you to feel like your opinions or feelings are irrelevant. It's mostly the dogged insistence on proving your point via sprawling walls of text even after Haruna has apologized multiple times and made it clear that she feels bad that is upsetting people at this point. We understand the issue you have and why your feelings are hurt, but at this point it'd probably be better to just make another thread -- possibly with its own poll. I say this as someone who has Ice Crystal as my favorite boy pony and would love to vote for him!

I will hold up my hands to the wall of text and apologise for that.

I find it hard to express myself concisely because I want to be understood and I am not great at phrasing things I care about in words that make me easily understood at times.

Please put it down to autistic inarticulacy, because it certainly isn't meant in spite.

I am not going to continue it here, either. I just felt the need to explain my point of view because it was being interpreted as an attack on Haruna. I know she apologised but she didn't have anything to apologise for - largely because criticising Haruna was never my point. I just phrased it badly because the poll upset me.

Basically the walls of text happened because you guys interpreted me as criticising Haruna, when I was criticising the overall issue, and I needed to try and make that distinction because I wasn't attacking anyone.

I'm going to shut up now, and go brush some pony hair instead

[Jorgito93]

Mine's definitely 4-Speed, he's just so beautiful.

[SunbeamV]

holy moly y'all they're just plastic horses 

[starstrider]

Daddy Sweet Celebrations.  I love his TAS symbols and beautiful green hues. 

[Jennifer2004]

The mountain boys are my favorites, followed by the playtime baby brothers. But from this list my vote would go to Tex. He incorporates my three favorite colors (yellow, blue, & pink).

Kind Regards,
Jennifer

[starberry]

holy moly y'all they're just plastic horses 

this
So on topic, it's Salty and DSC for me. 

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

FWIW I think Taffeta has a point: The UK releases were just as mainstream as the US releases, and should have been included on the poll both on those grounds and on grounds of statistical precision (Relegating that many choices to "Other" skews the results and creates vague data).

My personal favorite is Steamer. I like trains, he has nice colors. And he's the only one I've purchased so far.

[Sky_Rocket_Sammie]

Four Speed because when I was a kid my BFFs dad was a trucker. So I'd imagine Four Speed would feel right at home. Tex is a close second because western theme but I never found him in the store.

[Safflower]

Hmm.. My favorite is Cheif. Something about his colors is just so nice.

Spoiler

I agree the mountain boys should have been included. They are just as mainstream as US, and they aren't nirvana. (Not trying to attack you here Haruna, it's okay!) Taffeta has a good point about the underlying issue. We shouldn't have to separate Uk vs. Us. That would be like doing two separate polls for the two So Soft sets. Doesn't make sense, does it? Those two sets are both part of the same group. Well, so are Us boy ponies and mountain boys. Wouldn't you question the fact that the two so soft sets were divided? Why not question the fact that mountain boys weren't included here? (Again, not trying to attack you Haruna! Don't feel bad! Nobody is mad at you!)

I'm disappointed that you all are seeing this as overreacting and unimportant and are putting Taffeta down for sharing her opinion. We should all be supporting of each other here, no matter if we disagree. It's just proper etiquette. This isn't about plastic horses, it's about the community. A member here is unhappy. She is part of the community and should feel that way. This is about "oppressed minorities" in a sense (not that dramatic though...) because UK ponies are being seen as unimportant. Taffeta has to keep proving her point and explaining why she feels how she feels because you guys are putting her down and aren't understanding her. It's a circle. She explains, you dismiss her, she explains further because you aren't getting it, you put her down... The arena is here for discussion. Telling a member to stop discussing is the opposite of that. She isn't whining about some stupid, unimportant little detail, she isn't putting Haruna down, and she isn't just making a scene or being dramatic. What every member has to say here is important, even if you disagree. Why can't you just listen to her?
tldr: Be nice! Everyone's opinion is important, so don't put Taffeta down for sharing hers.

[Livia]

Mmmmm...it has to be Chief for me too...he's the only male pony I have...for now 

[Charmer]

tornado and tex:)