G3 1st 50

[pandorarose3]

Ok does anyone remember this?  It was for 2003, 2004 and 2005 there was a set of pony's evidently sold by a seller on eBay by Hasbro where a set of ponies were sold MIB with a number on the box and a certificate of authenticity.  Does anyone remember these or have these?  Especially the latter two years, if you can supply pictures that would be a great help.  MLP Merch just launched G1-G3.5 and they have listed on there the eBay sold ponys but as the host of MLP talk, I just want to make sure these were actually released or if they are just a pony myth.  Thanks, everyone.

[tailrustedtealeaf]

I've seen mention of them elsewhere, but never seen any listings, nor do they seem to be too sought after (at least on here). I'd love to see how much these sold for upon release, actually.

[pandorarose3]

That is the thing I have seen them mentioned on websites but with no photographs to back them up really.  Hence why I am asking those whom actually have these particular ponys to step up and help us out in saying this was a real thing.

[kissthethunder]

That is the thing I have seen them mentioned on websites but with no photographs to back them up really.  Hence why I am asking those whom actually have these particular ponys to step up and help us out in saying this was a real thing.

It was definitely a real thing, I have vivid memories of debating whether or not to buy one while arena members were purchasing theirs. A lot of collectors have put their G3's away and collectors from those days, while some are still around, have pittered off somewhat.

But they exist but people tend to hold onto them, which is fine because I don't think they're relatively sought after.

[Sweet Daes]

They do exist. I own a few of them, but my knowledge is limited, mostly by choice because it's an "eh" from me.

They have a sparkle sticker on the front that says that they are "the first 50" of the run, but the ones that I have did not come with anything in the way of a CoA, and are not numbered individually- the sticker only confirms that it came from that first batch. I'd take pictures but they are packed away. Here is an example:

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I own Heather Winds, Gardenia Glow and Sweet Breeze (the last one being Magic Marigold of that half, then the second half release later the same year are Alphabittle, Bunches-O-Fun, Fair Weather and Twilight Twinkle) that were all from 2005, but I only have them by chance. I didn't care what the stickers meant when I bought them, and I have no intention on seeking them out.

So, the following is strictly my own observaion:
The flagship line that year was Butterfly Island. The follow-up lines included the Birthstone Toys R Us exclusives, Valentines, Baby Ponies, "Dress Up Daywear", "Pony and Me", "Pony on the Go", "Super-Long Hair", the Spring and Winter lines; all of which have very distinctly designed art on their packaging. The previously specified eight of 2005 are not labeled with a line and only displayed the name of the pony, thus it seems most sources have dubbed these "Perfectly Pony". Apparently this is according to Hasbro's promotional materials due to the lack of any solid collection affiliation on the packaging for that year. The accessory packs would fall into that category due to the same basic art and no distinct gimmicks with the ponies themselves.

I mention the above because it seems that the "First 50" was NOT consistent. Other than the ones I know of from 2003 and the ones listed from 2005, I don't have a clue which ones are "First 50" since it seems that this was not something Hasbro cared to do for every pony package released. Apparently some affiliated with the Butterfly Island packaging were stickered with "First 50", but nothing in the way of the Winter, Spring, none of the store exclusives, none of the accessory packs, etc etc. However, we have evidence to show that Denim Blue from the flagship line Friendship Ball was stickered with "the first 50", so it was not exclusive to the ponies have no line affiliation:
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When they started this gimmick in 2003 the point was to promote charity auctions for playground equipment, so 50 of each of the first released ponies of G3 were sold over eBay.  According to Strawberry Reef, the 2003 collection included Kimono, Wysteria, Sweetberry, Rainbow Dash, Sunny Daze, and Pinkie Pie, but I can't find what poses would have been used.

These 300 pieces did not have the sparkle stickers like the one above of the ones that I have, but had a CoA and a numbered (foil?) sticker stuck on the bottom or back:
http://www.strawberryreef.com/images/Ponies/P/PinkiePieFirst50cert.jpg
http://www.strawberryreef.com/images/Ponies/P/PinkiePieFirst50.jpg
As far as I know, 2003 was the only time that they had the CoA. We can presume that the rest of the "First 50" had this slapped on the front:
http://www.strawberryreef.com/images/First50b.jpg

I have no idea how those "First 50" after 2003 came into circulation, either. I can't find any solid confirmation, but Strawberry Reef states that it was all the same eBay seller "WorldinAdvance", which is not an active handle on eBay currently so I am not sure how true that info is.

I hope this was helpful.

[pandorarose3]

So you bought yours in the store.  So there really is no way to verify if these were the '1st 50' of the production run.  Ok, that is what I wanted to know.  Because if they had a bunch with this sticker on them then there was really a bigger run made. 

The ones from 2003 I have found an eBay auction showing the numbered sticker and the COA.  I just wanted to know if later ones had the same thing.

[Sweet Daes]

So you bought yours in the store.  So there really is no way to verify if these were the '1st 50' of the production run.  Ok, that is what I wanted to know.  Because if they had a bunch with this sticker on them then there was really a bigger run made. 

The ones from 2003 I have found an eBay auction showing the numbered sticker and the COA.  I just wanted to know if later ones had the same thing.

No, I got mine off of eBay earlier this year.

They ARE the first 50 of each pony, but I can't tell you which ones of the entire collection had these silly stickers.

*** Nor are they numbered 1-50 individually. 2003 are the only ones that are like that.

[starbritesprinkles]

I own a First 50 Peachy Pie, but I did not win her from the original auctions. I bought her second-hand at the 2012 MLP Fair. She did not come with any type of authentication, but I do remember the Hasbro eBay auctions. (Most of them went well over what I was willing to pay at the time.) I have a friend not in the MLP community who owns a First 50 Kimono, and I know that those original releases did come with certificates. First 50 ponies were exclusively singles, kind of like the "signature" lines of the particular theme year in which they were auctioned.
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[Esbayne]

I also have a first 50 pony! Coconut Grove.
I can post pictures of her later. She's definitely very cool, but not the most interesting thing ever, lol!

[pandorarose3]

Ok just to get this straight.  The second and third round of MLP's that ran as part of the 1st 50 campaign were sold via the auctions, but then some with this sticker ended up in stores?  I just want to make sure of that.  As this is the first time I am finding out that this truley did come out.  I just want to get all of the info about this because if I am reading correctly, it seems that Hasbro did auction some off but then slapped this sticker onto others and sold them in stores too.

[LadyMoondancer]

They were a real thing!    The very first ones were individually numbered (1, 2, 3, etc).  The later ones just had a "1st 50" sticker, not individually numbered.

The second and third round of MLP's that ran as part of the 1st 50 campaign were sold via the auctions, but then some with this sticker ended up in stores?  I just want to make sure of that.

I haven't heard of that. I don't remember them being found in regular stores, just through the auctions.

Could this be a confusion with Licensing Show Pinkie Pie, who had a special cutie mark?  She was only supposed to be a licensing show exclusive but then some made it into stores.

Edit:  Yes, WorldInAdvance sold them on eBay.  Including the ones that weren't individually numbered, but just had the 'generic' First 50" sticker.

[Sweet Daes]

Ok just to get this straight.  The second and third round of MLP's that ran as part of the 1st 50 campaign were sold via the auctions, but then some with this sticker ended up in stores?  I just want to make sure of that.  As this is the first time I am finding out that this truley did come out.  I just want to get all of the info about this because if I am reading correctly, it seems that Hasbro did auction some off but then slapped this sticker onto others and sold them in stores too.

I don't know what could be supplying that info  ;

Unless there was some sort of an egregious shipping error I've never heard of anyone actually buying one of the first 50 with the stickers on them from a store at first release. Perhaps someone bought it and sold it second-hand through a different store, but it was never done that way initially.

When I said "store exclusives" I specifically meant that those were never auctioned as one of the 1st 50, and I do not know of a definitive list of the ponies in what poses were auctioned as such.

[starbritesprinkles]

They were a real thing!    The very first ones were individually numbered (1, 2, 3, etc).  The later ones just had a "1st 50" sticker, not individually numbered.

The second and third round of MLP's that ran as part of the 1st 50 campaign were sold via the auctions, but then some with this sticker ended up in stores?  I just want to make sure of that.

I haven't heard of that. I don't remember them being found in regular stores, just through the auctions.

Could this be a confusion with Licensing Show Pinkie Pie, who had a special cutie mark?  She was only supposed to be a licensing show exclusive but then some made it into stores.

Edit:  Yes, WorldInAdvance sold them on eBay.  Including the ones that weren't individually numbered, but just had the 'generic' First 50" sticker.

Agreed. I don't recall any 1st 50 making it to retail shelves. They were sold exclusively through the eBay auctions. I do remember a few instances of LSPP being found retail, though.

[Taffeta]

I only remember it being a real "thing" with the first 2003 release, because it was the start of G3 and stuff. I do remember those auctions, I also remember them with certificates of authenticity and they were obviously the original releases of those ponies pose-wise. I don't remember any big thing over subsequent sets or releases, though. I think people in general stopped caring very much once the ponies were out. It might have been because I remember that a lot of G3 showed up first in places not in the US. New Zealand had a bunch of them before the US did, and it's perfectly possible that some of these ponies (not 1st 50) were generally available in stores to people in other countries before the first 50 wave for later years. But that's speculation based on my assumption that this was one of the many things Hasbro US did for Hasbro US customers. G3 was a bit like that as a generation, and most people not in the US were probably more interested in the exclusive releases and less interested in having the first 50 of a pony that was going to come to their country anyway...

I never saw one in person, I never cared enough to look for one, and I wouldn't now.

[LadyMoondancer]

it's perfectly possible that some of these ponies (not 1st 50) were generally available in stores to people in other countries before the first 50 wave for later years.

I actually found original Sunny Daze, Rainbow Dash, etc, in a store before the 1st 50 came out.    Because it was a surplus store that didn't follow (or know, probably) the official street dates.

Of course the ponies weren't labeled "1st 50" or anything, they were just 'regular' ponies that happened to hit the shelves too early.  I am sure WorldInAdvance put on the "1st 50" label themselves.

Silverfall's Ponytopia website would be a good resource for checking which ponies got a 1st 50 release, as she was very diligent about documenting the early years of G3.