Emotional responses to certain ponies?

[applejackbunny]

I was just pondering the question of why certain ponies elicit certain emotional responses in me, and I couldn't really figure it out. So, I thought I'd see if others feel the same and if anyone can say what those feelings are, which ponies trigger them, and why that might be the case...

For me, the G3 Winter Series ponies affect me on a very deep emotional level, even though I never had them growing up - I first came across them in my late 20s! It's not nostalgia, then...so what is it?

My gen is G1 so you would think that only G1 ponies would affect me like that because of nostalgia, but nope. The G3 Winter Series have cast some kind of hypnotic spell on me and I can't for the life of me fathom why that is...

Does anyone else have a pony, or set of ponies (or anything pony-related) that just gets you right in the heart? If so, which ponies do it for you and what emotions do they trigger? Is it just nostalgia, or is it something else? If so, what?

I don't think I can quite put my finger on what I feel when I look at or think about those Winter ponies...I think it's just pure, unadulterated joy!

How about you?

Please tell me I'm not alone 

[Safflower]

You are definitely not alone! I collect mainly G1, though I didn't grow up with it. I think part of it is the softness of them. The sculpting and colors, especially on the early years, is just so cute and soft! I definitely know what you are talking about though, it's an odd feeling, having a bit of nostalgia for things that you shouldn't.

[BubbleTea]

My reaction to seeing cheerilee with hair like this gives me a deep feeling of dread

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[tailrustedtealeaf]

Munchy makes me feel a bit overwhelmed in a good way. I can't look at her on my shelf and not smile a little bit, I suppose it's the sentimentality attached to her because she was a gift.
Sweet Breeze makes me feel a bit..regretful? When I was very young I had discovered custom MLP online and just kind of went for it on her because I had not anticipated collecting in the future. Same with a Gem Blossom. They weren't my ponies, they were my younger sibling's. I still feel like I've betrayed some sort of childhood toy in some way.
Not a pony per se, but the Friends are Never Far Away short gives me emotions. I still have most beats of it memorized, so while I don't remember what is said exactly I remember how it's said. I think that one is actually nostalgia.

[Shaz]

I didn't have ponies when I was little, but I almost feel as if I did, if that makes sense . G1 especially makes me feel sort of happy and nostalgic, which is silly as I wasn't even alive during most of the G1 era.

I have a strong sentimental attachment to most of the ponies in my collection, for various reasons: some were gifts or have special memories attached to them. Some were my girlfriend's childhood ponies (she's a '90s kid like me but she had second-hand G1s) and she has told me about the games she used to play with them and shown me the stories she wrote about them, so I suppose I am nostalgic by association even though I wasn't there!

We have been through some tough times recently, and pony collecting has been a nice escape for both of us, and something fun to talk about in between more serious sorting-things-out type conversations, so I suppose that has factored into the happy, loving emotions I feel towards ponies too .

[Taffeta]

This will be predictable but ponies like glory etc who were in the comics but not stores. When I first saw and held them as real ponies it was a huge moment for collector me and I still feel like that about them now.

[The_Loner]

I also have something with the G3 winter ponies! I also grew up with G1 and was grown up by the time I got the winter ponies but there is just something about them! I suffered a lot from depression at the time they came out and winter was tough for me to get through but the winter ponies helped me appreciate winter in a whole new way!

I also have some very nostalgic feelings about the Remco ponies - especially the earth ponies. I never had one growing up but I remember a girl on the street had one. I don't know if that's why. I find it very odd that I feel that way about them but I embrace it

[StrawberrySundance]

I mainly grew up with G2/G3 ponies. G3 WinterSnow gets me right in the heart as she was my favourite pony growing up (I named her 'Queen of Ponyland' when I was little ). Unfortunately I let her go when I was growing up and seeing images of her on the web or listings on eBay kinda make me feel guilty for getting rid of her. I guess it's nostalgia for me as I took her everywhere I went and I developed an emotional attachment to her.
G3 Sweet Summertime (or 'Beachball' as me and my sister called her) gives me a similar feeling too.

[Elva]

The Dance and Prance ponies were my favourites when I started collecting MLP. I had the whole set, Tap Dancer being my favourite. Not long after that I got really sick, and don't remember much about those times. I sold my collection - even though I don't remember it at all. For some reason I associate the DnP's with those times, with the year before I got sick. It makes me feel weird, a little bit sad and nostalgic. I didn't even remember having a huge MLP collection until around late 2018 when I found two ponies that were not sold back then

[Leave a Whisper]

Maybe they make you nostalgic for happy holiday memories?

[Broken Irishwoman]

What a nice subject to discuss. I have it with several ponies and sets, but they are usually "logical" in one way or another (nostalgia, taste in colour/theme/atmosphere, etc.). However, there is one "strange" one that immediately comes to mind.

This Italian Cotton Candy! I mentioned many times that I really can't stand Italian ponies, especially collectors pose ones, because they always look manky and there are always so many of them at the fleamarket. There could have been Sweetberry Ponies or Merry-Go-Rounds in that spot instead! But nooooooo... 

However, when this pony came to me, I loved her instantly. I looked into her eyes, and she looked back at me. She seems so "real", so alive. We became friends right away.

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[applejackbunny]

Maybe they make you nostalgic for happy holiday memories?

Yes, I think they make me feel what Christmas would be like in a fantasy world, where everything is perfect. I mean like how Christmas is in the movies. They represent the absolute perfect ideal of Christmas. I think that's it

Post Merge: February 10, 2019, 10:53:25 AM

I also have something with the G3 winter ponies! I also grew up with G1 and was grown up by the time I got the winter ponies but there is just something about them! I suffered a lot from depression at the time they came out and winter was tough for me to get through but the winter ponies helped me appreciate winter in a whole new way!

Aww, that's lovely. How funny that we both like the G3 Winter series ponies, even though we didn't have them growing up!  I'm so glad they helped you through tough times 

Post Merge: February 10, 2019, 10:56:16 AM

What a nice subject to discuss. I have it with several ponies and sets, but they are usually "logical" in one way or another (nostalgia, taste in colour/theme/atmosphere, etc.). However, there is one "strange" one that immediately comes to mind.

This Italian Cotton Candy! I mentioned many times that I really can't stand Italian ponies, especially collectors pose ones, because they always look manky and there are always so many of them at the fleamarket. There could have been Sweetberry Ponies or Merry-Go-Rounds in that spot instead! But nooooooo... 

However, when this pony came to me, I loved her instantly. I looked into her eyes, and she looked back at me. She seems so "real", so alive. We became friends right away.

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Aww, what a lovely story! She's such a cutie! I love her lyre/harp pendant that you've given her - perfect! 

Post Merge: February 10, 2019, 10:58:23 AM

I mainly grew up with G2/G3 ponies. G3 WinterSnow gets me right in the heart as she was my favourite pony growing up (I named her 'Queen of Ponyland' when I was little ). Unfortunately I let her go when I was growing up and seeing images of her on the web or listings on eBay kinda make me feel guilty for getting rid of her. I guess it's nostalgia for me as I took her everywhere I went and I developed an emotional attachment to her.
G3 Sweet Summertime (or 'Beachball' as me and my sister called her) gives me a similar feeling too.

I love Winter Snow too - she's definitely one of the more beautiful G3s. A real stunner! And yes, I alway lump her in with the Winter Series ponies, even though she's part of a separate line. Love, love, love her! 

Post Merge: February 10, 2019, 11:01:13 AM

My reaction to seeing cheerilee with hair like this gives me a deep feeling of dread

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Hahaha! Any emotional reaction is valid - good or bad, lol! 

[amanda34]

Yes, i agree with that. For me the G1 ponies evoke the sense of happy christmas past, of total make believe and oh so happy times. I never had ponies as a child but i always would have liked them. I think maybe, too, the pony itself gives off that feeling of childhood joy, i know this may sound silly, but it is almost as though the child who played with that pony leaves the feeling behind within the pony forever, for others to tap into. Thats what i like to think anyway.

[applejackbunny]

Yes, i agree with that. For me the G1 ponies evoke the sense of happy christmas past, of total make believe and oh so happy times. I never had ponies as a child but i always would have liked them. I think maybe, too, the pony itself gives off that feeling of childhood joy, i know this may sound silly, but it is almost as though the child who played with that pony leaves the feeling behind within the pony forever, for others to tap into. Thats what i like to think anyway.

That's a lovely idea! 

[brightberry]

Yes, i agree with that. For me the G1 ponies evoke the sense of happy christmas past, of total make believe and oh so happy times. I never had ponies as a child but i always would have liked them. I think maybe, too, the pony itself gives off that feeling of childhood joy, i know this may sound silly, but it is almost as though the child who played with that pony leaves the feeling behind within the pony forever, for others to tap into. Thats what i like to think anyway.

That's a lovely idea! 

It is lovely! What a nice thought.   

My most sentimental ponies are my childhood Glory, Skydancer, Bubbles and mail order Ember.  Glory was my first pony and I remember looking into her eyes and thinking I would be looking into them when I was an adult... and maybe I was crossing some time continuum.  I still feel that way when I look at her.  I distinctly remember playing with the others and having so much fun with both my friends and ponies.