If you could only collect one gen, which would it be?

[Esbayne]

If you were in some weird hypothetical situation, and were forced to pick only one generation of pony to collect for the rest of your life, which would it be, and why? Doesn't necessarily have to be your favourite gen, and honestly I'd be super interested to hear responses from those who don't pick their absolute favourite gen! (Like maybe one gen is your favourite, but one PONY is your fave over all, and from another gen, so to keep her you'd pick them? etc.) This includes merch as well! All ponies, art, and merch are now magically poofed into being from the gen you picked.

I collect all of them (aside from .5 gens and EQG) and if I HAD to pick only one, it'd absolutely be G1. They feel the most nostalgic (G3 was my first childhood gen but was given all my aunt's G1s around the same time and grew up with them both! Even the movies and such), and have the most variety and my favourite designs. I love their soft sweetness vs. the other gens boldness and bright colors. (Don't get me wrong I love that too!)  All of my absolute favourites are from G1 too. I have a hard time picking my fave gen out of the first 3 but I'd say they are probably the top favourite.
G3 has some REALLY close runner ups too, ponies that make me go "Ahhh, but what about HER..." (Looking at you, Abracadabra and Pumpkin Tart...) when considering gens, but still still sticking with G1 here. (my Ice Crystal and Dutch Diary. @.@)

[Minty_Magic]

For me it would definitely be G3. Although I collect all gens G3 is the one I grew up with so it holds wayyy too many memories for them to vanish! Also as far as merch and art G3 has my favorite art style so that works out well too.

[Ponybookworm]

G1, as I'm older than the above poster & grew up wi them, plus I love HQG1C so I could keep collecting them like mad lol.

[tailrustedtealeaf]

G4 are cheap! G3 are cheap too, and had a lot more variety, but I'm still quite partial to G4 since they introduced me to pony collecting as a whole.
Also, as long as I can still customize, I'm fine.

[CloudyGlow]

This is tough. G3 is my first generation and my favorite generation is G4. Absolute favorite. But I enjoy G1 toys the most so I'd choose them. G1 had the most fun gimmicks and better quality in general. Besides the older the toy the cooler it is to get your hands on in my opinion.

[Harmonie]

I wouldn't be happy to give up G1, but G3 is my clear choice. I began collecting with G3's and just think that they're all delightful with so many beautiful color combinations and symbols.

[Elfpony]

Absolutely G1, no question. I got my first pony back in 1983, and while I collect all generations (not the .5s), G1 is easily my favourite.

Elf

[SpacePinto]

G1 hands down.

[kingluke]

That will be g1's for me. They are just so appealing and tere are so many of them.
I really love them, tho g4 would be a close second due to me watching and loving the show.

[MerryAnvil]

G1! <3

[Duenia]

G2 hands down

[Safflower]

Even now I only collect G1, so G1 it is for me

[otocolobus_manul]

I'd say G2, but they're so hard to find over here, so G3.

[Carrehz]

Oh man, that's tough. My kneejerk reaction was G1, but then there's my beloved Ivy... and my Trixies.. and... aaaa!! Couldn't I just pick one gen to collect and keep Ivy as an outlier?

I guess I'd go for G1.

[Taffeta]

G1.

That's a no brainer for me.

I genuinely adore several members of G2, G3 and G4. My avatar is the G4 pony my sister bought me as a mascot for my Japanese trip, too.

But G1 is different for me. I grew up with it and that makes all the difference. The history of the line, where and how things happened here, the variations, the stories, and all of those things have also been my collecting geekness for more than 20 years now. (Wow, that is actually scary, but I first wrote to Hasbro UK in 1995 and so it's literally 25 years of doing UK MLP history geeking this year.)

It's not really a toy collection to me in the sense that I just have the toys and look at them. So if you took away the G2, G3, G4 toys, it would be sad, but I'd get by. However, if you took away G1, it would take away all the investigating and mystery side of G1 in the UK, and I would not like that at all.

So yeah. It has to be G1.

It's not an exaggeration to say that my G1 pony backcards are almost as precious to me as most of the ponies are. >.>