Devolution of pony names

[Leave a Whisper]

I think it's incredibly forgiving to use Wysteria, Sunny Daze, and Amberlocks as the G3 examples.  When I think of G3 I think of "Adjective + Alliterative-Noun" names.

Cute Curtsey
Sweet Sparkle
Morning Monarch
Zippy Zinnia

etc.

Of course there were exceptions, some of which were good (Rarity, Shenanigans) and some of which were bad (Blushie, Romperooni, Orange Flower).  But overall I would say names like Wysteria were atypical.  To me G3 was the start of the Bad Names and they basically never ended after that.

I think a big cause of that is Hasbro started trying hard to use names that were easy to trademark.  Someone else might use the name Zinnia, but they are unlikely to use ZIPPY Zinnia.

Excellent point, G3 gave us Razz Matazz, Tinka Tinka Too, and Razzaroo, among other such gems. I’m sick of people acting like MLP’s problems started with G4.

Agree. Every gen has dumb or questionable names.

[Mrs. Prospector]

Reminds me, I hate all the "Belle" names! I know it started off in G2 with Sugar Belle, then we got a couple more in G3, namely Sweetie Belle. In G4 that was their go-to naming scheme for a while. Buttonbelle, Sugar Belle, Sweetie Belle, Honeybelle, *sighs* Mare E Belle... I think there was a So-Soft baby with a Belle name too, but I don't remember what it was.

The "Belle" actually started in G1, when we had Flowerbelle and the ever-redundant Pretty Belle. Does Blue Belle also count? Her name's based on the flower rather than attaching "Belle" to a random word, so I don't know. That's another MLP naming convention that bothers me. Names in G3/4 mostly that overuse Belle, Wishes, Dazzle, Sparkle, Dreams, Sweetie and others. It gets very confusing to differentiate them sometimes.

[Ragamuffin]

Reminds me, I hate all the "Belle" names! I know it started off in G2 with Sugar Belle, then we got a couple more in G3, namely Sweetie Belle. In G4 that was their go-to naming scheme for a while. Buttonbelle, Sugar Belle, Sweetie Belle, Honeybelle, *sighs* Mare E Belle... I think there was a So-Soft baby with a Belle name too, but I don't remember what it was.

The "Belle" actually started in G1, when we had Flowerbelle and the ever-redundant Pretty Belle. Does Blue Belle also count? Her name's based on the flower rather than attaching "Belle" to a random word, so I don't know. That's another MLP naming convention that bothers me. Names in G3/4 mostly that overuse Belle, Wishes, Dazzle, Sparkle, Dreams, Sweetie and others. It gets very confusing to differentiate them sometimes.

I forgot about Flowerbelle and Pretty Belle! I tend to forget a lot of the later-G1s and SHS. I wouldn't count Blue Belle since it is a flower.
Agree on the other names, though. Especially not a fan of "Sweetie" or "Sparkle". For some it depends on the usage, for example, I think Dewdrop Dazzle is cute, but I don't think it works for Adagio Dazzle. "Adagio Dazzle" is fun to say but I think something could've worked better for her character.

[orangepeachmango]

Eh, I think a lot of g1 names are boring. I’ll generally take weird, nonsensical or even cruel names over one-word names like Lofty or Fizzy, or straightforward conceptual names like Heart Throb or Cotton Candy.

Also, I never minded Spoiled Milk because it fits her character, what with how sour she is.

well wouldn't you be sour if your name was spoiled milk? LOL!

this reminds me all of the fiasco of elon musk and grimes naming their child... X Æ A-Xii? obviously they're just ponies not babies, but it really makes me think about the lore of naming ponies. you must really have it out for your kid to name them spoiled milk, or X Æ A-Xii.
pumpkin and pound cake a perfect examples. their last name is cake, right? mr. and ms. cake? so in reality, they named their children Pumpkin and Pound. little weird if you ask me.

[LadyMoondancer]

Oh geez, yeah, the Belle names.

Most of the Sweetheart Sister names are pretty bad IMO.  And then you have the Glittery Sweetheart Sisters who had pretty good names but . . . they gave them to the wrong ponies, lol.  In a set that had the names Twinkler, Starflash, and Bright Night, the pony with star symbols was named Sunblossom . . . not the gold pony with SUNS on her.

[Carrehz]

I still say something got switched when they were naming the Glittery SHS and they didn't notice it until it was too late to fix it. It's the only explanation that makes sense.

Speaking of... brony/fan names sometimes end up being better than what Hasbro/FiM writers give the ponies... "Vinyl Scratch" is WAY better of a name than "DJ-P0N-3". How are you even supposed to pronounce that? It's a stylized version of "DJ Pony" which is as unoriginal as you can get, but you can't just call her "DJ P-zero-N-three" or "DJ PON-three" like they did in that one promo...

well, DJ Pon3 (or however you spell it) is a fan name turned official too, but I definitely agree with you. I've always thought Hasbro picked the 'wrong' name to canonize there. I mean, DJ Pon3's okay as a stage name, I suppose, but it sounds stupid when you say it out loud no matter HOW you pronounce it ("DJ Pony" = boring, "DJ Pon-three" = sounds silly). It's a name that only really works when written down. Vinyl Scratch has a much nicer ring to it.

(speaking of alt. names that I prefer to the toy names, I still wish they'd kept "Pinprick" for the safety pin boy instead of "Royal Pin". I think Pinprick's from the trading cards? idk, I just like the sound of it much better than "Royal Pin".)

"Trixie Lulamoon". Trixie, because of "tricks"? I still don't like the human name, but okay. But what about "Lulamoon"? What's a lulamoon? What does that have to do with her magician persona?

eh, I'm forgiving with Trixie since it seems that there was a bit of a miscommunication while naming her? the first blind bag was just "Lulamoon", I think whoever named her must not have realized she was a show character that already HAD a name. So then she became Trixie Lulamoon as a compromise.

Although, yeah, what IS a Lulamoon? Never thought of that before.

[LadyMoondancer]

My guess is it's a portmanteau of moon and lullabye. Like Lolligiggle is a combo of lollipop and giggle.  I too think it was a name given to her by someone who wasn't familiar with the show.  I don't think toy designers normally watch the show associated with their toys. (I mean, they can but I would guess it's rare.)

[Gator]

Uh, is Elbow Grease's earring in her neck?

[Carrehz]

My guess is it's a portmanteau of moon and lullabye. Like Lolligiggle is a combo of lollipop and giggle.  I too think it was a name given to her by someone who wasn't familiar with the show.  I don't think toy designers normally watch the show associated with their toys. (I mean, they can but I would guess it's rare.)

oooh, that makes sense! (Isn't there a pony actually called Lullaby Moon too, or am I misremembering?)

Uh, is Elbow Grease's earring in her neck?

omg, I didn't even notice. Is it an earring or just a really weirdly drawn lock of hair?

[Squirtsquirt]

Wow! I didn't realize how bad the names had gotten!  Maybe it's best I slowed down with my collecting when I did.  I mean, I thought Cheese Sandwich was a bit questionable, but at least a little cute...

[SpacePinto]

Early G1 names were perfect, short and fitting, and pleasant to the ear too: Fizzy, Shady, Bowtie, Lofty, Posey etc.

[Mana Minori]

My guess is it's a portmanteau of moon and lullabye. Like Lolligiggle is a combo of lollipop and giggle.  I too think it was a name given to her by someone who wasn't familiar with the show.  I don't think toy designers normally watch the show associated with their toys. (I mean, they can but I would guess it's rare.)

oooh, that makes sense! (Isn't there a pony actually called Lullaby Moon too, or am I misremembering?)

Uh, is Elbow Grease's earring in her neck?

omg, I didn't even notice. Is it an earring or just a really weirdly drawn lock of hair?

There IS a Lullaby Moon Pony. G4 So Soft. Sadly she didn’t get any more toys made of her.

[Leave a Whisper]

Early G1 names were perfect, short and fitting, and pleasant to the ear too: Fizzy, Shady, Bowtie, Lofty, Posey etc.

Up Up and Away
Pillow Talk
Baby Princess Sparkle
Hula Hula
Tootie Tails
Toe Dancer
Sweet Suds
Baby Sleepy Pie

[LadyMoondancer]

Sticky and Sniffles is (are?) some of my least fave G1 names because they remind me of dirty tissues.  Which is a real shame because the toys are super cute.

[BubbleTea]

Early G1 names were perfect, short and fitting, and pleasant to the ear too: Fizzy, Shady, Bowtie, Lofty, Posey etc.

Up Up and Away
Pillow Talk
Baby Princess Sparkle
Hula Hula
Tootie Tails
Toe Dancer
Sweet Suds
Baby Sleepy Pie

Toe Dancer's name makes me uncomfortable in a way I can't explain . Don't forget to add Woosie and Squeezer to the list of awful G1 names.

Post Merge: June 07, 2020, 08:10:25 PM

(speaking of alt. names that I prefer to the toy names, I still wish they'd kept "Pinprick" for the safety pin boy instead of "Royal Pin". I think Pinprick's from the trading cards? idk, I just like the sound of it much better than "Royal Pin".)

ehhhh I can see why Hasbro wouldn't like having the word "prick" in a pony's name