Is it better to put MLP on hiatus or not?

[Mana Minori]

It has just been revealed that Pony Life will get a second season in Spring 2021, before g5 is set to take the stage in 2022. Now, I like pony as much as the next person (though PL isn’t really my slice of cake)... but Here’s the problem with a instant stream of pony- even if it is just filler like PL is...we don’t get a break from ponies, ever. A hiatus in the toyline and the series is DESPERATELY needed to make us MISS ponies and want them back in a new generation, rather than h omg a never ending stream of pony everything that only serves to overwhelm and turn people off from the brand.

What do each of you guys think? Should Hasbro allow the brand to disappear for a while and start letting us miss it, before bringing in a new gen, or just keep pumping out pony and possibly allowing for fatigue?

[LadyMoondancer]

I think it can be hard to get shelfspace back once a toy company chooses to forego it.

I do understand that feeling of being overwhelmed, but collectors need to remember it's okay to take a break.  I collect Transformers too, and that is a toyline that I don't think has been on hiatus since 1997.  The trick is to self-regulate.  It's okay to skip the latest show or not buy the latest toyline . . . it's okay to abandon the message boards or not update your toy blog . . . Take care of yourself and give yourself a "vacation from toys" if you need one.

[Taffeta]

I agree with LM, but personally I would be fine if pony ended.

I think it's very hard to reinvent the line completely and beat the success globally of G4.

But if they're rehashing G4 to create G5, to try to ride on its success, it means that MLP in general has probably taken a wrong turn it might not be able to get back from.

So I would personally be fine with a break or even no G5 at all. I think a rehashed G4 as G5 would basically kill MLP once and for all.

The idea of no gap between generations isn't new, though. MLP has also not been on hiatus since 1997, but it depends on the geography as to whether your location had that continuity. Here in Europe we had only around a 3 year gap between G1 and G2, and it was still possible to find some G1 stragglers in stores while early G2 were in stores (I found the bed and crib set in 2000, for example). And then G2 ended in Europe in 2003, when G3 began, and G3 merged into G3.5, and then into G4.

I understand Hasbro want to keep the shelf space warm, but the product has to be worthwhile to fill it.

I'm more about quality. I see PL as the end of G4, or like G3.5 as a stopgap and it's fine...but whatever comes next will have to be pretty special imo to be worthwhile.

[tailrustedtealeaf]

Cool, I had no clue about the second season! I was curious what the rest of 2021 had planned since the movie would be coming out in the latter half.
I would be sad if MLP was no longer fresh new on the shelves but it happens. The toyline is pretty expansive as-is, we're a lot luckier than some other toylines.
I'm loving the new stuff, the toyline felt stale for a few years so I don't mind an extra year of Pony Life. If you take a break, try not to worry about it too much. Secondhand shops and collectors with extras are always around if you feel bad about falling behind in collection.

[gabumon]

I really miss seeing what's new "in the Pony Aisle"... but it's good to take a break.  Hasbro should take a good year off.  Gives us time to catch up on vintage MLP.

[Leave a Whisper]

For the sake of brand fatigue? Yes. For Hasbro's bottom line? No.

[Mana Minori]

I think it can be hard to get shelfspace back once a toy company chooses to forego it.

I do understand that feeling of being overwhelmed, but collectors need to remember it's okay to take a break.  I collect Transformers too, and that is a toyline that I don't think has been on hiatus since 1997.  The trick is to self-regulate.  It's okay to skip the latest show or not buy the latest toyline . . . it's okay to abandon the message boards or not update your toy blog . . . Take care of yourself and give yourself a "vacation from toys" if you need one.

oh I agree that collectors need breaks (our wallets aren’t bottomless, after all!) and I also agree that toy competition is tough. Everyone is fighting for shelf space, and Hasbro doesn’t want to give theirs up- even if they aren’t taking up as much space (from what I’ve seen) as before. I haven’t been throwing money at Pony Life like I have with g4- partially because it doesn’t appeal to me (although I do have a Potion Nova and Applejack brushable) and partially because I have run out of storage space (I actually had to buy another storage bin to put more ponies in, yesterday). I just think we could’ve done without a .5 filler right on the heels of G4’s 10 year run (even as PL is going on, FiM is still ongoing in a “season 10” through the comics) so I guess i just feel like there’s too many things going on and overlapping and I want to miss the ponies so that absence can make there heart grow fonder. And appreciate them more when they return.

That’s definitely not to say that I don’t appreciate some of the things Pony has to offer, now, but (sorry, it’s hard to articulate my feelings into text, sometimes) that an endless stream of content with no breaks is either bound to burn out Hasbro or its consumers sooner, rather than later. I can see the fast pace of content in the Pokémon franchise and fans begging and wishing for content releases to slow down for the sake of quality over quantity, and I feel that Hasbro’s MLP brand is suffering from that as well.

[Sunset]

The thing about brand fatigue and My Little Pony is that it is primarily a toy aimed at the 3-8 age range.  Which means that there are always new kiddos coming in to the brand all the time.  So while brand fatigue could apply to the older fan base, there will always be room for ponies on the toys isle.  Even if it’s down to only 1 shelf now.

Really I think PL is as much a break as Hasbro is ever going to do at this point.  And since PL isn’t really my cup of tea, I’ve been treating it as something of a break.

[SpacePinto]

I wouldn't mind it at all.

[Nemesis]

Because the G4 continuity was very fleshed out and beloved by a broad audience, I’m inclined to wonder if it won’t always exist in the way that G1 Transformers or the original Thundercats series do. As in, some specialty merchandise and comics could continue to pop up even after the franchise has “moved on”, to appeal to the fans who loved the older generations. The IDW comics are already doing this with FiM, and I think that’s great for people who are going to miss the story and characters from G4.

Continuing with the Transformers comparison... TF actually juggles a number of continuities simultaneously, including comic book universes in which characters from different generations cross dimensional boundaries and exist together. While a sci-fi setting makes this a bit easier, G4 did toy with the ideas of parallel dimensions and co-existing continuities (EQG, PL, the aforementioned comics...).

Lately, Hasbro (and BF) has even been using classic MLP characters and likenesses in merchandising. I think the best thing that could happen to the franchise as a whole would be to follow TF’s example and move forward with new iterations, continuities, and styles... while not ignoring the brand’s history, and continuing to offer collectibles and licensed goods that cater to fans of past generations. This could also help alleviate Hasbro’s hesitance to leave G4 behind and move on.

I don’t think a proper break is going to happen—not in today’s fast-paced toy market. And from the standpoint of loving MLP and wanting it to continue to have a place in toy aisles... I think a break would be a poor move, business-wise. These “.5” generations seem to be Hasbro’s new way of buying themselves time to prepare the next proper gens.

[Leave a Whisper]

The thing about brand fatigue and My Little Pony is that it is primarily a toy aimed at the 3-8 age range.  Which means that there are always new kiddos coming in to the brand all the time.  So while brand fatigue could apply to the older fan base, there will always be room for ponies on the toys isle.  Even if it’s down to only 1 shelf now.

Really I think PL is as much a break as Hasbro is ever going to do at this point.  And since PL isn’t really my cup of tea, I’ve been treating it as something of a break.

Not necessarily. Too much exposure and fans old and young get tired of it.

The influx of comic movies these past five years comes to mind when every three movies is a comic movie, and two more are announced in the making whether they're made or not.

TTG has had schedules that took up literal days at a time with very little inbetween. Absolutely insane.

The mane suxx is ignored on the shelves and little kids pass by without sparing it a second glance. Going for toylines with more variety.

So yes, kids do get burned out on businesses' hyper- obsessive practices.

[Sunset]

The thing about brand fatigue and My Little Pony is that it is primarily a toy aimed at the 3-8 age range.  Which means that there are always new kiddos coming in to the brand all the time.  So while brand fatigue could apply to the older fan base, there will always be room for ponies on the toys isle.  Even if it’s down to only 1 shelf now.

Really I think PL is as much a break as Hasbro is ever going to do at this point.  And since PL isn’t really my cup of tea, I’ve been treating it as something of a break.

Not necessarily. Too much exposure and fans old and young get tired of it.

The influx of comic movies these past five years comes to mind when every three movies is a comic movie, and two more are announced in the making whether they're made or not.

TTG has had schedules that took up literal days at a time with very little inbetween. Absolutely insane.

The mane suxx is ignored on the shelves and little kids pass by without sparing it a second glance. Going for toylines with more variety.

So yes, kids do get tired of businesses hyper obsessiveness.

I didn’t mean that there isn’t going to be an ebb and flow of popularity in the brand (thus the 1 shelf comment) or that Hasbro shouldn’t mix up the characters they offer.  But there is always going to be a certain percentage of children who just want a colorful pony.  And since MLP was the first of its kind and is a household name, there will always be adults who will grab MLP as a gift just because of brand recognition.

[Leave a Whisper]

I am grateful that Hasbro is finally starting to put out some new things. Even if its a line for a con/fair that had to be cancelled physically. Crappy eye placement or not, the Crossover Collection is a breath of fresh air, in a closed room that stinks of dust and stale fart.

[Mewtwofan1]

I don’t think a full hiatus of nothing is good, since shelf space is hard to get back once it is gone. But just enough old stuff to hold the shelves, and maybe one or two new things is good. A slowdown to help people not get overwhelmed and caught up. Some breathing room to exhale before the next big tidal wave.

[Mrs. Prospector]

I wouldn't mind if they took a break for a year or two, just to refresh the brand to make a bigger and better comeback. Anything to keep them from milking mane six and releasing poor excuses for equines.