One thing each generation does best?

[Taffeta]

So there are probably lots of things we all love about our respective favourite generations, but looking at it objectively, suggest one (just one) thing that you think each generation does better than the other generations.


It can be toy or animation related, advertising, franchises, merchandising, any of the above.

For me I'm going to put forth the following:

G1
The variety and creativity of the toyline. There are so many different species of pony in this line. None of it makkes sense when you try to piece together what Hasbro were doing globally, but for sheer variety of product, G1 wins hands down for me.

G2
The balance of "main" vs "additional" characters. I have thought for a while that G2 has a nice balance with how much repetition it uses in releases. We see various diferent versions of SunSparkle, Ivy, Lightheart etc, although some of them look quite different - but there are also a lot of new and unique characters in each release.

G3.
Seasonal ponies. While I don't like that most of these were US Target exclusives, the concept was awesome and should have existed in the other generations more widely than it did.

G4.
Marketing. Hands down. The number of franchises and promotions and collaborations G4 has has spread the brand very far and wide. I know some people will probably say FIM but for me the biggest strength of G4 is its ability to mutate into many different things (such as the kotobukiya dolls, for example) to reach a wider audience.

I am not including 3.5 or PL because I don't consider them separate generations, but you can if you like.

*Just keep it positive*

[tailrustedtealeaf]

I like this idea!
G1
Definitely the variety for this one. Over 500 characters to collect and a lot of different gimmicks/sets to pick from.

G2
I like the more elegant sculpts and feathered hooves on these guys. They feel different from the rest of the ponies because they're so thin I think, I would like to see some other ponies designed in this way.

G3
The tinsel and designs! I absolutely love sparkly hair, and I think the varied hair colors and more intricate symbols are really sweet.

G4
The character-driven TV show, like Tales but with more variety and more distinct characters.

[Leave a Whisper]

G1 and G3-The sheer, overwhelming variety of everything. Colors, poses, species, and sets. Although G1 was clearer in what belonged where.

G2-Playsets/Accessories-I don't have any, but they look adorable, well designed and nicely detailed.

[SunPony]

Ooo this is a cool topic, it will be fun to see what everyone thinks.  Not sure it will stay objective, though.  Here's mine, they relate to the toys only:

G1 - Best at doing babies and outfits.  There was such a variety of sizes and poses among babies in G1, and so much ponywear (including for the babies). 

G2 - Best generation at actually looking like horses, proportion-wise.

G3 - I agree on seasonal ponies.  Also I think the size of the ponies is just right, from various stakeholders' perspectives.   

G4 - Their standard pegasus wings are closest to being biologically-accurate to bird wings.  This may seem minor but it's a big win in my eyes   Even as a kid I was confused by the G1 wings...

[Leave a Whisper]

I was trying to think of something positive for G4 that wasn't bogged down by negatives, but SunPony nailed it. I second her.

[otocolobus_manul]

G1 - accessories. Aside from the G3 season ponies and a few others, G1s are the only gen I collect accessories for. Dance N Prance boas, Baby Brother bandanas, Secret Surprise keys - the ponies just look so good with their accessories.

G2 - playsets. G2 had some very creative playsets, including the little mini-playsets that came with Magic Motion/Royal Lady ponies, Playground Twin sets, and Fantastic Job ponies.

G3 - sets. I LOVE completing a G3 set even more than a G1 set, because the ponies just look so good all together. The gimmicks may not be as noticeable as G1 gimmicks, but the colors and designs tie the sets together.

G3.5 - quality. G3.5s have such nice hair! It's so full and silky. Their plastic and paint seem pretty solid, too.

G4 - variety. Now, hear me out - the Mane 6 may have dominated the brushable line, but there were just so many lines in G4. Brushables, blindbags, Equestria Girls, EqG Minis, EqG Fashion Squad, Guardians of Harmony, Pop/Design a Ponies, Cutie Mark Crew, and probably more that I'm forgetting (and those are just Hasbro lines, not counting all the licenses stuff like Funko or Playskool). Granted the Mane 6 still feature way too prominently in each of these, but there are massive amounts of other characters too. Whatever you like, G4 tried it at some point. I just wish some of the lines (GoH and Design a Ponies especially) lasted longer. Don't get me wrong, I like brushable animal toys (hence why I collect MLPs, Fairytale Birds, Little Pretties and the like) but I like lots of other toys too, and it's nice to see MLP branch out.

G4.5 - they're so cute! They're the least elegant and horselike, but they're just so adorable. I can't tell if they or G4 are cuter, so I'll give them this for the sake of giving every generation something.

[MintyMyndi]

Okay, here's mine!

G1
Variety is something I'll agree on and probably my favorite part! I also like how grand and magical G1 Ponyland feels, with different interpretations in different forms of media. It's a fantasy land where anything can happen, really, so any medium with its own rules doesn't feel out of place, unless you look at characters that are characterized differently, for example. Tales does have a different vibe, though, but that's not necessarily a bad thing! Looking at Nirvana ponies is especially interesting; whatever worldbuilding you can get from backcards and stuff can vary wildly. It's a wonderful thing!
G1 was also quite resourceful with its symbol designs. If you look at every single G1 pony, you'll notice that not a single one has any more than three colors in their symbol. But, if you look at, for example, the Rainbow Curl ponies, you'll see excellent use of negative space to create a four-colored rainbow!

G2
G2 ponies are just high quality. They have the same color limit on their symbols as G1s, but they rarely use more than one; still, a lot of G2 symbols are intricately drawn. The ponies have neck articulation as a standard and, of course, the eye gems add so much to them! But, perhaps the most interesting parts are their accessories. A good chunk of them were made just for the pony they came with, and each pony came with quite the selection. It's a shame that my G2 collection has yet to include any of them; their world feels so fleshed out with all those accessories!
Also, it gave us this commercial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcHr5STmIQ4
A commercial for a rereleased G1 playset for G2 ponies with animated G3 ponies, the G3 logo, and the G3 My Little Pony theme- what a wonderful thing!

G3
A lot of things about G3 are really great, but one of my favorite things is the bold character design. G1 and G2 have subtlety and G3 is unafraid to be wild, which are both different, but good things!
For instance, let's look at the eyes. G1 ponies had a single-colored iris and, at most, bicolored eyeshadow. G2 still had solid irises, but upped the ante with the lovely eye gems! G3s have a main iris color, at least one colored stripe (some ponies, such as Scooter Sprite and Rainbow Dash, have more than one!), and a smaller highlight in yet another color that is usually one of three shapes, but can deviate from the norm!
Moving on to the hair, early G3s were either "glitter" or "rainbow," no matter what set they were from; this means that they either had multicolored hair or iridescent tinsel, and later gimmicks were added, like "shimmer" (metallic tinsel); only a few G3s ever had plain, solid-colored hair! Some ponies had as many as nine stripes (or maybe more!) in their mane, though that includes repeating colors. G3 embraced the fact that tails don't always have to match the manes, and there are many ponies with three colors in their mane and three entirely different colors in their tail! So many colors can be added to a color scheme, making rainbows bright and pretty and even spicing up monochrome ponies!
And, finally, their lovely symbol design. A lot of them can be seen as overly cutesy, but there's so much detail here. Gone is the three-color limit of yesteryear in favor of choosing many for several details, such as subtle outlines, added sparkles, dots, and other particles, or just making cluster symbols a bit less boring (not that they were exceptionally so)! Later ponies can have digitally-printed symbols with lovely gradients, while a good chunk of poses allowed for 3D symbols that weren't always the set's gimmick! While the quantity of a pony's symbols has been halved, the quality has been improved, at least in my eyes.
And, after all that, the vast majority of the ponies have this lovely, subtle pearly sheen. Throw in random gradients, glittery foreheads, and other little touches here and there, and G3 has such lovely variety!

G3.5
The quality! Their massive, bellbottom hooves are solid, not hollow! The three ponies with bang have three rows of plugs for them! Heck, Cheerilee even has a full head of hair! Their symbols are as lovely as G3s', and the eyes add details with eyeshadow, though the variety is impeded by limiting the generation to ten characters. Each of the Core 7 has a unique head mold (with one singular release being an exception), giving them unique faces, and only two of them share a body mold (with the same exception)! Their brushes are amazing for detangling, so, even if you have no interest in G3.5, it's worth owning one for large ponies or even other dolls with matted hair!
This is also my favorite art style, but that's a matter of opinion! (As if the rest wasn't!)
This is also where unique hairstyles became the norm for artwork, giving each character that little bit of extra personality!

G4
The marketing! The accessibility! The popularity! G4 is probably where you'll find the most variety in types of licensed products available; in fact, I can't think of a single one that previous generations had and this one lacks! Prove me wrong!
G4 also has a lovely art style not just for how it looks (it's not my favorite, but I do like it), but how it makes use of it. The hairstyles are unique, but not as intricate as G3.5, and the ponies are made of simple shapes; G4 ponies are easy to draw and relatively easy to design. Their symbols are unbound from the color limits present in G1 and G2, but subtlety returns; the shapes are easy to recognize, since they're going on such tiny butts!
And then there's the cartoon.  Wait! Drop your pitchforks! I'm not discounting the previous series! They have a lot of charm and lovely ideas, and I love them all just as much (or more in some cases)! FiM does have (arguably) higher quality animation, generally better voice acting, and overall better production value; if you look at the writing, you'll find fewer "eh, the kids won't care" moments, at least proportionally, and it just feels like more care was taken overall. G4 paved new ground for "girls'" cartoons and wasn't afraid to get deeply emotional at times, which it was set up well for with its small, consistent group of characters. Does that mean FiM is objectively better? Not at all! It has its ups and downs and isn't a perfect work of art, but it was still something special. Love it, hate it, or anything in between, FiM proved the viability of "girly" subjects to a wider audience and has made a deep cultural impact. That makes it noteworthy, at least to me.

G4.5
The art style is... an acquired taste, but one that was swiftly acquired by me! The eyes are expressive and sparkly, the large ears are charming, and the neck joints are just amazing. This isn't necessarily a bad direction, just a different one! (I certainly wouldn't mind if G5 went a bit more equine, though.)

[starrynights]

G1: Variety, I feel like G1 had so many different ponies and gimmicks
G2: Style, I feel that G2 had the best art style in my opinion
G3: Quality. Every G3 I've handled had super nice hair, plastic, and glitter.
G4: Marketing. FiM was incredibly popular.

[Minty_Magic]

Oh this is a really fun idea!

G1: The variety hands down! I love how many ponies there are to collect and the variety in the gimmicks. So softs, twinkle eyes, glow n show.... I’m surprised we did t see some of these gimmicks come back in later gens! They were so fun. I think this gen also has some of the best, and most creative poses of any generation

G2: These guys have grown on me so much! I actually love their slender build. Favorite features are the gemstone eyes and feathered hooves. I still have fond memories of the PC game.

G3: Okay...I’m biased on these since they are the ones I grew up with. I love the variety, the bold color choices, the play sets, the accessories, the art style... they are all awesome! A unique feature they had that the other gens haven’t had it their pearly plastic. As a kid I was always drawn to their sparkly bodies. The exclusives like the seasonal ponies the the Disney world build a ponies made them fun to hunt down in store and online.

G3.5: The quality of the toys is incredible! Each pony has a unique hairstyle, and the hair is always thick and silky. Like MintyMyndi mentioned, those hooves are SOLID. These aren’t cheaply made even though they carry a younger look.

G4: The media. Definitely this gen had the highest quality media produced of any other generation. Although I don’t love the sub culture it spawned, FiM was an enjoyable cartoon, and the music in it was pretty good too! The movie was well done for what it was, and the show also spawned a pretty enjoyable comic line! I appreciate that I’ve had more ways to interact with this gen than just the toys and the occasional special.

G4.5: They’re fun! Honestly after how seriously G4 started to take itself, having a mindless, goofy show with magical horses is a breath of fresh air. The main 6 actually feels like a group of real friends in this series. I never really felt that in the original show. The toys are insanely fun to photograph. Their big eyes and bobble heads make them easy to pose and play around with.

[Ponybookworm]

G1: Hairplay. G1 was the only generation who came with ribbons, & I've extended that to all the Ponies. Their clips were amazing too., plus they had separates like Pretty-Ups & the UK (maybe Euro) jewellery boxes of six clips each.

G2: Choose Your Own Gender. As the girls & boys of G2 look the same in body shape, Her Majesty Star can be His, Snowball can be a girl or boy, & the G2 twin babies can also be any gender.

G3: Themes. Every year had a theme, every set had a theme, the exclusives had themes.

G4: The storytelling. Hooves down. No MLP show has gained such a huge following, over such a diverse fanbase, as the Friendship Is Magic show, & the reason for that, especially in the first three seasons, is the storytelling. The world was built up well, the characters distinct & multi-faceted, & their interactions imperfect but also great.

[Shaz]

G1: The lack of an overarching canon. G1 just feels so free, and you can basically imagine whatever world you want for your ponies. Even the official stuff doesn't agree on one version of Pony Land! I know you can imagine your own world for any ponies, but I just feel like it was more encouraged in G1: the lack of main characters (up until Tales), the variety of different ponies and gimmicks, different stories/comics/backcards/names in different countries, no rules about only unicorns having magic or whatever. G1 is just so open to interpretation and I like that a lot. It always makes me happy when people say something like "my childhood Applejack was a boy" or "I always called Wind Whistler Chris".

G2: The Playsets are just so lovely I don't own any but I wish I did!

G3: I love how global G3 was! Countries that had never had ponies before got G3 (or in some cases, they had had ponies but not in a big way), and that means I can have fun collecting sticker books and storybooks in Croatian, Czech, Polish, Russian etc. I'm sure there's something pony-themed and Romanian out there waiting for me, that would make me so happy (combination of two things I love: Romanian history and ponies!). I also like the fabric clothes and accessories that some of the G3s had.

G3.5: The hair, of course! I got a G3.5 Sweetie Belle in an eBay bundle and the amazing quality of her hair just blew my mind!

G4: The wings. Also, mini ponies. The combination of awesome wings and tiny cute ponies has made mini Pony and Daring Do two of my all-time favourite ponies. They're just the right size to take out and about for adventures.

G4.5: I don't actually own any of these yet, but they're okay. I like that some are brushable and some have moulded hair, because I like both those types

[SpacePinto]

G1 - the best toys, the best cartoon, the second best cartoon, all the best ponies are here (Wind Whistler, Fizzy etc.)

G2 - the character design for media/packaging is a perfect mix of cute and realistic

G3 - the toys are almost as good as G1 but from what I've seen they also have very nice hair, and I like how their heads in media/packaging look most three-dimensional, plus it's the generation that gave us Minty!

G4 - I don't care about it enough to have anything come to mind...

[reanna-mator]

I dig this idea! I'm going to do my own brief ones before looking at the other replies:

G1: "Gimmick" ponies. Stuff like the Precious Pocket, glow in the dark, scented, talking ponies really make collecting G1 extra fun.

G2: Their look is totally unique and totally grew on me.

G3: Definitely the variety of poses.

G3.5: Their cute little faces grew on me!

G4: More compact size means you can display a collection easily. Also excellent tie-in with media.

G4.5: It's still early to tell, but overall I like the stylized look.

[LordBlumiere]

G1: As others have said, the sheer variety is unparalleled in any generation since. I also wanna give special mention to the size of G1s - they're absolutely perfect to me, and holding them feels just right!

G2: What can I say about my childhood generation? By far I think G2s are the prettiest ponies - while other generations may have more variety and more reach for style, G2s are elegant in a way that I don't think any other gen has topped.

G3: Definitely the theming. Knowing yearly what the general concept would be was really fun, especially when you saw the new ones start to trickle into stores and realized what the new theme was going to entail. I also hella miss the G3 pony + accessories sets; they were really fun, especially early on with stuff like Moonlight Celebration with Moondancer and the sister sets later on.

G4: The continuity. The toyline always mirrored the show, and if there was a character that was prominent enough it was almost certain there'd be at least some sort of merch with them on it. Also this generation introduced my favourite pony ever, so I gotta give props to G4 for Princess Luna!

[Artemesia's Garden]

To me, the G1 'ponyverse' is the most appealing. I love the simple, pastoral ideas in G1 that remind me of European fairly tales. I have to admit I'm not too familiar with the G2 ponyverse, but I do appreciate that the colour combinations and playset designs are some of the most attractive.  G3 ponies are some of the most artsy and bold in terms of colours and symbols, and have some everyday humour in them. However, I'm less of a fan of the playsets and only collect G3 ponies. The day-to-day life in G3 seems a little mundane to me. In G4 the quality went down in terms of figures but they are still attractive and interesting enough for me. However, along with most people I adore the animation in the cartoon series, the drawing is just so pretty. The humour and characters in G4 are the best part of it. I can't separate G4 ponies from the cartoons since I got to know both at the same time.

G1 Ponyverse, quality of ponies
G2 Playsets
G3 Symbols and colour combinations
G3.5 That thick shiny hair
G4 Characters and humour