Need help with release years

[Shenanigans]

Can someone tell me the US release years of the G1, G2, and G3 line and also what year the lines ended? I've looked it up, but they seem to differ by a couple of years on different sites.

[hathorcat]

I think everyone thinks of it a little bit differently mainly because release dates are different in different parts of the world. The first time G1 appears in a US HB catalogue is 1982 therefore for me thats the release year. The 1981 catalogue features only My Pretty Pony but in 1982 they are joined by the My Little Pony line as we know it.

I dont follow the latter lines enough to be as confident in the facts but I believe its 2003 for G3 and 1997 for G2

[Ivy]

Ok here is my standard reply to this...

If you look at the information on my site you may be wondering why my dates are different from other sites. For example I say the Flat-Foot Ponies were released in 1983.

Why do they have '82 stamped on their foot then? Why does Dream Valley and every other collector site state that they were released in '82. Why would I say '83 then?

Well I have been working with toys and toy stores for a very long time and I've learned a few things. Toys are released two times a year. Spring and Fall. Those are the two major releases, and the spring release comes out in December of the previous year. That means that while the very first of the Flat-Footed My Little Ponies hit the shelves in '82 they were meant for the '83 spring toy line. The fall line of toys come out in July.

Look at the way the things line up. The My Little Pony Movie came out in Theaters June 20th, 1986 - if you go by the time scale of Dream Valley or other collector sites the ponies were released in 1985? No. They were released in the Spring Line for '86 and were out while the Movie was. They all had special Movie Posters in their packages to help promote the movie.

Also here is a page from the 1984 Montgomery Ward Christmas Catalog.
visitors can't see pics , please register or login


 
Notice who is in the picture - These are the second year set of ponies. So year 2 is 1984-1985.

While most sites state the last year for My Little Ponies in the US as 1991 that is wrong as well. The last year was 1992.

[hathorcat]

Ok - so I have now pulled out all my catalogues...

So it goes...
1981 - My Pretty Pony
1982 - My Pretty Pony & Original 6
1983 - Original 6
1984 - Original Rainbow set [and other "Year 2" ponies]
1985 - Original Babies [and other "Year 3" ponies]
and so on up the years....

So maybe the problem is that we are calling something like 1985-86 Year 3 but in actual fact it is Year 4? I hope that makes sense...

[Shenanigans]

Thanks!!