In order which generation feels most like my little pony to you?

[Carrehz]

I disagree that Lil Litters etc is like G1.5, it never took over the line like G3.5/G4.5 did. To me it's only a .5 if it's the only thing they're making, otherwise it's just a sideline.

I think bronies just... didn't grasp that there were G2 toys, didn't bother to check if there was perhaps a toyline that didn't have a corresponding cartoon, because to them the cartoon was the main thing. I can understand misunderstanding, but that "Tales is G1.5" thing they made up really annoyed me...

[Leave a Whisper]

G3 Big Brothers would have been adorable!

The lack of G3 boys is the reason my fave bait Pony is a clone pose earth G3 of five of the Core 7. I take one of them, add Apoxie Sculpt hoof feathers, dye or paint if needed, reroot, add new symbol, redo eyes (single-colour irises), & boom!!! G3 Boy Pony!!!

Post Merge: July 18, 2023, 09:27:35 AM

I disagree that Lil Litters etc is like G1.5, it never took over the line like G3.5/G4.5 did. To me it's only a .5 if it's the only thing they're making, otherwise it's just a sideline.

I think bronies just... didn't grasp that there were G2 toys, didn't bother to check if there was perhaps a toyline that didn't have a corresponding cartoon, because to them the cartoon was the main thing. I can understand misunderstanding, but that "Tales is G1.5" thing they made up really annoyed me...

They don't listen and argue that what they decide overrides obvious facts. That's their problem. I've had too many state such things. There's a difference between not knowing and being belligerent and willfully ignorant.

[Taffeta]

I will say, it isn't always bronies, even though we are the worst offenders - I'm sure I remember arguing with someone who had grown up with Tales, and they thought it was G2, but I could be remembering it wrong (and could have said this before)... either way, the world can at least rest easy that at least one brony (me) got the message that Tales is G1.

Being a brony =/= growing up with G4. It would have been impossible for anyone to pick up that mindset in the older gen community, because of how the G terms came about. Anyone who had been an active older gen fan prior to G4 would also know G2 was an extant toyline, and so wouldn't call Tales G2.

It's always been called 'Tales', but the 'Tales ponies' has only ever referred to the 7 ponies known by Hasbro as the 'Seven Characters', rather than the entire release lines from 1993/4.

The thing is, G4's main cast of characters have been reproduced over and over as toys, and MOST of the G4 toyline have appeared in the series. Tales isn't like that (no G1 animation is), but I suspect most of the bronies who call Tales G2 are blissfully ignorant of all the unanimated ponies on sale in 1993 and 1994, almost all of whom use established or modified G1 poses...

Going mildly off topic, but

Spoiler

since animation in G1 was basically advertising, I've always wondered about the target audience of the Tales eps. It was undoubtedly made in the US, and aired there - but the content has always raised some eyebrows with me. The ponies play football, and that centres particularly around Ace, although men's football at the time was relatively unknown in the US. Tales predated the US world cup in 94, even. Maybe it's just easier for them to animate - but they made Clover and Meadowlark dance, so I don't think so!

The biggest questionmark for me, though, is when starglow and co appear, they're called 'Glowing Magical Ponies'. In the UK, we call that set Glowing Magic ponies. The US name is Glow & Show. In 1992, Glowing Magic ponies were still in stores in the UK. So were the Rockin' Beats - who are also included in the animation.

It's probably impossible to know for sure, but it feels as though the show was made for European or UK release, as the toys in the US weren't continuing.

Not a new generation, obviously. But interesting nonetheless.

Also, for clarity, I don't think there is a G1.5. I agree with Carrehz that there's no obvious division for any G1 gimmick that makes sense for that kind of division. Bronies don't have an awareness of how collectors saw/divided/thought about MLP prior to G4.

The distinction in the late 1990s between 'old ponies' (G1) and 'new ponies' was quite emphatic and sometimes even hostile. You never saw anyone pipe in with, 'but maybe there are subcategories of the old ponies!'.

As I said before, Hasbro made no distinction, and nor did stores in stocking ponies in the same aisle. Even Sky 1, who aired all the MLP animation in the UK in 1995, didn't split them. They called it all My Little Pony and Friends, although they aired everything from RAMC to Tales and then round again. My sister's friend taped them and even though they had the right opening titles, the Tales eps were broadcast as MLP and Friends.

The thing is that, unlike all subsequent gens, G1 didn't really have an overriding action plan. You can't subdivide something that feels like they literally went into the office every year and went, what will we do this time? LOL! Even G2 had repeated characters and there's a clear attempt to keep them alive through the line (like Ivy, Lightheart, Sunsparkle, etc). G1 did have a few repeats but it almost seems incidental.

There's really no difference between selling Cherries Jubilee and then flocking her as a so soft, and selling Starlight and then pearlising her as a hairdo pony.

[Leave a Whisper]

I will say, it isn't always bronies, even though we are the worst offenders - I'm sure I remember arguing with someone who had grown up with Tales, and they thought it was G2, but I could be remembering it wrong (and could have said this before)... either way, the world can at least rest easy that at least one brony (me) got the message that Tales is G1.

But you would have had that conversation post the beginning of G4, thus that person was probably influenced by the very vocal attempts of bronydom to redefine MLP entirely according to their animation preference. It doesn't matter what gen they grew up with. It matters what influenced them since - and you almost certainly had that discussion in brony space, so that person would've been surrounded by people saying it was G2.

Being a brony =/= growing up with G4.

The thing is, as I said before, the labels G1 and G2 didn't even exist till G3. LM will confirm it was borrowed from the Transformer community, since old ponies and new ponies couldn't wash when even newer ponies came out in 2003. There was such a consciousness about G1 and G2 being different, that those labels were always collective. The .5 was first in G3, towards the end.

Nobody tried to define MLP by animation until bronies happened.

Going mildly off topic, but since animation in G1 was basically advertising, I've always wondered about the target audience of the Tales eps. It was undoubtedly made in the US, and aired there - but the content has always raised some eyebrows with me. The ponies play football - which at the time was relatively unknown in the US. It predated the US world cup in 94, even. Maybe it's just easier for them to animate - but they made Clover and Meadowlark dance, so I don't think so!

The biggest questionmark for me, though, is when starglow and co appear, they're called 'Glowing Magical Ponies'. In the UK, we call that set Glowing Magic ponies. The US name is Glow & Show. In 1992, Glowing Magic ponies were still in stores in the UK. So were the Rockin' Beats - who are also included in the animation.

It's probably impossible to know for sure, but it feels as though the show was made for European or UK release, as the toys in the US weren't continuing.

Not a new generation, obviously. But interesting nonetheless.

Even further off topic. My brain always has to stall and reshuffle to remember that the rest of the world calls it football.

I can answer that part anyway.  AYSO (American Youth Soccer Organzation) was a very popular sporty thing to put your kids in, during the 80s and 90s. (And soccer/football was popular during the 70s as well.) So it would make sense to have the Tales ponies playing soccer.

[Taffeta]

LOL I just put that bit in spoilers as it is sort of off topic.

That is interesting, but it doesn't explain the Glowing Magical ponies...

[Leave a Whisper]

LOL I just put that bit in spoilers as it is sort of off topic.

That is interesting, but it doesn't explain the Glowing Magical ponies...

Aliens 

[MJNSEIFER]

I will say, it isn't always bronies, even though we are the worst offenders - I'm sure I remember arguing with someone who had grown up with Tales, and they thought it was G2, but I could be remembering it wrong (and could have said this before)... either way, the world can at least rest easy that at least one brony (me) got the message that Tales is G1.

But you would have had that conversation post the beginning of G4, thus that person was probably influenced by the very vocal attempts of bronydom to redefine MLP entirely according to their animation preference. It doesn't matter what gen they grew up with. It matters what influenced them since - and you almost certainly had that discussion in brony space, so that person would've been surrounded by people saying it was G2.

Being a brony =/= growing up with G4. It would have been impossible for anyone to pick up that mindset in the older gen community, because of how the G terms came about. Anyone who had been an active older gen fan prior to G4 would also know G2 was an extant toyline, and so wouldn't call Tales G2.

Not sure if I'm supposed to see the first paragraph or not (if you deleted it, I apologize for bringing it back), but for the record, it was YouTube, and yeah it likely was in the throws of bronydom (I got  into Tales in around 2014, so it would have been during or after that year), but yeah... that was probably it; even if it was someone who "grew up with Tales" they were probably mislead by bronies defining it as G2 - good point.

Again, I don't even remember for sure it was someone who grew up with Tales, or even watched it as a kid - I just remember that they liked it. I think I may have even been wrong to say "argument" - I just corrected them, and they pointed out that they were just saying that they liked a character (I can't remember if it went back and forth or not.)

Thank you for the information about how it basically was back then.

[Taffeta]

I didn't delete anything except in an attempt to try and make my post shorter *lol*. There's nothing in either your quote or LAW's that's a problem, it was just a very long post after I was done xD.

Bronies did take over YT and did target older gen videos and clips for some reason best known only to them. I would call YT brony space.

When I say brony, of course I'm not talking about every G4 fan, but the idea of Tales as G2 was a brony invention. It just would never have come up prior, because G2 actually existed and, until G4, MLP wasn't seen by anyone as an animation-driven franchise. G4 changed it completely - which is fine, but can't be retroactively applied, especially by people with little/no interest/knowledge of anything pre-2011.

[BlackCurtains]

Bronies did take over YT and did target older gen videos and clips for some reason best known only to them.

This is why I took down my videos when I was researching age spots and I did those microscope slides? It was attacked by bronies saying things like "G1 sure is a cancer!" and other uncool things.

[Queen Sophie]

Bronies did take over YT and did target older gen videos and clips for some reason best known only to them.

This is why I took down my videos when I was researching age spots and I did those microscope slides? It was attacked by bronies saying things like "G1 sure is a cancer!" and other uncool things.

What is wrong with them?! I really don’t get how they think it’s not hypocritical to hate on a gen while still loving another gen that made it! Those people make my brony friends look bad but the good thing is that the hate isn’t as strong as it used to be in fact, I talk to some that like pre g4 gens

[Taffeta]

To be honest I think it's 100% fine for a fan of G4 not to like older generations, or G5. We all have our preferences. Where it went wrong was the targeting of G1-3 stuff (like BC's video) just for the sake of causing upset and tension. It's not like there's never been tension before - G1 to G2 was messy like that - but with the internet the way it is now, the toxicity was multiplied several hundredfold - and enabled by all the media talking about MLP fans as though all pony fans were bronies and there never was a community prior to G4.

It's ok not to like something. But not okay to go into the space belonging to those who love it to cause harm.

It's also ok not to know everything about something, providing you're not then steamrollering over the fans of that thing by trying to redefine what it is.

I can only assume it was born out of insecurity of being only generation 4. Not wanting to recognise how much G4 depends on G1 and G3 in particular. A desire to erase the inconvenience of an existing fandom so they could feel like they were My Little Pony and pony fans.

I don't think it's surprising that many older gen fans are now not that friendly towards G4 or its fandom.

That all said,  the few times I did see into the brony space, it was pretty internally toxic as well. It's sad that that got attached to something we'd long since considered precious, and that the only way they knew how to show their 'love' for something was to try and destroy everything around it.

[SunbeamV]

Spoiler

visitors can't see pics , please register or login

anyway

1) g3 - i think they really refined and improved upon the classic ideas and aesthetics
2) g1 - cant go wrong with the classic!
3) g5 - the toyline leaves a lot to be desired but i think the general concepts feel Very mlp
4) g2 - nothing against it, it just had a very short run in the pre-internet days so i dont think it made as much of a lasting impression
5) g4 - tried too hard to be a tv show "fandom" and pander to adult bronies, often at the expense of the target audience (children). made hasbro obsessed and sick in the head about having a "core line". did irreversible damage to the collecting community. (as we can see in this thread, they even tried to manplain older gens to us). dont get me wrong i still enjoyed g4 but all of the collateral damage was just very.... not what mlp is or should be about

[Taffeta]

G2 ran from 1997-2002 or 2003 iirc. I'm going to sound really old now, but I was online in 1997 (from a library PC), and had internet (dial up!) at home from spring 1998. I was here for the whoooole "new ponies vs old ponies" civil war that blew up around them - newsgroups and mailing lists ahoy.

They did have a very short US release run, true enough, but there was definitely internet when G2 were around. And a pony community as well.

I don't suppose it was the right kind, but I think anyone old enough to remember that period would probably agree they 'made an impression' of sorts...

But reflecting on it now, the ages of many of us back then were comparable to the ages of most bronies now. I was 15 in 1997 - so 16 when the war broke out *lol*. It makes me wonder whether, if the net had been then what it is now, the G2 thing would've exploded much worse than it did. At times it was plenty unpleasant. I wrote this thing back in 2000 because of the online G2 squabbling - G2 were still in stores (at least in Europe) back then.

https://www.etherella.com/scrapbook2/ponydream.htm

In my personal experience 2000 was a particularly nasty year, but even by that point a couple of sites/people had been driven offline - either because they loved G2 or because they hated G2. :/

I don't remember what the pro G2 people went by, though. I just remember the Shadows and someone circulating an image of Gusty (?) killing a G2 pony which at the time was pretty shocking given the size of the community/etc. (You probably wouldn't even notice one image like that now in a sea of brony art).

I also love that spoiler xD.

[Ponybookworm]

Sunbeam your spoiler is a classic xxx 

[SunbeamV]

G2 ran from 1997-2002 or 2003 iirc. I'm going to sound really old now, but I was online in 1997 (from a library PC), and had internet (dial up!) at home from spring 1998. I was here for the whoooole "new ponies vs old ponies" civil war that blew up around them - newsgroups and mailing lists ahoy.

They did have a very short US release run, true enough, but there was definitely internet when G2 were around. And a pony community as well.

I don't suppose it was the right kind, but I think anyone old enough to remember that period would probably agree they 'made an impression' of sorts...

But reflecting on it now, the ages of many of us back then were comparable to the ages of most bronies now. I was 15 in 1997 - so 16 when the war broke out *lol*. It makes me wonder whether, if the net had been then what it is now, the G2 thing would've exploded much worse than it did. At times it was plenty unpleasant. I wrote this thing back in 2000 because of the online G2 squabbling - G2 were still in stores (at least in Europe) back then.

https://www.etherella.com/scrapbook2/ponydream.htm

In my personal experience 2000 was a particularly nasty year, but even by that point a couple of sites/people had been driven offline - either because they loved G2 or because they hated G2. :/

I don't remember what the pro G2 people went by, though. I just remember the Shadows and someone circulating an image of Gusty (?) killing a G2 pony which at the time was pretty shocking given the size of the community/etc. (You probably wouldn't even notice one image like that now in a sea of brony art).

I also love that spoiler xD.

oh yeah, i've read up on the g2 drama and i don't doubt it was huge for its time, but everyone still seemed pretty skeptical of the internet in the 90s so i feel like people sort of put less stock into what was going on with it if that makes sense? i was still super duper young but i remember things like bowienet being pretty "out there"- he (bowie) was convinced the internet would become something bigger than we could comprehend at the time, and a lot of people thought he was totally off his rocker for it 

we also dont have a lot of old internet backed up, so a fair amount of early internet drama is ultimately lost to time. but even if it wasnt, you're so right, it would probably be incredibly tame by today's standards after what we've seen with bronies 

so i guess my take isnt so much that g2 had "less" of a legacy/impact, it's just inaccessible to most people on today's internet. maybe that's ok. goodness knows i hope the insane brony stuff disappears into the void someday, too. lol