Bronies, come answer my questions!

[Saiko]

Hi MintySocks! I pitched your question to my local Brony friends, they're all university students and the nicest, most geniune and funniest people I've ever met. They also had no clue earlier pony generations had such a big fan base until I told them about the Arena. I won't include my answers as I feel I'm half-Brony / half MLP collector. Here are their answers, I'll edit to add as more people answer (its gonna be a long post!):

#One (female)
1. Saw reaction faces of it and decided to watch it.
2. Technically married to [friend - name removed], but not really.
3. I has ma ponehs
4. ...No.
5. We're pretty cool dudes. Watch ponies and don't afraid of anything.

#Two (male)
1. I surf the Internet.
2. I surf the Internet.
3. I just watch.
4. Nopa!
5. The whole charm of MLP is the vibrant personalities, the community and the good plot.

#Three (male)
‎1. A friend posted it on Facebook, I looked because I like cartoons.
2. Forever alone (that's a joke, laugh)
3. Collect and watch and discuss.
4. Ee-nope.
5. In general, we're the nicest community on the internets.

#Four (male)
1. Saw a parody video, ignored it for a few months. Eventually got curious enough to watch it.
2. Apparently I am also married to [friend]. This is against my will...
3. I'll order a pony or two at some point
4. NOPENOPENOPE [I'll add here that he doesn't mean he dislikes older gens, he just feels like the two fanbases should be clearly defined and not merged, to save confusion]
5. Uh, I don't really know how to explain the community. We're a pretty unique phenomenon.

#Five (female)
1. My flat mate would not stop going on about it so I gave it a watch
2. Single
3. Watch
4. No
5. What always seems to make a good show is one that shows that no matter what your friends will be there for you.

ETA
#Six (male)
1) [A friend] wouldn't shut up about it. So I watched it. And got addicted. 2) Engaged, to a girl who is basically a human Fluttershy. 3) Watch 4) NO

#Seven (female)
1. The Internet said it was rad. Can't argue with the Internet. 2. Single all the way. 3. I watch it and draw. Draw ALL the ponies! (will also buy Applejack because she is favourite pony) 4. No. I saw some of it as a kid and it was terrible.  5. Watch the show, enjoy the show, notice increase of happiness in life.

[Timepiece]

I'll take this as a "survey" thing. 

1. How you got into MLP and why you like it.

Last year, March-April 2011. I was hestitant to watch FiM at first, but when Lapfox Trax musicial Renard replied to a Brony who questions about the "CMC" background soundtrack, the question also included a full-blown episode. Because i want to understand why ponies was so popular, I watched it. Half edgy, but when the episode gets to the hot encore where the CMC sang the off-tune 80s rock music, I find that HILARIOUS! So... Yea. I got warped into the fandom after that.

WHY I like it? I guess for me is because it's "cute"... Like "anime chibi" cute. I also like how it was written, and making sure that the female cast remains interesting and "awesome", that you wish that they were your friends!

2. Single? Married? Any dads? Any moms?Single, do have siblings and a mom. But none of them are "bronies". I think it was my bro that stayed away from me because I was collecting pony merch. thanks to FiM.    3. Do you collect or just watch the show and discuss?I do watch the show, but I buy ponies if I can. Buying them is like a way to support the awesome guys that praise the fandom, and even kind enough to keep the full episodes at YouTube!       Then again this is pretty much how marketing works. Watch the show, get hooked, have the urge to buy ponies. And I don't mind, since I think it's the closest, cheepest toys I can afford! I could have discuss, but ti's a children's show... So I let it go lightly and enjoy Rainbow Dash being awesome and Pinkie Pie just being Pinkie.    
4. Have you developed an interest in the other pony generations?

Sort of. I mean- Thanks to Strawberry Reed and MLP Arena, how could I not ignore the previous gens that carry a key element to creating G4! Thanks to quick research on the looks and features of the previous generation toys, I know which one is a G3 or a G1. I did have 2 G1s (Fifi and Baby Nibbles), 4 G3s (Waterfire, Minty, and Pinkie Pie, McD Toola-Roola), G2 McD toy (Iris?), and McD 3.5s: Sweetie Belle, Starsong, and Cherielee, two of which I have as a gift from my RL friend). Oh and Ponyville... Toothbrush pony with a hot air balloon and clouds for a Cutie Mark. 5. Any other pertinent facts I should know in order to truly understand what bronies are about!
Well, there have been fans that would just love to being called "MLP:FiM fan" instead of a "Brony", just like how fans of Star Trek would prefer just being called a "fan" than a "Trekkie". I have seen good "explanation" blog posts from various Bronies/MLP fans like all of us. As for the girls, they are fine being called "Brony" or "Pegasister". I'm one of them that are okay being labeld as. (And easier for me I guess.) Finally... "Bronies" are probably the most kindest and most-open of all compared to a certain bunch who uses a certain discussion/picture board site. *Double-cough* There are a few bunch who are ever-so-kind enough to pull charies like "Bronies for Good", which give a ton of love from the VAs from BroNYcon!
I think that should be enough from me, heheh.

P.S. Sorry if my post is being VERY GLITCHY. D: I can't do much about the formatting.

[Dojo]

1. How you got into MLP and why you like it.
Me and one of my friends from my gaming group online are known for liking to you image macros to reply to peoples posts with on our forum. At one point other members challenged me to reply to posts with only images for a month. Eventually, in January 2011 my friend started replying with lots of FiM image then someone challenged him to do the same, only with FiM images. I got curious and was wondering why in the world he liked it. He linked me to youtube. Watched first two episodes and he recommened me to Winter Wrap Up and Bridle Gossip. I was hooked.

As for why do I like it? Oh wow. Short version: the characters, general cuteness and/or awesomeness, voice acting, animation, music, stories, humor, references, staff interaction with fanbase, fan art, fan music (I listen to EverFree Radio at work), fan comics, etc. Ever single piece of this is a major part of why I like it. They all come together to create something amazing. Yeah, even the fan works. The quantity and quality is amazing. Heck, it makes me proud how much the community has contributed to charities too. Yeah, there are parts of the fandom I don't like. But hey, I wouldn't like anything if I let the moronic side of the fandom get in my way.

2. Single? Married? Any dads? Any moms?
Single. ;-;

3. Do you collect or just watch the show and discuss?
I mostly watch the show and discuss. I'll be aquireing more G4 toys other than my Rainbow Dash little by little. (Can't wait for them to come back to McDonalds! I missed out the first time around)

4. Have you developed an interest in the other pony generations?
I think I might have seen a bit of G1 when I was little. I'm not really interested but I'd definitely take it over the other generations besides FiM. As for the toys, on.




5. Any other pertinent facts I should know in order to truly understand what bronies are about!
As with any fandom, there is both pure awesomeness and bad eggs. Don't let those bad eggs get in the way of your enjoyment of the series or all the talented fan works. Mean there are bronies out there who make trance/eurobeat/ other electronic music based on FiM or remixed by FiM. As well as many other styles, hey theres even "The Beatles Bronies" who pony-ize The Beatles songs. Theres teams out there working on video games like melee/fighting games or MMORPGs. People make tons or awesome music videos, parodies, and tons of fan art too. All the this quality and quantity just vastly outweighs any bad things about the brony fanbase for me.

[ashes]

I agree with what Zenna said - I like FiM, but I don't consider myself a brony since MLPs were my favorite toys as a child in the 80s, and I began to actively collect them in the early 90s.

[Ice Crystal]

I am a fan of FiM/G4 but don't personally consider myself a brony, just a fan. I will answer the questions anyway since I was introduced to pony collecting through G4, if that's ok. :3

1. How you got into MLP and why you like it.
G4, as mentioned. I always knew of MLP's existence, of course, but fell in love with the cartoon and researched the franchise's history a bit more. Many of the pony designs really appealed to me so I wanted to start collecting a few (or a lot)! I was looking for something new to collect anyway.
2. Single? Married? Any dads? Any moms?
Single.
3. Do you collect or just watch the show and discuss?
Both!
4. Have you developed an interest in the other pony generations?
All of them, but particularly in G1 and G3.
5. Any other pertinent facts I should know in order to truly understand what bronies are about!
I guess I'll skip this one haha.

[butterflybuttons]

There are some interesting answers.

[LilSpark]

I know you asked for only bronies, but I'm just going to leave a tidbit here:

That all depends on your personal interpretation of the word 'brony'. In my opinion, if you like the show FiM, regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, race, etc., etc., you're a 'brony'. And I know several people who would agree.

I love both FiM and the G4 ponies and I am certainly not a brony.  It's not that I have a problem with them, but I was a collector before bronies existed and liking FiM was a natural thing for me, as a pony fan.  The main reason I don't call myself a brony is because I don't associate with the fandom at all, since there are some sketchy bits that I don't care for at all.

This!

[ZennaBug]

I know you asked for only bronies, but I'm just going to leave a tidbit here:

That all depends on your personal interpretation of the word 'brony'. In my opinion, if you like the show FiM, regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, race, etc., etc., you're a 'brony'. And I know several people who would agree.

I love both FiM and the G4 ponies and I am certainly not a brony.  It's not that I have a problem with them, but I was a collector before bronies existed and liking FiM was a natural thing for me, as a pony fan.  The main reason I don't call myself a brony is because I don't associate with the fandom at all, since there are some sketchy bits that I don't care for at all.

Sorry if I offended you. I don't mean to imply that everyone should consider themselves a brony if they like the show, I only mean that in my mind, I consider you a brony. Feel free to call yourself whatever you like.

You didn't offend me at all    I just wanted to drop a line from the other side of the fence, as someone who loves FiM and G4, but doesn't care to associate with the majority of the fandom. 

[ElleDatura]

"Some people have been called bronies because they collect MLP, regardless of generation or if they watch the show."

Bronies are FiM fans, and only FiM fans. It is not a blanket term for MLP collectors.

Ah sorry. Just saying what I have heard before.

[Taxel]

Its alright. Its just that some collectors don't want to be referred to as bronies, and some would find it offensive to be personally called a brony. MLP was around before FiM and bronies and some people don't understand/respect that and older collecters can get really upset/angry/defensive/etc about it. It can be a touchy subject is all. :3

[TheFuzz]

I don't quite consider myself a brony, but it IS FiM that got me back into ponies.

1. How you got into MLP and why you like it.
One of my sisters friends collected, I spent a lot of time playing with her ponies when I was young. I even got two of my own to play with. When I heard the new show was a legit good cartoon, I started watching. It brought back my love of ponies instantly.
2. Single? Married? Any dads? Any moms?
Single, no kids.
3. Do you collect or just watch the show and discuss?
It started out just watching the show, but as I collect other toys, it was bound to happen.
4. Have you developed an interest in the other pony generations?
I like them all, as G1 and G2 were part of my childhood, G3 looks the best imo, and G4 is what's currently in stores/look like the characters from the show.
5. Any other pertinent facts I should know in order to truly understand what bronies are about!
I can't say first-hand, but I think it has something to do with guys (and ladies) needing some sort of social acceptance in liking something that's marketed towards a much different group, and/or having people of their own age/gender to talk about ponies with.

[Bounty Trotter]

1. How you got into MLP and why you like it.
Started watching the new show, and I got hooked.

2. Single? Married? Any dads? Any moms?
Married, no kids, parents live out of state.

3. Do you collect or just watch the show and discuss?
We watch the show, and just this week started our collection.

4. Have you developed an interest in the other pony generations?
Not me. I'm not much of a fan of the look of the older generations. My wife though grew up on G1.

5. Any other pertinent facts I should know in order to truly understand what bronies are about!
I'm 33, male, and I totally consider myself a brony. To me, a brony is anyone outside the age demographic who got started with MLP:FiM. I know there's some negative connotations with the term, but from what I've seen, the community is all about sharing a show they love with each other through art, music, and collecting. And I'm all about that.

edit: fixed a formatting error

[cesprins]

To me, a brony is anyone outside the age demographic who got started with MLP:FiM. I know there's some negative connotations with the term, but from what I've seen, the community is all about sharing a show they love with each other through art, music, and collecting. And I'm all about that.[/size][/font]

edit: fixed a formatting error

I think that's the most accurate description. The most important part being "Brony" implies fandom involvement and with what gen they started liking mlp.

[mlpfan]

1. How you got into MLP and why you like it. I used to watch it growing up, then by chance i rediscovered it a few months ago, and have been very much into it! I like the animation,charactors,music, everything!
2. Single? Married? I am single
3. Do you collect or just watch the show and discuss? I both collect and watch the show
4. Have you developed an interest in the other pony generations? I like all of the generations
5. Any other pertinent facts I should know in order to truly understand what bronies are about! a brony can be anyone, so it is hard to understand how a brony becomes a brony or a pegasister:)

[Cool.Breeze]

To me, a brony is anyone outside the age demographic who got started with MLP:FiM. I know there's some negative connotations with the term, but from what I've seen, the community is all about sharing a show they love with each other through art, music, and collecting. And I'm all about that.

edit: fixed a formatting error

I think that's the most accurate description. The most important part being "Brony" implies fandom involvement and with what gen they started liking mlp.

I think I have to agree on this, what Bounty Trotter said does sum up my general opinion of the MLP:FiM fandom. I think I got too wordy and focused on the shadier underbelly when I responded to the 5th question. I still don't know if I'll ever feel comfortable with labeling myself personally as a brony, I don't really feel comfortable with applying labels of any sort to myself;  I would not be offended to be called one, and I definitely fit the bill since FiM is what sucked me back into the ponyverse In any case, one thing is for certain- some incredible and awe-inspiring things have been created by this fandom, and I am no less moved and amazed than any other fan


Edited to correct quoted user's screen name