Symbols/Cutie Marks: Have you ever wondered?

[lovesbabysquirmy]

It's definitely a time-in-production cost-cutting measure.  Grrr it irritates me as I would like to pick which side my pony can be displayed facing.  Especially if they have wonky hair or stains on one side...

[Bag of Magic Food]

What I've begun to wonder about is, if the flank marks are "canonically" still two-sided due to cartoon artwork and later releases of the same character allowing the symbol to show on either side, what about G3's hoof marks?  You know, the ones that are usually a heart with a smaller heart of another color wedged on top.  I know they are meant to denote the magnetic foot, but what do they mean "in-story" to the ponies?  If hoof symbols had been made in an earlier era of My Little Pony, would they have been on both forelegs too?  Eye symbols are in both eyes, right?

I saw some comic book scans where the same pony's hoof heart kept switching sides throughout the same story, but it was never seen on both sides at the same time, even when both hooves were clearly visible.  Maybe they really do have magnet magic to be able to hold things, but they can only channel it through one leg at a time, and that's what the heart means?

[hathorcat]

I think thats an interesting idea Bag of Magic Food - I love that people can look for the extra dimension in the cartoon and the toys this way. The heart on the hoof doesnt always indicate where the magnet is - Hasbro liked to mix it up sometimes

[Ringlets]

I think most of us ..prolly like... 99%- 100%  of us ..  much prefer the symbol/cutie mark on both sides.
Maybe Hasbro will listen and get the message  eventually?... 

[Ivy]

The mark only on one side makes the poor pony unbalanced and is poor design in my eyes - that's why I'll stick with collecting my G1's thank you!

[LadyMoondancer]

I wonder if it's a manufacturing thing. Like, if they have to flip the pony over to put the symbol on the other side, and it takes too much time, so they discontinued it.  That actually wouldn't surprise me considering I used to work a manufacturing job :/

I don't think they actually have to flip the pony around to do both sides--I am pretty sure all the ponies go through the machinery in the same "direction" (whether that's head-first or butt-first or whatever) and then something swoops in to stamp them from either the left or the right.

Most of the G4s are in the same pose, yet some have symbols on the left and some on the right.  (Ditto with some G3 poses, like the donkey pose.) IMO this indicates Hasbro's machinery has the capability of doing either side, or both sides.  They are definitely not going to have separate machines, one for left-symboled ponies and one for right-symboled ponies!

Also, the G3 art ponies have shown that Hasbro can do very intricate symbols if they feel like it.

I think it comes down to "Kids can't see the other side in the packaging, so why bother?"  (Wasn't this actually one of the answers from Pony Fair?)  Lax.

Incidentally, didn't some of the very last G2 have symbols on only one side, like the one with the teddy bear costume?

[Leopard_Print_Unicorn]

Hooray! I'm glad I'm not alone. I never really thought about it in terms of display, probably because with the limited space I've had to display ponies, you couldn't see many of the symbols anyway because the ponies were all lined up, facing out. I think it was more that I grew up during G1, when I first started collecting as an adult it was only G1, and then when I bought my first G3 and saw that the cutie mark was only on one side, it was kinda like "Huh? What happened?"

As a G1 collector, I always preferred "symbol" to "cutie mark," but as I understand it, symbols refers to the older gens, like 1-2, and cutie mark came about in gen 3 and continues in 4. So that's how I phrase it, to avoid confusion.

[Dragonflitter]

As a G1 collector, I always preferred "symbol" to "cutie mark," but as I understand it, symbols refers to the older gens, like 1-2, and cutie mark came about in gen 3 and continues in 4. So that's how I phrase it, to avoid confusion.

lol this is true, Hasbro trademarked the phrase 'cutie mark' back when they unveiled the G3 line and probably saw no reason to give up the trademark when the G4's came along, so they got it too.

I guess this means technically cutie marks have -always- been on one side! lol.

........... *smacks self in forehead* I just realized it's probably meant be a play on the phrase 'beauty mark'! Oh man can't believe that never hit me before...

[Yurusumaji]

I watched the show before collecting any figures and I much prefer ponies with symbols on both sides. For one, they can be displayed if one side has a damaged/rubbed cutie mark. For two, cutie marks are found on both sides of the flank on the ponies in the show. I can see that it cuts costs a bit, but I would pay a little extra to have the cutie mark on both sides.

[heftysmurf76]

It never bothered me much about the cutie only being on one side, but it might be because I was a G3 collector before I was a G1 collector. I've heard fellow G1 collectors complain about this fact before tho * looks over at FarDreamer, among others*

Besides the manufaturing issues others mentioned, I'm also betting it is partly logistics when it comes to 3D symbols. I think there are a lot more of the 3d Symbols in G3 than G1, and I can see why they would also blame that not only on cost but manufactturing...I know G1 Princesses would be the exception/arguement to this rule, but still, the 3D symbols on G3s are bit more ornate and harder to put through manufacturing twice, AND position the same exact way on certain poses, etc

[The_Loner]

I definately prefer the body markings to be on both sides!!!!!!! I was so dissapointed when they started putting them only on one side and I still am!!! I really, really wish Hasbro will put their act together and start putting them on both sides again!!! It is so cheap not to!!! 

About the "G2" ponies: they have the same marking on both sides; the only ones to have different markings on each side are the Sunny Garden Friends - 4 ponies in all. There are a few of the babies that only have the marking on one side - Sweet Snowflake and the 2nd series of Twin Baby Ponies. With the twins it makes sense because it makes it easier to remember who is who.

Actually I don't think Hasbro has ever referred to the markings as symbols; I have only seen them refer to them as body markings (in the 80s) and Cutie Marks (this millenium).

[Bag of Magic Food]

........... *smacks self in forehead* I just realized it's probably meant be a play on the phrase 'beauty mark'! Oh man can't believe that never hit me before...

When it comes to My Little Pony anymore, you have to always suspect that "cutie" is a pun on "beauty".

Unless it's a pun on "booty".

[Flutterblossom]

I grew up with g3's, so I've always thought that MLP's were SUPPOSED to have only one symbol.

When I was little I never really noticed that in the show the g3's had two symbols. I also remember looking at the old g1's that used to be in my grandma's basement and thinking it was weird that they had two symbols.

It took me a while to realize that the ponies in FiM have their cutie marks on BOTH sides. I thought they did that because the animators were just lazy. I guess it's hasbro that's lazy now. Lol. I think g3's are fine with one cutie mark (because of their poses) but g4's definatly need cutie marks on both sides!

[Leopard_Print_Unicorn]

It never bothered me much about the cutie only being on one side, but it might be because I was a G3 collector before I was a G1 collector. I've heard fellow G1 collectors complain about this fact before tho * looks over at FarDreamer, among others*

Besides the manufaturing issues others mentioned, I'm also betting it is partly logistics when it comes to 3D symbols. I think there are a lot more of the 3d Symbols in G3 than G1, and I can see why they would also blame that not only on cost but manufactturing...I know G1 Princesses would be the exception/arguement to this rule, but still, the 3D symbols on G3s are bit more ornate and harder to put through manufacturing twice, AND position the same exact way on certain poses, etc

I'm not sure, because I wasn't the one paying for my ponies back then, but I'm betting that the Princesses, with the fancy symbols, Bushwoolies, and the accessories, cost more than a regular MLP at the time, too. They could have definitely factored the ornate symbol into the pricing. That's probably also why I never had one

[Shenanigans]

Both sides! When I started collecting G3s, all my G1s were in the attic. I kept telling my sister, "I just know G1s had symbols on both sides, but these don't..." She disagreed I got my ponies down from the attic and I was right, hehe. While it still annoys me, not as much as it did when I first started collecting G3s. Kinda used to it now