Rank the Generations

[Leave a Whisper]

With the new one in swing, (though whether it's in full swing or not remains to be seen,) I'd like to see how you folks rank your favorite to least.  Reasons are welcome.

Favorite to Least:

G1-Beautiful, diverse, sturdy, nostalgic. One of my favorite childhood toylines. Some problems, but for the most part nothing devastating. Love them forever.

G3-Beautiful, diverse, but with more problems popping up the older they get. Got me back into the brand, love them always.

Mishmash -I'd love them more if not for the low eyes. Wish the DnD ones had been sold separately like the rest. The retro Twilight and main six are cute. Woulda been all over G5 if they used those instead. Lovely silky hair.

G5-This one is in the middle. The faces I think, will always still bother me but they look a little better in person. Not charmed by the attempt to phase out good quality hair, but otoh I will have lotsa fun customizing the moulded hair ponies. Some very pretty colors. Looooove the wings! Hopefully Hasbro breaks free of its sucky core cast obsession. Lazy jerks.

G2-I remember seeing them for the first time on the internet. They were the ugly articulated neck ones and the removable tail ones. I had a visible jolt of shock and dismay. Not a good first impression. Found some that I like. Cute in person. Lacking species diversity. Don't have enough to form a proper opinion. Have one, would like to have more.

G4-Upon first seeing these I had an instinctive hatred. I tried to give it a chance, but between the low quality, ugly bulbous chihuahua heads, and all the awfulness that attached itself to taint the brand I'll never truly love them. Sometimes think about selling most of them off. I like some of them. Hopefully the taint will go away in a couple of gens.

Equestria Girls-Don't like. Don't have any. I got into MLP to collect horses, not dolls.

G3.5/NBC-Instinctive dislike. Small character pool, ugly moulds. Boring stop-gap. I've never owned one and never will.

PL-The absolute bottom of the outhouse. Jawless freaks, round human heads, wildly disproportionate bodies. Wide, strung-out, staring eyes. This went out with a whimper and was blessedly short-lived.

[stjarne]

for me, it'd go like...

1. G3
yeah yeah, maybe im biased since i grew up with G3 (and thats a part of why its at the top) but i think G3 had a lot of substance- from the toys/toy quality, to the playsets, films, & marketing that was done for it. the quality of the toys is great- they're sturdy, have some really nice factory paint and cutie mark designs, silky and resilient hair (for most of them) and some really fun themes and gimmicks (i.e glittery faces/symbols, SLHs, divine shines (ill get back to these), hoof hearts, etc. the design choices were pretty thought out imo- G3 is very detailed, yet simple and nice to look at. still horse-like but keeping a largely cartoony style. the playsets are super fun and i honestly think G3 has the best playsets out of any gen. (G4's seem to have too many bits & bobs and G1's are, admittedly a bit lackluster. i don't know anything about G2's or G5s) lots of variety, even if not as much as G1. the films are adorable, well animated and have that early 2000s charm. some simple storylines that young kids can follow along with but also that adults who grew up with it can appreciate. the games, even if i've only played the flash games & Best Friends Ball are still charming to this day. definitely early CGI and flash animation but i like that style. the merchandise that came from this generation is honestly never-ending and is a big part of my collection. very fun to collect and find more information about. i adore pretty much everything about it
none of this means G3 is safe from setbacks though- starting with the films. the ponies personalities are all, at their core "friendly & silly". more of the main ponies do have some different qualities- minty is clumsy, loves socks. rainbow dash says "darling" and is a fashionista. pinkie pie is similar to minty. rarity is rebellious, curious. you get the deal. honestly its hard to think of any traits for them in general- even though its all very simple. some of these traits could very easily be traded between any two ponies and not make much difference. it's not something i can't look over though- just gets more obvious as you get older.
next, the varying quality of some ponies throughout G3. usually, they don't have much going for them as far as problems go. except for some select ponies. the divine shines "absorb" their glitter as they age and is honestly sad. they're much more prone to this than G1's with glitter seem to be and i wish i knew how this happened. plasticizer leakage is common especially with ponies that've stayed in their original boxes for so long- usually it can be helped if you give the pony a good wipe down/scrub but it can still leak out, and in turn make the pony 'hard'. not a big problem for me, but i like the squishiness some of them have. last thing i can think of is the varying hair quality- ESPECIALLY for the dollar store ponies. it sucks, disintegrates & turns to dust after time, or if you even just touch it. it makes it difficult to brush their hair because you fear it'll all come out into clumps. thats basically what happens. autumn crisp, misty blue, peachie keen are a select few i have and i do dread the day i'll have to get them rehaired. i plan to get most of the family dollar ponies (sunrise, strawberry sunset, rhythmn n rhyme, green apple are all next) because i like their designs but it just sucks they all have an unavoidable problem like that. some of the non-discount ponies have this problem too. versions of petal blossom, jazz matazz, etc. also 'fading pink' is used a lot in this gen.
and then core 7. i don't think i need to go much into that. good from a marketing standpoint i suppose but loses a lot of charm and variety and this trend continues onto G4 and G5... they REALLY double down on it later on. the poses in core 7 start to become all too similar. not a lot of emphasis on other ponies or any big plot lines in the films. quality is about the same but you can still tell its a downgrade sweetie belle and starsong don't really add much to the lineup, either. i suppose it could have been worse but i like the merchandise/designs from the pre-core 7 better. i will say all of these things are, honestly minor and things i can look over bc of just how much i love the gen otherwise. so many good memories & nostalgia and despite all the problems with the toys they're more or less all fixable

2. G1
not sure what i can say about G1. i didn't grow up with it, not even close, but i really love all the variety in ponies in this generation. all the international versions of ponies are so fascinating to me and the themes/designs are all quite creative. awesome symbols (G1 and G3 have the best) and gimmicks. i really like the perfume puffs, twinkle eyes, so softs, twice as fancies. just classic & lots of lovable ponies in this generation. i like the idea of the pony friends line- and seaponies, flutter ponies, winger ponies are all really cool and it makes me wish G3 had more than just pegasi, unicorns & earth ponies.
i've never watched the films- but from some clips ive seen i can tell some ponies had a bit more personality and edge than in G3. i appreciate that. animation wasn't as great then though, and some of the characters (like megan, non-pony characters) seemed a bit ugly to me, but its to be expected from a new franchise. i can't speak on the films much besides this.
the figures, however- although the designs and gimmicks were amazing- have so many setbacks its egregious. thankfully, no big problems with hair like in G3- but pony discoloration/regrind, pony "cancer", "smooze", tail rust is so rampant it seems it really draws a lot out of them. the vinyl isn't as sturdy as in G3, either. lots of instances where the pony is basically smooshed or the vinyl is too thin. the poor so-softs have a lot of their flocking rubbed off or dirtied. BBE's even get rust in their eyes which is really odd to me.
overall, G1 is charming for sure- not as bright and fun as G3 was, but still up there in terms of quality. G1 is extremely beloved for a reason 

(G3.5 right in the middle)
3. G4
4. G2
5. G5

(gonna update this post w reasons in a bit)

[Ponybookworm]

G1 is the top spot for me too!!! Such a diverse range of Ponies, including Sea Ponies, Butterfly-based Ponies, bigger Ponies, smaller Ponies, &most ages & both genders (with one pose in particular being great for trans/ enby too). Pretty much no issues

G3 come next. Also a huge range, with Ponyvilles, Breezies, & I LOVE the themes!!! My main issues are: excessive pink, lack of Boys, BORE 7 at the end, symbols on one side only, some are known to hair-rot without warning, no Sea Ponies, too many variants of the same Pony (I don't need 20 Sky Wisheses)

G2 come next. Not a bad range overall, including Boys & Babies, & some quality playsets & accessories!!! My main issues are: no Sea Ponies, many mechanics on them look ugly, too many variants of the same Pony (I don't need 20 Ivys)

Next come G3.5. My BIGGEST issue is BORE 7. The Chibi-esque moulds of the older ones are a bit OTT, but I'm in love with the Newborn Cuties!!! If they'd branched out of BORE 7 & given us, say, some Soft Newborns in Newborn Cutie, I'd have been so pleased!!! Most of my Custom Newborn Cuties are based on Soft Newborns. Boys would have been good, but again BORE 7. Nice accessories for them though

Next up are G5. G5??? Yep. They're new, so giving them a chance. The Ponies are small, but decent. They come with cute accessories, & we have a couple of playsets which seem good. Main issues so far: too few brushables, BORE 5 ad nauseum

G4.0 next. Earlier G4 lacked variety in pose (only 3-4 I think at most), but had some interesting characters aside from the Mane Six, or BORE 6. My main issue is neither of these though: it's the playsets. Why do G4 Playsets only serve as backgrounds half the time, instead of more 3d, actual sets you can put the Ponies IN??? Even the bigger ones are nowhere near the ones in the show, with cardboard walls & so on. Some are even cardboard boxes with glossy print on them. And though we do have Boys again, they're few in number.  Plus G4.0 started the trend of smaller Ponies, about the size of G1 Baby Ponies. Other issue is how there are more mini Ponies, including Blind Bags, than actual Pony figures

G4.25, both Reboot & GOH, are next. Reboot add more poses, & a weirder shape of head, as well as a few extra character aside from BORE 6. GOH have moulded hair, but got articulation right. These Ponies can move, without being G2-mechanical ugly. They have a few awesome playsets too. Though a bit on the small side, I LOVE the pirate ship!!! It's hard to get my Celaeno & Boyle figures to fit it. Both also add Sea Ponies, Hippogriffs, & non-Pony characters to the mix. As well as Celeano & Boyle, I have a Discord, Land & Sea Skystar, Haven Bay, Capper, a changeling, & Silverstream. Now about that weird head shape...

Pony Life are third to bottom. Take the worst of G3.5 adults, take the worst of G4.25, & the worst of G4.0, & here's G4.5 in a nutshell. The cheapest looking accessories if any, the WORST-looking figures (Everybody says G5 look less Pony but they're more Pony than Pony Life). They look like LPS on drugs & a starvation diet gone wrong. I only want two, because one is unique & the other is one I collect variants of.

G4.75 are second to bottom. What are G4.75??? They're the moulded hair, fully articulated characters you dress in clothes to look like almost the worst cross between Ponies & dolls you can get. I've seen them & might get ONE out of morbid curiosity, but aside from that, just nope

At last place are Equestria Girls. The main reason for buying Ponies is to avoid toxic teenage doll culture. You know, dolls whose sole purpose is to teach girls they'll only be successful if they look like X unachievable unrealistic figure. Well if Barbie's permanently dieting & going under the knife, EQGs are like PL in human form, with MLP colours. On drugs & a starvation diet gone wrong, & so freakishly coloured you'd need toxic chemicals to get their looks. Sorry if I want6 my dolls to be dolls & my Ponies to be Ponies, but that's how I am. never the twain should have met. EQG was ok as a cartoon series, but as toys??? BIG FAT NOPE!!!

[Leave a Whisper]

At stjarne, tail rust isn't a generational quality problem, as much as it is a kids-played-with-toys-in-water issue. And tbf, none of us knew that they had metal washers. My daughter's Tangerine Sunset has tail rust, and it's worse because I couldn't get the darn head off to clean her up. That G3 glue is really something! G3 did bring back mermaid ponies and introduced breezies.

[SpacePinto]

G1
G3
G2
G5
G4

[Carrehz]

Oooh, let's see...

First off, I really like pretty much all of the gens, so far the only gen I don't own a single pony from is G3.5 (well technically - the only G5s I have are Phidal and Egmont figures - so I don't actually own any Hasbro G5 toys). But if I had to rank 'em...

G1: I just love G1... not all of the gimmicks are for me, but otherwise, man it just has it all. TAFs! Those wonderful big ol' boy ponies with their gorgeous feathering! (I know most other gens have boys too, but G1 definitely had the best feathered hooves. :p So nice and detailed without being so realistic it looks out of place.) Great variety of colours and pony breeds! Babies!! etc etc. I love the cartoon too, sure it's silly and shows its age a lot, but I still enjoy the heck out of it. :p Honestly not much I don't like about G1... can't really think of any dealbreakers I have for this gen, anyway.

Oh and I love the Pony Friends. I wish more gens would do that. G4 came close with the hippogriffs, but they never fully committed.

G2 + G3 + G3 Ponyville: I think these two are about equal for me... I seriously adore G2 ponies, they're so gorgeous... plus I count Ivy as my first pony. The absolute best!! I love their dainty figures (I love SHS and the G4 princesses too) and creative symbols. The wacky names near the end of the gen (I suspect, the result of the European branch of Hasbro being put in charge of names) are great too.
G3 symbols are also very creative at times! What other gen's given us stuff like Pepperberry. Great variety of poses too - I have to dock G2 a point for that. G2's sadly lacking in the pose department. It's not as big an issue for me as G4's lack of poses, for some reason? I guess since G2s are otherwise more detailed than G4s, or maybe because I haven't got as many G2s as G4s (yet!!) I just don't notice it as much? I dunno.
G3s also tend to be nice and easy to get a hold of, reasonably priced for the most part too, which is always a bonus :p G2s are a bit harder for me to find, which is why I don't have as many of them as I'd like. Especially the baby ponies - a shame since I ADORE G2 babies!! Well, I love all pony babies - but G2 babies are so darling. I love G1's "clone" babies but I do also really love how G2s made the babies clearly related to the mothers, without making them exact copies.
Also really appreciate how G2 just tossed in the odd boy pony here and there, that's something I wish more gens would do. Here's where I've gotta dock G3 a star - no boys! At all! >( Now that's one thing G4 DID improve on... sort of. (Eh, I'll take lower-quality boys over no boys at all.)
The department that BOTH gens fall down in is that they did tend to focus on Earthies over all else. G2 doesn't even have any actual pegasi! Although I do like their winged unicorns with the big butterfly wings - reminds me of PonyIsland's Wishing Ponies and I always loved Wishies - would love to see them make a comeback (but with proper molded-on wings instead of them just being clip-ons! :p). But yeah, waaaaay too many Earths. G3 improved on this a bit but there's still barely any Unicorns/Pegasi in that gen. I also sorely miss baby ponies in G3, the ones that do exist are darling, I just wish there were more - again, especially the unicorn/pegasi (there aren't ANY G3 unicorn babies and I'm here to ask: why). Relatedly, G3 was where they dropped the mum/baby sets and I'm STILL waiting for those to make a return - I'm a sucker for family sets. Even if they want to move away from parent-child sets... give us more sibling packs, please, PLEASE!! I'm still shocked G4 never gave us a (brushable) "Apple Family pack"!!! You don't know how much I wanted a set with Pinkie's sisters!!! -___-
Can't really comment on the... er, animated media? for these two. Never played the G2 game (I do want to though - it looks right up my alley - reminds me of Petz and I LOVE those games) and the only G3 cartoon I've seen is A Very Minty Christmas, which was cute but it's the sort of thing where I need to be in the right mood for it. It's a bit too sugary for my usual taste. I liked it but it's not something I could watch anytime, unlike G1, if that makes sense.
Don't have much to say about Ponyville but they're adorable, I love them. Wasn't a big fan of the later, more anthro figures, but the ones that are just tiny ponies are A+++ and I want them all. THIS is how to do tiny molded-mane ponies - as a side-line that's a COMPANION to the main brushable line, not as a REPLACEMENT for it. By the end of G4, the blind bags were often better and showed more creativity than the brushables... don't like that.
And G3 loses another star for the Core Seven - well, maybe let's just say half a star, since I think the years of unique and creative designs before C7 sort of make up for C7 really. At least Core Seven didn't happen until the line was halfway through the door anyway, you know? But it was a sign of things to come, unfortunately....

BTW, I'm not a huge accessory junkie (I love the ones I get, but I don't often specifically seek them out) but G2 has some of the cutest damn accessories. I'm still not over Trixiebelle's adorable jester hat.

G4 + Equestria Girls (first version): Two more that I'd rank equally. This gen took me a loooong while to get into. But eventually I was hooked. :p As you can tell from my sig.
I do like how small and compact G4s are. Mine all fit onto one table easily (or, almost all of them do - I have some of them displayed separately - but I could probably get all of them on there if I tried), which is always nice for a collector of collections like me - space is at a premium. Plus it's just cute. The anime-esque faces took a while to grow on me, but they are sweet... I particularly love the almond(?)-shaped unicorn eyes. They're my favourites.
Unfortunately, the one place where G4 falls down HARD is the total lack of unique characters, the lack of creativity!!! At first it wasn't too bad, they'd usually give you 2-3 new chars in addition to the Main 6... I don't mind the idea of having a "core" set of characters, I guess... sure is easier for writing a cartoon around... the problem is when they TAKE OVER the line. And by god did that happen with G4, and it's definitely to its detriment. I really don't understand why it happened either, since even if Hasbro couldn't be bothered to come up with new designs, or, I dunno - maybe they thought people only cared about the cartoon characters - HOW many characters did the cartoon have?!? I never cared about the cartoon, but I can't TELL you how many times I've seen a screenshot of a FiM pony and thought "Wow, she's cute, I want a toy of her!". I'm STILL waiting for that Fleur de Lis brushable, Hasbro!! And Babs!!
Plus the gimmicks in this gen were just awful. Most of them were cheap and stupid. I might not like all of G1-G3's gimmicks, but at least they feel like they were trying something cool and fresh. G4's "gimmicks" were just like... oh look it's the same but now it has a ribbon in its hair.. that's cool, right? -______-
QC was also pretty bad at times in this gen. I've never seen THIS happen on any of the other gens:

visitors can't see pics , please register or login


It doesn't photograph well, but I've got a Bon Bon with a weird, almost caved-in part of her head, too. All toys are gonna have the odd QC error, that's just life, but 99% of problems with the first three gens only pop up after they've been around for a while. I.e. plasticizer leak, hair fading, G3 hair rot, the transparent G3s melting, etc. I've never seen a G1-G3 with a QC error THIS bad fresh off the card - but I've seen it happen quite a bit with G4s - moreso than you'd expect. Don't even get me started on the ones that were sold with head/body mismatch. (Poor, poor Feathermay.)
And again, the lack of boy ponies, despite boy characters existing right from the get-go (I still can't believe it took until the REBOOT to get a brushable Big Mac). And I don't know what annoys me more, the lack of poses or the lack of BREEDS!! Again, this is another point where I have no idea why they didn't take some cues from the cartoon. I'd have loved some bat pony toys, those are really cute! I like the Changelings too - at least the first design, not the ugly puke-coloured bugdeer things - but all we got for those was Chrysalis and, eventually, the little GoH figure. Love that dude, but I'd have loved it more if they had some friends. :p I also wish the unicorn horns had been a biiiit longer. Not a huge dealbreaker for me, but just another inch or two would've been nice. But oh GOD the lack of poses drives me insane. Thing is that the basic G4 standing pose is cute and all but it gets old fast. That's a huge low point for the gen IMO.
Also barely any baby ponies, so lose another star for that. Though the ones they DID make are very very cute. (But I wish there had been some family packs. :p)

Love blind bags but I'm sad that eventually, more creativity and unique designs went into them over the brushable line. (Also I'd like to punt whichever "genius" decided to split the waves in two over here - meaning many of the second-half waves were difficult-to-impossible to get a hold of - and don't even get me started on that STUPID endless Halloween series that shelfwarmed here for years...) Also I'm still sad the last few waves were basically impossible to find over here, but that's not really the gen's fault. x) Another rant for another thread, perhaps. But I do like how many boy ponies were made for the blind bag line (I'm counting the non-blind packed figures as "blind bags" too btw, like the FiM Collection stuff, just easier to call them all by the same name), I just wish that had spilled over into the main brushable line.
Love the princess ponies. It's great to see "proper" (not just clip-on wings) winged unicorns finally making it into the line. Not a fan of the whole "only princesses can be WUs" thing or the "alicorn" moniker (alicorns are unicorn horns, dammit!!) but, again, that's another rant for another time.
I like the EQG dolls!! Well at least the first version - I'll get to those horrible reboots in a minute. It took them a good while to grow on me, but when they did, they did. :p I love them so much. The CMC dolls are especially adorable - some of my favourite collection pieces. (again I have the complaint that they were the only younger characters made, though! The molds are so precious, why didn't they use them again!! But I digress.) Yeah, the quality definitely could've been upped in some places (never liked those coloured legs they did in lieu of socks/stockings/etc, or the plastic clothes), but overall I loved this line and I still miss it.

I'm neutral on Guardians of Harmony. Honestly don't care much about it either way, I can take it or leave it. It's just kinda "there" for me.

Oh and I don't like the cartoon. Well, some of the songs are good. (Cider! Cider! Cider! Cider! - but I like the song that's parodying in the first place, so I'm biased) And they did come up with some great designs that I WISH we'd gotten more toys out of. But I've tried some eps and they either make me go "eh, okay I guess, wouldn't watch it again though" or "why the heck did I waste 30 mins on this [string of expletives]". I won't mention the fandom!
Also I just don't care for the animation. The walk cycles always looked weird and uncanny to me. (Lion Guard had the same problem - I guess I just don't like Flash walk cycles? I dunno. I can think of other entirely computer animated cartoons that have good walk cycles... maybe the combo of Flash + quadrupedal walk cycles is where it all falls apart. I dunno.)

Mishmash/Retro: Love the concept of these. The G4-to-G1 brushables are just darling, even if I don't think they're exactly "G1 style", and again, ugh the distribution on these sucked. But I really wish they'd make more of those.
The molded-mane figures I have mixed feelings on. I like the general idea, but many of the crossovers did nothing for me. And the eye placement is just horrible. But I do like the concept and such, they just need a little work.

G4 reboot (Movie): Did we ever come up with a definitive moniker for these? At this point I'm just going with "Reboot".
The balloon heads on these took me a good bit to get used to. But I did like that we got some more characters - like Big Mac, at LAST!!! If only they weren't determined to give all of the brushable boys those horrible mohawks. Horses should have long, flowing manes! But at least it's a step-up from the !~£@$%#^* troll hair that poor Shining Armour had. I also like the poses for these a little more than the G4 poses, they feel at least a little more dynamic. But I do wish the heads were smaller.
The character variety here was odd; mostly even worse than G4 BUT we did get some very cool characters, like Soarin' who has a great mold, even if they did make the stupid decision to slather him with screenshots (why?!?!?). The ball-jointed(?) wings they gave him are one of my all-time favourite pony features though. Very, VERY cool. No baby ponies, though.

G4.5 (Pony Life): I can't bring myself to be *too* harsh on this, since to me it's pretty clear this was always intended to just be a quick stopgap line intended to keep MLP on the shelves while they worked on G5. And it does that job pretty well, I think. Could be worse. Their crazy, manic faces grew on me eventually.. right now I only own a handful of G4s. Both versions of Trixie, the orange Angel Bunny blind bag (someone here pointed out he'd make an excellent Almiraj for the D&D ponies and I HAD to get him), Lyra blind bag, and the Unicorn Party Celebration set (lucky TK Maxx find, couldn't resist it, wouldn't have gone out of my way to buy it online though). Now you can probably tell from my sig that I love Trixie, and Lyra's another favourite of mine. So if G4.5 had just been only Main 6, I doubt I'd have picked any of them up. I don't intend on getting any more G4.5s. But I do like the ones I've got.
Their tiny little bodies drive me nuts though. :p Their legs are pretty awkward-looking too. And often they do look completely manic - like I said, it's grown on me, but it works better for some characters than others. x) I DO like the feathered hooves though, and I've still gotta rate these slightly higher than G3.5 because a) I don't own any G3.5s, I do own some G4.5s, clearly I like one at least a LITTLE more than the other and b) G4.5 at least has more character variety than G3.5. Not MUCH more, but still enough for me to want to point it out.
Distribution of these was crap though - I only ever saw one wave of the brushables in shops (don't get me started on how much of a nightmare it was to find the wave 1 version of Trixie online X_X), and just one wave of the blind bags - naturally, the wave I had zero interest in. :p

G3.5: Core seven.... snooze. And the molds just don't do it for me - I think they're a bit better than G4.5, but they just don't interest me. Don't at all care for the Ponyvilles from this merch. Can't stand Newborn Cuties either - entirely too human/baby-dollish for me - this'll probably sound funny since I just said that I love EQG, but I like my ponies to be ponies. :p I don't mind anthro pony dolls if you go all the way and make them fully anthropomorphic characters, but I don't often like it when they go in-between. It's funny since normally I don't mind, but somehow I've just never liked how MLP does these almost-anthro-but-not-quite ponies.
I will say that I DO like how they made each character a different height, that's a very cool detail. Probably unfeasible to do in a line with more than seven characters, but I do think that's nice. And the mummy ponies do appeal to me enough that I'll probably end up with them eventually. (I like the idea of them more than the toys themselves, I think. Always a sucker for family sets. And their basic designs are cute - now if someone would make G3 customs for them, then I'd be totally done-for. :p)

Never watched any G3.5 cartoons so can't comment on them. What I've heard about them doesn't exactly make me WANT to watch them, though. x)

G5: This one's just kinda "there" for me right now. None of the toys appeal to me at all but I don't violently hate them or anything, either. It's not even really that I'm neutral, I just don't care about them at all... I just... I see them and I'm like "yeah, alright then" they're just THERE. I might have a couple of (again, non-Hasbro) figures from this gen... but I'm still putting them (almost) at the bottom of the list since I actually have Opinions on G4.5 and G3.5. So far I guess I'm just still waiting for this one to dazzle me, or disappoint me? Or do ANYTHING to make me really sit up and pay attention, even negative attention. Cause right now I can't work up the interest either way.
(Distribution of them's been pretty bad, but I'll give them a pass for now cause of the pandemic and all.)
Again, haven't seen any G5 cartoons. Can't STAND that godawful 2D art style though, oh god!! So ugly!!! And the "Elsa faces" on the CGI art style are pretty damn distracting. But I suppose these are more rants I have about the current cartoon industry in general rather than anything specifically MLP-related.

G4 EQG reboot: Ugly, barf, take them away, ugh, what were they THINKING

...it doesn't help that their faces are a dead ringer for an old ex-friend of mine. x) Not sure which one was more of a dealbreaker for me - that, or them just being weirdly coloured humans rather than anthro ponies. But these are by far my least favourites!!!

OKAY I talked for way too long, whoops. x) Did I miss anything?

[Taffeta]

I'm going to be short and sweet for once

G1 - Childhood MLP, nostalgia beats everything else. Also, the original. No other ponies could exist without G1, yet still capable of shifting off shelves. This will always be the ultimate gen for me. There is a big gulf between it and the others in my affections.

G3 - I love the variety of G3, which is why it comes next.  Not a fan of 3.5, but don't really count them as a separate generation. Not a fan of core 7 either. But a lot of good before that.

G2 - I became fonder over the years though I never hated them. They are unique in the pony line and the later ones are quite beautiful. Berry Bright is still the best G2.

G4 - I like the toys. I don't like the movie or reboot style of toys, though. Pony Life is horrible. All of it. Sorry fans. I really dislike FIM, and I despise the G4-centric fandom for all they have inflicted on genuine, honest pony fans (including some of their own) over nine years. I also hate the repetition. But I would like G4 more if it hadn't ruined MLP for real fans for probably the rest of time. There's no recovering from G4. Unfortunately.

I like EQG and I include them in G4 because they are part of G4. I like Sunset Shimmer. She added a dynamic to the M6 that the FIM series lacked. But even though I like EQG, the plots all followed the same theme and the popularity issue being so pushed out there did bother me (see Friendship Games).  G4 got a lot of messages wrong. BUT I like EQG and I like the original dolls.

G5 - G5 comes last because I've done this based on toys. And I just feel nothing when I see G5 toys so far. It's not a like or a dislike. It's just nothing. I have some ponies from every gen that I am attached to, but I don't own anything from G5. I think it's a nonevent. I hope the kids like it.

[BlackCurtains]

Wow, you all gave great reasons and a lot of them are for me as well.

G1 - What I grew up with even if ponies weren't a huge part. They are nostalgic for me and I love the variety.

G3 - Would probably be in the number one spot if not for growing up with G1. I think G3 is the best overall generation. They look the most like horses, they are the perfect size, there are so many with different poses, colors, symbols. The babies could be better, but really that's the only thing that might be a negative toward G3. I really love them, but I get a pang of guilt when I say that because it feels like I'm betraying G1

G2 - Have the cutest babies and some of the most beautiful ponies like Copper Glow, Silver Swirl, Golden Light. The accessories are top notch too (sadly I have none). I think the color combos on a lot of G2 are unusual but they work so well (there are green ponies!). It didn't take me long to warm up to them when I discovered them.

G4 - I'm going to put 4 before 5 because 5 is still so new, and there are only a handful of characters. I still haven't seen the movie, but it looked cute. G4 has the show to go with it, and the show was great. I only watched up to season two, but I've seen later episodes here and there are I always like them, Pinkie never fails to make me laugh. As far as the toys go... I hated them at first, but I guess they've grown on me. I actually really like the reboot poses, they're dynamic and fun. I'm still not a general fan of the "big head, weird eyes" trend, but for G4 I guess it works okay. They also have a lot of characters with interesting colors, symbols and names. Plus, boys!

G4 human figures - The ones from Japan. I think they're super neat and really want Applejack, Sunset Shimmer and Rainbow Dash. The original ones... I don't care for the ones with pony colored skin, except for Pinkie, it works for her.

G5 - I like the toys okay. The muzzle could be better but it's been so long since MLP looked anything like a horse that it doesn't bother me much. I love the hooves. The wings are also nice. That's a big thing where G1 fails. What are those chunky, blocky wings? No. I'm optimistic about G5 and I love that Sunny is orange, of course. Hitch also seems like a fun character. I really need to watch that movie...

Everything else? - I would lump the rest together here. I don't dislike any of them, even G3.5 or the cat-like G4.5 or whatever they are. I want all the Applejacks and I mean ALL the Applejacks, so I can't hate on anything. Besides, I mean, they're toys. I don't want to waste my negative energy on toys

[Artemesia's Garden]

G1 comics, brushables, accessories and playsets
G3 love the colours and symbols of some of the ponies but not a fan of the accessories
G4 cartoons and brushables, some playsets like Pinkie's train. Controversially, I like the bas-relief playsets for display as well. I think the latest one I bought was Tempest Shadow
Fakies - there are fakies I like more after this point
G3.5 have nice hair
G4.5 The brushables with wierd pointy noses didn't appeal to me. I nearly bought some sea ponies like Haven Bay and Queen Novo but I have this overall issue with the articulated tail and display position.  I liked Sandbar who I think was sold around the time. He is an odd size though. I think I also got a version of Apple Mac that i like around this time and the detailing on the Seaquestria Castle
G2 have nice colours, concepts and accessories but I haven't really warmed to them. It's something about the ears.
G5 I like the cartoons and the light humour but I haven't warmed to the brushables
EG I'm not really into dolls

[LadyMoondancer]

#1: G1 - So much variety, such lovely hair!  The golden age.

#2: G3 - Lovely ponies, mostly very high quality.  I love the pearly plastic a lot of them have.  Love the magnet gimmick.  Not perfect gen due to only having symbols on only one side and having very few unicorns and pegasi.

#3:  G2, but with reservations.  Their faces look unfinished. The rest of them looks fine.  The most interesting ones are pretty inaccessible for me, being mostly sold in France.  Again, few unicorns and no "real" (molded wing) pegasi.

#4: G5 - Here's the thing about brushable hair:  I only want it if it's good quality.  Having seen the quality of G4 hair, I don't regret Hasbro switching to molded hair for the main line.  Also I find the poseable ponies genuinely fun to fiddle with.  The hair on the 6" ponies is the best hair I've seen aside from G1 hair.  I just want more characters, damn it.

#5:  G4 - They made a pose that was akin to the G1 Collector pose--all four feet planted, staring blankly ahead--and they used it for YEARS.   But wait  They also had the incredible mold variation of . . . that same mold, but with one leg bent.   Things did improve with the Movie line where they FINALLY created new molds, most of which I liked. And the baby sea ponies were great.  But overall, I can't get over this top-selling brand having the same pose for like seven years.  Other gripes: Their tails are placed too low.  A horse's tail shouldn't come out of the center of their butt, that looks terrible.  Poor quality hair on most toys. I did like the wings on the pegasi, though, and they were the FIRST gen since G1 to have a lot of pegasi and unicorn toys.  Also the blind bag mini line was quite nice.

#6: G4.5 - The heads are just awful, I hate that weird lower jaw and I don't like their eyes.  I have 4" Potion Nova and her plastic is unpleasant to the touch.  Not because it's sticky or anything;  she's dry as a bone, but the plastic itself has an unpleasant texture.  (The Fashion Styling G4.5's don't have this issue.)  AWFUL hair.  The actual bodies aren't that bad, though.  Just need a more horsey head.

visitors can't see pics , please register or login


#7: G3.5 - You may be wondering why these are lower than the G4.5's.  Didn't G3.5's have better hair?  Didn't they have better-feeling plastic?   Yes they did.  But with G4.5s, they're just toys I don't like.  I can roll my eyes or laugh at their weird heads. With G3.5s, I have a visceral negative reaction that comes from the gut.  Their faces and their awful lumpy legs are unbearable to me.

#8:  Newborn Cuties - These aren't even ponies.   (But I still almost put them above G3.5s.)

#9: Equestria Girls - Hey, wouldn't it be cool if MLP was turned into a human fashion doll?  NO.

[Leave a Whisper]

The fakie head on that pony Lady M!

[SkyCakes]

G1s: beloved childhood memories that I will cherish forever well loved. They are so derverse too. I also love that earth ponies had "magic" too.
G3s : so many earth ponies, but lots of gradients and colors. I love the pegasus,babies,and unicorns they are my favorites.
G4s: brought diaversity baack but so much craziness in the line. I did like the playsets. Some of the gimmicks were cute like the water cuties.

[TheClassCalico]

I am going to rank based on styles and the toys, rather than shows and other media associated with them.

G1 - I just have a massive soft spot for G1, many of the toys are lovely, I love the variety, the subtle blush, just about everything!

G3 - Nice quality, feels relatively similar to G1 with a ton of variety here, too. I also like the magnets that some G3s have and many of the gimmicks. I just prefer G1s style.

G2 - Gorgeous style, perhaps tying with G1 as my favourite style, the eye gem is a really nice touch and their bodies are very nice. I also like visible feathering and it's visible here, so that's a big plus! However, there's an unfortunate lack of variety in pony types and symbols, I feel.  Reused symbols (albeit, usually on ponies from the same sets) and only unicorns and earth ponies. This generation kind of has "alicorns", but the wings are detachable.

G5 - Somewhat of a hybrid of G4 and G2 in style, I suppose. Again with visible feathering on all ponies, which is nice, and a generally more G2-esque body. I am not a huge fan of their heads compared to the rest of their body, though, but I don't dislike it really, either. So far, I've not been a fan of the fully moulded and half brushable ponies, personally. The big brushables are excellent, though! I'd prefer it if the "standard" small brushables had spread wings, or at least the wings were a little thicker, personally. The folded wings look a little odd to me. Additionally, so far, we are seeing a whole lot of the main cast and very little outside of them.

G4 - I feel that G4 deviated a little too far from the "horsey" look for me to particularly care for the art style and the "main" toys are rather lacking in poses and variety in characters compared to generations prior. I don't care for Equestria Girls, I find the dolls look odd and I guess I am just not a fan of the concept of My Little Pony characters being turned into highschool students. I absolutely adore the Guardians of Harmony toys, however.

G4 reboot - Mostly fine, doesn't differ all that much from the earlier G4 style, but their heads are notably larger. Most noticably to me being the small alicorns. It just looks...odd. I will group the reboot Equestria Girls here, too. I actually prefer these, but I still don't care of them much.

G3.5 - Not a fan of the style. Similarly to G4, it doesn't feel horsey enough to me and overall, it's just not my cup of tea. The Newborn Cuties even less so. However, I really like the way that the mane is rooted on some.

G4.5 - Same as g3.5, but I dislike the style more and nothing interesting going on with the mane rooting.

[Featherwurm]

G1 - Cute!  Sweet!  Nostalgic!  Perfect!
G3 - Captured G1 while still feeling unique - very cute and good if a bit saccharine at times.
G2 - Sort of an odd sculpt but lots of fun gimmicks and colors.
G4 - From a toy standpoint - a bit bland, later beset with wonk.  Too many of the M6.  From a media standpoint - rather cute in the first couple seasons, got a bit weird later.
G5 - Not doing anything for me currently.  It's a toy, it's fine, but eh, I don't like 2020s toy design sensibility much (flat faces, big heads/tiny bodies, very simplified style).
G4.5 - Really oddly shaped toys, pretty poorly made.
G3.5 - Quite frankly hideous sculpting, though they did have really nice hair.

[katrine2309]

G1: Because, Childhood. I wouldn’t be into ponies at all if not for this gen. So, it is also a big step up from all the other gens for me as well. This is what I collect. I don’t collect any other generation.

G3: This is in 2nd place for me, because I do have some g3s that I really like. Snowflake is my fav, but Seaspray is also up there. I actually also have Royal Bouquet 2. Not because of her design that much, but I found her at a flea market and she just had this spunky attitude (I imagine). She also has a little hair cut. Nothing major, but just enough for me to find her kinda special And if I do find Breezie I will buy her!

G2: I never liked these as a kid. I was a little too old to play with them when they came out, but I remember I was looking forward to new MLPs. The disappointment when I saw them was huge. Now I like them though. They do have their own unique style.

G4: I like the toys. The size grew on me, and the brushables are cute. What I don’t appreciate is the repetition. I don’t like the show. I don’t like the personalities of the ponies. But the toys are fine. I have several because my nieces likes to play with them when they come over. I bought them at flea markets for this purpose. So they are not part of my collection.

G5: I don’t know anything about these toys. I know they are coming or out there, but I never seen anything from this line. Maybe they will become higher up, but right now I have no idea

All the other stuff: I have no idea. Not because I dislike, but because I don’t know. My main focus has always been g1, and I have just not been that interested in the other stuff. I can’t really keep up!