[Serpion5]

Yea bud. At least three and I suspect more. :wink:

 

[DeathKlokk]

http://www.collegehumor.com/video/6716898/my-little-brony

 

[Romanov77]

This is one of the rare cases in which the phrase "cleanse, purge, kill" would really be fitting in real life.

 

[WaLkAwaY]

Go easy on the bronies, some of them are staff...admins even

I don't understand.

What is the appeal?

Why do bronies like it?

What is it about it that attracts them to it?

Although it might sound like I am wanting them to justify it to me I do not I simply want to understand what the appeal is for grown men to like and want to play with something that is targeted at ages 3+.

 

[Serpion5]

I don't understand.

What is the appeal?

Why do bronies like it?

What is it about it that attracts them to it?

Although it might sound like I am wanting them to justify it to me I do not I simply want to understand what the appeal is for grown men to like and want to play with something that is targeted at ages 3+.

For me it's like a nostalgia hit. It reminds me somewhat of the simple children's cartoons I would watch as a child. Happier times. Naturally, I could just watch cartoons from my own time but this provides the same feel and is something new.

I also watch several other children's cartoons as do other bronies I understand, so it may not necessarily be the one show that draws this kind of audience.

 

[CJay]

Has someone called this dude a *** yet?

 

[Galahad]

Has someone called this dude a *** yet?

Not if they want to keep from being banned, they haven't. We don't put up with that kind of derogatory crap here. Just remember that if you would like to keep posting here

now, on to the actual question that was asked

I don't understand.

What is the appeal?

Why do bronies like it?

What is it about it that attracts them to it?

Although it might sound like I am wanting them to justify it to me I do not I simply want to understand what the appeal is for grown men to like and want to play with something that is targeted at ages 3+.

Let me ask a couple counter-questions:

Would you think a woman who likes transformers or gi joe is a lesbian and/or pedophile or otherwise defective or strange? No, you'd probably think she was pretty awesome. (Not saying that's what you think, but it's the two most common assumptions/accusations when people learn a grown man likes a show for little girls)

So what makes the reverse so strange?

I've always liked cartoons, never outgrew them. So the fact it's a cartoon doesn't matter to me. The fact it's a children's show doesn't matter either since most cartoons are. As long as it;s well written, I'll watch it. I still watch Animaniacs on DVD, Freakazoid, even the original Transformers cartoon, which was anything but well written.

The current run of MLP is actually fairly well written and though obviously not an adult-oriented primetime cartoon show like family guy, it;s still not strictly for children. The show was written so that parents could watch it with their children without wanting to kill themselves.

The fact that it would appeal to other adults who don't have children shouldn't be too surprising. It was made for people of all ages to enjoy


As to why I enjoy it...well, it's quite funny in places, there's some hidden references to things children wouldn't get (the entire cast of The Big Lebowski was featured in the background of a scene that took place in a bowling alley, for example...even The Jesus), but mainly for me...it;s just something positive.

The world is dark and scary, politics are a nightmare of gridlock and spite for the opposition, rne news is full of shootings and drugs and day to day horrir, 90% of the shows I watch are dark or twisted in some manner, I play the grimdarkest wargame ever to exist...why would I not welcome one little half hour of sunshine and positivity once a week? It gives me a warm, snuggly little slice of time where I can just be happy and relax.

What's wrong with that?

ALso, there's something to be said about the sheer level of trollish satisfaction that comes from knowing that merely by enjoying the most innofensive thing in the world, i'm actively offending some small-minded internet cunt. Seriously, the thought that a grownup likes a cartoon that they don't personally like actually pisses people off. It's wried, but I enjoy the fact that me ejoying something about love and tolerance pisses someone else off for no reason whatsoever. It causes people to make fools of themselves, practically falling over themselves for the chance to show what an asshole they are by hating on something cute and harmless because someone else dares to like it.

 

[WaLkAwaY]

For me it's like a nostalgia hit. It reminds me somewhat of the simple children's cartoons I would watch as a child. Happier times. Naturally, I could just watch cartoons from my own time but this provides the same feel and is something new.

I also watch several other children's cartoons as do other bronies I understand, so it may not necessarily be the one show that draws this kind of audience.

Does it also have something to do with the animation? I know people follow animators around watching their work.

I am not a huge manga or japanese cartoon fan but I really like the Appleseed movies.

EDIT:

Would you think a woman who likes transformers or gi joe is a lesbian and/or pedophile or otherwise defective or strange? No, you'd probably think she was pretty awesome. (Not saying that's what you think, but it's the two most common assumptions/accusations when people learn a grown man likes a show for little girls)

So what makes the reverse so strange?

That was not my intent. Nor was I looking to offend any of you. I just wanted a picture painted for my own knowledge. Everyone finds different avenues for their escapism. And I quite like G.I. Joe and Transformers. I actually like a lot of things that are really violent, movies, sparring, books, etc... I have a tendency toward violence myself in my training.

I've always liked cartoons, never outgrew them. So the fact it's a cartoon doesn't matter to me. The fact it's a children's show doesn't matter either since most cartoons are. As long as it;s well written, I'll watch it. I still watch Animaniacs on DVD, Freakazoid, even the original Transformers cartoon, which was anything but well written.

The current run of MLP is actually fairly well written and though obviously not an adult-oriented primetime cartoon show like family guy, it;s still not strictly for children. The show was written so that parents could watch it with their children without wanting to kill themselves.

The fact that it would appeal to other adults who don't have children shouldn't be too surprising. It was made for people of all ages to enjoy


As to why I enjoy it...well, it's quite funny in places, there's some hidden references to things children wouldn't get (the entire cast of The Big Lebowski was featured in the background of a scene that took place in a bowling alley, for example...even The Jesus), but mainly for me...it;s just something positive.

The world is dark and scary, politics are a nightmare of gridlock and spite for the opposition, rne news is full of shootings and drugs and day to day horrir, 90% of the shows I watch are dark or twisted in some manner, I play the grimdarkest wargame ever to exist...why would I not welcome one little half hour of sunshine and positivity once a week? It gives me a warm, snuggly little slice of time where I can just be happy and relax.

What's wrong with that?

Nothing wrong with that.

ALso, there's something to be said about the sheer level of trollish satisfaction that comes from knowing that merely by enjoying the most innofensive thing in the world, i'm actively offending some small-minded internet cunt. Seriously, the thought that a grownup likes a cartoon that they don't personally like actually pisses people off. It's wried, but I enjoy the fact that me ejoying something about love and tolerance pisses someone else off for no reason whatsoever. It causes people to make fools of themselves, practically falling over themselves for the chance to show what an asshole they are by hating on something cute and harmless because someone else dares to like it.

Haha, well I guess we all have to get our little pleasures as we can.

 

[emporershand89]

The fact it's a children's show doesn't matter either since most cartoons are

So Galahad let me get this strait so I make sure I'm understand. Your justifying grouping shows such as Naruto, Gundam, Ben 10, Yu-Gi-Oh, and other such shows targeting teens with TV series like My Little Pony, Barney, Dora the Explorer, Rolly Polly Olly, and other such childish cartoons?

I must respectfully disagree sir, they are nothing alike. My Little Pony is for young girls below 12 in my honest opinion. The fact that grown men, and women, continue to like the show is beyond me but one thing is clear. This show cannot be grouped with the more action based shows, and anime/manga series that have aired on Adult Swim, Boomerang, and other such channels. They are completely different. :ireful2:

Although it might sound like I am wanting them to justify it to me I do not I simply want to understand what the appeal is for grown men to like and want to play with something that is targeted at ages 3+.

Amen, good sir let me +1 you there for a great quote.

 

[Galahad]

So Galahad let me get this strait so I make sure I'm understand. Your justifying grouping shows such as Naruto, Gundam, Ben 10, Yu-Gi-Oh, and other such shows targeting teens with TV series like My Little Pony, Barney, Dora the Explorer, Rolly Polly Olly, and other such childish cartoons?

I must respectfully disagree sir, they are nothing alike. My Little Pony is for young girls below 12 in my honest opinion. The fact that grown men, and women, continue to like the show is beyond me but one thing is clear. This show cannot be grouped with the more action based shows, and anime/manga series that have aired on Adult Swim, Boomerang, and other such channels. They are completely different. :ireful2:

Actually, I think you;re profoundly misinformed as to the target demographic.
It's not a toddler/preschooler show. I'm not sure what you imagine it being, but it's not a mindless 'pretty colors and silly voices to amuse infants' program.

It's aimed at young girls and teens just like Ben10 is aimed at young boys and teens.
In fact, it's aimed at the same age range as Transformers. It CAN be watched by younger children because the general lack of violence, but it's *aimed* at the sisters of the boys watching GI Joe and Transformers saturday morning. It features fully developed stories and plots, complex themes about friendship and how to deal with people or situations, etc, references past episodes and features multi-part story arcs. Storywise it's on par with most other TV shows aimed at the kids and teens bracket. They may not be stories you care for, but it doesn't make them less valid or mature.

It just has less punching.
Seriously, you putting MLP in with barney and teletubbies and the like is as silly to me as me putting it in with gundam and ben 10.

Why do you think it's a show for infants? Have you ever even seen it? I'm not saying you;re not allowed to dislike something without having watched every episode...but you should at least see enough to have a vague idea of what you're talking about if you're going to categorize it with such authority.

Seriously, baffled here.

Does it also have something to do with the animation? I know people follow animators around watching their work.

I am not a huge manga or japanese cartoon fan but I really like the Appleseed movies.

The animation is a plus. It's generally good quality and has an endearing charm to it. I actually didn't like the art style at first, but its simple forms and bold lines grew on me, and it is pretty damned cute.

I don't think anyone came into it following the animators though.
However, a lot of people DID come to it because of its creator and former head writer, Lauren Faust. She was a writer for shows like Foster's home for Imaginary Friends and Powerpuff Girls (I think she's actually married to the creater of PPG)

I don't know about you, but I loved the powerpuff girls back in the day. It looked like a cutesie girly cartoon, but it featured a lot of very messed up funny stuff.

That was not my intent. Nor was I looking to offend any of you. I just wanted a picture painted for my own knowledge.

Fair enough, and for the record I didn't think you were. but i know that;s what some other people were thinking (as evidenced by CJay's lovely little homophobic gem) so I figured I'd pose the question.

Everyone finds different avenues for their escapism. And I quite like G.I. Joe and Transformers. I actually like a lot of things that are really violent, movies, sparring, books, etc... I have a tendency toward violence myself in my training.

Likewise. I'm loving Transformers Prime right now, and most of the other shows and comics I enjoy are pretty violent (walking dead, anyone?) MLP is probably the one actively nonviolent thing I really enjoy...partially because it's intelligently written and genuinely enjoyable WITHOUT having to be violent. I can watch it and relax without feeling like my brain is going to melt. It's the one cute sweet happy thing in my viewing history. Helps keep me centered and cheers me up when I need it.

 

[emporershand89]

I suppose I should clarify then. I have actually been made to watch my little pony. My girlfriend invites her GF's over to use my Netflix to watch the 1st Season, and probably the 2nd Season, though idk if it's on there. So yes, I have seen it.

To me Galahad it is just as you said...

I'm not sure what you imagine it being, but it's not a mindless 'pretty colors and silly voices to amuse infants' program

....I consider this to bee a little child's show. I will give you it's not Telly Tubbies or Barney; perhaps that was a bit much. But it still falls into that pre-teen category. The only reason I believe MLP is so successful outside of the kid spectrum is because it's marketing team has done a fantastic job at selling the brand to everyone.

Anyone female can love ponies, even the bro's can be "Bronies." As stupid as I think it is I must admit it's brilliant marketing scheme.

It's aimed at young girls and teens just like Ben10 is aimed at young boys and teens.

Fair enough, though I feel Ben 10 was designed for Teens and college kids, like Yu-Gi-Oh was when I was in school. MLP started as a kids show, but grew into something larger. Sorry bro, but on this one it's just differences of perspective between you and me

 

[Galahad]

I suppose I should clarify then. I have actually been made to watch my little pony. My girlfriend invites her GF's over to use my Netflix to watch the 1st Season, and probably the 2nd Season, though idk if it's on there. So yes, I have seen it.

So, let me ask you...do you quesdtion your girlfriend and her friends for watching a 'little child's show'? Do you think anything less of them? Do you think that they can't handle a mature and complex subject as a boy who turns into alien superheroes?

....I consider this to bee a little child's show. I will give you it's not Telly Tubbies or Barney; perhaps that was a bit much. But it still falls into that pre-teen category.

That's the thing...people assume that just because they watched and enjoyed a show at a certain age that it was targeted for people of that age.

Ben10 is a kids' show as much as MLP is. THey target the same demo and despite the fact that a lot of adults and older kids enjoy the show, the majority of the people it's being sold to are in the younger bracket who presure their folks into buying toys and sugar cereals.

Conversely, I know people who, when they were say 4 or 5, watched the old 'Batman: The Animated Series' in the 90s and adored it, literally absorbed every minute of it and made their parents buy every action figure.
Would you say that just because young children enjoyed the show that it;s only for them? Obviously not, B:TAS was a fantastically written series that appealed and still appeals to people of all ages.

I'm not putting MLP on the same exalted tier as that bastion of animated programming, but it;s an example of a show that was marketed at little children who did most of the merch-buying, but was intelligently written and thus beloved by the adult audience of the time.

Yes, there are lots of small girls who adore MLP and make their folks buy all the ponies, but that doesn't mean that the show isn't intelligently written and capable of appealing to someone not primarily interested in having tea parties for their dollies, any more than superhero shoes are meant exclusively for kids who run around in their underoos with towels for capes.

You assume superhero shows are targeted at an older audience *because you enjoy them* and if you enjoy them they MUST be meant for older kids.

But someone else who likes something you don't is guilty of watching something out of their demographic and therefore there must be something wrong with them.

The only reason I believe MLP is so successful outside of the kid spectrum is because it's marketing team has done a fantastic job at selling the brand to everyone.

Anyone female can love ponies, even the bro's can be "Bronies." As stupid as I think it is I must admit it's brilliant marketing scheme.

You may not realize it, but that's both profoundly ignorant of what most Bronies think, but it;s also more than a little insulting.

For starters, most bronies HATE Hasbro's marketing division because they;re constantly making the show MORE kiddy-girly, meddeling with the plots and goals of the writers and creator (Faust ended up leaving because Hasbro kept trying to dull her ideas down) and utterly fucking up the merchendise. It was almost impossible to get show-accurate merch that the adult collectors were wanting. Celestia, the goddess-figure of the show is a white winged unicorn...her first toys were PINK...why? Because Hasbro figured they would sell more pink toy horsies than white ones. Doesn't matter that it didn't match the character. And it's still almost impossible to find high-quality plushes of the characters. It wasn't until bronies started making and selling them themselves that Hasbro even bothered looking in that direction.

Fuck, it was two years before they even started putting out DVDs in season-sets instead of one-episode mini-disc pack ins with the dollies bronies don't want to buy. Seriously, the show may be written with more than just little girls in mind, but it was *marketed* exclusively to them until very recently.

So as someone who's heard the epic rants of toy collecting bronies, I find the very notion that hasbro's marketing department *attracted* people to the show to be laughable in the extreme. How is Hasbro selling it to adult men when every thing they do is aimed at selling it to the show's actual target demo. They've gone out of their way (until recently) to all but say "This show isn't for you"


Now, for the insulting bit.
Do you have any idea how iutterly back-handed and smug it sounds for *you* (who until now felt the show was meant to entertain infants) to tell *me* that the only reason *I* like something is because I fell for a marketing scheme?
Seriously, think about what you just said and understand why I'm restraining every urge to tell you to go fuck yourself. I realize you probably didn't mean for it to come off that way, but that's seriously about the most smug, superior, condescending thing I've heard in quite a while. I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt.

You don't know why I like the things I like. You don't know me, you obviously don't know the show, and you don't know the fandom. To sit there and say to me that the only reason people enjoy what they enjoy is because they were sold on it by marketers is just incredibly, monumentally insulting.

Plus, it's laughably ironic, considering you yourself enjoy shows created for small children and sponsored entirely by toy sales. But because *you* like it, and it's 'for boys' you're NOT the victim of a marketing scheme, you're just an astute consumer who knows what he likes...because the company told you it's for you, because you're a boy. Even if you're right and the show IS actually targeted at college kids...how is a young adult male who watches a show supposedly targeted at young adult makes, NOT a victim of marketing while a young adult male who watches a show targeted at little girls IS a victim of clever marketing? Seriously, wrap your brain around that one. You're watching what they say you're supposed to watch, I'm watching what they say I'm not supposed to watch, for which there is virtually no desirable merchandise that hasn't been created by third-parries or the fans themselves, and I'm the one who got suckered by hasbro?

Now, please...don't ever presume to know the inner workings of my mind. Do not tell me why I like something, or call me the victim of creative marketing while implying that you are not.

I'm being very nice right now because it's what Fluttershy would do.
Rainbow Dash would kick your ass, however.

 

[Galahad]

For the record: Bronies actually started on 4Chan of all places. The cesspit of the internet.

An early review of the show (by someone who clearly hadn't watched it and was just going off of hasbro's marketing teasers and images) claimed it was sexist and terrible and sugary-girly...so 4channers flocked to watch the train wreck in progress...only to find that the show actually wasn't any of that and that somehow the candy colored ponies and their largely nonviolent adventures in friendship were quite appealing.

Think about that. 4chan is where we come from. Bronies were originally /B/ronies, named for the /B/ random section of 4chan...which is like the Mos Eisley Spaceport of the internet. Bronies spread so explosively because /B/tards (as they call themselves) started chuirning out pony mem,es and used them, rather expertly, to troll every corner of the internet that they could, including itself, because everything on 4chan is a cander that consumes itself.

Eventually Bronies got banned from 4chan...then Moot and the mod squad realized they had just turned their backs on one of the biggest, most explosively growing internet communities to date, and one that they had spawned...and now we have our own board on 4chan.

Seriously, look that shit up. Bronies came from 4chan. Hasbro had no idea what we were or where we came from ubtil very recently. You still get vestiges of it in the cuddlier corners of the community. People who contribute art are known as 'Drawfriends' on Equestria Daily and some other pony blogs...why? Because the 4chan term for people who contribute original art is "drawfags" because, well, it's 4chan and they're assholes.

You know how I started watching ponies?
It wasn't from seeing ads for it while watching Transformers.
I don't even have the hub.

A friend of mine started spamming me with cute little semi-offensive pony image macros and mashup videos and fan music...and eventually I cot curious and started watching it on youtube.

I don't have the hub, I've never seen a pony commercial, I don't own any big pony dolls with brusbable manes and frilly dresses...just a handful of the random-packed figurines like the ones that some of our very enterprising heritics are converting to 40k minis as we speak. But I enjoy the show, and the comics, and the wonderfully demented fan community.

And the comic series, BTW, IS directly targeted at the adult brony community, packed with grown-up references, fucked-up scenarios (one villian takes a cuddly kitten and slaughters it in front of some pony children), and shout-outs to all the crazy fan-favorite background characters that hasbro doesn;t even know exists.

 

[CJay]

I'm going to spend the next two weeks having an awesome adventure, which is why I won't be posting here for a while. Totally not because I got banned for being alarmingly uncivil.

That post MAY have been edited to remove explicit and incredibly stupid attacks on a site admin. -G

 

[Galahad]

And it's people like CJay that are why bronies tend to be a might bit sensitive and defensive of their tastes...because for every one person that genuinely wants to understand why we get it, there's a dozen little twats out there saying we like to fuck horses, or worse.

 

[Serpion5]

Does it also have something to do with the animation? I know people follow animators around watching their work.

Not so much for me, though I will agree that the animation on the show is incredibly well done 95% of the time.

 

[Galahad]

Though the 5% when something gets fucked up can be amusing too. Animation errors are the best ponies.

Seriously though, most of the time it looks great.

 

[emporershand89]

do you quesdtion your girlfriend and her friends for watching a 'little child's show'?

Yes I do actually. I've come to accept that they will watch it, but I always pose the question. However it always is meet with the evil response of, "You will cook dinner tonight."

You assume superhero shows are targeted at an older audience *because you enjoy them* and if you enjoy them they MUST be meant for older kids.

You may not realize this but the above statement is incredibly ignorant of the actual situation at hand. Most people do not assume that superheroes were targeted for children anymore than people think Playboy was targeted just for grown men.

If you listen to what Stan Lee, Bill Finger, and Bob Kane have said about there comics it has little to do with children. If anything they openly admit they are targeting all audiences in the effort to bring them a good story. Many of the people who grew up reading these comics now go and watch the movies in the same fashion that Star Trek Fans who grew up with Spock and Kirk now go see the new Star Trek movies.

It is not that these people grow out of loving their childhood TV stars; they just mature and don't make a habit of constantly watching them. When girls of my generation watched Sailor Moon and us boys watched DragonBall Z we loved them back then. However, now that were all in our mid-late 20's I often here people look back on it as "that show I did watch." They may watch it on the rare occasion, but they do not follow it religiously.

My point here Galahad is simply that I believe MLP is for children, maybe even young teens. The fact that women over 25, and grown men over 25, are into watching the show that was not made in there generation neither targeted them is a little strange.

 

[Serpion5]

It is not that these people grow out of loving their childhood TV stars; they just mature and don't make a habit of constantly watching them. When girls of my generation watched Sailor Moon and us boys watched DragonBall Z we loved them back then. However, now that were all in our mid-late 20's I often here people look back on it as "that show I did watch." They may watch it on the rare occasion, but they do not follow it religiously.

Nobody follows a cartoon religiously. You watch it and you enjoy it.

I have the entire dragonball z and gt collections and I watch them when I am in the right mood. Ditto I have some of the MLP episodes on iTunes because I like to be able to watch them at will without fear of losing them on Youtube.

I've also tracked down numerous old Disney films like The Lion King and The Black Cauldron, I've obtained Looney Tunes and Nickelodeon tv series and I still enjoy most of them when the mood strikes.

Growing up happens, maturing is required but leaving behind the things you enjoyed is an option. The mentality that it HAS to happen is half the problem with people who insist on deriding people like bronies simply for having an interest like this.

 

[Apfeljunge]

My point here Galahad is simply that I believe MLP is for children, maybe even young teens. The fact that women over 25, and grown men over 25, are into watching the show that was not made in there generation neither targeted them is a little strange.

And here is where you are wrong imo. MLP:FiM was originally intended by it's creator for parents to be watched with their children. The intelligent and mature writing and the three dimensional characters are proof of that. FiM is no different to Pixar films in that regard.

You don't have like the show. It clearly doesn't appeal to everybody. But I don't think that anyone can take an honest look at it and not see that is was made to be watched by children AND adults. The adults that are watching it might be different than the ones it was thought for but I think the Bronies are living proof that the idea works even better than expected. You don't have to be a parent watch the show with your kid. Being a fan of good cartoons with an open mind is more than enough in most cases.

Nobody follows a cartoon religiously.

I can't get behind that statement. The Bronies are probably the perfect example of a cult fandom (like many other shows or sports have, too) and a great portion of it, even if it's not the majority probably, are quite religious about the show. spending a few hours on Equestria Daily makes that clear, i think.