okay, long wall of text incoming, it's just, something I want to get out of my head.

That, is pretty much how I feel. With all this fear and anxiety over what might be coming. Of what Hasbro might be doing to this show we love. I think it's time we all jus stopped, took a deep breathe, and looked around. Sure, the show is AMAZING, it is what brought us all together. BUT! It is not, by this point the end all and be all of who we, as a community are. Becuase, to me and I know so so many others, we are not just a fandom anymore, we are a community. A place where so many people, for the first time, feel like they belong.

Will I be sad to see the show end, either through cancellation, or being twisted by Executive Meddling into a pale shell of it's former glory? Oh hell yeah. But it need not be the end. While the show is important. Nothing that may come will change what has already been given to us. The joy, the laughter, the message of friendship that has touched so many, change so many peoples lives for the better, will still be there. We, as a community, quite honestly do not need the show to continue to keep it's spirit alive. What is it that kept us going during the long droughts between seasons? Each other. Our art, music, stories. And, as cliched as this sounds, our friendship.

I have made so SO many more close, dear friends since becoming a brony then I have ever had before. And they are not predicated solely upon us watching MLP. But on us simply being friends. We produce so much on our own, have such creativity, and such a bond to each other (For the most part). That while loss of the show would be a blow, it needs not be a mortal one. We can choose to stay, to preserve the lessons we've learned, to keep the fires of friendship burning.

I know I'm rambling and going on to long, so let me just sum it up. To me, and to so so many more, this fandom is more then just, well fans, it is a group, a shining beacon of love, acceptance, friendship. A place to belong, to be welcomed whole heartedly. That, is what, to me, makes us special. not simply loving a show, even one like MLP. But being dedicated to each other. To being a bastion of hope, creativity, and caring where all are welcomed and accepted. And I hope, beg, ask, and pray. That when the time comes, when the show that started this movement ceases to be. Either fully, or as it once was. That we do not put out that beacon. But stay together. Keep it burning.

Though FIM my end, it's lessons, it's impacts, the lives it has touched and changed will remain. Please, everyone. Calm down, look around, and see what this fandom and this show has given us so far. Nothing can take that away. Only you can choose to abandon them. We can survive, as long as we stick together. No matter what happens to the show, I will awalys be proud to be a brony. And I hope others feel the same

To all the bronies out there. I love you all

Seraphem.

What is this I hear about a TV movie and can I have a link?

They are launching an all new pony IP aimed at teens. And it will start with a TV movie.

No details beyond that, but the venue they stated for when they WILL release the information and unveil it is the San Diego Comic-Con

Panzerfaust

Ya gotta believe

boing~ Boingy~

Hedgehog mane

(btw the EVO leak build is still out there)

edited 9th Feb '13 7:23:36 PM by AceOfScarabs

OOC: Well fuck. Orion is much older than Rainbow.

... *sigh*

Today I realized that my anime club is the home of something I never thought I'd see in person: the idiot brony.

He claims that he hates all of Season 3 because he feels it "focuses too much on the fandom, " and he only watched up to episode 6 before he stopped.

and... to sappy?

@Nom: Ignore the false believer!

Insert Saiyan joke here

I can see that S3 has been focusing a bit on the fans, but not any more than S2 did. I mean, how can he complain that S3 is worse than S2 in that regard when S2 has stuff like Derpy everywhere and a Fluttertree reference?

She does look like Raditz there.

edited 9th Feb '13 7:27:32 PM by TheFreeman

I admit Season Three has been Pandering To The Fanbase a bit, and not in very subtle ways at all. However, while I tend to loathe such cases, this is a rare time I've actually enjoyed a lot of it, if only because it lacks the usual forcedness it has and it's blatant the writers still put some actual passion and care into the stuff anyway.

Lauren Faust once again shows she is awesome.◊

I can't really think of a whole lot of things that would be considered pandering that would not have happened if it weren't for the fanbase.

Looking at that picture of Twilight with the porcupine hair again, for some reason it makes me think of Carnival.

x11

Aimed at teens you say. Got a link to the announcement for these things?

To be fair, that part was unintentional.

Yeah, i love it becuase it's clearly NOT "hey stick this in because we need something to make the fans happy and don't want to put effort into it." it's not shallow, it's not forced, and it's not just for cheap points with the fans.

It's because the writers and artists truly appreciate us, and are doing this to show it. It's a heart felt thank you from them. Not a cheap ploy.

Honestly, the only episode I feel that was Pandering to the Base was "Magic Duel". That episode can be described as an Adaptation Distillation of every Trixie fanfic ever.... and it was glorious.

Also, for those asking about the TV move & new IP, have an article

edited 9th Feb '13 7:40:33 PM by Calnos

Yeah, the thing is that pandering isn't automatically bad. It's only bad when it's forced and its inclusion damages the quality of the episode. If it doesn't affect the quality, or enhances it, there's nothing wrong with it.

Case in point, "Magic Duel" is obviously a result of the fanbase, but at the same time it's well written, and it works perfectly well as an episode even if you aren't familiar with the fanbase. It can stand on its own.

Yeah, try telling him that. He won't listen.

I am about to visit memebase to see what sort of hell has taken place there in the last 24 hours. Wish me luck and a safe journey.

I feel the same way. Although I haven't made any friends, the over all energy and lessons on friendship has rekindled some of my lost idealism and helps me cope with a severe case of chronic depression. Although many of my days aren't happy ones, I can still feel better after watching an episode, read some of the heartwarming stories, and in general take in the atmosphere of the community.

So Yeah, I know we can get through this, it only tests the resolve and faith in the show, but we will only grow stronger and more tight-nit because of it.

Btw, sorry for being personal, but it's a very personal show for me.

Yeah, Pandering is bad at times, since it's blatant the writers don't really give a crap about it, and are just regurgitating what the fanbase says about them for cheap 'sucking up'. The quality is often terrible and forced in these cases and sometimes actually slows the pace of the show down just to show off how they 'listen' to their audience.

The most blatant example I can of this right now is Family Guy which has lengthy Self-Deprecation gags, and in many cases not even gags, just the characters going into lengthy rants about how much the creators and show suck. Nothing about the show has actually altered according to these critisms, so it's blatant they don't really feel these critisms are valid, but hey if they lampshade them over and over in such a blatant manner it shows they've listened at least. Right? RIGHT?

The FIM examples have some rather blatant nods at times, but they do at least try to blend them well into a proper story and make them something they actually care for.

edited 9th Feb '13 7:49:59 PM by Psi001

Wow...there was no drama on memebase.

...

I don't understand the internet anymore.

Eh, I don't even think Magic Duel was that pandering. The staff seemed to like her, so it didn't surprise me much that they would chose her to have a return role.