Adventures in Animation: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

*sigh* Ho-kay...

Ever since I found out that "bronies" were a thing, I knew I'd have to give My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic a shot. Actually, the more I learned about it, the more I realized that, no matter how many pink ponies and ribbons this show featured, it was likely right up my alley. And that was BEFORE I found put that the first season Executive Producer, Lauren Faust, was a writer on the Cartoon Network classic, The Powerpuff Girls. So, yeah, is it any surprise that I wound up totally ADORING this show?.

Eh, maybe it is.

Unlike Adventure Time, which I could never fully wrap my head around, I can tell you EXACTLY what makes MLP: FiM so good. At least, I think I can. And it starts right at the title.

Okay, so the title of this show is ridiculous. Like, completely. Where traditional "boy shows" have always been free to explore all sorts of subjects, from action to drama to slapstick, "girl shows" tended to focus on more... fluffy subjects. Things like friendship and love and such. Now these themes were present in boys' stories, to be sure, but they were the THEMES of individual episodes rather than the be-all-end-all of the entire series.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that there wasn't a lot of depth to classic girls' entertainment, even at its best. And, at first glance, it appears that MLP: FiM indulges in the worst of those tendencies. Then the music starts in and somehow reinforces that perception EVEN MORE. It's all, "Friends are fun and magic and stuff!" It's got the same vibe as some of those really bad Jem songs: cheesy, sentimental, and just sort of poorly written.

AND YET... It all really works. So much entertainment nowadays, even children's entertainment, revels in how self-aware and cynical it can be. There's none of that in MLP: FiM. Yeah, it's cheesy and a little cliche, but it's unrelentingly sincere in the best way. The show really is a celebration of all the good things friendship can do. It's that unfeigned optimism that really helps draw me in.

And maybe it's just wishful thinking, but I can't help but think it wonderfully significant that a show so popular among 18 to 35 year old males features so many well-rounded female characters. Nearly the ENTIRE CAST is female, not just the series leads, and they all feel like real characters rather than the bundles of stereotypes stewed up by all-male marketing teams you saw in so many 80s cartoons. I mean, sure you've got one girl obsessed with fashion, and another obsessed with parties, but you've also got a bookish nerd, a shy animal-lover, a rough-riding cowgirl, and a possibly lesbian race car driver. So even though I can't name more than a handful of strong male characters, the show doesn't suffer at all without them.

Now, it's not a perfect show. I try not to think too much about the mechanics of the world. I mean, how do horses build houses and plant seeds and bake cakes WITHOUT THUMBS?! A civilization of horses keeps cows and sheep that are clearly sentient, so there are some morality issues to sort through. And, of course, there's the fact that there are HORSE DRAWN CARRIAGES in Ponyville. Slavery much?

Oh, and there's this trio of baby ponies (characters I really like, by the way) whose subplot makes me unendurably uncomfortable. In the pony world, when a pony grows up, he or she develops a "cutie mark," which is basically a tramp stamp displaying what the pony is good at. These three little ponies don't have their cutie marks yet, and their anticipation kinda grosses me out. It reminds me of that time when I was a boy and mistook Judy Blume for Beverly Cleary and read Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. I... wasn't quite ready for female maturation stuff. And, probably, I'm still not.

Man, that book messed me up.

But, in the end, I'll deal with the little grievances I have. MLP: FiM is a surprisingly great show. It's got a lot of humor, heart, sincerity, and other things that come together to make a veritable Captain Planet of entertainment, while never getting so "girlie" as to drive away its audience. Heck, even that silly, whimsical music manages to make the show better. Maybe it's just because I live in Utah, where we're experiencing the wildest winter we've had in years, but I can't help but get this big, stupid, excited grin every time I hear this song.

But, uh, I probably shouldn't tell you how many times I've listened to it.