My Balls Are on Sale
*holds head*
Okay, confession time. When I was a kid, I had a VHS tape that had two cartoons on it; My Little Pony: The Movie and The Chipmunk Adventure. As I loved cartoons, I didn't think much of it, I just watched 'em. And to my credit, the Smooze is a pretty cool non-dangerous villain for kids (and a irritatingly catchy song). But over time I started watching mainly only the Chipmunk half, and even then it was mainly for the songs (okay, one song). And I was pissed when I lost that tape, because it was part of my childhood. Not just the movies, but the tape itself, having those two movie back to back was just what I'd always known of them; I'd never seen either movie on it's own, or ever one television, so I was not happy.
Now, skip ahead to today. I still love cartoons, and I've previously admitted to liking shows I should have no right enjoying because I am so far outside the intended range of what they're aiming for.
But I can't help it.
It's just...
They're...
It's just.
So.
Fucking.
Cute.
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. I have no words. There really is no defense. It's bright, cheery, sweet, sachrine, peppy, happy, girly, fluffy, oh my god why can't I stop watching this?!
There's this guy on Deviantart called JollyJack. He drew this and reference the show. I blame him for the lose of the last two hours.
It's not totally uncalled for. I've stated in cartoon posts before, I enjoy girl-oriented cartoons just as much as the guy stuff. If anything I'm pissed that the girls are treated so... girly, instead of just making good stories. Jem and Holograms and Wildfire are two shows I really, really would like to see come back, because they had so much that could be done with them. Girls kicking ass doesn't mean they have to be part of a larger boys team.
But this is still just... I don't know, it works. Yeah, you turn off your brain, but it's not annoying like Spongebob, it's not crude like any pick of what's on Cartoon Network half the time anymore, the art is clean, and as was pointed out, the facial expressions are pretty damn funny most of the time.
Part of what makes it easier to digest is that the show's creator (or at least this incarnation of it) is one Lauren Faust. Don't know that name? Well, she's the wife of slightly better known Craig McCracken, the dude who created The Powerpuff Girls and my favorite Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (love it), both of which Faust worked on with him as well. Her resume, while short, is impressive to animation fans: Cats Don't Dance, The Iron Giant, Quest for Camelot, as well as the aforementioned but a few other TV shows.
Here's the thing about this show I think; there are lot more boys watching it than they are ever gonna admit to. Guys don't say they watch this stuff, but they do. You just won't catch them.
The first two episodes set it all up; six female ponies, each with an easy to identify color and personality disorder trait, one cute baby dragon for any guy who gets "roped" into watching", and plenty of standard daytime story fare. What the first episodes do well, is they get some good action and a bit of darkness in early; that way, should they want to, they can have a deeper story later on. It's not just "happy, shiny, giggly" up until a two-parter comes along out of the blue; they started with an arc, so they can return to something similar later.
Following episodes are, as I said, fairly standard Saturday morning stock. Little problems that are turned into big issues (not something unfamiliar to sitcoms), characters ignoring things that should be obvious, and some minor slapstick here and there. One thing I give high kudos to the girls genre of animation, they will almost never go for crude or gross-out humor; not to the extent or visual level a boys cartoon will. But the stories work, because we're talking about neon dipped equestrians with personal logos on their asses and names that a hippie wouldn't use in a sprinkle bakery. They don't need Avatar: TLA depth, because it's two different ideas, and there's nothing wrong with that.
The show changes quite a few things from past series (yes, I watched those two, what are you gonna make of it?!). For one, there are guy ponies. And not just a couple token dudes that are obnoxious and there mainly to pit against whatever the girls are doing, there's just... guys. Not as many as the girls, mind you, but they are represented. There's also a ruling queen, sorry "princess" (no little girl wants to be queen, too much responsibility), a better sense of world structure, and a small core cast. Before, there were ponies that pretty much starred, but you really had no idea who was gonna be lead that episode. Now, you have six leads and room to mix and match what's going to happen to whom. There's the belltails of fixing problems and showing kids ways to better themselves, but that's so standard of something like this you can't even really mention it. It's expected, you know it's gonna be there, so just learn the lesson and enjoy the show.
I'll mention voice actresses too, since this is kinda interesting; besides the need for extras, there's really only three four of them. Tara Strong, so prolific that it's not even funny, plays the lead pony Twilight Sparkle (*hissss* Twilight...), a name so pwecious that it's beneath me to make fun of it. Tabitha St. Germain, a solid worker who usually ends up playing "you know, that other one" in just about everything she does, as the non-snobbish rich girl Rarity. Ashleigh Ball, a relative newcomer to voice work who plays the other four lead ponies, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Andrea Libman, whose work tends to err on the side of the girly stuff, is really the one who does Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy's voice; my bad, read that wrong.
The naming conventions are... well, it's My Little Pony, you knew what you were getting into. They really work it to the limit though, the first episode has a funny bit when you first meet Applejack and all her relatives are apple-related puns. It works, it's actually funny, and you almost wish you could meet more relatives of others to see what they territory they go into.
It's a decent show, I'd recommend it for anyone who wants a retro-nostaglia trip, has young daughters, or is baby-sitting some little girls. Get the bratty boy to sit his ass down by telling him there's a dragon in it. It's cute, it's harmless, it's good animation and story-telling, it's not a waste of a half-hour. Yeah, maybe you could find something better (or do a lot worse), but it's like watching Big; once it's one, you don't turn the channel until it's over. You're never sure why, but hey! it's not over yet, put that remote down or lose the hand!
I wouldn't know where to find it on an actual television, but that's why Youtube is your friend. Visit your friend.
Okay, confession time. When I was a kid, I had a VHS tape that had two cartoons on it; My Little Pony: The Movie and The Chipmunk Adventure. As I loved cartoons, I didn't think much of it, I just watched 'em. And to my credit, the Smooze is a pretty cool non-dangerous villain for kids (and a irritatingly catchy song). But over time I started watching mainly only the Chipmunk half, and even then it was mainly for the songs (okay, one song). And I was pissed when I lost that tape, because it was part of my childhood. Not just the movies, but the tape itself, having those two movie back to back was just what I'd always known of them; I'd never seen either movie on it's own, or ever one television, so I was not happy.
Now, skip ahead to today. I still love cartoons, and I've previously admitted to liking shows I should have no right enjoying because I am so far outside the intended range of what they're aiming for.
But I can't help it.
It's just...
They're...
It's just.
So.
Fucking.
Cute.
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. I have no words. There really is no defense. It's bright, cheery, sweet, sachrine, peppy, happy, girly, fluffy, oh my god why can't I stop watching this?!
There's this guy on Deviantart called JollyJack. He drew this and reference the show. I blame him for the lose of the last two hours.
It's not totally uncalled for. I've stated in cartoon posts before, I enjoy girl-oriented cartoons just as much as the guy stuff. If anything I'm pissed that the girls are treated so... girly, instead of just making good stories. Jem and Holograms and Wildfire are two shows I really, really would like to see come back, because they had so much that could be done with them. Girls kicking ass doesn't mean they have to be part of a larger boys team.
But this is still just... I don't know, it works. Yeah, you turn off your brain, but it's not annoying like Spongebob, it's not crude like any pick of what's on Cartoon Network half the time anymore, the art is clean, and as was pointed out, the facial expressions are pretty damn funny most of the time.
Part of what makes it easier to digest is that the show's creator (or at least this incarnation of it) is one Lauren Faust. Don't know that name? Well, she's the wife of slightly better known Craig McCracken, the dude who created The Powerpuff Girls and my favorite Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (love it), both of which Faust worked on with him as well. Her resume, while short, is impressive to animation fans: Cats Don't Dance, The Iron Giant, Quest for Camelot, as well as the aforementioned but a few other TV shows.
Here's the thing about this show I think; there are lot more boys watching it than they are ever gonna admit to. Guys don't say they watch this stuff, but they do. You just won't catch them.
The first two episodes set it all up; six female ponies, each with an easy to identify color and personality disorder trait, one cute baby dragon for any guy who gets "roped" into watching", and plenty of standard daytime story fare. What the first episodes do well, is they get some good action and a bit of darkness in early; that way, should they want to, they can have a deeper story later on. It's not just "happy, shiny, giggly" up until a two-parter comes along out of the blue; they started with an arc, so they can return to something similar later.
Following episodes are, as I said, fairly standard Saturday morning stock. Little problems that are turned into big issues (not something unfamiliar to sitcoms), characters ignoring things that should be obvious, and some minor slapstick here and there. One thing I give high kudos to the girls genre of animation, they will almost never go for crude or gross-out humor; not to the extent or visual level a boys cartoon will. But the stories work, because we're talking about neon dipped equestrians with personal logos on their asses and names that a hippie wouldn't use in a sprinkle bakery. They don't need Avatar: TLA depth, because it's two different ideas, and there's nothing wrong with that.
The show changes quite a few things from past series (yes, I watched those two, what are you gonna make of it?!). For one, there are guy ponies. And not just a couple token dudes that are obnoxious and there mainly to pit against whatever the girls are doing, there's just... guys. Not as many as the girls, mind you, but they are represented. There's also a ruling queen, sorry "princess" (no little girl wants to be queen, too much responsibility), a better sense of world structure, and a small core cast. Before, there were ponies that pretty much starred, but you really had no idea who was gonna be lead that episode. Now, you have six leads and room to mix and match what's going to happen to whom. There's the belltails of fixing problems and showing kids ways to better themselves, but that's so standard of something like this you can't even really mention it. It's expected, you know it's gonna be there, so just learn the lesson and enjoy the show.
I'll mention voice actresses too, since this is kinda interesting; besides the need for extras, there's really only three four of them. Tara Strong, so prolific that it's not even funny, plays the lead pony Twilight Sparkle (*hissss* Twilight...), a name so pwecious that it's beneath me to make fun of it. Tabitha St. Germain, a solid worker who usually ends up playing "you know, that other one" in just about everything she does, as the non-snobbish rich girl Rarity. Ashleigh Ball, a relative newcomer to voice work who plays the other four lead ponies, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Andrea Libman, whose work tends to err on the side of the girly stuff, is really the one who does Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy's voice; my bad, read that wrong.
The naming conventions are... well, it's My Little Pony, you knew what you were getting into. They really work it to the limit though, the first episode has a funny bit when you first meet Applejack and all her relatives are apple-related puns. It works, it's actually funny, and you almost wish you could meet more relatives of others to see what they territory they go into.
It's a decent show, I'd recommend it for anyone who wants a retro-nostaglia trip, has young daughters, or is baby-sitting some little girls. Get the bratty boy to sit his ass down by telling him there's a dragon in it. It's cute, it's harmless, it's good animation and story-telling, it's not a waste of a half-hour. Yeah, maybe you could find something better (or do a lot worse), but it's like watching Big; once it's one, you don't turn the channel until it's over. You're never sure why, but hey! it's not over yet, put that remote down or lose the hand!
I wouldn't know where to find it on an actual television, but that's why Youtube is your friend. Visit your friend.