Never
underestimate your enemy, or your potential entertainment source.
Sometimes disappointment will win out, but other times you may find a
pleasant surprise lurking where you least expect it. Here are six works
I found waiting just around that proverbial corner.
6. Stop me if you’ve heard this one...
You all know where this is going.
“My
Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is a great show that’s not just for
little girls anymore. An unexpected amount of 18-to-21-year-old men are
watching and loving the show. Blah, blah, blah blah.” - A ridiculous number of legitimate news articles
I’m
not disagreeing. In fact it was because this thing was creeping around
the internet that I decided to take a look. I knew a guy in college
who was enjoying it. One of my childhood friends was also into the show. So I
tried it.
Each
episode was like one of those shortbread cookies that are so sweet and
so addictive you just have to eat one more. Just one more, you promise
yourself as your hand comes out of the cookie jar with twelve.
The
strength of the show does not lie with the cutesy factor, although a
few “D’aww” moments do not hurt. Rather it comes from the characters.
You will find endless debates about “___ is the best pony!” Many of
the arguments will have a solid foundation. Almost all the characters,
especially the Mane Six, are given both strengths and weaknesses.
Episodes give them chances to explore those strengths or challenges the
weaknesses. While stereotypes can be found within the characters, they
don’t adhere completely to them. A fabulous example is the unicorn
Rarity.
Image from HubWorld.com
Rarity
was I character I was expecting to be annoyed with. A fashionista. A
diva. If she had nails, heaven forbid one that should break. All
points of her character, but not her entirety.
In terms of fashion she is first and foremost an artist.
There is skill and expertise behind her craft and she works hard at
it. Her profession is her passion. As a hobby artist/writer myself and
daughter of a watercolor artist, I can relate to Rarity in
that.
While
overdramatic, Rarity had no lack in smarts or commonsense. Not the
strongest or most athletic of the cast, she has relied on her wits and
her knowledge of interpersonal relations to overcome challenges and
out-maneuver dangers. Miss Rarity teaches that a strong female
character does not have to be sporting biceps.
- This is not a female character. -
Image from MLP.wikia.com. Episode "Hurricane Fluttershy"
Lastly,
but most importantly, is where her moral core lies. She dreams of
recognition, both as a beauty and as a professional and will take great
pains to maintain both. Eventually, as it is with any good story, her
highly-held reputation will meet an adversary known as “doing the right
thing.” It may be instantaneous or it may be journey throughout the
episode, but in the end it is always Rarity’s reputation that she will
sacrifice.
This
show was good enough to take a stereotype that I not only disliked, but
actively tried to distance myself from, and showed me that a
fashionista can have depths beyond what I had considered and is just as
valid an identity as the one I claim for my own.
Let
it be also known that Friendship is Magic is not without its moments of
epic, and here I do not simply mean “awesome.” While a good deal of
the show, especially the first season, has the general day-to-day
worries we come to expect out of a kids show - especially those
targeting girls and including some previous pony series - it also has
some moments of real stakes. Life and death come into play. Multiple
times the future of the nation, or even world, is on the brink. This is
a show that respects its target audience enough to not just make it
peaceful and loving but gives rhyme, reason, and importance to it. A
peaceful, loving nation and its ponies are important enough to take
risks for, both big and small.
- Just one of many battles -
Image from MLP.wikia.com. Episode "A Canterlot Wedding - Part 2"
There is good reason for the popularity of Friendship is Magic, and I'm glad I started watching.
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