Accepting the New Ponies
This is definitely the hottest debate in the My Little Pony circle. After years of petitioning, pining, and writing letters, Hasbro brought back the My Little Pony toy line. The ponies, however, didn’t look like the old ones we knew and loved. Some readily accepted them, while others refused, causing one of the nastiest arguments in any toy fan group.
The new ponies, say some, are horribly ugly. While it’s bad enough that Barbie encourages girls to be anorexic, it’s even worse for these skinny little ponies to do so. They don’t live in Dream Valley, but in Friendship Gardens, where they play with stupid accessories and live in dinky playsets. Opponents of the new ponies mention the mistakes made on the packaging of the new ponies (e.g. Petal Blossom’s bio card has her colored like Sky Skimmer). They also mention Hasbro using the same trick it uses with action figures: making several versions of one character. After all, how many versions of Ivy could one person need?
The new ponies, say others, are very cute. Just like the old ones, they are brightly colored with names that match their emblems. They even come with horseshoe points. Yes, the packages have some mistakes, but there were mistakes in the old line, too. Plus, some argue, Hasbro probably would have made bigger, better playsets if more people had gotten into the new ponies. Finally, they add, the new ponies are about the same size and stature of the Flutter Ponies, who are readily accepted by die-hard pony fans.
I bought one of the new ponies when they first came out because it was such a surprise to me to see them again. At the time, I didn’t know there were pony people online, and I’d never even heard of eBay. The new ponies were just a pleasant surprise, and I bought one for old time’s sake.
However, I
prefer the simple styles of the classic MLPs.
I never got into ponies that talked, or had tails that twirled, or hair
that changed color in the sun. So,
naturally, I don’t like the new ponies nearly as much as the old ones. I don’t hate them, however, and I’m sorry
the line ended so soon. Hasbro forgot
one of the reasons the originals sold so well the first two years—they were
inexpensive. The line ended the first
time around because expense caused sales to drop. Apparently the same thing happened this time, too.