I have been a lifelong feminist, and as an artist working in the animation industry for more than 16 years I have striven to do right by women and girls in the animated projects I have been part of. I try to bring sincerity and depth to the female characters I’ve animated and have fought in development and story meetings to make female characters more than just the typical girlfriend, Mom or sex symbol. I’ve even fought to see that there was more than just one girl character in whatever project I was working on. Sometimes I swayed my coworkers (often it was easy, to their credit) and sometimes I lost. My goal, as an artist and as a storyteller, was to one day have a show of my own for and about girls.
After years and years of pitching original animation for girls to studios and networks and always hearing “This is great, but animated shows for girls don’t get ratings,” or “Girls don’t watch cartoons,” I finally got the opportunity to have my own show. It’s called My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
I was extremely skeptical at first about taking the job. Shows based on girls’ toys always left a bad taste in my mouth, even when I was a child. They did not reflect the way I played with my toys. I assigned my ponies and my Strawberry Shortcake dolls distinctive personalities and sent them on epic adventures to save the world. On TV, though, I couldn’t tell one girl character from another and they just had endless tea parties, giggled over nothing and defeated villains by either sharing with them or crying–which miraculously inspired the villain to turn nice. Even to my 7-year-old self, these shows made no sense and couldn’t keep my interest. No wonder the boys at school laughed at my Rainbow Unicorn Trapper Keeper.
From what I’ve seen since I’ve grown up, little has changed. To look at the quality of most girls’ cartoons, it would seem that not one artist really cared about them. Not one designer, not one background painter, not one animator. Some of the more well-meaning, more expensive animated productions for girl audiences may look better, but the female characters have been so homogenized with old-fashioned “niceness” that they have no flaws and are unrelatable. They are so pretty, polite and perfect; there is no legitimate conflict and nothing exciting ever happens. In short, animated shows for little girls come across as boring. Stupid. Lame.
This perception, more than anything, is what I am trying to change with My Little Pony.
And that’s why I was so dismayed to find Kathleen Richter’s post on the Ms. Blog, accusing the show of homophobia, racism and smart-shaming. There she stated:
So overall, these are the lessons My Little Pony teaches girls:
- Magical white ponies are suited for leadership; black ponies are suited to be servants.
- Stop learning! You will overcome any obstacle by resorting to strength in numbers (of friends).
- Girls that wear rainbows are butch.
- You need the government (ideally a monarch invested with supreme ultimate power and a phallic symbol strapped to her forehead) to tell you what to do with your life.
A surprising amount of commenters rose in defense of the show, and for that I am extremely grateful. Without repeating their retorts too extensively, here is my defense against the accusations.
- Color has never, ever been depicted as a race indicator for the ponies. When your characters are purple, blue, orange, yellow, black, white, red, green and pink, who’s to say which is supposed to signify a white person, a black person, an Asian person? The only races in My Little Pony are Earth Pony, Pegasus and Unicorn, and they are all treated equally, ruled by a leader who embodies the traits of all three This leader is white only to signify day, and she co-rules with her sister, who is purple to signify night. Additionally, I’d just like to assure anyone who might still question the guards at the foot of the Princess’s throne that their colors were picked arbitrarily–and they are paid for their service.
- In the first episode, the lead character, Twilight, is depicted as a pony so wrapped up in her studies that she has no interest in socializing. But since socializing and making friends is an important, healthy aspect of anyone’s life, her mentor encouraged her to, essentially, go out and play. In the end, the character goes on to lead a more balanced life, maintaining both relationships and her studies. In subsequent episodes she is frequently seen reading, referencing books to help solve problems and even living in a library.
- Rainbow Dash has rainbow-striped hair because of her name and because she is very interested in sports, specifically flying. She is a tomboy, but nowhere in the show is her sexual orientation ever referenced. As we all know, there are plenty of straight tomboys in the world, and assuming they are lesbians is extremely unfair to both straight and lesbian tomboys.
- The Princess is depicted as the main character’s mentor, her teacher. She’s an authority figure and even a bit of a surrogate parent. The Princess gave Twilight her instructions as someone who knows her and is personally involved in her upbringing. And though there is historical speculation that unicorn horns were indeed phallic symbols, I doubt that is making its way into anyone’s subconscious.
The messages I’m really trying to get across with the show are these:
- There are lots of different ways to be a girl. You can be sweet and shy, or bold and physical. You can be silly and friendly, or reserved and studious. You can be strong and hard working, or artistic and beautiful. This show is wonderfully free of “token girl” syndrome, so there is no pressure to shove all the ideals of what we want our daughters to be into one package. There is a diversity of personalities, ambitions, talents, strengths and even flaws in our characters–it’s not an army of cookie-cutter nice-girls or cookie-cutter beauty queens like you see in most shows for girls.
- Find out what makes you you. Follow your passions and ambitions, not what others expect of you. For instance, if you like sports don’t let someone’s suggestion that that is unfeminine stop you from doing what you love. Be considerate of others’ feelings, but not at the expense of your own goals and dreams.
- You can be friends with people who are vastly different from you. And even though all friendships have their share of disagreements and moments when you don’t get along, that does not mean that your friendship has to end.
- Cartoons for girls don’t have to be a puddle of smooshy, cutesy-wootsy, goody-two-shoeness. Girls like stories with real conflict; girls are smart enough to understand complex plots; girls aren’t as easily frightened as everyone seems to think. Girls are complex human beings, and they can be brave, strong, kind and independent–but they can also be uncertain, awkward, silly, arrogant or stubborn. They shouldn’t have to succumb to pressure to be perfect.
Yes, My Little Pony is riddled with pink, the leader is a Princess instead of a Queen and there probably aren’t enough boys around to portray a realistic society. These decisions were not entirely up to me. It has been a challenge to balance my personal ideals with my bosses’ needs for toy sales and good ratings. I do my best to incorporate their needs in an acceptable way, so when we are asked to portray a certain toy or playset, my team and I work to put it in a place that makes sense within the story. There is also a need to incorporate fashion play into the show, but only one character is interested in it and she is not a trend follower but a designer who sells her own creations from her own store. We portray her not as a shopaholic but as an artist.
I never expected to work on a show based on a toy line, but I accepted the project based on my sincere childhood love of the toy and Hasbro’s desire to create an entertaining show that is not just a long toy commercial. When I took the job, I braced myself for criticism, expecting many people–without even watching the show–to instantly label it girly, stupid, cheap, for babies or an evil corporate commercial. I encourage skeptics like this to watch My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic with an open mind. If I’m doing my job right, I think you’ll be surprised.
Lauren Faust is creative steward/executive producer of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Top: Original drawings of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic characters by Lauren Faust.
I know I’m late to this party, but I really just want to thank you for helping create this wonderful show. I will admit that I cringed a bit last year when my then three year old was introduced to MLP by an older cousin, but now I am so very glad that she was! It is pretty much the only cartoon that our whole family can enjoy watching together. We have easily seen every episode at least three or four times, and they really are so great. It is so interesting to see how my girls relate to the different ponies at different times, and I really appreciate how ‘real’ their friendships are presented as – it’s not always just sunshine and rainbows. Honestly, I was a bit worried about my daughter being too girly in some ways, and I love that Rainbow Dash and Apple Jack have helped her be more interested in sportsy type things.
Thanks for making this show, this article too. I’m a 13 year old girl, and I always feel awkward, because I’m no doubt the smartest or at least in the top ten in my school. I also don’t bother talking to people, carry a pen and pencil around and take notes on my day, walking down hallways quoting my favorite books, read/write during class, walk down the hallway with my face in a book or my tablet under my arm, and often just sit around and block out the world in deep thought in things like time travel. So when I saw Twilight Sparkle, I had a mental “asdfghjkl” moment where I was like “This show was made for me!” I’ve loved the show since the first episode I saw. I relate to each character in different ways, also. So, I thank you for making the show, it made me feel a lot more normal!
<3
Its interesting how many people who defend the show talk on about how good it makes them feel.
One would suppose feeling good is all that matters, regardless of how the feeling may not resonate with reality and responsibly. Defending the drug is all that matters.
In S2, Ep.25 Princess Cadence’s special power was to be able to spread ‘love’ wherever she went, for example, transforming two ponies arguing over a ‘hooficure’ into goo-gooing lovers. That’s nothing but spreading infatuation; any deeper-seated issues were unresolved and tanked over by a hit of ‘feel good’. Is this all young children are to understand about love?
So is this why S1, Ep 21 gets a free pass? The show is so touchy-feely one either forgives the creators of MLP for lying about the Conquest of North America and crudely dissing caring and sharing, or one fully agrees with the sentiment that the Aboriginals never had valid claim upon their own land and caring and sharing is mockable. Either way, a regressive position is allowed to stand and the problem goes unresolved and tolerated only by ignorance or chronic addiction to painkillers.
The danger of MLP:FIM is not that it tells viewers what to think, but how to feel, while warmly inviting viewers not to think in the first place. Its as if no-one ever had to deconstruct a sweet-talker looking for what he’s really after.
Dafuq did i just read?
Referring of course to the ignorance above. You seem just as ‘read-to-much -into-it’ as the fine lady who posted the original, and equally misinformed, complaint.
1) As previously stated. This is a T.V. show. Stop reading so deep.
2) In answer to your question, yes. All most children understand about love is infatuation. Do you want to be the one to explain that ponies X and Y are having serious relationship issues and their marriage is on the rocks? Or do you just wanna watch the show?
3) If I recall correctly, and I know I do, the land issue in that particular episode were handled significantly better than we humans handled them here in real life. They compromised. We killed.
4) Your constant reference to the abuse of drugs is rather telling. I do believe you should get that checked before it becomes a true problem for you. I’d hate to lose such a font of wisdom. People like you really truth from the heart.
Lastly, take your liberal arts major paper writing elsewhere. I’m sure your professor is very pleased that you used so many big words. We are simple and we speak simply, after all, we are dealing with children.
This is a Ms Mag blog; anti-intellectualism and invitations not to think serve no purpose. Any children here in age or of heart are probably very bright. There is no need to speak ‘simply’, and every need to talk honestly. MLP:FIM is subject to criticism like any other work of art, all the more relevant for being popular art.
1. MLP:FIM takes pride in its sophisticated wit. Why not think carefully about a child’s show intricately crafted to be an example of discursive whiteness, spun to be hip and now and feminist, and appeal beyond the official audience age?
What is sold is more than plastic ponies; every few episodes, a cultural attitude problem of privilege and entitlement is crafted in. Using every trick of emotional reassurance to appeal to an alienated society, to reconnect with values in ways that alienate in the first place.
Notice that ponies come in a spectrum of colours, which would seem to defy charges of racism. Yet, when identifiably human-inspired Equestrian races come into play, they are like Zecora the Zebra (black African), or Little Strongheart the Bison (American Aboriginal) – separate species. The fantastic cool species like dragons and griffins, of course, have no distinguishable non-white affectations. Separate species were a promising convention, except it didn’t work because ponies soon became proxies for whiteness.
The core tenet of racism is that different races ARE as separate species, or at least subspecies or breeds. One race sets itself as the standard beneath which all others must fall and be seen to fall as less attractive and accomplished. Mixed-races are undesirable and it so happens the mule – a horse-donkey hybrid – appears in no less than six episodes as an object of ridicule. Mules and donkeys are drawn well below the high standard of pony cuteness. Real-life mules are as beautiful and intelligent as any equine. There was no reason to draw entire groups of animals to look bad and be ridiculed in a cartoon about friendship. Or, was there a pathological need for someone to be pickonable? How does this affect a child’s developing sense of universal love and fairness?
Whiteness isn’t characteristic of all white people, but its a stereotype becoming as distinct as any other racial stereotype.
2. Young children can be frightened by parental arguments. Obviously, the arguing ponies were no kids parents, but Princess’ Cadence’s love spell (from S.2, Ep.25) need only calm the ponies enough to apologize and begin sincere and constructive resolution, role-modeling a positive example not only to children, but any parents watching. A child can and should learn the difference between a crush and genuine love.
Children can have common moral sense that should be encouraged. Yet, in S.3, Ep. 10, ‘Keep Calm and Flutter On’, Princess Celestia asks Fluttershy to make a villain “… use magic obediently of his own free will.” That’s almost oxymoronic. The more appropriate and expected word would have been ‘responsibly’, over ‘obediently’. Why did Princess Celestia/MLP writers choose that word? For that matter, is controlling and manipulating someone a sincere reason to be their ‘friend’? Is that even friendship? Fluttershy, is supposed to be an exemplar of sincere kindness, not special agent False Friend. Did Discord learn universal respect and empathy towards others, or peer pressure from ‘friends’? What kind of conscience-building is that?
S.2, Ep. 21 ‘Dragon Quest’ is a somewhat better example of moral rationality when Spike refuses to smash a phoenix egg to go-along, get-along with newfound dragon friends. Having helped smash the nest and scared off the parent birds, he is presumably remorseful and assumes responsibility for the egg. The ‘reformed’ Discord would have likely smashed the egg if keeping mean friends appealed to him more than kind friends.
3. The land use issue in S.1, Ep. 21 was handled horribly, cleverly restating the racist line that aboriginals were just squatters who didn’t truly own or need their land for anything important compared to the settlers. It was hammered repeatedly by Braeburn and Applejack that ponies needed the orchard’s food to live, while the bison only needed a traditional trail to run wild on; there’s simply no moral equivalence. That denial of moral equivalence, that dehumanization, is the essence of racism, all the more postmodern for its subtlety. Saying no bison got killed on a MLP cartoon is meaningless.
MLP:FIM at its worst was like a kind of backlash and rebellion against so-called political correctness by the genuinely, antisocially, politically incorrect . S.1 Ep. 21, ‘Over a Barrel’, qualifies as the perfect negative example for any university or even junior high school course on aboriginal studies and postmodern racism.
4. Personal attacks are hardly a rebuttal, however harsh the withdrawal symptoms from MLP:FIM’s trickster spell. MLP:FIM has become part of the moral experience of children of all ages, reducing important human values to emotional sentimental buttons to push via personified ponies and musical numbers. Buttons that when pushed sometimes didn’t square with either real reality or the fantasy reality.
By S.3, Ep. 13, ‘Magical Mystery Cure’, MLP:FIM was exemplifying Bernard Shaw’s paraphrase of Pierre de Beaumarchais, “What is too stupid to be said is sung”, which applies to most of the episode. From its theme of royal elitism and cutie-mark determinism, to the racist imagery recalled by savage animals dancing around Rainbow Dash in a cauldron, there is little to redeem from this episode save perhaps the chorus of the second main song:
A true, true friend helps a friend in need
A friend will be there to help them see
A true, true friend helps a friend in need
To see the light that shines from a true, true friend
Any true friend to My Little Pony’s character archetypes should be critical of their misuse and those that misused them. Charity, compassion, devotion, integrity, optimism, and leadership are real values of the conscience, not make-believe like the characters made to personify them or buttons to push in a trusting audience.
Hasbro owns patents to plastic ponies, not humanitarian values. By being built around the manipulative presentation of those values, the MLP:FIM invites being strongly judged accordingly.
Please do provide an example of an alternative IP that contrasts MLP:FiM that also strives to do what Lauren Faust envisioned. Using “intellectual vocabulary” in an attempt to brow beat where regular speech will suffice and is much more efficient, and irrelevant pieces to parallel with the show does nothing to move the community over to your own views. I urge you to take some time to review your own statements, and attempt to see without first clouding your own lens. If in the end you still feel the same way, that MLP has threatened or undermined these values you have presented, you are certainly entitled to your own opinion. We the community who love this show and what it stands for will still be here to love and tolerate the hooves off of you.