Thoughts on the Series Ending: The Place Where No Shadows Fall · 8:16am Oct 3rd, 2019
From time to time you will make mistakes. They're inevitable. Sometimes those mistakes will be huge. What matters is that you learn from them. There's nothing wrong with falling down so long as you end up just 2 inches taller when you pick yourself up off the floor. At times you may end up far away from home. You may not be sure of where you belong anymore but home is always there. Because home is not a place. It's wherever your passion takes you. As you continue on your path you will lose some friends and gain new ones. The process is painful but often necessary. They will change and you will change because life is change. From time to time they must find their own way and that way may not be yours. Enjoy them for what they are and remember them for what they were. There's not much left. Except I believe I really do believe that sooner or later, no matter what happens things do work out. We have hard times. We suffer. We lose loved ones. The road is never easy. It was never meant to be easy. But in the long run if you stay true to what you believe things do work out. Always be willing to fight for what you believe in. It doesn't matter if 1000 people agree with you or one person agrees with you. It doesn't matter if you stand completely alone. Fight for what you believe. Which brings me to the first piece of advice my dad ever gave me, and now I'm giving it to you. - Never - Never start a fight, but always finish it. Always finish it.
- John Sheridan, Babylon 5 Season 5, Episode 21 "Objects at Rest"
I saw on Twitter the other day that J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of Babylon 5, said that of all the crossovers that are available with his show, he would love to have seen a crossover with Babylon 5 and My Little Pony. Here's the Tweet, if you'd like to see for yourself. And I can see why he would have said yes to this: many of the themes in the two shows coincide very well. That love and friendship are often the things that carry us through the darkness to the other side. And that where friendship and love exist, darkness cannot hold us in its sway for long. And I should like to think that, in many ways, both shows wish for us to walk together until we can walk together no longer, until we meet again in a place that no shadows fall.
The journey of the crew of Babylon 5 ended over 20 years ago, and in a few weeks, the journey of the cast of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, will come to a close. It has been a long road, has it not, friends? From those early, bewildering months until the Pony fandom exploded into something greater and more magical than I think any of us thought possible. We made mistakes along the way, missed opportunities, and stumbled. But a part of me - the quiet, optimistic part of me - hopes that in doing so we learned something about ourselves, and are still trying our best to bring the best of ourselves to the world.
Maybe I'm getting old and sentimental, but I sincerely hope that this does not mean the end of too many friendships. While every step we take along the road of life may take us farther from what we knew as home, and away from those we were friends with, I should like to hope that we never truly say goodbye. That we carry within our hearts the memories of others, so that no one is truly gone.
With the waning of the series, I offer a gentle challenge to everyone. It's likely naïve, and a little silly, but here it is: bring a little of Equestria to Earth every day. There will be days that Equestria seems far away, and that there is no light left in the world. In that case, be that light. Try something a little different. Be the friend that someone needs in a moment where no one else seems to notice. Love bravely and fiercely those around you. Be honest with yourself and others. Be wisely generous when you can, and help others help themselves when you can't. Spread the light of laughter when you can, and offer your strength when laughter is not enough. And if you are feeling lost and alone, may you find the courage in your heart to apply the lessons that the show has taught us, and to seek out the friends that you so desperately need.
It has been a long and beautiful journey, and while I am not leaving, I know that some will. I wish you all well, and we will miss you when you are gone. But I know we won't forget the friendships we've forged through these past nine years, and I hope that we all think of each other fondly in the years to come.
Changes are hard, and transitions are harder still. I think, for a lot of us, the show ending is a bit of a sign that we need to grow up a little, and go out into the world. That will not be easy, and everyone will likely struggle with the transition. But think of that little challenge to bring the light of Equestria to Earth, just a little bit.
And to steal a bit from Babylon 5, with apologies to J. Michael Straczynski, May the light of Friendship guard you in all the empty places you must walk.
If I never watch the last episode, the show never ends.
5131710
Genius.
Nah, fam. I was raised on MLP, and I'll carry that shit on until I'm 80 and quoting Twilight Sparkle at perplexed nurses.
Thank you for the beautiful words, and the amazing sentiment and I hope to see you for years and years to come, my friend.
To paraphrase another memorable quote from B5, on my feelings on its upcoming ending:
There’s a hole in my heart.
It’s been a wild ride, even though I didn’t get on till Season three or four. I won’t trade a second if it for anything.
5131712
Not just you, lady. I’ll likely be humming songs till I drop.
5131714
same i first saw an mlp episode when i was 11 now im 19 i would say as far as my short life so far goes thees past 8 years have been the best of my life no matter what happens i will always love this show ive been here since 2011 never once left the fandom and never will keep going and pony on
A beautiful sentiment, and one I agree with wholeheartedly. Thank you for it.
Hearing 'the place where no shadows fall' quote in my head still, to this day, gives me goosebumps. Babylon 5 was one of the first shows to really reach me and say something (other than that robots that turn into cars are pretty sweet... or along those lines). I have to agree... it's a crossover I can easily see the beauty in.
To the broader scope here... yes. FiM is ending... but only in the sense that there will be no new episodes. Given how many left the show but not the message behind long ago, I don't take that too hard. I will miss it, but it's only a small part of what it's created for us all. There are still stories to tell, friendships to cherish and new ones to make. Magic without end.
Postscript sidenote: That avatar is unfairly adorable.
It still feels so unreal to me that the show is ending. This show and community was one of my first experiences with being part of something extremely social. It taught me about my passions and inspired me to be better.
I know the community isn’t going anywhere, but it would be a lie to say I wasn’t sad about the end.
Excellent post as always Heart
Babylon 5 is probably my all-time favorite Sci-Fi series. What a great show it has been.
It has been a crazy ride. Never expected the show to last as long as it did. I thought we would get maybe five seasons if we we’re lucky and here we are, nine season later. But like all things, this ride has to end eventually. And while I’m not happy with every decision the made in the last years starlightglimmer I’m still happy that FiM managed to entertain me for nine Season without getting boring or truly bad. Is it the best show ever made? Absolutely not, but I liked it and that’s what really matters in the end.
I’ve meet some great people when I joined this Fandom after Season 2 and I hope we’ll remain friends after the show is over. I’ve already heard people saying that once the show is over, they’ll stop coming to meet-ups. Which I is a bit sad, because it’s not just about the show but also about the friends made along the way.
No absurdist ejaculation is appropriate for a comment on this blog.
When something's been a part of your everyday life for 8 years, it's uncomfortable to think about an ending. Endings are a part of life, but knowing that doesn't make them suck any less. It certainly fits the profile of a bittersweet memory to consider what is being lost versus what was gained along the way. And since everyone is tossing out quotes (which make me want to go watch Babylon 5 for the first time), all this sentimentality made me think of one from one of my favorites.
"No matter how you get there or where you end up, human beings have this miraculous gift to make that place home." We made a home in this colorful place that's not our own world, and we became family, friends, neighbors, and sometimes rivals in that home. I have faith the hearth fires will keep burning, and that we'll find a home wherever life takes each of us next.
Maybe, but I will always believe that while growing old is mandatory, growing up is optional. Personally, I submit that your challenge to bring a little bit of our world with us when we go out there to be the greater imperative. Challenge accepted. Time to grab a little pony for the pocket before heading out the door in the morning so they can be a reminder to spread a little bit of that spark wherever the path might lead.
A nice and good blog post, I think; thank you for writing and posting it. :)
(...Also, I didn't see the thematic similarities between MLP and B5 before you pointed them out, but, huh. :D)
Thank you for writing most eloquently what I'm sure most of us have been feeling and thinking. I freely admit that I was tearing up at the quote from Babylon 5 ( which I really need to go watch now!) and at your challenge to bring Equestria with us each day. Though I strive to do this now, I rededicate myself to showing the magic of friendship to others.
Things will change. As you said it is inevitable. I don't believe for a moment that the fandom will go away and neither will the magic or the friendships.
I spent 22 years in the Air Force, but I've made more friends in the past 6 years and have closer relationships with them than I ever did in the military. The people I've met have accepted me just as I am, with warmth and real affection and always treated me with kindness and respect; like it mattered that I was here. While we each may move to other things and even other places, this is the only place that I feel that I belong and where I am loved. This fandom, no matter what dark place I may be, will be the light that sees me through. It is now and will ever be, my home.
Since the AU tag exists, any new fic could necro this fandom easily. It would be orders of magnitude harder to kill this fandom than any particular human.
I have never watched an episode of the show, because I have no TV and my computer's sound card is broken-ish. I'm still in the fandom, and there are enough people who stopped watching the show when they decided that it stopped being good to keep this fandom alive. Also, Ranma 1/2 still gets fics pretty regularly, even if a good number of them are also pony. (To be fair, we have the direct translation of his name, the shared voice actor, and that throwaway gag in season 5, plus the usual culprits from the non-pony side of the crossover)
Oh yeah... I should really watch the show at some point
5132333
Wouldn't recommend it. Nine Season and all of the main characters are still alive, never had sex with each other or got addicted to drugs.
5132610
It could be worse... they could have gotten with stallions
I am very sad. I understand that I can not stop time and I can not change anything. Even my daughter has matured and does not want to watch the last season. I will miss them very much. For me it was like love. Why all good cannot last forever ... I know that this is not the last hobby in my life, but, to be honest, I would like to relive it.
I’m afraid that I’ve grown up too much and will not be able to love so much anymore and laugh so loudly, do stupid things. The whole world is leaving. As if part of my soul is leaving.
It would be nice to think that the fandom has built enough community and infrastructure that transitioning to the next generation won't be that jarring, and that those who independently become fans through G5 alone won't feel the need to distance themselves from G4, G4’s fandom, and all that of other previous generations. Reading comments of those saying that they're leaving the fandom with the end of the series feels like they hadn't been happy in the herd for a long time and wanted some external goal line for shifting interests. I haven't looked for spoilers, but I do have a worry as to whether the G5 will still have the optimistic and genuine tone so strongly associated with FIM. Even if G5 doesn't turn out to be what we wish it, pony as a franchise survived G3.5; so G6 (making assumptions that Hasbro's doesn't change their model) could be another great thing no matter how many years away it would be.
I'm thankful for posts like this, Heartshine, that articulate how so many are feeling these hopes and anxieties; and I’m thankful for everyone who does stay on the ride -or eventually returns. I much prefer the times when I find myself being sentimental (even though it's embarrassing) instead of jaded... Every line of Princes Whateverer's Solidarity keeps playing in my head.