Let's Talk the End of Friendship Is Magic · 4:50pm Feb 20th, 2019
So, the word has come down and it's official: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic will be ending after Season 9. We still have a couple of rumored TV specials afterward, but as far as a regular TV show goes, it's all over. The new MLP movie Hasbro announced during Toy Fair will most likely be the start of Gen 5, and who knows what form that will take.1
And I know it sucks to know for certain that the end of this ride is coming. Believe me, I've seen a lot of shows end that I wish hadn't. Daria, Gravity Falls, Kim Possible, I could spend the rest of this blog just listing shows.
But instead, let's celebrate the fact that Friendship is Magic has done something that very few toy related TV series have done. It lasted almost a decade. I don't think a lot of people appreciate how unheard of that is. Yes, MLP has been around since the 80s, but never has one generation stuck around as long as this one without any sort of massive overhaul. Not even Transformers. I have a friend who worked int he toy industry and he's amazed by how long Gen 4 has stuck around. Because the average shelf life of any toylike without any sort of refresh or reboot is about three years.
And even then, there's no guarantee it'll work. Take Monster High, which I would argue was the only other "girls" toyline with the same cross-gender appeal and media presence as MLP: FiM. They tried rebooting the franchise a couple of years ago and it backfired horribly. They lost the fans who were invested, and the new version of things were nowhere near as interesting as the old version. Beloved characters were dropped, the entire Ever After High spinoff imploded and now what dolls are left seem to be making their way to the bargain bin as Mattel switches over to DC Super Hero Girls as their main focus. 2
Almost a decade... hell if Gen 5 doesn't start til the movie comes out, it'll be OVER a decade of Gen 4. 221 episodes. Over 100 comic issues. Two TV specials. A successful spinoff 3with its own TV specials and shorts. And one theatrically released feature film. That's one hell of an accomplishment for a show about pastel colored horses.
I'll probably give Gen 5 a chance when it starts. And if I don't like it, well, there's going to be people out there who do and more power to them. For now, I'll work on getting actual physical media of the series for archival purposes. And while I considered season 8 kind of a dud, I look forward to seeing how the team brings things to a close in Season 9.
As has often been said, don't be sad because it's over, be happy because it happened. One of the most saccharine, often dismissed toy lines ever blossomed into one of the largest media juggernauts of the past decade. And we were all fortunate enough to witness it.
And here's the bright side for those of us here on the site. With Gen 4 coming to a close, that frees those of us who like to play within the canon boundaries considerably. Once Season 9 is over, there's nowhere we can't go! Who's going to stop you from writing that massive epic where the Mane 6 decide to leave Ponyville and explore the wider world beyond Equestria? Depending on what happens in Season 9, we could go anywhere! We know what lies to the North and South of Equestria, but what about to the east, beyond Griffonstone, and the Dragon and Kirin Lands? What about to the west, where the official map only shows open sea? And there's probably plenty of adventure for all within Equestria's borders. Any unanswered questions become fair game for interpretation. Go nuts! Not even the extremely loose leash of canon will be able to stop you anymore!
Play with your toys. Because that's what fan fiction, especially for this franchise, is. We're playing with our toys. We might not be physically moving our plastic ponies with brushable manes around our bedroom floor, but by writing the stories of these characters and sharing them with the world, we're showing off what we can do with our toys and our imaginations, and inviting others to come play with us too.
I don't know about you, but that makes the end of the series a little easier to take.
1 For me, I'm more interested in seeing what this means for Equestria Girls, since nobody from Hasbro or DHX seems to be saying much about it. I'm expecting either a) Hasbro will move production from DHX to Boulder like they did for the Summertime Shorts, while retaining the voice cast should they decide to continue or b) It may come to an end after the current season of the digital series. Either way, it's still kind of odd that nobody's saying anything.
2 Speaking of, yes, I too found Lauren Faust's tweets about the end of FiM somewhat like a backhanded compliment, but considering the circumstances under which she left, it's understandable. But even so, that's the nature of work for hire. I hope she's happier working with DC. I'm not particularly interested in her version of DC Super Hero Girls, but I hope it's successful.
3 No matter how much the NO HUMANZZZZ ONLY PONIIIIIIIEZZZZ! brigade likes to whine about it.
Good riddance
5016962
You seem fun
Well said. I got into this late and I'm seeing it end early, but it's still been wonderful. And it's hardly over yet.
5016962
...You DO know what you're on a fanfic site for, right?
5016971
Yes but I don’t know what the word good riddance means.
5016974
said to express relief at being free of a troublesome or unwanted person or thing.
"good riddance to all the fanatical hangers-on"
It's kinda like I said in my blog. It sucks, but we all knew it was going to happen at some point.
I don't know if the Friendship is Magic comic series will end just because the television series will. And who's to say there won't be more specials to come down the line? Or books?
As I also stated in said blog, I won't let the end stop me from writing stories and neither should anyone else! Besides, who knows how much more Equestria Girls content is in the works?
Exceptionally well said!
5016996
Thanks
5016974
Ah okay, sorry for the misunderstanding. Language is confusing.
5017028
No prob.
Well said.
It’s been one heck of a ride following MLP:FIM. I look forward to seeing how Season 9 will wrap things up.
5017038
Ok
Who knows, maybe We will see the fanfics about G5 here...
I can say for certain that, while I'm glad the series stuck around a while, I'm a bit ready to see it end. The quality's been dropping off for a while now, and the YouTube Shorts/Specials have been getting me more excited than the actual show these days. But that doesn't mean I'll stop watching now, and I'm sure as hell not dropping my WiP fics! I've been here since season 2, baby! LONG HAUL ALL THE WAY!!
Last I checked, MLP:EG is going to continue on an unknown amount of time after the TV Series Finale. And, from the look of the MLP:FiM shorts, it's possible that the Pones will be right there alongside the Hoomins.
AND MLP FINALLY HAS IT'S OWN "TRUK NOT MUNKY"! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!!