Formless Nurturing · 11:27am Sep 11th, 2019
This is one of those interesting but inchoate ideas that I’m not sure if I want to develop further. It all began when I remembered one of the more “Did that really happen?” screenshots of the show:
Specifically this one.
The working, “pony verbs noun” title is, naturally, Fluttershy Recommends Manga. Everypony would be at Fluttershy’s for one reason or another, and then would come an exclamation that Fluttershy has dreaded for years.
“Wow! I didn’t know they made comic books this thick!”
Cue everypony being much more interested and supportive than Fluttershy anticipated… or is entirely comfortable with. Something like a book club results, along with varying attempts at emulation. Ponies are such impressionable creatures…
The issue is that my finger’s been off that particular pulse, so I’m not sure what’s relevant or even recognizable these days. Plus, this is one of those ideas that could theoretically work in either the pony or human worlds, and I’m not sure which I’d prefer.
That said, I do have at least one selection locked down.
“Hoo-ee! There’s a stallion who’s done a hard day’s work. What’s this’un about?”
“W-well, the protagonist is named Johnathan Johnagold—”
“Sold!”
“Um, you should know, this series gets—”
“Bizarre, yeah. I can read, Shy. But I figure if it stars a good ol’ Apple colt, it can’t get too weird.”
Feel free to discuss other possible pony-series associations in the comments. Who knows? If this gets silly enough, it might convince me to develop the idea further.
I see Jonathan Jonagold was demoted from Appledad to his daughter's new favourite fictional character. What a bizarre transition.
I don’t honestly know enough about manga to be directly useful, but I’d buy AJ’s Bizarre Adventure for a dollar.
5119437
The multiverse is a strange and wondrous place.
Oh yes, Fluttershy is definitely the manga fan.
derpicdn.net/img/2019/8/14/2117984/large.jpeg
I'm not sure I understand the question though, are we talking about series that could be adjusted to pony form, or are we talking about series that particular ponies might like, dislike, or otherwise be surprised by?
The ones referenced in the actual screenshot are kind of a given. I personally have a tangentially-relevant reference to a "Wild 1/2" planned ("Ranma" happens to literally translate to "Wild Horse") which ironically has to retcon the screenshot to work; I need Ranko as a unicorn and Ranma as a pegasus in order to explain the Hiryu Shuten Ha as cross-pollination between the tribes' respective philosophies that would otherwise require alicornhood. Upon initial research, the means by which he learned it presents issues, but then further research says that making Cologne an alicorn nullifies both that and an admittedly dub-exclusive discrepancy.
Pretty sure that's a ponified Tenjou Utena. I would read the shit out of that.
JoJo’s bizarre adventures would make for an excellent ponification. (If it hasn’t been done) It depends on which arc you’re in, but for 3 & later... what would everypony’s stands be?
Rainbow Dash prolly gets away with an easy “Rock You Like a Hurricane.”
I can only hope the pony manga version of Neon Genesis Evangalopon is nothing like the actual manga and more like the show in all it's fuckery. Cause....shudder.
Also lol at Bulma back there.
(I'm still sad that there isn't a decent Sailor Moon/MLP crossover, actual crossover or AU. :( There's so much magical girl vibes in this show...)
Set it in Equestria. In Equestria one always has the chance of running into an "enchanted" version of a comic (or manga, as the case may be), and apparently sometimes without realizing it.
I could easily see somepony reselling their old manga, without ever having noticed (and therefor not having activated) the spell inscription on the last page.
Right now, if it's not Jojo or My Hero Academia, it's isekai. :B That's all I know about anime.
I'm wondering where she buys the manga from. Whether it's delivered, or bought in town...
How did she even get into it in the first place?
5119457
Sailor Moon / MLP Crossover... First big issue is that they're in separate worlds unless you go with EQG merged with SM Earth... Then you have better thinkers with more versatile magic just totally skewering the SM plot by allowing some sort of scrying, or tracking,
Equestrian-based magical analysis tools allowing magic level unlocks earlier than canon... Etc.
'Cause you mean full crossover, right? Not just "Character is dumped into Ponyville" or something?
5119462
I imagine Zephyr Breeze went through a brief shonen fan base, and got his big sister interested in Neighponese comics along the way. But when Zephyr moved on to other short-lived interests, Fluttershy went full manga fan.
5119443
Both work, though I'd prefer the latter.
What episode is that screenshot from?
5119468
"Scare Master," the Season 5 Nightmare Night episode.
5119457
I highly recommend mauroz's long-running Friendship is Magic manga.
Equestria does seem to have the isekai genre down, although they do execute it a bit weirdly. It’s supposed to be the characters that are sent to mysterious new worlds, not the readers. Although, that would be cool, if deadly depending on series.
I would dearly love to read the mane cast's reactions to reading Death Note. Or Code Geass, though that might work better in the EqG world where there's at least a chance they have cars and tanks so the mecha aren't completely implausible.
The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi could be another entertaining manga to investigate via ponyfolk.
I can only assume than manga is an art form from Mistmane's area of residence.
5119467
Series that each of the girls might like. Hmm. A few come to mind.
Rainbow - The Big O, any of the Mazinger series, Sukeban Deka
Pinkie - FLCL, Dragon Half
Rarity - Vampire Knight, Cutie Honey, Dance in the Vampire Bund (maybe)
Sunset - Magic Knight Rayearth, Bio-Boster Armor Guyver, Claymore, Yu Yu Hakusho
Ok here are some suggestions but I don't know which pony should receive each title.
- Battle Royal: It has some interesting thought about people put into horrible situation and what they would do when confronted.
- Dungeon Meshi: I am just curious about a Pony version.
- Ranma 1/2: a classic.
- Silver Spoon: that one is for Applejackfor sure.
- Lupin the III: for Rainbow. A nice counter to her usual Daring Do series.
- Iron Wok Yan: cooking manga.
- Kinnikuman and Kinnikuman Nisei: the pony version would be hilarious to read.
- Nana to Kaoru: a manga explaining about BDSM with a love story.
- Full Metal Alchemis
- Gunnm: Science fiction at it's best with beautiful art.
- One Piece: for Spike.
- Ah My Goddess: romantic comedy.
- Détective Conan
- Mahou Sensei Negima: for Spike I would say.
- Boku no Hero Academia: for Spike since he likes hero comics.
I could continue to name so much more but you would need the entire cast of Ponyville to find a match for each.
One of the problems with the Neighponese is that they have some really weird ideas of what an Alicorn Princess is.
derpicdn.net/img/view/2018/10/17/1858663.png
Celestia thinks it's hilarious, but she didn't tell the others; Luna is still sensitive about her past and Cadance isn't even a century old, she wouldn't get it.
5119515
"I'll tell you when you're older, dear."
"Auntie, I have a husband, a daughter, and a city-state. I'm pretty sure I can handle whatever you throw at me."
"Trust me, Cadence, you still have a great deal of innocence left. Savor it while you can."
Like most pop-culture references in MLPFIM, I think all the parodied titles date from the eighties and nineties, when most of the production staffers were children or teens. I recognize all but one of them—left to right, Sailor Moon (I think), Neon Genesis Evangelion, Revolutionary Girl Utena,
one I can’t identifyDragon Ball (according to Nealend86), and Ranma 1/2.Alternately, Spike And Fluttershy Go To A Con.
Gonna toss out Goodbye Mr. Despair and Yakitate Ja-Pan for Pinkie. Also probably the endless depths of One Piece.
5119526
Tv tropes says it's Bulma from Dragon Ball.
5119472
What scares me most about that episode is that it was four seasons ago...
5119548
Ah, that explains it. I’ve watched—or at least been exposed to—all the others, but neither I nor anyone I know has any interest in the Dragon Ball franchise. Since I was an adult fan in the 1980s I likely have a slightly different perspective on manga and animé than the production staffers in question. (My introduction was VHS copies of Mobile Suit Gundam first-run episodes recorded off the air and somehow almost immediately conveyed to California. I was hooked instantly.)
There is another possibility: Fluttershy finds a manga adaptation of the pilot. Imagine the reactions as they try to read it, seeing not only factual inaccuracies, but all sorts of manga and anime tropes. Like Twilight shouting out the name of a spell as she casts it.
As for popular... I can't be much help. I don't really read manga, and the only animes I watch are the ones currently on Toonami. That said, however, there is one that I think Pinkie would like.
Food Wars!
It's a show about a cooking school, but it's also a battle anime. Except instead of physical fights, they two opponents have a cooking challenge. They have a time limit to prepare a specific dish, and then it is judged by three others. Although this seems to be a minor portion. The more interesting part is that they give actual tips and advice on cooking throughout.
Naoki Urasawa's Monster is always a good prompt for moral and philosophical debate. The only question is would Fluttershy read something that dark and recommend it to her friends?
So clearly Rainbow reading Gurren Lagann needs to be a thing, followed by her trying to do a Giga Drill Breaker. That, and somepony reading One Buck Stallion. Probably Spike.
5119480
Pinkie Pie would be reading Haruhi it and say, "Y'know, this mare really gets it."
Unrelatedly.
"Here we see the specimen of alpha nerd building a book fort. Troubled by the increasing dorkery of her peer group, she has begun learning Neighponese to hold 'reading the original light novels' over their new habits."
"Rainbow, I'm warning you!"
For some reason, I love the idea of Rarity reading the adaptation of Eureka Seven.
Five issues later...
5119591
Nah, she'd be more likely to get upset at how little Haruhi cares about the feelings of others around her.
5119580
I like that idea! I mean, there's already one or two manga-style adaptions of the pilot going. Complete with changing Twilight into a hot guy and having all the girls fight over him.
5119521
Well... there are those kinds of manga...
derpicdn.net/img/view/2014/2/1/540175__questionable_artist-colon-deusexequus_discord_princess+cadance_twilight+sparkle_alicorn_comic_female_mare_pony_tatzlwurm_tentacle+porn_tentacle.png
Imagine this and the idea above put together. A Neighponese hentai of the Mane Six's first adventure, through the lense of a foreign comic artist hearing about it.
Why not both?
"Fluttershy Recommends Manga across the Mirror Portal"
You could explore how the manga differ across the dimensions despite being the same series with the same characters.
Well, I hate to toot my own horn, but I can think of one little series that might be recognisable and easily ponified. If only I had a picture to sho-or there it is!
images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/3e0d4ac3-ea89-48ad-9e28-180b74710b6f/db3p84b-bb2a46d0-aabb-4219-a4f4-ef6d45de22e5.png/v1/fill/w_1024,h_1116,strp/ponyville_s_first_warrior_meet__neighruto_cover_by_xeregon_db3p84b-fullview.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9MTExNiIsInBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzNlMGQ0YWMzLWVhODktNDhhZC05ZTI4LTE4MGI3NDcxMGI2ZlwvZGIzcDg0Yi1iYjJhNDZkMC1hYWJiLTQyMTktYTRmNC1lZjZkNDVkZTIyZTUucG5nIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTEwMjQifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6aW1hZ2Uub3BlcmF0aW9ucyJdfQ.7AI_KhOH8PGxW8zF0XJER1SNkzXWpi6GgtPEmIw9Sns
Anyway, other than that, one thing I've been considering for original works: go outside of pony limits. Japanese deer, the sika deer, can have their own art forms and culture and show it off.
For titles that are recognisable, and relevant, the classics come to mind. Dragonball (Spike: "This is about my whatnow?
"), Sailor Moon, One Piece... something more recent that everyone will have heard of by now is One Punch Man. Seriously, if you haven't seen the first season of OPM yet, do so. It is animation perfection, easily up there with How to Train Your Dragon 1. Uma Musume is also good, but probably harder to translate into pony form. Since, you know, it literally means "Horse Daughters" as it is.
Will Fluttershy be doing the the Eureponian fauxnime series as well, incidentally? Because Winx Club might be a candidate, but Filly Funtasia would give you an excuse to up the troll levels to eleventy.
Or Valt the Wonder Deer, that's Chineighse, though.
5119654
Yakira.
derpicdn.net/img/view/2018/7/24/1789018__safe_screencap_yona_non-dash-compete+clause_season+8_angry_lip+bite.png
5119657
All my yes. Take it. Take it all, you glorious person. You win
First of all, still shocked that the staff knew enough of Utena to give her a pony-sona. Second, still convinced that each of those girls can connect to one of her friends.
As for Magna things that Fluttershy could reconmend...
Twilight: MAgic Knight Rayearth, Fairy Tale, Orphen, Dr. Stone, My Hero Academia, and a personal fave of mine, Record of Lotoss war.
Applejack: DBZ, Grappler Baki, Demon Slayer, and something she would really love, Spice and Wolf. Just replace Horo with a wolf pony and we're golden.
Rainbow Dash: Utena, Berserk, Gunsmith Cats, One Piece, Ruroni Kenshin, and the manga that stars a guy who is over conifdent and has a girl who is basically a ninja Fluttershy, Naruto.
Pinkie: *Sighs*bobo-bo-bobo, Excel Saga, and for her Luck Star
Rarity: Chaviler Dion, Rose of Versails, Detective Conan, Cat's Eye, and for a personal fave Saint Seiya
Trixie: Slayers, because Lina.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOo
"rubs hands together"
I would recommend using Sailor Moon, Senkaiden Houshin Engi (make sure it's Senkaiden, not Hakyu), Magic Knight Rayearth, Yu Yu Hakusho, Gensomaden Saiyuki, Naruto (Shippuden), Fullmental Alchemist Brotherhood, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Shangri-La, Eureka Seven, Gundams Wing and 00, Ronin Warriors, Yuki Yuna is a Hero, and....hmmm.....Gunslinger Girl is also pretty good, though even sadder than PMMM near the end, so you might wanna think hard about that one.
5119666
One of them is a guy
5119666
The one that was apparently based on the creator's D&D campaign? Sounds like it has potential.
I can't really blame you for getting that title wrong, at least. Yakitate Japan also comes to mind as very Pinkie Pie; one of my stock responses is "still not as weird as Yakitate Japan" and I stand by that because it's ludicrous in a way that's easy to explain.
5119735
Yeah, that's why I kind of sighed. I love the anime and manga, but my god is it hard to spell! I would've also gone with Yatsuba since it is also cute, weird and over the top. and...
I can't believe I forgot to give Twilight Bakuman and Death Note.
5119731
*BRings out the hot water* Not for long. *Splashes it on Ramma* There we go.
5119735
>YJ Weirdness
That's because the weirdness is in the execution, not the premise
>A shonen about baking bread SO GOOD it warps reality and the consumer in pun-based ways
Is simple
>Let's do an entire dream sequence side story that's a straight Lord of the Rings sendup about the main character talking to a loquat that's sad because it's not likely to be baked into a pastry
Is not.
I'm also pretty sure Pinkie already knows that one ringmaster dude that judged the contest at angel falls.
5119475
Oh wow, I actually think I read this (or at least the intro comic) back in the day!
5119475
OH! FusionFic style! Not "Both sets of characters exist".
Interesting.
Not sure if that's what they were looking for though. Not like we know what they're looking for.
5119448
Not exactly a ponification, but Twisted Sunset is a crossover comic done in the JoJo manga style, which I highly recommend, because it does indeed fit really well. It takes place in a shared JoJo/Equestria Girls universe set after Stone Ocean, and it gives all the major characters original stands. Well, it will once it updates more, anyway; so far, we've only seen a few. But the artist has done character sheets with stand designs for everyone. My favourite is the one he did for Discord:
derpicdn.net/img/2016/11/20/1300044/large.jpeg
Also, I feel a little dirty for self-promoting like this, but chapter two of Van Helsing is a very loose pony adaptation of Phantom Blood, if that's your thing. Emphasis on loose, though.