9 Years · 5:38pm Oct 12th, 2019
I was sitting in computer class at collage when a group of students started sniggering to themselves. There were four of them. The larger two lacked chins and hair held flat to their heads by grease, one was a built like a wall, road a Harley-Davidson and had the same name as a famous whisky brand, and the third, the smallest of the lot and who played lead guitar in a band, currently had his head in his hands. On the monitor in front of him was a desktop background of six ponies and a small purple dragon. The guitarist shook his head and smiled. He kept that background for the whole two years of college.
It was the first time I had ever heard of the term brony, although I was aware of My Little Pony memes appearing online, mostly involving one rainbow-maned pony saying “20% cooler” and that there was a thing where adult men unironically liked the show. Turns out there where four of them in my class. Less than a year later, I became the fifth.
The first My Little Pony Episode I watched was season 2 episode 15, The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000. I had hesitantly typed My Little Pony episodes into YouTube and was looking through the results. I was only half-interested until I saw the title. I had to do a double take even.
You see, in the UK cider is almost exclusively alcoholic. And I happen to live in the part of the UK that’s famous for its cider. It’s the drink of the region. Pubs all around have a large array of ciders on tap and all refuse to sell anything more then a half pint of it to tourists who can’t handle just how hard our ciders are. Sweet, fruity, intoxicating. I had honestly no idea that non-alcoholic cider was a thing.
That’s probably why I enjoyed the episode so much. That super catchy song too. I had it in my head for weeks after. Still can remember it to this day.
I spent the rest of the day reflecting on the fact that I just enjoyed a My Little Pony episode. It was something that I couldn’t really comprehend. My Little Pony was supposed to be that thing for little girls with no substance, but I enjoyed it. Honestly, it’s much of a surprise thinking back at all the programs I enjoyed growing up, but it was something that I deeply had to consider.
I watched more episodes.
I found Equestria Daily.
The season 2 final was the first episodes I ever watched live, and what an introduction! It was nothing I could have expected, and it was amazing.
Then I found FimFiction.net.
I had first encountered FanFiction a year earlier. It was a Mass Effect 2 fanfic on the official forums. I was so naive at the time, thinking that it was awesome, the best thing ever. I was blow away by the fact someone would write a story like that, and a good one too. Somehow, I had forgot that I had written fanfics for quite a long time without realising it.
By the time I found MLP, I had already written FanFics for 3 fandoms, Mass Effect, FEAR and WITCH. I wasn’t good at it. Not at all! Looking back on those fics is like looking at childhood crayon drawings. One of those stories was very popular though, I even get messages from people liking it to this day, but sadly all but one of those stories where never finished. Although I still want to write a WITCH/MLP crossover fic.
I joined FimFiction and started immersing myself into a wonderful world of pony stories. There was much to choose from, and the quality was a whole step higher then what I was use too. It was inevitable that I would start writing myself, and I started with the Lion and the Unicorn. Part one of a seven-part series that follows each of the mane six as they struggle to get back to Equestria to free it from Discord.
The Lion and the Unicorn was never finished. It died like the rest of my stories.
I’ve always enjoyed writing. But I can never finish anything I start. A sudden burst of enthusiasm always dissolves into apathy, procrastination and self-doubt. I look at all the friends I have made and all the massive, many thousand-word bookshelves of stories they have written, and I cannot but help feel inadequate compared to them.
But I made friends. So many of them. Finding MLP and finding FimFiction changed my life. I have met so many fantastic people here, and to all of you, it is wonderful to know you.
When I started University, I thought that I would discover so many people to bond with over ponies. Sadly, I found none. But I continued to enjoy MLP in secret, having lost the confidence to be openly a brony. Back in the extra-long hiatus between seasons 4 and 5, I started my internship and had found new fandoms to get interested in. And sadly, MLP fell by the wayside and I stopped reading fanfiction or really anything other than comics. I forgot basically everything to do with the fandom other then the few friends I remained in contact with.
Then, during my final year at university, I was wilting under the pressure. Stress was getting to me and I needed something to help relieve it.
Somehow, and I’m not quite sure why, I found myself looking up season 5 of MLP and I watched the season opening.
Those two episodes came out of the blue and made me instantly fall back in love with MLP again. I binged watched the show up until the season 6 final. Then, too my surprise, I discovered that Equestria Girls had become popular and had 3 more movies released. Safe to say, I binged them too and really enjoyed them. I remember after spending a day writing my dissertation, I would watch one of the EqG movies before bed. Repeatedly.
And, of course, I found FimFiction again. And a whole host of new writers had appeared and had written so many fantastic stories. It also got me to join their Discord channel. And from there I found Equestria at War. And so much of the last 3 years has been defined by the new friends I’ve met here and there.
Tonight, (1 am my time!) I’m going to watch the final live with said friends.
It is going to be amazing.
I hope you all have such fond memories of MLP as I have. It’s been awesome. And just because the show over doesn’t mean the stories have to end. I’ll still be here. Writing. Slowly, yes, but writing.
I’ll see you all later.
It is really interesting to read how some people got into the fandom. Many just stumble upon it, or get more or less assimilated.
I'm just glad you joined the fandom when you did and even gave us your stories, finished or not.
Because for what you wrote, some here really enjoyed it.
People like grumpy old Germans like me ;)
Hope you'll like the final Episode.