but as a denizen of the Internet, I need to put in this word, addressing the bill SOPA.
It is [redacted].
See? My long-winded speech was destroyed. Which is of course legitimate evidence against SOPA.
On a more serious note, SOPA is a serious threat to the Internet and business alike, a shortsighted abomination. Do what you can to defeat it- e-mail your representatives, do something like this on your blogs, A quick infographic:
While I'm here, I'll officially mention that I own approximately none of the media I reference on the blog, but I likewise don't know their author. Either way, it's not mine, I do not claim ownership, etc.
I've already explained why MLP is awesome, how bronies came about, and why the fandom is as brilliant as it is. However, that last respect has hardly been done justice. Which is what I'm here to exhibit now: the works and wonders of brony culture, what makes them legitimate.
I am more than aware that I have already mentioned it, but the first and foremost factor that lends itself to the genius in brony culture is that of the cooperation and community between bronies. Here's a bit more along those lines:
Another earlier issue that I've covered rather heavily is that of brony hating. Brony legitimacy has never really been threatened by this, but here's a bit of reinforcement:
That's enough on recap- it's time to move on to what this section is really about- the genius of bronies. Bronies are by and large a highly skilled group of individuals, spanning the spectrum of the arts. Likewise, the unskilled are encouraged to develop and practice their own talents via community support and events. The arts are well and alive among bronies, with high quality productions being produced nigh constantly.
There are dozens of crafts employed among bronies- rendering, painting, programming, composition, acting, writing, sewing, business, design, science, rhetoric, the way bronies creative juices are employed are without limit. The amount of fanmade content is unfathomable, with thousands of songs, pictures, videos, etc. There's plays, movies, videogames, podcasts all being designed around the franchise. These large projects are out of the hands of normal chaps, but that doesn't stop them from doing what they can, with the art and music divisions especially vigorous.
The visual arts of static images is probably the second most impressive of brony-based art. These span paintings, sketches, photoshop, and computer images. The styles are likewise diverse, from complex to cartoony, classical in style or flashy. If you couldn't guess, there is going to be less writing on my part and more linking.
Some rather well-detailed pieces
Rarity the Magnificent
Steampunk Profile
Luna and Twilight
Derpy War Poster
Caitlyn (from LeagueofLegends) Sketch
Celestia-GLADoS
Crossovers
Cartoony Filly Derpy
Dr. Adorable (Dr. Horrible)
Not authentic, sadly
Ponified GLADoS
Doctor Whooves and the TARDIS
Ponified Zealot
AJ Bucking in Minecraft
And a bit of Miscellaneous
Steampunk Mane 6
Pinkie Pie Dreams
There's an awesome song to go with this
Seal of Twilight Sparkle
Mane 6 Dias
Fluttershy for Pres
That's more or less how the rest of this will go. By that I mean a pain to format and ridiculously long.
Moving on, there is the writing that bronies themselves do. I'll admit I do not know much myself in this category- I haven't read many. Regardless, there are quite a few rather well written and extremely popular fanfics. Due to my lack of experience, this list will be short (feel free to add to this in the comments, I'm woefully uninformed in this respect).
I said it would be short. I know there are good ones from word of mouth, but I really don't read many (by which I mean I've read 2). As a warning, however, there are a few fanfics that are remarkably well known, but solely from infamy. The principle one is Cupcakes. Do not let curiosity make you read that. Ever.
Before getting to the big one, I ought to mention all the diverse projects that are being carried out. Here is a brief list of some of the more prominent ones:
MLP The RPG- A role-playing game, like Dungeons and Dragons
Plus plushies, shirts, and a mass of miscellaneous merchandise.
Now comes the crux of all brony creation- the music. There are dozens of highly talented bronies who compose, remix, remix compositions, and sing original songs. This is the most brilliant facets of the fandom, The original works, parodies, remixes, etc are absolutely wonderful. They span the genres- dubstep, techno, rock, classical, country. Some are lyrical, profound, and others emotion-evoking ambiance.
Classical/Orchestral:
One of personal favorites. One of the best bronies in this field is makkon06.
Electronic (Dubstep/Techno/Eurobeat/etc):
OdysseyEurobeat is a pretty important chap. ChainAlgorithm and Foozogz
Rock/Acoustic/Rap/ThingsRemotelySimilar (if you can't tell, I'm not too comfortable identifying these genres):
LivingTombstone, GeneralMumble are big here.
Lyrical:
MandoPony is my favorite in this category.
Even more (YTPMV, misc, etc):
I've been building quite a collection of songs. If you want to see more:
If you couldn't tell, there is just a bit of a bias towards classical/orchestral pieces (as they invaded the other categories).
And this is the end of this compilation- not so much of an argument but an exposition of the skills of others. But the fact remains- the skill of bronies is impeccable and undeniable. And it hasn't avoided notice. Modern media is abuzz with news of bronies- everyone is fascinated/horrified by the phenomena. While a non-biased review is hard to find (I'm looking at you WSJ), it is rather refreshing to take a break from those who basically trash on it without base or rationale (ie they never looked past the cover). Some fair fame has been garnered, however, as bronies received a shoutout on the Colbert Report.
And possibly, the most important shoutout is that of Hasbro. They have officially recognized bronies in their ad campaigns (specifically mentioning them in Equestria Girls), as well as employing the fan-given names for a number of background ponies (most importantly DJ Pon3 and Derpy Hooves). Derpy Hooves, so-named for an animation error that caused her to be cross-eyed, has since been frequently inserted in the background with the "derpy" eyes solely because of her popularity among fans.
Bronyism has come to thrive and propagate, persisting despite negative coverage to make it worth those rare acknowledgments- consistent quality of every art and imagination possible has attracted bronies in and of itself. If nothing else, kudos must be given where it's due, and bronies certainly deserve it considering the wonders they've pulled.
Compared to the previous topic, this is significantly less controversial in definition, but being a brony yourself isn't. As far as what a brony is, it is as simple as this: a fan of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Some would limit the term to nonchild fans, but they might as well be too. However, for the purpose of discussion, we will primarily focus on the aged bronies, as no one wishes to hear a rant about people watching a show in their demographic. So from this point forward, when I refer to a brony, they are not a little girl.
So, concerning bronies. Unsurprisingly, this fandom is largely composed of nerds, geeks, denizens of the Internet. Not entirely surprising, considering that all three of these groups are often social outcasts and wouldn't flinch at another instance of social deviance. There is also the factor of the high percentage of hipsters in these groups, and anything ironic is fair game for them. In fact, the brony fandom began and lives on the internet, without which it would be massively crippled. But however did MLP come to the attention of these socially awkward penguins, to reference the internet meme?
The answer is this article, the End of the Creator-Driven Era in TV Animation by Amid. It attacked modern cartoons and animation and one of the first things it mentions is this: My Little Pony. While it is mentioned only once in the article, this is where it started, though it had nothing to do with the reference of MLP. The reason the article came to prominence was because it so deeply offended many members of 4chan's cartoon board. However, the specific mentioning of MLP in the article piqued the curiosity of some of those on 4chan. They found that Amid had chosen the worst possible evidence to make his case, and the brony was born. Soon, ponies became a culture of 4chan. But, being 4chan as it is:
But the Internet was tainted with the Dark One's own touch, it's magic made foul - What Robert Jordan would say if he went to 4chan
The newly found group of bronies quickly gained the antipathy of non-bronies, with a number of components resulting in this. First, 4chan is a collective of trolls, they fight and bicker as second nature (which is why one must NEVER go to 4chan, you will never be safe from then on). Second, bronies had found a very effective way to derail threads and stop discussion (the primary pastime on 4chan) in image macros. They would spam a thread with so much ponies that normal operation was impossible. This quite reasonably brought ire upon them. Finally, there is the fact that a lot of people simply hated on it. Candy-colored ponies make easy targets for trolls (though in actuality a seasoned debater could dissolve any arguments made against it, but then again, most people aren't debaters). Here, one of the many internet wars began. Bronies spammed pages with ponies, haters spammed it with things that should not be mentioned, and the ban hammer came out. All pony-related content was finally banned from 4chan. While this era is long past, bronies now with their own board on 4chan, this period served as a trial of fire to the bronies- if they could survive this, they could survive anything. Less significantly, it created a few common phrases such as:
In their exodus from 4chan, the brony culture began to propagate and expand its boundaries. Sites such as Equestria Daily and Ponychan were created to permit the continuity of the brony cause. Likewise, people from outside 4chan (such as myself) now became aware of the phenomenon. Youtube, DeviantArt, Facebook, the bronies found new homes all across the internet, forming groups, uploading content, etc.
At this point, the brony culture is alive and kicking, enjoying popularity throughout the web, with many fairly-well known names now holding the tag of brony, such as Weird Al Yankovic and Powree of the webcomic Sandra and Woo. Bill Clinton himself was once asked questions about MLP on Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me and answered all three correctly (he may have simply deduced it, but there's a healthy chance).
One of the defining traits of this culture is its quality- of individual and content. The core of the brony fandom is the idea of love and tolerance- these are their supreme values. The brony community has repeatedly been remarked on for its extraordinary camaraderie and unity, as shown by this very scientifically accurate graph:
In fact, the community is what many find most attractive- people's lives have been absolutely reversed by joining the bronies. Suicides have been prevented, depressions ended, vices undone, friendships and even marriages made, simply because this one show has brought so many people together in a non hostile environment- something which some bronies had never known before. There are instances of bronies being kicked out of their homes and quickly finding help among the community.
WARNING: LARGE WAVE OF EVIDENCE INCOMING
Click to expand
Click Moar
Continue Clicking
No one man should have this many links
Le Click
Keep Calm and Click On
You don't have to click if your eyes are good
I felt this one deserved extra notice. Pessimism is such an easy trap to fall in.
Quite right, sir
Clicking is definitely necessary
Very scientific.
Almost done clicking.
Last Click
The short of it is: MLP has had a massive effect on its fans, improving lives, providing a general good time, and creating a fundamental and compelling advocacy for something all too rare: harmony.
What's wrong with that?
Also, my primary source on the historical bit, by Saberspark once again:
