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That was a bad article. They only explained in the vaguest terms that some fans might be doing something that might be making some of the members of DHX unhappy before making a call to arms to go and throughly kiss DHX's asses to make them feel better.

I don't understand exactly what has happened. Have some of the fans actually been retarded enough to attack DHX personally just for doing their jobs and trying their best to make this crappy prompt from Hasbro work? If so, those people need to be gathered up and shot out of a cannon into the sun.

If the only thing the fans have done however is piss and moan about how bad they think EG is going to be, then the people at DHX need to remember that they're professionals, tighten their thongs, and get the fuck over it. Dealing with criticism just comes with the territory of being an artist, and I have no sympathy for these people who

1: Are getting paid to do what they love.
2: Have managed to amass a fandom for their work who adores them.

This is a position that a dilettante such as myself would happily sacrifice many children to Satan to achieve.

So yeah, I wish the article was a bit more specific so I could decide where I want to fall on this issue, but it isn't being specific probably because there isn't really anything to be specific about. It sounds like this publication is based on little more than conjecture and rumor, a little hysteria in response to the general hysteria about EG in the fandom.

Edit: Oh, page get? Let's mix it up a bit.

I dedicate this page to all the Mary Sues and OCs that we all love and love to hate!

We know. It's been screencapped in the gallery here. I've left my comment there.

Also Fifth's, you may not be aware of this, but apparently some dudes were going about personally insulting DHX staff (notably Meghan). Going beyond critique and into irrational hatred. I haven't found a whole lot of evidence, but word is that the individuals were so butthurt about Equestria Girls that they blatantly attacked the shows creators.

This was some time ago and I don't know if there has been any continuance of the incident, but if it was stuff like this:

Then it is understandable why EQD wanted to address it. That's NOT criticism. That's abuse, pure and simple.

I know that, that could have been just one miserable troll and chances are that it was. But there's also a chance it was a result of pent up tension from all the drama happening recently and obviously EQD did not want to take a chance.

If this EqG shitstorm is brewing aggressive hateful attitudes in our own fandom like that, then we damn well need to put a cap on it.

If it turns out there is not a problem to put a cap on after all, that's okay. I quote myself:

Regardless, I think this message carries a strong point that should not only apply to the trolls that tweeted rude responses to Meghan, but towards all accomplishments and events within the fandom.

Whether it was a main character turning into an alicorn or a human or any other change in the show that you don’t agree with; there is never a good reason to attack the makers

People are allowed to disagree with changes that Hasbro is making with the show and they are allowed to voice their disapproval. I think hasbro does deserve to be criticized for their decisions. But unless Hasbro burned down a bunch of orphanages, neither they or DHX deserve to be flamed (Note that there is a difference between critique and flaming)

People shouldn’t get so overly emotional over changes in a kids show in the first place. If a company trying to sell kids toys makes you draw your torches and pitchforks, then it’s time to reevaluate your priorities in life.

All that aside, it looks like DHX are handling themselves just fine anyway.

Pinkie explicitly states in Over a Barrel that ponies are vegetarian. She never said vegan, so that would mean things like eggs and milk are ok, and why they would make meat-looking tofu is beyond me (I think we can just call that one an error) but it has at least been confirmed in the show that ponies are not omnivores

OC AND MARY SUE PONIES EH?! Well feast your eyes on my new OC (Whom I made in less than five minutes literally)

KILLGORE THE ALICORN!

He's the son of Princess Celestia and Luna (Wincest amirite?) because of that he's the fastest flyer in the world, had more raw magical talent than Twilight Sparkle, can raise the moon, sun AND the stars because he's awesome like that. But he was too badass because he would form the stars into giant penises in the sky so his Mother sent him to Ponyville as punishment where he will make it his goal to screw every mare in the town which won't take him long because all the mares find him 100% irresistible. Oh he also fights and kills a dragon at one point.

I can't wait till DHX makes him canon.

@Regarding that famous picnic image

Boring answer:
Call it an artistic error.

Creative answer:
Assume in the pony world, there exists a species of pink colored plant, which when sliced thinly, looks like baloney

KYM Debate Club Answer:
Omnivores are a minority class in Equestria in the same manner that Vegetarians are a minority in reality. Pinkie was speaking on behalf of a majority but there exists some ponies that pursue more extravagant diets, some of which do produce their own meat products or purchase them from other meat eating cultures in Equestria such as Griffons, Minotaurs or whatever the hell those Diamond Dogs were. It's safe to assume that meat comes from the same farm animals that Ponies already cull to create their leathers and textiles so eating meat might not be taboo in any kind of way. Thus allowing ponies to bring meat filled sammiches to the community picnic. However, they might get interesting questions about it and/or mean looks from Fluttershy

@OC topic

<------------ Yours Truly

Blue Screen is right. Just because the Deathly Hasbro hates us doesn't mean the writers do.

No offense Hasbro. I just like making fun of you.

I love this. You win the internet for today.

@BSoD

That picture hurts me. Meghan McCarthy says something hilarious and heartwarming and some gutter slime says that to her.

You and I are agreed in the short and long of it. There is a difference between voicing disapproval and flaming. My point is that I haven't seen enough of the latter to really make this an issue. Of course, I pretty much get all my pony news through KYM, so I can't really call myself the authority, but yeah, I sincerely doubt the abuse has been so devestating that it's causing some of the staff to actually think about quitting.

Woo, a few different topics popping up here:

@Twilight Shipping
I am a little annoyed that some people seem to think that all the 'I don't want Twilight to have a boyfriend on the show' arguments boil down to 'I won't let them destroy my OTP!' or 'I want her for myself!'
There are plenty of good reasons to be wary of that situation without either of those flimsy strawmen.
Personally, I don't like the idea because I've really enjoyed the fact that she is a female protagonist with no romantic inclinations.
Those are a rare thing nowadays, especially in media aimed at girls, and I liked seeing it.
Suddenly having her fall in love with some hot new guy that is being introduced just to be a love interest in a cliche high school setting feels like it really goes against the characterization that has been built up so far.
I would be perfectly fine with seeing a relationship blossom on the show as long as it wasn't quite so horribly cliche.
(I kind of like the Big Mac/Cheerilee thing that has been somewhat subtly implied to have continued after their episode.)

@Lunar

Who needs polygamy when you have a changeling?

@Ponies eating meat
I like to think that vegetarianism is the default for ponies.
Eating meat is generally looked down on by society so those that do it tend to be very secretive about it.

That, or the 'meat' in that sandwich is just something else.
I remember people saying that it was a slice of beet or turnip perhaps.

@Kewl
AHHH, STOP IT!
THESE HORRIBLE OCs KEEP BEING CREATED FASTER THAN WE CAN DESTROY THEM!

GO FASTER, APPLE BLOOM!
THERE ARE EIGHT MORE THAT WE STILL NEED TO BURY THIS MORNING!

@Show Staff Abuse
Yeah, no one is saying that DHX is above criticism or that people are not allowed to dislike EG.
The problem comes when jerks decide to be intentionally insulting and abusive to people who are just going about their day-to-day jobs and doing the best that they can.
BSoD's example is probably the most… blatant that I've ever seen, but there has been a not-insignificant amount of derision thrown their way.
Luckily, most of them are pretty good at playing it off.

@Fifths
The difference between flaming and criticizing is exactly the issue here.
EQD should probably have done a better job of explicitly differentiating the two, but their intent is good at least.
I did actually see a screencap of someone saying that the recent attacks on show staff have caused some to contemplate leaving the show, but I'm having trouble finding it again and it was just your standard unverifiable forum post anyway.
Could easily be fabricated, but the claim that staff are quitting has at least been floating around.

Something that few people seem to have noticed:

Anyone wondering what the deal is with those ears?
We can obviously see that they are fake and all, but why are they wearing them?
Are we looking at some kind of freaky trans-dimensional cosplay?

DeadParrot222 wrote:

GO FASTER, APPLE BLOOM!
THERE ARE EIGHT MORE THAT WE STILL NEED TO BURY THIS MORNING!

Oh, crap, eight more!? I CAN'T DO IT THAT FAST!!!

ORIGINAL CHARACTER! DO NOT STEAL!

This is my OC. His name is Shadow Embrace.

His backstory is that he is the cousin of Luna, but he wasn't able to visit her often because he's constantly exploring dungeons and fighting big monsters. Yes, he's an alicorn. Because he's family of Luna his power is that of controlling darkness. You currently can't see his right eye, but that is one of a robot and can shoot lasers. The armor plate on his chest wouldn't be necessary with his strength, but it covers up a nasty scar he got during one of his many battles. The rings on his legs serve as weapons which he controls during battle with his magic, the sides can open up and reveal hidden blades.

After a while Luna asked him to go to Ponyville where he stayed for a time. He became best friends with the mane six and often helps them out, because he's just that cool. He's also the current boyfriend of Twilight Sparkle. Besides his old habit of exploring dungeons and fighting big monsters he also helped Rainbow Dash get into the Wonderbolts and he often joins them in their performances after they were amazed by his skill.

ORIGINAL CHARACTER! DO NOT STEAL!

Fifths Wrote:

I dedicate this page to all the Mary Sues and OCs that we all love and love to hate!

…Um…

Does it count as being a Mary Sue if every single character is exactly the same amount of overpowered? Both Hero and Villain alike?

ORIGINAL CHARACTER! DO NOT STEAL

His name is Midnight Braid. He is a bat pony but he is also part Zebra but there is more bat pony so he is black and red instead of black and white. He also used to be an alicorn, but he lost his wings in an accident but because he is also the smartest pony ever he made a new pair of wings out of metal that work with magic. He also lost his horn in the accident but it made his magic more powerful and so Princess Celestia sent him to Ponyville to be Twilight Sparkle's new magic teacher.

Because he is the smartest pony, he helps out the mane 6 a lot but they don't show it in the show because he is shy. Sometimes he goes on adventures with them and he uses his weapons that he invented using his smartness to save the day. He is Rarity's boyfriend but he is also Fluttershy's boyfriend but it's OK because Rarity doesn't mind. He also goes to the Equestria Girls universe with Twilight Sparkle except that he get split up from her and loses his memory and so all he remembers is that his name is Brad (but he is wrong because his name is Midnight Braid but he could only remember part of Braid) and so he's the Brad in the Equestria Girls videos.

(OOC: I'm noticing a trend with the bad OC color schemes we're coming up with…)

wow this comic represent well when something "weird" happens,like EG

@Deadparrot

EQD should probably have done a better job of explicitly differentiating the two, but their intent is good at least.
I did actually see a screencap of someone saying that the recent attacks on show staff have caused some to contemplate leaving the show, but I’m having trouble finding it again and it was just your standard unverifiable forum post anyway.
Could easily be fabricated, but the claim that staff are quitting has at least been floating around.

Perhaps more importantly, EQD should have mentioned what it was that they were responding towards exactly or recorded some examples. The posts left behind from the supposed offenders have been buried under the internet so we are lacking a lot of context. People aren't sure if EQD is overreacting to some trolls or talking about someone specific. We don't know how severe the actions were or what impact they had. This is resulting in a lot of assumptions.

But at least we know that the staff aren't that affected

Oh I get it, they are cosplaying bronies.

@RandomMan
>Not giving him AIDS
>Not having him be an orphan

Do you even make OC's?

@Deadparrot222
I demand a fanfic based on that Fluttershy picture.

@Deadparrot Series of tweets that I saw starting it all were are from here https://twitter.com/tehbobbles/status/334292052764413953

It was on Derpibooru when I found out but the OP requested the image be deleted (why IDK) Luckily someone added the link before pulling it from the gallery.

I remember when everyone in the MLP fanbase used to be all lovey dovey with each other around Season 1 and the relationship with Hasbro was stable. At least the events that have sprouted recently have been somewhat entertaining.

@Ponies Eating Meat:

Well… humans are animals, and we eat meat. In my headcanon, ponies are omnivores, but there are significantly more vegitarians than in our society.

For all you know, this cake could be made of meat.

Nice to see you guys know about the red and black color cliche when it comes to OC Mary Sues. Kudos to you two.

FYI my OC is better because he has a mustache and decapitated a dragon…..with his dick!

@Jimmy Lethal
I'm not entirely sure how to make "The Rains of Castamere" pony related.

Also, why is it that every single Mary Sue OC has the black and red coloring? The people who make them have to realize at some point that everybody and their mother is using that same coloring for their OCs. I don't even think it really works in this setting either.

@OC's

The time has come to finally ponify myself and submit to the world of terrible role-plays and fanfictions! Beehold!

OH GOD F(squee)CKING DAMMIT
(original character do not steal)

@Jimmy Lethal: Around the pony, around the pony

@level4outbreak: Maybr because they are OCs? I mean, people do them thinking "This is my thing, this is something I like", they probably are just think something that they (and maybe their closest circle of friends) will like. Not something in a Milky Way or something that dozens of people will actually enjoy, for example.

EDIT: Guess what I just found? EG Rule 34! Oh, /mlp/ never ceases to amuse me.

People, this is the best OC ever. Presenting, King Superawesome!

ORIGINAL CHARACTER DONUT STEEL

Oh, god, I think I killed them all. My revival spell: Ashley Massaro, mares and gentlecolts.

And destroy all R34 shipfics that contain parental incest and replace it by his girlfriend Twilight Sparkle getting aids? Do you even ship?

Twilitlord wrote:

(OOC: I’m noticing a trend with the bad OC color schemes we’re coming up with…)

>mfw people don't use the black and red master race.

@Bruno the Rustler
I didn't mean that the people who make the OCs are doing it for other people's enjoyment. There are quite a lot of good ones out there. I was more curious at how a lot of the more ridiculously overpowered OCs (not just pony ones either) end up being extremely similar. I mean, the creators of them must have come across similar ones on the internet at some point. But I get what you're saying.

I'm pretty sure that was never the case. If I remember correctly, the early fandom was somewhat apocalyptic (always making sadfics about the show eventually ending, even in season one), and would freak out at even the slightest brony shoutout that they found in the show/promotional materials. The relationship with Hasbro was less "stable" than it was an unknown abyss of fear, gratitude, and suspicion (likely on both sides).

Everyone should just relax and remember that we have always been insane. :)

@level4

I was more curious at how a lot of the more ridiculously overpowered OCs (not just pony ones either) end up being extremely similar

That's a good question. Now there's two ways of looking at it.

1. It's a common trope. RGB (Red, Grey, Black) is just a striking color scheme that really stands out and reminds us of unstoppable badassery. Numerous badasses in fiction have been associated with it. Dracula is RGB, Satan is RGB, Spawn used RGB. War from Darksiders used RGB. Venom used RGB. Batman of the Future used RGB.

There are examples everywhere of the color scheme being a typical trope for a badass and if you are making a character where the goal is to be as badass as possible, it's simply an easy trope to default towards. It's not like you are trying to be original anyway, you just want a character that stands out and the color scheme does the job.

2. We are being bias. We've gone and associated overpowered OC's with Pony Generator ponies with that color scheme simply because we noticed a lot of Pony Generator ponies are RGB, even if not all of them are overpowered. We have not actually done any study to confirm a direct correlation between overpowered ponies and RGB ponies.

This could be a matter of implying causation equals correlation. EG:

• Most people making overpowered OC's use pony generator


• Most people using pony generator make RGB ponies


• Therefore most overpowered OC's are RGB

But of course, the above logic is a fallacy. There's no real correlation implied between overpowered OC's and the color scheme except on pony generator which does not account for all overpowered OC's. This means we are perpetuating a stereotype within this thread.

@Jimmy Lethal

The current song has no lyrics…

Can bass drops be about ponies?

@BSoD
post number 777
>check them 7's

@Jimmy Lethal

I'm not listening to any songs at the moment, but I had this stuck in my head all day for some reason.

@Vazquez

Huh? I checked'em and I don't see a post 777…

@Ponified song

My cider brings Rainbod Dash to the yard
And she's like: "It's cooler than yours."
Damn right, it's cooler than you're.
She could race you, but she'd sonic boom.

(Don't judge me.)

The mindset of people who make Mary Sue characters.

They have to look cool
They have to act cool
They have to be the most powerful characters in the universe
Must have some sort of relationship to a canon character

Etc etc. That's where the Red and Black thing comes in when you look at that first example. They think it looks cool.

my post makes 783
now count backwards to your post

Oh, I was looking at the post ID's

True. I guess "lovey dovey" is a bit of an overstatement. "Less chaotic" would be more appropriate to describe the days of S1.

At least it's good to know that I'm not alone when it comes to insanity. Sanity is so overrated :P

All these horrible OCs…
My mind…

I think BSoD pretty much said the primary reasons for OC trends.
Certain traits are generally considered 'cool' so those traits are seen much more frequently as people who want a cool OC slap something together without a lot of thought.
I don't really think that there is any direct correlation between an overpowered character and its color scheme, they are just two common ways to make a bad OC so the stereotype takes both aspects and combines them.
Thus we have the 'red and black superpowered alicorn OC' that everyone has been parodying here.

@Captain Derpy
I kind of see what you mean, but i think that the fandom has always been pretty chaotic.
It's just that the type of chaos has changed.
At first, bronies were a very new thing and early adopters tended to band together.
They first reached out to the staff and created those relationships, but their drama came in the form of external 'attacks.'
You may recall the whole 4chan saga where ponies literally became a bannable offense for a while.
Bronies had plenty to yell about, it was just almost all directed at non-bronies.

Since then, pones have sort of become a fixture of the internet.
Even people who don't like them (for the most part) at least acknowledge that they are here to stay and most of the 'anti-brony' movements have fizzled out.
But with the external peace and the massive increase in numbers, bronies ended up turning the conflict inward.
I don't think the fights and drama are any worse (or better for that matter) than they used to be, they just seem to hit closer to home because they are happening amongst ourselves.

Same stuff applies to the relationship with Hasbro.
Early attempts were hopeful but suspicious.
Now, we are almost too close to those making the show that some people loose sight of the fact that they don't wok for us.
The cool little shout-outs became less 'treats' and more 'expectaions' to some people, so when the show does something they don't like, they perceive it as an insult.

So yeah, we're just a little overly attached.
But that doesn't make us crazy…

…does it?

Be careful what you wish for…

Genies are tricky bastards.

OK, I didn't want to respond to all the OC stuff at first, mainly since I don't know what Mary Sue means. I've made OC's for sure, but everyone seems to be hating the fact that…
1) They're black and red
2) They have a relationship with a canon pony (or at least a Mane 6)

3) Overpowered or Alicorns

4) Mary Sues? (someone explain this concept to me)
5) Orphans

I sure do not have 1, 2, or 3 (unless Changelings count as Alicorns, which I doubt they do). I don't know what 4 is. And I seem to have done wrong with 5 according to everyone on here. Is there a problem with orphans that I don't understand?

Distraction Topic: Wanna try and make up a situation these guys, and Fluttershy, could be in?

@Mark

1) I don't think Black and Red colors are the issue per se. More like having an eye-shredding color scheme is the problem. People generally hate ponies that look like Alienware PC's or the physical embodiment of a glow-paint rave party. Avoid colors that appear gaudy, inconsistent or high-contrast

An OC can get away with red and black so long as it's not ridiculously black (as if the pony absorbed all light it contacts) with a clashing bright neon red.

A little more than just two colors will help too. No pony in FiM consists of just two colors alone for the entire body. Only using two colors looks lazy.

Self example: I'm red, white, dark grey and blue. But not primary blue and not jet black.

2) As soon as you ship your OC with a main character, people start wondering how you suddenly got so important that you should be directly involved with canon characters. It's generally regarded as unwarranted egocentrism.

3) Same effect as 2

4) Well then, maybe you should know your meme.

5) Wait, OC's can't be orphans? Oh, that's bad news for me…error messages don't have parents…unless I can count Bill Gates as my dad?

As for that unrelated picture, it's simple. They came back from Trixies sock puppet show and have left thoroughly unimpressed. Even Patrick thinks he could do a better sock animation

Thank you very much for that, Blue! Looks like my characters aren't Mary Sues after all!
But I still don't understand the orphan deal. What's wrong with orphans? I mean, sure, they don't give a lot of background information to your pony, but… I can't explain it in fair terms. And what about relations with background ponies, not as major as Lyra or Derpy, but those like Rose… are those all right?

There isn't anything inherently wrong with orphans and actually (at least I feel anyway) it can give a bit of background information to the pony if done right, i.e. the character's motivations. However, a lot of people who make their ponies orphans pretty much do it so that the character has some sort of tragic backstory. Once again, there isn't anything necessarily wrong with anyone's OC having a tragic backstory. In fact, a character that is very well-adjusted can admittedly be a little bit boring.

However, it seems that the "orphan status as tragic backstory" is sometimes chosen for the sake of tragedy. The character is said to be an orphan but it is not described how that affected him/her in the past (other than "making him sad" or something similar) and it is not described how it affects their future. In short, characters as orphans has, in recent years, come to be associated with lazy writing.

Of course, I'm looking at this through the eyes of a fiction writer so that's only one perspective.

markhaox14 Wrote:

4) Mary Sues? (someone explain this concept to me)

It's kind of a term with a lot of possible meanings…

Generally though, if you want the meaning that's most relevant to their use, its the meaning that they are somehow so perfect that any actual conflict with them is meaningless.

Its like playing an RPG and starting with one character who's level 99, while the rest of the team is Level 1. And the enemies are all catered to challenging Level 1 characters and not level 99 characters.

…Which would admittedly make the entire thing kinda boring.

Generally, the threat level of the challenge should be roughly Equal or Higher than the skills of the characters. So if you've got an Alicorn and Five other Ponies, your challenge for them should be roughly equal to an Alicorn and Five other Ponies…

… Although as an optimum formula, since Six Regular ponies with elements of Harmony can deal with One Alicorn. You may want to adjust the enemy's threat to the Alicorn and Five ponies to be Something more like… Three Evil Alicorns.

…or Seven… Since "Seven Evil Alicorns" rolls off the tongue better.

There are other things that often qualify, but those have a different root problem of making no freaking sense, and can often be solved by fixing the holes in your story logic, or in some cases, how the story is told.

…But to sum up… The more stuff you throw into a character, the more work you have to do to justify their existence. And Mary Sues just happen to be a product of when somebody hasn't done the work needed to justify that character's existence.

Guys, if we're talking about writing fiction, it's time to trope it up.

There are many traits that commonly plague the Mary Sue, the most cringe-inducing type of character. However, any of these traits is not neccesarily bad in every case.

Mostly, what makes a Mary Sue is not any specific triat, but simply bad writing, (or in our case, bad use of PonyCreator). However, there are certain tropes that are overused by bad authors, and we make fun of them because… it's fun.

What . . . what have you done?!
You linked them to TvTropes – are you mad?!
I don't mean to be anvilicious but . . . DAMN IT! NOW YOU'VE GOT ME DOING IT!

Serrious Buisness Wrote:

Mostly, what makes a Mary Sue is not any specific trait, but simply bad writing, (or in our case, bad use of PonyCreator). However, there are certain tropes that are overused by bad authors, and we make fun of them because… it’s fun.

Well gee, thanks for summing up every single detailed rant about the subject into a single sentence.

…I wonder when it was that I lost that ability?

Did I just suddenly develop the urge to explain every single detail of an issue I enjoy or something?

Le Sigh

I can see why so many people enjoy criticizing Mary Sues.
My characters (only about four of them, in reality) are complete orphans (no mother or father). One had been adopted, one lives with a sibling, one lives solo, and one lives with another relative. Their backstories do play a heavy part in my fanfiction, otherwise you'd just know them as orphans who lost their parents, yet it didn't affect them at all. I'm not a lazy writer, but I have my moments where my mind just goes blank, especially recently with Reform.

@Serious

Goddam you! You linked Tropes!

I'm going to be awake for hours!

You're welcome.

I've had a TVtropes tab on my iPod's browser for nearly 2 years now. I haven't slept in forever.

You used the correct for of "you're"?

Marry me!

Hope you all don't mind, but I don't especially feel like wasting a tl;dr on the last post of a page.