My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic - Image #613,741

Hahahahaha, ahahahaha, AHAHAHAHAHAHA!
I was hooked from episode one, I learned about the brony community after having already seen the first handful of episodes. I literally didn't have a hating period at all!
I went straight from oblivious neutral to faithful fan over the course of just a couple days, thanks to a link for the first episode sent to me by a fellow forum-goer. I can't thank him enough for what he did for me.

I think it was actually beneficial for me, that he didn't explain a thing before sending me the episode. I asked him what a 'brony' was after I saw the term used in his signature, and instead of writing me a novel about what they were about, he simply gave me the episode to watch. I didn't have time to form an opinion before I was thrust head-first into the thick of things.

I never really went through that "hate phase" that I hear a lot of people experience. When I heard about the show and its popularity, I had a sort of confused curiosity. I mean, there had to be a valid explanation as to why so many people liked it, right? It wouldn't have a huge following for no good reason.
After watching the first episode, I wasn't hooked right off the bat. I was still unsure about it and wasn't certain if I got the appeal that so many others had found. But I thought "first episode ends on a cliffhanger, I gotta know what happens, right?" Then I went on to the second. At that point it wasn't too bad and even surprised me at several points with the genuine funniness of the show. Pulled up the third episode afterward… then the fourth… then the entire first season just flew by like that.
Before I'd known it, I had watched all of the first season (every episode that had been out at the time). And sure enough, I succumbed to the realization.
I was a Brony.