Michael (mergemm)

Michael

Story about bronies on the front page of the Wall Street Journal today http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203707504577012141105109140.html What do you guys think? !ottawabronies

Michael

@nightbreak Did the original MLP series have as much cartoon violence as Friendship is Magic or any at all? I noticed quite a bit of that in the new series, e.g., when the ponies fight the manticore in the first episode, and when two ponies drop a piano on Twilight. (On an unrelated note, how in the world does a pony play a piano with hooves?) And that's another thing about bronies: the huge amount of fan content you guys put out (fanfiction, art, videos, music, etc.). As a fanfiction writer, what is it about Friendship is Magic that inspires you to create this content?

Michael

@anubis418 I did notice a few gags and references clearly aimed at an older audience. Like the yakety sax bit, which they used twice if I recall correctly.

Michael

@nightbreak Thanks for the info. An obvious difference in quality (and style!) there. I presume these days Hasbro is also concerned with producing quality programming to drive viewers to their Hub network, rather than producing content solely to sell merchandise.

Michael

!ottawabronies @cakewalk That would be great! Sent you a reply. @frolicintheashes Thanks :) No reason why we can’t chat here or at the convention. I’m just choosing to focus on older bronies as far as sources go. @djmidli sounds good :)

Michael

@nightbreak Interesting! From what I gather the majority of bronies are only fans of Friendship is Magic and have either no knowledge of or interest in previous iterations. Can you tell me in what ways this latest MLP cartoon differs from the previous ones? !ottawabronies

Michael

@anubis418 Absolutely! I’m interested in speaking with as many Ottawa bronies as I can.

Michael

!ottawabronies @nightbreak @djmidli I'm focusing on why the cartoon has become this popular with a demographic so different from the target audience -- popular enough to spawn this brony subculture. Ideally real names would be used, but if there’s concern with that I’m willing to work around it. I do want to make it clear that I’m not out to portray bronies in a negative way. The premise just struck me as curious and I’m sure others would find it intriguing as well. I did commit myself to watching the entire first season when I decided to write this article; I think it’s a cute show with great production, characters and an interesting world. So the appeal is not lost on me :)

Michael

!ottawabronies Hi all. I’m a journalism student at Carleton University working on an article about bronies for a magazine writing course I’m taking this semester. I plan to pitch the story to an actual publication once I’m a bit further along with my research. I’m looking for Ottawa-area bronies (ages 18 and up) to be a part of the article. I’ll be at the convention in November, but I’m interested in chatting and/or meeting with any who are up for it before then. If you’d like to be involved, please email me at mmonett2 [at] connect.carleton.ca. Thanks!