spotto

Hey guys!

It's a Fluttershy analysis.

Yes another one.

Yes.

In fact, while that may be my intent for this post I have no way of knowing at this point if it will stay a Fluttershy analysis because most likely I will go extremely off-topic and rant about something completely different! But for now, in the beginning, this is a Fluttershy analysis.

I always wonder why people choose to like or dislike a character, including my own tastes. It's easy to tell why someone may like a character you also like because duh, you know why you would like a character...at least, in a rather simple one-off explanation. After all, exploring why you yourself enjoy things you do could say a lot about yourself, especially when you do not usually have such thought processes and live each day doing your thing, no time to contemplate about silly questions in life like why you like the pastel yellow horse in that one cartoon with that huge fanbase on the internet. Luckily Spotto is here to relieve you of such time-consuming thoughts, by doing so herself!

But the most puzzling question of them all is when others dislike characters you like. Now you wonder why their tastes are so different and perhaps, if you disagree on this, you and this other person may be more different than first realized and perhaps your compatibility as friends and beyond may be slightly jeopardized (it's just one opinion, not like you disagree on EVERYTHING) but, still, at least for me, I wonder why it is so? The obvious answer is two people have radically different lives and therefore will identify and prefer things to others, and hoping for everyone to simply be the same is not only boring but not especially fruitful when spawning potential discussion. After all when others agree we cannot then speculate as to why we do so, or bring up points as to why we have such beliefs. So in essence, thank you people for disliking Fluttershy, now I have a horse to poke around until it's dead as to exactly why this may happen beyond merely just "we're different" explanations, and so the existence of this post.

I've done this before though, wondering why and posting why, and so this may also be a bit repetitive. Well, let's bring up why others or myself may not like or dislike the other Mane Six as opposed to others. Going backwards is a lot easier! For example, I love Pinkie Pie. Now from random statistics that came up from various surveys through the years of ponydom, Pinkie Pie is usually never the fandom's most favourite character unless the poll was thrown up in a community in with an abundance of silly people. By which I mean, the only time I've seen her reign as queen in popularity is when the /oat/ section of ponychan did a poll and since /oat/ is a board for really random stupid kind of posts, it made sense the unpredictable pink pony was their uncontested best pony. Sometimes I wonder why I myself frequented that board at times because I'm just a lurker who rarely posts and understands the in-jokes that rampant that oddity of a board. Oh well.

But again, why is Pinkie Pie never the favourite? Well that's because the primary reason MLP has this immense fanbase is shockingly not the humour, but rather the writing. And frankly depending on the quality of the episode, Pinkie's antics are hit-and-miss. I enjoyed her thoroughly in The Last Roundup and A Friend In Deed, but many others found her overbearing and pushy in such episodes. On the other hand I found she fell flat in episodes like Too Many Pinkie Pies and Games Ponies Play, the first because the so-called humour was more like a machine gun of jokes originating from the clones themselves, who are all caricatures of Pinkie at best and are therefore inferior so their loud, obnoxious and high octane jokes fell short for me, quite a bit. Meanwhile Games Ponies Play itself was a mediocre episode but Pinkie's attempts at humour either confused me or felt far too forced. I do not believe Pinkie is the easiest character to write, but I can see if she is the funnest character to write, what with her unpredictability.

However, if even I, a huge Pinkie Pie fan find her own humour to be hit-and-miss, that means people enjoy Pinkie for far more than simply, or maybe not even, her humour. I believe there is underlying immense depth to Pinkie which is sadly rarely addressed in the show, but when it is, is grounds for possibly the greatest moments of MLP I have the pleasure to view. While these moments are rare, my (imo) high tolerance for Pinkie's antics keep her from becoming annoying to me unlike some other fans who view her as only that screeching pink distraction on the show, which indeed makes me sad of such an opinion but I can understand their views. Unfortunately, thanks to Pinkie's main screentime consisting of her attempts/ability to be the comic relief, unless you actually enjoy this humour Pinkie will largely not be your favourite, if ever.

So that was easy! Other characters will be harder to pinpoint unfortunately. Pinkie's is rather black and white, what with her being so distinct/extreme of a character. For example, Rarity is often never the favourite initially for fans, and had Applejack not fallen into unofficial background status, Rarity would've been the clearly wooden spoon winner as unfavourite of the Mane Six. Luckily, Rarity's emergence as a stereotype-wrecking rounded character allowed her to shine far brighter than anyone's expectations. Unfortunately in most polls she still sits as second last, rarely switching with Pinkie for fourth. I can agree she's probably one of, if not the most, well-written characters in the entire show, and her character focused episodes arguably the best of the bunch, but unfortunately we all as human beings have our lives that drive is in several different directions, influencing how we may like or dislike certain interests in life. Despite the abundance of artwork and music in this community, Rarity's lack of popularity is (well my best guess anyway) likely blamed upon the fans not identifying with her quite as much as the others. There are definitely plenty of people who do, but first we must look at the majority of this unexpected demographic and pinpoint what type of people they are.

Liberal male college students.

How many of these college students enjoy spas? Do they wish to pursue any artistic career professionally? Or do they merely draw ponies as a hobby? Do they own their own business? While I'm certain many of these fans are aware of Rarity's brilliance as a character and therefore do like her as one, they probably will not have her as their very favourite. However perhaps others will also choose Rarity as their favourite because they value powerful character writing and enjoy strong storytelling. Maybe they actually identify with character X more, but because that character is in their opinion not written quite as well as Rarity, that they prefer Rarity. Even so, the number of people who believe this will probably not outnumber those fans who choose favourites because of how they see themselves in said character. There was a poll on EQD recently that asked of favourite character and then of the character fans identified the most, the results, while had some interesting differences were largely similar. I cannot find that at the moment so I guess this point is [CITATION NEEDED], but I can find an old poll where Rarity is the character people least identify with!

On the other hand, there are of course those who dislike Rarity, perhaps even with a passion. That I can see too because of all elements, Rarity's seems like the one that fits the least. In episodes that are strictly focused on Rarity she often has generosity in spades, mostly in her work that she is willing to share and give to everypony. Unfortunately a large part of Rarity outside of those episodes besides ham-fisting drama is her lack of generosity. For example, in Just for Sidekicks she gives Spike the tiniest most insignificant of jewels for taking care of Opal. Granted, said jewel did buy an industrial-sized hair dryer, but remember that to actually be generous to Spike, one must realize what Spike actually wants with a jewel. His desire for the gems is as a snack, so the larger the better. He cares not for their monetary value. Now again, we can argue that perhaps that tiny jewel is actually one of the tastiest gems in existence, but nothing really suggests this and Spike never really figures this out. They all seem like chips to him except for the fire ruby, which he was drooling over. If anything Spike should be the Element of Generosity, what with him giving up his own absolutely delicious birthday snack that he had been preparing for a month to the one he loves. The lovely twist is that he too has the vice of Greed, and so now I suddenly realize why they are the toy ship in the show.

Well we can argue forever about this, so let's move on. I'll probably be far briefer about the next three because I don't really think it's that hard to figure it out. Hell, let's just get Dash over with. People like Dash because she is cool. People dislike Dash because she is a jerk. The End.

...well perhaps that was too brief. Rainbow Dash though is like Pinkie Pie with her appearance and personality being quite distinct/extreme. So she would often be again, in the like it or hate it category. There have been times when Rainbow Dash has won popularity polls however and I will probably poorly guess as to why that is, but I think it's because Dash is essentially the mascot of bronies. If Pinkie Pie is often on packaging because of the belief that little girls like pink, then Pinkie Pie is the mascot of the actual demographic, but Rainbow Dash is definitely the mascot of the bronies themselves. When non-fans of the show see a pony on the internet it will most often be of Rainbow Dash. She is the rainbow-coloured one, the least feminine and therefore most manly of the ponies. The number of people who thought RD was a guy at first is huge. Rainbow Dash is also the most shipped of all the ponies, so she has the backing of the numerous shippers in the fandom. Why that is? Well that'd be a huge rant for later, but in a nutshell because she is seemingly the least-girly and most badass of the six, she therefore is wanted by every other pony too. It only makes sense! And if this show were not a girl's show I think Rainbow Dash would've likely been the main character instead, if we ignore her lack of leadership abilities. (well okay, she leads the weather ponies and then Wonderbolts Academy, but for a large part of the series she's too impulsive and brash to be a responsible leader)  

Since RD is the least expected type of pony to exist in a franchise known for lack of character and lack of any personality beyond girly tea-party guest, then obviously the least expected fandom would identify. I'm not going to go into why people dislike Dash. It is imo very easy to dislike Dash as a character because well...she's a jerk. She's getting better though! But I do hope she remains jerk-like in some way and not too soft as Season 3 seems to have done because that is her charm, whether people hate her for it or not. (But not too extreme either, then everyone would hate her)

Applejack meanwhile is again, the unofficial background pony of the Mane Six. This has nothing to do with how much screentime she actually has because she has tons and quite obviously way more than Rarity, but Applejack as a character is regrettably not too terribly interesting. I always thought the writers wrote out her flaws too fast in the first few episodes of season one (thus my belief that EARLY AJ IS BEST AJ!) and didn't really develop any new conflict to really go with her, so whenever she shows up she's constantly perceived as the reliable, down-to-earth, where-the-fuck-are-your-crazy-fucked-up-flaws-you-damn-perfect-mare kind of pony. The idea that her parents are dead, implied and practically made official in her Apple Family Reunion episode gives her a lot of potential as a character to explore that part of how she feels without a parental figure in her life.... if this wasn't a kids show. Sadly due to children being shielded by such permanent facts of life, such an interesting aspect of Applejack may never be explored despite the fact that a large portion of the cowpony's episodes revolve around family. (which imo is another flaw of AJ's episodes, her family seems to take up most of her episodes simply because an episode revolving around AJ herself is not interesting enough to drive an episode) The only bloody episode that actually uses AJ on her own is her very first damn episode.

Oh, I apologize for my French (or Fancy or whatever), I really wanted to love AJ so very much, so I have a lot of frustration over how she's been handled as a character. Nonetheless AJ still has her favourites who may identify with her or believe that the Mane Six requires a sane pony to balance out all the crazy despite the fact that every pony in the cast has the ability to fill this role as well. They're not all one-dimensional! I really can't tell you any other reason people might like AJ but because she is the least popular I don't really think I need to. So, moving on!

Ah, Twilight. My least favourite of the Mane Six. 

Well before I go about telling the world why that is, let's examine why she is often the queen of popularity polls, or princess if you prefer. It's pretty obvious...with many of the fanbase being students themselves they can identify with Twilight's studious habits and paranoia of failure. She also is the main character and is often the focus of the adventure-y style episode that takes up the beginning and end of each season. Also, also, as the newcomer character she serves as splendid purpose of helping the viewer see Ponyville through new eyes as well. If Twilight wasn't there in episode one who other pony could've voiced our similar opinion that all the ponies in that town was crazy? WHO ELSE!? Also Twilight happens to be socially awkward which I'm sure is something many of the fandom also experience from time-to-time. There are plenty of those very charismatic social butterfly fans as well, but the abundance is often those who are not used to social activity...after all, why else is she the fan-favourite?

In fact, in my mind if a show or movie or game or whatever manages to have its main character as the most popular character, it has succeeded beyond all things imaginable! That means the fans will want more of Twilight herself, being the favourite and so less of those other pesky fans who believe she's a Mary Sue who hogs all the spotlight from all the other far more superior characters. And being the main character the writers will obviously deliver on that point. Now, since she IS the most popular it'd be fruitless to even explain why she might have detractors because it's like trying to explain why people might like Applejack when statistically barely anyone likes Applejack. (Well okay, I exaggerated)

THE POINT IS. I dislike Twilight.

Well, okay that's not true. I simply enjoy the other Mane Six more than her. Yes, even Applejack. I truly do want to love AJ after all, and she held onto third place for so long just because of that desire despite a lack of good character-writing. My favourite Twilight moments are when she is socially awkward. I loved her in Look Before You Sleep and Sweet and Elite. I also loved when she jumped around everywhere yelling "Yes! Yes! Yes!" during Cutie Mark Chronicles, it's quite adorable. However, Twilight is my least favourite simply because I don't identify with her the most. Well yeah, in personality quizzes I either get her or Fluttershy more often, but that is mostly due to my reserved nature more than anything. (And I do like learning and nerdy things like uh, storytelling and such) The thing is, Twilight's inability to make friends was never because she had no idea how to make friends. She just didn't want friends because books were so much better. Even though she ended up becoming the Princess of Friendship, for me, as a person who has often wished for friendship over focusing on books or academics, it kind of annoys me. My goal in life is probably similar to Pinkie's (otherwise it is barely anything else at all, probably the reason why my favourite ponies are the ones who are goal-less, lol) to basically find true companionship and be the best friend I can be. It is something I strived for my entire life, and this damn purple unicorn who cared nothing about it is given to her suddenly and she gets the bestest friends ever and then becomes the Princess of Friendship.

Yes, nothing to do with how well Twilight is written or how she is as a character. It is simply because of how I am myself. I also don't enjoy her prominence over the others but that should be expected anyway. I know she then discovered friendship and the whole point of the entire series is what she learns, but it's like looking at someone who is talented and does things without working hard for it at all, and then you yourself work on something so unbelievably hard but get very little in turn. Jealousy maybe? Of a bloody purple unicorn? Perhaps. Half of her friendship lessons aren't even lessons she goes through herself, but from her observations on the other ponies (all of season one) and then when the rest of them have to write letters they start becoming less like friendship lessons and the whole series becomes less about friendship until the sudden finale when friends is written three times in every single line of the biggest bloody song. GOOD JOB GUYS!

Okay, was a bit angry at that finale for a bit. But yes, that is why she is my least favourite. I still like Twilight of course, but ultimately I don't identify with her as much as the others. I identify with RD and AJ more than her even, and I'm barely like those two personality-wise. (Well okay only AJ, I do identify with RD quite a bit)

So remember when I said this was a Fluttershy analysis? Ha! Well anywho, let's get on with her then. The idea of this post is wondering why people dislike Fluttershy. For some reason I do not care if people dislike any other of the Mane Six, but my whole mind is set off when anyone dares speak negative of Fluttershy! Perhaps a little bit of that annoying overprotective Fluttershy mindset many of her fans have is rubbing off on me, but as an amateur writer I love having my favourite characters suffer, especially Fluttershy so I don't think it really extends that far. I guess whenever I see people express their distaste of Fluttershy, I imagine them walking straight up to her and telling her in her face, that she is a poorly written or inconsistent or whatever character and then while Fluttershy will probably not defend herself, simply agree, inside she will be dying inside. WHAT DID SHE DO WRONG!? THIS ONLY SERVES TO MAKE HER BECOME EVEN MORE TERRIFIED OF SOCIAL INTERACTION! All she's done is try to agree with everyone and be nice and polite so no one will be mad at her and then some random person is like "I DON'T LIKE YOU!"

For precisely because she tries to not make anyone mad by being nice, quiet, shy, and polite. The pegasus can't win! Well I like to think those who do not like her as a character simply cannot understand, and thus identify with Fluttershy herself. Now I agree maybe her episodes use the "being brave to overcome the problem" formula too often. This problem arises with the fact that... of course that solution is often the solution to her episodes! Fluttershy's bloody terrified of EVERYTHING! Well, afraid of her shadow is too exaggerated but despite Fluttershy's fears being mostly justified (I mean wouldn't you be scared of dragons, the dark, heights, the scary forest you're inexplicitly living next to, other ponies in general, etc.?) the fact that she has ALL of them is what makes her different. I wonder why she even has so many of these fears... it brings up a lot of questions about her character itself. How are you even afraid of heights when you're born on clouds!? What kind of parenting did Fluttershy even have!? Perhaps her father or mother was extremely overprotective, and always exaggerated of everything potentially dangerous to make sure Fluttershy as a filly never dared go close to them or else be injured. Perhaps the reason her parent acted this way is because she once had an older sibling who died in some tragic accident? Perhaps some horrible traumatic event occurred in Fluttershy's childhood that made these fears linger well into adulthood!? Perhaps the same hazards her paranoid parents warned her about actually took their lives!?

Okay, that's too much speculation.

Fluttershy's a very strong pony I feel. I think a lot of people comment on her character being poor is probably because it resembles Applejack's problem. Dragonshy has her facing one of her greatest fears, so rehashing something like that would be like rehasing AJ's stubborn-streaks (which they did anyway...), but just because Fluttershy faced one fear does not mean she is suddenly fearless. She still landed on her back like a goat when a leaf landed on her back...the problem did not go in away. In fact it's more like Fluttershy has the opposite of the Applejack problem, that one of her flaws were addressed but rather than having her grow tons as a character and no longer having such a flaw dictate her life, only a small portion of it was blown away. However as we can tell by going through the other episodes, overcoming a horrible fear isn't actually the main theme. In Stare Master, the episode served to explain her uncanny ability to hypnotize animals, and her fear of the cockatrice wasn't one of her irrational fears, but just that staring into its eyes proved certain doom...which she faced anyway because The Stare is just that powerful. The episode itself however is all about not biting off more you can chew and nothing about overcoming a fear. Now again it's not like this was a character flaw that existed all season, just brought up at this moment for this episode, so I don't really think it's that great of an episode but it certainly isn't some inconsistent or overdone kind of one-dimensional thing, oh no.

A Bird in the Hoof had nothing about overcoming fears or being assertive at all, instead she steals a pet. I'm preeeeetty sure stealing a pet is wrong no matter your intentions and the episode's lesson itself is to ask about things and not jump to conclusions anyway. Then we have Green Isn't Your Colour which is in my opinion one of the strongest episodes in the entire series, a perfect cast in perfect roles with the perfect story anchored by perfect character building. And the lesson here? Don't keep silly secrets from friends, be honest with each other and honest with your feelings. I could go on and on about this, but I'm going to stop before Season Two. The reason this post was meant to be a Fluttershy analysis is because frankly she as a character is even hard to discuss. It is so easy to just dismiss her and say she doesn't live up to expectations or her variations in the show seem inconsistent. 

Perhaps what I said about her having the opposite problem as Applejack is right. She has so much potential, but her portrayal in the series feels fragmented enough that there is something about Fluttershy no one even knows that that will finally complete her picture. Applejack's is long finished and Fluttershy's is incomplete. Perhaps I am just struggling to find a way to defend her from her detractors. I obviously identify with her and I feel a lot can be done with her reluctance to be around other ponies. I really don't think having Fluttershy let go and become really friendly and relaxed around other ponies is the direction she should go in. I really hope for this character to continue being pretty reserved but still assertive enough to function in society and have friends/associates. Fluttershy's critical eye with Rarity in Suited for Success and her brutal explosion in Putting Your Hoof Down might be an inkling of that. She feels like that friend you really want to become closer with even though you've been through so much, but she still has this wall around her keeping you from really knowing her, so sometimes her actions are puzzling, and you yearn even more to learn of her.

Fluttershy is the most interesting pony in the world.

Well okay, I will stop here because it is incredibly late... to add, Fluttershy does do well in popularity polls herself, so I'm not in the minority when I say I identify with her. She also has that insanely ridiculously outrageously cute shtick everyone melts over. But to conclude, I do not dislike Fluttershy. I do not like it when others dislike Fluttershy, but I suppose this post is just to acknowledge that yes, while I may not like it I can see why you dislike Fluttershy... for me it's just more doors to open for more character to discover.

My god I wrote a lot.