My Little Pony
My Little Pony is a franchise developed by the toy maker Hasbro. It is marketed primarily to young girls. Among other products are plastic toys and several animated television series and movies. The ponies can be identified by their colorful bodies and manes and typically a unique symbol. Accordingly, the ponies are named after the symbols. Following the related My Pretty Pony franchise, introduced in 1981, My Little Pony was launched in 1983.
In 2010, a television series was developed by a feminist and was designed to appeal to young girls, but also included politically correct characters and settings that challenged "stereotypes", and added adventure and humorous elements to keep parents interested.
Unexpectedly, My Little Pony (in particular after the 2010 television series) has also gained many adult fans, often males, who have adopted the name "brony", a combination of "bro" and "pony". The "brony" subculture has sometimes been ridiculed and has sometimes been criticized for argued aspects such as sexualization, bestiality, pedophilia, homosexuality, rape jokes, and even anti-feminism and misogyny. This has been seen as particularly problematic as such material may easily be found by children. "Bronies" have also been accused of bullying and threats against critics, even underage ones.
Bronies have similarities to furries. Furries are fans of anthropomorphic animals, such as those in cartoons. Furries may have a sexual fetish for these characters, just like bronies.
External links
- Film Highlights Male My Little Pony Fans, but Draws Criticism
- Terrifying New Trend: Grown Men Who Dig 'My Little Pony?
- The Mysterious World of Bronies
- Fixing The Problems Women Face in the MLP Fandom
- The problem with bronies: a look at the corruption of "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic"
- My Nationalist Pony
