What do you think gen 4 would have been like WITHOUT the show

[Mistfire]

After watching a few mlp fan-made videos, i thought about something

what would gen 4 be like if the show didn't exist and Lauren Faust never did anything to the toy line? Would it be another mindless 30-60 minute advertisement? Or would it just extend the 3.5 series into gen 4? The reason i posted this is because it doesn't look like anyone else on the internet has asked this, and i also thought about the previous failures Hasbro has made, such as 3.5 (ok maybe it wasn't a COMPLETE failure, but compared to the other wild cards that other companies have made to extend toy sales,3.5 was pretty bad...)

And what would have happened afterwards? Would the toy line just fall apart or would it be another clearance sale item you would see in a low-quality store? Would MLP even be appealing anymore?

I know this is one of those pessimist topics, but honestly, by the looks of how things used to be, i don't think mlp would have lasted another generation if FiM came along

[MyLittlePonyTales]

And what would have happened afterwards? Would the toy line just fall apart or would it be another clearance sale item you would see in a low-quality store? Would MLP even be appealing anymore?

G3.5 doesn't go on clearance. Though there may not have been Bronies, there were still little girls. They don't know the difference between the generations. (My little sister got me a G3.5 for Christmas. Neither she nor my parents knew that was the wrong gen.) The MLP toys have been around since the 80's. Even during G3 and G3.5, they were still going strong. To little girls, ponies are ponies, whether from the dollar store or name brand. Although if they see it in a show, there is more drive for that pony, since they have a personality, friends, and a storyline to go with them. They've seen the pony in action, and may feel like they 'know' them better. For collectors, Hasbro is Hasbro, even if the ponies are ugly. There has been demand for ponies since the 80's, and that does not change with a 'bad' generation (according to adults).

That said, who knows what the next generation would have been like. Each one is different. Just depends on the creator, not the fan base.

[Kryptchild]

It probably would have ended up at about the same level as G1-G3.5

Another girls toy line and cartoon to advertise it. The only real reason we know the G3.5 series was SO bad is BECAUSE we have Gen 4 to compare to. Heck without FiM, I bet 90% of us wouldn't even give anything MLP related a second glance.

But considering how many lives the Brony community has touched in these past 2 years alone... I'm glad things turned out how they did.

[SuperWriter]

Without the show, my guess would be somewhere between G2 and G3. Completely shallow, pointless, eye piercingly pink, the return of Rariprick (G3 Rarity), yet has some amount of substance. Evident by the pink Celestia toy.

[MyLittlePonyTales]

Without the show, my guess would be somewhere between G2 and G3. Completely shallow, pointless, eye piercingly pink, the return of Rariprick (G3 Rarity), yet has some amount of substance. Evident by the pink Celestia toy.

I thought Rarity acted like Pinkie Pie in G3?

[SirShadowdeath]

I couldn't care less about ponies if there was no show. I wouldn't be here right now.

[Rosewind]

I've received G3.5 gifts from people before -- and I never say anything because I don't want to sound rude, so I react as if it was G4.

So, you're asking "what would happen if FiM never happened?" I think alternate-universe G4 would be CG-animated and would look a lot like the new Care Bears. *shudder* We would not have the Mane Six, but poorly-done characters that might or might not share some of their traits. There'd probably be humans and we'd have no real lore. Pony would continue to languish in 20-minute-long animated advertisement minutia for another decade or two, with no promise of redemption.

Terrible indeed!

[Lux]

(Activates What If Machine from Futurama)

Well, there would be no bronies most likely.

There would be no MLP related sites like FiMfiction (gasp), Equestria Daily (double gasp), or Canterlot.com (Ok, now that's getting too scary).

There wouldn't be an explosion of creativity in the form or art, writing, and music.

There would be no MLP related cons.

There wouldn't be as big of a toy line.

The cartoon would probably be CGI or at least the same level as G1-G3.

In general, it would be largely obscure and nowhere near the fame it receives with now.

(Turns off What If Machine as that alternate reality is too scary).

[flutterscotch]

Well considering the toy design was better than g3.5... it would be a step up. ANYTHING would be a step up.

Things that would definitely happen:

1. You would get a lot of moaning no matter what came out, if it was different from the previous generation and g1.
   
2. And you would get fights as to whether these hypothetical g4s were hideous monstrosities or not (which just happens with every new generation anyway).
   
3. If boys were introduced, they would have been placated somewhat no matter how hideous the design.
   
4. If any g1 characters returned similar to their original form, they would have enjoyed it, but most would still prefer the original g1s.
   
5. If MLP returned to the time-honored tradition of releasing lots of characters and not just Pinkie Pie 8 MILLION times people would be happier.
   
6. Mimic would still go for an insane amount of money on ebay.
   
7. People would STILL be making customs that incorporate geek humor, sci-fi, anime, gaming references in custom ponies (this is not something unique to the Friendship is Magic fans. It's been going on a LONG time)
   
8. Midwestern Housewives on MLP Arena would still be overly dramatically talking about their secret pill addictions in the same tone that someone confesses to murdering someone else. (note, this is like 1-2 users out of thousands, but holy crap are they annoying.)
   
9. Several voice actors and actresses might be less accosted in the streets, or at least not be as recognizable.
   

My guess is that is might have still started out as flash, but as short webisodes, and then gone to horrible 3D like Monster High did. Toy-wise, they probably would have moved to a look more like Littlest Pet Shop (or even just folded MLP into that line like they did Blythe), to compete in the same market as LaLaLoopsy and Strawberry Shortcake.

it wouldn't have been the end of the world, but it wouldn't have been nearly as fun.

There would be no MLP related sites like FiMfiction (gasp), Equestria Daily (double gasp), or Canterlot.com (Ok, now that's getting too scary).

There would be no MLP related cons.

Wrong and wrong. Both MLP related sites, fanfiction collections, etc have been around for at least since the late 90s. They started out as e-groups on Yahoo. The MLP Arena actually is the news source that Equestria Daily used to use to track new toys until bronies started checking the same sources, and the folks there definitely knew about the show way before it aired.

Also keep in mind that Lauren Faust was presumably doing fan art of ponies well before she was hired as creative steward. Seeing as though her Deviant Art account was named after a g1.

MLP Fair has been going on in the United States since 2007. (They unveiled the core 7 at the first one, core 7 being the line that gave way to the dreaded g3.5. I hated Hasbro that day). There is a UK equivalent.

[Rosewind]

Flutterscotch -- once again I am impressed with your knowledge of historical pony culture. You are without a doubt Canterlot's best Historian of Pony.

I will say that while pony sites existed before FiM (and would robustly exist without it), they would not have the popularity, bravado, or content they do now had events taken a darker turn (or not happened at all).

[flutterscotch]

Flutterscotch -- once again I am impressed with your knowledge of historical pony culture. You are without a doubt Canterlot's best Historian of Pony.

I've been an active pony collector since 1995. Notsomuch knowledge as it is just experience.

[Lux]

Wow Flutterschotch. Great information. only one thing I'm confused about.

• Midwestern Housewives on MLP Arena would still be overly dramatically talking about their secret pill addictions in the same tone that someone confesses to murdering someone else. (note, this is like 1-2 users out of thousands, but holy crap are they annoying.)
  

What?

And I agree with Rose that while there are MLP sites pre G4 (I've been to a couple like a wiki dedicated to pre G4 toys), unless this alternate G4 series is as popular as this actual one, there wouldn't be the content.

Also, i didn't get into MLP until May of 2011, so my knowledge of G1 thru G3 is really limited.

[flutterscotch]

Wow Flutterschotch. Great information. only one thing I'm confused about.

• Midwestern Housewives on MLP Arena would still be overly dramatically talking about their secret pill addictions in the same tone that someone confesses to murdering someone else. (note, this is like 1-2 users out of thousands, but holy crap are they annoying.)
  

What?

I kid you not. For YEARS every once in awhile a pony collector would go off the deep end and just not shut up about their pill addictions that started with having them legitimately prescribed and then it would turn to a full-blown addition, and they would first confess it on a MLP board instead of, you know, talking to their family and friends or doctor about it. And it would become super dramatic. And it was always a stay-at-home mom who "shared" a collection with their daughter but really just had ponies that their kid wasn't allowed to touch, taking up way more of their house than was rational (and if you saw my house, you'd understand that the level of hoarding going on here for me to call it irrational is EXTREME).

This is why I come to "Brony" boards now instead. Because no matter how dramatic people can be, it's just normal emotions, and not just uncomfortable extremely huge issues like that. Plus they're more fun and I don't get yelled at for posting pictures of ponies doing anything that wasn't strictly nicey nicey. (again, not all the old school collectors, but there are people who take it WAY too far, and somehow it makes me way more uncomfortable with its women in their late 30s). Because some of people who have been around forever have no sense of humor at ALL involving ponies. (Mostly the people on those forums are nice. Too nice for someone snarky who doesn't take much seriously like me)

Yes, folks, I have been in threads (more than one. Actually more than 5) where someone posted a picture of a toy that had fallen out of a car and was run over or something of the like (mid-customization, etc), to see a bunch of the comments basically emotionally equating a damaged toy to a dead kitten. "OMG how could someone do something so horrible!". My eyes got tired from rolling.

Coming on board because of FiM, generally it's the humor of the show that really grabs people, or at the very least the humor is acknowledged. So you don't have that level of the plastic toy ponies themselves being srs bsns. among the fans. Just the plot. And the semantics.

[SuperWriter]

I thought Rarity acted like Pinkie Pie in G3?

I consider G3 Rarity a prick because she's the kind of idiot that takes everyone down with her to the point of almost crashing what is basically their religion because the instructions of do not touch are to much for her to comprehend. Worse, in a story with not so much conflict as much a minor setback, 3 ponies are almost killed and as it turns out, she could have gotten home easily all along. I'm sorry but her sheer stupidity is well below my level of understanding. There's making mistakes, and then there's... that.

[Parker_Izing]

It probably would have ended up at about the same level as G1-G3.5

Heck without FiM, I bet 90% of us wouldn't even give anything MLP related a second glance.

True, as a kid I looked at G1 toys in store, let go cause I got understood that was "girl toy", but they got kinda a charm, With no series, or no community would never bring the nerve to collect the g4 figures (Even today, I'm tempted of grabbing a G1 applejack for completion sake)

[TheBeatlesPkmnFan42]

There'd still be toys to collect. And every collector would ignore the cartoons. Like what it was like in 2003-2009.

[TheColtofPersonality]

Hardly anything methinks as the franchise would never have the attention it does now

Another girls toy line and cartoon to advertise it. The only real reason we know the G3.5 series was SO bad is BECAUSE we have Gen 4 to compare to.

No G3/3.5 sucks even from a G1 or even pony tales perspective

[flutterscotch]

True, as a kid I looked at G1 toys in store, let go cause I got understood that was "girl toy", but they got kinda a charm, With no series, or no community would never bring the nerve to collect the g4 figures (Even today, I'm tempted of grabbing a G1 applejack for completion sake)

You know there are several variants of Applejack, right? Regular US release in curly and straight hair, a UK Exclusive in a different pose, a UK-exclusive baby, a Brazillian one that is kind of shiny, several Columbian ones that are different colors (white w/pale green hair, yellow w/white hair, blue w/white hair) and a bunch of other weird ones released in various countries/areas (Macau, France, Italy, Spain, etc) ...if you want to be a completionist.

There's the more recent Dolly Mixture one too.

(sorry, SORRY, I just couldn't resist, but pssst...the UK baby Applejack's the cutest of all of the older releases that are easy to get.)

[Rosewind]

*eye twitch* You...you posted her! You monster!

Make her go away! *rocks back and forth*

[Parker_Izing]

For convenience I'l go for the first I could find, and BTW, the baby one lloking at camera, totally looks like a piggy Oink! Oink! Oink!

[flutterscotch]

For convenience I'l go for the first I could find, and BTW, the baby one lloking at camera, totally looks like a piggy Oink! Oink! Oink!

My friend Rick used to tell me that they looked like predators, seeing as though most herbivores' eyes are situated on the side, and the ponies are looking straight ahead....

[Ginger Mint]

hi hi

I'm sorry flutterscotch, but your story about dramatic confessions struck a chord with me and I think I have to make a confession of my own. If I don't air this out in the open now, I'm afraid it will eat away at me until I do. I know you're not a fan of high drama, I'm not a big fan either so I apologize in advance for this, and since its not really relevant to this topic I'll try keep it out of the way.

SPIKE HAS A CRUSH ON RARITY!

Sorry again about that, but back to the topic at hand, I'm pretty sure that if it hadn't been for the show, we would never have a Zecora toy.

[Rosewind]

hi hi

I'm sorry flutterscotch, but your story about dramatic confessions struck a chord with me and I think I have to make a confession of my own. If I don't air this out in the open now, I'm afraid it will eat away at me until I do. I know you're not a fan of high drama, I'm not a big fan either so I apologize in advance for this, and since its not really relevant to this topic I'll try keep it out of the way.

SPIKE HAS A CRUSH ON RARITY!

Sorry again about that, but back to the topic at hand, I'm pretty sure that if it hadn't been for the show, we would never have a Zecora toy.

Well played, Ginger! Well played.

[Lux]

And then Pinkie Pie pops out of a mirror and says "And you were so close too."

[Parker_Izing]

Pinkie pie's double standards? Twi breaks her Pinkie Promise for realsies and all she gets is some patronizing, but Applejack get a full metal carnage at hooves of the party pony? And she technically did nothing...