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Lessons MLP needs to address.


Starfox64x

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Random thought... What sort of lessons do you think the show should address that they haven't yet? I'm sure we've all recognized that almost every episode has some sort of life lesson in it, but what lessons/morals/etc should they address?

I've noticed that many episodes are based off of "Don't judge a book by it's cover' (Zecora, RD's pet Tank, Nightmare night, Rarity with the Diamond Dogs, etc) and, although i believe its a very broad and powerful lesson for ANYONE to learn, and a lesson that everyone should be reminded of from time to time, i feel that it might be a bit overdone at this point, so i was thinking about what other lessons they should address...

I was thinking that death might be something that they might want to address, since even kids have to handle that situation at times, and if anyone could use some help or sympathy when it comes to losing a family member, it would be children. Although i can't think of a proper way for them to do it without upsetting kids or parents... maybe they could have something where Fluttershy loses a pet and she has to cope with the loss... I dunno exactly how they would do it, but i think it's something that would need to be addressed, just so if a child DOES lose someone, it might help ease the pain...

But, thats a more grim lesson... so i dunno how i feel about that for a kid, or for the MLP universe... hm...

Oh! I got a better one! Twilight is begining to use her magic for everything, and starts relying on it too heavily, to the point where she becomes lazy... she uses it to grab her drinks from the fridge, she uses it to feed herself, she floats herself aorund the house so she doesnt have to walk, etc.. Basically dont become so reliant on magic (or technology *cough*) that you become lazy and boring.

So anyway, your thoughts on lessons the show should address?

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This topic is double plus good.

I could probably spend hours thinking about this.

Off the top of my head:

1) Friendships need to be worked on, you can't just go through the motions.

2) A conversation is listening, and responding to what you heard.

3) You can't accept love from others unless you accept that you are lovable

I can't wait to hear more from you guys.

I was thinking that death might be something that they might want to address, since even kids have to handle that situation at times, and if anyone could use some help or sympathy when it comes to losing a family member, it would be children.

I can't see it happening, but I agree that it would be valuable. I trust that they could handle it in a realistic and appropriate way. However, it would absolutely need support from the following episodes. If they moved on as if nothing had happened, it would feel cheap. It wouldn't need much. Just the acknowledgement that it still hurt, or that there were still questions, or that he or she was still missed.

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This topic is double plus good.

I could probably spend hours thinking about this.

Off the top of my head:

*Friendships need to be worked on, you can't just go through the motions.

*A conversation is listening, and responding to what you heard.

*You can't accept love from others unless you accept that you are lovable

I can't wait to hear more from you guys.

Hm, interesting thoughts... any idea on how they would be able to get those lessons into the show?

I can't see it happening, but I agree that it would be valuable. I trust that they could handle it in a realistic and appropriate way. However, it would absolutely need support from the following episodes. If they moved on as if nothing had happened, it would feel cheap. It wouldn't need much. Just the acknowledgement that it still hurt, or that there were still questions, or that he or she was still missed.

Yeah, agreed, it would feel pretty cheap if it were never mentioned again... which seems to be a theme for MLP... maybe they would have the grave in Fluttershy's lawn, and from time to time it would show her leaving a flower by the headstone, or sweeping up some leaves from the grave and 'talking' to them, just a brief thing to show that she's still thinking about the pet she lost...

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Hm, interesting thoughts... any idea on how they would be able to get those lessons into the show?

Yeah, agreed, it would feel pretty cheap if it were never mentioned again... which seems to be a theme for MLP... maybe they would have the grave in Fluttershy's lawn, and from time to time it would show her leaving a flower by the headstone, or sweeping up some leaves from the grave and 'talking' to them, just a brief thing to show that she's still thinking about the pet she lost...

Technically they have kinda touched on that first one, several times in different ways. Especially with RD and AJ and Rarity. They have shown that friendships aren't easy but can be achieved even with people whom are very different. Also they did address the conversation one, but not directly. In Over a Barrel. The conflict was escalated due to the failure of listening. And was resolved through compromise. The last one is hard.... An important lesson but hard to convey.

As for the death one, it has been thought that would be good for the parents of AJ, BM and AB. Could work in theory and never be talked of again.

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Hm, interesting thoughts... any idea on how they would be able to get those lessons into the show?

Haha. No. This is just a creative exercise. Writers can't just take a fan's ideas and use them.

If you want a view of how it could actually work, scroll down to "Lesson 1" on pitching ideas in THIS link. That is way more effort than I am willing to put forward.

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1) Friendships need to be worked on, you can't just go through the motions.

Technically they have kinda touched on that first one, several times in different ways. Especially with RD and AJ and Rarity. They have shown that friendships aren't easy but can be achieved even with people whom are very different.

I was thinking of a taking friendships for granted angle. The existing episodes that I can think of are more along the lines of "How do I get along with this pony that is so different from me?"

2) A conversation is listening, and responding to what you heard.

Also they did address the conversation one, but not directly. In Over a Barrel. The conflict was escalated due to the failure of listening. And was resolved through compromise.

My angle on this one was the fact that Fluttershy is ignored or overshadowed by the others. Even when she has something important to say. This one could be a good one for Rarity because she never stopped talking at the spa.

3) You can't accept love from others unless you accept that you are lovable

The last one is hard.... An important lesson but hard to convey.

Somebody could accomplish something cool or interesting or beneficial in front of a crowd. Ponies would offer their thanks or amazement, and would assume that the heroine was just being modest in deflecting their praise. However, she would ask her friends to stop talking about it and be uncomfortable with the compliments because she didn't believe them. It would be a shock to the others when they found out, and they would be able to confirm that their love was not based on merit or ability or duty. True love is unconditional, and she has theirs.

As for the death one, it has been thought that would be good for the parents of AJ, BM and AB. Could work in theory and never be talked of again.

Ah, I didn't think about referencing a death that had already happened. That could be a soft reveal, sensitively done and, as you say, wouldn't need other episode support.

---

MORE!

4) Sometimes being present and silent is enough, and trying to talk someone out of their grief is counter-productive.

5) A group of friends should be inclusive, not exclusive.

6) Sometimes there is no middle ground to compromise to. Have a good attitude anyways.

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I think death might be outside the scope of the series, important as it is. I'm sure there might be some way to learn a lesson about loss, though.

I believe the bigger issue is how many more lessons can you cover -- specifically about friendship -- now that we are nearly 40 episodes deep into FiM, with another unreleased season and a half on Hasbro's desk?

A few of the episodes have sort of staggered on the take home lesson lately; the big standout for me was Sweet and Elite. Rarity spent most of the episode lying to her friends, and pretty much lucked out and got away with it because her friends were so understanding/awesome -- and she stayed by them in the end (which I suppose was the lesson, but I still felt like she should have had some sort of consequence for all the lying she did).

I think we might see more of the morale and less concrete lesson Celestia-letter-writing in future episodes, if the episode from last week (Family Appreciation) was any indication.

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I think death might be outside the scope of the series, important as it is. I'm sure there might be some way to learn a lesson about loss, though.

I believe the bigger issue is how many more lessons can you cover -- specifically about friendship -- now that we are nearly 40 episodes deep into FiM, with another unreleased season and a half on Hasbro's desk?

A few of the episodes have sort of staggered on the take home lesson lately; the big standout for me was Sweet and Elite. Rarity spent most of the episode lying to her friends, and pretty much lucked out and got away with it because her friends were so understanding/awesome -- and she stayed by them in the end (which I suppose was the lesson, but I still felt like she should have had some sort of consequence for all the lying she did).

I think we might see more of the morale and less concrete lesson Celestia-letter-writing in future episodes, if the episode from last week (Family Appreciation) was any indication.

Well that is why they introduced the opportunity for the others to write letters. Each have their flaws, and learn something to write to Celestia. As for what happens when they exhaust all those lessons (I think they can probably pull it to 4 seasons ideally) They can easily switch focus and change the name while keeping the writing team and overall spirit of the show.

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Actually one of the lessons I'd like to see in the show is actually going to be in the show! The lesson being that just because you like to read doesn't mean you're a "nerd".

But I'd also like to see an episode dealing with boys who like "girly" things or girls who like "boy" things.

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Actually one of the lessons I'd like to see in the show is actually going to be in the show! The lesson being that just because you like to read doesn't mean you're a "nerd".

But I'd also like to see an episode dealing with boys who like "girly" things or girls who like "boy" things.

They have had several on girls that like boy things, pretty much every RD episode... And as much as I would like to see the reverse, it is a show intended for girls, so it wouldn't exactly hit home to their demographic.

I think they need to do an episode on the breach of trust or betrayal.

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I've noticed that many episodes are based off of "Don't judge a book by it's cover' (Zecora, RD's pet Tank, Nightmare night, Rarity with the Diamond Dogs, etc) and, although i believe its a very broad and powerful lesson for ANYONE to learn, and a lesson that everyone should be reminded of from time to time, i feel that it might be a bit overdone at this point, so i was thinking about what other lessons they should address...

I was thinking that death might be something that they might want to address, since even kids have to handle that situation at times, and if anyone could use some help or sympathy when it comes to losing a family member, it would be children. Although i can't think of a proper way for them to do it without upsetting kids or parents... maybe they could have something where Fluttershy loses a pet and she has to cope with the loss... I dunno exactly how they would do it, but i think it's something that would need to be addressed, just so if a child DOES lose someone, it might help ease the pain...

But, thats a more grim lesson... so i dunno how i feel about that for a kid, or for the MLP universe... hm...

Grim as it is, there is a precedent to it. When I was growing up (lol90schild), there was a TV show called Arthur that dealt with grim subjects like that, such as death of a pet, cancer, disabilities, religious differences, etc. And it did it in a great way, too, being one of the best cartoons from the 90s (that I can remember). It would take some creative writing, but I can guarantee Team Faust can pull it off. Personally, I wouldn't put it as a specific pet of Fluttershy's but more maybe a bird or something. Something like A Bird In the Hoof, but instead of wacky misunderstandings, Fluttershy finds an injured bird, attempts to nurse it back to health, but finds it dead later. The episode could revolve around her friends trying to help her cope about it. It's depressing to a degree, but a valuable lesson could be taught.

Actually one of the lessons I'd like to see in the show is actually going to be in the show! The lesson being that just because you like to read doesn't mean you're a "nerd".

But I'd also like to see an episode dealing with boys who like "girly" things or girls who like "boy" things.

These two are nice ideas. The first one is being done already (http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/01/season-2-episode-16-read-it-and-weep.html#more), probably, as for the second part, I'd love to see a call back to the doll Big Mac took during Lesson Zero (I recall seeing a comic once that had Twilight talking to Big Mac about the doll, and letting him keep it after she heard the story, I just can't find it), just for the hell of it. Also because he needs MOAR LINES.

Personally? I would want to see lessons on loss in general. One of the Mane Six loses an important item to them (like maybe Rarity's ruby necklace she made from the gem Spike gave her), they go on a hunt for it, and then when all seems hopeless, the item shows up again. A kind of "Don't know what you have until it's gone" kind of thing. I can't think of anything else at the moment for good lessons, though.

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One I'd like to see that I think could be fit in is somepony's house burning down and the town pitching in to help them recover what they can from the wreckage, fine a new home or build a new home, and get back on their hooves again. Would make for a nice touching story about loss and coping without having to hit on 'bad' themes like death... (Not saying that I dont want to see Death addressed - I REALLY do want to see it in the series, not to sound morbid or anything...)

As for the death one, it has been thought that would be good for the parents of AJ, BM and AB. Could work in theory and never be talked of again.

I second this, In fact This is my permanent head-fanon untill it's proved otehrwise so I's like to see it explained in-show (morbid as it sounds, I'd like to know just how they died, since it's prety obvious to everyone over 6 that they did)

Another option, which has been mentioned before, was that "the last roundup" might have been about Granny Smith dieing (I think we've found out otherwise now, but...) though I personally think losing their parents (or kids in granny's case) is enough for the poor ponyville apple clan, they don't need to lose any more members...

On the other paw, This is a kids show where everybody lives forever. Nobody ever dies (NMM was "defeated" and the "spell broken" freeing Luna, Discord was "imprisoned" etc)

Of course this doesnt mean we cant have a missunderstanding... like spike is out carrying a scroll in a storm, and twilight hears and off-scream clap of thunder and spike's scream, and find the ground scorched along with the scroll and 'realizes' that spike was struck by lightning and died... later after all is said and done spike comes back meekly admitting he was terrified and hid then fell asleep or something. (Yeah, lame plot, but I thought about it all of 30 seconds) Could be done with any of the ponies any number of ways just as long as they Never Found The Body such as an earth pony/unicorn falling off a cliff (or a pegasus getting concked on the head and falling off, or drowning, lightning, fire, etc.

Haha. No. This is just a creative exercise. Writers can't just take a fan's ideas and use them.

If you want a view of how it could actually work, scroll down to "Lesson 1" on pitching ideas in THIS link. That is way more effort than I am willing to put forward.

I think he meant more "ideas on how these would be worked into the plotline of the show" not "how do we submit these?" we all know that the only way we'll have any input is if a writer stumbles on a bunch of these and says "hey the fans really want a show about X, lets make one"

These two are nice ideas. The first one is being done already (http://www.equestria...-weep.html#more), probably, as for the second part, I'd love to see a call back to the doll Big Mac took during Lesson Zero (I recall seeing a comic once that had Twilight talking to Big Mac about the doll, and letting him keep it after she heard the story, I just can't find it), just for the hell of it. Also because he needs MOAR LINES.

Personally? I would want to see lessons on loss in general. One of the Mane Six loses an important item to them (like maybe Rarity's ruby necklace she made from the gem Spike gave her), they go on a hunt for it, and then when all seems hopeless, the item shows up again. A kind of "Don't know what you have until it's gone" kind of thing. I can't think of anything else at the moment for good lessons, though.

I agree, I want to see why Mac wanted the doll earnestly. (Though it was a great gag that this love for it DIDNT come from the 'want it need it' spell) Though I get the feeling hte comic idea isnt even remotely possible because, atleast to me, the doll looks severely home-made... I think it's more perhaps a hint that Mac likes Twilight (there seem to be hints at possible canon shippings popping up like this, now, I wonder if the writers are sick of the mare+mare ships and are trying to nudge us in a different direction...)

I dont think it would be the fire ruby, because some might missinterpret it as "rarity's love for spike is gone" though something else like this might be good.

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hi hi

There's so many wonderful choices for them to decide. This is just a few that I can think up off the top of my head.

• Dealing with people who exploit your generosity without getting all bitter and angry. (already mentioned in the dream episode thread.)

• A lesson about looking at things from other points of view, not just one or the other.

• A lesson about how the events in people's lives can effect how they act, and that you can't always assume someone who's grumpy is a bad person when they might just be having a bad day.

• An episode about moral luck, and why you should do the right thing, even if you think you might get away with it.

• An episode about learning to cope with being wrong. (Cause MMDW was a bad example)

• An lesson about how bad things can happen to you even if you didn't do anything wrong, and that its nothing to be ashamed of. (Just-world bias drives me absolutely up the wall.)

• A lesson about how people might have different reasons for doing the same thing, and to not assume they're the same as yours.

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I agree, I want to see why Mac wanted the doll earnestly. (Though it was a great gag that this love for it DIDNT come from the 'want it need it' spell) Though I get the feeling hte comic idea isnt even remotely possible because, atleast to me, the doll looks severely home-made... I think it's more perhaps a hint that Mac likes Twilight (there seem to be hints at possible canon shippings popping up like this, now, I wonder if the writers are sick of the mare+mare ships and are trying to nudge us in a different direction...)

I think Big Mac keeping the Smarty Pants doll was sort of a nod to bronyism. A year ago the thought of a bunch of guys collecting customs and making plushies of My Little Pony would never happen, and look where we are now. Or, it could have happened just because it was funny, and I'm reading too deep into it.

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I've noticed that many episodes are based off of "Don't judge a book by it's cover' (Zecora, RD's pet Tank, Nightmare night, Rarity with the Diamond Dogs, etc) and, although i believe its a very broad and powerful lesson for ANYONE to learn, and a lesson that everyone should be reminded of from time to time, i feel that it might be a bit overdone at this point, so i was thinking about what other lessons they should address...

This, though, is the most important thing to teach kids in a passive way, and to constantly reinforce. A kid can be brought up to be nice to others, and no matter how good their parents are, you get that kid around other children his or her own age and for some reason sometimes all parenting goes out the window and they begin to make fun of others based on their appearance. And a young kid is not necessarily going to *get* it the first time unless it's presented in a way that's really close to their specific situation, and even then they might not. So I'd expect to see this more throughout the series. Plus, no parent will argue with this, unless said parent is like a KKK member or something.

Death is really something that should be left up to the parents, though. (In my opinion this is because NOBODY will ever be able to, on a television show aimed at very young children in ways they will understand, top how Sesame Street handled Mr. Hooper's death, and I think the writers are at an age that maybe they know that. :)). I think they're afraid of parent outcry if said death isn't represented in the same way they would teach their children. I have little or no faith that there's a great population of parents that could fill a city who possess the stupidity to attempt to "ban" a TV show for presenting something totally normal in a way that they don't 100% agree with because they don't think their precious flowers need to know about real life. All you have to do is look at an ALA frequently challenged books list to know that.

Everything's really touchy when dealing with that demographic. Which is why most of the programming for it is abysmal.

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This, though, is the most important thing to teach kids in a passive way, and to constantly reinforce. A kid can be brought up to be nice to others, and no matter how good their parents are, you get that kid around other children his or her own age and for some reason sometimes all parenting goes out the window and they begin to make fun of others based on their appearance. And a young kid is not necessarily going to *get* it the first time unless it's presented in a way that's really close to their specific situation, and even then they might not. So I'd expect to see this more throughout the series. Plus, no parent will argue with this, unless said parent is like a KKK member or something.

Death is really something that should be left up to the parents, though. (In my opinion this is because NOBODY will ever be able to, on a television show aimed at very young children in ways they will understand, top how Sesame Street handled Mr. Hooper's death, and I think the writers are at an age that maybe they know that. :)). I think they're afraid of parent outcry if said death isn't represented in the same way they would teach their children. I have little or no faith that there's a great population of parents that could fill a city who possess the stupidity to attempt to "ban" a TV show for presenting something totally normal in a way that they don't 100% agree with because they don't think their precious flowers need to know about real life. All you have to do is look at an ALA frequently challenged books list to know that.

Everything's really touchy when dealing with that demographic. Which is why most of the programming for it is abysmal.

The problem is death isn't dealt with until something or someone actually dies, and then it isn't dealt with until the parents are comfortable to reveal half the time or until the kid is old enough to realize it themselves. Death was thrown at me at a very young age, and truth be told it wasn't long till I figured it out that they were never coming back thanks to books. My mother was reluctant to discuss the implications, but luckily I was always reading above my reading level and a lot of books deal with death... So yeah. My mother nor father really helped me there, but media did. It can be done, and really will likely happen before the parents even mention it or can mention it. If not in this show, then on the news, or in school or in a book. They will be faced with it SOMETIME that the parents won't have control over whether they want to or not. Getting angry at a show probably won't happen, unless we are talking about really conservative parents. Really I think media is NEEDED to open the doors to allow it to be explained softly to kids. Do you really want to wait until the beloved pet or [insert family member here] dies to explain it? That just makes it harder imho.

I do agree that nothing can top Sesame Street though with Mr Hooper's death. That was just masterfully done.

Ginger Mint's suggestions are amazing though. (Though I don't think MMDW was about being wrong, but rather being modest despite being talented, basically the opposite of Boast Busters. You need a balance, you can't be too modest so that you won't show what you can do at the right moment, but you cannot become egotistical and brag about what you are able to do.) They seem to tackle a lot of similar morals in various ways to show that they aren't all black and white (which is a good thing). But I really think they need to diversify and show some different things, because there are a lot of good morals to go through that are fine with the show's demographic and not a touchy subject like death.

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I agree, I want to see why Mac wanted the doll earnestly. (Though it was a great gag that this love for it DIDNT come from the 'want it need it' spell) Though I get the feeling hte comic idea isnt even remotely possible because, atleast to me, the doll looks severely home-made... I think it's more perhaps a hint that Mac likes Twilight (there seem to be hints at possible canon shippings popping up like this, now, I wonder if the writers are sick of the mare+mare ships and are trying to nudge us in a different direction...)

I know the doll was a complete reference to us (an in show way of saying "Hi Bronies, we know you're out there, thanks for watching"). Here's the comic I was talking about, if you feel like wanting an explanation as to why Big Mac would want the doll. (Edit: In addition, that is one of the few fan comics I've read that actually made me smile/feel warm inside/etc. It's very d'aw worthy.)

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The problem is death isn't dealt with until something or someone actually dies, and then it isn't dealt with until the parents are comfortable to reveal half the time or until the kid is old enough to realize it themselves. Death was thrown at me at a very young age, and truth be told it wasn't long till I figured it out that they were never coming back thanks to books. My mother was reluctant to discuss the implications, but luckily I was always reading above my reading level and a lot of books deal with death... So yeah. My mother nor father really helped me there, but media did. It can be done, and really will likely happen before the parents even mention it or can mention it. If not in this show, then on the news, or in school or in a book. They will be faced with it SOMETIME that the parents won't have control over whether they want to or not. Getting angry at a show probably won't happen, unless we are talking about really conservative parents. Really I think media is NEEDED to open the doors to allow it to be explained softly to kids. Do you really want to wait until the beloved pet or [insert family member here] dies to explain it? That just makes it harder imho.

People shouldn't be letting television raise their children. Just sayin'. Just because a topic is uncomfortable doesn't mean it should not be discussed, because that's a good way to get misinformation into your child's head. A kid should have at the very least seen a dead bird or plant or something before they reach Kindergarten. How I found out about death? ROCKY 3. I was 4. Not really a good way and it was all kinds of traumatic when I found out things could die, and had never connected it to bugs or plants or roadkill, because it was a person. Even though I was skeptical about any time I saw a dead animal that it really was "sleeping". But then my parents TALKED to me about it. IMMEDIATELY. They didn't let me just glean what was in the movie at the time and that was it.

Books are a little different because at the time that kids should be learning that death exists, they're generally being read to, or if they do experience it on a TV show it's at the age where the parent really should be watching with them to explain things that they don't necessarily get. A kid sheltered from the inevitability of death by the age of 6, in my opinion, is in for a world of being really upset when and if it happens to someone they love. A child introduced to the concept of death, and having it explained to them, younger than that through exploration of the world around them (dead bugs, flowers, etc) will still be understandably upset, but will cope better than a child who has been sheltered their entire childhood and just has this heavy concept thrown at them. Avoidance of a subject breeds more worry to a child than frank discussion. If parents consider a topic taboo, children are less likely to discuss it, except in hushed tones among their peers (which is a REALLY awesome way to get the wrong, but frequently hilarious, information into your child's head)

But if you're old enough to be reading above your age level, you're old enough to understand the concepts and be talked to by your parents at that same level. Media should be reinforcement, not your primary means by which to learn life lessons. And there are definitely educational shows aimed at younger children that are more equipped to handle this than FiM.

And my comments about parents flipping out about the way that things are represented really is how I have seen people I know (and at this point i am much in the minority among my friends and colleagues that I don't have children), who seemed totally normal or were totally normal until they had a kid. It's not just the conservatives. Not that most of them actually do anything but post their complaints on facebook and have other parents nod their head and disbelieve "the violence" or "the topics" conveniently forgetting that, as kids growing up in the 80's, we had the most effed up shows on the planet to watch as children and nobody batted an eye.

It's odd, and I don't understand it, but if I had to make an educated guess, I would say that there's probably enough crazy parents who think that or act like that media should be raising their children in the country, that are likely to at least make phonecalls about a controversial topic being introduced to fill a decent-sized city (and I wish they would all go do so and leave the sane people alone).

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People shouldn't be letting television raise their children. Just sayin'.

I completely agree with this. I truly believe that parents should take an active role in what their children watch, instead of taking one side of the two extremes (being overly restrictive about what they watch, or not really caring), so when the important questions do come up, education can take place right away and everyone wins. This should extend beyond passive activities like watching television, though!

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I totally agree that TV shouldn't be raising kids to a point. We live in a time of media saturation. Kids will find out certain things from the media one way or another, if not direct then from another kid. So I believe that instead of fighting it parents should strive to work with it while making sure to differentiate between real and fake. This way kids learn properly and parents can direct their children's upbringing. But either way a lot of parents need to be more active.

Oh and Hasbro has oked death in one of their movies that was pretty traumatic for a lot of kids. I of course speak of the death of optimus prime. Then you have short circuit 2 and Bambi... death in kids media is not unheard of. There are plenty more too. As I said, it shouldn't completely teach them, so much as give them enough information so that parents can handle the rest, breaking the ice so to speak on one of the harder topics to discuss.

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It's not unheard of, it's just MUCH rarer in mainstream television and movies today than it was before the 90s. I look at the stuff that was totally fine that would definitely not pass muster these days. The scale of what is acceptable for consumption for certain age groups is ever changing, and gets more and more restrictive.

But the things you mention were not G-rated as it pertains to today's audiences. They are rated PG (and were then as well, with the exception of Bambi which is the product of an entirely different generation than the one that produced Transformers and Short Circuit, with MUCH different values. It seems like the further you go back in programming or movies or books for children in the last century, the less it patronizes them, with notable exceptions), which really means that it's suitable for 9-10 year olds or older without having a parent right there explaining things to a kid. FiM is rated TV-Y Which means everyone from newborns onwards.

Plus Short Circuit was filled with all KINDS of sexual innuendo on top of that, so death is the least of its issues to a concerned parent. They'd attack that one first. But you know, honestly there's probably a person or two out there who IS over-sheltering their child from the concept of death BECAUSE Optimus Prime dies in the movie, and as a child that deeply affected them.

Not that I am an advocate by ANY means of not having your children exposed to things. I am pretty opposed to censorship, and if I had kids they could read whatever they want as long as it wasn't porn or materials basically illegal to minors in the country I live in. I am just saying that these are the concerns that other people have, based on hearing or seeing them voice them. And that those with the loudest voices usually get their way when it comes to a corporation.

I'm not saying it's right, because it is in fact quite stupid. I am just saying that this is something that is taken into consideration when programming for children, because, after all they are running a business. And unlike art, they're only there to express themselves and tap into deep truths within limits that will appeal to the broadest audience. Really they're there to sell toys first(whereas Sesame Street was there to educate FIRST and selling toys was an afterthought, make compelling characters second. So they will play it safe. If they do address death it will be in a movie where the consumer has to actively seek it out and chose to spend money on it, choose it for their child at first. And if there is backlash or embarassment, well, they just don't advertise it as much afterwards. *cough I'm looking at disney's black cauldron cough*

Edited to add: This being said, I have a HUGE STACK of what I consider to be important books, which in many cases are frequently challenged by conservative parents, waiting in the wings for my 4 year old niece. You bet your flank that as soon as she's like 10 I will be handing her a copy of several Judy Blume books.

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Truth be told I've been playing devil's advocate for the past couple of posts. I don't believe death is possible within the scope of the show's intent. I still believe that it can be done in the right way, but mlp:fim would have to shift focus somewhat to make it work.

What they focus on is interpersonal lessons, and death is not so much unless they make it about how they treat their friends after, but that is a stretch tbh.

Back on topic, I really want them to make an episode where someone does something intentionally wrong for their own benefit that hurts one of their friends or multiple. Though that would likely be a rarity episode, so it might be better left to season 3.

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