This sounds like a great shirt. Especially given the message you illustrated above in regard to how the show became more embracing of all creatures, genders, and cultures.

We can only hope G5 will keep this going. 'Pony Life' seems like it is just going to be a simple show with Spike being the only different character outside of the Mane 6. *Shrugs*

I admit that the Mane 6 are a tough act to follow when trying to find a magic character balance -- and set of character designs. One of my key differences is delivering on the BBBFF moments that FIM mentions but hardly shows. In the process, the big-brother dynamic has become a driving force for my work.

Overall, opposite-sex friendships get at least as much focus as same-sex friendships. Instead of just six girlfriends, I have six girls plus a boy who is a peer to them. In part, I imagine what the Mane 6 would be like if they were a Mane 7 with a stallion. I imagine a stallion who is shy yet brave -- academic yet athletic -- and a potentially great mentor who still has his own friendship lessons to learn. He has a strong sense of common ground with all six girlfriends, though he has a crush on only one of them (and she feels the same way about him).

I understand that MLP is focused on showing what girls can do. Unfortunately, it used to send the message that girls have no need for boys. That crosses the line from feminism -- and into driving a wedge between men and women that feminism should stand against. I send the message that girls and boys need each other equally. The two may be equally capable of standing on their own -- but that is not desirable for anyone.

I have felt like the stallion equivalent of a feminist. If there is any stallion who is a close friend of Celestia's, it must be Shining Armor. In "Sparkle's Seven", I felt as if Celestia sees Shining Armor as the son (or nephew) she never had. (I like to imagine Prince Blueblood also having a loving relationship with her, though she would probably be more proud of Shining Armor.)

I understand you've been self-conscious that your Haposaurs may look too much like Yoshis. I see the inspiration, but I believe the claws and crests, for example, make them into adorable dino-monsters that actually seem fairly original.

Likewise, I believe Nightlight looks like a possible cousin of Twilight Sparkle's -- but obviously an original character. I believe the same applies to White Night with respect to Shining Armor. Moreover, my two characters have their own memorable names. Twilight and Shining Armor don't look related except for their cutie marks -- but Nightlight and White Night share telltale features with their hair.

Moreover, there is a layer of humor with Nightlight's and White Night's names: It can be a tongue twister to avoid pronouncing one name as the other. In addition, White Night's name (as in a summer night where it never truly gets dark) is a homonym with "white knight" (as in a class of medieval soldier).

I believe both of us have managed to take an initial inspiration -- and create something truly transformative. We made changes as we found proper inspiration to do so. Now we just have to be confident in our self-expression -- confident that it stands on its own. Only then can we command respect.

Very true. The designs that  Nishi forged for the Hapos works, in my opinion, because the look is likely to have a warm sense of familiarity while not being a direct clone to Yoshies.

Haposaur bellies and cheeks, for example, are always a lighter tone of their primary skin color. Haposaurs also do not get their full-length tail until about the time their crest, or fin, comes out. Female Hapos could have the 'eyelashes' given to female cartoon characters. However they are distinct in how they have a 'fin' instead of a 'crest' upon their heads as they age up. Female Hapos also tend to be slightly brighter colors than the males. (Kind of like how you may distinguish male birds from female birds)

***

The design and plot for Starponys is far different than MLP in how it is a far more fleshed out world with characters that are intended to have more than one, or two, dimensions to them. Each character brings a potential relation to a reader along with having different personality traits based on the situation and who is in the situation with them. (This is more like real life as 'herd mentality' can often make for undesirable outcomes)

Star Lyre is also, from what I gather, like a secondary main character. Star likes being a part of the group of gals and, likely, gives Phoenix a 'big brother' when he may feel a need to have 'guy time'.

The overall story has characters all set in different situations that improve respectfully as the series goes on. Initially it may seem to be Night Light and White Knight's journeys. However you've noted a number of characters who also have troubles with 'faith and friendship' who find what Sky Sparkle has grown to not easily identify on her own.

Sky Sparkle sees her country and how it has been, at a macro level, peaceful and prosperous. However, as I recall, she will be made aware that there are some places that, albeit small in comparison to the whole, could work against the overall well-being of the nation if not properly addressed.

As I was developing Nightlight and Starlyre, it occurred to me that Starlyre would be naturally competing with Nightlight for the spotlight. I decided that trying to make them both fit into the character balance was itself a powerful plot element.

It would be tempting for Starlyre to foster his relations with the other five girls while making Nightlight feel left out. As he develops a real sense of brotherhood with them, it is tempting for him to feel Nightlight has become a fifth wheel. By this point, Nightlight has already done a lot to hurt her case with Friendsville, and it is apparent she cannot dig out of the hole by herself. (This plot point is a parody of how real townsfolk probably would have reacted to the disasters Twilight Sparkle inadvertently brought to Ponyville in the first two seasons.)

On the surface, Starlyre often seems exceptionally mature. Unfortunately, he has a lot to learn about being a good caretaker for difficult students. Meanwhile, Phoenix is kind of his teacher's pet. Phoenix sometimes gives Starlyre bad advice that is in tune with Starlyre's negative feelings.

Finally, Starlyre starts to realize he has let popularity distract him from being a good friend. Once he starts to feel like a brother for Nightlight, Phoenix feels he's the one losing the spotlight now.

One of the puzzles I had to solve was keeping Starlyre from being too perfect. Reading your Hapo Tales has helped me to give character flaws in a way that makes the characters feel like decent children trying to grow up.

To maintain interest in the mother-son dynamic between Skysparkle and Endearment, I need to have occasions where there is a battle of wills that can strain their friendship. I take the relationship between Celestia and Luna as a starting inspiration. I think Nightlight needs a chance, much later, to help solve such a conflict. (Some may feel that the two sisters got dumbed down, but I like to think that we just didn't know them very well before. It does shock the viewer, I must admit. However, it makes sense to think that Celestia might have been far more insensitive to Luna than anyone first realized.)

Sibling rivalry is nothing new. So Celestia and Luna having their share of spats would make sense.  SweetieLover actually wrote a rather endearing story about Celestia and Luna as foals where there is enough to show Celestia is not happy having Luna as a tag-a-long but, at the same time, she does love her sister.

I loved when Starlight 'switched' their Cutie Marks as each, especially after over 1,000 years, never had a chance to get over how one was always portrayed as 'the favorite' over the other. Getting to use each other's powers and see how their special talents respectively commanded a strong degree of patience and practice.

That saying of "The grass is greener on the other side" is one that haunts many, myself included, as it makes us prone to jealousy / envy. Envy then leads into lust, greed, and wrath.

So, maybe, Princess Luna had kept all these feelings 'hidden', or Celestia just wouldn't accept her sister had feelings she was overlooking? We know, in a crisis, they came together. However their original home in Everfree was quite tainted in the fight where, going by my head canon derived from Starlight Glimmer, Luna grew so full of sinful thoughts that she became Nightmare Moon. Nightmare Moon being the visible realization of all the envy, greed, lust, and wrath she felt that Celestia never was able to fully grasp. Even when Celestia knew her sister was coming back, she had Twilight take care of the matter as she stepped away. Did 1,000 years give Celestia too much time to think of how things could go wrong if she, herself, retrieved and used the Elements Of harmony? Or, perhaps, the 1,000 years of elapsed time caused Celestia to forget how to embody the six elements? It is possible she, in time, became unworthy of the elements and, for this reason, Star Swirl and pals planted the Tree Of Harmony with hope that spreading the elements to six different ponies based on the possession of one trait would ensure their successful use if, in Celestia's case, she lost the ability to harness all six at once? Perhaps Celestia is the one who made the tangible artifacts from 'Friendship Is Magic' brittle and could only hope her 'star pupil' would come across those who could reforge that which had been nullified?

Hopefully, in retirement, the pair will be able to truly be 'equals' as there is no longer a ruler for day and a ruler for night. They are just two sisters who spent way too much of their lives getting caught up in their responsibilities that they lost that 'bond' needed to maintain the balance.

Here is the next part of my reply:

After destroying Chaos and Disarray, Skysparkle has enjoyed a mostly peaceful world within the heart of her kingdom. Little did she realize that vanquishing Chaos and Disarray did not automatically bring peace to the world at large. On the contrary, many of Chaos and Disarray's minions were now fighting for power among one another. Skysparkle gained her crown when she was little, but her parents were leading further missions to secure the new kingdom.

Seth Appleheart and Hope Unquenchable managed to befriend many warlords, but they also had to destroy many others. Early on, they sometimes felt compelled to destroy entire enemy armies. Later, Seth and Hope started to feel that too many enemy soldiers were themselves victims of war -- and that it was often worth taking a risk to reach out to them. Seth and Hope had always been hesitant to share with their children what they knew about war. They mysteriously disappeared before they could find the courage to share the feelings they needed to share.

Skysparkle later would have to cope with the subject of war for herself. Her twin sister Stellaluna (or Stellanova) used to co-rule with her, but I want to avoid mentioning this at first. After defeating Stellaluna, Skysparkle was traumatized to her heart. When she had to face other enemies endangering her people, she gained a reputation as a destroyer. She never targeted non-fighters or areas outside the battlefield. However, but she might have been too ruthless toward many soldiers who never truly wanted to be there in the first place. Her own son and niece soon started to become afraid of her. Endearment and Teatime would go out ahead of her to help many enemy soldiers find salvation.

Even in her darkest state, Skysparkle was ready to show mercy to those who would surrender early on. This move on Endearment and Teatime's part didn't actually require that much bravery. Skysparkle was actually destroying many enemy soldiers who were -- as it turned out -- kind of helpless in her hooves. Fortunately, Endearment and Teatime managed to undo the vast majority of the carnage. To this day, many foreigners look up to Endearment and Teatime as angel-like figures.

After traumatizing herself with the horrors of war, Skysparkle slowly regressed to her former child-like naievete. Arguably, this was her reaction after destroying Chaos and Disarray in the first place. On the surface, she might not have seemed traumatized by Chaos and Disarray, having overcome them much more easily than expected. Deep down, however, it might have led her to keep herself in a bubble that prevents her from seeing much trouble in the world around.

(One of my favorite twists in Season 6 of FIM is the revelation that most of the changelings are themselves victims of war. That would help explain why they became mostly pacifist. It would also help explain their regression to a mostly child-like state. The two royal brothers are a wonderful parallel to the two royal sisters.)

Perhaps most of Skysparkle's kingdom really is peaceful and friendly. A great deal of it certainly is. Unfortunately, failure to be vigilant with the levels of administration has led to some rotten areas she has not been aware of. But it is secretly costing her the respect of many of her people. These areas are largely certain major cities -- but these cities house a great proportion of the Starpony citizens. Even if the danger spots are relatively small in geography, they affect a large percentage of the people. Moreover, too many ponies have taken advantage of other creatures -- especially business-ponies overseas in less developed countries.

And this tale for Sky Sparkle would make a lot of sense given how it would relate with those readers who are trying to cope with PTSD.

All the traumas in my life have made me 'full of holes' that hurt deeply if exposed. However the 'faith' and 'friendship' of others, along with my therapist, have worked wonders in making me able to be less afraid of encountering a 'trigger'. Perhaps, with help from Endearment and Tea Time, along with White Knight, Night Light, and Star Lyre, we will see Sky Sparkle start to not fear being 'triggered' back into a state of mind she has put up many barriers to ensure never has to happen even though it is the barriers that are making her blind to the reality of the kingdom.

Having Sky sparkle have PTSD, or show signs of discomfort, when certain events happen, a creature says a statement reminding her of her past, etc. would serve as a great foreshadow while also showing how an eternal entity, such as her, does have challenges that cannot be ignored / run away from forever.

I would say that Sky Sparkle's revelations and awakening, so to speak, would happen as White Knight becomes aware of how his hyper-vigelence hasn't made him many friends for his fear of 'losing control' of the kingdom. You'd also have Night Light, Phoenix, and Star Lyre in positions to show that what may have once 'triggered' them no longer does as a result of trusting in 'faith and friendship'.

More just thinking out loud. Though, as I think on it, seeing how far along Star Lyre and Night Light had come along may help give Sky Sparkle the ability to face the fear and do what she knows needs to be done. :)

Your experiences trying to find a happy place have helped me figure out how Skysparkle could be willfully naive — while maintaining a strong sense of innocence for her. She cannot be entirely excused; she might have been somewhat lazy, too. Most of her life has been about having fun, though most of that fun also has a diplomatic purpose. Indeed, she has certainly been hungry for friends to make her feel warm and safe.

Funnily enough — when Skysparkle learns how cynical White Night has become, I was already planning to have her tell a story she wished she had told him long ago. She finally tells the story of how her son and niece helped save her from herself. That one loved one you’re in danger of scaring away can be one who helps rescue you from the dark side. When words of reason are not enough, a loved one’s pleading eyes may say everything.

It is now Nightlight’s turn to beg her brother to put proper faith in friendship in his intelligence operations. The rulers could fire him, but he is too important to simply dismiss. From then on, White Night gains the emotional intimacy he should have had all along with the rulers. He approaches each of the ruling mares as a mother figure, including his big little sister. He approaches Endearment as a fatherly big brother. He feels so much happier knowing he can be vulnerable with them. They have felt vulnerable, too, for how much they have entrusted with him.

In feeling a healthy sense of family and friendship, he has no more secrets to hide from them, and his closest loved ones can watch over him as guardian angels. Finally, he is learning to be a proper guardian angel for his kingdom.

And this works as it illustrates character growth while showing that vulnerability is not weakness.

I had a class in college that focused on 'Negotiation'. The professor asked what the goal of negotiation was and, due to societal norms, we all answered that it was to 'get more for less' / 'Win / Lose' scenarios...

….We were quickly corrected in how you should aim for a 'Mutually Gain' / 'Win / Win'. It is a humbling moment when you realize that everyone should be able to trust others to do right in their daily dealings over feeling yourself, or someone else, is superior.

White Knight's plight is very much like 'Negotiation'. He wants the intel but doesn't want to openly let what he knows flow freely to those who should know it. He creates 'Win / Lose' scenarios until, based on what you share, they start becoming 'Lose / Lose' situations as he is trusted less and becomes frustrated as to why.

It is interesting to think on how social norms make us go from toddlers and pre-schoolers being shown the world is a 'Happy' and 'safe' place to adults who become 'What's in it for me?' and 'Watch your back!'.

The media, to me, is to blame as 'shock value' is more important than wholesome substance. The things my son is referred to watch on YouTube, Instagram, and Tick tock tend to have glorification of unkind actions to others.

What is really scary is how his one friend, whose family is deeply involved in the church, is extremely vulgar towards his own parents and says some very foul things in the presence of my son. It's troubling, but I do keep an open ear out to remind my son to keep others in mind before acting upon an impulse / group mentality of saying bad words and harsh statements over recorded lines on the internet.

Trying to keep your child away from bad company feels like trying to get out of one of those Chinese finger traps. If it becomes a battle of wills, then you may have already lost him.

Some parents would say, "You're not his friend -- you're his father." I would ask, "If your child is not your friend, then what is he? Your enemy? Your slave?"

You don't want to be permissive, but you don't want to make your child hate you. If he hates you, then he has shut his ears to you. So what is the solution?

Sometimes the fight isn't so much about the object -- as the right to make one's own decisions. I believe you need to limit your son's time with that friend -- but not a total ban. That friend certainly shouldn't be allowed to be alone with him. Maybe that will teach your son the mutuality that healthy friendship is about.

Oh, I have it all managed. I just catch him when he starts getting 'out of control' and blends with those around him either IRL or OL.

My philosophy for him is simple, "Keep Jr. High at Jr. high". I remember everyone cursing in my Junior High and High School years. However I learned you don't have to follow the herd with this behavior. So my cursing hit a limit and, when we knew Peep was going to be born, I stopped entirely with, now, only a few 'hiccups'. :)

I give him space but he knows 'I listen' and, for now, it is enough to keep him from getting too wild and forgetful of how some things can be seen as 'cruel' or 'offensive' if taken out of intended content.

As for you son’s friend, I wonder how much he gets in trouble with his own parents. If I were in junior high, I wouldn’t want to be caught without good friends. I might have to find the good in some I wouldn’t have otherwise been around.

Someday, I may encounter someone who seems loyal hearted — but has some shockingly awful tastes in entertainment. Smolder has been a special reminder to me that any friends I make are likely to be people I helped nurture into becoming great company. Many troubled people — but certainly not all — are people who need my love the most. Perhaps her tastes in entertainment have improved since her first year in the School of Friendship.

As for your friend on FIM Fiction who loves potty-training stories, he seems somewhat like Smolder for his tastes in comic books. He seems to enjoy comic book culture in general, for how he looks up to Stan Lee.

No problem. You are very passionate in your views and, well, I've had to constantly adapt mine based on an ever changing life where I could not stay in one place too long.

What I've learned most in being here is that, as long as it does not cause any harm nor ill feelings, it is best to keep strong opinions on anything to yourself UNLESS someone openly invites them.

I invite them as, well, I learn from listening. Though I may not be as good a listener as I once was. So I will be taking on some different, more focused challenges / traumas during my next therapy session. I'm far more 'disorganized' in my mind than I'd like to be.

I seek friendship and creative collaboration. If I can, I read deeper into certain matters of interest. However there are just so many views out there that there is no single way to best work with one without seeming inconsiderate to the other.

The worst feeling is hurting someone's feelings by just not reacting in a way they would want you to have done so. You don't want to upset a good friend but, if not seeing the other person as an intentionally spiteful person, I struggle with just telling said person to go away due to hearing they just hurt someone else.

I stand by you as, honestly, I don't believe you are trying to 'force' your views on others. What I do think is that you are trying very hard to find 'balance' in how you convey your message. You want all to be a part of 'faith' and 'friendship'. Unfortunately there are lots of people who either do not recognize religion, have a different religious set of beliefs, or have had to adapt their relationship with God in order to stay on the righteous path.

I have been psychologically tormented all my life for my disability. I was, literally, abandoned on a ski slope by the rest of my Youth Group and, later, my sister was called a liar / troublemaker for not being within the church we attended's 'in-crowd'.

Then I struggled with faith and ended up falling in love with an atheist. I had to work very-very hard to have our son baptized as my ex saw us baptizing him as 'forcing religion upon him'. My family was very happy he was baptized in the same church I, and other family members, were. However it did not please my wife at all.

Then I lost my job after avid church goers decided to brutally make me apologize for how 'my disability' inconvenienced them. Outside of many rude statements, the worst is one I was asked by one of those co-workers while attending an event. This being, "Why do you go to these things if you can't see them?". I was appalled and could only respond honestly, "To say I was there.".

When I got my wife to actually marry me, she would always tell me how it was 'my' idea and how 'she' never wanted to get married at all. I saw marriage as a commitment and she saw it as a ball-and-chain.

I loved my ex so much that I even said, if she was sent to Hell for being an unbeliever, I'd ask to join her as she meant that much to me.

Then she left me for a woman, reminded me of how she never did want to get married in the first place, and my family had to help pay for our divorce. All these later points after getting a job that, now, I'm about to lose due to an inability to work with ill-designed software.

***

I mention all this as I know I am not the only one who has had different paths with God. I believe as, truly, I refuse to believe all my suffering has been for nothing except bad luck. I believe god has a bigger plan that I just must be patient for it to be fully actualized.

My son is 'on the fence' with religion due to how his mother and I vary in stance. I tell him that, even without science fact, 'faith' is a very powerful thing. 'Faith' is knowing there is more than what is noticed at the surface.. 'Faith' is knowing that you will overcome all trials and tribulations as they are all meant to make your 'soul' stronger. To help you better understand the 'plight of man' and not add to the pain others may suffer that is theirs and theirs alone.

I also accept if God does not approve of how I went about my life. Perhaps the loss of all my sight and inability to keep my marriage were all meant to punish me for falling out of his graces? I do not know but, in the least, I have 'faith' that I will be able to either make it to heaven and/or at least be remembered as more than the "Dumb Blind Guy" who wasted his life chasing dreams and aspirations that were never mine to have.

Honestly, I don't have anyone I know off-hand that makes lite of life. You hear a lot of it on the radio about individuals who don't seem to take the pandemic seriously and/or get violent if they get told how they are endangering themselves and others by not following pandemic safety measures.

And worry not. I have had plenty of time to regret those words after my wife left me and started on her adventure to find someone else. It shames me to think how much I fooled myself that we'd be forever. I should have known better.

Most of the conversations I have with people relate around common interests and seeing where it goes. Sometimes it goes nowhere, which is fine, and other times it builds into a very open friendship. Though I am like my character in taking 'baby steps' in an effort to spare the feelings of myself and others. Too much hurt. I can barely handle my own pain and avoid causing any to others, when possible, as I feel like I'm falling apart as-is. :(

When it comes to comics, my message is that any scene that makes light of one innocent person’s life — or the lives of one innocent race of creatures — makes light of all human life. This seems to be a persistent blind spot with comic book fans. That’s what I mean to say. How do you handle people with such disturbing tastes in comics?

Hmm. Well, to be honest, it depends on how they translate the material itself.

If the individual sees it as a story while recognizing that the innocent deaths and injuries are a burden that must be burdened by the hero, I am okay with it. (Though you are talking to someone who struggles greatly in 'killing' characters as they are as much a part of me as they are the stories I write.)

Where I 'draw the line' is with those people who take away only glory from all the violence.

For example - "Captain Oblivion totally ripped that alien's head clean off before just epically destroying that entire army with his Megaton Shockwave Punch! He definitely takes no prisoners and is just so cool in how he eradicates all who would threaten the safety of earth!"

Counter example - " Captain Oblivion is such a tragic character. He really wanted to end the war between Earth and Zalga 7. However the leader of the Zalgan army had been so corrupted with anger and hate that he had no choice but to kill the corrupted leader. The illustrator did a good job in showing how our hero did not take any pleasure from how he, in reaction to nearly being killed by their leader, ended up decapitating him. The panel of him holding the head with a look of how he had lost all hope of a peaceful outcome was gone and that only his Megaton Shockwave Punch was capable of knocking back the alien army so that the Space Marines could safely board their ships and head home before they were overran by a vengeful army that, as a result of how things turned out, Captain Oblivion may not so readily want to take up the role of 'Interstellar Space Envoy' for earth."

The difference is that, although the situation was the same, you see what happened from both sides. You don't mindlessly maintain 'tunnel vision' for the hero and their epic ability to win. You take in the way the comic presents the moment and note how, often, the hero is a tragic hero for their actions often result in causing more harm than good. (Think twilight's battle with Tirek. All that magical power battling at levels only 'dragonball Z' can match certainly did far more than destroy 'The Golden Oaks Library')

Though, again, I am zero good at killing, encouraging killing, or having a character killed. So, like the end of "City Of Solitude", Emino does not kill Apathina. He banishes her.

As you may recall, I was talking about a peaceful race of kitties who were treated as if they were too mushy for us to care about their existence. I just cannot believe the message of friendship would be murdered like that. I don’t know why so many fans fail to see the evil for what it is. That friend of yours doesn’t seem to see what I see — even if you would.

I suppose the first number of comics date back to when the show didn’t take the message of friendship entirely seriously itself. In all, it seems the target audience was people who enjoy awful fan fiction. Those responsible for the comics must have noticed that such fans were a great proportion of the fanbase. That would explain the lack of fear of scaring fans away.

By now, I feel I’m beating a dead pony. It’s just that I’m always longing for someone who keeps me from feeling alone with my feelings. In all, I seem to find two incompatible versions of My Little Pony — for two fundamentally different audiences. What about you?

I have such a visceral reaction that I still long for a day when the public will demand careful laws about what can be marketed to children. That really was the straw that broke the pony’s back. Unfortunately, many moral crusaders may think my own religion is something that needs to be restricted, too. Any use of the law to find a cure could easily end up being worse than the original disease. Yet somehow, I cannot let the fear of failure stop me from pursuing such a cause. I just have to be careful that I keep making friends — and not enemies. That is the only way I can get a system that favors a healthy message of friendship.

Agreed. Again, this is why I think you will do best through the creation of 'Starponys' as it gets your message across without being potentially offensive to those who wish not to hear it.

How does the saying go? "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink?".

You have great passion in your faith and that is extraordinary. You should not ever feel detoured from doing what you feel is your 'mission on Earth from God'. However, to perhaps help make sense of things in another way, allow me to present the following.

As you know, I like to wear diapers and long for simpler times where I'm not treated like a lesser person. Now, knowing this, how do you feel people would react if I inserted, "You should wear diapers if you really want to improve your mood." in my comments and responses?

People do not take well to feeling 'forced' into something. This is why being very direct will, almost always, result in some degree of backlash.

However, if you present yourself truthfully in your posts and journals, you will find those who are seeking someone like you will naturally gravitate to you and your message.

I found my best friends here through seeing we shared common interests. We then just went from there to see likes, dislikes, etc.

So know that you are succeeding in serving as a 'gathering point'. Let your User Page and posts be what draws in those who, like me at the time, felt there was nobody else who felt the way you do. :)

Censored the names:

I hope you would never again say “if you were sent to Hell for being an unbeliever, I'd ask to join you”. When people talk like that, they have already declared that they are unfaithful to God. I hope I prove that nothing means more to me than the Creator.

When I have shared strong opinions, I don’t believe I was sharing any pet peeves. I believe I was trying to do something important. Even so, I must take care that I don’t cause others to shut their ears to me.

Fortunately, I never had the chance to get into a destructive argument with ——. He virtually ignored me, and I don’t think I bothered him much. I had positive comments for other posts.

How do you handle friends whose tastes in entertainment seem to trivialize human life?

Censored names:

This is probably the last I have to say about the subject that would be good for me or you. I hope I haven’t hurt you again. I was just feeling lonely with my own feelings. I guess this is why you share your feelings openly on FA.

In past times, there was often only one set of beliefs that could be safely expressed. Better to have a bit of a cultural conflict than to have repression.

As I recall, one of your friends tends to avoid the worst possible interpretation — even when it seems like the comic book team’s intent. She is too sensitive for that. ——, on the other hand, tends to have little or no problem. Looking a little more into his love for comics helped explain why. The first story arc doesn’t explicitly say anyone died, but the tasteless presentation certainly suggests a genocide that won’t be addressed. In comics, a million is treated as a statistic all the time, a billion and a trillion being footnotes. I certainly hope a lot fewer members of comic book culture are bronies these days.

From Yosh — censored names:

*Nods* I thought you were referring to ——.

My problem, which I will always suffer from, is that I don't look too deeply into people unless they give me a reason to genuinely doubt / judge them. If you are nice and friendly, I will treat you the same until I am made aware of something to the contrary. Though, as with past situations, I know others can be hurt by someone I feel is no trouble at all and, from that point, I have to go into a research program to see just how badly I've missed out on in my analysis of said individual(s).

—— is fun to collaborate with. I don't have enough time to spare to read all he posts. I just was happy to be invited to contribute to 'Potty Training Tales'. It gave me a chance to use some head canon of mine to discover how well I could take a character and develop how they grew into who they are now during a pivotal milestone in life.

My next prompt is 'Coco Pommel'. Though I need to write the 'backpack Story' first.

*Sighs* I find using my analhlitical skills to do 'background checks' on people very unenjoyable. Usually those who are not of pure and positive intent will give themselves away in time through inconsistancies along with others pointing out solid reasons why I should not align myself with said person.

For our recent situation, I feel you have shown willingness to grow without starting battles. People respond very differently to what is said to them and, well, sometimes it is better to say nothing than to try and say something that will trigger others to make blurry perceptions of who you are and what you represent.

Truly, I feel 'Starponys' will be your way to get your missionary message across without causing you to get wrapped up in 'Verbal Combat' with others. Starponys presents all the 'faith' and 'friendship' without coming off like one is being judged, looked down upon, etc. Those who read the book will come to their own epiphanies and be saved when they realize Jesus has been with them throughout the entire story.

This modern age is dangerous given how many faiths, beliefs, alignments, etc. are out there. The only way to 'safely' get a message across is for it to be delivered subtly. To be openly direct will create a situation that nobody wants.

Here is the third part:

The drawing style for my series will probably be a cross between the MLP comics and older manga. The main line of books would probably be light novels with lots of illustrations -- a lot like the formatting for the Captain Underpants books. My comic book series would probably be mostly for teenage and adult readers -- though having the same positive tone.

In general, I would recommend my work for all ages -- including a lot of material that might get rated for teens. I figure, if I allow children to read the Bible, then anything my work would explore probably wouldn't be any more troublesome for young minds.

By the way, I have had to accept that the MLP comics are meant for a different culture. Unfortunately, the tastes of comic book culture tend to be at odds with friendship, and they often show some sense of nihilism. They are clearly not meant for those who want only the positive tone of the show. As such, I cannot regard them as part of the show.

Your friend on FIM Fiction is a fan of comics in general, and he looks up to Stan Lee (for privacy, I don't mention him here). When I condemned the first story arc of the MLP comics in the face of your friend's endorsement, it is no surprise he did not take it well. He just brushed me off with a dislike -- which was a little anticlimactic to me, I must confess. (At times, it seems I've been a troll in the name of winning an argument.)

As a moral guardian, I am in danger of forgetting the love that is supposed to be associated with compassion. Smolder would probably see nothing seriously wrong with those comics, and I wouldn't want to hate her as a result.

I've wanted some new laws to restrain what can be marketed to children -- namely, a franchise marketed to children must be in good taste in all shapes and forms. But if I open those floodgates, I might create a monster that turns against me. The sanitization might go too far -- and the culture of political correctness might threaten my free exercise of religion.

If I really want more good MLP stories, then I need to promote the efforts of good fans to receive approval from Hasbro. If that day comes, then the opportunity for great world building will no longer feel wasted. One of my goals would be to add sequels to stories that desperately need repair.

A lot of problems with any form of media is how, to succeed, you need to have a steady formula of 'forming', 'storming', 'norming', and 'performing'. All stories that grant satisfaction work much like Group Development phases and/or Human Psychological Requirements. No step can be skipped and everything has to start of having, at best, 'fragments' to reach the first stage and make the tale progress.

If there wasn't a need to keep a series going on-and-on when ideas are out, this may not be a problem. However, with comics, you have all sorts of different arcs, pairings, specials, etc. that can lead to burning through all ideas that would fit properly with the 'target audience'. (It doesn't help how children, due to many life situations brought on by family, internet, other children, etc. get stuck in a feeling that being nice isn't 'cool' and being 'dark' provides a defense if someone says you are reading 'baby comics')

We had over 200 episodes of MLP FiM, a movie, two specials, numerous chapter books, and well over 100 comics. This means the idea pool is drained very quickly unless you start trying for something more 'edgy' to attract an audience.

In a way, the comics are a 'spin-off' for how they are darker than the show. The show, along with its book authors, got dibs on the 'wholesome' material while, to be able to gain any sort of 'feel' to justify buying a comic, the comics had to go darker and, well, this isn't always better.

This is why I appreciate Manga and Anime. Most good series end after either 13 episodes, 26 episodes, or 52 episodes. There are a number of exceptions to this. However most shows of 13 eps to 26 eps in total for a major arc to come to fruition prior to doing something 'different' seems the way to go.

Anime, like "Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex" are now on a third series. Note that it is a third 'series'. Each iteration of the SACs start out with reintroducing the characters, getting them to properly work together with a new series of mysteries that have little, if any, recall to the pervious series, and see that story arc until its end.

For Western animation, I'd argue for "Birdz" and "My Little Pony Tales" as great examples of staying true until their runs ended. Both had 13 episodes in total. However MLP tales had two eps in a single airing, which is like how "Pocket Dragon Adventures" and "Dragon Tales" worked. "Captain Flamingo" also used this formula of two-in-one to much success. The characters 'grew' between series / books. However nobody grew so much that it made it impossible to know that, as representations of human behavior, thought, religion, etc., these characters needed more fleshing out beyond showing how their efforts work towards a continual 'greater good'.

"Ghost In The Shell: SAC" had very deep stories that even had stories within them. However the team always managed to come together to resolve the problem while each grew in a different way.

"Birdz", if you reversed Episode 8 to Episode 9 so that 'Gulls & dolls' and 'Father And Son campout' was the order, you'd find a series that shows how a family together, along with individually, grow through life experiences. Even Mr. Nuthatch shows growth by the series end as he grows bolder in trying new things and not so deadest on having a 'bleak future'.

I appreciate coverage of dark subjects — as long as it’s done in a manner that brings light to the darkness. I condemn the first story arc of the comics for being totally tasteless. A few alterations could have made it okay, without having to change many panels. Unfortunately, that friend of yours is so numb to mass bloodshed in comics that he barely bats an eye.

That is the problem I find in the comic book world — darkness for the sake of shock value or cheap drama — promoting bloodlust and mocking tender-heartedness. It shouldn’t have to be a world where I might feel stigmatized for trying to be decent. I shouldn’t have to feel the need to overcompensate in some cheap and tasteless manner. How many parents would be shocked and angered by what their children are actually reading in MLP comics?

That having been said, I do plan, at some point, to include a fairly graphic scene where Skysparkle and Stellaluna, at the age of 8, destroy Chaos and Disarray by blowing and smashing them to bits. The scene is set up to make a decent person want to see this happen. I’m thinking, if I spin off a comic book from my own work, I might want to start with the origins of Skysparkle and Stellaluna. That story is about the darkest and most shocking I can go while still having a happy ending and an uplifting message. The plight of the unicorns is a family-friendly version of stopping a genocide.

Why is comic book culture so warped and bloodthirsty? Some fundamentalists would say comics are inherently evil. But that’s like saying the land Saudi Arabia sits on is inherently evil.

In any case, the MLP comics are clearly not for the same culture as the show. Actually, from what I can tell, many fans don’t want to acknowledge the comics. And the best I can tell, the show staff doesn’t want anyone feeling forced to.

Given that comic book culture is fundamentally different, I just see the comics as an alternative expanded universe. What about you?

I would agree on it being an 'expanded universe' for MLP. The greatest appreciation I would give it as, without needing to pay for pricey VAs, they were able to give us more of Tempest Shadow, Captain Soleeno, and Princess Sky Star. There were also comics to highlight some of these characters prior to the movie so they had a past that was more fleshed out than a "Hey! We're here for just this movie! Woo-hoo!". :)

Some characters returned in the books, but not as much as the comics were able to reuse them thanks to just needing to draw and make text and thought bubbles for them.

Though I am not really a good one to talk on the comics as I looked through only the first issue and barely could see it. :(
I do like what you could do for a comic series with Sky Sparkle. However, in your case, the violence is what leads sky Sparkle to feel traumatized during the main series and makes her very against doing anything that would result in conflict.

Unfortunately, I have a hard time acknowledging one single comic without feeling compelled to acknowledge them all. I feel that my refusal to acknowledge the comics is validated by the different culture the comics are aimed at. What about you? (That is what I meant to say.)

Honestly, as I never got to genuinely experience the comics, I must say I neither approve, or disapprove of them. However, given how I could never really read and see them, I do not acknowledge them outside of knowing how they provided more back story for the MLP Movie characters. However, I only ever got some of what these were about from silver quill's reviews. *Shrugs*

For me, I will stick with the show and movie. Plus, as it stands, I am really wondering if we'll ever get 'Rainbow Roadtrip' to download. I only saw it ONCE. :(

For me, any comics I could acknowledge (whether good or bad) would be those that feel like part of the spirit of the show.

By separating the comic book culture from the show culture, I can avoid my enjoyment of MLP getting shipwrecked. How about you? I might have mentioned a few comics you would try to avoid acknowledging. How does that sound?

Honestly, I feel overwhelmed. :(

I am largely a 'happy-go-lucky' individual who just wants to be loved, cuddled, and Pampered. If I like a story, I like it. If I don't, well I don't.

I know little of the comics aside from Issue #40 and a few with babs Seed / Rarity and Luna / Spike. The latter one not so good compared to the prior.

Though, admittedly, I'm too ignorant to know more than just what I expose myself to. I have a damaged soul and seek a world where a diapered little dino-duck can find peace from the traumas, misperceptions, and culmination of negative outcomes of bad choices, misinformed choices, or downright dumb choices made in 40 years of RL losing jobs and going totally blind. :(

I guess you tend just to acknowledge the stories you like, regardless of where they appear. Actually, that is a common tradition among fan culture.

Overall, I have the feeling that once bronyism stopped being so much of a fad, the culture of bronies started to improve. The developments since Season 6 certainly make the environment less friendly for the more cynical types.

I agree. Season 6 was a tremendous turning point as the show needed some additional areas of 'growth' in order to not become stale. So we got Starlight reforming, Trixie finding a friend, Sunburst coming back to face his fears of failing out of Celestia's School to rise to Crystaler and Vice Head Mare of The School Of Friendship. We then saw how the aging of the CMC had Applejack, Rainbow dash, and Rarity have to come to terms of how times are changing and that what they think should be will not be forever...

...and I'll end with what we gained by The Student Six, how they created an Equestria that was for more than equines, and how other creatures now take on important roles under twilight's rule. (You go, Gallus!)

Maybe the comics are not as tasteless as they used to be. I don’t know, and I don’t care to waste time or money on something I have no faith in.

Moreover, there is still the problem of the multiverse. In the comics, there is a mirror universe that makes free will feel like an illusion — for how tightly in sync the universes have become. Moreover, in that arc, the Elements of Harmony can be used to switch who’s good and who’s evil.

Overall, the existence of alternative histories seems to be played in a way that makes the main existence feel like nothing special — just one accident and chance. The show, on the other hand, gives the feeling of a master plan. Again, the comics just feel like an optional spinoff, given that comic book culture is fundamentally different.