It's Okay to be a Brony

If you have been around the Internet as much as I have, you have probably heard the word "Brony". What exactly is a Brony, you ask? A Brony is an adult male (typically 18+, but he can be younger) who loves the show My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Now, when I first heard of this, I dismissed as one of those things that will pass. Also during this time, I was cynical about cartoons on television, and I thought there was no point. I thought Regular Show and Adventure Time were also going to be wastes of time. Little did I know that they would become some of my favorite shows. What does this have to do with Bronies? Well, during that time, I was getting experimental and decided, on recommendation, that I would watch the taboo cartoon.

I watched the first episode, the first part of a two parter, and I thought it was okay. So I decided to watch another, then another, then another, until finally I found myself having watched the first season in less than four days. You might be wondering why I, an adult male, would be willing to watch a cartoon which for about three decades has been exclusively for girls. I became invested because it has things that most cartoons today don't have.

Let's start with the characters themselves. There are 6 main characters which the show revolves around: The book-smart, but dorky Twilight Sparkle, the hyper, but hysterical Pinkie Pie, The loyal, but bullheaded Rainbow Dash, The generous, but vain Rarity, The kind, but shy Fluttershy, and finally the honest, but stubborn Applejack.

One of the best things about the show is how the characters and plots are designed. All the characters are well rounded and surprisingly relatable; they all have faults which make for interesting interactions. The plots are also pure gems in terms of television shows; they were crafted with pure care. While the backgrounds are quite girly, the plots can feel quite suited for an action show once in a while. While this may seem strange at first, the first season's creator and writer was Lauren Faust. You may not know her name, but her work should be familiar to anyone living in the 90's. She worked on a variety of popular shows, including The Powerpuff Girls, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends and The Kids Next Door.

While I could keep going on about the show itself, I'm here to tell about Bronies and who they are. If you want more information about the show, I recommend you watch Chad Rocco's retrospective on the show, Familiar Faces, or SaberSpark's documentary Ballad of the Brony. I just had to give a brief explanation of what the show is to put in perspective what kind of show we watch. While the term Brony is generally applied to males, there are also female bronies who refer to themselves as either brines or pegasistahs.

When I first started to watch the show, I didn't want anyone to know i was into it, since such shows are taboo for someone my age. That was until I realized what I was missing out on when it comes to the Brony community. When I started to look around the Internet, I found spectacular music, videos and art. When I started to go to conventions, I found bronies of all shapes and sizes, people my age, people in their forties and so on. It is something great when each day you can go online and see something new or meet someone new.

While other people look on with confused and strange looks, bronies are free to talk about a great show and brohoof all day long (A brohoof is a fist pump between bronies and/or pegasistahs). Some people think that we are weird and anti-social for liking this kind of show, but actually we love talking to people about the show and about the community. Although that isn't the only thing we talk about. The show has touched people on a personal level unparalleled in recent memory, which is what I love most about the community. One of the best ways to get information about the show and fan content is the website "Equestria Daily" which also has interviews with people who work on the show. There is also the Youtube show "Brony Breakdown" with Youtubers Saberspark and Paleosteno. The creators and writers also keep close ties to the community and is always seeing how to impress them and their target demographic.

The show likes to use jokes aimed at adults, like references to The Big Lebowski and Metal Gear Solid. There are also ponies which bronies helped create, like the famous Derpy Hooves. Derpy Hooves is a grey, blonde pegasus who appears in the first episode, in the background with messed up eyes. While it might have been an animation error or intentional joke, no one knows for sure. Since she was noticed she has appeared in the background as a sign that the creators listen to bronies.

The show airs new episodes on the Hub at 1pm on Saturdays, but at the time of writing this, the show is wrapping up its second season. Luckily, Hasbro allows people to upload episodes to Youtube so that everyone can enjoy them. While I highly recommend you watch the show, it doesn't automatically mean that you are a Brony unless you want to, the show is best experienced when you take your time and watch it at your own speed. If you want to start watching the show, you can watch the first two episodes and see how you like it, but they might have a little too much exposition. I personally recommend the episodes: "Winter Wrap-Up", "Party of One", "The Return of Harmony part 1 and 2", and "Sister Hooves Social".