Soapbox time, where the fandom expresses its opinions! As always, we are open for submissions on these. If you'd like to submit your own soapbox, hit up this post for infos.
As always, these are the opinions of fandom members, not us here at EQD.
Have some headlines:
- Why Equestria’s Villains Are the Best Part of the Show
- On the Magic of Mundane Ponies
- How I would make MLP G6
- Are there any hopes for a German or Italian version of Rainbow Roadtrip?
And go read them below!
Why Equestria’s Villains Are the Best Part of the Show
By: Allonsy
When we talk about My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, the conversation inevitably circles back to the same touchstones: the Mane 6, the songs, and the show’s optimistic worldview. But if you really zoom out and look at what gave the series longevity, emotional tension, and narrative identity, one truth stands out:
Equestria’s villains carry the show more than they get credit for.
Take Nightmare Moon the very first antagonist we meet. She establishes from episode one that Equestria is not a place without moral complexity. Her existence introduces themes of neglect, resentment, and isolation, all wrapped in the fairytale elegance of a fallen princess. She’s not evil for the sake of evil; she’s a character built from wounds.
Then there’s Discord, who in many ways prefigured the “chaotic good antagonist” trend so common in modern animated storytelling. His redemption arc remains one of the most debated in the fandom because it asks a deceptively difficult question: Can someone who causes harm because of boredom truly change? That’s not a typical children’s-show dilemma; that’s philosophy.
Chrysalis represents the “refusal to reform” archetype, the villain who insists on her identity even when offered a path to redemption. Her presence questions whether harmony can be universal, or whether some individuals choose their isolation.
Even the later antagonists — Cozy Glow, Tirek, Starlight before her redemption — each highlight a different vector of emotional or societal conflict: manipulation, greed, the weaponization of insecurity.
What makes all of this remarkable is that the show uses villains not as obstacles, but as mirrors. Equestria’s rogues gallery reflects different fractures in our own world: jealousy, power, distrust, unmet emotional needs. And rather than defeating these forces through violence, the series constantly tries to answer with empathy, dialogue, and understanding.
The villains of MLP:FiM don’t merely oppose harmony; they give harmony meaning. Without their shadows, Equestria’s light wouldn’t shine nearly as brightly.
On the Magic of Mundane Ponies
By: Corevixen
Not every pony is a hero. And honestly? That’s my favorite part of Equestria.
I know the Mane 6 get the spotlight, and nopony’s complaining, they’re wonderful. But sometimes when I’m rewatching episodes, my eyes drift to the background. The ponies stocking shelves. The ponies sweeping stoops. The ponies arguing over hayburgers like it’s the end of the world.
There is something disarmingly magical about how ordinary life in Equestria feels.
Think about it: here’s a world where a mailmare can deliver letters in the morning, clip a wing on a storm cloud in the afternoon, and still have time to stop by Sugarcube Corner for a muffin on the way home. There’s no prestige to it, no grand destiny, and yet it feels like the coziest place imaginable.
I love Carrot Top watering her garden like it’s a religious ritual. I love Octavia practicing in her apartment while Vinyl blasts bass through the walls in a different musical galaxy. I love that there are ponies whose entire life purpose seems to be “likes scarves” or “runs a shop that sells one very specific item.”
In our world we tend to celebrate only the extraordinary; the dramatic, the powerful, the exceptional. But Equestria whispers a different lesson:
Being ordinary is not the opposite of being magical.
Sometimes it is the magic.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders spent years trying to discover who they were meant to be. Background ponies? They just are. And that quiet confidence is beautiful.
When I imagine myself in Equestria, I don’t picture wielding the Elements or blasting villains with rainbow lasers. I picture sweeping a café floor while a purple unicorn studies five seats away, or watching a rainstorm scheduled for exactly 3:15 PM roll in over the hills.
The show’s greatest gift isn’t just its fantasy, it’s how that fantasy makes the everyday feel enchanted.
How I would make MLP G6
By ManaMinori
So with the news of g6 finally having been dropped, I know that a lot of people are chomping at the bit to jump into a new generation after g5 had shown to have flopped. Generation 4 of MLP's tv series had lasted a whole 10 years- and the gen itself is getting merch and comics released in various parts of the world, so it still continues on, even though the show itself may have ended. At the time of this soapbox being posted, I can now say that g4 has finally surpassed the length of g1, which lasted 13 years to g4's current 15, by comparison- so long as merch and other media continue to be made for it. I really cannot see g4 ever really 'ending', even as we go forward into newer generations. That being said, how can g6 be handled appropriately, and still pay homage to the fans who loved g4, while at the same time, standing on its own two feet and being allowed to leave the shadow of g4? How can it draw in new fans, while still inviting the old? Easy- allow it to take place in a brand new world/ universe, while focusing on a new cast and giving nods to older faces of past generation by means of secondary characters. Perhaps there can exist a council of mentors that the new cast can continuously turn to for guidance and assistance, but yet gently nudged to tackle things on their own without so much help from them, at times when its needed. A hands on, hands off approach that varies by circumstance, sort of.
For instance -possibly g6 title drop- My Little Pony: Magic Hour Memories. Right off the Bat, it pays nod to Friendship is Magic, but invokes immediate curiosity. Whose memories are important in the series? What's going to be going on with the memories? Are they lost? Is there going to be a theme of reminiscing throughout? How do memories tie in with Magic? What is a Magic Hour? And while "magic Hour" is seen as the last hour before sunset, and the first hour before sunrise, and is a photography term, it revolves around the concept of a very limited time or moment to capture something in view. This title would work perfectly for an era of g6, in my opinion, not only to give a subtle reference to g4's Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer, but also play with the idea of having the new generation be a massive mashup of every MLP generation from start to current, in celebration of how far the franchise has come, and drawing in fans of all ages and generations, who have built memories with this brand for generations, and spur them to continue to build more with g6.
So for the characters- there are hundreds of ponies across the generations in total that exist, so who could possibly be the best candidates for g6? First and foremost, the main cast would all be brand spanking new. This would avoid mischaracterizations and headcanons of already existing characters. But ultimately, I personally would HAVE to have the name of at least one of the main characters be called "Pretty Picture". Reason being: "Pretty" would be a callback to MLP's Generation 0, My Pretty Pony, while at the same time pay homage to the toyline's OG creator (one of them, and the most popular and recognized, at least), Bonnie Zacherle. Because her last name basically means "God has remembered", and remembrance ties in with memories, which can tie in to "MLP: Magic Hour Memories" hypothetical g6 series/toyline, because pictures (which tie in to the magic hour. stay with me here) also hold memories. So basically it comes full circle. Secondly, if it were up to me- and yes this is now fully playing into bias territory (SHUT UP!), one of the other main characters would HAVE to be called either Charlie (because Charlie Horse pun, while at the same time loosely paying tribute to a certain character of a certain series made by a certain Vivienne Medrano), or Biscuit Queen, which would also reference VM's certain other series with a certain individual who has a horse obsession. And then the other main characters would have their own unique names that haven't been used in any other MLP gen as of yet.
The secondaries- the aforementioned council, would be familiar faces from all gens. From g1, I would have to include Applejack. This is due to the fact that she was kind of the running butt of the joke as an ignored pony in g4, never really getting much merchandise compared to the others, but also due to the fact that this pony has been in nearly every generation (minus g3 and g5) through the franchise's extensive history. Not only that, but her name and history alone could set her up as the head of the council and by all means, the wisest and most knowledgeable, much like g4's Twilight Sparkle excelled in academics and the field of magic. G1 portrayed Applejack as a sort of clumsy and greedy pony in the UK comics, while in many of her character card blurbs, she is depicted as loving to eat apples, and constantly caring for a garden that houses her apple trees. Sounds awfully similar to a garden in Genesis that depicts someone eating of an "apple" (or fruit of knowledge) due to their own greed an (of something that wasn't meant to ingest), and clumsiness, to me.
From g2, the likeliest candidate would be Sundance, who is mentioned to be an explorer who loved going off in search of new places and adventures. G3 would obviously have Mint Tea (because I think Hasbro lost the trademarks to use the name Minty, at some point? I could be wrong?), anyway- a clear nod to Minty through Mint Tea. G4 could have Star Dreams, who existed as a toyline exclusive pony. I feel that dreams and memories are very closely related, and she should be a good fit to include as a now adult pony in g6. Yes, I am completely biased, because I LOVE her!!!!!!, even if she had only 3 releases and nothing more..... Ahem- moving on....for g5, while I am the lest familiar with this gen personally, and admittedly, Misty is awfully cute, and the paparazzi pony, Shutter Snap's name best en-capsulizes the title and theming of the ideal g6 title of "Magic Hour Memories", I feel like Izzy Moonbow would be best to sit in a council seat on the secondary characters chair, and here's why: with her hobbies of upcycling in g5 being a part of her character, I feel like she would be a better representative in the concept of taking what is old and making it new again, if the next generation were to really incorporate this all encompassing concept of past gens and new gens all together.
All in all, these are just my own personal thoughts on how I would structure G6- as far as the concept of name, theme, and characters are concerned at the very least. Just one massive celebration/ love letter to the entire pony franchise and fanbases in one fantastic modern generation. I'm sure each of you guys have your own thoughts and ideas.
Are there any hopes for a German or Italian version of Rainbow Roadtrip?
By: FirePuppy (Tadashi Satoru)
Don't get me wrong -- I have strong concerns about the international versions of both the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and Equestria Girls franchises. And whenever a show is gone for good (yes, even the most popular ones), all the international versions go down the ship with it. But somehow, three times in a row (2018, 2022 and 2025), Hasbro has always managed to prevent that from happening to My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, making it possibly the oldest non-Netflix show to ever remain on that service to date.
But for this topic, I am talking about the German and Italian versions of Rainbow Roadtrip -- that is, if they were even produced by SDI Media in their respective countries, knowing Hasbro's bad habit of delaying or even refusing to release finished productions of their content for foreign audiences. In Germany, the special could have easily aired on Disney Channel, and in Italy, either on Cartoonito or Boomerang, since those are the respective channels where the show itself aired. But it didn't happen. Also in Germany, you can find the show on Amazon Prime, but again, no Rainbow Roadtrip there. And on Netflix, we didn't get anything My Little Pony at all in 2019. Now, knowing Germany and Italy, I can tell you that both countries do accept LGBTQ+ content, especially on films and television programs rated FSK 0 and "per tutti", respectively. So under this rule, why couldn't they just have released Season 9 and Rainbow Roadtrip on Netflix within countries where LGBTQ+ content is acceptable and not in countries where it isn't?
Obviously, that leaves us with only one option: the YouTube channels. But even they aren't any good anymore nowadays. The Italian channel has been completely inactive ever since Tell Your Tale was canceled, and the German channels have recently just been uploading the same things over and over again, which makes YouTube also a lost cause for Rainbow Roadtrip.
And there's more. According to articles, the Germanophone dubbing market is the largest in Europe, and Germany has the most foreign-movie-dubbing studios per capita and per given area in the world. Practically all films, shows, television series and even foreign soap operas are shown in dubbed versions created for the German market. Dubbing is also systematic in Italy, with a tradition going back to over 90 years ago. Virtually every foreign film of every genre and target audience -- as well as TV shows -- are always dubbed into Italian.
In conclusion, there's no excuse as to why Rainbow Roadtrip should not be released in German or Italian. It's already been dubbed into languages from countries where subtitles are preferred, and if they can do it, so can Germany and Italy.
