another thing I have been pondering on the subject of MLP is the fantasy world aspect of it. certainly there is nothing wrong with a little creative fantasy, in fact I would say we need more such fantasy and adventure based toys for little girls rather than the mountains of fashion doll and maternity prone toys. But does this fantasy world image perhaps have a negative side to it? Or am I just being cynical?
here's why I thought of it: as a child I was obsessed with pretend play imaginary worlds, mlp was not small part of that, in fact so much so that I refused to play any game that required me to pretend to be human. Now, it may just be that I was a particularly jaded child and saw the human world for what it is sooner than most, or that I have some form of peterpan syndrome, but even into early highschool when asked what I wanted to career wise I would respond with: I want to be a pony. ofcourse this was in part a joke, but... on the other hand it wasn't. If given the choice, hell yeah I would rather be a colorful little pony who plays games all day and defeats magical vilians. Now maybe I am just exposing my crazy, but I can't help but wonder, do such fantasy based images of mass produced toys, from companies that do their best to sell them not suggest that "this could be your life" in a fantasy world (if you buy this colorful plastic 5 inch toy)?
On the one hand, ofcourse a child should be given that time of their life where they get to live in a fantasy world, but at the same time, does it not make it all the more difficult to accept the reality? for instance I have always thought that lieing to a child about figures such as santa or the easter bunny or the tooth fairy, etc, is a sick joke, that entertains the parents at the child's expense. this may just be cause my parents never tried that crap on me, but thats just what it seems like to me.
But thats all for now, I have to go brush Sky Skimmers hair.....
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
My Little Pony's Image?
just some ideas I am listing to focus on my My Little Pony artifact.
My little Ponies are...
Innocent
Fantastical
passive
colorful
"girly"
soft, light/ pastel colors
long hair
friendly
sweet
forgiving
young
small
Hasbro's reps have said that my little ponies are not little colorful horses, but rather little girls. Which makes sense, they are, they talk, and do things that girls (supposedly) like to do.
So, My Little Pony's image says that: Girls are:
Suppose to be innocence, naive, playful, sweet, forgiving, uninformed, soft, helpless, etc.
ok, lets look at the (very very few in comparison to females) male ponies that were made/ presented in the cartooon.
As toys, there was only a handful of male ponies,Including the adventure and career based Big Brother Ponies (and also the Mountain boy ponies in the UK, and other non-US countries), Peak-a-boo Baby Brother Ponies, 2 or 3 individual male ponies available through mail order offers including the one and only groom pony (in comparison to the 7 bridal ponies), and then the 3 Male father ponies (and their 3 sons). I will ponit out here that there are HUNDREDS of different ponies that have been produced over the past twenty something years. Many of them baby ponies, Just as many of them Mother Ponies.... only 3 father ponies in all that time and through all those single mothers.
Now, I realize that these are girls toys, so why should they produce that many male toys? Not producing male ponies isn't the problem, producing fatherless baby ponies is, allong with mother, baby duo's, sans dad.
Also, the majority of the male ponies produced were adventure or career themed. What was most of the hundreds of female ponies themed? : Objects, such as candy, flowers, toys, and other nouns. In other words, Males do thing. Females are things? Idono, maybe I am reading into it too much, but thats what I get out of it.
This is reanforced in the cartoon. in the second season of my little pony hasbro finally decides to include the male ponies (in only one episode). In said episode, the female ponies are awaiting the male ponies' return from their round-the-world trip, talking about how much they've missed them, and how dreamy they are.... need I say more?
...ok, I think I have food for thought now, I'll get back to this in a part two.
My little Ponies are...
Innocent
Fantastical
passive
colorful
"girly"
soft, light/ pastel colors
long hair
friendly
sweet
forgiving
young
small
Hasbro's reps have said that my little ponies are not little colorful horses, but rather little girls. Which makes sense, they are, they talk, and do things that girls (supposedly) like to do.
So, My Little Pony's image says that: Girls are:
Suppose to be innocence, naive, playful, sweet, forgiving, uninformed, soft, helpless, etc.
ok, lets look at the (very very few in comparison to females) male ponies that were made/ presented in the cartooon.
As toys, there was only a handful of male ponies,Including the adventure and career based Big Brother Ponies (and also the Mountain boy ponies in the UK, and other non-US countries), Peak-a-boo Baby Brother Ponies, 2 or 3 individual male ponies available through mail order offers including the one and only groom pony (in comparison to the 7 bridal ponies), and then the 3 Male father ponies (and their 3 sons). I will ponit out here that there are HUNDREDS of different ponies that have been produced over the past twenty something years. Many of them baby ponies, Just as many of them Mother Ponies.... only 3 father ponies in all that time and through all those single mothers.
Now, I realize that these are girls toys, so why should they produce that many male toys? Not producing male ponies isn't the problem, producing fatherless baby ponies is, allong with mother, baby duo's, sans dad.
Also, the majority of the male ponies produced were adventure or career themed. What was most of the hundreds of female ponies themed? : Objects, such as candy, flowers, toys, and other nouns. In other words, Males do thing. Females are things? Idono, maybe I am reading into it too much, but thats what I get out of it.
This is reanforced in the cartoon. in the second season of my little pony hasbro finally decides to include the male ponies (in only one episode). In said episode, the female ponies are awaiting the male ponies' return from their round-the-world trip, talking about how much they've missed them, and how dreamy they are.... need I say more?
...ok, I think I have food for thought now, I'll get back to this in a part two.
Switching gears
Alrighty, I am changing from Tank Girl to My Little Pony. Why? because A) Tank Girl is a detournment in itself of comic book women, B) I love Tank Girl too much C) I don't think its main stream enough, although it is most certainly pop culture, it's not mass production, mainstream media pop culture.
So why then MLP? because A) I love my little pony, and what better thing to destroy than a pop-culture figure you adore? B) because I am lazy and want to use something I already know allot about (so sue me) C) I am so submersed in my My Little Pony culture (yes there exists a My Little Pony culture) that I am having trouble seeing the image, which is ridiculous, because its such a massive franchise, and it most certainly HAS an image. All the more reason why this should be my artifact, what is easy in research is countered by what is difficult in seeing the image.
So lets see if I can ruin one of my childhood .... one of my life long obsessions =D
So why then MLP? because A) I love my little pony, and what better thing to destroy than a pop-culture figure you adore? B) because I am lazy and want to use something I already know allot about (so sue me) C) I am so submersed in my My Little Pony culture (yes there exists a My Little Pony culture) that I am having trouble seeing the image, which is ridiculous, because its such a massive franchise, and it most certainly HAS an image. All the more reason why this should be my artifact, what is easy in research is countered by what is difficult in seeing the image.
So lets see if I can ruin one of my childhood .... one of my life long obsessions =D
Sunday, August 30, 2009
5 Favorites (more or less)
I'm afraid I have no one favorite anything, so I'll just list the top few of each.
Movie: Everything's Illuminated- This movie I think is great in every aspect, wonderfully composed, each element fits perfectly, excellent music, wonderful story, and successfully incorporates humor in a story that is set around the remnants of the Jewish Holocaust. Not to mention one of the main character's is played by Eugene Hutz, the lead singer of the gypsy-punk band Gogol Bordello (I didn't know he was in it when I first saw it though, so this is not my reason for liking the film).
Tank Girl: a pop-culture classic I think, and just an all around fun movie. I thought it translated from a comic quite well.
Edward Scissorhands: Possibly Tim Burton's best ever, wonderfully goth, and it makes fun of the 1950's mentality. ( I LOATHE almost anything 1950's)
My Neighbor Totoro: The single best children's animated movie of all time in my opinion. I associate allot with the children's pretend play in this movie from my own childhood. I think it does a marvelous job at capturing what children are really like. Too often does children's movies (thanks Disney) make kids out to be something they are not at all (their maturity/ age never mach up, and they lack the wonderlust that I remember as a child). Simple things in nature amuse the two girls in this film, and I remember have the same fascination as a child.
Donnie Darko: Yeah, yeah, I know, I get so much crap for liking this movie, but I like it. I just thought it was unique (I hate the world unique).
The Last Unicorn: I didn't count this when i said best animated children's film for the simple reason that I don't think it's a children's film. A rare occasion where the book is actually taken into consideration when it was made, a gorgeous movie, and it harbors a lor of nostalgia for me.
There are many, many more, but I'll leave it at that.
Music:
Gogol Bordello- gypsy -punk band mentioned earlier.
Ohgr, Rx, Skinny Puppy, and any other of Kevin Ogilvie's bands- I <3 industrial, and what better industrial than that?
Modest Mouse- all time favorite, just speaks to me, and its wonderfully depressing.
Billy Idol- because I need something I can dance to (by my self)
MSI AKA Mindless Self Indulgence- a band I got stuck on in high school, and don;t think I'll ever outgrow. They're silly, and obscene, and hate their fans. what more can one ask for?
Adam Ant- I have yet to hear one Adam (and the) Ant(s) song I don't like. 80's Britt-pop FTW, and once again, I love dancing to it.
And so very much more.
TV: Not a huge TV fan, in fact all the Tv I watch is either via dvd, online, etc. But never from cable.
The Mighty Boosh- My husband, Roommates, and myself consumed this series like it was air. It's a kid's show for adults, rediculously weird and colorful, and I've slewed whatever I was drinking at the time on several occasions from laughing so much. Besides, Noel Fielding is hot (its ok, my husband feels the same way)
The IT Crowd, goes hand in hand with the above, has at least 3 actors in common (including Noel Fielding, who plays a closet goth, literally). Slapsticky, with excellent characters.
Monty Python's Flying Circus: classic. (notice a preference in the country of origin of my TV favs?)
Cartoons: a subsection to my TV section which I think deserves its own section.
Freakazoid and Animaniacs.
The Venture Brothers- pop-culture hilarity
most 80's kid animation.
Adds: None?
Comics: Not a Huge comic fan, more into cartoons (they move, there fore they are better).
Transmetropolitan- Husband read it to my and I just looked at the pictures (this is one of our little past times) excellent story, and talks about how pop-culture and consumerism has taken over (is set in the future, so it exaggerates these aspects, but not unreasonably so).
Tank Girl- More pop-culture humor, and wonderfuly offensive.
Anything by Johnen Vasques, love his style, both art wise and story wise. Satire central, once again aimed at mainstream pop-culture.
Common thread? ( can I get back to you on that? O.o )
I like things that piss people off? I like colors? I like not liking things? I have no idea some one give me input on what my common thread is.
Movie: Everything's Illuminated- This movie I think is great in every aspect, wonderfully composed, each element fits perfectly, excellent music, wonderful story, and successfully incorporates humor in a story that is set around the remnants of the Jewish Holocaust. Not to mention one of the main character's is played by Eugene Hutz, the lead singer of the gypsy-punk band Gogol Bordello (I didn't know he was in it when I first saw it though, so this is not my reason for liking the film).
Tank Girl: a pop-culture classic I think, and just an all around fun movie. I thought it translated from a comic quite well.
Edward Scissorhands: Possibly Tim Burton's best ever, wonderfully goth, and it makes fun of the 1950's mentality. ( I LOATHE almost anything 1950's)
My Neighbor Totoro: The single best children's animated movie of all time in my opinion. I associate allot with the children's pretend play in this movie from my own childhood. I think it does a marvelous job at capturing what children are really like. Too often does children's movies (thanks Disney) make kids out to be something they are not at all (their maturity/ age never mach up, and they lack the wonderlust that I remember as a child). Simple things in nature amuse the two girls in this film, and I remember have the same fascination as a child.
Donnie Darko: Yeah, yeah, I know, I get so much crap for liking this movie, but I like it. I just thought it was unique (I hate the world unique).
The Last Unicorn: I didn't count this when i said best animated children's film for the simple reason that I don't think it's a children's film. A rare occasion where the book is actually taken into consideration when it was made, a gorgeous movie, and it harbors a lor of nostalgia for me.
There are many, many more, but I'll leave it at that.
Music:
Gogol Bordello- gypsy -punk band mentioned earlier.
Ohgr, Rx, Skinny Puppy, and any other of Kevin Ogilvie's bands- I <3 industrial, and what better industrial than that?
Modest Mouse- all time favorite, just speaks to me, and its wonderfully depressing.
Billy Idol- because I need something I can dance to (by my self)
MSI AKA Mindless Self Indulgence- a band I got stuck on in high school, and don;t think I'll ever outgrow. They're silly, and obscene, and hate their fans. what more can one ask for?
Adam Ant- I have yet to hear one Adam (and the) Ant(s) song I don't like. 80's Britt-pop FTW, and once again, I love dancing to it.
And so very much more.
TV: Not a huge TV fan, in fact all the Tv I watch is either via dvd, online, etc. But never from cable.
The Mighty Boosh- My husband, Roommates, and myself consumed this series like it was air. It's a kid's show for adults, rediculously weird and colorful, and I've slewed whatever I was drinking at the time on several occasions from laughing so much. Besides, Noel Fielding is hot (its ok, my husband feels the same way)
The IT Crowd, goes hand in hand with the above, has at least 3 actors in common (including Noel Fielding, who plays a closet goth, literally). Slapsticky, with excellent characters.
Monty Python's Flying Circus: classic. (notice a preference in the country of origin of my TV favs?)
Cartoons: a subsection to my TV section which I think deserves its own section.
Freakazoid and Animaniacs.
The Venture Brothers- pop-culture hilarity
most 80's kid animation.
Adds: None?
Comics: Not a Huge comic fan, more into cartoons (they move, there fore they are better).
Transmetropolitan- Husband read it to my and I just looked at the pictures (this is one of our little past times) excellent story, and talks about how pop-culture and consumerism has taken over (is set in the future, so it exaggerates these aspects, but not unreasonably so).
Tank Girl- More pop-culture humor, and wonderfuly offensive.
Anything by Johnen Vasques, love his style, both art wise and story wise. Satire central, once again aimed at mainstream pop-culture.
Common thread? ( can I get back to you on that? O.o )
I like things that piss people off? I like colors? I like not liking things? I have no idea some one give me input on what my common thread is.
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