The Fallen One said:Actually it's gaining ground in Japan. They didn't dub it immediately over there because the animation market is already absolutely flooded (just think about how much anime they have over there), but it gained enough of a cult following to actually get dubbed. I've heard a rumor that they're going to be getting their own pony con soon...
professorlight said:Is it me or is the first season vastly superior to the other two? I don't know... pinkie was funnier (you can't top "swarm of the century"), the stories focused on the characters, on the lessons and less in "we have to do stuff"... and it wasn't so "let's meet important ponies, mingle with royalty and save the world". The show seems to be leaving behind many of the things that made it unique and becoming more generic... I mean, the end was the main character magically becoming a princess, you don't get more little girl cliche than that... princesses are already all over the place, and those are unworthy of the title.
Season 1 and the first half of Season 2 were different than the second half of Season 2 and Season 3. Why? Lauren Faust was directly working with the show up until they had constructed about half of the Season 2 episodes. Then Megan McCarthy took over as head writer.
I don't think it's necessarily what's "better", it's just that it's different. Season 1 had more even pacing and felt "homelier" in general (in my humble opinion). Towards the end of Season 2 into Season 3 we had a huge shift, where the episodes felt a little more crowded. Basically while there are plenty of funny moments, the episodes feel like they're crammed with material, forcing a climax in the last 5 minutes instead of giving time for the rising action, climax, and falling action.
TL;DR: The later seasons have a different style than Season 1, but that doesn't mean that they're any worse, since that's subject to opinion.
Yeah, I know it's a matter of personal opinion, I just get tired of having to add "this is, of course, my own personal opinion and it doesn't affect in any way your opinion because opinions are subjective" all the time.
But maybe I misspoke saying it was superior, I still love the show, and it's faaaaaaaar away of reaching pokemon levels of suckiness, but the tendency to change in that direction is worrying. Take the songs, for example, most of S2 songs happened in three episodes, the cranky doodle one and the wedding. In S3, most happened in the first episode and the last. S1 had winter wrap up, art of the dress and other great songs. Also, with hasbro, the "lucas syndrome" is never too far away, and it's my understandiing it already altered the series, somewhat. And pinkie! pinkie was never funnier and more random than in season 1, I mean, the ending to the swarm of the century was brilliance, but the other episodes never came close to it, well, except that part in dragon quest when they show the dragon that looks the same as the crappy disguise made by rarity... that was brilliant too.