some Pony things

* A while back, I thought of that "Bitter Apple" stuff (I think it's really called Bitrex) that's sold to paint on your nails if you bite them, to discourage nail-biting.

And then I immediately thought: Bitter Apple is the one relative none of the Apple Family will talk about, heh. (And now I kind of wish I were a better artist. I would draw him - yeah, I think Bitter Apple would be a him, a skinny older pony with a crumpled-up disapproving face)

* And every time I hear Ponca City referenced on the weather, I think of Pinkie Pie, because some of the fandom refers to her as Ponk or Ponka. (I have never BEEN to Ponca City, I don't know what it's like. I suppose it's small).

* I keep kind of thinking it would be fun, after I make the G4-ized Minty, to make a G4-ized Surprise: a white pony with curly yellow hair. (Surprise was apparently the original idea for Pinkie Pie, before she got converted to an Earth Pony). I would do the curls for her hair and mane as those spiral-curls, like how people used to make "worms" for bookmarks. (I think other crocheters will know what I mean).

* I have a Baby Surprise of the original G1 set: she was the first baby pony I bought. I don't know a whole lot about the G1 personalities as I didn't watch the cartoon when it was out or pay attention to the ponies but I've picked up a little from the various fan sites. (For example: Posey was kind of a gentle, maternal pony who often looked after the baby ponies. She's also the color-palette design for Fluttershy - though Posey is an Earth Pony).

Also, I am not sure of the origin of the "identical to the adult version" babies - there's a Baby Glory and a Baby Surprise and a Baby Gusty and probably a few others. And I wonder, how did they explain their origin? Storks? Magic reflecting pools? I suppose it was somewhere in the old comics/books/tv show. But I'm guessing it wasn't a situation of "Surprise actually gave birth to Babyt Surprise" because of (a) the dearth of male ponies (And in a show for children, yes, you'd have to have a "husband" for each of the ponies, and weddings, and all*)

(*reminds me of something my old pop-eco prof talked about, how when he was a boy he decided he wanted to raise chickens. He told his dad he wanted money for a dozen hens and a dozen roosters. "Why a dozen roosters, son?" "The hens each need a husband!" I think he said that was also when he got the birds-and-bees talk....)


* I got the Cheese Sandwich and Sugar Belle ponies I ordered off that Canadian shop site quite a while back. It turns out they apparently...aren't official MLP merchandise. No My Little Pony logos, no "licensed by" hangtags. Yeah, I feel a little bit bad about that....I have bootleg ponies. (Then again, arguably, the ones I've made myself are "bootlegs" - except no money was exchanged in their creation.)

That said: (a) these are ponies that none of the "official" channels seem to have wanted to make and (b) the Minky they are made of is actually NICER than the Minky that the "official" Aurora ponies are made of - very soft. So I don't know. Like I said, I feel a little bad Hasbro didn't get their cut, because it's the merchandise that keeps the show going - but then again, I have a hundred or so blindbags, and several of the Aurora plushies, and even all six of the Equestria Girls chibis. Yes, I decided that I "needed" all of them and slowly bought them one at a time as the local Wal-Mart had them. The Applejack one is particularly nice - and she has a hat! (Too many of the Applejack toys render her hatless). The Rainbow Dash one is the least cute, IMHO - she is just in athletic shorts and a top, and although I guess RD would not be the skirt type, they do show her in one of the movies as wearing like bike shorts under a v. short skirt.

The chibi dolls are SO much cuter than the 12" Equestria Girls dolls, which are fundamentally Barbie-like: proportionally too slim, uninteresting faces that don't look like the cartoon, sort of hot-mess clothing designed to appeal to six year olds.

(And yeah, if they made chibi versions of, say, Maud Pie or the Cutie Mark Crusaders, I'd probably buy those too)