My Little Pony (TV series)
This article is about the 1986 television series. For the 1992 television series, see My Little Pony Tales. For the 2010 television series, see My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.
| My Little Pony | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Based on | My Little Pony toyline by Bonnie Zacherle |
| Written by |
Michael Reaves George Arthur Bloom David Wise Michael Charles Hill Carla Conway Gerry Conway Tracy Mann Hill Gordon Kent Barbara Petty Rebecca Parr Martin Pasko Linda Woolverton |
| Creative director(s) | Jay Bacal |
| Voices of |
Bettina Bush Scott Menville Keri Houlihan Susan Blu Katie Leigh Sherry Lynn Nancy Cartwright Ellen Gerstell |
| Composer(s) | Robert J. Walsh |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 65 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Joe Bacal David H. DePatie (Rescue at Midnight Castle) Margaret Loesch (Escape from Catrina, Series 1 and 2) Tom Griffin |
| Producer(s) |
Mike Joens Jeff Hall Roger Slifer |
| Running time | 10 minutes per episode |
| Production company(s) |
Sunbow Productions Marvel Productions |
| Distributor | Claster Television |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Syndication |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Original run | April 14, 1984 – September 23, 1987 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows |
My Little Pony Tales My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic |
My Little Pony is an American animated television series produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions based on the My Little Pony toys released by Hasbro. The series featured as the first segment of a program called My Little Pony 'n Friends. The second segment would be an unrelated cartoon based on another Hasbro franchise - including The Glo Friends, MoonDreamers and the Potato Head Kids. The series debuted on September 15, 1986, a few months after the release of My Little Pony: The Movie (which had introduced the Paradise Estate and many of the series' main characters), and ended on September 23, 1987. Two previous television specials were also edited into segments of My Little Pony 'n Friends: Rescue from Midnight Castle and Escape from Catrina. The complete series of My Little Pony segments has been released on DVD in Regions 1 and 4. As of January 25, 2012, none of the other segments has been released on DVD.
Synopsis
Ponyland is a mystical land, home to all kinds of magical creatures. The Little Ponies make their home in Paradise Estate, living a peaceful life filled with song and games. However, not all of the creatures of Ponyland are so peaceful, and the Ponies often find themselves having to fight for survival against witches, trolls, goblins and all the other beasts that would love to see the Little Ponies destroyed, enslaved or otherwise harmed.[1]
Cast
- Bettina Bush as Megan
- Charlie Adler as Spike
- Susan Blu as Buttons, Paradise
- Nancy Cartwright as Gusty, Baby Heart Throb, Baby Cuddles, Posey, Truly, Honeysuckle, Surf Rider
- Jeannie Elias as Whizzer, Masquerade, Baby Lickety-Split, Magic Star, Sweet Stuff, Sun Shower
- Ellen Gerstell as Lofty, Locket, Mimic, Scoops
- Skip Hinnant as Narrator
- Keri Houlihan as Molly
- Katie Leigh as Fizzy, Heart Throb, Lickety-Split, Ribbon, Baby Shady, Baby Gusty, Baby Tiddley-Winks, Water Lily
- Sherry Lynn as Galaxy, Gingerbread, Cherries Jubilee, Baby Half-Note, Baby Ribbon, Baby Sundance
- Scott Menville as Danny
- Sarah Partridge as Wind Whistler
- Russi Taylor as Cupcake, Rosedust, Morning Glory
- B. J. Ward as Surprise, North Star, Peach Blossom, Forget-Me-Not
- Jill Wayne as Baby Lofty, Shady
Additional voices by Michael Bell, Joey Camen, Melanie Gaffin, Tress MacNeille, and Frank Welker
Characters
Main articles: List of My Little Pony (1986) characters and List of My Little Pony characters
The Little Ponies of Paradise Estate include:
- Earth Ponies are brightly colored, and talking versions of real horses.
- Pegasus Ponies have feathered wings and are capable of sustained flight.
- Unicorns have horns that grant each of them a unique magic power. They are also able to teleport in a process known as 'winking in and out', though they can't displace solid objects, and thus are limited to winking through open air environments.
- Flutter Ponies are shy but powerful creatures with magic in their gossamer wings, granting them flight as well as various undefined abilities. They live in a remote area of Dream Valley known as Flutter Valley.
- Sea Ponies are brightly colored seahorse-like creatures who dwell in the rivers and lakes of Dream Valley. They vanish from the scene after the introduction of the Baby Sea Ponies.
- Baby Sea Ponies are brightly colored seahorse-like creatures who dwell in Dream Valley's rivers and wear floats that look like aquatic animals.
- Spike, a good-natured baby dragon who lives with the Ponies after being separated from his own kind. In later episodes, he is repulsed by the predisposition toward evil demonstrated by most of his dragon-kind, and prefers the company of peaceful creatures such as the ponies.
- The Bushwoolies, a joyful species of furballs that think alike. They seem to be led by a blue Bushwoolie named Hugster.
- The Furbobs, cousins of the Bushwoolies. They primarily walk on four legs as opposed to Bushwoolies who seem to walk on the equivalent of two legs.
- Stone Backs, ferocious looking armadillo-like creatures. They are enemies of the Furbobs until Megan helps the Furbobs realize that the two species can overcome their differences with love and understanding.
- The Grundles, a small race of creatures ruled by the Grundle King. They used to live in Grundleland before it was smoozed; they now live in Dream Castle.
Three human children, siblings Megan, Danny, and Molly, often fly across the Rainbow to join the Little Ponies. The group often seeks advice on magical matters from the Moochick, a wise but eccentric gnome who lives in the nearby Mushromp, and his rabbit assistant, Habbit.
Episodes
Original standalone episodes
| # | Title | Director | Writer | U.S. Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "My Little Pony" | George Arthur Bloom | April 14, 1984[2] | ||
|
Tirek captures some of the little ponies to use as demons to pull his Chariot of Darkness at midnight. The rest of the ponies panic, fearing that they will be next. Firefly goes off for help and finds Megan, a girl who lives at a stable at the other end of the rainbow. Megan agrees to go to Ponyland with Firefly, but will they be able to rescue the little ponies in time? Note: Originally untitled, this special was known as "Firefly's Adventure" on its US VHS release, "Dreamland" on its UK VHS release,[3] and "Rescue from Midnight Castle" on syndication and DVD. | ||||
| "Escape from Catrina" | George Arthur Bloom | March 23, 1985[4] | ||
| The Little Ponies prepare for a "Welcome Back" party for their human friend, Megan. Meanwhile, little furballs called Bushwoolies are the slaves of a feline witch named Catrina and are watched over by a shape-shifting lizard named Rep. When the Bushwoolies escape, Catrina abducts Baby Moondancer and the Rainbow of Light to force the ponies to be her new slaves. | ||||
My Little Pony 'n Friends, Season 1 (1986)
| # | Title | Director | Writer | U.S. Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-10 | "The End of Flutter Valley (Parts 1-10)" | George Arthur Bloom | 15–26 September 1986 | |
| The ponies are on their way to Flutter Valley for the "Sun Tuesday" celebration with the Flutter Ponies. Meanwhile, the Witches from the Volcano of Gloom are busy hatching a plan to destroy Flutter Valley and the ponies, allying with an army of giant bees to get their revenge on the Flutter Ponies. The bees steal the precious Sun Stone, and if the Flutter Ponies can't get it back, their home will be destroyed. | ||||
| 11-14 | "The Ghost of Paradise Estate (Parts 1-4)" | George Arthur Bloom | 29 September-2 October 1986 | |
| A ghost comes to Paradise Estate to scare the little ponies. However, when it flies away, it becomes tangled in a tree, convincing Megan that it is not really a ghost. She introduces herself as Pluma, a shape-shifting bird. She tells them about a creature who lived in Dream Valley before the Paradise Estate was built and is planning to destroy the ponies' home. Megan and the others decide to help Pluma recover the Flashstone and save her grandfather. | ||||
| 15 | "The Great Rainbow Caper" | Diane Duane | 3 October 1986 | |
| A pair of monkeys called Gizmonks take Danny and Surprise prisoner until Megan turns over the Rainbow of Light to them. | ||||
| 16-19 | "The Glass Princess (Parts 1-4)" | Tracey Mann Hall and Michael Charles Hill | 6–9 October 1986 | |
|
A self-obsessed witch named Porcina wants to turn the world into glass, to see her reflection everywhere. Three ponies, captured by a trio of Raptorians, are the key to Porcina's plan, and Megan and her friends must stop her using their own magic to destroy their friends. Meanwhile, Shady is accusing herself of lots of things. After the first run of Part 4, the song "Hurry" was removed, and the episode got slowed so that episode would maintain its length. The scene with the song does not appear on any VHS or DVD release of this story. | ||||
| 20 | "Pony Puppy" | Carla Joseph Conway and Gerry Conway | 10 October 1986 | |
| The ponies find a giant puppy and decide to keep her, build her a doghouse, and name her Dinah. When the new puppy is reunited with her family the following spring, the ponies are sad to see her go, but they realize that even though friends come and go they will never leave their hearts. | ||||
| 21-24 | "Bright Lights (Parts 1-4)" | Barbara Petty | 13–16 October 1986 | |
| The Baby Ponies are delighted when rock star Knight Shade performs for them - but the concert is a front to steal their shadows and feed his dark master. | ||||
| 25 | "Sweet Stuff and the Treasure Hunt" | Cherie Dee Wilkerson | 17 October 1986 | |
| Sweet Stuff wants to play games with everyone else, but feels left out because she is an Earth Pony and doesn't seem to be good at anything. She ends up surprising everyone (even herself) when she joins a treasure hunt with the pegasi and is the only one able to answer the last riddle and win the game. | ||||
| 26-29 | "The Return of Tambelon (Parts 1-4)" | Michael Reaves | 20–23 October 1986 | |
| The ancient city of Tambelon disappeared 500 years ago. Now, it returns to Dream Valley and all of the unicorns mysteriously vanish. | ||||
| 30 | "Little Piece of Magic" | Beth Bornstein | 24 October 1986 | |
| The Baby Ponies are bored and want Ribbon and Buttons to play a game with them. Ribbon suggests that they play a game of Make Believe and runs out to go get them a red ball to use in their game. She explains that the red ball is magic and can be anything they want it to be. While she's gone the Baby Ponies take turns imagining what the red ball will be. | ||||
| 31-34 | "The Magic Coins (Parts 1-4)" | Michael Reaves | 27–30 October 1986 | |
| The ponies are delighted to discover a treasure chest of magic coins. However, Baby Lickety Split steps on one while wishing it for it never to rain again. The wish is granted and brings a drought over Pony Land. | ||||
| 35 | "Mish Mash Melee" | Bruce Faulk | 31 October 1986 | |
| After a magical mishap, Fizzy, Shady, Wind Whistler, and Gusty must live each other's lives until they can restore the balance of nature. | ||||
| 36-37 | "Woe Is Me (Parts 1-2)" | Gordon Kent | 3–4 November 1986 | |
| The Little Ponies provide shelter to Woebegone, a wandering hobo who brings bad luck and disaster wherever he goes. | ||||
| 38-39 | "Fugitive Flowers (Parts 1-2)" | Martin Pasko and Rebecca Parr | 5–6 November 1986 | |
| Posey finds some sentient flowers wandering around her garden and offers them shelter and water, but she has no idea what they have in store for her to repay her kindness. After the Flouries have taken Masquerade hostage, they are on their way to sucking the life out of Dream Valley unless the ponies can stop them. | ||||
| 40 | "Would Be Dragonslayer" | Carla Joseph Conway and Gerry Conway | 7 November 1986 | |
| Spike is harassed by a young boy trying to become a knight. The ponies help him to find a good deed that doesn't involve slaying their friend. | ||||
| 41-42 | "Baby, It's Cold Outside (Parts 1-2)" | Gordon Kent | 10–11 November 1986 | |
| The ponies are delighted as snow falls in summer, not realizing that it's a plot by the Penguin King to freeze Ponyland and destroy those that can't survive the cold. | ||||
| 43-44 | "Crunch the Rockdog (Parts 1-2)" | Linda Woolverton | 12–13 November 1986 | |
| A vicious dog carved from rock charges through Ponyland, turning everything it encounters to stone. | ||||
| 45-46 | "The Revolt of Paradise Estate (Parts 1-2)" | David Wise | 14, 17 November 1986 | |
| A magic spell brings the Paradise Estate to life - and its furniture declares war on the Little Ponies. | ||||
| 47-48 | "Through the Door (Parts 1-2)" | David Wise | 18–19 November 1986 | |
| A door is opened to the world of fairy tales, and the ponies meet legends such as Robin Hood, Aladdin's genie and Hercules. | ||||
| 49-50 | "Rescue from Midnight Castle (Parts 1-2)" | George Arthur Bloom | 20–21 November 1986 | |
|
The untitled 1984 special, edited into two parts. The opening and closing credits were replaced with standard versions and the song "A Little Piece of Rainbow" was removed. There is some confusion over the episode title, which is sometimes rendered "Escape from Midnight Castle". The US DVD has "Rescue" on the packaging but the on-screen captions for both episodes read "Escape". The Australian DVD has "Rescue" on the caption for Part 1, but "Escape" on the caption for Part 2. | ||||
My Little Pony 'n Friends, Season 2 (1987)
| # | Title | Director | Writer | U.S. Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 51-54 | "The Quest of the Princess Ponies (Parts 1-4)" | Michael Reaves | 7–10 September 1987[5] | |
| Lavan, a lava demon, kidnaps the Princess Ponies and steals their magic wands. As Lavan grows in power, Ponyland's magic is thrown into chaos. Can he be stopped before everything is destroyed? | ||||
| 55 | "Spike's Search" | Michael Charles Hill | 11 September 1987 | |
| Spike goes in search of his roots and joins a dragon horde, but finds he does not agree with their bullying ways. | ||||
| 56-57 | "The Golden Horseshoes (Parts 1-2)" | Carla Joseph Conway and Gerry Conway | 14–15 September 1987 | |
| When Mimic becomes afflicted with a mysterious illness, Megan and the ponies embark on a series of odd adventures to find the four golden horseshoes with the power to heal the ailing unicorn. | ||||
| 58-59 | "Flight to Cloud Castle (Parts 1-2)" | Michael Reaves | 16–17 September 1987 | |
| Heart Throb, Locket, and Twilight help a young elf called Garf rescue his true love Ariel from an enchanted castle, while facing many dangers on the way. | ||||
| 60 | "The Ice Cream Wars" | David Wise | 18 September 1987 | |
| The First Tooth Baby Ponies are put in charge of the Newborn Twins: Sniffles & Snookums and Milkweed & Tumbleweed. The unruly twins are temporarily subdued with the promise of ice cream, but first the First Tooth Baby Ponies must reunite the feuding ice cream makers Rocky Ripple and Fudgy McSwain, who have cut off Ponyland's ice cream supply. | ||||
| 61-62 | "Somnambula (Parts 1-2)" | David Wise | 21–22 September 1987 | |
| The ponies prepare a surprise Welcome Home party for the Big Brother ponies who have been racing around the world. However, before he Big Brothers arrive, an old witch named Somnambula puts the adult ponies into a trance, then forces them to play in a circus as she drains the youth from them. The Big Brothers set out to rescue the ponies. | ||||
| 63 | "The Prince and the Ponies" | David Wise | 23 September 1987 | |
| The ponies come to the aid of two wronged royals when they attend an exclusive party at the Palace de Branforr. Meanwhile, the First Tooth Baby Ponies learn to be careful what they wish for. | ||||
| 64-65 | "Escape from Catrina (Parts 1-2)" | George Arthur Bloom | 24–25 September 1987 | |
| The 1985 special Escape from Catrina, edited into two parts. The opening and closing credits were replaced with standard versions (which misspelled the original title) and the song 'Those Good (Before You Turned Bad) Old Days' was removed. | ||||
Friends Segments
The Glo Friends (27 segments)
Main article: The Glo Friends
| # | Title | Director | Writer | U.S. Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–10 | "The Quest (Parts 1–10)" | George Arthur Bloom | September 23 – November 25, 1986 | |
| Glo Moon Drop Pond, the lifeblood of the Glo Friends springs a leak, and Glo Worm, Garden Ant, and their friends go on a dangerous quest to search for Moon Drops. | ||||
| 11 | "Baby Glo Worm Goes Bye-Bye" | Douglas Booth | December 2, 1986 | |
| Baby Glo Worm runs off when she is supposed to be napping and ends up in the Moligan's hideout. Glo Worm and the others search for Baby Glo Worm but get trapped by the Moligans in the process. | ||||
| 12 | "Two of a Kind" | Douglas Booth | December 9, 1986 | |
| Bashful Bug runs off after being teased by Glo Worm during a dance. Scoop also runs away as well after wrecking one of the Moligan's tunnels. The two outcasts then meet and form an unlikely friendship. | ||||
| 13 | "Make No Mistake, It's Magic" | Douglas Booth | December 16, 1986 | |
| A series of coincidences in a berry patch make Glo Butterfly believe her wand really has magical properties. However, Bed Bug, Bop Bug, and Glo Spider know she is not really magic and attempt to show the other Glo Friends this. | ||||
| 14 | "The Forest Brigade" | Douglas Booth | December 23, 1986 | |
| The Moligans feast on the roots of a tree that Garden Ant planted, and Garden Ant attempts to save the tree before it dies. | ||||
| 15 | "Caverns of Mystery" | Douglas Booth | December 30, 1986 | |
| Glo Cricket runs out of stories to tell the other Glo Friends and decides to search for the legendary Glo Drop Moon Lake. He fails to find it, and lies about it when he gets back. | ||||
| 16 | "Front Page" | Douglas Booth | January 6, 1987 | |
| The Moligans decide to get interviewed for the Glo Land Times newspaper to improve their reputations, but things do not go to plan. | ||||
| 17 | "Bean Ball" | Dale Hale | January 13, 1987 | |
| 18 | "The Masterpiece" | Diane Duane | January 20, 1987 | |
| Doodle Bug feels that no one in Glo Land understands his art, and so goes off to work in private with Snug Bug. | ||||
| 19 | "Beware Tales of Gold That Lead to Thorny Trails" | Craig Rand | January 27, 1987 | |
| 20–23 | "Glo Friends Meet the Glo Wees (Parts 1–4)" | George Arthur Bloom | February 3–24, 1987 | |
| The Moligan's latest plan brings two races of Glo Land bug together, the Glo Friends and the Glo Wees. They form a partnership and work to defeat the Moligans and destroy a storm that will kill the Glo Wees. | ||||
| 24–25 | "Easy Money (Parts 1-2)" | Douglas Booth | March 3–10, 1987 | |
| 26 | "Wizard of Rook" | Douglas Booth | March 17, 1987 | |
| 27 | "The Glo Friends Save Christmas[6]" | December 22, 1987 | ||
| An evil witch called Blanche kidnaps Santa Claus and traps him in a cage of ice, so that presents cannot be delivered to the residents of Glo Land and around the world. The Glo Friends go on a quest to rescue Santa. | ||||
Potato Head Kids (23 segments)
Main article: Potato Head Kids
| Episode | Title | Airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Abbad'Un In A Bottle | September 24, 1986 |
| 2 | The Case of the Fouled Up Pharaoh | October 1, 1986 |
| 3 | The Curse of the Silver Dragon | October 8, 1986 |
| 4 | Follow the Chocolate Cake Road | October 15, 1986 |
| 5 | The Great Candy Caper | October 22, 1986 |
| 6 | The Grin-Ness Book of Records | October 29, 1986 |
| 7 | Horse Hide and Seek | November 5, 1986 |
| 8 | Left Foot Forward | November 12, 1986 |
| 9 | One Potato, Zoo Potato | November 19, 1986 |
| 10 | Pig Out | November 26, 1986 |
| 11 | Poltergeist Potatoes | December 3, 1986 |
| 12 | Pot of Gold | December 10, 1986 |
| 13 | Potato Head Pirates | December 17, 1986 |
| 14 | Potatolympics | December 24, 1986 |
| 15 | Puff's New Job | December 31, 1986 |
| 16 | Robin Potato Head | January 7, 1987 |
| 17 | Romancing the Rock | January 14, 1987 |
| 18 | Sam Spud, Private Eye | January 21, 1986 |
| 19 | A Side Order of Soggy Spuds | January 28, 1987 |
| 20 | Small's Potatoes | February 4, 1987 |
| 21 | Spike Spiked | February 11, 1987 |
| 22 | Surfin' Potato Heads | February 18, 1987 |
| 23 | The Trash Can Derby | February 25, 1987 |
MoonDreamers (16 segments)
Main article: MoonDreamers
| # | Title | U.S. original airdate | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star Child Pt. 1" | September 1986 | ||
| Two Star Children named Blinky and Bitzi want to be MoonDreamers, but then Scowlene and her Sleep Creeps attack. | ||||
| 2 | "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star Child Pt. 2" | September 1986 | ||
| The MoonDreamers defeat Scowlene and Blinky and Bitzi earn their place as MoonDreamers. | ||||
| 3 | "All In a Night's Sleep" | |||
| Stumbles the Snoozer falls off the Dreamalong Drifter and onto Earth, where he uncovers a sinister Scowlene plot. | ||||
| 4 | "The Star of Stars" | |||
| The MoonDreamers go on a quest to find their original base, the Star of Stars, but Scowlene has taken control of it. | ||||
| 5 | "The Poobah of Pontoon" | |||
| Scowlene's older brother the incredibly fat Poobah of Pontoon returns and becomes Monstrous Middle's king. Meanwhile, Roary is foiled by the villains. | ||||
| 6 | "The Dreamkin" | |||
| A strange creature called the Dreamkin comes to life, and Wimzie is sad to see it go. | ||||
| 7 | "Minor Problems" | |||
| Ursa Minor flies into Sparky Dreamer's new machine and is cloned. Both sides have problems caused by the Ursas. | ||||
| 8 | "Igon the Terrible" | |||
| Igon is tired of being treated badly, so he runs away and meets a monster that helps him become a king. | ||||
| 9 | "Stuck on Bucky" | |||
| Sparky and Bucky use Galactic Glue and get stuck on each other. They must work together to foil an evil Scowlette invasion. | ||||
| 10 | "The Dreamnapping" | |||
| A boy gets pulled into a dream by Scowlene, and it's up to the MoonDreamers to help him escape. | ||||
| 11 | "Bucky's Comet" | |||
| Bucky wants Crystal Starr to think he's special, so he lassoes a comet with Grimace and Igon inside. | ||||
| 12 | "Dreamland Express" | |||
| The Star Children Blinky and Bitzi find a magic train that helps them do their chores faster, but then they run into trouble. | ||||
| 13 | "Whimzee Come Home" | |||
| Whimzee is afraid she has lost her imagination, so she goes to a world and battles a imagination demon. Eventually, Celeste comes to rescue her. | ||||
| 14 | "Zodies on the Loose" | |||
| Scowlene sets all the zodiacs in the Blue Zoo loose, and it's up to Celeste and Galaxia to stop them all. | ||||
| 15 | "The Night Mare Pt. 1" | February 1987 | ||
| Blinky and Bitzi are looking after a Starhorse at the Blue Zoo until the Starhorse falls into Monstrous Middle. Meanwhile, a horse-hating boy falls into there. | ||||
| 16 | "The Night Mare Pt. 2" | February 1987 | ||
| The Starhorse transforms into a Night Mare in Monstrous Middle and is captured by Scowlene. It's up to the boy, Blinky, and Bitzi to save the day. And will the boy like horses again? | ||||
DVD releases
Main article: List of My Little Pony DVD releases
References
- ↑ "My Little Pony: The Complete First Season". DVD Talk. Retrieved 2009-12-07.
- ↑ "Rescue at Midnight Castle" at TV.com
- ↑ "My Little Pony — In Dreamland and Escape from Catrina" (VHS) at Amazon.co.uk
- ↑ My Little Pony: Escape from Catrina at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ List of My Little Pony 'n Friends episodes at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ "The Glo Friends Save Christmas" at TV.com
External links
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