Brony life

Last weekend, I drove four friends hundreds of miles to attend a convention for people who love watching a cartoon about colorful talking ponies. I can easily say it was the highlight of my summer.

Sound unusual?

It’s not as unusual as you might think. I’m a proud brony, and I’m not alone. To the uninitiated, “bronies,” a combination of the words “bro” and “ponies,” are fans who fall outside the target demographic of the animated show “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.”

While predominantly male, the bronies encompass many adult females as well, who sometimes prefer the term “Pegasister.”

“MLP:FiM,” as the show is often abbreviated, aired in October 2010. It is the fourth generation of the My Little Pony toy franchise, but what makes “Friendship is Magic” special is the A-list animation talent behind the show, starting with its creator, Lauren Faust.

Faust is known for her work on shows such as “Powerpuff Girls” and “Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends.” She is a crusader on a mission to change the perception of entertainment for girls, lamenting how “for girls” is often synonymous with “stupid.”

She aspires to create intelligent stories and strong characters that anyone can relate to and enjoy, and the evidence is clear that with “MLP:FiM,” she has succeeded.

The show’s online popularity has skyrocketed with its most unexpected demographic, who have unironically embraced the positive themes of “MLP.”

This adoration has resulted in scores of fan-produced videos, audio remixes, original music, fan fiction, image macros and countless examples of fan art.

There is a roaring online exchange of fan-made merchandise, including customized toys and “hoof-made” stuffed animals of favorite characters called “plushies.”

Bronies don Pony-related t-shirts and attend meetups outside of online forums to watch episodes, exchange merchandise and celebrate their love of the show with others who have discovered its magic.

Brony conventions have begun springing up, including the upcoming Everfree Northwest in Seattle, Canterlot Gardens in Strongsville, Ohio, and Midwestria in St. Charles, Illinois.

The largest and most well-known convention to date has been BronyCon, which held its first convention in New York City in June 2011 with 100 attendees.

This summer, the convention has ballooned to 4,000 attendees and moved to the Meadowlands Convention Center in Secaucus, NJ. I was fortunate enough to attend. The Con was a blast, with panels featuring voice actors, writers and fan animators and musicians.

Nearly half of the venue space was dedicated to artists and vendors, selling prints, posters, plushies, apparel and places where patrons could donate to local charities. There were costume photo shoots and contests, laser shows, premieres of the latest fan animations and video remixes and live performances Saturday night from the most popular brony musicians.

Impromptu bouts of singing of show songs permeated the Con. Even a burning light fixture that forced attendees outside of the building for a while couldn’t stop the fun for long, as everypony led each other in rousing renditions of fan favorites such as “Winter Wrap-Up,” “This Day Aria” and the ever-cheerful “Smile, Smile, Smile.”

All convention action was captured by scores of cameras for the upcoming “BronyCon: The Documentary,” funded by fans and spearheaded by John de Lancie, voice of the chaos-loving MLP villain Discord.

There was so much to see and sing and browse and buy, and I enjoyed every minute of it all. But my favorite part of the convention by far occurred during the opening ceremonies. After this moment, before experiencing anything else at the Con, I would have considered the 900-mile trip a success.

Lauren Faust was introduced, attending her first brony convention since the phenomenon began in 2010.

The main hall packed with fans erupted with cheers, giving her a standing ovation, and Faust hid her face, overwhelmed. Bronies finally had a chance to thank the creator of the show we love so much.

Since this crazy, wonderfully unexpected fandom began, it felt like the circle was finally complete. I’m so very happy I was a part of it.