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The following is a list of allusions to other My Little Pony generations, works of fiction, people, places, events, and other cultural touchstones in the series My Little Pony Friendship is Magic. Entries on this page must follow the similarity guidelines.


Development[]

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic incorporates elements of classic fantasy, fairy tales, and mythology. Among the works mentioned by Lauren Faust as inspiration for the show are Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, The Wizard of Oz, The Lord of the Rings, Transformers, and The Chronicles of Narnia. Faust saw the inclusion of European and Greek mythologies as obvious, since the characters, unicorns and Pegasi, themselves draw from mythology.[1]

Multiple works[]

Character names and designs[]

Other names, titles, and design[]

Mythology[]

  • Lauren Faust and Rob Renzetti encouraged the writers to infuse mythology into the series.[12]
  • The show features dragons, griffons, unicorns, and Pegasi in multiple episodes, and several other mythological creatures detailed in individual episode sections below, like manticore, windigo, Hydra, cockatrice, a minotaur, and others.

Re-use of assets[]

Audio[]

Animation[]

Other[]

Episodes[]

Season one[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season one

Season two[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season two

Season three[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season three

Season four[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season four

Season five[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season five

Season six[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season six

Season seven[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season seven

Season eight[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season eight

Season nine[]

Main article: List of allusions/Season nine

Films[]

Main article: List of allusions/Films

Comics[]

Main article: List of allusions/Comics

Storybooks[]

Main article: List of allusions/Storybooks

Other media[]

Advertising[]

Television[]

Billboards[]

  • Billboards in Los Angeles, California that promoted the show in June 2011 reference the film Bridesmaids. It shows the main cast against a brick wall in poses similar to the women in the poster of Bridesmaids, under the parody title Bridlemaids.
  • Billboards for season 2 show Pinkie Pie with her hooves pressed against a "snow screen" TV with the caption "They're baaack!" This references the 1982 supernatural horror movie Poltergeist, which has a poster where the little girl, Carol Anne Freeling, has her hands pressed against a "snow screen" TV and the tagline "They're here" and its 1986 sequel Poltergeist II: The Other Side, which has the tagline "They're back."

Newsprint[]

  • On January 8, 2012, a full page ad ran in the LA Times, referencing the opening to AMC's award-winning drama Mad Men. It shows Rainbow Dash in silhouette, wearing a suit, falling in front of pictures of the main cast, with the parody title, Mad Ponies.[15]

Merchandise[]

Trading cards[]

  • Series 3
    • Card #PP1 gives the Masked Matter-Horn the secret identity of Trot Summers, a student of Professor Celestia's School for Gifted Youth; these are references to Scott Summers and the X-Men franchise as a whole, respectively.
    • Card #PP2 describes Mistress Mare-velous as hailing from Alfalfis, a lost city on a hidden island where the female inhabitants are all born with super strength; this is a combined reference to the DC Comics' locations of Atlantis and Themiscyra.
    • Card #PP3 identifies Radiance as a former pilot named Green Gardener who received her power bracelets from an alien hero; this is an homage to the Green Lantern mythos of DC Comics, with her name specifically referring to Guy Gardner while her origin resembles that of Hal Jordan.
    • Card #PP4 identifies Fili-Second as Marey Allen, a detective who acquired her super-speed after an accident involving lightning and a chemical plant; these are a parody of Barry Allen's origin story as the Flash.
    • Card #PP5 details Saddle Rager's backstory: as scientist Spruce Spanner, she was exposed to radiation as a result of an experiment gone wrong, a nod to Bruce Banner's origin story.
    • Card #PP6 reveals that Zapp is in reality a princess named Aurora who traveled from her distant homeland in disguise to prove herself worthy of becoming queen; this is a nod to the concept of Marvel Comics' Thor.

Collectible card game[]

  • Premiere
    • Card α #21 R of Gala Appleby has the quote "Sweet Apple Acres is the place for me... Keep Manehattan, just give me that countryside!", a reference to the theme song for Green Acres.
    • Card α #59 R of Rare Find has the quote "Never tell me the odds", a line spoken by Han Solo in The Empire Strikes Back.
    • Card α #136 C, Foal Free Press, has the Diamond Tiara quote "I want pictures! Pictures of ponies!", a reference to an internet meme commonly attributed to the Spider-Man character J. Jonah Jameson.
  • Canterlot Nights
    • Card #16 R of Pipsqueak has the quote "I wanted a real Red Rider sword for my birthday, but mum said I'd put my eye out", a reference to the 1983 film A Christmas Story.
    • Card #41 C of Purple Waters has the quote "... and when DJ PON-3 starts spinning different tunes, I'll see the Dark Mare of the moon", a possible reference to Pink Floyd's song "Brain Damage". In fact, Purple Waters' cards contains various references to the former bassist/vocalist of Pink Floyd, Roger Waters. Their names are alike, and Purple has made an album called 'The Fence', parodying the Pink Floyd album 'The Wall'.
    • Cards #102 R, Critter Stampede, and #141 C, Joe's Doughnut Shop, have the Cheese Sandwich quotes "Hey. You've got weasels on your face." and "You got any bear claws?", references to "Weird Al" Yankovic's song "Albuquerque".
    • Cards #52 and ƒ #21 of Professor Neigh include the quote "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some square roots to calculate. See ya!" This is a play on the closing line of each episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy.
  • The Crystal Games
    • Card #27 C of Sheriff Silverstar has the quote "I AM the law!", a possible reference to comic book character Judge Dredd.
    • Card #59 U of Top Marks has the quote "He just kept talking in one long, unbroken sentence, moving from topic to topic. It was really quite hypnotic...", paraphrased from a Captain Picard quote in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Timescape".
  • Absolute Discord
    • Card #27 U of Princess Luna has the song lyric "Princess Luna, bring me a dream! Make him the cutest that I've ever seen!", a reference to the Chordettes song "Mr. Sandman".
  • Equestrian Odysseys
    • Cards #75 C and #Pƒ10 of Spike have the quote "Sapphire cupcakes are good, ruby cupcakes are great, but garnet cupcakes are so much better!", a reference to the Cartoon Network animated series Steven Universe.
      • The Enterplay collectible card game's Twitter account tweeted on August 5, 2015, "Pinkie made malachite cupcakes for Spike once, but they came out all soggy...",[16] a reference to the Steven Universe character Malachite and her extended period of being trapped underwater.
    • The name of card #135 R, Rolling Tones, is a play on the band The Rolling Stones.
    • The name of card #138 U, Special Beam Cannon, is the name of a technique used by Piccolo in the anime/manga franchise Dragon Ball.
  • High Magic
    • Card #44 U of Dance Fever has the song lyric "Disco filly, coming through! That filly is you! Ooh ooh! Ooh ooh!", a reference to the Disney Channel original series Gravity Falls and the fictional song "Disco Girl".
  • Marks in Time
    • Card #24 R of Discord mentions "an evil interdimensional triangle wearing a tophat", specifically alluding to the Gravity Falls character Bill Cipher.
    • Card #70 U, Unplanned Guests, Very Animated, has the quote "Oh, it looks like Heero and Duo couldn't make it. They must be busy tonight...", a reference to Heero Yuy and Duo Maxwell of the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam Wing.
    • Card #87 C, Repulsor Blast, has the quote "All of Princess Celestia's unicorn soldiers are trained in this defensive technique, along with the offensive spell Uni-beam." Repulsor Blast and Unibeam are two techniques used by Iron Man in the Marvel vs. Capcom game series.
    • Card #93 U, Time Warp, has the quote "Let's NOT do the time warp again, Twilight", referencing the song "Time Warp" from the 1973 rock musical The Rocky Horror Show.
  • Friends Forever
    • Card #90 U, Hyper Beam, has the Star Swirl the Bearded quote "I am impressed that Starlight Glimmer didn't need a turn to recover after casting that spell!", referencing an effect of the Pokémon move of the same name.
    • Card #100 U, Tough Questions, has the quote "And how do you become a princess anyway? Strange ponies floating in space distributing wings is no basis for a system of government!", referencing a scene in which King Arthur's right to kingship is questioned in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Tabletop RPG[]

  • The Master Claw resembles the Master Hand from the Super Smash Bros. video game series.
  • In the introduction to The Compendium of Equestria, an exchange between Thrilly Filly and Oakheart parodies the first onscreen conversation between Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars Episode II: The Attack of the Clones.

Software[]

My Little Pony (mobile game)[]

  • When Zecora is instructing the player in the minigame associated with her hut, she utters "The power is yours", which is the catchphrase of the titular superhero of the cartoon series Captain Planet.
  • The in-game description for the Guitarist Pony parodies the Beatles song I Am the Walrus.
  • The in-game description for Songbird Serenade mentions a chandelier, alluding to the Sia song of the same name.
  • The in-game description for Flash Magnus refers to the saying "When in Rome, do as the Romans do."
  • The in-game descriptions for the Royal Legionnaire and General Seaspray reference the Major-General's Song from The Pirates of Penzance.
  • The in-game description for the Gray Forest-Dweller references the song Do-Re-Mi.
  • The in-game descriptions for Cubist Pony, Pop Art Pony, and Surrealist Pony each reference the artist upon whom each is modeled, namely: Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, and Salvador Dali.
  • The in-game description for Clear Skies is a parody of the famous "Is it a bird?..." intro for Superman.
  • A mission in update 4.3 refers to a Las Pegasus street called "Sineightra Drive"; this is a reference to Frank Sinatra.
  • During the Somnambula Springtime event, Somnambula encourages Fluttershy "believe in me, who believes in you!" This is a reference to the anime series Gurren Lagann.
  • The in-game description for Grim EEA Official references the character of Severus Snape from the Harry Potter franchise.
  • The in-game description for Twilight Sparkling references the Twilight series of novels.
  • The in-game description for Rainbow the Flying Reindeer references Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
  • The in-game description for Bird Whisperer Pony references the song "Feed the Birds" from Disney's Mary Poppins.
  • The in-game description for Northerly Pony references the film Elf.
  • The in-game description for Unlucky Pony references the Peanuts franchise, including A Charlie Brown Christmas.
  • The in-game description for True Umbrum names "H. Pony Lovecart", a parody of H.P. Lovecraft.
  • The title of the Neigh Anything event "Presentable in Periwinkle" is a play on the 1986 film Pretty in Pink. The community event tasks also feature various 80s musical references:
    • Prancing in the Dark, a play on Dancing in the Dark.
    • The Colt 'n' Play, a play on "the Kid 'n Play."
    • The Robo-Pony, a play on "the robot."
    • The Safety Prance, a play on Safety Dance
    • Walk Like a Somnambulan, a play on Walk LIke an Egyptian.
    • Luna-Walk, a play on the moonwalk.
    • The Running Mare, a play on the running man.
  • The in-game description for 8-bit mentions "Hocus Pocus: The Get-Together", a play on Magic: The Gathering.
  • In the "Cold Front" group quest, Rainbow Dash's line "Make my hay" is a play on the famous line from Dirty Harry.
  • The character collection name "Elementary, My Dear Stallion" is a reference to the catchphrase often associated with Sherlock Holmes, "Elementary, my dear Watson."
  • The "Lyra and Bon Bon Save Hearth's Warming" event features quests that are named in parody of various well-known espionage films.
  • The in-game description for Flawless Rarity refers to her as the "Mare in the Iron Mask", a play on The Man in the Iron Mask.
  • In "The Las Pegasus Job" group quest, Rarity alludes to Shadow Spade: The Big Sheep, a play on the film The Big Sleep.
  • In the "Doctor-Shy" group quest, one of Fluttershy's quotes states "It isn't Whoopus, is it...? No...it's never Whoopus...", a reference to the House television series.
  • The game's adaptation of From the Shadows is entitled "Nightmare Night at the Museum", a play on the Night at the Museum film series.
  • The bio for Frankenstag's Monster references the following quote from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: "The fallen angel becomes a malignant devil. Yet even that enemy of God and man had friends and associates in his desolation; I am alone."
  • The portion of the "Nightmare Night at the Museum" event involving the Marshans references The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells, who is parodied by the mentioned character H.G. Bales. The bios for Helmeted Marshan and Sniffly Marshan also reference quotes from the work.
  • The bio for the Cyclops-Clops references a prayer of the cyclops Polyphemous to the Greek god Poseidon in Homer's The Odyssey, with the narrator "Homare" and "Ponysseus" being plays on Homer and Odysseus, respectively.
  • The bio for Head Chef Pony and an advertisement during the "Royal Dining: Entrée" event mention an Equestrian TV show called Kitchen of Tartarus; this is a play on "Hell's Kitchen" starring Gordon Ramsey, upon whom Head Chef Pony is based.
  • The Sphinx's riddle from the "Wonderbolt for a Day" event references that from the myth of the sphinx and Oedipus, modified to fit the answer of pony rather than man.
  • Comments made by Jokester Pinkie during the "Kid's Play" event reference the Joker as depicted in The Dark Knight.
    • In the same event, Pinkie refers to her "mind palace", a reference to the same concept from the Sherlock television series.
  • In "The Power Ponies" event, Bat-Mare is mentioned; this is an obvious play on Batman.
  • Saddle Rager's bio references a quote of Bruce Banner's from the first Marvel's Avengers film.
  • The description for Ice Witch mentions "C.S. Horseshoeis", an obvious play on C.S. Lewis, and makes allusions to The Chronicles of Narnia.
  • Paramedic Pony's bio mentions Poirot Pass, a nod to Hercule Poirot.
  • Cyber Pony's bio references two separate origin stories for the Cybermen of Doctor Who fame.
  • The in-game descriptions for the various "Resortgoer" ponies reference parodies of real-life Las Vegas hotels, including the Bellagio, Caeser's Palace, the Luxor, Mandalay Bay, the MGM Grand, and Planet Hollywood.
  • Las Pegasus Singer's bio references two songs by Celine Dion.
  • Rover’s dialogue from the conclusion of the “Danger in Dimondia” event is a clear nod to the “meddling kids” trope from the Scooby-Doo franchise.
  • Cyber Applejack's bio references Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics.
  • Supercharged Twilight Sparkle's bio is a quote attributed to Arthur C. Colt, with his name and the quote being parodies of real-world author Arthur C. Clark.

See also[]

References[]

  1. Lauren Faust panel - Equestria LA 2012 (2012-11-05). Retrieved on 2012 November 6.
  2. M. A. Larson (2018-05-22). M.A.Larson on Twitter: "There's another layer of mispronunciation. I thought it was "non-par-eye" which I was trying to do a little rhyme with "why." Then during the record it got changed to "non-par-ay," also incorrect. Double fail. https://twitter.com/9btnXR4uO2… https://twitter.com/9sEaN1ib1V". Retrieved on 2018 May 28.
  3. Ishi Rudell (2017-05-15). Ishi Rudell on Twitter: "Have I watched West World? Yes... yes I have 😉 https://twitter.com/59xcwVaoH5". Twitter. Retrieved on 2017 May 15.
  4. Jim Miller (2018-03-25). Big Jim on Twitter: "Is it just the goatee and high collar? It wasn’t intentional.… ". Twitter. Retrieved on 2018 March 25.
  5. Jim Miller (2018-08-04). Big Jim on Twitter: "RICKMAN, BABY!… ". Twitter. Retrieved on 2018 August 5.
  6. Jim Miller (2018-08-04). Big Jim on Twitter: "There’s a touch of sorcerer supreme in there for sure. Plus some Sheriff of Nottingham and other stuff.… ". Twitter. Retrieved on 2018 August 5.
  7. Jim Miller (2018-06-02). Big Jim on Twitter: "Among others. Also Baby Doll from Batman TAS… ". Twitter. Retrieved on 2018 June 3.
  8. Cereal Velocity (2013-01-21). EQD Exclusive Interview: Ryan Lindsay. Equestria Daily. Blogger. Retrieved on 2013 January 22.
  9. Timothy Callahan (2013-02-02). RAINBOW DASH Writer Ryan K. Lindsay Interviewed by Two MY LITTLE PONY Fans. GeniusboyFiremelon. Blogger. Retrieved on 2013 February 2.
  10. Lauren Faust panel, Equestria LA 2012 (2012-11-05). Retrieved on 2012 November 6.
  11. M.A. Larson confirming the reference to Las Vegas (2012-05-24). Retrieved on 2012 May 24. Archived locally.
  12. M. A. Larson discussing mythology in Friendship is Magic (2012-05-02). Retrieved on 2012 July 28.
  13. Jayson Thiessen on Twitter (2012-12-01). Retrieved on 2013 January 23.
  14. MLP: Time Turner Companion. Gaia Online. Retrieved on 2013 December 7.
  15. My Little Pony spoofs Mad Men in newsprint ad Mad Ponies (2012-01-13). Retrieved on 2012 April 19.
  16. MLP: CCG on Twitter: "Pinkie made malachite cupcakes for Spike once, but they came out all soggy... #mlpccg http://twitter.com/4Gh3uOE7fC". Twitter (2015-08-05). Retrieved on 2018 August 19.
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