PAGE 3 | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2013 | THE BALL STATE DAILY NEWS | BALLSTATEDAILY.COM CONTACT: 72HOURS@BSUDAILYNEWS.COM
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DN PHOTO KEELY COLLIER
Dalton Duncan said his favorite “My Little Pony” character is Big McIntosh on the right. His plushie is signed by Peter New, who voices the TV show’s character.
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RYAN HOWE 72HRS EDITOR rhowe@bsu.edu
He sat silently among friends with his eyes glued to the TV. The sounds of “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” filled the room. For 22 minutes, Dalton Duncan was in a MLP trance, only breaking his silence to laugh. “So what did everyone think of the episode?” Duncan asked after the TV went black. An avalanche of excitement took over. Talking over one another, they talked about the things they liked, loved and what could have been changed about the episode “Luna Eclipsed.” It’s a weekly ritual for the Ball State University Bronies. Simply put, a bronie is a super fan of MLP. A bronie can be a man or a woman, old or young. “When people think of bronies, they automatically think of men sitting around watching ‘My Little Pony’ all day,” Duncan said. “That may be true for some of us, but I’d say there are just as many women who are bronies. The term is just a way for us to recognize we all love the same thing.” For the junior telecommunications major, being a bronie is a lot more than just watching the TV show. Duncan started watching the show when he was depressed. MLP offered him an escape, unlike the other cartoons he watches. It introduced him to
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friends at college and introduced him to his girlfriend. “The show is so lighthearted and innocent that it’s nice to just get lost in it,” he said. “When me or my girlfriend are having a bad day, we will watch an episode or two to cheer us up.” He has seen every episode, attended conventions, bought more than $200 worth of merchandise and has every song and the remixes on his iTunes. Duncan may be a superfan, but some bronies just like the show. Zachary Isaacs, a sophomore architecture major, started watching the show when he was a senior in high school. After the first couple episodes, he was hooked. He has watched every episode, sometimes more than once. Isaacs hasn’t always been so open about the show, however. “At first, I thought it was weird that I liked the show being a guy in high school,” he said. “I kept it a secret for a while. Eventually, I told my friends and made them watch an episode.” When Isaacs came to Ball State, he became more open about his love for the show. He joined the Facebook group Ball State University Bronies and this year, he started attending the weekly meetings. Isaacs said he is big fan of the animation. He often draws out ponies of his own and puts
them on Tumblr, a popular blogging website. “The storyline and animation are so pure and innocent,” he said. “It’s a nice break from the other cartoons floating around today.” Even though the students meet weekly, the organization has yet to become a club. Kimberly Holtz, the group’s president, is in the process of getting the club’s constitution finalized before moving forward. “I’m hoping to get it to be recognized by the university before Spring Semester starts,” the sophomore education major said. Holtz started organizing meetings through the bronies’ Facebook page at the beginning of the semester. The meetings started out small, but they continue to grow with help from Isaacs’ posters and word of mouth. The group’s adviser Kazumi Matsumoto, an assistant professor of Japanese, approached the club and was willing to help out and get the club on its feet. Holtz is ready to get the club up and running next semester and she said she hopes more bronies will come and “brohoof,” the bronie handshake, with other students who love MLP. “The group is just a great place to come hang out with people who love the same things we do,” Holtz said. “It’s a better place to relate with other bronies, other than the Internet.”
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‘MY LITTLE PONY: FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC’ MAIN CHARACTER BIOS TWILIGHT SPARKLE MAGIC
Voiced by Tara Strong Appearance: Twilight Sparkle is a lavender pony with a horn and wings. She has purple eyes and an indigo mane and tail that contain a pink streak. She also has a magenta six-pointed star mark on top of a white star with five smaller stars around it.
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FLUTTERSHY KINDNESS
Voiced by Andrea Libman Appearance: Fluttershy is a yellow pegasus and has teal eyes and a pink mane and tail. Her mark is three pink butterflies. RAINBOW DASH LOYALTY
Voiced by Ashleigh Bell Appearance: Rainbow Dash features a rainbow-colored mane and tail, as her name suggests, and is a sky blue pegasus. She has a red, yellow and blue lightning bolt mark. APPLEJACK HONESTY
Voiced by Ashleigh Ball Appearance: Applejack is light orange and has no wings or a horn. Her eyes are green and she has a blonde mane and tail and wears a brown cowboy hat. Her mark is three red apples. SOURCE: “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic”
KANYE WEST Check out both sides of the debate over his actions and whether it affects his music and fans.
It pays to plan. The $500 CompleTion SCholarShip Ball State offers qualifying students a $500 tuition credit awarded in their final semester before graduation. To qualify, you must: • complete your bachelor’s degree in four calendar years or less • have entered Ball State as a freshman • be an Indiana resident.
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Create a solid academic plan with your advisor and update it each term to stay on pace for on-time graduation. Apply for the award through your advising coordinator after registering for your final semester of courses and before the course withdrawal deadline in that semester. To learn more or apply, visit
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