Bronies: The Extremely Unexpected Adult Fans of My Little Pony (2012)

Just perfect...

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

I should start by stating categorically I am NOT a Brony. I've never watched the show, never bought the merchandise, never read one of the comics.I've also never understood Bronies, so when I saw this documentary available on Netflix, I popped it on, hoping to get an insight into these weirdo targets of derision I've heard about.I was simply blown away. I'm still not a fan, but to me, this documentary isn't about the show OR the fans, its about our ability to accept people who have different views or interests to us. It really made me question my assumptions about Bronies, but also my assumptions about myself and my identity as a liberal, accepting person. Namely how can I stand against racism, against homophobia etc if I still have an irrational dislike of Bronies? In all honesty, it reminded me of being a Trekkie back in the day. Comic Cons may now be a multi billion dollar industry and suddenly everyones calling themselves a "geek", but I remember times when the mere mention of a Sci Fi convention would get you into trouble at work, get you punched in a bar and a guaranteed life without sex.I spent decades as a Sci Fi outcast waiting for the rest of society to catch up and I see a lot of common touch points in the adversity the Brony community faces today.Slight spoiler - the effect a Bronycon had on a young man with Aspergers really did move me to tears and the work John De Lancie did helping a father accept his sons Bronyism was just astonishing. I'd give this 8 stars if it had "converted" me. The fact it managed to move me deeply, but still stay objective enough for me to not be converted bumps it up to a 9.

This documentary does an excellent job describing what the brony community is like. A lot of it is from the view of other bronies, but you get to see or hear a lot of what other people think.There's no shortage of heartwarming moments, and plenty of funny situations as well. The animations made for this documentary are very professional and look like something out of the show itself, not to mention the music that fits so fluidly with the animation.They did a great job capturing the real antics of the bronies who were interviewed during the documentary. It didn't feel like they had a camera crew following around.In all, it's a pretty entertaining documentary and also pretty informative even to bronies, but you certainly don't have to be a brony to enjoy and learn a lot from this film.

The Brony Documentary was well worth my purchase. As a 26 year old brony myself, I enjoyed seeing interviews from Tara Strong and John De-Lancie, as well as the convention coverage. The video is 90 minutes but seemed to go by faster than I wanted.It has some good song choices included, especially in the closing credits.Although I enjoyed it very much, it is not without its flaws. For starters, some of the people interviewed were probably not the best. The documentary put to much emphasis, on being an outcast, and didn't really focus on the fact that most bronies are just normal people.Being a brony doesn't make you an outcast, or hated by you're community. Well, obviously that is the case for some. But for many, it's about just getting together and having a good time.The Political/social aspect that was included really was uneasy to watch. John De-Lancie and others have always tried to justify guys liking MLP by making some sort of political, or social statement about the country... That just isn't really the case. It's just a good show with amazing fans who do amazing things.I wish the documentary would have focused on the "everyman." more so than they did. Though, I could see how that would have come across as boring to a viewer.Another issue I had, is that it should have spent way more time talking about the creative side of the fandom. The music, art, and everything in between is the best I've ever seen out of any fandom. But it was only lightly touched on in the film.If you are a brony, then I would highly recommend this. It is a good film, however, if you are not a brony, then I doubt this film will change your opinion much.. You know what might though.. Watch the show.. Sit down alone.. Spend 9 hours total on 1 or 2 weeks, and watch the entire first season from start to finish.There are more memes than I can count from that season alone. Surf youtube and google for image macros, music videos, and animation parodies...Like I said, I'm 26. I first watched the show after learning about it through thatguywiththeglasses and Death Battle.I rolled my eyes and said to myself I can't believe I'm watching this... And you know what. After the embarrassment went away, all that was left was the amazing feeling of seeing an incredible show.Check out this film.. It probably won't change your opinion if you are not a brony, but at least it does confirm one internet saying..."Haters gonna hate, Bronies gonna party"

Right off the bat, I'll let you know that I am NOT a brony. I don't think there's anything wrong with a man watching "My Little Pony." I've seen one episode of "Friendship Is Magic" and the old 80's series. I get the nostalgia. I'm fine with people following it.This documentary, however, was created with the intention of explaining bronies to non-bronies like myself, as though to somehow acquit the fandom of the negative image it has been saddled with, fairly or unfairly. This film utterly fails to meet that objective.One would think, in order to show that bronies are just normal people like you and I, that normal people would be put front and center in this documentary. They are not. The filmmakers seemingly selected some of the most extreme bronies they could find. Basically every person focused on in this documentary is a walking, living, breathing personification of every negative brony stereotype. Without meaning to be cruel or unkind to those who featured in the movie, effeminate, basement-dwelling, autistic, pasty-skinned, doughy manchildren is all this reviewer could see. And that's a shame, because in the group shots at Bronycon there did appear to be some relatively normal-looking people in the crowd. Perhaps in the five minutes wherein the documentary glossed over the military brony luncheon they could've actually found someone to shatter the stereotype, but even in that brief moment, they highlighted the most effete members of the group. For heavens' sake, Tara Strong was standing right there with her boobs practically hanging out and not one eye was on her chest.If the hope was to bring bronies into the norm, perhaps the documentary shouldn't have focused on such outcasts. You have the pilot guy, who spends his days getting his life threatened because he unwisely paints a target on himself by putting pony art on his car. You have the kid who we all gave wedgies to in high school who took his PARENTS to bronycon (oh, the humiliation) and whose father, throughout the movie, looks one step away from sending the kid off to military school for de- programming. You have the agoraphobic, socially-crippled Asperger's guy from England, who, let's just face it, is a blazingly hot mess. You've got people who insist on being called by their internet screen names in real life. The list goes on, and none of them appear to be anything other than social outcasts and maladjusted losers. This is NOT how you show how normal you are.As a non-brony, I approached this documentary hoping it would do something to dispel the overwhelmingly negative stereotype that follows the Brony sub-culture around. I hoped to gain some understanding of it. I watched it along with my wife, who had never even heard of bronies prior to viewing it, and not only did it not represent the fandom well, but it actually caused my wife to think poorly of it.If you're a brony, you probably won't see anything wrong with the film. But be aware, if you recommend it to a non-brony as a way to make your fandom look better, you will be shooting yourself in the hoof, because this will only hurt their opinion. Vote me down if you wish. I have no hate for MLP:FIM fandom, and I think it's great you have your hobbies, but this is the way it looks to people outside the bronyhood.