G3 What’s your favorite G3 movie/special? and why?

ninastoyshelf

ninastoyshelf

Teeny Tiny Baby Pony
Joined
Jun 23, 2023
Messages
174
I personally loved the movies and specials growing up, my favorite has always been dancing in the clouds. It’s always been so comforting to me. Which one is your favorite?
 
They all have such a special place in my heart for different reasons! If I had to choose just one, I'd probably say "The Runaway Rainbow." The range of songs is so much fun, the dynamic between the characters is great, and I was always drawn to the lore behind G3 unicorns. :purpleheart:
 
Quill said:
They all have such a special place in my heart for different reasons! If I had to choose just one, I'd probably say "The Runaway Rainbow." The range of songs is so much fun, the dynamic between the characters is great, and I was always drawn to the lore behind G3 unicorns. :purpleheart:
Click to expand...
Such a good choice, I love that one! From photos and old family videos I came to realize star catcher was my first pony and dancing in the clouds is what sparked my love for them
 
I think that I really love Dancing in the Sky because it's centered around Skywishes who was the only mlp that I got when I was a child (without knowing it by the way)
But The Princess Promenade is also really cool. Wisteria is such a sweet character !
 
Awwww! That’s super special then! Love that one too!
AsterLeaves said:
I think that I really love Dancing in the Sky because it's centered around Skywishes who was the only mlp that I got when I was a child (without knowing it by the way)
But The Princess Promenade is also really cool. Wisteria is such a sweet character !
Click to expand...
 
Minty Christmas was the only one I saw as a kid and since Minty’s my fave g3 pony I love it a lot. But I also think dancing in the clouds is really magical and special!
 
CharmsPonies said:
Minty Christmas was the only one I saw as a kid and since Minty’s my fave g3 pony I love it a lot. But I also think dancing in the clouds is really magical and special!
Click to expand...
Absolutely agree with you! I’m the same, as a kid I only saw dancing in the clouds and minty Christmas, so those two were always my favorite then
 
I think it's a tie between A Charming Birthday and A Very Minty Christmas because I kind of fell off and stopped collecting after that, so I don't really have a personal connection to anything that came after.

Okay I think A Charming Birthday has to be #1 because it's very cute and simple, Kimono was a cool character, and the expressions are unintentionally funny in a lot of frames. It's also the last MLP cartoon that was released on a VHS tape as far as I know. Even for the time the medium was starting to be considered a little dated. Was it also the last to be cell animated or was it done digitally?
 
Stellaluna said:
I think it's a tie between A Charming Birthday and A Very Minty Christmas because I kind of fell off and stopped collecting after that, so I don't really have a personal connection to anything that came after.

Okay I think A Charming Birthday has to be #1 because it's very cute and simple, Kimono was a cool character, and the expressions are unintentionally funny in a lot of frames. It's also the last MLP cartoon that was released on a VHS tape as far as I know. Even for the time the medium was starting to be considered a little dated. Was it also the last to be cell animated or was it done digitally?
Click to expand...
Both are super cute! I think the last one on a vhs was minty Christmas? I know friends are never far away was never a vhs. And i believe all of the earlier g3 movies were drawn I think?
 
Ive seen plenty of g3 vhs tapes including the princess promenade at our antique market :p
 
ninastoyshelf said:
Both are super cute! I think the last one on a vhs was minty Christmas? I know friends are never far away was never a vhs. And i believe all of the earlier g3 movies were drawn I think?
Click to expand...
Also they were all hand drawn, but there is a difference between cell animation and drawing it digitally. Cell animation is on physical cells (plasticy things) that the animators hand draw onto. Digital animation is still drawn with our hands but animators use a digital program. It’s kinda like traditional vs digital art but digital artists still use their hands via a drawing tablet and tablet pencil if that makes sense
(sorry I’m passionate about animation. went to college specifically to be an animator at one point in my life lol)
 
CharmsPonies said:
Also they were all hand drawn, but there is a difference between cell animation and drawing it digitally. Cell animation is on physical cells (plasticy things) that the animators hand draw onto. Digital animation is still drawn with our hands but animators use a digital program. It’s kinda like traditional vs digital art but digital artists still use their hands via a drawing tablet and tablet pencil if that makes sense
(sorry I’m passionate about animation. went to college specifically to be an animator at one point in my life lol)
Click to expand...
Oh my gosh wow! I had no idea of the difference, thanks for telling me! Which do you think dancing in the clouds is?
 
ninastoyshelf said:
Oh my gosh wow! I had no idea of the difference, thanks for telling me! Which do you think dancing in the clouds is?
Click to expand...
Not sure! I am going to assume digitally but I could be wrong about that, I couldn’t find any information about it online. A charming brithday might be cell? It noticeably has a slightly different artstyle with the way the lineart is drawn!

I know FOR SURE g1 of my little pony is definitely cell animation, as the drawings on those cells I’ve seen be sold on ebay before! And also I seen people posting images of the cells and also character reference sheets the animators used
 
CharmsPonies said:
Not sure! I am going to assume digitally but I could be wrong about that, I couldn’t find any information about it online. A charming brithday might be cell? It noticeably has a slightly different artstyle with the way the lineart is drawn!

I know FOR SURE g1 of my little pony is definitely cell animation, as the drawings on those cells I’ve seen be sold on ebay before! And also I seen people posting images of the cells and also character reference sheets the animators used
Click to expand...
Oh wow! I’ll have to look and see if I notice a difference next time when I watch a charming birthday versus the others. I’ve actually never seen any of the 80’s animated movies but I’ve been meaning to. I do watch older cartoons like scooby doo, but only the one from 1970. Those are drawn I know too
 
CharmsPonies said:
(sorry I’m passionate about animation. went to college specifically to be an animator at one point in my life lol)
Click to expand...
Same here! I majored in traditional 2D animation but eventually changed course at the last minute to illustration after our professors told us there was no future in animation. (It was the late 00's and people were pretty alarmist about the industry at the time.)

But yeah! I have great interest in this stuff too! I can't say for the other G3 specials (since I don't remember them well), but Charming Birthday definitely came across as cell animation to me. The lineart and inconsistent coloring from frame to frame seem to suggest that's the case anyway. Minty Christmas is much more clean and consistent and the vibrant colors really point to digital. I can't say with 100% certainty though.

update: Actually now that I've looked at some screencaps, maybe Charming Birthday was digital and it just looked traditional to me due to the mushy quality of the VHS tape. Oops!
 
Stellaluna said:
Same here! I majored in traditional 2D animation but eventually changed course at the last minute to illustration after our professors told us there was no future in animation. (It was the late 00's and people were pretty alarmist about the industry at the time.)

But yeah! I have great interest in this stuff too! I can't say for the other G3 specials (since I don't remember them well), but Charming Birthday definitely came across as cell animation to me. The lineart and inconsistent coloring from frame to frame seem to suggest that's the case anyway. Minty Christmas is much more clean and consistent and the vibrant colors really point to digital. I can't say with 100% certainty though.

update: Actually now that I've looked at some screencaps, maybe Charming Birthday was digital and it just looked traditional to me due to the mushy quality of the VHS tape. Oops!
Click to expand...
Oh wow! That’s really cool that you majored in 2D design! With the cells, were they individually colored by hand too?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top