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The final season of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic will include a lesbian pony couple, just in time for Pride Month.
An upcoming episode titled “The Last Crusade” will feature Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty, a couple who takes care of the school-age character Scootaloo.
And no, they're not just sisters or live-in gal pals. They are a bona fide romantic couple.
According to Comics Beat, the two actually appeared previously in a book, although this will be their first animated appearance. At the time, a writer and producer of the show, Michael Vogel, confirmed on Twitter that they are indeed a couple.
Vogel later tweeted about the fantastic timing of Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty's on-air debut.
The episode has already aired in Europe, but US audiences will get to see it on Saturday.
Vogel told BuzzFeed News that the idea for the aunts was a collaboration between himself and showrunners Nicole Dubuc and Josh Haber.
"I think it’s fantastic that we can show that what truly defines a family is love — that, to me, is the core of My Little Pony," Dubuc said.
It all started with getting them approved for that book.
"Nicole and I thought this was a great opportunity to organically introduce an LGBTQ couple in the series, and we asked Hasbro and they approved it," Vogel said.
"With Josh and Nicole running the final season together, it was something we all wanted to do — bring this out couple into the final season and make them 'officially' a part of the MLP world."
Haber said that, like other shows, fans love shipping same-sex pairings on MLP, even if they're not canon. This gave them a way to make a same-sex pairing a reality.
"Diversity and representation are important for kids for so many reasons, and it’s my first priority on everything I work on," he said.
For Vogel, who is gay, it was important to him for the show to reflect the real world.
"My Little Pony has always been about friendship and accepting people (or ponies) that are different from you. So it just felt like something important to do," he said.
Fans are very excited about the aunts.
Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty mark another win for LGBT representation in children's cartoons in 2019.
Last month, Mr. Ratburn from Arthur wed his husband in the premiere of the show's 22nd season.
Although many applauded the wedding, Alabama Public Television refused to air the episode, saying it would "violate" their audience's trust.
Vogel said there's definitely still pushback in kids TV when it comes to LGBTQ inclusion, but shows like Arthur and Steven Universe are changing that.
"As someone who grew up watching every animated show there was, I like that LGBTQ kids growing up today can see themselves reflected in the shows they are watching," he said.
An upcoming episode titled “The Last Crusade” will feature Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty, a couple who takes care of the school-age character Scootaloo.
And no, they're not just sisters or live-in gal pals. They are a bona fide romantic couple.
According to Comics Beat, the two actually appeared previously in a book, although this will be their first animated appearance. At the time, a writer and producer of the show, Michael Vogel, confirmed on Twitter that they are indeed a couple.
Vogel later tweeted about the fantastic timing of Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty's on-air debut.
The episode has already aired in Europe, but US audiences will get to see it on Saturday.
Vogel told BuzzFeed News that the idea for the aunts was a collaboration between himself and showrunners Nicole Dubuc and Josh Haber.
"I think it’s fantastic that we can show that what truly defines a family is love — that, to me, is the core of My Little Pony," Dubuc said.
It all started with getting them approved for that book.
"Nicole and I thought this was a great opportunity to organically introduce an LGBTQ couple in the series, and we asked Hasbro and they approved it," Vogel said.
"With Josh and Nicole running the final season together, it was something we all wanted to do — bring this out couple into the final season and make them 'officially' a part of the MLP world."
Haber said that, like other shows, fans love shipping same-sex pairings on MLP, even if they're not canon. This gave them a way to make a same-sex pairing a reality.
"Diversity and representation are important for kids for so many reasons, and it’s my first priority on everything I work on," he said.
For Vogel, who is gay, it was important to him for the show to reflect the real world.
"My Little Pony has always been about friendship and accepting people (or ponies) that are different from you. So it just felt like something important to do," he said.
Fans are very excited about the aunts.
Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty mark another win for LGBT representation in children's cartoons in 2019.
Last month, Mr. Ratburn from Arthur wed his husband in the premiere of the show's 22nd season.
Although many applauded the wedding, Alabama Public Television refused to air the episode, saying it would "violate" their audience's trust.
Vogel said there's definitely still pushback in kids TV when it comes to LGBTQ inclusion, but shows like Arthur and Steven Universe are changing that.
"As someone who grew up watching every animated show there was, I like that LGBTQ kids growing up today can see themselves reflected in the shows they are watching," he said.
