My Little Pony (IDW Publishing)

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
File:Mlp fim comic issue 1 cover.jpg
Publication information
Publisher	IDW Publishing
Schedule	Monthly
Format	Ongoing series
Genre	Humor/comedy
Publication date	November 28, 2012 – present
No. of issues	20 (main series) 10 (micro series) 6 (Friends Forever) 1 (Annual Edition) (as of June 2014)
Main character(s)	Cast of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
Creative team
Written by	Katie Cook (issues 1–4) Heather Nuhfer (issues 5–8)
Artist(s)	Andy Price (issues 1–4) Katie Cook (issues 1 & 4) Amy Mebberson (issues 5–8)
Letterer(s)	Robbie Robbins (issues 1–4) Neil Uyetake (issues 5–8)
Colorist(s)	Heather Breckel (issues 1–8)
Editor(s)	Bobby Curnow (issues 1–8)

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is a monthly comic book series based on the animated television show of the same name. The first issue was published in November 28, 2012 by IDW Publishing, under license from Hasbro, the parent company of the My Little Pony franchise. The series is typically written in story arcs that span either two or four issues apiece; Katie Cook and Andy Price write and illustrate the first arc, respectively, while Heather Nuhfer and Amy Mebberson perform the same on the second. A separate limited run of "Micro Series" comic stories around a single character was also ordered, with Thom Zahler writing the first issue and various writers and artists providing other series. This run ended in December 18, 2013 and has since been replaced by a second ongoing title, subtitled Friends Forever and involving single-issue stories centered on a pair of characters. Friends Forever made its debut in January 22, 2014 alongside the main series, with the first issue penned by Alex de Campi.

The series provides stories based on the established fictional universe of the television show. It follows the studious Twilight Sparkle (originally a unicorn, later given wings and made an alicorn) and her friends in adventures throughout the empire of Equestria. Though the comic, like the show, is aimed at young children, the writers and artists included material to appeal to bronies, the older, predominately male fans of the show, featuring cultural references and show elements enjoyed by the older fandom.

The first issue saw more than 100,000 pre-orders prior to its release, making it one of the best-selling comics of both the month and the year, requiring IDW to issue a second printing; it was only one of two non-DC or non-Marvel comics to be in the top 100 comics sold in 2012. Unlike the animated television series, the comic book genre is humor/comedy without the family genre. Subsequent issues were monthly best sellers and represented IDW's highest-selling property. Journalists in the comic industry noted that with the older fans likely buying comics for the first time in many years, along with child fans purchasing comic books for the first time, the success of the My Little Pony comic could aid the ailing industry. The first issue was highly praised for capturing the spirit of the characters and presentation of the show while providing a good introduction to its mythos for those who were unfamiliar with it.

Concept and creation

Hasbro's My Little Pony franchise, started in the 1980s, has had several animated television series and direct-to-video movies to help promote and sell the associated toy line collection; over the years, there have been four "generations" of designs and associated characters and setting. In 2010, Hasbro aimed to relaunch the My Little Pony line, following the recent success of the re-invisioning of the Transformers franchise, and brought in animator Lauren Faust as the creative developer for the show; in addition to developing the looks and characters to be featured in the toy line, Faust was also tasked with creating a new tie-in show as to provide programming for its new cable network, Hub Network (owned by Discovery Communications and Hasbro). Faust's previous experience on shows like The Powerpuff Girls and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends led to her developing a show that would have cross-generational appeal to young girls and the parents that would watch the show with them. Her characters were designed to challenge the norm of girl stereotypes while still keeping the archetypes as familiar figures. Faust worked with several former co-writers from her previous shows (including her husband and animator Craig McCracken), and with the directors at DHX Media/Vancouver (formerly Studio B Productions) in Vancouver, British Columbia, where the show would be produced to fill out the world.

The resulting show, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, was well received by parents, but found another unexpected target audience through the Internet photo-board, 4chan, primarily adult males from 13 to 35 years old. Quickly expanding through the Internet, the fandom came to use the term "brony" (a portmanteau of "bro" and "pony") to describe themselves. The brony fandom is attributed to Faust and her creative team for including strong characters, cross-generational appeal, cultural references, the show's expressive Flash-based animation, and the ability for the showrunners to communicate and reciprocate with the fandom, such as including fan-derived elements within the show. Hasbro was also caught off-guard by this surprise demographic but have come to embrace it, using licensing deals to market clothes, media, and other merchandise beyond the toys to the older audience.

Katie Cook, at the 2012 Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo

One such avenue was the creation of a comic series; there had previously been no mass-market My Little Pony comics. Hasbro's Director of Global Publishing Michael Kelly had introduced the idea to Hasbro following success of IDW Publishing's publications of G.I. Joe and Transformers comics, where it initially met some skepticism. Kelly and IDW helped to show internally that the current iteration of the My Little Pony show was readily transferred to comics due to its style and humor. Hasbro and IDW announced its licensing deal at the San Diego Comic-Con International in July 2012. Katie Cook and Andy Price were announced as the first arc's writer and illustrator, respectively; Cook had previous experience at both DC Comics and Marvel Comics, along with her own webcomic "Gronk", while Price had been involved with DC and the Batman Archives series. Cook stated that she has been a My Little Pony fan from the first generation of toys, and found that with this series, "the characters are strong and lovable, the stories are well-written, and there's an underlying sense of humor to the show that's very hip", making it a "great all-ages property".

Cook aimed to write the stories for the comic to be something that she herself would enjoy "as a Pony fan and an all-ages writer", and planned to continue in the spirit of the show, avoiding the feel of a "freebie Barbie comic" that would otherwise be packaged with toys. She further stated that she wanted to write an all-ages book, something that parents can share and read with their children. Like the show, she had included pop cultural references that adults will get, but does not try to shoehorn these in. She used the first four-story arc as a means for herself to get comfortable in writing for the characters, thus bringing back an established villain as the antagonist for the first story. Cook does plan to introduce new characters and settings in later issues. She noted that the first story include dark and scary elements, but she does not consider them any darker than the show itself. At the 2013 San Diego Comic Convention, Cook commented that in considering how dark to take the stories, "My personal gauge is Dark Crystal. If it’s darker than the Skeksis sucking the life out of a Podling, I don’t go there." Though normally Cook would write and draw her own comics, her work in the My Little Pony comic was her first foray into writing out a script and directing others to draw out the art. She expressed pleasure at working with Price has they have worked well together in the past. However, Cook does continue to do some of the art; the first issue contains a short two-page comic written and drawn by herself.

Price himself is influenced by works of comic artists including Don Newton and José Luis García-López. He himself includes some of the pop cultural references within the art beyond those written in by Cook. Price noted that his popularity, measured by Twitter followed, grew explosively after the comic's announcement, and compares working on the comic to his previous efforts at DC and Marvel, "being the artist on this book is an experience completely unlike any other".

Price has stated that Hasbro does give them freedom to write and draw the comic as they see fit, typically only asking for changes to achieve "a little bit more show accuracy". In one case, they had a story planned that Hasbro told them was being done within the show, and had to scrap it; in another case, they had initially planned to open the first issue with the Cutie Mark Crusaders camping, but found that the show already had a similar scene, within the Season 3 episode "Sleepless in Ponyville", and altered these pages for something different. Other elements of the show have been considered "off limits" for the comics until blessed by Hasbro; the villain Discord was considered one of these until the start of Season 4 of the show which changed aspects of his character, after which Hasbro allowed the comic to use the character.

A "micro-series" of comics, each with a single-issue story centered around the main six characters, was an idea born out from comic writer Thom Zahler. At the time of the main comic series announcement at the 2012 Comic-Con, Zahler had interest in doing cover art for the series, and approached IDW editor Bobby Curnow at the Con about his interest. Curnow later contacted Zahler and asked him to pitch stories for a smaller series; one such pitch included a crossover with Mars Attacks! penned during a convention panel in Baltimore. Though Zahler had pitched stories for all the main characters, he ultimately was the author for the Twilight comic. Zahler stated that prior to the comics he had seen a few episodes, and considered the characters as developed by Faust to be "wonderfully represented" and that the show itself had "a very classic cartoon element" that made cross-generational writing easy to do. Cook herself wrote the third micro-issue featuring Rarity, and saw the single-issue format as more like "episodes of the TV show" compared to the larger arcs of the main series, and can be "slice-of-life stories that really explore the character" without bringing in the full cast.

Hasbro and IDW announced that tie-in comics with the 2013 feature film, My Little Pony: Equestria Girls, would be published. The first was the My Little Pony Annual 2013, released in October 30, 2013, with two stories set as prequels to the events of the movie.

Synopsis

Main article: My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic characters

The comic takes place in the same fictional universe as the television show, in the land of Equestria which is populated primarily by ponies (including unicorns and pegasi), along with numerous other sentient and non-sentient creatures. The primary characters of the comic include:

• Twilight Sparkle, a studious alicorn (originally unicorn) gifted in magic, who has come to learn the value of friendship since arriving in Ponyville.
• Spike, a baby dragon and Twilight's assistant, who uses his fire breath to send Twilight's messages back and forth to her mentor, Princess Celestia.
• Applejack, a hard-working earth pony in charge of her family's apple orchard, Sweet Apple Acres.
• Fluttershy, a timid pegasus with a fondness for animals.
• Pinkie Pie, a hyperactive earth pony who loves to throw parties.
• Rainbow Dash, a tomboyish pegasus who helps set Ponyville's weather and dreams of joining the Wonderbolts aeronautics team.
• Rarity, a glamorous unicorn and clothing designer who runs her own boutique.
• The younger Cutie Mark Crusaders, consisting of Apple Bloom (earth pony; Applejack's younger sister), Sweetie Belle (unicorn; Rarity's younger sister), and Scootaloo (a pegasus that idolizes Rainbow Dash), who are in a hurry to get their "cutie marks" that show what their talent is for life.

The comics chronologically occur alongside the show, featuring characters and elements introduced in later seasons. For example, the first four-issue story includes the return of Queen Chrysalis of the Changelings, a major villain introduced in "A Canterlot Wedding", the Season 2 finale. As of issue #13, Twilight Sparkle is depicted as an alicorn, reflecting her coronation as Princess and her transformation that occurred in the Season 3 finale "Magical Mystery Cure".

Issues

In addition to monthly single issue releases, IDW has also published collected volumes covering the individual story arcs.

No.	Title	United States release date	United States ISBN
01	My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic - Volume 1 ("The Return of Queen Chrysalis")	May 15, 2013	978-1613776056
Issue 1 (released November 28, 2012) Issue 2 (released January 2, 2013) Issue 3 (released February 6, 2013) Issue 4 (released March 6, 2013)
Following the events of the TV series' "A Canterlot Wedding" episode, Queen Chrysalis and her Changeling minions have been thrown to a distant land where they consume the love of its creatures and regain their strength. Chrysalis plans to exact revenge on Twilight Sparkle for her defeat by absorbing her magic and feeding her friends' love to her minions. She has her minions entrap and impersonate the citizens of Ponyville. Twilight and her friends uncover the deception and rescue the citizens, save the Cutie Mark Crusaders, whom Chrysalis says she has imprisoned in her kingdom. She challenges the six friends to save the fillies in three days time. Twilight, unable to contact Princess Celestia, worries that the deadline coincides with the passing of the Secretariat Comet, which will amplify her magic. They nevertheless set out to free the fillies. En route, Chrysalis uses her Changelings to cause rifts between the six and separate them. The six overlook the fight and reach Chrysalis, who entraps Twilight's friends with the fillies. Chrysalis decides to make Twilight her pupil instead of absorbing her magic, threatening to kill her friends if she does not. Twilight opts to save her friends and, empowered as the comet flies overhead, defeats Chrysalis and her minions with a powerful burst of magic, and traps them in her castle. Twilight and the freed ponies are rejoined outside by Princess Celestia and Spike, who have been battling a horde of giant cockatrices in Canterlot. Katie Cook (story) Andy Price (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Robbie Robbins (lettering, 1–2) Neil Uyetake (lettering, 3–4) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
02	My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic – Volume 2 ("Nightmare Rarity")	October 16, 2013	978-1-61377-760-2
Issue 5 (released March 27, 2013) Issue 6 (released April 24, 2013) Issue 7 (released May 15, 2013) Issue 8 (released June 12, 2013)
Twilight Sparkle and her friends have been suffering from nightmares for a week, and decide to hold a slumber party together to figure out what is going on. During the night, Rarity is abducted by a dark miasma. The others contact Princess Celestia, who comes to Ponyville with her sister Princess Luna. Luna explains that Rarity has been taken by the same forces that transformed her into the evil Nightmare Moon to serve as their queen. Accompanied by Luna and Spike, the five friends venture to the Nightmare Dreamscape on the moon where Rarity has been taken. Meanwhile, Rarity is convinced by the nightmare forces that her friends care little for her. Upon her friends' arrival, they find that Rarity has been transformed into the nightmare forces' new queen, Nightmare Rarity. The friends are overwhelmed by the nightmare forces and locked up. Twilight urges Luna to return to Ponyville to prepare the citizens there. Spike manages to elude Nightmare Rarity as she departs for Ponyville with her forces, and rescues the others. Luna and the other citizens of Ponyville defend themselves against Nightmare Rarity, giving enough time for Twilight, Spike, and the others to arrive. Using the power of their friendship, the friends revert the corrupted nightmare creatures into docile moon creatures. They turn this and their thoughts of Rarity to Nightmare Rarity, and finally dispel the evil spirit. Luna and the moon creatures thank the ponies for their help before leaving, while Rarity is thankful for her friends' support. Heather Nuhfer (writer) Amy Mebberson (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
03	Zen and the Art of Gazebo Repair	January 2014	—
Issue 9 (released August 1, 2013) (SDCC variant: July 18, 2013) Issue 10 (released August 28, 2013)
Big McIntosh sets off to repair the farm's gazebo but finds he is out of nails. Unfortunately, the Summer Wrap-up fair stands between him and the hardware store. He is waylaid by several of Ponyville's citizens as he goes through the fair, only to find that the hardware store is both closed for the fair and in ruins from the antics of the Cutie Mark Crusaders trying to build their own fireworks launcher. Big Mac returns to the fair to locate the hardware store owner, Lugnut, continuing to be waylaid by the other activities of the fair. Although Big Mac is flustered at having wasted the day, Zecora reminds him to think of the happy memories he had from the events. Big Mac eventually finds the store owner, who reports that Apple Bloom had taken all the nails on the farm for their launcher, and gives him the nails he needs as well as a promise for delivery of lumber the next day. Big Mac returns to the farm to find the gazebo in ruins from another errant launch from the Crusaders' launcher. However, in the concluding photos, the gazebo is repaired by Big Mac with the help of Lugnut and the Crusaders. Katie Cook (writer) Andy Price (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
04	Neigh Anything	TBA	—
Issue 11 (released September 25, 2013) Issue 12 (released October 30, 2013)
Shining Armor and Princess Cadance relate the story of how they meet as high-school students at Canterlot Academy to Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Shining during school is a nerd who is stricken by Cadance's beauty and kindness and, with his other nerdy friends, vows to ask her to the upcoming dance before the top school's athlete Buck Withers can. Shining and his friends try to win Cadance over with a rock song, and then try to sabotage Buck during the championship polo match, but both plans backfire. Shining can only watch heartbroken when Buck asks Cadance to the dance. Cadance, who was also infatuated with Shining on the chance meeting, ditches Buck at the dance at the first chance she gets to catch up to Shining and affirm their shared love. Cadance and Buck are crowned the dance's Queen and King, but as Buck brags and openly humiliates Shining, Cadance, their friends, and the rest of the student body reveal how much of a bully he has been to them, and to cheers from the crowd, Buck is hoisted to the rafters while Shining and Cadance share their first dance and kiss. Katie Cook (writer) Andy Price (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
05	Friendship Ahoy!	TBA	—
Issue 13 (released November 20, 2013) Issue 14 (released December 18, 2013)
Fluttershy goes to return a fish Gil to the ocean after nursing it back to health, and her friends have come along to help, making it a beach holiday. A pirate ship suddenly washes aboard and its captain, Hoofbeard, disembarks, looking for a crew. Flutterhy, who lost Gil in the waves, eagerly joins, secretly hoping to find Gil, while Rainbow, entranced by Hoofbeard, quickly enlists the rest of the group. Hoofbeard explains he is looking for the treasure of Gallinghost Island, but needs the Map of the Wandering X from his former crew that abandoned them. Rainbow, Twilight, Pinkie, and Rarity go to confront the crew, while Applejack stays behind and learns from Hoofbeard that failure to get the treasure will mean his doom. Fluttershy also remains, and successfully locates and collects Gil. Rainbow's group find the crew, and after a scuffle, get them to cooperate, learning they took the map from Hoofbeard after searching for the treasure drove him mad, and threw the map into a giant crab's pit. After recovering the map safely, they return to Hoofbeard's ship, distrustful of his goals. Following the map, they end up in a windless part of the seas, and the ponies mutiny to take over the ship and to try to return to Ponyville. En route, they are attacked by mermares. Fluttershy, who has spoken to Hoofbeard, realizes that Hoofbeard's "treasure" is one of the mermares, Jewel, and he was driven to find her, just as she was driven to find Gil. Realizing she cannot force someone to like her, Fluttershy lets Gil return to the sea. The mermares and Hoofbeard realize their mistake, and make amends, offering Hoofbeard and Jewel to continue to travel with their pod. Twilight casts a spell that gives Hoofbeard gills and fins to allow him to be with Jewel whenever they want, and the mermares help the ponies return home. Heather Nuhfer (story) Brenda Hickey (art, coloring) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
06	TBA	TBA	—
Issue 15 (released January 15, 2014) Issue 16 (released February 5, 2014)
Twilight finds her books are being eaten by a magical bookworm, while the rest of Ponyville find strange pods around the town. Twilight, Pinkie, Rainbow, and Rarity use magic to enter the books to try to stop the bookworm and repair the damage they have done, though when they find themselves in the place of the heroes of the various stories, they over embellish on the original tales. Eventually, they are trapped in a white void, believing that the worm has completely eaten all their books. Meanwhile, in Ponyville, Applejack and Fluttershy find that the fictional characters from the books are emerging from the pods and plan to take over their world. Twilight and her friends realize they can create their own stories to lure the bookworm to them, while Applejack, Fluttershy, and Spike, trapped by the evil characters, send a message via a comic book to Twilight about their plight. Twilight shows the bookworm the damage its voracious eating has done to their friends, and the bookworm, only interesting in reading stories via his comsumption of them, offers to help fix everything and be the hero. Twilight, her friends and the bookworm return to Ponyville, and the bookworm's exacting recollection of the stories return the library to normal and wipe the fictional characters away. Heather Nuhfer (story) Amy Mebberson (art, coloring) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
07	Reflections	—	—
Issue 17 (released March 19, 2014) Issue 18 (released April 30, 2014) Issue 19 (released May 28, 2014) Issue 20 (released in June 25, 2014)
Princess Luna calls the Mane Six to learn about the disappears of Princess Celestia for the past into a magic mirror created by Star Swirl the Bearded. Finding his notes, they discover that he and Celestia were able to use the mirror to travel to many different universes, with Celestia finding one in particular of interest which eventually led to Star Swirl to place a spell on the mirror to prevent Celestia from using it. Celestia suddenly reappears from the mirror, and insist the Mane 6 go back through with the Elements of Harmony to help her ally on the other side. There, they discover that ally is a good version of King Sombra who is fighting against evil versions of Celestia and Luna, and further learn that the prime universe's Celestia and Sombra are in love with each other, the reason for Celestia's repeated use of the mirror. The Mane 6 quickly learn that because of how much Celestia had used the mirror in the past, these two universes are closely tied by a paradox, such that if one of the evil sisters is harmed, it will also harm the prime world's version. They also discover that the evil version of Luna used to be Sombra's close friend and only corrupted by the evil Celestia, and now this Celestia seeks to know how to enter the prime universe as to take over that world too. Sombra and Twilight compare the history of their worlds, and realize that with the combined powers of the Elements of Harmony and Sombra's crystal magic, they can seal the evil Celestia away, and restore peace to this world. On reaching evil Celestia's castle to implement their plan, she turns on her sister, knowing this will harm the prime version of Luna. The attack is strong enough to cause the paradox between the two universe to unravel and the two worlds start to merge, bringing the good versions of Celestia and Luna to this world. Celestia fights her evil self, giving Sombra and the Mane 6 enough time to start their plan, but stop when they find it is also affecting the good Celestia. Despite her insistence to go on, Sombra changes the plan, using the power of the Elements of Harmony to draw the evil out from the evil Princesses and take it in himself, becoming similar to the prime world's version of Sombra. With the last of his compassion, he spends a moment with his love before flying off. With balance restored, the two worlds unmerge, and assured that the alternate world is safe, the prime world characters escape in a fleeting vortex, safely back in their world. Celestia keeps a piece of the destroyed mirror as a memory of her love. Katie Cook (story) Andy Price (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
08	TBD	—	—
Issue 21 (released July 16, 2014) Issue 22 (released August 2014)
In Manehattan, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, Apple Bloom, and Babs Seed—all dressed in formal attire—go to Carneighie Hall to catch a magic show. When Fluttershy asks Rarity about the necklace she planned on wearing, Rarity mentions a recent string of jewel thefts happening in the city. As the five ponies take their seats, the performing magician appears from behind the curtains: Trixie. Ted Anderson (story) Agnes Garbowska (art, coloring) Bill Forster (coloring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
	TBD	—	—
Issue 23 (released September 2014)
The Mane 6's pets have found their owners have gone missing and it is up to them to figure out what happened. Jeremy Whitley (story) Amy Mebberson (art, coloring) Sara Richard (coloring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
	TBD	—	—
Issue 24 (released October 2014)
Discord takes Fluttershy and the Cutie Mark Crusaders back in Equestrian history to show Fluttershy some of the animals from the past. Jeremy Whitley (story) Amy Mebberson, Brenda Hickey (art, coloring) Brenda Hickey (coloring) Template:Multicol-end

Micro Series

The "micro-series" contains single issues stories that focus on each of the main six ponies. The original plan was to publish six of these for the main characters, but due to their success, Curnow has stated that additional micro-series comics will follow after these, featuring other characters from the show. The micro-series ended after issue #10, replaced by another series subtitled Friends Forever that began in January 22, 2014.

No.	Title	United States release date	United States ISBN
01	Twilight Sparkle	February 20, 2013	—
Twilight Sparkle is sent by Princess Celestia to help the injured Royal Archive librarian, Summer Mane, to shelve books. Summer is reluctant for help until Twilight lies about her possibly being replaced if she doesn't accept the help. Summer's demands for shelving are strict, and orders Twilight to stay out of her office. Despite Summer's coldness, Twilight finds she and Summer share a love of books, including the solitary work of author Jade Singer, who since disappeared after its publication. One day, Twilight is caught peaking into Summer's office, and Summer orders her away, until Twilight reveals that she has known Summer to be really Jade Singer for some time. Jade admits she hid herself away at the Archives, afraid to release another book that would fail to meet the expectations from her first, but Twilight explains that as Celestia's student, she has to live with that every day but is supported by her Ponyville friends and offers the same friendship to Jade. Inspired, Jade publishes her next book with great success, and Celestia thanks Twilight for helping her old friend. Thomas Zahler (story, art, lettering) Ronda Pattison (coloring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
02	Rainbow Dash	March 20, 2013	—
Two cloud gremlins bring in a thundercloud during Ponyville's Summerfell Festival, and when Rainbow Dash tries to dispel it, the gremlins are able to stop her, injuring her wings in the process. A month later after Rainbow's wings are healed, with the cloud still over Ponyville and depressing its residents, Rainbow Dash tries other means to get rid of the gremlins, but they are able to feed off the negative emotions in town. Inspired, Rainbow pushes herself to dangerous speeds to create a Sonic Double Rainboom, cheering up the residents and breaking the gremlins' spell, allowing Rainbow to finally get rid of the cloud. However, this severely injures her wings, and she believes she won't fly again. Applejack gets her to help with selling apple dishes made from apples infused with the magic from the Double Rainboom, and tricks Rainbow into showing that she can fly again, cheering the pegasus up. Ryan K. Lindsay (story) Tony Fleecs (art) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
03	Rarity (a.k.a. "How Rarity Got Her Groovy Back")	April 24, 2013	—
Prior to a big fashion show in Canterlot, Applejack arranges a rural spa retreat for Rarity to help her relax. The spa, run by hippies Wheat Grass and Flax Seed, is more like a farm, where Rarity reluctantly helps them with manual labor to collect natural materials they use to make "spiritual enhancers" which Rarity finds to be great health and beauty products. However, as she reaches her breaking point and demands a refund, she learns that the farm is in danger of being sold to Flim and Flam to make way for a new Filthy Rich megastore. Rarity gets the idea to help commercialize their health and beauty products to raise money to help keep the farm, premiering the new line alongside her fashion show in Canterlot with great success for both endeavours. Katie Cook (story) Andy Price (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
04	Fluttershy	May 29, 2013	—
Princess Celestia announces an art contest in Canterlot. Fluttershy, who secretly is highly adept at creating fantastic knitted works, wants to enter but fears rejection of her art from her friends and the judges, but Angel Bunny helps to convince her to go. She disguises herself at the contest. The Canterlot elite snub all of the works, including Fluttershy's. Fluttershy tries to defend her work as something that she loves, but the elite ignore her reasoning. Rarity, who has been with the elite, recognizes Fluttershy and tells her to be proud of her work and stand up for it. When Princess Celestia herself arrives to judge the works, she loves Fluttershy's, and awards her a top prize; the Canterlot elite quickly agree with Celestia's assessments. Fluttershy realizes she can share her knitting skills with her friends without worrying about being judged. Barbara Kesel (story) Tony Fleecs (art) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
05	Pinkie Pie	June 19, 2013	—
Pinkie Pie wins tickets to see a show by her idol, the famous clown Ponyacci. She and Twilight Sparkle go to the show but while waiting in line, Pinkie finds an older depressed pony whom Pinkie cannot cheer up. They enjoy the performance by Ponyacci and Pinkie goes to look for him backstage, only to find that Ponyacci was the older pony they met earlier. He reveals that his sadness was from this show being his last, as he is retiring from being a clown due to his age. Pinkie comes up with an idea to perform a large routine for Ponyacci to convince him to return to show business. Her display does not change Ponyacci's mind, though he does offer her several bits of advice for improving her own acts. Pinkie comes across the idea of Ponyacci opening a clown training school, allowing him to still be part of the profession he enjoys, and he readily agrees with that. Though Twilight suggests Pinkie take part in the school, Pinkie is more satisfied with helping Ponyacci continue to realize his dream. Ted Anderson (story) Ben Bates (art) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
06	Applejack	July 10, 2013	—
As Applejack and her family prepare numerous apple products for the Hearths Warming Eve season, they find their precious crop of apples are being transformed into squashes by the legendary Sass Squash monster, which Granny Smith had once witnessed as a filly. Applejack promises to go capture the beast on her own, refusing her family's desire to help. The Sass Squash proves too elusive for Applejack, causing her traps to backfire on her, and Applejack soon accepts she'll need the help of her family. As Granny runs into the forest to lure out the creature with pots and pans, Applejack, Apple Bloom, and Big Macintosh prepare a trap. The Sass Squash soon appears and is captured, but the three are surprised to find the "creature" is really Granny in a large suit. She had made the suit as a way to bring their family together during the hard work of the season as a way to break from the chore. As they settle back into routine, Applejack is surprised to find a photo of a younger Granny having met the real Sass Squash, while elsewhere, Granny leaves a freshly-baked pie for the creature, thanking it for its work over the last few days. Bobby Curnow (story) Brenda Hickley (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
	My Little Pony: Pony Tales, Vol. 1	November 13, 2013	978-1-61377-740-4
Collection of Volumes 1 through 6 of the micro-comics.
07	The Cutie Mark Crusaders	August 21, 2013	—
The Cutie Mark Crusaders discover a young Mimicker, a creature able to take the form of any non-pony object, while on a hike, and decided to call it Imp and have her join their club. They try to help Imp practice her mimicking abilities, but they get a bit too excited and start having her try more complex items. Imp soon runs away, and the fillies realize that they have only been considering themselves and not Imp's feelings. They soon find Imp and apologize, and realizing that it would be better to return Imp to where they found her, and consider the possibility of being friends once they all have matured. Ted Anderson (story) Ben Bates (art) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
08	Princess Celestia	September 11, 2013	—
When a banquet gets out of hand and causes the food to become enchanted at Princess Celestia's school, the elderly teacher Inkwell steps in to stop it with powerful magic that scares the fillies. The Pony-Teacher Association, led by the haughty Floribunda, demand Celestia force Inkwell into retirement, but Celestia considers Inkwell a long-time friend and a key professor at the school despite her age. Celestia finds a line in the bylaws that allows her to pick the test to prove Inkwell's competency. At the meeting the next day, Celestia challenges Inkwell to transform an ugly frog into something beautiful, but Inkwell refuses, already considering the frog beautiful. Floribunda and the other parents start to complain until Celestia points out that when they were fillies in school, Inkwell provided the same confidence for them during rough times. The parents withdraw their request and apologize to Princess Celestia and Inkwell. Georgia Ball (story) Amy Mebberson (art) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
09	Spike	November 13, 2013	—
Spike is jealous of his friends having pets, and when he spots an ad for "Sea Beasts" in a comic book, he races to order them, hoping to raise them as pets. The Beasts, as delivered, are unimpressive, but Spike gets an idea and feeds them magical growth formula. They do grow and Spike is able to teach them tricks, but rewards them with more of the growth formula, causing them to replicate and start to ruin the library, Spike stepping in before two sides go to war with each other. Spike is inspired and starts to teach the Beasts from the library books, but falls asleep mid-lesson due to exhaustion. The Beasts continue to read on their own, and by the time Spike wakes up, the Beasts have grown peaceful and intelligent, and thank Spike for raising them before they embark to explore the world on their own. Rob Anderson (story) Agnes Garbowska (art) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
10	Luna	December 18, 2013	—
Princess Luna describes her excitement from her duties the night before to Princess Celestia, who thinks the events were otherwise mundane compared to her daylight tasks. Luna takes this as a challenge and offers to rule Canterlot for the day. Celestia puts her in the capabilities of her aide Kibitz that keeps Luna to a tight schedule of otherwise boring administrative activities. As the day progresses, Luna's sleepiness and boredom begin to take its toll, and when Kibitz tries to adhere to the demanding schedule, Luna foregoes it, and continues to do the royal duties but at her own pace. Celestia, who secretly spent the day at a spa, returns and congratulates an exhausted Luna for handling the day shift, before retiring for the night and letting Luna return to her night duties. Katie Cook (story) Andy Price (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
	My Little Pony: Pony Tales, Vol. 2	February 18, 2014	978-1-61377-873-9
Collection of Volumes 7 through 10 of the micro-comics.

Friends Forever

The monthly Friends Forever series will focus on pairings of characters from the show, including the main cast as well as fan-popular minor and background characters. Series editor Bobby Curnow compared the concepts of these stories to buddy comedies, allowing them to explore other characters and give various fan-favorite characters the chance to be in the limelight of a story.

No.	Title	United States release date	United States ISBN
01	The Pie's the Limit (Applejack and Pinkie Pie)	January 22, 2014	—
Pinkie Pie and several others enter an Equestria baking contest, while Applejack, there to deliver catering for the event, is mistaken as the final competitor, Marine Sandwich, who vows revenge on the contest. As the contest proceeds, Pinkie and Applejack find one of the competitors, Toffee Truffle, is trying to win to reopen a favorite Dodge City restaurant, and Pinkie and Applejack agree to try to lose to help Toffee win. Going into the last event, Marine suddenly barges in and uses a fondant thrower to cover the other contestants and audience. Pinkie, Applejack, and Toffee use Toffee's desserts to clog the device and stop Marine's rampage. The judges award Toffee the grand prize for both a tasty and practical dessert, much to Pinkie and Applejack's delight. Alex de Campi (story, lettering) Carla Speed McNeil (art) Jenn Manley Lee, Bill Mudrow (coloring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
02	CMC and Discord	February 26, 2014	—
The Cutie Mark Crusaders have run out of ideas for how to get their cutie marks. Finding Discord outside, they ask for his help in creating scenarios with his magic for them to try. Discord creates a reality bubble and starts inventing situations for the Crusaders, but slowly becomes annoyed at their antics and makes more fantastical situations. He is unaware that the stronger magic is causing the reality bubble to grow and overtake Ponyville. After numerous attempts, the Crusaders admit that even with Discord's help, they still won't likely get their cutie marks, and show their appreciation for his help, offering to make him an honorary Crusader. Discord is touched by the offer and dispels the bubble, apologizing to the town for putting them in jeopardy. Jeremy Whitley (story) Tony Fleecs (art) Lauren Perry (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
03	Spike and Celestia	March 12, 2014	—
Spike asks Princess Celestia for help for getting Twilight a new telescope as a birthday gift for her. Celestia's astrologer can make one, but needs crystals to make the lens from a distant mountain. To Spike's surprise, Celestia cancels her duties for the day to come with him and help. During their travels, Spike complains that he is not an adventurer like Twilight and her friends, but Celestia asserts that he can be if he wants. Despite various dangers they encounter, Celestia encourages Spike to help save them instead of using her own abilities. The two make it safely to the mountain and retrieve a lens, though when they get trapped in a cave after a volcanic eruption, Celestia steps in to remove the obstacle blocking their way, noting that at times the teacher needs to help the student. They return safely to Canterlot, and Spike is able to give Twilight her new telescope, while he later gets a letter from Celestia thanking him for the adventure and assuring their friendship. Rob Anderson (story) Agnes Garbowska (art) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
04	Twilight Sparkle and Shining Armor	April 9, 2014	—
Twilight Sparkle travels to the Crystal Empire to spend some quality time with her older brother, Shining Armor, and recounts their childhood game of "monster hunters" they used to play. At the Empire, Shining is presently overwhelmed by business for the kingdom while his wife Cadance is away, and apologizes to Twilight. That night, one of Twilight's books is stolen, and she learns that several other books have gone missing recently, with the other residents fearing a ghost exists. Twilight and Shining, doubtful of this claim, stumble onto a secret passage into the depths of the castle originally created by King Sombra, and decide to go "monster hunting" once again to find the culprit. Avoiding numerous traps, they come across a crystal bard creature, who had been captured by Sombra to read to it in its soothing voice, but managed to escape; Sombra had laid the traps to try to recapture it. Finding the crystal bard with all the missing books, which it liked to read from and had only intended to borrow, Shining and Twilight explain that Sombra is long gone and offer the bard the task of helping in the royal library. Twilight and Shining finish out their visit peacefully. Rob Anderson (story) Amy Mebberson (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
05	Fluttershy and Zecora	May 21, 2014	—
Fluttershy wakes up one day to find that all her animal friends can speak normally with her, shocking her. As no other pony seems to have heard the animals talk, Fluttershy thinks she is going crazy and goes to talk to Zecora. Zecora can find nothing wrong with her and starts to suspect the animals. Fluttershy runs off after one of the critters to find that they have been planning a large tea party for her, and she gladly joins in, telling them her tales of adventure. Zecora concludes someone enchanted the animals, who is revealed to be Discord. Discord only wanted to give the animals the temporary ability to talk as a gift to Fluttershy to show his friendship for her, which Fluttershy happily accepts. Thomas Zahler (story) Tony Fleecs (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Neil Uyetake (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
06	Trixie and Rainbow Dash	June 18, 2014	—
Rainbow Dash is summoned to a distance kingdom to perform, and is surprised to find Trixie there as ruler of the Diamond Dogs. Trixie is trapped there as their ruler after mistakenly leading the Dogs to believe that she can douse for gems whereupon they made her their queen, using a magical crown that prevents her from leaving. Rainbow learns that the crown's magic is only powered by the faith the Dogs have in their rulers, and together with Trixie, create a plan that puts the Dogs' faith in Trixie in question and giving Rainbow enough time to distract the Dogs during the show to help Trixie escape. Thomas Zahler (story) Agnes Garbowska (art) Amy Mebberson (coloring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
07	Luna and Pinkie Pie	July 23, 2014	—
Princess Luna seeks Pinkie Pie's help to learn to be funny in public. Jeremy Whitley (story) Tony Fleecs (art) Amy Mebberson (coloring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
08	Applejack and Rarity	August 2014	—
Applejack and Rarity, traveling to the same destination for different reasons, decide to make this a road trip together. Katie Cook (story) Andy Price (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
09	Granny Smith and the Flim and Flam Brothers	September 2014	—
While at an apple convention, Granny Smith must help Flim and Flam resolve an issue that has come between the brothers. Christine Rice (story) Tony Fleecs (art) Amy Mebberson (coloring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
10	Fluttershy and Iron Will	October 2014	—
When Iron Will returns to Ponyville, Fluttershy helps to give him a more gentle demeanor. Christine Rice (story) Agnes Garbowska (art) Amy Mebberson (coloring) Template:Multicol-end

Special editions

No.	Title	United States release date	United States ISBN
	My Little Pony: Annual 2013	October 30, 2013	—
Stories based on the spin-off movie, My Little Pony: Equestria Girls, including an 8 page story original published in the 2013 San Diego Comic Con variant of the main series, issue #9 (in July 2013), telling the origin of the character Sunset Shimmer. In the short, Sunset is shown as Princess Celestia's prized student in magic arts, whom Celestia hopes to groom into a Princess. However, when Sunset becomes corrupted by the images she saw in a magic mirror, Celestia realizes that Sunset may be too greedy and vain. She goes against Celestia's wishes and breaks into the dark magic wing of the library, learning about the mirror's function and magic that can transform her into an alicorn. Celestia discovers this and expels Sunset as her student, but Sunset manages to escape and pass through the mirror, ending up in the human world. In the main story, a prequel to the events of the movie but told in flashback from a series of interviews, the five humans, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash struggle as freshmen to Canterlot High. Pinkie cannot find a school club that makes her happy, while Rainbow Dash wants to be the star player of the Wondercolts soccer team despite her inability to play on the team. Meanwhile, Applejack is initially glad to see her cousins Babs Seed and Sunflower, but they ridicule her fashion while making friends with Rarity, the fashion expert. However, when Rarity asks Fluttershy, who has been worried about Sunflower's sick dog but unable to speak up about it, to join them for lunch one day, Babs Seed and Sunflower refuse to allow her. On the day of the first game, Pinkie has found her true calling, as leader of the school's glee club, and gets Fluttershy to help distribute cheering equipment to the crowd. When Babs and Sunflower refuse Fluttershy's help, both Applejack and Rarity decide to abandon the two, and join Fluttershy. The crowd helps Rainbow Dash to remember the team spirit, and foregoes her ego to help her team to win. The five become fast friends, though all this is detailed in the present by Sunset to be used for her own gains. Template:Multicol Ted Anderson (story) Katie Cook (story) Tony Fleecs (art) Andy Price (art) Heather Breckel (coloring) Lauren Perry (coloring) Tom B. Long (lettering) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end
	My Little Pony: Annual 2014	September 2014	—
The Power Ponies face off against the Mane-iac and her new band of villains. Ted Anderson (story) Ben Bates (art & colring) Bobby Curnow (editor) Template:Multicol-end

Marketing

The first issue of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic was marketed by IDW by creating nineteen unique cover variants. Six of the covers, drawn by Price, feature each of the main cast, and form a continuous six-panel work. IDW will publish a boxed set of these covers separately. The other covers are unique to specific comic stores and Internet retailers such as Midtown Comics and Lone Star Comics, and are available as pre-order bonuses for purchasers. The second issue will also have several, but fewer, store-specific variants. Subsequent comics, including those in the micro-series, have typically had between two to four additional vendor-specific variants.

IDW published limited copies of each of the micro-series in a "comicfolio", containing the comic with one of the limited edition covers, a lithograph, and other materials in a hard-paper binding; the presentation would also be extended to other micro-series they are publishing including for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. IDW also published limited hardcover runs of the first four issues of the main series in six varieties, each featuring one of the main pony characters; the sets included art prints and collectable cards related to that specific character.

Within North America, the comic series are available digitally through both the iTunes Music Store and Comixology. In the United Kingdom, the series has become published digitally through a mobile app created by Made in Me, alongside other children's comics. Motion comics of the My Little Pony series and other IDW properties were published through a licensing deal with Madefire, as announced at the 2013 San Diego Comic Con with releases starting in August 2013.

A "micro fun pack" version of the comics have also been developed by IDW; these packs feature pages from the comic reprinted on collectable cards, along with stickers, posters, and tattoos, for sale in larger retail stores. IDW believes these will help further attract children to the comic and have plans to do this with another ongoing series, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and more in the future. The first printing of 150,000 sets were fully sold out by retailers after they were announced.

Reception

The first issue of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic received favorable commentary by comic reviewers. Dan Hart for Bleeding Cool News, who had not previously seen the show, praised Cook's script for quickly introducing the characters and the world, and Price's ability with facial expressions. Hart stated that he had "the same feeling of light-hearted fun as [he] got from (the much-missed) Tiny Titans and that's no bad thing". Mike Fahey of Kotaku further praised the ability of the comic to surpass some of the visual aspects of the television show, noting that the main characters "are more expressive and dynamic than their television counterparts, aided by black outlines that contrast strikingly with the show's colored ones", while the writing style captured the characters' personalities. Dakster Sullivan, writing for Wired's GeekMom column, further praised Cook and Price for doing "an amazing job bringing the spirit of the characters from the small screen to the comic book world". Comic Book Resources's Jennifer Cheng was positive of the issue, though she noted that the comic itself was weakened by the established nature of the television show. However, she praised that "Cook and Price's enthusiasm and skill" helped to overcome the predictability of the show, making it "a lot better than it needs to be for a property with an existing, devoted fanbase". Paste considered that while the first four-issue comic arc did not quite reach the humor of Adventure Time, it "still bustles with passion, fun, and personality despite a few rough edges". Bleeding Cool magazine placed Katie Cook as one of the top 100 Power List people in the comic book industry for 2013 for her contribution to the success of the My Little Pony series.

According to IDW, the first issue had reached over 90,000 pre-orders by October 2012 and exceeded 100,000 just before its release; most single issues of comics do not see sales in excess of 10,000 to 12,000, particularly for publishers other than DC Comics or Marvel, according to Price. In light of this number, IDW announced plans to run a second printing of the first comic along with the collectible box set in December, and ultimately ended up reprinting the issue four times. The large number of pre-orders for an all-ages comic has been considered a boom for the comics industry; the pre-order numbers exceeded those for other, more traditional comics like DC's The New 52 and Marvel NOW! relaunches, putting it on track to be one of the best-selling issues for 2012. As many of the purchasers of these comics are likely to be first-time comic buyers, the comic's success may also filter to improved sales of other comic titles. Total sales of the standalone first issue, as tracked by Diamond Comic Distributors, exceeded 80,000 units, making it the fifteen best comic for the month and an uncommon occurrence of a non-DC, non-Marvel comic breaking the top 20, according to Russ Burlingane of Comicbook.com. The first issue of Friendship Is Magic was one of only two non-DC/Marvel publications (the other being The Walking Dead #100) to be in the top 100 issue quantity sales for 2012, ranked at #90, and ranked #61 based on revenue. According to Heather Nuhfer and Amy Mebberson, the first issue of the comic is the best-selling issue published by IDW as of March 2013. John Mayo of Comic Book Resources points out that even with lower sales figures, the 7th issue of the comic sold more than three times the number of copies of the combined Star Trek and Doctor Who IDW-licensed and fan-heavy series, and believes that "whatever IDW is doing to promote My Little Pony is working". The success of My Little Pony and other children's comics like Adventure Time help to boosting overall sales in the comics industry by 15% in 2012.

By October 2013, a total of one million copies across both series, including reprints and collected editions, have been sold at retail, according to IDW. Adams also states that digital sales remain strong, with the comics often holding spots within the top 10 selling books on the iTunes Stores. To celebrate the milestone, a special variant cover of issue #12, drawn by Price and limited to twelve copies, was printed and auctioned or given away as prizes, while only a single copy of an another variant cover of the same issue, drawn by Sara Richard, was published and later auctioned by IDW and Heritage Auctions in August 2014.

Subsequent issues placed within the top 100 monthly sales charts as recorded by Diamond, and represented the top selling IDW comic in these months. The second issue ranked at #54 in December 2012 sales. The third issue and the first micro-series placed at #45 and #62, respectively in the February 2013 charts. In March, the fourth and fifth issue and the second micro-series placed at #55, #65, and #91, respectively. Similar placement numbers within the top 100 were held between April to July 2013. The first four-issue trade paperback was the seventh top selling such book in May 2013. The first collected volume featuring the Queen Chrysalis arc won the 2013 Diamond Comic Best Trade Paperback/Hardback award.

The IDW comics are credited with helping to get young children interested again in reading; Hasbro's Director of Global Publishing, Michael Kelly, has heard stories from comic shop owners who have seen young girls in their shops for the first time in years, a facet later noted by IDW's CEO Ted Adams. Adams further noted that while many of the direct sales of the comics go to the older audience, the sales for young children are significant and have helped to expand the variety of the demographics of its customers. Comics Alliance named the My Little Pony series as the 2013 "Best In-Your-Face To Opponents of All-Ages Comics", citing that the series "hold[s] up well enough for adults ... but more importantly are also accessible and fun for kids". The success of the My Little Pony series along with other Hasbro properties that IDW prints, like Transformers and G.I. Joe, has led the two companies to review Hasbro's catalog and consider other titles, particularly those from the 1980s, that could successfully be brought to comic form.

External links

• IDW Publishing