My Thoughts on Princess Cadance

I usually make my opinion articles thinking that I am voicing my thoughts properly, respectfully, and in a way so that not many people (and hopefully nobody at all) will get upset. I have the feeling things won’t be that hunky-dory with this one since it seems to still be an issue even today. Anytime I talk with any of my brony friends Princess Cadance comes up, and I always have two types of conversation with them: The conversation where Princess Cadance gets praised, or the conversation where she gets trampled over like a dumpster on fire. But what side am I on? Let me tell you all about it.

When it comes to interacting with this fandom there are a lot of statements I usually make that get a lot of people upset, or more like a small group of people that are so loud and annoying that it makes them look way bigger than they really are. With this I am saying that if this article is criticizing somebody it’s those fans that just can’t shut up yet they don’t dare show their faces. You know who I’m talking about. Those fans that lurk in image galleries down-voting pictures for being from a weird fetish, or making anonymous comments on news sites or blogs that can be summed up to “I hate you because your opinion is different from mine, now I will make a silly joke to appeal to those like me”.   

I don’t say they are wrong for having their opinion, I just say they are wasting their time pestering people for making statements like:

I think Dave Polsky is the best writer of Season 3.

 

I really enjoyed “The Mysterious Mare-do-Well”.

 

I think turning Twilight Sparkle into an Alicorn Princess is a brilliant idea.

The Great and Powerful Trixie is overrated.

Discord wasn’t a villain in the first place.

The Season 2 finale is not very well written.

I think they tackled the bully issue really well.

Gilda wasn’t a villain, she was just misunderstood.

Rarity is Best Pony.

But out of all the statements I make, out of all the things I say that are contrarian to what these people think and defend, there is one in particular that is not just collectively hated by them but also by the overwhelming majority of the fandom, and that statement is that I really like Princess Cadance.

That's the sound of half the fandom saying: "Screw this guy, I'm out of here"

Anywhere I go, anybody I talk to, whatever thing I do that has to do with the Brony fandom, if the subject of Princess Cadance comes up and I voice my opinion it’s then followed by shocked gasps and disbelief as they point accusative fingers at me and scream: “Betrayal! How dare you like something we don’t!? Take him to the wall! Make him drag the rock of shame!” I wish I was exaggerating, but it’s true. More often than not people don’t even bother explaining why they hate Cadance so much and just start insulting and attacking those who “dare” liking her. It’s kind of a taboo theme in this fandom, which is kind of ridiculous. I have indeed come across people and very good friends who have explained their reasons in a constructive manner, and I will cite their opinions as to offer a counter point to my point, but first let me explain why do I like Princess Cadance so much, and to do that I have to go all the way back to my childhood.

Not entirely like this, but almost.

I come from a family with very strong military background. My grandfather was a motorized guard of the Royal Army, and before that he served under the command of General Francisco Franco. He followed orders his whole life, no matter who was in charge, and his attitude towards authority was very, very strong. He had a strong respect for it, and he made sure to transfer this respect to his son, my father. Now, my father didn’t share my grandfather’s perspective on neutrality and he focused more on other things, and so he decided not to follow with the military tradition and instead he decided to study tourism and economics. However, he did keep a strong tie with authorities and agencies, including the Spanish police corps, and of course the military. So you can imagine that I grew up surrounded by quite a hefty amount of lawful and good people who were out there risking their lives to keep us the citizens safe. I grew up to respect these people, and admire them in every aspect, and I don’t mean just the Spanish forces, but the forces of any country, be it American, British, Chinese, or Japanese. When someone gets his or her life in the line of fire to protect other people you know they are doing it for good reasons, especially more nowadays when military service in many countries is voluntary.

So keep this in mind for the following paragraphs.

Now allow me to show you a list of characters and ask you a question. What do all these characters have in common?

Corporal Hicks from “Aliens”

Fix it Felix Jr. from “Wreck it Ralph”

Clarice Starling from “Silence of the Lambs”

Optimus Prime from “Transformers”

Marge Gunderson from “Fargo”

Nicholas Angel from “Hot Fuzz”

The Original Power Rangers.

Finn from “Adventure Time”

Detective Elisa Maza from “Gargoyles”

Wyatt Earp from “Tombstone”


Juror Number #8 from “12 Angry Men”

Steve Rogers from “Captain America: The First Avenger” and “The Avengers”

Phoenix Wright from the “Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney” series.

Princess Cadance from “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic”

Besides, you know, being amongst some my most favorite and admired Television and Movie characters of all time. If you are familiar with some if not all characters in the list you must have answered correctly. They are all lawful good. If we were to speak on Dungeons and Dragons alignments, these people are on the lawful good alignment for no other reason than to do good to those around them. To help and assist, to support those nobody else supports or dares to defend. I have a deeply rooted respect and admiration for all of them, some more than others. This doesn’t mean I like all lawful good characters. Alistair from “Dragon Age: Origins” is a massive pain in the ass, and he annoys me, the same with Kaiden Alenko from “Mass Effect” who is not just painful he is also boring. This seems to be a running theme with BioWare games where the chaotic good characters seem more interesting and likable than the lawful good ones.

Seriously, fuck this guy.

My point is that I find myself always preferring lawful good characters, be it because I was raised that way, or because I just find them irredeemably likable, and I know it’s because I aspire to be like that and I will never ever be. Let’s face it, in the real world very few people are truly lawful good, especially those who consider themselves so. Trying to achieve that level of personality is nigh impossible in this day and age, and I myself am guilty of doing things the wrong way for the wrong reason more than once, and I don’t feel proud of it. I have the intention to improve yes, but I regret my mistakes like anyone would. That’s another reason why I love lawful good characters.

Is it my cue now!?

So how does all this lead to me liking Princess Cadance? Well, I will try to put in terms that don’t make people cringe when they read it. Princess Cadance is a really, really good character. I don’t necessarily mean that she is very well written, but that she has a really good heart. She looks after the interests of her people (be it Equestrian ponies or Crystal ponies) and she herself has put her life on the line to defend them. Remember when she basically drained her own magic energy to the last drop defending the Crystal Empire and she was about to die of starvation and sleep deprivation? That was some hardcore life risking if you ask me. Maybe she didn’t fight an epic battle, but she did give her all. She is also one of those characters that don’t seem to have ulterior motives or hidden agendas. All she does is very straight forward and very transparent, get it? Because she is the crystal princess-I’m dumb, sorry. But joking aside she is not the type to lie to other people, or fool them with false premises.

"People don't have bread? Well, tell them to eat cake!"

Besides her personality I also have to mention the way she looks. This is an important factor for me to like a character, and it ranges from pure aesthetics to how the character holds him or herself up. Princess Cadance happens to be pink, with her mane of yellow, purple and pink hues and a both regal yet casual pose. It’s a very girly design that mimics Hasbro’s toy design to a tee, and I just love it. I personally love pink, it’s a really cute color, and the combination with the shape of her mane and tail, the gradient color of her wings, and her size make a very visually appealing combination to me. But most important of all is the voice acting. Candance is voiced by actress and singer Britt McKillip, and not only does her voice for her sound like that of a normal person, but it also transmits this sensation of honesty and kindness to her that’s almost soothing. She’s not annoying or painful to listen to, she has the kind of voice that you’d want to have to read your kids a bed time story before they go to sleep. I think that really reinforces her lawful good personality.

Although that hair still looks like Tim Burton's mind puked all over it.

So to me it’s a combination of visual and writing elements that make her such a good character in my eyes.

But, and here comes my counter point to my argument, I can totally understand why people don’t like her. Believe me. I can see it from your perspective. I understand those who bring up all the issues the character has, and I understand all of these.

Like I said in my Alicorn Princess Twilight Sparkle dissertation, I understand and will defend those who hate the character because it’s trying to blatantly sell a new toy. Yes, I know Hasbro made the show to sell toys, that’s the whole purpose of it, and I have no problem with that, but even I admit that sometimes when Cadance shows up on screen all that’s missing is the price tag along with the “Batteries not included” sign at the bottom. So to those who don’t like Cadance because she is another toy sell out, if somebody is attacking you, point them at this article and say “This guy who likes Cadance too understands us, so try to be more like him and respect our opinion”. I personally have no issue with her being in the show to sell a toy because, at least in my opinion, I think we are pretty much responsible from putting her where she is. When Hasbro received claims of fans wanting a white Celestia toy they were peer pressured to come up with another Pink Pony Princess to sell in stores, so that’s why Princess Cadance showed up, to take Pink Celestia’s place and allow us to have a show accurate Sun Princess. I am not entirely sure whether this is what really happened, but it really looks like it.

Seriously, just look at this! You could insert this in the commercial and no one will tell the difference.

I also understand those who hate her because she kind of broke the whole mythos that Lauren Faust built around the show and the land Equestria, the seemingly non-written unbreakable rule that there could be only two Alicorns in the land and that these control both the Sun and the Moon. I don’t see what the problem with this is, or why it should be an issue. I have never heard Lauren Faust say “There can only be two!” while wielding a katana and with lightning striking in the background. Maybe she said it somewhere, or some other time, but if she did we have to take one thing into account. She built this whole universe and put it on the hands of the current show runners, because she trusted what they could come up with. I understand why people don’t like Cadance because it doesn’t feel like what Lauren Faust would have done, but I don’t understand why do we still ask “What would have Lauren Faust do in this case?” We don’t need to ask that anymore, and asking it means being stuck in the past and not moving forward. So my issue with this point is not with people’s opinions, is with people’s attitudes.

But, and here is the biggest issue of them all, I will agree and find incredibly difficult to defend against this one point that not many people bring up and yet is entirely right and legitimate, and that is the fact that Princess Cadance has no flaws whatsoever. As I have talked before with my good friend, who will remain nameless but if you are reading this you know who you are, he has said with more or less these words: “Princess Cadance has no flaws, she makes no mistakes, and she is perfect. See, I think she was very well introduced, and I can see where they go with her, but she is not flawed, and I can’t find a character that’s not flawed relatable at all”.

"Bitch, I'm fabulous!"

Yeah, that is actually a pretty good point. I won’t even try to argue against it, it’s pretty solid. I could bring a couple of moments where she kind of screwed up, like when she let go the barriers down on the Crystal Empire, or when she got caught by Queen Chrysalis off camera previous to the Canterlot Wedding episodes, or when she spent a good chunk of an episode getting her hair done, an act that had no purpose whatsoever, but those are no flaws, they are mistakes, and they can’t count as strong as worrying excessively over nothing like Twilight does, being incredibly laid back like Pinkie Pie, being really stubborn like Applejack, really vain like Rarity, lazy as a brick like Rainbow Dash, or terrifyingly bipolar like Fluttershy. So, yes, I can argue against those other reasons why people hate Cadance, but not against this one.

"No, the hate, it's too strong and right!"

However, and with all this in mind, I still really like her. There is something in her that I see and it makes me feel like I am right at home. I see the kind of person I’d like to be friends with; the type of person who I would like to be protected by at all times. She beams goodness and kindness and those are two things I just can’t hate. It’s impossible for me to hate them, as it will be hating an entire life of being raised with those values. To me those problems that are deal breakers for other people are not deal breakers for me at all. Yeah, I acknowledge them, but they don’t ruin her for me. I still like her, and I am still looking forward to see her in Season 4. It’s ridiculous how happy I get anytime Cadance shows up, it’s a joy equal to that I feel when I see Princess Luna making an epic appearance, or Octavia making a cameo in the background.

"It feels good to be loved. Now, where is my box of chocolates!?"

So, now that I explained myself, allow me to ask you guys a question. It’s quite evident that a large portion of the fandom doesn’t like Cadance for all the reasons I listed above, yet I don’t see this same amount of hate for Shining Armor. They both were introduced as suddenly and out of nowhere, and they have the same amount of presence in the show, yet I actually notice a lot more love for the BBBFF than for the Foal Sitter. Is this because Cadance is a Princess and she is kind of over powered, or is it because Shining Armor sounds like a surfer dude and he is just impossible to hate? Or am I wrong here? Feel free to drop your two cents in the comments. If I find them interesting enough I’ll consider making an article on Shining Armor.

Until then, keep this in mind. I like Cadance. I understand those who don’t like her. And those problems people have with her are not deal breakers for me. Thank you for reading, and I will talk to you all later.

Another reason for me to like Cadance. She knows Rarity is Best Pony.