Had I known the artist prior to his creation, I would have warned him that there are a few people in the brony fandom - and just about every fandom, really - who not only take things way too seriously; they also have no filter that tells them to dial down their hurt feelings when communicating with others. I can’t say it’s due to a lack of maturity or a social disorder because YMMV but darned if these few don’t ruin things for those of us who do have the ability to appreciate a work of art for what it is instead of what it isn’t. How much better do these few think they made the artist feel by giving him negative feedback over Spike’s exclusion? Did they consider that the backlash they gave the artist could possibly result in a lower output of work, thus affecting all of us? The pony parade took talent and effort to create and I am grateful for the contribution he has made to the pony art community, even if he had excluded some of my favorite ponies which, I might add, he did by excluding Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.

I would humbly suggest to anyone who became legitimately upset over this perceived slight to recite the MST3K mantra and either animate their own parade video that includes Spike or commission an artist to create one for them. Whichever they choose, only then would they have a reason to be hot under the collar over Spike’s exclusion with someone who answers to them.

I’m going to end my preachy li’l tl;dr rant with a simple reminder and, in the spirit of the show we love so much, I ask all of you to consider taking it to heart and to apply it to your daily lives because doing so can only make our friendship-based community a better place for everyone.

It costs nothing to be polite.