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The fourth season of the animated television series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, developed by Lauren Faust, airs on the Hub Network in the United States. The series is considered to be the fourth generation (G4) of the My Little Pony franchise, following earlier lines and television show tie-ins in the 1980s and 1990s. Season 4 of the series premiered on November 23, 2013, on the Hub Network, an American pay television channel partly owned by Hasbro.

The show follows Twilight Sparkle, a studious alicorn (a pony with both horn and wings; in previous seasons, Twilight was a unicorn) pony as her mentor Princess Celestia guides her to learn about friendship in the town of Ponyville. Twilight becomes close friends with five other ponies: Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie. Each represents a different face of friendship, and Twilight discovers herself to be a key part of the magical artifacts, the "Elements of Harmony". The ponies share adventures and help out other residents of Ponyville, while working out the troublesome moments in their own friendships.

Hasbro selected animator Lauren Faust as the creative director and executive producer for the show. Faust sought to challenge the established "girly" nature of the existing My Little Pony line, creating more in-depth characters and adventurous settings, incorporating Hasbro's suggestions for marketing of the toy line.

Development

Concept

Season 4 continues from the events of the third season finale, Magical Mystery Cure, where Twilight, shown to have come to hone her magic skills while learning the value of friendship, has been crowned as Equestria's newest princess, becoming an alicorn in the process. Some elements of the season will focus on Twilight coming to terms with her new status; Lead writer Meghan McCarthy stated that "What we didn’t want to do was change who is as a character, because she’s certainly someone that everyone’s proud to know and love", while Tara Strong, the voice actress for Twilight, claimed that the episode is "a birth of a new era for Twilight, but not the end of what makes the show so wonderful".

Production

Investment documents for DHX Media's 2012 financial year indicate that production for a fourth season had been financed. Before the season premiered, aspects of it were discussed by Meghan McCarthy, Tara Strong and other writers and voice actors at various fan conventions. Hasbro's vice president for international distribution, Finn Arnesen, had stated that My Little Pony is a "top-priority" brand for the company and expects the series to continue beyond the fourth season. The fourth season of the series premiered on November 23, 2013. This season marks the first time storyboard artist Jim Miller (who also voices King Sombra from the season three premiere) will be co-directing alongside Jayson Thiessen.

At the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con International in July 2013, the writers and voice actors talked about the upcoming season. It is expected to have between 15 and 20 songs, even though the writers had envisioned more, and will include a musical episode centered around Pinkie Pie. Rarity will have her own episode, and Pinkie will also see an episode where her family, including her sisters, visits Ponyville. The season will also include a return of Nightmare Moon, the evil version of Princess Luna. The writers have stated that they will include references aimed for its adult audience, and will also include more appearances by the fan-named character Derpy Hooves.

Cast

The main characters will be voiced by their returning voice actors: Tara Strong as Twilight Sparkle, Tabitha St. Germain as Rarity, Ashleigh Ball as both Applejack and Rainbow Dash, Andrea Libman as both Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie and Cathy Weseluck as Spike. Other actors in guest roles include Nicole Oliver as Princess Celestia, Claire Corlett as Sweetie Belle, Peter New as Big Macintosh, Brenda Crichlow as Zecora, and John de Lancie as Discord.

Episodes

Like the first two seasons, this season will have 26 episodes. According to a Twitter post by Meghan McCarthy, this season will have a story arc.

Songs

Notes

1. ^ Information about the directors and writers are taken from the episodes' opening credits.

References

1. Miller, Jim (2013-11-24). "[Number of episodes confirmation]". Twitter. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
2. Busis, Hillary (2013-01-29). "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic exclusive: Twilight's becoming a princess!". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
3. Busis, Hillary (2013-02-15). "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic: Exclusive clip from season 3's royal finale". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved 2013-02-15.
4. "Management Discussion and Analysis" (PDF). Fiscal 2012 (Press release). DHX Media. 2012-06-30. p. 11. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
5. Watercutter, Angela (2013-02-15). "Exclusive: Watch a Clip from the Controversial My Little Pony Season 3 Finale". Wired.
6. Busis, Hillary (2013-01-31). "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic: A Brony explains why fans say 'neigh' to Princess Twilight". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
7. Christie, Brendan (2013). Lana, Castleman (ed.). "Hasbro hits its stride" (PDF). Kidscreen: 33–34. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
8. Busis, Hillary (2013-07-25). "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic exclusive: Season 4 premieres on..." Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved 2013-07-25.
9. Miller, Jim (2013-04-12). "[Co-director credit confirmation]". Twitter. Retrieved 2013-04-12.
10. Nyugen, Hanh (2013-07-20). "My Little Pony: Pinkie Pie Lands a Musical Episode and More Season 4 Scoop". TV Guide. Retrieved 2013-07-20.
11. ^ Maloney, Amy (2013-11-13). "A Royal Problem Begins for Princess Twilight When Celestia and Luna Disappear, on My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Nov. 23" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
12. ^ Maloney, Amy (2013-10-30). "It Is Time for Everypony to Fight the Engulfing Everfree Forest and Save Equestria, on My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Nov. 23" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-10-31.
13. Meghan McCarthy (2013-11-23). "MMeghanMcCarthy: Season. Long. Story Arc. #sixkeys ..." Twitter. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
14. "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic: Season 4". Zap2it. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
15. ^ Pucci, Douglas (2013-11-29). "Hub Network Weekly Ratings Scorecard (November 18–24, 2013)". Son of the Bronx. Blogger. Retrieved 2013-11-29.
16. Maloney, Amy (2013-11-14). "A Mysterious Shadow Stalks the Ponies Through Celestia's Ancient Castle Ruins, on My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Nov. 30" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
17. Pucci, Douglas (6 December 2013). "Hub Network Weekly Ratings Scorecard (November 25 – December 1, 2013)". Son of the Bronx. Blogger. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
18. Maloney, Amy (2013-11-22). "Rainbow Dash Finds Danger In Her Own Temple of Doom When She Tries to Help Her Favorite Author A.K. Yearling, on My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Dec. 7" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
19. Pucci, Douglas (13 December 2013). "The Hub Ratings Scorecard - Week of Dec. 2, 2013". TV Ratings. TV Media Insights. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
20. Maloney, Amy (2013-11-26). "Everypony Wants to Fly the Flag in the Equestria Games and Scootaloo Gets an Extra Boost From Coach Rainbow Dash, on My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic, Dec. 14" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-11-27.
21. Pucci, Douglas (20 December 2013). "The Hub Ratings Scorecard - Week of Dec. 9, 2013". TV Ratings. TV Media Insights. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
22. Maloney, Amy (2013-12-10). "Spike Becomes a Sidekick Rather Than a Super Hero When He and the Mane Six Get Trapped Inside a Comic Book, on My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic, Dec. 21" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
23. Pucci, Douglas (26 December 2013). "The Hub Ratings Scorecard - Week of Dec. 16-22, 2013". TV Ratings. TV Media Insights. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
24. ^ Maloney, Amy (2013-12-17). "A Farm Fiasco With Fruitbats Causes Conflict for Apple Jack and Fluttershy, on My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic, Dec. 28" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
25. ^ Maloney, Amy (2013-12-20). "Rarity Discovers the Devil Wears Pony-Rada When she Travels to Manehattan for a Fashion Show, on My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic, Jan. 4" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
26. ^ Maloney, Amy (2013-12-20). "Pinkie and the Apple Clan Travel Rough Roads to Find Out if They're All in the Family, on My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic, Jan. 11" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
27. ^ Sorenson, Laura (2013-12-26). "The Hub Network's January 2014 Highlights" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. p. 2. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
28. ^ Sorenson, Laura (2013-12-26). "UPDATED Hub Network's January 2014 Highlights" (PDF). Discovery Press Web (Press release). Discovery Communications. p. 2. Retrieved 2013-12-26.
29. McCarthy, Meghan (2013-11-07). "[Writing credit confirmation, 1]". Twitter. Retrieved 2013-11-07.
30. McCarthy, Meghan (2013-12-24). "[Season 4 Rarity Song Confirmation]". Retrieved 2013-12-24.

• 2013 television seasons
• 2014 television seasons
• Lists of American animated television series episodes
• My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic