My Little Pony fans blast producers as much-loved character is altered to seem 'less mentally disabled'

Character first spoke in January episode of animation

Adult male fans known as 'brownies' helped name her

But voice changed for iTunes version after complaints



It’s probably not the sort of controversy that will concern the majority of five-year-old girls who sit on the sofa after school to watch My Little Pony.

But the TV show’s creators are under fire from their adult male audience who say they recreated character ‘Derpy’ to appear less mentally-disabled.

The pony in the Hasbro cartoon began as a background character whose eyes were believed to have been skewed as a joke by an animator.

'Derpy': The pony in the Hasbro cartoon (right) began as a background character whose eyes were believed to have been skewed as a joke by an animator

But a group of older male fans of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, known as ‘bronies’ (bro+pony), named the anonymous pony ‘Derpy’.

This was picked up by Hasbro, who decided to include her in the series with that name, and she became the ‘bronies’ community horse’.

Her first lines came in The Last Roundup episode in January, when she proclaimed: ‘Oh, I just don't know what went wrong’, reported Gawker.

But critics of Derpy said her name refers to ‘derp’ - an explicit word used to mock the disabled - and described her as a ‘giant retard joke’.

Loyal following: 'Bronies' - pictured at the BronyCon event in January in Manhattan, New York - get their name for the combination of 'bro' and 'pony' Beloved character: Her first lines came in The Last Roundup episode in January, when she proclaimed: 'Oh, I just don't know what went wrong' This is said to stem from the sound some children make to each other at schools, making fun of those with Down Syndrome and other disabilities. 'This whole situation has been sort of depressing for most of us' Equestria Daily spokesman Hasbro decided to make her voice sound less like she had a disability when it put the episode on iTunes - much to the dismay of ‘bronies’. And in a further move that angered fans, her name was cut altogether as she ‘did not stay true to the core message of friendship’ in the series. The character was voiced by Tabitha St. Germain, who has also worked on the likes of Barbie, Care Bears, Dragon Ball Z, Sabrina and Action Man.

Different: Hasbro decided to make her voice sound less like she had a disability when it put the episode on iTunes - much to the dismay of 'bronies'

‘The series has always been about acceptance and inclusion, and the series strives to convey that,’ a Hasbro spokesman told Gawker.

'The series has always been about acceptance and inclusion, and the series strives to convey that' Hasbro spokesman

‘Some viewers felt that aspects of the episode did not stay true to the core message of friendship which is the heart and soul of the series.’

She added that Hasbro decided to then make small audio alterations.



But a Change.org petition by fans to return Derpy to normal now has an astonishing 40,000 signatures.

A spokesman for ‘bronies’ blog Equestria Daily said the whole thing has been ‘depressing’, but Derpy ‘isn't the reason the show is awesome’.

Watch Derpy in the original My Little Pony episode for television





Watch Derpy in the altered My Little Pony episode for iTunes



