My Little Pony Equestria Girls (franchise)

My Little Pony Equestria Girls is a franchise made up of toys, merchandise, full-length feature films, animated shorts, and other media. It was launched in 2013 as a spin-off of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic, featuring humanized versions of the series characters in a high school setting.

Development and production
The term "Equestria Girls" was first used in May 2011 when The Hub (now Discovery Family) released a promotional music video on their website featuring a parody of Katy Perry's "California Gurls". The music video was unrelated to the later-launched franchise.

In December 2012, Hasbro filed two trademarks for the name "Equestria Girls", stating that the brand would be used for "toy ponies and accessories for use therewith" and "dolls, doll clothing and doll accessories" respectively. The first film was announced in Kidscreen magazine's February/March 2013 issue, which was both distributed at the 2013 American International Toy Fair and released online. An article which covers Hasbro's 2013 plans mentioned that "A new companion series called Equestria Girls is set to air this spring, sending the pony heroes on a mission to a new world where they take on human form".

Toys and merchandise
Various toy lines and merchandise were released as tie-ins to the franchise's films and associated media. Standard releases consist of human dolls of the series' main and supporting cast and have been released under the titles Equestria Girls, Through the Mirror, Rainbow Rocks (which are themed around music), Friendship Games (themed around sports and school spirit), and Legend of Everfree (themed around several exotic assortments).

Spin-off toy lines include Equestria Girls Minis, which feature the characters in a cuter, "chibi-fied" style.

Humans
Unlike My Little Pony Friendship is Magic, in which most of the characters are ponies and various other animals and creatures, the majority of the characters featured in My Little Pony Equestria Girls are human. The series is primarily set in a world parallel to the pony-inhabited realm of Equestria, and much of the cast consists of alternate human versions of pony characters as high school students.

Main characters

 * Twilight Sparkle: Main character of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic and the Princess of Friendship. She first travels to the human world via magic mirror to retrieve her stolen crown. She also appears in later films in a supporting role.
 * Sunset Shimmer: A former student of Princess Celestia and the main antagonist of the first film. She steals Twilight's crown in an attempt to rule over Equestria, but Twilight and her new friends defeat her. Following her defeat and reform, Sunset serves as one of the main protagonists in the Equestria Girls sequels. She plays the rhythm guitar in her and her friends' band The Rainbooms.
 * Fluttershy: A shy and kindhearted teenage girl who loves animals. Plays the tambourine in her and her friends' band.
 * Pinkie Pie: A cheerful and carefree teenage girl who loves to meet people and throw parties. Plays the drums in her and her friends' band.
 * Applejack: A down-to-Earth country girl who values honesty and hard work. Plays the bass guitar in her and her friends' band.
 * Rarity: A very fashion-forward and generous teenager who loves to design clothes. Plays the keytar in her and her friends' band.
 * Rainbow Dash: An athletic and loyal girl who captains all of Canterlot High School's sports teams. Plays the lead guitar in her and her friends' band.
 * Twilight Sparkle/"Sci-Twi": Princess Twilight Sparkle's human counterpart and former Crystal Prep Academy student. Very bookish and introverted, she briefly serves as an antagonist in the third film. Following her defeat, she enrolls at Canterlot High as a new student.

Antagonists

 * The Dazzlings: Main antagonists of My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Rainbow Rocks. Consisting of Adagio Dazzle, Sonata Dusk, and Aria Blaze, they are sirens from Equestria who hypnotize the Canterlot High student body through song and feed off their negativity to grow powerful. They are defeated by the Rainbooms through the music of friendship.
 * Principal Cinch: Main antagonist of My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Friendship Games and the strict principal of Crystal Prep Academy. Obsessed with maintaining her school's reputation, she manipulates human Twilight Sparkle, her prized student, into competing in the Friendship Games.
 * The Shadowbolts: Secondary antagonists of My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Friendship Games and the sports team for Crystal Prep Academy. Consists of Sour Sweet, Sunny Flare, Indigo Zap, Sugarcoat, and Lemon Zest.

Equestria Girls
Hasbro announced at their Hasbro New York Toy Fair 2013 Investor Event that a My Little Pony direct-to-television movie was at that time in post-production. The movie was announced in May 2013 and received a limited theatrical run starting June 16, 2013, followed by a DVD/Blu-ray release on August 6 and a television airing on The Hub on September 1.

Rainbow Rocks
A sequel to Equestria Girls entitled My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Rainbow Rocks was announced in mid-February 2014. It received a limited theatrical run beginning September 27, 2014, followed by a television airing on Discovery Family on October 17 and a DVD/Blu-ray release on October 28.

Friendship Games
On January 29, 2015, Australian home media distributor Beyond Home Entertainment stated via Facebook that they had obtained distribution rights for seasons 4 and 5 of the show, in addition to Rainbow Rocks and the "third Equestria Girls [movie]". It aired on Discovery Family on September 26, 2015 and was released on DVD/Blu-ray on October 13.

Legend of Everfree
The fourth Equestria Girls installment was teased by Rainbow Rocks co-director and Friendship Games director Ishi Rudell and later confirmed by Hasbro Studios president Stephen Davis. It is scheduled to premiere on Netflix on October 1, 2016 and will be followed by a DVD and Blu-ray release a month later on November 1, 2016.

Animated shorts
Beginning with the second film Rainbow Rocks, several animated shorts were released as tie-ins to their associated films, some prior to the film's release and some afterward.

Rainbow Rocks
Eleven animated shorts were released to tie-in with the premiere of Rainbow Rocks. The first eight were released before the film as "Prequel Shorts" and included in the special features of the Rainbow Rocks DVD/Blu-ray. The last three were released after the film as "Encore Shorts" and appeared as the first three audio tracks on the My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Friendship Games - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.

Friendship Games
Five animated shorts were released to tie-in with the premiere of Friendship Games. All of the shorts were released before the film and included in the special features of the Friendship Games DVD/Blu-ray.

Equestria Girls Minis
Four animated shorts were released as tie-ins with the Equestria Girls Minis toy line. Unlike previous shorts, these shorts are animated in 3D and relatively short in length (ranging from 15-20 seconds long).

Other media
Chapter book adaptations of the films, as well as original stories, have been published for the films by Little, Brown & Company.

At least one official soundtrack has been released for each film in the franchise.

IDW Publishing released the My Little Pony Annual 2013 and My Little Pony: Equestria Girls Holiday Special comics for the Equestria Girls series.