My Little Pony 'n Friends

Sweet, candy-colored, and whimsical, this original series just can't compare in quality to later versions of the My Little Pony multiverse. Don't flame the Pegasus Ponies (who fly) or the Earth Ponies (who don't) -- they're victims of the time in which this series was made, in the days when the Care Bears, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, and The Transformers loomed large. These were simplistic tales, with stereotyped characters and big bad villains; this My Little Pony series followed suit. Its characters aren't the complex and recognizably human-like ponies you may know from the Friendship Is Magic reboot and later pony tales. Instead, you know just about everything you need to know about each pony by checking what type of "cutie mark" she bears on her flank, and villains are generally one-note meanies who descend, are grappled with, and disappear after an episode, rather than lessons arising from everyday conflicts, as on later series. 

The lessons viewers will take away just aren't as complex, or as meaningful as in later Pony movies and shows. Still, My Little Pony 'n Friends is innocuous enough for young viewers, and colorful and cute enough that they'll want to, particularly if they've seen and enjoyed other My Little Pony adventures.