Update:
When I posted what you can find below, I did not know a few things about Ember, and most importantly - that she is not (just) the mascot of HWCon, but (also) a personal OC of her creator, Alyria, who has a backstory and future plans of her own for the character.
This is, actually, good news: it means that Ember won't be abandoned and the initiative I started was not even necessary!
For the sake of history, I leave the rest of the page as it was, but please disregard it, and please refrain from further shipping of Ember with anypony.
Pony on, my friends!
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Posted on March 17 of 2020 to BroniesNL whatsapp group. Click on the images to see them in full size.
So. It has been two weeks since the last HWCon, the dust has settled and we kinda have other things to care about at the moment, but... But let's talk about ponies. About one particular pony, to be precise. Or, actually two.
Which pony is the mascot of the Dutch brony community? This one?
Yes, indeed. But not only him. It's also this one:
Officially, she's the mascot of HWCon, and just of the con, but come on! This pony is much more than that, and rightfully so.
She's the mascot of the country in general, and I can tell you: when I, a foreigner, first saw her (years ago, looong before ever visiting the Netherlands or thinking of moving here), what I thought was: "Oh what a cutipie! Those hollanders sure came up with a really nice pony to represent them".
Because a cutiepie she is.
After I moved here, I was not happy to hear that her "scope" is so much narrower, but it still was nice to see her around. I'm drinking tea from a mug with an image of her right now :) Seriously, how can you not like her?
( if Ailurya reads this: your art is amazing )
But, for good or bad, the HWCon is no more, and the orga of BroniesNL have their own mascot to promote. Without the thing which brought her into the existence, Ember will probably soon start falling into oblivion, and will eventually be replaced and forgotten...
This is sad.
...
But does it have to be so?
No. I believe it does not.
The thing is: given that HWCon is no more, it does not exactly need an "exclusive" mascot of its own. So maybe - just maybe - Ember could broaden her horizons a bit and show up elsewhere?
Like, get a recurring cameo at PonyCon Holland and BroniesNL meets? Or maybe BroniesNL new mascot, Stroopwafeltje, needs a sidekick? Or maybe even better than a sidekick - a friend? A friend, you know - that thing which this whole pony fuss is about?
I'm probably not the best person to campaign for it (heck, this wall of text is not even in Dutch), but: yes, I believe that Stroopwafeltje and Ember should be friends.
They should be friends, and they should be consistently depicted as such. Do you agree? Then make yourself heard :)
For this to happen, two groups of people should do two simple things:
1) Orgas of HWCon: donate Ember. Release her from "the mascot of HWCon" burden and donate her to BroniesNL - or to bronies of the NL in general. Not with half-hearted "fanart is welcome", but with an actual honest irrevocable permission, so that using that character won't be a risk. This is your chance to be generous and pony-like.
2) Orgas of BroniesNL: adopt Ember. Ask that other group of orgas for permission and do it. This is your chance to be noble-hearted and pony-like.
The rest of us: if you support the cause - create some social pressure on both of the aforementioned groups. :) You know, to help them see the light of the pony way, so that the bitterness of rivalry will not prevail. :)
I understand that this probably goes against sentimental bonds, personal affiliations and aspirations of certain people in both groups of orgas - but this is your chance to do the right thing. S03E02, if you know what I mean. Make it happen, people. Make Stroopwafeltje and Ember friends.
In the end of the day, that would be a very pony thing to do. Friendship is Magic, remember?
Seriously, the current situation, when on stage of BroniesNL orgas pretend that HWCon does not exist, and on stage of HWCon their staff pretends that BroniesNL don't exist, is just pathetic. But you have a choice: you could leave it as is for eternity, or...
Or you could amend fences. You could be (or at least act) noble, generous, forgiving. You could end this sad situation with a nice symbolic gesture. Make this happen, people: Ember and Stroopwafeltje should be friends.
Upd: I was contacted privately by the orga and got some explanations on why the situation looks the way it does, and how things are not as bad as they look like. These are good news, and I'm sorry for not believing in good will of you guys! One less obstacle to friendship then, yay :)
Orgas of BroniesNL will probably read this here. I don't know orgas of HWCon (besides David), but if you do - feel free to forward this to them.
Chat messages are transient, so here are more permanent links:
I'm not on social networks, but if you are - feel free to repost this there, and to tag relevant people.
...
Disclaimer: yes, I took the liberty of commissioning some art with those two characters without asking any permissions. I hope this is OK. Also, I could not find any "proper" descriptions of how they should look like, so please excuse me if any of it is somehow wrong, and please tell me how it is supposed to be. Yes, I know that stroopwafels do not look like that - sorry! Artists were not Dutch; I did send references, but it did not help :)
Also, there are limits to what you can commission on such a short notice. Two more commissions are still being made, and I believe those are going to be the best of the batch. Stay tuned :)
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March 21:
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March 25:
Just you look at those two, carelessly breaking the 1.5 meters rule! They aren't a family, they can't do that!
Or are they?
Yet another reminder that Ember and Stroopwaeltje should be friends. All events are cancelled, most people at home stuck at home - perfect time for pony diplomacy. Make it happen, orgas! :)