mlp Creepypastas are SO BACK (Infection AUs, Smile HD, and More!)

[@Shunks]

The art at 2:56 is actually by @anxietymonstrr, the watermark shown is from a reupload, my apologies 😅

[@Communistphilippines]

It's ok

[@renamon5658]

The mlp creepypastas are back to give a new generation nightmares

[@nasinnarcotics]

Speaking of “a new generation” I find it interesting that I see none of this energy for g5! I wonder if gen alpha will end up growing up more with g4 than g5 because queer teens and young adults are still hooked on FIM?

[@renamon5658]

@@nasinnarcotics i am shock that there are no g5 creepypastas.

[@Lucienchol]

@@nasinnarcotics Tbh I'm not surprised, you need to do a lot of fixing of the base story of g5 to make anything interesting/terrifying which is the only type of horror I've seen come from g5. Doing What If scenarios of what would cause Twilight to do such drastic measures...

[@TheOGLime]

@@renamon5658 I'm not. G5 is just not as compelling as G4 is.

[@Sparkle8205]

as they should hehe and yeah, g5 isn’t that good, g4 was peak tbh (though i’m also biased bc i grew up with it)

[@revelare_xvii6269]

“The Cough” walked so “Infection AU” could spread.

[@h5voc]

real

[@ayeslpirninsev]

Oh yeah right that one.

[@thesergalladaf6902]

That sounds horrifying.

[@Victoria-_]

Yup lol

[@UnusualYikes]

9:56 I got you bro! 🫡

[@MsBabydice]

ITS YOU!THE ONE WHO MADE THAT CAREBEAR SMILE HD VIDEO!good job!😀

[@thedotgiver2820]

.

[@Tuvandalist]

unusualyikes SPOTTED

[@chocolateplushy]

I have a theory where im pretty sure the people now making parodies of smile hd and the infection aus were kids who saw the old creepypastas and are trying to reclaim/reimagine what they knew as kids.

[@asleepyb0i400]

Or trying to heal their inner child that was scarred LOL

[@CoolattasLab]

I think a big part of why the Infection AU stuff is so widespread is because SO MUCH horror recently has been based on "ooohh innocent thing but EVIL and FUCKED UP!!!" Especially Analog Horror, they seem to borrow from it a lot. Some of it is actually pretty cool and feels like more than just Edgy Shock Value schlock like a lot of old MLP horror

[@L0rdOfThePies]

Recently? Innocent thing but evil and fucked up is a horror staple at this point honestly

[@strayiggytv]

Is it better though? It just sounds like younger people are cool with this because they made it. It's the sand edgelord horror stuff bronies did lol

[@ClowncoreisCool]

​@@strayiggytvI kinda disagree, when I was a kid most of the grimdarks were maybe one or two gold bits in a sea of "torture p//rn for the sake of it". Nowadays, it feels like they're at least *trying* to give it more substance, y'know?

[@strayiggytv]

@@ClowncoreisCool some of them are but then again some of them were back then too. It's always going to vary in quality and I don't think it's fair for the same fans who cried over smile hd to now see nothing wrong with the gorey infection AUs floating around. Sure some have content warnings but I've seen quite a few on TikTok that don't and let's not pretend kids don't ignore content warnings.

[@ClowncoreisCool]

@@strayiggytvI acknowledged that it always varied in quality but I partially disagreed that it was to the same level as it once was. Wdym, it's not fair??? Those people were most likely kids when smile HD came out (if we're assuming they're all Gen Z) and are now teens and adults, so of course their view of horror content would change. Neither comment mentioned content warnings. Either way, it's one thing for something to not be tagged where kids can easily access it, I'm glad the need for shock value was at least somewhat dying. However, to go "But think of the children! >:(" while talking about how they avoid CWs knowingly doesn't really make sense to me ngl.

[@tonefloat]

The venn diagram between the people who grew up traumatized from mlp content and the people who are making mr davie remakes and infection aus is a circle

[@TheCommenterDragon]

The mlp Creepypastas may have returned, But hey they've become just as big a part as the mlp fanfiction community as any other type of fanfiction.

[@SunIsLost]

Eeyup

[@miawmiawgary2024]

Hello again! :)

[@RiddleSquared]

i dont know if anyone has mentioned this before but before the mlp infection aus became a thing, there was this small tiktok trend to photoshop mlp characters into realistic backgrounds. it would be like fluttershy and twilight playing while in some weird dystopian looking building. it was generally creepy or nostalgic. there were multiple accounts doing this and it reminds me a lot of the mlp infection aus. they might even be the originator of the infection trend.

[@SunIsLost]

Yea

[@vexusvexed]

I was NOT expecting that clapback against Thanksgiving, but BOY is it welcome.

[@McBean1331]

I know right.

[@lilyanida]

we are so back as an veteran mlp fan they shall has my blessing to traumatize the new generation with the mlp infection au

[@Gustoberg]

As a non english speaking kid, for me ALL of the mlp fandom was SMILE HD, cupcakes, fufflepuff, and those "mlp meets ..." animations, literally, I never watched it until recently, and I built a whole expectation in my head of this cool show with horror, crossovers and sad backstories lol.

[@SunIsLost]

Yea

[@NightTheKittenn]

The infection AU trend has been slowly leaking into other fandoms too, I’ve also seen it with Trolls, Warrior Cats, and even Creepypasta characters! I love seeing what everyone comes up with! It’s a deep deep rabbithole to jump into, and it gets deeper every day because people are consistently making new videos. I can see the trend keeping strong for a while, and I hope it does, everyone has been so creative.

[@woodman3926]

You could almost say it’s… spreading into other fandoms 😉

[@BethanyWaler]

it it got warrior cats, what’s next, Wings of Fire?😭

[@lary_uwu6027]

I saw vocaloid already

[@cajunking5987]

All the girl fandoms

[@juliagoodwin9510]

Why the hell are people so fond of traumatizing our inner children? Okay, I was an adult when g4 came out, but that's not the point.

[@gearboxsys9313]

I think one thing that differentiates the current era from the past stuff is that most people put clear trigger warnings on their horror content. Of course that doesn't necessarily mean that kids won't look at it, but I remember a lot of the past stuff relied on shock value, setting it up as if it's a harmless happy pony story before swerving into the gore. So the warnings will probably help at least somewhat

[@woodman3926]

Agreed. Actually stating that “THIS IS HORROR CONTENT” is much better than going in blind hoping it’s all okay

[@NotALotOfColonial_SpaghettiToG]

I appreciate that, but I've still seen a lot of grammar issues suggesting young children, and a sort of weird smugness from some Gen Zers about Gen Alpha getting traumatized too, which is not okay.

[@gearboxsys9313]

@@NotALotOfColonial_SpaghettiToG I mean bad grammar isn't exclusive to kids, there are plenty of reasons why older people may struggle with it too (ie disabilities, english not being their native language, etc), but I'm sure there are still some kids who are seeing stuff that they're too young for. Unfortunately that's kinda just a universal truth, that's going to happen, especially on the internet. Even when given warnings, plenty of kids will be curious or confident that they can handle it, but at that point it's in the kids' hands, the adults did their part. And it's possible that some of these kids *are* able to handle it, especially because it doesn't have the shock value of things like Cupcakes or Smile HD. The people making MLP horror content now are very clearly saying "hey kids this isn't meant for you", and if a kid ignores that then ultimately there's not much that can be done there and it's kinda the kid's own fault (and it's definitely not the adult's fault). Adults acting smug about kids being traumatised is definitely bad though, that's pretty fucked up yeah

[@mick6247]

It’s probably because a lot people making horror mlp horror now, grew up with mlp horror, like smile HD pinkemena rainbow factory ,little Mrs rarity.and a lot of these never had warnings so you’d just click on whatever mlp video you see and also they’d make the beginning of the videos to seem as kid friendly as possible so they wouldn’t click on it before its to late . And now people are making trigger warnings and warning before hand. A lot more then the adults back in early 2010s did for us bro 😭

[@chloesibilla8199]

Another wave of parents who "had no idea" their kid was finding this stuff on the news starting another moral panic.

[@ImmaLittlePip]

Something tells me decades from now I'm gonna be 50 years old and G7 is gonna come out and I"ll hear about wave 4 of MLP Creepypasta's making a huge comeback lol

[@lambybunny7173]

11:05 the parasite thing is definitely a concern. When I was a kid I was obsessed with monsters inside me on animal planet which lead to my then undiagnosed OCD latching onto the idea of parasites being a common thing to worry about. I can't swim in lakes now without tearing brain eating amoebas... :(

[@arielruh7773]

I did and have the same 😮‍💨😰

[@lusaminefushiguro5332]

The infection AUs spread like wildfire it is amazing. Some people have gotten quite creative with it. My favorites are the ones that don't have Fluttershy dying first cause they acknowledge she actually has solid defenses. Some of Flutterbat is still in her,she communicates with animals,and most importantly she got DISCORD. There's this one where the whole concept is how Discord has become animalistic but is as loyal as ever to Fluttershy,and she's become this coldhearted mare who ends the life of anyone the second signs of infection pop up,which may be extreme but hey here refuge is indeed one of the safest places in all Equestria thanks to it. Many comments agreed on it being treated as Fluttershy's kindness taking a turn,with the concept of mercy killing and all

[@misshulabuloothe1st953]

What might be the name of the au in your second paragraph?👀

[@samuraitadpole5459]

I understand why it's your favorite

[@Kyezoar]

I always do find horror AUs somewhat interesting, ESPECIALLY if it's a damn good/original concept

[@kennysdirtyhoodie3459]

All I ask for the new wave of creepy mlp content is to make sure to give good warnings to kids. Cause we all like to joke about how we got traumatized by mlp horror when we were kids but some of us really really were traumatized and I would hate for us to continue the cycle with the next gen of kids. It’s not our responsibility to keep kids off the internet or make it safe for them but we still need to put warnings on things

[@ClowncoreisCool]

Honestly, new horror makers are much better than the old ones when it comes to warnings. I know kids aren't exactly fragile but I feel like it's just more considerate to have a warning than just try to emulate shocking content from the earlier days of the internet. :/

[@spaceravine8751]

i actually agree w/u 100% not even just for kids, but some content (not specifically mlp creepypastas) has genuinely triggering stuff in it, like stuff related to abuse and assault n shit. it genuinely makes me fkng mad when i watch something and there's absolutely NO trigger warning for the most DISGUSTING shit!! like bro, just put a lil message before fr

[@funnatopia704]

Children who are young enough to be part of MLPs targeted age demographic aren’t old enough to be anywhere near the internet, period. It’s a shame that we as a society haven’t figured that out yet.

[@ceilingfan6969]

Yes !! I think the horror aspects of the fandom being more dominant than the more gross/NSFW aspects is already a good start, but I have seen quite a few horror mlp videos without warning and it disappoints me. I see a trend in people trying to justify this by explaining that they don't like the trends the new generation have to grow up with, but this really isn't an excuse and it's shocking to me how so many people of our generation genuinely believe that the kids of the next generation need to grow up exactly how we did on the internet. Yes, the direction the new generation is headed in terms of trends and online influences isn't entirely good, but having some odd superiority complex over the fact and believing that exposing children to some media that we shouldn't have been exposed to so young to reverse this or "save them" just isn't okay !

[@kiplee-musicgirl23]

Rainbott has done a remake of Muffins and Lil Miss Rarity, now called Icing on the cake and Lil Miss Vouge. You should definitely check out their videos on those

[@aaronymous9]

If nobody else does this I’m definitely going to but my FAVORITE infection AU and the only one I found genuinely unnerving is mrsgendered on instagram’s AU. I don’t have Tik Tok though so I may be biased here… but his AU has such genuinely gorgeous and terrifying art with very good uses of negative and positive space in the black and white comics he posts in the form of reels. He also has been taking requests/commissions ( not sure which one- ) to create the second style of video, which is just a health status with little bits of lore for people’s OCs and it’s really cool. The story is very much slowly progressing and in Instagram Q&A’s they imply that the story may not be told chronologically. The person making these is an adult who has clearly been drawing for so many years and it shows. He also made his own original designs for all the characters that are beautiful. And I love how this AU doesn’t rely on tons of blood and guts, there is VERY little blood. The only thing close is how the fourth stage infected ponies are incredibly skinny and you can see their organs but since the fourth stage infected ponies are only in black and white it’s far less gross out than it would be otherwise. I’m not going to spoil which of the main six was infected first but she remains a looming background threat in the videos and it’s so fascinating. I also like how in comparison to other AUs, the characters are written the same. They’re still written as if they’re in a children’s show with their normal personalities. This feels like one of the My Little Pony writers went rouge and made something that while not looking like it came from the show, feels like something the characters would say and do in the scenario. And because it’s implied that the stage four infected ponies are entirely mute, you don’t get any cringey evil ( insert pony here ) dialogue. But anyways I would highly recommend it and will probably make a video on it before March if no one else does-? It also updates every single day without fail so your brainrot of silly MLP infection AU can be satisfied lol.

[@strawb3rrymi1k_]

i was just about to mention theirs! i check in on it every now and then and i'm always impressed by the artwork and story depth. and i'm not even a horror fan, or that knowledgeable about my little pony!

[@Makakaka]

I felt like SpongeBob when I see my video on Shunks newest video. THERE I AM GARY!!

[@theRCenby]

i feel like the au's are different than creepypasta cuz theres not just one story, like creepypasta. each pasta is or uas just one story. sure there are spin offs and stuff of them but theres usually only one; whereas the infection au's seem to be infinite. eveeyone has a different story to tell, all with art or animation. its super creative and i LOVE them, the au's and og creepypastas. to me, theyre 2 different things/genres bur theyre both really great

[@grapegardens9923]

I mean, to be fair, I think this is in part due to changing attitudes on fanfiction? Back in the day, the My Little Pony fandom tended to treat fanfics as pretty much a "fandom mythology", and people generally saw zero issue with just using and referencing people's fanfics without permission. But now in days, people tend to see using other people's fanfiction directly without their permission as rude, and while people generally still think it's fine to reference old MLP creepypastas do to the grandfather clause (effectively, the same reason why people still make fun of My Immortal even though jokes at the expense of bad fanfic are generally viewed as cruel now), infection AUs aren't treated the same way do to them being newer, so people make their own takes on the infection AU concept instead of just straight up using someone else's AU. ...I hope I explained that in a way that made a lick of sense.

[@Corvibug]

HEOLO HELLO IM ONE OF THE ARTIST IN ANOTHER APPLE SLEEP EXPERIMENT it had been such a joy to work on this omg. Everybody worked so hard

[@mk-aka-morgan8386]

I’m glad people are able to reimagine these stories now that they’re adults, I just hope we don’t traumatized another generation because of weird mlp stuff 🥺🥺🥺

[@jamstarr]

the fuckin jim cummings and disney comparisons had me howling HOW DO THE METAPHORS WORK SO DAKJ WELL

[@-A_random_artistt-]

I will say the virus au’s have reached fandoms like trolls, warrior cats and even spungebob

[@funnatopia704]

Holy shit the trolls movies has a fandom?

[@VALESTARRT]

​@funnatopia704 Always has. Recently, they've grown larger due to the sequels

[@whoreburguer]

​@@funnatopia704yes it does and it got way more bigger after the third movie

[@maravreloaded]

It's pretty much happening the same that happened months ago with the Ben 10 fandom. It was revived by a horny AU but also a gorey AU. And MLP never died in the horny side of the web.

[@laraprisma6381]

5:35 Trolls Infected AU spotted!!

[@Chained_Rosez]

I absolutely love how Hasbro is providing us with a new generation. And yet we all seem to be enjoying g4

[@Nanachi0000]

Not only that, but I've also been noticing that a lot more bronys and also bronys from the old community have been returning back to the fandom which is kind of cool. The entirety of the brony fandom is slowly but surely being revived.

[@waffie6785]

our childhood is coming back' creepypastas are making a comeback. They've always had a dedicated fanbase over the years but now it seems like there is an resurgence in popularity. Some of this can be attributed to the resurgence of the mlp fandom in general, but I think there's also an element of nostalgia and appreciation for the nostalgic creepiness. These factors have come together to create a perfect storm for mlp Creepypastas to make a comeback. i remember when they were super popular back in like 2012 or something but watching them was always such a fun way to explore the darker side of MLP.

[@Lakeside80]

MLP fandom got me into art, and I love seeing it flourish all over again. That aerozoophobia one looks cool. There's something about MLP creepy pastas that feel so safe to get into. I think it's the fact it's cool dark concepts and then it's just 'with ponies!' that makes it digestible.

[@toodless8]

The ones who were traumatized are now the ones traumatizing others🥰😇

[@Spacebun236]

I literally checked your channel for this video and when I got the notification I immediately clicked But on the topic my favorite infection au’s is the Divine Swamp Fever, the smile cookie virus, my little toothache, and this one where it gets very gory and ends with them turning into these tiny versions of themselves

[@quinnhouk5369]

What’s My Little Toothache?

[@Spacebun236]

@@quinnhouk5369 from what I’ve seen Celestia is the first to be infected and the theory is that discord started it because the gore happens to be candy like licorice guts and cotton candy coming out of them hence the name my little toothache

[@PastelMilk88888]

theres one called rainbow radiation its pretty good lol

[@quinnhouk5369]

@@Spacebun236 wow

[@Angelz_Gate]

"Well, it's official... the ponies are killing each other again." phenomenal intro

[@santi_0823]

NOO I GOTTA GO TO BED AND WATCH THIS TOMMOROW 😭😭

[@KitAster]

Lol same

[@steamrollerboi16]

Something like this happened in the Thomas the tank engine fandom called Sodor Fallout made by a guy who I think is gone now but basically a nuclear thing explodes and we follow Edward and his crew and see what happen to the other engines, Like Oliver is a beast, Thomas is deformed, and lots are dead , but it gets worst when the younger members made their own AU's and made it a joke wasn't even that scary.

[@avainspired]

Yay! My childhood trauma is back!!! (i was scared of my pinkie pie toy at the ripe age of 9 after watching smile cupcakes HD... 3 years later i become an mlp creepypasta writer in middle school 😭)

[@minoriiida465]

4:44 Yeah, the one with the pure black pony looking at the sky with "I got overnight shipping just for you babe" -m That's the Mordetwi meme.

[@Jxmie1029]

I actually looked into my little worms and other horror AU's! loved all of them! and i love your channel shunks!

[@Purified-Orangefanta]

Found it!!!!

[@That_littlekitty]

Found it!!!!!!

[@FR3EDOM_0]

gotchas

[@FR3EDOM_0]

DAMN TYPO

[@ByrdcageentLLC]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤hiiiiiiiiiiii uncle james

[@buffydoesstuff5978]

9:10, I get that it’s because it looks so much like the show and really professional but THE Lullaby for a Princess ANIMATION by WarpOut IS FIIIIREE

[@strayiggytv]

Ehh lullaby for a princess is less polished looking objectively. The song though is absolute fire

[@RariYork]

Your yak OC is always such a vibe to look at 😊 Anyways thought i would say that before i continue watching the video

[@0E1M1]

i'm not sure if this infection apocalypse ideia was done way before, but there is a really unknow LISA The Painful fangame called "Elements of Justice" that is basically the whole infection ideia done way back in like 2018/2020 (i'm not sure when the game was really made) the game is pretty short and has nothing really amazing, it's just the fact that it's kinda similar to the trend now but was done way before.

[@Charlottedapup]

There’s actually a version of Smile HD with Steve from Minecraft, with Sonic, Megaman, and Foxy the Pirate in it, but it’s lost media and I’m really sad about it, because it was literally funny, there’s abit of evidence of its existence, plus the creator of it was Topaz-The-CrossCat73

[@timsplosion]

2:56 Just so we're clear - the cookie virus AU, specifically the one pictured at this timecode, was created by anxietymonstrr. The account pictured in the screenshot is just a repost spam account that just uploads other people's videos.

[@keelanbarron928]

8:11 fun fact, "the friendship test" has nothing to do with cupcakes. It's it own thing.

[@ImmaLittlePip]

My favorite Brony youtuber/MLP content creator? lol anyway shes back with more great videos

[@Kawaiipony_Productions]

I'm honestly glad the Mlp horror scene is back. Last year, I found Rainbott's video on the Muffins Saga. And after that video, I got obsessed with Muffins as well as the Mlp horror scene as a whole. And it's honestly really cool. I do hope that this renaissance of sorts lasts a good while cause a lot of people have been gaining so much recognition from it all.

[@VALESTARRT]

Me too! I was hoping there would be more re-written classic grim-dark fics, but these AUs are fun

[@Kawaiipony_Productions]

@@VALESTARRTyeah, they are. I do hope that more classic grimdarks are rewritten too. Rainbott already did that with Little Miss Rarity and the Muffins Saga, so it's something I guess. Still, hope to see more like that soon too.

[@inkedmyths2038]

I don't use TikTok, but I can at least confirm the concepts have also taken off with the Tumblr crowd! I've seen a lot of really fun ideas on there, both following these more classic horror concepts while others put a more fantastical twist on them Personally I find myself a big fan of some of them! Not all of them, mind you, because some I think fall into the old creepypasta trap of relying far too much on the "shock value". But a lot of them delve into interesting character dynamics and stories, and I find myself fascinated by it.

[@justcallmeluke7254]

Weirdly enough these where my childhood and I love to see the creepy creativity come back. The main reason I enjoyed mlp so much was the community.

[@knifekisser]

i was, without a doubt, TRAUMATISED by the creepypastas back then, but now that the infection stuff has become popular, ive absolutely adored it. ive been making my own aus, my own art and storylines, my own characters etc. its just fun to toy with the many infections that something/someone can get. its so creative.

[@myquirkisfred9614]

I personally like these infection aus, and for the most part, there are proper warnings on these slides/vids

[@evaundertale2247]

The difference between the mlp horror now and before is now people actually putting warnings and more the og cupcakes and smile hd didn't have those warnings and also thumbnails look like a safe thing to click on at the time

[@squidboitoys]

I saw a weed Virus au where Pinkie pie gets everyone addicted to weed and and everyone gets high all the time.

[@surrealsweets8741]

She gave them the forever weed brownie 💀

[@zilikslider]

I don't get how people say bronies traumatized them back then only to make creepy au stuff like that, just pointing it out, I'm just curious.

[@maravreloaded]

I mean. That's stupid. Kids LOVE edgy dark twists of their childhood characters. Why else *_Squidward Goes to Switzerland_* became so popular?

[@Slushea]

MLP horror just decided to pull a springtrap

[@pistachioinlove2862]

This fandom never really dies does it

[@pasteldoll7274]

anther big difference between these and the old stuff is a lot of mlp infection content as a content warning.

[@thedancingwolfs]

perfect video to go with my meatloaf dinner

[@Squincy.B]

We’re so back!

[@Wublingify]

i have been eating SO good during this whole mlp horror renaissance. of course i was originally one of those kids that got morbidly curious one day online and couldn't think of Pinkie Pie quite the same for awhile after, but now that i actually like getting a lil creeped out, it feels so nostalgic. i do think whether or not we can/should keep the target audience of children away from these stories is a genuine conversation to have. a lot of the popular infection stories (at least from what i've seen) try to be careful about using warnings and such so that kids don't get jumpscared by intense gore on their fyp. but the fact that tiktok is the main outlet for these things does concern me in the way tiktok's format concerns me in general. i love using it as much as the next gen z college student, but the fact that you have so little input in what you see, that it's just an endless algorithmic scroll, means that curating your own experience is near impossible. so if you don't like these kinds of things, it's hard to keep it from popping up. but since it's been so successful for tiktok to work this way, it's just not gonna change. i think the only thing we can really do is keep using content warnings when we post, and either keep young kids away from the app (which they have no business being on anyway) or at least supervise their time on it. but of course, supervising children's online experience is so much easier said than done. i do not envy today's parents :')

[@mick6247]

What I really love is the generation who grew up on my little pony horror like pinkimena, smile HD, rainbow factory , little Mrs rarity , are now making their own horror , and you can really see where they were inspired by the og horror.

[@LocalTBZFan]

Me when Unusual Yikes: **throws myself to the screen** Seriously tho I love his content, with Care Bears being some part of my childhood (kinda) and also OBJECT SHOWS like I’m obsessed with them so ofc I love that too-

[@moonbunny24]

Can I just say I love the new... branding I guess? The setup with the TV is EXCELLENT for a nostalgia channel!

[@Velvetzienz]

I’ve been in love with mlp horror since the cupcake days I’m happy it’s come back and it’s probably better since we are all grown up now

[@hyenagore2982]

I always find it interesting that so many of us were traumatised by grown men sexualising and making vile horror and gore of mlp who now do infection au stuff. Feels like a reclamation

[@coyotix]

I saw Diamonds HD on my recommendations a bit ago, and my first thought looking at the thumbnail was "Please god let this be a new creepypasta video." When it turned out to be a new creepypasta animation, I _REJOICED._ Absolutely loved it. More please.

[@debgenerate]

I wasn't able to get into the infection AU until I saw the videos by etc.etcetera (or Chloe). Some of the things that they create are super horrifying and genuinely scary.

[@kyletatore4575]

its nostalgic and I'm happy I'm old enough to participate this time around ❤

[@preachta]

Me when shunks: YEEAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

[@shimerrill967]

Cupcakes and Apple Sleep Experiment are my favorite.. so far

[@erinthedemonhog2090]

I discovered this a bit ago when i stumbled upon a video about Swamp Fever & I was intrigued by it. It was pretty interesting.

[@mc.gemstone]

I love seeing this new wave of creativity with these new MLP horror AUs but as long as there are warnings and disclaimers then it's fine. I feel like no matter what happens every generation is gonna witness the horrors of the internet and its not gonna go away any time soon. As long as they know what's fiction and whats not.

[@dwightdeisenhowerfangirl]

my little worms also revealed that princess cadence was pregnant, presumably by the stuff she did with shining armor's body 😭

[@Ayame.Spicer]

Haven’t been in the MLP fandom since I was a kid, but I’m a huge fan of horror so turning a kids show into the stuff of nightmares is my jam.

[@SketchDevil]

Listen here. About what you said about the old days of the MLP fandom including the creepy pasta and horror stories made by the fandom. Sure trauma isn't exactly that good, but these stories aren't real; they're made up. Besides that, children are extremely easy to scare especially at a younger age. Fear is a good thing to experience, especially throughout your lifetime. Without fear we don't know how to handle things that scare us. Without fear we become weak and intolerant to anything that makes us scared in the future. Fear can be a good thing and can help us deal with the situations that we need to deal with on a daily basis. Sure a lot of those stories are meant to be scary, or meant to be gory, or are meant to fantasize what shouldn't normally be fantasized. But this world on the internet was not meant for children to begin with. The fact that they're on at a young age without supervision is more a fault of the parents. And furthermore, if we continuously coddle the children around us and continuously protect them when they don't need to be protected, then what's likely going to happen is they will grow into adults who do not know how to handle anything to do with fear and will likely end up falling into a pit of anxiety and not be able to get out of it so easily. Knowledge might be the thing that can destroy us, but a lack of knowledge can only make us dumber and while sure ignorance is bliss, a lack of experience with negativity in a safe place can make it harder to deal with negativity in reality when it is actually there. Parents these days have become less responsible for teaching their child how to navigate the world and instead choose to first drop their kids in front of a tv, now in front of a tablet, and the world has been catering to that. As a result those kids end up growing up in a world that caters to sedation, ignorance, and stupidity rather than learning. People have gotten use to chasing the next serotonin high and have stopped being able to deal with the discomfort that comes with actually doing something about it. I don't think we need to censor things and make things that are scary less prominent. We need to teach them about these things, and teach them how to handle things, and teach them to be smarter. Otherwise the world is going to become dumber and dumber and we're going to suffer for it.

[@TheCaptainsAntics]

I like to think about how scary fairytales used to be and I see creepy pastas sort of like modern day fairytales in the same way that urban legends was an earlier evolution, particularly with these infection AUs. They seem like a manifestation of today's anxieties and are an attempt to deal with those concepts. While I feel like some kids might be a little traumatized if they stumble across some of these, ultimately I think it might lead to adults that take global pandemics a little more seriously. And to be fair there's evidence to support that exposing kids to scary fairytales allows them to learn the skills necessary to deal with negative emotions within the safe confines of fiction. A good parent that can go through what they experienced with the child can help them take away a positive lesson from it. And I'll be honest, if a parent is too busy to pay attention to their child, then they might need a little wake up call and deal with actually helping guide their child through life, even if it's just a little bit. But like you, I don't believe in censorship either. I do think that parents should make sure they don't carelessly expose their child to things they aren't ready for. But I also believe that things like these can be an opportunity to explore difficult things, especially before they grow to adulthood and maybe even before they become teenagers; before their independence becomes too great for their parents to realize they need to bridge that gap and help teach their child how to confront fear with understanding. To face those difficult emotions before their lack of experience leaves them overwhelmed and drives them to run away from greater fears like facing their parents for the things they did or did not do and more importantly the fear of facing what they might think of themselves.

[@invaderlumen]

i think its a good thing the creepypastas are back, it all was a fun way for young artists and writers to attempt writing a horror story despite the nightmares some may have gotten

[@PolnareffsLeftNut]

This isn't my original thought since I heard it from someone else, but one of the possible reasons mlp horror has come back is because the kids who were the ORIGINAL target audience for mlp have since grown up, including myself. I think the fandom died super prematurely since the fandom was really just bronies. The og target audience didn't really have a chance to engage with the fandom since we were just too young, but now we can.

[@misatchi]

The original mlp creepypastas never got me too interested. I'm in my 30s and the Infection AUs can be deeply unnerving, especially bc some of the infections are based on canon. Its just so interesting and fun. (And yes, I was one of the 20 year olds watching MLP. )

[@mick6247]

One thing I like about these new creators is since most grew up on mlp horror , there’s some references to the og horror videos and It honestly makes me feel nostalgic in a way. They seem to mostly reference little Mrs rarity that I see . Rarity and her cat are always going through somthing in these situations 💀

[@Scriblyn]

The old traumatising MLP stuff always looked cute and innocent before it tricked you with a bunch of the gorey stuff. The current MLP stuff is kinda scary right off the bat with the music and presentation, so any kids not wanting to see it will probably steer clear. I also notice that kids tend to love horror! And also, kids today don't seem to care much for MLP anyway. So really, I am not so worried about how this will effect them. Kids are smart and know fact from fiction now

[@lilhedgehog8576]

I like your characters design. He looks chill. Something about those eyelids, they’re half closed but they’re also purple and for some reason half closed and purple eyelids just convey chill….. 🤷‍♀️ I see it in cartoons all the time. I love cartoons.

[@Kligor2]

Honestly I really like the Cookie Virus one! The rest are good too but they feel either too simple or to complex. I also love the designs some people make for each infected either the ones like the ponies turning into trees or how some just contort and become the embodiment of uncanny!

[@Synark25]

To any writers or au makers reading this, since this is on the topic of infection AUs I'd like to kindly ask to spread this to other fandoms . spread the infection au trope ! go little ones! wreck havoc across fandoms! write gore for your favorite characters!

[@UltraCenterHQ]

9:14 I mean, a single person can do that too given time. Just look at Narmak. He's been doing a whole SpongeBob anime for just a meme. Openings and endings everything

[@snafubravado]

i gotta say i dont think kids are gonna be traumatized by these in the same way. there are so many more content guidelines in place than there used to be and i really haven't seen anything nearly as /intense/ as the kinda stuff that messed me up, if that makes any sense ? also could be because im a whole adult now but idk i can't imagine getting too messed up on a website where you can't even say the unalive word =/

[@sephirothspasta7214]

i like the one infection au where they all grow branches and if u touch it the spore attaches to u

[@SparrowsN3st]

I have been HYPED for Another Apple Sleep Experiment since it was announced and im so excited for the final part! Their world building and character writting is amazing IMO and i, personally, draw inspiration from that grimdark when making my own mlp horror crap :p

[@OrangeSpaceNewt]

Apple Sleep Experiment made my skin crawl, its like two levels below The Story fo the Blanks, where that made me cry because TSOTB was a sad kind of horror

[@faradaycycles9668]

4:09 I’ve heard from frommi’s video that the uh.. the ponies connected to each other at the right corner may have been made using real g0r3 so uh.. might wanna blur that

[@withercat]

The thing that gets me about the aus is how much it reminds me of the story "and hell followed" on fimfiction back in 2021 that has a still being published sequel "babel"

[@ceilingfan6969]

I think a lot of this horror art coming from a generation that had been impacted by this horror side of the fandom while they were still young is also very telling. With the themes of "traumacore" and the liminal spaces, a lot of the reach this content is getting could be very nostalgia based, as I personally do feel nostalgic seeing these so many years after the horror era of mlp.

[@feralangel333]

Hello! I’m a child so I guess I could explain what we think about this situation (I guess I’m not quite a good example though) So, from what I can tell I know nobody who watches MLP FIM anymore (I do though TwT) so, I don’t believe that any children with tiktok get very traumatized by this (I know about this but I already liked horror before so I’m not a good example)

[@mayowhishes]

I'm too scared to watch the new scary things but they look really fun ! I'm glad to see the niche thrive

[@Spaghettioz666]

0:28 jumped for joy

[@jarrajada]

derpy gets pranked memory just hit me so hard holy moly

[@Nyax50Lopez]

OH yeah btw for those who dont know yet, there is an infection called the WEED INFECTION. based on the meme of a mlp oc called Stoney Pony, the marijuana addicted horse. AND YES THEY ADDED THE FOREVER WEED BROWNIE IN THE STORY 😭😭😭

[@mickeymouse-eb2qv]

Mlp infection AUs are gonna the nest Sodor Fallout MARK. MY. WORDS.

[@mickeymouse-eb2qv]

For those curious Sodor Fallout was a series made by Tidmoththunderbolt about a nuclear fallout happening on Sodor and Thomas and co have weird mutations such as extra eyeballs or some are just straight up ded