What is Pony Reactions?

Pony Reactions is a family of reaction images built from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic characters, with subtypes like Shrugpony, Crying Pony, Disgusted Pony, and Oh You covering different expressions.

Where did Pony Reactions come from?

The series started with DeviantArt user MegaSweet's shrugging Pinkie Pie outline titled "lol idunno," posted to 4chan's /co/ board on December 12, 2010.

What does Pony Reactions mean?

Each subtype is a visual reply, with Shrugpony standing in for "I dunno LOL," Disgusted Pony carrying an "Ew X" bubble, and Crying Pony used for sad or overly cute posts.

How do you use Pony Reactions?

Artists typically take an existing template like Shrugpony or Oh You and swap the character while keeping the pose and layout, then post the image as a reply on forums or boards like Ponychan and Equestria Daily.

Is Pony Reactions still popular?

The format is a classic of the early Friendship is Magic fandom, with a run of new subtypes that peaked through spring and summer 2011 across DeviantArt, Ponychan, and YouTube.

Pony Reactions

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Published September 23, 2026

Pony Reactions is a family of image macros built from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic characters, and it kicked off when DeviantArt user MegaSweet posted a shrugging Pinkie Pie outline titled "lol idunno" to 4chan's /co/ board on December 12, 2010. That single Shrugpony template spawned a fandom-wide reaction library that grew to cover Crying Pony, Disgusted Pony, and Oh You through the first half of 2011.

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Overview

Each Pony Reactions subtype pins one character to one expression while keeping the layout stable across variants4. Shrugpony catches a pony mid-shrug and works as a stand in for "I dunno LOL," Crying Pony pairs a filly aged character with a caption reacting to something sad or overly cute, and Disgusted Pony frames a pony in profile with an "Ew X" speech bubble. The Oh You subtype shows a pony pointing off to the side at whoever posted the thing being teased.

The design was made to be easy to redraw, and that low art barrier is why the Pony Reactions library kept growing. MegaSweet's original Pinkie Pie shrug was a plain outline that any tablet-armed brony could copy, so Equestria Daily and Ponychan threads through early 2011 filled with the same handful of poses redone across dozens of cast members and OCs3.

Gallery

Origin & Background

Platform

4chan /co/ (source) / DeviantArt (spread)

Creator

MegaSweet

Date

2010

DeviantArt user MegaSweet posted the original shrug outline of Pinkie Pie, titled "lol idunno," to 4chan's /co/ board on December 12, 2010, then uploaded it to his DeviantArt account within a few days4. The caption "I dunno LOL" was already a well worn chat throwaway on English forums, which primed the image to work as a reaction face rather than a punchline on its own.

MegaSweet later extended the Pony Reactions series with the Disgusted Pony template featuring Lyra, uploaded to Ponibooru on May 13, 2011. Other artists filled out the rest of the library, with DeviantArt user Dreatos drawing a four part filly Octavia comic whose 14th panel Keanno cut into the animated Crying Pony gif that then spun off dozens of character remixes.

How It Spread

Shrugpony traveled fastest because the pose was easy to redraw and every character in the show was fair game. Through early 2011 the shrug template kept surfacing on Equestria Daily posts and Ponychan threads with new characters plugged into the same outline3. YouTuber monketron cut a montage of shrugging ponies to Eric Prydz's "Call on Me" on April 2, 2011, which pushed the Pony Reactions format off static image boards and into video edits1.

Related subtypes stacked up through the spring. DeviantArt user Starshinesprint posted the first Oh You image using Fluttershy on April 4, 2011 and put it up on Ponibooru. The "Insane Pinkie Pie" pose showed up on Ponychan on June 3, 2011 and got attached to the Cupcakes fanfic as a reply face4. Additional fan reaction compilations for the format kept cycling on YouTube through 20112.

The dedicated site MyLittleFaceWhen later became a searchable archive for ponified reaction faces, mixing show screencaps with original fan edits and giving the community a single place to grab a matching reply image.

Timeline

2010-12-12

DeviantArt user MegaSweet posts the original Shrugpony outline of Pinkie Pie titled "lol idunno" to 4chan's /co/ board.

2011-04-02

YouTuber monketron uploads a loop of shrugging ponies set to Eric Prydz's "Call on Me," pushing the format into video.

2011-04-04

Starshinesprint posts the first Oh You reaction image, featuring Fluttershy pointing off to the side.

2011-05-13

MegaSweet's Disgusted Pony template, featuring Lyra with an "Ew X" bubble, is uploaded to Ponibooru.

2011-06-03

The "Insane Pinkie Pie" pose surfaces on Ponychan and gets tied to the Cupcakes fanfic as a reaction face.

How to Use This Meme

To make a Pony Reactions image, artists typically start from an existing template like the Shrugpony outline or the Oh You pose and swap in a different My Little Pony character or original OC while keeping the expression and layout consistent. Disgusted Pony often includes an "Ew X" text bubble aimed at whatever is being reacted to, though the bubble is common convention rather than a rule and can be dropped for matching purposes. Crying Pony and the Insane Pinkie Pie face usually stand on their own without added text.