'My Little Pony' Sets Ninth and Final Season on Discovery Family

The ninth and final season of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic will premiere April 6 on Discovery Family.


The cable network said the final 26 episodes will air starting at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, April 6, and also will stream live and on demand on Discovery Family GO, the network’s TV Everywhere app.


In addition, Patton Oswalt and "Weird Al" Yankovic will reprise their roles as "Quibble Pants" and "Cheese Sandwich," respectively, in the upcoming season, which also will feature new original songs and new characters.


The animated series, produced by Allspark Animation, also will air its 200th episode April 20, with Twilight Sparkle and her big brother, Shining Armor, pitting their wits against each other to settle a long-standing sibling rivalry score.


My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, which debuted in 2010, centers on the characters from the long-running Hasbro toy line. The show follows the magical Princess Twilight Sparkle and her trusted dragon assistant Spike, who live in Ponyville in the enchanted land of Equestria, along with her colorful pony friends — honest Applejack, generous Rarity, kind Fluttershy, loyal Rainbow Dash and fun-loving Pinkie Pie. Together, they teach one another valuable lessons about the most powerful magic of all — the magic of friendship.



In the back-to-back season premiere episodes, titled "The Beginning of the End," Princess Celestia and Princess Luna decide to retire and hand off the ruling of Equestria to Twilight Sparkle and her friends, which sends Twilight into a tailspin of self-doubt. Meanwhile, an ancient villain bands together a legion of nefarious characters to conquer all of Equestria, challenging Twilight Sparkle and the rest of the Mane 6 to step in and save the day.


Leading up to the premiere, Discovery Family will air a weeklong "Pony Palooza" marathon of Equestria Girls specials starting at 6 a.m. Saturday, March 30, leading up to the world premiere of Equestria Girls: Spring Breakdown at 11:30 a.m. That'll be followed by episodes from the past eight seasons of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic beginning at 6 a.m. Sunday, March 31, and running all week long during daytime.


Meanwhile, that doesn't mean My Little Pony fans will have to do without their favorite ponies for too long: A CGI-animated feature film is in the works. That follows on the heels of 2017's My Little Pony: The Movie, based on the Discovery Family series.


Watch the trailer for the final season.