Mountain Boy Ponies

TORNADO (blue shire with pink mane and tail (dark blue streak), white tornado symbol)	THUNDERCLOUD (lavender shire with dark pink mane and tail (dark blue streak), stormcloud and rain symbol)	LIGHTNING (Orange shire with yellow mane and tail (white streak in mane), cloud and lightning symbol)

Mountain Boy Ponies The United Kingdom got categorically more adult boy ponies than any other country, and these boys were issued only in the UK and I think maybe Australia! They weren't sold on the European continent as far as I can ascertain, and certainly not in North America! Needless to say, they're quite sought after. These guys have been a little puzzling in terms of their exact issue date. I know that they were out at least in October of '87, because my mother bought me Sunburst to mark a family event the following November. However, the inserts that I had from childhood dated 1987 do not feature these guys, and on the Hasbro List I have, Thundercloud is listed as Storm and Ice Crystal as Frosty.They are also called this on Hasbro's UK booklet of products (see photo to the bottom right - thanks to Pranceatron for this scan). However, recently I stumbled across a third UK insert dated 1987, which seems to clear up the mess a little :) I am not sure why there are three inserts dated 1987, though I am beginning to think the third insert might actually show the line more into 1988, despite it's dating. Though you might think that the puzzle ends here - it doesn't. Astute people will quickly see that Lightning and Tornado's names are REVERSED on the insert picture to the left. For this reason I have included a scan of Fireball's card (below) to indicate the names as they really should be. Even at this stage in production, Hasbro were not entirely sure what was happening with this set!! You can click on Fireball's backcard to view more clearly. The ponies also appeared in the My Little Pony Fact File of 1987, which gave them their correct names and featured their backcard stories verbatum. Please note that my Tornado's hair is faded - it should be pink, as you can see on the insert scan and on the backcard images ;) But since in my area at least Tornado is the hardest to find, I'm afraid this was the best we could do. Thundercloud, Fireball and Sunburst were the only adult boy ponies I had new as a child, and because of this I took an active interest in their personalities. They were first introduced in the pony comic in a several part story called 'There's Magic in Misty Mountain', when Baby Lucky discovered them. Thundercloud was the eldest and wisest, being friends with the old wizard who lived in the mountain with them. Sunburst was always bright and cheerful, Fireball restless and impatient, Tornado always dashing here there and everywhere without getting things finished, Ice Crystal was the one who made ice slides for the baby ponies and, if I recall correctly, the one with the sane head ;) And Lightning has the honour of being the only boy pony who could 'wink' in and out like a unicorn. ('Winking' was not a trait found often, if at all in British pony stories, which made his ability doubly impressive!). I remember also that they came with ribbons, stickers and frog brushes or grasshopper combs. I'm reliably informed that Fireball's was the purple frog brush, whilst Thundercloud had a mint green frog brush and Sunburst a mint green grasshopper comb, if my memory serves me correctly - since these were the three I had as a kid, and I had no other adult boy ponies to confuse accessories with. I believe Sunburst also had a pale blue ribbon. People often misspell Lightning's name as "Lightening". Though logical, this is incorrect, since Lightning is named after the weather phenomenon, and not simply another word for 'getting lighter' :) Thanks to Lady Guinevere for the confirmation of Fireball's brush and the scan of Fireball's backcard (below) :D

The United Kingdom got categorically more adult boy ponies than any other country, and these boys were issued only in the UK and I think maybe Australia! They weren't sold on the European continent as far as I can ascertain, and certainly not in North America!
Needless to say, they're quite sought after.
These guys have been a little puzzling in terms of their exact issue date. I know that they were out at least in October of '87, because my mother bought me Sunburst to mark a family event the following November. However, the inserts that I had from childhood dated 1987 do not feature these guys, and on the Hasbro List I have, Thundercloud is listed as Storm and Ice Crystal as Frosty.They are also called this on Hasbro's UK booklet of products (see photo to the bottom right - thanks to Pranceatron for this scan). However, recently I stumbled across a third UK insert dated 1987, which seems to clear up the mess a little :) I am not sure why there are three inserts dated 1987, though I am beginning to think the third insert might actually show the line more into 1988, despite it's dating.
Though you might think that the puzzle ends here - it doesn't. Astute people will quickly see that Lightning and Tornado's names are REVERSED on the insert picture to the left. For this reason I have included a scan of Fireball's card (below) to indicate the names as they really should be. Even at this stage in production, Hasbro were not entirely sure what was happening with this set!! You can click on Fireball's backcard to view more clearly.
The ponies also appeared in the My Little Pony Fact File of 1987, which gave them their correct names and featured their backcard stories verbatum.
Please note that my Tornado's hair is faded - it should be pink, as you can see on the insert scan and on the backcard images ;) But since in my area at least Tornado is the hardest to find, I'm afraid this was the best we could do.
Thundercloud, Fireball and Sunburst were the only adult boy ponies I had new as a child, and because of this I took an active interest in their personalities. They were first introduced in the pony comic in a several part story called 'There's Magic in Misty Mountain', when Baby Lucky discovered them. Thundercloud was the eldest and wisest, being friends with the old Mountain Boys (UK Catalogue)

wizard who lived in the mountain with them. Sunburst was always bright and cheerful, Fireball restless and impatient, Tornado always dashing here there and everywhere without getting things finished, Ice Crystal was the one who made ice slides for the baby ponies and, if I recall correctly, the one with the sane head ;) And Lightning has the honour of being the only boy pony who could 'wink' in and out like a unicorn. ('Winking' was not a trait found often, if at all in British pony stories, which made his ability doubly impressive!). I remember also that they came with ribbons, stickers and frog brushes or grasshopper combs. I'm reliably informed that Fireball's was the purple frog brush, whilst Thundercloud had a mint green frog brush and Sunburst a mint green grasshopper comb, if my memory serves me correctly - since these were the three I had as a kid, and I had no other adult boy ponies to confuse accessories with. I believe Sunburst also had a pale blue ribbon.

People often misspell Lightning's name as "Lightening". Though logical, this is incorrect, since Lightning is named after the weather phenomenon, and not simply another word for 'getting lighter' :)

Thanks to Lady Guinevere for the confirmation of Fireball's brush and the scan of Fireball's backcard (below) :D