The My Little Pony Scrapbook: G1 in the UK and Europe

Buttons

Movie Star Pony, 1987

Pink-purple unicorn pony with blue mane and tail (dark pink streak in mane) buttons and stars OR three big buttons symbol

Pink-purple unicorn with blue and pink hair, buttons and stars
Pony Data
Set Movie Star Ponies (1987, UK and Europe)
Asst. Number 4857
Accessories Yellow sun pick, medium pink ribbon, puffy sticker (in UK only, but also sold without sticker)
Pose Fizzy
Distribution UK and Europe
 
Other Versions Movie Star Buttons can be found with buttons/star symbol or three large buttons in the UK.
So Soft Buttons North America, 1985-6)

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Ponies Sold in 1987 in the UK Movie Star Ponies | Mountain Boy Ponies | Birthday Party with Tutti Frutti | Princess Ponies (Set 1) |Snuzzle's Grooming Parlour | Megan and Sundance (Second Edition)| Twinkle Eye Ponies (UK Set II) | Flutter Ponies (Set II) | Newborn Twins (Set I, Partial) | Pretty & Pearly Baby Sea Ponies (UK Release) Paradise Estate | Dream Castle | Lullabye Nursery | Baby Buggy | Baby Bonnet School of Dance

Other 1987 Ponies Twinkle Eyed Ponies (North America/Italy) | Pony Friends (Ponies) | Stockings | Pony Friends (Animals) | Soft Sleepy Newborns| Sea Sparkle Baby Sea Ponies | Satin Slipper Sweet Shoppe | Crimp & Curl Hair Salon (Perm Shoppe) (UK:1988) | Slumber Party Gift Set | Rainbow Ponies (Europe) | Twice as Fancy (Party) Ponies (UK:1988) | First Tooth Baby Ponies (UK:1988)| Big Brother Ponies (UK:1988) | So Soft Ponies (III) | Purse with Baby Crumpet | Baby Blue Ribbon


Buttons in the United Kingdom and Europe

Buttons was sold in the United Kingdom (and Europe) in 1987, as part of the Movie Star pony release. These were characters which would appear on the big screen in the My Little Pony movie, but which had not already seen a UK release.

Buttons was sold on one of the most elaborate and amazing G1 pony backcards ever produced - the Movie Star card - but she had no backcard story of her own. She was also sold with a sticker, and without.

Movie Star Buttons Mint on Card
Buttons Mint on Card
Movie Stars, 1987
Image from Rosse


Buttons...and Buttons.

Something rather odd happened with Buttons' release in the UK and Europe. For some reason, she exists with two types of symbol - the buttons and stars, featured above, and the three large buttons symbol, with which she is drawn on her backcard and the year's insert.

Buttons on her card
Buttons, as pictured on the Movie Star backcard

The three large buttons design was probably taken from the So Soft version, which was the earliest release of Buttons as a character and who had been sold in North America for at least a full year before this set was released in the UK and Europe. The fact that Wind Whistler is also pictured on the card with all pink whistles (again, matching the So Soft) suggests the promotional images used for the card art came from the So Soft release.

This would all be fine and good if all versions of Buttons that were sold had the updated buttons and stars symbol. But, of course, nothing in pony is simple.

Buttons with three large button symbol
Movie Star Buttons with three large buttons symbol
(UK, 1987)

Buttons exists with this three buttons symbol as well as the buttons and stars symbol.

Some sceptical folk on the continent have suggested that the three large buttons versions are deflocks, but this is unlikely. No So Soft Ponies were sold in the UK, yet there are numerous three-button Buttons (try saying that ten times fast) found here on the second hand market. In fact, it is probably the more common version in the UK, although both of the loose Movie Star Buttons ponies pictured on this page were found in the wild at UK car boot sales. It is possible that Hasbro got rid of excess So Soft bases by putting them on cards and shipping them to the UK, then updated the symbol at a later point - but we just don't know. All we can be sure of is that the three-buttons version only seems to show up in the UK.

To make things more complicated, Buttons is drawn on her American backcard with the buttons and stars symbol, despite never being sold that way! She appears in the animation with this symbol, also, and is always drawn in the comic that way too.
Buttons in the UK comic
Buttons in the UK comic, with buttons and stars symbol.
Buttons in My Little Pony the Movie with stars and buttons symbol
Buttons as animated in My Little Pony the Movie
Buttons and Stars symbol.



Buttons' Character

Buttons did not have her own backcard story in the UK, although she did have an entry in the fact file. It describes her spending time at the seaside hunting for shells to make into pretty buttons with the help of her unicorn magic. The image from the pony comic, shown above, also depicts her by the seaside.

In My Little Pony the movie, Buttons is the harried and impatient pony trying to organise the dance recital, and her annoyance is the trigger for Baby Lickety Split's running away from home.