Yes, these are ponies, not animals.

Most pony collectors are familiar with the animal "Pony Friends" set, but in parts of Europe in around 1987 (and possibly into 1988), there was another set of ponies sold under this header. This set was sold on UK style cards, but was never sold actually in the UK, just to be confusing. Instead, it was sold in Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, probably Finland and Denmark) as well as South Africa, and possibly Australia. There is some evidence it might have been sold in other European countries, such as Germany or the Netherlands, but this is speculative and at present can't be proven.

This is the set that contained the regular versions of Cupcake and Truly, as well as at least four other characters.

Truly's Card, English language, 1987
(Images of backcard from Inger and Monika, card obtained in Norway)

So what are "Pony Friends" and where do they fit in?

A European Earth Ponies collection, comprising ponies made in Hong Kong, was sold in various countries, with various packaging styles, in around 1986/7. A version of this set was sold in France under the name Amis Jolis, and Germany under the title Pony Freunde, where the ponies were made in Spain and/or Italy. These set names both translate to "Pony Friends."

"Pony Friend" Hopscotch (Made in Italy)
Mint on German Card, 1986

The card used in Germany and France does not appear to exist in English, but the same assortment (on different cards) was also sold in the Netherlands, Scandinavia, Finland, South Africa and probably Australia. Here, the ponies were made in Hong Kong.

The most compelling evidence of a relationship between this 1986 set and the 1987 Pony Friends set, however, is the assortment number. The assortment number for the 1986 and 1987 releases made in Hong Kong is the same - 4855 (This was also used in the UK in 1985 for the Groom and Style Ponies, which included characters that overlap these releases).

This assortment number is also immediately adjacent to the set sold in the UK in 1986 with Gypsy and Honeycomb - in which Hopscotch and Posey both also featured - which was sold as assortment 4856. The assortment 4855 thus seems like a general umbrella number for a range of Hong Kong made earth ponies sold between 1985 and 1987 across Europe.

Basically what I'm saying is that in 1986, the UK had a set and Europe had a set, with some overlap and some difference. And in 1987, Europe carried on with a second set on the same theme, with some overlap and some different. And this is where we end up with the Pony Friends.

 In effect, this is a second edition extension of the Earth pony collection made available in certain countries in 1986 - but the name Pony Friends was not used on cards in English until this issue.

The ponies in this set.

The six ponies pictured on the back of the card for this set are Truly, Cupcake, Shady, Posey, Hopscotch and Cherries Jubilee. Hopscotch, Posey and Cherries Jubilee had already seen a European release in 1986, whilst Shady was also released in 1987 as part of the Movie Star set. This has caused  questions about whether Shady was legitimately sold with this set or not (she was not always promoted with it in inserts). The only new ponies for the year were Truly and Cupcake, who were sold in the same pose as the American So Soft versions, and can be very hard to tell apart from deflocked So Soft Ponies.

Cherries Jubilee was sold in this set with curly hair and dark symbols - a uniquely European version which never came to the UK or to North America. Like Truly and Cupcake, it is hard to distinguish her from a deflock, although the version sold in 1987 often has brown eyeliner.

Pony Friends Cherries Jubilee MOC
Scandinavia, 1987
(Image from Ponyland)

There are also questions about whether other ponies were sold in this set, but not pictured on the card. Some promotional material features the green version of Tootsie instead of Shady. This version has been found in the relevant countries, although a clear method of release is hard to determine (White Tootsie was sold in the 1986 set).

Booklet advertising Pony Friends set, including Tootsie instead of Shady
Sweden, 1987
Image donated by Leikin

Shady is promoted in the same booklet, in the Movie Star set release, so Hasbro may just have seen no need to promote her twice. Given that there are at least two sets sold in Scandinavia/South Africa with six ponies pictured and eight in the collection, it isn't unrealistic to assume Tootsie and Shady were BOTH included in this set release.

For some reason, Shady's name appears on the back of the Pony Friends card as "Shady's". This is obviously a misprint, and it's unlikely this name appears on the front of her card (if she had one), but it is also a sign that Hasbro were maybe not quite sure what they were doing with Shady in this set. Lots of questions, more answers needed.

There could also be an eighth member, in keeping with the precedent for other sets. My favourite candidate for this is Magic Star. She was an earth pony of the right vintage, and this set assortment number only ever included earth ponies. She was also advertised in one Swedish catalogue in 1987 as a 'Standard pony' rather than a 'Movie Star pony'.

Magic Star (F - red ringed) as "Standard Pony" and Shady (E - Blue ringed) as "Film Pony"
Playmix Catalogue, Sweden 1987
Image from Leikin

She was definitely sold in this region as a Movie Star pony, however, making it hard to discern whether she had any other point of entry. This would need to be confirmed by a backcard or Mint on Card example, so for now I am not including her in this set page. (More questions, no answers!)

My theory is that this set was a bit of a clearance project. Truly and Cupcake are pretty much identical to the So Soft versions under the flocking,  making it seem as though there was no intention to amend production to create them, but rather just continue it to fill in gaps (probably because these ponies appeared in the TV specials). The others had all been released previously or in other sets, and this may have been a means of mopping up these earth pony characters ahead of a line style shift in 1988.

Eyeliner. Brown or Black?

It's generally observed that Movie Star ponies in Scandinavian countries had brown eyeliner. This brown eyeliner theory has also been used to identify/legitimise versions of Truly and Cupcake from being deflocks, as So Soft Ponies universally have black eyeliner. The problem is that a lot of Movie Star ponies sold in other places also have black eyeliner, and this seems to indicate the time of production/batch.

I'm dubious that eyeliner alone can authenticate or undermine the legitimacy of Truly and Cupcake in this form. I have two Trulys, one has brown and one has black eyeliner. Both were bought from countries where So Soft Ponies were not sold. Because of the doubts around the black eyeliner version, I took her to UK ponycon and she was examined by several other pony collectors, including those who deflock, all of whom determined she had never been flocked, nor deflocked.

Without Mint on Card versions, we can never be totally sure about the importance of the eyeliner. What it does do, however, is highlight the risks and problems of deflocking Truly and Cupcake.

The regular versions are worth considerably more than the So Soft versions are. If you are buying, please buy with care.