has anyone heard all the 'wonderful' promotions this show has to offer?

I love horses. I think I should watch this show whenever I can catch it just to see the sillyness from the link you posted...I have to say the writers must be very lazy and kind of harsh, it's not like if you get thinner you'll feel any better, you can still feel out of shape even when you're as thin as a paper clip, perhaps even less.

I mean, if horses were too thin I would have to think they'd hurt their backs just b trying to carry someone on it.

"You know what's funny? People. People are funny."

That...was THE most absurd thing I've ever read. I just saw that episode today, and at the end I thought, "That was one of the best episodes of anything that I've seen dealing with eating disorders." Not that there has been very much good competition, but still. The plot: Pepper gains some weight and gets a bit out of shape because her rider, Zoe, is sick for a while, and Chloe is unable to keep up with caring for two horses at once. At first, Pepper thinks it isn't such a big deal...but as the other horses tease her, her confidence falters. She winds up disappointing Zoe, and this leads to her deciding that she simply must lose weight by the tryouts. She resolves not only to eat less, but to stop eating completely, and also to exercise excessively. Ignoring the warnings from her friends, Pepper pushes herself harder and harder--but never feels as if she's reached her goal.

This parallels the experiences, mentality, and behavior of many crash dieters. Naturally, Sunburst and Scarlet are right about it--the thin but weakened Pepper winds up collapsing during the tryouts because she's eaten far too little and worn herself out with physical exertion. She took the wrong approach to getting back down to her proper weight. At that point, everything came out, her friends apologized for poking fun at her, and Zoe found out from the vet how to get Pepper back into her old healthy condition again. The episode wrapped up with a nice final scene, pointing out that there IS a right size and shape for everyone--there was absolutely no insinuation that everyone should strive to be skinny. Having at least one of the human girls be chubbier (as they are all very lean) would be a realistic diversification tactic, but it's not necessary. Okay, so a pig might not be THE greatest choice of animal for inspiring self-confidence and pride in heavier girls, but at least that little piggy IS comfortable with himself (and doesn't want to look like a bald cat...aka a Sphynx, lol.) They just happened to be dealing with those characters, thanks to the show's setting--a Collie, a slim cat (and just as with people, dogs, and most creatures, some kinds of cats are much slimmer than others)...and a portly pig. Which one was going to stick up for "pudgy pride" and bring up that important point about everyone naturally looking different, but still being beautiful?

So I do not understand why such harsh criticism would be directed at this, or why anyone would be appalled by it. The lessons are MORE than clear: To be healthy, one must balance food consumption with exercise. Don't overindulge in either. Don't make fun of the overweight (or underweight!) If they have positive goals, encourage them--or try to help them set some realistic, reasonable ones. Do not simply quit eating and/or exhaust yourself with exercise in an attempt to lose weight; it'll do more harm than good. If you have concerns regarding your condition, be honest and seek help instead of hiding secrets from your friends. There are different body types; everyone is different; we must respect and appreciate these differences instead of expecting us all to want to look the same. What is there to be offended by here?!? The episode is doing the opposite of encouraging kids to develop eating disorders, or to jeer at chubby people.

For crying out loud. In order to have an effective anti-bullying episode, you've got to show the bullying in the first place. It's ridiculous when people get upset over the depiction of behavior that is being shown as being WRONG. The clear message here is that some of the horses, as well as the girls, were doing things that are WRONG. Their behavior is not being shown with the intention of it being imitated--the intent is the exact opposite! How is that not glaringly, blindingly obvious?! It's truly unbelievable that conscientious adults could fail to see that the episode is ON THEIR SIDE...

I like you, Um. I like largeness...