The Pony Thread (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

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I found it quite ironic that they were all talking about "they made up their differences, their hearts melted, blah" and yet they all ended up pairing with their own kind until they finally got out of the cave. And even then, the unicorns stuck together.
I found that pretty stupid if you ask me

It was also interesting how the flag they made were of two alicorns moving the sun and moon, yet apparently Celestia and Luna didn't really seem to be worshipped back then (willing to debate? The Unicorns moved the Sun and Moon, remember?), so what just happened.
 
I found it quite ironic that they were all talking about "they made up their differences, their hearts melted, blah" and yet they all ended up pairing with their own kind until they finally got out of the cave. And even then, the unicorns stuck together.
I found that pretty stupid if you ask me
They did it BECAUSE THEY WERE FRIENDS
 
Finally got around to watching that episode.

I'm really disappointed, to tell the truth. The whole "history" and sequence of events didn't even seem to make sense. It seemed very poorly written, and worst of all, it was all solved with the "SUDDEN FLASH OF MAGIC EVERYBODY HAPPY" trope. What? No actual problem solving or working out of differences, but simply "warm fuzzies for all!" And then to make it even more laughable, they hang a Celestia and Luna flag, though their position in the story was never explained. Were the two of them sitting back and letting the tribes learn the lessons they needed to learn from it, instead of interfering, which would most likely be ineffective? Did they even exist before then? They didn't seem to be raising the sun. The fact that they're on the flag seems to mean they were important in it. I want to know! It's almost as if the writers put little to no thought into actual story consistency.

Even the humor was really far off this time around. Pinkie seemed like an unusually cheap attempt at humor. Not that she usually isn't, but this was overkill. Fluttershy was ridiculously Fluttershy again, which got old. I mean, pretty much every scene with her for the first half of the movie was her getting scared and hiding. And then there was the train scene. That was certainly original. As for Rainbow Dash, she was a complete jerk, as she has been way too often in the recent episodes. For representing loyalty, she's doin' it wrong. Same thing with Rarity. She is pretty much the least generous pony in the whole show. They need to do some serious character work. Seems to me like both the qualities of loyalty and generosity should go to Apple Jack and Twilight respectively, who are not so exaggerated and not as downright insane as the rest. Apple Jack is way more loyal to her friends, and Twilight is always being self sacrificial.

The only parts that honestly made me laugh were one: The Ditzy appearance, and two: Chancellor Puddinghead's "News Flash".
 
I enjoyed the episode myself.

You have to understand they were playing characters. Whether or not the founders of Equestria are based on the actors playing them or not isn't clarified, which isn't exactly bad because I wouldn't change the characters in any way. The humor didn't seem any different from previous episodes. Rainbow was a lot more toned down than she was in some of the previous episodes, which I agree was a bit out of character. The flag seemed pretty understandable. We see the ponies place the flag on the stage and not in the flashback, which could easily be the modern flag of Equestria.

I did feel the pacing wasn't very great, and there was some reuse of gags (Fluttershy) that fell pretty flat, but the episode served as nice exposition and expanded on what we knew about Equestria. A lot of people I've seen have confused Equestria as being the name of the planet, which it obviously wasn't before this episode.
 
Regardless if they were playing characters or not, they've not been very wise with the lessons they've learned and seem to be relearning more often this season. I'd imagine that if we were to treat this like Willy Wonka's tour, they all would have lost the privilege to the Candy Factory by now, because they're becoming ill mannered and dumb as your average spoiled brat. And I thought these girls were friends. They're at their necks over a fucking window. You can't get any lower than that. Oh wait, I'm sorry, I'm forgetting that ever since Lesson Zero, that any previous characterization has been as flanderized as any other excuse for a cartoon on television today. It mostly depends on if the writers will work together.

And... What exposition? They seemed to completely ignore major plot points of the series such as Discord's Reign, the Allicorns taking Equestria back, or any role the Demigods have whatsoever. If anything, it brought more questions than answers. What's this about the three pony clans having their own kingdoms? Either Discord and the Princesses had a major influence or they didn't. I'll chalk it up as Discontinuity just to have a Thanksgiving/Christmas special for the sake of having it. And yes, everything was terribly forced regarding the humour.

The writing is inconsistent this season. Either it's a hit or it's a miss. A shame this team reeks at working with each other.
 
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And... What exposition? They seemed to completely ignore major plot points of the series such as Discord's Reign, the Allicorns taking Equestria back, or any role the Demigods have whatsoever. If anything, it brought more questions than answers. What's this about the three pony clans having their own kingdoms? Either Discord and the Princesses had a major influence or they didn't.

Well the story is about the founding of Equestria. And Discord's story is about when Equestria was filled with chaos and the princesses had to solve it. For all we know, the six who put together Equestria were the only ones in harmony and the rest still hated the guts out of each other when they merged together. If you think I'm bullshitting, visit Australia's migration history for two seconds; a similar thing happened. It does make a bit of sense canonically, the only thing confusing me is the flag, but as someone said before, it could be just a modern flag so I'm willing to accept that.

I also felt the episode was a bit forced, but I still enjoyed it nonetheless. I sometimes like forced humour now and again, so I didn't mind. The whole window thing though, that was just silly.
 
Greg, the thing about the window was to tie in with the whole "cold heart" symbolism of the founding story. It's literally exactly the same. I would have thought that with your VAST KNOWLEDGE OF EVERYTHING that you would have had no trouble figuring that out by the end of the episode. Evidently not.

The rest of your post is full of crap. As Violo said, this is the story of the founding of Equestria, not the events that follow. You didn't even get the Lesson Zero episode title right. 0/10
 
Regardless if they were playing characters or not, they've not been very wise with the lessons they've learned and seem to be relearning more often this season. I'd imagine that if we were to treat this like Willy Wonka's tour, they all would have lost the privilege to the Candy Factory by now, because they're becoming ill mannered and dumb as your average spoiled brat.

And they weren't acting ill-mannered previously? They did crap like that in season 1. Did that just fly over your head?

And I thought these girls were friends. They're at their necks over a fucking window. You can't get any lower than that. Oh wait, I'm sorry, I'm forgetting that ever since Lesson of Zero, that any previous characterization has been as flanderized as any other excuse for a cartoon on television today. It mostly depends on if the writers will work together.

I do see a bit where you're getting at. Problem is, they were being flanderized from episode 1 on. It's obvious. Pinkie Pie's explicitly sole role is being a party pony. RBD's is being fast and "better" than all. Fluttershy's is... duh? TS's is books. AJ, apples. Rarity, fashion. If you think this trope's not been through the whole series, you must be nuts, as you probably are anyway.

Also, going on what I'll Begin stated, you didn't interlink the correlations of the episode's lesson with why that happened? The episode's about friendship and not arguing. End of the episode, they show you shouldn't sweat the small stuff. Then they remind you why. It's all an efficiency of the plot. Encounter issue, solve, learn lesson, be reminded if need be. Simple as that.
 
The rest of your post is full of crap. As Violo said, this is the story of the founding of Equestria, not the events that follow. You didn't even get the Lesson Zero episode title right. 0/10
Just because Greg usually Gregs doesn't mean Greg always Gregs.

Did you even read what he said, or did you just condemn it because, well, he said it? I can tell you it wasn't crap. Rather, he made a few valid points about the consistency of the episode with the rest.

Oh wait, I'm sorry, I'm forgetting that ever since Lesson of Zero, that any previous characterization has been as flanderized as any other excuse for a cartoon on television today. It mostly depends on if the writers will work together.

I am rather agreeing with this. Attitudes that were just parts of the pony have become the pony. It's like we have pony concentrate. The authors need to add some water. :p

Sure, we had some of this in Season 1, (Dragonshy for example), but lately it seems to be becoming the norm for the show. Well, perhaps not. The Sweet and Elite didn't really suffer from it at all... Whatever the case, this episode did suffer from it.
I'll chalk it up as Discontinuity just to have a Thanksgiving/Christmas special for the sake of having it.
inb4 SRB2Christmas

Well the story is about the founding of Equestria. And Discord's story is about when Equestria was filled with chaos and the princesses had to solve it. For all we know, the six who put together Equestria were the only ones in harmony and the rest still hated the guts out of each other when they merged together. If you think I'm bullshitting, visit Australia's migration history for two seconds; a similar thing happened. It does make a bit of sense canonically, the only thing confusing me is the flag, but as someone said before, it could be just a modern flag so I'm willing to accept that.

That's a good point, I guess.

Suddenly another plot inconsistency comes to mind. Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Winter Wrap up a celebration that honored the work Earth ponies of Equestria did to clean up the winter before Unicorns came and did it with their magic? When was THAT supposed to be? The three races always have existed together in Equestria, according to the episode.

Greg, the thing about the window was to tie in with the whole "cold heart" symbolism of the founding story. It's literally exactly the same. I would have thought that with your VAST KNOWLEDGE OF EVERYTHING that you would have had no trouble figuring that out by the end of the episode. Evidently not.

Ignoring the asinine remarks in this statement, of course he realized that! But that doesn't mean the fight they had over the window was realistic or warranted.

I do see a bit where you're getting at. Problem is, they were being flanderized from episode 1 on. It's obvious. Pinkie Pie's explicitly sole role is being a party pony. RBD's is being fast and "better" than all. Fluttershy's is... duh? TS's is books. AJ, apples. Rarity, fashion. If you think this trope's not been through the whole series, you must be nuts, as you probably are anyway.

The difference is that the good episodes used these characteristics in realistic ways, instead of just because they could. If you ask me, it's like the authors are playing fanservice, and smooshing the things we love/d best about the ponies in our faces.

"WHAT? YOU LIKED THAT? HERE! HAVE SOME MORE! AND SOME MORE! AND, HAHAHA, SOME MORE! ISN'T IT SoOoOoOo GOOD? YOU LIKE IT! MOOOORE!"
*muffled squeak from the fan*


Now, there were some things I liked about the episode, but I really think it has a lot of lost potential. If I was given the opportunity to rewrite it, I think I could make it present itself and it's message much better.
 
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Winter Wrap up a celebration that honored
the work Earth ponies of Equestria did to clean up the winter before Unicorns
came and did it with their magic?

Twilight told Spike that Ponyville was founded by earth ponies, so no major inconsistencies have been made there.

If you ask me, it's like the authors are playing fanservice, and smooshing
the things we love/d best about the ponies in our faces.

While I originally felt the same way, these episodes were written nearly a year ago. Most of the staff wasn't aware of the popularity as much as they are today. Aside from Derpy popping up now and again, the script can't really be changed since all the dialogue is recorded pre-animation.

Also, expressing my opinion on the characters themselves, not much has changed. As far as I can tell, everypony seems to be getting more of a development. The same traits from the previous season are still around and expanded on if anything. Obviously there's times where they have to exaggerate a character's traits, but that's done intentionally (which can be considered as a negative aspect since it's better to let characters write for themselves). But this show doesn't seem to be going downhill. Is it better than last season? No. Is it any worse? Not at all.
 
So... I was at Walmart today because we had to get stuff for xmas dinner and whatnot and when we got to the toy isle... I noticed these...
1223111326b.jpg

Small Twilight Sparkle + Small Snowcatcher? *Blurry quality.*
1223111327a.jpg

Rainbow Dash.
1223111328a.jpg

This is suppose to be Sweetie Belle?
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Small Rarity.
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Small Rainbow Dash.
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Small Fluttershy + Small Applejack + Small Twilight Sparkle slighly offscreen.
I didn't look at the price tags, but the small ones I think were about $5 and because this is a pony thread... I figure I could post this here.
 
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They usually go for about $5-$6. unless they're part of the ride along series.

The Fashion styles are around $15-$16.
 
And again I am reminded of how badly Hasbro sucks at making toys. Rainbow Dash looks little like Rainbow Dash at all. Maybe it's just the absence of any obvious tomboy-ishness. I guess that's okay. What would Rainbow Dash's more feminine side be like? Rarity, on the other hand, looks quite bald, and no amount of hair styling is going to fix that. Twilight is the worst though. Her eyes and hair are all wrong, and she looks like more of a slut than a nerd. What really cracks me up though is how that "Snow Catcher" pony has a Rarity recolor on it's package. The only two worth having are Apple Jack, which I happen to own (sadly she is not herself without her hat), and that Fluttershy, which is positively adorable. I am pleasantly surprised at it, and I must find some excuse to get one.

But really, Hasbro butchers every Twilight toy. I'll have to find a nice plushie or figurine of the best pony elsewhere. Any suggestions? I've had a few looks around the interwebs, but no luck.
 
Wow, even without mentioning my supposedly twisted views on politics and morality and trying (quite idiotically to something where said ideas aren't too welcome to the world of modern day cartoons) to apply it in any form to a candy coloured show inspired by a company's dream to overtake the toy industry with ponies, I can elicit a strong response. Look, I'll Begin. You're taking this quite aggressively. I know the window was supposed to pull a parallel to the characters from the play they were in and justify whatever moral of unity they tried to imply so vaguely. That doesn't justify their inane emotional struggle to get one of them to just simply shut it. It wasn't witty or called for.

Look, characters don't need to show off their prominent traits 24/7. You don't see Donald Duck cursing just for the sake of being a total grouch simply because he's a short tempered character. And while, yes, they were brats, they seemed to actually learn something and not generally be irritatingly stuck on a linear character track, and their characters developed because of it. When the next episode came around, they seemed to keep the moral they learned in mind. Now, they've been throwing said development away and having them relearn the morals and it's just generally bothersome.

And as for you, Violo, I'm just going to take your word for it. I'm not too brushed up on the Australian system of government, so we'll just leave this at that. Considering that, the Princesses could be comparable to the British Crown colony that's kept the European influence evident since its arrival. Again, I'm not too brushed up on this. However, I'm very familiar with the idea of throwing the modern day flag of a nation into a previous event of said nation's retelling of their history. I'm just curious as to where Discord, Celestia, and Luna belong in the timeline of the empire's history.

So with that said, I hope we won't jump on me so quickly the next time unless I pull politics into the whole thing again.
 
And as for you, Violo, I'm just going to take your word for it. I'm not too brushed up on the Australian system of government, so we'll just leave this at that.

It wasn't really the system of government, more what happened. To be honest, I think I mixed up migration and Aboriginal 20th century history. In the latter's case, there was a time where the two cultures were forced together and Aborigines were made to fit into white society. But there was still a lot of racism, etc etc. I can't remember if there was a similar time during the migration history, but I meaning to compare these events I do believe.

I was trying to get at the fact that having different cultures forced together won't just suddenly work, there will be quite a bit of chaos created for Discord to feed off (or whatever).

Hope that clears some confusion in comparison.
 
I'm just going to go out on a limb here and point out that friends do fight about the stupidest things, and the more time they spend together the more often it happens even if they do know better. They often just need to be reminded. That's kinda why I was pleased to see the CMC fighting at the beginning of S2, because when I was that age I never went that long without getting into an argument. (and the chicken gag from Staremaster doesn't count as fighting)

I will however restate that I thought this episode's moral simply brought back the same concept of "harmony" from previous episodes except with it generalized. That said, I don't think it killed the episode, just didn't really make me as pleased with it as I was with some of the other episodes this season. I do not think however I have seen an episode yet this season that was as much a missed opportunity as "Look Before You Sleep."

By the way, there's a difference between not liking an episode and not liking the series. There were a few episodes from season 1 I didn't like, and a few that didn't live up to my expectations, and there are only a few that I consider exceptional. So unless you are the sort to quit a fanbase the moment you see something you don't like (which if you are, you'd have probably quit by now) its no big deal if you don't like a few of the episodes.
 
But really, Hasbro butchers every Twilight toy. I'll have to find a nice plushie or figurine of the best pony elsewhere. Any suggestions? I've had a few looks around the interwebs, but no luck.

Try keeping your eye out on equestria Daily's Custom pony and Nightly roundup posts. they should help.
 
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