Why I'm not a fan of Alicorn Princess Twilight Sparkle · 5:04am Mar 20th, 2013
I've never written a blog in my life, so I guess there is a first time for everything. I also never even thought about writing fanfiction before I got hooked on this show either, and I'm glad I did. I was able to discover many new things, and meet many new people that I would never have met if I didn't get the courage to pick up that pen. Well, type on that keyboard would be a more accurate statement. Anyway, I digress. As you can probably tell based on the title here, I'm not a fan of Twilight becoming an Alicorn princess. It's not for the reasons that have already been discussed, either.
Ever since the announcement was made that Twilight was going to become an Alicorn Princess, a variety of opinions have been posted on a variety of sites. I've read a lot of them, and I just figured it's time for me to put my two cents in. Keep in mind, this is my personal opinion and I'm not bellyaching, or getting on a soapbox about how "the writers are ruining the show" or anything like that. I get why they made the decision, I just have my reservations. I also have a tendency to over complicate and over analyze things when I look at them. I could very well be reading too much into this, and seeing it through "adult" eyes, which I concede could be to my detriment. However, I think everyone is entitled to their opinion, as long as it's presented rationally and calmly. I'm just putting in my two cents.
First, I'll start with the a few issues that have already been raised, and one good thing that I am looking forward to:
1) She's a Mary Sue! - I have a confession to make. I've never been a fan of the whole "Mary Sue" concept. I just think that if you concentrate too much on a character's power level, you end up making a flat character, and when taken to the extreme, I feel that it can make a character's struggle feel unnatural. I don't care nor did I ever care about how powerful Twilight was or is. One of the things that I always liked about Twilight's character was the fact that, at least in my opinion, her faults came off naturally. They are social faults and awkwardness. Her "dorky" side, her probable obsessive compulsive disorder, etc... These are the things that I loved about her character, so I didn't care that she could vanquish an Ursa Minor.
2) She's gonna change! - Tara Strong has already said in interviews that Twilight herself is not going to change. I think that the writers understand how key Twilight's personality is to the show, so I doubt they will mess with it too much. Also, we have seen that even with wings, Twilight is still Twilight, i.e. asking if there is a book she can read about being a princess now that she is one. She is still the same "adorkable" character, at least from the references we got in the last episode, so I'm not too worried about this one.
The one thing that I actually do like about this change is the timing. Although I understand that people were taken back by the fact that it happened so soon, which I do agree with, in a way, I'm also glad it happened when it did, as now we get to see what happens next. I like the fact that they didn't end the series with this and leave everyone with a "...well, what happens next?!?" moment. We are going to get to actually see what this change is going to do to the canon universe, and I like that.
So, at this point, you are probably wondering what my problem is. My problem is one of dynamics. I'm not worried about how Twilight is going to act, I'm worried about how everyone else is going to behave towards her. Again, in reference to the Tara Strong interview, she said that the relationships between Twilight and the rest of the Mane 6 are not going to change. However, I don't see how. Whenever someone attains a title as grand as "Princess," the way others react to you changes, no matter your level of friendship. I'll give an example of what I'm talking about.
If you've never seen the movie "The American President," you should. It's a great movie written by Arron Sorkin, the writer behind "The West Wing" television series. Anyway, there is a scene where President Andrew Shepard, played by Michael Douglass, is walking with his Chief of Staff, A.J. played by Martin Sheen, from the West Wing to the residence. Just before they say goodnight, they have a small exchange:
President: "A.J., just so you know, when we're not in the office, or alone, you can call me Andy."
A.J.: "I beg your pardon, sir?"
President: "A.J. you were the best man at my wedding for God's sake, when we're alone, call me Andy."
A.J.: "Whatever you say, Mr. President. Will that be all, sir?"
And that right there is my problem. Whenever someone attains a title like "President" "Prime Minister" or "Princess" the little things that have to change even among the most intimate of friends, change, and they can affect a lot more than one might think. Imagine having a best friend, a guy or gal that you grew up with, and all of a sudden, they are the President. Even though they may owe their success to you, you can NEVER call them by their first name again. You ALWAYS have to stand when they enter a room. You can NEVER raise your voice to them during an argument. These things, may seem small, and even though your friend, much like Twilight, may have earned the position, your relationship will change. That is my fear about the direction that the show can go in. If you look at how ponies treat Princess Celestia, and even Princess Luna and Princess Cadence, there is always a wall there, a nervousness, an awkwardness. Now, in the last episode, Fluttershy called Twilight by her name after the coronation, so to me, there is still hope here. But, on the other side, Twilight always seems to wear a scowl every time her friends get too "familiar" with the other princesses. Again, that could just be something that I'm inferring, but I have to wonder how she will be made to react now that she is one of the ones in power. I have no doubt that Twilight will still continue to be the egghead we all know and love. But, can she be called on it? Can Rainbow Dash still call her an egghead, or would that be considered "disrespectful?" My favorite episodes of the show were the simpler ones, and the ones that had conflicts in them. I loved episodes where the characters would argue or rib each other for one reason or another. My favorite episode of the series (and I know it's one that not many others enjoy) is "Look before you sleep." I loved episodes like "Ticket Master" and "Fall Weather Friends." I liked some of the more epic ones, like both "Return of Harmony" episodes, but I'm wondering how many more episodes we are going to get like "Look Before You Sleep" with Twilight's new status. I just felt like the series was at its best when dealing with these basic friendship issues.
Anyway, with that said, I'm going to give season 4 a chance. There are certain things that will turn me off immediately, but for the most part, I've liked all 3 seasons, save a few episodes. So, until I hear more, I'm going to treat this the same way as when I heard that Heath Ledger was going to be the Joker in "The Dark Knight." At first, I was VERY skeptical, but I liked "Batman Begins" so I trusted Chris Nolan and I went in with an open mind. I'm going to do the same thing with season 4 of MLP. I still have my reservations, but they may turn out to be silly reasons, and I may look back on this blog post and say, "What was I thinking writing this?!? I love season 4!" So for now, we'll see.
I'd have to agree. I know that Tara Strong said that Twilight will still be living in Ponyville, and that her personality and relationships won't change, but that just creates a whole new problem in itself. Namely, how the hell not?? I'm not normally one to rant on about the story flaws present in a children's TV show about magical sentient ponies, but that just isn't socially realistic at all. The magic of friendship doesn't work that way. It can't.
Although I have to say I love "Look Before You Sleep". Probably my favorite episode that doesn't involve psycho ponies (i.e. Party of One, Lesson Zero). It's just so fucking ador(k)able.
I agree with your opinion, although my general dislike towards Twilicorn stems from a simpler and more selfish reason.
I've been slowly working on a storyline for my mlp fanfic for well over half a year (which is not published even now; I'm still working on the details), and if I tried to somehow incorporate the fact that one can simply turn into an alicorn, it would make an already very convoluted story even more complex.
Well, I guess I will simply set the story in an alternate timeline after the season two, but it still leaves a bad aftertaste in my mouth
Heh... DAYUM! You sure can write.a lot when you set your mind to it. You should make blog posts more often.
I'm a little late, aren't I? Late and bored, it seems. Aw, well, I'll use this opportunity to put my opinion in, too.
I agree with your opinion wholeheartedly; how could they throw off so many great works that their fandom has created? But, contemplate this; the decision wasn't made for us, it was made to appeal to the more popular and intended demographic: kids, or, more specifically, little girls. And what do little girls like? Princesses. They probably didn't take the fandom into account because why? We're not the intended audience, even though the fandom earns them their bits. And to most non-bronies/pegasisters? Us and our fandom are considered anomalies. Never meant to be, they say. The show's only for little girls, they say. Sad, but true to some, ahem, ignoramuses. But I digress. My point was that Hasbro was intending this... This travesty for the other audience.
But hay, let's look on the flip side of the coin. This recent transformation (and I don't mean Twifly) has opened up more doors for the cartoon, and, who knows? Maybe there will be an episode consisting of Twilight trying to get her friends to treat her the same as before. The possibilities are expanded, but I just hope that they won't convert the WHOLE Mane Six into Alicorns at the ultimate end. I mean, Rainbow Dash... With a HORN?! Applejack... With WINGS?! What is this sorcery?!
Eheheh... Despite me defending Hasbro earlier, I'm probably not going to watch Season 4 unless writing or reading a story absolutely requires it. I'm so cheeky.
1054994 Thanks! I figured I had a little too much to say on the topic so I would just use the blog function on here to share it.
As far as Hasbro is concerned, I understand the target audience argument, but the problem is Hasbro has tried doing things like this before and it's always come back to bite them. Transformers: The Movie, G.I. Joe: The Movie and from what I understand, the recent G.I. Joe: Retaliation movie are all great examples of this. And yes, while little girls do like princesses, the big problem they can run into, and probably will, is brand recognition. They have established a somewhat iconic character with Twilight Sparkle, and the target audience may have trouble recognizing or differentiating. What I mean is that it could turn into a situation where little girls no longer recognize the character, or get upset at the change, i.e. "Silly mommy, Twilight's a unicorn, she doesn't have wings!" Or, if they don't get the answer to the immortal question out there better than they have thus far, the older fans (8-12 year olds?) might get sad at the change and not want to think about the show anymore.
Also in regards to bronies not being the target audience, I know this might be rude to say, but who cares? People watch shows to be entertained. I think there are a lot of people out there who just care about what they like regardless of the motivation. I'll use a personal example. I used to love the show House, and I mean LOVE. I used to watch marathons when it was on. However, around the fourth season, they changed the cast around, and brought in new regulars, and rotated out a decent amount of the original cast. Now, I understand why they did it, but I didn't care why they made those changes when it came to watching the show. The new characters didn't grab me, and after I gave the show a few more episodes into season 5, I stopped watching. Now, did they need me around to have a successful show? Not at all, the show went on for another 4 seasons, and good for them. But, personally, I have the first 4 seasons on DVD. They got about $200.00 from me. Had they not made the changes they did, they would have gotten more of my money.
Twilight's change can bring about a whole plethora of new ideas and challenges, I agree. However, I think those changes are going to be epic in scope, which doesn't really grab me. As I said in my blog, my favorite episodes are the ones that deal with social interaction and social conflict. One of the things I thought the show was great at was balancing the epic with the social. They brought in a new villain or 2 here or there, just to keep it interesting, but it wasn't the focus. I get that they may want to change the focus to something more epic and sweeping, but it's not what I personally want to see, and if anything, Twilight's new title could hinder her social interactions rather than strengthen them, as I stated in my blog.
Anyway, I'm going to see what happens. Hopefully, I'll have Twifly II done by the time the new season rolls out, since if the new season doesn't grab me, I don't really want to be writing a fanfic about a show I no longer enjoy. I will try to keep an open mind, but I have a lot of reservations.
1055981
Hm. Got a point there. They killed off Duke in the new G.I. Joe. What the hay?!
While some people might not care about the change because the main theme is still there (magical, flying, colorful talking miniature horses), they have and WILL lose some of their audience thanks to this recent development. That we can be sure of.
Ha! Exactly! Twilight's social interactions being hindered because of her royalty status; a nice idea for an episode right about now. It would help alleviate some of our concerns about the show.
My friend, we all have doubts about this recent change. I'm sure even Tara Strong had some sort of concern about this too. In my utterly pessimistic opinion, I think this fandom is a sinking ship. Whilst trying to appeal to both audiences simultaneously, Hasbro may have unintentionally set the fuse for bronies. If we or Hasbro don't change direction right now, I don't know how long the fandom could last. But I know I'm staying 'till the bitter end, the fandom's good fun
I know I'm probably exaggerating or moaning about a problem that doesn't exist, but that's just my take on things. You put up quite a good argument. Has anybody ever told you that you'd make a good lawyer?
1056323 Haha, yes, constantly! I work in Insurance, and whenever one of my colleagues has to write a letter, they always consult me on wording and phrasing because they say that I write like an attorney. It's a terrible privilege, but one I bear proudly.
Yeah, when I heard about they killing Duke in the new G.I. Joe, I couldn't help but laugh, as they committed an error they went out of their way to avoid 25 years ago. It's amazing how the past has come back to haunt them, and ended up costing them money in the long run anyway.
I think Twilight's interactions with everyone will end up being an episode at some point, but I guess it bothers me to think of others being awkward around her as well, and not just her friends. Do we really want to see the Cake's or Cheerilee bow before Twilight? I don't.
I think this will affect the fandom, but I still don't see it slowing down all that much. Granted, something like this cannot run at fever pitch constantly, so eventually I think people will move on to other things, but I also want to enjoy it while it lasts. I never thought about writing fiction before I got into MLP, and I'm glad I did. I'm proud of Twifly II (I just hope more people would read it!)
1056591
Meh. Knowing movies these days, they'll probably revive Duke and use him as an enemy and/or a plot device for future sequels.
And about the fandom... No, I just think at this rate, we're gonna be losing more members than we are gaining. That won't be good for the fandom in the long run.
Glad to have been right about that. You just seemed to have a knack for it. And I'm glad to have met my match. At the rate we're going, we could be at this for days, so let's put this to a close. It was awesome conversing (arguing) with ya, mate. Until next time.