Episode Review: Amending Fences

Nostalgia spoilers are not what they used to be!

As the episode opens, Twilight now seems to be able to relax in the castle with a good book, while Spike finishes cleaning up the dishes. Twilight makes some reference to 'three events three days in a row' so we know she's been busy. Then Spike comments that Twilight's come a long ways since she was basically friendless in Canterlot, especially now that she's the Princess of Friendship -- only it comes off as an ironic statement, and it freaks Twilight out big time that she can't even remember her old friends' names. So Spike's 'big mouth' means an immediately flight to Canterlot to start checking up on them.

Here I like that Spike does not intend any meanness, just that he's pointing out how things have changed. The conflict for this episode comes from Twilight, and the things she did both before the pilot, and during that all-important series premiere. The nostalgia! The references!

We also learn that while Twilight does not remember her friends' names, Spike certainly does, and some of them will surprise the audience: Minuette, Twinkleshine, Lemon Hearts, Lyra Heartstrings, and Moondancer. With Twilight, that's six Unicorns, and perhaps an alternate Mane6 to boot. As Minuette explains when Twilight seeks her out, Lyra moved to Ponyville and the four of them frequently visit each other, either in Canterlot or in Ponyville. On top of that, three of them served as Chrysalis's first-choice bridesmaids and dungeon guards (in the comic Neigh Anything, Cadence's best friends are named 'Lemony Gems' and 'Diamond Rose.' Since Cadence was like a big sister to her, it would make sense for Twilight to have a similar friend).

Twilight and Spike return to their old home to find that not even Princess Celestia has touched it since they left, not even to close Predictions and Prophecies, still open to the Elements of Harmony page. Weird how nopony's come to dust or clean the place, but whatever. Or I'd say so if Twilight had never returned between the pilot and this episode. One would think that any time the princesses invited them and they had to stay the night, Twilight would get the use of her old room, unless somepony else moved in -- and we learn from this episode that the space has been unused since. What a waste! But this allows Spike to find the present he had been arranging for Moondancer. He deems the teddy bear ruined because it had been impaled on his tail, and besides it's unlikely a full-grown mare would need a teddy bear. Then again, she was pretty grown up back then, too, so Spike's choice does not make sense -- until you get to the picture, which just makes Twilight feel more guilty that she's abandoned her friends.

Fortunately Twilight and Spike find that Minuette does not feel at all abandoned, although she and the others did wonder why Twilight never dropped in on them on any of the occasions she was back in Canterlot. Granted the world was at stake many of those times, but she could have visited afterwards. Twinkleshine and Lemon Hearts are likewise doing fine, as we find out when the girls go to Donut Joe's place to catch up -- and meanwhile in the corner, Starlight Glimmer appears to be doing some catching up of her own. It's a pretty visible cameo, so the expected revenge scheme could kick in soon, although probably during the season finale. This is probably only the second time Twilight had made her own enemy independent of Celestia, the first being Trixie. And Starlight has proven herself to be more patient than her showpony counterpart.

After some awkward moments, the girls decide to go someplace nostalgic. Twilight identifies it as their old lab, and we get a flashback. It involves somehow getting one's head stuck inside a flask (it's magic, I ain't gotta explain a thing!), and Moondancer looking like a palette swap Twilight. Both bookponies are ignoring their other friends while trying to get a potion mix right, and apparently Moondancer has the wrong book. She is unamused. I think it's worth noting that Moondancer does not have a name inspired by a look through the thesaurus, unlike Twilight's other foils, Sunset and Starlight. Then again, they had little choice when Moondancer was already named in the pilot. Apparently her name and design are inspired by a G1 pony, and her cutie mark is the one Twilight herself would have had. She also calls Twilight 'Twilight Twinkle,' which is an earlier version of her name. Creator references, by the almighty Fausticorn!

The flashback inspires Twilight to ask about Moondancer, so the girls to to look her up. They find Moondancer at the edge of the city in a very run-down place, where, when Twilight knocks on the door, she does not know her own strength. She really should offer to repair it. Moondancer is clearly not open to socializing, causing the girls' colourful backdrop to drip-fade out. Twilight then begins to find tactics to try to bring Moondancer out so she can be friends with the others. Some people make comparisons here with 'A Friend In Deed,' because Twilight herself told Pinkie that there are some beings that simply are not open to friendship, but that was way before Twilight's Alicornization, and she genuinely wants to see Moondancer give friendship a chance.

During her attempts, Twilight demonstrates a couple spells we have not seen before: a Shield of Silence that could be a reference to the Cone of Silence, and Haycarte's method of becoming an ink drawing inside a book. Twilight says she can only do it for a little while, but it helps her absorb information faster. This makes me wonder if it can be cast on others, and if it can, could that have made a good study method for Rainbow Dash in 'Testing Testing 1, 2, 3?' The chance to learn this spell intrigues Moondancer, so Twilight gets her to come home with her. Moondancer gets angry that Twilight never returned a first edition book to her, which makes her unreceptive to an offer of the key to Twilight's old place -- and by the way, I think this is a neat solution to it not being used.

Twilight admits to Spike that her inability to make things right is hurting, and she's worried about how much her actions hurt Moondancer. When she says she wishes she could go back and fix things, it makes one worry about time travel magic, only we know that the one spell she learned from the Starswirl wing can only be used once, and only for about a minute. Thankfully, Twilight has already used this spell, and doing so changed nothing in 'It's About Time.' Lesson learned, Twilight goes to fetch her 'secret weapon.'

Who else but Pinkie Pie. Unfortunately Pinkie comes with a reminder that Twilight has been a bad friend to the others. Fortunately, she also comes with a knowledge of exactly how to duplicate Moondancer's party, and she enlists Minuette to help set it up. The latter goes to get the others. Although the party is set up right, it quickly becomes clear that Moondancer still holds a grudge toward Twilight for leaving without saying anything, and for abandoning her just when she was putting herself out there. And there are people like this in real life, who become sour toward social occasions because of one bad experience, whether that's betrayal by someone they thought of as a friend, or something less personal. Like Moondancer, these people can shut themselves in and focus on a single pursuit, carrying the scar and the grudge for a long time, and while there are plenty of people who are comfortable with their own company, human beings are naturally social creatures. Twilight apologizes to Moondancer, and this lets her begin to let go and open up again.

Some people ask how things might have been different if Twilight had gone to Moondancer's party. I do not think it would have changed much, since Twilight had about a day before the Summer Sun Celebration even then. She should have been able to attend the party and lead the Mane6 against Nightmare Moon -- because after all, who would arrange a party for the night of the Summer Sun Celebration?

I enjoyed this episode a great deal, not only for the references to previous episodes, but because it carries powerful lessons and it shows that there can be negative unintended consequences even to the best of choices or actions. Although Twilight was not the most tactful of Unicorns, she could have realized that Moondancer was in a similar situation to her own, and tried to help her out before leaving for Ponyville. Even though when Twilight first left she did not know she would be making a permanent move, she could have come back and arranged the others into a support network for Moondancer, but she simply forgot about her old friends entirely. Where Sunset was a foil for Twilight in the matter of power and magical potential, and Starlight in the matter of leadership style, Moondancer is a foil in her social potential -- and a better foil, because it would be so easy to swap Twilight with Moondancer, probably because the latter seemed to be modelling herself after Celestia's protegee.

There's not much in here I didn't like, but the head-in-the-beaker bit did freak me out a little. I would have liked to see some new animation on the flashback from the pilot, but that's a severe nitpick. I give this episode a solid 8 out of 10 and an A.

8/10
A

PS: Earlier I said that Minuette, Twinkleshine, Lemon Hearts, Lyra Heartstrings, Moondancer, and Twilight could have formed an alternate Mane6. We don't know much about Twinkleshine and Lemon Hearts, but who do you think could take what Element? Let me know in the comments.