I watched entirely too much pony this morning. It got me thinking.
EqG 1: Sunset Shimmer not granted higher power by Celestia, takes Element of Magic, becomes demon. 2(RR): Sirens not granted magic by default, must take it, are demonized for their acts. (weakest version)
So I've produced several (mostly scientifically-worthless but possibly making for good stories) hypotheses here: 1. Pinkie's social powers and memory derive from memory-hacking everypony she meets. Ponies, specifically. 1b. This is pid (pony ID) based, so pool clones do not benefit; this is whgat Pinkie actually acts like without her mental powerup.
❧Polymorph effects are getting more and more common, yet we keep running into things that they should solve ("It Isn't the Mane Thing About You"). ❧Swamp Fever doesn't require the whole lifecycle to reproduce…or Zecora just had some of the spores still on her to give the doc. (On the flipside, kudos for actually making it infect those it came in contact with.)