Help! My Heart is Full of Pony! - Behind the Scenes · 5:22am Apr 28th, 2017
The moral of this latest episode, "A Flurry of Emotions," is a simple one, but it's a lesson for the ages: always listen to Spike.
I, like a lot of people, really hated Spike when the show first started. He was annoying, and weak – a carryover from the old "tag along wimpy kid" trope that defined the character back in prehistoric Equestria, G1.
Somewhere along the line, however, he went from being the butt of jokes, to being the sarcastic straight man - a voice of reason. The "are you kidding me" looks that he throws have become not only a staple of his humor, and his character, but also a point of relatability.
At the very beginning of this episode, Spike tells Twilight Sparkle what the rest of us already know – that Twilight had already made a commitment to the hospital - that it would be irresponsible to take on more than the two of them could handle - that her overly ambitious plan of juggling these two very big responsibilities was going to blow up in their faces.
Of course, his advice is ignored, but throughout the episode, there he is anyway, right there beside Twilight Sparkle, for glory or for folly, because that is the nature of his relationship with Twilight. He is Sam to her Frodo. He'll follow her to the ends of the earth.
I don't think that's talked about quite enough.
Spike gets a bad rap because a great deal of his episodes tend to be subpar, (even if there are a few excellent ones). However, Spike as a character, shines brightest in episodes that are not, in fact, his own. Whatever other adventures, or hijinks might be going on, Spike is always there to re-organize the books after they get knocked off their shelves, or to clean up the castle after Luna-only-knows what happens to it. He's always doing the actual hard work of friendship and companionship – the sort of unglamorous stuff that is seldom called attention to, in real life, or in My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
In a show that exalts loyalty, and dedication, and friendship to the point of mysticism, Spike's unwavering devotion to Twilight is actually downplayed, taken for granted even. Think about that for a minute.
"A Flurry of Emotions" is adorable for obvious reasons, but it's also powerful because of the final scene – a sort of addendum to the main plot. Spike is there in the hospital with the sick kids, reading them a story, and they are loving it.
It's a simple tying up of loose ends, but it's beautiful because it captures everything low-key awesome about Spike. He may have a few Crystal Empire moments in the sun now and again, but at the end of the day, Spike will always be the behind-the-scenes guy, doing the right thing while everyone else is out learning lessons, and fighting monsters. There's something noble about that.
-Sprocket
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I'm glad to see that someone else has notice Spike for the yeoman work he does for Twilight and the other main characters. He is a constant; totally devoted and (almost) endlessly patient. He is definitely the yong to Twilight's yang. As you said, the voice of reason. He's a good egg and the kind of person most of us just expect to be there for us. I'm sort of the Spike in my house. It gets tiring sometimes but it's never dull! I guess you could say I know how Spoke feels.
4512423
Me too. It's a blue collar kind of friendship.
Sublimely well-said. I agree fully.
Mind if I quote you in my own Afterthoughts on this episode?
4513292 Sure. Go ahead
4513292
Link?
4517654 Here!