Shadow Play, various thoughts · 8:46pm Oct 9th, 2017

The rest of the season was leaked, it seems. Naturally, I've been watching each of 'em. This is the finale. It has all built up to this, and several pieces of lore are now relevant! Let's see what lies in store.

—The Princesses never knew of Starswirl’s final words, it seems. I wonder how that book came into the hooves of whoever owned that antiques-shop? I don't know how canonical the comics detailing the past 1000 years ago are, but I assume their time with their teacher can't have been too dissimilar.

—Apparently, each of the Legend of Magic heroes have met each other. Either this means they all lived in the same time period, or they became immortal somehow, before they each vanished and left behind their stories. (Taking the Pony of Shadows with them.) Either way it presents some questions about Equestrian history that I would like to see answered. How is is that such vastly different societies could exist at the same time? Rather, what even is the extent of Equestria, or the lands before it were ponies lived? What other countries, or nations have there been, and are there now?

—Finally we get to hear what Old Ponish sounds like! I’d like to know how it’s built. According to Google Translate, it recognises the text Starlight reads as Scots’ Gaelic. Pieces from a love poem, apparently written in Old Ponish triggers Estonian, and Icelandic recognition as well. Some seems Latin, to me. I believe it’s invented and takes inspiration from some of these, at least. Maybe some more professional linguistic researchers will be able to grant some insight. Please, people, get on this! EDIT: Apparently this is more or less straight up Old English. Not Early Modern, that is, rather, the language of the Anglo-Saxons.

—The Sirens appearing means that at least their part is very much canonical to the series. That is cool. Also, holy crap are they freaky. Rather, what they did, was. A good thing their containment was speedy!

—Oh hey, it’s Petunia Paleo! Nice to see her again! I wonder what sort of exploits she's been up to. Fanfic writers!

—We see AJ's strength displayed again. She single-hoof launched a huge boulder out of the way. It does make me wonder why that sort of feat of strength is apparently unheard of to that professor. Isn't strength supposed to be a common aspect of being an earth pony? I guess, maybe not. Certainly not the super strength that Lily Longsocks and Maud are capable of, at least. Maybe AJ's strength is an aspect of her attunement to the original form of the Element of Honesty. Strength, that is. But if that's the case, how is it that the Pillars of Light changed, and became Harmony? In the first place, what are they? Who created them, if at all? How do they relate to The Map?

—The old mare in the gardens does not look like many of the ponies in Mistmane’s time did. I figure whatever genetics made them as they were has been…. lost, somehow over the time. As might happen, but it still fills me with questions about who they were! What sort of magic did they have? Why is it that the spells Mistmane and Sable Spirit both used seemed to take away their life force, and it could be given back?

—Despite having been trapped in limbo for well over a millennium, and Starswirl's journal entries suggesting the language they spoke at that time was different, once brought back they all speak perfect Equish(or Equestrian, or English), whatever the modern language everyone speaks is. I suspect a convenient translation spell, either from the magic trio's side, or Harmony's. I'd be inclined to think it's the latter, given how visions of the past have been handled before. Still, could the places each of the Bearers of Hope hailed from have the same language, or was understanding similarly gifted to them? Or did they learn Old Ponish?

—Rainbow engages in social manipulation. I like.

—I'm not sure if this is an error, but when The Map directs the group to The Pony of Shadows' keep, only the Bearers of Harmony were directed there, it seems. And yet, this time, the entire party of the Bearers of Hope, as well as Sunburst and Starlight go out. For the first time, this defies The Map's specific notice. And that makes me wonder what exactly it had in mind.

—And the easily-predicted outcome happened. Whoop-dee-doo. I'd have liked for Twilight to have had the wherewithal to come up with a contingency plan instead of looking the fool before her idol by neglecting the obvious caveat in her plan.
Sometimes, Twi. Your writing.

— … I have no choice but to assume Pinkie and AJ are in a relationship consideirng she just grabbed AJ’s butt and rubbed her cheek on it.