May the muffins be forever in your favour."Dragon Dropped" Review: The End of an Romantic Era · 9:12pm Sep 9th, 2019
This episode brings with it a great loss. For almost nine seasons, we know about Spike's legendary crush on Rarity. And now that crush is gone, because Spike's heart has found someone else than Rarity. Sparity is a thing of the past.
Of all the things that could have happened, one that I didn't expect and would have never guessed is that Spike could lose his crush on Rarity and find another special someone. Much less so if we consider that this special someone is a special somegriffon. And even less so if we consider that this griffon is Gabby. That not only eliminates all the popular fandom theories about whom Spike could hook up with other than Rarity, most notably Ember and Mina, it also brings an end to something that's been with us since Season 1.
The obvious crush Spike had on Rarity and that Rarity wasn't completely averse to him is one of the first big things I discovered in My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and one of the first memories I have of it. I will never forget "A Dog and Pony Show" that made this so perfectly clear when I saw it for the first time in February 2012. I was flame and fire for that ship from the very beginning. It feels strange that Sparity does not exist anymore now. Something is missing all of a sudden.
That's also probably exactly how this development feels to Rarity. Most of the time, letting the early hints in Season 1 aside, it seemed like the romantic affection between Spike and Rarity was one-sided. Like Spike had a crush on her, but Rarity, while recognizing his feelings, didn't quite feel the same about him and was merely using his love for her to have him as her convenient slave who carries and holds stuff for her, because she knew he wouldn't refuse her requests. Especially after Trenderhoof, it strongly seemed like this.
But this episode changed all that, for us and for Rarity alike. After Spike turned her down and told her he can't spend time with her because he has something else to do, Rarity was completely beside herself. She was sad, confused and completely shattered. And after she found out that Gabby is the reason for Spike's rejection, she became downright jealous, daydreamt about past meetings with Spike, couldn't stop thinking and neither talking about him and eventually even tried to lure Spike away from Gabby. One could think that Spike is Rarity's only friend and the only one she can meet with and talk to when seeing all that. But we know that's not the case, Rarity has many friends and, therefore, many ponies she can talk to. And yet, she acted like this anyway.
It really was only now, when she couldn't have Spike all to herself anymore, that Rarity realized what she really feels for him and how much Spike truly means to her. This also shows when we look at it how Rarity, with Spike unavailable, made Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie help her in a similar fashion, which makes clear that this is a general attitude of hers and not something aimed at Spike, so she was never abusing his love for her. After all these years Rarity knows Spike already, it turns out that the feelings of romantic affection weren't one-sided at all.
But right when we and Rarity realize that, Spike has developed a crush on someone else and is even dating with that someone. The signs for the feelings between him and Gabby were pretty clear, too. Spike did not even hear Rarity when she talked to him before he went to meet Gabby at the post office because his head was full with thoughts about Gabby, the two of them didn't wait until Rarity had ended her sentence when she talked to them before flying off together and Gabby was offering the cherry on her milkshake to Spike and was holding it for him while Spike nibbled on it. It won't be long anymore until they share the same milkshake together like Lyra and Bon Bon did on the table behind them.
All of this creates a very coherent picture, that Spike's heart belongs to someone else now, to Gabby. And it's hard to see how he friendzoned Rarity, after more than seven years since I saw Season 1. Of course there is still Rarity's crush on him, which now that Spike is dating Gabby makes the feelings between him and Rarity actually one-sided, but this obviously won't last long and Rarity will soon have to realize that Spike and her won't be together like that anymore. It's sad to think about that. Another end of an era.
Also, speaking about Gabby, the last time we've seen her in a big role was in Season 6, which was also the season that introduced Gabby to us. I said this a few times in other Season 9 reviews already, Season 9 has an extraordinarily high amount of Season 6 references. The pieces of Chrysalis' throne in "Sparkle's Seven", the Tasty Treat in "The Point of No Return", buckball and the return of Quibble Pants into the show in "Common Ground", the Dragonlands in "Sweet and Smoky", Petunia Paleo and Gabby in "The Last Crusade", buckball again in "2, 4, 6, Greaaat" and now Gabby again, with a big role and even talking about the time when she wanted to get a cutie mark, in "Dragon Dropped". In total, we have eight Season 6 references in seven different episodes of Season 9, so far.
And Season 6 holds much significance to me, as 2016 has seen my biggest progress as a pony author, so far, as well as many other wonderful things that meant a lot to me, so I'm very happy that Season 9 references so many Season 6 episodes. Season 9 is in a very rewarding 69 position with Season 6.
What I especially like about Gabby's return is that she has shown to be much more mature than Rarity. Even though Gabby has the same feelings for Spike, she was dealing with it quite well when Spike didn't hang out with her for once and was doing something with Rarity instead, while Rarity completely lost balance when the same happened to her. A very effective proof for it that someone isn't necessarily going to be wiser just because of being older.
This episode somehow drives it home that My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic will end soon. By essentially ending something that we've traditionally known since Season 1, it's eerily fitting to what will happen soon. We have only seven episodes left now before the book closes. And this episode gave us a little foretaste on how it will feel. The next six weeks aren't going to be easy.
~ Fluttercheer
I found the episode pretty adorable to be honest
5118616
I was not suggesting that I don't like it. Nor that I hate it. It's just sad to see something end that's so rooted in the show and that's been there since the beginning.
I might be in the minority, but I'm rather glad the entire Spike/Rarity thing was given a definite nail in the coffin. Their relationship hasn't been terribly well portrayed in a positive light- intentionally or unintentionally. I certainly agree it was a staple in the MLP portrayal/fandom however, but that grows and can develop, as we have seen.
5118680
Because Rarity abused Spike to help her with work all the time? She's doing that with her other friends too, that's just a characteristic behavior of Rarity. I'm sure if she and Spike had hooked up eventually, this would have settled itself over time.
5118688
She's asked her friends to help, yes, but not to the point of clearly valuing Spike's assistance more than his company. I think that's an oversight by the writers, but it nonetheless comes off as a very one-sided relationship. (This episode is one of the few times we see an example of Rarity actually 'hanging out' with Spike. (at the spa.) Otherwise, it has almost always been in an 'assistant' capacity. Again, I don't think it's intentionally portrayed that way, but still is a bit 'eh,'
5118700
That's how it looked, so far. Yet, Rarity does the same with her other friends, so it's not specifically aimed at Spike. She just has that attitude. See "Rarity Takes Manehattan". And, yes, it did mostly come across as one-sided, so far. But, as I already said in my review, it was only now that Rarity realized what she truly feels for Spike. She even directly said that.
So it's not an oversight by the writers. Just a characteristic trait of Rarity and lack of self-awareness regarding her true feelings for Spike. Which is probably what caused her to trip and miss her chance. She never properly reciprocated Spike's affection for her, so it was bound to happen that Spike would fall for someone else sooner or later, now that I think about it. Now it's too late. That's something that is going to haunt Rarity for a long time.
5118711
I agree; but I think the oversight by the writers is that it's not built up that Rarity even has feelings for him, friend or otherwise. We only see one example where she misses his actual company (at the spa,) otherwise, it's missing the convenience he provides. It'd make sense if they built up her feelings more instead of having it seem she misses the convenience vs him.
Regardless, I'm ecstatic that Spike and Gabby are friends if not more. They both come from cultures that generally shun 'soft' feelings, and are both fish out of water in that respect.
While Sparity's odds of happening certainly have decreased, I don't think I'd call it full-on dead yet. Heck, if it were to hypothetically happen down the road from this point, I imagine it'd be far healthier now that they aren't overly obsessed with each other.
At the same time, however, I see exactly what you mean. One of the core aspects of the show, one that's been there since literally the very first episode, has finally been put to rest, at least when it comes to canon. It certainly is a rather bittersweet moment, one that serves as yet another reminder that the definitive end to this chapter of our lives is drawing nearer and nearer.
But in the end, as the saying goes:
–George Harrison
Not easy, yes but its not entirely over. In our fan ideas, it can still exist and gabby with Spike was Part of the fandom before. Just look at Mac und Marble before suger came in.