Feb
16th
2013
The End of Neighs · 3:04am Feb 16th, 2013
The armageddon clock ticks down; a hushed foreboding falls over Equestria. The hour draws near.
We've suffered a terrible fate, haven't we?
Much has been said over recent days. Some have seen doom and proclaimed the end: "corporate meddling!", they wail, tearing their clothes in grief. Others hold fast to their faith; "I believe in M.A. Larson", they cry, steadfast.
Will it all come to flame and ashes, our shining beacon of love and friendship falling down around us? Will Twilight Sparkle, chosen of Harmony, discover her true destiny and become something terrible?
This is the final day, and the hour fast approaches.
For good or ill, tomorrow...we will have our answer.
Dun dun DUN!
I remain annoyed that blog posts can't be upvoted.
Yes! The Two-Winged Angel Rises!
Estuans interius
amicitia maga!
Estuans interius
amicitia maga!
Twilight!
Twilight!
Sors -- gloriosa
Et lucrativa!
Sors -- gloriosa
Et lucrativa!
Veni, amicae, venias
Ne me derelinquere facias
Veni, amicae, venias
Ne me derelinquere facias
&c &c &c
...with apologies to FFVII and Latin. Oh, and also to my Latin teachers. Mea culpa. Mea maxima culpa.
831811
Comments can. Stories can. Blog posts? No.
Weird.
I feel like I'm the only one who not only saw this coming a season and a half ago, but looked forward to it.
For god's sake, she's Twilight Sparkle. What's the problem?
831839 Just in case it's not as obvious as I thought, this post has tongue firmly in-cheek. Also, I figure that lots of us - at least us writers - saw this coming. For my part, it's not that it's happening--it was inevitable--it's that it's happening now, with very little buildup. Just 'suddenly Twilicorn'.
This is why you don't have sales executives in change of content creators, incidentally. Should always be the other way around. But I digress.
The 'problem' is ZOMG MAN ITS THE END OF NEIGHS EVERYONE PANIC THE SKY IS FALLING PONIES AND GRYPHONS LIVING TOGETHER SUN AND MOON IN THE SKY AT THE SAME TIME AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!
You have to get into the apocalyptic spirit!
Bring it on. -sunglasses-
831857 lol don't worry, that was more in response to the controversy surrounding the decision than to your blog in particular.
Even so, the only problem I see is that it's going to be a single episode instead of the two-parter an event such as this would normally warrant. As for build up, I figured we had seen enough of Twilight's often unintentional displays of power, not to mention Celestia's unusual interest in her since she was little, to see it was going somewhere. I mean, they have been hinting since the beginning of this season, and even though this season is half-length, that's still a season's worth of buildup, and I feel they've done a respectable job of it without making the entire season twilight-centric. I guess what I'm saying is that I don't see any reason to be upset over this, it's something we knew was coming and something that entirely fits the character.
Besides, the song looks like it could be one of the better ones, and that's always something to be glad for. We need something better than "raise this barn" to end the season's soundtrack with.
But more in the spirit of things...
mezzacotta.net/garfield/comics/0083.png
Couple things, if I may add to this little convo (because it seems like a fairly beneighn one)
831883
Yes, the one-parter would be a problem, but never fear, Twitter to the rescue/twisting the screws! A tweet from Meghan McCarthy:
So we have a NEW Show of Damocles hanging over our heads, for the entire break!!
831839
Eh, some people who have reservations look at the broader implications, especially in a fandom where a lot of time and thought has been invested in creating the rules that govern the world we see and/or read.
Things such as, if she's an alicorn, isn't it sad that her friends will grow old and she won't?
Won't she have to choose between using her new powers and what seems to be the alicorn responsibility to make Ponies grow and do things on their own, and how would that affect a friendship?
Or the sad fact that, despite what the show staff say about "showing that with hard work anyone can achieve greatness," we see a situation where only Unicorns can- e.g., for now all we know is that writing magic is what kicks off the process, but no Earth Pony or Pegasus can actively use magic.
I'm not saying backstory won't come out to paper those over, but... from the understanding that has generally developed in the fanfic world, those are uncomfortable questions that arise from her suddenly apotheosizing.
832179 Cadence's relationship with Shining raises the same question regarding aging. Yes, it's sad, if that's the case. We only know that Luna and Celestia have been around for thousands of years. We have no indication that Cadence is immortal, nor should we assume she is. As for how alicorns come to be, it may be a sort of next level of being in tune with one's special talent. Since Twilight's special talent is Magic, it would make sense that writing her own magic is what causes the transition for her.
It's all about perspective. Plenty of headcanon and fics are made obsolete every single episode, we just need to adjust our view of the world based on what we know now as opposed to what we knew then.
832212
yes, that marriage does raise the same question. But it's not about any particular fanfic being mooted, for me it's more about having a set of rational rules. They don't have to be the same rules that govern OUR world (especially given that magic is extant there!), but I want them to be consistent, or any inconsistencies explained in a plausible fashion.
So, for example, if becoming an alicorn is not necessarily related just to magic... why don't we see any non-magic-related alicorns? So far, at least, there's no evidence of an extremely good farmer becoming the Alicorn of... corn? Something like that.
I'm not trying to be argumentative, but I find these ideas interesting and the inconsistencies, as I currently see them, before any exposition in the upcoming episode (or three, according to McCarthy, though we will have to wait til next season for the next two), I see the inconsistencies as a little depressing.
And you have a good point on the aging- I say immortal but we have no real indication of actual immortality. I used it as shorthand for "living a lot longer than her friends and leaving them in the dust," so I should specify and say "really long-lived." Evidence of that can be seen in how Celestia looks middle-aged despite being over a millennia old.
832212
And, I'm sorry, I should have said that you are correct; we don't know if Cadance or Twilight will age at a reduced rate, but that's one thing I'm very curious about, and would like to see explained at some point, so it's not floating around as an awful, unsettling possibility. A plausible explanation could be that born Alicorns have extremely long lifespans, whereas self-made ones like Twilight gain the powers and responsibilities, but genetically are locked into a normal lifespan.
Which is sad in and of itself... one reason I'm not the biggest fan of this development. *shrugs* The status quo cannot last forever, but it could last a little longer.
832269 Oh, I absolutely agree!
Coming up with those rules based on what we know is something I've had fun with, for sure, but that's just it. What we know is always changing, because the series isn't finished. But if everything you think you know always stayed the same, if you think you've got it all figured out, then where's the fun? And, of course, just because it contradicts what you think you know doesn't mean it contradicts what has been stated outright in the show's canon. Coming up with a rational explanation is what's so damn fun about this to begin with, and i promise you there's an explanation to be had. We just need to find it.
Let's take that question regarding the farmer, for example. After all, it's a good one. Why don't we see an alicorn of corn? Well, let's look at the alicorns we do have. Celestia and Luna we can safely assume to be 'born' alicorns, as you describe them, until otherwise stated, so they wouldn't apply here. That leaves Cadence. Now, having only one 'made' alicorn to begin with (assuming she is one, but we have nothing to contradict it, so let's run with it) we can assume that ascension into alicornhood is an extremely rare occurrence, so that explains them not clogging up the streets. However, there's not much evidence pointing to what her race prior to becoming an alicorn might have been. Her special talent is merely love-related, and so not entirely dependent on magic when viewed that way. She could have been an earth-pony matchmaker before becoming an alicorn for all we know. Something happened (she pairs the right ponies at the right time against the right odds, what have you. The details are a fic for another day, but you get the point) and she became an alicorn governing whatever her special talent was before that (in this case, love)
A lot of people may think that particular explanation is pretty stupid, and after having written it I at least partially agree with them, but it's also not the only possibility. Think about this, for example. A pony discovers their special talent, something they are fated for before they take their first steps. They don't choose it, they stumble into it and are shaped by it. It rules them, and they have no control over it. By accepting it, and learning to live and work with it, they earn their cutie mark. Perhaps, however rarely, a mare or stallion won't be held down by fate so easily. Perhaps a select few are not only driven to, but capable of manipulating their fate in a limited way. Perhaps it is only when one is no longer governed by their talent, and instead it is they who master it, that one transcends the three mortal pony races. Twilight writing her own magic would certainly constitute mastery over magic, I'd say, and would certainly play into that theory.
Anyway, there are hundreds of possibilities. I don't see this as an inconsistency or something to be dreaded. To the contrary, I look forward to more of the canon world's mechanics being revealed to us, and new questions being raised for us to answer, regardless of the motivation behind their creation. I trust the writers to give us something plausible to work with.
Sorry for the essay, and I'm not trying to be argumentative either. This is just a conversation I've been wanting to have with someone (anyone) for a while now. Thanks for the chance
832463
Interesting... i see we have some basic differences in interpreting data (or lack thereof), and if I weren't so tired, I'd dig in... but i have to sleep, badly, so I'll have to put it off.
If you're willing to check back in tomorrow, though, I'd be happy to continue!
then again, by that point, whatever I may have to say might be mooted, or more likely drowned out by the hordes of people saying... stuff.
Tomorrow, then, I shall re-read what you've said and offer some counter arguments, because this IS fun, and a welcome distraction from dread anticipation.
Well, it was certainly rushed, and I really don't know how to feel about the Princess thing, but darn it I really liked it. I was very pleased with how they handled the transformation itself (was not expecting them to go that route), and I actually would've been completely happy if they just left her as an alicorn at the end, rather than going the princess route. But I liked all the songs. It was definitely a different kind of episode.
Should've been a two-parter, but it didn't crash and burn, and I think they did an overall good job.
And I'm very intrigued about McCarthy's "first of a three parter" comment.