The Genius of Equestria Girls

I'm gonna cut right to the chase: Let's talk Equestria Girls.

I saw the movie myself on opening day—a little less than a week ago, at this point. As such, I've had quite a lot of time to reflect upon it, see other people's opinions, and formulate my own opinions. Through this, I have chosen the following stance on the film:

Equestria Girls was the perfect way to follow up season three.

Seriously, they—almost—couldn't have done it any better, and allow me to explain why.

In discussing the movie with other people, I've often pointed out that the whole plot of the movie parallels the pilot of the show: Friendship is Magic Parts 1 and 2. Here are some—but not nearly all—of the ways it does this:

- Twilight is sent to a world with which she is entirely unfamiliar with the intent of stopping a grand cataclysmic event, and Spike is her only companion. This is identical to when she first came to Ponyville, only more exaggerated.
- The antagonist—Sunset Shimmer—is a pony who evidently shared a personal connection with Princess Celestia in the past, but her greed and bitterness got the best of her and she turned to the dark side. Basically the same sort of situation that turned Princess Luna into Nightmare Moon, the pilot's antagonist.
- Twilight is the one who has to unite all of her friends—and the whole school, really—in order to stop Sunset Shimmer; Twilight gives them guidance and strength, and allows them to show their true potential. Do I really have to explain how this parallels the pilot?
- Throughout Twilight's journey to reclaim her crown, Sunset Shimmer repeatedly attempts to thwart her. Through the help of her friends, however, Twilight manages to overcome every obstacle Sunset throws her way. This is what Nightmare Moon also did to Twilight and her friends, and it ultimately brought the whole group closer together.
- In the end, Twilight and her friends harness the power of the Elements of Harmony and manage to stop Sunset Shimmer at the last second. Sunset Shimmer—after being shown the true power of friendship and harmony—has a sudden breakdown and turnaround after her defeat. Luna, anyone?

What's more is that most people whom I've pointed this out to have agreed with me. I don't think this was a coincidence either, since some points in the movie blatantly go out of their way to show this parallel. For instance, Twilight's first encounter with Fluttershy in Canterlot High happens pretty much verbatim the way it happens for the first time in Ponyville, right down to Fluttershy freaking out excitedly over Spike.

"But, Argon," I hear hypothetical some-of-you asking, "Why does this matter? Just because it's like the pilot doesn't make it good."

You're right; being such a close parallel to the pilot doesn't inherently make the movie great. As a matter of fact, plenty of people have given me the perfectly valid argument that it actually makes the movie worse, since it's just a rehash of something we've already seen, thus making it uninspired and boring.

This is an easy point to agree with, but don't jump to conclusions just yet. We're about to get to the good part: just why do I laud Equestria Girls for its genius if I openly admit that the basic story frame is uninspired? Simple, my fine friends:

Context and presentation.

While what I described above is the general story for most of the movie, there's an overarching plot point that gives everything else a lot more depth. It's pointed out to us right near the beginning of the movie, and one more time right near the end.

Right before she's about to go to bed in the Crystal Empire, Twilight talks to Spike about her nervousness and uncertainty about being a princess. She's afraid that she doesn't have what it takes to be a good princess and leader, and she doesn't want to let anyone down. Her lack of confidence is quite heart-breaking, truth be told.

Then we go through the bulk of the movie, this tiny plot point planted in the backs of our minds until we reach the end.

After Twilight and her friends defeat Sunset Shimmer and save the school, Principal Celestia gives the crown to Twilight and delivers one of the most poignant lines of the entire film: "A true princess in any world leads not by forcing others to bow before her, but by inspiring others to stand with her. We have all seen that you're capable of just that. I hope that you see it too, Princess Twilight."

That right there. That line is the key to what makes this movie so genius.

Think about it. When Twilight first came to Ponyville, she didn't have any friends, and she didn't want any either. Her friends-to-be, though, showed her the real values and power of friendship, and it inspired her to stand with her friends and be a real leader in order to stop Nightmare Moon. And it worked.

From then on, every episode in all three seasons built upon how these friends all interacted with and learned from each other. All of their values, qualities, and traits rubbed off on each other and they grew wiser because of it. This is especially true of Twilight because she was specifically tasked to learn about friendship in Ponyville, so she naturally learned and grew from all of her interactions as well as her friends' interactions with each other.

Then we come to Equestria Girls. In Canterlot High, all of Twilight's friends' counterparts have been driven apart and have essentially become enemies, not wanting anything to do with each other. Twilight, on he other hand, has a profound understanding of and appreciation for the values of friendship, and she knows she won't stand a chance against Sunset Shimmer unless she imparts that wisdom onto her friends in order to unite them.

See where I'm going with this yet?

Allow me to give you a quote from Magical Mystery Cure, spoken by Princess Celestia: "The lessons you've learned here in Ponyville have taught you well. You have proven that you're ready, Twilight." And another excellent one: "You've displayed the charity, compassion, devotion, integrity, optimism, and, of course, the leadership of a true princess." And one more—a short one—for the road: "You are an inspiration to us all, Twilight."

In essence, Twilight played the same role for her friends in Equestria Girls that her friends played for her in Friendship is Magic Parts 1 and 2. She effectively put all the lessons she's learned over the course of the show into practice in order to become a real leader for her friends and for the school as a whole.

And here's why this matters:

Twilight has serious doubts about being a princess, not believing that she has what it takes to fulfill the role. Through Equestria Girls, Twilight learns that she doesn't need to fear the leadership role, because she already has what it takes to be a leader. She, as an individual, already has all the qualities of a real princess, something she'd built upon through her friendships, and something she didn't realize because it's such an integral part of who she already was before she was a princess. And that's crucial.

Equestria Girls effectively concludes the character arc Twilight's been building up since the very beginning of the show, and it simultaneously begins begins the character arc of Princess Twilight. Through it all, though, we are assured of one thing: Twilight is the same pony regardless of whether or not she's a princess. Being a princess hasn't magically forced her into shoes that she can't fill. Instead, it's shown her the true potential she has as a leader and friend to make a difference in the world.

I dunno about you, but I certainly didn't expect this level of depth from the movie when I went to see it. I expected it to be a quirky and silly little side adventure for Princess Twilight before her character arc really began in season four, but the movie pleasantly surprised me. It also solidified the idea in my mind—which was already pretty concrete to begin with, mind you—that Twilicorn was the right direction for the series to take. It's not the beginning of something new, it's the continuation of what we love with a different perspective.

Anyway, those are my thoughts on Equestria Girls, articulated as best I can. I'd love to hear anyone else's thoughts on it, or your thoughts on my thoughts.

Before I go, I just want to point out one particularly powerful scene in the movie. It's probably my favourite scene, to be honest. It's the scene where Sunset Shimmer threatens to destroy the portal back to Equestria if Twilight doesn't relinquish the crown, and Twilight refuses.

Just think about that for a second. Twilight's willing to give up ever going back to Equestria again just in order to save a world she's known about for barely three days. She's willing to let go of everything that made her into the princess she is in order to save a world she's seen to have hope, harmony, friendship, and love. She's willing to accept a fate worse than death to defend the values of friendship.

The amount of self-sacrifice Twilight displays in that one little monologue is a thousand times more poignant than what she did in The Crystal Empire. If that doesn't show you how much Twilight deserves her title, I don't know what will.

Anyway, that's all. Have a good night!

Comments

[Bookish Delight]

Wow. Thank you.

A perfect movie EG ain't but it deserved more balanced views like this and less of the sea of constant hyperbolic whining.

Shame one can't favorite blog posts, because I love this. Only wish I'd found it earlier.

(Also, though I don't think Twilicorn was the necessarily "the right direction for the series to take" at all, I DO Think this movie (as well as a few other pieces of media we've had) managed to save and redeem what was a questionable idea that had an even more questionable introduction attached to it.)

[ArgonMatrix]

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Absolutely right. Despite its flaws (what was the point of Flash Sentry?!), EG was certainly a lot better than most give it credit for. I'm glad you agree!

Feel free to spread this blog post around, if you like. Maybe it could help some people see the movie in a different light.