"They're tiny, so who cares?" [episode spoilers!] · 4:28pm Mar 26th, 2016
Yup, we're back to doing this again! Hit the break to find out what I thought!
Down and dirty: if I have any complaint about this episode, it's that it's not as epic as other premieres have been. Not as epic as 1, 2 or 5, but more interesting than 3 and better put-together than 4. So, right in the middle and on the positive side of things. Considerably better than any previous episode featuring the Crystal Empire, though the bar for that is low.
But honestly? A good episode. Fun, lots of new stuff to enjoy, Starlight's arc wasn't as terrible as I'd been anticipating. I have to say, I was considerably more invested in Starburst's arc -- and I suppose I could nitpick it, but frankly, you can figure out what's going on with him pretty easily -- and I really dig him. I mean, he's basically Moondancer, only less bitter and more audience stand-in, but I love him, he's great. His special talent is sorting books. :V
Flurry Heart (I didn't realize they hadn't named her and had been wondering why her name was never said) was a lot of fun, something akin to both the Cake twins combined, and almost the world-ending horror I prophesied. :V I'm actually more happy about canon not screwing up the continuity I've been planning. Hooray for no canon screws!
Let's see, what else happened. AJ and Rainbow Dash have experience in dodging questions about the Crystal Heart. I love that moment when Starlight's entire being is focused on ending Spike. Shining's diatribe when they show up at the train station was fantastic. DUDE WITH MOUSTACHE @_@ I can't get over him. Celestia and Luna doing epic weather control. :V Oh yeah, and canon proof that they ascended into alicornhood and weren't born as alicorns. (Well, or they weren't born at all; fanfic writers take note!)
But the best part? TWILIGHT'S PARENTS TALKED :D And apparently he's just called "Mr. Sparkle" in the credits but I do not give one fuck that was the best part of both episodes
So yeah. I suspect Twilight's self-doubt at the end is setting up an arc for the rest of the season, so we'll see where that goes. I liked this one.
The Crystalling
You actually thought Season's 5 premier was epic?
Cthulhu-stache dude scares me.
I second Twilight's parents speaking as the best part.
One thing I'll say is that Shining Armor needs to lay off the meth.
It was pretty cool. I did like Twilight's parents finally having voices.
3828117 Eeyup.
Yeah, I liked this one. I think it might have been a more powerful message if Starlight just failed to reconnect with Sunburst altogether, because sometimes friendships don't work, and that's okay. But she's in kind of a fragile position right now. She still doesn't have that many friends, and if the only long-term one was still a failure, it might have been too much for her. So I'm not surprised to see it go this way.
Sunburst. Hm. He was an interesting character, but a few things rubbed me the wrong way. He's not a wizard, but he sure plays the part, what with the robe and the hat-shaped house. So who does he think he's fooling? The ponies who live around him would know that he never does anything. Plus he was surprised that Starlight thought he was a wizard, so he must suspect ponies know that about him. And it was really weird for Shining Armor to make the guy he's just met his Crystaller, and Twilight wasn't the least bit disappointed about being booted out of the job. I wonder what his talent is? He never said, though it's more or less hinted at, it's knowledge of magic, if not actual implementation of it. Still, his encyclopedic knowledge and organizational skills made me think Twilight would instantly warm up to him. But nothing. Still. Shippers, get on that one.
Yes! Twilight's parents! And the death knell to naming them Twilight .
Starlight stalling Spike was great. He thought so, too.
Alicorns... I think there's wiggle room. Celestia said one had never been born in Equestria. But don't Celestia and Luna predate Equestria? Though Rarity's comment didn't confine it to that. She just flatly said it took a magical feat, and Celestia didn't correct her.
So is this the top rated episode of the season for you so far?
3828149
On it!
Starlight and Spike were the best. I hope that the show keeps having the two interact.
Also, the little baby motions of Flurry Heart were disgustingly cute. The show still manages to surprise me with how much attention they pay to these little things.
I saw this part
as canon proof they WEREN'T born as alicorns.
It could be taken either way. Either the sun and moon birthed them respectively, or they both ascended at some point in their lives like Cadence and Twilight did. Which, if true, means that both Cadence and Twilight, as ascended alicorns, are probably gonna live a good long time.
"And then nobody ever mentioned why a baby is born an alicorn breaking the entire established ideals of the show ever again."
That's this premier. That's all it was to me.
But Starlight and Sunburst were pretty great together.
3828193
I have a story I want to write about this. Which likely involves Cadance going to Celestia for advice on raising an alicorn, since she was obviously around for her sister growing up, and Celestia just kind of looking at her uncomfortably before explaining that they didn't so much 'grow up' as will themselves into corporeal existence to reassert the order of nature and stop Discord from wrecking the world.
Followed by Cady turning to Twi because she needs to talk to somepony about this... and finding out Twi's known all along, and is pretty blase about the whole thing. Mostly because she's really sensitive to magic, and has known since the first time she laid eyes on Celestia that there was no way any mortal pony could carry that much of it.
3828264 yeah they seemed very 'what even is parenting' in this episode
like 'no no, you guys take care of the baby, we're gonna go fly into the storm'
3828149
Well:
They aren't mentioned in the Hearth's Warming Pageant, and that's all about how Equestria was founded. So I always figured they appeared after that.
Mike
3828448 Or they already existed and wandered in to help the united tribes, which is kind of what the comic suggests. Or outright states. I haven't gotten to that one yet.
3828458
Also contradicts the journal of the two sisters, which iirc, suggests they were born alicorns, predating their princesshood, and that there were other alicorns elsewhere.
Kind of glad this happened though, as it kind of sticks a spanner in the cogworks of everyone who had tried to argue that Celestia and Luna were true alicorns while Cadance and Twilight were not.
3828113
Omigosh, I am SO glad I am not the only one who thought that. The other people at the small meetup I went to kinda just went "eh" when I talked about that 'stashe making him look like Cthulu...
3828080
Actually, no, but I still liked it better.
3828149
Oh yeah, number one so far! :D
3828167
I was entranced by watching her mouth as she made baby babbles.
3828193
I was writing this quickly, that came out wrong. c.c;
3828251
The show's been broken since season two. Who cares anymore :/
3828278
Can confirm: much safer alternative
Sigh. Well, it was a decent plot with a decent conflict and resolution. No complaints about the macro elements of the story. The most irritating part for me was the innumerable nitpicky things I could list wrong with it.
*sigh* Yeah, there's no way that ponies who can move the sun and moon could possibly stand up to the weather of the Frozen North.
Probably the biggest deal breaker for me was this:
The hell?!!
Hold on a freaking minute. So how in the world is Celestia over a thousand years old if she's no different than Twilight in being an ascended alicorn? Especially when the show writers explicitly said that Twilight is not immortal? And who was there to guide Celestia through her ascension like she did with Twilight?
I suppose it doesn't matter - it's just something many of us are going to have to discard in our own universes. For me, personally, this is a major blow because my entire story universe is about the nature of alicorns.
On the other hand... I suppose I could salvage Celestia's line with the fact that Equestria did not exist the last time natural alicorns were born.
Cthulu-Face?
Yeah I was wondering that too, but the name makes more sense now. Though it's still a groaner.
Heh. Freudian Slip? You know that's gonna be their official shipping title in the fandom.
I'm a little confused as to what his future role is gonna be. He's going to be rather busy as a Crystaller?!!
MLP meets Jack Jack Attack!!
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And Mrs. Sparkle. No "Twilight Velvet"!
3829176
Who even cares? Everyone who wishes it were still Season Two, before "A Canterlot Wedding," dammit. Obviously. :V
The biggest problem for me was that by all indications, in the opener to Season Three, Cadence and Shining Armor were able to hold back Sombra and also the weather in general for a really long time with no indication of a problem. Why couldn't they through up a shield like they did then? Also, Flurry Heart's being a magical nuisance stopped way before Sunburst did anything, because the part of the episode(s) where that was needed was over. You basically couldn't tell whether he had any effect at all, or if she'd just passed the magical surge point in the interim.
On the whole, pretty good, though. And Spike had one of his best outings in a while.
I really liked the episode, and got a lot of laughs out of it, despite the fact that it's got me scrabbling for the old "Alternate Universe" tag. *sigh* But Twilight confirmed for being able to do point-defense shields, so yay for that.
"Hurry Fart" becomes even more terrifying after witnessing what she can do with a mere sneeze! Never let her anywhere near Mexican food! And, yeah, she pretty much weaponizes cuteness.
Spike confirmed for an asshole... check!
Sunburst is basically a magical theorist, which is incredibly valuable! With him at her side, when Flurry Heart is grown up, she's going to rule the world... if she wants to.
Cute baby alicorn did not induce nearly the girlish squeals of joy that Twilight's parents speaking did.
I have to say, my favorite part of both episodes was a little thing in the first: when Twilight first mentions that she wants Starlight and Sunburst to reconnect. The expression on Starlight's face, coupled with the strained ringing that drowned out Twilight, conveyed her sudden anxiety and fear perfectly. Glimmer still has a long ways to go in learning about friendship, but it's nice that the writers are actually treating her like a broken character. I was worried that she was going to be gung ho on friendship and that they'd mutilate S5 Starlight to make room for S6 Starlight; I was glad to see that not being the case.
3829630
They never said that Twilight wasn't immortal. The exact words were "Twilight will not outlive her friends".
Of course:
A) Tweets aren't canon. They change their mind about this stuff all the time. Remember, we've had like, at least three people in charge of the show over time (Faust, McCarthy, Larson), and nothing we don't see on the screen is canon. So, there's no reason to believe the Tweet. There's no reason why they can't change their mind about stuff, assuming it was ever set in stone to begin with.
B) Phrasing: there are lots of potential ways in which both alicorns can be immortal and Twilight won't outlive her friends, namely:
1) Twilight dies young.
2) Twilight's friends become alicorns.
3) Twilight constantly makes new friends, so while she outlives any particular friend, she never runs out of them.
4) Twilight is friends with Luna, Celestia, Cadance, and (sort of) Discord, all of whom are immortal. So, she won't outlive her friends because her friends are immortal already.
3832938
I've never actually considered three or four as interpretations of that statement before.
Honestly? I think either one, three especially, is the best possible outcome. :)
3832938
True, true.
There's also this...
5) The show won't ever depict Twilight outliving her friends.
As in, they have no plans to carry the show to the point where those five die. And in a show based on toys and profits, what is depicted is all that officially happens.
3832938 Number 1 would be the ballsiest move in the history of ballsy moves.
3833328
It's what I've always assumed, considering I don't expect them to ever make five more alicorns.
OF COURSE WHAT'S TEN ALICORNS BETWEEN FRIENDS NOW HUH?
3833359 Are there any
kidsfamily shows where the main character dies before her or his time at the end?Also you just gave me a story idea.
3833388
probably not :B