Points of Canon: S5x17 - Brotherhooves Social

I noticed that we’re out of fresh pony for a while. And I have a few hours.

And since it’s about time to try to rearrange the episode timeline, maybe I should do another retrospective canon combing.

This episode is interesting, beyond being one of the few times when Big Mac speaks for any significant length of time, for the timing constraints it introduces. Brotherhooves Social occurs simultaneously with the previous episode, Made in Manehattan. At the same time, it introduces an annual lock for both, because an integer number of years must pass between it and Sisterhooves Social.

Let’s see if I can wiggle anything else useful out of it.

• Actually, Big Mac has been using his head, rather than back, to move things for most of Season 5 and 6… So why does he wear a yoke all the time?
• The toy chest Granny Smith opens contains some interesting objects – notably, a baseball bat and a ball, a dart board, a tennis racket and a few boxes which look suspiciously like board games.
• Apple Bloom refers to Applejack saving Equestria. This is actually one of the only two instances I could locate where characters other than the Mane 6 themselves mention the Mane 6 being involved in saving Equestria. The other time is in Flutter Brutter. Notice that in both cases, family members do know, but stranger ponies appear not to.
• It’s interesting that one of the Apple barns contains an anvil, which Big Mac uses right there, but no apparent source of heat or fire. Fire could be kind of dangerous with hay on the floor, too, but I’m not sure you would need such a big anvil just for straightening out farming tools…
• Applejack refers to cutie map missions as “duty.” I wonder, if she means it in any official way. Probably, Twilight can make it official if needed, being a princess and all, but the official status of the Mane 6’s adventuring responsibilities was never strictly defined even before she became a princess.
• Apple Bloom’s breakfast includes what has to be sliced pineapple. More likely than not, canned pineapple.
• Sweetie Belle turning up to call Apple Bloom for the Social is one of the very rare instances where stable doors are used in a stable door fashion, i.e. by opening halves separately. But unusually, in this instance Sweetie Belle opens the bottom half, leaving the top closed.
• Among other sisterly pairings we see Amethyst Star paired with Dinky. Derpy has a really convoluted family situation.
• In view of the much later Dungeons and Discord, we can certainly agree that Big Mac has some serious roleplaying experience, which is difficult to acquire unless you have someone to practice it with. Whom did he GM for when Spike wasn’t around?
• Interesting tidbit: His outfit does include underwear, that is, old-timey drawers. I don’t think there is any other instance of obvious underwear, not that I remember. I expect that the dress originally belonged to Granny Smith, but where did he get the wig?…
• Orchard Blossom uses the word “clan” to refer to the Apples. That’s the only time this happens, ever, but it does.
• It’s interesting that the mares on the committee recognize Big Mac instantly, and choose to play along rather than call him on it, but the old stallion apparently buys it, and it gets played for laughs for the entire episode. Is there a particular reason or the guy’s just old and senile?…
• Rainbow’s phrase “Don’t think me and Scootaloo are gonna take it easy on you just cause you’re a stallion” is in itself interesting and offers lots of pretty controversial interpretations. But if you ask me, it’s an inversion of “there are no girls on the Internet” in this particular case, and motivated not by the hypothetical matriarchy (I’m not convinced it exists) or stallions being a protected class in some way, but by the mere fact that Big Mac is the only stallion with the balls to join this particular competition, and naturally stands out for that reason.
• A windup gramophone is used for the music. Seeing as how much superior sound amplifying tech exists, this actually implies a certain attitude to novelty, at least in this particular event. The announcer keeps winding it up while the song is playing, I wonder why.
• There is no way for Big Mac to perform the entire juggling routine if tactile telekinesis for hooves does not exist, because these glove-shoes would impede any other means of grasping things.
• The usage of the idiom “back of my hoof” creates a question: Just which side of the hoof is the “back?”
• The audience ponies are so blatantly copy-pasted that I won’t cite them for multiple copies of Lyra and Bon-Bon just a couple ponies away from each other.
• Side note: Wine pressing using feet hooves is actually a show-only practice, and has been so for many millennia. And for some reason, it’s always women who are supposed to be doing it on our Earth. See the above comment on the hypothetical matriarchy.
• The size of the egg basket suggests that the five pairs we actually see running are not the first set to run the race, because I can’t imagine why there would be eggs in those baskets at all otherwise, since Big Mac and Apple Bloom never return for more eggs.
• Apple Bloom’s reply to Big Mac’s speech in the end might imply that the hoofwear he wore is called “high heels.” Even though there were no visible heels…

Quite an interesting episode to reexamine in light of the recently aired When the Apple Lies, don’t you think?

Comments

[FanOfMostEverything]

I'm pretty sure the cloned spectators were a deliberate reference to "Sisterhooves Social."

[Oliver]

4252897

I.e. they're permanent props they just keep around to motivate the sisters to run faster? :)

[DannyJ]

Apple Bloom’s breakfast includes what has to be sliced pineapple. More likely than not, canned pineapple.

Apple Bloom confirmed for dirty fucking traitor.

Among other sisterly pairings we see Amethyst Star paired with Dinky. Derpy has a really convoluted family situation.

Same background pony she was paired with for the original Sisterhooves Social, isn't she? I don't think the situation is complicated at all. I just think Derpy's fanon family has been confirmed fanon-only.

[Oliver]

4252946

Same background pony she was paired with for the original Sisterhooves Social, isn’t she? I don’t think the situation is complicated at all. I just think Derpy’s fanon family has been confirmed fanon-only.

There’s also that colt from The Cart Before The Ponies, the mysterious mare who covers Dinky’s ears in Flutter Brutter, the way Derpy’s name keeps changing… Derpy is one of the most nebulous characters, blown completely out of proportion by all those nods to fandom which keep nodding in different directions.

So yeah. But still. :)

[DannyJ]

4252952

No contradiction there that I can see. Dinky is not related to Derpy and has her own family, and Derpy is maybe related to that other colt in some yet undefined way. Derpy gets a lot of nods by the the show, but to my knowledge, they've never acknowledged her fanon family.

[iisaw]

4252946
4252952
Yep, Dinky has never been connected to Derpy in the show that I know of. The relationship is pure fanon.

[howard035]

Actually, Big Mac has been using his head, rather than back, to move things for most of Season 5 and 6… So why does he wear a yoke all the time?

Ask Filthy and Spoiled.

I’m not sure you would need such a big anvil just for straightening out farming tools

Maybe because they don't use a hammer at Sweet Apple Acres for that kind of thing, Big Mac just goes at it with his hooves.

Applejack refers to cutie map missions as “duty.” I wonder, if she means it in any official way. Probably, Twilight can make it official if needed, being a princess and all, but the official status of the Mane 6’s adventuring responsibilities was never strictly defined even before she became a princess.

Spoilers: Bring this up again after Top Bolt.

In view of the much later Dungeons and Discord, we can certainly agree that Big Mac has some serious roleplaying experience, which is difficult to acquire unless you have someone to practice it with. Whom did he GM for when Spike wasn’t around?

I'm not sure about this. In Dungeons and Discord, Big Mac seems just as eager and giggly about the Squizzard as Spike is, implying it's his first time as well. On the other hand, Big Mac is in an acapella group with Rarity that probably practices at Carousel Boutique sometimes. That has to help. I also wouldn't be surprised if he had some acting roles in his youth, when he was more verbose.

But if you ask me, it’s an inversion of “there are no girls on the Internet” in this particular case, and motivated not by the hypothetical matriarchy (I’m not convinced it exists) or stallions being a protected class in some way, but by the mere fact that Big Mac is the only stallion with the balls to join this particular competition, and naturally stands out for that reason

Think you nailed it. Or Rainbow is guessing that his complicated dress will slow him down, but chooses to engage in a little trash talk instead, since if she read the gossip story about Mac in the paper she can guess he's insecure about his masculinity.

A windup gramophone is used for the music. Seeing as how much superior sound amplifying tech exists, this actually implies a certain attitude to novelty, at least in this particular event.

This event basically belongs to the Apple family, and we know how traditional they are.

There is no way for Big Mac to perform the entire juggling routine if tactile telekinesis for hooves does not exist, because these glove-shoes would impede any other means of grasping things.

Ok, you've convinced me earth ponies have it, which makes sense because we've always figured that's where their magic comes out of. Of the top of your head have you seen the other two tribes do anything with their hooves that can't be explained with a few extra joints and incredibly flexible frogs?

The audience ponies are so blatantly copy-pasted that I won’t cite them for multiple copies of Lyra and Bon-Bon just a couple ponies away from each other.

Kevin and Thorax really shouldn't have kept running from spot to spot while soaking up love.

4252946

Apple Bloom confirmed for dirty fucking traitor.

Pineapple. She skates by on a technicality.
4252954 Well, we recently discussed how Derpy runs the Equestrian version of a UPS store. What if "what can brown do for you" in Ponyville is "watch my kid for a few hours" ?

[Oliver]

4253567

Maybe because they don’t use a hammer at Sweet Apple Acres for that kind of thing, Big Mac just goes at it with his hooves.

Unfortunately, no. Big Mac uses a hammer in this episode, in MMMystery on the Friendship Express, and probably in a few other places I don’t remember. The only Apple demonstrated to use hooves specifically in place of a hammer is Applejack in 28 Pranks Later, where she nails down a door using her back hooves. (And I suspect she has metal horseshoes on those)

Spoilers: Bring this up again after Top Bolt.

But I already did Top Bolt?…

Ok, you’ve convinced me earth ponies have it, which makes sense because we’ve always figured that’s where their magic comes out of. Of the top of your head have you seen the other two tribes do anything with their hooves that can’t be explained with a few extra joints and incredibly flexible frogs?

I’ll keep an eye out for similarly convincing examples. It’s pretty difficult to remember these things because, you know, hands. :)

What if “what can brown do for you” in Ponyville is “watch my kid for a few hours” ?

That sounds like a story idea.

[howard035]

4253747

Big Mac uses a hammer in this episode, in MMMystery on the Friendship Express, and probably in a few other places I don’t remember.

I couldn't find it, but I'm sure you're right. I don't mean Big Mac or other ponies would use their hooves as a hammer for nails, even the flat of the nail could piece the frog with a misplaced swing. I meant specifically for fixing bent equipment on an anvil the way you would with a forge hammer, where there's less risk to the frog.

But I already did Top Bolt?…

What are you talking about Oliver, I have always commented on your blog post about Top Bolt, just as Oceania has always been at war with Eastasia. You can prove nothing! Anyway, I am happy to point out here that it looks like the Wonderbolts are happy to change up their entire training regime and give free housing because Princess Twilight says so. Maybe its just because they would do it for a Princess, but it does look like the EUP has been ordered to accommodate ponies with glowing, vibrating flanks on Official Friendship Business.

[Oliver]

4255089

I meant specifically for fixing bent equipment on an anvil the way you would with a forge hammer, where there’s less risk to the frog.

Well, in this particular episode he uses a hammer for something small. We can see that there is an object there but we can’t see what it is. So I don’t know…

Maybe its just because they would do it for a Princess, but it does look like the EUP has been ordered to accommodate ponies with glowing, vibrating flanks on Official Friendship Business.

Possibly, though right now we have very little evidence one way or the other.