Follow-up Fun Time: Friendship is Magic part 1, or, Down the Rabbit Hole · 1:34am Apr 12th, 2018
Can we get back to follow-ups?
Please?
Yo.
Every action has an equal, opposite reaction,
2010, no one thought this show would gain much traction.
In 2012, I decide to get in on the action.
Now I'm in charge of Sunset Shimmer, and her own faction.
Add Hamilton to the list of things I can't get him to stop referencing.
While everyone is moving forward to season 8, we're looking back, way back! Back to where everything began! I find it cathartic to remember that summer so long ago, when I first sat down to finally see what my friends had been murmuring about.
So follow us as we take a trip down memory lane, and down the rabbit hole...
Amazing how one show can change the course of someone's life...
Once upon a time...
Honestly, if the show doesn't end on this note, I'll be very disappointed.
In the magical land of Equestria...
For what I presumed to be a rather simple kid's show, the fact that we were opening with some lore and some pretty pictures should have been telling I was in for more than I expected.
No one expects the pony inquisition!
Two sisters maintained balance and harmony...
So, they can move the sun and moon. Does that mean physics don't exist in this world? Are they gods? Demigods?
Seven seasons later and none of those questions have been answered.
Original emo horse!
Of course, in cliche, but not unwelcome fashion, one of the sisters gets jealous and lashes out.
And gets a timeout on the moon! Remember kids, if you're feeling neglected and unloved, trying to bring about an apocalypse isn't the way to go.
*Snrk* Well, you would—
Finish that sentence and I will drop kick you; I don't care how depressed you are.
And thus, the coup was complete!
I mean, the older sister was sad because she now had to rule by herself, unopposed, for a thousand years. in relative peace. So sad.
Sister banished to moon for millennium.
Yeah, real talk, can any of you process how long 1,000 years of waiting is? Like, actually put yourself in Celestia's shoes for a sec. That must have been agony. And that's still probably downplaying it!
Meet Purple Smart!
How does a book worm, introvert, student of the sun
and a prodigy dropped in the middle of a forgettable spot in the Equestrian valley
with a friend count of zero,
grow up to be a princess and a hero?
Our main heroine, Twilight Sparkle. Young, curious, and lacking wings. She's almost tolerable now.
What would happen today would shape the rest of her life. As well as everyone who followed her on her misadventure.
Why?
I'm not apologizing.
But yes, the opening theme. For many a brony, they could stand everything about the show accept that. Probably because it screamed remember, you're watching a show meant for 8-year old girls! While I cringed every time it came on for the first season, I quickly got over it and looked forward to hearing it after the cold openings... as long as no one else was around.
"If we stare at her long enough, maybe she'll socially interact with us."
Coming from a few seasons in the future, this is actually pretty hilarious. We all wrote them off as one-shot characters here just to establish that Twilight isn't a very social pony.
I doubt there were many who thought, 'oh yeah, we'll see them again and they'll have some actual significance.'
Me: Hmm, Moondancer. There's a pony who will never show up in canon! I can totally use her a a foil for Sunset in Long Road to Friendship.
Dhx: Hey, guys, remember that one pony we mentioned way back in the first season? What if we made an episode entirely around her!
Good job, Jim.
Moondancer never did get that bear...
Twilight's faithful sidekick, the straight man to her crazier antics, and butt monkey for the writers for about three and a half seasons. Spike the dragon.
If you notice, his voice is just a little higher pitch for a lot of his lines. I love that the actors are still trying to get a feel for there characters. You'll really notice it when we get to Applejack.
Back when Twilight had to put in a little effort for her spells.
Now she can turn apples into baby chicks, a feat which I'm still scratching my head over.
My God, look at her eyes!
There's even a little sparkle in them! It's so... adorable!
This is why no one ever fights us. Yes, we've weaponized harmony, but we've also weaponized cuteness!
"I've been editing your fanfics, Twi, and I have some concerns."
"I'll get better, I swear!"
She doesn't get better.
Her time is almost up.
I didn't notice this until the third time I saw the episode. This is just really clever visual story telling. Really quick and subtle foreshadowing, and symbolic that she's in the hourglass. The time of her imprisonment is at an end. Less than ten minutes in, and this show already has lore, comedy, interesting characters, and great storytelling. All we're missing is the action.
"Okay, okay, your fanfic wasn't that bad."
It was.
Spike doing his duty as the royal fax machine.
Twilight's got a direct line to the princess. Worried about Nightmare Moon's return, she sends off a letter of panic.
It must be nice, it must be nice... to have Celestia on your side.
"It says, 'stop being a nerd and go make some friends.'"
Guess Celestia wasn't on her side.
Welcome to Ponyville! Days since last incident: 3 hours.
You know, while the show's graphics have drastically improved over the years, there's something about the old simple style that's... charming! Refreshing even. It's so simple,. it's cute.
The true instigator of doom.
Twilight, I'll give you one piece of advice: walk away now. It'll save you several major headaches, and a full body cast.
"The main character is here! And I haven't memorized my lines! Shit!"
Our first destination: the sacred land of apples.
All right, gotta brace myself. Applejack sounds extra hick like in her first appearances.
That's surprisingly graceful for her.
Look how adorable second best pony is! Ashleigh is using a higher pitch for her voice, which I actually prefer because she sounds even more adorable.
Odd way to say annoying.
Sunset!
I love the girl, but she's still a country rube.
"Spike, this earth pony is touching me... get the hoof sanitizer ready."
As we can see here, Twilight isn't ready to make friends, and Sunset isn't ready to stop being racist.
It was a joke!
"Yodoleheehoo!"
Applejack, stop being cute!
Dammit, Apple Bloom!
In the year 1302 of Celestia's rule, a war between Equestria and the griffons was stopped by five fillies making that same face at the invading general. We've been on good terms ever since.
The longer you stare, the blurrier it gets.
They say first impressions are important. Well, Twilight has the impression she broke at least three bones.
And to think she's going to be a Wonderbolt someday...
"You write fanfics too? Wanna ship our OCs together?"
The further we go, the more you learn why so many of us stayed. These ponies are flippin' cute!
Some less than others.
The go to gif for when someone fucks up.
No nostalgia blog would be complete without classic Rainbow laughing.
Meme mare, away!
Yep, that was ten seconds. I counted. Pretty impressive actually. Too bad that meme would become one of several overused jokes.
And it was at this moment, Monochromatic's life changed forever.
Here's fashion horse! I mean Rarity! Oh, season 1 Rarity! You would be looked down on by most of the fandom until halfway into the season when you got Art of the Dress. Even I dismissed you as stuffy and elitist.
Spike, however, is head over scales.
And so begins what might be, the longest running unrequited romance in modern cartoon history. Good luck, Spike. You'll need it.
"You can tell by my expression, the joy I feel right now."
If we were having a best face competition, this would certainly be a contender.
Smile, Twilight. Rarity's doing you a favor, trying to fix your dull style.
Presented with no context!
...My morbidly curious mind wants context for this.
Fine.
Rarity really likes BDSM.
Why... why did I ask?
Still not apologizing!
And then there's the cute one.
In the span of about twenty seconds, thousands of grown men around the world quickly declared this one pony to be the pinnacle of all things cute and pure, and declared her their waifu.
Most of them were obese and living in their parent's basement.
Sunset!
I'm not apologizing!
She sees what you're doing. She is very disappointed.
I mean, yeah, you'd have to have a heart made of ice not to at least admit Fluttershy is cute. Even if the shy factor is played up to eleven.
Until she meets Spike.
Glad we establish early on Fluttershy will come out of her shell for cute animals. Though, this begs the question, does she see Spike as a person, or a very sentient pet?
Long walk if the sun is already setting.
Ah, the Golden Oaks library. or just the treebrary. The cornerstone of the mane six's adventures for four whole seasons. it good to see you again.
Twilight's duties are done. Time to get some peace and quiet, and prepare for Nightmare Moon.
Ha, just kidding! You're not getting any of that.
Come on, Twi, cheer up! Look how happy Lyra is to see you!
Weren't they in Canterlot earlier?
And last but not least, the happy one.
You mean crazy one.
Tomato tomato. Pinkie was very much, take her or leave her. Hyperactive, motormouth, who doesn't seem to take much of anything seriously. She either grated on you, or you tolerated her. I was in the tolerate camp... until the song came on... but we'll get to that.
"I'm too sober for this."
As a natural defense mechanism against Pinkie's constant blabbering, Twilight has shut down all extra functions, leaving only her basic instinct to acquire food and water. unfortunately, her perception skills were also turned off.
Ponyta!
Careful, Twilight, your house isn't flammable. Eh, she'll find out later.
"Yoooo, Twi! You're missin' one crazy party!"
I wanna say Spike wearing the lampshade is symbolic, but I'm not sure what the show would be lampshading right now.
Not everything in this show has a secret message.
Tell that to the youtube analyzers.
The stars will aid in her escape.
I always wished we had found out more about the four stars that helped Nightmare Moon. Were they actually stars? Or some supernatural force?
Remember when Mayor Mare was relevant?
Yeah. Must suck when a princess moves into your town.
"Has anyone seen the princess? I seemed to have misplaced her."
Did you check the sweets shop?
Original frightened horse noises.
"The window was open, so I let myself in."
Heeere's Nighty!
The first villain of generation four is here! Bow to the queen of the night!
She certainly knows how to make an entrance.
"The night shall last forever!
Crazy alicorn with supernatural powers, trying to bring about an eternal night? Strap in guys! This show just got exciting!
Thinking back did anyone ever give Luna crap for her backstory? The way people act you'd think it wasn't as childish or simple as every other villains backstory that people won't stop complaining about. Yet I've never heard anyone ever mock Luna's backstory (or at least not as often) and I gotta wonder, what's up with that?
Ahh, such good fun to be had. I was smiling and laughing all the way through this. It really is fascinating to look back on these early episodes with hindsight and with Sunset given this was before her time. Heck, I even learned some new things from this. I've watched this premiere so many times and only now do I find out about the hourglass! Goes to show you can always learn something more, no matter how often you watch something.
And I'm glad to see you're doing well. I laughed and felt good for you at that joke about Sunset drop kicking you in spite of your depression. Sometimes the best way to deal with your problems is to laugh at them. It makes them seem smaller and allows you to feel a bit better. I certainly hope that did it for you.
Spectacular follow up and I look forward to the next.
Does Spike still have a crush on Rarity? It hasn't come up in a while.
Fruit to nest, seeds to eggs. Heck, the first part keeps it as vegetable matter.
In any case, definitely looking forward to more recaps with you and Sunset.
Trufax
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Is every single picture broken for anyone else? Or is it just me?
I’ve been on a Hamilton kick lately, so the beginning of this made me very, very happy.
The people were asking to hear your voice! The fandom is facing a difficult choice. And if you were to ask me who I’d promote—Albinocorn has my vote.
But seriously, glad to see another follow up from you
I’ve always enjoyed them.
Good times...good times...
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Nostalgia goggles.
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He kinda does, but these days it's more of an inertia thing. It isn't "active infatuation" so much as "he's used to letting Rarity take advantage of him". Which...is pretty messed up, if you think about it.
\
Honestly I don't think any of us thought we would still be here after all this time. Why could have predicted that a show called My little Pony would ever grow this big?
Seriously, reading this is more relaxing and joyous than almost anything I've done in days...
Mostly because of Sunset. Not gonna lie.
God, it's so true. I loved fashion horse from the very second I saw her.
The purple fateful student without a teacher
got a lot farther by working
a lot harder
after being inspired by seeing
a sun-goddess.
At season one, who knew she was gonna become a princess?
Then the entrance exam came,
and utter terror reigned.
Our filly saw the examiners
about to feast upon her remains.
She channeled her magic and casted
a spell from her brain.
And the dragon was a big frame.
Even sunbutt Princess came.
Well, the filly jumped around.
Screaming, "YES YES YES YES YES!"
Got the Princess consensus
just to send her to Celestia's school!
"Get your pen and quills, don't forget
from whence you came",
and the world's gonna know your name.
What's your name, mare?
Purple Pony Twilight Sparkle.
I'm not doing the long version
(or am I?)
But seriously, I'm so happy to see another of your follow-ups!
I love your work! I REALLY love your work!
...I feel this one.
Am I the only one who doesn't know who's Hamilton?
Blast from the past, uh? Very fun read. I can't love Sunset enough!
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I can't see the pictures either.
That blog brings memories. A lot of 'em
I have to admit I noticed NMM in hourglass JUST NOW despite the fact that I've watched S01E01 at least 5 times
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It's the 2015 musical about the life of Alexander Hamilton, one of the American Founding Fathers (he was the first Secretary of the Treasury, among other things).
Until next time...
Anon e Mouse Jr.
This bears being asked about the writers too...
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Later in the song, approx EQG
But that's when best pony showed up on the scene
All hail, Sunset Shimmer, forever reigning queen!
Though at first she wanted to rule the nation
She improved a lot after her reformation.