When the Cutie Mark Crusaders are magically transformed into grownups,they discover that growing up the right way means gaining experience and wisdom that simply can’t be rushed.
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When another author releases his own version of the events in AK Yearling’s Daring Do books, Rainbow Dash is furious, while Fluttershy is curious to know the truth.
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Starlight decides to hire a Vice Headmare in preparation to take over the School of Friendship from Twilight. But she soon realizes that hiring the right pony for the job is going to be a lot harder than she thought.
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Twilight's hopes of keeping her Trivia Trot winning streak alive are waylaid when she's unexpectedly paired up with Pinkie Pie, who has never been to a trivia night before.
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Let the "This proves the ship/this disproves the ship" fight begin. Gentlemen, ladies, please use the provided cream pies rather than punching, kicking, or gouging. Thank you.
Element of Generosity, ladies and gentleman. Apparently, sharing friends is not the same thing as sharing your own tail.
...
To be honest, I'm not sure if I mean that as a joke or not, because this episode was... confusing, to say the least. I'm sure some Sparity shippers got a bit of karmic catharsis for having Rarity know what it's like to be ignored, but for me, it was just weird. Seeing Gabby come back was fun. Seeing her befriend Spike was fun. Heck, seeing Spike actually make time for Rarity for all the conventions and stuff she dragged him to was a nice touch. But growing up with this fandom and knowing how shippers are, it was a bit cringe-inducing to see the roles reversed like that. And I can understand Rarity needing to learn how to share back in Season 4, but this late in the game? C'mon.
It's astounding how this episode turned out: Rarity would suddenly miss out on Spike's presence when her little assistant starts seeing another girl. And not just any friend, but some creature she never met before: Gabby, the mail carrier from Griffinstone. For years and years, Spike has had this puppy-dog crush (In E.G. 'literally') and devoted all his time trying to impress Rarity in hopes eventually she'd notice him. Yet it seemed this whole 'Sparity' deal was just a fantasy amongst the community as it was clear Rarity's interest was in other guys though they were often clueless, jerks, or it was just never meant to last. Yet there's this theme that this episode has in connection with this season has going for: That as the series is ending, the cast is maturing at it's own pace.
The fact Spike decided to spend time with another friend proves he's not centered on Rarity 24/7 and maybe he's accepted that since they can only be friends, it's best to put his crush behind for good. Yet this episode also demonstrates that Rarity finally comes to realize how great things have been when Spike was around, how her errands were easy with his assistance, and no matter how hard her friends try they could never reach the level of Spike's willingness to be there for Rarity in her need. True, what she did to monopolize Spike's time away from Gabby was wrong like getting in the way of a relationship and unintentionally hurting the other party. In a way it seems to go against Rarity's 'Generous' nature seeing as how selfish she was acting in this episode, but in a way considering how insecure many women are (Men especially) when their significant other starts seeing other people or hanging out with other friends we can't say that we are any better. But at the end of the day, just because Spike is willing to spend time with new friends doesn't mean he would ever neglect the time for other current friendships (Especially how surprised he was when Rarity confesses she misses all the time they spent together).
In the end, change is indeed coming for the series and there is another side to this episode. The friendships that ultimately survive are the ones that can 'adapt', roll with the punches, make do or do without. If you truly believe that a friendship can truly last in your lifetime, even when starting a 'mutual' relationship with your special someone, it's up to you to believe that no matter what happens or how far people are or if they spend more time with others that a true friendship can never be forgotten. Times may change and it may be difficult to adjust, I for one would know, but it's all a matter of if you are willing to change with it and appreciate the moments you can still make. I don't know if this was one of the show's best episodes, but I think it's a relatable topic we can all imagine because at one point of our lives... We've been in their shoes and know this feeling. I hope we don't go out of the way to sabotage our friend's other engagements, but for the most part... I bet we had this moment.
I've said before that the animators have been getting better and better with pony expressions, and Rarity had some good ones here. It was honestly funny to see her reactions to Spike's new friend.
5118303 Sharing a friend, however, isn't quite the same as sharing your stuff. Especially when it's a friend whose company you've been taking for granted to the extent that Rarity has with Spike. She has, since the start, come to see his presence as a given whenever she desires it, and I think it did her good to get a sharp reminder that this might not always be the case, especially as Spike's circle of friends widens.
I'll admit I've not really been a fan of Spike's crush on Rarity since S4, so I'm kinda happy that this one showed his growing maturity and left his ship status open to interpretation. Now I can keep the dream of older Spike/Twilight alive.
In all seriousness, I get this one. I went through similar with my last breakup a few years ago and found myself in the Rarity spot pretty hard. Only with less callous clinginess and more straight to accepting the change. Really I've been in Spike and Gabby's shoes more recently too so, even if I don't approve of the extremes. I get it and can enjoy the ep. 9th of 19 for the season.
I do have one complaint not connected to the main episode though, one that's been looming for about ten episodes now: Applejack. It feels like the writers have just given up on her since She's All Yak and shunted her into a similar role to Spike in the first few seasons. Either an ignored voice of reason or OOC comic relief. And no, showing that she was on the same level as Pinkie in this episode doesn't really help. I would like at least one more episode where she gets to keep some dignity before the end.
If only that picture or a reverse actually happened in the episode then the episode would’ve given me and a lot of those wondering about it what we wanted instead of nothing. Except Spike May have a harem now lol
This episode shows us that Spike has matured as a character. He's accepted that Rarity doesn't love him romantically, and he's moving on. He'll still be friends with her, but his days of crushing on her hopelessly are over.
Well, this was an interesting episode. I didn't expect to see Gabby brought back into focus, much less form such a strong friendship with Spike. But they were pretty cute together.
I'll admit Rarity was a little possessive of Spike in this episode, but it was also shown how much she's come to depend on him and enjoy his company. And helping Gabby and Spike reconcile definitely made up for it.
5118378 I think Gabby learned the same lesson as Rarity. She was a bit clingy, I thought. But she also accepts that she can't have Spike all to herself.
5118382 Considering Gabby never had any real friends before meeting the CMCs, you can't blame her for wanting to hold on to the few friends she actually has.
This episode was honestly a little predictable for me. I can't quite put my finger on why though. I mean, I guess it's different enough from all the other episodes that have tackled dealing with friends having other friends. At the same time, I don't know. Something about this episode just doesn't do it for me. I think it might be Rarity. Her overly dramatic antics make it hard to tell if she really means what she's saying. I also can't tell if she misses spending time with Spike or just having Spike's undivided attention. I mean, she is the penultimately least good Mane 6 on my list for a reason.
5118339 I also saw the last episodes and I don’t think any of those episodes confirm that there’s a romantic relationship between Rarity and Spike
for starters, the episode of Gabby and Spike feels more like confirmation that Spike outdid the crush he had on Rarity, the central theme of that episode is that friendship changes and I don’t think it refers to Rarity realizing that she has feelings for him, but Spike overcame his crush and his attention is no longer focused on Rarity alone, As soon as Rarity’s way of acting, knowing what her character is like, that she likes to be the center of attention, that really affected her, Spike just got over Rarity but that doesn’t mean she’s no longer an important friend to him, as the episode shows at the end
As for the recent episodes, it’s not at all unusual for Rarity and Spike to team up, after all, within the six main characters, she’s the second closest Spike after Twilight, if he doesn’t team up with Twilight, He does it with Rarity, they’ve done it before, I don’t think any of it involves a romantic relationship, especially because Rarity never showed a true romantic interest in Spike, she wants him as a friend but nothing else, And as Gabby’s episode shows, Spike also got over that crush. As for the song from the last episode, remember that most of these characters have big eyes, so their field of vision is greater ,And I think the ones in charge of doing the episode wanted all the characters to be the field of vision of each character, but now that Twilight and Spike are big, it was kind of complicated to do, So what we saw in that episode was the best position the characters can put their eyes on so they don’t feel like they’re turning their backs on each other, also, Spike never looks at Rarity at the time, his attention at that time was focused only on Twilight, and he closes his eyes and smiles as all his friends approach as Twiligth sings
There really wouldn’t be anything "controversial" if Spike and Rarity were real, just never was, I believe the writers created this crush of Spike by Rarity for the purpose of using it to make some funny moments or to use it as part of the plot of some comic episode, never to develop it as a true romantic relationship
p.d
sorry if there are errors in my writing, English is not my first language
5118292 I wish there had been an episode centered around her being 'princess of love.' What does she do exactly to facilitate love. Does she go on love missions? Is there a castle that warns her about love emergencies.
Honestly it seems like they're not even mentioning that friendship missions this season. Did those just stop happening when the tree was destroyed, was that not fixed in the next episode?
People complain that Spike only loves Rarity when certain writers helm the story. Here it seemed like he'd grown past his devoted puppy love phase, but it's actually less clear how Spike feels as the episode was really about Rarity.
He's a kid. This should have never been a problem for her. Don't know if I'll watch the episode, but I sincerely hope this is more a jealous sister thing then her being a jealous bitch.
Honestly, it’s good that this ship is over (yes, I have an argument to make that statement), and it’s about time it happened, Spike deserves better, you could see that Rarity appreciated Spike as a good friend and cared for him, but also takes advantage of it on several occasions, there are many other female characters who would be better choice to Spike couple than Rarity
5118435 I don't think she's actually ever been referred to as the Princess of Love in the show. Whenever titles or duties come up (like in Twilight's Kingdom), she's always said to be the Princess of the Crystal Empire.
I . . . I can't believe I'm saying this, but . . . the writers finally did it. They actually made a Rarity episode that I didn't like.
First, the positives.
Spike and Gabby appear to be in a budding relationship, complete with a scene of Gabby sweetly feeding Spike a cherry, both of them shown to be visibly longing for each other in ways mere friends would not be after a supposed failed friendship, and Spike visibly blushing when he requests to join Gabby on her rounds at the end of the episode. Perhaps it is due to Spike's status as a main character, unlike Big Macintosh and Sugar Belle, but the wishy-washy nature of Spike and Gabby's relationship in this episode seems to be in line with trying to keep the status quo open should any future events come up that may derail this development. Mind you, this is a strange decision when considering this is the final season. Regardless, this episode took what would have been a crackshipping under any other circumstances and made it work. Spike and Gabby are an absolute delight to see together.
Now, onto the negatives.
This episode shows Rarity at her absolute worst of her own volition. As much as I adore her, I’m not going to say her choices were sympathetic. The episode is rather unsubtle about how it portrays Rarity as a jealous lover trying to control her significant other's actions and free time. Rarity's obsession with Spike reaches disturbing levels in this episode, her actions in trying to control his free time bordering on types of domestic abuse. Of course, the moment her slave thinks of even getting a life for himself, she loses her mind. Another reason for me to hate Rarity in this episode and in the hands of a competent writer Spike would have flipped the hell up at this point. While not necessarily out of character, it shows how Rarity has gotten too used to using Spike's adoration for her own personal benefit for the past eight seasons and makes one question how much she really respects him as a person.
Having said all of that, I think it's safe to say Spike's crush on Rarity is over and done with. it was only a matter of time before Spike would realize that his crush on Rarity was never going to pay off. His lack of any romantic interest in Rarity at first sight at the start of the episode is the first sign that he is seeing someone else. He finally found someone who is a better match for him and it really shows with how happy he and Gabby are together. I personally am glad for these two characters. But this is ruined in the scene with Gabby flying through the halls as she hears Spike and Rarity playing Ogres & Oubliettes, which is a parallel to someone walking in on their spouse having an affair. Gabby’s devastated reaction upon entering the room only further drives the implications home. I mean, just look at that face. derpicdn.net/img/2019/7/20/2096674/medium.png]derpicdn.net/img/2019/7/20/2096674/medium.png
That is not the face of a boy missing his new friend. That’s the face of a sudden and painful heartbreak. I’ve been there. It’s difficult to describe the turmoil of a budding relationship being torn apart by circumstances outside your control. And yet, despite that, the Rarity x Spike shippers and writers are going to lose their damn minds after this establishment.
In spite of my hatred for this episode, I will say that it was nice to see Twilight act like an actual sister towards Spike, caring for him and defending him. After quite a few seasons suffering from increasingly worsening neurosis, I can't adequately describe just how refreshing it was to see Twilight Sparkle return to her roots as the voice of reason when she confronts Rarity over Spike's obvious crippling depression.
However, what shocked me was that we got actual character development in the show for once! Color me shocked! Rarity comes to terms with the fact that friendships change and that finding a new friend to spend time with does not mean that he no longer values his friendship with her. While reluctant to do so at first, Rarity wills herself to show up at the post office and confess to Gabby about her underhanded and manipulative actions to win back Spike's company, resulting in Spike coming along to witness it. Things are quickly patched up, Gabby and Spike are very happy to see each other, and fly off together to catch up on lost time.
But, despite liking the moral of the story, I really can't stand Rarity acting so despicable towards Spike. Turning a character into an asshole just to send a message really rubs me the wrong way. Though, this isn't the first time these writers have done that.
5118484 Wow, for someone "neutral," you act like a fanboy who wants me to agree with him First, you didn’t counteract any of my arguments; all you did was tell me that you’re right because you predicted naruhina, told me about Kishimoto and more things that have nothing to do with mlp look, I don’t care,I don’t feel like arguing with a kid, so, you’re right, I’m wrong, please, stop bothering me
I love Sparity. We can save the ship on the site. Stories can be made about them. The Sparity stories can take place in the Dragon Dropped timeline or if that timeline never happened. It can take place in season 9 or in a alternate season 9. To me it should be a alternate season 9 but that's just me. I'm fine with Spike being in love with someone else in fanfics, the same goes for Rarity. SPARITY FOREVER!!!
5118476 Fully agree. I think the message portrayed is fantastic (friendships grow and change.) But the Element of Narcissism was a sour taste on an otherwise great episode that called back to earlier seasons in terms of feeling. Sadly, the writers once again dropped the ball and didn't showcase as much how Rarity missed Spikes company, but rather how she missed the free labor. As per this episode and others, she clearly doesn't care about his presence; that's just a nice bonus to making her life easier.
Honestly, I saw this episode as a lesson and a warning, and some parts of it were actually rather unsettling because it mimics real-life narcissistic behavior in a relationship. Examples such as the continually one-sided interactions (only wanting to spend time when you are helping them,) manipulating to get a person away from a new friend, and not really caring about the well-being of another person over your own wants is a YIKES from a friend, let alone anyone with a romantic interest.
If someone acts like Rarity did in this episode, that is a huge red flag both as a friend, or romantic involvement, and certainly enough to reconsider a friendship or any further interaction. This is past 'spike/rarity' fans. The behavior in the episode is downright destructive to a relationship of any kind.
She was basically the bad apple in this episode. I thought the Spike/Gabby moments were well done, and wished they had focused more on that than the jealous marshmallow. Both Spike and Gabby are from cultures which shun 'softer' moments, I thought seeing them grow together would be fantastic in any aspect.
5118528 This is the last comment I answer you I’m going to give you some advice because I’m really worried about you, it’s time for you to grow up, you say you’re 32 years old, then act like a 32 year old person, since your childhood is long gone, that behavior of yours is going to cause you serious problems in life, even, maybe you already have them and you don’t realize, I sincerely hope that someday you mature
This episode pretty much gave me what I was hoping would come out of the relationship between Rarity and Spike with Spike growing out of his crush for Rarity, which would eventually lead to Rarity treating him as a equal instead of a lapdog; as we saw around the end of the episode when the two of them went gem hunting along with Pinkie Pie. Gabby was great in this episode and the friendship that she has with Spike was good to see, which is great as when finding out the synopsis for this episode was I was fearful that she'd be written as the rest of the non pony creatures have been written thus far, that being terribly and making them very unlikable. Despite Gabby turning out great and her performance in this episode was great that made the friendship of her and Spike nice to watch, I do wish that perhaps instead of Gabby it was Fluttershy who we've seen both her and Spike interact a lot more in this final season. Which would've made this episode make a bit more sense to see Fluttershy and Spike hanging out more since that was set up in previous episodes that came before this one. I also think that it would've been cool to see Rarity be jealous that one of her close friends and fellow bearer to the elements of harmony had, in her eyes, stole her Spikey Wikey away from her. That could've lead to her realization of when Rarity learns her lesson in this episode a tiny bit more important since it involves two of her closes friends that she's known and fought along side with when protecting Equestria over the years. But despite this, what we got was still great and I actually kinda like how open ended a lot of it is as it gives the viewers like us to draw our own conclusions on what exactly are the kind of relationships that the characters featured in this episode have with each other. The only downside to this is how there's so many people whose conclusions are ones that sexualize the fuck out of these relationships that these characters have with each other, but that's mostly a fandom issue and in most cases not a issue with the show itself.
5118592 That I do and now that you mention it, her being jealous of Fluttershy since Spike is hanging out with her more often wouldn't be that good due to Rarity already having a previous jealous regarding Fluttershy in the past that she learned from and got over it. Her being jealous of Fluttershy again would undo what that previous episode did, so although they could've worked around it with Rarity saying that this is a bigger deal then the thing she had jealously towards Fluttershy for in that previous episode you mentioned, it couldn't have worked out in the way that I had imagined it would work out when think of how that would go down. Honestly, I only said Fluttershy since she and Spike had more interactions with each other in this final season. They could've had anypony like Pinkie Pie, AppleJack, or Rainbow Dash be the one who Spike started to hang out with more then he did with Rarity and it would've worked better then Fluttershy, they would've just had to set that up first in episodes that came before this one by having Spike interact with whomever they wanted to fill that role before airing this episode that puts all that build up into motion.
5118302 It doesn't really say anything about the ship, because every character refused to acknowledge it as if that would make us all forget.
5118339 Really? Because I got the exact opposite impression - that there was obviously not anything between them. And it's not like there were plenty of clearly implied ships in that epilouge.
Rarity is distraught when Spike's new crush, Gabby, threatens to end the years of free labor provided by leading on Spike. Like a true Mean Girl, she successfully sucks up to Spike with gifts until Gabby is pushed out of the picture. Spike is so unhappy that it makes Raity's free labor unpleasant and she engineers a make-up. After all, some free labor is better than none.
5118648 Considering how they have portrayed Rarity, I would HOPE Spike is over his crush phase and that is never officially confirmed. Honestly, it'd send a really poor message.
Her behavior is not conducive with a good friend, let alone a romantic interest. It's been a rather 1-sided thing for...well, ages. I have nothing against different preferences for shippings or whatnot, but the behavior in this episode is pretty cut and dry. This episode just confirms that it's not Spike's company she mostly enjoys- but how he makes her life easier. He's gone? Suddenly her life is hard and she needs him back, irregardless of his own feelings on the matter and how happy he is.
That's not a friend, and certainly shouldn't be a romantic interest, in fiction or reality.
5118653 Agreeing to disagree is fine. I only find the potential for such a relationship a bit unsettling at the message it sends. Due to how it has been written, their relationship has been that of assistant and...something.
We (the viewers,) were given examples throughout 9+ seasons that Spike is her helper. He bends over backwards for this pony because of his crush (which is acknowledged by her ONCE, and that's it.) There have been very few examples of Rarity treating him like a friend rather than an assistant. In this episode we are suddenly shown him being taken to the spa and....that's basically it.
That's the underlying premise of what fractures the whole argument. We haven't been given evidence that Rarity views him as a friend- and therefore her behavior is even more inexcusable. As a friend, lover, whatever; you don't treat someone like Rarity treats Spike if you genuinely care about them in any way shape or form.
5118653 Yes. Spike's relationship with Twilight - and with Applejack in Spike at your Service - are framed in that way too. He's a well-indoctrinated slave.
5118659 To what point? A good narrative has characters grow and develop- to which I will admit the MLP writers have severely lacked in a literary and logical standpoint. So are we suppose to disregard past character events? That's just bad writing. In this case, you have a character putting their own wants above someone else's happiness; that's not ok in any sense.
Just because a show is 'for kids' doesn't give a pass for poor writing or portraying a negative situation as 'ok/acceptable,' which is what this episode does at times. Bad writing is bad writing; and in this case, it portrays a character and relationship in any context in a bad light. I'm not looking into it any more than you did to support the pairing.
5118669 Oh I don't think it's intentional at all; I'm simply stating that is how it has come off due to the poor writing. The same issue was with the third HTTYD. I doubt the writers intended to have it show that 'evil can win and isn't worth fighting against,' Yet...that's the message.
And that's why it's rather dismaying that such well-funded shows (MLP and others,) can't seem to afford writers that hold to an over-arching plot and narrative. It's fine for kids (to a point,) but part of what made MLP great were the undertones that could apply to adults.
When you hold a cherry from your milkshake in front of your "friend" while sitting in a café with him and let him nibble on it, you can be certain that you are dating right now. I'm not even an expert in romance but that's, like, at least in the Top 3 of "How to spot a pair of lovers". There is hardly a clearer signal than that.
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I predict a cameo appearance of Cadance.
Let the "This proves the ship/this disproves the ship" fight begin. Gentlemen, ladies, please use the provided cream pies rather than punching, kicking, or gouging. Thank you.
Element of Generosity, ladies and gentleman. Apparently, sharing friends is not the same thing as sharing your own tail.
...
To be honest, I'm not sure if I mean that as a joke or not, because this episode was... confusing, to say the least. I'm sure some Sparity shippers got a bit of karmic catharsis for having Rarity know what it's like to be ignored, but for me, it was just weird. Seeing Gabby come back was fun. Seeing her befriend Spike was fun. Heck, seeing Spike actually make time for Rarity for all the conventions and stuff she dragged him to was a nice touch. But growing up with this fandom and knowing how shippers are, it was a bit cringe-inducing to see the roles reversed like that. And I can understand Rarity needing to learn how to share back in Season 4, but this late in the game? C'mon.
It's astounding how this episode turned out: Rarity would suddenly miss out on Spike's presence when her little assistant starts seeing another girl. And not just any friend, but some creature she never met before: Gabby, the mail carrier from Griffinstone. For years and years, Spike has had this puppy-dog crush (In E.G. 'literally') and devoted all his time trying to impress Rarity in hopes eventually she'd notice him. Yet it seemed this whole 'Sparity' deal was just a fantasy amongst the community as it was clear Rarity's interest was in other guys though they were often clueless, jerks, or it was just never meant to last. Yet there's this theme that this episode has in connection with this season has going for: That as the series is ending, the cast is maturing at it's own pace.
The fact Spike decided to spend time with another friend proves he's not centered on Rarity 24/7 and maybe he's accepted that since they can only be friends, it's best to put his crush behind for good. Yet this episode also demonstrates that Rarity finally comes to realize how great things have been when Spike was around, how her errands were easy with his assistance, and no matter how hard her friends try they could never reach the level of Spike's willingness to be there for Rarity in her need. True, what she did to monopolize Spike's time away from Gabby was wrong like getting in the way of a relationship and unintentionally hurting the other party. In a way it seems to go against Rarity's 'Generous' nature seeing as how selfish she was acting in this episode, but in a way considering how insecure many women are (Men especially) when their significant other starts seeing other people or hanging out with other friends we can't say that we are any better. But at the end of the day, just because Spike is willing to spend time with new friends doesn't mean he would ever neglect the time for other current friendships (Especially how surprised he was when Rarity confesses she misses all the time they spent together).
In the end, change is indeed coming for the series and there is another side to this episode. The friendships that ultimately survive are the ones that can 'adapt', roll with the punches, make do or do without. If you truly believe that a friendship can truly last in your lifetime, even when starting a 'mutual' relationship with your special someone, it's up to you to believe that no matter what happens or how far people are or if they spend more time with others that a true friendship can never be forgotten. Times may change and it may be difficult to adjust, I for one would know, but it's all a matter of if you are willing to change with it and appreciate the moments you can still make. I don't know if this was one of the show's best episodes, but I think it's a relatable topic we can all imagine because at one point of our lives... We've been in their shoes and know this feeling. I hope we don't go out of the way to sabotage our friend's other engagements, but for the most part... I bet we had this moment.
I've said before that the animators have been getting better and better with pony expressions, and Rarity had some good ones here. It was honestly funny to see her reactions to Spike's new friend.
5118303
Sharing a friend, however, isn't quite the same as sharing your stuff. Especially when it's a friend whose company you've been taking for granted to the extent that Rarity has with Spike. She has, since the start, come to see his presence as a given whenever she desires it, and I think it did her good to get a sharp reminder that this might not always be the case, especially as Spike's circle of friends widens.
This was a nice, sweet episode that was quite amusing in parts. Couldn't help but feel bad for Rarity.
takes out baseball bat
so which one of you believes this is the end for SparityBut all joking aside, good to finally see Rarity realize the hard work Spike does for her.
And Spike being best buds with Gabby is a nice bonus too!
Just wait for the finally much more fuel for this fire there.
How late to post this blog
I'll admit I've not really been a fan of Spike's crush on Rarity since S4, so I'm kinda happy that this one showed his growing maturity and left his ship status open to interpretation.
Now I can keep the dream of older Spike/Twilight alive.In all seriousness, I get this one. I went through similar with my last breakup a few years ago and found myself in the Rarity spot pretty hard. Only with less callous clinginess and more straight to accepting the change. Really I've been in Spike and Gabby's shoes more recently too so, even if I don't approve of the extremes. I get it and can enjoy the ep. 9th of 19 for the season.
I do have one complaint not connected to the main episode though, one that's been looming for about ten episodes now: Applejack. It feels like the writers have just given up on her since She's All Yak and shunted her into a similar role to Spike in the first few seasons. Either an ignored voice of reason or OOC comic relief. And no, showing that she was on the same level as Pinkie in this episode doesn't really help. I would like at least one more episode where she gets to keep some dignity before the end.
If only that picture or a reverse actually happened in the episode then the episode would’ve given me and a lot of those wondering about it what we wanted instead of nothing. Except Spike May have a harem now lol
This episode shows us that Spike has matured as a character. He's accepted that Rarity doesn't love him romantically, and he's moving on. He'll still be friends with her, but his days of crushing on her hopelessly are over.
Good on ya, Dragon bro!
5118302
Hehe, you said "cream pies"
Well, this was an interesting episode. I didn't expect to see Gabby brought back into focus, much less form such a strong friendship with Spike. But they were pretty cute together.
I'll admit Rarity was a little possessive of Spike in this episode, but it was also shown how much she's come to depend on him and enjoy his company. And helping Gabby and Spike reconcile definitely made up for it.
5118378
I think Gabby learned the same lesson as Rarity. She was a bit clingy, I thought. But she also accepts that she can't have Spike all to herself.
5118382
Considering Gabby never had any real friends before meeting the CMCs, you can't blame her for wanting to hold on to the few friends she actually has.
This was such an entertaining episode. Wasn't surprised that Rarity would be jealous of Spike paying attention to another female
This episode was honestly a little predictable for me. I can't quite put my finger on why though. I mean, I guess it's different enough from all the other episodes that have tackled dealing with friends having other friends. At the same time, I don't know. Something about this episode just doesn't do it for me. I think it might be Rarity. Her overly dramatic antics make it hard to tell if she really means what she's saying. I also can't tell if she misses spending time with Spike or just having Spike's undivided attention. I mean, she is the penultimately least good Mane 6 on my list for a reason.
5118339
I also saw the last episodes and I don’t think any of those episodes confirm that there’s a romantic relationship between Rarity and Spike
for starters, the episode of Gabby and Spike feels more like confirmation that Spike outdid the crush he had on Rarity, the central theme of that episode is that friendship changes and I don’t think it refers to Rarity realizing that she has feelings for him, but Spike overcame his crush and his attention is no longer focused on Rarity alone, As soon as Rarity’s way of acting, knowing what her character is like, that she likes to be the center of attention, that really affected her, Spike just got over Rarity but that doesn’t mean she’s no longer an important friend to him, as the episode shows at the end
As for the recent episodes, it’s not at all unusual for Rarity and Spike to team up, after all, within the six main characters, she’s the second closest Spike after Twilight, if he doesn’t team up with Twilight, He does it with Rarity, they’ve done it before, I don’t think any of it involves a romantic relationship, especially because Rarity never showed a true romantic interest in Spike, she wants him as a friend but nothing else, And as Gabby’s episode shows, Spike also got over that crush. As for the song from the last episode, remember that most of these characters have big eyes, so their field of vision is greater ,And I think the ones in charge of doing the episode wanted all the characters to be the field of vision of each character, but now that Twilight and Spike are big, it was kind of complicated to do, So what we saw in that episode was the best position the characters can put their eyes on so they don’t feel like they’re turning their backs on each other, also, Spike never looks at Rarity at the time, his attention at that time was focused only on Twilight, and he closes his eyes and smiles as all his friends approach as Twiligth sings
There really wouldn’t be anything "controversial" if Spike and Rarity were real, just never was, I believe the writers created this crush of Spike by Rarity for the purpose of using it to make some funny moments or to use it as part of the plot of some comic episode, never to develop it as a true romantic relationship
p.d
sorry if there are errors in my writing, English is not my first language
5118292
I wish there had been an episode centered around her being 'princess of love.' What does she do exactly to facilitate love. Does she go on love missions? Is there a castle that warns her about love emergencies.
Honestly it seems like they're not even mentioning that friendship missions this season. Did those just stop happening when the tree was destroyed, was that not fixed in the next episode?
People complain that Spike only loves Rarity when certain writers helm the story. Here it seemed like he'd grown past his devoted puppy love phase, but it's actually less clear how Spike feels as the episode was really about Rarity.
Rarity being dramatic is always a win
He's a kid. This should have never been a problem for her. Don't know if I'll watch the episode, but I sincerely hope this is more a jealous sister thing then her being a jealous bitch.
5118423
Actually, Spike's crush on Rarity started out as just a way of showing the viewers that Rarity was a pony of great beauty.
Honestly, it’s good that this ship is over (yes, I have an argument to make that statement), and it’s about time it happened, Spike deserves better, you could see that Rarity appreciated Spike as a good friend and cared for him, but also takes advantage of it on several occasions, there are many other female characters who would be better choice to Spike couple than Rarity
5118435
I don't think she's actually ever been referred to as the Princess of Love in the show. Whenever titles or duties come up (like in Twilight's Kingdom), she's always said to be the Princess of the Crystal Empire.
First, the positives.
Spike and Gabby appear to be in a budding relationship, complete with a scene of Gabby sweetly feeding Spike a cherry, both of them shown to be visibly longing for each other in ways mere friends would not be after a supposed failed friendship, and Spike visibly blushing when he requests to join Gabby on her rounds at the end of the episode. Perhaps it is due to Spike's status as a main character, unlike Big Macintosh and Sugar Belle, but the wishy-washy nature of Spike and Gabby's relationship in this episode seems to be in line with trying to keep the status quo open should any future events come up that may derail this development. Mind you, this is a strange decision when considering this is the final season. Regardless, this episode took what would have been a crackshipping under any other circumstances and made it work. Spike and Gabby are an absolute delight to see together.
Now, onto the negatives.
This episode shows Rarity at her absolute worst of her own volition. As much as I adore her, I’m not going to say her choices were sympathetic. The episode is rather unsubtle about how it portrays Rarity as a jealous lover trying to control her significant other's actions and free time. Rarity's obsession with Spike reaches disturbing levels in this episode, her actions in trying to control his free time bordering on types of domestic abuse. Of course, the moment her slave thinks of even getting a life for himself, she loses her mind. Another reason for me to hate Rarity in this episode and in the hands of a competent writer Spike would have flipped the hell up at this point. While not necessarily out of character, it shows how Rarity has gotten too used to using Spike's adoration for her own personal benefit for the past eight seasons and makes one question how much she really respects him as a person.
Having said all of that, I think it's safe to say Spike's crush on Rarity is over and done with. it was only a matter of time before Spike would realize that his crush on Rarity was never going to pay off. His lack of any romantic interest in Rarity at first sight at the start of the episode is the first sign that he is seeing someone else. He finally found someone who is a better match for him and it really shows with how happy he and Gabby are together. I personally am glad for these two characters. But this is ruined in the scene with Gabby flying through the halls as she hears Spike and Rarity playing Ogres & Oubliettes, which is a parallel to someone walking in on their spouse having an affair. Gabby’s devastated reaction upon entering the room only further drives the implications home. I mean, just look at that face.
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That is not the face of a boy missing his new friend. That’s the face of a sudden and painful heartbreak. I’ve been there. It’s difficult to describe the turmoil of a budding relationship being torn apart by circumstances outside your control. And yet, despite that, the Rarity x Spike shippers and writers are going to lose their damn minds after this establishment.
In spite of my hatred for this episode, I will say that it was nice to see Twilight act like an actual sister towards Spike, caring for him and defending him. After quite a few seasons suffering from increasingly worsening neurosis, I can't adequately describe just how refreshing it was to see Twilight Sparkle return to her roots as the voice of reason when she confronts Rarity over Spike's obvious crippling depression.
However, what shocked me was that we got actual character development in the show for once!
Color me shocked! Rarity comes to terms with the fact that friendships change and that finding a new friend to spend time with does not mean that he no longer values his friendship with her. While reluctant to do so at first, Rarity wills herself to show up at the post office and confess to Gabby about her underhanded and manipulative actions to win back Spike's company, resulting in Spike coming along to witness it. Things are quickly patched up, Gabby and Spike are very happy to see each other, and fly off together to catch up on lost time.
But, despite liking the moral of the story, I really can't stand Rarity acting so despicable towards Spike. Turning a character into an asshole just to send a message really rubs me the wrong way. Though, this isn't the first time these writers have done that.
5118461
You might want to seek professional health for this level of crazy. Like a therapist.
I'm not even talking about Sparity here.
5118484
Wow, for someone "neutral," you act like a fanboy who wants me to agree with him
First, you didn’t counteract any of my arguments; all you did was tell me that you’re right because you predicted naruhina, told me about Kishimoto and more things that have nothing to do with mlp
look, I don’t care,I don’t feel like arguing with a kid, so, you’re right, I’m wrong, please, stop bothering me
I love Sparity. We can save the ship on the site. Stories can be made about them. The Sparity stories can take place in the Dragon Dropped timeline or if that timeline never happened. It can take place in season 9 or in a alternate season 9. To me it should be a alternate season 9 but that's just me. I'm fine with Spike being in love with someone else in fanfics, the same goes for Rarity. SPARITY FOREVER!!!
5118516
I repeat, I don’t care, I don’t feel like arguing with a kid
5118476
Fully agree. I think the message portrayed is fantastic (friendships grow and change.)
But the Element of Narcissism was a sour taste on an otherwise great episode that called back to earlier seasons in terms of feeling. Sadly, the writers once again dropped the ball and didn't showcase as much how Rarity missed Spikes company, but rather how she missed the free labor. As per this episode and others, she clearly doesn't care about his presence; that's just a nice bonus to making her life easier.
Honestly, I saw this episode as a lesson and a warning, and some parts of it were actually rather unsettling because it mimics real-life narcissistic behavior in a relationship. Examples such as the continually one-sided interactions (only wanting to spend time when you are helping them,) manipulating to get a person away from a new friend, and not really caring about the well-being of another person over your own wants is a YIKES from a friend, let alone anyone with a romantic interest.
If someone acts like Rarity did in this episode, that is a huge red flag both as a friend, or romantic involvement, and certainly enough to reconsider a friendship or any further interaction. This is past 'spike/rarity' fans. The behavior in the episode is downright destructive to a relationship of any kind.
She was basically the bad apple in this episode. I thought the Spike/Gabby moments were well done, and wished they had focused more on that than the jealous marshmallow. Both Spike and Gabby are from cultures which shun 'softer' moments, I thought seeing them grow together would be fantastic in any aspect.
5118528
This is the last comment I answer you
I’m going to give you some advice because I’m really worried about you, it’s time for you to grow up, you say you’re 32 years old, then act like a 32 year old person, since your childhood is long gone, that behavior of yours is going to cause you serious problems in life, even, maybe you already have them and you don’t realize, I sincerely hope that someday you mature
This episode pretty much gave me what I was hoping would come out of the relationship between Rarity and Spike with Spike growing out of his crush for Rarity, which would eventually lead to Rarity treating him as a equal instead of a lapdog; as we saw around the end of the episode when the two of them went gem hunting along with Pinkie Pie. Gabby was great in this episode and the friendship that she has with Spike was good to see, which is great as when finding out the synopsis for this episode was I was fearful that she'd be written as the rest of the non pony creatures have been written thus far, that being terribly and making them very unlikable. Despite Gabby turning out great and her performance in this episode was great that made the friendship of her and Spike nice to watch, I do wish that perhaps instead of Gabby it was Fluttershy who we've seen both her and Spike interact a lot more in this final season. Which would've made this episode make a bit more sense to see Fluttershy and Spike hanging out more since that was set up in previous episodes that came before this one. I also think that it would've been cool to see Rarity be jealous that one of her close friends and fellow bearer to the elements of harmony had, in her eyes, stole her Spikey Wikey away from her. That could've lead to her realization of when Rarity learns her lesson in this episode a tiny bit more important since it involves two of her closes friends that she's known and fought along side with when protecting Equestria over the years. But despite this, what we got was still great and I actually kinda like how open ended a lot of it is as it gives the viewers like us to draw our own conclusions on what exactly are the kind of relationships that the characters featured in this episode have with each other. The only downside to this is how there's so many people whose conclusions are ones that sexualize the fuck out of these relationships that these characters have with each other, but that's mostly a fandom issue and in most cases not a issue with the show itself.
5118590
To be fair, Rarity has been jealous of Fluttershy before. Remember "Green Isn't Your Color"?
5118461
Or maybe because you're posting spoilers for the end of the series before it has aired in the U.S.
Think jeez.
5118592
That I do and now that you mention it, her being jealous of Fluttershy since Spike is hanging out with her more often wouldn't be that good due to Rarity already having a previous jealous regarding Fluttershy in the past that she learned from and got over it. Her being jealous of Fluttershy again would undo what that previous episode did, so although they could've worked around it with Rarity saying that this is a bigger deal then the thing she had jealously towards Fluttershy for in that previous episode you mentioned, it couldn't have worked out in the way that I had imagined it would work out when think of how that would go down. Honestly, I only said Fluttershy since she and Spike had more interactions with each other in this final season. They could've had anypony like Pinkie Pie, AppleJack, or Rainbow Dash be the one who Spike started to hang out with more then he did with Rarity and it would've worked better then Fluttershy, they would've just had to set that up first in episodes that came before this one by having Spike interact with whomever they wanted to fill that role before airing this episode that puts all that build up into motion.
5118302
It doesn't really say anything about the ship, because every character refused to acknowledge it as if that would make us all forget.
5118339
Really? Because I got the exact opposite impression - that there was obviously not anything between them. And it's not like there were plenty of clearly implied ships in that epilouge.
5118302
Why fight when Spike can have them both?
5118570
Yeah, let’s see how long that mentality lasts
Synopsis
Rarity is distraught when Spike's new crush, Gabby, threatens to end the years of free labor provided by leading on Spike. Like a true Mean Girl, she successfully sucks up to Spike with gifts until Gabby is pushed out of the picture. Spike is so unhappy that it makes Raity's free labor unpleasant and she engineers a make-up. After all, some free labor is better than none.
5118636
A fantastic summary.
5118648
Considering how they have portrayed Rarity, I would HOPE Spike is over his crush phase and that is never officially confirmed.
Honestly, it'd send a really poor message.
Her behavior is not conducive with a good friend, let alone a romantic interest. It's been a rather 1-sided thing for...well, ages. I have nothing against different preferences for shippings or whatnot, but the behavior in this episode is pretty cut and dry. This episode just confirms that it's not Spike's company she mostly enjoys- but how he makes her life easier. He's gone? Suddenly her life is hard and she needs him back, irregardless of his own feelings on the matter and how happy he is.
That's not a friend, and certainly shouldn't be a romantic interest, in fiction or reality.
5118653
Agreeing to disagree is fine. I only find the potential for such a relationship a bit unsettling at the message it sends. Due to how it has been written, their relationship has been that of assistant and...something.
We (the viewers,) were given examples throughout 9+ seasons that Spike is her helper. He bends over backwards for this pony because of his crush (which is acknowledged by her ONCE, and that's it.) There have been very few examples of Rarity treating him like a friend rather than an assistant. In this episode we are suddenly shown him being taken to the spa and....that's basically it.
That's the underlying premise of what fractures the whole argument. We haven't been given evidence that Rarity views him as a friend- and therefore her behavior is even more inexcusable. As a friend, lover, whatever; you don't treat someone like Rarity treats Spike if you genuinely care about them in any way shape or form.
5118653
Yes. Spike's relationship with Twilight - and with Applejack in Spike at your Service - are framed in that way too. He's a well-indoctrinated slave.
5118659
To what point? A good narrative has characters grow and develop- to which I will admit the MLP writers have severely lacked in a literary and logical standpoint. So are we suppose to disregard past character events? That's just bad writing. In this case, you have a character putting their own wants above someone else's happiness; that's not ok in any sense.
Just because a show is 'for kids' doesn't give a pass for poor writing or portraying a negative situation as 'ok/acceptable,' which is what this episode does at times. Bad writing is bad writing; and in this case, it portrays a character and relationship in any context in a bad light. I'm not looking into it any more than you did to support the pairing.
"Dragon Dropped" Review: The End of an Romantic Era
5118669
Oh I don't think it's intentional at all; I'm simply stating that is how it has come off due to the poor writing. The same issue was with the third HTTYD. I doubt the writers intended to have it show that 'evil can win and isn't worth fighting against,' Yet...that's the message.
And that's why it's rather dismaying that such well-funded shows (MLP and others,) can't seem to afford writers that hold to an over-arching plot and narrative. It's fine for kids (to a point,) but part of what made MLP great were the undertones that could apply to adults.
5118676
When you hold a cherry from your milkshake in front of your "friend" while sitting in a café with him and let him nibble on it, you can be certain that you are dating right now. I'm not even an expert in romance but that's, like, at least in the Top 3 of "How to spot a pair of lovers".
There is hardly a clearer signal than that.
5118658
You couldn't be more wrong. Spike is treated like family, not a servant.