• Member Since 1st Apr, 2012
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SuperPinkBrony12


I'm a brony and a Pinkie Pie fan but I like all of the mane six, as well as Spike. I hope to provide some entertaining and interesting fanfics for the Brony community.

More Blog Posts1215

  • Saturday
    Episode Re-Review: Triple Threat

    Now it's back to FiM, and back to Season 7. Season 7 finally seemed to find its footing at the very end of its first half, with the back to back successes of "Discordant Harmony" and "The Perfect Pear". The same could not be said for Equestria Girls, which debuted three specials meant to be combined into a full length movie, but only one of which ("Movie Magic") was any good. Still, Hasbro bit

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    3 comments · 96 views
  • 1 week
    Special Re-Review: Equestria Girls: Mirror Magic (Magical Movie Night, Part 3)

    So it is that we come to the third and final act of this special, and what at the very least counts as the black sheep of the lot in the form of "Mirror Magic". Compared to the two previous specials, this one directly focuses on its villain, albeit one we've seen before. But hey, Queen Chrysalis' big return in "To Where and Back Again" seemed to be received quite well all things considered. And

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    8 comments · 145 views
  • 2 weeks
    Special Re-Review: Equestria Girls: Movie Magic (Magical Movie Night, Part 2)

    Despite this and "Dance Magic" and "Mirror Magic" being made part of the same story, different writers penned all three specials. This one was written by Noelle Benvenuti, who had been absent from the writing scene since the lackluster "Made in Manehattan" that we now know was changed from its original planned story involving Flim and Flam. A shame, rather. But more likely, real world problems

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    3 comments · 127 views
  • 2 weeks
    R.I.P. Akira Toriyama

    Shocking and unexpected news has reached the ears of fans of manga and anime worldwide. Akira Toriyama, the creator of the iconic "Dragon Ball" manga that spawned several sequels and anime series, died March 1 at the age of 68.

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    5 comments · 150 views
  • 3 weeks
    Special Re-Review: Equestria Girls: Dance Magic (Magical Movie Night, Part 1)

    I'm going by release date for the specials I didn't cover during my initial re-reviews back in 2021, even though we now know when some of the specials are actually supposed to take place. In any case, this special is one of three that, when combined together, equals the total run time of a full length Equestria Girls movie. From here on out, Hasbro would not greenlight another movie, but after

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    3 comments · 156 views
Sep
4th
2020

850 Followers Q & A Followup · 12:08am Sep 4th, 2020

You all asked questions and now it's time for me to respond to them, so here they are. Hope the answers are to your satisfaction.

First up we have a question from Darksoul85 who asks:

Where do you get inspiration from to write

All sorts of places, really. There's a lot of sources both real and fictional, fictional especially. Some of my favorite t.v. shows, movies and books serve as inspiration.

Next we have BezierBallad who asks only:

Do you have any favorite changeling stories?

There's one I'm following right now entitled "The Bug in the Mirror" which looks quite promising. It's centered around ten year old Minuette when she's at Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, and discovers a changeling within a mirror she receives as a birthday present. My all time favorite changeling story is one that I can't remember the name of off the top of my head. I do remember that it was based on a fan comic and had Vinyl Scratch taking in a changeling after the events of "A Canterlot Wedding". Obviously it was written long before the events of later seasons.

Melody Song is next and asks two questions. The first of which is:

Who's your favorite princess?

I assume by princess you mean only the ones on FiM and the answer to that one is simple: Princess Celestia. I know it's probably an unpopular pick given how much the fandom still goes nuts for Princess Luna, but I feel like Princess Celestia is vastly overhated. She's not a troll or a tyrant, she's very much a maternal and supportive figure. She tries to nudge others in the right direction, but she never outright imposes a destiny on them, she always gives them the option of choice. If anything, her problem may lay in that she often delegates out to others and is slow to act on her own if circumstances don't force her hoof.

And the second of which is:

Favorite episode of MLP?

"The Perfect Pear". Just getting to see Applejack's parents, even in a flashback, was good enough. But they went the extra mile to make them feel like their own characters even if it involved mixing aspects of each of their future offspring. It's even stronger than Romeo and Juliet since they're not rushing blindly into love after just meeting each other, their marriage comes after years of being together and preparing to accept the consequences of what they assume will be a long distance relationship. I also have to give a shout out to the celebrity VAs, particularly Felicia Day since I'd never heard of her before this but she really impressed me. Maybe she'd done voice work prior, but if it was her first major role I wouldn't have been able to tell from how well she delivered her lines, and William Shatner as Grand Pear was proof that Shatner can act void of his usual Shatnerisms. The ending is just the icing on the cake, showing that the feuding families have been become intertwined and Bright Macintosh and Pear Butter helped make it to be.

Bronycommander also asks two questions. The first of which is as follows:

Since you like to focus in Diamond, ever thought about Silver Spoon, like her family or what got her to follow Diamond?

Actually, I have sort of, though not really outside of my rewrite series. My headcanon is that Silver Spoon's family is descended from Princess Platinum and that her parents are divorced: Her father runs a family owned restaurant in Canterlot while her mom works in Ponyville, and I have Latecomer to thank for the inspiration of her mom working at a bank (presumably as a bank president). I also have a headcanon borrowed from a group thread I saw a long time ago, where Octavia is Silver Spoon's older sister since the thread suggested they had similar eye and coat colors. The divorce is specifically because Silver's father wanted to continue the family legacy in Canterlot, while Silver's mother found Canterlot too judging and too self-destructive and wanted to move to Ponyville to raise Silver Spoon the way she wanted. And as for what got her to follow Diamond Tiara, I've always believed it's simply because their families knew each other and naturally encouraged their off-spring to bond for the sake of forging connections. Silver naturally assumed it was a mutual friendship, but Diamond more often than not took advantage of it for her own gains until finally seeing the error of her ways and making amends.

The second question is as follows:

in all the years, had you ever thought or were fan of Scoots having a coltfriend, like Rumble for example?

I was actually a pretty big Rumbleloo shipper for quite a long time, up until "Marks and Recreation" in fact. When that episode showed that Rumble could not only fly well while Scootaloo could still only barely get off the ground, but also showed that Rumble had kind of an arrogant way he carried himself (not helped by how distracting Vincent Tong was as Rumble's voice) I felt like the ship might not last and started drifting more towards Sccotabelle since Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle being close friends could potentially become romantic later in life (I think people tend to be more likely to persue relationships with those they know rather than people they've just met but may have similar interests with). But after IDW Comics main series #81 I started drifting back towards Rumbleloo since it seemed like it might be possible for Scootaloo and Rumble to patch things up and work around the flying problem, though it helped that the glider shown off seemed like a way for Scootaloo to be able to fly even in spite of her potential disability.

BrawnyBold asks only one question, but it's quite a doozy:

If your chapters from your MLP What If series could become cannon, what would be your top 5 chapters you would want to be cannon?

Picking just five is quite hard because I feel like there are a lot of chapters that would be better than the actual episodes they're involved in or at least as good. Some of my choices may surprise those of you who've seen my episode rankings lists and know where I consider episodes to stack up. Anyway, of the chapters I've currently written, my top five would be as follows: 5. Celestia Advice Parts 1 and 2: It still feels odd to have Season 7 be the only season with just a two parter finale and not a two parter premiere, and I still suspect that it's because "Celestial Advice" was going to be the big premiere before Hasbro for whatever reason rejected it in favor of two stand alone episodes. 4. Newbie Dash: This episode was the conclusion to one of the biggest arcs in the entire show, and the way the original episode pulled it off was very insulting and disappointing, partially because it was trying to tackle subject matter way outside its comfort zone, so I wanted to try to tone it down and focus more on Rainbow Dash actually becoming a Wonderbolt, as well as change the nature of her accident so that it doesn't feel like her character is regressing. 3. Every Little Thing She Does: A portrayal like the original episode really didn't do Starlight any favors and made her entire redemption look questionable, so I feel like it's important to, if she is going to cross a line have it be something she regrets and actually faces consequences for. 2. The Cutie Re-Mark Parts 1 and 2: Considering this finale is still devisive among fans and considering how it handles Starlight Glimmer, there really is a lot that needed to be done to fix it, and I feel like even just having Starlight portrayed more competently and having her come to realize what her actions will cause does a lot more to make her initial redemption seem believable. 1. School Raze Parts 1 and 2: If the show just wanted Cozy Glow for the sake of having a child and twist villain, I'd much rather they just reuse Chrysalis and make use of what they already have, allowing the student six to shine while also not completing sidelining everyone else just to shill the student six, and yes I do feel like "What Lies Beneath" could've been worked into either the beginning or end of Season 8 to really give the test more weight.

Yoshifan30 simply asks:

What is your least favorite episode

"Secrets and Pies". It's the lowest of lows for filler episodes that contribute nothing of substance: Rainbow Dash is at her absolute worst here which is really saying something considering a lot of the other bad things she's done. Here she's gaslighting Pinkie (gaslighting is the act of making one question their sanity) by pretending to like pies before throwing them away, knowing full well how much work Pinkie puts into her baking. Not only that but she's willing to poison innocent animals including her pet tortoise just to keep up the lies. The episode also makes Pinkie Pie a complete idiot who can't see pies being eaten right in front of her, and tries to claim that what Rainbow does is okay because Pinkie wouldn't understand the truth. But I cry foul on that because Pinkie values her friends' happiness above all else, she wants them to sincerely smile. Sure, she might be upset at first to learn that Rainbow doesn't like her pies, but she'd come to understand for the sake of her friend's happiness and wouldn't waste effort making pies for a friend who doesn't want them (Rainbow doesn't even bother to give the pies to other ponies either, she keeps looking for ways to get rid of them without fanfare). Then after a really disgusting resolution (and considering I like to think I have a fairly decent tolerance for disgusting or gross out humor I think that's saying something), the episode has the nerve to end the same way "The Cutie Pox" does by having the main character of focus completely disregard the moral they just learned for the sake of humor. Even the evil Rainbow Dash segment just reeks of padding out the run time, and it's not even a very good mystery when Pinkie seeing one of her pies in the trash should immediately cause her to suspect Rainbow Dash, yet because of the plot she doesn't. And keep in mind that that happens after the title sequence, so the episode doesn't even get started until a good couple minutes in.

Up next, Arthor2017 asks:

What is your favourite Pinkie Pie episode?

Ultimately, that honor goes to "Pinkie Pride". Pinkie is written so well that even when she's in the wrong you're sympathizing with her and rooting for her to win, and not because the one in the right is portrayed so badly either. Heck, in a way it makes Pinkie Pie look like a tragic figure, determined to bring happiness to others so that they won't feel as lonely as she does. Weird Al absolutely rocks it as Cheese Sandwich, turning in a performance that's since seemed to really open doors for him in the voice acting world that don't involve just him playing himself or playing the wacky character. The songs are top notch, and Cheese's backstory even kind of makes it into a "Love at first sight" kind of story. It being the best of the key episodes is just icing on the cake.

Now we have HolyCross9 who simply asks:

Do you like crossover fics?

Yes, and I've read plenty of them. In fact, a crossover fic is the very first fanfic I read on this site: Total Magic Pony Island (which will probably never officially be continued considering it's been years since the original author posted even a blog on his account). I did mention in my previous Q & A session that good crossovers are hard to write, because the most important thing to remember is that both sides should contribute equally to the final outcome. You shouldn't make one side look strong at the expense of another looking weak. And idealy, the two should interact in a meaningful way that doesn't always involve "When worlds collide" or misunderstandings because of contrivence or out of context statements.

MLPFollower asks a question that will contain spoilers for a future installment of my rewrite series, so if you don't want to be spoiled I suggest you skip the answer to this question:

What will you change for Beginning of the End and Ending of the End, besides making Grogar the final boss of MLP:FiM?

For "The Beginning of the End" it'll be Tirek who strikes out on his own, and since Cozy Glow is just a Chrysalis disguise the Storm King will resurrected with a new voice (explained in-universe) to join the team. In line with some of the original plans, Celestia and Luna's retirement will be better explained and not immediate, and the student six will initially be involved before they're captured and imprisoned. And for "The Ending of the End", the remaining Legion of Doom members will try to betray Grogar only for him to reveal that he knew of their intention all along. He will force them to battle the ponies while he prepares a ceremony to bring back the windigos as part of his plan to wipe out the ponies and take back the land, and he will do this after fending off an attack from Discord who will be revealed to have been Grogar's creation. The amusement factory and Sweetie Belle's parents will make comebacks as the CMC will rally the three tribes to band together after the presence of the windigos causes them to start fearing for their own existence that creates a self-fulfilling cycle. The Legion of Doom will join forces with Twilight and the others to help distract Grogar long enough for him to be defeated and destroyed with not only the pillars and the student six aiding Twilight and her friends, but also the princesses (including Flurry Heart). Then the Legion of Doom will get a head start to flee before Twilight and the others come after them, as long as they promise not to show their faces in Equestria or anywhere allied to it ever again. The very end will play out largely the same, but with Starlight joining the group for the donuts.

RainbowSparkle3 asks three questions (what a coincidence). The first one is as follows:

What do you think of the early seasons vs later seasons debate?

I think it's valid, but if you want to know what camp I'm in I favor the later seasons ever so narrowly. Even with all the missteps in Season 8 I still think Season 1 is the weakest of the show simply because the show itself didn't know what it wanted to be at first, and even once it had carved out its identity it started experimenting in ways that more often than not backfired, to say nothing of the fact that the animation wasn't as polished since the animators were still learning the ropes. Season 1 still holds up well, but its age does show looking back on it. And Season 2, particularly early on, had problems with world building that later seasons would do better at (particularly the dragons and the changelings). Season 7 is the best season for me, albeit narrowly and largely boosted by the show deciding to tie in with the comics and start filling in some of the remaining gaps of lore (Season 4 is good but I feel like it played things a little too safe more often than not, particularly with the potential of the first three episodes to be part of an overarching narrative that they subsequently backed out of). No season was completely flawless, each season had its ups and downs. And I can see why people would prefer the earlier seasons, it's a mater of taste.

The second one is as follows:

What do you think of Cadance?

She is by far the most overlooked character in the entire arsenal of characters of FiM. No one and I mean no one seemed to know what to do with her. Hasbro pushed hard for her to be an alicorn instead of just a plain old unicorn or a pegasus, and this was the straw that broke the camel's back and made Lauren Faust quit the show all together. But after her debut, Hasbro just stuck her in the Crystal Empire that she was said to be the ruler of and rarely did much of anything with her. She had character, and it felt like later attempts to "add character" turned her into something she wasn't supposed to be. And this was repeated in the IDW comics that often seemed to take Cadence out of her element, even implying that she wasn't happy and all for the sake of jabbing at Hasbro's poor marketing strategies for her. Not even her becoming a mother when Flurry Heart was born seemed to really change her character, she just seemed to occupy the role that previously belonged to her aunts of giving advice to Twilight or to other characters. It's especially telling when SilverQuill mentioned in his review of "Sparkle's Seven" how Shining Armor was able to be fleshed out by show's end but Cadence seemed to get nothing at all.

And the third and final one is as follows:

Do you watch Marvel and if so what's your favourite Marvel movie?

I haven't watched much Marvel to be honest. I haven't kept up with the MCU and currently haven't been able to access Disney+ to see any of the movies from the MCU, or even the X-Men films. I have seen the two Deadpool movies, and the first two Sam Railey Spider-Man movies, as well as the two MCU Spider-Man films and Into The Spiderverse. But my favorite has to remain Spider-Man 2 from Sam Railey, it tackles many of the biggest concepts behind superheroes: The dual nature between the hero and the secret identity, the defining nature between the hero and the villain that drives them to their goals, the concept of forbidden love and the idea that the hero can never truly be in love since his (or her) enemies would hurt the ones he (or she) loves. Heck, it even draws inspiration from the famous Amazing Spider-Man #50 when Peter Parker first declared he was "Spider-Man nomore".

And finally, we have BronyRanger who asks simply:

Are there any episodes you consider guilty pleasures?

Quite a few, actually: "Griffon the Brush Off", "Baby Cakes", "MMMystery on the Friendship Express", "Twilight Time", "Party Pooped", "No Second Prances", "The Maud Couple" and "Between Dusk and Dawn" to name a few. "Baby Cakes" in particular is what I'd consider my greatest guilty pleasure: I legit like it better than "A Flurry of Emotions" and don't seem to be bothered that much by the crying (though I'll admit it is overdone and its relevance to the plot can get old fast).

And there you have it, hope these answers are to your liking. I'll do another Q & A session if I hit 900 followers or at the end of the year if there's a demand for it (otherwise it'll be during my FiMFictionversary in April of 2021 as always). Until then, unless I decide to start revisiting episodes of the show there probably won't be very many blog posts from me anytime soon.

Comments ( 29 )

I do remember that it was based on a fan comic and had Vinyl Scratch taking in a changeling after the events of "A Canterlot Wedding". Obviously it was written long before the events of later seasons.

I think you mean this one?

Thanks for answering my questions! I liked knowing the answers to all of these questions, actually. I skipped the one for Beginning and Ending of the End, but I really love that you put in all this detail for each and every one. I'm looking forward to more of your work in the future!

Very nice! About silver, I was just wondering, given she rarely appears in your diamond stories.

And Rumble, was just cirous, given how popular the two are, despite the episode and thus wondered how you see shipping. Me, I am not a shipper, just find they look cute together, plus the colts and stallions need more stories.

In fact, the Rumble story I made, Scoots is never mentioned but that was due to inexperience at the time, thus I didn't think of it, plus thought wouldn't fit with the plot of the story.

In any case, keep up the good work!

5348066 Yes, that's the one I was thinking of!

AW man wish I wrote down my question. But still I enjoy reading this

Thank you for answering my questions, though I kind of wished the Storm King kept his original Liev Schreiber voice, but I guess you can't win them all. Looking forward to the twelfth and thirteenth volumes of What-If rewrites!

oh ok I got it thanks for Answering my question

Thank you for answering my question. "Pinkie Pride" is also my favourite Pinkie Pie episode and one of the best from the entire show.

Until next time! :twilightsmile:

She's not a troll or a tyrant, she's very much a maternal and supportive figure.

So we're just going to ignore the fact that she put an entire empire and countless lives at risk for the sake of a test? Got it.

She tries to nudge others in the right direction, but she never outright imposes a destiny on them, she always gives them the option of choice.

Except that she made Twilight a princess without giving Twilight a choice or a say in the matter. At no point in the show was it ever indicated that Twilight wanted to be a princess, much less that Celestia wanted her to be a princess. It doesn't help that Twilight's task of spreading friendship throughout Equestria doesn't even require her to be a princess, so there was absolutely no need for a fourth princess. The only reason she became a princess at all is solely because Hasbro demanded it and the writers had to scramble to make it happen at literally the last minute, which is why "Magical Mystery Cure" was such a colossal mess.

If anything, her problem may lay in that she often delegates out to others and is slow to act on her own if circumstances don't force her hoof.

And this is why I hate her.

(not helped by how distracting Vincent Tong was as Rumble's voice)

God, yes! Why were the staff thinking when they decided that voice would be best suited for a song? It's like they intentionally made his voice annoying on purpose. It doesn't help that the song itself is terrible.

the way the original episode pulled it off was very insulting and disappointing, partially because it was trying to tackle subject matter way outside its comfort zone

Coming from someone who's had family members who have served in the military, as well as heard personal testimony from military bronies such as Josh Scorcher, I can tell you that what happened in that episode is accurate. And I don't know what you mean by "trying to tackle subject matter way outside its comfort zone." They've tackled the subject of bullying before.

A portrayal like the original episode really didn't do Starlight any favors and made her entire redemption look questionable, so I feel like it's important to, if she is going to cross a line have it be something she regrets and actually faces consequences for.

Not only was what she did perfectly in-character for her, but she faced the consequences for it and had to make up for it, which is more than I can say for Twilight in "Lesson Zero", an episode that I personally hated.

If the show just wanted Cozy Glow for the sake of having a child and twist villain, I'd much rather they just reuse Chrysalis and make use of what they already have

I'm honestly shocked they didn't go with that idea. It would've made much more sense than anything she did in season 9.

It's the lowest of lows for filler episodes that contribute nothing of substance:

This sums up how I feel about most episodes of the show and the show itself as a whole, in particular "Magical Mystery Cure."

(including Flurry Heart)

I hope that she'd be aged up in this alternate universe as I can't see how an infant is going to be of much help in this situation.

Then the Legion of Doom will get a head start to flee before Twilight and the others come after them, as long as they promise not to show their faces in Equestria or anywhere allied to it ever again.

So, in other words, they wouldn't face any consequences for their actions? I see that as a double standard, especially regarding what you said about Starlight Glimmer. I'm one of the few people who are glad that they were punished for their crimes in "The Ending of the End", though I can see why it's such a controversial issue for others.

The very end will play out largely the same, but with Starlight joining the group for the donuts.

No. Just no.

(Season 4 is good but I feel like it played things a little too safe more often than not, particularly with the potential of the first three episodes to be part of an overarching narrative that they subsequently backed out of)

Uh, were we watching the same season? The overarching plot was a constant presence in season four. My problem with season four is how it ignored the storyline that was set up in "Magical Mystery Cure", which itself abandoned the original storyline that was set up in seasons one and two just to create a brand new one, which, as I said, they completely ignored in season four. Just . . . fuck that season! :flutterrage:

It's especially telling when SilverQuill mentioned in his review of "Sparkle's Seven" how Shining Armor was able to be fleshed out by show's end

If by "fleshed out" you mean they made him a stereotypical nerd like they did with all of the other male characters, then yes.

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Except that she made Twilight a princess without giving Twilight a choice or a say in the matter. At no point in the show was it ever indicated that Twilight wanted to be a princess, much less that Celestia wanted her to be a princess. It doesn't help that Twilight's task of spreading friendship throughout Equestria doesn't even require her to be a princess,

The advanced magical studies were for Celestia to groom Twilight to become a princess, and considering Twilight has idolized Princess Celestia I think it was inevitable she'd want to be like Celestia regardless. Spreading friendship is something that Twilight chose for herself, same with her school and same with expanding friendship to worlds outside of Equestria.

It doesn't help that the song itself is terrible.

I like the song, and Vincent Tong was a great singing voice. The problem is that as a natural voice instead of a singing double it just doesn't sound believable. Rumble sounds more like a teenager than a little boy, and it proves why they usually have women voice little boys.

And I don't know what you mean by "trying to tackle subject matter way outside its comfort zone." They've tackled the subject of bullying before.

Bullying is not the problem. The problem is hazing and newbie shaming, stuff that is far too complicated for a show about friendship to truly understand when the audience is still primarily children. That's as bad as Captain Planet trying to talk about AIDS when it can't even do a good job with its green aesop.

Not only was what she did perfectly in-character for her, but she faced the consequences for it and had to make up for it, which is more than I can say for Twilight in "Lesson Zero", an episode that I personally hated.

In "Lesson Zero" Twilight was already clearly stressed and not thinking straight when she came up with the idea to use mind control. She did it once, realized it was a bad idea, regretted it, tried to undo it and was prepared to face the consequences of her actions because of it. In comparison, Starlight immediately resorted to mind control after her own idea to combine five friendship problems into one to impress Twilight (after shirking her friendship studies on purpose in the hopes of showing off her magical abilities), took advantage of it to try and continue to impress Twilight, had to be told why it was a bad idea and only had to say "sorry" before she was instantly forgiven despite no on-screen indication that she understood why she shouldn't have done what she did.

I hope that she'd be aged up in this alternate universe as I can't see how an infant is going to be of much help in this situation.

Flurry Heart is no ordinary infant. In fact, she's more of a toddler all things considered.

So, in other words, they wouldn't face any consequences for their actions? I see that as a double standard, especially regarding what you said about Starlight Glimmer.

They're going to help defeat Grogar after agreeing to a truce, and it's not like they're going have the slate wiped clean. They're still basically going to be forced to live their lives laying low, never allowed to go near Equestria or any of its allies if they don't want to be imprisoned or executed.

No. Just no.

Starlight's exclusion from the "Best Friends" post-apocolyptic donuts just feels like a needless exclusion. Starlight's become part of the circle of friends. It's not like she was given the option and declined, she was flat out not invited despite the role she played (albeit small) in the victory.

The overarching plot was a constant presence in season four.

Not really. After the first three episodes it only loosely ties into the key episodes that are then retroactively tied together for the finale, that's it. We also have a few episodes related to a plot involving the Equestria Games, but that has even fewer episodes tied to it. The rest have little to no influence on the overall arc of the season.

If by "fleshed out" you mean they made him a stereotypical nerd like they did with all of the other male characters, then yes.

They didn't make him a stereotypical nerd. Particularly in Season 6 and Season 9 he was given a chance to show off his more serious and competitive side, showing that he takes his job as head of security very seriously, probably because he has a family to protect.

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The advanced magical studies were for Celestia to groom Twilight to become a princess

Except that's not true. Nowhere was it ever stated that Celestia was doing everything she did to make Twilight a princess. Celestia sent her to Ponyville to make friends and learn about friendship. Nothing more.

Rumble sounds more like a teenager than a little boy

Except they're not kids anymore; they're teenagers — young adults — in-universe.

The problem is hazing and newbie shaming, stuff that is far too complicated for a show about friendship to truly understand when the audience is still primarily children.

Kids aren't stupid. I'm pretty sure most of them know what hazing is. I mean, even Zootopia had hazing and newbie shaming in it.

In "Lesson Zero" Twilight was already clearly stressed and not thinking straight when she came up with the idea to use mind control.

Except Twilight had absolutely no reason to be stressed. The problem of the episode was one that she herself caused and she faced no consequences for it. Remember that she basically mind-raped three elementary-school children who are likely no older than eight, ten at the most. Again, she never apologized for this and Rarity and Applejack are never shown as being cross with her for literally mindfucking their younger siblings.

She did it once, realized it was a bad idea, regretted it, tried to undo it and was prepared to face the consequences of her actions because of it.

Except she's quoted as saying "works every time." This heavily implies that not only did she know exactly what this spell was but that she had used it before, and yet she still decided to cast it anyway. It doesn't help that she didn't even need to look up this spell; she recalled it from memory.

As for her "punishment", the worst she thought she was going to get is being sent back to magic kindergarten and not because she caused a riot, but because she was tardy. What she did isn't even brought up in the following scene; instead, she and Celestia talk about her being tardy.

In comparison, Starlight immediately resorted to mind control after her own idea to combine five friendship problems into one to impress Twilight

Except, again, that is perfectly in-character for her. She isn't Twilight. Twilight carefully analyzes the situation and considers all of her available options before making a decision. Starlight doesn't do that. She goes with her gut. It would be highly out of character for her not to use magic to solve the problem. She's Twilight's student for a reason, because she's still learning about friendship. At least Starlight's crime was restrained to one location and only affected five ponies, which is in sharp contrast to Twilight's crime which involved all of Ponyville, putting multiple ponies, including three small children, at risk of getting seriously injured or even killed. In "Every Little Thing She Does", the ponies involved are in no danger, thus there is no risk of them getting killed, much less injured. This is why I consider "Every Little Thing She Does" to be the better written of the two episodes.

(after shirking her friendship studies on purpose in the hopes of showing off her magical abilities)

No, that's not why she did what she did. She shirked her responsibilities, sure, but it wasn't just so she could show her magical prowess again. Everypony, as well as the audience, knows already how good she is at magic. She shirked her responsibilities purely out of fear.

took advantage of it to try and continue to impress Twilight, had to be told why it was a bad idea and only had to say "sorry" before she was instantly forgiven despite no on-screen indication that she understood why she shouldn't have done what she did.

The same goes double for Twilight. At least Starlight admitted what she did was wrong, sincerely appologized for it, and worked for her forgiveness. Twilight didn't do any of that. Hell, she didn't even apologize for what she did, nor did she receive any punishment for it, not even a slap on the wrist. And why? Because she's the main character.

Flurry Heart is no ordinary infant. In fact, she's more of a toddler all things considered.

Doesn't matter. I fail to see how she could be of any assistance in this situation. You might as well be suggesting that the CMCs get involved. At the very least we'd get to see Diamond Tiara show off her leadership skills.

Starlight's exclusion from the "Best Friends" post-apocolyptic donuts just feels like a needless exclusion.

The scene itself was meant to mirror the ending of the first season finale — "The Best Night Ever." Besides which, Starlight hasn't been present in their group activities before. She was absent for most of them throughout seasons 6-9.

Starlight's become part of the circle of friends. It's not like she was given the option and declined, she was flat out not invited despite the role she played (albeit small) in the victory.

Starlight could very well have been invited, as there is no reason why she wouldn't be, especially seeing as how Spike was among them. She very easily could've declined the offer so she'd have a convenient excuse to spend some time with Trixie and Sunburst, especially seeing as how they would be taking over the school soon thereafter. Besides which, she likely wanted to check on the students to make sure they were safe and sound.

Not really. After the first three episodes it only loosely ties into the key episodes that are then retroactively tied together for the finale, that's it. We also have a few episodes related to a plot involving the Equestria Games, but that has even fewer episodes tied to it. The rest have little to no influence on the overall arc of the season.

This is solely because the show staff have no clue whatsoever what order the episodes are going to be produced in, let alone aired in, so every episode has to be very much stand-alone. They also wanted to make it where newcomers wouldn't be lost as to what was going on and could easily follow the story. It's not like this is anything new for this show. The Grand Galloping Gala arc from season one had all of two episodes (those being "The Ticket Master" and "Suited for Success") dedicated to it.

They didn't make him a stereotypical nerd.

See season 5 episode 19 — "The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows." Also, see how he was portrayed in the IDW comics, particularly issues #11-12 ("Neigh Anything").

Particularly in Season 6 and Season 9 he was given a chance to show off his more serious and competitive side, showing that he takes his job as head of security very seriously, probably because he has a family to protect.

Which just makes him and the royal guard as a whole look completely stupid. They can't be bothered to beef up security after a terrorist attack, but they'll beef up security for a stupid sibling rivalry contest!?

Hey there. Thanks very much for sharing the answers to so many questions. Unfortunately, I couldn't think of any questions I haven't already asked, so I couldn't participate. Still, these ARE some good answers. I especially liked the differences for the final season opener and final season finale. And, yeah, considering Tirek has had bad experience with villain team-ups in the past (and I could definitely see him making the point about how ALL major villains are too egotistical to easily follow orders and would all too gladly betray everybody else at the first real opportunity [as he has been on both the receiving end of that AND the giving end before]), it makes sense that he would be the one that struck out on his own.

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Kids aren't stupid. I'm pretty sure most of them know what hazing is. I mean, even Zootopia had hazing and newbie shaming in it.

Maybe, but that was aimed at showing the world wasn't all happy go lucky, it fit into the intended message. It doesn't work for a show about friendship when it's clear that the subject is controversial and they don't know how to portray it properly.

Except Twilight had absolutely no reason to be stressed. The problem of the episode was one that she herself caused

Twilight already showed that the smallest of details could set her off, and she was slowly becoming more and more obsessed and stressed as the episode went on. It doesn't mean what she did was justified, but we understand why she resorted to something so extreme. And again, as soon as she saw what the spell was doing and just how powerful it had become she tried to undo it. When that failed she tried to get Big Mac's help to undo it, which made the situation worse. She confessed willingly to her friends when they saw the chaos, and she was willing to face whatever consequences Princess Celestia was going to inflict upon her. Celestia chose to forgive because she knew from Spike's letter that Twilight wasn't thinking straight and didn't intend for things to get so out of control. None of that is what Starlight did when she decided to use mind control on her friends.

the ponies involved are in no danger, thus there is no risk of them getting killed, much less injured.

What would you call starting a fire in the kitchen or flooding the castle with rain water to extinguish said fire? It's true that Twilight had the whole town fighting, but Princess Celestia was able to intervene before anyone could get hurt. Starlight was lucky that the fire and the flood didn't cause any lasting damage.

Everypony, as well as the audience, knows already how good she is at magic. She shirked her responsibilities purely out of fear.

A fear that she only admitted to after being caught in the act of shirking her responsibilities, and previously saying she hoped to just keep impressing Twilight with magical feats, completely ignoring why Twilight took her on as a student in the first place.

Hell, she didn't even apologize for what she did, nor did she receive any punishment for it,

Twilight did apologize because she confessed. And she was clearly apologizing to Princess Celestia in the library before her friends interfered. I imagine just living with the guilt and being scolded quite sternly by her mentor was a punishment worse than anything Celestia could've inflicted upon her. And again, Princess Celestia knew Twilight wasn't in the best state of mind when she did it, and knew that Twilight had realized why what she did was wrong. Starlight, on the other hoof, didn't see anything wrong with it and had to be told why mind controlling her friends was a bad thing. She didn't even try to solve the friendship problems on her own first, she just immediately jumped to the nuclear option because she foolishly thought she could tackle five friendship problems at once after previously ignoring her studies, and thought that Twilight wouldn't notice or mind.

Besides which, Starlight hasn't been present in their group activities before. She was absent for most of them throughout seasons 6-9.

Which makes her exclusion from the "Best Friends" gathering after the victory all the more noticeable. The call back to "The Best Night Ever" still works even with Starlight, it's the setting that counts.

See season 5 episode 19 — "The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows." Also, see how he was portrayed in the IDW comics, particularly issues #11-12 ("Neigh Anything").

Those are not the only portrayals of him. There's also "The Crystalling, Part 2" where he leads the evacuation of the Crystal Empire, "The Times They Are a Changeling" where due to his past he's incredibly hostile to the idea of a reformed changeling and doesn't like his guards even joking about it, "The Best Gift Ever" where he's able to call out Twilight's freak outs and become a battle couple alongside Cadence and "Sparkle's Seven" where he's given the task of beefing up security around Canterlot and does so to a remarkable degree.

They can't be bothered to beef up security after a terrorist attack, but they'll beef up security for a stupid sibling rivalry contest!?

Did you miss how Princess Celestia explained that she hired Shining Armor to beef up security specifically because of what unfolded during "The Beginning of the End"? The sibling rivalry contest was a way to test the system.

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It doesn't work for a show about friendship when it's clear that the subject is controversial and they don't know how to portray it properly.

The Wonderbolts are the closest thing to the military that Equestria has. For them not to give Dash a hard time would've been unrealistic.

And again, as soon as she saw what the spell was doing and just how powerful it had become she tried to undo it. When that failed she tried to get Big Mac's help to undo it, which made the situation worse. She confessed willingly to her friends when they saw the chaos, and she was willing to face whatever consequences Princess Celestia was going to inflict upon her. Celestia chose to forgive because she knew from Spike's letter that Twilight wasn't thinking straight and didn't intend for things to get so out of control. None of that is what Starlight did when she decided to use mind control on her friends.

Again, only because they were ordered to follow Starlight's instructions. Nothing more. They weren't enchanted to fight and try to kill each other over an inanmiate object. And Starlight didn't do anything that Twilight did in response to her fuckup? Bullshit she didn't! Watch the episode again. As soon as she realized what she did was wrong, she immediately went to the ponies she wronged, sincerely apologized, and made up for her mistake.

What would you call starting a fire in the kitchen or flooding the castle with rain water to extinguish said fire?

The fire was purely an accident due to Starlight forgetting to turn the oven off and the flood was due to Rainbow Dash misinterpreting Starlight's instructions. These incidents are nothing that Starlight couldn't handle.

A fear that she only admitted to after being caught in the act of shirking her responsibilities, and previously saying she hoped to just keep impressing Twilight with magical feats, completely ignoring why Twilight took her on as a student in the first place.

Again, watch the episode again. Never once is she quoted as saying "I hope to just keep impressing Twilight with magical feats." Here is the exchange in full:

Starlight Glimmer: I could combine all five of these at the same time without breaking a sweat.
Spike: I think maybe you're missing—
Starlight Glimmer: An opportunity to really impress Twilight? [gasps] Great idea, Spike! I'm gonna get right on that! Good talk.

She admitted her fear when it finally came to a head and she had to confess the truth, not because she got caught. Her fear was the underlying reason behind what she did what she did. Impressing Twilight was just the excuse she used.

Twilight did apologize because she confessed.And she was clearly apologizing to Princess Celestia in the library before her friends interfered.

Confessing is not the same as apologizing. And, no, she never apologized for what she did. The scene after the riot has the following exchange:

Twilight Sparkle: But...but... I'm supposed to send you a letter about friendship every week. I missed the deadline. I'm a bad student! I'm... tardy!
Princess Celestia: You are a wonderful student, Twilight. I don't have to get a letter every week to know that.

Again, this is not Twilight apologizing for what she did and fearing being reprimanded for it. This is her thinking that she's a bad student, not because she caused a riot, but because she's tardy.

And again, Princess Celestia knew Twilight wasn't in the best state of mind when she did it, and knew that Twilight had realized why what she did was wrong.

Except Celestia had absolutely no way of knowing about anything that was going on. She just received a letter from Spike telling her that he was concerned about Twilight due to her letting her fears get the best of her. That's it. It's only when she arrived on the scene did she realize what was going on.

Starlight, on the other hoof, didn't see anything wrong with it and had to be told why mind controlling her friends was a bad thing.

At least she got scolded. Twilight didn't even get that.

She didn't even try to solve the friendship problems on her own first, she just immediately jumped to the nuclear option because she foolishly thought she could tackle five friendship problems at once after previously ignoring her studies, and thought that Twilight wouldn't notice or mind.

Because, again, this is perfectly in-character for her.

Those are not the only portrayals of him. There's also "The Crystalling, Part 2" where he leads the evacuation of the Crystal Empire, "The Times They Are a Changeling" where due to his past he's incredibly hostile to the idea of a reformed changeling and doesn't like his guards even joking about it, "The Best Gift Ever" where he's able to call out Twilight's freak outs and become a battle couple alongside Cadence and "Sparkle's Seven" where he's given the task of beefing up security around Canterlot and does so to a remarkable degree.

Can't believe you left out both "The Crystalling" and "Once Upon a Zeppelin."

"The Times They Are a Changeling" where due to his past he's incredibly hostile to the idea of a reformed changeling and doesn't like his guards even joking about it

Which does nothing but make him look like a racist asshole. Not saying he doesn't have any reason to be a racist asshole, as he has plenty of reasons to be, but considering that Discord and Starlight and Trixie were all reformed, he could've at least been open to the idea. I mean, they didn't even give Thorax or Spike a chance to plead their case before they jumped to conclusions, looking like they were getting ready to lynch the poor guy. No wonder Thorax was so pissed off. Their reaction to him is especially odd considering the fact that there was a Changeling present at Cranky and Matilda's wedding and Cadence nor Shining Armor batted an eye at it.

and "Sparkle's Seven" where he's given the task of beefing up security around Canterlot and does so to a remarkable degree.

Again, I can't help but ask, why the hell they didn't do this after the terrorist attack back in season two?

Did you miss how Princess Celestia explained that she hired Shining Armor to beef up security specifically because of what unfolded during "The Beginning of the End"? The sibling rivalry contest was a way to test the system.

No, I mean security should've been beefed up after the terrorist attack back in season two.

Comment posted by SuperPinkBrony12 deleted Sep 8th, 2020

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For them not to give Dash a hard time would've been unrealistic.

Maybe, but there is such a thing as sacrificing enjoyment on the alter of realism. And again, hazing and newbie shaming is something far beyond the reach of a show about friendship, especially when it's far more polarizing and controversial.

As soon as she realized what she did was wrong, she immediately went to the ponies she wronged, sincerely apologized, and made up for her mistake.

She did go to them, but again only after she was told why what she did was wrong and not because she realized it for herself. And all she did was say sorry and then walk away, that was it. She didn't even tell them what she told Twilight, not that it would've helped.

Never once is she quoted as saying "I hope to just keep impressing Twilight with magical feats."

She outright said at one point to Twilight she hoped to just keep impressing Twilight with magic until she forgot about the friendship problems. Starlight was hoping to just keep putting it off and showing off. And when Twilight finally took notice, Starlight decided to impress Twilight solely because she wanted to get Twilight to stop making her do friendship lessons even though that was why Starlight was brought on in the first place. And as soon as the five problems combined into one didn't work and things became a little complicated, Starlight retreated to the library, used a powerful and untested spell combination and without even a second thought cast it. Again, when Twilight did something similar she was already stressed and not in the best state of mind, and wasn't thinking straight as evidenced by her thinking that a beat up old doll with excessories for pretending to study would make a good toy (as well as not noticing she was unintentionally getting what she wanted: A lesson in forcing a gift onto someone when they don't want it).

Again, this is not Twilight apologizing for what she did and fearing being reprimanded for it. This is her thinking that she's a bad student, not because she caused a riot, but because she's tardy.

We didn't see the whole exchange, but the instant Princess Celestia showed up Twilight was frightened. And she'd already confessed to her friends about what she did to her doll, and they rightfully asked why she'd do such a thing. No one needed to tell Twilight it was a bad idea, she'd seen for herself what her spell had caused and she was trying to undo it, which is more than can be said for Starlight.

Except Celestia had absolutely no way of knowing about anything that was going on. She just received a letter from Spike telling her that he was concerned about Twilight due to her letting her fears get the best of her.

You think Celestia would've come to Ponyville if Spike's letter didn't sound urgent? Spike too knew Twilight was losing her mind, and him writing to Princess Celestia was the only solution he could think of, which in turn allowed Celestia to step in and settle things before anypony could truly be hurt, whereas Starlight was exposed when Twilight came back and likely would've kept on doing what she was doing had Twilight not returned at that very moment.

Because, again, this is perfectly in-character for her.

If it's in character for Starlight to immediately resort to mind control when things don't go her way, or use powerful magic as a short cut whenever she wants something, then she's not a very compelling character and it makes her redemption look questionable. Maybe a little at first is okay when it's something harmless and she undoes it afterwards, but when she keeps doing it and keeps having to be told not to it makes it seem like she isn't learning her lesson. That's why I'm glad they stopped doing that after "A Royal Problem" for her episodes.

Can't believe you left out both "The Crystalling" and "Once Upon a Zeppelin."

I included part two of "The Crystalling". I didn't leave them out because while they are relevant to the discussion they're not part of the overall argument. Not every portrayal of Shining Armor was a good one, and those are definitely some of his weaker portrayals, but you're ignoring the good portrayals he did get where he was not a nerd despite the evidence I presented in the previous argument.

Which does nothing but make him look like a racist asshole. Not saying he doesn't have any reason to be a racist asshole, as he has plenty of reasons to be, but considering that Discord and Starlight and Trixie were all reformed, he could've at least been open to the idea. I mean, they didn't even give Thorax or Spike a chance to plead their case before they jumped to conclusions, looking like they were getting ready to lynch the poor guy. No wonder Thorax was so pissed off.

The entire empire was on edge and they didn't know if Thorax was alone or part of a group. And keep in mind that instead of coming to them to plead his case, Thorax hid and was revealed due to his close proximity to Flurry Heart while he was growling and hissing, not exactly the kind of impression you want to make. And instead of defending Thorax then, Spike remained silent. What Shining did, racist or not, is a case of "Jerkass Has a Point".

Again, I can't help but ask, why the hell they didn't do this after the terrorist attack back in season two?

Well that may be because it was the first time Canterlot was definitively attacked, let alone the royal palace. Beefed up security wouldn't have stopped the plunder vines when even Discord had forgotten about them, and with Discord by his side Tirek would've known how to defeat any security systems in Canterlot during "Twilight's Kingdom". Starlight never targetted Canterlot or the royal palace, and we don't know for sure how the changelings were able to infiltrate it in "To Where and Back Again" so it's possible increased security wouldn't have made a difference then. The same might be true for the Storm King's invasion since that army was better trained and better equipped, though the presence of a royal guard might have at least bought more time for ponies to evacuate.

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She did go to them, but again only after she was told why what she did was wrong and not because she realized it for herself.

Again, watch the episode again. The episode itself points this out.

Starlight Glimmer: Maybe if I had reversed the Fiducia Compelus and Cogeria... Or maybe I added too much Persuadere... What?
Spike: You're really missing the point here.

Starlight Glimmer: Well, it was the first time I cast that particular spell, and I didn't fully think it through. I-I bet if I had reversed—
Twilight Sparkle: I think you might be missing the point here.

She is a student. Students mess up all the time and have to be told why what they did was wrong.

And all she did was say sorry and then walk away, that was it.

So what? Why does that matter? At least she apologized, which is far more than Twilight did in "Lesson Zero." She walked away because she assumed that they didn't want anything to do with her. Besides which, she was on clean-up duty.

She didn't even tell them what she told Twilight, not that it would've helped.

Yes, she did.

Starlight Glimmer: I really messed up. I cast the spell because I was nervous about working with you on the friendship lessons.

And when Twilight finally took notice, Starlight decided to impress Twilight solely because she wanted to get Twilight to stop making her do friendship lessons even though that was why Starlight was brought on in the first place.

Again, no, she didn't. She did what she did out of fear, anxiety, and nerves.

And as soon as the five problems combined into one didn't work and things became a little complicated, Starlight retreated to the library, used a powerful and untested spell combination and without even a second thought cast it.

And yet again, the episode itself points it out.

Starlight Glimmer: Well, it was the first time I cast that particular spell, and I didn't fully think it through.

Again, when Twilight did something similar she was already stressed and not in the best state of mind, and wasn't thinking straight as evidenced by her thinking that a beat up old doll with excessories for pretending to study would make a good toy (as well as not noticing she was unintentionally getting what she wanted: A lesson in forcing a gift onto someone when they don't want it).

And again I say, Twilight had absolutely no reason to be in such a state since Celestia never specified a deadline for these letters. This episode only works if you buy into the theory that Twilight is fully aware that she's a character in a TV show and is thus lampshading the formula of the show.

No one needed to tell Twilight it was a bad idea, she'd seen for herself what her spell had caused and she was trying to undo it, which is more than can be said for Starlight.

Except she only came to this realization after a full-blown riot had broken out.

whereas Starlight was exposed when Twilight came back and likely would've kept on doing what she was doing had Twilight not returned at that very moment.

Except she too realized that things were getting out of control. Again, this is the first time she'd cast this spell. She likely wasn't aware that there was a spell to counteract it.

If it's in character for Starlight to immediately resort to mind control when things don't go her way, or use powerful magic as a short cut whenever she wants something, then she's not a very compelling character and it makes her redemption look questionable.

I'm sorry, what? :rainbowhuh: So you honestly want Starlight to be a goody-two-shoes who never messes up? :rainbowlaugh: How is that compelling? Do you really think the characters in Harry Potter or the CMC would be nearly as compelling or interesting if they just followed the rules and never got into trouble? That's not compelling and that's not realistic. Like Twilight back in season one and Discord in season four, Starlight is still new to this whole friendship thing. Of course she's going to make mistakes along the way, just like Twilight and Discord did. That's what makes her redemption better, because we expect her to make mistakes, but we also know that she's going to learn from said mistakes and become a better person for it, just like with Discord.

That's why I'm glad they stopped doing that after "A Royal Problem" for her episodes.

Oh, okay, so it's perfectly okay if Twilight does something stupid and dangerous when under stress, but not Starlight? How does that make any sense? She was under a great deal of stress by that point in the episode. What else did you want her to do? Besides which, like "Every Little Thing She Does", no one is in any danger. The spell itself would've worn off in twenty-four hours. How her behavior in this episode is a problem is beyond me.

And instead of defending Thorax then, Spike remained silent.

Which I hated. At least Spike realized his mistake and made up for it.

and we don't know for sure how the changelings were able to infiltrate it in "To Where and Back Again" so it's possible increased security wouldn't have made a difference then.

Considering how useless and pathetic the royal guard is, I think the Changelings wouldn't have a problem infiltrating Canterlot at all. This is probably why the Princesses were taken out so easily.

The same might be true for the Storm King's invasion since that army was better trained and better equipped, though the presence of a royal guard might have at least bought more time for ponies to evacuate.

Again, given how useless the royal guard is, that's highly unlikely.

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She is a student. Students mess up all the time and have to be told why what they did was wrong.

Starlight was brought on as a student of friendship, not magic. That meant actually trying to work on befriending others instead of using magic as a shortcut. Regardless of "excuse" Starlight was shirking the sole reason for her not being arrested or prosecuted for her crimes.

At least she apologized, which is far more than Twilight did in "Lesson Zero."

I've pointed out that Twilight did do more. She realized her mistake on her own, tried to undo it and was willing to accept whatever consequences came as a result. No one needed to tell her what she did was wrong or tell her that she needed to apologize.

And again I say, Twilight had absolutely no reason to be in such a state since Celestia never specified a deadline for these letters.

Twilight may have assumed it was a non-verbal agreement to send a friendship report every week even if Celestia never said it outright. Twilight has made such assumptions about Celestia before, it's in character for her to do so and not just for lampshading purposes.

So you honestly want Starlight to be a goody-two-shoes who never messes up?

No, but I don't expect her to think that mind controlling her friends is acceptable the moment something starts to be too difficult for her. I expect her to at least bat an eye at the very thing that previously made her an antagonist and drove her down a path of self-destruction. When Harry Potter used a powerful and forbidden spell on Draco Malfoy he did without realizing what it would do, saw for himself what he'd unleashed and was punished thereafter by Snape and never used it again.

Oh, okay, so it's perfectly okay if Twilight does something stupid and dangerous when under stress, but not Starlight? How does that make any sense? She was under a great deal of stress by that point in the episode. What else did you want her to do? Besides which, like "Every Little Thing She Does", no one is in any danger. The spell itself would've worn off in twenty-four hours. How her behavior in this episode is a problem is beyond me.

Starlight was under stress for a problem that she caused by her own negligence and indifference to the very thing she was supposed to be studying. She willingly chose to combine the friendship problems when no one asked her to do it and all Twilight asked of her was to do one after realizing Starlight wasn't taking on friendship problems on her own like she was supposed to, which Twilight had every reason to assume Starlight would do. Starlight does all of this with a straight face, fixiating on the spell once she can't pick one problem to work on, and needs to be told over and over again that she's "missing the point". She doesn't see anything wrong with anything she did, whereas Twilight in a similar situation was: A. Stressed and B. Instantly regretted her actions when they got out of control.

That's what makes her redemption better, because we expect her to make mistakes, but we also know that she's going to learn from said mistakes and become a better person for it, just like with Discord.

Not a good example when Discord kept making the same mistakes over and over again, and kept getting off the hook for it while claiming he was "reformed". It seems almost like Starlight and Discord ended up swapping roles, where Discord kept making the same mistake while Starlight began to make more of an effort to not rely on the one thing that always got her into trouble. If a reformed character is going to stumble, I at least expect them to be making an honest effort to solve the problem without resorting to their worst instincts. If a character keeps doing the same thing that got them into trouble and they refuse to learn from it, then that character has become a bad character.

At least Spike realized his mistake and made up for it.

That's probably the big thing I expect when characters mess up, for them to realize on their own what they did wrong and strive to put it right on their own. They don't necessarily need to succeed completely but they need to make an honest effort and not make the same mistake again. I don't think that's asking for too much.

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Regardless of "excuse" Starlight was shirking the sole reason for her not being arrested or prosecuted for her crimes.

So did Discord.

Twilight has made such assumptions about Celestia before

When? :rainbowhuh:

it's in character for her to do so and not just for lampshading purposes.

Except the show has done meta humor before, so this was likely the writers poking fun at their own formula.

No, but I don't expect her to think that mind controlling her friends is acceptable the moment something starts to be too difficult for her.

By that logic, you should be pissed at Cadence because she's been known to do the same thing.

I expect her to at least bat an eye at the very thing that previously made her an antagonist and drove her down a path of self-destruction.

But that wouldn't be compelling or interesting. It makes her character much more compelling and interesting if we see her backslide from time to time.

When Harry Potter used a powerful and forbidden spell on Draco Malfoy he did without realizing what it would do, saw for himself what he'd unleashed and was punished thereafter by Snape and never used it again.

Except he did so while Draco was under duress. He didn't bother asking Draco what was wrong or even if he was okay. Draco attacked him, yes, but that is a perfectly normal thing to do while suffering from a mental breakdown. Rather than try to calm Draco down or go get help, Harry decides to use a spell that he recently came across and furthermore has no idea what it does and almost ends up killing Draco as a result. Then, just to piss me off further, he's seen moping because the detention Snape gave him is keeping him away from Quidditch. This is our supposed hero and protagonist.

Starlight was under stress for a problem that she caused by her own negligence and indifference to the very thing she was supposed to be studying.

That goes double for Twilight in "Lesson Zero."

She willingly chose to combine the friendship problems when no one asked her to do it and all Twilight asked of her was to do one after realizing Starlight wasn't taking on friendship problems on her own like she was supposed to, which Twilight had every reason to assume Starlight would do.

And again, the same can be said of Twilight in "Lesson Zero." She'd already come across friendship lessons throughout the day that she easily could've written a letter about before she decided to brainwash three little kids.

Starlight does all of this with a straight face, fixiating on the spell once she can't pick one problem to work on

And yet again, this is perfectly in-character for her because that's what she's used to.

and needs to be told over and over again that she's "missing the point".

And? The episode is calling her out for her mistake. And the same can be said for Spike in "Owl's Well That Ends Well."

She doesn't see anything wrong with anything she did

She doesn't? Really? What do you call her saying that she didn't think things through and using that spell was a bad idea? And, again, the same can be said for Spike in "Owl's Well That Ends Well."

whereas Twilight in a similar situation was: A. Stressed and B. Instantly regretted her actions when they got out of control.

So again, Twilight gets a pass whereas Starlight doesn't. That is a double standard if I ever saw one. You should be just as, if not more, pissed off at Twilight for her actions in "Lesson Zero" than you are at Starlight for her actions in "Every Little Thing She Does." Yes, what Starlight did was wrong. No one is denying that. But what she did wasn't as bad as what Twilight did.

Not a good example when Discord kept making the same mistakes over and over again, and kept getting off the hook for it while claiming he was "reformed". It seems almost like Starlight and Discord ended up swapping roles, where Discord kept making the same mistake while Starlight began to make more of an effort to not rely on the one thing that always got her into trouble.

:rainbowlaugh: What in the hell are you talking about? That is not accurate to the show in any sense of the word. After season four, Discord made a conscious effort to better himself as a person. He started to take to heart the lessons that the Mane Six were trying to teach him and was starting to build relationships outside of the Mane Six thanks to the help of Spike and Big Mac. Look at episodes such as "Discordant Harmony", "To Where and Back Again", "Dungeons and Discords", "The Break Up Break Down", etc. Starlight, on the other hand, like Trixie, kept making the same mistake over and over again and got away with it because she claimed to be "reformed" and refused to learn from said mistakes up until "A Royal Problem."

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When? :rainbowhuh:

How about "A Bird in the Hoof" when she assumed without any proof that Princess Celestia would have Fluttershy imprisoned or banished for stealing Philomeena? Or how about when she was desiring everything to be perfect for Celestia's visit to Ponyville in "Swarm of the Century" even though it was clearly just a formal visit? And both cases were marked by a Twilight freak out when things went wrong. So it's not impossible for Twilight to have thought of something similar for the friendship reports.

By that logic, you should be pissed at Cadence because she's been known to do the same thing.

We only saw her do it once in a flashback with a couple that was arguing. We don't even know if that's where Twilight copied the idea for the "Want It Need It" spell.

But that wouldn't be compelling or interesting. It makes her character much more compelling and interesting if we see her backslide from time to time.

Not to the extent where she doesn't see anything wrong with mind controlling her friends just for the sake of impressing Twilight in the hopes of not having to keep doing friendship lessons.

Except he did so while Draco was under duress. He didn't bother asking Draco what was wrong or even if he was okay.

Harry had been trying to find out what Draco was up to all year long to no avail. And why would Harry believe Draco would tell him anything when they'd previously been enemies and Draco had constantly been trying to make Harry's time at Hogwarts miserable, including siding with Dolress Umbridge the year before? I'm not saying Harry was justified in what he did, but again he did it once in desperation and curiosity and after seeing what it did to Draco he regretted it. He was going to grumble about what Snape did because at this point he'd only known Snape as the one professor who always got on his case no matter what he did.

That goes double for Twilight in "Lesson Zero."

It doesn't because again Twilight didn't need to be told why what she did was wrong. Twilight saw it for herself, and she was not thinking straight. Starlight was thinking straight. Twilight was willing to repent and try to fix what she did wrong, Starlight didn't bother to try and took advantage of it. And Starlight's stress was caused by her own decision to combine the friendship problems. Twilight's stress was slowly being built up all day long and only made worse when she felt her friends weren't taking it seriously.

And yet again, this is perfectly in-character for her because that's what she's used to.

So Twilight should've expected Starlight to not take her studies seriously? Starlight was right to just ignore the very thing she was supposed to learn about and ignore how uncomfortable her preferred options made others even when it always backfired? Again, all Starlight had to do was tell Twilight the truth and just do one friendship problem, that was it. Starlight decided to make things worse, and then decided to "solve" a problem she'd created without so much as a second thought about how using magic even after she'd had experience in it not working out.

After season four, Discord made a conscious effort to better himself as a person. He started to take to heart the lessons that the Mane Six were trying to teach him and was starting to build relationships outside of the Mane Six thanks to the help of Spike and Big Mac.

Maybe a little, but only when he was outright prodded to do so. He still willingly excluded Twilight from a weekend of fun just to teach her a lesson and clearly enjoyed rubbing it in her face, he obviously delighted in messing with Twilight when she didn't have a plan for Starlight and hoped to publicly embarrass her with that knowledge, he tried to prove a point about not being invited to the School of Friendship by engineering a situation to take over and basically goaded Starlight into attacking him when she was just trying to do her job, and of course there's the whole plan of pretending to be Grogar to "help" Twilight gain the confidence to rule that he somehow never thought would backfire on him even though he was working with villains who had previously betrayed or humiliated him. What few times he did try to better himself ultimately got negated in the end by his own selfish actions. Starlight eventually managed to start wising up and stop relying on magic all the time, and became a better character for it by trying to use common sense and understanding. A shame I can't say the same for Discord or Trixie.

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How about "A Bird in the Hoof" when she assumed without any proof that Princess Celestia would have Fluttershy imprisoned or banished for stealing Philomeena? Or how about when she was desiring everything to be perfect for Celestia's visit to Ponyville in "Swarm of the Century" even though it was clearly just a formal visit? And both cases were marked by a Twilight freak out when things went wrong. So it's not impossible for Twilight to have thought of something similar for the friendship reports.

Considering the fact that she banished her own sister to the moon and turned a villain into a literal garden ornament, this is less than surprising.

We don't even know if that's where Twilight copied the idea for the "Want It Need It" spell.

Considering the fact that Cadence is the literal Princess of Love, I'd be surprised if Twilight didn't learn this spell from her.

Harry had been trying to find out what Draco was up to all year long to no avail. And why would Harry believe Draco would tell him anything when they'd previously been enemies and Draco had constantly been trying to make Harry's time at Hogwarts miserable, including siding with Dolress Umbridge the year before?

Immaterial. JK Rowling is in fact a Christian. I would expect a Christian to have her protagonist put his feelings regarding his rival aside to help him. This really could've been a touching, moving heartfelt scene. Instead, what remaining respect I had left for Harry was lost in this scene. At least he learned from this mistake and made up for it in the next book.

I'm not saying Harry was justified in what he did, but again he did it once in desperation and curiosity and after seeing what it did to Draco he regretted it.

Except his immediate reaction wasn't concern for Draco and his well-being; his immediate reaction was, "Oh, this guy is attacking me. I should totally attack him back." It would be one thing if Draco was in the right state of mind in this scene, which would justify Harry's actions. Considering the fact that Draco was mentally and emotionally unhinged, I can't help but feel disgusted at Harry's actions.

Starlight didn't bother to try

Again, yes, she did. Watch the ending of the episode.

So Twilight should've expected Starlight to not take her studies seriously?

That was exactly why Starlight was taken on as a student in the first place. She was serious about turning her life around and giving friendship a chance.

Again, all Starlight had to do was tell Twilight the truth and just do one friendship problem, that was it.

And again, that was all Twilight had to do in "Lesson Zero", but instead she worked herself up into a frenzy. She and Starlight have the exact same relationship that Twilight has with Celestia. Both students look up to their mentors and are terrified at the thought of disappointing them. This is why Starlight thought tackling all five friendship lessons at once would be a good idea and why she never thought of just doing one at a time.

Starlight decided to make things worse, and then decided to "solve" a problem she'd created without so much as a second thought about how using magic even after she'd had experience in it not working out.

Again, same applies to Twilight.

Maybe a little, but only when he was outright prodded to do so.

Not really, as it wasn't until he was betrayed by Tirek that he began to really see the value in friendship.

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Again, yes, she did. Watch the ending of the episode.

That is after she had to be told why what she did was wrong. Twilight was the one to undo the spell and point out why Starlight's actions were wrong. When Twilight did the same thing Twilight didn't need anyone to tell her or help her, she came to the realization on her own and tried to fix her own mistake as well as own up to it. It goes beyond just saying sorry, it requires an understanding that you know what you did wrong, which I don't get when it requires Starlight to be told why mind control is wrong and shouldn't be done on her friends.

That was exactly why Starlight was taken on as a student in the first place. She was serious about turning her life around and giving friendship a chance.

Until she decided in "Every Little Thing She Does" not to bother with friendship and just focus on dazzling Twilight with magical feats over a "Freudian Excuse". And thankfully that was a low she never quite again sank to.

And again, that was all Twilight had to do in "Lesson Zero", but instead she worked herself up into a frenzy. She and Starlight have the exact same relationship that Twilight has with Celestia. Both students look up to their mentors and are terrified at the thought of disappointing them. This is why Starlight thought tackling all five friendship lessons at once would be a good idea and why she never thought of just doing one at a time.

Starlight sure doesn't seem to have the same level of respect for her mentor that Twilight had with Celestia given that Starlight in "No Second Prances" was all too quick to accuse Twilight of not trusting her, as if trust is something you can just give on demand. Or in "Shadow Play" where she seemed to believe that Twilight should defend her on a whim without giving her a chance to make her own argument after Starswirl left. Or in "Horse Play" where she said Twilight wasn't a "princess princess". So no, it's not the same. Starlight didn't work herself up into a frenzy, she was shirking her studies and willingly resorted to mind control. The only real difference is that she doesn't have the excuse of suffering from a mental breakdown like Twilight did in "Lesson Zero". And keep in mind that we saw actual breakdowns from Starlight in the form of anxiety attacks, that's not what she had in "Every Little Thing She Does", and again she brought it on herself through her own willing negligence.

Again, same applies to Twilight.

No, as I said above, the two cases are hardly similar. They do have some areas that parallel each other, but the circumstances surrounding them are not the same and thus the motivations for the characters are not the same.

Not really, as it wasn't until he was betrayed by Tirek that he began to really see the value in friendship.

Yes, but even after the betrayal he still willingly excluded Twilight for the sake of teaching her a lesson, had to be persuaded to join a guy's night and not make it all about himself, only really cared when Fluttershy was kidnapped by Chrysalis, reacted with indifference to Big Macintosh's heart break, let Big Mac to break up with Sugar Belle without even giving her a chance to speak her mind and then started to undermine others to either prove a point or try to "help" them. Sometimes he did learn a lesson, but in the end like with Trixie it was a case of "One step forward, two steps backward". Yes, I get that he's a chaotic prankster who can act like a spoiled child not used to getting his way, but at some point I expect him to start realizing that he can't do everything he used to be able to do if he truly wants to stay friends with others. And that he can't just hide behind good intentions or the one friend he cares about to get out of trouble.

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given that Starlight in "No Second Prances" was all too quick to accuse Twilight of not trusting her, as if trust is something you can just give on demand.

Except Starlight had every right to be as pissed off at Twilight as she was. Twilight was unnecessarily jumping to conclusions.

Or in "Shadow Play" where she seemed to believe that Twilight should defend her on a whim without giving her a chance to make her own argument after Starswirl left.

That wasn't a whim. Starlight was using logic whereas everyone else was jumping to conclusions.

Or in "Horse Play" where she said Twilight wasn't a "princess princess".

I think she meant more like Twilight hadn't yet risen to the level of reverence that Celestia and Luna had. After all, she couldn't get a cab in Manehattan.

No, as I said above, the two cases are hardly similar. They do have some areas that parallel each other, but the circumstances surrounding them are not the same and thus the motivations for the characters are not the same.

The circumstances may have been different, but Twilight still 'solved" a problem she herself caused by resorting to magic without a second thought to what the consequences would be. It's only after complete chaos broke out that she realized she royally fucked up.

Yes, but even after the betrayal he still willingly excluded Twilight for the sake of teaching her a lesson

No, he didn't. The others were going to invite her, but he didn't want her being disturbed. He was looking out for her well-being but when he saw how much being excluded upset her, he decided to turn her exclusion into a positive. It's not like in "Party of One" where the party being excluded went through emotional and mental trauma and the others being portrayed as not caring about it.

had to be persuaded to join a guy's night and not make it all about himself

First and foremost, he has no experience with Big Mac and Spike. It would be awkward for him to be around them. He's more used to hanging out with Twilight and the others.

Secondly, he didn't want to make it all about him. He is a spirit of chaos and disharmony. Of course he would find a board game containing a lot of rules and restrictions boring.

only really cared when Fluttershy was kidnapped by Chrysalis

Well, gee, I wonder why. Could it be because everyone else treats him like shit and Fluttershy is the only one to treat him like a decent person? Even in "Discordant Harmony", the shopkeepers are surprised that he and Fluttershy are friends. He naturally wouldn't care about Cadence, Shining Armor, or Flurry Heart being taken because he doesn't know them on a peesonal level like he does all the others. And that was one of my favorite bits from that season finale.

reacted with indifference to Big Macintosh's heart break

Which is natural as he can't grasp the concept of love.

let Big Mac to break up with Sugar Belle without even giving her a chance to speak her mind

Discord wasn't even present in that scene.

and then started to undermine others to either prove a point or try to "help" them.

I don't recall him ever doing that. The main characters sure are guilty of this, though. They do it all the time.

but at some point I expect him to start realizing that he can't do everything he used to be able to do if he truly wants to stay friends with others.

You mean the very lesson he learned in "Keep Calm and Flutter On?"

And that he can't just hide behind good intentions or the one friend he cares about to get out of trouble.

Which is a lesson that he's learned on multiple occasions. And by "the one friend he cares about", you mean the one whose life he's constantly putting at risk by putting her in perilous situations where she could very easily get seriously injured or even killed?

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That wasn't a whim.

It was when she didn't give Twilight a chance to speak and immediately assumed that Twilight agreed with Starswirl's blanket statement.

No, he didn't. The others were going to invite her, but he didn't want her being disturbed. He was looking out for her well-being but when he saw how much being excluded upset her, he decided to turn her exclusion into a positive. It's not like in "Party of One" where the party being excluded went through emotional and mental trauma and the others being portrayed as not caring about it.

That isn't at all what Discord did, it's perfectly clear from the way he conducted himself that he enjoyed excluding Twilight and did so intentionally for a "lesson" he could've done at any time. "Party of One" was unintentional because Pinkie's friends had already planned her surprise birthday party and hadn't expected her to throw a different party that same day. The only real mistake they made was not having someone go to the party to distract Pinkie while Twilight was picking up the cake since Pinkie lives directly above Sugarcube Corner.

Well, gee, I wonder why. Could it be because everyone else treats him like shit and Fluttershy is the only one to treat him like a decent person?

Part of the problem is when he goes and does stuff like "Three's A Crowd" or "What About Discord?" where he clearly just wants to mess with others because he can and then tries to pass it off as a "lesson". And just because he didn't know have a personal connection to the others doesn't mean he should've reacted with mild indifference to them being captured. He could at least "pretend" to be interested.

I don't recall him ever doing that.

"A Matter of Principals" saw him undermine Starlight and send the mane six away so he could take over the school, and for no real reason other than because they didn't tell him about it, because he acted like an entitled, self-centered jerk who got on Starlight's case just for doing what was asked of her even though they were supposed to be friends. Then there's "The Best Gift Ever" where he orchestrated a situation to one up Rainbow Dash as a friend to Fluttershy, the one friend he had no reason to do that to when he already considers her his favorite. And of course the enterity of Season 9 when he was masqurading around as Grogar to "help" Twilight gain the confidence to be a ruler, something that was not asked of him and was completely unnecessary since Twilight gained the confidence naturally over time. On top of all that, his whole plan hinged on everything working out just perfectly even though he should've been smart enough to know that Chrysalis and Tirek at least would surely try to betray him or injure or kill Twilight and the others.

Which is a lesson that he's learned on multiple occasions.

Not when it seems like more often than not he got away with his bad behavior, especially in the last few cases even though he had no reason to do what he did.

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It was when she didn't give Twilight a chance to speak and immediately assumed that Twilight agreed with Starswirl's blanket statement.

Because Twilight was just going along with it without raising any objections.

That isn't at all what Discord did, it's perfectly clear from the way he conducted himself that he enjoyed excluding Twilight and did so intentionally for a "lesson" he could've done at any time.

Because he loves getting under Twilight's skin. It's kind of his thing. Besides which, this wasn't the first and only time he'd done something like this. He'd done this to Twilight twice already by this point. And even afterward he's still fucking around with her in episodes like "Celestial Advice", "The Beginning of the End", and "The Ending of the End."

Part of the problem is when he goes and does stuff like "Three's A Crowd" or "What About Discord?" where he clearly just wants to mess with others because he can and then tries to pass it off as a "lesson".

Except those things happened later. I'm talking about in episodes like "Keep Calm and Flutter On" and "Princess Twilight Sparkle" where the main characters don't hesitate to jump to the conclusion that he's up to something nefarious.

"A Matter of Principals" saw him undermine Starlight and send the mane six away so he could take over the school, and for no real reason other than because they didn't tell him about it, because he acted like an entitled, self-centered jerk who got on Starlight's case just for doing what was asked of her even though they were supposed to be friends.

That's more to do with terrible writing than anything else. It literally makes no sense whatsoever in-universe why Discord would even be interested in this place. It's almost as if the writer of this episode never actually watched the show before. Oh, wait . . .

Then there's "The Best Gift Ever" where he orchestrated a situation to one up Rainbow Dash as a friend to Fluttershy, the one friend he had no reason to do that to when he already considers her his favorite.

That is not at all what he did. He was simply helping Rainbow Dash get to know Fluttershy better by finding the right holiday gift. His nethods weren't backward as hell, he was actually very well-intentioned, there was no emotional or mental manipulation involved, and he plays into Rainbow Dash's personality in a way that gets her to work with him without it coming across as needlessly cruel. This episode was one of Discord's best appearances because it took advantage of all his strengths as a character and paired him up with a member of the Mane Six in a way that wasn't asinine.

And of course the enterity of Season 9 when he was masqurading around as Grogar to "help" Twilight gain the confidence to be a ruler, something that was not asked of him and was completely unnecessary since Twilight gained the confidence naturally over time. On top of all that, his whole plan hinged on everything working out just perfectly even though he should've been smart enough to know that Chrysalis and Tirek at least would surely try to betray him or injure or kill Twilight and the others.

Hence why I loved him in "Best Gift Ever." He executed this plan much better there.

Not when it seems like more often than not he got away with his bad behavior, especially in the last few cases even though he had no reason to do what he did.

Hence why I said he learned this lesson on multiple occasions.

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Because he loves getting under Twilight's skin. It's kind of his thing.

It gets old really fast and doesn't make him a good character when he keeps messing with Twilight just for the fun of it. Does he really have nothing better to do with his time? And then he wonders why Twilight doesn't fully trust him and tries to keep things secret from him.

Except those things happened later. I'm talking about in episodes like "Keep Calm and Flutter On" and "Princess Twilight Sparkle" where the main characters don't hesitate to jump to the conclusion that he's up to something nefarious.

It made sense in the former since Discord had manipulated them in the past, why should they suddenly fully trust him with no way to counter if he went rouge? And in the latter they kind of ended up being justified, plus he was really the only one who had a motive and he didn't exactly make himself look innocent.

Hence why I said he learned this lesson on multiple occasions.

In the end, no he hasn't. He faced no consequences for his Grogar stint or even his plan from "The Best Gift Ever". He never owned up to anything or faced any kind of consequences.

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It gets old really fast and doesn't make him a good character when he keeps messing with Twilight just for the fun of it. Does he really have nothing better to do with his time? And then he wonders why Twilight doesn't fully trust him and tries to keep things secret from him.

People do that with friends and family all the time. They annoy their loved ones on purpose to get under their skin. It's their way of showing affection.

It made sense in the former since Discord had manipulated them in the past, why should they suddenly fully trust him with no way to counter if he went rouge?

Because Celestia trusts him. I think that would be enough of a reason. We all know that if Celestia asked Twilight and her friends to jump off a cliff for Equestria they would do it in a heartbeat.

And in the latter they kind of ended up being justified, plus he was really the only one who had a motive and he didn't exactly make himself look innocent.

The only time he didn't make himself look innocent was when he was torturing those two foals.

He faced no consequences for his Grogar stint or even his plan from "The Best Gift Ever". He never owned up to anything or faced any kind of consequences.

In the former, like Twilight, he realized what he did wrong, why it was wrong, and made up for it. It's not hard at all to assume that he got this idea from Celestia since she did that shit all the time. Again, you seem to have this double standard when it comes to the heroes and villains. If the heroes do something bad, it's fine, but if a villain does the same thing they're irredeemable and should be punished.

In the latter, he didn't do anything wrong.

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People do that with friends and family all the time. They annoy their loved ones on purpose to get under their skin. It's their way of showing affection.

Lies, that's NOT what family does. That's just being malicious and using something as an excuse. Maybe a little playful teasing or sharing of embarrassing stories, but nowhere close to intentionally annoying others all the time while claiming it's a sign of love.

Because Celestia trusts him. I think that would be enough of a reason. We all know that if Celestia asked Twilight and her friends to jump off a cliff for Equestria they would do it in a heartbeat.

That's not what they did in "Keep Calm and Flutter On" and again I don't blame them. Even Twilight thought Celestia had erred.

In the former, like Twilight, he realized what he did wrong, why it was wrong, and made up for it. It's not hard at all to assume that he got this idea from Celestia since she did that shit all the time. Again, you seem to have this double standard when it comes to the heroes and villains. If the heroes do something bad, it's fine, but if a villain does the same thing they're irredeemable and should be punished.

In the latter, he didn't do anything wrong.

If it backfires on Celestia in spite of her visions, then there's no reason why Discord should expect it to work for him when he doesn't even bother to keep an eye on the villains he brought back and takes them at their word. Celestia's plan for Tirek with Discord wasn't exactly perfect, but there was enough shown to indicate why she sent Discord, and she obviously had no experience with Tirek's manipulative skills. Discord shouldn't be trying to do something that didn't work. He wasn't even trying to redeem them he was just using them to "help" Twilight gain the confidence to rule even though no one asked him to and even though she was naturally gaining the confidence without him helping.

And I'm sorry, but in the latter he deliberately set up the situation so that he would come off as a better friend to Fluttershy than Rainbow Dash. And again, he had no reason to do it with Fluttershy when she's willing to forgive just about everything he does and stick up for him the most. If he still feels like he needs to one up the others as a friend to her, he hasn't learned at all from "Make New Friends, But Keep Discord" where he was supposed to have come to terms with his friends having other friends.

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