Pharynx’s voice · 5:56pm Sep 5th, 2022

After a chat with BezierBallad, I came up with this headcanon/analysis of To Change A Changeling after we both pointed out how Pharynx’s voice changes from the beginning to end.

Now, I don’t know whether what I’m about to say was intentional or not but here we are, and I’m going to say yes because I’m one of those people.

Have you ever noticed how some voice actors (typically ones that aren’t great or don’t know what direction to go in for a character) end up going really derpy when trying to act like in an evil, ferocious manner? Like a bad impression of Dracula.

That’s what I believe Bill Newton (Pharynx’s voice actor) is doing in the beginning of the episode. He’s doing some sort of weird snarling voice.

Pharynx isn’t evil, as far as we’ve seen. He isn’t naturally malicious or ferocious (anger issues? Maybe, but not in an evil way) so he’s acting as to try to scare the intruding ponies (and, by extension, the other changelings that have already reformed), but obviously it isn’t working.

In the beginning of the episode, I’d like for you to look at what what he says at his ‘snarliest’:

Pharynx: In the old days I would have already feasted on their love!

He puts emphasis on ‘feasted’ in an effort to make it seem worse, scarier even, than what it is.

And just like that, Pharynx’s voice is slowly changing through the episode, getting less and less ‘snarly’ as time progresses. Grumpy, yes, but this sort of act he’s made for himself is coming down as the episode goes on.

And what do we see Pharynx go through this episode? His failed talk with Trixie and Starlight, his quite literal hissy fits as to make the other changelings scarper, walking in on the feelings forum where they’re all slagging him off, and then his transformation.

Especially those middle two. With those, he’s realising he hasn’t got a place in the Hive, he thinks he doesn’t belong anymore, and so there’s all his emotional defences up with the hissing and the yelling and all that, but his act is slowly melting away as seen in the gradual transition in his voice, until eventually it comes straight down, and he’s speaking as himself.