How would you have handled Lightning Dust's return?

7397393
It would have to a lot of wingshakes and wing-fives.

7397393
Poorly, probably

7397393
Have her not obsess about one-upping Dash and just focus on helping Scoots discover her passion.

7397393
Honestly, would have handled it the same way I did in my Duelist Team of Canterlot High story. Or heck, even Hunter's Catch. In the dueling story, Lightning was angry because she had been branded as someone who should never be on a team, never getting another chance to reach her full potential. However she's more upset at Spitfire since she kicked her off without so much as a warning. Sure she was upset at Rainbow as well, but it was because she thought that Rainbow went to Spitfire and said it's her or me. And it end with a higher up hearing about all this and taking steps to correct it. Maybe Celestia or an official from Cloudsdale. In Catch, it was more that her world was crashing down around her bumming at her moms and unable to hold down a steady job because of those anger issues. It wasn't until she was confronted with how it was destroying her in an extreme fashion that she realized it was over as well as the hellhole that was her life. She had to move to Hollow Shades but got a job at a gym as a work out instructor

I liked the idea they had going about her being her own mare.
"Was it wrong for me to endanger the live of your friends? Yeah."
I think where we change it is towards the end, cause I felt like all the build up she and Dash had when they met could have gone somewhere. If Scootaloo wasn't there, say it's a thing where Dash is jealous that Lightning has a much more popular team than her, and they come to accept their differences.

I've always drawn comparisons between The Washouts and The Lost Treasure of Griffenstone. In that episode, Pinkie's effect on Gilda helped her reconnect with Dash but Scootaloo just drove them further apart.

7397393
The obvious thing that comes to mind is the ending. LD endangering Scootaloo and forcing her into doing the stunt comes out of left field in my opinion. There's recklessness and then there's criminal negligance.

How I would have handled that scene is have LD give Scoots the option of backing out, making sure she truly wants to perform the stunt.

Well maybe lightning dust would've change her personality a bit she might be okay about it

7397393 I think her return in "The Washouts" was decent, she wasn't being subtle about her motives and it was clear she was leaning hard on Scootaloo specifically to drive a wedge between her and Rainbow Dash. But Lightning Dust needed one more appearance, even just teaming up with Wind Rider to try and take on the Wonderbolts.

7397393

I'm with 7397582: "The Washouts" mostly did a good job, but then it went OTT painting her as an easily obvious bad guy in the last minute or so. Would've been more interesting to keep her a complex character, like how she was both resenting Dash and being cool with her own new direction in life, after being kicked out of the Wonderbolts (a direction which plays to her strengths, at that).

Could've had Scootaloo dramatically get cold feet and back out at the last second, and then maybe have Lightning be disappointed, yet still keep her hoping to bump into Scootaloo again "in case you change your mind, kid". I like the idea of RD and LD becoming "frenemies" at best rather than just rivals, and LD and Scootaloo encouraging a very unorthodox mentor-student relationship.

Thing is, the episode was about Scootaloo, and Lightning was a catalyst with a history complicating the issue. It was doing fine showing how Scootaloo wasn't stuck under Rainbow's shadow and had her own passions and interests and goals, even if that meant her associating with a former antagonist. If the episode had committed to that theme right to the end - instead of making LD 100% wrong at the last minute - I'd have had a lot more respect for it.

7397996
Indeed. There is a story on here that does precisely that.