Daring Don't certainly was a bit controversial, right? At least, in how well the fandom received it. Some thought it was awesome, while others were confused and even angry at the revelations it held.

But in most of the criticisms of the episode... a startling trend is revealed.

Perhaps I'm reading it completely wrong, but it seems that people who hate the episode kind of don't want more worldbuilding.

Right of the bat, let me say that the episode isn't perfect. In fact, it's kinda medicore. But Daring Do being real? I can deal with that. It opens up opportunities for storytelling.

The main beef people seem to have with the episode is that it seems stupid for Daring Do to have actually done her adventures in real life and nobody having heard of it. Let's dissect this, shall we?

1) Equestria does not have internet. Or any form of mobile communication. They only have letters, which can take days to be sent across a country.

2) Now think about our world. How many things are going on that the general populace is unaware of? People get lost in the Amazon and sometimes die there, and nobody would have ever known of it. And we do have the internet! So who's to say escapades in ruins (generally hidden, secret places no one's heardof) can't take place in Equestria and be unheard of?

3) Some say why isn't Celestia aware/does something about this. Well, she can't be everywhere at once. Plus, she probably knows Daring Do can handle it on her own.

4) As for Daring Do writing her adventures as stories... who's to say she doesn't make things up in them as well? If she didn't, her stories would probably suck. And clearly they're popular stories.

Sorry, I went on a tangent there. What this post really about is this: why do members of the fandom seem so reluctant to let other heroes be a thing in Equestria?

The Mane 6 aren't even super awesome warriors at this point; the Elements are gone. You really think the defense of the whole of Equestria is gonna be left to them? 'Course not. That'd be stupid, and they've got lives too.

Again, maybe I'm reading it wrong, but it just seems odd to me. We should be happy at the amount of worldbuilding matieral Daring Don't gave us. Instead, some of us seem to be raging that for once, the Mane 6 weren't really saving the day (I know they did in the episode itself, but...).

Anyhoo, enough rambling. Discuss!

-JaketheGinger

2359518
You. I like you.

This man knows his shit, people. Listen to him.

2359518 I saw the episode as all right, but your points are valid.

2359522

2359528

2359518
I can't say I hate the episode. I don't. I thought Pinkie was cute as hell, when she had her moments, and that housecat is still the best villainous henchman ever.

The actual meat of the episode though? I swear I liked that far less than the peripheral stuff.

I just didn't like Daring Do. At all. I didn't find her cool, I just found her to be a bit of a bitch. Normally, I'd be okay with that. I can dig bitch characters. ( ) It's just, in this case, she even felt a bit flat and dull, so I can't say I even really want to follow her future adventures.

So... basically, yeah. Equestria might have another hero. But she's just not really all that neat of one, and I'll take the Mane 6 every time.

In general though? I think what you said is pretty spot on. No harm in more stuff to play with, and yes, I can believe Daring Do is real, even if it feels... odd.

I actually liked the episode, to me it felt it was a tribute to the fans especially with how Twilight & Rainbow Dash were arguing about the continuity of the Daring Do books. Also I really don't have a problem with Daring Do being real, it did feel weird at first but I'm over it. The only problem I have with it is that the episode does contradicts the comics which heavily implies that Twilight's mother is the author of the Daring Do books. The only way I can see around it is that either Hasbro over looked that panel when they approved it or she co-authored some of the books, which would mean she was with Daring in one of those adventures.

2359518 Well here is basically what I thought about it.

Rainbow starts off barely even caring about the writer because she's so obsessed with the product. Then she finds out that the mere mortal author that she'd basically dismissed is in fact her living breathing hero in the flesh, and suddenly cares a whole lot about her, only for that idol to casually dismiss her as a hindrance to the point where it ruins Dash's self-esteem. Daring Do is as dismissive of Dash as Dash was of Yearling, caring only about her own mission in the same way Dash only cared about getting her new book.

How about the fact that in the end Dash decides to go do the right thing even without Daring Do's validation? She overcomes her self-esteem problems by realizing they were self-imposed and that she doesn't need Daring Do to approve of her to be heroic. THAT is a fucking amazing moral. If that kind of thing had shown up in Season 1 do you know what kind of love everyone would have given Faust for it? So, yeah...

2359601 That really didn't bother me, but I guess I can see where you're coming from. Overall I thought it was a fantastic Dash episode. People got mad when she "damseled" herself, but I think that's dumb, Dash does stupid stuff w/o thinking all the time. My problem is with people having conniptions that she's real and it somehow "breaks the world".

Celestia let 6 ponies go head to head with the god of chaos... but it's a leap to say she let one pony (who has already proven capable) to go head to head with some random villian?

Why is Daring Do a real character? Because the writer thought it'd be a fun story for a cartoon show. In a world of magical technicolored ponies living in pink/purple colorful buildings with rainbow waterfalls, it's clearly too much to believe that an author is also a vigilante? That just seems illogical. But then again, getting into the meta, Celestia doesn't rule on logic, she rules on whatever makes the shows story go forward, since she's a character written specifically to provide backstory to something.

I'm confused as to why a cartoon show should be BOUND by such laws, when it enables them left and right. Why does pinkie break the fourth wall? How did the power of love banish a changeling invasion? How does friendship = magic? Why does being friendly and tolerant banish ice spirits? Why aren't there brony riots about such absurdly crazy things?

It seems to me if calling out plot contrivances are such a big deal, then those who do can't stop at the ones they can explain away, they should do it with all of them. But by that point, wouldn't the show be unwatchable for such a person?

2359518

The Mane 6 aren't even super awesome warriors at this point; the Elements are gone.

Now now, you of all people should know that sometimes the best heroes don't use anything more than a screwdriver,

2359847

The Doctor isn't a warrior.

He is...

The Doctor.

2359847
>Implying The Doctor is a soldier/warrior.
Do you even watch the show? He is a hero, but not a warrior.

Also, as 2359899 said. He is just The Doctor

I absolutely love that episode. I excepted some kind of magical book transportation, but just making her real was outstanding! The fact that she really existed was a twist I saw coming, but was like, "Nah, they wouldn't do that," but they bucked me right in the flank with that reveal.

I get why people would be super butthurt about their theorizing being cut off, now that I think about it, though. It's a huge part of the fandom that enjoys the vagueness of the show, as it leaves more options to explore their own creativity(i.e. MLP S4 premiere ruined nearly every single evil Celestia theory that was made in tangent with the ambiguity of what happened a thousand years ago during Luna's Nightmare Moon phase). Since two theories were completely obliterated, I can see why people would feel.....betrayed?

But at the same time, it leaves a new branch of ideas and theoretical answers. Does she know Celestia? does Celestia know her? Why are they the only two Alicorns that existed a thousand years ago(I'm even working on a fiction for that!)? ect. cause I'm not good with theories?!.....

But generally, yeah, the show is changing. If some fans will leave the fandom because their precious preconceived notions are ruined, then that's fine. I think they may have been too mentally & emotionally invested into the show Everyone was overreacting to Equestria Girls, so Socrates forbid the hate this season's gonna get for any other previously ambiguous events in the show being explained better or overall entirely different from the fan's perspective.

In other words: Allot.

2359899 2359906
Note that I said hero; not warrior,

And yes, I do in fact watch the show. Just because a person thinks of themselves one way or another doesn't mean that they don't occasionally take up a mantle they aren't entirely comfortable with. I would go so far as to argue that the Doctor is, in fact, the best kind of warrior there is.

"A warrior who does not fear his own sword hath not the right to wield it."

2359962

My post was actually kinda a joke so I wouldn't sound like I got an aspect of Doctor Who wrong.

But yes, we should stay on topic, lads and lassies.

2359968
/jumps back on topic

My wife and I thought the episode was great! Pinkie painting the red 'travel line' cracked us up, and I think we paused on Rainbow's creeper-smirk and rolled around on the floor for like five minutes, (quick! someone make an emoticon of it!)

I've never gotten the whole brony 'ragequit after every other episode because something in it rustled my jimmies' thing. I started watching the show because it was funny, and it's never failed to be, even if it's just Spike getting hit by a door.

Oh, and as for things 'not making sense', I refer everyone to the boss:

2359601
I actually agree with you.

But I shrugged it off as Daring Do just being the quiet type. You saw how she was dressed at first, right? Someone ostentatious wouldn't be caught dead wearing that stuff.

2359844
Dash was hit-and-miss for me. I always like her fan-girling, on one hand. On the other hand it was almost physically painful to me that she didn't up and mention she was a big damned hero, to Daring.

I don't actually disagree with you on any of the rest, Primrose. It all makes sense to me. And like I said, I can even buy into Daring being real. I was starting to posit things in that direction in Crucible. (Though it's a bit obsolete now).

I would have preferred if she wasn't the Palette-swapped Dash, from Dash's fantasy. But I'm not sure if that was canonical before from cover art, so not sure if that's something to complain about. But at the end of the day, my big complaint with the episode is really just that I didn't care for Daring Do. And I'll disclaim that as being a completely subjective thing.

2360007
'Tis fair enough, and good point on the clothing!

I suppose it was just a bit of mental dissonance. You expect an Indiana Jones expy to be a bit more dynamic and cheer-worthy, I guess. But admittedly, I might not be the most unbiased person in world. I was never the biggest Daring Do fan.

2360273 I hope I wasn't sounding too argumentative with that post.

This was an episode for many that is either made or broken based upon what they can accept with their suspension of disbelief. No harm in saying something doesn't make sense to you.

I get the pallete swapped Dash thing, from the context of that episode, it made sense as Dash imagining herself as that character. But within the context of the show and what has transpired, to me, having this occurrence isn't a dealbreaker. Especially when considering that the design of show comes from this...

Where there are "clones" of other ponies populating the backgrounds with only minor differences in manes and coloration.

But you're correct. At the end of the day, its different strokes for different folks. Also, I'd take the mane 6 of Daring as well.

And fun fact: My own story has Daring Do being real, only its Derring Dew. She is a real archaeologist who just happens to have books written about her adventures. Between this and the vagueness of NMM in the premiere. My story remains safe. I couldn't be a butthurt fanfiction author even if I wanted to!

I have no stake in the Scootaloo fanon, so whatever happens on Saturday I'll simply look on with glee.

2360370
Yeah, I remember wondering why Aldus knew about her when nopony else did, including her biggest fans.

2360273
Good point. That was strangely out of character. I was thinking that at any moment she'd lend her help to Daring Do immediately just because she's Rainbow Dash. I suppose that was one of those "They're my idol, so they're far superior to me and I'm just a wittle spectator" type thing to teach little girls how to deal with feeling overwhelmed?

2359601>>2359518
I think that maybe having her not all she was cracked up to be is one of the main points of the episode. Yes she is brave, fats and strong, but not really a good pony. The thing I didn't like was Rainbow should have been mad at her instead of blinded by fangirlism. It would have made the episode more interesting that way.

I think the writers tried to redeem Daring in the end, but it didn't fit because Daring Do didn't really change that much. That doesn't mean that she couldn't get more development in future episodes though, so I still have hope.

If Daring Do went form a bitch to a saint in one episode that would just make the episode even worse.

2359518
As for the episode as a whole, I liked it. Maybe not as much as the others, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it. I thought they did a better job of pacing despite a 22 min show.

2359518

You deserve a cookie, a large platinum encrusted bejeweled cookie for finally bringing this hit up

This is you ---------->

you are my guardian angel du dud dud du d....... Sorry, carry on