So, it's the start of the last season, and it's time for the first two parter, which is called "The Beginning of the End".

This one is by Joanna Lewis and Kristine Songco. Remember them? They wrote things like "The Perfect Pear", "Rarity Investigates!", and "All Bottled Up". And some other episodes, too, but they're good wirters I'm glad to see again.

Trying to remember what this was supposed to be all about. A big bad villain shows up and is terrorizing all of Equestria or something. Tirek or King Sombrero or something. Something like that. Maybe the library gets destroyed again. There are probably stairs involved.

This is the official discussion thread for the two parter, though, so try to keep discussion in here so we don't have a million threads about it, and have fun!

--Sweetie Belle

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King Sombrero

Autocorrect got ya.

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My keyboard has autocorrect?

--Sweetie Belle

That's this weekend!?

6818300 Mane 6 against Sombrero!

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HYPE!

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Wow.... Just. Wow. That was actually an amazing premiere!

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So, what do we know so far? Grogar has been confirmed canon. Tirek, Cozy Glow, Chrysalis, and King Sombra are brought back together. And.....King Sombra is dead.....again.

Any thoughts?

Okay so firstly the whole original princess retiring and just handing everything over to Twilight comes out of nowhere. What is Luna even retiring from? You would think given Luna tried to overthrow Celestia twice as Nightmare Moon, got redeemed and would be next in line that Luna would get the job of running Equestria if Celestia wants to retire.

Sombra seemed to have have got the farthest in securing power, only being undone by the elements still working, which raises the question what was the point of Equestria Girls if the elements could be used just with friendship alone? Sure the same thing happened at the end of Equestria Girls but then it is established Equestrian magic works differently there, this revelation changes even the series opener as Mane 6 didn't even have to reach the castle as the physical elements are a kind of placebo, it also makes Nightmare Moon's time travel plan in the alternate timeline pointless.

Of corse these are nitpicks, it was a very enjoyable season primer.

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Okay so firstly the whole original princess retiring and just handing everything over to Twilight comes out of nowhere. What is Luna even retiring from? You would think given Luna tried to overthrow Celestia twice as Nightmare Moon, got redeemed and would be next in line that Luna would get the job of running Equestria if Celestia wants to retire.

Yeah, that would make a lot of sense. Princess Celestia will have all the time to gorge herself with all the cakes in the world, while Princess Luna gets the other piece of the pie to rule the kingdom, raising the sun and moon, and all that responsibility.

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just finished it.

Awesome start to the season if I must say so myself.

I did not expect a team-up of villains to happen right away, or even to see what Cozy Glow and Triek were up to, and I thought Sombra will return on his own! Wow! Just...wow!

He who controls background ponies rules the world. Sombra had good idea there.

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I'm kinda disappointed Starswirl didn't say "The Elements are bupkis! I found them in the box of Cracker Jacks!"

Anyone got somewhere I can watch it?

OK, so, to sum this up, King Sombra just captured an empire in 20 minutes, lost it in even less time. Got obliterated, destroyed the Tree and Elements of Harmony, captured Ponyville and Canterlot almost instantly... before getting destroyed by the Elements once again because dodging is for losers.

One, this was the fastest and the most irregular military attack of all time. Two, Sombra is fucking OP. Three, the Elements are even more OP and don't even need to exist to be so.

Overall, this premier was quite good. I did enjoy the foreshadowing of the finale with all villains uniting. The start wasn't completely unexpected, but I liked it anyway.

Also, am I the only one triggered by the way they just get rid of Starlight at the start by just putting her in charge of the school?

Also, Grogar is really cool and Sombra is dead now... (unless he isn't? (he probably is (and that's sad)))

No one's going to read this comment anyway, so POTATO.

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Don't post episode links, it's against site rules.

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--Sweetie Belle

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I hate this image of Chrysalis so much........

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Sorry, I didn't know (maybe reading these rules would have been a pretty logical thing to do before posting).

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One, this was the fastest and the most irregular military attack of all time

There is Tempest's attack in the movie, she just calmly stands in front of the princess and takes 3 out of the 4 princess out with ease. She also captured Twilight yet decided to give the Staff of Sacanas to the Storm King instead of using it herself so she didn't get as far as Sombra.

The premiere gets a 10/10 from me just for Rainbow commenting on how useless Luna and Celestia are in a crisis.

This first episode of this last season needs only 3 words to describe it: IT WAS AWSOME!!! So many little one-liners and watching Twilight go 'almost' Lesson Zero on us; the hyperventilating with the brown paper bag bit was great! This had me laughing and on the edge of my seat when Grogar appeared and gave some backstory about himself. I was hoping King Sombra would have lasted longer then this but I didn't mind. The story moved along at a good clip and didn't really give anypony a chance to catch their breath. Can't wait to see what's next!

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Put sombra a mexican hat and he's sombrero Stallion

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She's going coco bananaz, Because you know isolation n stuff

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Eyup. essentially a 'RUSH B!' Kind of tactic

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Something like this

Just finished the episode and I loved it. One of the best opening starters in a long time.

I'm not sure if it was just me, but I was not expecting Sombra to sound like that. I liked this voice actor, but I guess In my mind I was picturing a much deeper voice. It is a little disappointing that Sombra got killed off for the season, because I though Grogar would have brought them back, which I though was implied in their deal, but I guess not.

I really liked how Discord was handled in this episode. They acknowledge that Discord could have stopped Sombra if he wanted but gave him reasons to not help.

My one big grip with the episode was that in the same episode the ToH was destroyed the Main 6 are still using instant win friendship layers.

Thank God for the ending and having Celestia and Luna come to their goddamn senses… Seriously, I was watching this on pins and needles, praying that Hasbro won't just erase the princesses 'just like that' and thankfully they haven't.

All in all, both parts were very nice – 8-9/10 for me the Grogar guy, also seems like a more interesting villain than the previous ones.

Nice starter for the final season

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No.

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Thank God for the ending and having Celestia and Luna come to their ******* senses… Seriously, I was watching this on pins and needles, praying that Hasbro won't just erase the princesses 'just like that' and thankfully they haven't.

So was I. I actually cheered when they announced they were staying.

As bad as their combat track record is, I do really like the Princesses. I'm still kind of holding out for them getting a spin-off of some kind. Or maybe just a Luna spin-off. I'd be happy with that. :)

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I, personally, prefer Chrysalis when she was creepy and terrifying in her first and second appearances. In fact, her scariness was what helped me get into MLP in the first place. I mean, I think she's OK now, but I miss that sense of menace she had.

But I can't deny it; that is an amazing face.

So, I just watched the season 9 premiere, and I have to say, it was pretty good. However, the only problem I had was King Sombra’s voice. I kinda expected it to be more... deep and gravelly. Not what we got in the two parter. But what do you guys think? Did you like the shadow king’s voice?

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Growing up on G1 I was thrilled to see Grogar return and one thing the other villains need to realize is that Grogar makes a point. The Mane Six always prevail because they work together while that has not happened with our villains. The closest you ever got to that was Tirek giving Cozy Glow advice on how to steal magic. Now I honestly am disappointed that Sombra was so easily defeated. He easily took the Empire, got his ass kicked, destroyed the Tree and the Elements, easily took over Ponyville and Canterlot only to get his ass handed to him again....overconfidence was his downfall, should have listened to Grogar.

Also, I think Twilight's teleportation abilities are very OP. In the past eight seasons, she has not been able to simply teleport all of them such great distances and I do think overall the unit (Mane Six) is also horribly OP. I just hope the hell they don't soup them up further down the road although they probably will.

Also regarding the villains, I am enjoying seeing Tirek, Chrysalis and Cozy being somewhat unnerved by Grogar. Now this is one thing where they didn't quite get the continuity right. Both Tirek and Grogar caused problems back in the days of Ponyland but here they make it seem like Grogar was the only one back in those days and that Tirek didn't come along until later and that Midnight Castle never existed....of course in G1 Scorpan was a human prince, not Tirek's brother so I shouldn't be expecting them to go off of G1 for all that.

Queen Chrysalis: Ha! Until Gusty the Great rose up and banished you.

Grogar: That fool believed taking my bell would defeat me! But she only weakened me temporarily.

Well I suppose that line from the book Twilight read to the foals in season 7 was legit. It wasn't until I actually saw the text that I knew what Chrysi said. My initial thought was that SHE was Megan Williams who rang the bell in Tambelon and cast him and his city back into the depths.

Perhaps this is just the part of me who grew up on G1 speaking but I would think that Grogar's tale would have been long before the existence of Cloudsdale as is depicted in "Gusty the Great." To me, Grogar will always date back to Ponyland no matter how much the G4 storyline states otherwise and in my Ponyverse, he will always be far older than he is in G4.

Overall though, I thought the premiere was great, I've watched it three times already. After this, outside of season 5 Starlight, Grogar is my favorite villain.

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I'm just praying that they'll leave the whole 'Twilight will take over' thing vague in the end. Seriously, it would be better for everybody to say that she may replace them at some point, but she still has a lot to learn (and, let's be honest - it's true!). They will probably still print new comics for a while after S9, se even from Hasbro's POV, removing Celestia and Luna would severely limit their options there .

Although, IMHO the perfect solution would be for them to rule together - leaving poor Twi to take care of everything on her own, is a pretty lousy idea and not really in the spirit of friendship. Seriously, who leaves a friend hanging like that ?

I know Celestia ruled alone in the past, but... that's probably one of the reasons why she has almost no friends compared to Twilight - with governing sucking all her time .

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I want reformation for Chrysalis. IT'S ALL I ASK FOR HER!

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Then wait for finale. She will either become a beautiful butterfly or face the ultimate doom. Start your prayers and bets now!

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She will either become a beautiful butterfly

Former for me.

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I'm just praying that they'll leave the whole 'Twilight will take over' thing vague in the end. Seriously, it would be better for everybody to say that she may replace them at some point, but she still has a lot to learn (and, let's be honest - it's true!).

Exactly!

leaving poor Twi to take care of everything on her own, is a pretty lousy idea and not really in the spirit of friendship. Seriously, who leaves a friend hanging like that ?

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So anyone wanna talk about how they turned Sombra, who was essentially the Sauron of Equestria, a dark, terrifying lord of shadows, darkness and fear....Into a cross between Scar from the Lion King and Princess Blueblood. Seriously, what the actual HELL, happened to the guy?

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Okay! I've watched both parts and I'm only slightly drunk! Opinion time!

STARTING OFF!

The beginning of the first episode felt a bit weird. Why did the princesses make their summons sound like an emergency? Like, couldn't they just have scheduled a normal audience? It almost seemed as if they were deliberately trolling the Mane Six.

Luna: "Equestria currently enjoying its longest period of harmony in recent years."

Yes, you've only had, what, three or four major crises involving evil forces threatening your entire country only to be narrowly averted per year.

Exactly how bad were things before the start of the series?

So, anyway, Celestia and Luna declare that they are retiring and leaving the throne to Twilight... in a matter of days. Jesus, how did they think she would react to them springing that bullshit on her?

I know the joke is that Twilight gets worked up and worries a lot, but she was seriously the only one who actually had a realistic reaction to all of this. Yeah, maybe being told you're going to be the crowned God-Empress of Ponykind next week and henceforth be responsible for an entire nation with no training in politics or statesmanship might be a bit nerve-wracking?

I do not think the rest of them understood the gravity of the situation, is what I'm saying.

ALL MOST SOME OF THE BAD GUYS ARE BACK AND ALSO GROGAR IS A BIG DEAL I GUESS?

First of all, Chrysalis starting to crack due to being isolated from her hive cracked me up as well.

Moving on: Grogar sorta came out of nowhere. I get that they have limited time to work with when writing these premiers but there was no buildup or anything, he just walked into the room and was like: "I am the final villain! Fear me!" And also, for a guy who is apparently supposed to the OG Ultimate Evil, he really didn't make much of an impression of me. He's just this an evil goat wizard, I suppose? He's not that intimidating and I didn't get the sense that he was really more dangerous or imposing than the other ones.

Speaking of which, this evil mastermind assembles his Legion of Doom, which consists of a ancient warlord who absorbs magic to power up, a shape-shifting insect monster sorceress who feeds on love, a ridiculously badass dark magician (more on that in a bit) and... a little pegasus filly.

Yeah, I don't really get that what Grogar was thinking bringing Cozy Glow into this. Sure, she's one of the few non-redeemed villains, and I guess maybe sociopaths are just so unheard of among ponies that she is literally the most evil pony alive. But she's still like ten years old and has no special powers. The closest thing she has to a useful ability is acting innocent and manipulating others, which is of limited use now that she's a known criminal and also Chrysalis is probably better at that anyway.

Grogar doesn't even seem to respect her at all. He clearly finds her annoying. Why is she on the team? Was Grogar just really desperate?

SOMBRA IS A HUGE BADASS!

Can we just talk about what a goddamned monster Sombra was in all of this? Yeah, he was super arrogant but dammit if he couldn't back it up. Consider:

-Dude shows up in the Crystal Empire and takes the entire place over by himself in like half an hour. This sunnovabitch just waltzed into the royal nursery chamber and stole the super-special baby alicorn princess all like: "This is mine now!"

-Actually took a blast from the thus far invincible Deus Ex Machina Friendship Laser (!!!) then just reformed like he's freaking Doctor Manhattan or something. This is a feat no other bad guy has managed to pull off, including Discord.

-Murders the shit out of the Tree of Harmony and destroys the Elements, which is the MLP equivalent of taking Excalibur from King Arthur and snapping it in half over your knee like a twig. Jesus Christ!

-Creates crystal constructs that Twilight's magic can't affect. Like, at all.

-Declares he's going to enslave Ponyville. Succeeds! Declares he's going to take Canterlot as well. Also succeeds! I don't even think he needed the army of brainwashed slaves for the former, he just didn't want to bother exerting himself.

His only mistake was not brainwashing the Mane Six when he had the chance, or banishing them into the Shadow Realm or something. But I guess that would be asking too much of this show. Still a really solid performance.

I am actually kinda sad he's not the main villain of the whole season. If Grogar's supposed to be even worse, he's really going to have to impress me now.

Oh, and I was worried bringing Sombra back would ruin this idea I had for a Sombra-centered fanfic I might write eventually, but I was happy to find that it still works. In fact, it may even work better this way. So that's awesome.

THAT ONE SCENE WHERE RANDOM UNICORN CIVILIANS FIRED LASER SPELLS!

Vindication! I will never have to listen to that stupid: "Only alicorns and very elite unicorns can do it" argument again!

Sucks that it took until the last season to get there, but still.

HOLY SHIT! IT'S STAR SWIRL THE BEARDED!

So, yeah. Star Swirl is basically a living WMD of arcane might. Nice to see him again because I was starting to fear that the writers had forgotten they brought him and the other ancient heroes back. Hopefully they'll have something important to do in this season. Kinda wanted to see him face off against Sombra, but oh well.

Actually, these two episodes really hammered home the unfortunate tendency of this show to have the real heavy hitters conveniently absent, preoccupied or otherwise useless because the creators never stopped to consider the power balance. Case in point:

DISCORD IS BASICALLY INVINCIBLE BUT ALSO (DELIBERATELY) USELESS!

This. This is exactly why I thought it was a bad idea to make Discord a good guy without nerfing his powers. As awesome as Sombra is, Discord could still end him by snapping his claw once or twice. So the writers have to make him actively avoid taking action for relatively flimsy reasons even when his supposed friends are in danger and the fate of the world hangs in the balance because he's literally too powerful to be a hero.

I admit, however, his faking a serious injury and delivering that amazing speech only to find out it was wasted was hilarious. And over-all, they did do a good job of balancing his trolling nature and attempts to be supportive. This was the most trickster I've seen him in a while.

THE MANE SIX CAN NOW USE THE DEUS EX MACHINA BLAST OF HARMONY WITHOUT THE ELEMENTS! LIKE, THAT'S JUST A THING NOW, I GUESS?

Um, yay? I'm sure this is going to turn our to be totally balanced and not at all reduce the tension and suspense of the big climactic battles? Especially since they're pretty much going to have to fight four major villains in one season now. Yeah, this is going to be fine!

THE PRINCESSES COME TO THE GODDAMNED SENSES, TO THE SURPRISE OF NOBODY!

I love that Celestia basically went: "Twilight, this whole ordeal has proven beyond a doubt that you are now ready to lead Equestria. However, we've decided not to retire just yet so you'll have more time. Not because Equestria was almost conquered by a megalomaniac super-wizard on your watch and we just realized that this sort of thing is probably going to keep happening. We just thought maybe you needed more time to get used to the idea."

Yeah, no shit Sherlock Horse!

Seriously, though, I kinda assumed the whole thing would turn out to be a fake out at least until the finale. It's still slightly weird how they handled the whole thing, though.

CLOSING STATEMENT!

Yeah, I didn't hate it. It was all pretty fun, though Sombra made up for a lot. Over-all I'd say it was an adequate set up for the season, though not my favorite. It's almost like they designed the whole thing to showcase all the shortcomings they've built into the formula of this show over the years. Kinda wished they'd gone the extra mile with it and produced something truly outstanding. Oh well.

Why does Hasbro hate trees?

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Why not?

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For once. I agree with Asriel

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Nah they save'em

Maybe, not sure side they are a corporaration

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I blame Grogar being short and having normal eyes. He looks rather ordinary compared to Tirek, Sombra and Chrysalis. He actually was mentioned I believe in Twilight aunt episode so he didn't come completely out of thin air. Still, there is one advantage he might have. Has a whole season to work till the finale. Unless, you know, they forget about team evil till the last two episodes...

I found this two-parter to be okay. Not great, but it does have its moments. I think the second half really picks up in terms of quality, too.