This was an astounding episode. For Scootaloo's first episode as a central character, it really didn't disappoint. We saw a lot about her:

1. her desire to be Rainbow Dash's protégé

2. her huge fear that was built from those stories

3. her eventual development as a character

4. her athleticism

Of the three Cutie Mark Crusaders, she's the only character to not have that much development. Whenever she was there, she shared the rest of the CMC's role, sometimes not speaking most. With her finally getting an episode, finally she can garner a bit more attention to herself so we see really serious character development.

The few things that strike me.

1. Luna, obviously, and how she played a role in Scootaloo's dreams. There's a reason why she's the Princess of the Night: when ponies sleep, she keeps an eye on the peace and any possible trouble. Luna noticed Scootaloo having serious nightmares, and she told her to face them. Not only her nightmares, but also her pride. Scootaloo is a proud character who doesn't want to disappoint Rainbow Dash in any way.

2. Scootaloo's pride. She idolizes Rainbow Dash and wants to be her protégé. For her, if she breaks down that "proud" barrier, it equals weakness; Rainbow Dash herself is a very proud character, so RD's core personality rubs onto her. That's why she tried the best she could to hide her fright. Sometimes admitting your weakness is what also makes you even better, and we saw this here. She admitted to being terrified to the point of almost getting herself killed, and now she's a much stronger pegasus emotionally.

3. Scootaloo's scooter. This could hopefully be a major turning point in her character. Since the start of the series, she's always had that scooter to help maneuver. Now she no longer has it to get around. With her scooter gone, perhaps this can give her the ability to develop her ability to fly, swim, dive, glide, run fast, or whatever. Just because she has small wings doesn't mean they're useless.

4. Rainbow Dash herself. Of all the Mane Six/Mane Seven, Rainbow Dash is by far the most difficult character to write because she has so many facets that tie to Rainbow Dash being Rainbow Dash. But for the beginning of the season, her characterization was not well-written, particularly in The Mysterious Mare-Do-Well (as we know). Since then, she's been written in a much better light. Hurricane Fluttershy was, if you ask me, where she stole the show because it took all of her facets and blended them into one, especially her biggest quality: her loyalty to Fluttershy when she was down. In this episode, we saw several bits of her, particularly her playful side while she told those stories, her comforting and care for Scootaloo after she finally admitted to being scared, and helping Scootallo fly around Winsome Falls. But even when Rainbow Dash admitted to being scared of the stories when she was a filly, we still saw that nonchalant pride she expressed when she said she was going to deny "it" (being her initial fright of those stories, too). This episode and Hurricane Fluttershy are her best written episodes characterization-wise since TMMDW.

5. Sweetie Belle's singing. We've seen in this series that she can really sing very well. But to quote Bob Ross, "Talent is a pursued interest." She can sing well, but this song shows that she isn't fully committed into pursuing it and improving her skills. In future episodes, we can hopefully see this pattern of her pursuing her singing capabilities.

Sleepless in Ponyville doesn't eclipse Magic Duel, but this episode and Magic Duel are the best 1-2 episodes of the season so far. Season 3 has carried plenty of momentum, and besides Sombra's lack of fulfilling characterization in The Crystal Empire, it hasn't disappoint. Let's keep it going!

P.S.: And welcome to the team, Corey Powell! For your debut episode, you wrote one of the best episodes in the series.

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Source: S03:E06 - Sleepless in Ponyville