Now that I've had a week to reflect on Keep Calm and Flutter On, I have a few more things to say. Fluttershy was truly amazing. She was already my favorite pony, but she showed faith and perseverance I didn't think she was capable of. Keep Calm and Flutter On is the first time I have seen Princess Celestia give a Mane 6 pony besides Twilight a major individual assignment. Fluttershy didn't let her down either by displaying a Twilight Sparkle-like diligence and commitment to carrying out her task. The quiet pegasus wasn't born yesterday and she knows all along what Discord is up to. She pulls off the acting job of the series, fooling Discord and own her friends, by pretending she's gullible and naive. The best part comes near the end. Attempting to turn Discord good appears to be a lost cause and Fluttershy has every reason to blast Discord back into stone. She's angry, miserable, and so sick of his shenanigans. Discord is just begging for it, but at the moment of truth she throws her element away. Without a doubt, Fluttershy is the most stubborn persistent pony I have seen since...Applejack! Three seasons in, we're beginning to see some of the ponies' best traits rub off on each other.

Nonetheless, it was a huge gamble by Fluttershy. If Discord didn't have a change of heart, she would've taken the blame for allowing him to go and spread chaos all over Equestria. But speaking of Discord, I still don't totally understand him. He's loosely based on Q from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Q is just one member of a body called the Continuum which has a serious purpose for maintaining balance in the universe. Q also seems omnipotent except for whatever restrictions the Continuum is placing on him at the moment. He has potentially limitless power over space, time, and matter. But one thing I don't think Q has ever done is read somebody's mind. He can see the synapses firing and even the molecules that make up an organism's brain, but he lacks the ability to interpret that information. This allows the Star Trek crew to outwit him. I personally think this is a restriction imposed by the Continuum.

I get the reason for Discord's existence: You can't have light without darkness, order without chaos, harmony without discord. Discord was the best villain of the series even though he lacks the heart of an evildoer. He is more like a force of nature. But he's not a “balanced” force like Q is due to Continuum policies. His innate predisposition is to create disorder and the only clear counterweight to that is the embodiment of harmony, the Mane 6. Time will tell whether that is enough to keep him out of trouble. Curiously, like Q, Discord can't read minds. Otherwise, he would have known the "kindness" Fluttershy was giving him wasn't totally sincere. I get why some people are opposed to Discord losing his villain status and I imagine some Trekkies didn't like it at the time when Q ceased being a clear cut threat. Q, and John de Lancie himself, have gone on to become legends in the Star Trek fandom. So I will give the MLP crew a chance to play this story out before passing judgment.

A funny footnote: The brief episode description provided by my digital cable box says “Princess Celestia wants the ponies to tame Discord but Fluttershy is opposed.” Where did they get the idea Fluttershy was against it?