A Talking Dragon

This is really impressive! I don't know many who give a thought to the timelines let alone piece bits together with canon information. I doubt I could have come close to writing this. I'll comment on some things for fun. ^Nice guess there on Smiths and Apples being two separate families. Granny Smith would of had to married into the Apple family on account of her old family name. ^ It also helped that Ponyvile was essentially an earth pony town, even if it became more diverse later on. ^ I think Applejack learned from her mother as she played one too. ^ That AJ's parents died while on a trip to make up with Grand Pear makes sense. It would add to the reasons why Granny Smith never spoke about the feud and why the mayor and Mrs. Cake looked so reluctant bring up the Pears. This is good Apple lore. Another reason could be the dangerous beasts the Apples would have to face while making their delivery routes to neighboring towns (Somepony To Watch Over Me). We know from Bats that the Apple Family would lose large parts of their harvest from the fruit bats. Any unexpected losses like with the Zap Apples would cause the Apples to lose their farm. So the need to make these risky trips just to pull even are likely very necessary. We know from Bats of one particular bad harvest time from the show is either before AJ was born or when she was too young to remember. Either way these reasons would explain why both of the parents aren't around at the same time. ^ Applebloom could have been older too. From Going To Seed Applebloom is around before AJ got her cutie mark. The Cake Twins and Flurry Heart show that babies can be around for a bit and still look like babies. So to consider you got the time period between Applebloom being born and the Going To Seed flashback, the time period between that and the first sonic rainboom and the time between the rainboom and camp with Rara. Add to that rainboom Applejack is younger than CMC Chronicle Applebloom. With The Mane Attraction episode I wonder if Applejack got her inspiration to go Manehattan from her friendship with Rara. But this only works if AJ and Rara knew each other before camp. If Applejack's parents died after these events it could be signaled when Applejack stopped writing to Rara. Again overall you did a great job with this.

Since changeling maturity rate is unknown this is really the best indication we have. Thorax choose that age for a reason. While Thorax has physical changed his age would still be the same. So based on his pony form and that he was chosen to be Spike's friend, Thorax has to be around Spike and the student six's age range.

A problem too might be that most of the threats in premiers and finales have been magical (Nightmare Moon, Tirek, Sombra, Starlight Glimmer, Discord, the cutie mark switching). There's only so much that a non-magic talented character can do in these situations. Discord homing in the point in one scene by simply putting the main 5 in a cage with the snap of a clawed finger. I think that's what A Canterlot Wedding did so well: having a villain that relayed on stealth, planning and using an army rather then rely more on magic. In the situation too more characters can help, like the royal guard enforcing security or Pinkie using her party cannon.

The mane 6--minus Twilight--always seemed to be lumped together during these episodes, the focus always being on Twilight or the guest character. And while the rest of the gang act as one unit behind their leader, they don't impact the plot as much. The last season premier seemed to try to do something with Fluttershy, but while everyone was depowered. Are the mane 5 being utilized effectively in premiers and finales? How can they be used; could they be broken up or should they stay together during missions? What do you hope for when season 6 starts?

Thanks. It feels great to be doing this again. Hopefully I can make more of these in the near future. 1. I see what you're saying. I believe AJ meant age; how many times have you heard the phase "when I was little"? While it can be taken for size, often not people use it to refer to a stage in one's life. So when AJ says "even littler" than the CMCs, she refers to her growth state in life and being younger. And if you think about it there's no point in AJ comparing sizes within the same ages when someone with a large enough growth spurt like Big Mac is around. 2. Applejack has never been shown spending money. It's not from a lack of wanting either; from the Gala events we know there are things she wants but never had the bits for. Even when promising it she had to get it somewhere else instead of pulling from her own pocket. No matter what the farm takes in it seems AJ is handed down money rather than taking from the top of the pile. Recall the only person we've seen in the family put forth large amounts of bits is Granny Smith. 3. As for responsibility, AJ's main role looks to be that of stall seller, with her helping around the farm in other tasks as a secondary role. In Applebuck season Big Mac headed the role for applebuck season with AJ learning about underestimating the job when he handed it down to her. Granny Smith does all the zap apple jam making--one of the two big income pulls--all by herself. And cider making is a team effort. AJ still organizes, though she's more new to it and has been overruled by Granny a couple of times. So while I agree AJ more than Big Mac is moving to towards taking over the farm, when mlp started she was more third string there and was still quite inexperience at parts of her own job. Compare this to Rarity, Rainbow and Fluttershy who had already settled well into their roles and in two cases have moved up the chain. 4. I think there are enough clues for a guess. Sweetie Belle was five during her birthday--and half the size--years later SB is still a filly, just learning magic and going to school. How many other species can you think of that has about tens years go by and not have the creature in question grown up by that point? 5. Maybe, but Trixie doesn't know AJ personally to know what insults would stick. And did she refer to Twilight, Rainbow and Rarity the same? Despite my arguements I can't say for certain where AJ would fall exactly in the group--Twilight is hardest to guess with privilege and studying masking the clues that would help. Though I don't think AJ would be in the upper end where Fluttershy and Rarity would be. Pinkie Pie and her would certainly be near each other age wise if I'm right. Visual media like this is about showing, and since heavy mystery isn't the point of mlp I think we were meant to see the 21 candles. Otherwise why 21 and why not just do the big one candle thing other shows do to get past listing the age? 21 matches Rainbow not being in school and gives enough time for her to make the upper positions of the weather team.

Discussions in other places have got me thinking about the mane 6's age, particularly Applejack's. It's widely speculated that AJ is on the older end of the mane 6 group due to her maturity. However when considering some things in the show I think Applejack might be one of the youngest of the mane 6. 1. In Cutie Mark Chronicles the mane 6 are portrayed around the CMCs age in the flashback. Applejack said that she was younger than the CMCs during the incident. Yet this is never stated to also be true for the rest of the mane 6. 2. Applejack seems to be more in line with Pinkie's current position in life rather than further along like Rarity, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash: she doesn't yet own her own home, is staying with people who look after her, nor has she shown any spending power like that of Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow, or even Pinkie Pie. She more along the lines of someone in their late teens than one already out in the world. 3. Applejack doesn't own Sweet Apple Acres. AJ is credited with organizing Sweet Apple Acres in a Twilight fashion yet Granny Smith hasn't yet passed the reins over to either her or Big Mac. As such Applejack is still able to leave for over a week for contests or deliveries; is not needed to supervise events like that of the Sisterhoove Social when it's held on the farm; nor was she the one putting up the farm to the Flim Flam brothers for a bet. In fact, Granny letting AJ organize the family reunion alone was seen as a big deal. So while AJ works where she lives, she's not that along enough in life to take on big responsibility. 4. Appleblooms' birth/SweetieBelle's birthday: AJ and Big Mac were already alone with Granny Smith during the Cutie Mark Chronicles. It would be odd for AJ's parent not to be around or even mentioned during the massive changes in their daughter's life. If they had already passed on Applebloom would of had to have be been born already--just still too young to be out and about. Applebloom and Sweetiebelle are both in the same year in classes so are around the same age. But with Sweetiebelle's fifth birthday we see Rarity is already fully grown or near enough. And by this point we know for certain these ponies aren't going by our world's pony growth standards. So even at earliest if Applebloom was being born when AJ got her cutiemark, that only leaves five years between a filly even younger than the CMCs and a mare in adult form. By this alone Rarity has to be older than Applejack and by more than a year. 5. Trixie singling Applejack out in the crowd and calling her "little hayseed" in Boast Busters. A light point though I don't think Trixie would pick Applejack first out of a group of ponies and use that comment if Applejack looked older or was at least taller. The mane 6 ages aren't stated in the show but I think these points give clues where AJ would fall in age among them or the rest of the cast. What are your thoughts on these points? Where do you think Applejack would fall in age compared to the rest of the mane 6?

^ Twilight won't have known Spike was with the others. When she left Ponyvile Spike wasn't among the mane 6. And she had encouraged everyone to stay inside because of Triek attacking everyone. Also Twilight was away for a time learning to control her magic.