ponyvangelist

Where Angel Fears To Tread Expanding on what Devin was saying... Fluttershy over-mothers and dotes over him constantly, so it's not surprising he's spoiled -- sometimes shockingly so -- and occasionally abusive. But as others have pointed out, he's really not pure evil. Well, not pure evil, anyway. Angel knew how important the Grand Galloping Gala was to Fluttershy, and went out of his way trying to help her get the tickets. When Fluttershy was late, for a very important date, Angel went out of his way to remind her, even going so far as to play charades to get her to remember. Which brings up another point. Fluttershy is able to communicate with virtually every animal in Equestria, except Angel. Seriously. She just got done fixing a mouse's broken leg and was pushing him in a little wheelchair while reminding him to stay off it, when Angel came running in. No problem with the mouse. But Angel? She just can't seem to figure out what he's trying to say. Then, as pointed out in previous posts, Angel was there for her in one of her darkest hours... Sure, he can be a royal jerk sometimes, and I wanted to throttle him when he slapped Fluttershy in Putting Your Hoof Down, but she's like a mother to him, and any child can become a jerk when their parents spoil them. On the surface, Angel is a fairly simple caricature, yet over the course of the series, he's become more complex. Part of that probably has to do with different writers interpreting him differently, but the nature of his relationship with Fluttershy has several dimensions. In many ways, he's the brains of the outfit. He looks after Fluttershy and tries to correct her when she's doing something silly, but can be too harsh sometimes. In return, Fluttershy takes care of him, but she tends to smother him sometimes. Does any rabbit really need to be told how fast to eat a carrot, or how much? Granted, I tend to look for good in characters that most people love to hate, but all things considered, I think Angel means well and cares deeply for Fluttershy. That said, he can be too irritable at times and should probably take an anger management course or two. Although it probably wouldn't hurt if Fluttershy put a little more effort into understanding him, either.

The only immutable law of the universe is the Law of Irony. Fluttershy, who famously has a mortal fear of dragons, becoming a dragon would comply with that law. However, Spike's loyalty to Rarity might be challenged by a beautiful yellow and pink dragon with a kind, gentle soul. I can see him now... "How are my spines? Are they straight?" Edit: It seems Wormtail96 beat me to it as I was typing this up. In my defense, I refer to the first sentence of this post.

Of Argent And Adamant We don't see Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon use their talents often, because they are simply too powerful to be used lightly. So what, exactly, are their special talents? Diamond Tiara, as her name implies, wears a tiara. But it is no ordinary tiara. It is none other than the fabled Tiara of Power, forged of old at the command of Nightmare Moon by the eldritch hoofcraft of Firemane the Hammersmith. It is said that into this tiara Nightmare Moon poured all her cruelty, her malice and her will to dominate all life. One tiara to rule them all. One by one, the free ponies of Equestria fell to the power of the Tiara. But there were some who resisted. A last alliance of earth ponies, pegasi and unicorns marched against the armies of Nightmare Moon, and on the very slopes of Mount Canterlot, they fought for the freedom of Equestria. Victory was near, but the power of the Tiara could not be undone. It was in this moment, when all hope had faded, that Princess Platinum, daughter of the Unicorn King, took up her father's horn. And Nightmare Moon, enemy of the free ponies of Equestria, was defeated. Through the power of the Elements of Harmony, she was thereafter banished permanently in the moon. The Tiara passed to Princess Platinum, who had this one chance to destroy evil forever. But the hearts of unicorns are easily corrupted, and the Tiara of Power has a will of its own. It betrayed Princess Platinum, to her death. And some things that should not have been forgotten were lost. History became legend. Legend became myth. And for nearly a thousand years, the Tiara passed out of all knowledge. Until, when chance came, it ensnared a new bearer. It was picked up by the most unlikely creature imaginable: a young filly, Diamond Tiara, of Ponyville. At the very moment she placed it upon her head, her cutie mark appeared. Grim tales speak of the Tiara's immense and terrible power, capable of sundering seas and shattering mountains. In the wrong hooves, it could bring ruin to all the land, so Diamond is ever cautioned to restrain herself and avoid using it except at the uttermost end of need. But it is said the Tiara speaks secretly to her, tirelessly corrupting her, whispering of power and glory unimaginable. And being a spoiled, conceited little pony with a penchant for self-aggrandizement, Diamond does occasionally yield to temptation, with invariably disastrous results. Fig. 1: Diamond Tiara shows off her special talent. The resulting fire burned for days. It is not known what the future may hold for Equestria, but one thing is certain: whosoever wields the Tiara of Power shall ultimately decide the fate of all. Needless to say, this knowledge has led to many sleepless nights for Princess Celestia. Meanwhile, Silver Spoon's talent is that she spoons well. She spoons very well. That's pretty much it, which is why we don't see her doing it often. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice spoon. Silver that never tarnishes and all. But in the end, just a spoon. When spooning, however, she can lose control and cause significant property damage. Rumor has it that Froggy Bottom Bog, previously the site of one of the most fertile farms in Equestria, was created during such an incident, when Silver (who had ambitions of becoming a farmer herself when she was a foal) volunteered to help with the spring planting. So her parents keep her spoon safely locked away in the family china cabinet, leaving Silver little choice but to serve as Diamond's sidekick and toadie. So there you have it. The true story of Diamond Tiara's and Silver Spoon's special talents. It's 100% legit and absolutely, positively not fictitious in any way shape or form. Trust me on this.

Sweet.

The Adorable One-Trick Pony What the heck is the appeal in Trixie? For my part, I tend to have a fondness for blustery characters who act large in an effort to conceal their weaknesses. It's a trait shared by Diamond Tiara and, to a slightly less obnoxious extent, Rainbow Dash. There's a kind of courage needed to grandstand despite knowing oneself isn't really "all that". Trixie represents a challenge. We know she's a bluffer. She knows she's a bluffer. We know she wouldn't bluff if she had confidence in herself and was satisfied with who she really is. And though she can be quite the arrogant bitch, her boastful antics are still cute in their own way. If she were to ever honestly confront her faults, she would admit she's not really The Great And Powerful Trixie, but she's still courageous, strong-hearted, talented and pretty amazing anyway. It's not our strengths that endear us to others, but our weaknesses. I can't speak for anyone else, but that's why I'm a fan of Trixie.

CANTERLOCK is cruise control for FRIENDSHIP. If that's not magic, then what is? Meanwhile, it would seem our little ponies have caught the attention of the ESRB... They don't, however, appear to have established a rating for "Magic", and so the debate rages on...

They won't let me get away with that trick twice.

The Magic Of Rhetoric At the risk being banished and thrown in a dungeon myself, I do think it's only fair to point out that the phrase "Magic of Friendship" doesn't necessarily prove "Friendship is Magic". Consider, for example, the phrase "Magic of Disney". It is often used to refer to the effect classic Disney cartoons have on audiences. Yet it would not necessarily follow that "Disney is Magic". It's a huge multibillion-dollar corporate conglomerate that may be able to work magic, but not magic itself. Moving on to the pony world, we can refer to the "Magic of Twilight", since she is a unicorn with powerful magical abilities. But does that mean "Twilight is Magic"? She does represent the spirit of Magic, but that doesn't mean she is Magic any more than Applejack is Honesty or Rarity is Generosity. So while I do maintain that Friendship is Magic (in the show, at least) because Lauren Faust said so (e.g., ipse dixit), I don't believe the expression "Magic of Friendship" itself proves that "Friendship is Magic". Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'll take precautions in case somepony tries to banish me for saying that and I end up sharing a cell with Blue. I'm considering the Chewbacca Defense...

Nolo Contendre I realize this is all tongue-in-cheek, so... Absence of evidence does not constitute evidence of absence. Likewise, ignoring the subtitle of the entire series deliberately excludes evidence vital to assessing the thesis of "Friendship isn't Magic" and therefore diminishes its validity. Consider, if you will, that nopony explicitly claims Princess Celestia is an alicorn in the show itself. That doesn't mean she isn't one. What's more, we know through such authoritative sources as Sabrina Alberghetti that the production staff refers to her and Luna as alicorns. As those who make the show, they bear the official authority of indisputable canon. All the more so in the case of "Friendship is Magic". We know that this subtitle was bestowed upon the series by none other than than the Creator Herself, God-Empress Lauren, Ultimate Best Pony. It would be no less than a sin to suggest the Goddess and Mother of All Ponies did not speak sooth when naming the show. Ergo, forthwith, heretofore and in accordance with the established legal doctrines of ipse dixit, ipso facto and presto change-o, we can confidently assert that Friendship is indeed Magic, stands as such under Equestrian law, and that declaring otherwise violates said law. Therefore I so move, as the law clearly demands, that the heretic Blue be banished from Equestria, and thrown in a dungeon in the place he is banished to.

They're bugs.

By Hoof And Claw I'm in the "Spike will grow out of it" camp. The idea of Spike and Rarity actually having some sort of genuine romantic relationship just doesn't fit the situation at all. Spike's crush was a "love at first sight" event in the very first episode of the series, and has defined his relationship with her ever since. He sees Rarity as a love interest and the girl of his dreams, but has clearly been in denial about how things really are and where they could realistically go (until recently, at least). For Spike, true romance with Rarity is an unattainable fantasy, but a pleasant fantasy nonetheless. Spike may be a baby dragon and a bit naive at times, but he's by no means stupid. He probably knows deep down inside that his fantasy can never become reality, but takes comfort in it anyway. He wants to love Rarity, and that's enough for him. For Rarity's part, Spike may be cute, but he's a baby dragon. To a mature, self-sufficient, ambitious social climber like Rarity, the idea of an actual romantic relationship with Spike is so farfetched that for quite a long time, she didn't seem to have the slightest clue about how he felt. It simply wasn't on her radar. Over the course of the first two seasons, she has gone from oblivious to indulgent to impatient to accepting and ultimately affectionate. Yes, she does take advantage of Spike now and then, but Spike clearly wants her to do so, going to great lengths to insinuate himself into Rarity's affairs even when she would rather be left alone. As we saw with the CMC in "Stare Master" and Sweetie Belle in "Sisterhooves Social", and heck, her friends in "Suited for Success", Rarity is incredibly talented, highly dedicated to her profession as a designer and seamstress, and meets nothing but disaster when others meddle with her work. For her to even allow Spike to help her at all is more of a privilege than either of them may realize, because when it comes to dressmaking, Rarity requires privacy more than anything else to succeed. Rarity can most definitely be manipulative and has no qualms about using her feminine charm to get what she wants. The fact that it's so easy for her and bolsters her ego when it works can only make it all that more tempting to do so. And in considering this aspect of her personality, it occurs to me that... Rarity represents the spirit of Generosity, but she can be greedy. Applejack represents the spirit of Honesty, but she can be deceitful. Fluttershy represents the spirit of Kindness, but she can be cruel in a flash. Pinkie Pie represents the spirit of Laughter, but she has Pinkamena. Rainbow Dash represents the spirit of Loyalty, but she can put herself first. Twilight Sparkle represents the spirit of Magic, but, um... I got nothing. With, I guess, the exception of Twilight, each of the Mane Six has conflicts with their primary personality traits. They aren't perfect. Being their best requires effort on their part, and when they lose sight of that, trouble follows. It's an interesting mechanic at the heart of the show that is fundamental enough to overlook (as I so often do), and that also seems to bear on Rarity's behavior toward Spike. Getting back a little closer to the topic, Spike and Rarity's relationship has given the show's writers an interesting thread to pass from episode to episode. What probably started off as a brief "Spike has crush on Rarity" note in the writer's bible has developed over time as different writers have incorporated it in different shows. And, over time, both characters have developed along with it. As they were falling to what could have been their deaths, Spike was compelled to confess his feelings to Rarity. She stopped him with tears in her eyes, because she clearly already knew, and she clearly cared deeply about his feelings. Despite all the indignity and horror "Big Spike" had just put her through, despite the fact that she was quite possibly about to die herself, she didn't want their relationship to change, because it was precious to her, symbolized by the flawless fire ruby he had so selflessly given her. Once they were safe, and Spike left to sit on the bridge to think about what had happened, it was Rarity alone who came to him, called him her hero and gave him a kiss. We can speculate about what the future may hold for Rarity and Spike, but of one thing I am sure... Rarity would never deliberately do anything whatsoever to hurt Spike, they are very dear friends, and all things considered, that's not bad at all.

"You, sir, are the most un- charming prince I have ever met. In fact, the only thing royal about you is that you are a ROYAL PAIN!" I'm with Rarity on this. Word of Faust says he's related, so that's a given, but he is nonetheless a prince in name only. And nopony treats Rarity like that and gets away with it.

Maybe it's because Lauren Faust has blue eyes. Just a thought.

That might take about 20% longer...

Heh. I dug it out for my previous post, but I decided that picture of God-Empress Lauren was so badass, I had to make it my avatar for a while.