Dark Qiviut

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Fluttershy: Aw, Angel. Winter Wrap Up is so much fun. Why don't you help us wake the animals?

Angel:

Link: https://derpibooru.org/images/3041286

It's been said, but there are two big reasons.

1. Hasbro's a toy company and reboots their generations every decade or so. 2019 marked the near-end of Generation 4's life cycle, so it was time to start fresh.
2. The show had been going on for a long time, while sustaining quality throughout. It can only go so long, though, before they run out of ideas. Season 9 marked the end at just the right time.

Magic Duel. That episode was such a blast to watch more than ten years ago. And I think it still is.

Besides, Trixie corrupted has a few memorable moments, including her refusal to trust wheels.

Pelé is one of soccer's all-time greats for reasons @daviddaviddavid already stated. He's in the conversation for GOAT among soccer players. He's nicknamed "O Rei" (translated to "The King") in 1958 and more than lived it up.

RIP, King.

Power Rangers was a gigantic part of my childhood, too. Also grew up watching it. This news literally made me gasp.

RIP, Jason.

Really cute. Love the humor. Love Izzy’s characterization.

The reason is because despite being obnoxious and immature, he cares for his friends, even when he doesn’t exactly show it all the time. He’s extremely close with Fluttershy and has close connections with Big Mac and Spike. When he cares, he does it his way, from breaking Sugar Belle’s wagon wheel to reunite her and Big Mac and helping Big Mac set up (and accidentally screw up) Big Mac’s marriage proposal.

None of them. All of the episodes, TV specials, and movie happened in the canon, even the worst ones. Refusing to acknowledge them as canon doesn’t make the events go away.

@Megas listed a good chunk. Others like What About Discord, Mare Do Well, Somepony to Watch Over Me, and Owl's Well apply, too.

1 hour ago, CloudMistDragon said:

Shocked that no one's mentioned Magical Mystery Cure yet though, fandom literally exploded over the alicorn Twilight announcement and tons of people were hating on the episode too. 

MMC doesn't accurately apply. Plenty hate it, yet just as many (if not more) love it.

3 hours ago, Splashee said:

In the very beginning, there was The Mysterious Mare Do Well. Everypony hated it, YouTube videos and reactors, all just thought it was horrible.

I can understand why. This was the first episode I hated, and upon rewatching it years later, it looks worse. Easy to see why MDW remains so widely despised.

After a disappointing Chapter 1, Chapter 2 is exactly what MYM needed.

1. The animation and lighting are much, much better. No, it doesn’t need to be as fantastic as ANG. It needed to be adequate. The animators more than stepped up here.
2. The majority of the stories are entertaining and satisfying, Episode 7 notwithstanding. Almost all of them are engaging with various conflicts that are well in character of the Mane Five. Portrait of a Princess and Sleep-Over are excellent and compete with some of FIM’s best.
3. Misty is Ch. 2’s standout. For the first time, an adult blank flank is in MLP. Temperament-wise, she’s similar to Fluttershy, and also extremely innocent. For so long, she wants to have her Cutie Mark and will do whatever it takes to impress Opaline to get it. Someday, she’ll earn it and become one with the rest of the Mane Five.
4. Opaline is vindictive and as unreliable a narrator as there is in the last two generations. She claims about alicorn SA like her being immortal rulers, but she twists Equestria’s post-M6 history so much that you can’t help but believe she isn’t telling the truth. Opaline puts Misty in a bind with all of her schemes. Even though none of them succeed, she’s one step closer to being Equestria’s premiere threat.
5. Pipp and Zipp are the Mane Five MVPs and complement very well from TYT. Zipp already has an established character beforehand, but Pipp was the weakest, which is a shame, for she has so much upside. TYT does a tremendous job making Pipp a solid, relatable character. Equally effectively, Chapter 2 does the same. Zipp has an arc of her own, being the M5’s detective. While no one else was suspicious of Misty, she was and rightfully made sure she wasn’t up to any tricks.
6. Everyone has time to shine. 
   1. Hitch is an amazing dragon dad to little Sparky, and I love their adorable father-son relationship. His reaction to Sparky being kidnapped is exactly what any dad would do.
   2. Sunny is the leader of the group and had to adjust to being groveled on as an alicorn, even though she's the same pony.
   3. Izzy is outstanding this chapter. Like ANG and TYT, she resembles many of Pinkie’s biggest strengths while being her own, like her creativity and unconditional accessibility with others. She was the first to lend an open hoof with Misty. When things went wrong, she was visibly upset and admitted to missing home.
   4. Sparky was extremely pivotal to the plot. Not only by being extremely connected to magic in Maretime Bay, but also by having magical powers himself. More importantly, he’s extremely smart, immediately understood what Misty was up to, and knew exactly what to do to foil her plan.
7. ANG foreshadowed the importance of Earth Pony magic in the post-credits scene and in TYT. Chapter 2 explores it further. Back in Twilight’s time, Earth Pony magic was extremely subtle, depending on cues by various ponies and their various connections over time. The intertwining apple and pear tree is the most obvious example. Thousands of years later, Earth Pony magic evolved into something more. Their connection to the earth is visible and greatly impacts vegetation and agriculture.

It’s only eight episodes, but Chapter 2 packed a lot of insight and details. Chapter 2 does a great job evolving what ANG started. With TYT going strong as well and how good MYM became, G5 as a whole is well on its way to becoming FIM’s worthwhile successor.

Not so sure about this one. Even though Pipp was motivated over her sister's Cutie Mark glowing, her plan was extremely rash and ridiculous. All morning, Zipp searched high and low to find it.

On one hand, Hoof Done It showed that her plan wasn't a good idea, as Zipp started accusing ponies left and right, including the culprit. On the other, considering the origins of this lantern, wouldn't Pipp (and Izzy) think about the consequences of the lantern getting lost if it left the Brighthouse?

Good song and animation sequence, though!

Overall, meh.

This one was actually really sweet. All of the mares communicating with Misty after Izzy met her and invited her to a sleepover. Zipp, being the one on top of things, grew suspicious of her presence from the start, while the others were oblivious.

Even though Izzy was the odd unicorn from Bridlewood, she held onto some foalhood memories, and preparing for the sleepover was one of them. Eagerly sharing those memories with another unicorn meant she can relate to another unicorn in the Brighthouse. As a character, she was really good here, and you can't help but feel bad whenever the sleepover kept going wrong.

Also, really sweet of Pipp and Sunny to craft Izzy's little bedroom area to make the Brighthouse feel like home. Scenes like that really show how much they love her and consider her one of their own.

Oh, yeah, I really enjoy the animation of Sunny and Misty telling their own versions of Ancient Equestria. Not only does it explore plenty backstory, but further establishes just how manipulative Opaline is.

In short, really well done.

I only saw the first four episodes so far, but already, there are a ton of highlights. Just to go over a few of them:

In all, really promising. I'll watch the rest of Ch. 2 later.

P.S.: If you haven't seen Episode 3, you're missing out! Watch it. Now.

While not bad, it feels a little weaker than the previous three. Yes, Maretime Bay being somewhat emptier here is an issue here than in previous episodes, considering that transforming to an alicorn is considered a big deal and the sudden arrival of the Filly Four.

But the pacing in the third act is also wonky; steady for the most part, only to rush at the end. Not just Sunny to feel better, but also Pipp's envy over the Filly Four. Her own realization of not having to maintain a perfect outward image is a fine message, and it's good how the B-Plot doesn't take itself seriously. But it could've flowed better.

However, the best parts are Opaline's manipulative interaction with Sunny and the apprehensive crowd whenever Sunny isn't in her alicorn form. This is the first time Opaline has any on-screen conversation with a pony other than Misty, and it shows how well she can target another pony's self-confidence for her own self-gain.

Also, Maretime Bay ponies being jerks is a good thing. So why here rather than in FIM episodes like Mare Do Well, Putting Your Hoof Down, or Fame & Misfortune?

1. Well, think about FIM. The sense of community was established from the first episode onward. Treating other ponies equally mattered. When the background characters act like jerks, they stuck out like a sore thumb, especially as the series progressed. Established background characters like Daisy mocking Rarity behind her back and remaining unapologetic as she ran away bawling was extremely out of character.
2. On the other hand, in each of the three Equestrian territories, everypony is looking after themselves. ANG established a lack of community; xenophobia, racism, and classism are obvious.  Ponies will try to one-up others for their own gain. The Mane Five is unique. When Sunny is an Earth Pony, no one took her seriously. As an alicorn, she's prestigious. Regardless, she's the same pony. Each of the three communities still have a ways to go.

Again, Ali-Conned isn't bad. It's not polished, but it serves the plot.

10 hours ago, Sparklefan1234 said:

Why was Discord given another chance with no repurcussions after the whole Lord Tirek team up?

I know he was tricked but Discord still wasn't punished for anything that he did. 

He didn't really need it. Tirek manipulated him, then dumped him and absorbed his magic when he wasn't useful anymore. He felt what it was like when his trust was used and witnessed what was left of Equestria afterwards.

Green Eggs and Ham had a quasi-similar plot, except it was just Sam-I-Am trying to persuade the lead to try the green eggs and ham, and his refusal is only getting him into trouble. The difference is Dr. Seuss’s book was engaging, entertaining, catchy, the lead was a really funny grouch, and it landed on the message.

TYT has been really good throughout their run so far.

Not here.

This short sucks, and their poorly-written comedy is a primary reason why. The sorry “comedy” at Posey’s expense, which is completely unwarranted here, is a microcosm of this short.

Secondly, their usage of “persuading” Zipp doesn’t work, either. It’s one way to successfully persuade through some effort, like asking her why she says “no” and maybe going to a couple of other ponies she trusts in Maretime Bay. How they did it, by tapping into her competitive nature to make her change her mind, is extremely cheap and makes them look manipulative.

It was only a matter of time before TYT had a clunker. Unfortunately, it was here.

Hey-lo, Umbra! Welcome back to the forums!

@Rising Dusk @Sparklefan1234 @DubWolf

Taking a quote from the "Vince retires" thread to here for this.

8 hours ago, Megas said:

Brock Lesnar has already walked out of Smackdown as soon as the news broke. People have already been saying this is a work but given the ramifications of this news I doubt this is the case

On 2022-04-13 at 12:04 PM, Ring Team said:

At the end of the day, and with the exception of The ending of the end, I have a hard time believing that the Starlight we've seen from season 5 to 9 is the same unicorn who wanted to redeem herself and learn from her mistakes as it was suggested at the end of Cutie Remark.

Not hard to believe one bit. Starlight went down such a rabbit hole as a result of her childhood trauma that she had to make her steps to becoming who she is today, and she made incredible strides over the last four seasons.

1. Using whatever excuse possible to not reunite with Sunburst, yet was able to become one with her childhood friend.
2. Say what you will about To Where and Back Again, but Starlight demonstrated how she can lead without manipulating, her dependency for magic, or letting her anger get the best of her. With a ragtag team of herself, Thorax, Trixie, and Discord, they successfully defeated Chrysalis and reformed the hive. Whereas Starlight accepted Twilight’s offer, Chryssie rejected it.
3. Season 7 fixed a glaring flaw from the season before, showing up more often and become more acquainted with Ponyville regardless of role she played. A couple of examples include:
   1. A brief background role in Fluttershy Leans In, helping her friends build the sanctuary.
   2. Trying to help Rarity regrow her mane.
4. Making the mistake by choosing to physically bottle up her anger with Trixie rather than just talk it out out of fear that she’ll say the wrong thing, hurt her, and fracture their friendship together.
5. Becoming one with Maud and being the one Maud trusted when she admitted that her relationship with rocks made her not feel like she was judged. Considering so many misunderstand her or feel uncomfortable around her, Starlight Glimmer was the most open-minded about her, it was the first time where her personality wasn’t merely a gag.
6. When Sunburst found herself having so much fun with her friends, Starlight turned desperate and recreated a scene from childhood just to find ways to have something in common with each other. The scene was rightfully treated as wrong, and it only made things worse.
7. Shadow Play concluded her redemption arc perfectly. Afterwards, FIM didn’t remind the audience of her past nearly as bluntly as before.
8. When Twilight’s school was unaccredited, Starlight used her experience and their time together as a reminder that Neighsay’s xenophobia shouldn’t cause her to abandon the School of Friendship.
9. Working with the Mane Six and students to develop and save the play.
10. Because no pony went to her office, Starlight believe she wasn’t wanted in the school. Cozy showing up changed her mind permanently.
11. Because of her success as guidance counselor, Twilight trusted her into becoming the School of Friendship’s next headmare and then make the right executive decisions moving forward.

I watch TYT episodes once they come out each week. It's in the middle of a great run, and I really enjoy it so far.

Once again, another fantastic TYT short! It’s really hitting its stride, and each short is a combination of both heart and growth. Sunny’s conflict, alicorn Magic aside, is down to earth. She wants to help others that she’s unsure how to help herself. This solution is a first step of the process.

He really, really isn’t. Discord’s entire plan was flawed from the start and fell apart the minute the Terrible Trio schemed behind his back.