Thrond

If you haven't seen the post-Legend of Everfree specials, they're on Netflix under "Tales of Canterlot High." The first two specials after that, "Forgotten Friendship" and "Rollercoaster of Friendship," are also listed individually on Netflix, if you don't want to watch them split into six separate chunks on YouTube.

I should clarify that what I mean is Starlight's ideology is extreme enough that opposing it doesn't necessarily mean opposing all socialism. Most left-wing ideologies have never appeared in the show. I feel like the OP is trying to criticize Equestria's politics and economy in some way but I don't see how being opposed to Starlight's ideology is a bad thing.

Okay nope this is my limit. I am not arguing over the definition of socialism. I think a lot of socialists would be very surprised to hear you claim they believe in oppression or conformity. Though I seriously wonder what the OP's point about anti-communism was if they're using Starlight as an example.

Is Flash Sentry a Nice Guy™? I do not like this song. That auto-tune is really annoying, the rap is wack, and this kinda just seems like a lame lyrical theme. And for a song that is more or less about how cool the girls is, it sure is a lot about him. Get out of the way, Flash. Toaster monster is kinda funny but I am completely burnt out on the superheroics half of this series. Most of the time it just feels bland to me; here they just sort of shoot lazers at the thing until it dies. I mean this is just a music video, but surely it could be flashier.

This is on YouTube now.

Hello! The My Little Pony wiki has a very helpful list of all animated Equestria Girls content here. The YouTube channel also has playlists for both seasons here and here. Last time I checked, the chose-your-ending shorts were broken on YouTube, but you can find all of the endings on the wiki.

I'll admit that it probably didn't have much potential to present an existential threat to Equestria, but it was clearly bad for the ponies suckered in by it. There are many forms of socialism, and the core of socialist ideologies is not necessarily authoritarianism and conformity. I do not like Soviet-style communism, but I am not interested in arguing over which political ideology is better. Sure, Starlight's ideology was a sort of socialism, but it was an extreme fringe version.

The implication of that is pretty clearly that Celestia does not have absolute power. We know that she would not want to put someone like him in charge, so she must not be able to do so - a fact supported by Celestia supporting Twilight but not directly overriding Neighsay. The Equestrian system of government is not explored in sufficient detail for us to make inferences from the show. These are also found in socialist regimes and liberal democracies. The economic system of Equestria is also not very clear, but I think the traits you notice are vague enough to mean anything. Applejack had supply problems. She needed far more than protection from competition. I doubt she encouraged that cult. She may or may not be an absolute monarch - it's not clear. It does seem there is certainly beholden to some sort of political elite, or she wouldn't even bother attending the Grand Galloping Gala. It's also worth remembering that Celestia has almost exclusively used force against threats to national security; her government is always presented as highly benevolent towards its citizens. It does bother me that we have no evidence of a democratic system in Canterlot, though... Yaks are way more different from ponies than humans with different skin colour are from each other. In any case, I'm always surprised by people who see the yaks' portrayal as offensive, because the show has always treated the yak culture with a lot of respect. They seem stereotypical, and yet their stories are often about cultural relativism. I'm fairly certain we've seen a fair degree of socioeconomic diversity among all three tribes. Also I do not think Rarity is part of the nobility, or that her family was particularly wealthy before she became a celebrity. Clearly tensions still exist, but they must be somewhat minor, because we know that the relative harmony among ponies keeps the Windigos away. Starlight was an extremist who ran a dangerous cult. She isn't even representative of Marxism-Leninism, let alone socialism or communism as a whole. (I'm going to regret all this very shortly, aren't I?)

I just think maybe we could have gotten to multicultural harmony without Discord jeopardizing the whole thing.

Consider the following: this was already happening due to the efforts of Twilight and her friends, and Discord only contributed to it by messing up catastrophically. Which is funny because that episode mostly treats what Discord did as a serious mistake. Honestly, it's hard to get that mad when I don't expect anything better from him, whereas I don't think we were supposed to think the Celestia stuff was messed up.

He helped save Equestria that one time, but there were also those two times he was helpful to the villain. And he's a jerk to everyone so I don't see why some of the characters like him so much. I like him, but that's because he's not real and so I don't have to deal with him in person. We know that he wouldn't stay turned into a statue forever, though, so maybe it's better that he merely annoys everyone around him.

I don't know who you would replace her with, but the fact that Fluttershy turned out to be a naturally talented buckball player in "Buckball Season" never made much sense to me. Most of the time, though, I think the show picked the right characters for the story. Whether that story did those characters justice, or whether it was a story worth telling in the first place... those are other questions entirely. My interpretation was always that Rarity simply didn't think it was possible to succeed as a Canterlot restaurant without conforming to Zesty Gourmand's tastes. Consider that she had never even considered eating at a place like the Tasty Treat before, and that Coriander only asked for her to improve the restaurant's business. It's not an unreasonable decision to make considering those facts. I think the very fact that he befriended Thorax is why he couldn't be part of the rescue team. Both of his episodes that season had him doing something big and heroic, whereas that finale was about the day being saved by people who were not heroes up to that point. Luna did have the "reformed villain" thing going for her, but her status in Equestrian society is too high for her to be an underdog in this context. Starlight had saved the day in the premiere, but she is the lead character in this episode so she gets a pass.

Why would Applejack move to someone else's farm? Easier to censor if they don't show anything outright.

Let’s just say that Pinkie Pie knows more than she lets on.

I just don't see a more reasonable explanation for that weird conversation they were having about chores. I can't think of a simpler reason for them to live together. Whether those hints should have been included is another conversation entirely.

I just like it on a metaphorical level. We see an Equestria which is more open and accepting than ever before, to the extent that groups of people who had been previously feared by ponies are now openly living among them. I find it quite heartwarming.

Oh god I forgot about that, that episode didn't even make sense. I'm just joking around here. I think Chrysalis was simply more powerful than her and I don't really want to overthink it.

The "mean six" personalities never get old to me. The real mane six get some nice moments too - the part with Rainbow Dash and Applejack trying to figure out why Rarity is acting weird especially stands out, but Pinkie Pie's silliness and Twilight being a dork are always welcome, and the subplot about Rarity desperately trying to survive without all her things leads to some great moments. But the mean six really do steal the show; their bad attitudes are just so silly, and Chrysalis getting mad because she can't do anything is a blast as well. I feel like some of the mane six make questionable choices - I would like to think that Fluttershy would remember to tell her friends where she's going, for example. And I kinda wish they figured out something weird was going on, as I feel like they were too quick to turn on each other, especially given that most of them initially seemed confused by the mean six. But I think the stuff about how their friendship can survive anything is cute, and I think it's really funny that they never meet the mean six - though maybe it would be even funnier if they knew something was weird but never figured out what. In any case I still find this one delightful. Also, Starlight Glimmer MVP. My favourite Starlight moment remains "Marks for the Efforts," but I don't think I've ever found her more relatable than in this episode. Camping: it's no good.

Maybe she just got lazy because she figured Twilight would come up with something.

Nah, she didn't do that until the second time. Why would she let Discord out only to have him turned back into stone? I mean she needed to bail the mane six out at the last minute when they failed to defeat him.

Yeah that makes sense. Kinda gives a bit more meaning to Celestia's suggestion that Twilight go make some friends. Twilight thought that making friends would not help her save Equestria, but Celestia knew otherwise. Sometimes I feel like Twilight's friendships were only a means to an end, though... She always got the mane six to solve her problems. Sister lost to darkness? Get your student to make friends. Discord broke free from his magical prison? Get your student and her friends to deal with it. Grand Galloping Gala is boring? Hmm, maybe your student's weirdo friends can liven things up. (I really want to know what Celestia thought when Twilight complained about not having enough tickets. Did she immediately realize it was an opportunity to crash the Gala?)

Chrysalis just kept getting progressively sillier every time she appeared. I always thought she seemed overconfident, to the point that she repeatedly made very obvious mistakes, and then by the time season 8 rolled around the show seemed to validate that interpretation by making her completely incompetent. She gets credit simply for sticking around so long - Discord and Luna stopped being in their second appearances, but she just kept on being sinister. Chrysalis MVP. As I said in the other thread, I like Trixie more than any of the minor antagonists, but I only really started liking her when she stopped being a villain. I think Flim and Flam are my favourites; I never got sick of them like some other people did.