Aethylynn

To be fair, she has a lot of catching up to do. A lot of work was needed to establish her as a main character, and this has pretty much been accomplished. We'll probably see a bit more balance next season. I for one am looking forward to the episode. I wonder if Starlight will get jealous of Sunburst getting along so well with the other characters?

- Queen Chrysalis recurring multiple times, forming a villain arc. - More breakout for Spike. A resolution to his crush on Rarity. Deeper exploration of his relationship with Twilight. - Further exploration of secondary main 6 character traits. For example Rarity's taste for mystery novels, or Fulttershy's singing, or Applejack and the rodeo circuit. Rainbow Dash and Quibble Pants - A little bit more slapstick. - Exploration of Scootaloo's inability to fly. - Starlight developing a goal to strive for.

Dragons have a general reputation as being amongst the most fearsome opponents you will ever come across. This "leaks" into the show in terms of pony reactions. But actually, dragons are quite nerfed, being regularly shown as incompetent boneheads, easily outmaneuvered by clever ponies. And of course alicorns, Tirek and certain other characters being OP'd doesn't help.

Some ways in which Spike has developed. Life revolving around Twilight -> Independent life with own friends and interests. Self esteem issues about not being useful, and fear of being sent away -> Issues being explored and (at least partially) resolved in Season 4. Each episode about Spike adds something new to his character. That's what makes him so interesting.

It would only cause a problem if there was a character conflict between Spike and Sugar Belle, which I don't see happening since Spike tends to get along with everyone except Garble. We haven't seen much depicted of Spike's friendship with Big Mac, so I presume it has little significance in the show. This too would mean it is unlikely for a major drama to suddenly erupt over it. But then, it's up to the whim of the writers. So, who knows? Care to place some bets?

It would have been funny if they actually did take a picture.

While the show has had a lot of changes. All of the friends being together in Ponyville is one constant I do not believe will change. It will essentially amount to a main character exiting from the show, which tends to be a show killer.

It has been pointed out in other threads that all the main characters have been getting less screen time this Season. So Spike getting less is not surprising. I have said myself that Spike tends to only be around when the focus is on him or Twilight, and Twilight herself has been absent a lot this Season. I would also like point out that Spike has never been quite on the same level as the Mane 6, and hasn't had the same prominence. He is a sidekick character after all. However, after stating that, I believe that there is a shift in the dynamic occurring. I agree that Spike has been bumped from the #1 assistant slot, and that this is part of Spike breaking out, which has been happening since Season 6. Maybe they are trying to figure out how to make Spike work in this new dynamic, but I don't see any reason to think that Spike would be relegated to the background, or to not get any more episodes. There is still a lot of ground to explore with his character. Spike had one episode in Season 1 and one episode in Season 5. So this is nothing unusual. It hasn't been a major focus since Season 4, but has popped up from time to time. The latest being "Honest Apple" this season. As of this episode he is still very much enamoured with her, so the answer would be no.

Not necessarily so. This is an extract from the TV Tropes web page for "The Scrappy"

This is not actually a hijab as hijabs cover up the neck. This is really just a coat with a hoodie.

What I think the show could use is true villain arc. A villain shows up in the season opener, is a recurring antagonist throughout the season (maybe even two seasons) and defeated in the finale. All the villains in the show have been one or two shots, with no ongoing stories. As for other arcs. Discord is not fully reformed. He still keeps trying to get under Twilight's skin. Maybe he could finally get over himself and become a true good guy. Twilight could see more focus on her duties as princess. We are given hints that she does a lot, but we don't really see much other than map summons. The Remane 5 arcs are pretty much exhausted. New ones could be opened up for them, but I wouldn't know what they would entail.

I hear you. However, just because we think he should be included doesn't mean he will. I am not entirely convinced that the writers see Spike as family to Twilight. He is treated as a servant far more often than family. I have gone though the series recently and have been able to count only abut a dozen times when their interaction can be considered genuinely "familial". I am anticipating this episode with great trepidation. It will go a long way to settling the servant vs family debate. Fingers crossed for family.

All the other characters have had their story arcs completed, and what they are doing now is largely episodal in nature. However Spike's arc has just begun. It thus has the potential to become a major part of the show.

I'm going to weight in on the "no" side of this argument. The idea of a special relationship between Starlight and Spike is forced. Although they interacted in the Season Six opener, since then interaction between Starlight and Spike has been fairly superficial. I am sure that they are friends, just like Spike is friends with many ponies, but we don't see it in the show, and thus it has no plot relevance. It is possible for this to change, in the same sense that anything is technically possible. But there is no reason for it other than wishful thinking. I would consider it more plausible for it to be a Spike/Rarity episode than a Spike/Starlight one, although if it is an episode involving Spike, I would agree that Spike/Twilight is the most likely pairing.

Spike ramps up his efforts to woo Rarity. We all get to cringe as he goes from one embarrassing scenario to another. Rarity finally puts her hoof down and insists that Spike stay in the friend zone, but acknowledges that they do have something special, and thus an "uncommon bond".

One observation was how Twilight and Starlight were following Spike's lead in a lot of places. Spike often gives advice and the others even follow it, but taking the lead is a significant step in Spike's development, even if it was a screw-up.

It wasn't explicitly stated, but it makes sense. Spike is Thorax's close friend (presumably his closest within Equestria), and he came to Spike for advice. It was also Spike's befriending Thorax that got the ball rolling for the great Changeling Reformation. This is one of the more "interesting" aspects of the show. Spike is technically a child, but behaves more like an adult. His friends are all adults, and he mostly treated as a adult. He has proven that he's got what it takes. So why not? It's also been in my head canon that Celestia had intended for Spike to help improve relations between dragons and ponies, and he accomplished this 30 years ahead of schedule!

And it gives Spike an excuse to follow Rarity around.

I liked the episode. Some of what I liked Spike is an official Ambassador The map acknowledged Spike Twilight and Starlight took Spike's concerns seriously rather than getting paternal with him. Thorax changing into a bear Ember having trouble telling the difference between Twilight and Starlight. Ember eating the castle. What I didn't like? The fact that Spike didn't actually solve the problem. Thorax and Ember became friends on their own and then came back to express their displeasure at him. I was expecting a little more conflict between the two and Spike actually working to get the two to get along. Instead it was more of a "You screwed up, Spike" story. In spite of this it was a good episode, and Spike wasn't portrayed as a complete tool (he did solve several other friendship problems, which was cool). What I liked best was that this was a breakout episode for Spike. He is becoming an independent character and not just Twilight's sidekick.

Maybe visiting the gem cave is simply a regular activity that Rarity and Spike do together.

Without official word, I would also seriously doubt it. Part of the purpose of making Twilight an alicorn would be to highlight her specialness and status as the show's main character. If Starlight were to become an alicorn, she would be competing with Twilight for Most Important Character. I doubt DHX would do this. From a more in-universe perspective, becoming an alicorn is more than being strong in magic, or being good. It's about being a leader. While Starlight showed leadership in "To Where and Back Again", she doesn't come across as being princess material. Particularly since it appears she has settled in as part of Twilight's group, which would rule her out as a true leader.

I had another look at Fame and Misfortune, and it appears you are right. If this isn't a one off anomaly, then Starlight has replaced Spike as Twilight's #1 assistant. This has been a major fear of Spike throughout out the show, and it seems to have come to pass. Of course, Spike would still be expected to do the dishes, effectively demoting him to 'domestic help'. Poor Spike. I wonder if the writers will pick up on this and we'll see some episodes where Spike reacts to this change in status, or will it be ignored and we are all expected to pretend this was never an issue to being with? Considering the unpopularity of the show's handling of it in the past, I suspect it will be the latter.

The point is that Spike is Twilight's sidekick. While he has had some breakout, he is not a truly independent character. If the focus isn't specifically about him or her, Spike has very little role to play. Therefore, no Twilight = no Spike (mostly).

One possible reason is that Twilight herself has had so little screen time. In 14 episodes so far, she has only appeared in 8 of them, and one was only as a background pony. The CMC's had three episodes back-to-back, which is highly unusual. Spike has little reason to be in those. This is something I believe is overdue. We have seen many episodes focusing on various relationships, but not Spike and Twilight. They are often seen together, but as part of some other story, not about the two specifically. Fans are left to poke through the episodes to get scraps about their relationship, but there is no real meat. A true Twispike episode is what I am hoping for. I have angst about it too. The premise has a lot of potential, but can be mishandled, and thus be a major let down.

Somehow I doubt this. The association between Dr Hooves and Dr Who is fan made and only lightly nodded to in Slice of Life. I doubt the writers see the two characters as one and the same. Also, considering how gender imbalanced the show already is, I would consider changing a male character into a female one to be a bad move, even for a background character.