TheTrueMelissa

Sure! Come one, come all. I'll see if I can figure out how to set up a watch party. I think Zoom has a way, and most people have that already.

I like this one. Rarity's dithering is believable, and I understand how she got sucked gradually into lying. One dubious thing is how the wealthy ponies are, almost throughout, portrayed as unbearable snobs. Given how they speak, it's understandable that Rarity assumes they will look down on her friends. It's all solved in the end, though. It's a nice touch that Fancypants turns out to be a decent pony who likes her "charmingly rustic" friends just fine. The problem was always in Rarity's mind.

Yeah, it's a two-parter. I think they all are. A few days, you say? So maybe Thursday evening?

I love this one. It intrigues me that Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were special cases for Discord. The others were tempted into expressing the opposite of their designated Elements, but Discord didn't even try to turn Rainbow Dash disloyal -- instead, he leveraged a competing loyalty by telling her Cloudsdale needed her more. Somehow this still worked. I guess it counted as disloyalty because real Clousdale was fine. He tried to tempt Fluttershy, but it just didn't work. She's just too sweet and kind to resent her friends for any reason, so in the end he just concussed her with the curse.

This is one of my least favorite episodes, because Flim and Flam don't seem that bad to me. Their machine works perfectly: it's faster than doing it by hand, and the cider is just as good according to the ponies. They're presented as if they were scam artists, but it's not a scam. During the contest, Applejack's family is losing. Applejack was wrong about being able to keep up with the machine. Her boast was incorrect, and so they are losing, and so they cheat. They clear it with the judge and even with Flim and Flam, so it's technically allowed, but it's still changing the rules because Applejack is losing. Flim and Flam lower their ingredient filter to keep up, but we've already seen evidence that they are faster at producing cider which is at least as good. They should have won. They told the truth and did everything they said they'd do. We're expected to hate them because of their personalities, not their actions, which seems like a dubious message. The apple cider shortage, which has been going on for years now, will remain unsolved. 🤷

How about a watch party for the S2 finale? Maybe they'll let us list it as an event.

I was originally thinking of a marathon, but I'm already well into S2. A watch party sounds fun. Do you know how to set one up? I've never done it, but it's probably not that hard these days.

How dangerous is Ponyville, anyway? I'm four and a half minutes into the episode, and Dash has prevented four separate tragedies. What happens when Rainbow Dash is sick? 😂

I just rewatched this, and I believe it's one of the first which goes above a simple children's show. The lesson here is relatively complex. Most kids' programming pushes "be yourself and "express yourself" and other simple individualist messages. This episode asks kids to consider that, when Rarity makes a dress for e.g. Applejack, Applejack's clothes are also Rarity's work. It's not just about the pony wearing it, and furthermore, Rarity was right about what sorts of gowns would go over well. Maybe expertise does matter.

I'm also in my 50s, though I'm a woman. I watched the show with my son when it was new, and I'm rewatching it now. As I revisit the fandom, I'm finding less volume but more quality. There's much less fanfic being posted to fimfiction.net, for instance, but most of it is at least decent. In the old days, the stuff worth reading was hard to find in all the crap. The discussion right here, too, is fairly thoughtful. People think about what they're saying, and they post analyses and critical essays instead of just quips and quick takes.

I'm reentering S2 as well! Boy, I really breezed through S1.

I like this episode because it's the first appearance of Trixie, whom I like. She certainly seems boastful here, but as Espy puts it, Trixie is on Trixie's stage. The grandiosity is part of her act, and given that it's clearly and explicitly an act on a stage, it's kind of dopey for Snips and Snails to expect her to replicate it offstage. Then again, they are dopes. Twilight's arc is a little odd. She misinterprets her friends' dislike of Trixie's grandiosity as dislike of Trixie's power. I guess she learns to use her abilities to benefit others, without boasting. The first season isn't my favorite because it was aimed straight at children. The basics were there, which is why adults got interested in the first place, but IMO it becomes more compelling as it develops into a true family show.

I've been a Rarity fan in the past, but right now I'm appreciating Rainbow Dash more. They're all fun, of course.

I just joined. Yesterday, I came across some old fanfic from Ghost of Heraclitus (which I highly recommend). It made me want to watch the show again -- is it ever a bad time for sweet, innocent friendship? I'd rather join a forum with real fans than cruise through some Facebook group or subreddit which is mostly memes and nonsense. I'm glad to be here. Would anyone like to rewatch with me? I just rewatched the pilot, but I'll wait a bit before proceeding if anyone would like to rewatch me.