Creamy Arty

Spike has shown himself to be very intelligent and organized, something that while handy for Twilight as a student could become instrumental in her fulfilling her duties as a princess. I would like to see him permitted more autonomy. He's ready for more tasks to tackle that require him to exercise his best judgement rather than making things easier or more convenient for Twilight. He could serve as some sort of dignitary in her new castle, overseeing matters too mundane for her to deal with with constantly. Having him take some long trips on his own to the Crystal Empire or Canterlot to handle some business in Twilight's stead too. He's young, but he's competent, and should be in more of an equal role to the ponies now rather than often being subservient or simply along for the ride. If not something so official, at least have him interact with the Mane 6 as more than a yes-man or handyman, hanging out just for fun and maybe teaching them something for a change. Perhaps making new friends of his own and having some thrilling escapades with them.

Equestria Games gave me several surprises that puts it firmly in the spot of being my favorite. I'll try not to keep this short rather than a proper episode review. We all know that while Spike has a good heart, he is a bit of a braggart too. Just part of his nature as a dragon I would suppose, one which he may overcome as he grows older. This is beside the point though, just a semi-relevant, tangential thought. He started off this episode by being self-assured. Nothing wrong with that. In fact, it's a good quality for one to possess. But stage fright took over and made him choke in a vital moment, and he was rescued by a good little deed from his close friend, Twilight. It went to his head before learning the truth, and here's where I expected the episode to stay for the next 15 minutes — Spike boasting and strutting around. To my pleasant surprise, the news was quickly broken to him. My expectation was that this episode would be him bragging about something he didn't do, making a complete fool of himself, and having a number of apologies to hand out. Spike should have known better by now and so I'm delighted this wasn't the case. Long story, short: he moped around for a while instead of doing that, plagued by a low sense of self-worth rather than feeling overshadowed as he did when Owlowiscious arrived, and regained that in the end when the endangerment of his friends brought a burst of resolve which couldn't be instilled through kind words alone. He saved his friends, surprised himself with his own abilities, and was appropriately humble about it afterwards. Much better than how I envisioned things unfolding, so my own low expectations no doubt contributed to my great love of this episode. Spike ruining the Cloudsdale anthem in front of the entire stadium made me as embarrassed as I've ever been for another person, cringing the whole time. That means that it was executed perfectly. Never have I been so glad in retrospect to be vicariously humiliated. xD

How about hats with pony ears on them? No? Alright. Look above and you'll see loads of examples of when they've worn hats. I can't imagine any of them besides Applejack and Rarity wearing a hat on a regular basis. Anything I can imagine Rarity wearing would have a rather wide brim. I think she'd need it not to look silly given the size and shape of her hair. Can't envision AJ with anything other than the one she wears all the time now. Honestly though, I think she's cuter without the hat and should take it off more often.

Twilight shot him in the face once, which seemed to upset him quite a bit, then he deflected the blast rather than trying to absorb it. Tirek doesn't appear entirely impervious to magical attacks. "Aaarrrrrgh!!!" Or maybe he was simply blinded for a moment. Who knows. Most of Twilight's attacks hit him from the front. Perhaps a blow from a different angle or an indirect strike would be more effectual. After Tirek knocked Twilight through the mountain, she slammed him from above with an attack that didn't injure him but did send him careening helplessly to the ground. Chillin' Several more attacks like that may have worn him down to eventual defeat. Only one other attack gave him pause, that being when their energies met and exploded, leaving Tirek partially buried under some rubble. Sure, he shrugged it off, but it still put him down temporarily. If direct strikes didn't avail Twilight, she may have tried using some sort of magic that could detonate and throwing it at the ground beside or behind him. The force of the blasts may have done some damage over time until he couldn't fight anymore.

Several elements of these far away places we've heard tell exist beyond Equestria have made their way to the Mane 6 in some fashion. Whether it's Cerberus storming into Ponyville, Chrysalis arriving in Canterlot for her diabolical machinations, and even our beloved Zecora moving to the Everfree Forest from her mysterious homeland, we've seen but glimpses of what lies beyond. All I want is for these things to be explored in greater detail. The Mane 6 could venture forth to these places, sure, but I'd be happy enough with more elements of those lands showing up to Equestria. Whether that occurs in the form of a trip to these foreign lands, or maybe exposition from natives complete with flashbacks, or Twilight reading a few books, I don't care. Granny Smith's reminiscing took us back to the founding days of Ponyville easily enough. The same could happen from a tale told by a new visitor. No need to leave. If a writer could come up with a good reason for them to embark on such a journey besides sightseeing, maybe even something pertaining to Twilight's increasing responsibilities as a princess, I'd be cool with that. Although there are still plenty of cities mentioned that they've yet to visit in Equestria. Getting to see those places and see how culturally diverse Equestria truly is would be more interesting to me, assuming we've yet to see all there is in that regard.

I'd say Hasbro has been aware all along as well as attentive to us. This fight scene had a clear purpose and fit well within the episode. Lack of such scenes before now doesn't seem like them being clueless about us so much as they just didn't have such an opportunity with previous villains and situations. Hasbro/DHX has made it clear on several occasions that they're aware of us, through merchandise, advertisements, and tiny shout outs in the episodes themselves. And really, only now becoming aware of how large our presence is should encourage them to stay their course rather than changing things. Obviously we loved the show as it was, so it would make more sense to leave it that way. More likely they'd be trying to captivate the portion of the target demographic that's beginning to age out of it than make a nod to us. Sometimes I think they do things as much for their own amusement as that of the audience too. This adult brony actually prefers the calmer, slice of life episodes more than the action-packed ones, and I'm glad they're typically kept to premiers and finales. Hopefully this won't become something we see regularly throughout the series.

Thanks to all who voted in the Maud vs. Cheese matchup since I couldn't. I love them both too much to choose one over the other. Even so, Maud is a worthy victor. ^^

Pound and Pumpkin Cake are babies who's only purpose is to look cute and make baby noises. Baby ponies aren't cute to me and so I wouldn't want any more of them. Granted, they've not been seen too much since Baby Cakes. People seem to like them or babies in general enough that it wouldn't surprise me if they were featured prominently again at some point, but for me they just induce stress. Let's keep them to cameo appearances and the occasional mention where relevant.

They would probably have no frame of reference to form an opinion unless they've been monitoring human development for a while. I imagine our concepts of humor and morality would be foreign to them. Can't tell for certain. At the very least I'd think they would be inspired to learn more about us.

Do you realize how conflicted I am here? Maud and I share a personality to an extent, or at least I understand her very well. Cheese Sandwich is just so gregarious that I have to love him. This must be the toughest decision I've faced here...

@@FlyBunny, I forgot to mention that this thread would be better off in the Pony Merchandise board. I'm moving it there now. ^^

@Rarity Paige Belle, If you're trying to make a simple decision as to how to spend your day, or some other piddly matter, ask about it in a status update or a blog post. This sort of thing hardly warrants a thread. The time has elapsed, but I'm locking the thread anyway. Just keep this in mind for the future because the thread probably won't make it off the ground before it gets taken out.