Season 2 Episode 22. My thoughts on Fluttershy...*sigh* [SPOILER]

[MrJK 399]

Ok, in the most recent episode, fluttershy is needed to make the funnel to carry the water, blah, blah,blah. Now, the reason im making this topic is to share my most recent feelings with fluttershy in this episode. This time, she was to afraid to help RD in the funnel thingy. Through out the whole episode, she cried, and whined, and felt sorry for herself.

 

Now, up until this point ive always liked her. But this time i think they took it too far. Her shyness can only be a plot device for so long and honestly this time her being like that just annoyed me. It just seemed all she cared about was herself and cried and whined the whole time. It was to the point where it was really bothering me.

 

In the end, of course, she pulled out and helped, surprise surprise, but, once again, in the future im sure she'll be back to her old self (Which, dont get me wrong, i like. And, i did like the episode.) Anyway, to get my point across in a sentence. I thought near the middle when she ran away and cried to herself, just really annoyed me.

 

And i do know im gonna get hate for this, just sharing my opinion.

[Page.Turner 940]

I took it differently. Having BEEN bullied as a kid, there are honestly things I don't do today because I'm very self conscious.

 

In Fluttershy's case, she had stage fright and ever since she was made fun of she just hasn't had the confidence to do something while a crowd is watching. If you notice, no one was making fun of her but she said that they were laughing at her because her insecurities made her believe they were all judging her.

 

It wasn't she was shy, it was she had to realize that it didn't matter what anyone else thought of her and it didn't matter if anyone laughed at her. She just needed confidence, and the opposite of confidence isn't shyness.

[Chattershy 2]

I can understand that. It did seem a little off and even out of character for her. But the montage and insight into their weather mechanics made up for it imo.

[Key Gear 6,663]

Well, I mean, at the end of the day, we have to keep in mind the target audience of the show. They can only do so much with characters and character development within a 22 minute timeframe without flying too far over the heads of the show's target demographic. With that said, I really didn't mind Fluttershy's behavior throughout the episode.

 

It's just like SkySong says above me, Fluttershy had a type of stage fright. She was mocked for failing to measure up to similar standards as the rest of her classmates in flight school, and she still felt the horrible feeling of coming up short. It wasn't so much that she was concerned with herself as it was that she did not want to fail again. Fear of failure is a very understandable emotion.

 

I actually like that they held off on having her "come to the rescue" until the very, very end. That made it more believable to me, because she had told RD earlier in the episode that she could only fly well when it was an emergency. (I'm paraphrasing here, I do not think those were her words exactly.)

 

I guess I can understand how you were annoyed when she ran away during the middle of the episode. I too was a little annoyed by her repeated failings to come through when her friends needed her, but, then, within the context of the episode, I thought that it made sense. She just had a really, really serious fear of failure.

[halcyonharlot 372]

I don't think it goes back on her character development at all. Shy's stage fright issues are deeply rooted, man. It was very clear how badly they affected her. I'm no psychiatrist, but in my experince you can't just get over things that severe so easily.

 

And she didn't spend the entire episode feeling sorry for herself. Fluttershy made multiple attempts to try and get over her fear for her friend's sake. Her fear just kept getting the better of her. But in the end she buckled down and pushed through all those awful feelings. That's admirable as hell, man.

Edited March 24, 2012 by spicydetective

[Fghik 360]

but it was soooooo cute!

 

Yeah...That's awful! BOO! BAD FLUTTERSHY! NO DESSERT AFTER DINNER!

Edited March 24, 2012 by Fghik

[Akemi Homura 7,680]

I took it differently. Having BEEN bullied as a kid, there are honestly things I don't do today because I'm very self conscious.

 

In Fluttershy's case, she had stage fright and ever since she was made fun of she just hasn't had the confidence to do something while a crowd is watching. If you notice, no one was making fun of her but she said that they were laughing at her because her insecurities made her believe they were all judging her.

 

It wasn't she was shy, it was she had to realize that it didn't matter what anyone else thought of her and it didn't matter if anyone laughed at her. She just needed confidence, and the opposite of confidence isn't shyness.

 

I agree with this. She was bullied and all for being pathetic at flying, and she finally proved her worth in this episode near the end, by rising to the occasion. That is called being clutch and performing well under pressure... when you think that everybody is against you, and then you suddenly burst out and bedazzle everyone.

 

Essentially, she overcame the bullies. I don't think she'll be as shy as later on in the show.

[Cadence Sparkle 102]

I took it differently. Having BEEN bullied as a kid, there are honestly things I don't do today because I'm very self conscious.

 

In Fluttershy's case, she had stage fright and ever since she was made fun of she just hasn't had the confidence to do something while a crowd is watching. If you notice, no one was making fun of her but she said that they were laughing at her because her insecurities made her believe they were all judging her.

 

It wasn't she was shy, it was she had to realize that it didn't matter what anyone else thought of her and it didn't matter if anyone laughed at her. She just needed confidence, and the opposite of confidence isn't shyness.

 

exactly thank you

[Page.Turner 940]

I agree with this. She was bullied and all for being pathetic at flying, and she finally proved her worth in this episode near the end, by rising to the occasion. That is called being clutch and performing well under pressure... when you think that everybody is against you, and then you suddenly burst out and bedazzle everyone.

 

Essentially, she overcame the bullies. I don't think she'll be as shy as later on in the show.

 

Exactly! She gathered up her courage and made the choice to do by herself, not what others think! C:

[Inactive01 5,299]

This was key to Fluttershy's development. I went like this :( :( when I saw her cry like that. She learned to overcome her fears and have confidence in herself, something she clearly was lacking throughout the whole series up to this point. Before this, Fluttershy was able to fly strong without anyone noticing or was motivated into doing it. In this case, she needed the will to fly with confidence and strength.

[Twi Rubix 726]

I see where you're getting that idea, and I kind of agree that her shyness is like a plot device for some episodes, But I personally think Fluttershy's Season 2 episodes are about her overcoming her shyness, and being stronger, like this weeks episode and Putting Your Hoof Down.

[Pumpkinbot 69]

TL;DR, it wasn't about her being shy, it was about her getting over her stage fright.

Edited March 24, 2012 by Pumpkinbot

[Cloud_Jumper_189 56]

Completely supported FS's decision to go cry under a tree. It was completely in character, and her still being scared is a lot more realistic than her being instantaneously cured of all her problems in one episode, so of course she'll be back to her old ways by next episode; stands to reason, as that's been her character all along. They aren't gonna just go and change that. I mean, think about the first time you met FS, with her being too afraid to even speak to Twilight. I hope they never change her- I love her adorable, frightened self

[Spider Man 186]

I haven't seen it yet, But by description it sounds similar to the iron will episode. : o

[MrJK 399]

Completely supported FS's decision to go cry under a tree. It was completely in character, and her still being scared is a lot more realistic than her being instantaneously cured of all her problems in one episode, so of course she'll be back to her old ways by next episode; stands to reason, as that's been her character all along. They aren't gonna just go and change that. I mean, think about the first time you met FS, with her being too afraid to even speak to Twilight. I hope they never change her- I love her adorable, frightened self

 

Well i dont want her to change, the point i was making was that this episode she went over the top. I think (And this is from memory) She has only cried one other time in the entire show. I looked at her as a SHY person, not a pansy who can't handle herself.

[FLARE 952]

I--I have to agree with you...

this is why we don't get so many fluttershy episodes... if we had more, I would have gotten sick and bored of it, unless fluttershy goes out of character, which is worse because its inconsistency.

its pretty much the same thing over again...sorta.

[Twiliscael 3,960]

I completely agree with you, DJ. I used to like her but they put WAAAAY too much emphasis on her being afraid of EVERYTHING than they do on her changing/correcting her problems. The rest of the mane 6 have changed and overcome their past ways, even if only a little.

[Southern Belle 6]

I took it differently. Having BEEN bullied as a kid, there are honestly things I don't do today because I'm very self conscious.

 

In Fluttershy's case, she had stage fright and ever since she was made fun of she just hasn't had the confidence to do something while a crowd is watching. If you notice, no one was making fun of her but she said that they were laughing at her because her insecurities made her believe they were all judging her.

 

It wasn't she was shy, it was she had to realize that it didn't matter what anyone else thought of her and it didn't matter if anyone laughed at her. She just needed confidence, and the opposite of confidence isn't shyness.

 

And this is why I enjoyed today's episode. It showed that bullying can hurt, and yes, in time you can overcome anything and people aren't always going to bully you.

[Comet Tail 808]

Well i dont want her to change, the point i was making was that this episode she went over the top. I think (And this is from memory) She has only cried one other time in the entire show. I looked at her as a SHY person, not a pansy who can't handle herself.

Characiture characters; take an aspect of the character and blow it somewhat out of proportion to make the characters stand out more. It's not bad writing; Charles Dickens did this in his stories, for example. It enriches the character interactions and makes the story more interesting.

 

You could fight to not "go over the top", and make it as realistic as possible, but then you'd get a snapshot of everyday life, and it would be very boring to most audiences. Fiction is a somewhat concentrated and/or enriched reality, you have to make things more concentrated/enriched.

 

This episode wasn't "over the top" at all IMO. This is something, socially speaking, that is extremely realistic. Far more exotic and extreme things happen in reality, and fiction generally takes the extremes of reality or past, so this was extremely socially realistic, IMO.

 

Now, physics-wise, I'm not so sure how realistic it is, but they did a pretty good job with a lot of things. I'm really glad they seriously depicted the force needed as being tremendous, it would be!

 

EDIT: In reply, It's not just being shy; being shy goes hand-in-hand with lacking aggression. Fluttershy is pretty much entirely devoid of aggression (unless in defense of her BFF's). Being timid to crowds goes hand-in-hand with being shy. And seriously, we all fall victim to our feelings at some time or other, and being timid/shy has always been Fluttreshy's weakness, making her extremely vulnerable to falling victim to that. But great ending, I absolutely love the part where she imagines them laughing again, while flying in the tornado, but finally manages to overcome her feelings and weakness! Great episode!

Edited March 25, 2012 by EASA - Dr. Braun

[Inky Milk 78]

I actually think this is very different from Putting Your Hoof Down, and in the best possible way as I wasn't all too happy with that episode. Being a doormat is VERY different from having poor self esteem. Sometimes they coincide, but they can mean very different things. I know some people who have fantastic self esteem, but are so wrapped up in helping others they often remain quiet and let themselves 'become a doormat' when they need to be more assertive. Yet this episode was addressing a different issue entirely, and one I think that reaches out on many different levels to all viewers since being bullied is sadly becoming such a common occurrence. Learning to be happy and confident in who you are doesn't necessarily mean one has be assertive (though it helps), rather it means finding your inner peace. So I personally do feel Fluttershy has learned two completely different lessons in this episode from the last.

 

That aside, I do admit to a personal sadness of not seeing a bit more development with the other pegasus as my own inner fangirl had so hoped, but I suppose that's to be expected with pretty much all background ponies.

[Roflmeow 5]

Being bullied myself when I was younger, I can feel for Fluttershy and totally understand why she was acting the way she did. (I thought the animals cheering her up was SO cute!) Just like Inky Milk said, I believe both FS episodes have two different personalities and feelings FS has had to overcome and achieve. FS is my favorite pony for a reason, one because I can see myself being her.

 

And I'm not trying to be mean at all whatsoever, but when you called her a "pansy" I kind of find it inappropriate because like someone else has said, this show is of course intended for a girl audience, especially younger girls who go through SO MANY personal identity and self-etseem issues every day. Calling the way she acted a pansy is totally wrong and mean.

[cuteycindyhoney 13,307]

I liked how Fluttershy overcame her insecurities in this episode. I didn't like how that stuck up bitch Spitfire didn't lend a wing when she was so obviously needed. Even if she was there as a judge while the Ponyville Pegasi tried to break the record, having eight ponies out sick ended that. It turned into an emergency situation when it became obvious that they had too little power to raise the column of water. She just stood her ground and watched them fail when her input would have been enough for them to at least do their job. They wouldn't have broken Fillydelphia's record, but at least Cloudsville would have had water enough to make the much needed rain.

 

Say in our world, there was a contest of amateur life guards pretending to go out and save a crowd of people from a pretend rip-tide. A famous award winning life guard is there as judge. Eight of the guards called out sick, but the show must go on. Suddenly, the rip-tide is real, and people are in serious danger of drowning. The famous life guard just stands and watches as the amateurs struggle and try to save the people, but there aren't enough of them to do the job. Shouldn't he be helping?

 

I think the ending would have been better if Spitfire jumped to the challenge and helped, but the power still fell just short of the minimum. Fluttershy then could have saved the day when adding her power pushed them over the limit and they shipped the water. I did not like them making Spitfire so callus that she'd just stand and watch ponies fail at their important task.

 

 

(Shipping water? You'd need a hoof held massaging shower-head for that! I know of what I speak!)

Edited March 25, 2012 by cuteycindyhoney

[PaganPony 92]

Her reluctance and shyness can easily get on ones nerves after a while, and I'll give you that one...

 

But think about kids who are watching the show that are really like that (albeit, to a lesser extent) and relate to her. I've suffered from social anxiety since elementary school, and literally, I'm more afraid of being judged, laughed at, and embarrassed than I am of death.

As exaggerated as that sounds, it's true.

 

When she was trying to help, but kept hearing other ponies laugh at her in her mind, I related to her so much at that moment. I have let fear of embarrassment or failure keep me from doing what I need to do so many times in my own life, and seeing her overcome that and make a huge difference in the end, despite her fear, it just really touched me.

 

And yes, she will go back to being shy and reluctant and scared as always. People don't always change because of one triumph, and I can confirm that personally. I'm in a performance group, and I always pull through, and the show goes great, but the next day I'm back to trembling and blushing and stuttering when a stranger speaks to me.

I think it's only realistic. I know it might be hard to relate to, and even annoying if you don't experience it yourself, but that's why there's a pony for every type of person. We can all relate to a pony, some more than others.

I think some ponies need to be a little exaggerated, and even sometimes annoying, because it balances out the other personalities beautifully, which I think really compliments the series as a whole.

 

tl;dr Fluttershy is shy for a reason, and I relate to her a lot.