S05:E01+02 - The Cutie Map

[Scootaloodle 1,623]

I loved it:

 

Was on the whole a good all round two episodes and I like the direction there going with the map now taking them places.

 

Kinda interesting they did a sort of dictatorship-cult episode.

 

Also Pinkie Pie was so cute and awesome and I wanted to cuddle her

[Lagrangian 64]

I was so tired last night that I forgot it was happening today (I slept for 10 hours).

 

Seemed appropriate as a socialism/communism analogy. Every attempt at such societies has failed because there's always someone who ends up creating a class disparity.

 

Not sure how I feel about Starlight Glimmer being an apparently recurring antagonist.

Bit sad we didn't get a Mane 6 song too, but those are often saved for the finale anyways.

 

Thought it was a good opener overall, it'll be nice to see the Mane 6 tackling problems all over Equestria (and hopefully even beyond it).

[Mand'alor Dash 2,224]

Actually, what makes Starlight Glimmer's "utopia" interesting, as well as her character, is that the world system of Equestria is already far more fair than global capitalism, and lacks many of its evils while staying clear of the dark side of communism. She must have some reason for wanting to rule over a population who is otherwise suppressed under the illusion of equality. I would assume she has failed to measure up to other ponies at some point in her life, but I imagine we will find out about that in due time.

 

Actually, Equestria's already been shown to have private ownership, commerce, and barely (if at all) regulated markets. It has its upper, middle, and lower classes, and a strong agricultural economy. If anything, it's a kind of ideal capitalism.

 

In fact, we don't see a whole lot of government at all outside of Canterlot. Is there even a tax system?

[smitty121325 64]

I wasn't expecting Pinkie's weight gain or the musical number, so both of those were pleasant surprises. The villain was great, the pacing was excellent, and everyone was in-character. Not to mention that there were some funny bits thrown for good measure, and Fluttershy was used better here than she was in "Magic Duel." There are only a few complaints that I have. One, why didn't Starlight cover the hole? She could've gotten to the caves a lot faster without running the risk of anyone catching her. And two, I would have liked to see Starlight get her ass kicked. When the other ponies were ganging up on her, that's the route I thought they were going to go with. But, no. She runs away to her house. Then again, this is a kids' show. Still, golden opportunity lost. And three, I was genuinely confused when the talk of Mage Metalbrook's eight enchanted items came up, especially .since there was no foresbadowing or discussion of them beforehand. Maybe this is something that will be expanded upon throughout the season, like they retrieve one of the enchanted items with each new place they go to and they have some magical power behind them like the keys and box last season.

 

I also loved how Starlight shut Twilight up in the middle of her lecture. I don't think any other villain (or the show itself) has done that before. Also, Twilight's reaction, that "whoa!" face. You just know people are going to turn that into a meme. LOL

Edited April 4, 2015 by smitty121325

[Declen 118]

 

 

world system of Equestria is already far more fair than global capitalism, and lacks many of its evils while staying clear of the dark side of communism.

That's true. The qutie marc system has allowed to fulfill something we'll never have in our world: a true socialist utopia.

 

 

I would assume she has failed to measure up to other ponies at some point

But she must be wery good in magic to do what she did. Exceptionally good, I would say.

[Pastel 7,630]

One, why didn't Starlight cover the hole? She could've gotten to the caves a lot faster without running the risk of anyone catching her.

Yeah that was a bit weird, maybe she was in too much of a hurry.

[Flutter's lover <3 8,206]

Oh wow...haven't typed out my thoughts about an episode since the Season 4 Finale...Let's see how well this goes.

 

So, we finally get to see the castle in action. It was cool, having them all sit on their respective thrones and having a magical map of Equestria pop up. Sorry, but I kinda laughed at the bit where Pinkie found her rock farm and then Spike steps on it. Though, there was no mention of the Treebrary....but I"m assuming that'll be in another episode. I loved the bit where Fluttershy said she wanted to stay with Spike, but then he mentioned about hanging with Big Mac and she immediately said she'd go with the rest of the mane 6...it kinda debunks Fluttermac. She'd rather go on a potentially dangerous journey than hang out with Spike and Big Mac.

 

So then they arrive at the Village...Which..we never really find out the name of...at least I don't remember the name of the village being mentioned. Then we meet Starlight....When I first seen Starlight with her equal cutie mark, the first thing I noticed was that she was bright, she wasn't dull and faded like all the other inhabitants of the village....It made me wonder during the entire episode, until Fluttershy found out she had been faking it that is. In the end, Liked the episode. Starlight was more an antagonist than a hardcore Villain, Like we've seen in previous season Premieres.

 

The bit with them going into the basement and meeting the other ponies that longed for their cutie marks again, were kinda funny..I mean I know I'd be like that, seeing something different after being stuck in the "sameness" they were in. Albeit, it was a bit creepy, seeing the other ponies basically molesting their cutie marks..

 

Forgot about this bit, but it was almost like they were Discorded, when they lost their cutie marks, Fluttershy couldn't communicate with animals anymore, Twilight couldn't remember things, Pinkie had the joy sucked out of her, Applejack lost her bucking power and her countryisms,I Thought that was a little funny, hearing AJ not able to make one.  Rarity seen some ugly drapes and thought they were nice, I found that hilarious.  and RD lost the ability to fly fast...They had all lost their abilities because lack of cutie mark...it was like the life had been sucked out of them. They had gone to a similar shade too, back when they were Discorded. Also when they were discorded, they had lost their special ability as well....and eventually went to the complete opposite end of their respective element spectrum.

 

 

I like how big of a part Fluttershy played in the first episode of the season. She got to show that she's not as shy of a pegasus as she was in previous seasons.I'm really hoping it carries over through Season 5. I'm glad that Fluttershy's assertiveness has carried over, which was another thing I noticed. She kept telling the others not to be rude to the townsfolk., then her telling AJ that she's almost as bad as RD. Fluttershy was just trying to be kind to the village people,afterall...it's her element, yet the others were just kinda weirded out. Yet again, her kindness from the start proved useful...She was the one that the town would believe that accepted their ways, because she was so kind from the start. She proved herself in it of being a developed character..She uncovered Starlight's plot. (in more ways than one )That she was faking her being equal and fooling all the other ponies that actually did give up their marks in favour of her for friendship..Though the bit about her talking to herself while climbing out of the chimney..I don't know, I think it goes with that she was just reassuring herself. Like how some people talk to themselves, to get their adrenaline up to do something. But hey, in the end she accomplished her task, because everyone was counting on her.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I look forward to more of Season 5.

Edited April 4, 2015 by :Flutterdash:

[Declen 118]

Actually, Equestria's already been shown to have private ownership, commerce, and barely (if at all) regulated markets. It has its upper, middle, and lower classes, and a strong agricultural economy. If anything, it's a kind of ideal capitalism.

 

In fact, we don't see a whole lot of government at all outside of Canterlot. Is there even a tax system?

Yet, it also has some strong socialistic (or rather eco-socialistic) elements, like communal labor: winter wrap up or tornado duty.

[Foliha 395]

Yikes!  The Stepford Ponies...  Creeeepy.  But once again, Pinkie disproves the idea that she's a dope.  She knew it was all a sham! 

[ShyPie 164]

This was a great opener. Thanks sweet Celestia the show is back! A quick list of what I liked:

 

Rainbow Dash: "We collected the keys, defeated Tirek and got a sweet castle."

The super creepiness of everypony in that town.

The song, the song! "you cannot have a nightmare, if you never dream"

Starlight Glimmer cutting that pony's hair

Rainbow Dash's face with "everyone wins"

Pinkie when she's super suspicious

The fact that muffins were the only thing on the menu, great nod to Derpy and the fandom.

AJ and "countryisms"

 

More developed thoughts. It was interesting that Starlight Glimmer seemed to see herself as a genuine alternative for harmony and friendship to Twilight. I want to know why she wants this so. It can't just that she wants everypony else to be less than her, because she got quite riled up proclaiming that she brought about harmony and friendship, it's something that clearly means a lot to her. I'm willing to bet 2 bits she got burnt in the past by friends who thought they were better than her.

 

It was worrying how much Fluttershy seemed to be taken in by it all. At times she's been all too easily to manipulate and succumb to the power of suggestion/peer pressure, she's got a real naivite that her character needs to fight against and grow out of. She is more than capable of this as we saw before that she was the only one who didn't fall for Discord's lies when he first met them. I think there's a real danger of Fluttershy being led astray further down the line this season, but that could hopefully at least set up a chance for her to grow out of it by overcoming it.

 

I really want to see what Spike and Big Mac got up to over those couple days. Hoofball!

[takai 1,060]

This part though. Twilight= Wrekt

 

[Wardaddy 470]

I think its an intended story thing. Like, destiny saw fit to give 3 or more unicorns similar names and paths in life, discovering the nuances of friendship. One arrogantly Imposed her viewpoints and hid from criticism, another found refuge in oppressive bullying, and one got it right and ascended. For all we know, there may be more of them out there.

I've been thinking the same thing for a while now. Twilight, Sunset and Starlight may not be related, but the Creator (MLP's version of God in my headcanon) made a plan for those whose names correlated to a shining light (Sparkle/Shimmer/Glimmer) and tasked them with the life mission to individually discover the aforementioned nuances of friendship and teach it to others accordingly. However, in relation with something very common in life, they each went about it in different ways based on their experiences.

 

I imagine Starlight lived a hard life as a filly. A life where she tried to make friends, but was forced to endure bullying not for the lack of a cutie mark, but rather for a cutie mark that her bullies believed would not serve her well in the future, bragging and boasting about how theirs were superior to hers. This left Starlight scarred with the belief that if ponies were different, some would be better than others, giving rise to the philosophy that she would only find proper friendship if everypony was equal. Thus when she became a pony of Twilight's age, she ran away to Nonameville (the town in the episode) and convinced the villagers that if they were equal and worked together, their town would prosper and enjoy a peaceful existence.

 

Sunset, meanwhile, lived a normal life as a filly. i assume before she became Celestia's student, she was a good pony, kind and friendly to others, and equally as talented in the arcane as Twilight, which obviously caught Celestia's attention. However, she became overly confident, to the point of being brash, egotistical, condescending and just plain bad, not to mention gaining a lust for power. Cue the comics, when her personality takes control. Personally, I would chalk her up to being impatient.

 

As for Twilight, well, she did everything right. She became Celestia's student, succeeded where Sunset failed, defeated Nightmare Moon, repelled Discord and assisted in the victory over the Changelings. She would then go on to fix the spell Starswirl couldn't, becoming an alicorn and princess, thereby fulfilling her destiny. Before long, she would go head-to-head against the fearsome Tirek and put an end to Starlight's rule over Nonameville. Besides all that, she learned some very important lessons about friendship, while in the process forming a circle of five very trustworthy ponies and never giving up, even when things looked bleak.

 

Of course, that can't be all of them. Perhaps the Creator intended to make some disciples of Starswirl? Who knows for sure.  All I know is that Twilight may have found herself a rival in Starlight, and this season will finish with a battle between the two ponies with their respective philosophies at stake.

[Mand'alor Dash 2,224]

Yet, it also has some strong socialistic (or rather eco-socialistic) elements, like communal labor: winter wrap up or tornado duty.

 

That would imply some form of government (or community, in the former's case) effort. However, that seems to be the extent of it.

[~ Dr. Ocsid ~ 690]

I am using Internet Explorer at the moment, and Quoting doesn´t work with that.

 

Oh, you can always move a character down a bit by adding some better character to the lists. Turn a top ten into a top eleven, and place ten will move one down.

[Chaton 3,765]

Commence the shipping huh? 

 

There is Pinkie x Party Favor. The names are a given

 

Pinkie x The muffin pony after she gets over the muffins

 

Pinkie x that cupcake pony. That's a given

 

Fluttershy x Party Favor. So many givens.

 

Snowboard pony x Starlight Glimmer. They seem to have some interesting history.

 

Rainbow Dash x that one Pegasus: They look similar.

Much sense has been made this day.

[Prince Firemane 309]

I loved the episodes, they were much more down-to-earth and still had depth. They didn't try to be anything more than they were, it was all Starlight's game and she was just a regular pony, no superpowered manipulation or possession; just a regular pony and her ambitions. I noticed that they stepped up the animation a bit, with newer kinds of facial expressions and new magic effects. As I mentioned earlier, I loved the shout-out to Neon Genesis Evangelion.

[GoGreenGirl 239]

I enjoyed this episode. It seemed more 'real' than the other two parters. And Starlight Glimmer, in my opinion, is one of the most terrifying villains in the MLP universe. She looks just like a normal unicorn, yet she can strike fear into ponies much more than past villains. The song 'In Our Town', was a nice touch to the episode. It works with setting perfectly. And I got chills when I heard the stanza '"You can't have nightmares if you never dream." And the expressions on the ponies were flawless (*cough*PinkiePie*cough*).

Can't wait to see the future episodes.

[AlbaTross 1,586]

Actually, Equestria's already been shown to have private ownership, commerce, and barely (if at all) regulated markets. It has its upper, middle, and lower classes, and a strong agricultural economy. If anything, it's a kind of ideal capitalism.

 

In fact, we don't see a whole lot of government at all outside of Canterlot. Is there even a tax system?

You're partially right. There were older world systems that had some of the staples of capitalism, but without sucking out the soul of humanity. Of course, I think most of those systems made up for that with class relations adversely affecting all exchanges including buying and selling whereas Equestria is more fair in that regard.

 

What makes capitalism tick is less money exchange and just having private ownership and more the degree of power those with private ownership have when they have ownership of the means of production. Essentially, those individuals control the market, and that's why large corporations rule our world, and those who are in charge of those companies are known as the Bourgeois. Equestria favors small business owners, who are known as the Petit Bourgeois, and while we have seen a rise of small business, especially with the rise of the Internet, corporations still rule the world we live in whereas small business owners are more common in Equestria.

 

The thing with small business owners is that they have fewer if any employees, which greatly reduces the number of Proletariate. The market is also more open and exchanges are more at the discretion of those selling wares, allowing for buyers to haggle and ultimately leading to a higher likelihood of both parties being satisfied with the transaction.

Edited April 4, 2015 by Tross

[mars 4,862]

The episodes were amazing! I tried so hard not to spoil myself on anything season five related. Just when I was going to break.. the new episodes came out! It was so well worth the wait. I got to see everything as it happened, and even though I still figured out the plot really quick, it was awesome to watch everything play out.

 

I love the whole concept of the episodes, for starters. It gave me a strong Animal Farm vibe (all ponies are equal, but some are more equal than others). The characters were all really awesome- Sugar Belle was a total sweetheart. She's my favorite from the minor characters in this episode. One thing I also really liked was how... It was slightly dark.

 

The ponies pretty much go to a cult, where everyone is forced to be equal. The leader is this charismatic pony who has no trouble locking ponies away in a shed until they behave. Starlight Glimmer is an incredible villain, and I think one reason I like her so much is because she's so... Normal. She's not this extreme big bad like Discord or Tirek or Chrysalis. No. She's just a regular pony. It goes to show that anypony can be a villain. You don't have to want to bring chaos or rule Equestria to be a strong, dangerous villain. Another thing I like about this episode is the fact that she wasn't reformed. I was hoping she wouldn't get a quick two minute explanation on friendship and make a heel face turn. I also love that she got away. Maybe we'll see her in the season finale?

 

I think all the mane six were at their strongest in terms of characterization, I love the expressions that happened in this episode. Like Pinkie having to eat all those muffins. Poor Pinks, but the face you made was classic. I couldn't stop giggling. One thing did confuse me though. Why did Applejack lose her countryisms? That's not what her cutie mark represents- it's how she was raised. Even filly Applejack with no cutie mark acted that way.

 

(And that song was absolutely incredible. "You can't have nightmares if you don't have dreams." Ooh, brought chills to my spine.)

[Batbrony 16,055]

Also, this is awesome:

 

WWII propaganda... you know, for kids

 

Oh great, now I can't help but think that this might've served as inspiration! 

 

 

Fun fact: that was an actual Nazi propaganda song during WWII.  -_-

[~Flash Brush~ 313]

It was awesome!!!! I have never had so much hype for two episodes in my entire life!!!!!!

[The Nth Doctor 662]

The dark blue pegasus pony should be named Crescent Descent or something...

 

All in all, a very enjoyable start to the season

[Admiral Regulus 2,769]

You know, there's something I find rather interesting here.
 

Each one of us has something special
That makes us different, that makes us rare

We have a light that shines within us
That we were always meant to share

And when we come together
Combine the light that shines within
There is nothing we can't do
There is no battle we can't win

When we come together
There'll be a star to guide the way
It's inside us every day

That there is some serious foreshadowing.

[rpc8169 238]

You know, there's something I find rather interesting here.

 

 

Each one of us has something special

That makes us different, that makes us rare

 

We have a light that shines within us

That we were always meant to share

 

And when we come together

Combine the light that shines within

There is nothing we can't do

There is no battle we can't win

 

When we come together

There'll be a star to guide the way

It's inside us every day

 

That there is some serious foreshadowing.

 

Good catch! I wonder if that was done on purpose...

[mipster 19]

I loved the episode, I missed MLP and i would have taken almost anything for the premier only for the show to return

what really surprised my is the fact that magic can interact with cutiemarks

i mean, we've been thought that cutiemark magic is special and unicorns magic cannot interact with it, but apparently you can remove a cutiemark and store it in a bottle, and the default cutiemark is an equal sign

it was the easy way to explain this, a suggestion that came up with on the spot is instead of making it so the unicorns magic is capable of removing a cutiemark, the magic stuff is able to, we can even say that it is the 8th magical item, and he was forgotten

they could've thought of a better name for the stuff too, "The Wand of Sameness"? really?

and by the way, why did the kids had the cutiemarks? dont they need to discover their cutiemark before they change it?

 

 

its a very messy comment, i know

I'm new to forums, hope ill get better at it