Something I don't understand about "The Cutie Remark part 1"

[ErisPegasus 56]

Zecora (and later Twilight) insist that even the tiniest changes in the past can have unforeseen ramifications, but barely 6 minutes into Part 1 this logic seems to break.

 

When Twilight and Spike first land in Cloudsdale, filly Rainbow Dash whooshes between them, knocking them slightly.

 

Yet up until Starlight freezes RD, the race sequence carries on EXACTLY as it did back in Season 1's flashback. From the colt knocking RD aside, to her yelling "Hey!"and zooming down, to Fluttershy falling out of the sky. Wouldn't Spike and Twilight's presence in RD's path have altered history slightly? She must have seen them standing there, since Season 4 established that she's very observant while flying. How come she still swoops in to defend Fluttershy at the right time? Wouldn't she be wondering how odd it is that an adult alicorn and a dragon are standing in the middle of the runway? Wouldn't this fact gnaw on her mind slightly, and possibly distract her while she's racing?

Unless the time travel spell makes its users invisible at some moments, and not during others. Hmm... maybe this is why Starlight and Twilight arguing during Part 2's climax doesn't change anything, despite them being in sight of the racers.

[Marimo 555]

 

 

since Season 4 established that she's very observant while flying

That's Rainbow Dash years later, not Rainbow Dash as a filly was very observant. 

 

And yeah, they didn't do enough to draw attention to themselves without all the magical fighting. Twilight had to fly right up to Rainbow Dash for her to notice she's an alicorn.

[Aurora Storm 83]

A young competitive RD is all about winning. I could see how she would be distracted compared to herself as an adult with a job adnd honed talents.

[manic 121]

Zecora (and later Twilight) insist that even the tiniest changes in the past can have unforeseen ramifications, but barely 6 minutes into Part 1 this logic seems to break.

 

When Twilight and Spike first land in Cloudsdale, filly Rainbow Dash whooshes between them, knocking them slightly.

 

Yet up until Starlight freezes RD, the race sequence carries on EXACTLY as it did back in Season 1's flashback. From the colt knocking RD aside, to her yelling "Hey!"and zooming down, to Fluttershy falling out of the sky. Wouldn't Spike and Twilight's presence in RD's path have altered history slightly? She must have seen them standing there, since Season 4 established that she's very observant while flying. How come she still swoops in to defend Fluttershy at the right time? Wouldn't she be wondering how odd it is that an adult alicorn and a dragon are standing in the middle of the runway? Wouldn't this fact gnaw on her mind slightly, and possibly distract her while she's racing?

 

Unless the time travel spell makes its users invisible at some moments, and not during others. Hmm... maybe this is why Starlight and Twilight arguing during Part 2's climax doesn't change anything, despite them being in sight of the racers.

 

Well, the episode was pretty much the Butterfly Effect, yes? (Not necessarily the movie, I mean the phenomenon/theory) 

 

So we wouldn't see much difference RIGHT THEN at that point in time, but in 15 years' time, there could be huge differences. It would take time for the small change to spiral out of control resulting in a very different future. Does that make sense?

 

Also episodes/shows like this always make me wonder: Am *I* the product of a time travel change? What if I was somebody completely different in a different altered timeline?  Nobody except the time traveler would know.

Edited February 18, 2016 by manic

[PinkiePie97 913]

When she was a filly, she probably wasn't as observant as she is now.

[sweetolebob18 728]

Probably the best explanation would be in Asimov's book The End of Eternity.  Changes have to be of a certain importance to make enough of a difference to be noticed.  That is, if (for example) Lincoln had oatmeal instead of pancakes for breakfast the day he issued the Emancipation Proclamation that would be a change.  But, would anyone even notice?

 

So, yeah, things were different because they were there (Heisenberg's Uncertainty principle) but it didn't change things enough to matter until Dash didn't make a Rainboom.