What would happen if one of the Mane 6 had a cutie map-related friendship problem?

[SaburoDaimando 1,196]

This is something that's been playing in my head since a Royal Problem aired in Canada.  But what would happen if one of the Mane 6 wound up having a Friendship Problem that requires the Cutie Map, as well as another pony willing to solve the problem?

One example I had was involving Twilight.  What if she had her own Friendship Problem(Mainly her stress) that requires another pony(Ex: Starlight Glimmer) to help her out on?

[Will Guide 21,325]

@SaburoDaimando

Twilight's already been paired up with another pony on a Cutie Map mission. Twice! With Fluttershy in Season 5 (Hooffields and McColts) and Rainbow Dash in Season 6 (Top Bolt).

The map has always sent a pair of ponies out together. 

This question has already been asked and answered!

Edited May 22, 2017 by WiiGuy2014

[ggg-2 3,550]

5 minutes ago, WiiGuy2014 said:

@SaburoDaimando

Twilight's already been paired up with another pony on a Cutie Map mission. Twice! With Fluttershy in Season 5 (Hooffields and McColts) and Rainbow Dash in Season 6 (Top Bolt).

The map has always sent a pair of ponies out together. 

This question has already been asked and answered!

No, they mean what if a member of the Mane 6 was the one with the friendship problem?

[Will Guide 21,325]

25 minutes ago, ggg-2 said:

No, they mean what if a member of the Mane 6 was the one with the friendship problem?

Twilight already went through her own friendship problem in "What About Discord?" where she got jealous of the fact her friends hanged out with Discord all weekend and didn't want to admit the fact!

[Truffles 2,033]

10 minutes ago, WiiGuy2014 said:

Twilight already went through her own friendship problem in "What About Discord?" where she got jealous of the fact her friends hanged out with Discord all weekend and didn't want to admit the fact!

Also in P.P.O.V. where 3 of the Mane 6 had a friendship problem. Spike and Twilight to the rescue!

[The Nth Doctor 652]

Isn't that basically what "Fluttershy Leans In" "Applejack's Day Off" and other Mane 6-centered episodes are?

They just cut out the Cutie Map bits to save screentime 

[Megas 27,063]

Lost Treasure of Griffonstone kinda fills that quota. Always figured the friendship problem was mending RD and Gilda's friendship

[cuteycindyhoney 13,283]

I'd like it to be something like the map sends AJ on a solo mission. She looks at the map and she whips off her hat to wipe beads of sweat form on her brow.

"Oh Crab-apples. That, that there is where HE lives!"

Aj then has to confront somepony, possibly an ex-Somepony Special from her past, and set right what caused them to have a drastic falling out.

[cmarston1 5,951]

Then I guess it would be up to other characters like either Starlight or the CMC to solve the problem instead.

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 40,274]

It would be interesting to see one of the mane 6 have some sort of friendship problem and then have an outside pony who we have not seen before be drawn to the Cutie Map thanks to the whole cutie mark beeping service. I am thinking either AJ or Pinkie Pie with the problem for that episode, it would be an interesting change of pace and a good way to introduce a new character. Kinda writes itself actually. 

[Zel 56]

Well it would be a bit weird kinda in a narrative standpoint but also about this story could work.

If one random pony in Equestria has his flank blinking how will he know to go to Twillight's castle to receive a mission and discover that he need to help one of the Mane 6 without any previous knowledge of the map and what it is all about ? So the only person who could potentialy be called by the map would be characters who already have knowledge of the map and could come right away like some people in Ponyville, some people a bit more far away with knowledge of the map (Discord, the royal Sisters...) or people related to the map episode which could have learned about the map existence during the M6 rescue mission (Flim and Flam, the Hoofields and McColt, Coco, Vapor etc...). If the pony isn't one of this category it would be highly difficult to explain how they managed to understand the all blinking flank thing and where to go.

For a narrative standpoint now. If the pony called is an inhabitant of Ponyville it would be much faster and cleaner to write the story without the map which is a cool device to make some ponie go out of their ways in distant lands to help but consume time out of the episode for nearly nothing if the pony called is a Ponyville pony to help in Ponyville. There is much faster and efficient way to make Ponyville ponies interract than using the map as a plot device.

A random pony we don't know coming help would also be a very weird thing to do since the episode would need to introduce this new character during the episode. Moreover just introducing him would be not enough : if the map called him the episode should explain why and so flesh out the character a all lot to make him a believable character who could help and explain why any of the cast member couldn't replace him in this role. The only solution for this to work would be to keep this out of nowhere character for a bit much longer than one episode to flesh him out and give him a propre treatment before he could help a M6 member with the problem he was called upon. But what would be weird since MLP is very episodic and I don't think a lot of fan would really welcome a new "recurent character" after Starlight case.

The map episodes work because we know the ponies helping and know about their psychology so when they make the right call or use previous lessons to resolve a conflict it's seems natural because we saw them grow and understands their actions. Even Starlight in Royal Problem resolve the problem by being herself. If a random pony come how would we know what he is and why he was the perfect pony for the job ?

So in the end the only character who could coming to help one of the M6 member would be characters like Discord or the Royal sisters (but here again there are much more efficient way to drag them into resolving some sort of conflict in Ponyville, even if I kinda wanna see Discord being called by the map to let him apply what he learnt so far about friendship) or the previous characters needing help from the map and having knowledge of it which would a very cool idea I think to have some them kinda like given the change for what the M6 did for them...