What is up with Celestia?

[smk.png 181]

Celestia was one of the most powerful alicorns since episode one. While Twilight defeats every single villain, while Celestia sits around doing, well, only she knows what. 

[The Grobien 58]

She must be on a break. Maybe has a schedule.

[Rhythm Red 6,484]

This is one of those things the fandom brings up time and time again. It really is a good question, though. My best guess would be that she wants twilight to learn from those experiences. I dunno if you’ve watched season 3’s premiere, but that should help explain.  

[Adderbane 121]

Celestia's been defending Equestria for the past millennium and then some.  I think she's earned a break for a century or so, especially now that there are three other adult alicorns to deal with things.

The issue is a matter of writing and worldbuilding, and not something that is easily solvable.  A lot of franchises have scenarios where a powerful character inexplicably takes the back seat.  But if Celestia solved everything, we'd have no story.  Really the only thing we can do is accept that since this is a kids show, it's inevitably going to fall short in subtlety and complexity.

[King of Canterlot 9,603]

It's because Celestia knows that Twilight will pretty much be able to defeat any villain with the power of friendship with her friends. She can just.............. let Twilight take care of the problem  

[Ganondorf8 11,395]

Celestia might not look like it but she is more than capable of defending Equestria from the threats that well, threaten it. She has more than earned a chance to kick back a little and allow the younger generation of ponies to handle their problems, and yet she taught Twilight what she needed to do whenever danger came calling. Granted, some of the show writers do like to remove her from the story for plot convenience but it's something they can't keep relying on forever. There will come a time where Celestia will show us what she can truly do with her immense power.

[Anonymous Old User Who Has Left 599]

Even Spike asked the same question in the Pony Tales Comic.

[Nyactis Mewcis Catlum 672]

You know, you could make a really good case for Celestia planning out making Twilight a pony princess so she could pawn off the work of defending Equestria on her and her friends.

[BlueStreak98 828]

My headcanon for her avoidance of Sombra was the potential pain of confronting an ex who had been consumed by evil. She'd step in as a last resort if she had to, but if Twily could handle it, Celestia was going to let her.

 

Beyond that, I haven't really thought about it much.

[Will Guide 21,362]

On 3/26/2018 at 6:55 PM, Rhythm Red said:

This is one of those things the fandom brings up time and time again. It really is a good question, though. My best guess would be that she wants twilight to learn from those experiences. I dunno if you’ve watched season 3’s premiere, but that should help explain.  

That's the point!

On 3/30/2018 at 1:06 PM, Shabb3r said:

Even Spike asked the same question in the Pony Tales Comic.

Exactly, I enjoyed that particular issue.

[Earl Grey Ghost 446]

Or it could be just as simple as: She's not the main character.

It's all about the writers, they introduce Celestia more of a mentor, not so much as a ruler (even though she is equally both), and since Twilight and the rest of the Mane 6 are the...well mane characters, it's going to be about them, their lessons and their experiences.

 

I mean, I'm not particularly happy about how they just push Celestia off to the side during times of crises, but *shrugs* what can ya do?

[kaiser5578 340]

Well, Luna tried to help with the Crystal Empire but Celestia held her back from it

gotta say, Luna was in the right for putting a country of people and her niece and nephew in law above a learning experience for Twilight

Edited April 15, 2018 by kaiser5578

[Rising Dusk 28,097]

Mane character syndrome.  Princess Celestia is already grown as a pony and if she was solving all of Equestria's problem with a flick of her horn, we as an audience don't have somepony to relate to or grow with.  You see this in a lot of series, where there is always somepony more powerful than the mane character that could have fixed the problem, but don't.  Writers usually get around this problem by incapacitating the powerful character so that the main character can struggle through it and us with them.

 

[EpicEnergy 23,224]

It's called plot convenience, the writers made Celestia do nothing while all these bad things happen because they need Twilight to be the hero.