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Holiday Special - Best Gift Ever


PinkiePie97

Best Gift Ever  

105 users have voted

  1. 1. How did you like the special

    • “Ew Glitter” - Hated it
      1
    • “Bah Humbug” - Not a fan
      2
    • “Sorry but we delivered your Halloween episode to the wrong series” - it was okay
      0
    • “A surprising gift worth receiving” - Liked it
      24
    • “Puuuuuding!” - Instant Classic / Loved it
      78


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2 minutes ago, Truffles said:

The next time I see it I'll have to pay closer attention to that scene with Thorax and see if he's celebrating like Ocellus say changelings do. :mlp_laugh:

He does, alongside Ocellus and Pharynx.

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sooooo....anyone wanna take guesses on why Twilight's parents couldn't make it to spend time with their daughter, (royal) son, (royal)  daughter-in-law, grandfoal, and adopted dragon, when both of Pinkie Pie's parents could make it off the rock farm to spend time with her? I'm sorry, but if a Prince and Princess could leave their kingdom for a day and get to Ponyville, why can't the very NON royal mom and dad? I want to like you, Sparkle parents, but you're making it pretty hard.

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Maybe it was too hard to expect a Halloween themed episode In October since we did have Winter holidays  episodes in August, but it wouldnt be far off the mark ether.

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Great holiday special!

It was funny, heart-felt and hugely entertaining. Every character was incredible and they had important morals completely related to each one of them. 

Here are my thoughts from favorite to least favorite mini-arc:

Rarity. No surprise that the element of generosity had already thought of the perfect present for AJ. She said that she had the hat made, it makes me believe that she was very fortunate to have picked AJ as her helper pony because the draw was made a day before the exchange and she must had already ordered it by then. Her visit to Sweet Acorn Orchard was absolutely beautiful! Pistachio and his parents are endearing characters, watching how Rarity felt and reacted about making somepony so happy, even if it was caused by a mistake, was really warming. The fact that she immediately seized the opportunity to guide a young fashion enthusiast was also great. Then, after she parted from the farm, she said 'sorry Applejack' partly because she had no gift to her now, but partly because it had been a very thoughtful present from the start and she was probably looking forward to watch AJ's reaction when she received it.

Rainbow Dash. Never would have thought about such an amazing combo between Dash and Discord. Although Discord manipulated Dash, he did it in a friendly manner and at the same time helped her to give Fluttershy a great present (instead of some random candle). Rainbow has always been the one to be most annoyed by Discord and she doesn't hide it, that's why Dash warming towards Discord and inviting him to the eve was so significant.

Twilight Sparkle. What can I say about her meltdown? They're always extremely entertaining and this time she had Shining Armor and Cadance to spice it up. Twilight's method to decide on Pinkie's gift was hilarious and the reference to Chancellor Pudding Head's made perfect sense. Flurry Heart was adorable in her star costume and when adding ingredients to Twi's mixture. This was tge funniest mini-arc of the special. 

Pinkie Pie. Her conversation with her sisters was funny, I especially liked Limestone on it. Yak's best and Pinkie knows it, except they're not the best at gift giving! [Mind blown, Pinkie's and mine] The visit to the North Pole's reindeers was also very funny and I loved Alice and Aurora, Bori was ok too. 

Spike. His obsessive crush on Rarity is painful to watch, I was a bit annoyed at Spike wanting to switch at all costs and he performed a jerkish move on Fluttershy to achieve his goal. I think it would have been better if he had gotten Rarity from the start because, once he started thinking about the present, he was amazing realizing how many things could Rarity like, but how they didn't live up to what he wanted his gift to mean. His attempt to make a handmade present was very cute and a bit funny once he fell asleep. The song he gifted to Rarity was the best thing that has been born from his crush, the little guy really knocked it out of the park.

AJ and Fluttershy. Their trip to Rainbow Falls and their search for gifts were fine, but at this point Flim and Flam are so overused that all the fun which could come from their shenanigans becomes boring and predictable. AJ and Shy still managed to make the trip enjoyable to watch but their mini-arc pales before the rest of them.

A few other things I liked about the special:

  • AJ (second in command) turning off Twilight's initial stress while the rest of the mane 6 didn't seem to have a way to calm her.
  • Pinkie Pie shocked at the proposal to give only one present.
  • The pudding attack and the best Shining-Cadance interaction ever!
  • Both songs were enjoyable to listen.
  • All the cameos at the beginning and the end.

This may become one of those classic holiday specials to watch with the family's children starting this year.

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Question: If an over the air network was to broadcast this in late November and sometime in December , who do you think would be the better choice out of these 6 :

CBS

NBC

ABC

FOX

THE CW

MyNetworkTV

My choice would be NBC! I think it's feel like the right fit to air this over the air.  But what about you all?

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The 0nly 4 things that some took issue with this special, but not enough to ruin the overall enjoyment, were:

 

1. The Airdate of the debut, which was (at the time) 4 days from Halloween.  But when you think about it, it's really no different, because when you look at Hallmark Channel, they were doing Christmas Movies ever weekend recently to get ready for their Countdown To Christmas Deal, that started a day before this special debut.  

Also, retail stores already were getting ready for Christmas, around the same time they were getting ready for Halloween.  So it may be unusual to some, but it's not really out of the ordinary.

 

2. Was the whole Sub-plot of Sparity, mostly Spike wanting to get a gift for Rarity, and when he finds out he didn't get her, the lengths he goes to, to get her, even going as far as a quick talking/smooth talking Fluttershy into a trade (because she just happens to have Rarity, and Spike has RD), is one things fans didn't like.  But as I said before, Fluttershy being herself, wouldn't have minded (even if she found out about it later, off-screen), and if made Spike happy, that's all that really would mattered to her.

 

3.  And speaking of Fluttershy, folks didn't like the way, that it seemed she had regressed back to earlier season Fluttershy, with how gullible she has to Film and Flam's con, or oblivious to Spike Trick switching her (which I talked about above this), but that seem to all be redeemed at the end with her saving the day, by taming the Winter-Zilla.

 

And 4th. The whole situation with Mable Pie being heartbroken/sadden that Big Mac found somepony in Sugar Belle (this of course was during the opening montage song), but this seem to be quickly shrugged off later on in the special.  But yet some fan didn't like that moment at the start.

 

However, as I said, despite these just some of the small nitpicks fans had with this special, from what it sounds like, it didn't ruin their overall enjoyment of the Special.

 

But what do you all think?

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I liked it but some things confusing. If indeed the apple and pie family are related why is marble pie crying? Isn't there a pony named Apple Pie? And why is there hate for big mac because hes with sugar belle. Marble did not speak up for herself.  You miss 100%of the chances you do not make.

 

Secondly, did they change Derpys voice again?  And why did they make her constantly pause? That was irritating. She didnt talk like she did in the last episode.

I wish they had their parents to visit around the holidays. I thought it was odd that flurry hearts first HWE was to visit her aunty and not even visit shining armors parents or even cadences parents.

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2 hours ago, ChocolateSwirl said:

. If indeed the apple and pie family are related why is marble pie crying?

Isn't it because Big Mac was right in front of her with Sugar Belle, and that would be like rubbing sault into the wound that arguably might not never happened.

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10 hours ago, bwrosas said:

3.  And speaking of Fluttershy, folks didn't like the way, that it seemed she had regressed back to earlier season Fluttershy, with how gullible she has to Film and Flam's con, or oblivious to Spike Trick switching her (which I talked about above this), but that seem to all be redeemed at the end with her saving the day, by taming the Winter-Zilla.

Fluttershy wouldn't be the first to be suckered in to Flim and Flam. Just this season, Rarity almost bought their textbook; Rainbow Dash seemed enthusiastic about their cider in "The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000," and even Applejack decided to accept their practices in "Leap of Faith," albeit not without hesitation. 

10 hours ago, bwrosas said:

And 4th. The whole situation with Mable Pie being heartbroken/sadden that Big Mac found somepony in Sugar Belle (this of course was during the opening montage song), but this seem to be quickly shrugged off later on in the special.  But yet some fan didn't like that moment at the start.

It's rather sad, because we might never see that resolved. 

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22 hours ago, Nightmare Muffin said:

sooooo....anyone wanna take guesses on why Twilight's parents couldn't make it to spend time with their daughter, (royal) son, (royal)  daughter-in-law, grandfoal, and adopted dragon, when both of Pinkie Pie's parents could make it off the rock farm to spend time with her? I'm sorry, but if a Prince and Princess could leave their kingdom for a day and get to Ponyville, why can't the very NON royal mom and dad? I want to like you, Sparkle parents, but you're making it pretty hard.

Velvet being an adrenaline junky -- she was probably mountain climbing the pony equivalent of Mount Everest. :P

 

2 hours ago, AlexanderThrond said:

Fluttershy wouldn't be the first to be suckered in to Flim and Flam. Just this season, Rarity almost bought their textbook; Rainbow Dash seemed enthusiastic about their cider in "The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000," and even Applejack decided to accept their practices in "Leap of Faith," albeit not without hesitation. 

13 hours ago, bwrosas said:

Yep. In the special Fluttershy gave a perfect in-universe explanation. Their talent is sales, so obviously they are really good at convincing people to buy goods and services.

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23 hours ago, Nightmare Muffin said:

sooooo....anyone wanna take guesses on why Twilight's parents couldn't make it to spend time with their daughter, (royal) son, (royal)  daughter-in-law, grandfoal, and adopted dragon, when both of Pinkie Pie's parents could make it off the rock farm to spend time with her? I'm sorry, but if a Prince and Princess could leave their kingdom for a day and get to Ponyville, why can't the very NON royal mom and dad? I want to like you, Sparkle parents, but you're making it pretty hard.

There's a lot of family members missing from this special, and I do admit I would have liked to see the rest of them. Maybe they just didn't arrive yet; Cadance and Shining had just showed up by the end, and as royalty they probably have an easier time finding fast transportation. 

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I really enjoyed "The Best Gift Ever". It was a lot of fun from one end to the other. Derpy's voice changed again though. I did like the dreamy quality of it though. She's a pony with her head in the clouds. It introduced a new meme phrase. Twil-nanas! I love that. I love how Twilight just excepts it too. I bet Shining Armor has been saying it since they were foals!  I don't love that my husband watched with me, and was all "That's so YOU!" during that scene.

(I love gift giving, but do get a wee bit frazzled over trying to get it perfect! Heck, I get frazzled nearly every day over tiny details!)

 

The special also gave us the best Discord line ever. It was  very subtle about it, but almost completely tore down the forth wall. It was like he was talking directly to me, it mirrored my thoughts so exactly.

Spoiler

"A bit reindeer ex machina, but two thumbs up. Way up!"

 

 

Edited by cuteycindyhoney
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2 minutes ago, Sparklefan1234 said:

@Dark Qiviut

  Hide contents

I love how Rarity doesn't care & just wears sunglasses in the Winter! :laugh:

 

Spoiler

As a fellow sunglass-wearer in the winter, it really comes in handy, especially when the sun reflects off the snow. ^_^

 

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Me here:

Quote

I have a big problem with Dash and Discord plucking that winterchilla from the wild.

And now after this:

Quote
Fluttershy: Awww. Your family is gone for the holidays, and you're all alone?
[affirmative growl]
Fluttershy: I'm so sorry. If you calm down, I'm sure you could join us.

I don't care that many of the animals, both traditional and fantastical, have some form of sapience, and I don't care if this was done w/ good intentions by Dash and Discord. Wild animals belong in the wild! If the winterchilla was injured, a little sick, or orphaned, I wouldn't have minded them picking him up, because it fits the purposes of her sanctuary. But he's healthy and has no business being taken out of familiar territory, given to Fluttershy as a present, and threatened punishment for letting his animal instincts take over. It's like her scolding the dragon for "bullying the RM5," when he was defending himself. It wasn't okay then, and it's not okay now.

And I have two other problems with FS's line:

  1. It makes his biological family sound heartless.
  2. It cops out what Discord and Dash did earlier by trying to remove the implications from earlier.

And don't get me started on how Twilight used Spike as live bait to distract him. C'mon, man! Does Father Knows Beast matter at all?

082.gif

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9 minutes ago, Dark Qiviut said:

And don't get me started on how Twilight used Spike as live bait to distract him. C'mon, man! Does Father Knows Beast matter at all?

Playing devil's advocate here. Spike was enveloped in Twilight's magic. Arguably some of the strongest magic in Equestria. Spike couldn't have been hurt. It probably scared the mess out of the scales off of him, but he was totally safe. It was probably mentally scarring though!

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Just now, cuteycindyhoney said:

Playing devil's advocate here. Spike was enveloped in Twilight's magic. Arguably some of the strongest magic in Equestria. Spike couldn't have been hurt. It probably scared the mess out of the scales off of him, but he was totally safe. It was probably mentally scarring though!

He can still grab him and bite him out of the air, and it's no guarantee if he's weaker than some forms of her magic. In addition, she's a strong magician, but the magic in itself's basic levitation, no different than other times she levitated him in some form in the past.

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3 minutes ago, Dark Qiviut said:

He can still grab him and bite him out of the air, and it's no guarantee if he's weaker than some forms of her magic. In addition, she's a strong magician, but the magic in itself's basic levitation, no different than other times she levitated him in some form in the past.

Maybe it was a combo of levitation and shield. If Spike was bitten, teeth would break. If Spike was swallowed...Um, what a minute. Shield or not, Spike would go where no pony had gone before (and survived!) It would be a trip I WOULD NOT wish on my worst enemy!

 

My Little Pony: Vore is Magic? I don't think that would fly well!

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I liked this, but I before I go any further, I'd just like to state for the record that this....thing....special....whatever you want to call it....shouldn't exist.  At least, not like this.  I'm irked by the fact that FIM has always just been the core season episodes (plus the actual movie), until today when we suddenly got this random 44 minute thing.  It's just...not supposed to be this way.  It's just supposed to be the regular season episodes.  We already had the season finale.  Season 8 was over.  There wasn't supposed to be anything else until S9.  Where did this thing come from?  We've never had something like this before.  It's just....weird.  I don't get it.  I guess the reason it bothers me is that I enjoy reviewing every episode, but I also like having a break so that I don't have to stay on top of it, y'know what I mean?  I thought we were done, and I was looking forward to a little break before S9.  I almost missed this special.  In fact, it was by pure coincidence and dumb luck that I even realized it existed.  So now I'm thinkin', "well crap, am I gonna have to start watching like a hawk to make sure I'm not missing any more random specials?"  I just like knowing that the season is over, and that there will be a reliable break, y'know?  Personally, I think this thing should have been an Equestria Girls special instead, because EG has always been random.  Random length, random timing, and I kind of like that, actually.  It's like a fun surprise, but I also don't care when I see/review EG stuff for that very reason.  I like FIM being more structured.  I hope this isn't a trend.  I just don't like it.  No sir.  Not in a box, not with a fox.  Not with green eggs 'n' ham, I don't like it, Sam I Am.  But, keep in mind, this is coming from autistic nutcase whose resistance to change borders on the psychopathic.

That said, Best Gift Ever was actually really, really good.  Like, wow.  It felt to me like a bit of a gift to the fans.  Like, this was our present to thank us for our loyal viewing.  It just had such great lines sprinkled throughout, and it felt like we got to see all these classic character moments that we haven't seen in ages.  From Fluttershy getting so angry that she gently kicked a rock, to a classic, full-blown Twilight freakout, to me it was sort of like a throwback to everything that made these characters great, but without seeming like a character regression at all.  It was perfect.  It was interesting without being predictable, classic without being derivative.  Very satisfying.  A really enjoyable story all-around.

They managed to include a lot of great little touches.  I'm really glad that they remembered to include Grand Pear, even if he didn't get a line out.  I loved that the Pie family visited and stayed at SAA.  I was thrilled that the Pie sisters got a few lines.  I can never get enough Limestone.  I love her.  :wub:  Even Marble made a sound!  That's rare.  And we got a Derpy speaking scene!  :-D  That was a fangasm.  I liked that they included a brief shot of the Sisters, and seeing Ocellus at home with Steve and the other changelings was cool.  Too bad we didn't Yona with the Yaks, or Gallus with the griffons, or Smolder with Ember and the dragons.  Not enough time for everything, I guess.  I'm also glad that they remembered Starlight.  On the one hoof, it was nice to have a classic, mane 6 focused episode....er....special, but you can't just forget that Glimmy exists either, and  I was wondering why she was suspiciously absent.  My theory was that she and Sunburst were spending the holiday at Sire's Hollow with their folks, but apparently she took another road trip with Trixie instead?  Okay...that's fine.... I guess.  But didn't they decide never to try that again because it was kind of a disaster?  Whatever.  Maybe they changed their minds.  Hey, maybe they were traveling to Sire's Hollow to meet Sunburst!  :dash:

I liked every sub-story.  I think my favorite was Rarity's.  Her little scene with ...Peanut or whatever....was very touching.  That was so sweet.  And it's so cool that somepony out there is a fashion buff who idolizes Rarity!  And even better that it's a rural farmpony!  And better still that it's a stallion!  (I relate because I'm a male fashionista!)  :D

I swear, Flim & Flam need to be executed.  Tartarus isn't sufficient for them.  They need to die.  I'd invite Chrysalis and Tirek to my dinner table before those two slime bags.  Those guys have used up every chance at redemption for ten lifetimes.  They've proven that they can't be trusted and will never learn.  I think what makes them so much more hate-able than the ideological super-villain is that they're just sleazy, dishonest, and greedy, and therefore just like most big businesses in real life.  It's not often that you encounter a super-villain bent on world domination in real life, but it's every friggin' day that you deal with horrible, greedy companies.  F*ck, I hate those Flim Flam brothers.  I'm glad that AJ & Fluttershy got the better of them, but an even better route would have been for AJ to march right into their tent and say, "Okay guys, here's the deal: you refund everypony's money, and I won't shove every last one of these dolls up your ass, including the boxes.  Capiche?"

Twilight was adorkable, especially when she was trying to argue that she wasn't going "Twilynanas".  Omg, was a precious, cute phrase!  She will always be the cutest pony by far.  People think it's Fluttershy, but nope.  They're wrong.  Fluttershy is the sweetest pony, but Twilight is the cutest.  Lol.  Twilynanas:wub:

Discord's role was fun.  I always love him.

Oh, and Shiny and Candy were actually....like...into each other, there.  ...That was kinda hot.  :orly:

Spike's gift song was wonderful.  What a touching moment!  I feel so bad for they guy, having to suffer this unrequited love.  Oh, and incidentally, does he just not have any long term memory, or what?  Why was he trying to act all nonchalant and cover for himself when he freaking told Rarity that he has a crush on her in Secret of My Excess?  And he was doing that with everypony, as if they don't know.  Doesn't he realize that it's not a secret?  And then he spilled his guts with that song!  Why try to hide it anymore?

Ah, ye olde compression of time, where it takes all day to reach Canterlot by train, but Pinkie can go to Yakyakistan and back in an afternoon.  I did enjoy the Yak scene, though.

The only thing I didn't really care for was the pre-cogs.  The gift deer.  What the hell was their deal?  Too many questions here.  I've never really cared for prophetic abilities in any fiction, because it doesn't really make sense to me, even in the context of a magical world.  Telekinesis and teleportation and stuff like that make sense, but abilities to see into the past, present, or future just don't make sense.  In a universe where time flows linearly, the whole idea just doesn't hold water.  But they've done that kind of thing loads of times in fiction.  Powerful Jedi have foresight, and then there was the Oracle in the Matrix, and even the Tree of Harmony seems to have prophetic abilities.  Pinkie's gift kinda felt like a Matrix Oracle thing to me.  I guess it was okay, but the whole idea just sort of bugs me.  And can they really only use their powers for gifts?  Can they really only see through time as it relates to gifts??  You've gotta be sh*tting me.  That would make absolutely zero sense.  They can predict the future, but only as it pertains to gifts?  So....they can tell who's going to give who a Hickory Farms gift box before it happens, but if Tirek escapes Tartarus and begins a path of destruction across the world, they're completely oblivious?  Whaaaaat?  Or do they just choose to focus on gift stuff?  Shouldn't they be floating in a sensory deprivation chamber beneath Canterlot palace so they can predict the future and save Equestria from calamity?  Frickin' weirdo pre-cogs.  I don't like 'em.  :dry:

My only other quibble was that line about AJ's hat.  Y'know, when she says that Papa said that sometimes the hat chooses you when he gave her the hat?  Uuuuh...huuhh....  I see.  Papa gave you that hat, AJ?  Well, now, that sure is a cool origin story about your hat, AJ.  That hat that Rarity bought for you at a hat stand in Manehattan when you and Rarity helped Coco Pommel build a set for a play during a map mission.  Is that the hat to which you are referring?  Or were you talking about the hat that Rarity tossed in a trash can in Manehattan because it got thrashed from the set building?  Is uh....is that the hat you're talkin' about, there, AJ?  Huh?  Is it?

131459136_MLP-Facehoof.png.2d2133750fe1f4e1e58a07aea52360a0.png

I've always thought that it would be a great idea for franchises like this (basically any franchise that spawns a "fandom") to have a super-obsessed, possibly autistic fan with an eidetic memory on staff as a consultant whom they could call every time they write something like this to see if it's a continuity error.  So much frustration and angst could be saved.

Okay, that's all.  We were supposed to be done a couple weeks ago.  Now maybe we'll actually be done until S9?  :baconmane:

 

Spoiler

Huh?  What?  Oh, Steve?  That's Thorax.  I'm not gonna keep correcting that.  I'm just gonna call him Steve from now on.  If you don't get it, then watch DWK's Totally Legit Recaps and get with the freakin' program!  :laugh:

 

Edited by Justin_Case001
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1 hour ago, Justin_Case001 said:

My only other quibble was that line about AJ's hat.  Y'know, when she says that Papa said that sometimes the hat chooses you when he gave her the hat?  Uuuuh...huuhh....  I see.  Papa gave you that hat, AJ?  Well, now, that sure is a cool origin story about your hat, AJ.  That hat that Rarity bought for you at a hat stand in Manehattan when you and Rarity helped Coco Pommel build a set for a play during a map mission.  Is that the hat to which you are referring?  Or were you talking about the hat that Rarity tossed in a trash can in Manehattan because it got thrashed from the set building?  Is uh....is that the hat you're talkin' about, there, AJ?  Huh?  Is it?

Did you also remember the big closet full of identical hats as well as identical copies of Apple Bloom's bow from "Somepony to Watch over me"?

Hats_and_bows_about_to_fall_down_S4E17.p

I'd say to just headcanon that the hat AJ is wearing and referring to here is a different one from the one she was wearing that got destroyed in Manehatten. You know how the guy who got Rarity's designer hat said he'd never wear it in the Orchard? Maybe AJ's the same, doesn't wear her dad's hat out for normal stuff, just for special occasions like a holiday, has lot's of copies for all the rest of the time.

Edited by BasementSparkle
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22 minutes ago, BasementSparkle said:

Did you also remember the big closet full of identical hats as well as identical copies of Apple Bloom's bow from "Somepony to Watch over me"?

I did not.  That's a great point!

22 minutes ago, BasementSparkle said:

I'd say to just headcanon that the hat AJ is wearing and referring to here is a different one from the one she was wearing that got destroyed in Manehatten. You know how the guy who got Rarity's designer hat said he'd never wear it in the Orchard? Maybe AJ's the same, doesn't wear her dad's hat out for normal stuff, just for special occasions like a holiday, has lot's of copies for all the rest of the time.

Yeah, I figured that was everyone's headcanon.  *WhispersBut between you and me, and I don't think the writers remembered either of these scenes with the hats!

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