Which main character has been "most improved"?

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

Which Main Character (Mane 6 + Spike/Starlight Glimmer) do you think has come the farthest in terms of character growth and development? Which character went from being the most generic/annoying to the most likable/endearing? 

[Sparklefan1234 161,867]

My answer is Rarity.

I found her to be pretty one dimensional in Season 1 but Season 2 & beyond have had episodes that have turned her into my second favorite pony.

Edited October 29, 2018 by Sparklefan1234

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

16 hours ago, Sparklefan1234 said:

My answer is Rarity.

I found her to be pretty one dimensional in Season 1 but Season 2 & beyond have had episodes that have turned her into my second favorite pony.

I personally always liked Rarity, she had some of the funniest lines in Seasons 1 and 2. She reminds me a lot of Frasier Crane.

For me, my answer is Rainbow Dash. I found her to be an egotistical and self-absorbed brat. She was my least favorite because she reminded me of a lot of people I knew in high school. That began to change when Read 'Em and Weep, which showed her more dorky side, which I found endearing. Sleepless in Ponyville did for RD what Sisterhooves Social did for Rarity, ie show a more sensitive and emotional side of the character. Finally, Testing Testing 1-2-3  made her my second favorite. I related with her struggles as I have ADHD and have difficulties when it comes to studying. As time went on, she became less egotistical and selfish, and more mature.

 

Edited October 30, 2018 by Theanimationfanatic

[FlareGun45 2,221]

Most of them! In some ways or another, but Pinkie and AJ seem to have been the least developed outta all of them. AJ cause her developments are more connected to her past, and Pinkie, she's always been cheerful and social and hasn't really changed! Everyone else, yeah!

Who feels the most developed though? It just depends on the situation! But I feel Fluttershy has been the most developed as of late!

[FirePuppy 626]

6 minutes ago, FlareGun45 said:

Most of them! In some ways or another, but Pinkie and AJ seem to have been the least developed outta all of them. AJ cause her developments are more connected to her past, and Pinkie, she's always been cheerful and social and hasn't really changed! Everyone else, yeah!

Who feels the most developed though? It just depends on the situation! But I feel Fluttershy has been the most developed as of late!

You tell me. A LOT more Pinkie Pie would certainly be appreciated for Season 9, but I'm not so sure about Applejack, since it's agreed that her developments have all occurred even before the beginning.

[Goat-kun 2,498]

Rarity. She reached her goal, remained herself, yet still she has new stories that aren't (that) boring and/or degrading to the character. This really activates those almonds, eh

[Dashy 4 Ever 4,832]

I'm gonna guess Rainbow Dash for the sake that I've always loved her and always will!  

[Kadeda 178]

Probably Rainbow Dash... Everybody else was half developed b4 the show even started. Maybe Starlight Glimmer, I mean... from evil to like... mini twilight is a pretty big jump.  

[DonMaguz 1,023]

Without starting as an annoying character, my choice is Twilight Sparkle.

She has gone from book nerd out of the water, to a community leader, to princess with a blurry future, to princess with a mission, to mentor, to diplomat, to headmare of her own school...

Her relationship with Celestia across the seasons is the best measurement of how far she has gone. 

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

6 minutes ago, DonMaguz said:

Without starting as an annoying character, my choice is Twilight Sparkle.

She has gone from book nerd out of the water, to a community leader, to princess with a blurry future, to princess with a mission, to mentor, to diplomat, to headmare of her own school...

Her relationship with Celestia across the seasons is the best measurement of how far she has gone. 

Well said. She went from a snarky cynic and shut-in to an altruistic and inviting leader figure.

[Sepul-Coloratura 756]

I think it's Spike and rarity.

Spike was sometimes painful to watch because he was causing so much trouble in a dumb way. How the show uses him as a constant punching bag was not that pleasant to watch either. But after that, he is one of the most dependable friend anyone can ever ask for. He helps things a lot and he is one of the voice of reason in the show.

Rarity came from the worst of all Mane 6 to one of the best of all. I don'y think I'm the only one who feels that way. She was annoying, selfish, and quite stuck up. But lately the show slowly reveals her positive aspects more and her attitude becomes something more about self-confidence than vanity, her generous aspects were dealt better. She is more appealing as a character.

On the other hand, the CMC's causes less trouble in the show, some might say they are less annoying now which I agree, but they kind of lost their charm a bit. They were troublemakers but also a representation of a young generation watching the show. (the writers were quite accurate on some points of how children feel) They were most changed characters in many aspects, but I don't think it's most improved. (I like how they dealt with it in Forever Filly though.)

Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Twilight became worse in my opinion. Not as a good person, but as an interesting character for the show.

[Misty Shadow 7,084]

I gotta go with Twilight. After all, she started out as the only main character who actually needed to change. The other five have definitely made important progress, but Twilight is just so much different from who she used to be now that it's amusing. If we're going by Mane 7 or even Mane 8, Spike would be a close second. He was in essence just a gag character before the later seasons, where he finally got the opportunity to prove that he could be useful and was deserving of the title of a hero. 

[JH24 385]

For me Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash.

Twilight has really grown from someone who closed herself off from others into a kind and understanding pony.

I had difficulty liking Rainbow Dash in the earlier seasons. But she has grown a lot over the seasons into someone who has not only become more humble but also more selfless. 

Edited October 29, 2018 by JH24

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

Just now, JH24 said:

For me Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash.

Twilight has really grown from someone who closed herself off from others into a kind and understanding pony.

I had a lot of difficulty liking Rainbow Dash in the earlier seasons. But she has grown a lot over the seasons into someone who has not only become more humble but also more selfless. 

Which episode(s) shifted your views on the characters?

[JH24 385]

1 hour ago, Theanimationfanatic said:

Which episode(s) shifted your views on the characters?

For Twilight I can't really pinpoint an episode. Her growth felt more gradual. 

 

Your second post in this thread made me smile because your episodes that changed your view about Rainbow Dash are almost the same as mine.

Read it and Weep was the first episode that began to change my mind about RD. It showed a different and (like you said) more dorky side of her.

Sleepless in Ponyville did so much for RD's character. (Her literally taking Scootaloo under her wing is still one of my most favorite moments)

Another episode that connected with me was Tanks for the Memories. It showed how much RD cared for Tank and how much she wanted to keep him with her. 

Newbie Dash also connected with me because I could understand what she was going through. Rainbow Dash's ending scene felt for me as one of the turning points for her character in the series.

 

There were other episodes that made me like RD more and made me understand her character better. (For example The Washouts) Which also felt like another pivotal moment for Rainbow Dash.

Edited October 29, 2018 by JH24

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

14 minutes ago, JH24 said:

For Twilight I can't really pinpoint an episode. Her growth felt more gradual. 

 

Your second post in this thread made me smile because your episodes that changed your view about Rainbow Dash are almost the same as mine.

Read it and Weep was the first episode that began to change my mind about RD. It showed a different and (like you said) more dorky side of her.

Sleepless in Ponyville did so much for RD's character. (Her literally taking Scootaloo under her wing is still one of my most favorite moments)

Another episode that connected with me was Tanks for the Memories. It showed how much RD cared for Tank and how much she wanted to keep him with her. 

Newbie Dash also connected with me because I could understand what she was going through. Rainbow Dash apologizing and her ending scene felt for me as one of the turning points for her character in the series.

 

There were other episodes that made me like RD more and made me understand her character better. (For example The Washouts) Which also felt like another pivotal moment for Rainbow Dash.

Parental Glideance is a great episode for many reasons. One of them being that it provided us with a lot of insight into why Rainbow Dash is the way she is. 

[BlackPony 77]

I’d say Fluttershy. Most of the season 1-4 episodes completely over exaggerated her personality to the point where she looked like she needed therapy. Not to mention she constantly had to relearn the same lessons over and over again. The most recent seasons have improved with this, and have allowed her to expand on the lessons she learned, like in Flutter Brutter and Fluttershy Leans In.

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

8 hours ago, BlackPony said:

I’d say Fluttershy. Most of the season 1-4 episodes completely over exaggerated her personality to the point where she looked like she needed therapy. Not to mention she constantly had to relearn the same lessons over and over again. The most recent seasons have improved with this, and have allowed her to expand on the lessons she learned, like in Flutter Brutter and Fluttershy Leans In.

True that. She became less domicile and her growth actually stuck starting in Season 4, rather than her having to learn the same lesson in her next episode.

[Thrond 3,257]

I do not enjoy any of the mane six right now more than I did in the first four seasons. 

Rarity, I suppose, would come the closest; I always liked her, but her occasional selfishness was sometimes frustrating in the first couple of seasons. Somewhere around season 4, they dialed up her positive qualities significantly while still leaving a basis for her insecurities. My favourite Rarity episodes are in the season 4-5 period. I do think the show balanced her flaws better in the past, though; recent efforts tend to feel even more exaggerated. 

I started liking the CMC significantly more once they stopped obsessing over their cutie marks in season 3. I'd say I liked them most in the period of season 3-6. I do agree that something's lost after they got their marks, but I also enjoy a lot of the post-mark episodes. And they're way more tolerable than they were in the first two seasons, anyway; back at that time, I just found them incredibly annoying. 

The biggest for me is Starlight Glimmer, who I feel has a much more consistent personality in season 8 than in season 7 or season 6. Some of my frustrations with her remain - I don't find her intermittent disregard for boundaries entertaining, for example - but she's kinda like an edgier version of Twilight, and when her relative moral ambiguity is played for a low-key joke, it's always pretty great. Plus, her best roles this past season haven't required her to upstage anyone else, so that's nice.  

In addition, I like a good majority of Spike episodes and almost all of his supporting appearances, but they've gotten especially consistent since season 6, so I'll give him a special mention here.

Other big improvements: Fluttershy since "Flutter Brutter," which would have been on here if the show hadn't immediately squandered that improvement, and Twilight Sparkle since "A Flurry of Emotions," who might be next season's most improved if she gets some of her snark back, although I wouldn't need to mention her if the show hadn't screwed her up in season 4. Rainbow Dash definitely grew more mature somewhere around "Sleepless in Ponyville," but her focus episodes have also gotten worse, so it's sort of a wash. 

[RulesofRarity 489]

Fluttershy by miles. For the first 4 seasons, she was a rather stagnant character in the sense that, any lesson she learnt in assertiveness would be forgotten the next time she had a new episode. Her shyness was exaggerated to ridiculous heights like her being startled by a leaf falling on her back or by her own shadow, this exaggeration often made her a burden on the team if anything. 

Season 5 fixed this and Fluttershy became the character she was intended to be. She still doesn’t like being on stage but she doesn’t have crippling hallucinations at the thought of being on one, episodes like Fluttershy Leans In see her applying her assertiveness, Tanks for the Memories sees her administer tough love towards her friend without a sudden rush of adrenaline or coming off as an asshole. 

[Octavia Heartstrings 28,407]

For me I'd say Rarity. I found her to be stuck-up and annoying during the first season or two, and she was my least favorite when I started watching. But since season 4 she's improved massively and started to show her element a lot more often, and is now my fourth favorite pony, behind only Fluttershy, Twilight and Starlight.

[sweetolebob18 724]

I go w Pinkie. I point to her behavior in 

Feeling Pinkie Keen (S1). She knows that Twilight is following her & just doesn't care what happens to Twilight

Baby Cakes (S2) She starts to grasp the idea that her actions have consequences

Too Many Pinkies (S3) She gets it.

[Singe 2,109]

Fluttershy because she's more comfortable being social as the series progresses.

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

12 hours ago, AlexanderThrond said:

Rainbow Dash definitely grew more mature somewhere around "Sleepless in Ponyville," but her focus episodes have also gotten worse, so it's sort of a wash. 

Parental Glideance, Top Bolt, and  The Washouts  refute your argument.

Edited November 1, 2018 by Theanimationfanatic

[Thrond 3,257]

6 hours ago, Theanimationfanatic said:

Parental Glideance, Top Bolt, and  The Washouts  refute your argument.

I like “Rarity Investigates,” “Top Bolt,” and “Parental Glideance” a lot, but most of her other recent episodes I’m not too hot on or like in spite of her. That’s just how I feel.