S09:E26 - The Last Problem

[Senko 459]

4 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

To make matters worse, this party that was a big deal to Moondancer, that she herself threw? She didn't invite Twilight to it personally.

I think Twilight did get an invite personally at least in a retroactive fashion since we see that Spike does have a present in season 1 so he at least was expecting them to go prior to the others asking if Twilight was going. Obviously the first season episode didn't plan on the later one but it does work in my opinion as the other 3 know Twilight and were wondering if she was going to attend or not. Where it breaks down for me is that Moondancer should also have known Twilight and half expected her not to show.

[Thrond 3,263]

4 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

No. The finale strongly implies that they have all drifted apart and moved on with their lives. They only meet up once a moon.

Part of what this finale is missing is the suggestion that Twilight has other friends in Canterlot. Without that or any sense that she wanted this, it doesn't really track as a happy ending. Luster Dawn does not view Twilight the same way her friends do. But compared to Twilight's fear that they would lose track of each other entirely, having a tradition of meeting up even though their careers have gone in different directions seems pretty good. It seems like they keep in touch.

4 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

It doesn't help that the finale strongly implies that Twilight and Spike will be subjected to having to watch all of their friends slowly one by one in only a few short years due to all of them dying of old age while they're forced to go on living. This in spite of the fact that we were promised that Twilight would not outlive her friends. 

I think this might have been less of a bummer were it not for the problems I mentioned above. If she got to choose, I would feel a lot better about this whole premise; friendships change, and if Twilight were the only one to become immortal, of course she would eventually need to say goodbye. And if she had other friends in Canterlot, who treat her like a friend and not just as the immortal princess, that would soften the blow considerably as well. If given the option, I would probably choose not to die. 

5 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

What in the hell does LGBT representation have to do with this? There really wasn't any hints that they were a couple in the episode. The last shiw that should be incorporating political crap like that into its show is My Little Pony. 

Hasbro issued a press release saying that Scootaloo's aunts were a couple.

And LGBT representation isn't "political" any more than including straight couples in a show is. Scootaloo's aunts were treated in the same way as other parent couples in the series, because it's not a big deal. We got two big straight wedding episodes, and nobody called that political. 

5 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

This is in spite of the fact that we never see any hints of them being romantically involved. They literally threw this scene in "The Big Mac Question" and "The Last Problem" purely for fanservice. 

 

It was a blink-and-you'll-miss-it background scene for characters whose inclusion in the show has always been fanservice. I didn't even notice either moment while watching. I don't think we should be too concerned about how in-depth their romantic arc was. 

5 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

This is why so many people had an issue with the School of Friendship idea. 

 

That would have been a lot better if they had a qualified multi-species faculty. Then we wouldn't get to see the mane six involved in it, but it's not like the show really did as much with that as it could have. 

5 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

I liked maybe eleven episodes from season one and six episodes from season two. 

 

Wait, did you ever like this show? 

5 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

What in the hell does LGBT representation have to do with this? There really wasn't any hints that they were a couple in the episode. The last shiw that should be incorporating political crap like that into its show is My Little Pony. 

But when you say that it's "insulting" that people enjoyed this, you're basically doing the same in reverse. I'm very open about disliking episodes, and although people did argue with me the last two times I voiced my dislike of a popular episode ("Sounds of Silence" and "The Summer Sun Setback") I kinda expect that when I'm posting that opinion on an internet forum. You're getting such pushback because your criticism is really aggressive and you're making broad assumptions about the writers' and producers' intentions. 

5 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

In these scenes and episode 1, in which Moondancer doesn't even appear (don't worry, we'll get back to that), Twilight behaves like an acquaintance and not a friend, and her not even being able to remember her supposed "friends'" names says volumes.

At least I'm not the only one who thinks so; I find that episode completely nonsensical because it doesn't seem believable that Twilight and Moondancer were ever friends at all. 

5 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

Really? Because most people I know loved that episode and consider it to be one of the season's best episodes. 

 

In my experience it's incredibly polarizing; personally I hate it because it just seems so defensive and mean-spirited, and because I don't think the story is a sensible metaphor for TV fans. 

5 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

In these scenes and episode 1, in which Moondancer doesn't even appear (don't worry, we'll get back to that), Twilight behaves like an acquaintance and not a friend, and her not even being able to remember her supposed "friends'" names says volumes.

I dunno, I hated it; seems to come up whenever people talk about bad episodes of this show. 

 

[Brobot 1,436]

I had such complex emotion when I found out it ended weeks ago, I haven't been on the forums for about a year but the sheer beauty of the finale made me come back. I'm gonna catch up on everything that I missed!

[kazamacat 64]

I am definitely not a fan of this ending. I don't like the time skip. I don't like big alicorn Twilight, I don't like the others looking so much older, I don't like having the Canterlot/Ponyville separation. I don't like how Rainbow Dash looks. I didn't want to see any of the Mane 6 canonically shipped with anyone. They rule Equestria together by not being still visibly friends to the rest of Equestria? Just...PASS. This episode was like if someone found a check list of "Do Not Want" in my notes and then made it.

I do read the ending as Rainbow Dash and Applejack ending up together, and I've got mixed feelings on that. Seeing some of the younger characters grown was a nice touch but I'd rather not "know" the older ones died off in between. I really wanted the end to encapsulate that part of the characters' lives depicted in the series and leave the future older stuff to our imaginations.

[Senko 459]

2 hours ago, kazamacat said:

I am definitely not a fan of this ending. I don't like the time skip. I don't like big alicorn Twilight, I don't like the others looking so much older, I don't like having the Canterlot/Ponyville separation. I don't like how Rainbow Dash looks. I didn't want to see any of the Mane 6 canonically shipped with anyone. They rule Equestria together by not being still visibly friends to the rest of Equestria? Just...PASS. This episode was like if someone found a check list of "Do Not Want" in my notes and then made it.

I do read the ending as Rainbow Dash and Applejack ending up together, and I've got mixed feelings on that. Seeing some of the younger characters grown was a nice touch but I'd rather not "know" the older ones died off in between. I really wanted the end to encapsulate that part of the characters' lives depicted in the series and leave the future older stuff to our imaginations.

I agree with pretty much all of what you dislike about the ending. I liked the Celestia > Cadence > Luna > Twilght sizes over Twilight suddenly and mysteriously growing as big as Celestia when we see no signs of that in Luna or Cadence. The "move to Canterlot and Rule" plot just came out of nowhere and makes no sense at all to me. Unless you buy into the theory Celestia has been repeatedly trolling Twilight from episode 1 and this is just her latest way to torment her which I also do not like.

Personally I ship Twilight Dash but I'd rather they not go with that as the "official ending" because I know other people see them with different ponies and it'd be better since there was no built up relationship to just leave it alone so everyone can keep shipping them with their prefered pair. Same with Pinkie and Fluttershy. Honestly this Apple/Dash pairing left me feeling given the little hints at Rarijack that Rarity wound up alone because her one true love Applejack had chosen someone else and I do not want that. The Big Mac/Sugar Belle relationship like or hate was built up over time we see them meet, start dating, propose, marry and have a foal it works. Applejack and Rainbow Dash or Twilight and Rainbow Dash or Pinkie and Cheese was never shown, never hinted at and it should have just been left alone for the final episode.

Maybe as a little wink given the Rarity/Applejack hints show both of them with a ring (on Rarities horn and around Applejack's's neck) but don't go any furhter leave the fans able to imagine they married but don't tell them who. If you like Rarity and Applejack they're married to each other, if you don't then they found a special somepony somewhere else. Don't show Rarity living in Yakyakistan but do show Yona and Sandbar living in the Boutique. Maybe Rarity is living with Applejack on the farm, maybe she's living somewhere else such as moving into Twilight's massive castle we don't know. Same with Pinkie you can show her having a foal but don't show us the father. Maybe you pair her with Cheese, maybe someone else, maybe she's just babysitting another of the cakes kids leave it up to us to imagine the ending we want.

Edited October 30, 2019 by Senko

[Thrond 3,263]

1 hour ago, Senko said:

Honestly this Apple/Dash pairing left me feeling given the little hints at Rarijack that Rarity wound up alone because her one true love Applejack had chosen someone else and I do not want that.

I think you're reading too much into that; I don't think Rarijack was built up any more than Appledash. I'd personally be upset by Rarijack being canon because I dislike that ship but more importantly I don't understand where you're getting the idea that it already is canon. It seems clear to me that they don't have feelings towards each other. 

[doomie-22 19]

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

Part of what this finale is missing is the suggestion that Twilight has other friends in Canterlot.

What do you mean she has no friends outside of her Ponyville friends? She has plentt of friends: Cadence, Shining Armor, Flurry Heart, the Student Six, Starlight  Glimmer, Trixie, Sunburst, Maud, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Moondancer, Twinkleshine, Lemon Heart, Minuette, Lyra Heartstrings, etc. 

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

Without that or any sense that she wanted this, it doesn't really track as a happy ending. 

What do you mean "if she wanted this?" She clearly did. 

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

I think this might have been less of a bummer were it not for the problems I mentioned above. If she got to choose, I would feel a lot better about this whole premise; friendships change, and if Twilight were the only one to become immortal, of course she would eventually need to say goodbye. And if she had other friends in Canterlot, who treat her like a friend and not just as the immortal princess, that would soften the blow considerably as well. If given the option, I would probably choose not to die.

Again, where is this "she didn't get to choose" nonsense coming from? She had a choice in the matter. At any time she could've told Celestia, "I don't want to be a princess" and Celestia would've removed her wings and that would've been the end of it. The fact that she didn't tells me that she wanted this, that her becoming princes and eventually ruler of Equestria is just progressing her character. 

Also, nowhere in this finale was it even hinted at the idea that Twilight is immortal. 

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

That would have been a lot better if they had a qualified multi-species faculty. Then we wouldn't get to see the mane six involved in it, but it's not like the show really did as much with that as it could have. 

True, but it at least had a decent payoff in the end. I could understand what the wrirers were going for, but it still was a stupid decision.

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

Wait, did you ever like this show? 

Yes, I just absolutely despised the first two seasons.  Seasons 4, 5, 7, and 9 are the show's best seasons, though. Even seasons 6 and 8, as lackluster as they were, had some great episodes. 

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

I'm very open about disliking episodes, and although people did argue with me the last two times I voiced my dislike of a popular episode ("Sounds of Silence" and "The Summer Sun Setback") I kinda expect that when I'm posting that opinion on an internet forum. 

My only problem with "Sounds of Silence" was Fluttershy's stupidity and my problem with "The Summer Sun Setback" was the half-assed way they just did away with Twilight's character development.

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

At least I'm not the only one who thinks so; I find that episode completely nonsensical because it doesn't seem believable that Twilight and Moondancer were ever friends at all. 

Hence, my major issue with this spisode and why I didn't like it. 

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

In my experience it's incredibly polarizing; personally I hate it because it just seems so defensive and mean-spirited, and because I don't think the story is a sensible metaphor for TV fans. 

 

On 10/27/2019 at 9:09 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

I dunno, I hated it; seems to come up whenever people talk about bad episodes of this show.

The people I saw hating on it were people who stopped watching the show years ago and saw the episode as a personal attack on them for daring to criticize the show. 

[Thrond 3,263]

4 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

What do you mean she has no friends outside of her Ponyville friends? She has plentt of friends: Cadence, Shining Armor, Flurry Heart, the Student Six, Starlight  Glimmer, Trixie, Sunburst, Maud, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Moondancer, Twinkleshine, Lemon Heart, Minuette, Lyra Heartstrings, etc. 

I phrased that wrong. I just mean that I wonder if she'll be able to make friends the same way in 200 years, once she's been the immortal ruler of Equestria for long enough that most ponies haven't known her as anything else. 

I mean, I think she's immortal; she doesn't seem to have aged like her friends, and the fact that she looks like Celestia now seems to imply as much. Given how much you complained earlier about her outliving her friends, I'm a bit surprised you're arguing with me on that point. 
 

4 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

Again, where is this "she didn't get to choose" nonsense coming from? She had a choice in the matter. At any time she could've told Celestia, "I don't want to be a princess" and Celestia would've removed her wings and that would've been the end of it. The fact that she didn't tells me that she wanted this, that her becoming princes and eventually ruler of Equestria is just progressing her character. 

Yes, it's true that she never said anything, and clearly the idea is that she's happy to take over for Celestia. I'm not convinced Celestia actually has any control over Twilight's wings, but I don't actually know either way. My complaint is that Twilight didn't play an active role in becoming a princess, so it always seemed like she was constantly reacting to something that someone else decided for her. It's easy to assume why she would want to become princess, but she never says it out loud, and Celestia never asked her what she wants. 

If she did want to become Celestia's successor, then I figure that she's fine with everything that comes with that, so I don't see any reason to be unsatisfied. 

4 hours ago, doomie-22 said:

my problem with "The Summer Sun Setback" was the half-assed way they just did away with Twilight's character development.

What do you mean "did away with"?

[Senko 459]

On 10/30/2019 at 12:53 PM, AlexanderThrond said:

I think you're reading too much into that; I don't think Rarijack was built up any more than Appledash. I'd personally be upset by Rarijack being canon because I dislike that ship but more importantly I don't understand where you're getting the idea that it already is canon. It seems clear to me that they don't have feelings towards each other. 

I was referring there to my personal feeling from that element of the final episode you'll note in the rest of my posts that I don't want pairings of the mane 6 like we got. Part of the journey in anything is the main reason we have interest in it. Like I said I'm a firm Twilight/Dash fan but if I came across a story that was "Rainbow Dash married Twilight Sparkle. The End." it'd just leave me cold. There's nothing there showing how they met, when they realized they had feelings for each other, when they had to overcome conflicts etc and that's what I was getting at here. We have seen at several points hints of Rarity and Apple Jack being a potential couple and then bam suddenly its basically hitting us in the face with a Rarity not only alone but having moved as far away from Ponyville as she can get and a Dash/Applejack relationship. It comes out of nowhere and feels to me like this new relationship hurt Rarity so much she had to leave Ponyville. Now I'm sure that was not the intention but this is the risk with taking a mane character and pairing them in an Epilogue time skip where we can't see how that happened. It'll make a small group happy and upset the rest when tis not necessary. Which is why the point of my post was that they shouldn't have paired any of the mane 6 off with anyone. At the most they should have given hints of a relationship with somepony e.g. a ring on Rarities horn saying she married someone but not who. Leave that ambiguous and up to the viewer to decide who she married. But then I dislike a lot of this final episode and the whole Twilight becomes Celestia we get here.

[Thrond 3,263]

10 hours ago, Senko said:

There's nothing there showing how they met, when they realized they had feelings for each other, when they had to overcome conflicts etc and that's what I was getting at here. We have seen at several points hints of Rarity and Apple Jack being a potential couple

I don't think those aspects are there any more for Rarity and Applejack than they are for any other couple. The only thing I see between them is the touchy-feely interactions that everyone has in this show. I mean, I'm biased because that's by far my least favourite mane six ship, but if Rarijack suddenly becoming canon would be weird, then maybe the idea that Rarity is sad Applejack didn't pick her is weird too.

10 hours ago, Senko said:

and then bam suddenly its basically hitting us in the face with a Rarity not only alone but having moved as far away from Ponyville as she can get and a Dash/Applejack relationship. It comes out of nowhere and feels to me like this new relationship hurt Rarity so much she had to leave Ponyville. 

I'm not entirely sure she moved to Yakyakistan, though I'm partially saying that because Rarity moving to Yakyakistan makes absolutely no sense to me. We later saw Yona at the boutique in Ponyville, so it seems to me like Rarity was in Yakyakistan for a delivery or something. 

And I know that you're just talking about a weird headcanon you have, but it's not in the show, so I don't know why you're complaining about it. 

 

10 hours ago, Senko said:

At the most they should have given hints of a relationship with somepony e.g. a ring on Rarities horn saying she married someone but not who. Leave that ambiguous and up to the viewer to decide who she married.

I would also have personally preferred it if the mane six didn't mostly wind up in relationships, though I would like to point out that, for all of the hints, we don't actually know if anyone aside from Pinkie Pie has gotten married. I would find it very strange if Rarity just remained single the whole time, because she's the only pony of the mane six who seemed to have any romantic interest in anyone. Maybe she has a boyfriend, though it's really weird that an episode with so many hints doesn't give her anything. 

[BastementSparkle 20,326]

12 minutes ago, AlexanderThrond said:

I'm not entirely sure she moved to Yakyakistan, though I'm partially saying that because Rarity moving to Yakyakistan makes absolutely no sense to me. We later saw Yona at the boutique in Ponyville, so it seems to me like Rarity was in Yakyakistan for a delivery or something. 

And I know that you're just talking about a weird headcanon you have, but it's not in the show, so I don't know why you're complaining about it. 

In the flashback, Rarity actually talks about opening up boutiques for non-ponies, so to me it seems like she followed through on that and probably just opened up a boutique in Yak-Yakistan. I kind of doubt Rarity would move away from Ponyville and if she did, Yak-Yakistan doesn't seem like the place she'd go.

[Thrond 3,263]

26 minutes ago, BastementSparkle said:

In the flashback, Rarity actually talks about opening up boutiques for non-ponies, so to me it seems like she followed through on that and probably just opened up a boutique in Yak-Yakistan. I kind of doubt Rarity would move away from Ponyville and if she did, Yak-Yakistan doesn't seem like the place she'd go.

Yeah, I mean, she didn't even stay in the Canterlot or Manehattan boutiques, and those are Equestria's capitals of high culture. 

[Senko 459]

Exactly yet her Ponyville Boutique is now being lived in by others and we see her come out of the Yakyakistan one so I get left with the feeling she's moved there for some reason and with the Dash/Applejack hints that's what seems likely to me. Honestly I"ll probably ignore that timeskip because while it has some amazing emotional moments there's just too much I dislike. The mane 6 relationships, Twilight's change, the friends apparently drifting apart well its all been mentioned above.

The Rarity/Applejack hinting is a lot more explicit if you watch Equestria Girls including a gender swapped version pallete of Applejack Rarity has a crush on who then dissapears at the end of the episode. Applejack mentions Dash having chores which is pretty odd for friends who meet once a month when they've just met up for said monthly meeting unless they're living together now.

Edited November 1, 2019 by Senko

[BastementSparkle 20,326]

17 minutes ago, Senko said:

Exactly yet her Ponyville Boutique is now being lived in by others and we see her come out of the Yakyakistan one so I get left with the feeling she's moved there for some reason and with the Dash/Applejack hints that's what seems likely to me. Honestly I"ll probably ignore that timeskip because while it has some amazing emotional moments there's just too much I dislike. The mane 6 relationships, Twilight's change, the friends apparently drifting apart well its all been mentioned above.

The Rarity/Applejack hinting is a lot more explicit if you watch Equestria Girls including a gender swapped version pallete of Applejack Rarity has a crush on who then dissapears at the end of the episode. Applejack mentions Dash having chores which is pretty odd for friends who meet once a month when they've just met up for said monthly meeting unless they're living together now.

Or it could just be that Yona and Sandbar are her employees? The thing about her opening more shops is that even if she doesn't move away from Ponyville, it still means she has to spend more time away from Ponyville to deal with all of them, and considering Ponyville is housing a lot more than just ponies in the epilogue, I'd imagine it's grown and so there's probably more customers. It makes sense she might hire others to help manage her boutique while she's gone. I think that makes a bit more sense than her moving, personally.

 That said, I share your feelings on mostly ignoring the epilogue, since I'm not the biggest fan either. I mostly like to just think of it as a "Potential future" one of many possibilities that might happen, not anything concrete.

[Thrond 3,263]

On 11/1/2019 at 2:30 AM, BastementSparkle said:

Or it could just be that Yona and Sandbar are her employees? The thing about her opening more shops is that even if she doesn't move away from Ponyville, it still means she has to spend more time away from Ponyville to deal with all of them, and considering Ponyville is housing a lot more than just ponies in the epilogue, I'd imagine it's grown and so there's probably more customers. It makes sense she might hire others to help manage her boutique while she's gone. I think that makes a bit more sense than her moving, personally.

Yeah I think that makes way more sense. Yona at the very least quite clearly works there, but that doesn't mean Rarity has moved out. 

[The Recherche 29,968]

One thing I will say right off of the bat is that I appreciate that the series finale was not an epic clash of sorts; the previous two episodes covered that well enough. Though I may not be the biggest fan of the episode overall, I do like that they opted for a slice-of-life finale, rather than a final battle finale. That said, I do appreciate the moral they conveyed: change is a necessary part of life, and whether you like it or not, you will have to face it one day, regardless of how it makes you feel.

The episode overall is competent enough, having the same general humor, visuals, and charm we have come to expect, on top of a message that I generally like. From a pure entertainment standpoint, I don't have much to complain about... but the lore connotations, I have some issues with. I know it will likely seem as though I am making mountains out of molehills, but I do genuinely think things like this matter, especially considering that this was the series finale.

First of all, I dislike Twilight being the sole ruler of Equestria. Not is it a massive responsibility to thrust upon one person, but the sudden discarding of the two princesses seemed completely inappropriate. I do understand the basic idea of placing her in the position of ruler of Equestria, considering her title as Princess of Friendship, but why was it necessary for Celestia and Luna to step down and basically vanish with no trace?

Then there is the epilogue itself... which I have some thoughts on, to say the least. First of all, I strongly dislike Twilight and Spike's designs.  Princess Twilight 2.0 is a borderline Celestia recolor, and Spike is far too anthropomorphic and disproportionate. I do understand the general idea of both, but Twilight's design should have been revised to resemble her more, and Spike should instead be growing into a more traditional dragon, as was much more common in the earlier seasons. This highlights the biggest issue I have with the finale, and the later half of the series as a whole... but more on that in a bit.

As for the remainder of the Mane 6... they don't fare much better. One minor complaint I have with their designs is their eye bags; I do understand that they were meant to convey age, but they just look exhausted instead. That is the least of my issues with them, however, though they each have unique issues. To summarize:

• Pinkie Pie is paired with a character that she has very little romantic chemistry with, from my recollection. This isn't wrong per se, but it is awfully sudden, as seems to be the trend in the series finale. I do know this was a common ship, but canon and fanon are two separate things.
• Applejack inheriting Granny Smith's scarf is a nice touch, but of all of the Mane 6, she is the one who should have a family... but she doesn't.
• Rainbow Dash being captain of the Wonderbolts is fine, but her design resembles Spitfire too much. Again, I understand the idea here, but Rainbow Dash is her own person, not a mere successor to someone.
• Fluttershy is probably the best handled one, though her mane is a bit ugly.
• And finally, Rarity is alone in her middle-ages, in spite of her romantic pursuits in her younger years, which utterly perplexes me. I do like her design quite a lot, but her epilogue is yet another contradiction to what their characters have expressed desires for in the past.

There are various others I could go into, but those are the most important. So, truthfully told... I am not happy with any of the epilogues; at best, I am lukewarm. I will even go as far as to say that the general state of the Mane 6 is... borderline depressing. Virtually none of them got what they wished for early on, and the elephant in the room being Twilight outliving her friends is not addressed at all. The Mane 6 do not look like they are in their golden years; they as though they are well past their prime, and have stagnated in life.

This all leads to the largest issue I have and have had with the later few seasons, perfectly encapsulated by Twilight being the new ruler of Equestria: instead of keeping Equestria a high-fantasy setting, they are determined to turn it into friendship land. I know that likely sound silly, considering the theme of the series as a whole, but one of my favorite aspects of the series early on was how well-defined and mystical the world seemed. It was an overall pleasant place to be, sure, but it had dangers, classes, tensions, and so on, as any normal world does.

Overall... I don't know. As I said; the finale itself was perfectly acceptable, and the final song of the series, "The Magic of Friendship Grows" is absolutely fantastic, but the smaller things about the finale get to me. There wasn't anything bad enough to completely ruin the series for me, but the epilogue leaves me a bit cold, admittedly. I would have preferred if they had just left it ambiguous.  Nevertheless, the journey up to this point was certainly worth it, in the end.

[Klutzy Draconequus 12]

After reading some of this discussion, I’m a little hesitant to throw in my worthless two cents, but at the risk of having things thrown at me, here goes. 

Maybe it’s because I’m completely new to this fandom and maybe it has to do with the fact that I have only watched every episode featuring Discord and nothing more, but I didn’t think this was a terrible finale. Granted, it could have been better. I don’t get why Twilight has an overactive pituitary gland and gets bigger and “prettier” than her friends while they stay “adolescent size” and develop wrinkles, but I shrugged it off. The song was enjoyable as I have found most of the songs to be in the show. I can relate to the whole moving away bit because my own childhood was a series of me moving away every one to two years and losing touch with friends. All in all, it wasn’t bad.  Biggest complaint: not enough Discord. Yes, you can throw things at me for that if you wish.

Now on to my main curiosity. I really like the odd friendship that developed between Fluttershy and Discord. I think it’s cute how the writing throughout the show implies that Discord might have a crush on her (I get a kick out of his jealousy and overprotective behavior), though I can’t say I’m totally sold on a true romantic relationship between them. So with this finale, Fluttershy made her entrance through a portal that had Discord written all over it before he even appeared. Is this meant to say that they truly did end up together as more than friends? Like...married? 

[The Nth Doctor 662]

Would've been more interesting if Twilight had reverted to a unicorn 30 years later and we're given no explanation so we could come up with our own idea of what happened in the intervening years

[Quinch 1,120]

1 minute ago, The Nth Doctor said:

Would've been more interesting if Twilight had reverted to a unicorn 30 years later and we're given no explanation so we could come up with our own idea of what happened in the intervening years

Better yet, Twilight's a griffon, Rainbow Dash is a buffalo, Applejack is a breezie, Fluttershy is a sea serpent {imagine the hugs!}, Pinkie Pie is a cow and Rarity's a zebra!

[BastementSparkle 20,326]

7 hours ago, Klutzy Draconequus said:

So with this finale, Fluttershy made her entrance through a portal that had Discord written all over it before he even appeared. Is this meant to say that they truly did end up together as more than friends? Like...married? 

It's possible, the writers were sort of hinting at that, though many of them have said they decided to leave it ambiguous for fans to make up their own minds. Just cause Discord brings her doesn't have to mean they live together though, it could just mean she was visiting him before showing up to the Friendship Council, or maybe just hitching a ride because having a friend who can take you anywhere in seconds, who wouldn't want to use that?

 So, they could be a couple or just a pair of very close friends, up to you to decide.

[The Nth Doctor 662]

Discord is Fluttershy's Uber because she doesn't like to fly

[Will Guide 21,360]

Recently the Final episodes of two shows I've been watching through Netflix had this to say about the story ending.

ONCE Upon a Time: Names not given for spoilers reasons

Quote

Character A : This is it. It's your happy ending.

Character B (smiling throughout) : Mm, no, not even close. This isn't an ending. I hate endings. Because then your story is done. And everyone here... well, their stories are far from over.

Character A : Well... a happy beginning, then.

Character B : I like to call it... a second chance.

 

And in the Netflix version of Lemony Snicket's a Series of Unfortunate Events in the final minutes of the Last Chapter

Quote

Sometimes, a chapter might end, but that doesn't mean the story's over. And some stories go on even after the storyteller has stopped telling them

 

[Jane 123]

I don't like the last episode of the series. Leave such ambiguous explanations of what happened to the lives of our protagonists, if Hasbro was going to leave things so indescised just for fans to choose, better we would have written the damn episode!

Is Appledash canon? We will never know, Fluttercord? Many fans say they only work together and others say they are a couple.

Twilight is nothing more than an ugly recolor of Celestia. I thought that Celestia had taken decades to grow to that size, Luna is a few years younger than Celestia and still was notoriously smaller, and now boom! a Twilight 15 years in the future that grew as much as Celestia. I would have liked her to only grow up like Cadence, who is a couple of years older than her, or even Luna, but no, she looks so bad next to her friends.

I know that animators have always tried new techniques and improving animation, but there are many nasty designs in this episode! The Young Six, of course, with the exception of Gallus (who looks the same) his designs were really beautiful, but now we only had bad adult versions of them very badly made, and Yona EXAGGERATLY large. Another would be the son of Pinkie, who is a mini Pinkie with the colors of Fluttershy, but very simple. Let's not talk about the bags under their eyes that were there to tell us that they are aging, very rarely we saw ponies with those lines, I do not remember that their parents had them, and the only character, in addition to older ponies such as Granny Smith,  who had more time on the screen, was Soarin, which at first I thought it was due to fatigue, but then I guessed it was already an adult pony.

At the beginning of the season (and the rest of the time the subject was discussed) we were led to believe that the all the mane six  would govern, but then we found out that that beautiful castle we had for 5 seasons would be left behind, and now Twilight would move to Canterlot and he would forget the idea of being with his friends all together. 

What it is to be born in a high class family.

Edited November 9, 2019 by frida

[Jane 123]

it would be more credible that Luster was the sister of Starlight and Sunburts than their daughter, but leaving this theory, what if Starlight is going to teach recurring classes at the School of Magic and this is the reason why she knows Luster? It would be strange on Twilight, not to invite Starlight to teach in the School from time to time. 

PD: Celestia in the 1000 years she was ruling, never found someone to replace her? Really?

[Jane 123]

Now, let's talk about Cutie Marks. The cutie mark of Luster Dawn is exactly that of Sunburts, but inverted upwards, instead, that of Sunburts is tilted, around the Sunburts cutie mark, four-pointed stars appear, the same Starlight's star, as if its destination was to illuminate her (help, accompany), (which happened and is exactly how he got it). Instead, that of Luster reflects her name, and it is the sun at dawn rising from behind the sea, as if her destiny were to illuminate all of Equestria and she in the future would take care of the sun (which Twilight cannot do)