S03:E05 - Magic Duel

[GreyScholar 1,584]

Yes she did use magic, that's how she was making flashes and puffs of smoke, her horn was glowing.

 

Of any case it doesn't matter Twilight outsmarted Trixie. In battle, tactics more often then not beat out strength and power. Twilight knew as long as Trixie had the alicorn amulet she would not be able to win with magical power alone thus Twilight used her superior intellect to have Trixie take off the amulet.

 

Also do not forget Trixie stole Twilight's amulet.

Edited August 24, 2013 by EquestrianScholar

[Singe 2,111]

yes she did use magic that's how she was making flashes and puffs of smoke, her horn was glowing.

 

Of any case it doesn't matter Twilight outsmarted Trixie. In battle, tactics more often not beat out rough strength and power. Twilight knew as long as Trixie had the Alicorn Amulet she would not be able to win with magical power alone thus Twilight used her superior intellect to have Trixie take off the amulet.

 

Twilight faked the spells she annouced she was doing. A flash and puff of smoke to swap AJ with fake Big Mac still means she didn't cast a real gender swap spell.

Edited August 24, 2013 by Singe

[GreyScholar 1,584]

Why do you insist? Just accept the fact Trixie is inferior to Twilight, that without cheating she had no hope of winning in a magic duel.

 

Heck if Twilight had not tricked Trixie in taking off the amulet she would have become fully corrupted and evil.

 

Trixie lost, Twilight out performed and out smarted her. The duel was lost as soon as Trixie took off the alicorn amulet.

Edited August 24, 2013 by EquestrianScholar

[Singe 2,111]

Twilight didn't win the Alicorn Amulet off of Trixie in the duel. She had Rainbow Dash interfere by flying in and stealing it.

Twilight didn't even have an amulet to steal since she admits that it was a doorstop.

 

Twilight's entire act in the duel was nothing more than a con job.

Edited August 24, 2013 by Singe

[GreyScholar 1,584]

If this was an officially established magic duel Trixie would have already lost because of using an artifact that realistically would be banned from any official estabished duels.

 

Not only that but the original duel was forced upon Twilight Sparkle, as were to a large extent the conditions setup for said duel. Realisticly if this magic dual was following any official rules Trixie would have been disqualified in the very beginning for using a dangerous artifact that turns the user evil.

[The Neckbearded 11]

If this was an officially established magic duel Trixie would have already lost because of using an artifact that realistically would be banned from any official estabished duels.

 

Not only that but the original duel was forced upon Twilight Sparkle, as were to a large extent the conditions setup for said duel. Realisticly if this magic dual was following any official rules Trixie would have been disqualified in the very beginning for using a dangerous artifact that turns the user evil.

I agree with this entirely.

 

Trixie still gets to keep her magic duel win over Twilight. The second duel was forfeit on Twilight's part since she admits to not actually doing magic but just putting on a show.

Twilight may have lost the duel in terms of actual performance, but that is irrelevant, I think. Trixie cheated, plain and simple. We both know who would win in an actual magic duel between Twilight and Trixie, if they'd be left to their own strength and not artificially boosted. To say that Trixie won the second duel is still kind of silly though when you consider that of course Twilight couldn't actually win that. . . Trixie used an amulet that amplifies her powers. . .

[~Tian_Disharmony~ 48]

Is it just me, or is Trixie suddenly being the most sadistic villain the show's ever had?  Let's see, so far she's: (1) almost killed a background pony with a wagon, (2) physically altered ponies in rather disturbing ways, most notably the age spell she cast on Snips and Snails, and (3) cut off all of Ponyville from the rest of Equestria!!!  Gosh dang, Trixie's a stone-cold b*tch!!!!!!!!! 

Not really, BLAM THE ALICORN AMLET,  just saying, it made her  that evil anyways .............. And no Trixie is not  FYI, and what back ground pony?

[Batbrony 16,055]

Not really, BLAM THE ALICORN AMLET,  just saying, it made her  that evil anyways .............. And no Trixie is not  FYI, and what back ground pony?

 

 Oh no, I know that now; that post was made in the middle of the episode on the very first day of its release while it was debuting live, before we'd gotten an explanation yet about the Alicorn Amulet.  I know that now, but that was just what I observed at the time.  Oh, and I don't know which background pony; I don't think it was one of the more popular ones, but there was definitely a point either before or during Trixie and Twilight's first duel that Trixie almost crushed a background pony who Twilight got out of the way at the last second.  Hope this helps clear things up! 

Edited October 11, 2013 by Batbrony

[firestream 15]

i for one did not like this episode.
i am not that much of a " great and powerful trixy " fan i never have been from her first episode  can't rember the name one top of my head.

[~Tian_Disharmony~ 48]

 Oh no, I know that now; that post was made in the middle of the episode on the very first day of its release while it was debuting live, before we'd gotten an explanation yet about the Alicorn Amulet.  I know that now, but that was just what I observed at the time.  Oh, and I don't know which background pony; I don't think it was one of the more popular ones, but there was definitely a point either before or during Trixie and Twilight's first duel that Trixie almost crushed a background pony who Twilight got out of the way at the last second.  Hope this helps clear things up! 

Yeah it, I understand conpletely... I can say it wasn't Snips and/or sails though they where pulling the wagon at the time....  Not  Derpy, I don't remember seeing that part...

[CharChar 35]

Trixie....  You  could've seen Twilight's fakeness but you were just so greedy with power...  Oh well.  the Great and Powerfull Trrrrixie must move on, right?

I do wonder if we will ever see her truly happy.

 

Also love how Pinkie just gets cut off at the end.  Classic.

[NomDeSpite 452]

I was impressed with most of this episode. But the ending was so disappointing that I can only deem it average. Let me explain:

 

"Trixie returns from self-imposed exile." That's good. The general nastiness she demonstrated in "Boast Busters" back in Season 1 makes her a good villain, plus she's popular with the fanbase.

 

"She's more powerful than before." Also good. We get a sinister, shadowy episode introduction where Trixie buys the dangerous Alicorn Amulet, of dubious legality, to boost her magic.

 

"She's out for revenge against Twilight Sparkle." I like that her motivation is to make Twilight (and Ponyville) suffer for the humiliation she experienecd last time. It's realistic. Alot of the worst criminals suffer from narcissistic rage and commit their crimes to destroy the threat to their ego.

 

"Trixie wins the duel and forces Twilight out of town. In order to save the day, she has to use the power of love and friendship!"

It's not very original but it's still useful. Trixie is basically a loner and clearly loves little but herself. That's a disgraceful way to live. Twilight possesses something beautiful, pristine and priceless that Trixie lacks. So, why not have this be her key to victory?

 

Unfortunately, there is a huge problem: Trixie's conversion from villian to protagonist is too sudden! Come now, writers. Do you seriously expect me to believe that someone who commits crimes of this magnitude in this episode is going to "see the light" in an instant and know that what she did was wrong? Not really. With Luna/Nightmare Moon, it made more sense because the Elements Of Harmony were used to change her back to normal.

 

If I had written this episode, I'd have given Trixie another retreat. Then, in a future episode, she would make one more attempt at defeating Twilight, and after Twilight defeats her, only after this does she go about the slow process of realizing everything that's wrong with her and becoming "The Great And Apologetic Trixie". Three times + reflection would have been a better choice (we may also have missed a sensational final battle because of the writers making her a protagonist now instead of later).

[joecal97 340]

wow, trixie vs twilight

Let the 'MAGIC' begin!

ROUND ONE...FIGHT!

Edited December 5, 2013 by joecal97

[GreyScholar 1,584]

One parallel that can be draw with Trixie and her use of the alicorn amulet, and whether or not she should be blamed for her actions, can be made with someone that drinks too much becoming drunk and lets say does things that harm others... both would still need to pay for any crimes they commit. Trixie got off easy for her actions, and saying "the amulet made her do it" is a poor excuse to justify what she did to others while wearing it.

[Gary S. 102]

Is it just me, or is Trixie suddenly being the most sadistic villain the show's ever had?  Let's see, so far she's: (1) almost killed a background pony with a wagon,

 

I don't think it was life threatening. Remember that Twilight survived an anvil and a piano. Damn, ponies are tough.

She had to go to hospital, though.

Edited December 15, 2013 by Gary S.

[Frozen The Unicorn 484]

Tim thinks that this is a solid episode

 

 

 

Tim gives it

 

9/10

 

Tim says it was a 8 but third person gives it a bonus point

[Rainbow Eclipse 3,927]

This episode was my least favourite for the sole reason of what happened to Pinkie.

[Dr. Mechano 630]

I didn't like Boast Busters all that much. I thought Trixie's status as an antagonist was a bit forced, and the introduction honestly came across as Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity pointlessly heckling a stage magician and getting (probably) deserved comebacks for interrupting her show. The closest thing it had to an antagonist wasn't Trixie, but Snips and Snails, who endangered Ponyville by bringing an Ursa Minor to town. Trixie herself was haughty to be sure, but hardly harmful, and certainly didn't deserve to be completely vilified in the manner she was.

 

Magic Duel rectifies many of the problems with Boast Busters. While Trixie is an unabashed villain here, it's only because the Alicorn Amulet is exaggerating her very real ambitions for fame and adoration into a corrupted desire for power. Her personality is more or less intact, and it's my belief that the Amulet - rather than outright controlling her - merely amplified the negative parts of Trixie's personality that were already there (thus, the same amulet would likely have different effects on another pony). I appreciated that both Twilight and Snips reminded the audience that Trixie was "just a fraud," and not an outright evildoer in her earlier appearance.

 

With that said, Trixie does make a fantastic villain. The statues, the tapestries, the egotism... it reminds me of a certain self-loving mad scientist, and that's definitely a compliment coming from me. Trixie hams it up for the entire episode, and was one of the great highlights of the entire third season.

 

I enjoyed seeing her apologize and make amends with Twilight as well. It's nice to see that Trixie did learn something after all, and I hope we see her again in the future!

[Pastel 7,630]

This episode has an excellent story: Twilight expulsed from Ponyville and looking for a solution to defeat Trixie. I really like she asks help from Zekora.

 

But it's so badly written: Fluttershy is a complete doormat, Snips and Snail enslaved?, too much scenes of Ponyville dominated by Trixie, the episode should have more focused on Twilight than Trixie.

And the end with Pinkie Pie? What?

 

One of my least favorite episodes of the show....

[Justin_Case001 4,896]

Epic episode.  Loved it.  I really liked the way Twi won with the whole real-life illusion show.  It was like a Criss Angel act.  But the best part was the whole allusion to Empire Strikes Back with Zecora training Twi.

[FlutterDashing 0]

trixie get fryendly not evil

[Steelstallion 462]

Didn't Trixy learn her lesion the first time!!!

[()()()()()()? 72]

....................

Edited September 5, 2022 by ()()()()()()?

[Galen Selanno 351]

I kinda like repeats from previous episodes, but this was a little over the top. This played more into emotion and past defeats, and emotions affected by past defeats, than it did friendship. And one must also wonder why the Alicorn Amulet wasn't given to Canterlot for security upon its discovery.

[Princess Pinny 6,099]

This is my favorite from Season 3. It's so cool how Trixie turned so evil with just that Alicorn thing.