Prediction: Twilight Sparkle Is The Next Nightmare Moon

[Queen Cassie 3,057]

Twilight Sparkle has been consistently growing more and more powerful over the course of the series. She's been harnessing new techniques, improving her repertoire of spells, and honing her manipulation of everything from levitation of living beings to her control over teleportation--after all, in the first season, she was barely able to teleport from an alleyway to her home in the library, whereas in the second season she teleported herself and several others over a distance of a number of miles. Then there's the difference between her brute force lifting of the Ursa Minor to her skilled manipulative dancing of the animals in Magic Duel, and plenty of other instances as well.

It's a fairly commonly held belief at this point, due to all of the signs, that Twilight Sparkle will become an Alicorn at the end of Season Three. But I am growing increasingly convinced this will be a darker transformation...

Why? Simple.

Twilight Sparkle has been growing more callous lately as well. Let us examine her magical feats over the first five episodes of Season Three. In the Crystal Empire she immediately takes to the dark magic of Sombra to manipulate the crystals. In Too Many Pinkie Pies, she not only masters a spell that allows her to turn animals into oranges--arguably robbing them of their sight and possibly their ability to swallow food, meaning they are not only blind but will starve--and later shows no hesitation in the way she arguably outright executes the Pinkie Pie clones. Even when it is down to just one clone and Pinkie Pie herself, she continues to use the same test--and keep in mind that she was worried for what the spell might do to Pinkie earlier, meaning she could have done Pinkie grievous harm.


Figure 1: Pinkie Pie execution.

Then there's her magic she uses in Magic Duel. While it's true she was forced to utilize stage magic in an effort to give the illusion she was outdoing Trixie...she did gain possession of the Alicorn Amulet, and while it's implied that Zecora will get rid of it, we never quite see her actually do it. (And then there's the fact that she waited till after the end of the episode to restore Pinkie's mouth. Bit mean, don't you think?)

This notion of Twilight Sparkle becoming an Alicorn, or indeed, a Nightmare Moon of sorts, is hardly a new idea. It's been around since the fandom first formed practically--you only need to look at FIMFiction for five minutes to see that.

But the difference here is that in the past, there was never any actual evidence for Twilight becoming an Alicorn at all, let alone turning into a Nightmare Moon. It was a fandom hobby, turning every powerful magic character into one, but that's all it was: pure baseless fanon. And yet, there are many hints towards Alicornism for Twilight in the near future.


Figure 2: The Black Book

 

So, the question becomes, why would she become a dark Alicorn akin to Nightmare Moon instead of something more like Celestia?

Well, we have a number of potential reasons. First, this would hardly be the first time Twilight Sparkle has snapped--we've seen her lose her temper explosively in Feeling Pinkie Keen, and temporarily lose her sanity in her zeal to not be late in Lesson Zero. Second, there are several unanswered questions regarding the nature of Nightmare Moon and, indeed, King Sombra as well--both are mentioned as happening one thousand years ago, and both have yet to be given a reason for why they went evil. (There is, after all, that lingering line from the pilot, "The stars will aid in her escape.") Third, King Sombra's horn is still around, suggesting that lingering traces of his evil might yet lurk within it.


Figure 3: King Sombra's horn surviving his death.

 

Then there are a few out of universe reasons, in terms of narrative structure. The series in this season has been taking an increasingly dark tone, relatively speaking to the previous two seasons. We've been dealing with existential crises, revenge, and severe bullying(including the realistic lesson that plenty of bullies start bullying because they were bullied themselves and don't wish to be bullied again), as well as other little hints, such as the way the Pinkie clones were dealt with, the fact that King Sombra was outright killed, and the way Trixie tried to make Rainbow Dash writhe in agony. They're small, yes, and in a larger sense, compared to a lot of the entertainment we adult fans might enjoy, they're not quite huge, but compared to the previous seasons they're really quite obvious. Then there's the fact that Twilight becoming an Alicorn would represent a series game changer. If the series is to continue on from the third season at all, it would have to be a non-permanent change. She would have to revert back at the end of the episode in order for her to continue being the main character Twilight that we all know and love. What better way to ensure that than to make her a temporarily evil Alicorn, that then is reverted with the message of "You're not ready to join me in true Princesshood yet, Twilight" from Celestia?
 

Now, how is this likely to occur? Well, it's probably not going to be jealousy on Twilight's part. She's been consistently modest, so unlike Luna she won't believe she needs appreciation that she's been denied to the level that she would outright turn evil just to get it. Plus, I have always been convinced--and I believe it is the general opinion amongst the fandom--that Nightmare Moon was something of a possession of Luna. That is, some sort of evil power was invited in or was able to take control, due to her desire for appreciation, that she was corrupted and became a tyrant due to its influence. Arguably the same happened to King Sombra--he was barely able to say anything other than crystals, and with his horn still around the spirit that possessed him might also still lurk within.

So I think what's likely to happen is that there will be some sort of threat, something that Twilight must counter, that she must gain the necessary power to defeat, something the Elements of Harmony can't handle, but neither can the Princesses. Something only she can take down. The spirit thing that possessed Luna and Sombra might manifest to her as some sort of possible way to gain more power, something she could take in so that she could defeat this threat--the necessary sacrifice, she might believe. And then once the threat is handled, she's left with an ever growing power and an ever darkening mind that is close to snapping--she might start believing that she has to do other things for Equestria, to make it better. She may start to see her friends as threats, the Princesses as threats, and so on and so forth. She wouldn't quite be evil in the traditional sense of "I want to rule the world for myself!" but she would become evil in that she would be doing so much harm...all because she'd believe it would be for the best of Equestria. She would think she was doing everyone a favor.

She even has tools at her disposal to consolidate her power. She knows the location of the Alicorn Amulet, which alone could magnify her power--and she might believe she's become powerful enough to resist its corrupting influences. She has access to the magic pool that Pinkie used to clone herself, which Twilight could use to form an army of soldiers from anypony loyal to her--and there will definitely be some loyal to her after all the good she's done for Equestria. (Including possibly Rainbow Dash and one or two more of the Mane Six, which could split the Mane Six up making the resolution of things much more complex and precarious.)

So, how will this be resolved? How will she be removed from her power? That I don't know. I know it would have to happen, out of universe, because there's no way the show writers would actually have the show end in a "Sparkle Falls, Everybody Dies" kind of scenario. That's just ridiculous for this show.

It is my opinion, however, that however it might happen, that whatever might be done to resolve it, Twilight Sparkle is going to become an Alicorn by season's end, and she'll do it by becoming the next Nightmare Moon.
 

[Princes Cadance 345]

I think Twilight is just one of those persistent ponies who has that little special something inside her that wills herself to do better

[Arcanel 3,041]

Holy mother of predictions....seriously! HOLY CELESTIA! That's huge Kyro! Anyway, here are my thoughts.

 

It's no wonder that Twilight is in for something big. She has done spells that are getting more and interesting while advancing through Season 3, that's not to forget the ominous "cutie mark background" back in The Crystal Empire as well, for example. And I have to admit that Twilight becoming corrupted in such a way is quite an interesting idea.

 

Twilight has been getting more and more confident in the spells she uses that's for sure. And I have the feeling that Celestia had been waiting for the moment Twilight was ready. Alicornhood? I don't quite think so. I am still gonna be skeptical on how exactly an alicorn is...made/born for lack of better words. However, Twilight is a powerful unicorn that she can be a threat on her own even against Celestia and Luna.

 

However, I do believe that if she gets corrupted, it will be by an outside source, knowing how strong she has become, I believe someone will use her against Celestia, Luna, and the rest, which could also provide the best of Friendship lessons one could hope for that ensues in an epic battle. "Your friends will always be there for you".

[Queen Cassie 3,057]

Holy mother of predictions....seriously! HOLY CELESTIA! That's huge Kyro! Anyway, here are my thoughts.

 

It's no wonder that Twilight is in for something big. She has done spells that are getting more and interesting while advancing through Season 3, that's not to forget the ominous "cutie mark background" back in The Crystal Empire as well, for example. And I have to admit that Twilight becoming corrupted in such a way is quite an interesting idea.

 

Twilight has been getting more and more confident in the spells she uses that's for sure. And I have the feeling that Celestia had been waiting for the moment Twilight was ready. Alicornhood? I don't quite think so. I am still gonna be skeptical on how exactly an alicorn is...made/born for lack of better words. However, Twilight is a powerful unicorn that she can be a threat on her own even against Celestia and Luna.

 

However, I do believe that if she gets corrupted, it will be by an outside source, knowing how strong she has become, I believe someone will use her against Celestia, Luna, and the rest, which could also provide the best of Friendship lessons one could hope for that ensues in an epic battle. "Your friends will always be there for you".

It's true that she wouldn't necessarily have to become an Alicorn in order to become an evil character that is being used against the Princesses and her friends, but I follow through on the idea because I've become quite convinced she's likely to become an Alicorn this season--and while she might not necessarily be turned into one "on schedule" by Celestia, she might actually seek out her own means by which to become an Alicorn, again to counter a threat she thinks is there to be countered.

 

This would then lead to what I suggested before and what you follow up upon: something or someone using her and twisting her desires to help into the evil control. Thus, she'd become an Alicorn, but too soon.

[NavelColt 22,877]

I don't find it all that hard to believe. Twilight using the dark magic Celestia showed her only once, twice, may very well have been foreshadowing. To me, if Twilight ever turned, it would be because her sanity in question would shift ever so slightly, to be more like it was in Lesson Zero. Not outright crazy with the same over-the-top expressions, but certainly possessing the same paranoia traits and fixation on her goals. It'd be interesting to see Luna confront a corrupted Twilight.

 

"Twilight Sparkle, thou must look deep into thine heart and remember the very magic thou taught me, many moons ago, when I too looked down upon you and your friends with those same eyes."

 

Anyway, an interesting theory ^^ Very intriguing.

[MatrixChicken 879]

This needs to happen. Like, really. Either Twi or Celestia. Or maybe even Luna going berserk again! Someone important needs to become evil, though. It just needs to happen!

[Vicke 3,187]

Just to let you know that the shows episodes has really no connection (I see them as fillers, no storyline) or order in which they are shown.

They are written by different writers and now the big question. How does one change race/kind?

Edited December 4, 2012 by Vicke

[Jghx5 33]

This reminds me of a comic I readied yesterday were she became a nightmare moon type character.  Funny that she may become in the show for real.  Thanks for pointing that out.

[Arcanel 3,041]

It's true that she wouldn't necessarily have to become an Alicorn in order to become an evil character that is being used against the Princesses and her friends, but I follow through on the idea because I've become quite convinced she's likely to become an Alicorn this season--and while she might not necessarily be turned into one "on schedule" by Celestia, she might actually seek out her own means by which to become an Alicorn, again to counter a threat she thinks is there to be countered.

 

This would then lead to what I suggested before and what you follow up upon: something or someone using her and twisting her desires to help into the evil control. Thus, she'd become an Alicorn, but too soon.

I guess it all follows up on how alicorns are formed though. I don't wanna see Twilight corrupted, of course, but I will say that if the last part becomes two episodes where someone sees Twilight trying to strive being better for Equestria in ways that could be dangerous, goes to corrupte her somehow, and uses her against Celestia and co. then that will be one hell of two episodes for sure.

[Circadian 1,273]

Dark Twilight. It's going to happen. She will become corrupted. I've been saying it since the season 3 premiere. Two part finale where her friends have to save Twilight from herself.

[Queen Cassie 3,057]

Just to let you know that the shows episodes has really no connection (I see them as fillers, no storyline) or order in which they are shown.

They are written by different writers and now the big question. How does one change race/kind?

The sheer amount of continuity in this show would disagree with you, particularly in how much episodes tend to depend upon preceeding episodes in order for some of the things to happen to make sense. While the most obvious example is Magic Duel happening after Boast Busters, there are also little tiny ones--such as Pound and Pumpkin appearing in A Friend In Deed, or Rainbow Dash reading Daring Do books in that same episode(and then again in a later episode, Too Many Pinkie Pies.) You might want to rewatch the show before you decide it doesn't have continuity.

 

As for how she would transform into an Alicorn, that all depends upon what exactly Alicorns are. We still don't know what they are or where they come from in the show, so it wouldn't be contradicting previous information to have her transform into one--that may be how they are created, that a normal pony is transformed into an Alicorn.

 

I guess it all follows up on how alicorns are formed though. I don't wanna see Twilight corrupted, of course, but I will say that if the last part becomes two episodes where someone sees Twilight trying to strive being better for Equestria in ways that could be dangerous, goes to corrupte her somehow, and uses her against Celestia and co. then that will be one hell of two episodes for sure.

I don't necessarily want to see her become evil either, but the way I'm looking at this is a combination of both in and out of universe. Everything points to Alicorn Twilight at the end of the season, but the series is also not likely to end anytime soon. And given the other evidence we have at hand, I think it's most likely we could have Nightmare Twilight, because it's the most logical way to turn her into an Alicorn and then revert it.

[Vicke 3,187]

The sheer amount of continuity in this show would disagree with you, particularly in how much episodes tend to depend upon preceeding episodes in order for some of the things to happen to make sense. While the most obvious example is Magic Duel happening after Boast Busters, there are also little tiny ones--such as Pound and Pumpkin appearing in A Friend In Deed, or Rainbow Dash reading Daring Do books in that same episode(and then again in a later episode, Too Many Pinkie Pies.) You might want to rewatch the show before you decide it doesn't have continuity.

 

As for how she would transform into an Alicorn, that all depends upon what exactly Alicorns are. We still don't know what they are or where they come from in the show, so it wouldn't be contradicting previous information to have her transform into one--that may be how they are created, that a normal pony is transformed into an Alicorn.

"You might want to rewatch the show before you decide it doesn't have continuity."

That was completely unnecessary.

---

 

Lets put it like this.

We have cannon episodes and we have "filler"

In the first season we have two first episodes where NMM arrives. And the Gala episodes.

The second season we the two first episodes with Discord and the two last ones with Chrysalis.

And now, the third season we have the two first ones.

 

I do not believe the rest of the episodes will and can affect these ones as much.

Dash reading a book can simply just be a nice little touch they decided to throw in, because why not?

The ones with Trixie is something that the fans has been shouting about for quite some time now.

 

The show has no goals or story.

---

 

And for the Alicorn part, i believe  its something you are simply born as. Just like Chrysalis being born as a Changeling.

We can throw the need of power in the wall, because then both Chrysalis and Sombra would have been Alicorns.

 

 

You don't see Earth ponies transforming into Unicorns or Pegasus, now do you?

Edited December 4, 2012 by Vicke

[The Pirate Prince 105]

I also thought about Twilight becoming an Alicorn, but I don't think she'd become evil. All three alicorns we've seen so far have represented something, the day, the night and romantic love. I think Twilight would absorb the Elements of Harmony and become the spirit of harmony/friendship.

 

Maybe it starts with her absorbing the Elements so the six can access them whenever they want, so they can avoid messes like with Discord and Chrysalis. Then one adventure when they use it, she becomes a Alicorn for a brief time. Eventually she is able to transform at will and then she has to decide whether to fully embrace "Alicornhood," take the title of Princess and become Celestia's equal or stay a unicorn and not be treated differently by others.

[duidamasterXD 9,626]

I am highly skeptical that she'll become an Alicorn, but I can certainly see her becoming the villain of a future episode. Perhaps the return of Discord or some similar threat could cause Twilight to cross the Godzilla Threshold

(http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GodzillaThreshold) and either go overboard with dark magic or end up putting on the Alicorn amulet. Of course the situation would get even worse and the rest of the Mane 5 would have to figure out some way to bring Twilight back. It's definitely an interesting idea. I can't really see Twilight becoming evil for reasons other than the ones I mentioned though. The book that Luna has is definitely significant though, perhaps some extremely dangerous threat is coming and Celestia is desperately trying to prepare Twilight for it somehow? I suppose we'll see.

 

[iLegovideo 152]

Well, this changes EVERYTHING. I don't think that she will be the next Nightmare Moon, but she has the potential of becoming a villain, but is unlikely because Luna became Nightmare moon because of one factor: Jealousy. As of right now, Twilight is not really jealous of anyone. It's rather unlikely that she would be corrupted if there is no factor to make her jealous. I really don't know at this point. Maybe Shining Armor has just become a better unicorn than her, but she would overcome that by studying. If anything, it would take something like being shunned to become Nightmare Moon because that's how Luna became Nightmare Moon, she was shunned, and so she tried to challenge her sister. Maybe Twilight will try to challenge somepony because she got shunned from the other pony's attention. As this is more likely to happen, it is still unlikely. A pony who tries to seek attention but is shunned from another's attention doesn't sound much like Twilight. Twilight might burst into flames, but that's about it. 

[Queen Cassie 3,057]

"You might want to rewatch the show before you decide it doesn't have continuity."

That was completely unnecessary.

I apologize if I offended you--I wasn't meaning offense at all. I simply meant that it can be hard to realize how much continuity there actually is from episode to episode if you're not watching closely--the rewatching of the show was meant to be a suggestion, to rewatch episodes with a careful eye.

Lets put it like this.

We have cannon episodes and we have "filler"

In the first season we have two first episodes where NMM arrives. And the Gala episodes.

The second season we the two first episodes with Discord and the two last ones with Chrysalis.

And now, the third season we have the two first ones.

 

I do not believe the rest of the episodes will and can affect these ones as much.

Dash reading a book can simply just be a nice little touch they decided to throw in, because why not?

The ones with Trixie is something that the fans has been shouting about for quite some time now.

 

The show has no goals or story.

And I'm afraid I must significantly disagree with you. There's no reason to assume that the episodes that aren't focusing on action are less canonical than the episodes that do. Your point actually disproves itself in that you bring up The Best Night Ever as one example, when two previous episodes dealt with the Grand Galloping Gala--the Ticket Master and Suited for Success. The Ticket Master introduced the goal of the Gala and Suited for Success gave them their Gala dresses. And of course we've seen Rarity's Gala dress in a few other episodes, such as Bird in the Hoof, or Sweet and Elite.

 

It's true there isn't an on-going direct arc from episode to episode as much as some might like. It's more, well, episodic. But that doesn't mean that continuity is irrelevant and that episodes don't build up on each other. There are far more instances of on-going continuity than what I've just mentioned. Every episode builds on the last--the only ones that are arguably in the wrong order are Winter Wrap-Up and Fall Weather Friends. Trixie's return, while demanded greatly by the older fans, wasn't decided on because of the older fans. Let's not forget--the show's fanbase isn't dominated by us. We're a significant minority, but the majority of watchers are still the little girls and parents of said girls that are the target demographic. The show may be making a few more nods to us older fans in the form of things like the R63 joke from Magic Duel, but that's all they are: nods. We're not deciding the show for them. They're doing it.

 

The show's writers have gone on record as saying they've been working on enhancing world building and enriching the universe they're working within. They're not all doing their own thing and ignoring what's come before, not at all. It's an on going evolution. Not quite a direct arc from episode to episode--you are correct about that--but that's only because they're not allowed to do that. Within those limitations they're still building tons of continuity, and I think it would be a little silly to argue that anything that isn't a season opener or season closer is irrelevant and acanon.

And for the Alicorn part, i believe its something you are simply born as. Just like Chrysalis being born as a Changeling.

We can throw the need of power in the wall, because then both Chrysalis and Sombra would have been Alicorns.

 

 

You don't see Earth ponies transforming into Unicorns or Pegasus, now do you?

Fair enough. You might very well be right about that. Certainly, Princess Cadance argues for that interpretation of Alicorns.

 

But my point is that we simply don't know because there is no evidence in canon either way. We haven't heard anyone declare "Alicorns are born, not made" nor have we heard anyone declare "Alicorns are made, not born." There's nothing at all that's been said, which means it's anything's game. And I stand by my hypothesis for now because it makes a great deal of sense based upon what we've seen.

 

As for not seeing earth ponies transform into pegasi or unicorns, you say that as if pegasi or unicorns are somehow more powerful than earth ponies or are better races. They're not. Each of the three pony races has their own magic, their own way of doing things. Earth ponies have extreme strength and a connection to the land and the soil--if an earth pony, a pegasi, and a unicorn were raising crops on farms, and all other factors were equal, the earth pony farm would do better than the pegasi or unicorn farm by default simply because it is being run by an earth pony. Similarly, pegasi use their magic to fly and manipulate clouds and the weather. I don't need to tell you what magic unicorns do.

 

An Alicorn, meanwhile, seems to be a unification of all three pony races. That's why I believe it's more likely they're made rather than born. They possess the traits of all three races--earth pony strength, pegasi flight, and unicorn magical manipulation.

[Akemi Homura 7,680]

Twilight Sparkle has been consistently growing more and more powerful over the course of the series. She's been harnessing new techniques, improving her repertoire of spells, and honing her manipulation of everything from levitation of living beings to her control over teleportation--after all, in the first season, she was barely able to teleport from an alleyway to her home in the library, whereas in the second season she teleported herself and several others over a distance of a number of miles. Then there's the difference between her brute force lifting of the Ursa Minor to her skilled manipulative dancing of the animals in Magic Duel, and plenty of other instances as well.

 

First off, I'd like to say I was hoping you would write a thread about something like this. It's been how long now? Needless to say, it's a nice change of pace as it were. On a more on-topic note, Twilight definitely has grown in both magical ability and as a living, breathing Equestrian and she exemplifies Celestia's values to the fullest of her ability. In the span of two years that we've observed her, she's gone from being a shut-in egghead who only cared for her studies to a wonderful friend, leader, and student.

 

Growing up is tough. Especially seeing your favourite cartoon character take the character development motto head-on as it already is. We've seen Twilight do a myriad of amazing feats, which can sometimes make her akin to a Mary Sue, but she's lovable just because she's flawed as well. She overreacts, worries, and has the mindset that everything has to be perfect in order to have an inkling of a good time. Naturally, it is tough to admit and hard to accept that she could end up becoming the next ruler herself one day! But, this shall not be in vain, I promise you.

 

Twilight Sparkle has been growing more callous lately as well. Let us examine her magical feats over the first five episodes of Season Three. In the Crystal Empire she immediately takes to the dark magic of Sombra to manipulate the crystals. In Too Many Pinkie Pies, she not only masters a spell that allows her to turn animals into oranges--arguably robbing them of their sight and possibly their ability to swallow food, meaning they are not only blind but will starve--and later shows no hesitation in the way she arguably outright executes the Pinkie Pie clones. Even when it is down to just one clone and Pinkie Pie herself, she continues to use the same test--and keep in mind that she was worried for what the spell might do to Pinkie earlier, meaning she could have done Pinkie grievous harm.

 

 

For those two instances, I'd mainly put those in the folder of comedic effects intended to be a big joke rather than anything else. That said, I'm dubious that there was any sort of ulterior motive behind Twilight's transformation spells. You see, if it were blatantly placed inside a book of all things, where unicorns may have full access to them whenever they wanted, I really don't believe that anypony would object to it provided that they did not abuse it. In this case, it didn't seem like anything else other than a hands-on study session that Twilight undertakes from time to time, akin to giving ponies moustaches (also similarly, for comedic effect). 

 

..and later shows no hesitation in the way she arguably outright executes the Pinkie Pie clones.

 

Indeed, her handling of the Pinkie Pie crisis was slightly ugly and sometimes disturbing to watch. Then again, the entire thing was ugly from the get-go. As such, it would be hard to justify her actions regardless of the instance, but hey, ugly situations are always tricky to resolve. Twilight did do the one thing that allowed her to ultimately reel out the real Pinkie Pie - staying calm, keeping a cool head, and keeping her focus. She didn't falter, and she while she did downright fight the clones, it was for a good cause. The focus allowed her to distinguish the real Pinkie Pie from the clones, and that was also where her knowledge of Pinkie Pie came in and that alone shows a lot about her character. They've been friends for a long time already, and the trust she put in her test and in Pinkie Pie made it successful. Was it risky? Yep, it was very risky. The real Pinkie Pie could have been downright sentenced to Celestia knows where! But taking risks is also a part of being a good friend and also a good leader - it may not come out right, but Twilight's faith, once again, allowed her plan to work to success.

 

Then there are a few out of universe reasons, in terms of narrative structure. The series in this season has been taking an increasingly dark tone, relatively speaking to the previous two seasons. We've been dealing with existential crises, revenge, and severe bullying(including the realistic lesson that plenty of bullies start bullying because they were bullied themselves and don't wish to be bullied again), as well as other little hints, such as the way the Pinkie clones were dealt with, the fact that King Sombra was outright killed, and the way Trixie tried to make Rainbow Dash writhe in agony. They're small, yes, and in a larger sense, compared to a lot of the entertainment we adult fans might enjoy, they're not quite huge, but compared to the previous seasons they're really quite obvious. Then there's the fact that Twilight becoming an Alicorn would represent a series game changer. If the series is to continue on from the third season at all, it would have to be a non-permanent change. She would have to revert back at the end of the episode in order for her to continue being the main character Twilight that we all know and love. What better way to ensure that than to make her a temporarily evil Alicorn, that then is reverted with the message of "You're not ready to join me in true Princesshood yet, Twilight" from Celestia?

 

Absolutely! Themes have been much darker thus far because of the freedom that Studio B now has when developing the episodes, in contrast to how it was in season one, where it was required to be strictly E/I (Educational/Informative). The good thing is that these episodes thus far, as a result of all this, has been that everything is a lot more relatable to the real world no matter how insignificant. The bullying episode, for example, although not entirely informative of the horrors of bullying, demonstrated that you should put faith in others to know that they've been through quite a bit themselves and also trying to find out why someone behaves the way that they do.

 

Season one was mainly about tackling things as a group, learning how to get along with each other, and thus having fun with one another. Pretty basic stuff. Season two managed to connect with viewers on a more personal level, serving more character-specific episodes, which adds a lot to the character driven nature of the show. For every group of friends, there's people, of course. But what goes on inside the minds of each of those people? Their personal beliefs and values could conflict and/or mesh with their friends, depending on the circumstances, and at the end of season two, it was quite the hit. Now we have season three, where we try to look at our friends from their perspective. Even the harshest of ways, where the CMC tried to be bullies themselves where they saw Babs as nothing more than just a monster at one point, and consequently it ended up causing all of them quite a bit of trouble. Twilight had to put her faith in Spike to save everypony because she could not get out of the trap that Sombra deliberately placed on top of the tower in the premiere, and although it is hard admitting it, we do have to trust people to get our own tasks done sometimes. Even during Magic Duel, it was presumed that Trixie was nothing more than just an evil mistress and wanted nothing more than power, but hi-ho! She only behaved as such because she was bitter and angry, not because she was pure evil or anything. Understanding and realizing that can make a dark theme that much more relieving, and I have found that after every episode, it's as if storm clouds have lifted, so to speak.

 

Empathy is such an underrated thing and the writers have tried to bring it out into the light, with good results so far. We're getting a lot of fanservice (I'll have to admit it, Trixie vs. Twilight is something you would expect to see in fanfiction) yet it keeps true to its roots as much as it can.

 

Twilight in particular seems to be in store for a rather ominous turn of events... the premiere was just the beginning. Her fear of failure was shown quite clearly for a one-hour episode, much more than it has been for quite a long time. To refresh everyone's memory, she does get crazy at times, worrying about every single thing, but to what end will she really go if she were not kept in check? We've seen her go borderline insane to cope with the stress and pressure. Would she let all of her repressed emotions out in one outing, or will it be gradual (which could kill the harmony between her friends and herself)?

 

So I think what's likely to happen is that there will be some sort of threat, something that Twilight must counter, that she must gain the necessary power to defeat, something the Elements of Harmony can't handle, but neither can the Princesses. Something only she can take down. The spirit thing that possessed Luna and Sombra might manifest to her as some sort of possible way to gain more power, something she could take in so that she could defeat this threat--the necessary sacrifice, she might believe. And then once the threat is handled, she's left with an ever growing power and an ever darkening mind that is close to snapping--she might start believing that she has to do other things for Equestria, to make it better. She may start to see her friends as threats, the Princesses as threats, and so on and so forth. She wouldn't quite be evil in the traditional sense of "I want to rule the world for myself!" but she would become evil in that she would be doing so much harm...all because she'd believe it would be for the best of Equestria. She would think she was doing everyone a favor.

 

 

 

You just mentioned Ra's al-Ghul without intending to do so. Bravo.

 

I see where you're going with this. Her perfectionist attitude, her diligence, her drive, can ultimately poison her head to attempt to do just that, especially if there were growing pains that could be left unchecked. Tough times with friends and some fights with the Princess herself can aggravate her further and push her beyond the boundaries where it would be extremely difficult to bring her back into the fold. So what does she do? She goes about doing all the things you've just mentioned - threatening ponies, getting as much power as she possibly can, and overall being a tyrant. All because she thinks it would be healing Equestria rather than making ponies suffer, but then again, the conditions of her subjects only be as strong as her ideals allow them to be. In this case... she'd be doing anything but improving their conditions. Eventually, over time, she will begin to lose her ability to love, something that Equestria has always strived to maintain even before Celestia's rule. She becomes vastly cynical, paranoid, and distrustful of even her own subjects.

 

She even has tools at her disposal to consolidate her power. She knows the location of the Alicorn Amulet, which alone could magnify her power--and she might believe she's become powerful enough to resist its corrupting influences. She has access to the magic pool that Pinkie used to clone herself, which Twilight could use to form an army of soldiers from anypony loyal to her--and there will definitely be some loyal to her after all the good she's done for Equestria. (Including possibly Rainbow Dash and one or two more of the Mane Six, which could split the Mane Six up making the resolution of things much more complex and precarious.)

 

 

Every villain claims to be evil. But shall I tell you what true evil is? It is to submit to twisted, malevolent thoughts without a care in the world for those around you. It is when you surrender your friendships and bonds to your own selfish desires instead of defying them.

 

All heroes have their origin story. Twilight was once callous and somewhat cynical of those around her, and wanted to be left alone, emphasised by the fact that she was shut-in for the majority of her fillyhood. Now that she does have friends, she has never strayed away from helping them out and treating them with the love and respect she thinks they always deserve, all because she now knows just how powerful friendship can be. It's been said by herself over and over again - it's a wonderful, joyous feeling that can extend beyond the stars themselves. As the Element of Magic, she understands this better than anyone and would never shy away from her own power.

 

Twilight doesn't just enjoy friendship. She has a duty to it, by spreading love and kindness wherever she goes. It's not enough for her to have friends - she wants everypony to be friends, too! Not Pinkie Pie style, but her influence is so great that she's already got a long list of accomplishments to cling onto, from the dethronement of Discord to the pulverization of Sombra. Friendship really is magic, and as the element representing both at the same time, she will never falter no matter what odds are stacked against her. Her discipline, diligence, and intelligence are all great things to have. But the bonds she shares with her friends, the other Elements, are what make her life complete.

[pinkieshyrose 58]

the pinkies contrary to pepoles belive i think were not killed they were the way twilight said they were sent back to the mirror pond you can see one scene where one clone was telported  there/ dragged  in the squished form to the lake now keep in mind the lake is like a parrel universe two worlds are there you can see that because the other pinkie went in the mirror pool and came to the real pinkie i got the feeling that it was permanet so if the real pinkie was there she would never get out... also twilight the main chracter turning evil is to dark even for the increasingly dark episodes of these show it just wont in my opinon of course happen

Edited December 4, 2012 by pinkieshyrose

[mycarhasaMoustache 449]

I do think there is going to be something else towards dark magic and corruption involving twighlight it seems to be the overall theme so far I think

[Queen Cassie 3,057]

 

 

For those two instances, I'd mainly put those in the folder of comedic effects intended to be a big joke rather than anything else. That said, I'm dubious that there was any sort of ulterior motive behind Twilight's transformation spells. You see, if it were blatantly placed inside a book of all things, where unicorns may have full access to them whenever they wanted, I really don't believe that anypony would object to it provided that they did not abuse it. In this case, it didn't seem like anything else other than a hands-on study session that Twilight undertakes from time to time, akin to giving ponies moustaches (also similarly, for comedic effect). 

 

 

Firstly, thank you for your excellent long in-depth post. For the most part I didn't find anything I wanted to respond to, except this.

 

That is, I want to be precise that I wasn't trying to say the act of casting the spell was a sign of her being more callous. The callousness comes from how she never worked to revert the spell cast upon the frog or the bird--she just left them as is, as oranges. That's why I point out the possibility of them starving to death, because they were never changed back. Twilight wouldn't do that normally--she wouldn't forget to alter them back.

 

And actually the spell is another sign of her magical growth, too. In the past she wasn't able to maintain transformations for very long--it took the concentration of both her and Spike to keep the cane and hat in Boast Busters from reverting to a rock and a stick, and in the end they did anyway. Yet here, she's able to maintain a seemingly permanent transformation. I still question why she was casting the spell at all in the episode--it never led to anything at all, unlike the similar mustache spell from Boast Busters. So I continue to hold, as I speculated originally, that the whole spell thing is going to come back somehow, in some way--not necessarily transforming apples into oranges, but just the fact that she can transform things into other things and keep the transformation permanent is likely to become important.

 

So, yes, essentially, my point in the original post, which I conveyed poorly, is that the bit about the spell comes not from the casting, but from the fact that she left the bird and frog to their fates, rather than reverting them--that is quite callous behavior.

[Dusty Soul 2,611]

I oh so want this to happen.  That book Luna was holding could have prophecies written inside, and one of them could be like the 3rd sister (Twilight) Would try to destroy Equestria.  (Yes this is pretty close to a fan-fic).  Twilight could become corrupted like Sombra and try and take over all of Equestria.  With this they could incorporate the Changelings,  the dragons, and the griffons all in a huge episode.

[Akemi Homura 7,680]

Firstly, thank you for your excellent long in-depth post. For the most part I didn't find anything I wanted to respond to, except this.

 

That is, I want to be precise that I wasn't trying to say the act of casting the spell was a sign of her being more callous. The callousness comes from how she never worked to revert the spell cast upon the frog or the bird--she just left them as is, as oranges. That's why I point out the possibility of them starving to death, because they were never changed back. Twilight wouldn't do that normally--she wouldn't forget to alter them back.

 

And actually the spell is another sign of her magical growth, too. In the past she wasn't able to maintain transformations for very long--it took the concentration of both her and Spike to keep the cane and hat in Boast Busters from reverting to a rock and a stick, and in the end they did anyway. Yet here, she's able to maintain a seemingly permanent transformation. I still question why she was casting the spell at all in the episode--it never led to anything at all, unlike the similar mustache spell from Boast Busters. So I continue to hold, as I speculated originally, that the whole spell thing is going to come back somehow, in some way--not necessarily transforming apples into oranges, but just the fact that she can transform things into other things and keep the transformation permanent is likely to become important.

 

So, yes, essentially, my point in the original post, which I conveyed poorly, is that the bit about the spell comes not from the casting, but from the fact that she left the bird and frog to their fates, rather than reverting them--that is quite callous behavior.

 

Unless, she forgot about them completely or didn't know that her spell fell astray and hit that bird and frog?

 

Re-watching those scenes and ruling out comedic effects, the bird turning into an orange and not being reverted back by Twilight does seem pretty odd. Then again, it flew away before they could do anything, and Twilight was distracted by Pinkie's antics to focus on anything else. Call it what you will - a sad turn of events, callousness, etc. but I do see how it can be the latter. The part with the frog seemed like genuine lack of awareness than anything else, though - there was no indication that Twilight was aware that her spell became a stray bullet so to speak, and once again fell victim to distraction virtuoso of Pinkie Pie's antics. Perhaps more important matters were just at hoof. It is quite easy to get lost in somepony like Pinkie Pie's constant randomness. And, who knows? Maybe the spell resets after a while so Twilight didn't bother to change the bird back the first chance she had, if any.

[Queen Cassie 3,057]

Unless, she forgot about them completely or didn't know that her spell fell astray and hit that bird and frog?

 

Re-watching those scenes and ruling out comedic effects, the bird turning into an orange and not being reverted back by Twilight does seem pretty odd. Then again, it flew away before they could do anything, and Twilight was distracted by Pinkie's antics to focus on anything else. Call it what you will - a sad turn of events, callousness, etc. but I do see how it can be the latter. The part with the frog seemed like genuine lack of awareness than anything else, though - there was no indication that Twilight was aware that her spell became a stray bullet so to speak, and once again fell victim to distraction virtuoso of Pinkie Pie's antics. Perhaps more important matters were just at hoof. It is quite easy to get lost in somepony like Pinkie Pie's constant randomness. And, who knows? Maybe the spell resets after a while so Twilight didn't bother to change the bird back the first chance she had, if any.

Except that we see the bird again later, outside the window near the end of the episode, where it distracts one of the Pinkie clones into getting zapped. Said bird was still an orange at that point.

 

Now, I will grant you I am possibly reaching a little bit here, but it seems to me like Twilight needed to be more careful regardless, because the episode implies the spell is permanent and therefore she should be far more careful with how she uses it. She's still being callous because she's not paying enough attention to what she's doing.

[Akemi Homura 7,680]

Except that we see the bird again later, outside the window near the end of the episode, where it distracts one of the Pinkie clones into getting zapped. Said bird was still an orange at that point.

 

Now, I will grant you I am possibly reaching a little bit here, but it seems to me like Twilight needed to be more careful regardless, because the episode implies the spell is permanent and therefore she should be far more careful with how she uses it. She's still being callous because she's not paying enough attention to what she's doing.

 

I'll have to correct you here. That was actually the frog that was still an orange, not the bird. There was a bird that distracted a Pinkie clone before this, but it wasn't the same blue bird that was turned into an orange as well - it was a red one. That said, Twilight didn't know what she ended up hitting when she used that spell a second time, so there was no way for her to know otherwise.

 

Such is the way of the unicorn, probably. Accidents are probably a big thing in any unicorn's magic training. In this instance, we suppose Twilight will indeed have to be more cautious the next time she uses such a spell.

[morethanicecream 116]

I dont think it is possible for her to become evil forever. From an outside source, maybe she might become evil. Here is why it wont happen forever:

1. Remember the target audience of kids, the entire idea is to teach kids morals. What would the kids learn. With great power becomes great responsibility. Kids might not understand that one (target audience).

2. Plus, main character. No way she could be evil, cause of her being a main character. I have never seen a kids show kill of a main character, especially since she is the element of magic, the most important one. All 6 are needed. 

3. Twilight is too modest. The orange spell she did wasn't aimed at animals.