Why it would be bad for Twilight to turn back

[Anadu Kune 668]

As many of you know a large portion/minority of the fanbase expressed the desire for Twilight's alicornhood to be temporary. After the finale I think the majority accepted it, some begrudgingly others neutral, some loved it. However I noticed the other day on another forum some who still expressed the desire for Twilight to turn back into a unicorn. This to me would be as terrible a decision as some thought Alicorn Twilight to be in the first place and perhaps twice as damaging as they thought that would be. To explain this I needed to also lay out the indicated nature of the transformation. 

Many seem to think the transformation was dictated by Celestia and Celestia alone. That Celestia was the sole reason Twilight became an alicorn. Though this seems to go against the theme of not only the transformation scene but the whole episode. Before the transformation scene Twilight performs/activates the completed spell which then transports her to the higher magical plane. It is twilight through the completion of the spell who reaches that plane, there is no indication the Celestia sent her there. Watching the transformation scene there is a theme of growth and motherly support from Celestia. That's what it seems the whole transformation is about growing up, as indicated by the lyrics "you've come such a long long way"  "It's time now for a new change to come You've grown up and your new life has begun". Also if you look at the transformation itself the energy that transforms twilight comes from within her, It is also the color of Twilight's magic not Celestia's. This I think shows the process was guided not dictated by Celestia. It was a point of growth or ascension  reached by Twilight through her ultimate understanding and application of the magic of friendship. It was the completion of a journey and character arch that started in the first episode. She went from just realizing friendship was important to realizing it was the most important thing to her. 

With that stated I think you might begin to see why turning her back would be a bad decision. It would be revoking the completion of a completed character arch. Why would she all of the sudden un-ascend or regress in growth? All of the sudden she just doesnt understand friendship anymore? Celestia shouldn't be able to just change her back as the process doesnt seem to be solely her doing any way. Though if she had such a power then why not use it on nightmare moon? To turn her back would be like revoking Luke Skywalker's Jedi status or turning Han Solo back into a smuggler. Its a big step backwards in terms of character development, a development which had been bulit towards since the very first episode. Any of the reasons I can come up with for a permanent regression result in 1.) regression of character development, or 2.) seem lazy or arbitrary.


 

[Nature's Spell 526]

@anadu-kune I totally agree with you and I've made many of the same points in other threads. Honestly I've never understoood the anti-alicorn sentiment, which I think is based upon a lot of misconceptions of who Twilight really is and the role she plays in the show. But I accept that people feel that way.

[IronPuddinG 249]

     Interesting viewpoint.  I'll be honest and say that I was against the whole Twilicorn dillemma from it's announcement, but you have quite sound reasoning.  However, I was against this not for the sake of being against it, but the future it brings.  I've said it countless times and I'll say it again: if Twilight were to remain an alicorn for the whole of season 3, then the entire show would begin to fall apart.  Why, you may ask?  Because of the position, the title, that she now holds.  People may say 'oh, she'll stay in Ponyville with her friends and everything will be fine', but I have to disagree with that for the very same reason I agree with this post.  To transform  Twilight into an alicorn and continue the show is pretty self defeating.  Seriously, if you get transformed into royalty and your position amongst others remains perfectly the same, what is the point of the transformation in the first place?

     Overall, I would have agreed with Studio B on this one had the show ended there.  Instead, we get a whole season of Twilight doing... what?  Overseeing the operations of Ponyville and thus ursurping the position of Mayor Mare?  Staying in Canterlot?  Staying in her library doing nothing?  The first two options would leave little time for her friends and would go against the entire moral of the show, and I've already covered the last one. 

     I really think that if they were going to transform Twilight, they should have done it at the series finale.  Now, all I can see in the future of the show is a giant pool of awkward.  I guess I can say that I'm looking forward to how they handle the situation.

Edited April 4, 2013 by -sYGQ-IronPuddinG

[Anadu Kune 668]

     Interesting viewpoint.  I'll be honest and say that I was against the whole Twilicorn dillemma from it's announcement, but you have quite sound reasoning.  However, I was against this not for the sake of being against it, but the future it brings.  I've said it countless times and I'll say it again: if Twilight were to remain an alicorn for the whole of season 3, then the entire show would begin to fall apart.  Why, you may ask?  Because of the position, the title, that she now holds.  People may say 'oh, she'll stay in Ponyville with her friends and everything will be fine', but I have to disagree with that for the very same reason I agree with this post.  To transform  Twilight into an alicorn and continue the show is pretty self defeating.  Seriously, if you get transformed into royalty and your position amongst others remains perfectly the same, what is the point of the transformation in the first place?

     Overall, I would have agreed with Studio B on this one had the show ended there.  Instead, we get a whole season of Twilight doing... what?  Overseeing the operations of Ponyville and thus ursurping the position of Mayor Mare?  Staying in Canterlot?  Staying in her library doing nothing?  The first two options would leave little time for her friends and would go against the entire moral of the show, and I've already covered the last one. 

     I really think that if they were going to transform Twilight, they should have done it at the series finale.  Now, all I can see in the future of the show is a giant pool of awkward.  I guess I can say that I'm looking forward to how they handle the situation.

Well it was the end of one character arch and season 4 begins another. There is much they can do with this. From Twilights dilemma of princess hood and how to handle as such. To how her friends will undoubtedly aid her in this new phase of life. The title Princess defiantly means something different in Equestria, for one it is a title earned not one granted.  We don't know specifically what she will be responsible for though it again opens great possibilities, episodes like dragon shy could become more common. She could take a more prominent role in official communications to Celestia and such. One thing that needs to be remembered is what she is a princess of that being friendship and magic, as such I'm pretty sure the other ponies will be just as important if not more so. After all Twilight had recognized them as the most important aspect of her life, her ascension would have been impossible without them which was a main point in MMM. 

 

That's not even mentioning the other characters and the numerous ways they could explore them. Rainbow Dash and the wonder bolts, the cutie mark crusaders getting their cutie marks, or Rarity dealing with the complexity of her expanding business ect. The very fact that Twilight is an alicorn gives reason to explore the past of other alicorns. Its easy to imagine Twilight inquiring about the past of Cadence, Celestia, or Luna. 

[hawkflame 3,310]

While I'm still not a fan of the decision, I have to agree that backing out of it now would at the very least be extremely tricky.  You don't undo the end of a character arc like this without good reason.  It's not impossible, but they can't undo this on a whim.  If she's going to lose her alicornhood, it should be nothing short of sacrificing it to save her friends, or Equestria.  And even then, I'm not 100% sold on the idea.  To make such a big deal of it, and then undo it super easily would show that the writers have no conviction. 

 

This is part of why I'm not a fan of this whole idea.  The writers have written themselves past the point of no return here. 

[Anadu Kune 668]

While I'm still not a fan of the decision, I have to agree that backing out of it now would at the very least be extremely tricky.  You don't undo the end of a character arc like this without good reason.  It's not impossible, but they can't undo this on a whim.  If she's going to lose her alicornhood, it should be nothing short of sacrificing it to save her friends, or Equestria.  And even then, I'm not 100% sold on the idea.  To make such a big deal of it, and then undo it super easily would show that the writers have no conviction. 

 

This is part of why I'm not a fan of this whole idea.  The writers have written themselves past the point of no return here. 

Even the proposed sacrifice wouldn't work. Her alicorn/princess status was gained through an extremely hightened/ultimate understanding of friendship, yet she loses it by further demonstrating that understanding? A bit like eating food that makes you starve to death. Its would just be confusing.

 

Well that is kinda the point of completing a character arch. Its a major point of progression for the character. Luke became a Jedi, Goku became a super saiyian, Data gained emotions, Micheal Westin gets his burn notice lifted ect. All of these are examples of completed story archs, after which new ones occur. A new character arch presents great new possibilities. 

[Ficta_Scriptor 165]

If Twilight lost her wings and Princess status it would be a case of horrendous bait and switch, and simply couldn't be done in a way that would make for good storytelling. The writers would prove that they aren't up to the task, and the most important event in the series thus far would be ignored because of the 'status quo'.

 

With that said, I would still want her to change back, even if it meant a crappy 'it was all a dream' scenario. Even if it meant butchering Twilight's potential story arc, I wouldn't care. Yes, it would make for a terrible writing decision, but I simply wouldn't give a s***. None of the potential princess plotlines that I've seen spouted a million times all over these forums interest me. Alicorn history, Twilight visiting the ambassadors of other nations, Rainbow flying lessons, helping to rule Equestria etc etc... I'm just not interested, and I would prefer for her to be a unicorn again, regardless of how bad it would make the series look, and regardless of how ridiculous it would be.

 

It kind of reminds me of the recent death of Robin in the Batman comics. I'm absolutely fine with it. Strangely enough, my 13 year old brother is happy that Robin is dead, because he hated that character. Still, lots of people want him back alive, even if it meant some crappy story involving time travel or magical resurrection. And you know what? They have every right to want that, even if I think it would be a stupid thing for the writers to do.

 

At the end of the day, to me, MLP is a 'fairly good' cartoon that's spawned tons of fan content that I often enjoy far more than the show itself.

 

TLDR version: Changing Twilight back would be a terrible decision, would probably result in an even bigger backlash than the Twilicorn issue itself, but I would still want it to happen. *Shrugs*

Edited April 5, 2013 by Ficta_Scriptor

[TailsIsNotAlone 3,695]

That's not a regression. It's an adjustment. It would be a complete regression if Twilight becoming an alicorn princess felt like a fitting conclusion to her character arc, and to me it didn't. At all. Luke's development into a Jedi Knight was actually well structured, clearly foreshadowed, and made sense. Twilight Sparkle as an alicorn princess does not.

 

Imagine if Applejack got to be a better and better farmer, until finally she grew the biggest apple harvest in Ponyville history, and as a result of all this development...................

She becomes a pop singer. 

See? It doesn't make sense!   Yeah, it's a progression, but it's not appropriate for her character, so ultimately it's not worth much. Twilight Sparkle doesn't feel like the next Princess Cadence (or Celestia, or whoever) to me any more than AJ feels like the next Sapphire Shores.

 

If Twilight did choose to turn back, I think they could make it work. It would stand out as a gesture of self-awareness and individualism that she didn't show in the finale. I want to see her develop as much as anyone, but it should be in a way that does her character justice. I'm going to throw out an idea off the top of my head that would be more fitting and interesting than what the show did: Twilight gets promoted to Celestia's Chief Advisor on Magical Affairs or something along those lines. No wings, but she can talk more directly with the princess, get involved in foreign policy and visit more places throughout Ponyville. Twi gets a reward for her hard work, Celestia and Luna are further developed, the scope and potential of the show expands. Everybody wins.

Edited April 5, 2013 by TailsIsNotAlone

[Clarity 3,094]

Adding to that.

 

You all wanting Twilight to turn back, as yourself this: Just how ridiculous would it look for Twilight to become an Alicorn for about six minutes and turn back in the next season?

 

The Princess Coronation is all fancy and had a lot of effects. Her friends marvel at how she turned into an Alicorn, and she was labeled a princess and was hinted to have new duties in Season 4. And, oops, all of a sudden, she turned back into a unicorn. Then the entire Season 3 finale was there for no reason.

 

Even if some of you hope--hoping for farfetched theories such as "it's just a dream" or the writers changing their mind and just somehow turning her back for a reason, that's not happening--remember that the majority of the fandom is completely okay with Twilight's transformation and wouldn't listen to the vocal minority and ruin the show's reputation and toy selling just for them. The show is not at your command.

[Ficta_Scriptor 165]

Adding to that.

 

You all wanting Twilight to turn back, as yourself this: Just how ridiculous would it look for Twilight to become an Alicorn for about six minutes and turn back in the next season?

 

The Princess Coronation is all fancy and had a lot of effects. Her friends marvel at how she turned into an Alicorn, and she was labeled a princess and was hinted to have new duties in Season 4. And, oops, all of a sudden, she turned back into a unicorn. Then the entire Season 3 finale was there for no reason.

 

Even if some of you hope--hoping for farfetched theories such as "it's just a dream" or the writers changing their mind and just somehow turning her back for a reason, that's not happening--remember that the majority of the fandom is completely okay with Twilight's transformation and wouldn't listen to the vocal minority and ruin the show's reputation and toy selling just for them. The show is not at your command.

 

I'm under no delusion that Twilight is absolutely going to stay as an alicorn princess. I've spouted off enough stuff about it being permanent in other threads that people actually thought I was pro-Twilicorn. I simply don't believe for one second that they will change her back.

 

And you're absolutely right. If they just changed Twilight back it would be absolutely ridiculous. But... I would still prefer that outcome instead of a progressive and structured story towards a new goal for Twilight that incorporates her princess-hood. It's not a popular opinion, and it goes against the general rules of great storytelling, but... I don't care. That's just the way I feel.

 

I used to say that I was indifferent to the change and optimistic about the future, that I had faith in the writers... but that was just a case of me trying to convince myself that that's how I felt. In short, I was lying to myself. I'm not really that bothered since I've come to accept that I probably won't enjoy season 4 as much, and I'm fine with that. At the end of the day, MLP is just a cartoon.

 

That's not a regression. It's an adjustment. It would be a complete regression if Twilight becoming an alicorn princess felt like a fitting conclusion to her character arc, and to me it didn't. At all. Luke's development into a Jedi Knight was actually well structured, clearly foreshadowed, and made sense. Twilight Sparkle as an alicorn princess does not.

 

Imagine if Applejack got to be a better and better farmer, until finally she grew the biggest apple harvest in Ponyville history, and as a result of all this development...................

She becomes a pop singer. 

 

See? It doesn't make sense!   Yeah, it's a progression, but it's not appropriate for her character, so ultimately it's not worth much. Twilight Sparkle doesn't feel like the next Princess Cadence (or Celestia, or whoever) to me any more than AJ feels like the next Sapphire Shores.

 

I don't think it's quite as drastic as AJ suddenly becoming a pop singer, but I do think the general feeling about it has something to do with the fact that Twilight never had any aspirations besides her studying and then *BOOM!* Alicorn princess because she found a solution to a problem that she caused in the first place. The whole "Her element was a crown and Celestia's student so teh foreshadowing" thing isn't a viable argument IMO. 

 

If Twilight's destiny was that of some kind of high-level mage or a magic teacher in Canterlot, that would actually make a lot more sense and I'd definitely support that kind of outcome. Hell, I'd even accept the princess thing if it had been built up to as a series finale, with some actual foreshadowing. Imagine if she'd helped all her friends achieve their lifelong dreams and helped the CMC get their cutie marks? And imagine if they were all there at her coronation to say just how grateful they were for everything she'd done for them? And if we had flashbacks of Twilight giving Rainbow Dash advice for a Wonderbolts written exam? Or helping Rarity with a fashion line that makes her famous? And after all this... she finally becomes a princess, and the series comes to a satisfying conclusion. That is something that I'd have loved to see.

[Shanks 10,816]

As I have many times on here though I think that turning her into an alicorn at this point in the story was a bad idea because it is way too soon changing her back would be just as bad changing her in the first place because it would be attempting to solve lazy writing with even more lazy writing which will just compound the problem instead of actually solving it.  Even though the finale has been botched horribly we only saw alicorn Twilight for about a few minutes or so which leaves the writers alot of room to actually make this mess work.

[Veylon 255]

I think the writers have really painted themselves into a corner here. It'd be fine at the end of series when they can hang up their hats, show the other ponies achieving their ambitions, and sort of have everyone gallop off into the sunset.

 

It's going to be very tough to make excuses to keep the gang together through a whole 'nother season now that Twi's a Princess. Heck, I'm surprised that Rainbow Dash is still around. Isn't she supposed to be a Wonderbolt now? On the other hand, tough scenarios can make for the best writing...if they don't cheat.

 

When Season 2 ended, I was full of ideas for Season 3. But now that that's ended, I got almost nothing for Season 4. What do the writers think they can do with Princess Twilight? If they can answer that satisfactorily, they'll have earned their pay. If not...well, it was a bad idea to begin with.

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 41,309]

Many may disagree with me, I think that it would be incredibly stupid if they did that. I love the concept of Twilicorn, but mainly, it would just be a slap to the face of the whole princess coronation hype, Celestia's teachings (which apparently were for this very purpose) and Twilight's destiny as a whole. 'Hey! Congratulations Twilight! You achieved your ultimate goal, for the most part, now we are taking that away!'

 

I do agree that they did this whole thing a bit too early, but I am still perfectly fine with the whole thing. I personally see many different possibilities with her as a 'princess', we still don't even know what she is princess of really. I say give it a chance. I love Twilicorn already, so meh.

Edited April 6, 2013 by Kyoshi

[True Rarity 1,240]

Because it would be a step in her friendship.

I've seen somepony say that the Season 4 premiere/finale may include a life-changing decision. Twilight may either:

Keep her princesshood

or

save her friends.

Of course, Twilight would need to save her friends to prove even more friendship. Of course there would be regret and remorse from all of her friends, but the love of true friendship cannot be blocked completely.

If the writers decide to keep her princesshood, I'm certain they'll have a good reason for it.

[Joan Lillian 3]

I couldn´t agree more.

Personally, I never really understood why people hate on Alicorn Twilight this much. I mean, yes, her being a princess now changes alot of things but not necessarily for the worst.

I´m actually really looking forward to seeing Twilight as an Alicorn next season.