After the long wait for Season 5, MLP:FIM, Season 6 has a pretty short hiatus. In fact, the season opener is tomorrow!
The two-parter is called “The Crystalling” and it features…
-Starlight Glimmer in the Mane Cast.
-All the Alicorn Princesses
-A trip to the Crystal Empire
-A threat of eternal winter
-and, of course, the Royal Bay-Bee!
Well that was an interesting season opener. It’s very different in that although there is danger and conflict, there is no antagonist. The episodes follow two parallel storylines: The first is Starlight Glimmer beginning her friendship lessons with Twilight and second is the impending birth of Cadance and Shining Armor’s baby.
The Crystal Empire ponies have an important ceremony called the Crystalling, where newborn ponies are publicly presented before the Crystal Heart and the outpouring of positive emotions from family, friends, and well-wishers strengthens the Crystal Heart. Since this is a royal baby, practically everypony in the empire will be there.
The Mane Six (plus SG and Spike) soon realize that something is wrong when they arrive in the Crystal Empire are are met by a barely-coherent, disheveled Shining Armor. Cadance also looks a lot worse for wear, too. Of course, the baby is revealed to be an alicorn with powerful, uncontrolled magic. Trying to corral her makes babysitting the Cake twins look like a walk in the park, as she flies, fast teleports, blows holes through the walls with magic blasts, and has a crystal-shattering cry, which is unleashed when the gang finally corral the baby for the ceremony in front of the Crystal Heart, which promptly shatters. Oops! Especially since the Crystal Heart is what keeps the ice and snow of the frozen north at bay…
Starlight Glimmer starts the episode thoroughly discombobulated. She literally can’t find her away around the castle (a running gag has her opening a door to find Spike behind it) and then Twilight in her manic zeal to prepare friendship lessons and lots and lots of checklists doesn’t notice how overwhelmed SG is looking and feeling, especially when Twilight decides that rekindling her friendship with Sunburst will be SG’s first friendship lesson…
I miss Faust. It’s not bad, but it’s just not been the same and each season is weaker than the previous. I do like that things change but I’m not crazy about the changes. And I’m not crazy about the now-nice-formerly-evil pony
Pretty strong opener, I thought. The two story threads were entertaining on their own and worked together into an in-universe plausible conclusion, using characters instead of introducing random plot-critical McGuffins. That puts it ahead of the openers of seasons 3, 4 & 5, IMO.
I like the introduction of Starlight, but not so much for her own sake. As of yet, she’s not much of a character, but her existence has interesting implications for Twilight.
Also, I wouldn’t call Starlight evil, more just bitter and convinced she had everything figured out, that the world and ponies in general were innately unfair; that Twilight crashing her perfect cult was more of that unfairness manifesting, and what makes her so special anyway. I can buy her worldview changing upon finding out that, no, Twilight actually is that special, and she didn’t do it out of cruelty or privilege.
I don’t think her disillusionment or even her fascist tendencies made her evil, but what made her evil (Equestria-evil, not like Kilgrave-evil) was her fighting Twilight to keep her power. That was a lot… especially for a kids show.
I thought the first two episodes were better than the most of the episodes from the previous season. A bit of a throwback to earlier seasons where the show was about ponies acting crazy.
Apparently stallions need to shave.
Apparently bronies exist on Equestria.
Flurry Heart is so cute!!!
I’m kind of wondering what the fan reaction was to the season opener as it had a) no antagonist and b) the Mane Six didn’t play much of a role in saving the day, and were pretty ineffectual overall The pacing between the two separate storylines worked out nicely.
Points-
-I wonder how much focus Starlight Glimmer will get this season? She’s kept some of her less pleasant mannerisms (eyerolling, smile-only-on-the-outside, manipulativeness) despite her face-heel turn. I don’t care for the new mane-style, though, as it makes her look too much like Rarity.
-Kind of odd that Sunburst was able to out magic-nerd Twilight Sparkle, much less Celestia. SG’s flashback actually lays it out if you pay attention: Sunburst is the one to figure out how to use magic to solve the problem, the Starlight replicates what he does on a more powerful scale.
-Some people have told me that it was kind of a copout that Sunburst just happened to be in the Crystal Empire, but I felt it made sense. If he washed out of magic school, he wouldn’t want to be in Canterlot. The Crystal Empire not only has an impressive library of magical books, perhaps second only to Canterlot, it’s book have also been out of circulation for a thousand years. It would be a very attractive destination for a bookish magic scholar.
Did anyone else catch that Celestia said alicorn wings are earned and not birthed? That puts a bit of a crimp in the continuity and raises a lot of questions
Does it put a crimp in the continuity? Cadance is apparently the first alicorn to bear a foal, so I guess there was no thought to the possibility of a hereditary alicorn. IIRC, none of the princesses were born alicorns.
Comments on “The Gift of Maud Pie”
Oh look it’s the Statue of Livery
Ponies: The Musical: Equestria’s longest running musical (Need a better pun for Cats MLP Style)
Maud Pie may be my favorite character
Time-Warner Cable On Demand has apparently completely yanked MLP:FIM from their listings, so it looks like I’ll miss episodes until I buy the season on iTunes 
(They seemed to have yanked Miraculous, too, but that’s a different story.)
Time Warner doesn’t have the Discovery Family Network?
Time Warner does indeed have the Discovery Family Channel, but if I am not home when a show is broadcast, I watch it On Demand. MLP:FIM is not available on Discovery Family On Demand.
And MLP:FIM re-appeared in my On-Demand Cable, so I’ve been able to catch up.
“On Your Marks” could be a metaphor for this season as a whole: What do you do when it’s all been done? The CMC have their cutie marks, which is still sinking in with them. They decide to focus on their new mission of helping others with their cutie marks, but find that, other than Bulk Biceps, everypony in Ponyville seems to be content with their cutie marks.
While trying to find something to do, they come to the realization that, maybe without their madcap efforts to try new things to get their cutie marks, they don’t have a lot in common at all. Poor Apple Bloom takes this the hardest, as she has trouble finding something to try that she enjoys and has a bit of a despair event horizon sitting alone in the dark clubhouse before finding a way for to help a pony earn their cutie mark.
Are there any good Spike episodes?
The one where Spike pet sits is probably my favorite Spike one.
I crochet so all the anti-crochet jokes had me yelling “THAT BITCH!” at the tv in this episode. I think Apple Bloom has a new voice actress or she got older. She sounded slightly off.
Any others?
Am I the only one who likes Spike?
I haven’t rewatched the older ones in a while. Kid still watches the new ones, but it’s not ALL PONIES ALL THE TIME anymore like it used to be.
Is your username Castleton, like Castleton VT?
I like Equestria Games because Spike sings that song.
Comments on Gauntlet of Fire:
Finally Dragons!
Cute female dragons!
Twilight and Rarity: Masters of Disguise
Tsunderes are invading US cartoons!(although now that I think of it Raven and Maude are Tsunderes too)