History Recap / MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E19ADogAndPonyShow

* FantasticRacism: Rarity gets even more upset about being compared to a mule than she does getting slapped on the flank.

* FracturedFairyTale: In a sense, Spike's fantasy of rescuing Rarity counts as one. The usual scenario is of a knight on a white horse rescuing the princess from the clutches of an evil dragon. In Spike's fantasy, the dragon ''is'' the knight and the princess is a white horse (er... unicorn).
** A dragon charges into battle on the back of a (future) princess to rescue the white (magical) horse--who has pretty much freed herself.

* GuileHero: Rarity. Once she realized the Diamond Dog's couldn't stand her complaining voice, she made full use of her advantage until she was running the show.

** If jumping straight into a fight with a manticore in the pilot wasn't big enough of a hint, this episode showed that Rarity is more than capable of taking care of herself, and she didn't even need to resort to violence to do so.

* MadeASlave:
** The Diamond Dogs kidnap Rarity so they can force her to find gems. It doesn't last long thanks to her wits and her willingness to weaponize whining.

* ChainmailBikini: How else would you describe what Spike is wearing in his Fantasy about being a KnightInShiningArmour?

* DramaQueen: Rarity already is a major one, but she purposely invokes and turns it UpToEleven as part of her gambit of getting the Diamond Dogs to release her.

* PityTheKidnapper: {{Invoked|Trope}} by Rarity when she discovers her complaining seriously annoys the Diamond Dogs. So she takes it UpToEleven to be as annoying as she possibly can on purpose. By the time her friends finally reach her, the dogs literally ''beg'' them to take her back.

* DamselInDistress: Played with; this is how the others picture Rarity in their {{Imagine Spot}}s. In truth, Rarity had her kidnappers "wrapped around her hoof the whole time."

* MadeASlave: The Diamond Dogs kidnap Rarity so they can force her to find gems. It doesn't last long thanks to her wits and her willingness to weaponize whining.

** It also happens to the Dig Dogs that try to capture the rest of the Mane Cast.

* FantasticRacism: Rarity gets more upset about being compared to a mule than she does getting slapped on the flank.

* PityTheKidnapper: {{Invoked|Trope}} by Rarity when she discovered her complaining seriously annoys the Diamond Dogs. So she takes it UpToEleven to be as annoying as she possibly can on purpose.

* DarthWiki/MostAnnoyingSound:[[invoked]] Rarity's whining voice, to the Diamond Dogs. Unfortunately for them, she knows and exploits it.

* MostAnnoyingSound:[[invoked]] Rarity's whining voice, to the Diamond Dogs. Unfortunately for them, she knows and exploits it.

* PunBasedTitle: A "dog and pony show" is an expression for an elaborate display meant to convince someone or promote something. In this case, there are [[LiteralMetaphor actual dogs and ponies involved]].

[[caption-width-right:300: [[{{Understatement}} How embarrassing.]]]]

* PunBasedTitle: InNameOnly to a common expression for a traveling salesman's sales pitch.

* MostAnnoyingSound: Rarity's whining voice, [[InUniverse to the Diamond Dogs]]. Unfortunately for them, she knows and exploits it.

->'''Rarity:''' I am not whining; I am complaining! Do you want to ''hear'' whining? ''[in higher-pitched voice]'' ''Thiiis'' is ''whiiiiining!'' Oooo, this harness is too ''tiiiight!'' It's going to ''chafe!'' Can't you ''loosen'' it? Oh, it hurts and it's ''so rusty''! Why didn't you clean it first? It's going to leave a ''stain'', and the wagon's getting ''heavy'', ''WHY DO I HAVE TO PULL IIIIIIIT?!''

!!Tropes present in this episode (YMMV tropes can be found [[YMMV/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E19ADogAndPonyShow here]]):

* BlueAndOrangeMorality: [[WordOfGod According to the writer]], the reason the Diamond Dogs tried to take Rarity in the first place. For Diamond Dogs, it's ''normal'' to be kidnapped and made to work for a stronger dog.
* BreadEggsBreadedEggs: combined with InsistentTerminology in the below quote.

** LostInTranslation: In the German dub, where it becomes something like "'Lady,' 'Rarity' or 'Valued Rarity.'"

* ChainOfPeople: When Spike gets pulled in after baiting the Diamond Dogs with a gem he saved, Applejack tried to pull him out, but before she slides in as well, Twilight follows but... you get the idea. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy join in the chain, then just as the latter is pulled in, Pinkie Pie joins the chain because, hey, [[ComicallyMissingThePoint it looks like a fun ride]]!
-->'''Pinkie Pie:''' ''Wheeeeeeeee!''

* ComplainingAboutComplaining: How the Diamond Dogs learned a valuable lesson in the difference between "whining" and "complaining".

* DamselOutOfDistress: Not only does Rarity rescue herself but reverses the situation and puts herself in charge.

* {{Hammerspace}}. Spike pulls a large gem Rarity personally gave to him out of a pocket, despite being completely naked save for his scales.

* MostAnnoyingSound: Rarity's whining voice, [[{{In-Universe}} to the Diamond Dogs]]. Unfortunately for them, she knows and exploits it.
* MuggingTheMonster: The Diamond Dogs picked the wrong unicorn to enslave. It also happens to the Dig Dogs that try to capture the rest of the Mane Cast.

* OhCrap: The Diamond Dogs when they realize Rarity hadn't even '''begun''' to whine.
* OneManArmy : Spike, in his fantasy, can effortlessly trounce a pack of Diamond Dogs on his own.

%%* PleaseDumpMe: How Rarity gets the Diamond Dogs to free her.

* RealWomenDontWearDresses: Averting this is the {{A|nAesop}}esop of the episode. Being a lady does not mean Rarity is a push over. During the epilouge, all of her friends congratulated her, impressed with how she had got out of her kidnapping situation.

* SapientSteed: Deconstructed in the climax. Twilight is not amused by Spike's attempt to ride her into battle, but ultimately decides humor him this once.

* TerribleTrio: The Diamond Dogs are led by such a trio. {{Word of God}} says their names are Fido (the hulking one), Rover (the tall, skinny one) and Spot (the short one).
* TitleDrop: The wording is ''slightly'' off, so it's a lot more subtle than, say, [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E18TheShowStoppers "The Show Stoppers"]], but the Diamond Dogs call Rarity "''[their]'' precious ''little pony''".

* TakeThat: To the RealWomenDontWearDresses idea. Faust is really big on averting this trope as much as possible, so it's no surpirse that she would have this episode written.

* TakeThat: To the RealWonenDontWearDresses idea. Faust is really big on averting this trope as much as possible.

* DramaQueen: Rarity already is a major one (to the point of providing the page image ''and'' the quote for this trope), but she purposely invokes and turns it UpToEleven as part of her gambit of getting the Diamond Dogs to release her.

* BlueAndOrangeMorality: [[WordOfGod According to the writer]], the reason the Diamond Dogs tried to take Rarity in the first place. For Diamond Dogs, it's ''normal'' to be kidnapped and made to work for a stronger dog. [[spoiler: Which results in a bit of FridgeLogic: No wonder Rarity was able to dominate them so thoroughly. For them, submitting to a higher authority is normal, so as long as she kept acting like she was in charge ...]]

* DramaQueen: Rarity already is a major one (to the point of providing the page image for this trope), but she purposely invokes and turns it UpToEleven as part of her gambit of getting the Diamond Dogs to release her.

* RealWomenDontWearDresses: Averting this is the {{A|nAesop}}esop of the episode. Being a lady does not mean Rarity is a push over. All of her friends were also extremely impressed with how she had got out of her situation.

* RealWomenDontWearDresses: Averting this is the {{A|nAesop}}esop of the episode. Being a lady does not mean Rarity is a push over.

** The episode is one long homage to OHenry's classic story "[[http://www.online-literature.com/donne/1041/ The Ransom of Red Chief]]".