- Written by Christine Rice, art by Tony Fleecs
The Apples attend the annual fruit-sellers convention, though Granny Smith is bitter about the excessive amount of non-apple products the convention has added over the years. As AJ, Big Mac, and Apple Bloom set up their stall, Granny wanders the fairgrounds and is surprised to hear the voice of Flim trying to hawk a new gadget, but with no sign of Flam. Flim states he has broken up with his brother and have gone their separate ways. Later, Granny finds Flam also trying to sell the same gadget, and has the same story. Despite their past attempts to con the Apples, Granny feels this isn't right and goes to find Flim and ask him about it.
Flim tells her that three weeks before the con, they were in Dodge Junction where they met Marian, a librarian pony, which caught both of their attention. They started to vie for her heart, but got so bitter towards each other that Marian decided to drop the both of them. The two brothers went their separate ways, by chance being at the fruit convention at the same time.
Granny hatches a plan to bring the brothers together. After stopping them from yelling at each other, Granny tells them that in her youth, she incited the same division of the Jonagold brothers when they both tried to win her over. She opted to leave both alone, but that caused the brothers to feud, and never see each other again, and she does not want the same to happen to Flim and Flam. She helps them reconcile their differences, and by the end of the convention, they are back together and making a (legitimate!) fortune, thanks to Granny's advice.
This issue provides examples of:
- Ascended Meme: Apparently, Celestia likes bananas.
- Blatant Lies: Granny Smith initially denies helping the brothers get back together, but admits it when Applejack gives her a Death Glare.
- Cassandra Truth: Flim and Flam tell Granny that they are no longer on speaking terms and are not scheming anything, but it takes awhile before Granny actually believes them.
- Continuity Cavalcade: The two page spread overlooking the apple convention has too many background character cameos to list, though some notable characters include Cheese Sandwich, Maud Pie and the rest of the Pie clan, Ms. Harshwhinney, Surprise, and Daring Do.
- There's also several nods to the past comics: the David Bowie - inspired pie wagon from the Rainbow Dash micro is there, as well as Flax Seed & Wheat Grass's "Goops for Stuff" from the Rarity micro. "Fancy Shmancy" from the Pinkie/Luna is in line, and the PNN reporter pony is awaiting on stage. Wheat Grass and Summer Mane also show up later.
- It might be easier to say who doesn't show up.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones/Everyone Has Standards: Granny may not particularly like the Flim Flam brothers, but she won't stand by and let two family members be driven apart if she can do anything about it.
- History Repeats: Granny Smith was once courted by a pair of twins called the Jonagold brothers, who began fighting each other of her affections. Granny, unable to choose between them, broke it off with both of them, and neither spoke to the other again. Her helping Flim and Flam is an attempt to stop the same thing from happening to them.
- I Was Quite a Looker: Granny says this word for word at one point.
- Shout-Out: To The Music Man. Flim and Flam were originally based on Professor Harold Hill from that play, and in the backstory to the comic they vied for the love of a a mare named Marian — who is a librarian.
- There's also a Bluth's Banana Stand in Apple Con.
- Sibling Love Triangle: Both of the Flim Flam brothers had a crush on one mare, named Marian, and their attempts to woo her drove them apart, and neither got her. This is situation that Granny can relate to as she was in a love triangle herself with the Jonagold brothers.
- Really Gets Around: Apparently Granny had a lot of boyfriends when she was younger.
- Riddle for the Ages: Flim proposes the idea that Marian had never cared for him and his brother, and was only distracting them from conning the ponies of Dodge Junction. Granny's tale implies that she couldn't choose between them and was tired of their fighting. Since she never appears outside of what Flim is telling Granny, we never know.
- Sibling Rivalry: Flim and Flam, due to having been two opposing sides of a Love Triangle.
- Take That!: Granny Smith's and Apple Bloom's reactions to Apple Con parody the most common criticisms of San Diego Comic Con — the theme of the convention has drifted away from its original focus (apples = comics, oranges = movies and TV), it's too crowded, and attendees spend most of their time standing in line.
