History AlternativeCharacterInterpretation / MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic

** Twilight Sparkle's difficulty in social situations (most clearly seen at the start of season 1), her love of studying and reading, her knowledge of magic, and her SuperOCD all point to her being having [[UsefulNotes/AspergerSyndrome Asperger Syndrome]] or some other form of high-functioning autism. [[WMG/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicTwilightSparkle The WMG page]] and the Princesses section has more speculation.

* Exactly how useful are the Royal Guard and the Wonderbolts? Are they really as useless [[MilitariesAreUseless as their constant failures suggests]]? If so, why does Equestria bother having them? Or do we only see them when they fail, [[TheoryOfNarrativeCausality so the main characters can save the day]]? Is it a result of [[WeHaveBecomeComplacent complacency]] due to [[PhysicalGod the Princesses]] being the ones who normally [[AuthorityEqualsAsskicking take care of things]] and anything [[TheWorfEffect able to threaten them]] is beyond what anyone else could be expected to do any better against?

** Is Shining Armor an effective captain? Is the Royal Guards' aforementioned ineptitude due to his poor leadership or just making him look bad? As a soldier, are his constant defeats despite [[BarrierWarrior his powers]] a demonstration of his ineptitude? Was he simply caught off guard or went up against opponents [[AntiMagic who can negate his powers]]? Or are his powers only useful defensively? Why is he in command as opposed to using his power as a supporting role? AuthorityEqualsAsskicking? Is it the best place to use them? Does [[{{Nepotism}} his relationship to Twilight Sparkle or Princess Cadance have anything to do with it]]? The two mares are respectively Celestia's favorite student and her niece, and Celestia is likely to have appointed Shining Armor. Whether she seems merit in him is another question.

** The episode "Gauntlet of Fire" suggests that dragon culture is one based on AsskickingEqualsAuthority, with a hierarchy and promotion system based on shows of strength, agility, and resourcefulness; and that compassion towards each other, while not looked down upon, is uncommon enough for it to be weird to other dragons. The episode also implies the dragons have an antagonistic relationship with the ponies, with both sides considering the other an enemy and engaged in a cold war. It is left unclear if dragons just dislike cute, friendly things or there is a deeper cause behind their enmity.

----

** As of [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E3TooManyPinkiePies "Too Many Pinkie Pies"]], Twilight is labeled as a mass murderer due to seemingly [[KillEmAll committing genocide on the Pinkie clones the moment they looked away from the paint wall]]. The entire discussion has sparked a strong back-and-forth debate on the episode discussions of Blog/EquestriaDaily and Website/YouTube about the nature of the clones, the Mirror Pool, and whether Twilight can be labeled as a murderer or not. Considering how in "A Canterlot Wedding" she had been [[spoiler:willing to severely harm, if not kill Cadance, with only the SecretHandshake proving it was the real Cadance]], it's not much of a stretch to assume that...

** Celestia's tendency to do absolutely nothing other than sent Twilight and the gang after a perceived threat against Equestria, along with her utter [[CurbStompBattle curb-stomping]] by Chrysalis the one time she ''did'' try something (granted Chrysalis had a power boost, but you would expect Celestia to have at least been able to put up more of a fight than ''that'') and how Nightmare Moon had her on the ropes in their flashback battle until Celestia brandished the Elements of harmony, have made many fans question her strength. Is she actually powerful and holding back to do behind the scenes work, or just a BadassOnPaper who knows that she does not have the power to do much of anything against a powerful enemy and has to hide behind others? ''The Cutie Remark'' showing that every single future of Equestria without Twilight and her friends is a [[BadFuture war-torn post-apocalyptic nightmare]] only serves to imply the latter. While this means that only one villain succeeded and the rest were defeated, there is no word on whether Celestia or [[EnemyCivilWar the current dominant villain]] was responsible for it. Later episodes have attempted to [[AuthorsSavingThrow address this]] by claiming she [[WillfullyWeak holds her power back]] out of fear of harming others, but this raises other questions. Does she honestly believe standing by and doing nothing, holding back to the point villains defeat her, and/or only relying on others ''actually'' endangers her subjects less than just fighting back herself?

* According to some fans, the single most evil entity in all of Equestria is none other than [[KillerRabbit Angel Bunny]], especially after he is seen abusing his owner Fluttershy [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E19PuttingYourHoofDown "Putting Your Hoof Down"]]. Although he has [[TookALevelInKindness taken a level in kindness]] since then.
** Another candidate for "most evil thing in Equestria" is [[CatsAreMean Opalescence]]. Rarity's cat who often lashes out with her claws.

* Granny Smith. Is her eccentricities just "old people are funny humor" or waaay back in her youth was she the Pinkie Pie of her social circle? The Zap Apple prep stuff that she is shown to do in "Family Appreciation Day" support this. Pinkie often knows what she is doing even if it seems strange, and it would explain how Granny discovered things like Zap Apples prefer polka dots; she did Pinkieesque things and kept doing them when they made the jam better. Besides, running off into the most dangerous forest in the world alone at night is not very sensible.

** Others have suggested the exact opposite. One fanfic, ''[[https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NzHgSUpMl2X7jICAuMOiM_ZcQesbXdnBoafDmlLTG6o/edit?hl=en&authkey=CKyjrPAC The Liar]]'', portrays Trixie as a run-of-the-mill con artist. It suggests that [[spoiler:Trixie has NO magical ability, that her powers are all based off of the machines she uses in her act (including powdered poison joke to disrupt attempts to show her up), and that her special talent is really the ability to tell the most convincing lies.]] (Fair warning: This fic reads in reverse chronological order)

** Similarly, Silver Spoon may be a [[AlphaBitch stereotypical "queen bee"]], because she is insecure about being rich and useless, hence her cutie mark.

** Is he the AnthropomorphicPersonification of chaos that is just hard-wired to want chaos, just as the ponies are hard-wired to want harmony and peace? If so not only is he unwilling but incapable of [[BlueAndOrangeMorality maintaining anything resembling a moral compass]]; even if he ''could'' feel empathy for the beings he torments for his own amusement, he wouldn't be able to maintain it long enough for it to make any difference. By this interpretation, he is TheSociopath because he is hard-wired to be incapable of internalizing emotions that could let him live in harmony with others. By his very nature, Discord must consider himself separate from and in conflict with the rest of existence. ''Keep Calm And Flutter On'' seems to suggest that [[spoiler:he ''can'' understand and even enjoy friendship, however his [[ItsAllAboutMe selfishness]] and chaos-mongering tendencies have always prevented him from ever having a real friend.]]

* Were the Windigos evil spirits intentionally causing the ponies suffering and grief, or non-sentient beasts who were merely feeding and [[EmotionEater their natural way of survival]] made them a dangerous threat?

* Is Queen Chrysalis a bad guy seeking to subjugate an entire nation to make her and her minions stronger, a JerkassWoobie who is a victim of her upbringing, or a WellIntentionedExtremist who just wanted to feed her people? ''To Where And Back Again'' made it pretty clear her biggest priority is looking out for number 1, but these questions ''still'' stand.

*** The third view is that he is actually benevolent. Sure, he may be a tyrant, but he still wants to keep his subjects fed and happy. This mostly lines up with the Tyrannical Celestia mentioned above, as it implies that Celestia and Luna actually attacked the Crystal Empire preemptively, possibly because they feared him.

** It is made clear that Starlight adored him, but Sunburst seems indifferent to her until their reunion in adulthood. Which suggests that Starlight's feelings were not recirpocated.

** With Big Mac turning into an ''alicorn princess'' (or prince? not sure how that works) in "Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep", some have theorized that he may be a UsefulNotes/{{transgender}} woman. Others see this as a mere power fantasy after "Brotherhooves Social" showed that Big Mac feels inadequate that he is "just a farm hand while his sister saves the world."
** Between the aforementioned horned Big Mac in "Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep?", his [[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons Oubliettes and Ogres]] character in "Dungeons and Discords" being a unicorn, and his new unicorn girlfriend in "Hard to Say Anything", it is possible that that Big Mac has a unicorn fetish.

** Speaking of the Wonderbolts, did Spitfire ''actually'' have a change of heart at the end of ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E7WonderboltsAcademy Wonderbolts Academy]]'', or was she only suddenly concerned because the behavior she was encouraging had happened to endanger a member of royalty? It seems a little convenient, especially now that she is suddenly praising the leadership qualities of someone who showed no real leadership qualities for most of the episode. She does so after "coincidentally" learning that Rainbow Dash is best buddies with Princess Twilight. After all, [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E10RainbowFalls come next episode]] Spitfire has [[AesopAmnesia conveniently forgotten the moral lesson]] and turned her back on comrades for personal gain. So one wonders if Spitfire is not just [[ProfessionalButtKisser kissing up to Twilight by giving Rainbow Dash preferred treatment]] and [[TheScapegoat throwing Lightning Dust under the bus to pass the blame off of herself]]. Alternately, a later episode has her outright admit that she has wanted Rainbow Dash in the Wonderbolts since day one. Since Spitfire only "cared" about Lightning Dust's antics once Rainbow Dash tried to quit, it is quite possible her only motive behind firing Lightning Dust was merely to entice Rainbow Dash to stay. If Dash hadn't tried to walk out, Spitfire couldn't have cared less about Lighting Dust's antics.

* Pinkie's sister, Maud Pie, has at least two interpretations to her character: Is her general behavior a sign of autism, or does she deliberately behave in an asocial manner because she simply doesn't want to be friends with Pinkie's friends?

* [[OurDragonsAreDifferent The nature of the dragons as a species is widely debated]]. Common interpretations are that wild dragons tend to be {{Jerkass}}es and Spike's a NiceGuy because he was raised by ponies, while others suggest that adult dragons are powerful and dangerous when provoked but also intelligent and non-malicious. In which case they are the antagonists, only because we keep seeing them at their worst. The purple dragon had suffered a personal crisis, the red dragon was unreasonable because it was exhausted and the Mane Six kept interrupting his nap, the green dragon overreacted because he thought Spike wanted to steal all his food, and the teenage dragons were immature idiots that hadn't learned how to behave.

* According to [[https://www.derpibooru.org/pony/unpopular-opinion-time/post/1563438#post_1563438 one fan]], the teenage dragons from ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E21DragonQuest Dragon Quest]]'' did ''nothing'' wrong. She points out that the dragons, despite teasing Spike a bit, gave him multiple chances to prove himself and readily accepted him when he did. As for the phoenixes, while the dragons were a bit dickish about it, she saw them as an essential part of nature which was keeping down the population of a never-dying species which defends itself by lighting itself on fire, which would realistically be an over-populating and highly-destructive pest without another species to keep them in check like the fire-proof teenage dragons.

* ''A Canterlot Wedding Part 1'':

* ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E26TwilightsKingdomPart2 Twilight's Kingdom Part 2]]'':

* Every non-pony race seems to at best be irreverent to ponies and at worst outright want them dead, and it leaves you wondering if the ponies don't bring a lot of this on themselves. On one hand the ponies are undoubtedly good folks who as a whole are trying to do right by the world and spread friendship and non-pony races do tend to be jerks by default. On the other hand the ponies [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E21OverABarrel have no qualms stealing land from other races]], [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E1SchoolDazePart1 have nauseatingly racist laws as official policy]], seem to by default treat other races like sheep, cows, griffons, on occasion even Spike, and characters like Ahuizotl as either lesser entities or outright villains by default, seem to be willing to treat [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E6BoastBusters even]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E19PuttingYourHoofDown their]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E1TheCutieMapPart1 own]] horridly at the drop of a hat, and have been directly or indirectly responsible for nearly every world ending threat the series has ever seen. It makes you wonder if the low opinion these other races have for them is wholly justified or even outright deserved. If the ponies were in a series where [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality they weren't the stars]], they would be at best [[FantasticRacism racist]] HolierThanThou [[CantArgueWithElves smug elves]] or outright villains.

** Others have suggested the exact opposite. One fanfic, ''[[https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NzHgSUpMl2X7jICAuMOiM_ZcQesbXdnBoafDmlLTG6o/edit?hl=en&authkey=CKyjrPAC The Liar]]'', portrays Trixie as a run-of-the-mill con artist. It suggests that [[spoiler:Trixie has NO magical ability, that her powers are all based off of the machines she uses in her act (including powdered poison joke to disrupt attempts to show her up), and that her special talent is really the ability to tell the perfect lies.]] (Fair warning: This fic reads in reverse chronological order)

* Do the main characters [[EasilyForgiven easily forgive]] villains purely out of altruistic desires and ThePowerOfFriendship, or do they decide who they will and won’t forgive on [[BoxedCrook how useful the villains can be for the defense and protection of Equestria]]? The ponies who reformed the two biggest examples of reformed villains in ''MLP'' had ulterior motives for their actions: Discord was reformed because Celestia decided [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E11KeepCalmAndFlutterOn his powers can be "used for good"]] while [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E26TheCutieRemarkPart2 Starlight was given the chance to reform just because she was a character who Twilight personally sympathized with in spite of her crimes]]. Cozy Glow, on the other hand, is never even considered for forgiveness despite her being a child and despite her actions being on par with all of the adult villains who received leniency in the eight seasons before she came along. The series portrays her getting locked up in Tartarus for her crimes in "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E25SchoolRazePart1 School]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E26SchoolRazePart2 Raze]]" and then [[spoiler: being [[TakenForGranite turned into a stone statue]] along with Tirek and Chrysalis in the GrandFinale]] as something she totally deserved, and none of the characters express any remorse or regret at all for her fate or even consider if she had a FreudianExcuse or could change for the better. One can argue that the main characters decide who they will and won’t forgive on if they show remorse, as Discord and Starlight eventually had remorse over their villainous actions while Cozy Glow did not, but ''none'' of these villains showed any remorse at all for their actions after their first defeats and had to be offered the chance to reform in order to change. One could just as easily argue that Cozy simply never got the same opportunity that the others got: the princesses swiftly turned her to stone after her second defeat, without her so much as getting a word out, unlike Starlight and Discord who were allowed the chance to speak in their defense and were put in an environment where they were given the opportunity and lenience to change for the better.

** "Lesson Zero" gives more insight into Twilight's personality, specifically her deepest fears: She is absolutely terrified of failure and the thought of not meeting the expectations of others (a trait further solidified by "The Crystal Empire"). Add her general social awkwardness, the fact that she always wanted to throw a slumber party (even though she and her friends are now adults), and even the lyrics of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiTVSjlTcvc the full version of the theme song]] ("When I was young I was too busy to make any friends / Such silliness did not seem worth the effort it expends."), her obsession with studying and being a good student seemed to be all she had to validate her own self-worth. Now that she has real friends, she is completely terrified of losing them and reverting back to the lonely filly she once was.
** The events of [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E23TheCutieMarkChronicles "The Cutie Mark Chronicles"]] have lead some to speculate that Twilight's obsessive studying and list-making are all about retaining control of her magic. Basically prior to the day of the test she was studying to be like Celestia, after the test she's studying so she never again turns someone she loves into a potted plant.

** Is her failure to acknowledge her crush on Flash Sentry since ''Rainbow Rocks'' due to losing interest in him or being too preoccupied with her duties as Princess of Friendship and other happenings to spare it thought?

** Twilight's relationship with ''him'' also gets much scrutiny. Sometimes she seems to view Spike as a beloved family member, other times as just an employee who she can order around. After all, Spike is explicitly a ''baby'' dragon who does lots of hard work for nothing but food and a place to live. There is a reason that parody fanworks often outright call Spike a slave. ''Friendship Games'' depicts the human world's Twilight having Spike the dog as a pet she mostly treats as such, but he also seems to be her only friend that she talks to about her life, so there is also that interpretation.

** Rainbow Dash's tomboyish nature, raspy voice, and rainbow motif have caused some people to come to [[LesbianJock certain conclusions]]. Lauren Faust herself has noted that this is rather unfair to all of the jockishly tomboy straight women ''and'' feminine lesbian women out there.

** Some people suggest that she and Applejack got the wrong Elements and that she should have gotten Honesty while Applejack should have got Loyalty.

** Rainbow Dash has several interpretations coming from fans and haters alike. In a few fics, she is a BitchInSheepsClothing who only helped Fluttershy to further her own evil goals, and really doesn't give a damn about anyone but herself. There is also Scootabuse to consider, which is basically Rainbow Dash being a {{Jerkass}} to Scootaloo most often for humour. Whenever she is not portrayed by a fan, many haters will have her be a straight up {{Jerkass}} instead of the lovable JerkWithAHeartOfGold we know from the show. Her ego is often Flanderized in fanworks such as ''Friendship Is Witchcraft'' to the point she can only really say her name. Often times, due to being an athlete, she is often portrayed as the token idiot of the group who doesn't know anything, even more than Applejack who was born and raised on a farm (and presumably never went to school). Rainbow Dash has many different fan interpretations, and to list them all would take up an entire page, but these are perhaps the most common.

** Due to an offhand comment in "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E21OverABarrel Over A Barrel]]", some people think that she is obsessed with becoming a tree. (Her disguise in "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E22HurricaneFluttershy Hurricane Fluttershy]]" probably only added fuel to that particular fire.)
** Is Fluttershy so quiet and timid because she was [[http://warmfuzzyglow.com/my-little-dv-survivor-761/ abused as a young filly?]]

** In "The Return of Harmony", is Fluttershy really incorruptable pure, or is she just saying whatever (she thinks) Discord ''doesn't'' want her to?

* In "Sweet and Elite", the behavior of the Mane Cast outside of Rarity lends itself to some speculation. For instance, was Twilight genuinely ignorant that Rarity was ditching her and the rest to hobnob with the Canterlot Elite? Or was she feigning ignorance to help Rarity save face? Or was their immediate act to crash and trash the Garden Party them being spiteful? Were they simply feigning niceness? Or were they just drunk (we don't see Spike, so they might have been serving intoxicating beverages).

* When playing the fan game ''VideoGame/StoryOfTheBlanks'', [[WebVideo/FamiliarFaces CR]] says Sweetie Belle is Rarity's ''daughter'' instead of sister, jokingly. (A ShoutOut to [[http://gavalanche.deviantart.com/ Gavalanche's]] fancomics where Rarity is really Sweetie Belle's abusive mother who prefers to be called her sister.)

** "Growing Up is Hard to Do" and "The Last Problem" show Scootaloo's adult body with child-size wings. Shortly thereafter, [[DiagnosisOfGod one of the staff]] [[https://www.derpibooru.org/images/2157535 confirmed via twitter]] that that was indeed meant to indicate an actual disability, but included the line "But fans are welcome to interpret things how they like" (given that Bulk Biceps can fly despite having even smaller wings, Scootaloo's situation still is technically open to interpretation).[[note]]That line could just as easily be interpreted to mean "We're trying to have it both ways" -- that is, satisfy both the fans who wanted to see Scootaloo eventually fly and those who had held her up as a quality specimen of disability representation.[[/note]]

** Do he and Celestia [[FoeYay have a more amiable history]]? Many fans think that the two were close friends or even lovers long ago, and that their falling out has at least something to do with his [[DystopiaJustifiesTheMeans tyrannical intentions]]. Their dialogue hints at a deeper relationship of some kind that we are only able to speculate about. The way they brush off each other is very similar to the way [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Q (who Discord is based off of) would ruffle the feathers of Captain Picard]], who had a lot of HoYay.

** His relationship with Twilight; Is it a platonic/obsessive friendly antagonistic relationship much like Q and Picard? Or is it that Discord has a FoeYay with Twilight? It seems that Twilight is the only one he sees as a WorthyOpponent. He constantly teases her like a childish boy does to girls he likes. His friendship with Fluttershy could be a way to get in good with her social circle and start making his moves there. To add ACI on that, is his relationship with Twilight a mirror image of his relationship with Celestia? Could it be now that Twilight is an Alicorn, Discord is projecting his feelings of Celestia onto Twilight?

** With Big Mac turning into an ''alicorn princess'' (or prince? not sure how that works) in "Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep", some have theorized that he may be a UsefulNotes/{{transgender}} woman. Others sse this as a mere power fantasy after "Brotherhooves Social" showed that Big Mac feels inadequate that he is "just a farm hand while his sister saves the world."

* Another theory is that Equestria ''used'' to be a facist caste system because of the Hearth's Warming Eve play. It is the only time we see the ponies divided along earth pony/pegasus/unicorn lines and that is explicitly set in the past, implying that modern Equestria is much more racially balanced. If the unicorns somehow controlled all the learning and knowledge, then why is the most prominent teacher character (Cheerilee) an Earth pony? Also, if the unicorns oppressed the earth ponies in a 'first and second class citizen' manner, then why is the mayor of Ponyvile (Mayor Mare) an earth pony and the Film Flam Brothers (both unicorns( were run out of town by angry customers? Queen Chrysalis being able to almost ''effortlessly'' sow distrust between the three pony types in no time at all in the SeriesFinale shows that, if this interpretation is true, the ponies have probably only been balanced this way for a very short amount of time and ''still'' deep-down harbor considerable dislike and distrust of one another.

** Twilight Sparkle's difficulty in social situations (most clearly seen at the start of season 1), her love of studying and reading, her knowledge of magic, and her SuperOCD all point to her being an [[UsefulNotes/AspergerSyndrome aspie]] or a high-functioning autistic. [[WMG/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicTwilightSparkle The WMG page]] and the Princesses section has more speculation.

** Another theory gaining some popularity is that Scootaloo is the product of a mixed marriage and for whatever reason-death, divorce, etc.-the Pegasus parent is a missing parent. Leaving Scootaloo to be raised by an Earth Pony or Unicorn, neither of which can teach her how to fly. The Cake twins being born to Earth Pony parents has led to an alternate take, where Scootaloo is a "throwback" born to two non-Pegasus parents.

* After the brief fallout between them at the end of "A Canterlot Wedding, part 1", much speculation arose as to whether Twilight's friends, brother, and mentor were sincerely remorseful on how they abandoned her, or whether it was a cover-up. Some people considered the former based on how things are in season 3, but others noted that the only person who apologized was Applejack[[note]] Although they were in a middle of an invasion[[/note]], and Celestia's form of apology can look [[BrokenAesop broken]], they tend to say they were just saving their own flanks.

** When Twilight [[EasilyForgiven easily forgives]] them, is she being a true friend who would rather TurnTheOtherCheek than hold a grudge, or [[RestrainedRevenge bottling in?]] Perhaps she took her anger out when she was fighting the Changelings, who turned into her friends...

** As of [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E10TheSaddleRowReview season 6]] we know at least one escaped and lives in Manehattan. She was wearing a trenchcoat and fedora and actively hiding from Pinkie. It seems that duplicates can grow and learn, though at what point they become Pinkie's twin and not a destructive homonculus [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement is not a discussion for a TVTropes page]].

* Do the main characters [[EasilyForgiven easily forgive]] villains purely out of altruistic desires and ThePowerOfFriendship, or do they decide who they will and won’t forgive on [[BoxedCrook how useful the villains can be for the defense and protection of Equestria]]? The ponies who reformed the two biggest examples of reformed villains in ''MLP'' had ulterior motives for their actions. Discord was reformed because Celestia decided [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E11KeepCalmAndFlutterOn his powers can be "used for good"]]. [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E26TheCutieRemarkPart2 Starlight reformed just because she was a character who Twilight personally sympathized with, despite all of her crimes]]. Cozy Glow, on the other hand, is never even considered for forgiveness. Despite her being a child and despite her actions being just as bad (if not worse) than all of the adult villains who received leniency in the eight seasons before she came along. The series portrays her getting locked up in Tartarus for her crimes in "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E25SchoolRazePart1 School]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E26SchoolRazePart2 Raze]]" and then [[spoiler: being [[TakenForGranite turned into a stone statue]] along with Tirek and Chrysalis in the GrandFinale]] as something she totally deserved. None of the characters express any remorse or regret at all for her fate, or even consider if she had a FreudianExcuse or could change for the better. One can argue that the main characters decide who they will and won’t forgive on if they show remorse. Discord and Starlight eventually had remorse over their villainous actions, while Cozy Glow did not. But ''none'' of these villains showed any remorse at all for their actions after their first defeats. One could just as easily argue that Cozy simply never got the same opportunity that the others got: the princesses swiftly turned her to stone after her second defeat, without her so much as getting a word out. Unlike Starlight and Discord who were allowed the chance to speak in their defense. They were put in an environment where they were given the opportunity to change for the better.

* That said, how ''do'' we know that Discord didn't betray his friends for real in the final season? The only "proof" the ponies have that he didn't create the Legion of Doom in a genuine bid to [[FaceHeelTurn turn bum]] was his claim that his motives were valid, and Discord [[CompulsiveLiar struggles to tell the truth]] even when he is not [[ManipulativeBastard deliberately lying to them for a chuckle]]. After all, it is not [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E25TwilightsKingdomPart1 the first time he betrayed them for real]] only to [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E26TwilightsKingdomPart2 come crawling back when he was betrayed in turn]]. He is well aware the ponies have a track record for [[EasilyForgiven trusting and forgiving villains at the drop of a hat if they sound off about friendship]]. And on the other hand, while he is not the sharpest tool in the shed at times, Discord is definitely intelligent enough that you would think he would realize a far safer plan would be to whip up some fake villains. He is easily powerful enough to create thinking living threats that he could control if things went sour, as [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E2PrincessTwilightSparklePart2 he has done so in the past]].

** Speaking of the Wonderbolts, did Spitfire ''actually'' have a change of heart at the end of ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E7WonderboltsAcademy Wonderbolts Academy]]'', or was she only suddenly concerned because the behavior she was encouraging had happened to endanger a member of royalty? It seems a little convenient, especially now that she is suddenly praising the leadership qualities of someone who showed no real leadership qualities for most of the episode. She dooe so after "coincidentally" learning that Rainbow Dash is best buddies with Princess Twilight. After all, [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E10RainbowFalls come next episode]] Spitfire has [[AesopAmnesia conveniently forgotten the moral lesson]] and turned her back on comrades for personal gain. So one wonders if Spitfire is not just [[ProfessionalButtKisser kissing up to Twilight by giving Rainbow Dash preferred treatment]] and [[TheScapegoat throwing Lightning Dust under the bus to pass the blame off of herself]]. Alternately, a later episode has her outright admit that she has wanted Rainbow Dash in the Wonderbolts since day one. Since Spitfire only "cared" about Lightning Dust's antics once Rainbow Dash tried to quit, it is quite possible her only motive behind firing Lightning Dust was merely to entice Rainbow Dash to stay. If Dash hadn't tried to walk out, Spitfire couldn't have cared less about Lighting Dust's antics.

** With Big Mac turning into an ''alicorn princess'' (or prince? not sure how that works) in "Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep", some have theorized that he may be a {{transgender}} woman. Others sse this as a mere power fantasy after "Brotherhooves Social" showed that Big Mac feels inadequate that he is "just a farm hand while his sister saves the world."

*** Some fans have noted that devastating, highly important events in Equestrian history are either completely unknown to the general populace ([[TheDarkTimes Discord's reign]], the disappearance of the Crystal Empire) or only known through inaccurate myths (Nightmare Moon's [[TheNightThatNeverEnds longest night]]). They thus speculate that Celestia [[InternalRetcon regularly alters official histories]] to remove undesirable elements, which in turn leads to speculations as to whether she does this out of misguided benevolence or a malicious attempt to hide her own mistakes.[[note]]One alternative to these alternatives is that she just lets the natural distortion of historical events happen, and everyone usually thinks that she is too busy or important to fact check with her. In Nightmare Moon's case, who is going to ask her about the time she banished her own sister and risk reopening old wounds?[[/note]] Her actions in the Season 9 finale, where she swept Discord's involvement in the Legion of Doom under the rug and pinned all the blame on the others, adds serious weight to this theory. To the point of practically proving it, as it is evident Equestria was not allowed to know that Discord was directly responsible for the entire incident in the first place. As far as the newspapers say and anyone outside of Celestia's circle know, the ''only'' ones responsible for the Legion of Doom were Chrysalis, Cozy Glow, and Tirek.

** One wonders how hard Celestia's job actually is on a normal day, and how much authority she actually has. She does a fine job leading when everything is going well. But the ''second'' things go south and she is called upon to take charge, she begins making terrible decisions, gets defeated effortlessly, and has to sit back and hope others can save the day on her behalf. Perhaps she is actually a ''terrible'' leader outside of her ability to raise the Sun. Merely a [[PuppetKing figurehead]] at best who is the "face" of an empire that is actually ran by others. So everything goes fine, until she is put on the spot and called upon to actually lead. Organizations like the EEA being able to tell Celestia what to do seems to suggest that she actually makes very few decisions on her own. Twilight Sparkle being able to easily do the job of both Celestia ''and'' Luna in the DistantFinale hints that perhaps she and Luna's duties aren't much of a burden, since most of the work is done by others.

** Princess Celestia calling out Chancellor Neighsay at the end of School Daze and allowing Twilight Sparkle to run her school without EEA accreditation leaves you wondering where she actually stands on the issue. While she allowed Twilight to skirt the rules she certainly didn't seem to make any attempt to remove authority from Neighsay or reform the policies of the EEA, with them operating completely unchallenged as late as the season finale. Despite Celestia apparently disagreeing with how they were operating, and at the time she had rather strict gender and racial exclusions in her military and leadership. Does Princess Celestia actually believe in Twilight's methods and beliefs, or does she actually agree with Neighsay but was just siding with Twilight [[{{Nepotism}} because of their relationship]]? Perhaps she actually agreed with Neighsay's beliefs, but had faith that if anyone could do it Twilight could. Or Celestia knew that Neighsay was a noble man deep down and would ultimately be swayed by Twilight. Or she initially only sided with Twilight to save face, but was swayed along the way like Neighsay was. It is even possible she [[BothSidesHaveAPoint saw the value in both sides' arguments]] and was treating Twilight's school as a preliminary test to see if the EEA's policies ''should'' be changed.

* ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsLegendOfEverfree Legend of Everfree]]'' has Sunset Shimmer respond to Flash Sentry's unwanted [[DoppelgangerReplacementLoveInterest interest in human Twilight Sparkle]] by saying he should get over his feelings for Twilight. Was she being InnocentlyInsensitive to his feelings for pony Twilight Sparkle, which she previously supported? Did she know or assume pony Twilight has lost interest or was too busy for romance, and never found the time or way to break it to him earlier? Was her reaction motivated by Sunset's desire to be (back) together with Flash, to be together [[LesYay with (either) Twilight]], or to be together with Flash to keep him from an uninterested Twilight? Or was she too preoccupied at the moment to give a more though out response?

* Every non-pony race seems to at best be irreverent to ponies and at worst outright want them dead, and it leaves you wondering if the ponies don't bring a lot of this on themselves. On one hand the ponies are undoubtedly good folks who as a whole are trying to do right by the world and spread friendship and non-pony races do tend to be jerks by default. On the other hand the ponies [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E21OverABarrel have no qualms stealing land from other races]], [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E1SchoolDazePart1 have nauseatingly racist laws as official policy]], seem to by default treat other races like sheep, cows, griffons, on occasion even Spike, and characters like Ahuizotl as either lesser entities or outright villains by default, seem to be willing to treat [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E6BoastBusters even]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E19PuttingYourHoofDown their]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E1TheCutieMapPart1 own]] horridly at the drop of a hat, and have been directly or indirectly responsible for nearly every world ending threat the series has ever seen. It makes you wonder if the low opinion these other races have for them is wholly justified or even outright deserved, as it seems if they were in a series where [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality they weren't the stars]] they'd be at best [[FantasticRacism racist]] HolierThanThou [[CantArgueWithElves smug elves]] to outright villains.

* ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsLegendOfEverfree Legend of Everfree]]'' has Sunset Shimmer respond to Flash Sentry's unwanted [[DoppelgangerReplacementLoveInterest interest in human Twilight Sparkle]] by saying he should get over his feelings for Twilight. Was she being InnocentlyInsensitive to his feelings for pony Twilight Sparkle, which she previously supported? Did she know or assume pony Twilight has lost interest or was too busy for romance, and never found the time or way to break it to him earlier? Was it motivated by Sunset's desire to be (back) together with Flash, be together [[LesYay with (either) Twilight]], or be together with Flash to keep him from an uninterested Twilight? Or was she too preoccupied at the moment to give a more though out response?

* The Crystal Empire. The term Empire refers to a nation that controls a large sovereign territory, as well as indirect or direct control over other territories, such as vassals, subjects or colonies. The only thing we see of the Crystal Empire is maybe 100 square kilometers, and it's ruled by a King (later a princess). It's possible that the Empire encapsulates a much larger territory than shown, or that it used to, but the different territories were annexed by other nations (namely Equestria) following the Empire's collapse.
* TheReveal in the season finale that the Legion of Doom was staged to give Twilight Sparkle a boost in confidence and groom her to take Princess Celestia and Princess Luna's place, along with noticing all these villains only seemed to show up once Twilight began her friendship lessons (and seemed to go away again once she ''did'' take their place), the mysterious circumstances behind some of their escapes and returns, and Princess Celestia's tendency to be a TricksterMentor, raises a ''disturbing'' alternate interpretation of the events of the entire series. Was Discord just being Discord by staging a conflict and was called out for as such, or has Princess Celestia been doing this from the get-go and Discord was JustFollowingOrders and only got chastised for getting caught? It's even possible he, after watching Celestia do this, [[FollowTheLeader stupidly thought it was an okay thing to do]].
* That said, how ''do'' we know that Discord didn't betray his friends for real in the final season? The only "proof" the ponies have that he didn't create the Legion of Doom in a genuine bid to [[FaceHeelTurn turn bum]] was his claim that his motives were valid, and Discord [[CompulsiveLiar struggles to tell the truth]] even when he's not [[ManipulativeBastard deliberately lying to them for a chuckle]]. After all, it's not [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E25TwilightsKingdomPart1 the first time he betrayed them for real]] only to [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E26TwilightsKingdomPart2 come crawling back when he was betrayed in turn]], and he's well aware the ponies have a track record for [[EasilyForgiven trusting and forgiving villains at the drop of a hat if they sound off about friendship]]. And on the other hand, while he's not the sharpest tool in the shed at times, he's definitely intelligent enough that you'd think he'd realize a far safer plan would be to whip up some fake villains since he's easily powerful enough to create thinking living threats that he could control if things went sour as [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E2PrincessTwilightSparklePart2 he's done so in the past]].

** As of [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E10TheSaddleRowReview season 6]] we know at least one escaped and lives in Manehattan. And was wearing a trenchcoat and fedora and actively hiding from Pinkie. Seems they can grow and learn, though at what point they become Pinkie's twin and not a destructive homonculus [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement is not a discussion for a TVTropes page]].

** When she [[EasilyForgiven easily forgives]] them, is she being a true friend who'd rather TurnTheOtherCheek than hold a grudge, or [[RestrainedRevenge bottling in?]] Perhaps she took her anger out when she was fighting the Changelings, who turned into her friends...
** Did Twilight's friends, mentor, and brother ''really'' abandon and shun her after her outburst until her vindication, or did they walk away (possibly for only a few minutes) to give everyone time to cool down, only to later be unable to find her? One of Equestria's most talented unicorns couldn't have been kidnapped, especially not in the middle of a secure castle on high alert, so she must have left on her own. Worrisome, but there's no reason to think she's in danger and they can all have a long talk after the wedding.

** Did the entire town of Ponyville just happen to take about [[TookALevelInJerkass twelve levels of jerk-ass]] or, since this is the only time we've seen Fluttershy interact with them in general, is this how they [[FridgeHorror always treat her]]? It might explain why she tends to prefer the company of animals.

* [[OurDragonsAreDifferent The nature of the dragons as a species is widely debated]]. Common interpretations are that wild dragons tend to be {{Jerkass}}es and Spike's a NiceGuy because he was raised by ponies, while others suggest that adult dragons are powerful and dangerous when provoked but also intelligent and non-malicious, in which case they are the antagonists because we keep seeing them at their worst; the purple dragon had suffered a personal crisis, the red dragon was unreasonable because it was exhausted and the Mane Six kept interrupting his nap, the green dragon overreacted because he thought Spike wanted to steal all his food, and the teenage dragons were immature idiots that hadn't learned how to behave.
** The episode "Gauntlet of Fire" suggests that dragon culture is one based on AsskickingEqualsAuthority, with a hierarchy and promotion system based on shows of strength, agility, and resourcefulness; and that compassion towards each other, while not looked down upon, is uncommon enough for it to be weird to other dragons. The episode also implies the dragons have an antagonistic relationship with the ponies, with both sides considering the other an enemy and engaged in a cold war, though it's unclear if it's just that they dislike cute, friendly things or there's a deeper cause behind it.

* The land of Equestria as a whole might be a less-than utopian autocracy where the unicorns stay in power thanks to their control over magic and learning, and the pony population as a whole oppresses and even enslaves the other hoofed races. The posters in [[http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/19993725/ this discussion thread]] analyze the show and eventually come to the conclusion that Equestria is basically a fascist utopia, rife with rigid caste systems, engineered environments, slavery, class imbalance, all controlled at the beck and call of an all-powerful, godlike being that somehow manages to keep her subjects ignorant of the underlying problems of their society. To make matters worse one could easily interpret the different friendship-related events to be BreadAndCircuses, which even the villain of [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 the movie]] brings up when she calls out Equestria for wasting all their time on parties rather than actually ''doing something'' about constant attacks, and that the series has consistently shown with creatures like the Windigos and ThePowerOfFriendship being literal that their celebration of friendship could be closer to a mandatory ritual than something done for the sake of friendship. Season 8 even showed that while there is an ''illusion'' of Equestria being a constitutional monarchy with laws and policies the princesses have to follow, they're ultimately still free to bend, change, and outright break them on whims, which raises the troubling interpretation that the ponies are tricked into thinking they have rights and protections to keep them content. That Equestria seems to have no legal process whatsoever outside of "whatever the princess who decided to show up feels like doing that day" and casually ignores what are even the most basic human rights in our world when imposing the law certainly doesn't cast Equestria in a positive light either.
* Another theory is that Equestria ''used'' to be a facist caste system because of the Hearth's Warming Eve play. It is the only time we see the ponies divided along earth pony/pegasus/unicorn lines and that is explicitly set in the past, implying that modern Equestria is much more racially balanced. If the unicorns somehow controlled all the learning and knowledge, then why is the most prominent teacher character an Earth pony? Also, if the unicorns oppressed the earth ponies in a 'first and second class citizen' manner, then why is the mayor of Ponyvile an earth pony and the Film Flam Brothers run out of town by angry customers? Queen Chrysalis being able to almost ''effortlessly'' sow distrust between the three pony types in no time at all in the SeriesFinale shows that, if this interpretation is true, the ponies have probably only been balanced this way for a very short amount of time and ''still'' deep-down harbor considerable dislike and distrust of one another.

* A decent amount of fanfics like to give Star Swirled the Bearded an HistoricalVillainUpgrade. When he finally ''did'' make an appearance in {{Canon}} they weren't too far off the mark: while he was no villain he certainly [[GoodIsNotNice was a jerk]] who followed BlackAndWhiteInsanity to a T.
* Possibly in response to his general Hatedom, there have been several fan works that portray Flash Sentry as a complete ButtMonkey, unable to get the universe to stop hating him.

** Is Shining Armor an effective captain? Is the Royal Guards aforementioned ineptitude due to his poor leadership or just making him look bad? As a soldier, are his constant defeats despite [[BarrierWarrior his powers]] ineptitude? Being caught off guard or up against those [[AntiMagic who can negate it]]? Or being only useful defensively? Why is he in command as opposed to using his power as a supporting role? AuthorityEqualsAsskicking? Is it the best place to use them? Does [[{{Nepotism}} his relationship to Twilight Sparkle or Princess Cadance have anything to do with it]]?
** Speaking of, Shining Armor's personal BadassDecay over the series, going from a strong but outmatched BarrierWarrior who would bravely stand up to the likes of King Sombra and Lord Tirek to a helpless {{Dumbass In Distress|Disorder}} who cries at the drop of a hat and won't even try to fight anymore opens a lot of alternate interpretations . It may be he feels that what he does is a HopelessWar, as no matter how hard he or the guards fight they'll be stomped into the dirt without anyone of Equestria even seeming to care while the Mane Six show up to save the day and get all the glory, and so he come to figure [[DespairEventHorizon trying is pointless]] and now puts himself above his duty. After all, [[IronicEcho you can't have a nightmare if you never dream]]. More generously, it's possible he's simply a HouseHusband now who has no real duty or authority any longer, and now stands back with his daughter while others whose job it ''is'' to save Equestria get things done. Of course, it's also possible he was [[MilesGloriosus never a bad ass in the first place]] and was simply attempting to do a job he was KickedUpstairs into (it's a ''persistent'' theory that he was given command of the royal guard [[{{Nepotism}} because he's Twilight Sparkle's brother]], as ''many'' characters in the series were given jobs because they were friends or family of one of the princesses).
** They seem to have little to no presence whatsoever anywhere except Canterlot, as characters like Ahuizotl and Starlight Glimmer rule over entire regions of Equestria until the Mane 6 happen to swing by, other places like Appleoosa are policed only by mobs of citizens, and even locales near Canterlot like Ponyville are attacked by monsters often enough for the ponies to be completely accustomed to it. Are they too few to be there? Are they stationed in important locations and only respond to emergencies, which are apparently rare given how said locals seem to manage.