History YMMV / MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017

** A common point of contention is how it ignores CharacterDevelopment and continuity (outside some cameos) past the end of Season 4, leading to questions about why they sought help from [[spoiler:the hippogriffs]] over all the other allied races they made since then and it not feeling like it fit the shows continuity. Many criticize this as an attempt for ''The Movie'' appeal to wider audiences at the expense of it appealing to existing fans. But work on ''The Movie'' started immediately after end of Season 4, thus AnimationLeadTime would make it impossible to incorporate said later development and continuity beyond cameos if they wanted to or not.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Queen Novo was [[https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vvnH2CNVtKw/WfTUtLCH9AI/AAAAAAAC41Y/98wEO0DjrBgiMPwxU933lCAAtOwfZ5AnQCLcBGAs/s1600/Capture.JPG the least popular new main character]] despite being the BigGood. She was meant to be an benevolent queen initially refusing to fight the Storm King due to not wanting to endanger her people or risking her powerful Pearl of Transformation falling into the wrong hands but would have been persuaded to help fight if not for [[spoiler:Twilight attempting to steal the Pearl]] due to being too quick to lose trust in Novo. But due to them being the first thing to come to Princess Celestia's mind when the Storm King invaded[[note]][[AnimationLeadTime it was written before they gained other possible allies]] in [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic the series]][[/note]], many thought Novo was an ally under expectation or obligation to aid the heroes only to be inexplicably distrustful toward them (''Literature/TheStormyRoadToCanterlot'' would [[AllThereInTheManual justify that]] but it's canonically suspect and not alluded to in ''The Movie''). The Storm King and his army being defeated by [[spoiler:thirteen ragtag individuals without the Pearl]] made Novo look [[DirtyCoward excessively cowardly]] for running and hiding rather than standing and fighting against such seemingly easy to beat foe. Even many who defend her actions as pragmatically justifiable felt Novo's lack of positive contribution left her having done nothing to deserve their happy ending after abandoning Equestria in its hour of need.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation:

** Some have jokingly interpreted the Storm King as an AuthorAvatar for Hasbro's marketing department. He is fully aware of and embraces his villain status, apparently sells merchandise of himself abroad, is interested in making everyone work for him moving said merchandise, and is conscious of his brand image and actively works to reinforce it with everything he does including his name.

** Celestia [[spoiler: rather easily leads herself open to attack and is the second princess to be petrified. Did she just panic at the shock of seeing it happen to Cadence? Or did she realise that as the strongest princess, she'd be the easiest target, and was pulling a HeroicSacrifice in the hopes that Luna and Twilight would be able to get to safety?]]

* AngstWhatAngst: Despite the fact that their home has just been attacked and conquered by an invading force, their friends' lives are in danger and they are forced to leave their home on such short notice, the Mane Six don't appear all that concerned or upset about the whole ordeal. It's lampshaded later on when Twilight calls out her friends for their unnecessary cheerfulness and not taking the journey more seriously. However, the Mane Six's staying true to their friendliness despite difficulties is what ultimately saves the day come the end.
* SugarWiki/AwesomeArt: The movie's AnimationBump to Toon Boom results in some gorgeous use of colour, each of the Mane Six now getting their own personalized walking style, and some incredibly vivid locations. Not to mention getting to see a Sonic Rainboom on the big screen.

** The rest of the soundtrack follows suit. From the heartwarming "We Got This Together", to Capper's solo "I'm The Friend You Need", to Rainbow Dash and Captain Celaeno's confidence-boosting "Time To Be Awesome", to the upbeat and perky "One Small Thing", to Tempest Shadow's haunting VillainSong "Open Up Your Eyes", there's plenty to enjoy. The tracks provided by the various celebrity artists don't slack in the quality department, either -- each of them is epic in their own way, all of them having the unifying theme of friendship within them.

** Throughout the movie, Twilight Sparkle is only shown using basic levitation, illumination and magic blasts despite her huge repertoire of spells in the show proper. [[spoiler:When captured by Tempest Shadow's cage, she doesn't attempt anything beyond [[AttackAttackAttack blasting it with magic]] when she could have easily just attempted a teleportation spell, no matter how well that would have turned out in the end.]]
** Applejack has SuperStrength and is second only to Rainbow Dash in terms of athleticism, while Fluttershy has gone through plenty of CharacterDevelopment in the show and has been known to keep up with Rainbow Dash when motivated enough. Come the final battle, [[spoiler:Applejack's only method of offense is lassoing a bunch of minions, and Fluttershy's only contribution is comforting a minion in what's obviously supposed to be a gag]].

** The Princesses [[spoiler:[[TheWorfEffect get taken out easily at the beginning of the movie]]]]. ''Again''. Some are okay with it as it serves the plot, establishes the stakes, and they'd be too much to focus on along with the rest of the cast. Others are not happy about continuing something the show gets flack for or that [[DiabolusExMachina the villains are arbitrarily given]] a StoryBreakerPower solely to facilitate this.

** Twilight's behavior in the second half of the film. Long story short, this is easily one of the biggest base breakers for the movie's fans. [[spoiler:First off, you have the camps that lambaste Twilight's decisions in trying to steal the Pearl of Transformation and yelling at her friends as being OutOfCharacter. Then you have those that say Twilight's decisions were justified in that their ways of friendship weren't working outside of Equestria and she was getting desperate, not at all helped by [[WithFriendsLikeThese said friends not treating the situation seriously]]. Then there's the third group which says that BothSidesHaveAPoint, where Twilight shouldn't have done what she did but the others should have been more empathetic to Twilight's plight and noticed her growing doubts.]] Adding to the divide is the similarities to "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E25ACanterlotWeddingPart1 Canterlot Wedding's]]" infamously divisive actions and falling out; some criticizing it/them for [[AesopAmnesia making the same mistakes]] while others like how it did a better job of justifying their actions and having the realize and atone for their mistakes.

** After Verko puts Capper in deep dept and almost has the Mane Six and Spike sold, being zapped by Tempest when he tried he tries to be mockingly cute on her is both cathartic and hilarious.
* ClicheStorm: No pun intended. This movie apologetically plays all of the cliches of every single children's movie right to the hilt -- such as the HerosJourney, PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure, DisneyDeath, DisneyVillainDeath, SaveTheVillain, HeroicSacrifice -- and in [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks some cases]], plays its own cliches too much.

** There is also a drastically different reception to Daniel Ingram's musical sequences in the movie between the fans and the critics, though it very likely ties in to reception to the film itself. After all, if you don't like a musical movie or play very much, you probably won't like the musical sequences much either.

** Most everyone agrees Tempest Shadow is the best part of the movie. Brony news site Blog/EquestriaDaily had a poll which asked "which new movie character was your favorite" after the movie came out. Tempest shot into the lead with a landslide amount of votes, to the point that Equestria Daily had to quickly [[https://www.equestriadaily.com/2017/10/poll-swapped-which-non-tempest-new.html pull the poll and replace it]] with a new one that read "which new movie character was your favorite, ''besides Tempest Shadow''". After only two days, Tempest was already winning the first poll with more than 56% of the vote; second-placer Capper only had 14%, and Tempest had more than four times as many votes as Capper when the first poll was cut off. Reasons for Tempest being so popular include her design, her interesting backstory, the way she's a rather effectively menacing villain (which is pretty rare for a SugarBowl world like ''My Little Pony''), and her status as a {{foil}} to Twilight. Her song is also widely agreed to be the best one.

** Even those disappointed with The Storm King's lack of focus admit to still enjoying Creator/LievSchreiber's performance which shows his great range and that he can do comedic acting just as well as the dramatic acting that he's usually known for.

** The Storm King's ineptitude. After "Shadow Play," [[spoiler:this was seemingly lessened due to The Pony of Shadows being seen as even more of a disappointment by comparison; at least The Storm King was still able to get a NearVillainVictory, whereas The Pony of Shadows never once had the advantage. That, and he didn't have the benefit of being LaughablyEvil like the Storm King.]]

** Fans of traditional animation, even the ones who aren't fans of the show, have expressed interest in the film due to how rare Western 2D-animated theatrical films are in this day and age.

** "Tired Rainbow Dash", based on the sunken eyes Rainbow Dash's character model appeared to have in the teaser due to [[SpecialEffectsFailure rendering issues]], making her look very sleep-deprived.

** "RIP, Brian", in memoriam to Party Favor's poor deflated balloon animal, took off just minutes after the official trailer launched. He even got a character tag on Derpibooru!

** Once it came out ''Friendship is Magic'' would end in 2019, some blamed the movie's weak reception and earnings. However, Hasbro stated they wanted it to continue for five years in 2014 when the movie was first announced, wanted to wrap it up [[https://derpibooru.org/1997810 in the very early pitches for Season 7]] while the movie would be mid-production, and months after the movie released leaked early drafts for the next series which was too soon to have been designed in response to its reception. While [[https://www.equestriadaily.com/2021/12/concept-art-from-cancelled-generation-4.html other]] [[https://twitter.com/Chevistian1/status/1096241924930002944 G4]] [[https://twitter.com/Chevistian1/status/1096924149614891009 movies]] may have been canned, the end of ''Friendship is Magic'', already a LongRunner by this point who's toy sales were slowing down before the movie released, was decided well before reception of ''The Movie'' could influence it.

* NarmCharm: The song "Time to Be Awesome" would have been very hard to be taken seriously thanks to its lyrics, but Ashleigh Ball, Zoe Saldana and the orchestrated music make it work.

* PresumedFlop ''The Movie'' was ravaged by critics for being [[SweetnessAversion too sugary sweet]], received [[BrokenBase mixed]] to [[SoOkayItsAverage mediocre]] reception from the [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic parent show's]] large PeripheryDemographic it was supposed to cash in on, and led to the planned sequel to be reworked into a [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyRainbowRoadtrip television special]]. But it made back nearly ten times its measly 6.5 million budget for a total of 61 million dollars worldwide and got [[VindicatedByCable strong digital sales]], doing well enough the next movie ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyANewGeneration'' was also intended for a theatrical release before the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic moved it to [[{{Creator/Netflix}} Netflix-exclusive]].
* SoOkayItsAverage: While most fans think the movie was really good, other people who aren't fans of the series have a mixed reaction towards this movie -- it's well animated, the characters are likable enough and it's mostly just harmless, enjoyable fun if you are bored, but it's also predictable, repetitive and too saccharine at times and you won't miss anything if you skip it. At the same time, the movie isn't awful either, so it doesn't make good riffing material. Even those that actually like the movie admit it's hardly going to blow anyone away.

** While many agree the [[SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome character animation]] from the teaser is [[AnimationBump impressive, to say the least]], it's obvious copy/paste vibe and bizarre, oversaturated shading (resulting in "baggy eyes" that are [[https://derpicdn.net/img/view/2017/4/6/1405471.png particularly noticeable on Rainbow Dash]]) have resulted in the character models appearing slightly off even to those who have expressed high hopes for the film after watching the teaser. Art director Rebecca Dart has pointed out that much of this stems from the failure to convert the film's 16-bit images into 8 bit for the teaser, which "crushed all the [models'] shadows".

* {{Squick}}: A pill bug crawled across Pinkie Pie's eye and she didn't care.

** "One Small Thing" combines elements from the ''WesternAnimation/SofiaTheFirst'' songs "Welcome To Merroway Cove" and "Joining Together", the upbeat tempo of the former, and the message on working together from the latter.

** Discord. While from a story perspective, it makes sense not to have him in the movie due to the fact that he can literally save the day with a snap of his fingers. [[note]]Unless he got caught by one of the [[TakenForGranite Obsidian Orbs]] or something.[[/note]] However, it's still disappointing he didn't even make a cameo and allowing us to see him in the upgraded animation. His only in-movie cameo wasn't even him, but a balloon sculpture by Pinkie (the stained-glass window depicting his second defeat is also briefly visible). [[spoiler:Likewise, while he did directly cameo in the end-credits, the animation style used there was completely different from that of the movie itself.]]

** The Equestrian Royal Guards aren't even around to defend Canterlot, only briefly appearing in the credits. Their valiant but futile attempt at fighting off the Storm Guards could've added a much more dramatic effect to the invasion scene and let Twilight Sparkle realize how much more higher the stakes are.

** We never got to see [[LaResistance a resistance movement]] to the subsequent invasion of the rest of Equestria after the fall of Canterlot, especially at prime spots like the Dragon Lands, the Changeling Hive and the Crystal Empire. After all, considering what happened to [[https://imgur.com/a/Pc5yc Ponyville]], it must have been quite a blast. (The Yaks and Griffins might be counted as a separate nation and therefore wasn't invaded.) In fact, we never got to see the state of Equestria during the 72 hour war until the liberation of Canterlot which ended the war.
** Seaquestria lacks an EstablishingShot or any sort of exploration of the place. The Mane Six (and Spike) travel through quite a bunch of Klugetown, with a number of long shots that show the impressive size and vertical element of the city. In contrast, when they get to Seaquestria, they head straight for the royal chambers, which is also the only structure seen, making it seem like that's the only building in the place and the Seaponies just kind of live among the coral and kelp (which admittedly could tie into how sad and bored they are). The main series however would feature Seaquestria more.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Queen Novo was [[https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vvnH2CNVtKw/WfTUtLCH9AI/AAAAAAAC41Y/98wEO0DjrBgiMPwxU933lCAAtOwfZ5AnQCLcBGAs/s1600/Capture.JPG the least popular new main character]] despite being the BigGood. She was meant to be an benevolent queen initially refusing to fight the Storm King due to not wanting to endanger her people or risking her powerful Pearl of Transformation falling into the wrong hands, but would have been persuaded to help fight if not for [[spoiler:Twilight attempting to steal the Pearl]] due to being too quick to lose trust in Novo. But due to them being the first thing to come to Princess Celestia's mind when the Storm King invaded[[note]][[AnimationLeadTime it was written before they gained other possible allies]] in [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic the series]][[/note]], many thought Novo was an ally under expectation or obligation to aid the heroes only to be inexplicably distrustful toward them (''Literature/TheStormyRoadToCanterlot'' would [[AllThereInTheManual justify that]] but it's canonically suspect and not alluded to in ''The Movie''). The Storm King and his army being defeated by [[spoiler:thirteen ragtag individuals without the Pearl]] made Novo look [[DirtyCoward excessively cowardly]] for running and hiding rather than standing and fighting against such seemingly easy to beat foe. Even many who defend her actions as pragmatically justifiable felt Novo's lack of positive contribution left her having done nothing to deserve their happy ending after abandoning Equestria in its hour of need.

** Many fans initially thought [[HarpingOnAboutHarpies Captain Celaeno]] was a [[OurGryphonsAreDifferent griffon]] when she was first revealed, due to her having a similar design as the griffons in the show, and long pointed ears similar to the kind griffons are sometimes depicted with in fiction. Others pointed out that her name doesn't start with a "[[AlphabeticalThemeNaming G]]" like the other griffons in ''Friendship Is Magic'', and is a reference to a harpy from Greek mythology. Then her official toy was revealed, showing that she didn't have lion parts, resembling a humanoid [[PirateParrot parrot]] instead of a griffon. Due to her kinetic animation and split-second appearances in the trailer, however, the confusion still persists [[CowboyBebopAtHisComputer even among a reviewer or two]].

** Was the Storm King [[spoiler:being StupidEvil for backstabbing Tempest Shadow, or could he not fulfill his deal to restore her horn even if he wanted to, and thus there was no way or reason to keep up the act? Did he only pretend to accept Grubber's explanation for her "show all of them what I can do" comment and in actuality suspected she might backstab ''him'' if he gave her what she wanted after Strife's betrayal in the prequel comic? Were his actions in the movie at odds with his comic portrayal as a PragmaticVillain, or did he become DrunkWithPower or was this his true nature that he let loose once he thought [[NothingCanStopUsNow Nothing Can Stop Me Now]]?]]

** For critics of the story, a lot of plot points the film hits have already been done by the show for its season premieres and finales, especially the princesses being hit by TheWorfEffect. This is a major reason that the impact of seeing the Storm King's forces invade Canterlot and petrify the Princesses can fall flat; other villains have done it, too, and it's already starting to become a DiscreditedTrope.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Queen Novo was [[https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vvnH2CNVtKw/WfTUtLCH9AI/AAAAAAAC41Y/98wEO0DjrBgiMPwxU933lCAAtOwfZ5AnQCLcBGAs/s1600/Capture.JPG the least popular new main character]] despite being the BigGood. She was meant to be an benevolent queen initially refusing to fight the Storm King due to not wanting to endanger her people or risking her powerful Pearl of Transformation falling into the wrong hands, but would have been persuaded to help fight if not for [[spoiler:Twilight attempting to steal the Pearl]] due to being too quick to lose trust in Novo. But due to them being the first thing to come to Princess Celestia's mind when the Storm King invaded[[note]][[AnimationLeadTime it was written before the gained other possible allies]] in [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic the series]][[/note]], many thought Novo was an ally under expectation or obligation to aid the heroes only to be inexplicably distrustful toward them (''Literature/TheStormyRoadToCanterlot'' would [[AllThereInTheManual justify that]] but it's canonically suspect and not alluded to in ''The Movie''). The Storm King and his army being defeated by [[spoiler:thirteen ragtag individuals without the Pearl]] made Novo [[DirtyCoward excessively cowardly]] for running and hiding rather than standing and fighting against such seemingly easy to beat foe. Even many who defend her actions as pragmatically justifiable felt Novo's lack of positive contribution left her having done nothing to deserve their happy ending after abandoning Equestria in its hour of need.

* PresumedFlop ''The Movie'' was ravaged by critics for being [[SweetnessAversion too sugary sweet]], received [[BrokenBase mixed]] to [[SoOkayItsAverage mediocre]] reception from the [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic parent show's]] large PeripheryDemographic it was supposed to cash in on, and led to the planned sequel to be reworked into a [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyRainbowRoadtrip television special]]. But it made back nearly ten times its measly 6.5 million budget for a total of 61 million dollars worldwide and got [[VindicatedByCable strong digital sales]], doing well enough the next movie ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyANewGeneration'' was also intended for a thematic release before the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic moved it to [[{{Creator/Netflix}} Netflix-exclusive]].

** Twilight's behavior in the second half of the film. Long story short, this is easily one of the biggest base breakers for the movie's fans. [[spoiler:First off, you have the camps that lambaste Twilight's decisions in trying to steal the Pearl of Transformation and yelling at her friends as being OutOfCharacter. Then you have those that say Twilight's decisions were justified in that their ways of friendship weren't working outside of Equestria and she was getting desperate, not at all helped by [[WithFriendsLikeThese said friends not treating the situation seriously]]. Then there's the third group which says that BothSidesHaveAPoint, where Twilight shouldn't have done what she did but the others should have been more empathetic to Twilight's plight and noticed her growing doubts. Even that last group is broken up into more camps; some say it's an AuthorsSavingThrow in regards to "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E25ACanterlotWeddingPart1 Canterlot Wedding's]]" portrayal of a near-falling out, while others hate it [[AesopAmnesia for that same reason]] and for being a forced excuse for getting Twilight alone and captured by Tempest.]]

* IdiotPlot: Given how easily Twilight's friends fight off the Storm King and his troops in the climax, if both the mane and supporting cast actually did it in the prologue instead of looking for the queen of the hippogriffs, they'd save us a movie. Afterwards, there's numerous times where the characters could have had an easier time had the Mane 5 sans Twilight taken the journey more seriously, and Twilight herself [[spoiler:didn't feel the need to resort to thievery]].

* EightPointEight: Bordering on HePannedItNowHeSucks, an IGN journalist got a lot of backlash for giving the film a 3.5 [[note]]For comparison, that's a lower score than the heavily-panned ''[[WesternAnimation/TheEmojiMovie Emoji Movie]]'' that was released a few months prior, which got a 4.5[[/note]], with many accusing them of focusing too much on trivial details and inaccurately representing the show that the film was based on, despite claims to have seen the series before. Given the existence of [[UnderwaterCity Seaquestria]] and its significance to the plot, jokes about "[[VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire too much water]]" were inevitable.

* AuthorsSavingThrow:
** One of the complaints fans had with the initial official posters and trailers was that the {{Celebrity Voice Actor}}s were listed in favor of the show's regular voice actors. At San Diego Comic-Con, Hasbro released [[https://www.equestriadaily.com/2017/07/exclusive-hasbro-announces-my-little.html?utm_source=t.co&utm_medium=referral a poster that gave the Mane 6 voice actors top billing instead]]. From that point on, the Mane Cast actors started getting advertised in individual posters, the official website, and even the second full trailer.
** A major issue lots of fans have with the show's treatment of villains is that some of them get redeemed too easily without earning it. Even fan favorite Sunset Shimmer was only RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap ''after'' she had to earn her redemption. [[spoiler: Tempest Shadow does not earn her redemption until she pulls off a HeroicSacrifice, defeating the Storm King in the process and with the full knowledge that she could be petrified forever]].
** For those who disliked "A Canterlot Wedding" for [[spoiler:Twilight getting abandoned by her friends, the movie mitigated this by acknowledging how BothSidesHaveAPoint but at the same time, what they've done wrong: Twilight was wrong for trying to steal Queen Novo's pearl and chasing her friends off, but had every right to be angry at them for not taking anything they've gone through seriously; the Mane Five had every right to be hurt and angered by Twilight's actions, but were wrong for leaving Twilight to get abducted. It also helps that the Mane Five had every intention to talk to Twilight once everyone had their space, and immediately went off to rescue her once they discovered Twilight was caught, with both sides apologising upon reunion]].

** Even those put off by the Storm King's relatively short screen time find him to be a delightfully entertaining villain. Even acknowledging that he's one of the most accomplished, dangerous, and powerful villains in the franchise. That, and [[LaughablyEvil he's also pretty funny]].

*** And then ''both'' of them got off the hook after "The Ending of the End", as [[spoiler:at least the Storm King and Pony of Shadows were actually confronted and defeated after their respective self-contained arcs whereas Grogar, whose presence as a villain was built up since the beginning of season 9, turned out to be a RedHerring and was revealed to be a well-meaning [[TricksterMentor Discord]] after the villains he recruited turned on him. In other words, at least the Storm King and the Pony of Shadows ''[[UpToEleven were actually present]]''.]]

* SoOkayItsAverage: While most fans think the movie was really good, other people who aren't fans of the series have a mixed reaction towards this movie -- it's well animated, the characters are likable enough and it's mostly just harmless, enjoyable fun if you are bored, but it's also predictable, repetitive and [[TastesLikeDiabetes too saccharine]] at times and you won't miss anything if you skip it. At the same time, the movie isn't awful either, so it doesn't make good riffing material. Even those that actually like the movie admit it's hardly going to blow anyone away.

** The initial teaser failed to impress due to multiple factors, such as Pinkie's screeching voice, [[TastesLikeDiabetes heavily saturated colors and glitter]], and some rather choppily inserted character animations, most of which suffer due to [[SpecialEffectsFailure compression issues]]. It's gotten to the point where the film's own animation crew, plus others who've received an inside look (such as Collider's John Rocha) told fans that [[NeverTrustATrailer the teaser is a poor representation of how the movie will actually look]]. Thankfully, the full trailer was [[WinBackTheCrowd much better received]].

* TastesLikeDiabetes: A frequent negative reaction to the movie from mainstream critics, another being WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids. Both of these are ultimately the result of MoodWhiplash.

** While many agree the [[SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome character animation]] from the teaser is [[AnimationBump impressive, to say the least]], it's obvious copy/paste vibe and bizarre, oversaturated shading (resulting in "baggy eyes" that are [[https://derpicdn.net/img/view/2017/4/6/1405471.png particularly noticeable on Rainbow Dash]]) have resulted in the character models appearing slightly off even to those who have expressed high hopes for the film after watching the teaser. Art director Rebecca Dart has pointed out that much of this stems from the failure to convert the film's 16-bit images into 8 bit for the teaser, which "crushed all the [models'] shadows". She has since assured fans that the teaser does not reflect the overall quality of the film, which has some fans pumped up for how awesome the movie will look in comparison, but others worried that it [[TaintedByThePreview blew its first impression with such sloppy oversights]].

** While many agree the [[SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome character animation]] from the teaser is [[AnimationBump impressive, to say the least]], it's obvious copy/paste vibe and bizarre, oversaturated shading (resulting in "baggy eyes" that are [[https://derpicdn.net/img/view/2017/4/6/1405471.png particularly noticeable on Rainbow Dash]]) have resulted in the character models appearing [[UncannyValley slightly off]] even to those who have expressed high hopes for the film after watching the teaser. Art director Rebecca Dart has pointed out that much of this stems from the failure to convert the film's 16-bit images into 8 bit for the teaser, which "crushed all the [models'] shadows". She has since assured fans that the teaser does not reflect the overall quality of the film, which has some fans pumped up for how awesome the movie will look in comparison, but others worried that it [[TaintedByThePreview blew its first impression with such sloppy oversights]].

** How did [[AbsenteeActor other notable allies]] of a ''post Season 7'' Equestria fare against the Storm King's invasion? Shining Armor, Ember, Thorax and [[spoiler: the Pillars of Old Equestria]] are the biggest examples.

** For those who disliked "A Canterlot Wedding" for [[spoiler: the Mane Five abandoning Twilight, the movie mitigated this by acknowledging how BothSidesHaveAPoint but at the same time, what they've done wrong: Twilight was wrong for trying to steal Queen Novo's pearl and chasing her friends off, but had every right to be angry at them for not taking anything they've gone through seriously; the Mane Five had every right to be hurt and angered by Twilight's actions, but were wrong for letting Twilight get abducted. It also helps that the Mane Five were about to look for Twilight and immediately went off to rescue her once they discovered Twilight was caught, with both sides apologising upon reunion]].

** Capper, the bipedal anthropomorphic cat, is so far the most controversial character to be revealed. Some find it odd to see a full-blown FunnyAnimal in the series, as opposed to the usual {{Civilized Animal}}s we see, complete with accusations of both pandering to the UsefulNotes/FurryFandom and [[FollowTheLeader trying to ride the coattails of]] ''{{WesternAnimation/Zootopia}}'' (not helping is that it was [[https://www.equestriadaily.com/2017/02/character-descriptions-for-each-of-big.html stated]] that Capper's a ConMan, much like Nick Wilde from said film). Others find the character to be interesting and unique and point out that anthropomorphic cats have appeared in G1 in the form of the villainess Catrina as well as in the IDW comic book as the cat-like denizens of Wuvy-Dovey Land. Some even consider it to be rather hypocritical considering nobody batted an eye towards the Diamond Dogs (though that may have been because they were more hunched over and ape-like than upright walking {{Funny Animal}}s).

** Queen Novo. Either you hate her for [[spoiler:her BystanderSyndrome attitude towards the Storm King's conquest and for nearly drowning the Mane Six over something that was solely Twilight's fault, or you like her due to her sympathetic motives (whether you figure them out through FridgeBrilliance or because [[AllThereInTheManual you read the supplementary material]]) and thus forgive her for reacting the way she did.]]

* FourthWallMyopia: Queen Novo suffers this for her initial unwillingness to help the heroes [[spoiler:driving Twilight to attempt to steal from her in desperation and punishing Twilight's friends when the latter acted alone. Unlike audiences, Novo never say they were normally good and trustworthy or that Twilight's friends were completely unaware and disapproving of her planned theft. As far as Novo knew they were all intending to betray her trust in exactly the way she initially feared all along]].

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Queen Novo was [[https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vvnH2CNVtKw/WfTUtLCH9AI/AAAAAAAC41Y/98wEO0DjrBgiMPwxU933lCAAtOwfZ5AnQCLcBGAs/s1600/Capture.JPG the least popular new main character]] despite being the BigGood. She was meant to be an benevolent queen initially refusing to fight the Storm King due to not wanting to endanger her people or risking her powerful Pearl of Transformation falling into the wrong hands, but would have been persuaded to help fight if not for [[spoiler:Twilight attempting to steal the Pearl]] due to being too quick to lose trust in Novo. But due to them being the first thing to come to Princess Celestia's mind when the Storm King invaded[[note]][[AnimationLeadTime it was written before the gained other possible allies]] in [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic the series]][[/note]], many thought Novo was an ally under expectation or obligation to aid the heroes only to be inexplicably distrustful toward them (''Literature/TheStormyRoadToCanterlot'' would [[AllThereInTheManual justify that]] but it's canonically suspect and not alluded to in ''The Movie''). The Storm King and his army being defeated by [[spoiler:thirteen ragtag individuals without the Pearl]] made Novo and her people look [[DirtyCoward excessively cowardly]] for running and hiding rather than standing and fighting against such seemingly easy to beat foe. Even many who defend her actions as pragmatically justifiable felt Novo's lack of positive contribution left her and her people [[spoiler:(save Princess Skystar who Novo grounded over)]] having done nothing to deserve their happy ending after abandoning Equestria in its hour of need.

** She bemoans how so much Equestrian power is wasted on parties when it has far greater uses. But if Equestria used that power to build an army powerful enough to defend against the Storm King and other threats, annex villainous or despondent locations like Klugetown, or put into medical science to find solutions to her and others disabilities (the apparent lack of which [[DealWithTheDevil drove her to villainy in desperation to get fixed]]), much of the movies and [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic the shows]] major conflicts might have been prevented or mitigated.

* StrawmanHasAPoint: Tempest Shadow's claim that "All this power wasted on parties when there are far greater uses" is meant to be part of her villainous philosophy that gets disproven. However...
** If a nation as great as Equestria was not content to focus on domestic affairs and had focused on building a strong military, then the surprise attack on Canterlot would've floundered or turned into a costly victory for the Storm King.
** If Klugetown had been annexed by Equestria, then the lawless and corrupt environment which permits the existence of a black market there (slavery and sale of animal parts) would've been stamped out long ago.
** Tempest's motivation for joining up with the Storm King (getting her broken horn fixed) may point to another "far greater use" for pony power: medical research. If Equestria had put more resources towards that instead of parties, there may have been some meaningful remedy[[note]]Even if one assumes that [[HealingMagicIsTheHardest regeneratove magic would be a no-go]], a prosthetic horn might be worth looking into.[[/note]] available to her younger self. Or for that matter [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E5FlightToTheFinish Scootaloo]] or [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E19TradeYa Stellar Eclipse]].[[note]]"You don't need to be not-disabled to be special" is a fine Aesop in and of itself, but for a society which claims to value friendship, passing off [[InspirationallyDisadvantaged feel-good platitudes]] as a substitute for developing actual solutions is [[CrapsaccharineWorld not a very friendly thing to do]].[[/note]]

** The Storm King's MemeticLoser status. After "Shadow Play," [[spoiler:this was seemingly lessened due to The Pony of Shadows being seen as even more of a disappointment by comparison; at least The Storm King was still able to get a NearVillainVictory, whereas The Pony of Shadows never once had the advantage. That, and he didn't have the benefit of being LaughablyEvil like the Storm King.]]

* MemeticLoser: The Storm King. Seeing that this is a movie, you expect him to personally provide an epic showdown... only for him to not only go down in one hit from the Mane 6, but also get himself petrified and shattered shortly afterwards. Although, he does at least get a NearVillainVictory by [[spoiler: enslaving Canterlot, robbing the princesses of their magic, and conjuring a massive storm to ravage Canterlot. And in spite of getting knocked down a couple times, [[DefiantToTheEnd he doesn’t give up until his ultimate demise]]. Plus, both Twilight and Tempest, as the latter pulls a HeelFaceTurn, [[DisneyDeath almost die to defeat him]].]]

* NeverLiveItDown:
** Some fans will never forget Twilight [[spoiler: going behind her friends' backs and attempting to steal Queen Novo's Pearl of Transformation. Never mind the whole plot of the movie up to then was to drive her to that MomentOfWeakness, or that Novo and her entire race have forgiven Twilight and view her as a hero for the ultimate outcome of her actions next they meet.]]
** Queen Novo undergoes this for [[spoiler: punishing Twilight's friends when the latter acted alone]]. [[FourthWallMyopia From her perspective]] she welcomed these seven people into her safely guarded home [[spoiler: and they reward this by trying to steal from her. What's more is that Twilight makes it look like her friends were trying to distract everyone so she could steal the Pearl.]] She really does have every right to be annoyed.
** The Storm King gets called a weak villain by a lot of fans for his final moments, ignoring that he did enslave all of Canterlot and several other nations - even forcing an entire kingdom into hiding because he was too powerful. It's just that a lot of this was done off screen or only done under his command - so it's easy for people to forget that Tempest Shadow did all her cool villainy at his instruction. Plus, at TheClimax of the film, he actually wasn’t one to go down so easily, as both Twilight and [[spoiler: Tempest, as the latter pulls a HeelFaceTurn]], almost die to defeat him.

* NeutralEvil: Without a doubt, the Storm King is definitely one of the rare, tyrannical types, combined with the fact that he is a crazed megalomaniac in a position of power within the Storm Creature hierarchy. He was more than willing to let Tempest Shadow co-operate with him under the promise that he will get her horn back, but in the end, [[spoiler:he made her expendable once he successfully got the power he needed.]]

** Tempest's motivation for joining up with the Storm King (getting her broken horn fixed) may point to another "far greater use" for pony power: medical research. If Equestria had put more resources towards that instead of parties, there may have been some meaningful remedy[[note]]Even if one assumes that [[HealingMagicIsTheHardest regeneratove magic would be a no-go]], a prosthetic horn might be worth looking into.[[/note]] available to her younger self. Or for that matter [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E5FlightToTheFinish Scootaloo]], or [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E19TradeYa Stellar Eclipse]], or [[WebAnimation/Snowdrop2013 Snowdrop]], or what have you.[[note]]"You don't need to be not-disabled to be special" is a fine Aesop in and of itself, but for a society which claims to value friendship, passing off [[InspirationallyDisadvantaged feel-good platitudes]] as a substitute for developing actual solutions is [[CrapsaccharineWorld not a very friendly thing to do]].[[/note]]

** What is Tempest Shadow's cutie mark? The fandom has variously depicted it as (1) the Storm King's logo; (2) nothing, she's a blank flank; (3) fireworks; or (4) an ice cream float, like [[spoiler:the G3 pony Fizzy Pop, whom she was named after.]]

* NeutralEvil:
** Without a doubt, the Storm King is definitely one of the rare, tyrannical types, combined with the fact that he is a crazed megalomaniac in a position of power within the Storm Creature hierarchy. He was more than willing to let Tempest Shadow to co-operate with him under the promise that he will get her horn back, but in the end, [[spoiler:he made her expendable once he successfully got the power he needed.]]