Line #157 FridgeBrilliance/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicSeason9


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3	[[folder:The Beginning of the End]]
4	* How is it that Twilight Sparkle would be expected to handle both Celestia and Luna's jobs despite both of them being pushed to their limits with just their own? Celestia did both for 1000 years until the start of the series so that is in reason and precedent.
5	* While it's understandable Celestia would want to retire after over 1111 years on the job per "Horse Play", why would Luna despite having been on the job a fraction of that time? Said fraction is still over 111 years, long enough and longer than any real life comparisons. Given Celestia's tendencies, it's likely she would have also retired sooner if not for having to wait for someone (Twilight) with the power and character to take her place.
6	** As for the argument it's OOC of Luna to want to retire despite wanting recognition and approval for her work being her defining character arc, "A Royal Problem" had Luna realize she had neither aptitude or interest in the formal and political requirements of gaining such approval, likely killing her interest in such. This was coincidentally, or not, the last episode she had a major role in. And there's the such desires causing her to turn to villainy which her regret of is her more defining character arc thing.
7	* Cozy Glow's inclusion in the group seems a bit odd. She isn't a magical powerhouse like Tirek, Chrysalis, Sombra, or Grogar himself, her greatest strength was deception (which she lost after it was revealed she was fooling everyone and won't work anymore since they know her true nature), and she's a kid. But she's a pony which means she can offer insight on how ponies think and, as one of Twilight's former top students, she knows more about the power of friendship than any of the villains there.
8	* Twilight doesn't attempt to teleport out of the crystal Sombra traps the Mane Six in, despite using teleportation at relevant times at other points in the episodes. But then one recalls that back when she first dealt with Sombra's magic she discovered his crystal traps interfere with any attempt to teleport out of them.
9	** Which also explains how his crystals grow despite the Tree's backup magic (which - in [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E2PrincessTwilightSparklePart2 "Princess Twilight Sparkle"]] - had stopped the whole Everfree, Discord's Plunderseeds included, for centuries): We know they're capable of AntiMagic.
10	* [[RewatchBonus Upon rewatching]], it's clear Discord pointing out Fluttershy as his favorite was actually very deliberate manipulation on his part. He was fully aware that Sombra would try to attack Fluttershy after hearing that in an attempt to bait a sacrifice, so he'd let his guard down, thus being the perfect opportunity to "sacrifice" himself for her, and give a YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre speech from there.
11	* On the one hand, it may seem odd that friendship magic would kill Sombra, given in the past it has tended to only immobilize, purify or banish/seal away. On the other hand, one could consider what happened to Sombra to be the same as what happened to the Mean Six. The friendship magic didn’t directly kill him or them, it simply undid the magic that had brought them to life (or in his case back to life) and thus in effect killed them.
12	* This episode basically explained why there are so many monsters and other dangerous threats to Equestria. They were either created by Grogar himself or inspired to follow in his footsteps.
13	* As noted in the previous season, Changelings are extremely social creatures by their nature, to the point that an individual changeling can't function on their own. Next we see Chrysalis after "The Mean Six", she's [[GoMadFromTheIsolation teetering on the edge of a full mental breakdown from being alone for so long]].
14	* Discord fakes an injury and pretends he can't fight anymore because he wants to show the Mane Six that they can save the day without his help and that they're capable of protecting Equestria on their own. That's probably the exact same thing Celestia and Luna have been doing this whole time and why it seems like they haven't been doing much, they just weren't as explicit about telling Twilight that they were holding back because they wanted to make sure she'd be up to the task once they were gone.
15	** It also shows why Discord doesn't just step in and save the day all the time either even though he's powerful enough to do so. He much rather prefers being a trickster mentor and getting the ponies to handle their own problems.
16	** Another possible reason for him to pretend to be hurt by Sombra's attack is to play with Sombra's ego; if Sombra believes he can beat [[PhysicalGod Discord]] then he would absolutely believe that the Mane Six couldn't possibly defeat him and would be even more caught off-guard when it turns out that they absolutely can.
17	* On meta levels, it makes sense to make Sombra the defective villain of Grogar's team since he is the only one of them who can be seen as an actual threat at this point. Tirek is still weak (plus Discord, who can capture him, is now fully on the ponies side, and since Tirek already fooled him once, it won't work again), Chrysalis is nothing without her minions, and Cozy Glow is now exposed as a criminal, so she won't be able to do that sneaky takeover again.
18	* When asked why the Mane 6 always win, Chrysalis says it's because they cheat, while Tirek says they're lucky. While the actual answer is that they have friendship, one can see how they saw those as the answer. Both times Chrysalis was defeated, she had the Mane 6 captured when outside help came and won the day- meaning the Mane 6 "cheated". As for Tirek, they only defeated him because there happened to be a powerful magic inside the chest, when they had nothing else left: A lucky break for them.
19	* Aside from Grogar, Sombra is the only villain present at the villains' meeting that hasn't been defeated in some way by the Elements of Harmony or the Tree they came from, and therefore has no respect for them or the power they represent in relation to his own. So of the four lesser villains, he's naturally the one to underestimate the Mane Six and try to conquer Equestria using his own power, like so many other villains have done before him.
20	* Grogar chooses to make an example of Sombra's failure, but Sombra not being revived again would also apply to a case of ExactWords for Grogar. The deal Grogar made with him was that Sombra could keep the Crystal Empire if he won and that he had to submit to Grogar if he lost (and stay dead if he refused to submit), and even assuming his initial retreat from the Elements of Harmony didn't count as a loss, Sombra definitely broke the agreement when he decided to try to rule all of Equestria instead of just the Crystal Empire.
21	* When Sombra shows the Mane Six their greatest fears, Twilight's includes Daybreaker, who so far has appeared only in Starlight Glimmer's nightmare in "A Royal Problem". How would she know about that? Answer: At the end of that episode, Twilight told Starlight to "Tell ''[her]'' everything" and "don't leave out any details". Considering Starlight's magical prowess, it's not unfeasible that she'd be able to create a sort of magical hologram to show Twilight what Daybreaker looked like.
22	* Grogar said there were ponies in the lands of future Equestria far before its founding. Perhaps, this can explain all these [[FantasyCounterpartCulture cultures]] like Egypt, China and Aztec that already existed at the time the exodists from Hearth's Warming legend arrived to this lands. And Grogar might be reason why they all are located on the south of the continent despite the legend claims that equestrian nature is extremely rich. Even more, this finally establishes that there were multiple pony nations instead of quite fairy-tailish "one species, one kingdom, one purpose" thing that history looked like before with Saddle Arabia, Maretonia and Mistmane's homeland as examples.
23	* It makes sense that Grogar is the series' FinalBoss, since [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends G1 Grogar]] was powerful enough to defeat the Flutter Ponies. To put this into perspective: up until then, ''nothing and nocreature'' could withstand that Utter Flutter of theirs.
24	* The Mane Six managing to use the power of the Elements of Harmony without the Elements makes sense when you remember that their human counterparts (and Sunset Shimmer) managed to use their power without the physical artifacts on them. At least until they got their own versions of the Elements of Harmony.
25	** Speaking of which, King Sombra's plan was to hypnotize a group of innocents into helping him seize Canterlot...just like Sunset in the first EG movie.
26	* Why was Chrysalis burning portraits of Changelings into logs of wood? Seeing how in the comics, Changelings were said to have came from a tree, Chrysalis may have been trying to make new Changelings to be her minions.
27	* [[FreezeFrameBonus It's a very brief moment,]] but when Discord first jumps out of his pillow bed after Twilight says she's not ready to take Celestia's place at the end of Part 2, Rarity gives him a stern look. Why? Well, the Mane 6 gave him all those pillows and a drink because they believed he was severely injured. Him jumping out of bed and walking over to complain reveals he was faking his injury. In other words, Discord was taking advantage of the ponies' ''generosity''. Now, what's Rarity's element again?
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30	[[folder:Uprooted]]
31	* Why did the Tree of Harmony send its version of an automated massage for help instead of its own consciousness? Its body was smashed into a stump by Sombra. Just being alive is already a miracle by itself and will only leave it with a mere fraction of its power.
32	* Despite us later seeing what appear to be her parents, when chastising Ocellus for leaving unannounced Thorax only speaks of the "the hive" being concerned for her. This emphasis makes sense given the deeply communal nature of the changelings, they may recognize certain changelings as being closer family, but in a sense they are all treated as one family.
33	* The ways each of the students chose to remember the Tree of Harmony are references to each of their respective races' cultures:
34	** Gallus the Griffon figured that the best idea to memorialize the tree would be to put it and everything about it in a museum so that it could be preserved for future generations, which makes a lot of sense considering how he was a Griffon living in Griffonstone. [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E8TheLostTreasureOfGriffonstone A people and land who LOST their historic symbols and self-destructed because of it.]] He doesn't want history repeating itself in Equestria. He also turned it into a tourist attraction as a way to generates bits, reflecting how concerned griffons are with making money.
35	** Smolder, as a dragon, figured that the best way to honor the Tree was to create a massive '''POWERFUL''' statue that would last for generations that everyone could pay respects to and recognize it for what it was. Also dragons have been shown to have a talent for working with stone.
36	** Ocellus was doing a meditation garden which also fits with what we have seen of her personality and [[NewAgeRetroHippie changeling society]] thus far.
37	** Sandbar, being the [[TokenHuman token pony]] of the group, simply goes for the MundaneSolution which is planting a replacement. He's also an Earth Pony and earth ponies are generally good at growing things.
38	** Silverstream's memorial artwork is fluid and dynamic while at the same time (sort-of) waterproof. Much like her people who constantly shift between land and sea while maintaining a sense of core identity. And it also reminds one of the pictures she showed her family explaining why she needed to go to school early.
39	** Yona's idea was to simply build a memorial out of the remains, as the yaks follow the philosophy of destruction and rebirth as nothing lasts forever. Her idea brings the rest together out of their conflicting views and the result was a ramshackle clubhouse that becomes the Clubhouse of Harmony, symbolizing their friendship.
40	* The yaks' Snilldar Fest takes on a whole new meaning when you take into account what Yona knows about her people's philosophy. Yaks don't simply destroy their logs and forts [[PlayedForLaughs just because]]. They do it to acknowledge that material possessions don't last forever.
41	** It also becomes HeartwarmingInHindsight when one realizes why Yona was offended at her friends suggesting the moss-piling (or the hair-braiding ceremony it entails) involves smashing: the first [[RuleOfSymbolism represents]] that it's still nice to make an effort to preserve things that have sentimental value, whereas the braids represent that love and family can last a long time.
42	* A new tree growing from the Young Six's use of the old pieces has a bit of TruthInTelevision to it. New trees can be grown from cut branches of old ones being planted in the ground, creating a clone of the older tree. It's a lot more complicated than what we see in the show, but it's doable.
43	* Similarly, branches removed from the trunk don't instantly die (hence why this practice of "cutting" is possible). As such, the life (and therefore magic) still lingering in the remaining pieces of the tree could be what allowed it to reach out to the Student 6 in the first place.
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46	[[folder:Sparkle's Seven]]
47	* Given this is the 200th episode of the series, it feels highly symbolic that the one who came out on top in this episode was Spike and Princess Luna. This appropriate on 2 levels. On Princess Luna's level, she was virtually the catalyst for the Mane 6, as [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Nightmare Moon]] was what brought them together and made them the Elements of Harmony. On Spike's level, his getting the crown represents how he's the SpannerInTheWorks to most villains (from stopping Sombra to befriending Thorax and therefore leading to Queen Chrysalis' downfall), so naturally he foiled both Twilight and Shining Armor.
48	** There is a reason as to why Luna would agree to Spike's plan in the first place: Both characters were constantly in the shadow of and/or simply reduced to second fiddle to their more famous family members: Celestia for Luna, Twilight and Shining Armor for Spike. Of course she would agree if it means actually beating her sister for once.
49	* Whether her time as Apple Chord was actually true or not, either way would have given insight to her character and past:
50	** True: In hindsight, [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E24TheManeAttraction Countess Coloratura]] is a ShadowArchetype of what Applejack would've been if she hadn't quit her Apple Chord gig in time to see how important her family was. In fact, her stunt as Apple Chord may have served to second-hoof give Applejack a taste of how overrated celebrity-hood is.
51	** False: It showed her dedication to family as it is mostly likely the time after her parents died as an infant Applebloom was shown but her parents are nowhere to be seen.
52	* It seems Zephyr Breeze joining the Canterlot guards would be out-of-character... and it is! If one is familiar, he's not one to do anything outside his comfort zone or specialty (mane-styling). Also, it would be a ContinuitySnarl for Zephyr to go back on his old ways, starting something he doesn't intend to finish. That's where the Brilliance comes in: It's a hint that he's a pawn to Luna and Spike's plan.
53	** It also makes sense for him to agree to it, since he also knows the feeling of being overshadowed by a more successful older sister.
54	* Twilight's statement that her and Shining Armor having a long-term SiblingRivalry appears to [[ContinuitySnarl contradict]] the [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E25ACanterlotWeddingPart1 song B.B.B.F.F]] in where "We never had a single fight". Then you realise a few things:
55	** While not as obvious as say, her adoration of Celestia, it's shown that she has a massive case of BigBrotherWorship judging by the song lyrics of B.B.B.F.F. There's no way she would risk to giving a bad first impression of him to her friends if she included the sibling rivalry.
56	** Throughout the montage, the duo were treating everything as a (seemingly) friendly competition. [[ExactWords The rivalry just never escalated to fighting.]]
57	** Any RealLife siblings can tell you, it's TruthInTelevision that even those that never fight can't exactly resist trying to one-up one another for parental affection and/or trying to rub it in their faces.
58	* Celestia being the judge of the whole thing shows two character traits that has been consistently shown throughout the series: Her penchant at being Twilight's ParentalSubstitute and her tendency to ignore Luna without even realising it.
59	* In addition to being a ShoutOut to Disney's Hercules, Rainbow Dash's Megara outfit can be seen as a reference to the associations ancient Pegasus culture has with the ancient Greeks.
60	** It's also works as a clever way to work in a ShoutOut to the original Pegasus. Putting the original creature in the show as a cameo wouldn't work, because it would just be another white MLP Pegasus. So they took Rainbow Dash, the Mane Six's primary representative of the Pegasus race, and put her in a Greek toga dress.
61	* Why would the episode be named Sparkle's Seven if only the Mane 6 are involved? That's because there is a seventh member the entire time that flew under the Mane 6's radar: Spike.
62	* Luna was a vital component of Spike's plan, which ultimately succeeded, so you could say that it was a [[StealthPun literal]] DarkHorseVictory.
63	* Why did Shining Armor choose now, of all times, to revive the "Sibling Supreme" contest, with the winner receiving the crown for keeps? Because he knows that Twilight will soon be taking Celestia's place as ruler of Equestria, and that competing with her over the castle's security could very well be his final chance to one-up his little sister before she ends up permanently outranking him. Not to mention, being constantly overshadowed by her and being a FailureHero throughout the series likely contributed to him taking the JerkassBall, resulting in him pulling this off to likely try getting some shred of self-esteem left. This makes Spike's victory HarsherInHindsight if that was really the case...
64	** Which also goes to explain why his "security improvements" are so shoddy and oddly designed just so Twilight and her friends can bypass them. He's being fair and giving Twilight a chance to win.
65	*** Him spilling all of the of the security improvements in advance could have been a combination of this and, if they were genuine, wanting to test a worst-case scenario; if they worked to stop an intruder who knew all of them and had ample prep time, they'd easily stop someone caught off guard.
66	* Right at the last minute, Shining reveals Twilight lost their contest. Because although she did eventually succeed in circumventing his security enhancements, she and her friends failed to do so without being spotted and identified by the Royal Guard, who had already been informed that they would be trying to break into the castle.
67	* When listing off his improvements, while mentioning increasing the number of guards, at no point does Shining mention improving the training program. Consequently, TheGuardsMustBeCrazy is still in full effect as both "Apple Chord" and Pinkie succeed in distracting them. ''Shining Armor himself'' even falls for the former, at least at first.
68	* How was Rarity able to easily undo the bricklaying blocking one of the tunnels? It's probably not much different than unearthing a gem, especially with telekinesis allowing more precise control.
69	* Mixed with FridgeHorror. The Sibling Supreme contest being a fundamental part of Twilight Sparkle and Shining Armor's foalhood explains a lot about how they act in present day. Due to how it effectively prioritizes outcomes over processes, it leads to a fear of failure along with many other issues. Twilight got off lucky due to her successes in life. Her brother, [[FailureHero not so much]]. As summed up by this episode's parody in ''WebVideo/MyLittlePonyTotallyLegitRecap'':
70	-->'''Twilight''': It was just a game but our malleable young minds internalised that constant fear of inadequacy. It's why Shining and I have achieved so much. We were incentivised from an early age to constantly strive towards greater and greater accomplishments. It's also why I have low self-esteem, horrible OCD and I am terrified of depending on other people
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73	[[folder:Common Ground]]
74	* Wind Sprint not liking Daring Do 1) implies that she has very unreasonable standards for interests and/or 2) seemingly makes no sense at first. Then you realize that she likely got her first impression of it from Quibble Pants, who always preferred the puzzle-oriented era of the books. His emphasis on puzzles over action when introducing the series likely bored her to sleep and gave her the wrong idea about the series.
75	* Why not just ask Snails to dodge the balls so the Ponyville team couldn't get a score? That would make the fact that they're just letting Quibble win too obvious, making Wind even more disappointed.
76	** On the other side of the coin, nopony bats an eyelid at Pinkie and Fluttershy's obvious intentional help. The assumption is that since the skill difference is so great, it wouldn't be entertaining to watch Team Ponyville curbstomp a team of unprofessional players. Even without Quibble's arc, it'd make sense for them to level the playing field a bit.
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79	[[folder:Frenemies]]
80	* Tirek mentions that Cozy Glow snores when she sleeps. You aren't dreaming when you're snoring, which could explain how Luna wasn't able to see if Cozy had any trauma through her dreams; she never dreams.
81	* Cozy Glow convinces Chrysalis to attend her team meeting by telling her there'll be cupcakes. Considering how isolated Chrysalis has been, she likely hasn't been able to feed on love for a while and is probably starving. Small wonder an offer of food appeals to her.
82	** Not to mention, granted it's her own magic that was just stolen and Tirek gave it up reluctantly, but likely the first 'magical' meal she's had in a long time is one that somebody else gave to her... which is exactly what reformed all the other Changelings.
83	* Rusty Bucket doesn't recognize Cozy Glow as the one who drained magic, and isn't as suspicious as he should be. Unless there's a horn hidden under that BucketHelmet (which looks a bit too short to be hiding one), or wings hidden under that cloak (which is unlikely as he'd have no reason to hide them), he's likely an Earth Pony (which would make sense for someone chosen to guard a mountain pass--you're gonna need a lot of strength to deal with the snow and rocks). He probably wasn't as affected by the magic drain, and was nowhere near Equestria when everything went down.
84	* When the trio starts succumbing to ThePowerOfFriendship, Chrysalis is the first to snap out of it. Changelings undergo an actual, physical transformation when they "give love freely, instead of taking it", and Chrysalis's context was similar to Pharynx in realizing that feeling of mutual acceptance. Chrysalis might have felt that transformation beginning to happen and [[Franchise/{{Pokemon}} hit the B button]] by actively rejecting friendship. The other two, who don't have that warning sign, didn't realize what was happening until called out.
85	* When it comes to Unicorns, their cutie marks tend to point towards what kind of magic they'll be most adept at, and ponies tend to have [[MeaningfulName Meaningful Names]] (especially with "The Perfect Pear" confirming that ponies can change their names). Gusty the Great's cutie mark is of leaves blowing in the wind, and that plus her name implies an an affinity towards wind magic. With that in mind, the strong winds surrounding Mount Everhoof could be the result of one of her enchantments placed there to protect the bell, rather than being a natural hazard.
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88	[[folder:Sweet and Smoky]]
89	* Why didn't Smolder point out that Garble was her brother throughout her time at the School of Friendship? Spike being the one who interacted with him the most and isn't afraid to badmouth him is not one of the (main) teachers while the Mane Six omitted any stories which paint other dragons in a bad light (which is pretty much all of them) to [[YouKnowImBlackRight avoid pissing off the international exchange student.]]
90	* Garble suddenly having HiddenDepths in contrast to his previous appearances seems like an AssPull at first but then you realise this fact: This time, his sister is around to reign him in.
91	* Smolder's penchant for cute stuff and dresses or Garble being a beatnik poet. [[ItRunsInTheFamily Both siblings are dragons that have an embarrassing secret that cannot be shown in public.]]
92	** Which could be why Smolder never tells Spike ''how'' her brother is sensitive (because of his poetry). Having her own secret, she knows that it's up to Garble to tell others about his secret.
93	* [[SmartBall Why Ember and Fluttershy couldn’t tell that the eggs weren’t warm enough while Spike could?]] The teenage dragons have yet to drain enough lava for the change in temperature to be noticeable. It’s likely that when the former two were taking care of the eggs, it’s still warm but not hot enough to make the eggs hatch. While by the time Spike came, the teenage dragons had their lava pool long enough for the eggs to be cold.
94	** Alternatively, neither Ember (who was new to the task) nor Fluttershy (who has no reason to know this) knew how warm the ''eggs'' were supposed to be; Spike figured it out because he was the first one to think to check the ''ground''. In addition, since the Dragonlands never get cold, Ember probably doesn't know what shivering is, so it makes sense that she wouldn't equate the shaking eggs to them being cold, whereas Spike would be more likely to recognize it. (Not sure what Fluttershy's excuse is there, though.)
95	* Why is it when the dragons laugh, they produce hotter fire, when we've never seen Spike do anything like it? Unless he just hasn't reached the age to do such a thing, it's because he's learned to control laugh-fire because he's always lived in places where the fire could cause massive damage. The dragons in the Dragonlands are surrounded by rocks and lava: There's nothing to damage with their laugh-fire, so they don't bother reining it in.
96	** Also, laughing loudly and rapidly involves repeated forceful exhalations, so that might also affect the heat of fire produced at the same time as laughing, and/or the amount of fire.
97	* In his previous appearances, Garble was often depicted as ''[[EvilerThanThou worse]]'' than most of the other dragons, like being more hostile and vicious. Considering what we learn about him in this episode, it's clear that all that was him overcompensating for his own perceived "weakness" by trying to be the most "[[BuffySpeak dragon-y]]" dragon possible.
98	* Suddenly, it makes sense where Smolder would get that story about Scales from: Garble could possibly be the story-teller.
99	* Bit of Fridge Heartwarming: It's been proven that babies in utero can still hear people speaking outside. Shortly before they hatched, Fluttershy was reading to the dragon eggs. That could be why the baby dragons she was hugging at the very end didn't react negatively and even seemed to be enjoying it--they recognized her voice and consequently trusted her.
100	[[/folder]]
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102	[[folder:Going to Seed]]
103	* Applebloom's appearance in the flashback threw many longtime viewers for a loop due to how messy it made the Apple siblings timeline. An example would be [[https://www.deviantart.com/wild-stallions/art/The-Apple-Bloom-Enigma-798766891 this.]] However, this could be Granny Smith being an UnreliableNarrator due to her old age.
104	* It seems to be the case that whenever the pasts of the Apple family siblings were shown, it results in ContinuitySnarl. However, the possible timeline could be: Filly's AJ's Great Confluence-->Leaving for Manehatten and getting her Cutie Mark-->AJ leaves for summer camp and meets [=Rara=]-->"Where the Apple Lies" incident-->Parents' death
105	[[/folder]]
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107	[[folder:Student Counsel]]
108	* Trixie getting everyone in circles during the search for Silverstream despite saying that she has experience. Since her tale with the Ursa Major is made up, it makes sense that her experience is made up as well.
109	-->'''[[ExactWords Trixie:]]''' I have a lot of experience telling ponies that I have experience with the dangerous creatures of Everfree Forest.
110	* Sunburst proves able to fire a beam of destructive magic from his horn, an ability that is increasingly indicated to be nigh-universal for unicorns rather than a complex spell (as he can't do those). If one thinks about it, this was actually indicated long ago back in season 3's Magic Duel, where Trixie is able to fire an attack beam even after losing the abilities of the Alicorn Amulet. Its just that (as in that case) without fairly high magical capability/experience/refinement, the attack beam is unlikely to actually do much or any real damage. Thus in this season while we see Sunburst and Rarity use attack beams, the actual damage they seem to do is quite limited compared to similar attacks from Starlight, Celestia, Luna, Twilight, etc.
111	* In "The Maud Couple", Maud was 100% on board with Mud's eccentricities. In this episode, she's shown silently calling him out a couple times for his unwarranted corrections. What changed? Probably more ponies besides Pinkie pointing out that that isn't really socially acceptable behavior. She's trying to keep him out of trouble with the others by reminding him when to rein it in.
112	[[/folder]]
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114	[[folder:The Last Crusade]]
115	* If the reason Scootaloo can't fly is due to having an Earth Pony father and a Pegasus mother giving her half-baked magic from both sides, this could go a long way explaining as to why there are rarely any mixed race couples in Equestria. If the biology is in conflict like mixing a land based Earth Pony and sky based Pegasus, even if they can get past the biological compatibility tests, the children in question will be likely born with their respective parent traits in conflict resulting in a MasterOfNone.
116	** If this is accurate, this could be another trait of Alicorns: They're so powerful they overpower the other races even on a ''genetic'' level, resulting in Flurry Heart being born an Alicorn with a Unicorn father and a Pegasus-turned-Alicorn mother.
117	** Wind Sprint probably pokes a hole in this. Pegasus father (she mentions when talking to Rainbow Dash that her dad was also a great flyer), Unicorn mother, skilled flyer in her own right.
118	** Pound Cake offers another piece of evidence against that. His family tree is mostly earth ponies, but he can fly normally (while dragging an adult pony holding on to him, no less).
119	* With their constant travelling for work, it can make one wonder why Scootaloo's parents would have a permanent residence in Ponyville and a daughter in the first place. Scootaloo mentions that her father is very knowledgeable about the creatures of the Everfree Forest, which indicates the possibility that her parents moved to Ponyville for the express purpose of studying the Everfree Forest's wildlife. Living so close would've also let them easily juggle work and raising a child, though they clearly didn't consider that they'd have to leave Scootaloo behind once their study of the Everfree concluded.
120	** Why didn't they just take Scootaloo with them the first time? A couple possible reasons. Either their next place would have been too dangerous to bring someone so young, or they figured it would be a lesser evil for her to have a stable home and friends as she was growing up without her parents, as opposed to staying with her parents but having no stability otherwise, or maybe even both. Either way, they're bringing her this time because they figure she's old enough to handle things now.
121	* Some have wondered why they didn't go with the Great Seedling for a SnipeHunt to keep Scootaloo's parents in Ponyville. One explanation could be that Scootaloo's parents are more interested in dangerous creatures, and the Great Seedling is benign if mischievous.
122	* Scootaloo's parents EstablishingCharacterMoment while showing their skills also foreshadowed their inability to understand the viewpoints of their child by being only able to catch the rampaging beast after it had already broke into the school and endangered the students and Cheerilee.
123	* Of course Applebloom would run faster than Sweetie Belle while disguised as "the Banshee Beast", Sweetie had to keep the heavy head part up so Snap and Mane could see, slowing her down. Applebloom also has Earth Pony strength behind her legs.
124	* This episode explains why Scootaloo was mad at Rainbow Dash when she yelled at her parents in "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS7E7ParentalGlideance Parental Glideance]]". With her parents constantly busy, Scootaloo's only actual parental figures are her aunts. She simply does not understand why someone would have the chance to see her parents anytime they wanted, but refused to do so - she'd visit them all the time if she could!
125	[[/folder]]
126
127	[[folder:Between Dark and Dawn]]
128	* Why is Celestia seemingly terrified of Chickens? Because Chickens are similar in appearance to [[TakenForGranite Cockatrices]]! At some point in Celestia's life, she might have ran afoul of a Cockatrice and [[AndIMustScream turned into stone]] and that Luna was able to free her after some time, leaving Celestia afraid of Cockatrices and Chickens ever since.
129	** Fridge-TearJerker kicks in when you realize that this primal fear of hers might have resurfaced again sometime after the events of [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 The Storm Kings' Invasion]], followed by the three-day long TraumaCongaLine that she, Luna and Cadence all suffered from during the [[ForcedToWatch occupation]].
130	** A more humorous factor (by comparison) might due to what [[https://camo.fimfiction.net/q_p_fGBIp3wbIwljd_HbnWbqU3x4wBWeJzRH-ukbHRM?url=https%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2FLFznKAVpyzYCgLKfqPqUKJj2Enf-27DLEL7sRJmQAbWjR7pFqWWMZZ0x43Wujvln3gPz7kcBpcStthnrdfjzJcDyPLQTWJE2i0AZ5dZCu2Ku_PfDgtdXZCaO-_fYMNV8FrYm0A%3Ds1600 happened]] in the ''ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendsForever'' Issue #38.
131	* What's with the Royal Sisters' constant insistence on [[UnwantedAssistance "helping"]] in the ColdOpening? After the events of the Season 9 premiere and being in [[DamselInDistress constant need of rescue]] throughout the series prior, can you blame them for being actually wanting to be useful for once? It's almost as if they heard [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E1TheBeginningOfTheEndPart1 Rainbow Dash's complaint about them not helping]] and decided to make her eat her words.
132	* Twilight's insistence on keeping the royal duties being done by just the seven of them is due to the fact that she wants to prove that her friends can rule Equestria on their own. It doesn't help that until now:
133	** 1) She ''actually thought'' Celestia did all her duties by herself, meaning that in her mind, she is just following her mentor's example.
134	** 2) The Canterlot nobility has never really been shown onscreen to help with Celestia's duties. This gave her the impression that their help isn't needed.
135	* [[NiceGuy Fancy Pants]] taking a level in jerkass seems odd at first. Then, you realize that he was kind enough to offer his help the first time, only for Twilight to forcibly decline multiple times because of her need to overcompensate. In his eyes, he is dealing with an incompetent stuck-up like any other stereotypical noble.
136	* Luna geeking out over the post office. The post office is typically closed and not making deliveries at night.
137	* It's Luna that insists on going to see the opera. Luna was banished to the moon for a thousand years. To her, this was a chance to appreciate some fine performance art that she missed out on.
138	** Celestia, meanwhile, is bored out of her skull at the opera, and lets slip how much she hated going. One of Celestia's complaints was that she was constantly having to hobnob with and suck up to politicians and ambassadors. Which meant going to see this exact same opera hundreds of times over the centuries at their request.
139	* This story reveals there is a Gala committee. This would explain why Celestia can't just make the changes she wants to the Gala (as she has shown before that she thinks it's boring unless she purposely invites guests she knows will cause chaos), because she isn't directly involved in planning it.
140	* I have a theory on how the princesses could ride the Wild Blue Yonder even though it's supposed to be closed. The ride is located in the Flim-Flam hotel, and we know they were planning to expand, probably also had plans of replacing the Yonder with something more profitable, or something that suits ''their'' needs. I guess after Rainbow Dash rode it, they did close it, but chose not to demolish it until they got the bits for the replacement. Their main income at the time was Friendship University, and we know how that ended. Then they tried to do the same with the Heart's Warming dolls, and failed again. They probably had no choice but to give up their expansion plans, and reset everything to the original state to stay in business (for now, at least). So, with their two encounters last season, the Mane Six didn't just save ponies from being overcharged for stolen friendship lessons and poorly made toys, they also additionally saved the coolest roller coaster of all time.
141	** Knowing Flim and Flam, there is one other possibility: They never had any intention of closing the Wild Blue Yonder. Rather, they falsely announced its impending closure in hopes that ponies would rush in to ride it while they could (which, judging from the long line as Rainbow Dash was trying to ride it, worked reasonably well).
142	* During Garble's brief cameo in "Lotta Little Things", he is shown flying, not with his usual gang, but with two other dragons. This makes sense, when you think about it: Following his HeelRealization, he would have also realized that his gang were [[FairWeatherFriend never really his friends]] (due to not accepting him for who he really is, and mocking him whenever it was even suggested he had a sensitive side), thus driving him to seek out some real friends.
143	[[/folder]]
144
145	[[folder:The Last Laugh]]
146	* Why doesn't Pinkie consider her purpose of making others happy worthwhile at first? While her calling is noble, her scale is limited to Ponyville while the rest have influences beyond Ponyville. Twilight is going to rule Equestria, Rarity has other branches of her fashion business in the country, Fluttershy's animal sanctuary caters to animals from around the world, Rainbow Dash is a Wonderbolt and even Applejack's family business also operates on a country-wide basis via the Apple family. She is OvershadowedByAwesome.
147	[[/folder]]
148
149	[[folder:2, 4, 6, Greaaat]]
150	* Twilight purposely giving Rainbow Dash a job she clearly has no interest and experience in sounds like a jerk move. But with Pinkie Pie busy teaching the other students, Rainbow Dash's enthusiasm and the ability to hype people up is the next best thing. Rainbow Dash was also Fluttershy's cheering instructor all the way back in "Sonic Rainboom". Why would Twilight do this? It's because she is following in Celestia's hoofsteps while clearing showing that she still needs to iron out some kinks to even reach the latter's level.
151	* Why does Rainbow Dash detest cheerleading so much? That was basically all her parents did, so her opinion is probably being sullied by all of those embarrassing memories.
152	* In the Rainbow Dash fan club from "The Mysterious Mare-Do-Well" and the Scootaloo fan club from "The Washouts", Snips and Snails were front and center, with them and the other members wearing merchandise featuring the relevant pony. Here, Snips keeps prodding Rainbow Dash to actually do her job as cheer squad coach so that they can get fans excited enough to buy his souvenirs. With this, there's a good chance that he was the one selling all that other merchandise.
153	[[/folder]]
154
155	[[folder:The Summer Sun Setback]]
156	* When Tirek drains the Earth Ponies' magic, their cutie marks remain, whereas before anypony drained by him would lose their cutie marks. Why the difference? If their cutie marks disappeared, it'd be pretty easy for others to connect the dots and guess he had something to do with it. By only draining enough magic to leave them physically weak while letting them keep their marks, he lowers the odds that anypony will suspect foul play.
157	** This also plays into Discord not sensing Tirek's magic draining, there probably wasn't enough magic drained at once to register on his radar. Remember in "Twilight's Kingdom - Part 2", it took the transfer of magic between alicorns for it to finally register on his head if he is ''not'' actively sensing for it. And the reason he is not actively sensing for it? He probably still thinks Tirek is in Tartarus and Twilight most likely ordered him to control himself to avoid having him mess with the preparations.
158	* Why did the weather manager not recognize Cozy Glow? Only the main characters and Royal Guard arrested her. The average pony was LockedOutOfTheLoop since the heroes still think she is in Tartarus. Meanwhile, the guard that didn't recognise her is probably either a newbie or wasn't present at her arrest.
159	* Twilight rebranding the Summer Sun Celebration to the Festival of the Two Sisters is symbolic for two reasons: The first is her taking political power over the Royal Sisters. The second is finally letting go of the past (The battle between the siblings) to celebrate what they achieved (Their impact on Equestria).
160	* Cozy Glow breaking the chains which ''locked'' the book with another book. What's on the cover of the book she used? A ''[[VisualPun key]]''.
161	* How did Cozy Glow even know about the restricted section? She likely got that information when she was Twilight's assistant.
162	* Cozy Glow's ability to put a wedge between other ponies was hinted at back in "What Lies beneath". In a subtle way, she was trying to tear the Young 6 apart by pointing out their flaws and how "friendship wasn't in their nature". If it hadn't been for the Tree of Harmony's "test", chances are the Young 6's friendship wouldn't have grown strong enough to resist her influences.
163	[[/folder]]
164
165	[[folder:Dragon Dropped]]
166	* Why is Spike's taste for gems used as a gem quality tester? Since gems are [[EatDirtCheap treated like food]] for dragons, it's safe to suffice that a gem's overall quality is directly proportionate to how good it will taste to a dragon.
167	* Both times when Rarity pulls out the fainting couch, she gets advice from Twilight on how to fix the problems when the two sit on them. The fainting couch also doubled as a therapy chaise.
168	[[/folder]]
169
170	[[folder:A Horse Shoe-In]]
171	* Trixie telling her class how she [[BookDumb never learned history]] actually explains a lot towards her constant ego and exaggeration, despite there never being an instance of it succeeding; those who fail to learn history are doomed to repeat it.
172	** It also ties with what Trixie once told Starlight in "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E25ToWhereAndBackAgainPart1 To Where And Back Again - Part 1]]", in that the important part of mistakes is forgetting about them and moving on. Naturally, she wouldn't be interested in others' mistakes either...
173	* Gramp Gruff complaining about how he has to fly to Ponyville to hear about Gallus' school progress may be why he sends so many letters through Gabby. That way, he can still be informed from Twilight's school without having to leave his house, and with the added bonus of having to talk to as few creatures as possible.
174	* Starlight Glimmer being nervous when Doctor Whooves mentions time travel. Being a time traveller herself, of course she would be worried about the inevitable repercussions.
175	* Trixie being angry at Grandpa Gruff about his neglect of Gallus. Being abandoned/neglected by her father herself would have no doubt made it personal for her.
176	* Discord not being invited is because Starlight doesn't want another incident to happen again.
177	[[/folder]]
178
179	[[folder:Daring Doubt]]
180	* Dr. Caballeron's disguise being a ShoutOut to Creator/GeorgeRRMartin. His book was to the Daring Do series what Martin's ''Franchise/ASongOfIceAndFire'' was to fantasy series, a DeconstructorFleet dedicated to deconstructing Daring Do, showing she isn't actually as heroic as her books portray them. This also sets up the episode doing to same to Daring.
181	* Daring Do being called out for "stealing" artifacts stems from the fact that she hides them in her own house with no other forms of security, ironically making it easier to steal them whenever she's not home. Leaving the ancient sites in ruins really didn't help her case. It's also a nod to how RealLife archaeologists in the past would bring home foreign artifacts without the permission of the locals, which is effectively legalised theft.
182	* Thanks to Ahuizoti, we now know where the design on the totally-not body pillows at the [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E14StrangerThanFanFiction Daring Do convention]] came from.
183	* Ahuizoti being GoodAllAlong explains why no one other than Daring Do was opposing him. And why so many ponies were supporting him despite the 800 year heatwave he'd bring (it wouldn't have been as bad as it sounded).
184	** It's also possible that the 800 year heatwave would actually be very bad for the local ecosystem, but Ahuizotl saw it as an extreme yet necessary measure to stop Daring Do and Caballeron; since they kept getting all the relics, it's obvious that the temples' traps and Ahuizotl himself weren't good enough to stop or intimidate them, so he was trying to make the terrain hostile enough so it would be quite difficult for any archaeologist to just get there.
185	** This may also explain why Grogar did not summon him to be part of his Legion of Doom.
186	* Why didn't Rainbow Dash buy Dr. Caballeron disguise this time? She was fooled before in a similar fashion in "Daring Done?". There is no way she is going to fall for it a second time.
187	[[/folder]]
188
189	[[folder:Growing Up is Hard to Do]]
190	* Teleportation is an ''very'' advanced spell; the only non-alicorns seen to use it are Starlight, Twilight pre-ascension, and Trixie in recent seasons, and the last one needed a lot of training to use it reliably. Despite this, grown-up Sweetie Belle manages it. It's not easy--she [[TeleFrag Tele-Frags]] herself into a bale of hay and rubs her sparking horn afterward while looking like she's in pain--but she pulls it off. This might seem purely like NewPowersAsThePlotDemands, but remember her cutie mark: it has a star, and celestial bodies in cutie marks, particularly stars, tend to point to an above average magical talent. Adult Sweetie Belle might not be on Starlight's level of power, but she's likely stronger and more skilled than the average unicorn, which would make such a spell a bit easier for her.
191	** Also, Twilight Sparkle was the one who taught Sweetie magic in "Twilight Time", Sweetie used a shield spell in "Campfire Tales" and [[FreezeFrameBonus blink-and-you-miss-it]] Accelero in "Surf and/or Turf". They had opportunity and precident for advanced magic.
192	[[/folder]]
193
194	[[folder:The Big Mac Question]]
195	* Despite being swamped with 20 orders for Sugar Belle's proposal, Mrs. Cake doesn't ask Mr. Cake or Pinkie for help. While the former is unanswered, the latter makes sense; [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E20TheOneWherePinkiePieKnows She knows from experience that it's not easy for Pinkie to keep exciting secrets]], so she decided not to put Pinkie through that strain again.
196	* Big Mac isn't wrong when he bemoans that every time he tries to do something involving Sugar Belle, it often ends in a mess because he made it convoluted. There's a pattern to it. Ask Sugar Belle to be his girlfriend? Convoluted by trying [[GrandRomanticGesture big romantic gestures out of fairy tales]] and competing with Feather Bangs in the process. Having a Valentine's Day with Sugar Belle? Mail the package inviting her, which got [[SpannerInTheWorks mixed up for being Sweetie Belle's package]]. Sugar Belle sounds like she wants to end it? Break up with her first instead of talking about it, [[DramaticIrony nearly losing a still-working relationship]]. Trying to propose to Sugar Belle? Well, [[CaptainObvious that's pretty self-explanatory]].
197	** And in turn, each mess was fixed by [[CuttingTheKnot going with a simpler approach]] of expressing that love. Instead of big romantic gestures, Big Mac made Sugar Belle a surprise by giving her something he knew she'd like (a new shelf). In wake of the Hearts and Hooves mix up, Big Mac not only mends their bond and talks it through, but eventually ''asks'' Sugar Belle to accompany him to the barn where her surprise was waiting. And as for proposing, the two ponies decided to pop the question, simple as that.
198	** It's fitting that Big Mac and Sugar Belle [[BookEnd end]] the pattern by having a ''humble'' wedding "[[MeaningfulEcho without a big splash]]", very much like Bright Mac and Pear Butter.
199	* Fridge Heartwarming: Mrs. Cake once helped her friend Pear Butter in her marriage with Bright Mac. She eventually did the same with Pear Butter's son.
200	* A FandomNod; when Lyra and Bon Bon are proposing to each other, Lyra gets in one knee (like a human) while Bon Bon stays quadrupedal. Many fans think that Lyra is obsessed with humans, something shown in plenty of fanfics and fan art in general.
201	[[/folder]]
202
203	[[folder:The Ending of the End]]
204	* After the reveal that the Grogar we see in season 9 is actually a disguised Discord, some of "Grogar's" actions actually make sense. The reveal explains...
205	** Why "Grogar" was able to exist so many years despite no confirmed immortality.
206	** Why he is a BadBoss to Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy despite his claims to want the three to work together. It's to keep them too afraid to learn his true identity.
207	** Why he sent the other villains to retrieve the bell instead of personally leading the quest, either because he has other things to do like hanging with Fluttershy or to keep the Legion from suspecting his true identity.
208	** Why he gave Tirek only a small portion of magic rather then a lot. Discord learned from the last time he helped Tirek drain magic, and wanted to keep Tirek from draining his magic again too quickly, and thus exposing him far too early.
209	** Why "Grogar" didn't see the betrayal of the Legion coming (or at least seemingly didn't). We don't know for sure if the real Grogar would've fallen for their treachery, but we also don't know which of his powers and personality were faked by Discord and/or real. If it was really Grogar, he would probably have foiled their attempt immediately when they came back, as Discord!Grogar did say he didn't trust them.
210	*** He was not keeping an eye on the Legion while they were plotting against him, despite being well aware of Sombra's defeat (as he shows them this in his crystal ball). We now know he was there, in that very room, when Sombra was destroyed.
211	** The seeming hypocrisy of "Grogar's" views of teamwork.
212	** This may also give us a new layer on his decision not to bring Sombra back again. It wasn't just to make an example out of the Legion of doom, but because Sombra destroyed the Tree of Harmony. That was not part of the deal he made with Sombra, even if he did suspect he would do it. The elements may be Discord's opposite, but he is reformed and respects the tree and the elements enough to no longer wish them any harm.
213	** How "Grogar" has the same eye color as Discord.
214	** Why Discord was so reluctant to help dealing with Sombra. That was part of Twilight's test, and to stick to his metaphor, the teacher can't take your exam for you.
215	* Discord forcing the three to work together may have also been an attempt at teaching Tirek, Cozy, and Chrysalis the magic of friendship. It was even working too, with the three starting to feel a bit closer after succeeding in obtaining Grogar’s Bell, and only failed because they let their hatred of the Mane Six and their friendship get in the way.
216	* Applejack is the first to voice her disapproval of Discord trying to boost Twilight's confidence with a MotivationalLie. Besides being the Element of Honesty, she knows from her past experiences in "Where the Apple Lies" and "Leap of Faith" that even a well-intentioned lie will do more harm than good.
217	* In "The Summer Sun Setback", Discord seemingly couldn't sense Tirek's presence despite him using his ManaDrain powers in relatively close proximity to him. It looks like he ''did'' sense it, and just pretended not to in order to keep his plan going. Not only that, this meant that his cryptic words about Twilight being ready for the future in the episode's epilogue was actually foreshadowing him (seemingly) playing both sides all along.
218	* Why did he bring Tirek, Chrysalis, Cozy Glow, and Sombra together by disguising himself as Grogar instead of bringing them together as himself? Well we know that the former three of them are completely aware of Discord's reformation and they all hate him for it. They likely wouldn't listen to him at all without the disguise. And he can't just tell them that he turned evil again either. They don't even trust each other and they are not the type to easily take things others say at face value (we've seen this several times like when Cozy tries to manipulate Tirek and Chrysalis and when Cozy herself wasn't fooled by the CMC's diversion in season 8), especially not Tirek, who already did turn Discord back to being evil once before and the fact that Tirek had to convince him to do so means that there's no way he could've just done so on his own at all. By using his Grogar guise, he can get the Legion to do what he wants if they follow a villain who most likely had no redeemable qualities and only sees teamwork as a means to an end. And most importantly, he actually did succeed in fooling them even though they still betrayed him. They don't trust "Grogar" anyway, but they never suspected him being Discord until they successfully acted against him.
219	* Grogar's Bell having ManaDrain powers like Tirek does makes sense, he probably became as powerful as he supposedly was by draining the magic of others like Tirek did.
220	* Why couldn't Tirek use Discord's chaos magic? He's used it before in "Twilight's Kingdom". However, this actually serves to resolve the previous plot hole of why he only grew a little by draining Discord, when he grew to the size of a mountain by draining the much weaker princesses: he knew he couldn't control that power, so he absorbed it, but didn't use it.
221	** Also it appears that when Tirek absorbs the magic of others he converts the foreign magic into his own form of magic, but the bell simply transfers magic from one being to another; so in "Twilight's Kingdom" Tirek didn't have to deal with the chaotic nature of Discord's magic, just the enormous raw power the Lord of Chaos possesses.
222	** Another way of looking at is it that Tirek's ManaDrain only lets him absorb the raw energy of the person he drains. The bell, however, steals not only a person's inherent magical energy, but also the unique powers attached to that energy. When he first drained Discord, Tirek only received a boost to his own power, whereas if he tried to absorb the magic using the bell he'd be overwhelmed by the chaos energy attached to it.
223	** Another way of looking at it is that at that point in "Twilight's Kingdom", Tirek was stronger than he was here — the bell returned him to his third form, but he took Discord's magic once he was in his fourth form, having just absorbed the magic of the Mane Six. It's likely that in his current state Tirek isn't strong enough to control Discord's magic like he could before, and since he was able to do it before, he would know that he's not cut out for it this time.
224	** This could also explain why Tirek ended up at an impasse with Twilight instead of outright defeating her. Whatever allowed him to control the magic he stole from Discord may have had the side effect of preventing him from accessing it's full potential.
225	* Tempest Shadow is finally shown to have controlled her magic and has it acting like the others next to her. She's smiling because not only is she one of them, but she's also a true unicorn now with a working horn. She might not physically have the rest of her horn back yet, but at least her horn's magical ability returned.
226	* Why would Discord suggest turning the villains to stone when he said that was [[EvenEvilHasStandards a line he wouldn't cross]] in his debut appearance? Wouldn't that make him a huge {{Hypocrite}}? The answer is simple: It was already a hypocritical statement to begin with, since what he was doing to the ponies of Equestria was no better than the punishment he got for it, which he felt he didn't deserve. But now he feels he ''did'' deserve it, and since the villains have proven themselves to be just as bad as he was with no signs of remorse, he decides that they deserve it, too.
227	* Cozy Glow becoming an [[WingedUnicorn alicorn]] when empowered by the ArtifactOfDoom is also what happened to the BigBad of the ''Ponyville Mysteries'' novels. It being normal to become alicorns while empowered by such would explain how the Alicorn Amulet got its name. (As for why the Amulet didn't do that to Trixie, maybe she wasn't powerful enough for the boost to effect her so, or the Amulet was a failed attempt at such an item.)
228	** And that the above alicorn transformations go away without the artifacts adds to the "true" alicorns significance. Anypony can get the power, but Twilight (and Cadence per the novels) have earned it, Flurry Heart (and Celestia and Luna per the novels) were born with it, that they stay alicorns even with their powers stolen means it is truly there as opposed to cheating their way to such power like the villains did with the artifacts.
229	* Chrysalis notes the fragments of her throne will nullify all the villains powers when they are too close, despite the throne being initially described as working on everything except changeling magic. However, not only might Starswirl have changed that, one will recall that Chrysalis is no longer using pure changeling magic but rather a mix of her own and Grogar's.
230	* As far as we know, the rumors were only spread between ponies, so why did dragons, griffons, and yaks had to be convinced to? Well, all ponies took an "everypony is for themselves" mindset, so they probably didn't just ignored the other pony races out of prejudice, but their may have also cause them to shut out the other species out of fear and impulse. And unusure whether the other may do the same (given how ponies were paragons of friendship), they may have took similar mindsets due to feeling there's nothing else that can be done.
231	* The Flim Flam Brothers being part of the many allies of the Mane Six against the Legion of Doom makes sense from a pragmatic standpoint. At the end of the day, they are no worse than scamming con artists and it's because of their failures and the fact that they now own a resort that's keeping them from being as bad as in the alternate timeline. Any land ruled by such evils is just not good business for them. It's like how Hondo Ohnaka from Star Wars knows not to do business with the Sith.
232	* Of course Discord and the Alicorn sisters would think [[TakenForGranite being turned to stone]] is a strong enough punishment for the Treacherous Trio: they ''all'' have experienced it first hand, so they know the horrors of [[AndIMustScream watching the rest of the world go on without them]].
233	* The poses Cozy Glow, Tirek and Chrysalis have whilst turned to stone seems to reflect how they have ultimately lost what they wanted. Cozy Glow, TheChessmaster, has an aghast expression like she's been ''caught off-guard''. Tirek, who craved power, cowers ''feebly'' from his enemies. Chrysalis, who feeds on love, has the most aggressive pose as she's ''consumed by her hatred'' (and [[TakenForGranite stone]]).
234	* There was a clear foreshadowing that Cozy Glow was never going to be redeemed (at least, not by Twilight): her name. Aside from Tempest Shadow, Twilight Sparkle has redeemed two ponies who shared a similar name to hers, Sunset Shimmer and Starlight Glimmer. Each of the three was named a time around nighttime (Twilight, Sunset, Starlight), followed by a small source of light (Sparkle, Shimmer, Glimmer). They each reflected some pony who, in one form or another, didn't know about friendship but changed for the better once they understood it was more important than knowledge or power. Cozy Glow doesn't have the same sort of name because ''she's not like them''. She's the opposite of all three put together: she knows what friendship is, but ''[[TheFarmerAndTheViper she couldn't care less]]'' about it anymore than she does power.
235	* Discord is the Lord of Chaos which makes it very fitting that he causes the defeat of the heroes through his actions and then later his actions are the ones to turn the tide back in their favor. When both sides were confident in their supremacy chaos changes the game.
236	* Discord's idea to create enemies for Twilight to stop is very similar to his gift for Fluttershy in "Best Gift Ever". In that episode, he tricked Rainbow Dash into bringing home a dangerous monster so Fluttershy could tame it and be the hero, and it worked out well then. Discord probably figured he could get away with it a second time, failing to account for the fact that Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy Glow are more intelligent than a wild beast.
237	* While Rainbow Dash's speed would have been helpful for taking Grogar's bell from the villains, it makes sense that Twilight would choose Rainbow alongside herself and Pinkie to serve as distractions. Between Twilight's magical might, Rainbow's speed, and Pinkie's cartoony antics, the three of them probably stood the best chance of distracting such powerful villains and actually ''surviving''. Additionally, Twilight is the biggest magical threat of the Mane 6 and Rainbow is arguably the biggest physical threat, so she knew the villains would go for them first. What's more, at least two members (Spike and Fluttershy) Twilight assigned to bell-retrieving duty have a history of slipping past villains unnoticed, making them suited for that task.
238	* How the villain trio lost in the end was pretty much a G-rated DeathByIrony:
239	** Chrysalis has a long history of commanding and working with others - and yet she made it very clear that she was out for herself, that this alliance was temporary.
240	** Cozy Glow was the former friendship student, who kept talking about how the villains could use friendship against the heroes, but was constantly trying to backstab her 'friends' and take more power for herself.
241	** Tirek, the guy from point one who always said Friendship was useless, friends were a distraction and at best were tools to be used... THIS is the guy who kept his word and was a team player from first to last. The one guy who kept the alliance going and never tried to turn on the others.
242	* Discord's plan worked PERFECTLY. Yes, Twilight had a crisis of confidence at first, but not only did she regain that confidence and lead the WORLD to victory, she was much calmer and more willing to accept her coronation after the villains were finally defeated. He did it in the most roundabout and chaotic way, but Discord's insane, CHAOTIC plan actually SUCCEEDED. Not only that, remember that if he didn't pull this stunt in the first place, a nervous Twilight with zero confidence in herself would have taken the throne instead a few days after the announcement. He essentially stalled for time to give Twilight preparation to rule, which may or may not be one of his side goals when consider that "Grogar" only debuted shortly after the announcement.
243	** Also, either intentionally or not, Discord's plan created a lot of chaos, disarray and disharmony across Equestria. Even when thinking of the greater good of his friends, he still cannot avoid thinking as the embodiment of Chaos.
244	* Why did the Pillars fall to Tirek so easily? Stygian is absent. Without their main strategist, they defaulted to LeeroyJenkins which went about as well as you'd expect. As for why he's absent, recall that his main contributions were planning and research for their battles, things they simply didn't have time to do before Tirek and company showed up. Either he was offscreen trying to do that in hopes of bringing ''something'' back to the Pillars for them to work with; or he figured he would just be a liability in the fight, since he lacks the magic and strength of the other Pillars, and thus chose to stay out of it.
245	* The debris shield being able to block the villain trio's combined attack reeks of PlotArmor at first. The shield is not only hit with the same blast that levelled more than half of the castle earlier, but now is also assisted by two others just as powerful. However if you look closely, it's possible that Twilight's magic which was holding it might be the real reason why this ordinary chunk of debris can suddenly withstand a castle-busting blast. The moment Twilight teleports away, the magic is no longer reinforcing it, making it give way.
246	* Chrysalis taunts Tirek for thinking that Twilight Sparkle, multiple savior of Equestria, is a danger. This makes more sense when you remember that Twilight has never actually defeated Chrysalis before. Twilight's only direct contribution to any of Chrysalis' defeats was freeing Cadance, who is at large along with Shining Armor anyway. The queen's other defeats were thanks to Starlight Glimmer, Thorax, her own animated servants and the Tree of Harmony.
247	* Twilight's turn of phrase "rainbow lasers" initially comes off as SchizoTech since Equestria doesn't have actual lasers. But remember that Twilight has been to the Equestria Girls world a few times which has contemporary tech, and human Rainbow Dash explicitly calls their harmony beams "rainbow lasers" multiple times in the [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls Equestria Girls]] franchise, including this moment when (pony-become-human) Twilight was right next to her:
248	--->'''Rainbow Dash''': Uh, weren't there rainbows and lasers and stuff last time?
249	** This would also explain why Spike replies to that comment like he knows perfectly well what Twilight's talking about; he's the only other member of the Mane 7 to visit the human world.
250	*** Alternatively, Equestria DOES have access to advanced technology (such as Button Mash’s Arcade), so lasers aren’t too much of a departure.
251	* In "The Summer Sun Setback", Discord claimed Twilight's CharacterDevelopment was boring, and was unhappy that she didn't fall into a FreakOut when the problems were revealed to her, yet here, he admits that his whole plan was to make Twilight confident enough to rule Equestria. While at first, this might seem confusing, the most likely answer is that Discord [[ItsAllAboutMe wanted to be the one responsible]] for building Twilight's confidence, and just didn't like the idea of something else being responsible for it.
252	* Part of the reason the villain trio were able to spread disharmony across Equestria without the Mane Six noticing was because of Sombra's destruction of the Tree of Harmony. While the Tree returned in a new form, its connection to the Friendship Map was severed, meaning that the Mane Six could no longer be made aware of friendship problems across Equestria (of which there would be many, due to the villains' actions). This also makes for some {{Irony}}: Despite not wanting to be part of "Grogar's" VillainTeamUp, Sombra actually [[VillainousLegacy helped]] his would-be teammates [[AchievementsInIgnorance without even knowing it]].
253	* Fridge-Heartwarming: When Twilight is suffering her HeroicBSOD, each of her friends lifts her spirits by invoking their own elements. Fluttershy kindly exercised empathy by comforting Twilight and sharing she knows what it's like to be scared. Rainbow Dash loyally declared they'd face the odds together. Rarity was generous to include herself and say they face danger all the time. Pinkie Pie was optimistic to make a point they face danger without knowing what to do ''every time'' before. And Applejack was the cherry on top by honestly pointing out Twilight made a difference in their lives.
254	* If Discord's plan was to set the villains up to fail, then why did he send them after [[ArtifactOfDoom Grogar's bell]]? Two reasons: firstly, to counter the trio's complaints about "Grogar" seemingly doing nothing for weeks on end. And secondly, to keep them busy. It's highly likely that he never believed they could actually succeed, and only sent them on that "mission" to keep them occupied, and thus keep them from asking questions.
255	* Cozy Glow, Tirek and Chrysalis turned to stone was not just the most severest punishment for being BeyondRedemption; it was also a matter of being practical. If the three were simply imprisoned again, be it Tartarus or elsewhere, chances are they'd escape somehow sooner or later, be it through their own efforts or with outside help, leading to the season 9 events starting all over again. This is especially the case for Chrysalis due to her shapeshifting abilities. Turning the three to stone forever removed that possibility!
256	** Alternatively, the last time Tirek escaped was because no-one was watching Tartarus at the time. By turning them to stone, they can do what Celestia did with Discord at first and put it where somepony is always keeping an eye on it; and can raise the alarm as soon as the statue so much as cracks.
257	* The fact that almost the ponies and other creatures banded together to help the Mane 6 stop the Legion of Doom completely invalidates their VillainHasAPoint moment in the ending of the first part.
258	** The statement Chrysalis made about fear being stronger than friendship is torn to pieces about how the ponies and creatures banded together as friends to stop the Legion because they’re working through their fear for the sake of friendship.
259	** Tirek saying that protecting yourself means you don’t have time for others has lost all meaning when the Magic of Friendship protects not just the ponies but also their friends.
260	** When Cozy Glow adds that Twilight never taught what Chrysalis and Tirek said at her school, the fact that she was defeated by the amount of friends the Mane 6 made due to what she and her friends have taught at the school more than outshines Cozy’s statement.
261	* Building on the above fridge about Cozy Glow being [[MachiavelliWasWrong wrong]], think back to what she said in "School Raze": "I can make more friends without using any of [the Elements of Friendship]." Well, one can assume she ([[VitriolicBestBuds for lack of better words]]) befriended Tirek and Chrysalis with the bare minimum of the elements. But look at all the friends and allies Twilight alone made by being everything her friends taught her, all of which fought against Cozy Glow in the final battle. In the end, Cozy Glow had to eat her words in the face of the very would-be-friends being opposed to her.
262	* Why didn't the Mane 6, Spike, Student Six, and Pillars' rainbow blast destroy Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy Glow, when a similar power unleashed by only the Mane 6 destroyed Sombra? Because, although the Legion proved irredeemable, that one moment where they nearly became friends showed that, while they vehemently rejected it and vowed never to accept it, they were at least slightly capable of feeling friendship, and thus friendship magic could not destroy them, where Sombra never once showed any signs of this. Though, this doesn't explain why the rainbow didn't turn them to stone like the Elements did to Discord, who, unlike the Legion, was later [[HeelFaceTurn unable to resist friendship]] once he felt it for the first time.
263	* Of course Discord's plan failed to work in the way he expected, but when he had to improvise (by mocking Tirek) everything worked. Planning involves ordering, which goes against Discord's nature. On the other hand, working out decisions on the fly is more in line with his chaotic existence.
264	[[/folder]]
265
266	[[folder:The Last Problem]]
267	* On the last scene of the Mane Six and Spike looking on before the literal {{Book Ends}}, the sun goes down to literal ''twilight''. Meanwhile, Luster Dawn's story begins at ''dawn'' which is her namesake, which signifies PassingTheTorch.
268	** What's more, it also fits that saying "It's always darkest before the dawn". Twilight and her friends had to go through 9 seasons worth of bad guys and antagonists before they could reach an era of peace, in the form of (Luster) Dawn.
269	* Luster's story starts just like Twilight's: A young pony with a love for books who is the current ruler's apprentice and is sent to Ponyville to learn the importance of friendship. However, the similarities don't stop there. At the start of the episode, Luster says she's thinking on making an independent course of study. Now, what did Sci-Twi wanted to enter in ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsFriendshipGames''?
270	* Rarity having a grey streak in her mane. Rather than dyeing her hair to hide such an obvious sign of aging, she chooses to keep it in view. Just like Mistmane, Rarity understands that true beauty is on the inside, and her generous heart is still just as beautiful as it always was.
271	* It's more than likely coincidental, but it makes sense for this to be the first season finale since "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E13MagicalMysteryCure Magical Mystery Cure]]" to not be a two-parter. Originally, "Magical Mystery Cure" was written as the [[GrandFinale series finale]], since it was uncertain if the show would get a fourth season [[ForegoneConclusion (it did)]]. But now, the next half-hour one we get is the ''real'' series finale.
272	* Spike's drastically different body build might be off-putting at first, but it makes sense once you consider two facts: the first one, is that his adult build is not much different from the one seen in Garble (apart from Spike being noticeably more muscular); the second one is that, across the series, Spike has shown interest in his physical build, either by posing or through his muscular knight fantasy, so Spike deciding to work out at some point is not out of the question.
273	** There's also the fact that he's the one travelling to various potentially-hostile races. Beforehand, his only real weapon for self-defence was his fire breath which would be potentially lethal. Being strong enough to hold off attackers without killing them isn't a bad idea for a Friendship Ambassador.
274	* It is implied (though [[ShrugOfGod not explicitly confirmed]]) that Rainbow Dash and Applejack are married. While ponies biting each others' tails is typically not a sign of a romantic relationship, Applejack bites Rainbow Dash's tail ''nine times'' in the course of the series.

Context FridgeBrilliance / MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicSeason9