Support NeoGAF

[Boss Doggie]

So is it better?

Tail end of season 3 turned me off from the series, and Equestria Girls sealed the coffin.

 

[Hitokage]

It's too early to say either way, but it's on a good start.

 

[Aarglefarg]

The Apple family dealing with things was the best part in episode 1.

Episode 2 was much more interesting, showing past things! It would be better if the things Discord later said were actually in the initial scene, but somehow written to be subtle or with a double meaning. That would have made it some percent cooler.

 

[Orcastar]

That was a pretty good opener.

A season long story arc sounds nice, but season 3 was supposed to be all about Twilight's development too. Instead, they teased some big things in the season premiere and then forgot all about it up until the season finale. In other words, don't be surprised if season 4 is all about the usual slice of life stuff up to the season finale, in which the mane 6 suddenly find all six keys in about ten minutes, sing a bunch of songs and all turn into princesses.

 

[Hitokage]

In other words, don't be surprised if season 4 is all about the usual slice of life stuff up to the season finale, in which the mane 6 suddenly find all six keys in about ten minutes, sing a bunch of songs and all turn into princesses.

Season 1 had a bunch of episodes that loosely built on each other, even though it was mostly Gala prep, so it was kept pretty basic.

 

[Boss Doggie]

That was a rather rushed "third act misunderstanding"

 

[Choppasmith]

Man, what a day. Saw the episode earlier after seeing Day of the Doctor (I have to wait until the end of my long work day). All in all, it was solid. I think I'm only disappointed in the lack of a song.

 

[Boss Doggie]

lol vine snapping Mac's butt

 

[Cheerilee]

Can't say I'm too impressed with AJ in this episode as she started the whole "princess shouldn't be with as" non-sense. She does look pretty badass fighting the vines though.

AJ is kind of racist. She was also the one who called Twilight "Princess" until the name made her uncomfortable and she asked her friends to knock it off. Rarity was kind of "What? Uncomfortable? No way, revel in it. I know I would." Because Rarity is Rarity and AJ is AJ.

AJ has had previous problems with both wings and horns. She's got a slight edge of racism/envy, being a mere Earth Pony. AJ doesn't seem to have any actual problem with Alicorns, but I think that when she looks at one, she tends to see race. Pinkie has none of that, because she's Pinkie. Rainbow Dash is certain that being a Pegasus is the best, but that Unicorn is kind of cool too, I guess. Fluttershy will ask for permission to have a non-hurtful opinion, but Rainbow Dash will step in and answer for her that Pegasus is best.

To be fair on AJ, she had a really good point. With Celestia and Luna out of the picture, something happening to Twilight would mean that control of Equestria would default back to Cadance. Cadance, people.

Spoiler

I kid, I love Cadance.

The guards implied that Cadence outranks Twilight, but that since Cadence was absent, Twilight was in charge.

IMO, Princesses can take to the field. Celestia probably did so in the past, and the guards didn't try to stop Twilight from leaving the castle, because they had their orders (investigate the situation as best they can, and report any findings to Twilight). AJ was wrong to question her princess (as were those who went along with her idea), and double wrong to treat her friend like a princess after being expressly asked not to do that, since it made her uncomfortable. And triple wrong since Discord was right, and a princess who lets others fight her battles for her is a bad princess.

 

[PaulloDEC]

AJ was wrong to question her princess (as were those who went along with her idea), and double wrong to treat her friend like a princess after being expressly asked not to do that, since it made her uncomfortable.

Hang on a second, one moment you're reprimanding AJ for questioning Twilight as a Princess, and the next you're reprimanding her for treating Twilight like a Princess at all?

Anyway, Applejack may not have been right to suggest Twilight head back into town, but she was absolutely right to raise some discussion on the matter. It wasn't about letting other people fight Twilight's battles, it was about big-picture thinking. Putting the fate of Equestria before a personal desire to hang with her buds might not win AJ any popularity points, but it's hard to fault her motivation.

And triple wrong since Discord was right, and a princess who lets others fight her battles for her is a bad princess.

That's an incredibly black-and-white way to look at situation that wasn't at all black-and-white. A good Princess is one who chooses her battles, and who carefully considers the words of her most trusted friends. A good Princess would think carefully about the consequences of putting herself in danger and make a wise decision.

Twilight has all the makings of a good Princess, and I don't think that has anything to do with whether or not she's willing to fight every battle in the trenches (or put stock in anything Discord says!)

 

[Cheerilee]

Hang on a second, one moment you're reprimanding AJ for questioning Twilight as a Princess, and the next you're reprimanding her for treating Twilight like a Princess at all?

Yep. Twilight told her friends to stop treating her differently, that they were her friends, not her subjects.

AJ essentially says "Princess, I question your orders."

A: The Princess told AJ to knock that "Princess" stuff off.
B: AJ is allowed to question a friend, not a Princess. Questioning "The Princess" makes AJ double-wrong.
C: The Princess was right all along and AJ was wrong. Making AJ triple-wrong.

The guards informed The Princess of the chain of command. She ordered them to investigate and report their findings. They can do that. Perfect order. Equestria is in good hands. Ponyville is under an unusual attack. The Princess thinks this bears investigating, and sees the opportunity to unite the Element weaponry and gain the aid of her friends. So she travels to Ponyville, takes the lead in confronting Discord, takes the lead in investigating the potion, and takes the lead in investigating the forest. None of this is inappropriate.

But because dangerous forest creatures exist (which everyone knew), and because The Princess is distracted by trying (and failing) to use some new abilities, The Princess is exposed to a not-abnormal level of danger, which her backup was able to handle, and which she dismisses as she presses onward. She's bumpy, but it's her first day and she's getting the job done. But AJ stops her and insists that The Princess retreat back to the safety of her castle and act more like the sheltered Princess that she is. "For the good of Equestria." Causing the Princess great personal discomfort and a temporary lack in judgement, ensuring that the Elements are broken up and rendered useless, causing the group to fail in their investigation, causing them to be without the means to accomplish their mission even if they could figure it out, and putting The Princess in even greater danger when she eventually rejects AJ's notion of becoming a sheltered Princess and marches back in to the forest unescorted.

 

[Boss Doggie]

Pinkie isn't racist but wasn't she an instigator for race wars not once but twice?

 

[Amibguous Cad]

Pinkie isn't racist but wasn't she an instigator for race wars not once but twice?

Over a Barrel and what?

 

[kazebyaka]

Liked both episodes. It's pretty good in every aspect. Much better start of a season than s3 had.

 

[LuffyZoro]

 

[DrForester]

So Nightmare Moon's magic zap was the Dalek death ray SFX.

 

[Tenumi]

The guards implied that Cadence outranks Twilight, but that since Cadence was absent, Twilight was in charge.

Cadence does have more experience as a national leader, depending on how much time has passed since the end of season 2.

Speaking of time, does this mean now that 1 year has passed? After all, the first episode had the Summer Sun Celebration, and so did these episodes.

 

[Snytbaggen]

So Nightmare Moon's magic zap was the Dalek death ray SFX.

Holy shit, you're right!

 

[SpacePirate Ridley]

Just watched, thought it was great fun.

So Nightmare Moon's magic zap was the Dalek death ray SFX.

Oh!

 

[PaulloDEC]

But because dangerous forest creatures exist (which everyone knew), and because The Princess is distracted by trying (and failing) to use some new abilities, The Princess is exposed to a not-abnormal level of danger, which her backup was able to handle, and which she dismisses as she presses onward. She's bumpy, but it's her first day and she's getting the job done. But AJ stops her and insists that The Princess retreat back to the safety of her castle and act more like the sheltered Princess that she is. "For the good of Equestria." Causing the Princess great personal discomfort and a temporary lack in judgement, ensuring that the Elements are broken up and rendered useless, causing the group to fail in their investigation, causing them to be without the means to accomplish their mission even if they could figure it out, and putting The Princess in even greater danger when she eventually rejects AJ's notion of becoming a sheltered Princess and marches back in to the forest unescorted.

Just to reiterate, I'm not trying to make the claim that Applejack's call was the right one; as you've explained above, it clearly wasn't.

The point I'm trying to refute is that AJ is somehow a classist, racist asshole because she spares a thought for the big picture when no one else will.

 

[SparksterMeta0]

Unless alicorn magic IS evil magic.

Actually, dark magic isn't necessarily the same as evil magic.

 

[Village]

Man, what a day. Saw the episode earlier after seeing Day of the Doctor (I have to wait until the end of my long work day). All in all, it was solid. I think I'm only disappointed in the lack of a song.

It was kind of worth it with out the song.
Killed a lot of annoying fan theories, like Luna was possessed.

I dunno if we can say spoilers or if any of you care about that sort of thing so just in case.

Spoiler

No she super strong and pissed, beaten her sister to the edge, used the elements as a last resort, shot her to the moon.

Your favorite character was a dick ( reasonable, but a dick none the lesser) once. It doesn't make her not strong, it doesn't make the whipping that Celestia had to take to even get to that point not happen. But she was a jerk once, now she isn't a jerk.

Everyone wins, except for AppleJack. AppleJack never wins.

Actually, dark magic isn't necessarily the same as evil magic.

This tends to be the case in many things.

 

[$200]

It was kind of worth it with out the song.
Killed a lot of annoying fan theories, like Luna was possessed.

I dunno if we can say spoilers or if any of you care about that sort of thing so just in case.

Spoiler

No she super strong and pissed, beaten her sister to the edge, used the elements as a last resort, shot her to the moon.

Your favorite character was a dick ( reasonable, but a dick none the lesser) once. It doesn't make her not strong, it doesn't make the whipping that Celestia had to take to even get to that point not happen. But she was a jerk once, now she isn't a jerk.

I love it. Further proof why comic #5-8 sucked.

 

[PaulloDEC]

I love it. Further proof why comic #5-8 sucked.

Nightmare Rarity, right? No arguments here.

 

[Village]

I love it. Further proof why comic #5-8 sucked.

And its not like she got nerfed, no. She is like the strongest thing in the show, at any point she could turn the planet, or the stars in space, or start handing sleep lobotomies. Maybe its me, I do not mind a little angst or edge in my cereal. But I feel like its better character development for the character to have made the mistake and learned from it. In this sense, MLP isn't the type of show to go too deep into the after effects of mind control.

The only think I really want from the character at this point for her to i dunno I guess come to terms with NMM and just look like NMM with out the helmet. I just find that to be a cooler character design, and stark contrast to Celestia on an aesthetic level.

 

[Hitokage]

I dunno if we can say spoilers or if any of you care about that sort of thing so just in case.
[SPOILER ]
No she super strong and pissed, beaten her sister to the edge, used the elements as a last resort, shot her to the moon. [/SPOILER ]

How are season one premiere events spoilers?

 

[Village]

How are season one premiere events spoilers?

Some people get pissy.

I rather not step on any uneeded toes.

 

[$200]

"Here's Twily!"

 

[Hitokage]

Some people get pissy.

I rather not step on any uneeded toes.

We've gone through multiple years of drama as a community because of the perceived need to placate a vocal minority of pissy people throwing tantrums. It's high time we stopped so that the rest of us can have a more enjoyable time.

 

[UberTag]

We've gone through multiple years of drama as a community because of the perceived need to placate a vocal minority of pissy people throwing tantrums. It's high time we stopped so that the rest of us can have a more enjoyable time.

Haven't we already established precedent that the seasonal OT is fair game for all manner of discussion once an episode has aired and that if people are ultra-sensitive about spoilers they should relegate themselves to the Community thread until after they've watched said episode? That was my understanding.

 

[$200]

We've gone through multiple years of drama as a community because of the perceived need to placate a vocal minority of pissy people throwing tantrums. It's high time we stopped so that the rest of us can have a more enjoyable time.

Hito you remind me of those crazy Americans who would carry their assault rifles to coffee shops to demonstrate their rights.

 

[Hitokage]

Haven't we already established precedent that the seasonal OT is fair game for all manner of discussion once an episode has aired and that if people are ultra-sensitive about spoilers they should relegate themselves to the Community thread until after they've watched said episode? That was my understanding.

Indeed, but I'm trying to do more than argue technicality here.

Hito you remind me of those crazy Americans who would carry their assault rifles to coffee shops to demonstrate their rights.

 

[PaulloDEC]

We've gone through multiple years of drama as a community because of the perceived need to placate a vocal minority of pissy people throwing tantrums. It's high time we stopped so that the rest of us can have a more enjoyable time.

I'm not sure I'd recognise this fandom without the drama.

Haven't we already established precedent that the seasonal OT is fair game for all manner of discussion once an episode has aired and that if people are ultra-sensitive about spoilers they should relegate themselves to the Community thread until after they've watched said episode? That was my understanding.

Yup, that was pretty much what Cheerilee set out in the community thread IIRC.

 

[HassanJamal]

Finally watched the opening eps and I must say, they were great!

New opening sequence was pretty neat, liked the expansion of characters. Even Discord being in Fluttershy's house. Speaking of him, I actually liked Discord in this episode, really confused whether he's gone good or not, matching his whole chaos sthick quite nicely. Also, seeing the past of NM happening and the Discord battle was pretty awesome too. Writers did well here with the backstories.

My only gripe was the ending was kinda abrupt. I expected, I dunno, more Celestia and the gang talking, not S3 Twilight flying ending. Oh well, count me excited for more of S4

 

[DrForester]

Finally watched the opening eps and I must say, they were great!

New opening sequence was pretty neat, liked the expansion of characters. Even Discord being in Fluttershy's house. Speaking of him, I actually liked Discord in this episode, really confused whether he's gone good or not, matching his whole chaos sthick quite nicely. Also, seeing the past of NM happening and the Discord battle was pretty awesome too. Writers did well here with the backstories.

My only gripe was the ending was kinda abrupt. I expected, I dunno, more Celestia and the gang talking, not S3 Twilight flying ending. Oh well, count me excited for more of S4

Considering everything he did helped Twilight and the others, I'd say he's good. They were jerks to him, so he made them work for it.

 

[PaulloDEC]

Even Discord being in Fluttershy's house. Speaking of him, I actually liked Discord in this episode, really confused whether he's gone good or not, matching his whole chaos sthick quite nicely. Also, seeing the past of NM happening and the Discord battle was pretty awesome too. Writers did well here with the backstories.

First of all, holy sh*t, Discord really is lurking in Flutters' house now! That's pretty amazing.

Secondly, totally agree about Discord, such a return to form after Keep Calm and Flutter On. I like that the writers have changed the message a little after that story, with the new direction looking more like a no-less-chaotic-but-perhaps-less-overtly-evil Discord, rather than the sickeningly sweet "friendship is magic" Discord from Keep Calm. Having the Elements out the picture ought to make things a bit more interesting too.

 

[LuffyZoro]

First of all, holy sh*t, Discord really is lurking in Flutters' house now! That's pretty amazing.

Secondly, totally agree about Discord, such a return to form after Keep Calm and Flutter On. I like that the writers have changed the message a little after that story, with the new direction looking more like a no-less-chaotic-but-perhaps-less-overtly-evil Discord, rather than the sickeningly sweet "friendship is magic" Discord from Keep Calm. Having the Elements out the picture ought to make things a bit more interesting too.

I'm pretty sure he was being sarcastic in Keep Calm.

 

[akira28]

they got a thaaaang going oonnnnn. they got a thaaaang going oonnnnn.

 

[PaulloDEC]

I'm pretty sure he was being sarcastic in Keep Calm.

Really? Seemed more grudging to me, like a child being made to apologise for something by a parent.

In any case, the issue for me with Keep Calm was much larger than that particular line. I'm really pleased the S4 opener went such a long way towards repairing the damage.

 

[Hitokage]

In any case, the issue for me with Keep Calm was much larger than that particular line. I'm really pleased the S4 opener went such a long way towards repairing the damage.

Discord's character isn't back to full health, but you're right, it did get better.

 

[Village]

they got a thaaaang going oonnnnn. they got a thaaaang going oonnnnn.

Nah b.

He like her father, she be trying to get dates and he be scarin em off with his powers.

 

[HassanJamal]

First of all, holy sh*t, Discord really is lurking in Flutters' house now! That's pretty amazing.

Secondly, totally agree about Discord, such a return to form after Keep Calm and Flutter On. I like that the writers have changed the message a little after that story, with the new direction looking more like a no-less-chaotic-but-perhaps-less-overtly-evil Discord, rather than the sickeningly sweet "friendship is magic" Discord from Keep Calm. Having the Elements out the picture ought to make things a bit more interesting too.

True, without the EoH, wonder what the gang will do. This season has only started but im really quite hyped. Another thing to note, the opening sequence has Princess Luna which is grand

Considering everything he did helped Twilight and the others, I'd say he's good. They were jerks to him, so he made them work for it.

Seems like chaotic good. It'd be a strange seeing him just being all goody two shoes. Writers, you dun good. Its been a heck of a day, DW50th and S4 opening were just all great to watch!

Btw, we need gifs of NM being all destructive, that was something I never thought to see in this show.

 

[DrForester]

Seems like chaotic good. It'd be a strange seeing him just being all goody two shoes. Writers, you dun good. Its been a heck of a day, DW50th and S4 opening were just all great to watch!

He was kind of like that one guy from Star Trek

 

[Boss Doggie]

Over a Barrel and what?

Didn't she instigate another war?

 

[Hitokage]

He was kind of like that one guy from Star Trek

Q was chaotic neutral.

 

[Cheerilee]

Haven't we already established precedent that the seasonal OT is fair game for all manner of discussion once an episode has aired and that if people are ultra-sensitive about spoilers they should relegate themselves to the Community thread until after they've watched said episode? That was my understanding.

Even more than that, official pre-release hype is allowed. There are no spoiler tags needed for anything, short of something based on a leaked episode. Although excessively considerate use of spoiler tags (a-la Fluttershy) is not exactly banned.

If you fear the spoilers but need your Pony fix, retreat to Community! No shame in that. It's what I do.

These new rules are a work in progress, and if anyone doesn't like them, they should attend more committee meetings.

 

[Boss Doggie]

Hasn't the episodes already aired? Or is it one of those "web only" release.

 

[$200]

Hasn't the episodes already aired? Or is it one of those "web only" release.

Episodes already aired on Saturday so anyone can talk about them anywhere without adding spoiler tags. The episodes should be available on Hub's website from Monday by the way.


The spoiler rules as far as I know:

Season 4 thread - No need to spoiler tag anything regarding the upcoming episode(s). Promotions, pictures, etc are all welcome. Exceptions being information of future episode(s) - these include promotions, Twitter posts, leaked scripts, VA leaks, etc; those must be probably tagged.

Community thread - Use spoiler tags for information regarding all new or future episodes. Post links to images instead of images directly and kindly add spoiler warning next to them. After Saturday 5pm EST of the day an episode's aired you are free to discuss without using tags.

Main irc channel - Same rules as community thread. If you want to discuss spoilers, use the #ponyspoilers channel.

Other irc channels such as #eff - No rules. So stay out of them on episode day if you don't want to be spoiled.

 

[Hitokage]

The spoiler rules as far as I know:

Season 4 thread - No need to spoiler tag anything regarding the upcoming episode(s). Promotions, pictures, etc are all welcome. Exceptions being information of future episode(s) - these include promotions, Twitter posts, leaked scripts, VA leaks, etc; those must be probably tagged.

Staff info is not material information. A VA could indicate a key role, a flashback that has extended lines or needs rerecording, a minor role, or just a dumb cameo. It lacks context. Even leaked scripts may not be material if nothing pertinent is divulged in-context.

 

[Narag]

Main irc channel - Same rules as community thread. If you want to discuss spoilers, use the #ponyspoilers channel.

This rule was such community cancer in irc.

Staff info is not material information. Even leaked scripts may not be material if nothing pertinent is divulged.

Never forget raging at synopsis posting. So many crucial details given in vague plot descriptions.