Support NeoGAF

[draetenth]

Sucks that AKR and Larson have left (though ED seems to imply it's uncertain if it's a permanent thing on Larson's part and that he may be back).

Still, while AKR and Larson were my favorite writers and had what were probably my favorite episodes last season, it still ended up being my favorite season and the episodes written by everyone else was still good so there is hope.

 

[Conkersbadfurday]

So what I've gathered from this last page of this thread is that there will be another terrible Equestria Girls movie and toys I kinda think look cool but won't buy because I'd feel bad about myself if I did.

Also, new season coming...sometime

 

[draetenth]

So what I've gathered from this last page of this thread is that there will be another terrible Equestria Girls movie and toys I kinda think look cool but won't buy because I'd feel bad about myself if I did.

Also, new season coming...sometime

Yes, there's at least one new Equestria Girls movie coming (don't know when), a movie actually about the ponies (iirc sometime next year), and a new season (iirc it's by the end of this month).

 

[Jawmuncher]

I'm so far behind.

 

[SigmasonicX]

So what I've gathered from this last page of this thread is that there will be another terrible Equestria Girls movie and toys I kinda think look cool but won't buy because I'd feel bad about myself if I did.

Also, new season coming...sometime

Season 6 is starting this month, actually, on March 26th.

I'm so far behind.

You still have almost two weeks!

 

[PaulloDEC]

Minor detail, but there could be something worth discussing. A source article for the Game of Thrones video also claims that some new characters will "reveal the mysterious backstory of some of the main cast." It's suspicious that the Yahoo article sourced in the original ED post doesn't mention this, but it would be odd for that claim to just come out of the aether.

Spoiler

We already know that Fluttershy's brother is appearing. Out of the Main Six, she's the one with the most opportunity for a mysterious backstory, since we know nothing about her family--we at least saw Rainbow's father in a cameo. Before "The Hoofields and the McColts" aired, I jokingly theorized that Fluttershy is actually part of one of the warring families. That didn't happen, of course, but there's enough left unknown about her that there could be a twist about her family.

However, there is one main character who already has a mysterious backstory established: Spike. Combined with the new Dragonlands setting in the trailer, I'm thinking it's finally going to happen: actual information about where Spike came from. I just hope they don't drop the ball like with "Dragon Quest"

.

Spoiler

Aren't they addressing Spike's origins in an upcoming comic though? Usually they don't like to run over one another with the Comics vs TV.

Not that I wouldn't like to see that!

Well shit. Show lost it's two best writers in season 5.

So long, any hope of a decent Celestia episode.

Aw crap, that's a big kick in the nuts. He did such good work in S5 too.

Sucks that AKR and Larson have left (though ED seems to imply it's uncertain if it's a permanent thing on Larson's part and that he may be back).

Still, while AKR and Larson were my favorite writers and had what were probably my favorite episodes last season, it still ended up being my favorite season and the episodes written by everyone else was still good so there is hope.

Really hope we do get some more from him at some point. It isn't really clear how many more years the show has in it.

I'm so far behind.

As Sigma said, there's still a couple of weeks to get caught up and there's no time like the present!

 

[SigmasonicX]

Spoiler

Aren't they addressing Spike's origins in an upcoming comic though? Usually they don't like to run over one another with the Comics vs TV.

Not that I wouldn't like to see that!

I meant in the sense that

Spoiler

we don't know where Spike's egg came from. I don't believe there's been anything to suggest the upcoming comic will address that.

 

[SpaceCadetKeon]

Oh hey, the new season starts soon. I should go see what's happening in this thr-

Well shit. Show lost it's two best writers in season 5.

So long, any hope of a decent Celestia episode.

ooh...ouch. And my friend is a big fan of his work on the show. He's sure to be crushed by this. D:

 

[Village]

Sucks that AKR and Larson have left (though ED seems to imply it's uncertain if it's a permanent thing on Larson's part and that he may be back).

Didn't know that

 

[SigmasonicX]

Episode titles and descriptions! There's a week long break between episodes 5 and 6.

Spoiler

Season 6 Episode 3 - The Gift Of Maud Pie
Air Date: April 2nd
Synopsis:
Rarity and Pinkie Pie are in Manehattan looking for an ideal location for Rarity's new store and searching for the perfect gift for Pinkie Pie's sister.

Season 6 Episode 4 - On Your Marks
Air Date: April 9th
Synopsis:
'Now that they've finally received their cutie marks, the Cutie Mark Crusaders struggle with the question of what's next; the friends do not all agree on how to embrace their destinies.

Season 6 Episode 5 - Gauntlet of Fire
Air Date: April 16th
Synopsis:
In order to save his friends, Spike is forced to compete in a perilous Gauntlet for the title of Dragon Lord.

==BREAK==

Season 6 Episode 6 - No Second Prances
Air Date: April 30th
Synopsis:
N/A

"The Gift of Maud Pie" sounds a lot more interesting now, though mainly because of Rarity. "On Your Marks" is a premise they had to address. "Gauntlet of Fire" is actually disappointing, since it sounds like it will just be "Dragon Quest 2.0". Also, Harry Potter reference. "No Second Prances" is a terrible pun. No description yet, but I'm guessing it's a Starlight episode.

 

[draetenth]

All of those sound okay except for

Spoiler

Gauntlet of Fire, but that's mainly because they don't seem to be able to do Spike justice when he is the focus. I agree that it does sound too much like Dragon Quest 2.0 except Harry Potter style. I suppose we just have to wait and see.

 

[SigmasonicX]

More writer news:

Leaving: Natasha Levinger (Scare Master, Make New Friends but Keep Discord, and Pinkie Apple Pie)
Staying: Ed Valentine (Flight to the Finish and Three's a Crowd)

I really liked the former's episodes, so it's a shame that she's gone too. The latter's episodes have been good too, but not as good as the former's.

 

[PaulloDEC]

Bummer about Levinger, she's delivered some really solid scripts. Good to see Valentine sticking around though, I've quite liked his work.

Those story outlines sound fine to me, though as always with MLP it'll be down to the execution. Fingers crossed the

Spoiler

Spike story turns out well, he could use a few more wins.

And in (possibly) huge news, a trademark for a "Guardians of Harmony" TV show has been filed by Hasbro. For anyone keeping track, GoH is the name of the new action-oriented toy line revealed earlier this year (which apparently is also going to show up in comic form at some point).

 

[Strider_Blaze]

Man catching up to Pony news and see that more writers left. Makes me worried about the quality of the writing, but won't try to panic just yet.

As for a possible Guardians of Haromony spin-off show, I'm all for it!

 

[SigmasonicX]

Friendship is Magic #40
This was a very cute comic, though I was bothered by how Twilight's teachers and Celestia all let her situation with Spike go on for so long without helping. Instead, they all seemed to ignore the dragon in the room and assume Twilight was slacking. I would have liked if Twilight had to ask Celestia for help in the end, and that was the lesson, but no such thing happened.

The default art style was great, and I liked some of the weird expressions, though I felt that they were used a bit too often. I liked the shoujo as hell moments, particularly that shot of Twilight with flowers at the start of the flashbacks.

Thankfully for the Twilight's First Day fan comic, it didn't step on its toes too much in regards to what sorts of ponies Twilight meets and what her classes are, though you still have to do a lot of timeline shuffling. Honestly, I was rather surprised this comic didn't do anything with the "Amending Fences" flashbacks other than cameos.

Also, Friends Forever #26 was released early in paper, not online yet.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Season 6 commercial - an extremely annoying one, unfortunately, taking show clips of characters saying "season", "six", "is", "coming", etc. and putting them together. What were they thinking?

Main things to note are that Starlight has a new hairstyle, which resembles Rarity's in the front, and we get a better look at a certain new-ish character. Pictures spoiled below. You can get larger versions by changing the "s400" part of the URL to "s1600".

Spoiler

I thought Starlight's new look felt a bit off at first, but I think I'll get used to it. As for the new-ish character,

Spoiler

Sunburst is confirmed to be yet another anti-Twilight. I like his design, though, and they might be going for more of a Harry Potter thing.

 

[UberTag]

Season 6 commercial - an extremely annoying one, unfortunately, taking show clips of characters saying "season", "six", "is", "coming", etc. and putting them together. What were they thinking?

Man, I'm not sure they were thinking. That was awful.

Wonder if this latest exodus of talent will result in the inevitable downturn in quality that seems to befall every long-running animated series not named South Park - because Matt & Trey never abandoned their baby.

 

[Rhomega Beta]

I wonder if it was inspired by the videos that show every mention of "friends" or "friendship".

 

[PaulloDEC]

Friendship is Magic #40

I liked this one a lot. The criticisms levelled at the way young Twilight gets treated by Celestia and her teachers are absolutely fair, but I had a good time with this one just the same.

Season 6 commercial - an extremely annoying one, unfortunately, taking show clips of characters saying "season", "six", "is", "coming", etc. and putting them together. What were they thinking?

Main things to note are that Starlight has a new hairstyle, which resembles Rarity's in the front, and we get a better look at a certain new-ish character. Pictures spoiled below. You can get larger versions by changing the "s400" part of the URL to "s1600".

Spoiler

I thought Starlight's new look felt a bit off at first, but I think I'll get used to it. As for the new-ish character,

Spoiler

Sunburst is confirmed to be yet another anti-Twilight. I like his design, though, and they might be going for more of a Harry Potter thing.

Man, I'm not sure they were thinking. That was awful.

Yeah... not the best trailer they've ever done. They clearly had a specific thing in mind though, so I guess kudos for picking a target and sticking with it?

Wonder if this latest exodus of talent will result in the inevitable downturn in quality that seems to befall every long-running animated series not named South Park - because Matt & Trey never abandoned their baby.

I think there's probably still enough reliable hands on deck to stave that off for a bit, but I've been wrong before. Not long now til we get a sense of that I suppose.

 

[Jay RaR]

Yeah, feeling a little less confident about the quality of Season 6 with veteran writers signing off and this excuse for a teaser. I just pray its better than Season 4.

The Guardians of Harmony info is a bit interesting, wonder how Hasbro will pull that off.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Yeah, feeling a little less confident about the quality of Season 6 with veteran writers signing off and this excuse for a teaser. I just pray its better than Season 4.

While I am concerned about writers not being involved in this season, especially due to how similar it is with the crew split between Star Trek: The Next Generation season 7 and the movie Star Trek: Generations (which was to the detriment of both), the teaser trailer has no bearing at all on the quality of the season. That's all on Discovery Family, and in any case, they already made that good Game of Thrones tribute teaser.

 

[Fat4all]

While I am concerned about writers not being involved in this season, especially due to how similar it is with the crew split between Star Trek: The Next Generation season 7 and the movie Star Trek: Generations (which was to the detriment of both), the teaser trailer has no bearing at all on the quality of the season. That's all on Discovery Family, and in any case, they already made that good Game of Thrones tribute teaser.

Indeed, trailer quality across the board for each season has been spooty, no real bearing on the upcoming season.

 

[DrForester]

EQD did a big interview with Jim Miller.

http://www.equestriadaily.com/2016/03/equestria-daily-interviews-mlp-season-6.html

He also poked around in the comments answering questions. I asked about a Celestia episode. He said they're not going to do one just because she hasn't had an episode, and want to make sure it's a really good story.

Nice that they want a good script, but it kind of sounds like they have no interest in pursuing one, unless a script magically falls into their laps.

 

[Fat4all]

Nice that they want a good script, but it kind of sounds like they have no interest in pursuing one, unless a scrip magically falls into their laps.

It seems like they'd rather it just tie more naturally into a future plot more than anything, rather than have it be a one-off. Or at the least, a one-off with some decent relevance to that seasons gimmick.

But I dunno, I ain't no fortune tellerman.

 

[PaulloDEC]

Yeah, feeling a little less confident about the quality of Season 6 with veteran writers signing off and this excuse for a teaser. I just pray its better than Season 4.

Sigma and Fat4all already said it, but I wouldn't let the trailers bother you much. In most cases those are put together by network people who are totally separate from the folks who make the show.

The Guardians of Harmony info is a bit interesting, wonder how Hasbro will pull that off.

It's all very interesting. On the subject, I've since learned that the comics they've talked about are actually pack-ins (i.e. not standalone comics to be released in the usual manner), but we don't yet know anything about length/format.

Another interesting tidbit was that the Chrysalis figure actually includes an accessory that directly references the IDW comics:

Probably means nothing, but interesting none-the-less.

EQD did a big interview with Jim Miller.

http://www.equestriadaily.com/2016/03/equestria-daily-interviews-mlp-season-6.html

He also poked around in the comments answering questions. I asked about a Celestia episode. He said they're not going to do one just because she hasn't had an episode, and want to make sure it's a really good story.

Nice that they want a good script, but it kind of sounds like they have no interest in pursuing one, unless a script magically falls into their laps.

That whole thing is just weird to me. I don't understand why they wouldn't want to tell a story with Celestia, so the suggestion that they're deliberately avoiding it doesn't make sense to me. Could there be a Hasbro reason maybe? Someone higher up on the show side doesn't like her?

I don't get it.

 

[DrForester]

Sigma and Fat4all already said it, but I wouldn't let the trailers bother you much. In most cases those are put together by network people who are totally separate from the folks who make the show.



It's all very interesting. On the subject, I've since learned that the comics they've talked about are actually pack-ins (i.e. not standalone comics to be released in the usual manner), but we don't yet know anything about length/format.

Another interesting tidbit was that the Chrysalis figure actually includes an accessory that directly references the IDW comics:



Probably means nothing, but interesting none-the-less.



That whole thing is just weird to me. I don't understand why they wouldn't want to tell a story with Celestia, so the suggestion that they're deliberately avoiding it doesn't make sense to me. Could there be a Hasbro reason maybe? Someone higher up on the show side doesn't like her?

I don't get it.

Further fuel for the "Meghan doesn't want to do anything with Celestia" theory.

 

[tomtom94]

Just noticed that at some point while I wasn't looking Amazon Prime put the rest of season 5 up, so if I get caught up on those I might actually be able to watch concurrently next season!

 

[SigmasonicX]

Two-minute clip of the season 6 premiere. It's just next week, so I won't watch this.

 

[wookieofdoom]

Aw damn it. I got confused on my days...thought season 6 started today.

 

[PaulloDEC]

Two-minute clip of the season 6 premiere. It's just next week, so I won't watch this.

Cute clip. Not much to be concerned about in terms of spoiling the premiere; it's a very "establishing" kinda scene.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Official tabletop RPG coming from River Horse

Interview with the developers (41 minutes and 53 seconds in). Kind of awkward, since the developers are still in the "constantly trying to justify themselves" mode, but not too bad.
* You can only be earth pony, pegasus, or unicorn. No alicorns.
* Pegasi have flight, unicorns have magic skills.
* Earth ponies have no extra skills, but have higher base strength and stamina.
* You can choose to start at a level 0 pony without a cutie mark, or a level 1 pony with a cutie mark.
* Special talents and weaknesses are chosen by the player, they don't appear to have predefined stat influences.
* Given that it's meant for children to play with their parents, player actions are very open-ended and a lot of the work appears to be on the game master's side.
* The starting book will have adventures based on your characters being sent somewhere by the Cutie Map.

Obviously, for more advanced players, the fanmade RPGs will probably be preferable, but there could be interesting stuff in this.

 

[Infinite Justice]

Cute clip. Not much to be concerned about in terms of spoiling the premiere; it's a very "establishing" kinda scene.

Yea.

Spoiler

I like that Glimmer is kinda uncomfortable with this given what she did but it doesn't stop Twilight from being overly excited/positive

 

[PaulloDEC]

Cool to see that tabletop game showing up. Not really my scene, but like the CCG I'm glad that it exists.

Also, River Horse? Seaponies confirmed at last.

Yea.

Spoiler

I like that Glimmer is kinda uncomfortable with this given what she did but it doesn't stop Twilight from being overly excited/positive

Spoiler

Yup, Twi has some crazy tunnel vision. Once she's excited about something, everything else seems to just fade into the background.

 

[DrForester]

Yea.

Spoiler

I like that Glimmer is kinda uncomfortable with this given what she did but it doesn't stop Twilight from being overly excited/positive

Spoiler

I think she's nervous because she probably knows her friend is in the Crystal Empire. That's probably her first Friendship assignment. To make reconcile with him.

 

[SigmasonicX]

June comic solicitations

Friendship is Magic #43

Thom Zahler (w) • Tony Fleecs (a) Tony Fleecs (c) • Sara Richard (sc) • Mary Bellamy (ric)
“Ponies of Dark Water Part 1” The Ponies go on an adventure to a newly erupted geyser. After some fun playing in the water, the ponies begin to act a bit strange, perhaps even… sinister? What happens when good ponies turn bad?
* The ponies meet their greatest foes…themselves!!

Friends Forever #29

Ted Anderson (w) • Brenda Hickey (a & sc) • Tony Fleecs (c)
When Rarity meets Maud Pie at a gem convention the two seemingly have little in common. But when Maud comes across an opportunity to make a name for herself in rock academia, Rarity may be just the pony to help Maud discover her inner enthusiasm.

Both of these seem like they could be good, but I've learned to be wary of main series arcs. I recall it being mentioned before that we'd see evil versions of the main six, and everyone assumed that we'd see their counterparts from "Reflections" in more detail, but I guess we're going Nintendo with Dark versions instead. For Friends Forever, I like the idea of Rarity and Maud bonding over gems.

 

[PaulloDEC]

I'm not a huge fan of either Zahler or Fleecs, so I'll be pretty wary of Dark Water. Premise sounds interesting at least.

Rarity/Maud FF on the other hand sounds right up my alley. Anderson has done some very solid work, and Hickey is my favourite artist on the series.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Friends Forever #26 - Shining Armor and Blueblood
This was an interesting and enjoyable story, but I felt that it had one major flaw: it went too far in redeeming Blueblood and didn't really demonstrate the negative qualities we saw in "The Best Night Ever". When Blueblood said that Shining Armor was lucky that the orphan he fell in love with was a princess, I was expecting a conflict between them regarding their views on lower classes. Given that, his friendliness toward the yak servants felt off, even if his narration clarified that he didn't really care about them, and it was weird that the crystal pony servants had no problem carrying him around (especially having no response to the cold). It probably would have worked better if Shining Armor contributed by being friendly to the servants, which helps push Blueblood's negotiations through, so the two princes would have worked together.

Anyway, the art was good, I thought Blueblood's negotiation advice was interesting, and the scenes with Twilight and Cadance were cute.

EDIT: Link to season 6 OT

 

[PaulloDEC]

Friends Forever #26 - Shining Armor and Blueblood
This was an interesting and enjoyable story, but I felt that it had one major flaw: it went too far in redeeming Blueblood and didn't really demonstrate the negative qualities we saw in "The Best Night Ever". When Blueblood said that Shining Armor was lucky that the orphan he fell in love with was a princess, I was expecting a conflict between them regarding their views on lower classes. Given that, his friendliness toward the yak servants felt off, even if his narration clarified that he didn't really care about them, and it was weird that the crystal pony servants had no problem carrying him around (especially having no response to the cold). It probably would have worked better if Shining Armor contributed by being friendly to the servants, which helps push Blueblood's negotiations through, so the two princes would have worked together.

Anyway, the art was good, I thought Blueblood's negotiation advice was interesting, and the scenes with Twilight and Cadance were cute.

Got around to reading this tonight.

Blueblood is a kinda interesting here. On the show his most defining trait was being oblivious to how incredibly rude he was. They've dialed that back dramatically here, and in fact it disappears completely once he starts dealing with the Yaks. Back in the Crystal Empire he's complimenting tyrants, breaking furniture and making skeevy comments about people's' wives; in Yakyakistan he's a consummate professional.

That aside, not a bad issue. Shining gets stuck replaying the events of "Party Pooped" for a while, which is a bit of a bummer. I liked Blueblood's page on diplomacy though, and I enjoyed both the art and the dialogue in general.

 

[Infinite Justice]

Man today is the day

Should be interesting

 

[PaulloDEC]

Man today is the day

Should be interesting

Yup! There's a shiny new OT if you'd like to join us.