MLP:FiM Megathread: Does anyone even watch this show anymore edition

[NeoCracker]

My thoughts are mostly on the irrelevance of ones Cutie Marks and how irrelevant they seem to be on a whole, and are rather just a small aspect of the ponies themselves. For example, Rarity's talent is Gem Finding. Mind you that is far from any one of her defining characteristics, and her living is made by fashion, which is supplemented by the finding of Gems, but really that just helps her cut out the middle man.

Applejacks special talent is something related to apples, I haven't really pieced exactly what together, but yeah. However she is highly praised mostly for her athletic ability other then some apple related ability.

Twilights talent is magic, yet she is also an encyclapedia of all sorts of information ranging all sorts of topics, and clearly shows superior management and organizational skills then all the other ponies.

I know Pinkie Pie has her own theory on her cutie Mark, but she's crazy and any story she tells should be taken with a grain of salt.

Though in case of Fluttershy and Rainbow it seems pretty consistent.

[Pike]

I don't think the CMC are ever going to get their cutie marks during the show's run. I could see it happening if they ever made a movie, though.

[Laddy]

I do hope and predict there will be an MLP movie. Whether or not it gets a theatrical release is beyond me, but a thearically-released MLP film would be genius for Hasbro at this point.

[Hollycat]

Yes, but not yet.

[NeoCracker]

I'm not sure the world is ready for a line of middle aged men surrounding a theatre in MLP cosplay waiting overnight to see this film.

[Hollycat]

GAH! I can't find todays episode anywhere!

[Agent Proto]

Here you go while it's still up. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic - Season 2, Episode 20 - It's About Time - 1080p - YouTube

[Hollycat]

Here you go while it's still up. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic - Season 2, Episode 20 - It's About Time - 1080p - YouTube

Thanks bro

[MJN SEIFER]

As I mentioned earlier, I am really interested in cutie marks, so I am going to attempt to reply to a lot of you at once here, so this may or may not be a long reply, so brace yourself for it, I hope you see it though.

So my wife and I were discussing the CMC. We were talking mostly about how and when they will get their cutie marks. We both agree it will be pretty far in the future, especially since they seem to love making CMC eps (especially in S2).

Where were sort of diverged was on whether they would get them all together or at different times. My initial thought is that they will obviously make some episode where everyone's special talents shine through in their very different ways to solve single problem (sort of the like the fire episode) and in the end, will end up with cutie marks relevant to the skills they used.

My wife wonders if they will potentially have them get them at different times causing strife and dissent between them. At first I wrote this off as not possible since the other idea seems more marketable and happy go lucky for the "intended audience."

However, my wife argued that many elements have already been thrown in (especially notable in S2) that are obviously aimed at bronies and an older demographic in general since so much of the audience has gone that way. I guess I could see them going that route, but I'm curious (and she's curious) what other people think.

Will the CMC get their cutie marks all at once, or at different times?

I think it's most likely they'll get their cutie marks all at once, similar to how the mane six got their cutie marks around the same time when filly Rainbow Dash performed her first sonic rainboom. I kind of view the CMC as the Mane Six Redux as two of them are younger siblings of two of the members, and each kind of ponies are represented in both groups. I just think it's only natural that the CMC will each get their cutie marks at the same time.

I've been thinking of this for a long time myself to be honest, and ever since I watched The Cutie Mark Chronicles I've always personally hoped that they would in some way do a similar thing with the CMC (without blatantly copying the rainboom thing, but basically doing a cool history repeating it thing). The ending of TCMCC is still one of my all time favorite endings ever, as what could have easily been a throw away twist ending ended up being a really aww and sentimental ending for the show. I just like the idea of them being connected before they knew they were, as I'm interested in that sort of thing. I wish I could explain it better why I like it. I would personally prefer it if the CMC got their marks at the same time, or at least in the same episode (bonus points if it's all triggered by the same event - though whether it will be done by a CMC themselves remains to be scene.) I will admit an episode where one CMC gets her mark first, and the others become jealous did cross my mind, but after seeing The Cutie Pox it seems unlikely.

My thoughts are mostly on the irrelevance of one’s Cutie Marks and how irrelevant they seem to be on a whole, and are rather just a small aspect of the ponies themselves.

I personally disagree with these, as I find at least the mane six's cutie marks to be relevant, and actually a key aspect to the ponies, in a way that goes further than it seems...

For example, Rarity's talent is Gem Finding. Mind you that is far from any one of her defining characteristics, and her living is made by fashion, which is supplemented by the finding of Gems, but really that just helps her cut out the middle man.

Rarity's talent is actually that she can use the gems she finds in her fashion design. This is more relevant to her character. Yes, she is good at finding them, but her real talent lies in what she does with them; in her flashback she gets her mark once she realizes that gems were the certain "it" she needed to make her designs perfect and unique - the flashback implied that she had been experimenting with fashion design for a long time, but wasn't pleased with what she had made. If her finding gems had been her talent/cause for her cutie mark she would have received it when she found them, but no, she received it when she realized that gems were what made her costumes stand out - she realized she had a talent for using gems in her designs, not finding them.

Applejacks special talent is something related to apples, I haven't really pieced exactly what together, but yeah. However she is highly praised mostly for her athletic ability other than some apple related ability.

This is harder to define without being somewhat contrived, but her talent seems to be that she tends to the Apple Acres more than anything. I think however, that Hasbro (and maybe Lauren herself as she would have had the deciding vote on this) just wanted to keep the apple theme going on this version of Applejack's character as she was one of the few "classic" ponies that Hasbro could include in the show without running into copyright issues with themselves (yeah, doesn't make sense to me either), so maybe they just kind of built the character around what they had, and just said "she needs to have an apple cutie mark, no matter what we do with her." Yeah, I warned you it was contrived.

Twilights talent is magic, yet she is also an encyclapedia of all sorts of information ranging all sorts of topics, and clearly shows superior management and organizational skills then all the other ponies.

Well I don't know if OCD is really a talent In a more serious matter, I think that the title of the show Friendship is Magic is actually meant to be taken more literally than it seems and there's all one big metaphor waiting at the end. I think also that because Twilight has talent in magic she's able to put it to use and incorporate into what she does.

I know Pinkie Pie has her own theory on her cutie Mark, but she's crazy and any story she tells should be taken with a grain of salt.

As random as Pinkie is, I think she's more aware of what's going on that she gives the impression of - she knew how to handle the parasprite situation, but told everyone about it in a weird way that didn't seem at all connected to the disaster (though to be fair, nopony made half an effort to even try to understand what she was saying...). I think that on the whole she's meant to be more perceptive than she seems, just hyperactive to go with it. Even with doubts on how she got her mark, it still makes sense that partying is her talent, which brings me to my next point;

I actually think that the Mane Six's cutie marks are supposed to coincide with their elements; Pinkie's talent is partying/making parties, which would lead to laughter, Rarity's talent for designing with gems allows her to make dresses, and other varieties of clothing for others, which would lead to her generosity, Twilight's element is magic whether you look at it literally or figuratively given the show's title, Fluttershy's talent linking to her element is so obvious I don't think I need to even point it out. I have a much longer answer planned on how Dash's talent fits into her element, which includes a theory on the rainboom itself. Applejack's is the only one that I can't link her talent to her element (which is honesty), but again this maybe because they just forced themselves to give her a literal cutie mark of apples, which is what she always had in every version she was in, even before they were important and were just "symbols".

I don't think the CMC are ever going to get their cutie marks during the show's run. I could see it happening if they ever made a movie, though.

I kind of hope they do, but we'll have to see. A movie would be awesome though.

[MJN SEIFER]

As long as it is, I hope that you'll giive it a read because I put effort into it. Thanks.

[Tigmafuzz]

*Really long post*

[MJN SEIFER]

^You're only getting off light because you uploaded a really "awwwwww" picture, but I do hope at least one of you will find time to read it. I know it's long, but I spent a lot of time on it, and I would like to hear your views on it...

[NeoCracker]

Even if you take the Friendship is Magic thing literally, Twilight is Still the best manager type Ponyville has. Just see Winter Wrap up for proof of that. She even managed to get them to finish on time regardless of the amount they were late by when twilight took the helms. She has a clear talent for both Magic/Friendship AND management. One just comes up more then the other.

And I recall with Rarity it stated her talent was for finding Gems, but lets say I'm wrong and that was never stated, and it is in fact for making Fashion with Gems is her talent. She's made Jewel-less clothes before. That makes no sense what so ever. Look at all of the dresses she made in 'Suited for Success' and you'll see the shear lack of Gems those dresses possess. These are designs that impress whatever that dudes name was who watched the fashion shows. So what you are telling me is she has a talent for using gems in her desings, yet is recognized for her jewelless outfits?

And yeah, your AJ explanation is a pretty damn big stretch.

The Cutie Marks work fine as giving you a glimpse into the pony characters, but the route they go with the CMC is just silly. Especially on the first episode with them where there is the whole thing about 'you already have your cutie mark, where as I'm a blank slate who's talent could be anything'. That is just a silly line, as apperently the moment they each get their cutie marks they'll be in the same boat. Which is really odd, as they treated that as though it were a bad thing.

And on to Rarity again, if Cutie marks signify a talent for something, why the hell hasn't she a famous designer already? Clearly she has talent, I mean look at her Cutie Mark. Is it because she still needs to practice to improve her skills? Clearly this is the reason. Now the question is can they improve things not related to their talent? Well, FlutterShy has shown herself to be a mighty fine Chiropractor, there is Twilight and her Managment skills, Applejack and her athletic talent, Rarity and her Gem Finding/making non-jewel garments/shop owner, so yes they can improve things unrelated to a cutie mark. Which really means a cutie mark doesn't really dictate what it is your good at.

That means cutie marks are one of two things. 1) A story adults tell children just to make them work towards something, or 2) a superstition the entirety of Equestria believes.

I think a cutie mark works much better as a glimpse into a their Personality and what not rather then their special talent.

[GhandiOwnsYou]

Wall o Text approaching.

AJ's was explained in a way, but it IS a bit non-standard compared to the other ponies. If you look at the mane 6 at how FIM describes cutie marks, 5 out of the 6 are pretty obvious. Cutie marks seem to be described in two manners, the most common being "your special talent." Most of the main 6 seem to follow this "special talent" line. Twilights special talent is magic, Rainbow Dash flies fast, Fluttershy can communicate with and therefore care for animals, and Rarity's I've always taken as fashion as a whole. Pinkie's seems to be bringing happiness/laughter to a group of people.

This drops us off the AJ and the second way cutie marks are referred to. You'll also hear pony's say a few times that cutie marks are what makes you special, rather than a specific talent. AJ's single defining factor is her love and protective nature of her family. Growing up in a farm family, the way that she would show that love, care and affection for her family would be through taking care of the farm, ensuring that her family would always be okay and at the same time preserving what her family had built through the generations. If her defining characteristic is her love of her family than it all fits together. She got her cutie mark when she realized how much her family meant to her, and it manifested by giving her a cutie mark that said "go home, take care of the farm, and take care of your family."

I feel like both Pinkie and Dash can be interpreted better this way as well. It's not so much that Pinkie can throw a party better than anyone else, but more that her defining characteristic is that she wants to bring smiles and happiness to people around her. I feel like this was at least suggested when she threw her first party. She didn't get her cutie mark when she threw the party, she got it when she saw her families reaction to it. So it's less that she has a particular TALENT at throwing a party, and more that what defines her as a pony is that she wants to make ponies happy.

I feel like it's much more apt to look at cutie marks as more general than a "special talent" thing. Rainbow Dash flies well, yes, but her cutie mark could also be looked at as showing that she's fast, exciting, and adrenaline junkie of sorts. She doesn't just fly fast, she's competitive in a huge number of ways and is constantly on the look out for something faster and more exciting. Rarity can find gems and make dresses, yes, but if you look at her Cutie Mark as indicating that she wants spread beauty and grace in all forms it explains a lot more of her behavior. Fluttershy has her caring nature vs it just being an "I can talk to animals" tattoo.

Twilight's a little trickier. Twilight's special talent is obviously magic, but thats a bit harder to interpret as a defining characteristic. If you look at the mark itself, it's a six pointed star surrounded by 5 other stars. It's pretty obvious that this is hammering the Elements of Harmony point home, with her main star being fueled by her 5 friends. It's also repeatedly referenced that the Elements of Harmony are the strongest magic in Equestria. So if I was to say anything was Twilights defining characteristic, I would say Harmony would be what her cutie mark is really trying to get across. Harmony is obviously a large factor in the way magic is used in Equestria, thus explaining her talent in the field, but it would likewise explain her almost OCD nature and her skill at management and organization, harmony also being defined as a consistent, orderly or pleasing arrangement of parts. It's always been my personal opinion that this is why Celestia was so quick to snap her up as a pupal. The second she saw the cutie mark she knew exactly what it meant, and that Twilight was going to be the lynch pin in saving Equestria's plot several times.

So yeah, that's my logic anyway. Cutie marks = more defining characteristics, less specific talents.

[NeoCracker]

So basically we agree on what the cutie Marks seem to be.

And if they ever make a movie, for the love of god don't make it about the Cutie Mark Crusaders.