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[Sordid]

His trying to break up the main characters friendship was mean and probably a bit spiteful but to be fair to him they where trying to imprison him in stone.

Yeah, what was a bit nasty, wasn't it? Overall I have to say I'm rather disappointed with the S2 opening two-parter. It's the same plot as in S1, except without the character development and with an ending in which the power of friendship doesn't bring about peaceful reconciliation but rather turns people into stone. Hm.
I just hope this drop in writing quality isn't permanent and the rest of the season is significantly more well thought out.

[Bohandas]

Just want to state that Discord was not "evil" nor a "villain". While he was the antagonist he was mostly just trying to have fun and spread a little chaos. Chaos is not evil just like Order is not good. Too much or too little of either is quite bad for you/society but not in and of itself evil.

Seconded. Chaos and Order both have the potential both to create and to destroy.

Here's a handy diagram:

[tehstefan]

Meh, I liked the two parter. Some of the jokes were absolutely top notch, and most of them were pretty good. Overall I'm satisfied with the opener.

[kaijyuu]

I'd consider it more of a "closer" than an "opener." It wrapped up all of season 1 quite well and didn't introduce anything new that wasn't resolved.

/nitpick

[LordBucket]

Official word relayed on EQD was that it actually was intended to be the season 1 closer but was pushed back for some reason. If you check the credits, Lauren is still being credited as executive producer, a title that she no longer has for season 2.

[Jacob/Lee]

Ha, Killing Floor crossover.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[Sergius]

I'd consider it more of a "closer" than an "opener." It wrapped up all of season 1 quite well and didn't introduce anything new that wasn't resolved.

/nitpick

I'm not really sure what did it wrap, or what was it about season 1 that needed wrapping? About the only loose end from season 1 for me was: WTH did they do with the fancy elements? Did they pawn them? Well, now we know, they had put them in a box somewhere.

[Flying Dice]

Actually, I completely agree with the interpretation LordBucket posted, both because it offers a much better reason for the way Discord acted (One point in particular was the ease with which Twi undiscorded the rest of the mane six; if Discord had actually put his full power into that, Twilight Sparkle would be effectively Celestia-tier in terms of sheer magical power, in that she was able to break a supposedly powerful enchantment cast by a living god with minimal effort, and then was able to channel the power of the EoH through her friends to "imprision" him again.), and because it make the way they crammed everything into p2 much less annoying.


Also, going on the theory that Discord is released when the EoH leave their current owner, wouldn't he have been freed as soon as Celestia used them to send Luna to the moon? Because IIRC that was the moment she lost power over them, for using them incorrectly.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I hate pony crossovers.
EeNOPE

BillTwilight Sparkle: "What the hell are you doing FrancisPinkie?"

Fallout Equestria, pony crossover of win, I can recommend no other.

Yeah, that has been pretty great so far. I've just been annoyed by it a bit because my nitpicking side doesn't want to ignore the occasional poor word choice.

 Also, 31. 

Oh, and Stargate: Equestria is pretty great as well. I really like how the author managed to capture the pacing and feel of a typical SG-1 episode, even without the self-referential metahumor.

[kaijyuu]

I'd consider it more of a "closer" than an "opener." It wrapped up all of season 1 quite well and didn't introduce anything new that wasn't resolved.

/nitpick

I'm not really sure what did it wrap, or what was it about season 1 that needed wrapping? About the only loose end from season 1 for me was: WTH did they do with the fancy elements? Did they pawn them? Well, now we know, they had put them in a box somewhere.

I don't mean "wrap up" in the sense of wrapping up unresolved plot threads. Rather, I mean "wrap up" in the sense of being a retrospective that brought the message of the entire season into focus. Just watch Twilight's redemption again.

[Silfurdreki]

Actually, I completely agree with the interpretation LordBucket posted, both because it offers a much better reason for the way Discord acted (One point in particular was the ease with which Twi undiscorded the rest of the mane six; if Discord had actually put his full power into that, Twilight Sparkle would be effectively Celestia-tier in terms of sheer magical power, in that she was able to break a supposedly powerful enchantment cast by a living god with minimal effort, and then was able to channel the power of the EoH through her friends to "imprision" him again.), and because it make the way they crammed everything into p2 much less annoying.

Also, going on the theory that Discord is released when the EoH leave their current owner, wouldn't he have been freed as soon as Celestia used them to send Luna to the moon? Because IIRC that was the moment she lost power over them, for using them incorrectly.

Yeah, that has been pretty great so far. I've just been annoyed by it a bit because my nitpicking side doesn't want to ignore the occasional poor word choice.

 Also, 31. 

I don't think Twilight would need to be Celestia-tier to undo the enchantments cast by Discord. Remember that that in this universe friendship is, in fact, magic, and very powerful magic at that. Now, that's not to say I don't like LordBucket's theory, I think it's elegant and quite plausible.

I think Fallout: Equestria has definitely improved over time, in the beginning it was just side-quests from fallout 3 with some nice characters, but it has grown to become a lot more than that. The characters are well developed and I think the parts that are not more or less directly ripped from Fallout quests are a lot better than the ones that are. Hopefully Kkat will continue making his own plot(s) in the future .



31...   ...   

[Flying Dice]

Actually, I completely agree with the interpretation LordBucket posted, both because it offers a much better reason for the way Discord acted (One point in particular was the ease with which Twi undiscorded the rest of the mane six; if Discord had actually put his full power into that, Twilight Sparkle would be effectively Celestia-tier in terms of sheer magical power, in that she was able to break a supposedly powerful enchantment cast by a living god with minimal effort, and then was able to channel the power of the EoH through her friends to "imprision" him again.), and because it make the way they crammed everything into p2 much less annoying.

-snipped a bit-

 Also, 31. 

I don't think Twilight would need to be Celestia-tier to undo the enchantments cast by Discord. Remember that that in this universe friendship is, in fact, magic, and very powerful magic at that. Now, that's not to say I don't like LordBucket's theory, I think it's elegant and quite plausible.

The point I was making is that it looked like Discord pulled his punches with the corruption of the mane 6, meaning that the enchantments weren't nearly as strong as he could make them, just strong enough for Twi to have to work to break them. Which would fit in perfectly with the other evidence that was established that pointed toward what LordBucket was suggesting. In other words, if Discord (Who, from what we've seen of him in canon, is essentially some sort of god with control over time and space) had used his full strength, Twi would have needed to break it using only her own magic and her feelings for her friends. So, as you said, the magic of her friendship. And keep in mind, she would be doing this without the power of the EoH, as from what we've seen they don't work if used in concert, meaning that she would be indirectly pitting the power of her friendship against that of a god which even Celestia and Luna were only able to "imprision" (although going by this interpretation it is doubtful if it actually came down to a battle of power between them and Discord).

I guess what I was trying to say is that the fact that Twi was able to break the discordification, and in such short timespans, indicates that Discord wasn't being very serious about it, as she was only relying on the magic of her own friendships, rather than that of the Elements. After all, if friendship is magic, then it must be treated as such, and if Twi's was powerful enough to break the full power of a god, she would by default be equivalent to one, at least in terms of sheer strength, which she really doesn't seem to be.

While she is probably the most magically gifted mortal in Equestria, the two serious situations have been solved through the use of the EoH, which appear to act as magical amplifiers which provide high levels of enhancement to the magic provided by the friendships of the mane six. In Robert Jordan terms, she solved both two-parter conflicts by using the equivalent of a circle, all members of which possessed an angreal, rather than her normal magical ability (which, as you noted, includes the magic of her friendships).


On a significantly more awesome note.

[Dsarker]

Cupcakes need ponies badly!

[Crazy Cow]

On the most awesome note ever...

[kaijyuu]

Cupcakes need ponies badly!

They might be put off by the name


You don't have to be psychotic murders if you don't want to, ponies!

[Silfurdreki]

The point I was making is that it looked like Discord pulled his punches with the corruption of the mane 6, meaning that the enchantments weren't nearly as strong as he could make them, just strong enough for Twi to have to work to break them. Which would fit in perfectly with the other evidence that was established that pointed toward what LordBucket was suggesting. In other words, if Discord (Who, from what we've seen of him in canon, is essentially some sort of god with control over time and space) had used his full strength, Twi would have needed to break it using only her own magic and her feelings for her friends. So, as you said, the magic of her friendship. And keep in mind, she would be doing this without the power of the EoH, as from what we've seen they don't work if used in concert, meaning that she would be indirectly pitting the power of her friendship against that of a god which even Celestia and Luna were only able to "imprision" (although going by this interpretation it is doubtful if it actually came down to a battle of power between them and Discord).

I guess what I was trying to say is that the fact that Twi was able to break the discordification, and in such short timespans, indicates that Discord wasn't being very serious about it, as she was only relying on the magic of her own friendships, rather than that of the Elements. After all, if friendship is magic, then it must be treated as such, and if Twi's was powerful enough to break the full power of a god, she would by default be equivalent to one, at least in terms of sheer strength, which she really doesn't seem to be.

I don't think it was Twilight that was breaking the discordification, she merely provided the initial momentum (the memory spell). I'd say it was either the individual mane six breaking their own discordification or their their common friendship. Essentially, what I mean is that friendship-magic is a very strong fundamental power in Equestria, one that neither Discord, or Celestia/Luna can directly overpower. I rather like the idea that there is a power more fundamental and unassailable than what god-tier characters can bring to bear.

This might also be why Celestia locked the EoH away after the mane six had used them the last time. They are a way to directly harness the power of friendship, so if Celestia could not overpower that, they could be a threat to her position. That Discord never just destroyed the Elements could also support this; he was not capable of destroying them (and neither was Celestia), since they are representations of an incredibly primordial (and powerful) force.

Of course, this doesn't discredit the possibility that Celestia and Discord planned out the whole thing in advance. I do, however, think that the Star Wars shoutout ending discredits the conspiracy a bit, since if Discord never actually posed a threat, Celestia would just have let the whole thing die out without a large celebration for "heroes" that defeated someone almost no one ever noticed in the first place.

Nevertheless, fanon, right? It's always up to what you personally think is cooler.

While she is probably the most magically gifted mortal in Equestria, the two serious situations have been solved through the use of the EoH, which appear to act as magical amplifiers which provide high levels of enhancement to the magic provided by the friendships of the mane six. In Robert Jordan terms, she solved both two-parter conflicts by using the equivalent of a circle, all members of which possessed an angreal, rather than her normal magical ability (which, as you noted, includes the magic of her friendships).

*Woooosh* That flew right over my head, I've never read the Wheel of Time.