Oh Jesus Christ pony show is back
it's been a while I'm not sure if I'm up for this anymore
-Pinkie Pie knows a Stepford when she sees it.
-What is it with these villains whose names are synonyms for "Twilight Sparkle"? Is this some kind of universal constant thing? Are they just being on-the-nose with their antagonists who reflect on the protagonist?
-Glimmer looks kind of like Cherry whatever from the "Applejack is #2" episode way back when. I'm pretty sure it's the hair.
-Not to get too Soapbox, but the vibe I get from this town is a real kind of conservative, reactionary-type version of equality, where you accept everybody equally but only so long as they act exactly the way you want them to and believe exactly what you believe. Like, the kind of men who'll let women into their boys' club but only so long as they're "one of the good ones" who will just accept how things are done without question, objection, or complaint. Or, perhaps more to the point, it's a "colorblindness" version of equality that says we're all equal because we're all the same, when the reality is that we're all equal because we're all
different. We're all human, but we all come from different backgrounds and have different experiences and react to the world in different ways; every life is unique, which means that every life is valuable, and the fact that we're all different and we're all valuable means that none of us is better or worse than anybody else. I'm extrapolating a lot about the moral from the first act of the first episode but, I dunno, I'm into it. Even if they're not being very subtle with this song.
-It's interesting to me that Fluttershy is finding this town appealing. On the one hand, she's definitely one to shy (HA HA HA HA) away from confrontation, so this outward veneer of "everybody's always happy and nobody ever argues and we always get along" probably would be appealing to her; after all, this entire town is evidently built around putting on a happy face and silencing or ignoring any part of you that might think differently or be uncomfortable, which is exactly what you do when you smile and nod and pretend everything's fine instead of confronting people when there's a problem between you. On the other hand, Fluttershy is a very particular pony with her own particular habits, behavioral needs, and coping mechanisms, and I don't think she'd do very well in an environment that demands conformity.
-Gee Twilight's horn is actually a good bit bigger than a normal unicorn's these days. I didn't even notice until she and Not-Twilight the Second had their heads next to each other in the same shot.
-don't look at me like that, glowlight glamor
-There was a store with a quill and a pen across the street from the shitty peasant cloak store. I wonder what kind of literature comes out of this town?
-Wait a second, is this episode about Mormons? Well, okay, I don't really like to shit on Mormons specifically, so what I mean is the whole "being uncomfortably obsessed with the newcomers and overbearing helpfulness as a form of soft evangelism" thing reminds me of some Christian groups I've bumped into.
-Rarity, you hurt that poor pony's feelings! Fluttershy was right about not being rude.
-2 muffins a piece. Twilight and pals are livin' the high life on the Equestrian taxpayers' dime.
-Huh. Being utterly baffled by things that contradict what you've been taught and reciting those teachings to prove your view must be correct? Actually I might be on to something with this religious angle.
-"Accidentally" eaten cardboard, Pinkie? Suuuuuure.
-"Daydreaming is one thing, but actually getting it back seems extreme." This is getting cultier and cultier. Have I started conflating cult mentality and religion? Eh.
-Y'know Twilight I think you might be whispering your secrets a little loudly.
-Pinkie you done fucked up
-Hmm. Why'd Nettleguy make this thing in the first place? What was he trying to accomplish? Are we gonna run into the other 8 magic things?
-And why does the = sign appear after removing the cutie mark? Could the magic be modified to just take away the cutie mark and leave flanks blank? Or does the = appear naturally, because a My Little Pony can't be without a cutie mark once it develops? If that's the case, why the = specifically? Could this staff be used on somebody who already has the = mark? Would that just stick a new = on them? Could you dupe infinite = marks and sell them to a vendor for infinite bits? Why am I asking these questions when I'm 99% certain none of them will matter?
-Losing their cutie marks doesn't seem to have affected our heroes much, at least not yet, but then it did just happen all of ten seconds ago so we'll see how things go in the second half. Still, I have to wonder if the cutie mark isn't necessarily directly tied to personality. Maybe the town's behavior comes out of a longer process of indoctrination instead. I know this'll be answered so I should really just keep watching and stop wondering about it.
-I wish Spike was here and hadn't been written out with some lame "boys and their sports" gag. I'd like to see how a creature that doesn't have cutie marks would fit into this plot.
-Oh okay, indoctrination it is. Looks like the cutie mark does have some kind of magical effect on personality, though. Personally I think that's kind of lame, traits and talents should be an innate internal thing, not tied to some magic picture on your butt.
-"Even tweets don't make sense anymore!" yeah okay
-Turns out Applejack's real special talent was folksy similies.
-Wait, "Meadowbrook?" Huh. I thought that word was "Nettle."
-Hey wait a second, they're all outside now, aren't they? Why not make a break for it? Cutie marks or no, it's not like a village full of nobodies can overpower a gaggle of protagonists.
-What's a cult without witch hunts, eh?
-Fluttershy shoulda pointed the hoof at somepony who wasn't part of that group. I doubt Shinespark Lantern wouldn't believe her, no matter how hard the accused denied it.
-You know I'm sure at least half of the mane six could smash a loudspeaker no problem.
-Well of course she still has a cutie mark, hypocrisy is a central part of any successful cult
-The fact that we didn't see any of Party Favor's time in the brainwashing house makes me suspect he's now a double agent.
-+1 for lecture interruptus
-I think getting their cutie marks back changed their hair.
-BALLOONS DO NOT WORK THAT WAY
-Apparently "moving at any speed greater than sluggish" is a universal pony talent.
-You know I think sculpting snow into a particular shape isn't really a baking-related skill.
-balloons still don't work that way
-He sounds like a surfer dude, but he's actually a ski-dude!
-SHOW'S OVER, EVERYONE LAUGH
Well, okay, that's a season opener. I think I like where this is going with the adventure-of-the-week setup they've opened up. I'm not sure I'm entirely satisfied with this episode's exploration of cutie marks as a concept but hey, whatever, if that's what I wanted I was looking for the wrong thing. I'm still a little unclear on what Moonlight Sonata's motivation even was, and the "she's like Twilight if she doubled down on studying magic instead of making friends" thing they just kinda throw out there at the end doesn't quite make for a satisfying character (plus it just adds to my sense that she's a lot like Sunset Shimmer but without the leather jacket so she's not as cool). It kind of seems like we'll be seeing more of her this season, though, so maybe it'll go somewhere in the long run?