What I want to know is how much of that anthem was scripted and how much was ad-libbed against actual music.
It sure sounded like the latter, for maximum authenticity. And that's part of what felt "feature film-y" about it: it's like they made an exception and did the underscore
first for that scene just so it would end up sounding "bad" in just the right way. Like they ate the cost of doing things out of order this time just because that's how they knew they had to do it
right.
E: And the setup! The setup was so marvelously well-written and organic. Spike traipsing out onto the field with a perfect (but ill-thought-out) plan to sing the Ponyville anthem because
obviously Ponyville would have won, and he grabs the spotlight onto himself before Shining Armor has a chance to dissuade him (even though he tries his best and in a very realistic taking-him-aside way), and only when it's too late does he realize his terrible mistake and the depth of the shit he's in and through nobody's fault but his own. The
Cloudsdale anthem?
All of a sudden every mention of Cloudsdale and the Wonderbolts and the EqGames running all the way back to Games Ponies Play makes sense retroactively as setup for
this one Spike moment. The Cloudsdale/Ponyville rivalry
had to have been set up that far in advance to feel this organic, for it to sneak up on us (and on Spike) so insidiously. I no longer regret GPP not ending with "And the games will be held in.... Cloudsdale!" and Rainbow Dash insensitively doing an aerial endzone dance.
