Wow. The finale was just wow. I know I'm a wee bit late, but I do have other business to attend.

I couldn't get over how drastically different it was from S1. Not just the finale, but the whole season. Especially the finale though. We have closed borders, espionage, identity theft, all-out war, international threats, straight up fighting in the streets, even a proper display of an armed-albiet-unready Royal Guard contingent. I've always wondered about Equestria's military, and it now becomes apparent that they are ridiculously inept and ineffective. I suppose this can only be expected with such a long period of peace, however. I can't help but wonder if training has been stepped up in the light of the nation's vulnerability, behind the scenes. If it hadn't been for Bronies, this whole thing would doubtless have been a repeat of "At the Gala", which, as amazing as it was, left something to be desired.

We also got to see something like serious marshal magic, from shielding to knockback spells. I hope I get to see a little more of that in S3, as magic is tricky due to the fact that its mechanics vary from fandom to fandom and we need a good understanding of how it works to write about it effectively, realistically, and without excessive dispute.

I hope we get to see more of what's outside Equestria. It'd be cool to know, wouldn't it? S3 has endless possibilities. They could do just about anything they wanted, you know.

I've been speculating on S3's opener. Return of an old villain? The coming of a new one who surpasses all who came before them? Regardless, I'll be rather giddy when it finally airs. I'm expecting a lot of S3. I can only hope that the awesomeness continues. S2 was about 20% cooler than S1, and that's quite an achievement. Even the staff at MLP will be hard-pressed to surpass themselves again.

For now, though, the canon remains frozen in time, and we can write fanfics without making adjustments every week. The off-season does have its upside, you know!

Goodbye, everybrony!