TheInvisiblePony

Starswirl's spell isn't what transformed Twilight, it was Celestia. As soon as Twilight finished the spell, Celestia summoned her.

If you'll recall in season 1, Twilight tried to cast a Cutie Mark spell on Apple Bloom and it failed repeatedly. She explained that such a thing was completely impossible. But here, she completes it -- a spell which can alter a pony's destiny itself. That's major, dude.

I guess your right. Really, I just need to go back and rewatch the episode. Still, I'd like to know the details of this spell, like how exactly it affected the ponies. I just want to know how they thought they earned the fake cutie mark once the swap had happened.

Well. I can honestly say I didn't like this episode. Oh, not because of the whole new alicorn on the block thing, I'm completely fine with that. Heck, if anything I can say I was never really surprised when I caught wind of the news. Really, it seemed a bit inevitable in retrospect, and all I have left to say on the matter is that I will still always think of Twi as a unicorn, mainly out of habit at this point.

No, what bugged me was the pacing, and a few other issues. But for now, lets start with the pacing. With all the music quite literally every two minutes at some points, this episode seemed a bit... forced, really. As in, I could have been fooled into thinking it was a twenty minute music video rather than an episode. Oh, and the plot was so glossed over it left me in the dust in a few places, which really is a shame, because the whole swapped destiny idea really intrigued me. But the cause was glanced over, the cure was glanced over, the morale implications were glanced over, and the doubt of royally (pun-intended) screwing up again were glanced over. This is the one episode that I think really, and I mean really, needed to be a two-parter.

The other thing I didn't like was how they handled the cutie-swaps. That in particular was a plot element that needed to be fleshed out. It should have gotten legitimate scenes, and not just a song. It should have been explored, but as it was I don't think this was nearly the biggest event Twi's been through. She's beaten a literal embodiment of chaos, and finishing a spell is what got her crowned? I question that, but mainly because Celestia's scene was barely looked at. From what I understood, Celestia was celebrating how far she had come, and that she was going to be a princess. I guess I can understand that the spell was specifically a culmination of all she had learned about friendship, but it just wasn't emphisised enough.

Oh, and why was Starswirl working on a spell to turn himself into a god princess alicorn in the first place?

It wasn't all bad though. I mean, the songs were good, even though they took the place of, you know, development. I did like Shining Armor's quote about liquid pride, which I may have to start using, and the overall message they were intending to get through was respectable enough. Just, too much to handle in the span of 20 minutes.

Still sound asleep as the sun rose, Fantasy was more or less unresponsive to the light. Over the years, she decided she never liked waking up because of sunlight, because that's just one victory the night had over the day. Waking up in the light never seemed to be better than falling asleep in relaxation. So, in a small victory against the day that some might consider silly and a little petty, Fantasy managed to figure out how to be a light sleeper to anything but light. She figured if anything should wake her up, it wouldn't be the sun.

So that's why she woke up to Darkness scooting back rather than the rise of the sun. Of course, still sleep deprived, she didn't really do much at first. Just kind of blinked, and registered that Darkness was a few hoof-steps away. Well, she was sleep deprived until that thought hit her. The promise of social activity, for better or for worse, always woke her up. Fantasy sat upright, figuring it would be rude to remain lying down, and stifled a yawn with her hoof. Blinking her eyes open for good measure, she spoke "Good morning." Mentally, she was already working out a few different things he might say, and a few different ways she could respond.

While she waited for a reply, she also glanced down at her coat and noticed the side she had been lying on was ever so slightly decorated with what she could only assume was crushed moss. Well, she couldn't have that, so she took her hoof and started trying to remove it from her coat. Awake or not, it was early enough to divert most of her attention.

Fantasy Tropes had no idea what she was doing in Manehatten. Well, technically she knew exactly why she was there: she had been trying to visit one of the museums in the city, mainly to try and see what pieces of history she couldn't see herself. What she didn't know, is just how crowded it would be. Because it was really crowded. She had already panicked twice in the large mobs in the streets, and she made great attempts to take what appeared to be back roads. Still, even the back roads had plenty of ponies, and Fantasy was beginning to feel a little claustrophobic, so she ducked into a hotel, rented a room for the night, and thought it would be less crowded in the early morning.

It was, but only slightly and even that was due to the fog blocking out most of the crowd, so Fantasy felt back at square one, but mainly she wanted to find a spot where she wasn't in a panicked state, and the hotel was not a viable option (she already turned in the room key, and was running low on bits as is).

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a coffee shop through the fog, and it looked empty enough, so the earth pony hurried towards the door. Walking in, she wondered if she was socially obligated to order a cup of coffee in order to stay, and made a mental estimation of how much it would cost her. As she stood by the door, she looked around and saw the pony she assumed to be the owner, a sort of tannish unicorn. She blinked, unsure of what to say, so she decided to opt against saying anything until she was addressed.

((OOC I can forgive your delay if you can forgive mine ))

Enos happily took the bread, and followed the pop star over to the wooden table. [colour=#696969]'Strange'[/colour] he thought [colour=#696969]'I wasn't even aware they were tables over here. Guess I should be a bit less absent-minded today. Or rather, I should try.'[/colour] Looking over to Sapphire, he looked just in time to catch the face she made. Out of context, the face took Enos by surprise, and he just barely managed to suppress a chuckle. He wondered what could have given reason to such a face, before he noticed a little dust on her food. Enos looked down at his own hooves, and decided it would probably be best to wipe his own hooves before starting to eat his bread.

Luckily, there was just enough pause for him to start eating. He kept forgetting how hungry he was, but with food in hoof it was neigh-impossible to. Miss Shores spoke up again while he just bit off his end of bread. She starting singing while he was trying to hurry the first bite. With half-chewed bread in his mouth, Enos didn't dare say anything at first, least he break one of the most important social etiquette rules Canterlot had -- that is to say, never speak whilst chewing your food. So, he did a lot of thinking instead.

[colour=#696969]'Is she... starting the music lesson now? Why would she... huh. Maybe she's just constantly on the fast lane. Okay, I think I can give this a shot.' [/colour]Enos, not bothering to look around at the one or two ponies that had cast askance glances, thoughtfully swallowed his bite, and cleared his throat. He was aware of the musical Do-Re-Mi, but hitting those notes without magic might prove tricky. He recognized the note, and tried to match it himself.

[colour=#696969]"Do-o-o-"[/colour] He paused mid note. That note was a bit high. [colour=#696969]"Do-o-o-o-"[/colour] Too low, that time. He coughed a bit, in an attempt to ready his vocal cords. [colour=#696969]"Do-o-o-oh!"[/colour] He let the note bounce around in his head for a second before deciding that it was close enough.

[colour=#696969]"Will that suffice?"[/colour]

Oh my goodness, how could I forget about my personal favorite accomplishment?

I once beat the Portal 2 co-op. By myself.

Now that was incredibly tricky. Has anyone ever tried playing a game with 2 different controllers? I heartily reccomend it. Its just difficult enough to be entertaining. Oh, not to mention you don't have to deal with the annoyances that come with co-op, such as your friends trying to murder you with portals. Honestly, this was an accomplishment born out of necessity more than anything else.

What would it be called?

I'm partial to Friendship is Magic: The Next Generation

Cause, you know, Star Trek.

You know, I've given the episode some more thought, and I've decided.

I would totally watch a spinoff series starring Discord and Fluttershy.

Fantasy stood there for a moment, and watched. Of course, simply watching something, even somepony you love, can be difficult to do without thinking as well, be it about the somepony in question or something completely different. In this set of circumstances Fantasy was thinking about the somepony in question, this somepony of course being Darkness. Watching the sort-of-snore was enough to put her at ease, and keep her thoughts from being unpleasant after all ease can be quite contagious. So, as she stood there, she decided to think of how content she was. Well, mayhaps content was a bit of an understatement, but she found it to be a good word.

One thing she did notice, was that he was taking to the cape quite well, which probably meant he was at least slightly serious about asking her to fetch it, as well as being playful. Not wanting to disturb the sleeping pegasus, she looked back up towards the sky, specifically towards the moon. She could remember a time when there was a mare on the moon, and only one princess on the throne, even though it was a while back. She could also remember when she would go into tombs, and have adventures and such by her self. The two were comparable only in that having a second pony join you was decidedly better than being alone.

With that in mind, she felt better having given those thoughts time to think themselves out, and looking down, she concluded he was probably too heavy of a sleeper to mind herself. Laying down, she nuzzled up next to him, and began to rest her eyes herself.

(OOC: Sorry 'bout the lack of activity. I've been slightly out of it)

[colour=#800080]"As you wish"[/colour] Fantasy continued smiling, and stretched happily for a brief moment before slowly walking over to where her cape was draped across the clearing's floor. She moved slowly so as to avoid making a ruckus of herself, and thus disturb Darkness, which she didn't want to do in the slightest. Upon reaching the nostalgic piece of fabric, she picked it up by one of the corners and turned back towards the now curled up Pegasus.

Continuing the relaxed pace, it took her a good few seconds to get back towards Darkness, despite there being little actual distance there. She would have said something at that moment, but she was using her mouth to hold the blanket, so even had she had something important to say, it would have muffled. Trying to match the pace and temperament she had but a moment earlier, Fantasy gently draped the blanket over the pegasus, then took a step back to admire her handiwork, as well as the stallion currently resting underneath it.

Satisfied, she whispered out [colour=#800080]"I hope that'll do. Its not much, but it doesn't look like you have much in the shape of blankets around her anyways." [/colour]With that, she turned back around and through the darkness located her hat, which rested in the same spot her cape was in. Although it matched the night around her, she never had any trouble spotting it, mainly though experience. Again, she walked the brief distance across the clearing, and picked up the hat. Putting it on with a slight tilt, she stood in the spot for a minute, frowning thoughtfully. With a realization, she realized the hat was backwards, and she addressed the problem with a slight chuckle.

I'd be 'appy to throw my hat into the ring.

So.. brief run over of strengths: Strong, even for a griffon, fairly smart (though he obfuscates this a bit), while not terribly fast, he has tenacity, and has a strong sense of honer. Some might argue too strong of a sense, really.

Let's see... on a playthrough of Professor Layton and the Curious Village I once solved every single puzzle without consulting any outside source, nor did I spend any of the hint coins to solve the puzzles.

Oh, and I didn't get less than full points for each and every one. That's probably my greatest accomplishment. Or, you know, the one I'm most proud of.

I'm the I to the N to the Vis-able Po-ny

And ain't no other pony here can see me.

I'm Invisilicious

I'm... actually not sure what to think of this episode. On one hand (or rather: hoof) it was fairly well written, had good jokes, and it has Discord, for Celestia's sake, but on the other hand, I have some problems with it.

For one thing, I'm not sure how terribly happy I am with D being reformed. A: if all the villains get to reform, it kinda takes away what made Luna so unique in the show. That is to say, she was the character that got redeemed fairly early one, and struggled with the whole concept. First Trixie, and now Discord, and soon we'll have back up element-bearers if it continues at this rate. Not a big problem, but more me being a bit nitpicky.

The second problem I have with this episode is the existence of a reformation spell that Twilight mentions. Now, we don't ever get to see it in action because it was kind of eated (which I did love about this episode: Discord being such a sly dog. Goat. Dragon. Thing) but its implied that it reforms ponies. This bugs me intensely. I know mind-warping magic exists as evidenced by pretty much every main villain thus far (with the exception of Nightmare Moon), but thus far its also been clearly classified as a villainous type of magic. The fact that Twilight has no qualms in using it kind of freaks me out, even given the circumstances. I know Discord is kind of, well, evil, but the point still stands that even though the use it for good, Twilight was essentially planning to do to Discord what Discord did to the main six. That was plan B.

The other problem I have is as follows: How in Equestria can Celestia prevent Discord from stealing the elements? As a serious, good to honest question, how? Its already been cannonized that Discord is both more powerful than Celestia and able to circumvent her spells, seeing as how he got them in the first place. So, I guess she made this spell specifically or.... I dunno. Maybe I'm just overthinking it.

Don't get me wrong, it was a great episode, and I absolutely adored all of the different ways Discord demonstrated his nigh omnipotence, such as the rolling of the eyes, and even the purifying of Sweet Apple Acres.

But yeah, Discord's back! Everypony can cross that off the checklist of things they want, and we can go back to trying to find Derpy. Or something. I don't know.

It was absolutely amazing. It wasn't as good as Broadway, but I suppose that's kind of a harsh comparison. Russel Crowe was not the best singer, but he certainly acted the part excellently, and I certainly felt emotion during the film, so what more can I say?

It was awesome. That's what more I can say.

Okay, time to shock the shoes right off you all... I've never played any of the final fantasy games. There, I said it! Are you happy now? That being said, I obviously don't know the allure to FF games.

Actually, I can't say I've played FF that much myself. I've played a little of VI, which I admit I liked, and a little of XIII, which was painful. Just... painful. The cinematics were pretty great, but it was sooo linear. Other than that I haven't played much either. I just can't really get into them, although I certainly have no qualms with anything in particular. In fact, I can certainly respect them. Just not my cup of tea, I guess.

[colour=#800080]"Fair enough, although I may be a while before I sleep myself."[/colour] She smiled at him, and then looked around the clearing. Spotting her hat and cloak, she figured an offer was in order.[colour=#800080] "If you think you'll pass out, you're welcome to borrow my cape. It makes quite a nice makeshift blanket."[/colour] She smiled kindly at Darkness, before looking back up to the sky.

Hello, everypony!

So, I'm aware that there's a favorite game thread up already, but what those series of games that you have special ties too? They don't have to be your favorite games, and indeed they could be far from the top, but that doesn't mean you can't love 'em just the same. They might be a favorite game from one's childhood, or rather a guilty pleasure, or even something you know is bad but still find yourself playing it time and time again.

You know those games, those wonderful discs, cartridges, and programs that have fought their way into the fiber of your being until, dare I say, you've developed a certain bias for them. Believe me, I don't even mean bias in a negative connotation. I mean straight up games you will defend to the point of defeat and back, because you love them that much. Or, you know, something less intense.

For me, I'd have to say its Neverwinter Nights 2. Hey, I never even finished the thing, and I still love it to pieces Mainly because it got me into D&D and RPGs in general, but I digress because it was still first and foremost a stellar game. Hey, it was even one of the first games I'd played, and I loved everything from the characters to the quests. Like I said, maybe not my favorite game, but definitely one of the most meaningful.

Fantasy paused again at the kiss, still finding it new, and so she followed his gaze up towards the stars. As she did so, she was instantly reminded why she preferred night to day. Somehow, the sky always seemed more... spacious. There was more room in the sky itself. How else could it get so many stars in? Regardless, she always felt at home in the night. She herself was not terribly tired as of yet, but she understood why Darkness would be. She didn't think he would be terribly accustomed to the night life, seeing as how he had places to be even by sun rise.

Smiling as she looked up, she stood there for a moment stargazing, as well as getting distracted with her own thoughts, but eventually she looked back towards Darkness. Not wanting to seem impolite, she decided to feign being tired herself. [colour=#800080]"I guess I can see your point."[/colour] Stressing the point, she put her hoof up to stifle a yawn.

[colour=#800080]"Fair enough. Sunrise is an excellent time of day."[/colour] She nodded, as she decided to step out of the pool. Upon reaching the shore - deliberately a distance away from Darkness - she planted her four hooves firmly on the ground and shook the water off, not thinking much of it. Besides, she hardly had a towel or somesuch thing, so she excused the shaking (she always considered it slightly impolite, and did it only when necessary).

Looking at him yawn, she inquired [colour=#800080]"Are you a bit tired?"[/colour] She tilted her head slightly, asking mainly out of curiosity. Now that she was fairly dry, she walked over to the spot where he was sitting, but seeing as how she was still rather wet she stayed put a few hoofsteps away.

Fantasy paused to think that one through for a few seconds. Her... with wings? She had expressed slight jealousy seconds before, but she wasn't quite sure if she could actually see herself with wings, even temporary ones. Also, she was mildly surprised to hear this Moonlite's name again. The more Fantasy learned of her, the higher Darkness' opinion seemed to grow of her. She had to be awfully nice, but that was a meeting that would probably take place at a later date.

Then she went back to mulling over the wings. She was aware of the spell, having read many a magic tome over her life, but she wasn't quite keen on the details, or anything besides the spell giving you wings. Still floating around in the water, she spoke [colour=#800080]"I've half a mind to agree with that proposition. The other half is firmly rooted to the ground."[/colour] She paused and gave a small smile, [colour=#800080]"Of course, being firmly rooted anywhere only works so long, so consider it a deal."[/colour] She looked around at the water, and the wonderful scenery one last time, before concluding with [colour=#800080]"But of course, we really don't have to leave now. Whenever you're ready, I'd be inclined to, but otherwise staying works fine with me as well."[/colour]

Silver perked up quite curiously at the comment, taking it in for a few seconds with a blank look on her face. After a slight stare, she chirped in happily [colour=#696969]"Its very possible that I could have inspired that. I have't really met anypony else who sculpts clouds."[/colour]

Staring happily, she more or less glossed over the comment on her looks, as she was more happy that she could have possibly inspired another pony. After all, it did certainly look nice, so she supposed Hope must be quite the artisan. Moving her gaze, she started looking at the piece in question, she continued a thoughtful stare, wondering several things about it. Chief among the thoughts were if she would like it seeing as how she wasn't one to really wear jewelry. Of course, she had never really tried it out, so she reasoned she very well could love wearing it as well. With that decision in mind, she nodded decisively and turned back to Hope.

[colour=#696969]"I'd be absolutely happy to try it on, if only to appease your curiosity I certainly think it does look nice."[/colour] Smiling quite happily, she noticed a tuft of her already messy mane had managed to find its way directly in her eyesight. Absentmindedly,she focused on it just long enough to blow it out of her face before reverting back to a happy grin.

Fantasy smiled as she watched Darkness burst from the water, before quickly shielding her face with her hoof. The droplets from the flight burst pretty much everywhere, including in her direction. Not that shielding herself helped her in any way, given that she was thoroughly covered from head to hoof in water already. It was really more of an instinct thing, and while up she reasoned that she probably deserved that one, but she was still fairly happy with the deed that caused the small explosion of water. He didn't seem to be upset at all, so that was just a bonus.

As she realized the droplets had stopped, she lowered her hoof and looked up only to see Darkness gliding back into the water. Smiling broadly and suppressing a playful laugh, she started to speak [colour=#4B0082]"You know, you looked quite in place up there. Probably goes hand in hand with the wings. Take it as an Earth Pony's admiration."[/colour] Letting the chuckle slip out a little, she followed a brief laughter by adding [colour=#800080]"And a touch of jealousy, might I add. I can only imagine what flight is like, really."[/colour]

Hugo was excited And maybe even that may be a bit of an understatement. Ever since coming to Equestria he'd worked as a strong-griffon, doing various heavy lifting related things, and he had to admit it could be a little dull from time to time. But this - this 'Wind Shear Passage - was going to be a different beast entirely. This was not just a show of strength, but a test of honor. Ever since he heard of the passage, he took it as a personal challenge, and Hugo always went out of his way for those.

In this case, going out of his way meant waking up earlier than he normally would, but that wasn't much of a problem. He was just happy to have made it onto one of the few groups attempting to make the journey. As he flew what he assumed to be the final part of his preliminary journey to the peak, he heard something of this 'Nocturna' being handed the supervisor role, which he figured probably suited her. Curiously, he also heard a different pegasus altogether singing of all things. As he approached the group he mentally pined over not knowing the song; otherwise he would have joined in the revelry. Instead, as he gave a last few flaps as he landed, he gave out a hearty laugh.

"Good to know I'm not the only excited one." He looked down into the canyon before continuing "This should make quite the story."

He smiled broadly with his beak, and stood with the proud stance that only a griffon could manage. Looking around, he reasoned there would be at least a small amount of waiting, if only to let the others arrive and such. He only had one slight fear, and even then it wasn't really a fear. Looking at the two pegasi before him, Hugo wondered if he could manage to be as fast. Certainly he could endure the flight, but from his experience most pegasi tended to be faster than him. Of course, speed probably wouldn't be the focus of this flight, so he reassured himself with that. Dangerous flight or no, he was determined to make it through.

Welcome welcome welcome, a fine welcome to you!

Welcome welcome welcome, I say how do you do?

Welcome welcome welcome, a hip, hip, hip, hooray!

Welcome welcome welcome to Canterlot todaaaaaay!