Summer of Pony ~ Session IX [S1E21-23]

[Rosewind]

Summer of Pony '12 ~ Session IX ~

Introduction/Schedule

Previous Sessions:

I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII

Over a Barrel, A Bird in the Hoof, The Cutie Mark Chronicles

Session IX is going to be short 'an sweet, my pretties! We do have a fun little vote-your-own-adventure kind of thing though! Huzzah!

So much pony! Watch:

"Over a Barrel" Original airdate: March 25, 2011

The ponies visit the frontier town Appleloosa, but are caught in a dispute between the settler ponies and the native buffalo herd, who claimed the land their apple orchard was established on.

"A Bird in the Hoof" Original airdate: April 8, 2011

During a visit from Princess Celestia, Fluttershy sees the Equestrian royal's seemingly sick bird named Philomena. Without the Princess noticing, the pegasus takes the poor creature home and tries to take care of it, only to find that this job is much more difficult than with her other animals. The situation takes a turn for the worse when Twilight gets involved and Celestia and her guards notice the pet missing.

"The Cutie Mark Chronicles" Original airdate: April 15, 2011

Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle learn the stories of how Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle got their cutie marks — soon realizing that all six of their stories share a common connection to one event.

Buffalo, birds, and fillies, oh my!

Game of the Week: Poll your Own Adventure!

Over the next several days, we will be posting a piece of a story, and will pause when a decision needs to be made. The choices will be in the polls at the top of each thread. To participate, simply read the story, decide what you want to do, and vote in the poll! We go!

Ah, the warm summer sun feels great. But better still will be relaxing after walking for a while day. So this is Ponyville? It is as scenic and quaint as they say. Perhaps a few days here will push out the big city worries for a while. There are some cute looking shops, but they can wait. Time to find a place to sit down and eat...and there, just beyond that pink pony is....

Hi I'm Pinkie Pie and I've never seen you before and if I've never seen you before you must be new and if you're new that means you haven't met anypony yet and if you haven't met anypony yet then you must be lonely and if you are lonely you must want to meet friends and if you want to meet friends you should do it at Sugarcube Corner so here we are have a piece of cake!

Huh. How did I get inside? I must have blinked. But this cake looks tasty...

Oh, thanks. My name is...

Well howdy stranger! 'Though I s'pose you ain't really a stranger once you've met Pinkie Pie. I'm Applejack! Welcome to Ponyville!

Pinkie did you waylay another pony on their way through town? We go through this every week...

Hi there, I'm Twilight Sparkle, and I can see that you have been traveling, take a seat and I'll have Mrs. Cake whip you up a milkshake. What brings you here?

I'm on vacation. Just looking for something to do and someponies to do it with.

Well you sure are in luck! Why, tomorrow is our annual Cook's Competition! There will be plenty of tasty vittles to eat, and...say, are you interested in entering are you? I'd be happy to share my kitchen with you!

Oh that's a great idea! You can team up with one of us, and if you don't have a place to stay we can lend you a bed, and we can stay up late swapping stories!

Or you know, get a good nights rest and be ready for tomorrow. I've read that sleep deprivation has a negative effect on performance on a wide range of competitions.

Hmmm, three invitations already! What a friendly town!

Who should I stay with?

Well, I appreciate all of your offers! I will stay with _______.

Please make your choice in the poll!

[weesh]

I am curious, when did you guys figure out that Philomeena was a phoenix? For me, it wasn't until she burst into flames. I think that is because I intentionally shut down the part of my brain that tries to predict what will happen next. I find I enjoy TV and movies more that way. However, it might have taken me that long anyways. I'll never know. My sister got it about 30 seconds after seeing her.

[starswirlthebearded]

This question was posed to me in a completely different way, but my answer is unwavering. Twilight Sparkle. My second choice would be AJ in this situation though.

Twilight has books, I like books. Yup, I'd totally nerd it up with her reading all night XD.

Just from what I remember...

I didn't like Over a Barrel much...

A Bird in the Hoof was funny. I can't not laugh at a Benny Hill scene. Second one in the series! Also, briefly dealt with death... sorta... kinda... I mean the bird burst into flames! I just wanted to huggle Fluttershy when the ashes were just passing through her hooves.

I recall enjoying Cutie Mark Chronicles quite a bit.

[Rosewind]

This episode set isn't my favorite. All of them have some good moments (especially Celestia's trolling), but I agree with ya Swirly!

[weesh]

A Bird in the Hoof was funny. I can't not laugh at a Benny Hill scene. Second one in the series! Also, briefly dealt with death... sorta... kinda... I mean the bird burst into flames! I just wanted to huggle Fluttershy when the ashes were just passing through her hooves.

The seven-year-old girl that I watched that scene with was completely horrified. She'd never heard of a phoenix before then. I had to comfort her in the moments in between the death and rebirth.

[SirShadowdeath]

About halfway through the episode I figured it out.

I scanned some mythological knowledge of mine for all the birds I knew. It was more of a guess than anything else, but it ended up being right.

[SonicRainb00m]

Oooo, it's tied between Pinkie and Twilight... But anyway, I realized it pretty late... not until Priness Celestia didn't seem to care a bit. Then it just popped up in my mind like a neon sign: Phoenix!

[SonicRainb00m]

And I also enjoyed Cutie Mark Chronicles quite a bit... That special comnection thing was pretty cool!

[BaconofChaos]

Voting AJ. I actually prefer Twilight and Pinkie, but I imagine that staying with either of them would be a chore. Pinkie would be fun but would probably talk your ears off well into the night and you'd never get any sleep. Twilight is cool, but I can't help but feel that her OCD would make things awkward ( "Okay, we just need to make a checklist of all the things we need to sort out for your stay. Item one: decide on what colour of blanket you'll need..."). AJ on the other hoof, would go out of her way to be a most hospitable host. Sure, you'd likely have to wake up early (it is a farm after all) but imagine the delicious apple-based breakfast she'd cook for you.

I am curious, when did you guys figure out that Philomeena was a phoenix? For me, it wasn't until she burst into flames. I think that is because I intentionally shut down the part of my brain that tries to predict what will happen next. I find I enjoy TV and movies more that way. However, it might have taken me that long anyways. I'll never know. My sister got it about 30 seconds after seeing her.

I seriously did not even get it until the last moment when Celestia started talking to the pile of ash. Until that point my thoughts were along the line of "They can't actually do that in a kids show, can they?" HERP A DERPA DOO.

I'm still not actually watching these episodes again. I almost feel bad participating in these. When we get to season 2 I'll probably start.

Over a Barrel is one of my favourites. So many good moments. Pinkie's song, Fluttertree, "Mild west dances". Yes the final fight was silly, but I got a laugh from it. Also, this episode gave us Braeburn. How can you not like it?

A Bird in the Hoof was good too, despite my complete inability to guess the twist. The whole sequence of Fluttershy trying to take care of Philomeena was brilliantly funny (this bit where she soaks up the water especially). This ep also gave us canon Trollestia, which was a welcome piece of characterisation.

The Cutie Mark Chronicles... was overrated. There, I said it. That's not to say it wasn't good, I just felt that it wasn't the fantastic episode that most people seem to think it was. I can't quite decide why either. Maybe it was the cheesiness of Dash's rainboom being the cause of the friends' "special connection", but I remember not being thrilled about the entire episode. Also, I didn't really like Fluttershy's song.

[Ginger Mint]

hi hi

While I haven't watched the episodes over yet, I gotta say I didn't guess that Philomena was a phoenix at all. It wasn't until she burst into flames and appeared good as new that I connected the dots, or had them connected for me, depending on how you look at it.

As for the story, I had to go with Applejack, but it was a really tough choice. Pinkie Pie is the obvious choice if you're not too interested in the competition, Twilight Sparkle is totally right about getting sleep, but Applejack is a bonafide tasty treat maker so I don't think you could go wrong with her on your side.

[Mojo]

Of the three of these eps, my favorite by FAR is "Over A Barrel"

In my opinion, Season 3 would do good to have another episode based in Appleoosa. I believe the dynamics of Appleoosa give plenty of opportunity for further plot development. First of all, it has the "buffalo vs. settler ponies" angle to it. Second, the town's Western flavor is a nice 'change of pace' from the more 'refined' areas of Equestria such as Ponyville and Canterlot. Third, I think background characters like Sheriff Silverstar, Braeburn and Little Strongheart deserve more appearances in the cartoon.

As for the episode itself, I loved all of the incidental comedy (a wild west 'showdown' with pies, Braeburn's introduction speech. Pinkie Pie's singing, etc.). The story was good too as was the 'lesson' of the story.

Of course, who can argue about the greatness of "The Cutie Mark Chronicles"? LOVED the origin story of Pinkie Pie as well as the triumph of foal Rainbow Dash! This was a great ep too, but by a thin margin, I still loved "Over A Barrel" better.

[weesh]

As for the story, I had to go with Applejack, but it was a really tough choice. Pinkie Pie is the obvious choice if you're not too interested in the competition, Twilight Sparkle is totally right about getting sleep, but Applejack is a bonafide tasty treat maker so I don't think you could go wrong with her on your side.

I like this post, as well as the others that explain the rational.

I will be writing the story with the character who wins, and hopefully, with the motivation that you had when you selected them.

[SonicRainb00m]

I just realized that Twilight actually said "anybody" instead of "anypony" in "Over A Barrel"... Not that big of a deal, but I expected her to say "anypony".

And after watching that episode again, I must say that it beats out my original favorite of the set, "Cutie Mark Chronicles". Great episode, lots of funny moments.

[weesh]

I just realized that Twilight actually said "anybody" instead of "anypony" in "Over A Barrel"... Not that big of a deal, but I expected her to say "anypony".

And after watching that episode again, I must say that it beats out my original favorite of the set, "Cutie Mark Chronicles". Great episode, lots of funny moments.

I notice when they say 'anypony', but I never notice 'anybody'.

[Rosewind]

Sometimes I catch myself writing "everypony" in school papers and other things outside of this community. It's an awkward thing to try to explain!

[SonicRainb00m]

Sometimes I catch myself writing "everypony" in school papers and other things outside of this community. It's an awkward thing to try to explain!

Oh wow, really? I really hope that doesn't happen to me until I am totally confident and comfortable.

[starswirlthebearded]

I don't think I've ever had any issues with that. I think I'm too accustomed to switching lexicon databases in my mind. But I'm a strange one.

[SonicRainb00m]

I don't think I've ever had any issues with that. I think I'm too accustomed to switching lexicon databases in my mind. But I'm a strange one.

Oh wow, you too? I switch between different vocabulary with different groups of people all the time.

[weesh]

I don't think I've ever had any issues with that. I think I'm too accustomed to switching lexicon databases in my mind. But I'm a strange one.

I'm impressed, I only have the one database. I try to keep it clean because I spends lots of time with kids and if I swear with my friends, it will come out with the kids.

ALSO! The next phase of the adventure is HERE!

[Mojo]

I just realized that Twilight actually said "anybody" instead of "anypony" in "Over A Barrel"... Not that big of a deal, but I expected her to say "anypony".

And after watching that episode again, I must say that it beats out my original favorite of the set, "Cutie Mark Chronicles". Great episode, lots of funny moments.

I think the reason Twi said 'anybody' in this case was because she was refering to ALL the parties involved in the dispute: the settler ponies AND the buffalo. Buffalo/bison are a lot of things, but they certainly are NOT 'ponies'.

Don't see this as a mistake, I feel the writers were accurate on this one.

[weesh]

I think the reason Twi said 'anybody' in this case was because she was refering to ALL the parties involved in the dispute: the settler ponies AND the buffalo. Buffalo/bison are a lot of things, but they certainly are NOT 'ponies'.

Don't see this as a mistake, I feel the writers were accurate on this one.

:D

WOW is it hard to write anypony while writing a story. While I was running through my draft of PYOA Part IV, I caught a "person" by luck, and went back through to find others. I found more, but I had already moved on when I found one that I had missed multiple times.

Are there situations where "anypony" and its kin were not used, though they would have been appropriate?

[Ginger Mint]

hi hi

Alright, since I didn't have a weekend to speak of, I'm going to try to knock down three episodes in three lunch breaks. Can I do it? Only time will tell.

And the first episode up for bid is "Over A Barrel," I admit it wasn't my favorite the first time I watched it. I think it was the first episode where I actually had to wait to watch, since I usually caught them as soon as they aired. It was hard on me to avoid spoilers, and I think the fact that some spoilers got through is what dampened it the first time around.

However, I thought about it for a while, watched it again and enjoyed it a whole lot more. It still might not be up there on my list of very best episodes, but its a good episode that tackles a really tough issue and handles it really well. I gotta give them mad props for even trying, let alone succeeding. It was a gutsy move to be sure.

Before I really begin, I'm pausing the tape cause I gotta get something off my chest. I the horse pulled steam engine. I have no idea why people made such a big fuss about it. Its just close enough to what we're familiar with to give a frame of reference, while being different enough to still feel like its from a magical faraway place called Equestria.

Bloomberg's bedtime story... This is one of the reasons why Friendship is Magic is, well, magic. They can take something absurd like reading a bedtime story to a tree and make it seem kinda touching actually. One of those little slice of life moments that you don't normally get in television. (Seriously, who didn't like getting a bedtime story when they were little?)

by Shuffle001

Rainbow Dash: "Oh man, we're going fast!" I admire her enthusiasm, but "man?" What is this Man you speak of? Probably some weird hairless monkey or something.

I know distances in Equestria are a little on the completely arbitrary side, but I was playing an RPG where people needed to know how far it was to Appaloosa and I went and did some checking and found that old steam engines in the mid to late 1800s went around 10-30 mph depending on the rail quality (faster rails existed but were uncommon) so for an overnight ride, Appaloosa could be hundreds of miles away from Ponyville. So even though you could walk to Canterlot or Manehattan in a day, Equestria is a pretty big place apparently.

"Fluttershy's not a tree silly!" Oh my, even if it weren't for any other part of the episode, this bit is absolutely hilarious. I had to watch it twice.

Also... memeception!

This one's for you Dessa.

Hey Little Strongheart, maybe you could stop and check to see if Rainbow Dash is alright? No? Ok...

Aaaaaaappaloosa! The horse drawn horse drawn carriages was my favorite part of that scene. I mean, did you see the expression on the sketched pony's face? I might be biased though... Mild west dances came close.

"We can't find Pinkie Pie too." You know, I never did understand how Pinkie Pie got off the train. I guess that's Pinkie Pie for ya.

"They totally respect dragons though." Hmm, after watching Season 2, I wonder if perhaps there's more than one group of dragons. Those dragons from the dragon migration didn't seem terribly respectable.

I admit it, when I first saw Spike playing the piano, I immediately remembered the My Little Pony movie... However, Pinkie Pie's performance was far and away better than Lickity Split's performance. I don't know why no one like Pinkie Pie's dance routine, maybe if they'd have watched Lickity Split's performance their reaction would have made sense though.

Animation genius right here.

"Ohh, that wasn't the message of my song at all..." There there Pinkie Pie *sniff* I got the message.

Applejack might not like the look of the storm brewing, but I loved the serious looks on all the different ponies as they were doing their sort-of-a-montage thing. And the music, lets not forget the music. The Appaloosa theme throughout the whole episode is one of my favorites, with its jaunty piano play, banjos and that weird twangy thing that I don't even know what it is. Some seriously epic stuff. I wonder what the show would have been like if they hadn't hired William Anderson.

Rainbow Dash: "Come on... think think think think." I do that myself sometimes, but it never works for me either.

I know I've posted this before, but I've gotta post it again.

Pinkie Pie is a force of nature, she can banish fear with a song and a dance, or start a international conflict without even trying too.

Although the bit with Sheriff Silver Star and Chief Thunderhooves was the most touching part in the climax, I thought the bit where the buffalo rams into the clocktower to be the most poignant. He never would have crashed into the tower if he hadn't been hit in the face with a pie.

I always found it a bit strange that some people didn't like the way the conflict was resolved in this episode. On one hand, yes, nothing the mane 6 did really influenced the outcome, but at the same time I think that teaches an important lesson in and of itself. "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink." Or in other words, you can try all you want to get people to get along, but they've got to want to get along somewhere along the line.

Now for the remix of the episode... It almost feels like cheating to pull out Eurobeat Brony for some reason.

[Ginger Mint]

hi hi

Well, it looks like I'm going to have to double post to pull this off. If that means I get banned, or thrown in a dungeon, or thrown in a dungeon in the place I've been banned to, I guess that's what I deserve. Cause it's time for "A Bird in the Hoof."

We'll see how well this episode stacks up to how I remember it. I admit it was never one of my favorites. It was sort of my go-to example of an episode that wasn't great, but wasn't really bad either. My original impression is that a good portion of the episode didn't quite click right for some reason.

I did like the intro though. If I somehow found myself magically teleported into Equestria, I don't think I would worry too much about receiving medical attention if I needed it. If Fluttershy can put a cast on a mouse, I suspect she might not have too much trouble putting a cast on a goofy looking hairless monkey.

My only complaint is that I wish the cool "Angel Bunny is pantomiming running late," musical motif had gone on to a full blown musical number.

"Oh, maybe I shouldn't go..." I've been in that position quite a few times myself. Thank goodness Angel Bunny is there to push her out the door. As much as people think he's awful, I say he's got his moments.

... Actually, this episode is going to be really hard for me to comment on just because I don't want it to turn into a long list of all the times I've been in a similar situation to Fluttershy, whether its being nervous at social gatherings or deciding that having to answer tough questions (Like: what's your name?) isn't worth the trouble and going home. To make matters worse, Pinkie Pie doesn't steal the scene in this episode but for a brief moment, and she doesn't quite get away with it either before she gets caught by the tail. Not that there's anything wrong with any of that, just hard to comment on.

"But this is the first time she'll spend any time with you." You'd like to think that wouldn't you Twilight Sparkle? Too bad fate has other plans for your tea party.

One thing I do like about this episode is one of the few times we get to see Princess Celestia's personality. She doesn't really mind Pinkie Pie's eccentricity, she got a playful side and her little prank isn't nearly as rough as any of the pranks from Griffin the Brush-off, and perhaps quite tellingly she puts her duty above her personal life.

Someone once commented asking why Twilight Sparkle doesn't ask the Princess for favors since she's so well connected, but I think this episode helps establish something that should have been easy to guess. With 1000 years of harmonious rule under her belt (or necklace...thing if you prefer) it makes sense that corrupt governing is not the way she operates. I don't think she is into cronyism or favoritism. Fairness must be important for her.

Also, judging from the looks of the party guests, Twilight has more friends than just the Elements of Harmony these days.

On my first watch through, the thermometer bit seemed way over the top, but of course now that I know Philomena is a phoenix, it makes sense that the thermometer would be way too hot normally and putting an icepack on her head would cause her to start freezing like that.

Is that hummingbird's name "Hummingway?" Oh my... now I'm imagining "Old Mare and the Sea," but Ernest Hummingway...

Fluttershy singing the My Little Pony theme song randomly? I think maybe that was one of the things about this episode that was weird. It just came out of nowhere. Maybe its just me though...

Twilight: "You have no idea what will happen when the Princess finds out!"

Fluttershy: "Do you?" - Brilliant!

Honestly though, this is one of Twilight's better freak outs. She's got some great lines, superior perhaps to even some of the parts in Lesson Zero. (Though its a pretty small portion of the episode by comparison)

Twilight tip-hoofing past the guards? They may have re-used the same bit in Its About Time, but I think its just one of those quirky things that's unique about her character. I mean, the guards aren't even looking for her, but it doesn't matter to her what anyone else knows. She knows the truth and thats what matters.

The part where Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Applejack show up just long enough to toss out a catch phrase or two was probably the other weird part about this episode that felt like it was out of place. I don't know what happened, maybe something got cut during production and they were supposed to have a real role to play at that point, but I guess 2 odd moments in 1 episode isn't that strange.

Everyone made a big deal about the funeral in Hearts and Hooves day, about ponies referencing death and what it could mean if they had an episode about death. However, I think that in part, A Bird in the Hoof covers the topic of Death in a number of different ways, some subtle, some not so subtle.

First off, Philomena pretends to die, and for almost 3 minutes of airtime, anyone in the audience who doesn't realize she's a phoenix or know what a phoenix is, is led to think she is dead. That's pretty straight forward, but there's more to it than that. Most of the episode is devoted to Fluttershy trying to save a pet but nothing she does can help. I think perhaps watching a pet grow old and sick can be a lot like that, sometimes there's just no cure.

So in the end, I ended up appreciating the episode more than I did the first time around. I guess thats part of what makes a good story is you can go through it again and see something new each time.

Now for the remix of the episode.

(this one's just for fun.)

----

I can't do it... I can't triple post. So here's my Cutie Mark Chronicles commentary, all >>Wall of Text<< of it.

I know I've mentioned this before, but I think this is the episode where the three crusaders finally managed to develop their personalities as separate from each other. In Stare Master they sorta all acted the same, but here we see Scootaloo's distaste for mushy stuff and Sweetie Belle's preference for not quite so active activities. Applebloom seems to be some kind of never ending source of positive energy and stick to-it-ness, cause ever since Bridle Gossip, she's been this little pony that could. (perhaps she'll get a steam engine cutie mark?)

"The greatest flier to ever come out of Cloudsdale... Fluttershy?" Ok girls, now you're just trolling her.

It sure is a good thing those girls are wearing helmets, I mean how many times do they get into/almost get into an accident in this episode? Important safety tip kids, always wear a helmet when you're zooming down the road in a hoof powered vehicle. (Or wear a seatbelt if applicable, that works too.)

Little Big Macintosh is soooo cute. Its hard for me to tell who's got the best cutie mark story out of the mane six. Rarity may have humor and Twilight Sparkle may have epic epicness, but one thing's for sure... Applejack has heart. After almost a whole season of being a rough and tumble, no nonsense, hard working pony, we see her at a time when she was lost and adrift. (so to speak) I think it goes a long way to explain why she's so well grounded, and later, even though she might be swept out of her element somewhere, she carries some piece of home with her.

"cock-a-doodle-doo..." Celestia help me, that part makes me cry every single time. Every. Single. Time.

Scootaloo: "Sweet? Try sappy!" Sorry Scootaloo, but you should know by now that your attempts to earn a cutie mark are going to leave you covered in sappy stuff.

I know some people thought that Fluttershy's filly design was weird, but I always liked the gangly, awkward look she has. I think it fits.

Rarity's cutie mark story, while short, was even funnier that Pinkie Pie's if you ask me. Part of it is how Tabitha delivers the lines, as usual, but the absurdity of the whole situation is just great. From the way she gets pulled along to the silly costumes everypony is wearing in the play.

(Have a few parodies based on that scene, if you haven't already seen them.)

Watching this episode the first time made me wonder, and later on seeing Sisterhooves Social kind of cemented the idea in my head, but I get the feeling that gems in Equestria aren't so much valued for their monetary worth as they are valued for their beauty. I suppose it makes sense because if it was our world, Rarity would make a fortune just finding the gems, rather than making outfits out of them.

Scootaloo: "We need action, we need Rainbow Dash."

Cut

Twilight Sparkle: "As a young filly in Canterlot..."

The way Tara Strong delivers that line is perfect, she could put someone to sleep with that drone as easily as my old macro-economics professor.

You know, I hadn't been completely sold on Princess Celestia up until this point. I mean, I always thought that she was wise and fair, not really buying into the whole trollestia thing. But wow, seeing her in action like when she raises the sun? Its not hard to understand why ponies think she's awesome, cause she is pretty awesome right there.

Also, did anyone else get the impression that Twilight's parent's were rather well to do after seeing that study room where she's learning magic all night long? I wouldn't doubt that they were important ponies, even before Twilight became the Princess's star pupil.

Those ponies judging Twilight during the entrance exam? They were just as bad as my first judge when I was taking my driver's test. I just want to bonk them on the nose and say "No! Bad pony!"

Oh Pinkie Pie... I'm willing to bet that at least 68.3% of her story is accurate, but the margin of error on that estimate is rather big. I would go into a discussion about the logistics of rock farming, but I think that might be a topic of its own.

Rainbow Dash has some of the best theme music, hooves down.

I know nobody's going to read this (seriously, if you made it this far, congratulations!), but I think Cutie Mark Chronicles dispels a few myths about Rainbow Dash that had been floating around ever since Sonic Rainboom. Lots of people got the idea that Rainbow Dash was an insecure pony who tries to act cool because she's afraid of losing her friends or something, but right here we see the root of Rainbow Dash's competitiveness. She may enjoy the cheers and the glory, but the reason she competes is because she likes it, A LOT. The speed, the adrenaline, the wind in her mane. Its a big part of who she is.

"This is uncanny!" Yes, it is uncanny. Strangely uncanny. I admit that having everyone's story tied together like that was a bit much even for me, but if you look at it in the abstract, its true that the things we have in common are often what hold friendships together, giving people common ground and all.

"Hey, how about a song!?"

• Pony Music Video of the episode:

There are so many fantastic remixes of Fluttershy's song, but in the end, I had to go with one of the originals.

•

[weesh]

"Oh, maybe I shouldn't go..." I've been in that position quite a few times myself. Thank goodness Angel Bunny is there to push her out the door. As much as people think he's awful, I say he's got his moments.

... Actually, this episode is going to be really hard for me to comment on just because I don't want it to turn into a long list of all the times I've been in a similar situation to Fluttershy, whether its being nervous at social gatherings or deciding that having to answer tough questions (Like: what's your name?) isn't worth the trouble and going home.

Is that hummingbird's name "Hummingway?" Oh my... now I'm imagining "Old Mare and the Sea," but Ernest Hummingway...

Fluttershy singing the My Little Pony theme song randomly? I think maybe that was one of the things about this episode that was weird. It just came out of nowhere. Maybe its just me though...

I agree that this episode is really easy to connect with Fluttershy. I've absolutely had been in positions where I try for a long time to get up some courage, and then I go for it, and it turned out to be exactly the wrong thing at the wrong time. Which makes it hard to step out the next time.

Hummingway? Cute! Was that verbal, or on a sign?

When was the theme song hummed? I missed it.

[Ginger Mint]

hi hi

I went and looked again, making sure to listen really closely to the name. Its right after Fluttershy tries to feed Philomena soup, she brings out her hummingbird friend and says, "Look Philomena, I brought a fellow feathered friend by to cheer you up, Hummingway here was sick once too..." Then, for reasons which are still a mystery to me, Fluttershy "aa~aah's," the theme mofit and tries to get Philomena to join in, which results in her throwing up on Fluttershy's face. I guess Philomena skips over the intro too.