Goddamn, it feels good to revisit this one. “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” was quite a pivotal show for me. I experienced it at just the right time in my life where it fits with my nostalgic side, it’s helped me encounter some of the kindest friends I could have ever asked for, and it’s resulted in some of the fondest memories in my life.
I did end up leaving the Brony/pegasister fandom for my own reasons, but even then, I can’t deny what a blast I’d had going through the show. But with it having ended over two and a half years ago now and G5 currently underway, I think it’s high time that G4 gets its own retrospective. This is going to be different from other review series I’m currently doing; this is not coming from the perspective of someone who’s never seen the show before or is merely wanting a refresher on it. This is coming from someone who knows exactly where it all goes, and is looking back at it all in 2022.
Obviously, I’m very nostalgic for the show, but I’m gonna be remaining as unbiased as possible. Pretty much every episode I’ve given my thoughts on at some time or another, but you know what they say: hindsight is 20/20. Chances are my opinions will have changed over the years. How good was the show really? Was it good the entire time, or was there a dip in quality here or there? Did it ever get bad? By the end of all this, we will have the answers to all these questions.
With that said, we naturally have to start at the beginning: season 1, episodes 1-2: ’Friendship is Magic’. Since the show does have two-parters, I’m gonna be covering them in their entirety in one day, since they do tell a single story.
Anyway, the two-part pilot follows a unicorn named Twilight Sparkle, a book-loving and introverted nerd that isn’t very concerned with making friends. She comes across the legend of Nightmare Moon, a wicked mare of darkness that threatened to cast eternal night on all of Equestria before being banished to the moon by her sister through of the Elements of Harmony. Upon further research, Twilight learns that Nightmare Moon is likely going to be returning during the upcoming Summer Sun Celebration, and thus tries to warn the princess about it. But she essentially gets laughed off and is tasked with making some friends instead while getting the preparations ready. After encountering all the central characters for the series(which I’ll get to later), Nightmare Moon indeed returns and they all have to team up to stop her.
As far as the story goes, it’s surprisingly dense in terms of everything that happens. Twilight’s character being established and developed through a mini-arc, seven main characters needing to be introduced, a handful of silly shenanigans mixed in with a little adventure, establishing a piece of the lore that will get further expanded on as the series progresses; there’s a lot that happens here, and it could easily have been too rushed or complicated.
But this is a case where the two-parter runtime really does help. Being 44 minutes long, it has enough wiggle room to do all of this while pacing it out pretty much perfectly so as not to overwhelm the viewer. It also makes sure not to contain any superfluous bits just to fit the runtime; it’s a very tightly-written story all around.
As for what it does establish, it gets off to a very strong start. The beginning tells the tale of Nightmare Moon, and it does so through a beautifully-drawn storybook sequence. It gives it the feel of a children’s story with a sense of majesty, as is befitting for the show itself. I love the art style used for this opening, and it isn’t gonna be the only time we see it either.
While the entire Mane Six gets their chance to shine, it’s really Twilight that’s the central focus. Starting off not wanting to make friends and focusing more on her books and research, the episode naturally progresses her growth to realizing that she does value friendship after all. When she first encounters the other Mane Six members, she’s thrown off by the idea of having them as friends and is basically just there to make sure the preparations are being handled. But throughout Part 2 as the adventure takes place, her experiences there with them help her see the good in having others there to aid you. It’s a nicely-written character arc that feels real, and it does a great job setting her up for all the stories to follow.
Among the main cast is also her dragon assistant Spike. He’s considerably more open to social situations than Twilight, making him a nice counterbalance to her in that regard. He’s also got a bit of a snarky side, as he’s willing to poke fun at Twilight‘s more neurotic tendencies, but is also soft-hearted as he encourages her to lighten up and have fun. The fact that he’s a baby dragon is also gotten across in an amusing fashion, as he’s unable to spell words that are too long for him. With Spike being one of my favorite characters of the show, he certainly comes off as fun and lovable even this early on.
The rest of the Mane Six are lightly introduced in Part 1, but get their true moments to shine in Part 2. Applejack is a very family-centric pony with an affinity for farming, and while she can be a little physically rough at times, she’s so heartwarming that it’s hard not to smile. She represents the Element of Honesty, and how Part 2 gets that across is…odd. Twilight is hanging over a ledge, and Applejack suggests that she let go, claiming it’s the “honest truth” that she’ll be safe. I get the feeling that Lauren Faust wrote herself into a corner and so couldn’t really think of much for Applejack to prove her honesty, and so had that little bit there as a handwave kind of explanation. It has more to do with unfounded trust than it does honesty.
Speaking of Applejack, I should also briefly mention that, of her family members listed off, the ones that get the most focus are her brother Big MacIntosh, her sister Apple Bloom, and her grandmother Granny Smith. While we don’t get a good sense of their characters just yet, it’s a sign that these three will get a lot more development and focus as the show goes on. Though Apple Bloom’s sad face here never fails to be adorable.
Rainbow Dash, meanwhile, is bold, brash, and does not belong in the trash. She can be reckless with her flying and weather control, but she does clearly try her best to help others. She talks a big game about how good at flying she is(enough that she’s confident she’ll improve the Wonderbolts, the most talented flyers in all of Equestria), and she actually has the talent to go with it. There’s a reason her “ten seconds flat” moment is cited so often as a standout moment for her; Rainbow Dash is indeed good at flying and isn’t afraid to flex about it.
As Part 2 shows, Rainbow is also the Element of Loyalty, and her test is probably the best of all of them. Encountering a group of flyers known as the Shadowbolts, she’s presented with the opportunity to join them and fulfill her dream…but she refuses, standing by her friends. It‘s an excellent way to show that, in a pinch, she‘ll stick by her friends no matter what.
Rarity is the Element of Generosity, which you may not expect upon first encountering her. She has all the makings of a stereotypical fashion diva, and so at first glance, one would expect her to be selfish and vain. But as Part 1 goes out of its way to show how far she’s willing to go to help someone in making them look great(as well as having a dream of living in fancy Canterlot), Part 2 shows that she’s willing to sacrifice something as precious as her tail if it means making someone else happy. Later episodes would go on to expand on her further, of course, but to put it simply, Rarity is a perfect example of the phrase “don’t judge a book by its cover”.
Funny enough, that phrase also applies to Fluttershy. True to her name, she’s very timid around other ponies, so much so that she finds it hard to say her name to a newcomer, and yet she has a love and affinity for animals. The sheer excitement she feels when meeting Spike for the first time is infectious and adorable, and it’s a nice bit of foreshadowing for Part 2. There, the mains encounter a manticore ready to tear them apart, and yet Fluttershy is able to demonstrate her Element of Kindness by helping to heal it and getting the thorn out of its paw. Despite her timid nature, she can be very brave and a valuable ally when put in the right scenario, and so she’s quite lovable from the start.
Pinkie Pie is very hyperactive and talkative, the optimistic and bubbly one of the group. Out of all the mains, she’s easily the most social, throwing parties for newcomers and wanting to make friends with everyone. It’s difficult to have a super talkative character like her and not make her annoying, but they pull it off through funny writing and Andrea Libman’s stellar performance. Her optimism also works its way into her test, where she proves her Element of Laughter by literally laughing in the face of danger(with a fun song to go with it). It’s the kind of positivity that works its way into your heart, and I love it.
Yeah, this is a lot to establish at the start of the series, but the pilot really succeeds at it. But I also have to discuss the main villain of the pilot: Nightmare Moon. I’ve seen people claim that her plan of eternal night wouldn’t have really harmed anything in the long run, but…well, with a world like Equestria that thrives on plants for ponies to eat, not to mention trees for oxygen, having no sun would basically render all of that gone eventually. If left to her own devices, Nightmare Moon would basically have ended the world.
Character-wise, she’s…fine. She’s very stereotypically evil for the most part, and we don’t really see anything else from her personality-wise until she reverts back to Princess Luna at the end. What we do get there is great as she reunites with her sister, Princess Celestia, but the majority of her airtime is rather meh. Not helping is her not really using her powers to their full advantage. You have the ability to transform into whatever you want, and you decide…to cut off a sea serpent‘s mustache in half. I know this is a kid’s show and you can’t go too over the top, but…just sayin’, a little something more would have been nice.
Speaking of Celestia, we also get a bit of her at the end as well. We don’t physically see her until then(aside from the storybook opening), but she comes off as very regal and motherly, essentially giving Twilight the starting point she needs to naturally learn her lesson rather than straight-up telling her. It’s a very clever way to handle a wise character like her, and Nicole Oliver’s performance is masterful in how soft and gentle it is.
I‘d been relatively hard on the pilot before, but honestly, I think it’s gotten a lot better in hindsight. Sure, the villain is pretty weak and not everything adds up, but it’s a very strong start to a great series. The plot threads it establishes are intriguing enough on their own, and the characters are charming and enjoyable enough to make you want to see more of them. It’s a great two-parter that would only pave the way for greater stories to come.
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