Episode written by Lauren Faust
Entirely unofficial reflections by sixcardroulette
This is The Shorter Ponywatching. For a really long, in-depth essay
on this episode, check out the full length reflection!
The first episode we ever watched, thanks to my daughter being given the DVD for Christmas, Friendship is Magic, Part 1 had a lot of work to do to overcome some anti-pony prejudice. It has a lot of work to do establishing the series, too, of course.
We were unsure about watching My Little Pony – dim memories of the ultra-girly, heavily gendered 80s toys and cartoons made us protective of our daughter – and so the care and affection with which this was done really made for a pleasant surprise, if no more than that at this early stage.
The plot is actually two plots which don’t really interact (or need to interact) with each other on a satisfying level yet; the adventures of bookish unicorn Twilight Sparkle (there’s a sentence I never thought I’d be typing!) as she tries to warn the authorities about an ancient evil, only to instead be sent on an incongruous quest to make some friends.
Most of the running time is taken up with friend-making, introducing Twilight (and the audience) to the rest of the main cast by way of five excellent little comic vignettes. The fairytale threat is mostly just a background presence, which only resurfaces right at the end of this first part. To Be Continued.
Given I was pretty hostile to the idea of even watching this in the first place, it doesn’t exactly go out of its way to dismiss those fears; Friendship Is Magic opens with a gorgeous but bewildering sequence in a completely different animation style, an illuminated manuscript with a fairytale narration:
It even opens in true fairytale style:
“Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria…”
But the episode excels at wrongfooting unwary viewers like me and my family; in the opening minutes, we’re shown a series of visions of a markedly less good show, just long enough for us to worry this is what it’s going to actually be like, before whisking us off in a different direction.
So, the animated storybook gives way to an intro sequence (complete with familiar twee 80s theme music) featuring Twilight drifting above the clouds in a cutesy velvet balloon, before Rainbow Dash blasts in on a wave of rockin’ guitars to literally blow away everything that came before. Twilight’s giggly Valley Girl friends invite her to a party; just as we’re worrying these ponies won’t hold our attention, she leaves them behind never to be seen again. Then, she’s doing research in her (amazing, Art Deco meets Niemeyer) library – but I’m still not sure what this show is going to be about, and presumably it’s not The Adventures of Twilight the Librarian.
Twilight is awkward and anti-social, lonely without realising it; one of the best portrayals of a nerdy wallflower I’ve ever seen, animated or not, and impressively nuanced for a children’s show. When she’s sent on a busywork mission by her offscreen fairytale princess mentor and boss, and ordered to “make some friends”, it feels like a step back down into standard kid-friendly fare again.
But she isn’t alone; Spike, the heart of the show, Twilight’s confidante and only friend, a vital window into her pre-show life, has a great relationship with her, full of unspoken love as they mutually put up with each other’s flaws. The show is better with him in it, and I don’t think I’d have warmed to it half as much as I did if these two didn’t hook us in.
After we relocate to the town of Ponyville (almost a character in itself, its size, location and reputation changing according to the needs of each story; for today’s purposes, a small village out in the sticks), the rest of the episode is taken up with a reluctant Twilight meeting several ponies who are quick to call themselves her friends – even if the feeling is far from mutual in most cases.
I think bronies might second-guess themselves in worrying that this episode doesn’t show their beloved characters in the best light. Honestly, it works just fine. Without knowing anything more about these five characters, or the future of the show (or even if the show had a future beyond this DVD!), the introductions are beautifully handled, five excellent comic vignettes that introduce five distinct personalities. All five feel like they’re already fleshed out as people ponies, rather than archetypes (even Rarity, who comes across as particularly shallow on first viewing).
So, Applejack and her Generic Southerner family welcome Twilight as one of their own with open hooves, and AJ’s total lack of cynicism mirrors that of the show itself, something I found instantly appealing. Rainbow Dash is the lazy jock who can back up her big talk (ten! seconds! flat!), and who expects her friends to indulge in, and shrug off, good-natured horseplay (and who messes up Twilight’s mane, giving my kids their first proper belly laugh). Rarity, who I didn’t like to begin with, is apparently the token Girly Girl, egotistical and pretentious (it’s only later we can reflect on just how generous she is with her time, and later still we discover she arguably has the most hidden depths of any pony), as well as Spike’s new crush. Fluttershy is cripplingly timid, her introduction giving me my first proper belly laugh with its lengthy, awkward pauses and Andrea Libman’s increasingly inaudible squeaks. And Pinkie Pie is a manic well-meaning whirlwind of energy who throws surprise raging all-night keggers for complete strangers while never pausing for breath.
By the end of the introductions – and the outstanding little scene that follows, Twilight trying to get some sleep while the party continues into the small hours, music thudding through the library – we already felt we knew these characters, and wanted to spend more time with them. Even if the show is very much presented as Twilight’s story, and so we have sympathy with her viewpoint: Ponyville is apparently filled with weirdos, yahoos and hillbillies with no respect for personal space.
The ending is kind of perfunctory, a pantomime villain appearing out of nowhere with less than a minute to go, but by this point we were all primed for episode 2 anyway, and the show had built up enough goodwill that a banner advert reading “NIGHTMARE MOON PLAYSET AVAILABLE NOW FROM ALL GOOD HASBRO STOCKISTS!” wouldn’t have made me give up before seeing the end.
Bronies seem divided on whether this opening two-parter is the best way to start watching the show (I didn’t have the choice, which saved me a decision!), as with hindsight it’s not the show at its strongest – although I’d put this first part in the top half of any theoretical ranking of first-season episodes. But everyone has to start somewhere, and this worked well for both me and my family; I’m an old cynic and I wasn’t put off!
Even with hindsight, I’d recommend this as a starting point. The introductions of the characters are all handled so wonderfully, I can’t imagine having to go back and watch this for the first time having already met them all. If the show is stronger on the slice-of-life domestic sitcom front, rather than the epic quest stuff, it’s because it gives rise to impressively well-scripted scenes in familiar circumstances, concentrating on developing Twilight and her various new relationships, without the burden of developing a fantasy narrative as well.
The ending comes as a surprise, and still feels rushed, Nightmare Moon underdeveloped before her sudden appearance – but since this is a two-parter, Lauren Faust was able to lay off most of the quest stuff for the second part, meaning the all-important domestic scenes had room to breathe, to introduce these characters and this world before putting them in peril and expecting us to follow along. Without a doubt, she got it the right way round.
This one was tough to choose; all five of the Mane Six introductions are great in their own right, and special mention has to go to the scene where Twilight first meets Fluttershy. The pacing, sound editing and voice acting are all superb here); the agonising long pauses are timed to perfection as Twilight tries really hard to come out of her shell only to encounter someone even more awkward than she is.
But for so many reasons – not least because it sets the tone, and the level, of the show to come – I have to go with Twilight trying to sleep while the raucous party is going on downstairs. Unquestionably an adult situation, uncomfortably familiar to any geeky ex-student, and yet done so well it’s still funny; bonus points for Twilight’s outstandingly childish impression of lampshade-hatted Spike:
You really should lighten up, Twilight, it’s a party!
[mock “Spike” voice]: Meh meh meh meh, Twilight, meh meh meh-meh!
If I had to pick one moment when I knew this show was for me, that was probably it, and so we have our first winner.
“All the ponies in this town are CRAZY!”
Tara Strong’s bug-eyed frustrexplosion at the end of the line, as her irritation finally boils over, just nails it.
Despite the accelerated and unexpected finish (and accompanying, slightly jarring change in tone), this is as good an opening episode as any sitcom has had. It’s less effective as an opening episode of a fairytale fantasy epic, but it’s never bad. We all wanted to see more of these characters, and to find out what happened next, so it did its job. There’s still better to come, mind, even in these uncertain early days.
Intriguing. Adorably intriguing. And mostly funnier than expected.
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