FiM Finale: The Ending of the End/The Last Problem

[Mewtwofan1]

I like to think most of the mane 6 ships started after the events of twilights newest coronation. The final, final episode takes place some years in the future. Enough time for everybody to find someone, or find out they had them all along.

[Sunset]

Starburst? I don’t really feel that Starburst was even remotely hinted at in the finale.  We just had an episode where Sunburst was made vice-principle for the school.  So it makes sense that the principle and vice-principle would be speaking to each other in the halls?  Especially, if they were there to great Twilight and her entourage.   But I saw someone else have the immediate reaction that Starburst was a thing during that clip.   Is there something I’m missing?

[caseysealia]

Starburst? I don’t really feel that Starburst was even remotely hinted at in the finale.  We just had an episode where Sunburst was made vice-principle for the school.  So it makes sense that the principle and vice-principle would be speaking to each other in the halls?  Especially, if they were there to great Twilight and her entourage.   But I saw someone else have the immediate reaction that Starburst was a thing during that clip.   Is there something I’m missing?

Starlight was supposed to end up with someone in the finale, and Luster looks like them both. Of course this could be Hasbro being lazy, but she does have Sunburst's Cutie Mark. One of the crew members were asked about it yesterday and which replied with "maybe  " So its not "confirmed" by any means but heavily hinted at. Might not find out until the season 10 comic, or if ever.

[Sunset]

Starburst? I don’t really feel that Starburst was even remotely hinted at in the finale.  We just had an episode where Sunburst was made vice-principle for the school.  So it makes sense that the principle and vice-principle would be speaking to each other in the halls?  Especially, if they were there to great Twilight and her entourage.   But I saw someone else have the immediate reaction that Starburst was a thing during that clip.   Is there something I’m missing?

Starlight was supposed to end up with someone in the finale, and Luster looks like them both. Of course this could be Hasbro being lazy, but she does have Sunburst's Cutie Mark. One of the crew members were asked about it yesterday and which replied with "maybe  " So its not "confirmed" by any means but heavily hinted at. Might not find out until the season 10 comic, or if ever.

I get that Luster Dawn* shows some resemblance but it would be very odd for the child of a couple running a school of friendship to act like she has never heard of the concept.

In regards to the crew member... I feel like they purposely say vague stuff to keep everyone happy and so that they aren’t tied down to something if they decide to change their minds.


* I love Luster Dawns design.  I want a brushable.  Why can’t we have her and her friends as the new cast of the next incarnation?

[PinkieLopBun]

In regards to the crew member... I feel like they purposely say vague stuff to keep everyone happy and so that they aren’t tied down to something if they decide to change their minds.

Sorta. They deliberately left some stuff ambiguous for fans to debate and have fun with.
https://twitter.com/TheBiggestJim/status/1183419745506250752

[Al-1701]

Leave stuff ambiguous for fans to debate strikes me as weak writing.  Your job is to tell a story, not leave a bunch of loose threads for the fans to pick at.

[caseysealia]

Starburst? I don’t really feel that Starburst was even remotely hinted at in the finale.  We just had an episode where Sunburst was made vice-principle for the school.  So it makes sense that the principle and vice-principle would be speaking to each other in the halls?  Especially, if they were there to great Twilight and her entourage.   But I saw someone else have the immediate reaction that Starburst was a thing during that clip.   Is there something I’m missing?

Starlight was supposed to end up with someone in the finale, and Luster looks like them both. Of course this could be Hasbro being lazy, but she does have Sunburst's Cutie Mark. One of the crew members were asked about it yesterday and which replied with "maybe  " So its not "confirmed" by any means but heavily hinted at. Might not find out until the season 10 comic, or if ever.

I get that Luster Dawn* shows some resemblance but it would be very odd for the child of a couple running a school of friendship to act like she has never heard of the concept.

In regards to the crew member... I feel like they purposely say vague stuff to keep everyone happy and so that they aren’t tied down to something if they decide to change their minds.


* I love Luster Dawns design.  I want a brushable.  Why can’t we have her and her friends as the new cast of the next incarnation?

It is odd. There is too many loose ends. I'm so sick of "maybes" just tell the story you can't please everyone. I guess I understand it based off this fandom's constant outrage. But still half the crew thinks it their child the other half doesn't. As for her not getting the concept my headcanon would be Starlight and Sunburst were too busy running the school to teach her, and as a resort to get  her to learn about it is Twilight. The whole thing is wishy washy and I honestly hope g5 is the opposite of g4.
I agree!! She's really pretty. Maybe its best they don't though considering how the recent toys have been. Maybe g5 will have a pony with a similar color scheme? 

[Shadowperla]

Appledash is about as canon as Twilight's brother being G1 Fireball and some real tasteless jokes some script drafts had, tho.

Leave stuff ambiguous for fans to debate strikes me as weak writing.  Your job is to tell a story, not leave a bunch of loose threads for the fans to pick at.

Yes. Weak, and cowardly, as well. Don't get why normal fans must suffere cause twiter yelpers exit.

[SunbeamV]

Appledash is about as canon as Twilight's brother being G1 Fireball and some real tasteless jokes some script drafts had, tho.

the tone of the episode coupled with the comments by staff members of the show makes a pretty solid case for queer coding, though. (or queerbaiting, depends how you see it.) queer coding and queerbaiting are extremely common marketing techniques to grab the attention and money of the lgbt+ community while avoiding a mainstream scandal. it's entirely reasonable that a big company like hasbro would utilize that tactic. and you can't really use plausible deniability here because it's kinda (read: very) hard to write about a rainbow pony with a super "traditionally masculine" personality and not have a single person on the entire team over 9 years stop and think "huh. she sounds a lot like the typical idea of a butch lesbian." especially given the highschool setting of equestria girls, because all of us millennials/gen Zers almost certainly had a "suspiciously rainbow-obsessed classmate" like that. it's fine if you don't like the ending, or don't like the characters' chemistry, but to throw around "it's not canon, though!" when show staff were open about their intent and comparing it to "a tasteless joke" is a little.....ehhhhh...

edit: spelling

[Deep Purple Crystal]

Spoiler

Finally reserved the time to watch the final triad of episodes and, from the outset, The Ending of the End was fundamentally pretty awful stuff. While I was kind of touched by the entire ancillary cast conglomerating in the final scenes to defeat the villain trio, Twilight's composure only 8-9 episodes following her meme face-laden trivia breakdown was definitely challenging to buy as a result (telling us a character is grown is not equivalent to actually showing they have, but I guess the writers preferred to squeeze more drops of blood from the bag of cliched sitcom humor), several vital scenes fell surprisingly flat (even Starlight's battle with Chrysalis seemed desperate in a way (particularly considering her minor role in the remainder of the plot), as if the writers were scanning a checklist and inserting the bulk of its criteria onto the screen whether it benefited the story/made coherent sense or otherwise) and the entire experience (save for aspects of the climax) simply exuded a weirdly empty air to me, which I assume can be chalked up to the cliched nature of the plot and latter-day FiM's typical brand of obtrusive and overly basic comedy (digging the viewer in the ribs to laugh at a meme face simply because it's a wacky expression/weird is not really effective (or well thought-out) comedy, particularly when the earlier seasons actually offered a variety of well-structured jokes as opposed to dumb material - bizarre one-liners and obvious attempts at manufacturing fandom memes included -  which give the episode an air of a semi-self parody (or, more plausibly, Josh Haber and co. simply writing the script on autopilot).
The Last Problem was merely pleasantly forgettable. The plot was reasonable for a final episode, yet it (subjectively) simply wasn't successfully funny enough to work for me. It was also kind of insidious how the show's crew spent six years continually reassuring the fandom that Twilight wouldn't become immortal and outlive her friends before blatantly contradicting this in the final episode of the run. I sense it may be emblematic of the brony fandom and staff's relationship as a whole in a way.

With FiM concluded, I can only concur that it finished in a worse position than it started - from what I've gathered, the later episodes seem to be more popular with fans over on the major brony sites (primarily for having 'more meat and substance' and 'more introspective dialogue' than the earlier seasons, yet I would argue that the Faust-run seasons are far more consistent and well-written in that they actually commit to conveying (mostly) solid narratives with a unique personal touch and utilize dialogue/comedy in more effective ways (for some reason, the use of dialogue in the Haber-edited episodes (seasons 6 and end of 7 onwards) always felt overly expository/lazy to me, as if to create the illusion that something more complex was occurring on-screen than the reality) than their successors, which enables individual episodes to work better as an entire narrative as opposed to being 'the one where Rarity shreds with the guitar' or 'the one with Twilight pulling the uncanny 'pudding' face'.

Final season ranking: 2>1>4>3>5>7>8>9>6
Top 5 (decreasing order): Lesson Zero, Hurricane Fluttershy, The Best Night Ever, It's About Time, The Return of Harmony
Bottom 5 (decreasing order): Hard to Say Anything, What About Discord?, Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep?, 28 Pranks Later, Non-Compete Clause

[tailrustedtealeaf]

On Purple's note, I'm glad to see I'm not the only person who thought the Haber seasons were really weak. Seasons 1-2 are my favorites, and although I like 4 it really feels like the show shifted dramatically after it.

[TJgamer]

I will admit that I was a little disappointed we didn't get to see more of the future in The Last Problem.
Fan content ahoy? 

As for Applejack and Rainbow Dash, their dialogue isn't really enough to confirm anything. Also, didn't Faust herself not like the idea of people seeing Rainbow Dash as the lesbian archetype because of her rainbow colors and tomboyish persona?
But, to be fair, I'll take it over Rarity/Applejack any day. 

[caseysealia]

Appledash is about as canon as Twilight's brother being G1 Fireball and some real tasteless jokes some script drafts had, tho.

Leave stuff ambiguous for fans to debate strikes me as weak writing.  Your job is to tell a story, not leave a bunch of loose threads for the fans to pick at.

Yes. Weak, and cowardly, as well. Don't get why normal fans must suffere cause twiter yelpers exit.

I agree. Shipping the main six together has always been weird to me. I guess I don't know why people are saying its canon? Seems like the Fluttercord throw away, not really there.
Is Fireball and Twlight being siblings an  actual headcanon or..? 

Post Merge: October 16, 2019, 07:05:52 AM

I will admit that I was a little disappointed we didn't get to see more of the future in The Last Problem.
Fan content ahoy? 

As for Applejack and Rainbow Dash, their dialogue isn't really enough to confirm anything. Also, didn't Faust herself not like the idea of people seeing Rainbow Dash as the lesbian archetype because of her rainbow colors and tomboyish persona?
But, to be fair, I'll take it over Rarity/Applejack any day. 

I kinda get the impression that this new cast doesn't care about Faust's ideas. She's not on the show and hasn't been in a long time, but still? If it weren't for her this how wouldn't be what it is.

[tailrustedtealeaf]

Appledash and Fluttercord were both planned to be canon according to the new leaks.
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[Pinkie21]

Leave stuff ambiguous for fans to debate strikes me as weak writing.  Your job is to tell a story, not leave a bunch of loose threads for the fans to pick at.

This.  Usually, I’m for stuff being left to interpretation, because IMO, it’s also bad to hold the reader/watcher’s hand throughout.  But yeah, it was pretty weak writing in this case.  Though...

Spoiler

I think I’m mostly bitter about them just hinting at Granny dying, rather than showing how that was dealt with.  How did AJ react?  Did her passing break the family for a bit?  Big Mac obviously held some strong emotions about his parents, so how did he take it when the current matriarch passed?  What about Applebloom?  Did she rely on her friends?  Could have been a really amazing episode, because every kid experiences the loss of a grandparent at some point...  But the Apples are just fine and dandy in the end while AJ wears GS’s shawl.  They seem to want to be able to tackle tough subjects sometimes, but they just skip over the obvious loss of a fan favorite.  You want to be as groundbreaking a show as you claim, FiM (you’re not), then go all the way rather than kinda-sorta hinting at difficult subject matter and then pulling a JK Rowling on fans via Twitter.