Those who used to be into My Little Pony but no longer are, why did you enjoy it at the time and what made you move away from it?

Well, My Little Bronies, I've seen the new My Little Pony theatrical film, and while positive reviews are rolling in, praising the film's colourful characters and child-friendly message, some of what I saw in the theatre shocked me.

What everypony in this fandom deserves is a rational, in-fandom examination of how this film ties into all of the pre-existing My Little Pony canon. Beware, everypony! There are spoilers ahead.

While watching this film, I became overwhelmed by the sheer number of glaring oversights and internal inconsistencies in this story. This film shows a blatant and irresponsible disregard for the pre-established canon of the My Little Pony universe!

The film begins with Princess Twilight Sparkle nervous about the arrival of Songbird Serenade: A singing pop-star pony that is voiced by, and resembles real-life pop-star Sia. Obviously, true fans of the show will already notice a glaring inconsistency with the plot. Over the course of the Friendship is Magic series, the main six ponies have already interacted with at least two famous pop-star ponies. In S1E19, we have Sapphire Shores, who is repeatedly referred to as 'the pony of pop', then, in S5E24, they put on a concert for Countess Coloratura: The pony equivalent of Lady Gaga.

I, myself, find it hard to believe that any of these ponies would be starstruck meeting yet another pop-star pony. Not to mention that Princess Twilight Sparkle herself was the lead singer of a successful pop band when she was turned into a human in the Equestria Girls spin-off! Failing to acknowledge this spits in the face of everything we know about these characters!

As this was early in the movie, I was willing to overlook this horrifying inconsistency, I crossed my hooves and prayed to Celestia that this would be the only mistake of its kind, but I'm afraid it gets worse.

This movie featured many catchy musical numbers that were clearly inspired by a Disney movie or the monorail episode of The Simpsons - which are the only two pieces of media I've consumed that have musical numbers.

In Capper, the singing cat's musical number, "I'm the friend you need", there is a shot of Fluttershy cowering in an alleyway, afraid of a colony of bats. Later, in Capper's house, when he mentions lions, tigers, and bears, fluttershy delivers the punchline by fearfully saying, "Oh my!"

I was trying to enjoy the talking cat's song, but I was abruptly and totally taken out of the moment by this betrayal of Fluttershy's character. Fluttershy is consistently characterized as a friend to all animals! Fluttershy reiterates many times throughout the series that she likes to receive hugs from a fuzzy bear. That very bear appears in the opening sequence to this very movie! Not to mention S4E07 which was entirely devoted to Fluttershy's defence of the local fruit bat colony! I can't fathom how anyone would overlook these story elements! I didn't bring my three-hundred dollar custom Fluttershy plushie to this premiere just so she could witness a character assassination of this caliber.

When Capper reveals that he betrayed the ponies and is going to sell them into slavery to settle his debt, Twilight Sparkle exclaims, "I knew it!" That is a very strange and specific thing for her to know. After the ponies escape Capper's house, they visit the sea ponies in their magical underwater kingdom, and a castle referred to in toy packaging as "Seaquestria Castle" - The place that erroneously depicts Equestria as directly beneath Canterlot castle, despite Canterlot clearly being situated on a cliffside with only perhaps a shallow river running beside it. Certainly no place for an underwater kingdom!

Perhaps more insulting is that Seaquestria is an inconsistent name for the sea ponies' kingdom. In the 2013 picturebook "Under the Sparkling Sea", which is canon, the sea ponies are depicted as living in a kingdom called Aquastria - Nice try, Hasbro!

It is revealed that the sea ponies are in fact the hippogriffs, who have transformed themselves and fled underwater to avoid the evil Storm King. I find it hard to believe that Princess Celestia, who was going to send Princess Luna to the hippogriffs for help, would be completely ignorant to this fact. How could an entire thriving society vanish without anypony in Equestria noticing?

Without first having a long logistical explanation of how this worked, it was hard for me to immerse myself in the seapony musical number about having a good time making shell necklaces. The seaponies offered to let Twilight and friends stay with them underwater, where the Storm King cannot reach them, but Twilight wants to take their power source back to Canterlot, to free her friends from the Storm King's tyrannical rule.

But as already established, to complete his evil plan, the Storm King needs to have all four princess ponies, as long as Twilight is hidden underwater, he cannot complete his master plan, so logic dictates that Twilight should remain with the seaponies, and wait the Storm King out, perhaps sending her friends back to fight in her place.

Princess Twilight Sparkle returning to Canterlot is the least logical course of action! I would expect better from Princess Celestia's most faithful student. In the film's darkest moment, we see Sia's pony, Songbird Serenade, imprisoned in a cage next to the other enslaved ponies, singing sadly to herself. Fans of Sia's Elastic Heart music video will know that the little girl representing Sia is depicted as having the power to dance in and out of cages with ease! Depicting a pony version of Sia trapped in a cage is a blatant distruption of Sia music video canon! If anything, it would only make sense for a ponified version of Shia LaBeouf to be trapped in a cage.

Princess Twilight Sparkle uses the magic scepter to turn all of the stone ponies back to their normal state. Presumably, turning the stone fragments of the Storm King back into bloody chunks, lying in a pile on the cobblestones. I find it frankly quite sexist that only the male villain doesn't get to be reformed. After the evil pony Tempest Shadow is reformed, she reveals that her real name is Fizzle Pop Berry Twist, and her colours are strikingly similar to the 2005 G3 pony, Fizzy Pop.

Coincidence? I think not.

The movie featured many cameos from fan favourite characters that I recognize, this reminded me that the movie is for me, and that the children in the theatre around me would never appreciate it the way that I could have, and made me even angrier that it wasn't what I, as an adult, wanted.

The children I was in the theatre with seemed to enjoy the movie, I can only hope that none of them grow up to realize what a misrepresentation this was of the core elements that make up the world-building of this beloved series.

Anyway, thanks for reading this review, and stay strong everybrony, come here next week for an analysis of why the new Powerpuff Girls show is so bad.

/r/AskReddit Thread