@ATC: actually, it's more like Twilight trying to read every book in Ponyville and passing out from sleep deprivation.

edited 1st Jul '13 2:18:39 PM by crimsonstorm15

I'm afraid I'm going to have to agree with ATC in the sense that we don't see everyone else in the group fail at the things they set out to do with as much regularity as AJ does. In fact I can't think of anything she has actually won or triumphed over in the show.

I just don't like the aesop that "There are things that you simply cannot do; because you are limited, and that's okay. It is not meat for a man to run faster than he is able".

I hate my limits, I hate that I have to sleep, I hate that I can't run forever or read forever (only thirty-six hours at a time without leaving the recliner, and then I fell asleep, surrounded by books), I hate that I can't climb every single tree within a hundred miles in a day. I hate not being able to stare at the sun and I hate not being able to stop myself from walking into the shade when I get overheated.

I prefer aesops like the one in "Hurricaine Fluttershy", where the lesson is that you are stronger than you think you are; you can surpass all your limitations; nothing is impossible because you have great potential within you.

OK, random idea number 2: Twilight and Rainbow somehow get their jobs switched either intentionally or some sort of skill swap spell. Rainbow blows most of her time on reading Daring Do and Twi is so OCD at getting the weather just right she can't keep up with the weather team. Alternatively, they swap personalities.

But again, AJ always sets out to do much, much more than the rest.

And that's something in and of itself. No matter how much she 'fails', AJ doesn't ever give up - she always pushes herself as much as she can, always stretches her limits to the point of failing, and the results of it always show. She's kind of a walking aesop that there aren't any real limits, because every time she buts up her head against a limit, she gets better the next time.

I think Hurricane Fluttershy has a good aesop overall, but I think it could pull it off slightly better, because what happens if a kid does their best and still doesn't succeed, if they believe trying hard will always lead to success? IT's easy to become disheartened. If instead you teach them sometimes you'll fall down, but as long as you keep getting back up you'll be good enough eventually, that's a much healthier version of that lesson.

I wish the show showed her getting better each time. That would be really great.

I think it does, it's just... a bit hard to notice.

Yeah, I'll admit it would be nice to see her get some victories frome time to time, but the fact that she still never gives up is worth something.

Anyways, I've gotta head back to my woeful internetless house, alas. Later all.

I have to agree with the idea that we need more stories of AJ actually succeeding, without the help of others. She's always overcome by some challenge and needs help to beat it. But I have to sleep now.

Have a funny fat Pinkie in the meantime.

And I consider that an important aesop.

We South Africans have a race called the Comrades Marathon. If you're going too slowly, you are forcibly stopped from running. Why? Because every year, people die running it. And you need to have run a marathon in good time recently to even be allowed to compete.

Hurricane Fluttershy spoke to me. It said, it's okay to not be as good as everyone else. Your contribution is important despite that.

Yeah, that's right. I mean, it's not like Fluttershy suddenly learned to do a Sonic Rainboom. She was still the weakest flier, but they needed her, and her contribution was important.

Now that I think of it that way, I like it even more!

edited 1st Jul '13 2:40:12 PM by ATC

I think I'm ready to try making a simple game in game maker. Of course it will be pony related. I just have to come up with a concept now.

@CDRW

Pinkie Pie must find the changelings to throw a "At least you tried" party.

I think it was more of every bit counts and that you can always make a difference, no matter how small. After all, flying is Flutter's weakest talent and she still managed an athlete's average.

Also, I can't believe I never stumbled across Berry's Drinking Telegram yet. Had me cracking up for 4 minutes straight.

But isn't that usually portrayed as a bad thing. Her main character flaw was always that she was "stubborn" after all.

@ Steve: Lol, that's actually pretty funny.

@Mio yeah. I kinda figured something like that. Like say Scorpio/Trismegistus had magically removed Rainbow's Wings and put then on Trismegistus. Of course that would be the start of the cheating.

edited 1st Jul '13 3:18:35 PM by MorningStar1337

So, I got issue 8 of the comic. I gotta say, while I think he ending of it was rushed just a bit, it was overall a nice story with a heartwarming ending, and it's cool to see worldbuilding about what is up on the moon.

I need happy things stat, the FOE thread has gotten me near panic attack levels of revulsion and rage. I really REALLY need something to calm me down/pick me up.

Agreed my only issue with the comic...the damn store sent me the wrong cover, I got the rather lackluster Nightmarity vocer B not the freaking awesome, Battle Armor Luna leading Ponyville in attack A cover.

edited 1st Jul '13 4:34:20 PM by Seraphem

I like jam. Slam jam is the best jam.

oh hey, mlp no longer has the page image for All-Natural Gem Polish

I'm with Kegisk on the AJ thing. The reason she fails is because she sets the bar ludicrously high for herself; setting goals that no one would have a chance in heck in of possibly doing. Like somebody said up there, an apt comparison would be like Rarity trying to make five hundred dresses in a week, or for Twilight to read every book in the Canterlot library over one weekend.

Like the apple thing, she literally attempted to do the work of two ponies while horribly sleep deprived. The amount she did get done is incredibly impressive.

As for this:

I personally don't think think much of those sorts of aesops because they're bullshit. You can't surpass all limitations. As much as it sucks to have limitations, everyone has them, and it's important to know what they are. Not to say that you shouldn't try to improve yourself, but at the same time you have to have a good grasp of your own capabilities so that you don't hurt yourself or others. Telling someone "you can do anything if you try hard enough" is dangerous because sometimes they simply can't and they might hurt themselves trying. Not to mention that it's kind of insulting in that it implies anyone who fails at anything simply did so because they weren't trying hard enough.

In fact, that was the whole point of Hurricane Fluttershy, that even though you might not be able to improve as much as you hoped, your contributions can still be valuable. Fluttershy honestly didn't improve much, but that didn't stop her from contributing. The lesson that "it's okay to not be good at something" is far more important and relevant (especially to me on a personal level) than "you can be awesome at anything if you try!"

And now I vanish once again, because beach.

edited 1st Jul '13 5:26:15 PM by JapaneseTeeth

I'm going over our Fi M work page, and it looks like someone got a trope description with the wrong trope

That description does not describe that trope.

any idea what that trope this is supposed to be?

edited 1st Jul '13 5:34:29 PM by Blissey1

@ Blissey: I'd go with just your basic Talking Animal.

Evening everypony. What's going on?

Hey, Party ponies! Back from work. What's up?