My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic just finnished its 4th season last week. Since season 5 will soon be upon us, I think this gives us plenty of opprotunity to to come up with a wishlist of ideas and speculations for next season and beyond.
Give the season an overarching villan - I think that since season 4 had an overarching plot for the first time, I think now is a good time to give us a season long villain. A looming threat reigning over Equestria, and every few episodes, one, or all of the mane 6 fight against it, either physically, or verbally.
Flesh out Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash's backstories more - We know that Rainbow and Flutters went to flight school together, but we don't much else about their backstory or parents. A random, no name pony is the closest we've seen to a family member from Rainbow Dash, we've seen nothing from Fluttershy. There's got to be something deeper, and more tragic about their past that drives their quirks and motivations. Keep in mind, FiM is still a kids show, so they can't go too far, but they can certainly take risks.
Tell us what happened to AJ's parents - There is some debate as to what is ok to show in a kids cartoon, and not just hiding adult stuff behind layers of puns, metaphors, and symoilism, I mean show it in all glory. Some time or another, the writers need to explain what happened to Applejack's Ma & Pa. Some say MLP can't do it as it's primary target audience is 2-11 year olds. To which I'd say, you'd be suprised as to what you can do in children's programing. Go watch the Hey Arnold! episodes Pigeon Man and Helga on the Couch those episode deal with dysfunctional families, alcoholism, neglectful parents, and even attempted scuicide. I'm not saying FiM needs to go as far as scuicide, but take some risk and tackle the subject of death and how it works in Equestria.
Have an episode about Twilight's parents - Twilight is one of the few ponies of the mane 6 whose parents we know exist. I'd like some screen time for them other than brief cameos. Like have an episode where Twilight's parents come to Ponyville for a visit and start embarassing Twilight. The lesson can be that sometimes it's OK to embrace embarassment, especially from your parents.
Have a Rainbow vs. Pinkie prank war - Testing, Testing, 1,2,3 established that Rainbow rivals Pinkie in terms of pranks. So lets put that theory to the test, have an episode where the two go all out and try to out prank eachother. They can even hire Derek Drymon to write it since looking at his work on SpongeBob, he's the master of visual gags.
I want to see a CMC timeskip subplot - I'd like to see what The CMC are like in the future. Sweetie Belle could be a lead singer of an Equestrian equivelant to a collage rock band. Scootaloo could work at a repair shop, and Apple Bloom can be some sort of artist. But to do this.....
The CMC need to get their cutie marks - This needs to happen soon, and judging The CMC's behavior from season 4, it may eventually happen soon. I guess the lesson could be, friendships last long even after the goal that created it has been accomplished.
Have a secret agent Pinkie episode - Say Pinkie Pie is recruted by a top secret spy organization to Monitor Twilight. Pinkie, being as naieve as she is, agrees, and is now [insert numerical code name here]. This is a perfect opprotunity for some clever James Bond references.
We need a courtroom episode - No, not a murder mystery (remember, kids show). But an episode involving what the Equestrian court system is like. Twilight can be a lawer, and spout clever Pheonix Wright refereces. Hell, throw in some Law and Order parodies as well.
Give Vynl Scratch a more promonant role - I'd like to see what Vynl Scratch is like as an actual character, and not just a background pony. If Derpy can get a few, Scratch should as well.
Have a comedic, disturbing episode - Let's say Twilight wakes up to a deserted Ponyville with no memory of what happened prior, and she and Pinkie Pie are the only ones left in town. Pinkie thinks everyone is planning a supprise party for her, despite everypony being gone for a month. Twilight, suffering from amnesia, questions Pinkie's supprise party theory and starts looking for Ponyville's citizens. This may sound like a violent fanfic, but as long as they keep it kid friendly, this can give a disturbiing take on a seemingly innocent show.
Have 2 of the mane 6 get into a fight - Not a verbal fight though, an actual physical fight. This can teach kids that Friendships don't always have happy moments.
A deeper look into Fluttershy's personality - We know Fluttershy to be a kind, and timid pegasas with social anxiety. But as the show progressed, she has multiple times, shown an alternate side of her, one who's more agressive, sly, and manipulative. This can lead to her having sudden outbursts of rage (even having an entire episode dealing about it). But what if for those moments, that wasn't normal Fluttershy talking, but a manifestation of her deepest thoughts, goals, feelings, and memories. What if she has some deep, alternate persona that unleashes uncontrollably when anything to do with her animals or friends are at stake, or when things don't go her way (though there are a few moments where she can seem to control it).
I think it's time we have an episode that gives us a real look into Fluttershy's phsyche (Putting your Hoof down doesn't count). Like Twilight and Spike travel into her diary, or journal and see call backs to previous Flutterrage moments. And, an insightful look into her past, and family, why she has these mood swings, and how she developed her shy nature. You may think it would be too deep for a kids show, but I feel its disrespectful to just throw that around like it's nothing. I feel kids can handle darker, more complex moments if you don't go too far.
An actual reason for Rainbow joining The Wonderbolts - People don't just join the Military because they think they're cool, they have an actual reason for joining. Same with The Wonderbolts, Rainbow isn't trying to join The Wonderbolts because she thinks their awesome, she has to have a deeper motivation for doing so. Like with Fluttershy, this would give us a better look into Rainbow's phsyche, why she wants to be the best flyer possible, and why she demands attention.
Give us a Celestia & Luna only episode - If there are any characters in the show that need more development, its these two, how about showing us what they do when not spouting exposition, or information we already know. What are there strengths and weakness?, and how do they work together? It would give me more respect from them, and make them more compelling.
Conclude the season with a 2-hour TV movie - Many succesful cartoons have had a made-for-TV movie at one point. Now would be a perfect chance for FiM to have one. Go all out, make it as epic as you want, and teach a moral only a movie can teach.
So those are some of my ideas so far, your ideas?
Give the season an overarching villan - I think that since season 4 had an overarching plot for the first time, I think now is a good time to give us a season long villain. A looming threat reigning over Equestria, and every few episodes, one, or all of the mane 6 fight against it, either physically, or verbally.
Flesh out Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash's backstories more - We know that Rainbow and Flutters went to flight school together, but we don't much else about their backstory or parents. A random, no name pony is the closest we've seen to a family member from Rainbow Dash, we've seen nothing from Fluttershy. There's got to be something deeper, and more tragic about their past that drives their quirks and motivations. Keep in mind, FiM is still a kids show, so they can't go too far, but they can certainly take risks.
Tell us what happened to AJ's parents - There is some debate as to what is ok to show in a kids cartoon, and not just hiding adult stuff behind layers of puns, metaphors, and symoilism, I mean show it in all glory. Some time or another, the writers need to explain what happened to Applejack's Ma & Pa. Some say MLP can't do it as it's primary target audience is 2-11 year olds. To which I'd say, you'd be suprised as to what you can do in children's programing. Go watch the Hey Arnold! episodes Pigeon Man and Helga on the Couch those episode deal with dysfunctional families, alcoholism, neglectful parents, and even attempted scuicide. I'm not saying FiM needs to go as far as scuicide, but take some risk and tackle the subject of death and how it works in Equestria.
Have an episode about Twilight's parents - Twilight is one of the few ponies of the mane 6 whose parents we know exist. I'd like some screen time for them other than brief cameos. Like have an episode where Twilight's parents come to Ponyville for a visit and start embarassing Twilight. The lesson can be that sometimes it's OK to embrace embarassment, especially from your parents.
Have a Rainbow vs. Pinkie prank war - Testing, Testing, 1,2,3 established that Rainbow rivals Pinkie in terms of pranks. So lets put that theory to the test, have an episode where the two go all out and try to out prank eachother. They can even hire Derek Drymon to write it since looking at his work on SpongeBob, he's the master of visual gags.
I want to see a CMC timeskip subplot - I'd like to see what The CMC are like in the future. Sweetie Belle could be a lead singer of an Equestrian equivelant to a collage rock band. Scootaloo could work at a repair shop, and Apple Bloom can be some sort of artist. But to do this.....
The CMC need to get their cutie marks - This needs to happen soon, and judging The CMC's behavior from season 4, it may eventually happen soon. I guess the lesson could be, friendships last long even after the goal that created it has been accomplished.
Have a secret agent Pinkie episode - Say Pinkie Pie is recruted by a top secret spy organization to Monitor Twilight. Pinkie, being as naieve as she is, agrees, and is now [insert numerical code name here]. This is a perfect opprotunity for some clever James Bond references.
We need a courtroom episode - No, not a murder mystery (remember, kids show). But an episode involving what the Equestrian court system is like. Twilight can be a lawer, and spout clever Pheonix Wright refereces. Hell, throw in some Law and Order parodies as well.
Give Vynl Scratch a more promonant role - I'd like to see what Vynl Scratch is like as an actual character, and not just a background pony. If Derpy can get a few, Scratch should as well.
Have a comedic, disturbing episode - Let's say Twilight wakes up to a deserted Ponyville with no memory of what happened prior, and she and Pinkie Pie are the only ones left in town. Pinkie thinks everyone is planning a supprise party for her, despite everypony being gone for a month. Twilight, suffering from amnesia, questions Pinkie's supprise party theory and starts looking for Ponyville's citizens. This may sound like a violent fanfic, but as long as they keep it kid friendly, this can give a disturbiing take on a seemingly innocent show.
Have 2 of the mane 6 get into a fight - Not a verbal fight though, an actual physical fight. This can teach kids that Friendships don't always have happy moments.
A deeper look into Fluttershy's personality - We know Fluttershy to be a kind, and timid pegasas with social anxiety. But as the show progressed, she has multiple times, shown an alternate side of her, one who's more agressive, sly, and manipulative. This can lead to her having sudden outbursts of rage (even having an entire episode dealing about it). But what if for those moments, that wasn't normal Fluttershy talking, but a manifestation of her deepest thoughts, goals, feelings, and memories. What if she has some deep, alternate persona that unleashes uncontrollably when anything to do with her animals or friends are at stake, or when things don't go her way (though there are a few moments where she can seem to control it).
I think it's time we have an episode that gives us a real look into Fluttershy's phsyche (Putting your Hoof down doesn't count). Like Twilight and Spike travel into her diary, or journal and see call backs to previous Flutterrage moments. And, an insightful look into her past, and family, why she has these mood swings, and how she developed her shy nature. You may think it would be too deep for a kids show, but I feel its disrespectful to just throw that around like it's nothing. I feel kids can handle darker, more complex moments if you don't go too far.
An actual reason for Rainbow joining The Wonderbolts - People don't just join the Military because they think they're cool, they have an actual reason for joining. Same with The Wonderbolts, Rainbow isn't trying to join The Wonderbolts because she thinks their awesome, she has to have a deeper motivation for doing so. Like with Fluttershy, this would give us a better look into Rainbow's phsyche, why she wants to be the best flyer possible, and why she demands attention.
Give us a Celestia & Luna only episode - If there are any characters in the show that need more development, its these two, how about showing us what they do when not spouting exposition, or information we already know. What are there strengths and weakness?, and how do they work together? It would give me more respect from them, and make them more compelling.
Conclude the season with a 2-hour TV movie - Many succesful cartoons have had a made-for-TV movie at one point. Now would be a perfect chance for FiM to have one. Go all out, make it as epic as you want, and teach a moral only a movie can teach.
So those are some of my ideas so far, your ideas?