How did I do?

Looks like I am in serious need of a life. Anyhoo, here's how my predictions compare to what actually happened.

Hearts and Hooves Day 

The prediction:

1. Apple Bloom feels sorry for Big Macintosh, who has nopony to be his mare on Hearts and Hooves day.

2. After a visit to Zecora, Apple Bloom and the rest of the CMC come up with a plan to make a love potion to make Big Macintoch and Cheerilee fall madly in love.

3. Apple Bloom becomes mortified when Big Mac and Cheerilee decide to get married.

4. The CMCs learn that it is not fair to make people fall in love against their own better judgement and figure out how to make an antidote for the happy couple.

5. Just when Cheerilee and Big Mac are about to be wed, the antidote kicks in and they realise that they are no more than just good friends and decide to to be married. Apple Bloom breathes a sigh of relief and, um…………… Rainbow Dash declares her love for Big Macintosh to prove once and for all that she is NOT a lesbian!

That's how I figure it'll play out. Tune in on Saturday to see if I'm right. (I'm from the UK, so I'll be catching it on YouTube)

The reality:

1. It wasn't Big Mac they felt sorry for. It all started when the CMCs found out that Cheerilee didn't have a "special somepony". Naturally, they assumed this was a bad thing.

2. They didn't visit Zecora at all. Zecora wasn't even in this episode. The CMCs find the recipe for the love potion in one of Twilight Sparkle's books and make the potion completely by themselves.

3. All three ponies become mortified because as soon as Big Mac and Cheerilee fall in love because of the unexpected side effects regarding the couple's behaviour. However, earlier on in the episode, Apple Bloom expresses some concern for her brother when she realises it is he who is to be paired up with her teacher.

4. I suppose they kinda did learn this lesson inevitably. They also learned to read chemical recipes more carefully in future.

5. I was kinda close here. I thought that the CMCs would learn their lesson just before Big Mac and Cheerliee begin their marriage vowels, but the antidote was in a sense a part of it. Big Mac and Cheerilee are unable to see each other, so in desperation, they charge towards each other but fail to make eye contact before Hearts and Hooves Day ends. This cause them to return to normal.

A friend in Deed

The prediction:

1. Pinkie enjoys the fact that she is popular in Ponyville and that most of the residents appreciate her attempts to be sweet and loveable.

2. Cranky Doodle Donkey arrives in town and tries to avoid making contact with any of the ponies. Pinkie finds him/her and welcomes him/her with open arms, but Cranky turns down Pinkie's offer of lifelong friendship and storms off.

3. Pinkie becomes confused and paranoid, convinced that this is not right since no one ever refuses to be friends with her.

4. Pinkie goes to extreme lengths to make Cranky turn. Eventually Cranky decides to humour her and goes to one of Pinkie's parties.

5. The episode ends with Pinkie learning that it is OK if not everypony wants to be friends, after all she can only have so many friends at one time. Cranky then takes a shine to Pinkie Pie's rational decision and agrees to Pinkie's request for life long friendship.

I don't know if Cranky will be a male donkey, but I sincerely hope it's Weird Al doing the voice!

The reality:

1. Check

2. Cranky does move in to Ponyville and inevitably avoids contact with other ponies, although Pinkie is really the only one who attempts to talk to him.

3. Pinkie didn't take it too hard. The more she talked to Cranky, the more she learned about him, but she spent a lot of time trying to make friends and also trying to apologise for her blunders. She does underline the fact that no one has yet resisted her songs and laughter when she wants to make friends.

4. Pinkie was much sweeter than that. Instead of buttering Cranky up with random gifts, she tries to make Cranky feel better. She takes him to the spa and gets Rarity to make him a new wig. Cranky begins to soften but seems to have something else on his mind which he'd rather not talk about.

5. The lesson was more, you can still be friends with those who like their privacy as long as you have an understanding. Cranky didn't change in any extravagant way which makes the story more believable (yes, even a Pony story) and is a much more reasonable ending to what I had in mind.

I was wrong about Weird Al. Apparently it was an actor named Richard Newman who played Rhinox in Beast Wars.



Putting Your Hoof Down

The prediction:

1. Fluttershy annoys Rainbow Dash because she's so passive.

2. Fluttershy turns to Iron Will who agrees to help Fluttershy become more assertive.

3. Iron Will helps Fluttershy and she transforms into a really ruthless pony.

4. The other ponies become detached from Fluttershy because of her new personality.

5. Fluttershy realises that being passive is a better way to keep her friends.

I'm kinda stating the obvious, but who knows? It could turn out to be a very different story.

The reality:

1. Wrong! RD was not even IN this episode! Instead, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were the ones to express their concern for Fluttershy.

2. I suppose Fluttershy didn't exactly go right to Iron Will but she did find out about his seminar. She even had to make quite an effort to get Iron Will's attention.

3. Iron Will simply employed his technique on Fluttershy as a demonstration to his audience. His influence is what transformed Fluttershy as the story moved on.

4. Not sure if "detached" is exactly the right word, but it was apparent that Pinkie and Rarity were regretting their concern for Fluttershy and decided they liked her better as a door-mat.

5. Rarity and Pinkie teach Fluttershy that assertiveness doesn't have to involve rudeness and Fluttershy uses her new found ability to reason with Iron Will when he went to get her money.



It's About Time

The prediction:

1. Twilight meets herself from the future and reveals that there is something in the Starswirl wing in the castle. Future Twilight fails to give Twilight her complete message before being transported back to the future.

2. Twilight grows paranoid from this occurrence and tries to avoid doing anything with her friends, knowing that her future self has warned her to avoid something. Twilights friends begin to feel neglected because of this.

3. Twilight's stubbornness leads to problems on a larger scale. Ponyville is invaded by outsiders and many of the citizens have to flee from their homes.

4. Twilight is captured and brought to the castle to find Celestia gone and one of the invaders has taken the throne. Twilight escapes and makes her way to the Starswirl wing so she can go back and warn herself about the invasion.

5. Just before Twilight can send herself back in time, she is visited by future Twilight again who tells her it will not work because as they both know, past Twilight won't listen. Together, they come up with a plan and get complete message to Twilight as originally intended, thus saving Ponyville.

The reality:

1. I already new Twilight would meet herself from the future because I saw the preview clip so this doesn't really count as a prediction.

2. There was a moment in this episode, just after Twilight gets her scar, when she chooses to do nothing. I was pretty close, but this moment was just one of Twilights many attempts to prevent the catastrophe. Gaining a scar, among other things is what makes Twilight worried since they match the things she noticed on future Twilight. I had no idea of this.

3. Ponyville was not invaded by outsiders and even the arrival of the Cerberus turned out to be nothing more than a minor inconvenience. Twilight spends most the episode looking for a disaster, but not finding one.

4. Twilight was not captured by anyone and she snuck into the Castle aided by Spike and Pinkie with the intention to find the Starswirl wing and stop time rather than actually go back. Celestia was fine, making a brief appearance saying hi to Twilight, Twilight realises after the day breaks and everything is still normal that there will be no disaster and the message she tried to give to herself was to not worry about future events. Ironically this means she must travel back in time to tell herself that thus completing the paradox (I think that's the correct usage of term).

5. Twilight di not meet her future self a second time. The episode was simply based around a time loop. Like most time travel stories it doesn't make sense, but is made to look as though it might.



Dragon Quest

The prediction:

1. Spike becomes sick of being used as a fax machine to the Princess. When some other young dragons find their way into Ponyville, Spike becomes friends with them.

2. Spike's pony friends become aware that these new dragons have a tendency to cause trouble. They tell Spike about the great dragon migration. Spike is intrigued, but tells them that Ponyville will always be his home.

3. The new dragons scoff at the idea. After going too far with their troublesome hyjinx , they leave to join the migration and Spike decides he wants to go with them. Twilight disapproves and tries to make him stay.

4. Spike leaves, Twilight becomes heartbroken and worries about how she will get by without him. Spike begins to learn that as a baby dragon, he is unlikely survive the treacherous journey that lies ahead. His dragon pals act tough, but when danger strikes, they cower in fear, leaving Spike to save the day in one last showdown.

5. Spike changes his mind about the rough and tumble gang and heads back to Ponyville. Twilight is there waiting for him and everything returns to normal.

The reality:

1. I was in the right ball park. Spike gets fed up with the ponies talking down to him because he is cute and harmless unlike most dragons. Spike feels that living among ponies for so long that he doesn't know his true identity and longs to meet some other dragons. I seem to have forgotten that Spike wasn't going to meet the other dragons until he joins the great dragon migration.

2. When Twilight attempts to research dragons she finds nothing. Ponies know next to nothing about dragons. This had me thinking there might be some big horrifying secret revealed to Spike towers the end of the episode but I think it worked out a lot better as it was.

3. Spike is followed to the migration by Twilight, Rarity and Rainbow Dash in a 3-pony dragon costume. They witness the behaviour of the teen dragons and feel concerned towards Spike. They also disapprove of Garble's attitude towards ponies. Spike denies that he is similar to his pony friends and maintains that he is "all dragon".

4. After Spike gains the confidence of the teen dragons, they take him out to smash some phoenix eggs. Spike finds an abandon egg which he refuses to smash. Twilight and the others turn up just in time to aid Spike in his escape.

5. Spike's lesson is more to do with family. He still doesn't know where he comes from or who his parents are but he is happy to be among his pony friends because they have been the best family a dragon could ask for.



Hurricane Fluttershy

The prediction:

1. The rainy season is coming up so Rainbow Dash leads her fellow pegasi create a tornado. Everyone is ready to do this except Flutterhy.

2. Fluttershy worries about humiliating herself in front of the others but she doesn't want to appear frightened so she puts on a brave face. But as time marches on, she becomes more and more afraid.

3. Fluttershy abandons her friends and at first, nopony notices. Twilight eventually finds her hiding and Fluttershy explains her worries.

4. Twilight persuades Fluttershy to get back and help with the tornado. Fluttershy does make some mistakes and fears that she will be ridiculed for it. The task is completed and Rainbow Dash congratulates all of them. She also offers constructive criticism to Fluttershy.

5. The other pegasi stand up for Fluttershy because she overcame her fears and committed to the task at hand. They state that mistakes are nothing to be ashamed of and that Fluttershy should be pleased of what she has accomplished.

I'm hoping the episode will be better than this! I do struggle coming up with ideas. Also I am aware that Derpy is going to make another appearance and it would be great if she gets another speaking role.

The reality:

1. This was downright obvious and it's really no surprise I got this one right.

2. Fluttershy didn't really hide her fear of humiliating herself. She made excuses and it was blatantly clear to Rainbow Dash that she was having no part of it. She admitted that while she will do anything for her friends, she doesn't like the idea of performing in front of others.

3. Fluttershy did make an attempt at joining in. It was only when she lost concentration due to flashbacks to her childhood and came last in the first speed test. This seemed to mostly be a result of RD turning the task into a contest.

4. Twilight did help Fluttershy, though it only happened towards the end. This is where Fluttershy began solo training with support from her animal friends. They helped her to ignore the onlooking ponies and stay focussed.

5. There was no giant plot twist at the end of the story. I thought it would be a little obvious if Fluttershy saved the day. Actually, the absence of half the flyers could be described as a plot twist (that said, it was made rather clear that there was a bug going around among the pegs and this is probably more obvious than Flutteshy saving the day). It meant that Fluttershy was actually needed and that she would have to go the extra mile to help the team succeed.

Derpy didn't speak this time round but I was amused by the bulked-up pegasus pony who kept popping up. Random.



Ponyville Confidential

The prediction:

1. The CMCs are still on the lookout for their special talents. When they get in contact with a local paper, they are rejected at first. Eventually they come with the idea of secretly sending stories in under the name Gabby Gums.

2. The stories they send in are printed and quickly become poplar among the readers. They start off as harmless insights from the CMCs' points of view. Soon however they are pressured into coming up with fresh stories with juicer themes.

3. The CMCs resort to sending in stories about their pony friends which causes outrage among them. The CMCs find out that their friends are angry at Gabby Gums so they decide to find stories about ponies in Canterlot including Princess Celestia.

4. At first, the CMCs get the impression that they have gone too far when Twilight and the others become enraged on Celestia's behalf. The CMCs confess that it was they who wrote the column. Twilight tells them they need to tell Celestia. Reluctantly they agree.

5. Celestia admits that she was not angry about her article but that she would have preferred it had they asked her permission before it had been published. The CMCs apologise having learned that it is wrong to publish information about others without there consent.

I have seen a couple of previews of this episode so I'm going to feel even more silly if I it turns out I got it all wrong.

The reality:

1. The CMCs were indeed on the lookout for their special talents (surprise surprise) and Applebloom came up with the idea of becoming columnists. They were not rejected. The name Gabby Gums is a collective because as they pointed out, they couldn't fit all of their names on the same column. There was also the introduction of Featherweight, the photographer of the school paper.

2. I think this part had more to do with the column spreading from the schoolyard to the entire town. The first column was noticed by Rarity who went on to show it to the other ponies. The CMCs realised they had a hit and this encouraged them to write more.

3. This would have been the point where each of the mane 6 got their dose of humiliation. Rarity found out that Sweetie Belle was involved in writing about her and before long the entire town found out that is was the CMCs all along. When the CMCs saw how angry they had made everypony, they pleaded with Diamond Tiara to let them quit but she refused and blackmailed them to continue writing the Gabby Gums column.

4. Twilight and the others were clearly more enraged about their own humiliations. The CMCs then came up with the idea to write an open letter explaining to the public how and why they ended up doing what they did, thus revealing the moral for this episode.

5. Cheerilee commended the honesty of the CMCs and Diamond Tiara got her just deserts. This also saw the start of Featherweight's new role as head of the new CEO of the school paper.

Celestia didn't feature in the plot of the episode. I assumed she would when I saw a screenshot of Twilight reading the paper with Celestia's image in the column. I actually thing it was funnier to have Celestia as a mere punchline for one of the sight gags.



MMMystery On The Friendship Express

The prediction:

1. Pinkie Pie is given the important job of guarding the royal cake but after she lets her guard down, she finds the cake partially eaten. She begins an investigation to find out who-dun-it.

2. Pinkie enlists the help of Twilight to help her solve the mystery. Pinkie and Twilight try out a range of different tactics to work it out.

3. Pinkie grows weary of questioning everypony and stressed about greeting the Princess with a half-eaten cake.

4. Twilight admits to eating the cake and apologises to Princess Celestia. Celestia tells Twilight not to worry.

5. Pinkie learns that sometimes the answer is right in front of you and that the best way to reveal the answer is to be approachable.

That's all I got. I did read a mention of Weird Al on EQD in relation to this episode. It would be amazing if he appears in this episode.

The reality:

1. Fell at the first hurdle! It wasn't a royal cake at all. It was the Cakes' entry for a contest. Pinkie meets the other contenders who sneer at the Cakes' entry. She checks up on everyone on the train throughout the night but eventually falls asleep. She awakens the next morning to find the cake half eaten.

2. Nearly right, when Twilight suggests that they look for clues, Pinkie ignores her and jumps to three conclusions, one by one she accuses the other contenders. Twilight points out that each of these accusations to be incorrect.

3. This was the point where the mystery simply grew to a larger scale. Instead of growing wearing, Pinkie is faced with a mystery of not just the half eaten cake but the consumption of all the other entries. Twilight takes over and after Pinkie retraces her steps, she works out who dun it. Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Fluttershy.

4. When Pinkie questions the other part of the mystery, Twilight lets Pinkie work it out for herself. Pinkie uses all that she has learned from Twilight and succeeds in working it out. She gets the three contenders to confess and they also complemented each other's craftsmanship which had gone into making the tasty treats. Celestia wasn't a part of the story.

5. Pinkie actually learned that it is not wise to jump to conclusion and that even when you suspect the worst of somepony, they could turn out to be sweet and caring.

No ponies this week sadly, but the next episode will be the Royal Wedding two-parter. Really looking forward to the possibility of another Vinyl Scratch appearance. There's also talk of Discord returning. We'll soon find out.



A Canterlot Wedding

The Prediction

Part 1

1. Twilight's brother Shining Armour proposes to Princess Cadance.

2. Twilight feels a bit weird upon hearing this news and expresses her concern. The other ponies get excited about going to a wedding.

3. The others grow even more excited when they are all selected to be bridesmaids.

4. Twilight begins to feel better and happy for her brother.

5. Just when Cadance and Shining Armour are about to be wed, Princess Cadance admits that she cannot go through with it because she has a terrible secret.

Part 2

1. Princess Cadance reveals that she is a clone and that clones of every other pony she has met are invading the castle. The wedding guests are scarred out of the castle when Twilght and her friends meet their dopplegangers. Clone Cadance tells them it is not too late to stop them.

The reality:

Part 1

1. This part of the story had more to do with Twilight's relationship with her brother and how she feels about him not telling her about the wedding. It is made clear how Cadance and Shing armour are deeply in love with each other.

2. Twilight is first concerned because she doesn't know who the bride to be is. Then later when she catches up with her foal sitter she becomes suspicious because she doesn't seem to remember Twilight at all.

3. Cadace's behaviour causes Twilight to think the worst of the arrangement. She tells her friends but they disagree. Twilight then finds Cadance doing evil things to Shining armour.

4. Twilight does not feel at all happy about the marriage. When she declares that Cadance is evil and the marriage should not go ahead, Shining armour, Celestia and all of her friends turn their backs on her.

5. The first part of this 2 parter was wrapped up a lot more neatly than I imagined. Twilight's suspicions are confirmed, but it is too late. When Cadance goes back to her evil persona, Twilight is sent down into the dungeon. The perfect crime. Nopony will be searching for Twilight because her own brother banned her from the wedding.

Part 2

This was by far the best episode(s) of the entire series in my book. The second half involved the real princess Cadance revealing herself and evil Cadence turns out to be a changeling (not a clone!) known as Queen Chrysalis. Canterlot is now in jeopardy but Twilight and her friends band together to fight off Chrysalis' minions while Cadance and Shining armour eventually work out how to defeat Chrysalis with the power of their love.
Best of all, Vinyl Scratch made a second appearance!