My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic ‘Twilight’s Kingdom’ Review


A season finale is always bittersweet. On one hand we know it’s going to be epic, but on the other hand we also know it’s going to be a long wait until the next season. A long time ago show head-writer Meghan McCarthy claimed Season 4 would be the most grand one yet. While it was debatable prior to the finale, with the latter it easily surpasses all other seasons epic-ness wise. This is unarguably the most important story yet. Not only is it the fulfillment of all the major things which have happened throughout the season, it also completes Twilight’s journey which was established all the way back in Episode 1 four years ago. ‘Twilight’s Kingdom‘ is a fantastic adventure with superb writing. Whoever said My Little Pony can’t be epic must watch this two-parter!

Here’s the official episode description from The Hub:

Twilight is having trouble finding her place as a princess. But she soon has bigger things to worry about as the evil Tirek arrives and plans to drain the energy out of every pony in Equestria. 

Luna and Candance all transfer their magic into Twilight in hopes that it will help them defeat Tirek and save Equestria.

What exactly is Twilight’s role as a princess? Like the viewer, she was wondering about this in the opening part of the finale. Despite having a grand coronation and gaining a crown, her status really hadn’t changed. It’s nice to finally see the show and Twilight herself acknowledge this. The first song, ‘You’ll Play Your Part‘ perfectly explains her feelings and has an amazing amount of emotion. I have to give a big shout-out to Daniel Ingram for always nailing the music. The finale reminds everyone why Meghan McCarthy is the show’s head-writer. All of the lines spoken by the characters sound very smooth and natural, no one’s out of character here.

Fans always look forward to new villains. Sadly, the last ‘big’ one, King Sombra, didn’t quite meet expectations. Lord Tirek however exceeds all expectations. Not only is this satanic individual pure evil, he’s the most powerful entity in the entire show! His dialogue is great too. Discord gets the short end of the stick, which might annoy his fans. For the first time there’s a being much more powerful than him! While what happens after their meeting may be viewed as controversial, there’s no denying how awesome that meeting was. Not only is Tirek powerful, he’s also a great schemer. If someone was to be called the Devil of MLP, it’d be this guy.

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The epic-ness comes in the second part of the finale. The battle between Twilight and Tirek was all kinds of amazing. This is something people who were watching way back in the first season dreamed about. This is what happens when Dragon Ball Z combines with MLP. Even the Ponies get Super Sayian rainbow forms! It was however definitely a mistake of Hasbro to reveal the rainbow designs literally months in advance, it took away from the special factor of the opening of the chest. The other ponies didn’t do much, but that’s okay because at its core Friendship is Magic is Twilight’s story. Seeing her unsure of her role, then having the biggest battle of her life, and finally realizing her destiny has made this two-parter an extremely worthwhile watch. It could have actually been the series finale. (It has a fantastic closing song, ‘Let the Rainbow Remind You.’)

Overall, ‘Twilight’s Kingdom‘ doesn’t disappoint and is a masterpiece. I would go as far to say that it beats all the other two-parters. The writing is perfect. Tirek is a brilliant antagonist, by far the best villain the show has seen yet. While Discord’s role might not have been the best since he plays second fiddle to Tirek,  at least we can fully accept him as a force of good by the end. The climax is one of the most epic and emotional climaxes in animation history. Sadly we won’t be seeing any more My Little Pony until 2015, but at least the season ended on an extreme high note.

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OUR RATING
10
+Excellent Writing +EPIC Climax +Tirek was a Brilliant Villain +Twilight's Journey Comes to a Close Smoothly and Naturally