“Explore Equestria” is confirmed as My Little Pony’s new toy line, which could bring a fascinating shift in the next season. Even with a map of the world, there is a vast amount of area that’s yet to be featured in an episode. From the countries beyond to what could be down below, let’s count down 5 Places “Exploring Equestria” could go after the break.
#5: A Country That Thrives on Hatred
Friendship surrounds everyone in the MLP universe and provides the foundation for Equestria’s existence. Without it, our little ponies would be struggling to live in a wasteland. But what if “Exploring Equestria” showed a country that thrived on that? I’m not talking about Sombra’s country, where everypony was forced to fight for the glory of dark magic. Or Starlight’s town, where the ponies were the only ones misguided. What if the farmland, animals, and “friendship” that surrounded the country was instead replaced with alienation and hatred?
This trope is ubiquitous throughout media and science. Anti-matter exists as an opposite to matter (Calpain will hit me if I’m wrong). The Dark Side constantly fights with the Light. Heaven fights Hell in Diablo (and absolutely nowhere else), and for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Is there a world within Equestria where the opposite is favored or celebrated? Are there parties held for each new enemy you make? Does the country run itself via a monarchy that’s constantly challenged? Or will the country be more black and white, as an area where friendship simply can’t happen?
#4: A Returning Villain’s Country
If we don’t see one of the major villains returning next season, I’ll be very surprised. The comics played with this idea with Chrysalis’ arc in the beginning of their run, and I’d love to see this explored more in the show. Starlight Glimmer’s town was one of the most refreshing villain settings in a while. The tone and indirect characterization flowed throughout the dialogue and resident’s actions. Starlight didn’t need to wax poetic about how awesome she was (although she did for her ideology), everything else did it for her.
There’s been a small amount of criticism towards the show regarding reformations, and whether or not the trope is getting old. I have a feeling that the writers are listening. If there’s one or even a couple villains that are incapable of being reformed, or are evil incarnates that the Mane 6 will be fighting forever, then it will be easier to come up with villain episodes. Not only that, but if Generation 5 wanted to continue with a time-skip, it could bring old fans back with Discord or Chrysalis, even if just for that episode. I mentioned a few editorials ago that is the time that MLP can afford to explore darker themes. Just like with poker, if you fold every hand you’re given and don’t take any risks, eventually you’ll run out of chips.
#3: What Lies Below
There’s nothing more terrifying than the unknown. The Crystal Caves was the only area that we’ve seen below Equestria so far. If Fallout has taught us anything, it’s that you can have entire civilizations underground and characterize the inhabitants with this environment. The explanation for a city’s lack of basic essentials such as sunlight and plants is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to characterization. Could we see a new pony race underground?
Perhaps the bat ponies live down below and the entrance to their city is through a cave that leads down under? Are there untold horrors waiting to be unleashed when Derpy accidentally takes a left turn at Albuquerque? Is the entrance to Tartarus accessible to anypony or was Twilight given special permissions? All of these questions could be answered next season.
#2: The Dragon and Griffin Empires
I’m not convinced that “Dragon Quest” and “The Lost Treasures of Griffinstone” is all there is to these civilizations. The problem with those episodes is that neither race got their time to flourish because they were the villains, and they weren’t in a premiere or finale so their priority to be “awesome” was undercut. But I’m interested in both of these creatures, just because there seems to be tension between ponies, dragons, and griffins. Twilight’s diplomatic duties have graced Saddle Arabia (which is still an amazing pun), and now it’s time to revisit some old “friends”.
There’s a plethora of lore surrounding griffins and dragons within myths and more friendly character examples (Gilda), but there is still room to explore each races problems, friendship or otherwise. The myths surrounding the two Princesses, Nightmare Moon, and Discord all seem to affect the ponies in Equestria, but do they have any bearing upon the ones to the North and South? Do these races have their own supervillains? I’d like to find out.
#1: The Past
We want more Celestia episodes, and there’s a huge gap every thousand years where something interesting happens. A day in the life of past Celestia would give us a glimpse into Equestria while there was only one Element bearer. Two birds, one stone. Much like the end scene in "Slice of Life", even small glimpses at secondary characters provides us with enough fuel to keep the fanfics and animations going for years. But if there was an entire episode that opened Celestia’s closet to show all her regrets, fears, and skeletons, I’m sure we’d love to see it.
The past doesn’t apply to only Celestia, either. Does Starswirl the Bearded need some more screen time, or Princess Luna’s life before her downfall? Can we invoke two of these ideas and have the Griffins threaten war against Equestria until the Princesses settle it? Was the Everfree Forest always full of life-threatening monsters? I could go on forever, but if I’m positive about one thing, it’s that the past is full of material. I’m sure none of the characters would like to admit it, but the past can’t be changed, and learning it will help you fix the future.
And that’s all I have for this week. What do you guys think? With the finale’s more darker tones, do we have the ability to look into some of these more existential ideas? Will "Explore Equestria" be more of the same? Leave them in the comments. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you guys soon.
Honorable Mention: Zebras. Just put them in already. We need more Zecora… anything.
