Howdy, folks. TheSlorg here, and it's time for another editorial in our Guides to Ponies series. Many of you know that we've delved into the topic of ponies crying already, so we decided that the next topic in the series should cover something more upbeat: the boop.
What is a boop, you may ask? It is when one pokes another's nose or head. In a pony's case, they can either perform a hoof or a snout boop, in which they press their nose together with that of another pony. As with pony tears, I did not really notice this phenomenon until later seasons, but that doesn't mean that they didn't exist early on! I've watched and re-watched every episode of the season in order to find out who gives, and who receives, the most boops in the series. To find out with me, or if you're just bored and want five minutes of entertainment, go ahead and see below the break!
What is a boop, you may ask? It is when one pokes another's nose or head. In a pony's case, they can either perform a hoof or a snout boop, in which they press their nose together with that of another pony. As with pony tears, I did not really notice this phenomenon until later seasons, but that doesn't mean that they didn't exist early on! I've watched and re-watched every episode of the season in order to find out who gives, and who receives, the most boops in the series. To find out with me, or if you're just bored and want five minutes of entertainment, go ahead and see below the break!
Before We Begin
Now, watching and re-watching an entire season’s worth of episodes to look for a specific action or moment is time-consuming, and can even be daunting. What, exactly, counts as a boop for instance? For the purposes of this article, I will be rather lenient on the exact definition, and will count any case in which a pony snout has become scrunched due to direct contact with a hoof or snout, as well as any cases where a pony is directly poked on the top of the head by a hoof in honor of the original boop meme. Additionally, I’ll be counting “bottom bumps,” a thing that only ponies tend to do (I hope), in which they will shove another pony along, or bowl them over, by pushing their bottom with their snout or head.
Lastly, as much time as I take to keep these lists as accurate as possible, there is always a chance that I may miss one or two instances. There may also come times when it is debatable as to whether or not a boop counts. If you find anything I missed, or wish to challenge a particular boop, feel free to leave a comment below. And now it is time. Have I typed “boop” enough yet? Ready or not, let the boops begin!
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| "No! Don't you dare say the word 'apple' again!" |
Friendship is Magic (part one) - Rarity gives Twilight a bottom bump as she pushes her along to get a makeover. Fluttershy also gives Twilight a bottom bump when she nudges Twilight out of the way in order to see Spike.
Friendship is Magic (part 2) - Rainbow Dash very nearly boops Twilight when she accuses her of being a spy, but Rainbow’s snout bumps Twilight’s forehead, not her snout, so I’m not counting it. As such, it is the first episode without any boops.
The Ticket Master - Rarity gives Twilight a snout boop as she discusses how great they would look together at the Grand Galloping Gala.
Applebuck Season - Not a single boop was had.
Griffon the Brush-off - Rainbow Dash almost boops Pinkie immediately after pranking Spike, but she just holds her hoof over Pinkie’s mouth so it doesn’t count. Gilda boops Pinkie’s snout when she calls her “Stinky Pie.” Pinkie Pie boops Fluttershy on top of the head six times in a row at Gilda’s party. Pinkie also snout… er, beak boops Gilda when Pinkie says she has her eyes on her.
Boast Busters - Twilight pushes Spike with a bottom bump during Trixie’s show.
Dragonshy - Pinkie boops Fluttershy’s snout with her own during the Hop, Skip, and Jump song. Rainbow Dash gives Fluttershy a bottom bump to help her across the chasm. Twilight then bottom bumps Fluttershy twice to get her to help with the dragon, and is in turned bottom bumped twice by Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy gets yet another bottom bump from Applejack in an effort to cheer her up. Twilight accidentally snout boops the red dragon when she bumps into him.
Look Before You Sleep - Rarity bottom bumps Applejack right out of bed during the sleepover. They boop each other’s snouts during the ensuing argument.
Bridle Gossip - Applejack boops Apple Bloom’s head seven times as she explains to Twilight why they’re hiding from Zecora.
Swarm of the Century - No boopsies for yonder ponies.
Winter Wrap Up - Twilight accidentally bottom bumps Pinkie when she loses control while ice skating.
Call of the Cutie - There are several hoof-to-mouth moments, but no proper boopsies. EDIT - I wasn't originally going to count bottom to bottom bumps, but then Pinkie did it later on so I'll count them: Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara give each other bottom to bottom bumps after tormenting Apple Bloom.
Fall Weather Friends - No boopsies here.
Suited For Success - Another episode free of any boops.
Feeling Pinkie Keen - Twilight gives Spike a bottom bump when she bumps him up onto her back as she races to Froggy Bottom Bog. She does so again a short time later while running from the hydra. Pinkie gives Twilight a proper hoof-to-snout boop at the end of the episode.
Sonic Rainboom - It’s debatable if it counts as a boop, but Rarity pokes Twilight in the bottom with her horn after Rainbow crashes into the library. She then performs something I had never even considered when coming up with the idea for this series: a rare reverse-bottom bump when she smashes her rear into Twilight and sends her flying. Rainbow Dash snout boops Fluttershy when she freaks out at the Young Fliers Competition.
Stare Master - No boops here.
The Show Stoppers - None here, either.
A Dog and Pony Show - Rarity boops Spike on the head six times after he collects gemstones for her. Spike also shoves a diamond dog with his head, but he shoves it in the back, not the bottom. Also, while a diamond dog does smack Rarity on the bottom, it doesn’t count as a bottom bump.
Green Isn’t Your Color - Stella Lashes, one of Photo Finish’s helpers, bottom bumps Fluttershy after it’s revealed that they want to make her a star. Photo Finish herself later gives Fluttershy a bottom bump to get her on stage.
Over a Barrel - Rainbow Dash puts her hoof over Pinkie’s mouth early in the episode, but it’s not really a boop. Seconds later she gives Pinkie a proper snout boop, though. Little Strongheart puts a hoof on or in Chief Thunderhooves’ nostril, and though it’s not exactly what I had in mind, the stated criteria for a boop means it counts. Little Strongheart and Braeburn are almost forced into a snout boop by Rainbow and Applejack, but only their foreheads touch. Rainbow and Applejack gives each other snout boops in quick succession during an argument. It looks as if the same pair of buffalo accidentally snout boop each other on two separate occasions when they crash their horns together.
A Bird in the Hoof - Angel Bunny gives Fluttershy a bottom bump in the opening scene. Twilight snout boops Fluttershy when trying to take the blame for Philomena’s “death.”
The Cutie Mark Chronicles - Scootaloo gives Sweetie Belle a bottom bump right out the door after listening to Rarity’s cutie mark origin story.
Owl’s Well That Ends Well - There was a head rub or two, but no actual boops.
Party of One - Pinkie is the second pony to do a rare reverse bottom bump when she sends both Twilight and Fluttershy flying at her party. Rarity almost gives Spike a proper hoof to snout boop after he takes out the garbage for her, but she just misses it and hits his mouth instead. Pinkie gives Applejack an extra-rough snout boop when she tries to peer inside the barn, then does so again a moment later. Rainbow later gives Pinkie a bottom bump in an effort to get her back to Sweet Apple Acres, but it backfires and Pinkie reverse bottom bumps Rainbow by sitting on her head (yes, it counts). Rainbow gives Pinkie another bottom bump in order to push her inside the barn. Pinkie boops snouts with Twilight during the group hug.
The Best Night Ever - A background pony named Count Caesar gets the bottom bump of his life when Rainbow Dash sends him flying across the hall in an effort to impress the Wonderbolts. In yet another case of unexpected occurrences when making this list, Pinkie Pie does the unthinkable when she delivers a bottom-to-bottom bump on Frederick Horseshoepin the pony pianist. She then goes on to bottom bump a background mare named Charm.
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| And that's how Equestria was made. |
So Who Got the Most Boops?
There were only nine out of twenty-six episodes that did not feature a boop or bump of some kind, meaning that just over 65% of the episodes featured a boop. Admittedly there were far more instances to count than I suspected when the idea for this list first came to mind. But who gave, and who received, the most of each type of boop/bump?
Below is a list, starting from least to most.
Booped
- Chief Thunderhooves - 1
- Gilda - 1
- Rainbow Dash - 1
- Rarity - 1
- Red Dragon - 1
- Buffalo A - 2
- Buffalo B - 2
- Pinkie Pie - 2
- Twilight - 3
- Applejack - 4
- Spike - 6
- Apple Bloom - 7
- Fluttershy - 9
Gave Boop
- Gilda - 1
- Little Strongheart - 1
- Buffalo A - 2
- Buffalo B - 2
- Twilight - 2
- Rainbow Dash - 3
- Rarity - 8
- Applejack - 9
- Pinkie Pie - 12
Got Bottom Bumped
- Applejack - 1
- Charm - 1
- Count Caesar - 1
- Sweetie Belle - 1
- Pinkie - 3
- Spike - 3
- Twilight - 5
- Fluttershy - 7
Gave Bottom Bump
- Angel Bunny - 1
- Applejack - 1
- Fluttershy - 1
- Photo Finish - 1
- Pinkie Pie - 1
- Scootaloo - 1
- Stella Lashes - 1
- Rarity - 3
- Rainbow Dash - 6
- Twilight - 6
Got Reverse-Bottom Bumped
- Fluttershy - 1
- Rainbow Dash - 1
- Twilight - 2
Gave Reverse-Bottom Bump
- Rarity - 1
- Pinkie - 3
Got Bottom-to-Bottom Bump
- Diamond Tiara - 1
- Frederick Horseshoepin - 1
- Silver Spoon - 1
Gave Bottom-to-Bottom Bump
- Diamond Tiara - 1
- Pinkie Pie - 1
- Silver Spoon - 1
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| "And then I leaped out of the bush and booped her right on the snoot, did you see how much it scrunched up? I mean, really you can't top that. And then I saw Twilight down the road so I went and got her too!" |
So what does it all mean? Well, we have Fluttershy receiving both the most boops and the most bottom bumps, for a combined total of 17, giving her the crown as the most-booped pony in season one. The runners up are Twilight with a combined 10 instances, and Spike with 9.
As for the character who gave the most boops, it's no surprise that Pinkie Pie leads the pack with a combined 17 instances, including the most reverse-bottom bumps and a bottom-to-bottom bump. Rarity comes in second place with a combined 12. Sliding into third is none other than Applejack, whose rapid-fire boops upon Apple Bloom's head helped her end with a total of 10 for the season.
In total, 40 boops and 29 bottom bump variants were given and received, for a total of 69 boops and bumps over 26 episodes. Shockingly, these totals greatly eclipse the number of tears that were counted back in our first Guide to Pony Tears.
And that about wraps it up! Goodness there were way more boops to count than anticipated. Did your favorite pony do well? How ridiculous was all of this, and would you like to see more? Which pony will reign supreme overall? Let me know in the comments below, and keep an eye out for more Pony Guides coming soon!
