History Recap / MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E7WonderboltsAcademy

* FriendOrIdolDecision: Rainbow Dash has to choose between following her dream and enabling Lightning Dash's reckless actions, or sticking by her friends and resigning. Being the Element of Loyalty, she chooses to resign. What happens next would have done credit to ''Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory''.

With that, Rainbow Dash quits the Academy and dejectedly returns to her friends, certain her dream of being a Wonderbolt is over...when Spitfire catches up and admits that Rainbow Dash made a valid point about pushing oneself. As such, she forces Lightning Dust into the open and unceremoniously tears off the lead pony badge. Once Lightning Dust has left, crushed and with her tail between her legs, Spitfire gives it to the more deserving, ecstatic Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash proudly flies off with her class to finish their training (all while Pinkie complains that Rainbow Dash never opened her care package).

* FriendOrIdolDecision: Rainbow Dash has to choose between following her dream and enabling Lightning Dash's reckless actions, or sticking by her friends and resigning. Being the Element of Loyalty, she chooses to resign.

* JerkJustifier: Lightning Dust as TheSocialDarwinist.

* JerkJustification: Lightning Dust as TheSocialDarwinist.

With that, Rainbow Dash quits the Academy and dejectedly returns to her friends, certain her dream of being a Wonderbolt is over...when Spitfire catches up and admits that Rainbow Dash made a valid point about pushing oneself. As such, she unceremoniously tears off Lightning Dust's lead pony badge and gives it to the more deserving, ecstatic Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash proudly flies off with her class to finish their training (all while Pinkie complains that Rainbow Dash never opened her care package).

* NonStandardCharacterDesign: Thus far Dash has been the only pegasus (outside the Wonderbolts when they perform) who leaves a trail behind her as she flies; this episode introduces Lightning Dust, who leaves a trail of lightning behind her where she flies.

* OncePerSeason: Rarity has to be saved from falling to her death.

* [[AlwaysSaveTheGirl Always Save Your Best Friends]]: Rainbow Dash gives up on her dreams of being a Wonderbolt when she assumes becoming one would lead her to make reckless decisions and endanger her friends again.

* [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter Always Somepony Better]]: In the initial examinations, Lightning Dust proves to be as good as Rainbow Dash at everything they're tested on (keeping pace with, but not beating, Rainbow Dash when it comes to speed, although Dash did not perform her signature supersonic move). While Rainbow Dash sets a record time on the disorientation test, Lightning Dust loses by only half a second with the machine on the maximum setting. This leads to Lightning Dust being made TheLeader of her pairing with Rainbow Dash. Initially, the conflict in their team dynamic is Rainbow Dash learning to try and accept somepony else as her leader. However, it quickly becomes clear that Lightning Dust isn't so much better but [[TheUnfettered less restrained.]]

* [[ArrogantKungFuGuy Arrogant Flyer Pony]]: Lightning Dust takes pleasure in making other ponies eat her clouds and dismisses the harm she does as a result.

* [[CurbStompBattle Curb-Stomp Competition]]: Lightning Dust and Rainbow Dash dominate the cloud-clearing exercise. Before the tornado destroys the scoreboard, they have a recorded score of 70; the next highest score is 10.

* [[FacePalm Facehoof]]: Twilight Sparkle's reaction to Pinkie Pie's InsaneTrollLogic about Rainbow Dash forgetting her friends over the course of three days.

* [[FreeRangeChildren Free Range Flight Cadets]]: For a paramilitary organization, the Wonderbolts don't seem to supervise what their cadets are doing during their training exercises...

* [[SloganYellingMegaphoneGuy Slogan Yelling Megaphone Pony]]: Pinkie Pie has one that's bigger than her.

'''Spitfire:''' Well, then, let me be the first to tell you: ''[[EstablishingCharacterMoment You don't!]]'' If you had what it took to be an elite flyer, you'd already ''be'' a Wonderbolt!

* BrokenPedestal: Spitfire and the Wonderbolts overall for Rainbow Dash, on account of their approval of Lightning Dust's recklessness. [[TenMinuteRetirement It doesn't last long]], as Spitfire chases after her to give the response that Rainbow Dash didn't stick around for.

* [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter Always Somepony Better]]: In the initial examinations, Lightning Dust proves to be at as good as Rainbow Dash at everything they're tested on (keeping pace with, but not beating, Rainbow Dash when it comes to speed, although Dash did not perform her signature supersonic move). While Rainbow Dash sets a record time on the disorientation test, Lightning Dust loses by only half a second with the machine on the maximum setting. This leads to Lightning Dust being made TheLeader of her pairing with Rainbow Dash. Initially, the conflict in their team dynamic is Rainbow Dash learning to try and accept somepony else as her leader. However, it quickly becomes clear that Lightning Dust isn't so much better but [[TheUnfettered less restrained.]]

* [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter Always Somepony Better]]: In the initial examinations, Lightning Dust proves to be at as good as Rainbow Dash at everything they're tested on (keeping pace with, but not beating, Rainbow Dash when it comes to speed, although Dash did not perform her signature supersonic move). While Rainbow Dash sets a record time on the disorientation test, Lightning Dust loses by only half a second with the machine on the maximum setting. This leads to Lightning Dust being made TheLeader of her pairing with Rainbow Dash. Initially, the conflict in their team dynamic is Rainbow Dash learning to try and accept somepony else as her leader. However, it quickly becomes clear that Lightning Dust isn't so much better but less restrained.

* CallBack:
** Several Pegasi from [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E22HurricaneFluttershy "Hurricane Fluttershy"]] make a return (Thunderlane, Bulk Biceps, Cloudchaser, and others).
** The obstacle course runway looks like it's the same one from summer flight camp in [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E23TheCutieMarkChronicles "The Cutie Mark Chronicles"]].
** Tornadoes have been used to clear clouds (and snow, and parasprites...) in a hurry before--Rainbow Dash made a small one on her own in [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E10SwarmOfTheCentury "Swarm of the Century"]], but it took an entire team to make a full-sized one in [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E11WinterWrapUp "Winter Wrap Up"]].
** Two to [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E16SonicRainboom "Sonic Rainboom"]]: This isn't the first time Rainbow Dash has had to save a friend--or friends, in this case--from falling to their doom on her own, and there's also Rainbow Dash's repeating "[[{{Squee}} Omigosh!]]" line when Spitfire names her team leader.
** Rainbow's decision at the end of the episode is a callback to her demonstration of the Element of Loyalty in [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E2ElementsOfHarmony the pilot]], where she turned down her lifelong dream out of loyalty to her friends. This time, though, it wasn't a trick.

* ContinuityNod: Pinkie Pie has [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E25PartyOfOne shown]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E3TooManyPinkiePies before]] that her faith in her friendships is easily shaken. Here she is worried that Rainbow Dash will forget all about her after not seeing her for a week.

!!Tropes present in this episode: [[YMMV/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E7WonderboltsAcademy YMMV tropes here.]]

* RecycledInSpace: ''Film/TopGun'' [-WITH PEGASI-]! [-AND A [[DownerEnding DOWNER ENDING]] FOR MAVERICK-]!

* MildlyMilitary: [[ZigZaggedTrope Zig-zagged]]; the Wonderbolts and the [[FanNickname Royal Equestrian Air Force]] in general seem much ''more'' military than might be expected in this episode, between Spitfire's DrillSergeantNasty persona, Rainbow Dash and the other cadets [[InsistentTerminology consistently addressing her as]] "Ma'am", and the BlingOfWar worn by her and the other instructors...and yet there ''seems'' to be an amazing lack of supervision at times in those training exercises...but ultimately the free rein is shown to be a SecretTestOfCharacter.

* SecretTestOfCharacter: It's easy to see why Rainbow Dash is made a wingpony instead of a leader, and why Lightning Dust is made a leader instead of a wingpony. Rainbow has to learn humility and when to stand up to orders that endanger others, which she passes. Lightning fails miserably since as a leader, she should have known not to put other ponies at risk in pointless competitions. Hence Rainbow Dash is promoted to leader in the end while Lightning Dust is kicked out/demoted despite her skills.

* BigYes: Did you think an episode with Snowflake in it would go by without him at least once saying his CatchPhrase? "'''''YEAH!!!'''''"

** Several Pegasi from [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E22HurricaneFluttershy "Hurricane Fluttershy"]] make a return (Thunderlane, Horse Power/Snowflake, Cloudchaser, and others).

* TheCameo: Some of the pegasi from "Hurricane Fluttershy" make an appearance, including Cloudchaser, Thunderlane and Snowflake.

* FunnyBackgroundEvent: All of the other cadets race to help catch Rainbow's friends on the rebound from the cloud. Snowflake gets the task of rescuing the already-crushed care package, and he looks pleased as punch at doing it.

* NonStandardCharacterDesign: Thus far Dash has been the only pegasus (outside Wonderbolts when they perform) who leaves a trail behind her as she flies; this episode introduces Lightning Dust, who leaves a trail of lightning behind her where she flies.

* NonStandardCharacterDesign: Thus far Dash has been the only pegasus who leaves a trail behind her as she flies; this episode introduces Lightning Dust, who leaves a trail of lightning behind her where she flies.

* TenMinuteRetirement: [[spoiler:Not even ''two'' minutes, since it happens right before the episode's end, but Rainbow Dash quits the Academy—and her dream of becoming a Wonderbolt—when she feels Lightning Dust's reckless behavior is tolerated too much. When Spitfire rectifies this by punishing Lightning Dust and letting Rainbow Dash stay, Rainbow Dash is more than happy to come back.]]
* [[AlwaysSaveTheGirl Always Save Your Best Friends]]: [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash gives up on her dreams of being a Wonderbolt when she assumes becoming one would lead her to make reckless decisions and endanger her friends again.]]

* AwesomeMomentOfCrowning: [[spoiler:What happens to Rainbow Dash after she demonstrates the strength of character to resign her commission when she has a moral objection to the Wonderbolts' skewed priorities. At this, Spitfire not only convinces her to stay on, but promotes her to team leader, and she is saluted as such by her teammates.]]

* BigNo: Rainbow Dash when [[spoiler:she sees her friends plummeting to their doom]].

** Rainbow Dash spends the first half of the episode bluntly overconfident of her abilities, until she is placed as wingpony to Lightning Dust. When she complains to Spitfire, she is very quickly put in her place, and spends the remainder of the episode humbled and earnest [[spoiler: as a contrast to the increasingly reckless and arrogant Lightning Dust]].
** [[spoiler:The smug Lightning Dust is quite visibly heartbroken after Spitfire strips her of her team leader badge and has her escorted off the premises.]]
* BrokenPedestal: [[spoiler:Spitfire and the Wonderbolts overall for Rainbow Dash, on account of their approval of Lightning Dust's recklessness. [[TenMinuteRetirement It doesn't last long]], as Spitfire chases after her to give the response that Rainbow Dash didn't stick around for.]]

** Two to [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E16SonicRainboom "Sonic Rainboom"]]: [[spoiler:This isn't the first time Rainbow Dash has had to save a friend--or friends, in this case--from falling to their doom on her own]], and there's also Rainbow Dash's repeating "[[{{Squee}} Omigosh!]]" line when [[spoiler:Spitfire names her team leader]].

* CharacterDevelopment: [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash is shown to be a lot more caring, cautious, and responsible than in earlier episodes. Even after an initial objection, she seems to swallow her pride to accept the wingpony position and perform to the best of her abilities in a team where she's not the leader, and she doesn't hesitate to ditch the Wonderbolts if their work comes at the cost of other ponies. Since Lightning Dust behaves much like Dash did at the beginning of the show (with added [[TheSociopath sociopathy]] and lack of Dash's defining [[UndyingLoyalty loyalty]]), the difference shows pretty well.]]
* ChekhovsSkill: Rainbow Dash is shown in the ColdOpen to have the ability to shape and pack clouds quickly. [[spoiler:Guess what skill comes in handy to save her falling friends?]]

* DickDastardlyStopsToCheat: As Dash points out, they are already way ahead in the cloud-busting exercise, but Lightning Dust wants to "literally blow away the competition". Not technically cheating since Spitfire is willing to allow it, until she learns that [[spoiler:it almost killed someone]].
* DramaticallyMissingThePoint: When Rainbow Dash calls out Lightning Dust on [[spoiler: how she nearly killed her friends, she retorts that her friends survived.]]

* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler:After spending the entire episode forced to play second banana to a reckless mare who (albeit unintentionally) nearly killed her friends, and being yelled at, injured, unfairly lectured, and yelled at some more, Rainbow Dash is finally one step closer to her life long dream of being a Wonderbolt and her chances of getting in for real have gone from highly possible to inevitable.]]

** {{Subverted|Trope}} when Lightning Dust deliberately creates a tornado to bust clouds but instead [[spoiler:endangers Rainbow Dash's friends]].

* FriendOrIdolDecision: Rainbow Dash has to choose between following her dream and enabling Lightning Dash's reckless actions, or sticking by her friends and resigning. [[spoiler:Being the Element of Loyalty, she chooses to resign]].

** Later {{defied|Trope}} when Lightning Dust wants to give Rainbow Dash a hoof bump following [[spoiler:the Mane Six's rescue from the tornado, but is rejected and gets a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech instead]].
* {{Homage}}: To ''Film/TopGun'', but with a different direction: it's not Rainbow Dash playing Maverick, but Lightning Dust, showing how being a reckless flyer isn't always a good thing. Rainbow Dash more plays Goose's role here, being a loyal but hesitant second and trying repeatedly, without success, to rein in her headstrong flight lead. (Element of Loyalty, after all). She also channels Iceman's "You're dangerous" line in her TheReasonYouSuckSpeech. Likewise, Spitfire's role effectively combines Viper and Charlie into one character, even though one of her subordinates is clearly meant to look like a [[ShoutOut pony version of Viper]]. At the end, [[spoiler:Spitfire and the other instructors side with Rainbow Dash, much as [[RealLife real life]] military flying instructors would normally favor a by-the-book regard for safety and teamwork over casual recklessness, even in an unusually skilled student. (For that matter, even ''in'' ''Film/TopGun'', it was [[StrawmanHasAPoint Iceman who won the trophy for top student...]])]]

* InnocentBystander: [[spoiler:The rest of the Mane Six show up at the worst possible time to deliver their care package to Rainbow Dash as their Twinkling Balloon is caught in an out-of-control tornado, prompting Rainbow Dash to rescue them.]]

* InsigniaRipOffRitual: Both variants are played back-to-back. [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash turns in her wingpony insignia when confronting Spitfire in her office because they had rewarded Lightning Dust for her dangerously reckless behavior up to that point. Spitfire responds in kind by bringing Lightning Dust over and ripping her team leader insignia off her suit, with Lightning walking off in disgrace]].

* LackOfEmpathy: Lightning Dust doesn't care at all that she [[spoiler:nearly killed Rainbow Dash's friends]], which is the last straw for Rainbow. [[spoiler:It also costs her her leadership position when Spitfire realizes it. Considering the Wonderbolts do rescue work in several episodes, this makes a lot of sense]].
* LaserGuidedKarma: [[spoiler:Lightning Dust's attempts at pushing herself, which earn her rank as team leader, eventually cost her that rank when she does it at the cost of those around her. {{Justified|Trope}} in that the academy practices the sort of strict discipline you'd expect from a boot camp.]]
* TheLeader: Lightning Dust is a Headstrong type because she likes to push herself. [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash is deemed a Levelheaded type at the end of the episode]].

* MildlyMilitary: [[ZigZaggedTrope Zig-zagged]]; the Wonderbolts and the [[FanNickname Royal Equestrian Air Force]] in general seem much ''more'' military than might be expected in this episode, between Spitfire's DrillSergeantNasty persona, Rainbow Dash and the other cadets [[InsistentTerminology consistently addressing her as]] "Ma'am", and the BlingOfWar worn by her and the other instructors...and yet there ''seems'' to be an amazing lack of supervision at times in those training exercises...[[spoiler:but ultimately the free rein is shown to be a SecretTestOfCharacter]].

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash's expression briefly expresses this after she drops out of the Academy.]]

* NeverSayDie: [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash says her friends could have been "smashed to pieces", "taken out", and "demolished" by the tornado.]]
* NoKillLikeOverkill: Lightning Dust, despite already having a massive lead at the cloud-clearing exercise, attempts to best the others even more by causing a tornado to eliminate the remaining clouds. This is {{lampshade|Hanging}}d by Spitfire, who considers it excessive (but still approves until she learns [[spoiler:it nearly killed someone]]).

* NotTheFallThatKillsYou: [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash catches her falling friends by condensing a cloud so it will support their weight. It shoots them back up like a spring.]]

* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Rainbow Dash chews out Lightning Dust for her recklessness after the tornado incident nearly [[spoiler:kills her friends]].
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Spitfire [[spoiler:wastes no time in booting Lightning Dust from the class when Rainbow Dash points out her reckless attitude nearly got her friends killed]].

* RememberedICouldFly: [[spoiler:[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E7Dragonshy Not surprisingly]], Fluttershy's wings lock up in fear when Dust and Dash's tornado destroys the Twinkling Balloon. She's rather sheepish when she remembers she has them after the rescue]]
* ResetButton: [[spoiler:{{Subverted|Trope}}. Many viewers expected Rainbow Dash to leave the Academy by the end of this episode, thus maintaining the status quo. For a second, she ''is'' going to leave, but instead the episode ends with Rainbow staying in the Academy. While things may not change drastically, this will still probably have some impact considering this show's tendency towards Continuity.]]

* RevisedEnding: According to [[WordOfGod Meghan McCarthy]], [[https://twitter.com/MMeghanMcCarthy/status/279273190071599104 the ending was altered from the original script]]. [[https://twitter.com/MMeghanMcCarthy/status/284070859172352001/photo/1 Two]] [[https://twitter.com/MMeghanMcCarthy/status/284071139733561344/photo/1 snippets]] show [[spoiler:Lightning Dust switching her rank with Rainbow Dash and admitting her mistake]], and [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash unambiguously getting first in her class and a recommendation for the Wonderbolts]].

** This is Lightning Dust's philosophy; she's always pushing herself to be first in everything (even first place by a wide margin isn't good enough for her), and if others get hurt, [[NeverMyFault it's their own fault]]. [[spoiler:[[InsigniaRipOffRitual This costs her dearly in the end]]]].
* SecretTestOfCharacter: [[spoiler:It's easy to see why Rainbow Dash is made a wingpony instead of a leader, and why Lightning Dust is made a leader instead of a wingpony. Rainbow has to learn humility and when to stand up to orders that endanger others, which she passes. Lightning fails miserably since as a leader, she should have known not to put other ponies at risk in pointless competitions. Hence Rainbow Dash is promoted to leader in the end while Lightning Dust is kicked out/demoted despite her skills.]]

* StatusQuoIsGod: [[spoiler:[[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-zagged]]. On the one hand, Rainbow Dash prepares to quit the Academy together with her defining dream of becoming a Wonderbolt (thus returning to Ponyvile) only for Spitfire to keep her from leaving and make her team leader for her class at the last minute. Her prospects of joining the Wonderbolts have increased significantly thanks to her leadership skills, to the point where, in the DeletedScene, RD tells her friends the Wonderbolts outright have their eye on her]].

* SweetAndSourGrapes: [[spoiler:Rainbow Dash abandons her dream of joining a Wonderbolt because she finds their abetting of Lightning Dust's recklessness morally abhorrent. However, Spitfire stops Dash from leaving just in time to tell her that the Wonderbolts need recruits of such fine character, and not only convinces Dash to withdraw her resignation, but promotes her to team leader.]]

** Lightning Dust isn't necessarily a hero, but Rainbow Dash still respected her for the majority of the episode so this trope still counts when Dash reads Lightning Dust the Riot Act for not caring about the collateral damage from her tornado, even when that collateral included other cadets and [[spoiler:Dash's friends]].
** A minor example, but [[spoiler:after dropping out of the Academy, Rainbow Dash is stopped by Spitfire, who proceeds to call her out on storming out of her office and not giving her a chance to [[Heartwarming/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic commend RD for her worth as a leader]]]].

* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: The Dizzitron. This machine will make you very - I repeat - VERY dizzy.

*** Some fans have [[http://derpiboo.ru/183365 a different interpretation]] of [[AxeCop who he looks like]].

* DeletedScene: [[http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/12/alternate-ending-to-wonderbolts-academy.html An extended ending]]. Among other things, it would've confirmed that [[spoiler:Lightning Dust was merely demoted, not dishonorably discharged]].

* TrollingCreator: Of a sort. Ever since ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E2TheCrystalEmpirePart2 The Crystal Empire Part 2]]'', the fans have been speculating on the book Luna pulled out. The commercials didn't help things, as they claimed Twilight would meet her destiny. Cue Applejack telling Pinkie Pie that Twilight had new spells to learn, which incited quite a bit of interest in the bronies. Except that we never get to see what Twilight's working on because Pinkie Pie chooses to sit by the mailbox all day.