Original air date: July 31st, 1992
Melody is showing off her new cassette player to her friends, and tries out one of the buttons. All that happens is that the player spits out tape. Teddy has seen it and laughs at Melody's misfortune, then tries to fix it, despite Melody's protests. Unfortunately, he only causes more tape to come out, and he then storms off. While Sweetheart is picking up trash from the ground after Teddy kicked over a trash can in anger, the janitor, Mr. Tidwell, comes by, lamenting Teddy's troublemaking tendencies, but Sweetheart defends him as he was only trying to help. After she leaves, a blue hoof picks up Melody's cassette player from the picnic table she left it on.
Miss Hackney tells the students that this week, they will be learning about courtroom procedures. Melody then panics when she realizes her cassette player has been taken. Teddy enters the classroom looking as smug as ever, and Melody immediately accuses him of stealing it, pointing out some tape stuck to his hoof. Starlight suggests to Miss Hackney that they use their courtroom lessons to determine whether or not Teddy did take the cassette player. Miss Hackney is on board with the idea, and appoints Starlight as the judge, stating that if Teddy is found guilty, he will be suspended from school for three days. Sweetheart volunteers to be Teddy's attorney when no one else will.
At Starlight's ice cream shop, Melody is refusing to return Sweetheart's greetings, angry with her for siding with Teddy. Sweetheart doesn't budge, affirming that she's friends with Teddy as well as the rest of the girls. When Melody asks for Starlight's support, Starlight simply points out that as the judge, she can't possess any bias to either party.
The next day at school, when things look bad for Teddy, Sweetheart calls a surprise witness: Mr. Tidwell. She asks him what he does with the things he finds left out in the playground, and he says he puts them in the lost and found box. One item is Melody's cassette player, proving once and for all Teddy is innocent.
Melody admits she was wrong to jump to conclusions, while Teddy says that while he learned friends can give you help when you need it, he does not... only to fall head-first into the lost and found box.
"Stand By Me" provides examples of:
- Added Alliterative Appeal:Teddy: The dodo hit the dum-dum button!
- An Aesop:
- Don't make accusations against people you don't like without sufficient evidence.
- It's okay to accept help.
- Stand up for what you believe in, regardless of who's with you.
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: Bright Eyes' list of reasons why she thinks Teddy is guilty of stealing Melody's cassette player:He had the motive, the opportunity, and besides, he's very, very rude.
- Choosing Neutrality: When Melody asks Starlight to affirm her loyalty to her friends over Teddy, Starlight simply tells them that as the judge, she isn't allowed to take either side.
- Clear Their Name: Sweetheart must prove Teddy didn't steal Melody's cassette player.
- Conflicting Loyalty: Sweetheart's friends are mad at her for defending Teddy, and force her to choose between them and him. She chooses him, which pays off when she proves he didn't take Melody's cassette player.
- Courtroom Episode: This episode has Teddy put in the class' mock trial and attempting to claim his innocence when he's accused of stealing Melody's tape player.
- Digging Yourself Deeper: Happens to Teddy when he's accused of taking Melody's cassette player:Sweetheart: What about the motive? If you have a tape recorder of your own, you wouldn't need to take Melody's, right?Teddy: Yeah, but I don't have one. I'd do anything to get one.
- The Dissenter Is Always Right: Sweetheart is the only one of the girls (aside from maybe Starlight) who isn't convinced Teddy stole Melody's cassette player. She's correct.
- Does Not Know How to Say "Thanks": Teddy has trouble thanking Sweetheart for defending him in the mock courtroom session.
- Dude, Not Funny!: Melody snaps, "Not funny, Teddy!" when he laughs at her cassette player spewing tape.
- Establishing Character Moment: In Teddy's first appearance save for cameos and the intro, he laughs at Melody. Shortly after, Mr. Tidwell asks Sweetheart if Teddy is causing trouble again.
- Everyone Has Standards:
- Teddy may be something of a petty bully, but theft is beneath him.
- Ace can be seen in the background gasping with everyone else when Teddy says he'd be willing to do anything to get a cassette player of his own.
- Gasp!: Everybody watching the trial gasps when Teddy says he'd "do anything" to obtain a cassette player, which isn't the best thing to say when he's been accused of stealing one.
- Getting Suspended Is Awesome: An aversion; Teddy hears he'll be suspended from school for three days if found guilty, and gulps.
- Golden Moment: While the simple, soothing version of the theme song plays in the background:Miss Hackney: Well, ponies, this has been quite an important day! Can anyone tell me what we've learned?Sweetheart: Well, I've learned to stand up for what I believe in, even when no one agrees with me.Melody: I learned... I'd better know the whole story before I give somebody a bum rap.Miss Hackney: What about you, Teddy? What did you learn?
Teddy: I guess... that... that friends can be important. Uh... uh... if you need 'em. Which I don't—(yelps as he falls into the lost and found box) Sweetheart! H-help me! - Gonk: Mr. Tidwell is drawn with old, baggy facial features not found on any other character.
- Got Volunteered: Variant 4 in the classroom trial when a defending attorney is needed for Teddy and everyone except Sweetheart steps backwards. Subverted when she then steps forward and says she'd be happy to do it.
- Help, I'm Stuck!: Happens twice to Teddy, first when he jumps and gets his front hooves stuck in a trash can, then when he falls head-first into Mr. Tidwell's box.
- Ignored Aesop: At the end, Teddy states that while friends can be helpful if you need them, he does not... only to be immediately taught a lesson.I guess [I learned]... that... that friends can be important. Uh... uh... if you need 'em. Which I don't—(yelps as he falls into the lost and found box) Sweetheart! H-help me!
- Instantly Proven Wrong: On two occasions, Teddy brags that he doesn't need help, then immediately gets stuck in something and has to be freed by Sweetheart.
- Judicial Wig: Starlight gets to wear a long white wig while being a judge.
- Literary Allusion Title: The title is the same as a certain 1986 movie.
- Mistaken for Thief: Teddy didn't take Melody's cassette player, but the others save for Sweetheart and possibly Starlight believe he did.
- Never My Fault: Melody demands Teddy give her back her cassette player when Teddy grabs it to try and fix it, and he presses several buttons at once which causes it to spit out even more tape. He says to Melody, '"Now look what you made me do!"''
- No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Downplayed. Although Teddy was trying to fix Melody's cassette player, he was being rather rude and forceful about it. Regardless, it results in everyone suspecting he may have stolen it when some tape from the cassette player is stuck to his hoof.
- Not Helping Your Case: Teddy blurts out that he would "do anything" to get a tape deck like Melody's, making him seem more guilty in the eyes of the jury. Also, Flash Back sequences give us more evidence of Teddy's Jerkassery as Sweetheart tries to tell us that he's actually good, no, really. It's unlikely that anyone ended up with a better opinion of him just because one instance of theft was Not Me This Time.
- One-Shot Character: Mr. Tidwell shows up only in this episode so that a blue-hoofed pony could take the cassette player to make it look like Teddy did it.
- Possession Presumes Guilt: Teddy having tape stuck on his hoof gets everyone thinking he stole Melody's cassette player.
- Rule of Three: Miss Hackney asks the students if they can guess what they're going to be studying from the equipment that's been put out. Starlight looks at the Judicial Wig and guesses that they're going to be doing a fashion show. Patch holds the judge's gavel and suggests that they're going to play croquet. Miss Hackney tells them that they'll be studying courtroom procedures and holding a mock trial.
- Surprise Witness: Sweetheart uses this term verbatim when she calls in Mr. Tidwell.
- That Liar Lies:Sweetheart: That tape Melody saw on your hoof... it wasn't Melody's?Teddy: Aw, save your breath. It was Melody's. It must've gotten stuck there when I tried to help her make it play.
Melody: Yeah, right... - Tsundere: Teddy is depicted as a Type A with Sweetheart via her song number. He picks on her and is generally rude to her for no reason. However, he sometimes feels bad after causing her grief and makes up for being mean to her. Sweetheart furthers this idea by saying he acts tough, but it’s just an act to hide how he really feels.
- The Unapologetic: Teddy refuses to apologize to Melody for worsening her cassette player problem.
- Verbal Backspace: After Teddy says he'd do anything to get a cassette player of his own, and everyone else gasps and murmurs, he corrects himself to almost anything.
- "The Villain Sucks" Song: Downplayed. Sweetheart sings a song about Teddy's more positive qualities, and her friends have their own lines where they point out his flaws, which Sweetheart reluctantly agrees with.
- The Watson: Clover asks what a "prosecutor" is.
- With Us or Against Us: Sweetheart finds herself torn between Teddy and her friends, with the girls demanding she choose them over him or lose their friendship.
