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Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Spike
Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Spike
- Supported in the Cutie Mark Chronicles; Fluttershy turned into a much better flier after seeing how butterflies did it.
- Well... it'd explain why she looks a bit like Rosedust, and why she had such long legs as a filly. However, she looked more rawboned than dainty back then, so...difficult to say.
- Impossible. FS would recognise her sister/cousin/whatever, but in The Stare Master it's as if they've never met.
- They could be unaware that they're related.
- (Looks up G3 Scootaloo's cutie mark) Hmmmm, that might be something.
- All related ponies have similar color schemes... just different tones. Fluttershy is yellow/light pink, Scootaloo is orange/dark pink.
- Partially jossed due to Pinkie Pie looking nothing like her family (aside from sharing an earlier hairstyle with her sister, but that may be their mother's style of combing their hair and Pinkie kept it that way until her cutie mark gave her the current perm.)
- Scootaloo and Fluttershy are both Pegasi who seem more comfortable on land and struggle with flying. It may just be a coincidence but it does make you wonder...
- Maybe they're both part earth pony? Pegasi tend to be blue-toned, while earth ponies tend to be red and yellow-toned. Fluttershy and Scootaloo's colors are more like earth ponies.
- I don't think so; I think Fluttershy is just a pony who keeps her frustrations in, and then sometimes it explodes. A fairly common thing.
- Twice.
- This is more a case of Fundamental attribution error. The times Fluttershy has flipped out have either been due to imminent mortal danger to her friends, or being placed in an extremely stressful situation. Everyone's behaviour changes in those situations, especially since because of her shyness Fluttershy's personality tends to be muted. (She's actually got a really cunning sense of humour, but it only comes out in situations where she feels really comfortable for example)
- While I don't think she is on any sort of medication, I do believe she has psychological issues; namely, abandonment issues. Think about it: besides her many animal friends, the other 5 ponies of the main cast are probably the only friends she has. So of course she'd be very protective of them (as seen in "Dragonshy") or protective of their siblings (as seen in "Stare Master"). At Ponyville, when not with her friends, Fluttershy is with her animal friends, so everything's fine. But at the Gala, away in Canterlot, she can't seem to befriend any of the animals there, despite trying many times, and so starts to go a little crazy, fearing that she'll be all alone, again. These issues most likely stem from the fact that she is a rather poor flier, and since pegasi are very proud of that ability, she was looked down upon, possibly even by her own parents! Upon finding out about the wonders of the forest and the grounds under the sky and Cloudsdale, she says that she "never wanted to go back to Cloudsdale ever again". (Cutie Mark Chronicles)
- This actually does make a lot of sense, and would explain her shyness. Also, that shyness would likely be why she didn't just go find her friends. It was a HUGE Gala, with a lot of people. Fluttershy is...well too shy to go into a place like that without being with her friends. So it was probably just stress that ultimatelly got the best of her.
- Whatever happened to good old-fashioned Anxiety disorder?
- While I don't think she is on any sort of medication, I do believe she has psychological issues; namely, abandonment issues. Think about it: besides her many animal friends, the other 5 ponies of the main cast are probably the only friends she has. So of course she'd be very protective of them (as seen in "Dragonshy") or protective of their siblings (as seen in "Stare Master"). At Ponyville, when not with her friends, Fluttershy is with her animal friends, so everything's fine. But at the Gala, away in Canterlot, she can't seem to befriend any of the animals there, despite trying many times, and so starts to go a little crazy, fearing that she'll be all alone, again. These issues most likely stem from the fact that she is a rather poor flier, and since pegasi are very proud of that ability, she was looked down upon, possibly even by her own parents! Upon finding out about the wonders of the forest and the grounds under the sky and Cloudsdale, she says that she "never wanted to go back to Cloudsdale ever again". (Cutie Mark Chronicles)
- She also seems to have some repressed anger issues, as a couple of times she looks visibly annoyed at other characters (for example: look at when she informs Pinkie she's a year older than her; Fluttershy looks pissed) but is unable to vocalise it effectively. This may have contributed to her loosing it in Canterlot, since the source of the anger didn't wander away without realising it, leading to the pressure point being inadvertently reached.
- Food for thought on this: She did seem to enjoy "beating up" that bear. Even if it was only for a massage.
- This part at least borders on necessarily true. From what we've seen, Fluttershy has either been picked on, condescended to, or flat-out ignored pretty much all her life. Other than when she becomes a fashion model, does anypony other than her five friends and animals even acknowledge her existence? She almost seems to be an outcast, living on the edge of the Everfree Forest alone except for her pets. It's difficult to tell whether her Shrinking Violet personality is the cause of her exclusion or the result of it, but either way, all those negative emotions from such encounters aren't just going to disappear, they're going to accummulate until they find a form of release.
- Yes, they do acknowledge her existence: remember, long before Twilight arrived in Ponyville, somepony had asked Fluttershy to provide the music for the Summer Sun Celebration, and had persuaded her, despite her anxiety at appearing in public, to do it. Also, somepony in "Applebuck Season" had hired or directed Fluttershy to take a census of the new rabbits; it seems likely that she works as a naturalist for the Ponyville government. Self-evidently, somepony in authority is aware of her and is aware of her abilities.
- While it's true that asociality is a common symptom of psychological problems, one can be painfully shy without any underlying psychological conditions.
- How is this a guess? She says that she is in "Stare Master", and there is no reason to suppose that she was lying. It's certainly not difficult to believe.
- I think the OP is suggesting that "Shh" is an actual competitive sport in Equestria, as opposed to the implication that she was just trying to get the Crusaders to shut up for thirty seconds in a row; while it would, happily, get them to shut their pieholes, it was also a legitimate challenge since Fluttershy's not wholly certain how one goes about entertaining young children.
- Well, of course it's an actual competitive sport in Equestria. How else could Fluttershy be the world champion?
- By being the only one who plays it.
- There must be gender divisions, because there is no way she'd beat Big Macintosh.
- I think the OP is suggesting that "Shh" is an actual competitive sport in Equestria, as opposed to the implication that she was just trying to get the Crusaders to shut up for thirty seconds in a row; while it would, happily, get them to shut their pieholes, it was also a legitimate challenge since Fluttershy's not wholly certain how one goes about entertaining young children.
- Or cockatrice petrification attacks the target's spirit. Twi was caught by surprise, while Fluttershy was prepared and was thus able to exert her will against the cockatrice and drag it into a psychic duel.
- There's still that "harvesting apples via the Stare" in "Applebuck Season". Causing the tree to turn old "enough" to make it drop its fruit?
- I think there was a creature up in the boughs of the tree that was shaking them down. We haven't seen her Stare into anything but a creature's eyes yet, and the Stare hadn't even been established in the third episode of the season.
- It was summer flight camp, so she may have just been alone, instead of with the kids her age. It's highly likely.
- Classes could be divided up based on skill rather than age. True, this troper was held back several years consecutively at swimming classes.
Now for the fun part. Let's apply what we learned here to Fluttershy's actions during the Grand Galloping Gala. First, go back a few episodes to A Bird in the Hoof. Fluttershy is trying very hard to gently nurse Princess Celestia's sickly pet bird, Philomena, back to health. However, Philomena proves to be highly uncooperative with Fluttershy. The bird refuses to take its medicine, have some soup, or get some sleep. Fluttershy is quick to move on to other medical techniques whenever her patient makes it very clear that she won't accept whatever technique the pegasus offers. Enter Twilight Sparkle. Upon realizing what's going on, she strongly insists that Fluttershy should stop being a pushover and FORCE the bird to take whatever steps necessary to make its recovery! To demonstrate, Twilight forces Philomena to take the medicine Fluttershy gave up on, trap it in a cage in an attempt to keep it still and more. Twilight's methods are way more aggressive than those of gentle Fluttershy and she can't wrap her head around them... yet.
Okay, let's bring it all together! Fluttershy is at the Grand Galloping Gala! She's finally going to meet and befriend the unique animals living in Canterlot's Royal Garden! But wait... for one reason or another, the animals are doing everything they can to avoid Fluttershy! How is this happening?! She tries to be as gentle and caring as always, but it just doesn't work this time! That's when something interesting happens... Fluttershy sets up a trap to catch an animal so that she can befriend it face to face. This is NOT normal for Fluttershy... but then she says something very interesting:
"I just have to be more bold, like Twilight says."
Once again she takes her trusted friend's advice, which she initially was hesitant about, and runs with it. In this case, when something doesn't work, she becomes more and more aggressive. Her traps get more elaborate. She raises her voice. She's trying to be less and less of a pushover in order to get something done, just like Twilight Sparkle previously insisted! Combine this advice, which is clearly NOT helping Fluttershy here, along with the emotional stress of being unable to befriend a single creature in the garden no matter how desperate she gets and how hard she tries... And you've got yourself a terrifying disaster.
Overly long entry short: Fluttershy is easily influenced by her friends, but it takes a while for their advice/opinions/suggestions/demands to settle in her mind. But when they do, she feels a need to grab hold of the influence when the time comes to do so and hold on tightly to it. This can be a VERY good thing when you consider the results of Pinkie Pie's "Hop, Skip, and a Jump!" encouragement. Twilight's powerful suggestion of "Be assertive!" on the other hand utterly ruins her. Who knows? If Twilight never gave such a statement that conflicted with Fluttershy's character earlier, Fluttershy may have just kept trying to gently coax the animals around her to come out, rather than shouting at them to do so at the top of her lungs in frustration. Maybe she'd just become immensely sad and frustrated... but not loud and dangerous.
Nice job breaking the gentlest, kindest, most innocent pony in the world, Twilight. In the season finale no less.
- A possible theory: the gardener was a Changeling. He imitated birds singing to lure Fluttershy away from the others, then knocked her out and began impersonating her. Its plan was to stir the animals up into a frenzy and have them rush the gala as a distraction, while it either attempted to assasinate Celestia (which, granted, would probably have failed miserably) or to just infiltrate a group of ponies close to her. Unfortunately, "You're going to LOVE me" was a fatal Freudian Slip and instantly clued Celestia in on their true nature. She told Twilight and the others to 'run' beause she didn't want them to see what she was about to do. Meanwhile the real Fluttershy had been cocooned somewhere (the Changelings needed her alive, her love for all creatures would be an incredibly potent power source) but some of her animal freinds found her and broke her out. She then made her way to the donut bar because that's where she knew everypony else would be.
- I attribute that more of Fluttershy being a "Duck Pony", while she was born a pegasus pony, due her shyness, she almost never left her home (and therefore, almost never exercised her wings, making her quite clumsy in that regard, in contrast with competitive Rainbow Dash, who was far more extroverted and athletic, she already knew how to fly when she entered on the junior flyers academy), and after she discovered the ground she rapidly became more comfortable with it, causing her to depend even less on her wings and more on simply walking (note that apparently she can fly as fast as Twilight can run, and we know Twilight is a pony of the weak nerdy type).
- Not looking good for this one considering her burst of speed in The Return of Harmony, Pt 2.
- She's bigger-framed than most pegasi. She's had to bust her little rump to even become competent at flight, much less actually good.
- Most likely jossed by Hurricane Fluttershy: Her trouble seemed to be mostly performance anxiety combined with bullying. I think she only reached 5 wing speed rather than the ~10 the others had, but that may be just from a lack of practice. The other times where she seemed to nearly match Rainbow Dash's speed were in times of necessity. She's probably an average flyer overall, just prone to performance anxiety.
- Highly likely, but I doubt that they'll go into it on a kids show.
- To me, if anything, she looked taller and leggier rather than necessarily more delicate.
- Wouldn't they all be pretty well-known in-universe by this point? Aren't they the heroes who saved Equestria from Nightmare Moon and the sleeping dragon? Isn't Twilight Sparkle the prized pupil of the Princess? Might not the story of the Ursa Minor have spread beyond Ponyville by this point also? And isn't Rainbow Dash the winner of a major flying competition and the only pony in living memory to have ever performed a sonic rainboom, an event visible and audible for hundreds of miles?
- Let me rephrase: Flutterrage is a meme in-universe
- Possible, but why? Fluttershy's episode at the Gala was noteworthy to us because it was so incongruous with what we know of her normal personality, but most of Equestria would have no idea what she's usually like. They would probably say: "Famous fashion model/close associate of powerful courtier turns out to be a primadonna with a nasty temper. So what else is new?"
- Still to them it probably go viral, like celebrity slip ups in the real world. I think it'll be a season 2 episode with her having to live it down.
- Well, the fact that she was a national hero, along with the other mane six appears to be very unknown outside of ponyville, that seams unlikely. You would think "the Elements of Harmony ruin the Great Gallaping Gala," be more newsworthy than "former fashion model ruins party." New WMG, Equestria has very strict state censorship.
- Possible, but why? Fluttershy's episode at the Gala was noteworthy to us because it was so incongruous with what we know of her normal personality, but most of Equestria would have no idea what she's usually like. They would probably say: "Famous fashion model/close associate of powerful courtier turns out to be a primadonna with a nasty temper. So what else is new?"
- Doesn't seem very likely considering Twilight was just able to pacify a baby monster about the same size and power as the dragon in the previous episode. Princess Celestia, on the other hand, could take out the dragon no problem, but being the good ruler she is, she probably sent the Mane Six as envoys to try and work out a peaceful solution before resorting to force.
- Alternatively, her shadow also has The Stare. But since you can't see its eyes, you never know when it's glaring at you. Fluttershy is scared of her shadow not because it can harm her, but because she thinks it hates her.
- So Fluttershy's been reading Carl Jung? (There'd be a some sort of pony play on Jung's name here but I suck at those.)
- Corral Jung?
- This makes more sense then her being part-unicorn. Unfortunately, she didn't get the enhanced strength and durability perk, Fortunately, to compensate, her nature ability, and animal communication especially, has been enhanced to superpony levels, hence The Stare.
- Based on filly!Fluttershy's design, she probably is supposed to be fairly tall and large-framed as pegasi go. Not really being built for flight—and being(at least until more recently) neither enough of a jock or an overachiever to overcompensate, or assertive enough to find someone to coach her—could explain why she was such a klutz at it in her youth. And it could also explain her habit of sort of curling in on herself and hiding behind her forelock: She's not just being a Shrinking Violet, she's also consciously attempting to take up less space.
- I actually think this makes sense, as Fluttershy actually had a fear of flying at one point and overall doesn't seem to enjoy it as much as Rainbow Dash (who is clearly Pegasus to the core) and the fact that her "special talent" that earned her her cutie mark involves a bond with animals, and that kind of connection with nature is usually only found in Earth ponies. I also heard that Fluttershy was originally planned to be an Earth pony.
- She was- she's based of Posey from Gen 1. Like how Pinkie Pie was originally a Pegasus named Surprise.
So the Mane 6 is supposed to have 2 unicorns, 2 earth ponies, and 2 pegasi. Pinkie was apparently also supposed to be a white pegasus named Surprise, until copyright issues (?) arose, and when she was turned into Pinkie Pie the ex rock farmer Earth pony, one of the other ponies had to become a pegasus. Twilight and Rarity are quite unfitting for that (given that Twilight needs to be able to do magic as the Element of Magic and Rarity's work with all its details would be pretty hard for someone without opposable thumbs or magic), and Applejack is as "earthy" as you can get.
At first sight, Fluttershy seems like she'd make a pretty good Earth pony: lives on the ground near a forest, is in tune with animals (her companions are shown to be ground-inhabiting ones, mainly), and can't fly very well. She's also quite different from the stereotypical pegasus, who are shown to be much more competitive and... outgoing (eg: RD, Scootaloo, Commander Hurricane). These are all remnants of when she was designed to be an Earth pony.
- This is correct. Fluttershy was an earth pony in the concept art, when all the Mane 6 were supposed to be straight readaptations of Gen 1 ponies (in Fluttershy's case, the earth pony Posey), before copyright issues got in the way.
- As an extension on this, Rainbow Dash indeed knows karate. Her black belt seen in "Call of the Cutie" apparently wasn't just a one-off sight gag if her destruction of Applejack's barn is anything to go by.
- Going even further, Rainbow and Fluttershy were sparring partners in flight school.
- I've noticed this as well. That part in the pilot when she goes from quiet and awkward to constantly talking upon seeing Spike is something I've frequently experienced.
- Well, Fluttershy took some asparagus, and since Aspergers and asparagus have the same root (I'm not making this up, they both come from the latin word for spear) Fluttershy must obviously be an aspie.
- To be serious, she does present a pretty good case, but there are several times where she shows a little bit too much sensitivity to other ponies/Spike's feelings, though this can be explained by saying that she learned these skills the hard way, and abuse she suffered related to her having Aspergers could have made her become such a doormat and taught her to be hypersensitive to the feelings of others in certain situations. Even though she shows some socially empathetic depth at times there is enough other times where it is clear that she really has no idea what other ponies are feeling and she is just trying extra hard to not offend anypony.
- Being an Aspie myself, I can see many traits of AS in her, mainly her empathy and compassion for animals.
- This troper is an Aspie too and he has those same traits as mentioned in the theory also he has trouble understanding other like how in Sonic Rainboom Fluttershy failed to notice she was actually increasing RD's anxiety.
- In the later seasons, she appears to be too manipulative to be an aspie. However, Season 6 adds information to this which brings the possibility back. In Dungeons and Discord, it's clear he manipulative tendencies are learned, not a part of her nature, which the reverse psychology scene. More importantly, Flutter Brutter shows that her brother is extremely manipulative. Maybe she learned manipulation and many other social skills from her younger brother?
- Jossed. She's obviously the element of kindness, your point is invalid.
- Debatable, the concept of her having severe Aspergers or Autism as presented above, might lead to a lack of empathy on her part. But even Discord could tell her sense of right is unbreakable without magical interference.
- Jossed by science. People who suffer from Asperger's tend to be more empathetic than most, but they often don't exhibit he nonverbal cues thereof, leading to the illusion that they're sociopathic.
- This actually varies from person to person. While Asperger's can make some people more empathetic than most neurotypical people, it can cause other people with Asperger's to have difficulties with cognitive empathy (i.e. recognizing someone's emotional state).
- Jossed by science. People who suffer from Asperger's tend to be more empathetic than most, but they often don't exhibit he nonverbal cues thereof, leading to the illusion that they're sociopathic.
- A bitch? Maybe. A Monster? I doubt it.
- So being a little annoyed at someone treating you in a condescending manner is grounds for being labeled as a bitch? Demonization much?
- Sir, retarded theories are part of my job.
- Semi Confirmed by "Putting your Hoof Down"
- So she's like Jane?
- Rarity: Did you use...(scary music plays in background)...the stare on her?
Fluttershy: Oh no! I wouldn't! I couldn't! I don't really have any control over when that happens! I-it just happens!
- I like to think that The Stare is the equivalent of twisting somebody's arm behind their back. Not too painful, but you're not likely to go anywhere easily. The cockatrice resisted initially, similar to someone who would kick and scream at the person holding them, but the cockatrice eventually gave up. Her will was too great.
- Word of God is that The Stare is a weaponized form of the attitudes behind the Mama Bear trope, and it's true that it really only comes out A) when someone is resisting something she knows is good for them, e.g. bedtime for the chickens, or B) when someone she cares about is in danger, e.g. when the dragon was dragoning it up in everyone's grill. So basically what happened to the cockatrice was that it was hit with the utter certainty that it had about ten seconds to stop trying to stone this sweet, adorable, pacifistic pegasus, or else this sweet, adorable, pacifistic pegasus was going to tear it a structurally superfluous new one, and it would have nothing to complain about because it attacked the children.
- Well, The Cutie Mark Chronicles confirms that she was bullied for being a bad flyer, and in Party of One Spike "confesses" to Pinkie Pie that Fluttershy is afraid of heights. Considering she's a pegasus, that's prime bully material right there, not to mention her lanky legs and bangs made her look different to the others. No wonder she suffers from low self-confidence.
- Why on earth is being timid equated to being abused? Not everything is the result of a tragic past...
- Hurricane Fluttershy confirms that the bullying she received was emotionally traumatic and still affects her to this day.
- it could also be something innocuous, like having extremely loud parents. Normally, that's not traumatic, but in fluttershy's case it could have been what scared her.
- Does masquerading as a tree to hide from Dashie count?
- Nah. It took the Power of Friendship for Fluttershy to catch up to Discorded Dash, who was motivated mainly by apathy and disloyalty. If Rainbow had had the Power of Friendship on her side too, Fluttershy would be eating her Rainboom trail.
- But in "The Mysterious Mare Do Well" she flew past Rainbow effortlessly.
- Sure. Going in the opposite direction. Rainbow's own speed would only have been helping her there.
- It wasn't Friendship (at least, in the sense that Fluttershy was doing this to help RBD directly): she only got to her top speed when Twilight reminded her that if she lost RBD, Ponyville would remain Discorded forever, hence yet another situation where the safety of her friends drives her to unusual actions. Furthermore, even if we're talking a Discorded RBD, she was fleeing to initially save "Cloudsdale" and then subsequently for her own life; there's no reason she'd not be breaking her top speed to do so.
- Ah, but doing things you normally can't do for the safety of your friends is what Power of Friendship is all about!
- Well, again, consider that for several minutes, while loaded as described above, Fluttershy at least matched speed. When she started to drag (putting RBD out of AJ's lasso reach), that's when Twilight spurred her Power of Friendship into gear, which I accept boosted her speed. But before then — that's where the gotcha is that suggests Fluttershy can normally fly faster than RBD, but certainly can't sustain that speed.
- But in "The Mysterious Mare Do Well" she flew past Rainbow effortlessly.
- It's somewhat confirmed in "Secret of My Excess" that Fluttershy can go as fast as Rainbow Dash, and that they both are aware of that fact.
- Although in that case they were trying to arrive at the same time. Still, at least it proves Fluttershy isn't a weak flyer anymore.
- Interestingly, their poses and expressions show that Fluttershy is uncomfortable and impressed with the speed, while Rainbow is more at her element. It's also weird that they go fast enough for Rainbow Dash to leave a rainbow trail, but Fluttershy doesn't leave one.
- Although in that case they were trying to arrive at the same time. Still, at least it proves Fluttershy isn't a weak flyer anymore.
- A possible case of Unreliable Narrator and Rule of Funny, but in the opening of "Cutie Mark Chronicles" when Scootaloo is hinting at going to see RBD about her cutie mark story, she has trouble getting the other two to see this. Scoots puts up "the coolest pony", and Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle offer up their respective sisters; then Scoots talks about the bravest pony, prompting both to suggest Pinkie Pie (which is essentially true). Then Scoots suggests the fastest pony from Cloudsdale, and both AB and SB put out "Fluttershy". They may know something that Scootaloo would purposely be oblivious to (given that RBD's her hero), and a "fact" that has never been discussed because there's no need to discuss it that otherwise all the other ponies happen to know about.
- Further supported at the beginning of "The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000", when Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy are flying to Sweet Apple Acres, Fluttershy is seen flying just as fast as Rainbow in the scene with the bunny. Before that, she's seen flying with no visible effort, while talking to Rainbow.
- It should be noted in "The Elements of Harmony Part 2", Dash wasn't trying. She spent most of the balloon-chase scene trolling the others by zooming around on a cloud, and though she is struggling to get away from them when Applejack manages to get the rope on her, if she had actually put in the effort to escape, she could have.
- Appearance: Despite doing a lot of work with animals and nature, Fluttershy is always shown to be clean and groomed with her mane just as neat and routinely styled as the rest of the cast. Considering she is considered supermodel material in "Green Isn't Your Color" it's evident that she more than knows how to keep up her appearance. Someone of a high-class background would often be expected to keep up appearances and it's possible Fluttershy keeps herself looking good out of old habit her parents instilled in her.
- Would also explain her knowledge of "French couture" (or however it's spelled)
- Personality: Element of Kindness aside, Fluttershy has shown a tendency to be rather condescending when pushed, evidenced by her irritation at Pinkie Pie's comment in "Griffon the Brush Off"- resulting in her infamous "I'm a year older than you" line, as well as her uncharacteristic outburst/sewing rant (Complete with the snooty nose-up motion and "Hmph") in "Suited for Success" could mean that as a foal she was brought up to feel somehow superior to other ponies. These could perhaps be a result of this upbringing. As far as her usual demure persona goes, this could be normal for a more traditional patriarchal family that often comes with stereotypical upper-crust elites. Fluttershy, as a growing filly, was expected to be soft-spoken and subservient. On top of an already shy and submissive temperament, this shaped Fluttershy's outward personality early in life and later became her usual as she had no parental figure to learn otherwise from in Ponyville, which she had to adapt to on her own. Since no one told her otherwise about her soft-spoken demeanor, it never changed and grew to define her.
- Known Past: Fluttershy was shown to be bullied in her youth as evidenced by "Cutie Mark Chronicles." While her weak flying could have been a result, one can ask WHY she was a weak flyer growing up. Someone in high-class society wouldn't NEED to fly all over the place and thus had no need to develop the same kind of muscle that most pegasi were expected to have at her age. (On a side note, the animals brushing her off at the Grand Galloping Gala may have brought back memories of the bullying, helping spur along her breakdown.) Fluttershy also somehow knows a lot about sewing despite it having nothing to do with her cutie mark or special talent. Where did she learn this? If she was of Cloudsdale upper-class then she could have gained this knowledge due to spending time having to listen to custom tailors if her parents insisted on her looking nice for major events in the city or even in general.
- Means of living: Just what does Fluttershy do for a living? It's shown she takes care of the animals around Ponyville, yes, but even IF it pays at all the wages given to what amounts to a city park manager or groundskeeper can't possibly afford her weekly trip to the spa with Rarity unless Rarity pays for the both of them. While we know Fluttershy didn't return to Cloudsdale after receiving her cutie mark, there is no reason she wouldn't at least visit her family from time to time. However, there is the possibility of said parents no longer being around at this point, thus there being nothing for her to return to in the first place. Either way, with a high-class background, she either has an inheritance or some sort of allowance.
- Fluttershy is a veterinarian; this has been pretty well established by the series.
- Almost certainly Jossed: in "Flutter Brutter", Fluttershy's parents appear to be a perfectly regular couple of newly-retired middle-class ponies.
- In Crystal Empire, she wears her lance on her left, while Rainbow wears hers on her left. Food for thought.
- Maybe most pegasi are left-hooved by nature?
- Not sure if confirmed, but her Equestrian Girls counterpart appears to be left-handed (she's holding her spoon with her left as she's eating in the trailer).
- In "Putting Your Hoof Down", she's seen holding a piece of lettuce in her left hoof, and opening her saddlebag with her left wing. In "It Ain't Easy Being Breezies", the hoof she checks (to see if she'd accidentally stepped on Seabreeze) is her left.
- Jossed: Female pronouns are still used when referring to her. Likewise, her body structure didn't change to make her resemble a stallion; therefore, she was still female with a really deep, male voice.
- Season 3 has come and gone, and that storyline never happened.
- Jossed, she shoves Discorded!Pinkie Pie into a bush, slaps Twilight with her tail and instigates the Big Ballof Violence in Twilight's library.
- She already acted surprised by how freaked out Twilight was when the creatures Fluttershy asked her to wake up from hibernation in Winter Wrap Up turned out to be snakes.
- Maybe not afraid of them, but she is easily startled and spiders do have a way of dropping on ponies at unexpected times...
- Not being scared of spiders was confirmed in "Maud Pie" and "Scare Master", and Harry the bear is seen hanging out with her on a semi-regular basis.
- Or she already did and it's Angel Bunny. He is a real jerk, and has some traits that aren't like a real bunny. For example, real bunny don't have long enough fur on their tails to be put in curlers. The kindness he has shown (in Just for Sidekicks, for example) is only possible because he is being reformed by Fluttershy.
- She will start wearing hats to conceal her horn, not wanting the attention her new status would bring
- Jossed: Fluttershy's parents are alive.
- Her shy nature reflects that she was not originally a pony and so wasn't really sure how to conduct herself properly in pony society at first. She gets better with time, but still doesn't want to screw it up because Good Feels Good. Similarly, her scaredly-pony (at least on the surface) character is from a sudden loss of relavent knowledge of her new world combined with fear.
- Her taking care of animals acts as a sort of practice for taking good care of Puella Magi, as well as seeing what altruism is like. It also serves as an outlet for her to practice communicating and empathizing with other beings with ponies not readily available at first. Additionally, given that she's liable to outlive the girls she bonds with in the Madokaverse, she's going to be dealing with a lot of loss - Fluttershy would have to learn how to grieve without letting it affect her ability to perform her duties.
- Her general selflessness to the point of Extreme Doormat might be a holdover from being an Incubator with little sense of self-preservation in the service of a greater cause. The inner struggle with Flutterbitch might be trying to grapple with taking a heightened sense of self too far in the other direction.
- Her fairly traumatic foalhood is an example of what kind of life Kyubey's usual leads go through. Something to use empathy for once she returns to contracting duty. An episode like "Hurricane Fluttershy" would also serve as good examples of the despair and hope that for the longest time Kyubey would just treat as resources.
- Her apologizing all the time is partly a quiet admittance both of her outsider status ("I'm sorry for barging into your group") and a reminder of her guilt ("I'm sorry for all the ways I've hurt you." - "you" in this case meaning more than just the pony she is addressing).
- Rainbow Dash became her first real friend because she represents pretty much everything Kyubey was not: brash, loud, acting on instinct rather than rationality, seeking immediate gratification, and loyalty to an individual like her (similarities to Sayaka would be in the back of her mind).
- Her freaky knowledge of sewing stems from exposure to all the intricate outfits that Puella Magi wear. By extension, being friends with Rarity allows for new insight on how and why Puella Magi end up dressed as they are when they do contract.
- Her living near the Everfree and away from most other ponies serves to both maintain secrecy and as a contingency containment plan should the original Eldritch Abomination that is Kyubey resurface; Fluttershy may live in fear of losing herself to an Incubator's nature (whether or not it's still there). Angel Bunny may be in on this as additional security - he is tough and direct because he understands the high stakes involved. It also allows Fluttershy the time and privacy to organize her thoughts and feelings.
- Her not-so-beautiful moments (i.e., "The Best Night Ever", Flutterbitch, "Putting Your Hoof Down") is sorting through the potential pitfalls that being emotional brings, or possibly her original nature attempting to sabotage the whole experiment.
- Something like reforming Discord may be equivalent to a mid-term exam by Celestia to see how well Fluttershy has incorporated the EQ lessons learned: can she still perform the Incubator's job while having emotions and empathy?
- Sending Discord to Fluttershy may be also a play by Celestia to train Fluttershy in her future role (specialized advanced lessons?). The move would serve to accomplish goals beyond removing a very dangerous threat to Equestria:
- An Incubator's job, at its core, is combating entropy, i.e., controlling chaos. What is Discord if not the embodiment of it?
- It's quite apparent that being a straight-up ingenue is not going to cut it, especially in an Incubator's line of work - if The Kyubeyshy Experiment is to work, Fluttershy would have to become a Guile Heroine almost by default, both to get contracted girls to actually fight (especially if Fluttershy's conscious means she can't hide the truth about the nature of Witches and Soul Gems without obfuscation) as well as very likely fighting against any machinations of regular Incubators. The Incubator Race would very likely test Kyubeyshy by comparing her to a regular Incubator - even if the latter would appear to have an advantage by way of not having empathy as an automatic mental block, who is to say the latter would not attempt any and every method of having Kyubeyshy judged defective, since their whole modus operandi is "anything to push back the heat-death of the universe"?
- A friendship with Discord would mean Fluttershy might even be able to pick up a couple of tricks of her own to use. For this to work as intended Fluttershy would have to very much remain benevolent (which is why that part of her came first, i.e., her foalhood), perhaps more along the lines of the "Prankster Fluttershy" fanart by HowXu. If Celestia knows about Japanese Mythology (somehow I think the prospect of being able to Retcon the origin of the name "Kyubey" from a shortening of "Incubator" to "Kyubii no Kitsune" would be too delicious for her to pass up) and/or concedes that changes to the system beyond what is necessary should be avoided (note that even with Madoka's ascension to Goddesshood the new system is still quite bleak and Magical Girl survival rates aren't much better than before), this is likely the least amount of change to the universe that can be done while still utilizing an empathic and sympathetic Incubator.
(A/N: Yes, I'm totally making this WMG based on the fact that they share the same seiyu. Please feel free to critique and improve.)
- I want to see that crossover. Like, really badly.
- OP - No promises.
- Or perhaps their closeness was meant to imply they may become a couple, or just friends (making Biceps a recurring minor character for Fluttershy). Not strictly necessary, and their interaction is nice either way, but there's perhaps potential.
While it's known for happening in war veterans, anything that causes an overwhelming feeling of hopelessness or helplessness can cause it, including bullying. She seems to be getting somewhat better over the course of the show.
- Likely because it's not the case. Her parents appeared in "Flutter Brutter", and Fluttershy seems to have a very healthy relationship with both of them. If anything they're not strict enough, letting their deadbeat son walk all over them and take advantage of their generosity without so much as a word of protest. And since when does one need to have had an abusive childhood to be shy or not athletic?