Twilight has come a long way since the first episode of MLP-FiM. At first, she was an antisocial bookworm who wasn't interested in making friends and keep her head in books virtually all the time. Now.......well, she's still a bookworm, but with more friends. Not only that, but her magic has improved vastly over the course of her studies with Princess Celestia. And with her transformation into an alicorn princess, Twilight has proven to have the potential to be one of the most powerful ponies in Equestria. But with that being said, it's about time that Twilight had a decent rival character.
In the past there have at least 2 characters who have had the potential to be great rivals to Twilight, but have come up short in the ordeal.
First off is The Great and Powerful Trixie. Trixie has often been described as what would happen to Twilight if she allowed her talent to cause her to become overbearing and boastful, which of course, made her to be a perfect foil for Twilight and she was practically the only one who could match her in terms of magical abilities. The episode, 'Magic Duel' had potential to really elevate the rivalry between them; Trixie had a reason to seek revenge against Twilight, heck, Trixie even managed to beat her with the Alicorn Amulet, but after Trixie was defeated by her in the second round, she was automatically redeemed. She should've remained a recurring antagonist for Twilight in the series, other than her role in the second Equestria Girls.
And speaking of which, that brings me to the second character, Sunset Shimmer. Man, you talk about wasted potential. Now, I'm not saying Sunset was horrible, but she could've much better. She was the perfect foil for Twilight. She was Princess Celestia's student who abandoned her studies when she didn't get what she wanted right away. Basically, what would've happened if Twilight was impatient. Her staredown with Twilight in the first movie was as epic as it could get, so from there, you could tell this had the potential for something great. It was made even more so by their second confrontation in the darkened hallway; she freakin' threatened to take Spike away from her!! Not only that, she manipulated the Humane 5 into disliking each other and di her damndess to make sure Twilight didn't get elected as princess of the Fall Formal. And when that didn't work, she kidnaps Spike and threatens to destroy the portal back home unless she gives her, her crown. And when that didn't work, she tackles Twilight and goes for the crown herself and finally gets it, turning into a hellish demon. And just like Trixie, after she's defeated and utterly humiliated, she reforms. One mistake she made was after she kidnapped Spike. What she should've done was threatened to hurt Spike if she didn't give her the crown and then let him go after she gave the crown to her. And don't even get me started on her defeat; there she is lying in a crater, all her power gone, completely and utterly defeated and humiliated, talked down by Twilight, having it all thrown in her face, and she just apologizes. Sunset seems to me like the kind of person who wouldn't just accept defeat like that. Instead of apologizing, what she should've done was get up out of the crater, push Twilight to the side and walk away. That would've left leeway for her to come back and try to get revenge on Twilight for what she did to her. She could've done a lot more to show that she was a capable rival for Twilight. While she works as a reformed villain, she would've worked even better as Twilight's greatest rival.
Now let's talk about a third character who still has potential; Starlight Glimmer. Not much say about her except she's pretty much an equalist
how believes in what she says. What got my attention was when she literally cut off Twilight when she was making one of her friendship speeches and when she rejected Twilight's wisdom after her defeat. She has the potential, but I don't quite see her as an ultimate rival. Only the future will tell.
First, a good rival serves as an antagonistic foil, like looking at one's dark reflection. This in many ways, causes conflict and even relatability between the rivals. This is turn makes the feud even more emotional than it already is.
Second, Twilight's rival should be willing to do whatever it takes to bring her down. Sunset Shimmer came close to this when it came to Spike, but Twilight's rival should absolutely, in no way, shape, or form, pull any punches in order to take her down.
Third, Twilight's rival should equal her in magic. Trixie was able to hold her own against Twilight, but her rival should have the potential to surpass her in magic, so much so to the point where Twilight has to push her abilities like they've never been pushed before.
Fourth, Twilight's rival should be someone who can really make her mad. Someone who can push Twilight's emotions to the edge. Someone whose words, actions, and deeds will get Twilight so furious, that it brings out a side of her that no one ever thought existed.
So with that being said, I think it goes without saying that Twilight is the kind of character that needs a strong, VERY STRONG, rival that can push her to her limits. Someone who can get a win or two over her and really cause her to think about how she can win. Twilight needs this, not only to show just how far she's comes, but to see what happens when she's faced with virtually, a reflection of herself.
In the past there have at least 2 characters who have had the potential to be great rivals to Twilight, but have come up short in the ordeal.
First off is The Great and Powerful Trixie. Trixie has often been described as what would happen to Twilight if she allowed her talent to cause her to become overbearing and boastful, which of course, made her to be a perfect foil for Twilight and she was practically the only one who could match her in terms of magical abilities. The episode, 'Magic Duel' had potential to really elevate the rivalry between them; Trixie had a reason to seek revenge against Twilight, heck, Trixie even managed to beat her with the Alicorn Amulet, but after Trixie was defeated by her in the second round, she was automatically redeemed. She should've remained a recurring antagonist for Twilight in the series, other than her role in the second Equestria Girls.
And speaking of which, that brings me to the second character, Sunset Shimmer. Man, you talk about wasted potential. Now, I'm not saying Sunset was horrible, but she could've much better. She was the perfect foil for Twilight. She was Princess Celestia's student who abandoned her studies when she didn't get what she wanted right away. Basically, what would've happened if Twilight was impatient. Her staredown with Twilight in the first movie was as epic as it could get, so from there, you could tell this had the potential for something great. It was made even more so by their second confrontation in the darkened hallway; she freakin' threatened to take Spike away from her!! Not only that, she manipulated the Humane 5 into disliking each other and di her damndess to make sure Twilight didn't get elected as princess of the Fall Formal. And when that didn't work, she kidnaps Spike and threatens to destroy the portal back home unless she gives her, her crown. And when that didn't work, she tackles Twilight and goes for the crown herself and finally gets it, turning into a hellish demon. And just like Trixie, after she's defeated and utterly humiliated, she reforms. One mistake she made was after she kidnapped Spike. What she should've done was threatened to hurt Spike if she didn't give her the crown and then let him go after she gave the crown to her. And don't even get me started on her defeat; there she is lying in a crater, all her power gone, completely and utterly defeated and humiliated, talked down by Twilight, having it all thrown in her face, and she just apologizes. Sunset seems to me like the kind of person who wouldn't just accept defeat like that. Instead of apologizing, what she should've done was get up out of the crater, push Twilight to the side and walk away. That would've left leeway for her to come back and try to get revenge on Twilight for what she did to her. She could've done a lot more to show that she was a capable rival for Twilight. While she works as a reformed villain, she would've worked even better as Twilight's greatest rival.
Now let's talk about a third character who still has potential; Starlight Glimmer. Not much say about her except she's pretty much an equalist
how believes in what she says. What got my attention was when she literally cut off Twilight when she was making one of her friendship speeches and when she rejected Twilight's wisdom after her defeat. She has the potential, but I don't quite see her as an ultimate rival. Only the future will tell.
First, a good rival serves as an antagonistic foil, like looking at one's dark reflection. This in many ways, causes conflict and even relatability between the rivals. This is turn makes the feud even more emotional than it already is.
Second, Twilight's rival should be willing to do whatever it takes to bring her down. Sunset Shimmer came close to this when it came to Spike, but Twilight's rival should absolutely, in no way, shape, or form, pull any punches in order to take her down.
Third, Twilight's rival should equal her in magic. Trixie was able to hold her own against Twilight, but her rival should have the potential to surpass her in magic, so much so to the point where Twilight has to push her abilities like they've never been pushed before.
Fourth, Twilight's rival should be someone who can really make her mad. Someone who can push Twilight's emotions to the edge. Someone whose words, actions, and deeds will get Twilight so furious, that it brings out a side of her that no one ever thought existed.
So with that being said, I think it goes without saying that Twilight is the kind of character that needs a strong, VERY STRONG, rival that can push her to her limits. Someone who can get a win or two over her and really cause her to think about how she can win. Twilight needs this, not only to show just how far she's comes, but to see what happens when she's faced with virtually, a reflection of herself.
