If She Doesnât, Iâd be Shocked
Happy Belated Pinkie Pie Day! And for that matter, happy Canadian Thanksgiving and Oktoberfest (both big where I live)! With so much to celebrate, itâs only fitting to spotlight Ponyvilleâs premier party-planner, Pinkie Pie.
Today I wanted to dive a little deeper into that preposterous pink ponyâs character, to the center of what makes Pinkie⌠Pinkie.
Abandonment issues! Hooray! *party canon blast*
More specifically, separation anxiety.
The Proof is in the Pudding
I think we can all think of times when Pinkieâs had a hard time saying goodbye. Twilight staying in Canterlot to prepare for the Summer Sun Celebration meant she had to hug her one last time and send her care-package. Rainbow Dash leaving for the Wonderbolts Academy lead to waiting by the mailbox. Fluttershy leaving for a little while had her running alongside the train.
And thatâs not to mention every time Pinkieâs gotten insecure. Her self-worth and her party-planning and baking skills are unbreakably linked. Heck, even her secret-keeping abilities can make or break an entire friendship in her mind.
To put it lightly, Pinkie canât handle her friends being separated from her friends, which is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because itâs that very loving, altruistic spirit that makes her such a great friend to begin with. A curse because her self-esteem and, well, coping ability goes out the window when her friends walk out the door.
Iâve always found this to be a pretty interesting aspect to her character because she left home at, presumably, a pretty young age. If not right after getting her cutie mark, then in her teenage years. Pinkie made the choice to leave for her own happiness, which is awesome, but it kind of makes you wonder why she has so much trouble with goodbye if she was able to leave her family.
And I think the answer is simple. Pinkie doesnât have problems leaving, she has problems being left behind.
In a similar vein to her struggles with being disliked or ignored, the root of all these abandonment issues is a fear of rejection.
Which⌠makes a scary amount of sense from a writing perspective. Pinkieâs the most sociable character in the show, and you might expect Flutter âSocial Anxietyâ Shy to have more problems with rejection, but itâs because Pinkieâs so social that she canât take it when her friends reject her.
And just look at her discord-ification in Return of Harmony. If Pinkie Pie feels sheâs been reduced to nothing but a joke, sheâd rather not laugh or smile at all.Â
So, it seems to me our answer is clear: yeah, she does. As to the why?
That goes all the way back to mini-ponk: Pinkieâs cutie mark story. If youâve seen the episode, you know Pinkieâs family ends up loving her party and actually---*gasp*---smiles for once. But the moments where Pinkie isnât sure what they think of it are telling.
She pretty well immediately assumes they donât like it. Given how different Pinkie is from her family, that honestly makes sense. Even from when she was small, Pinkie felt she had to justify her lifeâs purpose. If she could make others happy, keep them around, her parties and by extension Pinkie herself, was worth all the silliness.
Itâs what she was meant to do with her life, as âfrivolousâ as it might seem to others. Pinkie Pride made it extremely clear that she finds a lot of meaning in her work, but I think perhaps too much for her own good.
For those of you who havenât watched the movie and donât want spoilers, skip the next section. Itâs not necessary to understand this analysis anyway, so consider it a bonus.
Carrying the Emotional Weight
... Okay, we good?
THAT FIGHT SCENE, THOUGH.
Okay, okay, okay. So, back when I made that incredibly-overly-long post analyzing the trailer, I said I thought Pinkie looked like she wasnât just going to be the comic relief, and how awesome that would be if true.
But not only was Pinkie not just the comic relief, she carried the heaviest emotional weight in the movie (next to Twilight, of course). They let Pinkie be a real character instead of a punchline delivery system. I just needed to appreciate that for a second.
And, okay, can we just take into account for a second how much more heartbreaking the line âI just canât talk to you right nowâ is when you know Pinkie Pie?Â
General audiences will be able to pick up on just how talkative Pinkie is from watching the movie, yeah, but when you know how deeply Pinkie loves her friends and how much it kills her when they reject her, youâll know this might possibly be the worst moment of Pinkieâs life.Â
She canât even muster up a cartoony âWorst adventure ever.â Sheâs just too hurt.
Okay, Movie rant over. Just. Just needed to get that out of my system.
Donât Go
So, with all that in mind, I think Pinkieâs biggest flaw is what makes her such an enjoyably deep character. Itâs why we relate to her. Boundless optimism and hilarious quirks are pretty swell, but this is precisely why itâs so devastating when Pinkieâs sad. Because we understand the stakes are so much higher for her if someone she loves leaves, says something hurtful, or just doesnât like her.
Truly, Pinkie Pieâs an emotional character. Highs and lows. And I wouldnât change a thing. Although, for her sake, I do hope it becomes easier to separate her own value from her friendsâ whereabouts, or what they like. As much as I love and relate to the emotional extremes, Pinkie deserves a little stability in the face of rejection, donât you think?
Pony pony pony. More pony. Hereâs more! Iâve got editorials and episode reviews! And lookie there, the last three things are right here for you:
Rarity, Hascon, and Sunset Editorials
Year of the Pony
Header Image Wouldnât Be Possible Without...
Pinkie in the Window by DashieSparkle
DashieSparkle makes gorgeously gorgeous vectors! Give them a look in his devintART gallery!
You Could be Happy/ And I Wonât Know




















