Flim and Flam

Flim and Flam, collectively known as the Flim Flam Brothers, are twin salespony unicorn brothers who are featured as antagonists in The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000, Leap of Faith, and A Case for the Bass, in the IDW comics as unseen antagonists mentioned in 's story How Rarity Got Her Groovy Back and appear again in 's story Zen and the Art of Gazebo Repair - Part Deux "If You Only Have a Hammer, You See Every Problem as a Nail", 's story The Day Shift, and 's story, and they also appear in the chapter book Fluttershy and the Fine Furry Friends Fair. Their names are a play on a flimflam, a confidence trick or a scam. Flim is called Flim Skim in some merchandise. "Skim" has various definitions and meanings

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The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000
Flim and Flam first appear in the season two episode The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000 on their cider-making contraption of the same name and introduce themselves through song and dance. With Ponyville's citizens faced with the dilemma of a limited quantity of manually pressed cider, they turn to Flim and Flam and their automated cider production. The brothers attempt to broker a deal with the Apple family to allow themselves business in Ponyville, calling for a 75-25 split in profits in their favor. When the Apples deny the offer, Flim declares that he and his brother will drive Sweet Apple Acres out of business.

The brothers return the next day and provoke the family into a cider-making competition to garner the rest of the town's favor, declaring that whoever produces the most barrels will be the winner. The Apple family uses manual labor to contend with the brothers, but Flim and Flam's technology overpowers them. Applejack's friends offer their help to the Apple family, which the brothers permit, calling the Apples' tactics a lost cause. The additional help allows the family to produce barrels much faster and endanger the brothers' lead. In a panic, the brothers enhance their machine's suction and turn off its quality control setting, causing it to suck up whole trees, and pulping and mixing the apples with rocks and branches.

At the end of the competition, Flim and Flam have produced the most barrels and are declared the winners. However, their tactics have caused their cider to taste horrible, and all the ponies refuse to drink it. Realizing nobody in Ponyville wants to buy their product, Flim and Flam decide to try the next town over and beat a hasty retreat.

Leap of Faith
The brothers return in the season four episode Leap of Faith, this time selling a product called the "Flim Flam Miracle Curative Tonic", using a musical number to hype it as a panacea able to cure any ailment and injury, and even restore youth, among other outrageous claims. The tonic appears to work on a crutch-wielding volunteer in the audience, who casts off his crutches after drinking it; and later on Granny Smith, who overcomes her crippling fear of swimming.

Suspicious of Flim and Flam, Applejack visits the brothers' tent that night and discovers that the volunteer pony, Silver Shill, is part of the brothers' act to promote the tonic. When confronted by Applejack, the two partially admit that their tonic is a useless mixture of apple juice and beet leaves. However, they point out that Granny Smith's blissful ignorance of the tonic's true nature is allowing her to relive her youth as an aquapony, and guile Applejack into silence by suggesting that she would be denying her grandmother that happiness if the truth is revealed.

The next day, Flim and Flam sell their entire stock of tonic to Granny Smith for her to perform at the Ponyville Swim Meet, while Applejack unwittingly approves of its apparent beneficial effects, boosting their credibility. They set up shop at the swimming competition, promoting Silver Shill to help sell their tonic. However, Applejack realizes the bad example her dishonesty is setting for others and, after stopping Granny Smith from performing a dangerous high diving stunt, reveals that the tonic is fake. The brothers try to save face by endorsing the tonic's placebo effects, but Silver Shill, inspired by Applejack's honesty, intervenes and further confirms the brothers' schemes. Defeated again, Flim and Flam hastily flee Ponyville before anyone notices their absence.

The brothers appear in a flashback from this episode in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 1.

Animated shorts
The human counterparts of Flim and Flam appear in the short A Case for the Bass, where they run a pawn shop called "The Flim Flam Brothers' Everything-Under-The-Sun Emporium". The brothers try to swindle Applejack when she comes to retrieve her bass guitar that Granny Smith had accidentally sold them at a garage sale for two dollars. When Applejack proves her ownership of the bass, the two compromise her into working as their costumed spokesperson to pay off the instrument.

Depiction in comics
Flim and Flam are mentioned in IDW comics', having swindled characters Flax Seed and Wheat Grass into surrendering the land their spa is built on.

They also appear in, selling parasprite repellent.

Flim and Flam appear again in, shown to have swindled Flax Seed and Wheat Grass out of their cart and another pony out of her sheep's wool. Princess Luna has Flim and Flam return the goods to all the ponies they had conned.

On page 12, alternate versions of Flim and Flam appear in a stained glass window labeled "Fairness". They are depicted wearing robes with a judge's gavel and the scales of justice.

In, Flim and Flam have a heated falling-out due to their fighting over a mare in Dodge Junction. At AppleCon 45, they promote their products separately. Granny Smith, initially suspicious of the brothers' motives, helps them reconcile because to her there's nothing more important or valuable than family.

In, Flim and Flam are recruited by Radiant Hope to orchestrate an attack on the Crystal Empire, using their Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000 as a Trojan horse to smuggle changelings in.

Merchandise
Flim Skim and Flam mini-figure toys and collector cards are included in the eighth wave of mystery packs, which feature the brothers on their packaging; the Flim Skim toy was displayed at the 2013 New York Toy Fair. According to Flim Skim's collector card, "FLIM SKIM of the Flim Flam Brothers loves to sing!" And according to Flam's collector card, "FLAM of the Flim Flam Brothers loves apple cider!"

In the Friendship is Magic Collection of toy sets, a mini-figure toy of Flam is packaged in one of six Story Packs, and a mini-figure toy of Flim is packaged with the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000.

HubNetwork.com description
''Flim and his mustachioed brother Flam ride into town on their Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000. Doing a song and dance, these fast-talking salesponies challenge the Apple family to a cider-making contest. They win, but when everypony wises up to these Unicorns' wily ways -- the cider tastes awful! -- Flim and Flam hightail it out of town… perhaps to return again one day.''

My Little Pony mobile game description

 * Flim:
 * The brother of fellow salespony Flam, Flim sings and dances his way into Ponyville and attempts to sell low-quality cider, among other things!
 * Flam:
 * A traveling salespony, Flam has a mustache and can be found running the Balloon Pop Stand with his brother Flim.

According to the mobile game, Flim and Flam live in the cider machine. A promotional image posted by the official Facebook page of the game on May 27, 2014 uses fanart of the two Flim Flam Brothers, an edited version of the Flim part of which is to be used in the game itself.

The Elements of Harmony guidebook
''The FLIM FLAM BROTHERS are a pair of salespony tricksters who travel from town to town, using song and dance to trick ponies into buying their wares. But it's all just a sham—the Unicorn duo are often run right out of town when their faulty products and shady tricks are revealed!''

Quotes
"Don't worry, everypony, there are plenty of apples in Equestria. We'll find some others and make more cider than all of Ponyville can drink!"

- Flim, The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000

"With our machine, we can make enough cider in one hour to satisfy this entire town!"

- Flam, The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000

"Congratulations, Granny Smith! You just made the purchase of a lifetime!"

- Flim talking to Granny Smith, Leap of Faith

"Hypothetically..."

- Flam, Leap of Faith

"Theoretically..."

- Flim, Leap of Faith

"Buy it now while supplies last."

- Flam, Leap of Faith

"That could mean anything."

- Flam, A Case for the Bass

"Flim Flam's Miracle Curative Tonic! Buy it now, while supplies last."

- Enterplay collectible card game α #155 U card of Flim