Call of the Cutie

Call of the Cutie is the twelfth episode of the first season and first aired on January 7th 2011.

Writer: Meghan McCarthy

Episode Summary
When a pony discovers something it is talented or unique with, they will earn a cutie mark, a tattoo-like symbol magically placed above its flank. That is how it goes, and there is no way around it. However, some ponies have lacked this proud symbol.

Apple Bloom was one of them; a resident "Blank Flank" (a school nickname of a pony who has yet to earn a cutie mark) by a few of her classmates.

Two young school fillies, Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara, invited her and another "Blank Flank", Twist, to their "Cute-ceañera" (a coming-of-age-like party to those who just earned their mark), hoping they'll show up and be made fun of, or not show up at all.

Back in Sweet Apple Acres, Apple Bloom discussed this with her big sister Applejack. AJ responded that she and her family all received their cutie mark, but were always last in class to do so. Bloom was upset about this, believing that being last for this runs in the family. She then realized her last words can also mean that her future cutie mark could be based on her namesake. After all, Granny Smith, Big Macintosh, and AJ all had apple-related marks, which means she would have to do something apple-related to get hers. And so began a quest to find her mark before the party.

In the Ponyville town square, she helped her sister with the apple market. She showed the townsfolk the versatile uses for apples, while getting a few "customers" to buy some. Unfortunately, her poor marketing skills drove away more customers, wasted all the apples, and failed to make a decent profit. At this point, she was fired. Applejack asked her sister if there were other ponies without a cutie mark so she wouldn't be left out. Bloom decided to find Twist and ask if she wanted to go to Diamond Tiara's party since they both had something in common. To her dismay, Twist already managed to get her cutie mark earlier, a two candy-cane symbol, after discovering her skill with creating candies. Practically the only one with no mark now, a distraught Apple Bloom sulked during the afternoon.

Next, she then met Rainbow Dash to ask her about her problem. Dash told her that she earned her cutie mark after discovering her need for speed. She then said that the secret to finding her mark was "trying as many things as possible, as quickly as possible". From hang-gliding to karate to kite-flying, Bloom's impatience got the better of her and was unable to handle any of these. The only thing she gained so far was exhaustion, and time was running out.

The little filly then helped Pinkie Pie with baking cupcakes in the Sugar Cube Corner shop, hoping that her mark would involve baking. Tried as she might, she only made a mess in the kitchen and burnt her share of the treats.

She resorted to begging Twilight, who was passing by, to magically create a cutie mark before the party, despite Twilight warning her that it was impossible. They gave it a shot anyway, and as expected, one fake cutie mark after another disappeared. Finally giving up, Apple Bloom decided to not show up to the party. To her horror, however, she just remembered that Diamond Tiara's Cute-ceañera was set up right in the snack shop, and she walked right in the middle of it!

Bloom tried to hide herself (and her flank), from the ponies in the party, covering herself with a table cloth, and bumped into the two guests of honor. She lied that she already had her cutie mark earlier. When Tiara called her bluff, Bloom saved face by saying she didn't want to show off and overshadow the guest at her own party. Unfortunately, as she prepared to leave, her disguise was caught and her bare rear was exposed for all the party attendants to see.

Just as she was about to be rediculed, two other "Blank Flanks", Scootaloo and Sweetie Bell, arrived out of hiding to defend her. Neither of them had a cutie mark, saying that it just means that they still have the potential to find their calling. With most of the marked ponies in the party to support them, Diamond Tiara's plan failed.

Since then, Apple Bloom and her new friends formed the Cutie Mark Crusaders, with a purpose of finding their talents to earn their marks.

Trivia

 * This episode focuses on Apple Bloom and puts the main characters in a supporting role. It is the only episode so far to switch the cast's roles in this manner.


 * This is the only episode in which Rarity does not appear. However, Apple Bloom is standing in front of Rarity's house/boutique when Pinkie appears and suggests she eat cupcakes.


 * This is the second episode in which Fluttershy does not appear, and the third in which she has no speaking role. She does not appear in Look Before You Sleep, and has no lines in Boast Busters.