A Dog and Pony Show

A Dog and Pony Show is the nineteenth episode of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic, season one. In this episode, Rarity decides to find a new load of gems with Spike's assistance. But when a group of creatures called the Diamond Dogs abduct Rarity, Spike and the other ponies head underground to rescue her.

Episode summary
Inside the Carousel Boutique, after putting the last gem onto a garment, Rarity hears a customer walk into her shop. She casually greets the customer, only to find out in shock that it's "Pony of Pop" sensation, Sapphire Shores. Sapphire explains that she had heard of Rarity's fashion designs from a local magazine and came to browse the shop for designs for her upcoming tour. Rarity happily showed Sapphire her latest finished project: a garment covered in multi-colored gems. Sapphire took an immediate liking to the bejeweled garment, saying that she would buy it... along with five more for costume changes, requiring Rarity to gather more gems than ever before.

Rarity asks Spike to assist her in finding a new load of gems outside Ponyville. In return, she promises him he can have a few as a snack. Spike manages to curb his appetite and was rewarded with a blue gem. Rather than eat it right away, he decided to keep hold of it as a gift from his crush.

Hiding in the bushes, a trio of canines known as Diamond Dogs are in awe of the large amount of stones being carried by the baby dragon, mistaking him as a gem tracker. Then they hear Rarity's voice and discovered that she was the one finding the gems. Ambushed by the mutts, Rarity panics, but Spike intercepts them so Rarity escape. Unfortunately, they shake him off and succeed in abducting Rarity before escaping into their hole in the ground.

"Yes, we hunt. We hunt for gems, but you are a better hunter. So now we hunt... for YOU!"

- Diamond Dog Leader

Spike brings the other ponies after his rushed explanation to the spot of the incident only to see the entire site laden with holes. They encounter the dogs, but are outmaneuvered to exhaustion when the dogs refill the holes and then pop out of them to trip the ponies up. Spike then uses his blue gem as bait to catch one of the dogs. His fishing line is snagged and he and the ponies are dragged into a large set of tunnels. Alone at the moment, they theorize that the dogs may have taken Rarity to a spot with the most gems, but there is no way to find her until Spike reminds Twilight Sparkle that Rarity showed her how to track gems herself. Using the spell, Twilight locates the tunnel with the most gems.

Within the central area underground, the Diamond Dogs demand Rarity find all the gems she can. She finds them some gems and then asks to be let out, but the dogs order her to dig for them. She does so, but very slowly, as she tells them she just got a pony pedi and doesn't want to ruin it by digging. Frustrated at this pathetically slow pace, the leader calls on his comrades to do the digging. They decide to use her to haul carts of the dug-up gems instead. But Rarity starts complaining about everything and whining. The Diamond Dogs eventually beg her to keep quiet and tell her that they would do anything. The dogs treat Rarity like a princess while they dig and haul the jewels she tracked. Just then, one of the dogs realized that they could actually endure her constant whining as long as she did as they told her. But Rarity breaks down in tears, after one of the dogs calls her a mule. The dogs try to cheer her up and apologize. It doesn't work, and she continues crying.

A distance away from the center, Spike and the ponies heard Rarity's cries and rush to help her. A group of guard dogs sees them as new "work horses" and ambushes them. Applejack tells her friends to buck them off rodeo-style and the guard dogs retreat. Spike hoped to relish the moment of saving Rarity from the dogs. In the end, the dogs offer to give away all of the gems they found, providing the ponies take Rarity back along with them.

On their way home, Rarity reveals that annoying her captors was all a ruse to keep them under control. Twilight learns that just because someone is lady-like doesn't mean they're helpless.

Quotes

 * Pinkie Pie: Holy moly! That's a lotta holeys!


 * Applejack: Now, I'm used to pickin' myself up and dustin' myself off, but Rarity won't even touch mud 'less it's imported.


 * Rarity: Oh, woe is me! What ever shall I do? Ah! Dirt, dirt! Get away, dirt! Oh! Make it stop, make it stop! Filthy, disgusting dirt. It stings, it burns. Help! Somepony save me, SAVE ME!


 * Spot: Get me the baubles!
 * Fido: Get me the beads!
 * Rover: Get me the trinkets!
 * Diamond Dogs: Where is the treasure?!
 * Rarity: (faints)


 * Princess Rarity: Oh, Spike! I knew you would save me!
 * Sir Spike: Nothing could stop me, my lady.
 * Princess Rarity: Oh, Spike. You are my hero. *smooch*
 * Sir Spike: Mmmmmm...
 * Applejack: Ho-hold it there, lover boy.


 * Fido: What are you doing? We said dig!
 * Rarity: Forgive me, but prior to you so rudely dragging me into your dirt pit, I had a pony-pedi, and I am not about to chip a hoof because you dislike my style of digging.


 * Rarity: Good heavens, what is that smell?
 * Rover: Smeeeeeell?
 * Rarity: Ah, mystery solved. It's your breath.


 * Rover: Search, Pony!
 * Rarity: Well, since you insist... But I must say the working conditions in here are simply dreadful. Musty and damp, it's going to wreak havoc on my mane. And this air is stifling, suffocating. And when I try to take a deep breath, the stench of all you dogs makes me nauseated. You look and smell like if you haven't bathed in weeks. Have you never heard of soap? You could all do with a good round of soap and water. Water, water, I'm terribly thirsty. Could I please have some water?
 * Spot: Good gracious, I can't take this anymore. BE QUIET, PONY!


 * Rarity: I am not "whining". I am complaining. Do you want to hear "whining"? This is whining! Ooohhhh! This harness is too tight! It's going to chafe! Can't you loosen it?! OH! It hurts and it's so rusty! Why didn't you clean it first?! It's gonna leave a stain, and the wagon's getting heavy! Why do I have to pull it?!
 * Spot: AAH! Make it stop!
 * Rover: Stop whining!!!
 * Rarity: But I thought you wanted whining!


 * Rover: Make the noises all you want. But move while you make them. Hyah, mule!
 * Rarity : Did you... just call me a... mule?!
 * Rover: Eh...
 * Rarity: Mules are ugly! Are you saying that I, too, am ugly? [sobs]


 * Rarity: HE CALLED ME UGLY!
 * Rover: No! Mule! I said mule!
 * Rarity: An old ugly mule! And it's true! Just look at me. I used to be beautiful, but nooow...
 * Fido: No, no! You're still beautiful, po... uh, Miss Rarity.
 * Rarity: You're just saying that!
 * Spot: No, you're still pretty and... and...
 * Rover: Oh, and, and nice, yeah.
 * Rarity: I don't believe you! You never liked me!


 * Applejack: Ho doggies! If you can take this bull by the horns, you better be ready to ride! Come on, ponies. Kick 'em up, kick 'em out. Buck 'em up, buck 'em down.


 * Spike: I'm coming for you, my lady. Heigh-ho, Twilight! Away!
 * Twilight Sparkle: And just what do you think you're doing?!
 * Spike: Please, Twilight. Just give me this...
 * Twilight Sparkle: Fine...


 * Twilight sparkle: C'mon every pony, let's save Rarity!

Gallery



 * A Dog and Pony Show image gallery

Trivia

 * The phrase "a dog and pony show" originated in 19th century America as a term for small traveling circuses that toured through rural areas. The modern usage refers to an over-staged performance. Typically, the term is used to connote disdain, jocular lack of appreciation, or distrust of the message being presented or the efforts undertaken to present it.
 * The episode's plot is reminiscent of the O. Henry story "The Ransom of Red Chief", in which a young boy's antics drive his kidnappers so crazy that they end up paying his family to take him back.
 * The episode's "Diamond Dogs" take their name from David Bowie's famous concept album and its titular song.
 * Rodeo music from Fall Weather Friends is used in this episode.
 * Applejack's phrase "Kick 'em up, kick 'em out. Buck 'em up, buck 'em down" is a reference to "Rawhide", a song performed by Frankie Laine.
 * The dogs' use of the word "precious" and predilection for jewelry is reminiscent of the character Gollum from Lord of the Rings.
 * Spike's line "Heigh-ho Twilight, away!" is a reference to The Lone Ranger.
 * In Spike's rescue fantasy, the Diamond Dogs attack with the characteristic slow motion leap and 'bionic' sound effect from The Six Million Dollar Man.
 * When Spike first uncovers some gems, what appears to be the scene's animatic is visible in the valley next to his head.
 * In the iTunes release of the episode, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy are missing when the group arrive at the bottom of the hole. Another iTunes exclusive error, albeit minor, is the consistency of the appearance of Twilight Sparkle's rope harness: For example, in one scene, when Twilight Sparkle bucked off the Diamond Dog guard riding her, the guard haphazardly pulled off the harness with his claws as he was flung away. In other releases of the episode, Twilight Sparkle's harness remained around her head rather than being pulled off.
 * This is the second of two season-one episodes (the other is Stare Master) that feature no background ponies whatsoever.
 * Sapphire Shores calls her show Zigfilly Follies, a reference to the Ziegfeld Follies series of theatrical productions.
 * This is the first of three episodes to feature the voice of Scott McNeill, who voices Rover the Diamond Dog. Rover's partner Fido is voiced by Garry Chalk, who has worked alongside McNeill on a large number of animated shows.
 * The bejeweled costume Rarity shows Sapphire Shores in the opening segment bears a very striking resemblance to the jumpsuits worn by Rock & Roll Legend Elvis Presley during his 1970s heyday.
 * At the beginning of the flash forward scene where Twilight and the rest of the gang imagine Rarity's captivity in the dirt filled dungeon, the opening notes of Bach's Fugue in D Minor can be heard.