A Canterlot Wedding - Part 1

A Canterlot Wedding - Part 1 is the twenty-fifth episode of the second season of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and the fifty-first overall. It is the first episode in a two-parter which concludes the season. Twilight Sparkle is confused by her conflicting feelings when she finds out her brother, Shining Armor, is marrying Princess Celestia's niece, Princess Cadance.

The wedding announcement
The episode starts out with Twilight, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Applejack having a picnic in a field. While they are having their picnic, Spike quickly runs towards the group, and when he arrives, out of breath, he burps up a scroll for Twilight and her friends. In this scroll, Princess Celestia describes to Twilight that she wants her friends to take part in the wedding, and asks each of them to perform a certain role. She wants Applejack to bake the cake, Pinkie Pie to host the reception, Fluttershy to train her choir of birds, Rainbow Dash to perform a sonic rainboom, Rarity to make the wedding dresses, and Twilight to watch over everything.

Twilight then wonders who are marrying, then Spike gives Twilight the invitation. She is shocked to find out that Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, also known as Princess Cadance and her brother, Shining Armor, are the couple to be wed. She reveals that he was her BBBFF (Big Brother Best Friend Forever) before she was sent to Ponyville, and explains her story through a song - B.B.B.F.F. But Twilight has suspicions of Cadance and her friends try to reassure her.

Arriving at Canterlot
After this, the six plus Spike make their way to Canterlot. While in the train to Canterlot, everyone save for Twilight is happily discussing the occasion, but Twilight is sitting on the other end of the carriage looking out the window. When Applejack asks why she's upset, Twilight says that she's "thinking about Shining Armor", and that after she left Canterlot for Ponyville, they had been seeing each other less and less. She is still angry that Shining Armor did not find time to tell her about the wedding himself.

Immediately after arriving in Canterlot, Twilight rushes off the train, stating that she is going to give her brother a piece of her mind. She jogs towards a wall upon which Shining Armor is directing his soldiers around. Twilight rudely calls for him, and on hearing this shout the guards immediately take up defensive positions. However Shining Armor quells the guards, running down to greet his sister (calling her by the nickname Twily). Twilight immediately begins to berate him for not telling her about the wedding, but Shining Armor states that he had no choice and that Princess Celestia wanted an increase in security. He later explains that this security is due to an outside threat. Twilight concedes, but still is hurt at how her brother doesn't have time for her. Shining Armor says that he will always have time, and asks Twilight to be his Best Mare.

Twilight says she is still upset that he is marrying a pony she doesn't know. However, Shining Armor reveals to her that Princess Mi Amore Cadenza is the full name of Cadance, who was Twilight's foalsitter when she was a filly. Twilight proceeds to say that Cadance is "the most amazing pony ever", and that she is "beautiful, caring, kind", while a flashback of her as a filly and a younger Cadance plays.

Cadance appears
Suddenly, Princess Cadance appears at the other end of the wall. After she asks if she's interrupting anything important, Twilight runs up to her and performs the short song that Cadance and her sing in the flashback. However, this does not have any effect on the Princess, and even when Twilight says it's her, she just walks past, to her confusion. Shining Armor says he needs to go back to his station, and that Princess Cadance will be checking in on her and her friends as they prepare for the wedding. After Shining Armor states that they're both very happy to have her there, Cadance gives Twilight a rather mean-looking smile.

Checking up on her friends
Twilight goes to monitor how Applejack is doing in her preparation. Twilight ticks off the cake, ice sculpture, and bitesize apple fritters, all of which Applejack finishes quickly one after another. While Twilight uses her magic to put down figurines of Princess Cadance that Spike was playing with, Princess Cadance enters the room. Applejack lets her try an apple fritter, which she insincerely calls "delicious". Applejack gives her a few of them to go, but while she walks out and while Applejack isn't looking, she throws the bag of apple fritters in the bin.

Twilight then makes her way to Rarity. While in Rarity's room, Princess Cadance arrives, followed by her three bridesmaids, Lyra Heartstrings, Minuette, and Twinkleshine. Rarity expresses her gratitude of being able to serve the Princess, but the Princess brushes this off with a quick "hmph" and looks at her dress. She is not pleased at the results, and when she looks at her bridesmaids dresses, she requests that Rarity changes their color, even though her bridesmaids love them.

After this, Princess Cadence meets Pinkie Pie, who shows off her preparations, including a board game, carnival music and dancing. When Pinkie Pie asks if it's perfect, Princess Cadance says yes, if it was for a six year old's birthday party. Pinkie Pie expresses her thank you at this remark. All of this happens while Twilight is hiding behind a pillar.

Discussing Princess Cadance
In the next scene, Princess Luna arrives at the watch tower Princess Celestia is using to watch over Canterlot, and she assumes the watch position for the night from her sister. The 6 friends as well as Spike are having drinks at a café, and when Twilight sits down, she immediately remarks that Cadance is the "absolute worst bride-to-be ever". However, her friends do not agree with her, Rarity says that it was okay for her to be so demanding, and Applejack says that she was trying to spare her feelings. Fluttershy then remarks that she shouted at one of her birds at a rehearsal, but only because he was singing out of tune. Pinkie Pie and Spike are too busy playing with figurines to talk, and Rainbow Dash was too busy practicing for her sonic rainboom to notice anything. Her friends accuse her of being too protective of her big brother, but Twilight asserts that her friends were just too busy with their wedding preparations to notice anything about Cadance.

Talking to Shining Armor
After the discussion at the café, Twilight storms off, going to her brother's house. There, she talks to him, but just as she starts to speak, Princess Cadance rudely interrupts, asking to talk to Shining Armor.

They go into an adjacent room, and in there, Princess Cadance scolds Shining Armor about a crest he is wearing. Princess Cadence says that she made it clear that he is not to wear it, but Shining Armor says he thinks he should wear it. After he disagrees, he suddenly has a twitch, and Cadance casts some magic on him, which makes his eyes go weird. Twilight has been watching this the entire time, and when she sees this, she runs off.

Attempting to warn everyone
Twilight runs to a mansion in which her friends are. On running up to the stairs, Princess Luna catches sight of her and requests for her to stay indoors. When she gets inside, she notices that all of her friends are wearing fancy dresses. Fluttershy dashes up and says that Princess Cadence has chosen them to be her new bridesmaids. Twilight is speechless at this, and slowly walks out.

The next day, the wedding rehearsal takes place. When it comes for the time for Shining Armor to take a wedding band from his Best Mare, he notices that Twilight is not present. Twilight then storms into the wedding hall, exclaiming that she will not stand next to Princess Cadance, and that Shining Armor shouldn't either. Fluttershy and Applejack rush up to ask if Twilight is alright, but after telling Fluttershy she is and using her magic to move Applejack's hat over her face, she approaches the podium and points at Princess Cadance, saying that she is evil. She tells everyone in the hall that she was horrible to her friends, had obviously done something to her bridesmaids, and put a spell on her brother that made him go walleyed.

Princess Cadance starts to cry at these remarks, and runs away. When Twilight turns back towards everyone else, they all stand with their mouths wide open. Twilight walks proudly right into her brother, who then explains why he goes walleyed, which is because of migraines he receives as a result of his protection spell he has been casting, and that she replaced her bridesmaids because she found out that the only reason they wanted to be in the wedding is so that they could meet Canterlot royalty, and that she was mean to her friends because she had to make all the decisions about the wedding, with Shining Armor preoccupied with defending Canterlot.

Shining Armor walks off, telling Twilight that it wasn't important to her that everything went perfectly, that she wasn't his Best Mare any more, and that she shouldn't even turn up to the wedding at all. The rest of her friends walk out on her, followed by Princess Celestia herself. Alone, Twilight begins to sing a short song thinking about how she's now lost a brother.

Princess Cadence then walks up behind Twilight, and rubs her mane affectionately. Twilight apologizes to her, saying she's sorry, and Cadence returns with a quick "you will be." On this, she casts a ring of green fire around Twilight, which sinks her through the floor. The final shot of the episode shows the Princess walking out of the hall with a grim smile, while Twilight sinks into the floor in the background.

Quotes

 * Twilight Sparkle: [reading] Rarity, you will be responsible for designing the dresses for the bride and her bridesmaids.
 * Rarity: Princess Celestia wants me to- [breaks down into gibberish] ...wedding dress? For a Canterlot wedding... I, ah, ooh, oooh!
 * [thump]


 * Twilight Sparkle: Yeah, great news. That I just got from a wedding invitation! Not from my brother, but from a piece of paper! Thanks a lot, Shining Armor. I mean, really, he couldn't tell me personally? [as Shining Armor] Hey, Twilight, just thought you should know I'm making a really big decision that changes everything. Oh, nevermind, you'll hear about it when you get the invitation. [normal] Princess Mi Amore Cadenza? Who in the hoof is that?! [snorts]


 * Twilight Sparkle: I'd be honored! [pause] But I'm still pretty ticked you're marrying somepony I don't even know! When did you even meet this "Princess Mi Amore Cadenza"?
 * Shining Armor: Twily, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza is Cadance. Your old foalsitter.
 * Twilight Sparkle: Cadance? As in the Cadance? As in the greatest foalsitter in all the history of foalsitters?!
 * Shining Armor: [chuckles] You tell me, she was your foalsitter.


 * Spike: [deep voice] I do. Do you? [high voice] I do! [kissing noises] [laughs nervously]


 * Princess Cadance: And those should be a different color.
 * Twinkleshine: I think they're lovely.
 * Minuette: Me too!
 * Lyra Heartstrings: I love them.
 * Princess Cadance: Make them a different color.


 * Pinkie Pie: I think this reception is gonna be perfect! Don't you?
 * Princess Cadance: Perfect! ...if we were celebrating a six-year-old's birthday party.
 * Pinkie Pie: [gasps] Thank you!


 * Twilight Sparkle: Pinkie Pie, you had to have noticed how Cadance treated-
 * Pinkie Pie and Spike: [kissing noises and laughing]
 * Twilight Sparkle: Nevermind.


 * Twilight Sparkle: I'm sorry!
 * Princess Cadance: You will be.

Trivia

 * This is the first 2 part episode of the series where The Elements of Harmony are mentioned, but not used.

Gallery

 * A Canterlot Wedding - Part 1 image gallery