The Fault in Our Cutie Marks

The Fault in Our Cutie Marks is the nineteenth episode of season six of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic and the one hundred and thirty-sixth overall. The title is a reference to the John Green novel The Fault in Our Stars.

Production
Similarly to Putting Your Hoof Down, this episode was first listed by IMDb, whose season six episode nine listing was "Fault in Our Cutie Marks" and which, similarly to with Flutter Brutter and with Applejack's "Day" Off, credited David Stuart as the voice of "Father Pony", both months before the episode would be announced; said listing changed to The Saddle Row Review, but Jim Miller stated on Twitter that for "legit reasons", season 6 episode "9 was moved to later" "in the season" than in production order.

Information about the episode was first revealed during a closed-door press event at the 2016 Hasbro Toy Fair.

This episode was to be included in the Shout! Factory DVD My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic: Soarin' Over Equestria but was replaced with On Your Marks.

The episode (dubbed in Polish) aired in Poland on September 7, 2016 and was leaked online on YouTube three days prior to its airing on Discovery Family.

Prologue
The episode begins with the Cutie Mark Crusaders visiting a couple who are concerned by their daughter Petunia Paleo's new cutie mark: a skull and two bones. After Scootaloo helps Petunia unearth a dinosaur skeleton in their garden, the filly's parents are relieved that their daughter is an archaeologist, not a pirate like they feared.

The Crusaders' conundrum
The Crusaders make their way back to their clubhouse, proud of the many cutie mark problems they've helped other ponies solve. Sweetie Belle wonders aloud if they'll ever face an unsolvable problem when Apple Bloom suddenly spots a griffon perched atop the clubhouse. The fillies are alarmed since griffons are usually grouchy and unfriendly creatures, but when the griffon sees them, she greets them with a big, enthusiastic hug.

The griffon introduces herself as Gabriela—or Gabby for short—and says that she has been searching for them for one reason: to get a cutie mark of her very own. Gabby explains that she has always felt out of place among the more foul-tempered, antisocial griffons while working as a mail carrier at Griffonstone. When she saw Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash teach Gilda about friendship, Gabby became convinced that their glowing cutie marks had something to do with it. Leaping at the chance to deliver a letter from Gilda to Rainbow Dash in Ponyville, Gabby met with other ponies who all directed her to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, whom she is certain will help her find her true purpose in life and her cutie mark.

The Crusaders are stumped, since they've never heard of a griffon with a cutie mark before, and they go consult Twilight Sparkle for advice. However, not even Twilight has any knowledge of creatures other than ponies who can get cutie marks—and using magic to make one appear, she reminds the fillies, is never a good idea.

Find the Purpose in Your Life
The fillies decide to tell Gabby that, while it's unlikely that she will get her cutie mark, they can still help her find her life's calling. Gabby, however, misinterprets them to mean that getting a cutie mark is guaranteed, becoming more ecstatic than ever. Even when the Crusaders explain what Twilight told them, Gabby remains optimistic that it's not impossible, no matter the odds.

Gabby's optimism strikes a chord with Scootaloo, who, having similarly improbable dreams of achieving flight, promises Gabby that they will fulfill her dream of getting a cutie mark. Turning to their old cutie mark chart, the Crusaders sing Gabby through a list of activities that other ponies are struggling with.

Gabby shows great aptitude with everything on the list, yet her cutie mark shows no sign of appearing. The Crusaders come to the grim realization that Gabby is so good at everything, singling out Gabby's special talent is impossible after all. When they tell Gabby they can't help her, she flies off in complete disbelief.

Gabby makes her mark?
As the Crusaders wallow in their first cutie mark failure, Gabby bursts into their clubhouse with exciting news: she has earned her cutie mark after all! She shows off her cauldron mark, which she says happened some time after helping Zecora brewing potions, which was the first thing on their list. The Crusaders are elated and declare that they must tell Twilight the good news. Upon hearing this, however, Gabby nervously promises to stop by the Castle of Friendship on her way back to Griffonstone to deliver the news personally, speeding away.

The Crusaders go to the castle to see Twilight's reaction, but Twilight tells the fillies that Gabby left them a note without bothering to come in. When the Crusaders read Gabby's note aloud, thanking the fillies for helping her earn a cutie mark, Twilight delightedly drops everything to research the first cutie marked griffon in history. Realizing Gabby broke her promise, the Crusaders become suspicious.

The three catch Gabby helping to push Dr. Hooves's cart out of a mud puddle when she trips and falls, smearing off her cutie mark in the mud. Gabby sadly admits that she lied about getting her cutie mark to spare the Crusaders' feelings because they were so upset that they failed to help her. Suddenly, Scootaloo gets an idea and tells Gabby to meet them at the clubhouse.

The first griffon Crusader
At the clubhouse, Gabby wonders that since she can't get a cutie mark, she may not even have a true calling in life. The Crusaders, however, tell her that she actually does have a talent: helping other ponies in need, even themselves when they were feeling down. Gabby says that helping others is just something that she enjoys, which the fillies say is the point; what makes her talent special is what she enjoys doing most, and she doesn't need a cutie mark to know that.

In recognition of her talent, the Crusaders present her with a makeshift cutie mark in the form of two mailbag clips modeled after their own marks. With this, they declare Gabby to be the first ever griffon Cutie Mark Crusader.

Later, all of Ponyville throws a party celebrating Gabby's new cutie mark. Gabby promises to spread what the Crusaders have taught her to the rest of Griffonstone, while the Crusaders tell her to come back soon, since she is now one of them.