List of allusions/Season six

The following is a list of allusions to other My Little Pony generations, works of fiction, people, places, events, and other cultural touchstones in the sixth season of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic. Entries on this page must follow the similarity guidelines.

The Crystalling - Part 1

 * "Crystalling" has the same cadence as "christening," a Christian rite with outstanding similarities to the titular ceremony in principle and purpose.
 * Starlight Glimmer remarking that the Castle of Friendship looks "smaller on the outside" is a reference to the TARDIS of Doctor Who lore.

The Crystalling - Part 2

 * Starlight exclaiming "We have to go back!" is a reference to the ABC mystery drama series Lost.

The Gift of the Maud Pie

 * The title is a reference to O. Henry's 1905 short story The Gift of the Magi. Pinkie Pie's trade of her party cannon is a reference to the story's plot.
 * During the sightseeing trip, the trio visits a toy store where two ponies are playing a duet on a foot-operated electronic keyboard, which is a reference to a famous scene from the 1988 movie Big. The tune they are playing is the beginning of the My Little Pony theme song.
 * The skating rink is modeled after the rink at Rockefeller Plaza.
 * Maud begins the story of how she met Boulder with the line "It was a dark and stormy night", which is attributed as originating as the first sentence of Edward Bulwer-Lytton's 1830 novel Paul Clifford, and was further popularized by Snoopy in his persona of "The World Famous Author" in the comic strip Peanuts.
 * In the jewelry store, Rarity is dressed as Holly Golightly from the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany's.

On Your Marks

 * The title is a reference to the phrase, "On your mark, get set, go!"
 * Three stallions in the art class all bear resemblances to famous artists:
 * The first is modeled after Pablo Picasso.
 * The second is modeled after Salvador Dalí. His portrait of Tree Hugger resembles Dalí's The Persistence of Memory.
 * The third is modeled after Andy Warhol. His portrait of Tree Hugger is modeled after Warhol's portrait of Marilyn Monroe.
 * The ponies dancing on the stage at the recital are modeled after Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey from the 1987 film Dirty Dancing.

Gauntlet of Fire

 * The title is similar to the fourth Harry Potter novel Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

No Second Prances

 * The title is a play on the phrase, "No second chances".
 * The character Hoofdini is a reference to famed illusionist Harry Houdini.
 * The poster art for Trixie is modeled after a 1921 poster of the magician Bernardo.

Newbie Dash

 * When imitating Twilight, Rainbow suggests the nickname "Reading Rainboom", a reference to the 1983 literary educational children's TV series Reading Rainbow.
 * When imitating Fluttershy, Rainbow suggests the nickname "Care Mare", a reference to the Care Bears line of toys.

A Hearth's Warming Tail

 * The story A Hearth's Warming Tail is based on the Charles Dickens novella A Christmas Carol.
 * The characters are parodied as follows:
 * Starlight Glimmer/Snowfall Frost: Ebenezer Scrooge
 * Rainbow Dash/Snowdash: Bob Cratchit
 * Applejack: The Ghost of Christmas Past
 * Pinkie Pie: The Ghost of Christmas Present
 * Princess Luna: The Ghost of Christmas Yet-to-Come
 * In addition, Featherweight appears holding a crutch in reference to the character of Tiny Tim, and Octavia appears in the role of the Fiddler at Fezziwig's party.
 * Snowfall Frost's teacher Professor Flintheart is based on Severus Snape from the Harry Potter film franchise, as portrayed by the late Alan Rickman.
 * The duck doll seen throughout the episode has the same color scheme as Perry the Platypus from Phineas and Ferb.
 * Pinkie and Featherweight's tap-dancing routine is almost similar to the one with Gene Kelly and Jerry Mouse in Anchors Aweigh.
 * During Say Goodbye to the Holiday, a little filly is seen modeled after the title character from the Hans Christian Andersen story "The Little Match Girl".

The Saddle Row Review

 * The episode's working title "Saddle Row & Rec" is based on the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation, which also uses a similar mockumentary style.
 * The reporter Buried Lede is modeled after the character J. Jonah Jameson from the Spider-Man comics.
 * Two stallions sitting in the diner are modeled after Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield from the 1994 film Pulp Fiction.
 * The three ponies that Rainbow Dash hires resemble fashion designers Karl Lagerfeld, Betsey Johnson, and Zandra Rhodes.

Applejack's "Day" Off

 * The scene in which Twilight is suspended over the pigpen and stops falling just short of the ground mimics a scene in the 1996 film Mission: Impossible, complete with a similar-sounding musical score.

Flutter Brutter

 * Zephyr Breeze tricking Spike into cleaning the throne room windows is a reference to Tom Sawyer getting a boy to paint a fence for him in the Mark Twain novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
 * An Earth pony stallion in Ponyville bears a resemblance to Link from The Legend of Zelda video game series. This pony wears a green cap, has a Heart Container for a cutie mark, and appears pulling a cart of gems resembling the games' Rupee currency.
 * When Zephyr Breeze tries living in the woods, he starts talking to his mannequin and names it Wigford, referencing the 2000 Tom Hanks film Cast Away, in which Hanks' character has an imaginary friend that he makes out of a volleyball and names Wilson.

Spice Up Your Life

 * The title is an allusion to the Spice Girls song of the same name.
 * Multiple ponies at the second grand reopening of the Tasty Treat strongly resemble real celebrity chefs:
 * S06E12 Unnamed Earth Mare #1: Clarissa Dickson Wright
 * S06E12 Unnamed Unicorn Mare #3: Rachael Ray
 * S06E12 Unnamed Unicorn Mare #4: Cat Cora
 * S06E12 Unnamed Unicorn Mare #5: Julia Child
 * S06E12 Unnamed Unicorn Stallion #7: Gordon Ramsay
 * S06E12 Unnamed Unicorn Stallion #8: Jamie Oliver
 * S06E12 Unnamed Unicorn Stallion #9: Chris Cosentino
 * S06E12 Unnamed Unicorn Stallion #10: Art Ginsburg

Stranger Than Fan Fiction

 * The title is an allusion to the saying "truth is stranger than fiction".
 * Quibble Pants' dislike of books beyond the original trilogy is very similar to Patton Oswalt's attitude toward the Star Wars prequel trilogy.
 * Rainbow and Quibble's brief argument over whether Quibble said "go around" or "go over" mirrors a similar argument in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
 * Quibble's remark about a "Pony or the Tiger situation" is a reference to the infamously open-ended Frank R. Stockton short story The Lady, or the Tiger?
 * When Rainbow Dash is in the lobby, two pony versions of characters from the 2014 Wes Anderson film The Grand Budapest Hotel appear.

The Cart Before the Ponies

 * The title is a reference to the idiom "putting the cart before the horse".
 * Rarity laments about how her swan cart has turned into an "ugly duckling," referencing the Hans Christian Anderson story of the same name.

28 Pranks Later

 * The title is an allusion to the 2002 film 28 Days Later and/or its 2007 sequel 28 Weeks Later.
 * The episode's story also contains various story elements and tropes reminiscent of zombie films such as Night of the Living Dead and The Return of the Living Dead, such as:
 * Pinkie lying sick in bed as a parallel to Night ' s Karen Cooper
 * The zomponies craving cookies as a parallel to Return ' s zombies craving brains
 * The Cutie Mark Crusaders' uniforms and their cookies are references to Girl Scouts of the USA and their cookies.
 * The prank that Rainbow Dash uses on Pinkie, where she appears hanging upside down in a closet, alongside Gummy is a reference to a similar scene featuring Grandpa Munster and Igor the Bat, on the episode "Family Portrait" from the 1964 CBS television series "The Munsters".

The Times They Are A Changeling

 * The title might or might not be a reference to the 1964 Bob Dylan album "The Times They are a-Changin'", basis of Enterplay collectible card game Marks in Time #102 C card Invasion of the Changelings flavor text "The times, they are a'changelin'."
 * Twilight says, "I've got a bad feeling about this," which is a recurring phrase throughout the Star Wars saga.
 * The scene with Spike and the changeling's first encounter is a parody of the mirror gag from the 1933 Marx Brothers film Duck Soup.

Dungeons & Discords

 * The title is a reference to the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons &amp; Dragons, which has had two in-universe counterparts—Ogres & Oubliettes and Dragons & Dragons—introduced in the IDW comics.
 * The tiny Discord's running sounds is the sound used for Fred Flintstone revving up his Flintmobile.
 * "Discord as basketball player" "was inspired by actual real sports."
 * Discord's entrance music is similar to the song "Get Ready for This" by 2 Unlimited.
 * Discord's dance club and zoot suit are a reference to the 1994 film The Mask.
 * A background Earth pony mare dancing in the club scene bears a resemblance to Betty Boop.
 * Another background Earth pony mare bears a resemblance to African-American dancer Josephine Baker aka "Chiquita Banana".
 * In one scene, Discord, Spike, and Big McIntosh recreate Cassius Marcellus Coolidge's 1904 painting "A Friend in Need", part of the Dogs Playing Poker series of paintings.
 * Spike and Discord's role-playing characters Garbunkle and Captain Wuzz bear resemblances to Gandalf and Legolas respectively of the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit book/film series.
 * Big McIntosh's character Sir McBiggun wears a helmet resembling the Dragon born helmet from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
 * The symbol on the Squizard's amulet is the "Super S" or "Stussy", a stylized "S" commonly drawn by elementary school students.

Buckball Season

 * Story inspiration: Bad News Bears meets Dumbo.
 * The game of Buckball is similar to the game of Quidditch from the Harry Potter universe.
 * The beginning scene of Applejack bucking in slow motion is similar to the 1973 science fiction television series The Six Million Dollar Man, right down to the "bionic" sound effects.
 * At the train station, Derpy and another pony are seen wearing hats identical to the hat worn by the Cat in Dr.Seuss's The Cat in the Hat.

The Fault in Our Cutie Marks

 * The title is a reference to the John Green novel The Fault in Our Stars.

Viva Las Pegasus

 * The title is a reference to the popular tourism slogan "Viva Las Vegas".
 * Many of the buildings in Las Pegasus resemble real-life hotels/casinos and attractions on the Vegas Strip.
 * The circus tent alludes to Circus Circus.
 * The giant Ferris wheel alludes to the High Roller.
 * The building shaped like Manehattan alludes to the New York-New York Hotel and Casino.
 * The pyramid and Sphinx-shaped building allude to The Luxor.
 * The Eiffel Tower-shaped building alludes to the Paris Las Vegas.
 * Gladmane's accent and manner of speech are reminiscent of Elvis Presley.
 * Applejack reinforces this resemblance by announcing "Gladmane has left the building!", which was often said whenever Presley was demanded an encore by the audience.
 * The three posters in the lobby bears a resemblance to:
 * street magician Criss Angel's 2005 TV show "Mindfreak"
 * pop singer Britney Spears' 2013 residency show "Britney: Piece of Me"
 * a Cirque du Soleil promotional poster
 * Two performers in Gladmane's employ resemble stage magicians Siegfried &amp; Roy.
 * Two other background stallions at Gladmane's resort resemble Penn &amp; Teller.
 * One of the games being played in Gladmane's resort arcade is Dance Dance Revolution.
 * The stage manager of Ponet Fantastique bears a resemblance to the Muppets character Scooter.

Every Little Thing She Does

 * The title is a reference to the 1981 Police song "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" and/or the 1964 Beatles song "Every Little Thing".
 * The episode's plot shares elements with The Sorcerer's Apprentice.
 * Pinkie Pie's short cake-baking song shares its lyrics (but not its melody) with the LazyTown song "Cooking By the Book".
 * Several of Applejack's lines allude to various literature and film or famous quotes:
 * "Granny Smith knew she was gonna need a bigger boat" - Jaws
 * "If you can't say anythin' nice about anypony, come sit by me!" - Alice Roosevelt Longworth
 * "She was just a pony standin' in front of another pony askin' him to love her" - Notting Hill
 * "They can take our farm, but they can't take our freedom!" - Braveheart
 * "It was the best of apples, it was the worst of apples" - A Tale of Two Cities
 * "With a whole lot of power comes a heck of a lot of responsibility" - Spider-Man
 * The photo with Big McIntosh covered in mud and hiding from a mysterious creature is an allusion to a similar scene in the 1987 science-fiction film Predator.

P.P.O.V. (Pony Point of View)

 * The episode's premise is similar to the Japanese 1950 film Rashomon, in which one incident is retold from several different, sometimes contradictory, perspectives.
 * The jacket Rarity wears in Pinkie's story is similar to the one worn by Captain Stubing in the 1977 series The Love Boat.
 * Rarity's dress in Applejack's story is similar to the dress worn by the character Rose in the 1997 film Titanic.
 * Before Applejack joins Pinkie and Rarity on the ship, Rarity even recreates the film's iconic "I'm flying" scene.
 * The wave that capsizes the boat in all three stories mirrors the capsizing scene of the F/V Andrea Gail in the 2000 film The Perfect Storm.
 * Applejack's line "There'll be no mutiny aboard me ship!" is a direct allusion to the line spoken by Captain Queeg in the 1954 film The Caine Mutiny.

Where the Apple Lies

 * The title is a reference to the 2003 novel and 2005 film Where the Truth Lies.
 * Pony versions of the Grady twins from Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation of Stephen King's The Shining are seen at Ponyville General.

Top Bolt

 * The title is a reference to the 1986 film Top Gun.
 * The line "You can be my wingpony anytime" is also a reference to a famous line from the same film.
 * Twilight's Pegasus diagram is based on da Vinci's Vitruvian Man.

To Where and Back Again - Part 1

 * The title is a reference to the subtitle of the J.R.R. Tolkien novel The Hobbit, or There and Back Again.
 * Twilight and Starlight suspect the object heading toward them might be a bird or a parasprite, a reference to the opening of the Fleischer Brothers Superman cartoons: "Up in the sky, look! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's Superman!"
 * Spike refusing Starlight Glimmer entry into the Castle of Friendship is a reference to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

To Where and Back Again - Part 2

 * The scene when Discord conjures up a pig and a lance, rides on it and says "For Fluttershy!" is an allusion to the battle scene when Peter Pevensie says "For Narnia!" in the 2005 film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.
 * The scene in which all of the changelings claim to be the real Fluttershy is reminiscent of the "I'm Spartacus!" scene from the 1960 film Spartacus.