Stare Master

Stare Master is the seventeenth episode of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic, season one. In this episode, Fluttershy offers to take care of Apple Bloom and her friends, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.

Episode summary
Rarity was swamped with work, and believed she had "bitten off more than she could chew".

She was busy in her shop trying to complete a special order: make 20 robes for Trottingham by tomorrow. It didn't help much that her sister, Sweetie Belle, was trying to help in an attempt to get her cutie mark, but ended up making a huge mess. Fluttershy arrived to drop off Rarity's cat, Opalescence, from her grooming appointment. The unicorn was surprised at how well behaved her cat was, seeing as she couldn't do it herself without getting scratched. She asked her friend if she used "The Stare" on the feline, but she denied it.

While she explained to Fluttershy of what she was up to, Sweetie's friends, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, arrived for their sleepover at Rarity's house. The Cutie Mark Crusaders, as they called themselves as a group, planned on finding their hidden talents in order to get their mark. The little unicorn even created a uniform of sorts to represent the group, with a golden underlining to boot. Unfortunately, the gold was part of a silk cloth Rarity needed to finish her order. Realizing that it was going to take longer than before, she was forced to cancel her sister's sleepover. Seeing the young fillies disappointed, Fluttershy offered to take care of them, much to her friend's worry. Rarity warned her that her little sister and her friends were quite a hoof-ful, but the pegasus insisted. The trio was excited with this new change of plans. Rarity, not so much.

In town, Fluttershy ran into Twilight along the way, who was off to visit Zecora in the Everfree Forest for some tea. Learning that her pegasus friend was going to babysit the three fillies, she also wondered if she could handle it.

In Fluttershy's cottage, the winged pony was looking forward to a play-date of tail-braiding, coloring and tea parties. The kids wanted to go adventuring in the forest instead. As expected, their babysitter warned them of the dangers out there. The group tried to be "creature catchers", but their roughhousing resulted in breaking a nearby table. They then worked as carpenters to fix the table, but that didn't work out so well either. Fluttershy decided to have them play a game of "Shh...", basically a game of who can be quiet the longest; she claimed to be a champion of it before starting the game. Of course, the Crusaders immediately ended it by losing on purpose. It was already getting dark, so the pegasus took them to bed, promising they can do more "crusading" in the morning.

The trio wasn't even sleepy yet, so Fluttershy sang to them a lullaby. Sweetie Belle recognized the song and asked if she could sing it. Her version of the lullaby, however, was loud enough to wake up a nearby chicken coop. They got out of the house to help rustle the flock back to the coop. In the end, Fluttershy was able to, but not in her usual gentle coaxing fashion. Instead, seeing the chickens stubbornly staying put, she gave them an intimidating look, getting them to re-enter the hen-house.

The Crusaders went back to bed, but were still wide awake. They still wanted to find their talents, and it wasn't going to happen if they stayed in the cottage for the rest of the night. They got up and noticed from outside the window that one of the chickens had escaped to the Everfree Forest. They snuck past Fluttershy to get it back.

"All I needed to do was just show them who's in charge. Nothing's gonna get past Fluttershy. Good with animals... Good with kids..."

- Fluttershy

Fluttershy was glad that it was finally quiet... A little too quiet. She got up to check on the kids and discovered that they were gone. Looking into the hen-house, she also noticed that one of the chickens, whom she called "Elizabeak", was gone too. She put the pieces together and had to venture into the forest all by her lonesome to bring them all back. As much as she hated to admit it, she was beginning to regret her offer to take care of them.

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were arguing on the proper way to call a chicken, then got an idea that their special talent could be arguing; but Sweetie Belle broke it up, asking what kind of cutie mark would represent it.

Deeper into the forest, Fluttershy was having a hard time maintaining her composure. She eventually found Twilight, only to learn that she was mysteriously turned to stone. Horrified of what had obviously caused this, she rushed further to find the fillies.

She eventually found them trying to find the lost chicken. The pegasus warned them that a Cockatrice was near, a creature with the head of a chicken and a body of a snake, and not to look at one in the eyes. However, they laughed at the silly description before finding the chicken pass them by. They noticed a second chicken hiding in the bushes, one with a long reptilian body. It was the Cockatrice, the very creature Fluttershy warned them about. Its deadly stare caused the chicken they found to turn to stone. The Crusaders panicked before Fluttershy told them to stand behind her. The pegasus confronted the hybrid beast face-to-face, ignoring her own warning. Thankfully, with her stern voice and intimidating stare, she ordered the Cockatrice to change the chicken and her unicorn friend back to normal, just in time to prevent herself from becoming completely petrified. Impressed by their babysitter's ability, they dubbed her the "Stare Master". With Twilight and Elizabeak free from the monster's spell, they all returned home.

Back at the cottage the next morning, she explained to Twilight of the events that happened, inspiring her to write another report to Princess Celestia. Helping the Crusaders pack up so Rarity can take them home, Fluttershy learned one shouldn't do a task that is more than can be handled.

Rarity returned, surprised at how well her sister and her friends behaved. She soon asked Fluttershy to help her with a new problem with her cat Opal.

Major events

 * Fluttershy's intimidating stare, "The Stare", is first mentioned and shown in this episode.
 * Sweetie Belle mentions that Rarity is her older sister.
 * Sweetie Belle's hidden talent, singing, is hinted at in this episode.

Quotes
Rarity: Now back to work. I lost a lot of time, and I can not have anymore interruptions. WHAT NOW?!

Rarity: Did you use... "The Stare" on her?

Fluttershy: Oh no! I wouldn't. I couldn't. I-I don't really have any control when it happens. It just happens. Really. I'm just good with animals. It's my special gift, you know.

Fluttershy: So, what should we do?

Scootaloo: I'm gonna get my mark first!

Fluttershy: Girls...

Sweetie Belle: Na-ah!

Fluttershy: Shouldn't we--

Apple Bloom: I AM!!!

Scootaloo: We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders!

Applebloom: And we wanna crusade for our cutie marks!

Sweetie Belle: And we um... Yeah what they said!

Apple Bloom: Hammer!

Scootaloo: Hammer.

Sweetie Belle: Hammer!

Scootaloo: Hammer.

Scootaloo: Hammer!

* Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle stare at her with the hammers still in their mouths*

Scootaloo: Hammer.

Sweetie Belle: Um ... that doesn't look like a table.

Scootaloo: We were making a table?!

Apple Bloom: Somepony needs to put this thing out of its misery.

Scootaloo: We are definitely not Cutie Mark Carpenters.

Fluttershy: Now that we've gotten that out of the way, How about a game?

Applebloom: A game?

Fluttershy: It's called "Shh".

Scootaloo: What's that?

Fluttershy: Well... It's a game about who can be quiet the longest. Sound fun? I'm the world champ, you know. I betcha can't beat me! Eeeee.

* Slight pause*

Scootaloo: ...I lose!

Sweetie Belle: Me too!

Applebloom: Me three!

Applebloom: How about "Cutie Mark Crusader Coal Miners"?

AB/SL/SB: YAY!

Fluttershy: NO!

AB/SL/SB: Aw...

Applebloom: Oh wait, now I know how to call a chicken... ''Scootaloo! Scoot-Scootaloo!''

Scootaloo : That's so funny I forgot to laugh!

Applebloom: Y'also forgot how to call a chicken.

Fluttershy *to Twilight's stone statue*: Don't move! I'll be back for you!

Fluttershy : YOU! Just who do you think you are, going around turning others into stone? You should be ashamed of yourself! I have half a mind to find your mother and tell her what you've been up to, young man! Now you go over there and turn Elizabeak and my friend Twilight back to normal. And don't ever let me catch you doing this again! Do you understand me?

Gallery



 * Stare Master image gallery

Trivia

 * The episode's title is a reference to the title the Cutie Mark Crusaders give to Fluttershy, being a "Stare Master", a pun of the name of an exercise machine, the Stair-Master.
 * Despite the revelation that Sweetie Belle, like Apple Bloom, is the younger sister of a main character, Lauren Faust has said on DeviantArt that Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash are not related.
 * This is the only episode in which Applejack does not appear, thus making Twilight Sparkle the only character to feature in every episode so far.
 * When the Cutie Mark Crusaders enter Fluttershy's house, one of them proceeds to yell: "Are those tickets?" which likely means that the Grand Galloping Gala still hasn't happened yet.
 * This episode helps explain how Fluttershy, thanks to her stare, was able to convince the dragon in Dragonshy to leave Ponyville.
 * This is the second episode, after Sonic Rainboom, where Twilight isn't the one explaining the moral of the episode.
 * When the Crusaders say goodnight to Fluttershy, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle have each other's voices. Sweetie Belle also has Scootaloo's voice when she says "What kind of crusading should we do next?"
 * Sweetie Belle's song may have been inspired by many Gospel musicals, like Godspell and Jesus Christ Superstar.
 * It was this episode that gave rise to the joke-like notion that Scootaloo was a chicken.
 * This is one of two season-one episodes featuring zero background ponies, the other being A Dog and Pony Show.
 * From the beginning of the scene where the crusaders are chasing the chickens in the pen until they are put in bed, Scootaloo has no wings.
 * After Fluttershy catches up with the Cutie Mark Crusaders in the Everfree Forest, she explains that a cocatrice is on the loose. During this moment, Fluttershy's cutie mark is visible on her right inner thigh as she tries to move the Crusaders away from danger.