Magic Duel
Trixie returns with a powerful amulet to seek revenge.
"Magic Duel" is the fifth episode of the third season of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, the fifty-seventh episode overall, which premiered on December 1, 2012. The episode follows Twilight Sparkle after she is banished from Ponyville by Trixie, who wields a magical amulet that corrupts its user. Trixie returns seeking revenge from Twilight after her last visit, and the powerful amulet overpowers Twilight, forcing her to find a way back into town and get Trixie to remove the amulet willingly.
Quick Facts
- Series
- My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
- Season
- 3
- Episode
- 5
- Director
- James Wootton
- Writer
- M.A. Larson
- Air date
- 1 December 2012
- Length
- 22 minutes
- Guests
- Brenda Crichlow as Zecora
Facts from the source article.
Plot
A mysterious pony buys the Alicorn Amulet, one of the most powerful artifacts. Meanwhile, Twilight Sparkle practices magic at Fluttershy's cottage for Princess Celestia's visit with delegates from Saddle Arabia. Rainbow Dash interrupts her with news of an emergency. In Ponyville, the amulet's buyer is revealed as Trixie, who seeks revenge from Twilight after her last visit. The amulet overpowers Twilight, and Trixie banishes her from Ponyville, sealing the town with a glass dome. Stuck outside, Twilight goes to the Everfree Forest to see Zecora, who offers to help her beat Trixie. While Trixie takes over Ponyville, forcing everypony to be her slave, Twilight's friends discover that the amulet also corrupts its user and only the user can remove it. They send Fluttershy to tell Twilight. After hearing this, Twilight asks for a re-match. She secretly arranges with Zecora and her friends to perform simple illusions disguised as more powerful magic with a fake charm, making Trixie take off the amulet willingly to try the charm. This breaks the spell, and the amulet is secured by Zecora in a locked box. Now back to normal, Trixie realizes her mistake and apologises for her behavior after watching Twilight's magic show for Saddle Arabian delegates.
Reception
Daniel Alvarez of Unleash the Fanboy gave the episode five out of five stars, calling it a "great episode all around" and "one of the best [Friendship Is Magic episodes] yet." He praised the characters, particularly Trixie and Zecora, and Twilight's usage of the "magic of friendship," which he said would be considered "cheesy" in any other television series. Raymond Gallant of Freakin' Awesome Network gave it nine and a half stars out of ten, and found it more energetic, amusing, and exciting than "The Crystal Empire." While he commended her development, he deemed Trixie's reformation out of place. Other things he lauded included Zecora, the expansion of the series' world, and references to previous episodes and fandom. In her analysis of the episode in a collection of critical analysis essays on Friendship Is Magic, author Jen A. Blue examined the episode's relationship to Joseph Campbell's monomyth and traditional narrative structures. She observed that the episode initially follows elements of the hero's journey framework found in works such as Star Wars, but ultimately focuses on Trixie's character development rather than Twilight's journey. Blue commented that Trixie defeats Twilight through stage magic rather than spell-casting, and described the episode as "a leading contender for strongest episode of the third season."
Frequently Asked Questions
Who directed Magic Duel?
Magic Duel was directed by James Wootton.
Who wrote Magic Duel?
Magic Duel was written by M.A. Larson.
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