Perchance to Tease?

[Notes]

Wow. I'm so happy that so many people are online here. People are all wonderful, and still care ever so much. Guests on here in the past 24 hours is consistently higher then it used to be. We average 40, but once, we had 85 guests log on in the past 24 hours. It gives me the warm fuzzies knowing people are all still here.

As of the beginning of this message, there were 17 guests online at present time. All I can think is that I need to write something exciting for everyone on here. That's a major reason so many of us are on here, I'm sure. Maybe there will be new Tales stories to read for everyone soon, from my desktop to yours. I've already pretty much gotten myself stuck posting some blurb/analysis stuff I wrote. Maybe I'll just keep myself away from the word processor and type these things in fits of happiness.

...Maybe it's because I'm getting antsy over not saying anything for days, but I just have to say that you're great for sticking around. I probably will do something cool with the writing, because I personally consume any and all Tales stuff. Or at least, I might make an effort. 8)

[Notes]

Remember how I said that, if I had favorite characters from Tales, my choices were Patch and Bon Bon? Because I did say that. Totally. They had an interesting friendship in the show, and had a lot of great screen time, in my opinion.


…They also happen to be my OTP. Not “Out of Toilet Paper” as one person thought in a forum, but my One True Pairing. As in, Patch and Bon Bon is my favorite ship. Don’t pretend like you don’t know what shipping is, because it’s plastered all over the internet.

If you don’t know (some people might not) it means pushing them into a fancy shmancy restaurant on a date, disguising yourself as the waiter, and thinking anxiously in your mind, “Kiss… come on, kiss…”


Maybe that’s a dramatic version of the case with these two for me, but it’s true. Most people in the Tales fandom either have Teddy and Sweetheart, Teddy and Ace or Bright Eyes and Lancer as their OTP.


But I saddled myself with the mule of the group that has been whispered about in analyses, commented on jokingly by ignorant bronies, and there being only two flipping pieces of fan-art out with just the duo, both of which are explicit and exclusive to Derpibooru.


But… just why? Teddy and Sweetheart had so many episodes out, it has a bunch of fan-art, and great moments too.


Maybe I’ll type up something on it later and elaborate on why I’m uncertain as to how to feel about Teddy and Sweetheart shipping, but Teddy is actually at the bottom of my favorite characters’ list. I totally respect him and all, but I know this opinion is unpopular and, frankly, something of heresy for some! l8.


But that’s for another time. This is Valentines’ Day, not share-my-unpopular-opinions day. So, instead of talking about what the definition is, why don’t I elaborate just a bit?

I’ll save the funny part where I put on my shipping goggles (looking at every little interaction as a sign of love) until the end and plunge into what makes the two work so well together as friends.


Anyway, Patch and Bon Bon are, in some ways, polar opposites. One spends her time adventuring, causing trouble for the teacher, trying to prove that aliens/glowing magical ponies/UFOs/dragons exist, and being silly, not really caring what others think of her. The other prefers eating and cooking, only breaking the rules in spades, doubting and angsting, and admiring fashion models while caring a very great deal what others think of her Bon Bon-ny ways.


But the two are friends despite all of these differences, if the series is anything to go by.

But then there’s plenty that they share, too.


For example, both of them put minimal focus on schoolwork, or they just aren’t good at it. In addition, both of them have a career aspiration that would launch them into the spotlight. There’s always the fact that both have somewhat-contrasting color schemes and that they both only want to be good little ponies.


I just love their interactions for some reason, too, but that’s the same for so many other dynamics between the main girls, like Clover and Bon Bon, Patch and Melody, Sweetheart and Bon Bon and Sweetheart and Starlight. Many even have the opposites thing, like Starlight and Melody, Bright Eyes and Melody, Patch and Sweetheart, and Clover and Melody.


Now I guess we get into the shipping part, or what makes this dynamic stand out to me more than all of the others as different.

In little spurts, you can see some of the behavior of the other coming into one. For example, in Birds of a Feather, Bon Bon came along on the adventure with Bright Eyes even though that normally isn’t her idea of fun. In The Play’s The Thing, Patch has a rather large supply of makeup, so they use that to prepare Bon Bon’s old woman alias for dress rehearsal.


But now I think I’ll descend into the hugest episodes with blatant development with the most obvious: Up, Up and Away.

Up, Up and Away had a whole lot of shipping or friendshipping fuel, depending on my mood. The premise is basically that Patch took Bon Bon on a joyride in a hijacked balloon.

I can’t take the first scene where Bon Bon tries to talk Patch out of stealing borrowing the balloon as ship fuel for some reason, but I sure can take some other things.


Part of why I like Up, Up and Away is because it shows character development because, like others have said before, there is subtle evolution amongst the characters. But I really like seeing the characters interact with each other as a whole! If you think about it, if this was in either Slumber Party or Too Sick to Notice’s place, not only would the producers be pretty unintelligent for putting a dynamic-developing episode like this first, but the characters would be too mature. Episode 17 is perfect.


I honestly and truly can’t comment on the points until the balloon started falling without putting on shipping goggles. Particularly, there’s this little clip of diologue…


Bon Bon: -diving under blanket and audibly shivering- OH NO!

Patch: Don’t worry, Bon Bon, I’ll protect ya…

Bon Bon: How?

Patch: I’m THINKING!


In this case, Patch wasn’t only willing to say that to reassure Bon Bon, but she seriously tried. Later on, Bon Bon actually believes Patch can save her (“Patch, this isn’t a time to make jokes! DO SOMETHING!”) which I just… in the circumstances?


Of course, after the balloon is stabilized, I can’t help but note the happiness the two little ponies have. Plus, if Bon Bon doesn’t believe in Glowing Magical Ponies, what could she have possibly thought had rescued the ponies? She didn’t believe it was a UFO; that much is obvious. My theory is that, though Bon Bon tries to put it all behind her, she thinks Patch somehow saved them.


Up, Up and Away focal points aside, The Masquerade also proves to be a ballpark in the second half.


After Patch’s clowning around and Bon Bon's near fall, Bon is super glad to be back, hugging her mom (who wouldn’t?) Patch comes up to her, holds her hoof, and assures her that she’s with friends too.


After hugging Starlight, Bon Bon says that’s she’s alright, “Thanks to you two.”


Hold on a second. I can’t be making this stuff up. Starlight being thanked makes sense, because she was one of the ponies who actually saved her from the cliff, but couldn’t Patch have been marked as a cause of the problem by ignorant ponies?


Then there’s the other big episode; JUST FOR KICKS of all of them. Maybe I let my goggles get in the shot, but rewatch the last thirty seconds in the ice cream shop. Keep your volume up on your computer too, because they seemed to go all out for me.


Now I’ll make list of my favorite moments, goggles secured.

• In the theme song, when the two not only sit next to each other a bunch of times, but they appear in Bon Bon’s kitchen preparing cookies together.

• In Slumber Party, when Bon Bon has a Patch-colored pillow.

• In Slumber Party, where Patch ‘rescues’ Bon Bon during the song.

• In Too Sick to Notice, where Patch invites Bon Bon roller-skating. Admittedly, Bon also gets invited to a concert and a movie in the same scene, but you have a lot more physical contact and interaction skating.

• In Tea Party, where I could speculate that they held hooves whole waiting for the thieves to appear.

• In Tea Party, where Bon Bon rushes to pick Patch up out of the white, gooey stuff that looks nothing like honey.

• In The Masquerade, where Patch takes a look at Bon Bon, thinks for a moment, and then makes the class laugh.

• In The Masquerade, when Bon Bon suggests to either Patch or the group that they should go back the party and dance.

• In Shop Talk, where Patch waves Teddy’s secret around. If you watch the timing on the scene, then you’d understand where I’d come from if I said Patch tried to impress Bon.

• In Shop Talk, where Patch admires Bon Bon’s eating skills while she suggests helping Teddy out.

• In Impractical Joker, when Patch puts Bon Bon’s chef hat on.

• In Impractical Joker, where you see Bon Bon running around on the TV in the classroom and Bright Eyes explaining the “Vandershire Theory of Force.” If you get a transcript, it sounds like a nerded out explanation of love.

• In Impractical Joker at the end, when Patch suggests changing up the prank to work on somebody else, Bon Bon smiles and looks excited.

• In An Apple for Starlight, the second half is a veritable gold mine for me. There’s the holding hooves and blushing in the background, the eagerness to help, and the making sure the other’s okay.

• In Up, Up and Away, Bon Bon gets a Patch-colored stress blanket to go with her pillow.

• Birds of a Feather is amazing in this, in my opinion.

• In Birds of a Feather, while the ponies are in a tree, as per Ace’s suggestion, Patch says that the idea’s no good. When Bon Bon exclaims “Oh no!” she is very visibly alarmed. After hearing about being out of food, Patch is quick to supply an idea of her own.

• In Birds of a Feather, Bon Bon doesn’t let anyone but Patch even touch her diary, let alone pull it open.

• In Gribet, where Bon Bon says her mom has a great recipe for frog legs and Patch exclaims “Bon Bon!” at her for it. The look afterwards just screams shipping on some days.

• In Gribet, when Patch basically asks Bon Bon to babysit Spot, complete with puppy dog eyes.

• In Bon Bon’s Diary, Patch glares at Bon Bon in the background in the classroom scene, as if she suspects there’s something up with Teddy.

• In Just for Kicks, there’s the entire teasing sequence at the start, where the two do aerobics next to each other.


…Plus a truckload more that I cite as evidence for liking it that just didn’t make the cut for my favorites. Do keep in mind that might not be implying Patch and Bon Bon shipping as real in the show, just citing reasons for liking it, and some of my favorite scenes or background events with the two of them.


…But it’s funnier the other way. So, for all intents in purposes, either think I’m saying I rather like it, or that OMG IT’S SO TOTALLY TRUE.

I know plenty of you were expecting me to type some analysis on Teddy and Sweetheart, Ace and Starlight or Lancer and Bright Eyes, but…


If you want something to do one day while you're bored and don't have a truckload of things to do, just give some of these scenes a rewatch to see if I'm just going loony with free time. You have all rights to ignore this post, too, because something else more interesting should come up eventually. 8)

[Notes]

It's amazing how many people come here when there's a new post. 8, I imagine that most ponies on here have desktop notifications or feeds or something to rely on.