That’s disproportionate retribution. They fed someone (whose worst crimes are kidnapping, extortion, and chopping down a few trees) to a Hydra and let the parasitical usurper queen just get thrown in jail and deported.
Besides, the villain was witnessed to be breaking about 50 laws that no one thought to take legal action against him for, including violating zoning laws, kidnapping, extortion, blackmail, stealing mail, assault, unlawfully using someone’s image, forcing a minor to sign under duress, and forcing a citizen of another sovereign nation to sign under duress. But like the idiots everyone was, they just let this idiot of a villain walk all over them.
Josh, I like you—I agree with you mostly, but on this I have to respectfully say that your points, albeit valid, are missing the point about the comics and series as a whole.
Let’s consider the five major conflicts that the Mane 6 (Twilight specifically) has needed to face.
A) Nightmare Moon
Solution: Discover ancient relic from Book Horse’s readings, become Equestrian heroes and bring back “Best” Princess Luna from her banishment in (not on!) the Moon for a thousand years.
“Weapon” used: The Magic of Friendship
Diagnosis: Non-Violent Combat Resolution
B) Discord
Solution: Sunbutt—apparently the only alicorn who is actually doing anything here—sends back all of her student’s work to remind her of the lessons she’s learned about friendship. She gets un-greyed, finds her friends, and Orbital Friendship Cannons Discord back into stone form.
Diagnosis: Non-Violent Combat Resolution
C) Queen Chrysalis/Princess Cadance
Solution: Well, wow. Twilight really can’t do anything here. Even after being asked to go and fetch the Elements of Harmony, now apparently the go-to for any catastrophe, they are captured by the Changeling Swarm. The true Heartbutt is pushed toward her fiancée, and love and sparkly things send the evil Queen Chrysalis on her way.
Diagnosis: I wouldn’t call this violent… but it’s definitely an indirect method of taking care of evil. No intended violence used here. So, non-combat conflict resolution.
D) King Sombra
Solution: Sombra never really plays his hoof until near the end of the episode, in which we see him retake his pony form. Through the power of the Crystal Heart, we seem him—wow. He kinda gets blowed up. We see a fragment of a horn go flying off into the distance.
Diagnosis: Ehh, Twilight didn’t actually hurt Sombra. In fact, nopony put a hoof on him. This is a gray area because he technically was killed. (Unless you consider Ask-Wiggles’ http://ask-king-sombra.tumblr.com/ to be canon, in which case he’s not dead, just lost.)
5) Tirek
Solution: Here is where violence ends up rearing its ugly head into the picture. However, this is justified: Tirek, in his chase of Twilight Sparkle, chases her down to try and take the combined alicorn magic of four ponies—and blows up Golden Oak Library.
Diagnosis: This is undoubtedly the violent solution. Does it end in death? No.
End of the day, Josh, the way that the antagonist in the most recent MLP comic was taken care of may seem like it was the cowards way out, but you’ve got a 4-1 docket against violent remedies to the situation at hoof.
One final argument I will make to counter your point: in this principality, there seems to be absolutely no system of administrating justice in any manner. Your position that you feel it was a case of “disproportionate retribution” may have some weight; but this is a comic based on a kid’s show that does not believe that violence is the way to solve anything.
And YOU are missing the point of what I am saying.
There is NO excuse to feed Well-To-Do to the Hydra. If our ponies are able to stop an evil alicorn, an embodiment of chaos, a parasitical queen, and a demon centaur without killing them, then they are perfectly able to throw Well-To-Do in prison without killing him.
“War is the ultimate failure of diplomacy.” Tony Benn
Several times in the series, the ponies were forced to use violence when diplomacy wasn’t an option. Whenever it was an option, they used it. This comic completely rewrites the world’s existing justice system and assassinates the characters and overarching message of the show in the process.
Also, you have some pretty odd statements.
“-but you’ve got a 4-1 docket against violent remedies to the situation at hoof.”
Correct me if I’m wrong, but did you just say that because the problem was resolved non-violently during previous times in the series, then that excuses the murder of Well-To-Do? If you didn’t, then you really need to work on your wording because I cannot for the life of me interpret what you said any differently.
“-in this principality, there seems to be absolutely no system of administrating justice in any manner.”
What about the Royal Guard? Or the Police? Both of these organizations exist. Also, the comic itself pointed out that there are legal firms when Well-To-Do was showing the Twilight Sporkle toy.
There is law. There is a system in place, but the comic just ignores it.
“-but this is a comic based on a kid’s show-”
That’s not, never has, and never will be an excuse for poor quality.
Being for kids doesn’t excuse anyone of giving kids the poisonous messages of “Corporations are evil, so kill them,” and “The Law and Authority will not help you against bad people.”
“-that does not believe that violence is the way to solve anything.”
If Equestria does not believe that violence is the way to solve anything, then why have a police force or a royal guard? Isn’t that what they’re there for.
All right—get where you’re coming from here and appreciate the counterpoint. One of the issues I have with the comics—and the show as a whole—is a varied writing staff with varied ideas as to how the world works. There’s no baseline between issues: what happened in Issue 14 has little to no bearing on what happened in Issue 27 and 28. Is this necessarily a bad thing? Well, depends on your perspective. Other people will like it, others not: it’s a matter of personal opinion and that’s all there is to that.
I’ve studied criminal law—took a class less than a year ago. Even in this instance, you can’t really say that Well-To-Do was “murdered.” If we use my state’s (Minnesota) criminal code regarding murder, found here: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=609.185 (Murder 1),https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=609.19 (Murder 2), https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=609.195 (Murder 3), the only pony that could face any sort of repercussions here is King Aspen as he was the only one to do anything—even if that anything was inaction.
I think the main issue here is story: you had to create a crisis (The Everfree Forest invading), set the call to action (ponies go and investigate), put in a cliff-hanger part (Aspen’s actions making it impossible for Celestia and Luna to immediately do anything, ultimately unintended), and then come up with a insanely ridiculous method of resolving the issue at hand (what happened in Issue 28, #nospoilers for those who haven’t read all of it yet).
If we hit this straight away from the perspective of logical reasoning, ergo Well-To-Do actually sought permission to build this park, you would have an incredibly boring issue filled with legal technicalities, developing meetings and the arduous process of the building of a theme park. I wouldn’t have read it, you wouldn’t have read it and nobody at IDW would have signed off on such a profoundly dry script for a comic.
Would it have been nice to see a proper way of dealing with the situation given the laws of the land being enforceable by the proper authorities, of course; Would it have been interesting? Highly doubt it. Sometimes what happens in the course of a story doesn’t need to make rational, logical or legal sense to be told. I think that’s why there are talented fanfic writers who will step up and tackle things like this that are just impractical to do in the sense of a comic while maintaining the integrity of the story.
For this arc? Eh, lowish water mark. The premise for the solution is poor and relies on sheer comedic slapstick to get its point made. Art, awesome as always. Story, lacking in making it completely believable.
I felt the same frustration that you might have done while reading the last two comics, probably saying something like this: “Why aren’t they DOING anything about this legally?!”
Anywho, thanks for the reply! It was good to discuss this with you, even if I didn’t completely agree with your assessment initially.
Note Worthy's Notes 