That is not at all what happened.

I love the season 5. It’s one of my favourite seasons in the show.
 
But it’s not because of Cutie Map or Cutie re-mark. These episodes, especially the season finale, felt rushed, like someone pressed the Stop button in the DVD.

You guys should know it’s possible to argue without ad hominem. Try to keep things a little bit tamer.

@EyeGuy  
Go away eyeguy.

@PonyPon
 
@Alexlayer  
Please don’t make this an echo chamber.

@Background Pony #033B  
Damn, quality post right here!

@Background Pony #033B  
Well said, friend.

@nitebeat
 
Nitebeat speaks the truth. Starlight caused several timeline splits/shifts full of war, oppression, tyranny, and eventually what even seemed like total omnicide. It may mean nothing to us, but that means those ponies, those versions of the ponies we know, had to live through all of that. Imagine if your life was the same as someone living in one of those war-torn third world countries where you could die at literally any moment, but then - oh, you weren’t meant to live that way. You were supposed to be healthy, happy, respected, and successful. And so was everyone else. Some angry, jealous, overpowered person caused your whole life to be this way trying to get revenge for being stopped from her evil plans.
 
 
@Background Pony #F7C5
 
She came off as if she was planning to take over Equestria. And just because someone doesn’t take something by force doesn’t mean they haven’t stolen it, and doesn’t mean they aren’t evil. If you don’t think people can hurt you while making you think they’re the cat’s pajamas you haven’t lived in this world very long, and aren’t going to do well while you continue to do so. Look at literally every politician, from city to federal level. Every conman, every huckster, every successful salesman, all the fat cat CEOs. With one hand they can give you what you want while you never even realize that with the other hand they’re the ones responsible for many of the bad things in your life.
 
She brainwashed those people, accepting people who were down on their luck and thus gullible and malleable - in essence, they were not in full control of their faculties, and she exploited that. Exploited them and their vulnerabilities. They weren’t angry just because she lied - people lie all the time. They’re angry because she sold them on believing in her, that her vision was the best for them, for everyone. By playing their heartstrings. While she herself would retain all of her individuality and incredible power. No one else would, in her new world order. She alone would be the most unique and special pony and everyone else would effectively be zombies who only listened to her. That they had to be inferior to her at all times, and that that’s not what she told them. Not what she pretended to be.
 
Not only that, but given what we saw her do to the Mane 6, and the fact she had their prison-like room ready beforehand, when she attempted to brainwash them (this is classified as mental/emotional TORTURE, by the way)it seemed like it wasn’t even the first time. Like she’d done this before and each time it always worked. Imprisonment against their will, stealing their cutie marks, enforced propaganda, piping in brainwashing rhetoric, combined with peer pressure and the only succor was to submit to her will forever. Those of her townsfolk who were quietly in ‘rebellion’ (imagine that, Sugar Belle was tired of being massively incompetent and just wanted to SEE her cutie mark again) looked AFRAID of Starlight. Why would that be the case, if she was good? Why would they have any need to fear her? She ruled through propaganda, deceit, peer pressure, and fear (let’s not forget that for some dumb reason she’s as powerful as the alicorn of magic/friendship, if not slightly more - so she rules by strength unspoken, as well) alone. That’s the very definition of a tyrannical despot.
 
All of this. All of this suffering, and deceit, and revenge plotting, stalking and abuse of the timeline, breaking and entering, worlds full of death and horror. All because Sunburst got his cutie mark before her, and SOMEHOW she let that ruin her whole freakin’ life even into adulthood and turned her into a psychotic, power-mad dictator. The stupidest possible backstory.
 
So no, it is YOU who does not know what evil is - don’t tell others to stop posting just because you have an inkling that maybe, maybe they just might be right and that that goes against your narrative. Just because she’s your ‘bestpone’ doesn’t mean she didn’t do bad things. She even continued doing some bad things after being reformed, just not necessarily maliciously. Oh hey, mental domination of your friends is always just something to laugh off, it’s not a big deal. It’s not a big deal because you’re willing to forgive her for anything she does, and that’s honestly kind of sad.

@Background Pony #F7C5  
Theft is the act of depriving a person of an object without the intent to return it. she stole the cutie marks of the mane 6. And her refusal to return the cutie marks of the other villagers makes that theft as well.
 
Starlight was evil even if she thought she was in the right that doesn’t make her right.
 

 
@Background Pony #F7C5  
you are allowed to voice your disagreement with this post. I will continue to post my agreement with it.
 
To whom it may concern:  
You are allowed to like Starlight glimmer (Not that I could stop you or that you needed me to tell you that.) But she did some truly vile things when she was introduced caused 6 Bad futures during the season finale and still does sketchy stuff from time to time. Just because you like her doesn’t change the fact that she did bad things.

@nitebeat  
There is a right answer and a wrong one. And the right one is that Starlight was never evil. She never stole her villages cutie marks. They gave them willingly, if you actually paid attention to what they were saying.
 
Plus they didn’t fear Starlight. Again, if you pay attention to the whole episode they truely believed in her. That was why the only thing they were mad about was her lying.

@nitebeat  

 
Who said anything about winning? This is not about winning or losing man. See, this is the kind of ridiculousness I was to avoid. Look I actually can refute your “points” but it would be a huge waste of my time because I know you’re just going to just ignore what I say and speak in circles. I’ve done this countless times before and I don’t wanna do it anymore because it all ends the same. In short: I don’t give a damn
 
Like I said, Good day.

@MegaAnimationFan  
really none of that made sense? or do you mean “That point goes against my opinion so I’ll pretend it was non-sense.”
 
you don’t want to argue that’s fine. Just don’t pretend you won when you can’t actually refute my point.

@nitebeat  
……..Look, nothing you said made sense and I’m not gonna argue with you because I don’t feel like it. On top of that, anything I say will just go in one ear and out the other. So I’m ending this right now. You wanna think that way about her? Fine. But I don’t wanna hear it and to be honest I’ve got better things to do anyway.
 
Good day.

@MegaAnimationFan  

 
lets review shall we.  
Starlight is Trecherous she betrayed the trust of the villagers. Starlight is Greedy she stole the cutie marks from the villagers and the mane 6. Starlight is cruel Sugarbelle and other villagers make it clear Starlight is Feared. Starlight is a Liar she never had any intent of letting the mane 6 or anyone else leave the village with or without their cutie marks. Starlight is a Manipulator Her “freindship” in the village is all just about control when called out on her actions rather than apologize she becomes enraged at the defiance.
 
that is what I meant when I called her The antithesis of the Mane six. Starlight is forgiven far too easily and continues to be morally dubious.
 
Yes Chrysalis, Sombra, and Tirek are evil but that doesn’t make Starlight any less evil

@Background Pony #F7C5  
@Background Pony #F7C5
 
I already pointed that out

@Background Pony #F7C5  
You want evil, you go to Sombra, Crystalis, Tirek, and Sunset.

Starlight wasn’t evil. She believed she was doing good and that Twilight was the evil one.
 
It’s all a matter of perspective.

@MegaAnimationFan  
Oh good.

@ktbcat  
Oh no. This is nowhere near an argument. This is just a disagreement at most.

I feel like I accidentally an argument. Please tell me I didn’t accidentally an argument?

@nitebeat  
Practically the anithesis of everything the mane six stand for? That’s Discord, the spirit of chaos and disharmony, not Starlight who was a cult leader. Albeit a harsh and extreme one. Even if that were true that doesn’t mean people gotta be insultingly reductive about it.
 
Also Starlight wasn’t “pretty damn evil”. Tirek is pretty damn evil. Sombra is pretty damn evil. Even Chrysalis is pretty damn evil. Starlight pales in comparison due to simple ignorance. She wasn’t aware of how damaging her actions were and when she was shown she willingly stopped.

@MegaAnimationFan  
Alright Starlight was evil in fact she was really damn evil. Practically the anithesis of everything the mane six stand for. Her back-story has most of her trauma be self inflicted. Twilight basically said stop being to stupid and evil.

@ktbcat  
I guess….actually not really. Starlight wasn’t aware she was evil. She never wanted to be evil she saw herself as an unsung hero (minus the while time traveling thing but even then she had no idea that stunt could kill everyone and saw that as an act of justice since Twilight invaded her territory and ruined all of what she built from the ground up). If anything, it was more “there’s another better way” and less “don’t be evil”
 
Sorry, but from one Glim Glam fan to another I disagree entirely. Even as an over-simplification this is pretty off. Also, sorry for ranting about this. I do that.