Gilda

Gilda is a female griffon and supporting character in the series. She first appears as an antagonist in Griffon the Brush Off, and she makes subsequent appearances in later episodes, chapter books, and the IDW comics. She is called Gilda the Griffon in some merchandise.__TOC__
==Development, production, and design==
 Lauren Faust's concept art refers to Gilda as "Grizelda"; this name was used in an audition script for Apple Bloom and in hubworld.com's description of Griffon the Brush Off. Not to be confused with Griselda.
In 2012, Lauren Faust stated that Gilda's meanness towards ponies in Griffon the Brush Off was "an intentional reflection" of how Faust thought many people had "a contempt for little girls' toys".
As a griffon, Gilda has the head, wings and feet of an eagle and the body and tail of a lion. Her head feathers form a fringe that hangs ahead of her face.
===Sound cues===
Various musical cues and sound cues play when Gilda is on-screen. When she is irritated, she's accompanied by a single plucked note from a guitar. When antagonizing others, she is accompanied by a simple metal riff, culminating in her tirade, which is accented by a more complex riff.
Bird sounds also play depending on Gilda's mood; when she is excited, various chirps and squawks are heard, whereas after her grand exit, a red-tailed hawk's screech is played.
==Depiction in the series==
===Season one===
Rainbow Dash introduces Gilda in the season one episode Griffon the Brush Off as an old friend of hers, from their days at the Junior Speedsters flight camp. Pinkie Pie tries to join in on the duo's time together, but Gilda keeps brushing her off in rude and menacing ways, going as far as threatening her.
 Later, when Rainbow Dash leaves Gilda on her own to take care of some weather jobs around Ponyville, Gilda's mean behavior to the other ponies is revealed. Not only does she prank Granny Smith by using her tail to fake a rattlesnake and steal an apple from a fruit stand, Gilda bullies Fluttershy, who is only trying to guide a family of ducks through town, to the point of tears. Scoffing at Fluttershy's crying, the griffon then leaves the scene, greatly annoyed by the presence of the ponies whom she deems lame.
Having spied Gilda's mean behavior nearby, Pinkie Pie becomes mad at how Gilda treated Fluttershy and resorts to "extreme measures" by throwing a party in Gilda's honor, hoping to improve her attitude. Gilda attends the party, and when Rainbow Dash is out of earshot, the griffon warns Pinkie Pie she knows something is up, to which Pinkie reveals her innocence. As the party goes on, one by one, Gilda falls for the pranks set up at the party, making her irritation more evident, but she still puts up a good face when Dash is near. During this time, Gilda suspects that Pinkie Pie is the one setting up the party pranks to demean her.
 When the game of "pin the tail on the pony" leaves Gilda covered in cake and with the "tail on the wrong end," the griffon finally snaps, calling all of the party attendees "dweebs" and singling out Pinkie Pie as "queen lame-o" with her party pranks. She then declares that she and Rainbow Dash have "ten times as much cool" as the other ponies and prepares to bail out with Rainbow Dash at her side. However, to Gilda's shock, Rainbow Dash reveals that she was the one responsible for all the pranks at the party and that they were not all meant for Gilda specifically. Gilda cannot believe this revelation and claims that the party was all Pinkie Pie's idea of revenge to make a fool of her. However, Pinkie Pie defends her idea by saying she threw the party for Gilda to change the griffon's attitude.
Having seen Gilda's true colors, Rainbow Dash tells Gilda that if being cool is all she cares about, she should go find some new cool friends someplace else. Though hurt at first, Gilda says that Dash is "a flip-flop: cool one minute, lame the next." The griffon tells Dash to give her a call when she decides not to be lame anymore, slamming the door behind her. She then flies off in rage.
===Season three===
In the season three episode Magical Mystery Cure, Gilda appears in one of Rainbow Dash's flashbacks.
===Season four===
During the Equestria Games in the season four episode of the same name, Gilda briefly appears near Gustave le Grand in the audience as Spike attempts to light the torch.
===Season five===
In The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone, Gilda is mentioned early in the episode by Rainbow Dash, who continues to harbor resentment toward her. When Rainbow and Pinkie are sent to the kingdom of Griffonstone, they are greeted by Gilda, who also still holds a grudge. In the episode, Gilda makes a living selling griffon scones so she can save up enough bits to leave the kingdom. With the help of Pinkie Pie, Gilda learns to bake better tasting scones.
 Rainbow Dash believes that she and Pinkie Pie were sent to find a long lost griffon idol, but Gilda doesn't believe that the idol exists. When Rainbow's search for the idol puts her in danger, Pinkie Pie convinces Gilda to remember the times when she and Rainbow were friends and help to rescue her. She is later given a choice between saving Pinkie and Rainbow and recovering the lost idol, and she chooses to save the ponies' lives. Learning to embrace friendship, Gilda reconciles with the ponies and makes new friends in Griffonstone.
===Season six===
In The Fault in Our Cutie Marks, Gilda appears in a flashback to the events of The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone from Gabby's perspective. She also gives Gabby a letter to deliver to Rainbow Dash in Ponyville.
===Season eight===
Gilda is mentioned by Gallus in School Daze - Part 1, and she appears in Gallus' story in The Hearth's Warming Club.
===Season nine===
In Between Dark and Dawn, Gilda makes a cameo appearance flying beside Gabby during Lotta Little Things. In The Ending of the End - Part 2, Gilda takes part in the final battle against Queen Chrysalis, Lord Tirek, and Cozy Glow. In The Last Problem, Gilda attends Twilight Sparkle's coronation ceremony. She also briefly appears in Pinkie Pie's group shot during The Magic of Friendship Grows.
===Clip show===
A memory of Gilda flying alongside Rainbow Dash from Griffon the Brush off reappears in Deep Tissue Memories.
==Other depictions==
In a My Little Pony Friendship is Magic group message video, Apple Bloom tells the joke "How did Gilda the Griffon get a cutie mark so fast?" with the punchline "Well, she had a flying start!!"
===IDW comics===
Of , Gilda appears on a Jetpack Comics exclusive cover RE and on a Larry's Comics and Jetpack Comics exclusive cover RE. Of , Gilda appears on Phoenix Comics & Games (and Everfree Northwest) exclusive cover RE. She also appears on the Hot Topic cover of . In , Gilda enlists Rarity's help in designing uniforms for Griffonstone's Boffyball team, and she is later appointed the team's assistant coach. An alternate dimension version of Gilda appears in Princess Eris' casino on pages 12 and 14 and page 20.
===Chapter books===
Gilda the Griffon is featured as an antagonist in the book Twilight Sparkle and the Crystal Heart Spell. She first appears in chapter 6, "On a Scroll", and works together with Trixie in later chapters.
===Magazines===
In the Signature My Little Pony magazine issue 69 comic Daring friends and the missing story!, Gilda appears on pages 5 and 6 when Twilight Sparkle and Starlight Glimmer are searching for A.K. Yearling's long-lost manuscript. She tells Twilight and Starlight that she dropped it during her travels and Trixie picked it up.
In the My Little Pony magazine issue 107 comic The Voice of Reason, Gilda appears as one of several foreign diplomats hosted by Princess Cadance in the Crystal Empire. She mentions that she has a daughter who likes to play hide-and-seek.
===My Little Pony (mobile game)===
Gilda is a character in Gameloft's mobile game; she was first teased in a February 5, 2016 promotional image and revealed on February 11. Additional promotional images featuring Gilda were posted on the My Little Pony Game Facebook page on February 17. An image of Gilda, Grampa Gruff, Greta, Griffon Shopkeeper, and Li'l Griffon was posted on February 19. An image of Gilda, Greta, and four ponies was posted on March 1. The game's description of her states, "Once a foe with a heart full of greed, now Gilda is a friend to anypony in need!"
==Merchandise==
 A Gilda the Griffon miniature collectible is included in the Cloudsdale Set with Rainbow Dash and a Wonder Bolts pony. A second, translucent Gilda the Griffon mini-figure toy is included with a collector card in the eighth wave of mystery packs; despite her being a griffon, the packaging of the wave collectively refers to all 24 of its characters as ponies. A translucent version of Gilda the Griffon is also to be released with a second collector card in the tenth wave of mystery packs, which has been displayed at the 2014 American International Toy Fair. According to both collector cards, "GILDA THE GRIFFON loves flying with RAINBOW DASH!"
Gilda is part of the 2012 trading card set. The trading card shows a "Nice Meter", with the griffon on the "Mean" end of the scale.
===The Elements of Harmony guidebook===
GILDA is a mythical griffon, a creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion! She was once friends with Rainbow Dash and loved good old-fashioned pranks. But Gilda's insecurities about being seen as cool caused her to fall out of favor with her friend.
====Volume II guidebook====
GILDA the Griffon used to think she was the prankmaster general until she got a taste of her own medicine, courtesy of Rainbow Dash. Is Gilda bitter? Maybe. But she's learned her lesson and is trying to be a better friend than enemy.
Grampa Gruff's description identifies Gilda as his granddaughter, contradictory to The Hearth's Warming Club and Jim Miller.
==Personality==
 Gilda is first introduced by Rainbow Dash as her griffon friend, a "half-eagle, and half-lion", to which Gilda adds, "And all awesome." She is shown to be playful and competitive around Rainbow Dash, and she mentions she enjoys a good prank before setting out on several flying excursions with Dash. However, she is also very rude and has a short temper but hides that by acting friendly toward Dash. She shows her true colors when Pinkie Pie asks to join her and Dash and tries to discreetly ditch Pinkie by racing with Dash. This fails when Pinkie pursues them with the aid of balloons, prompting Gilda to pop Pinkie's balloons and send her floating down to the ground when Dash is preoccupied with a race. However, Pinkie manages to catch up to Gilda and Dash again; when Dash isn't looking, Gilda menaces Pinkie Pie, calling her a dweeb, a dork, and "Stinkie Pie", and sends Pinkie hurtling to the ground again. Pinkie describes Gilda to Twilight Sparkle as mean and grumpy, but Twilight thinks that Pinkie is just jealous of Gilda. Later, Gilda frightens Granny Smith by making her think her tail is a rattlesnake, steals an apple from a food cart, makes Fluttershy cry by bumping into her, doesn't accept Fluttershy's apology when Fluttershy thinks it was her fault, makes fun of the way she talks and roars at her. She then calls the ponies around her "lame".
At Pinkie Pie's party, Gilda seems to hold back her temper and misbehavior around Dash, but she eventually snaps after getting repeatedly pranked and she lashes out at Pinkie and the other ponies. She rants on about being "cool", blindly mistaking the pranks as Pinkie's doing, and leaves in a huff when Dash tells her she should find other "cool" friends. In truth, the pranks were set up by Rainbow Dash for nobody in particular; however, Gilda always happened to be the victim.
In Twilight Sparkle and the Crystal Heart Spell, Gilda demonstrates both a love of pranking and a somewhat manipulative streak, playing on Twilight Sparkle's insecurities as a princess.
 In The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone, Gilda apparently harbors a kind, caring attitude that she hides behind a rude facade—as Pinkie Pie points out—and regrets losing her friendship with Rainbow Dash. Her nasty behavior stems from her childhood when one of the bullies made fun of her. When faced with the choice of recovering the lost Idol of Boreas or saving Pinkie and Dash from falling into an abyss, Gilda chooses the latter and mends her relationship with the two ponies.
In , following the events of The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone, Gilda displays more of a willingness to cooperate with and stand up for others, including ponies like Rarity, but she exhibits some distaste for frilly dresses. Gilda briefly adopts the harsh coaching methods of Coach Klaus when he appoints her as the assistant coach of Griffonstone's Boffyball team, but she abandons them in favor of friendship and teamwork.
==Appearances==
==Quotes==
==Gallery==
==See also==
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==References==
ar:جلدى
de:Gilda
es:Gilda
gl:Gilda
ko:길다
pl:Gilda
ru:Джильда
sv:Gilda
th:Gilda
Category:Bakers
Category:Cloudsdale Flight School students
Category:Featured articles
Category:Griffons
Category:Parents
Category:Reformed antagonists
Category:Supporting characters