Close Encounters of the Balloon Kind

Title card

**Close Encounters of the Balloon Kind** is the first part of the twenty-third episode of the third season of *LEGO Ninjago & My Little Pony: Living the Pony Life*, and the 127th episode overall. Along with "The Tiara of Truth", it aired first in English on March 28, 2021, in the UK and Ireland. It aired in the US on April 11, 2021, paired with "Research is Required" and "A Cute Mystery".

## Synopsis

*When a mysterious, giant balloon lands across the two cities, the Ninja, the Young Ninja, the Mane Six and the Williams Sisters speculate what it could be.*

**Extended:** *Just as Pinkie Pie created desserts for her friends using the comet crystals, a mysterious giant balloon resembling the Cotton Candy Comet lands across the two cities, and the team set to investigate the cause of an armageddon that Gleam told earlier.*

**Tiny Pop**: *A giant balloon is headed towards Ninjago and Equestria, and while Pinkie Pie serves her friends with crystal-like delicacies, they encounter the balloon that cause the whole population to be in danger...or some kind of armageddon?*

**Teletoon**: *A mysterious giant balloon is headed towards the two realms, thinking the team there is an armageddon.*

## Plot

As the Ninja, the Young Ninja, the Mane Six and the Williams sisters enjoy desserts made with the comet crystals Pinkie Pie obtained in "The Crystal Capturing Contraption", a giant mysterious balloon suddenly appears in the sky over Ponyville and around Ninjago City, when Zachary showed them on his tablet. The Ninja and the ponies' imaginations run wild with ideas of what could be inside it: Pinkie believes it contains rare baking ingredients like the comet crystals, Rarity believes it conceals a giant performing stage, Twilight Sparkle believes it houses a giant library of books, Rainbow Dash believes it is a monster, Applejack believes there are apples inside, Jay believed it contains a newly-launched gaming console, Cole believes it will give a pair of Shintaro Wings for each of the Ninja, Nya believes it holds a variety of fashion wear, Zane believes it will give everyone a stronger Wi-Fi connection, Kai believes it will give a lifetime supply of Mala Chips, Lloyd believes this can travel from their home realms to any part of the Sixty Realms, the Young Ninja believe it gives them a recreational place for them to enjoy and the Williams sisters believe there are friends and family from Earth.

Twilight believe the balloon's appearance is related to the Cotton Candy Comet. As dozens of smaller balloons appear, they all start to succumb to crippling fear, but Fluttershy assures them that the unknown is nothing to be scared of and that they will figure out what the balloons are together. The episode ends on a cliffhanger.

## Cast

* Applejack - Ashleigh Ball
* Caralisa - Tabitha St. Germain
* Cole - Kirby Morrow
* Damien - Andrew Francis
* Dan Vaapit - Ian Hanlin
* Fluttershy - Andrea Libman
* Gleam - Marÿke Hendrikse
* Jake - Nicholas Holmes
* Jay - Michael Adamthwaite
* Kai - Vincent Tong
* Kimberly - Shannon Chan-Kent
* Kitonaru - Andrea Libman
* Lloyd - Sam Vincent
* Megan Williams - Kelly Sheridan
* Molly Williams - Chantal Strand
* Nelson - David Reynolds
* Nya - Kelly Metzger
* Pinkie Pie - Andrea Libman
* Rainbow Dash - Ashleigh Ball
* Rarity - Tabitha St. Germain
* Twilight Sparkle - Tara Strong
* Zachary - Gavin Langelo
* Zane - Brent Miller

## Locations Featured

* Equestria
	+ Ponyville
		- Sugarcube Café
* Ninjago (as seen in the news)
	+ Ninjago City

## Transcript

* Close Encounters of the Balloon Kind (Transcript)

## Trivia

* **Narrator**: Twilight Sparkle
* This episode first aired in France on February 24, 2021, as part of sneak peak for the season's main arc.
* This episode, along with other episodes of the third season's second arc, was leaked on Pop! On-Demand in the UK on April 2, 2021.
* The title is a reference to the 1977 film *Close Encounters of the Third Kind*.
* Each of the Ninja and the Mane Six speculate what was inside the giant balloon:
	+ Twilight Sparkle: A giant library of books
	+ Rainbow Dash: A monster named Balloonga the Destroyer, who wants to conquer both Ninjago and Equestria
	+ Pinkie Pie: Rare baking ingredients
	+ Rarity: A stage playing the musical *Lamilton*
	+ Applejack: Many apples from the tree
	+ Fluttershy: Unsure what was inside, unless it may be a storm
	+ Lloyd: A portal to transverse between the Sixty Realms
	+ Kai: A lifetime supply of Mala Chips
	+ Jay: A new video game console
	+ Nya: A variety of fashion wear
	+ Cole: Everyone was given a pair of Shintaro Wings, like Vania and the Winged Guards of Shintaro
	+ Zane: A better and stronger Wi-Fi connection
	+ Young Ninja: A recreational place after school
	+ Williams sisters: Their family and friends from Earth.
* The Ninja and the Mane Six confuse giant balloon in Ponyville and in Ninjago City as a cosmic event, since the balloon resembles the Cotton Candy Comet.
* *Lamilton* is a play on/reference to the 2015 musical *Hamilton*.
	+ The song Rarity sings is based on the song "The Room Where It Happens" from the musical.
* Jay and Pinkie Pie blamed each other that aliens are invasive, unlike in the previous episode where they want to see aliens in the movie, and there is a whole lot of those.

## Continuity

* This episode takes place some time after "Torn Between Worlds", as Gleam finds out that the giant balloon leads to an armageddon.
* This is the second episode to feature real horses in the title card. The first is "How Applejack Got Her Hat Back".
* Applejack breaks a fourth wall as she said "Cliffhanger" before the episode ends.

## Changes

### Changes from the Pony Life cartoon

* The Ninja, the Young Ninja and the Williams sisters speculate what is inside the balloon.
* A scene was added when Jay and Pinkie Pie blame at each other for aliens that are fictitious.

## Errors

* When Fluttershy telling her friends not to panic, Gleam has longer legs, although most Dream Aliens have shorter legs.