Sunset Shimmer

**Sunset Shimmer** is a female unicorn pony-turned-human and former antagonist introduced in *My Little Pony Equestria Girls*. She is a student at Canterlot High School, a former student of Princess Celestia, and a rhythm guitarist for the student band The Rainbooms. Following her appearance in *Equestria Girls*, she has since appeared in other films, animated shorts, software, film novelizations and chapter books, and several IDW comics. She wants to have unprotected sex with Lincoln Loud.

She represents the element of empathy.

She is voiced by Rebecca Shoichet who is also the singing voice of Twilight Sparkle.

## Personality

Throughout the first film, Sunset Shimmer is shown to be self-absorbed, condescending, manipulative, and dishonest. She frequently insults and belittles others and thinks little of it. According to human Fluttershy, Sunset makes life miserable for "anyone who stands in her way." As a result, most of the Canterlot High School student body is afraid of her. She is also not above making threats and blackmail in order to realize her goals.

When Sunset puts on the element of magic, she transforms into a demonic visage of herself. While in this form, she becomes more ruthless, going so far as attempting to dispose of Twilight. After she is defeated, Sunset Shimmer becomes immediately repentant and apologizes for her actions, appearing to renounce her prior dishonest and unkind ways.

In the second film, Sunset Shimmer has completely discarded her old self and starts believing in friendship, being kind toward others and befriending former enemies. She is also deeply repentant for her actions in the first film, referring to her transformed self as a "raging she-demon". However, she suffers from a lack of confidence, keeping silent in situations she feels it isn't her place to speak up and falling prey to the Dazzlings' taunting. During the final battle, she finally overcomes her insecurities and joins the Rainbooms in defeating the Dazzlings, gaining a half-pony form in the process. By the end of *Rainbow Rocks*, Sunset starts writing friendship reports to Princess Twilight using the book she once used to communicate with Princess Celestia.

By the third film, while Sunset has managed to fully integrate herself into the group and take mentions of what she did in the past with good humor, she also harbors a fear of losing her school's newly gained trust, and she becomes deeply depressed when she believes she has let them down, despite their assurances. She also becomes increasingly irritated and stressed by her struggles to understand how magic works in the human world, briefly snapping at her friends at one point.

Sunset has something of a temper on her. In her debut appearance, she lashes out at Twilight after her friends praise her. While it becomes less pronounced after her reformation, it still flares up during stressful situations. She also has a competitive streak, outright admitting in *Rollercoaster of Frendship* that she hates to lose. In *Friendship Games*, when human Twilight Sparkle endangers her friends, Sunset's anger explodes as she berates Twilight for meddling with forces she doesn't understand, taking her own frustrations and self-doubt out on her. However, she immediately regrets her harsh words and reaches out to Twilight in friendship by the end of the film. In "Saving Pinkie's Pie", the second segment of the *Holidays Unwrapped* special, she angrily joins in on the snowball fight (despite wanting to help Pinkie Pie) after Applejack insults her love of video games.

In the My Little Pony: Equestria Girls Holiday Special comic, Sunset Shimmer displays a forgiving and compassionate side when she forgives the Cutie Mark Crusaders for framing her as the rumormonger "Anon-a-Miss".

In *Sunset Shimmer's Time to Shine*, Sunset displays a considerable level of intelligence, being ahead of her friends and classmates in school and smart enough to develop various computer applications. Her affinity for science and research is also seen in The Science of Magic, where she explains she prefers a hands-on approach to studying magic over "studying ancient books".

In The Art of Friendship, Sunset has a fondness for sunflowers that she expresses through her painting in art class. Her artistic side is further shown in Display of Affection and Super Squad Goals.

A Fine Line shows that she likes to play video games, and she is excited to get the new game *Tirek's Revenge*. Her avid gamer personality is expanded upon in Game Stream, where she has her own Internet video channel on gaming.

## Backstory

An eight-page featurette included with *My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic* Issue #9 and My Little Pony Annual 2013, titled *The Fall of Sunset Shimmer*, details Sunset Shimmer's last days as Princess Celestia's student.

Like Twilight Sparkle, Sunset Shimmer is a magical prodigy. However, *unlike* Twilight, she's quite boastful and condescending toward others, despite Celestia's lessons about humility. Celestia shows Sunset the Crystal Mirror; in it, Sunset sees herself as a powerful Alicorn—one who could rule Equestria. Sunset briefly sees something else in the mirror, but Celestia guides her away from it before she gets too curious. During the weeks that follow, the mirror is all Sunset can think about, and Celestia repeatedly tells her that she'll learn about the mirror and other lessons "when [she's] ready".

Not convinced, an undeterred Sunset Shimmer begins researching the mirror in a dark magic library behind Celestia's back but is soon caught by the princess and her royal guards. Sunset berates her teacher for hiding such magic from her and demands to be made a princess. Celestia refuses, saying that being a princess must be *earned*, and removes Sunset from her position as her student and banishes her from Canterlot Castle. She has the royal guards escort Sunset out of the castle, but Sunset overpowers the guards and escapes through the mirror.

As Celestia has the mirror moved to her throne room, Sunset Shimmer emerges in the human world as a teenage girl.

## Trivia

* Sunset Shimmer become Thomas' enemy but reformed in the end of in *Thomas' Adventures of My Little Pony: Equestria Girls* and becomes Thomas' new friend in *Thomas' Adventures of My Little Pony: Equestria Girls - Rainbow Rocks.*
* Sunset Shimmer make her first debut in Thomas and Twilight Sparkle's Adventure Seriesand will be guest starring in the adventures.
* Sunset Shimmer somehow have strong relationships with her closest friends, Thomas the Tank Engine, Percy, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Discord and Marco Polo.
* Sunset Shimmer is best friends with Discord, Iago, Berkeley Beetle, Rattlesnake Jake, Starlight Glimmer and Trixie since they're all reformed characters.