The Last Roundup

The Last Roundup is the fourteenth episode of the second season of Legends of the Multiverse: Friendship is Universe and the fortieth episode overall. After Sheriff Mulan sends a note to her family and friends that says she will not return to Multiville after competing in the Multitopia Rodeo Competition in Canterlot, her friends decide to find her and understand her motives.

Production and release
The episode is included in The Friendship Express DVD, and its title was revealed a month prior to airdate. Many Flash assets from Over a Barrel are reused, including the four train pulling ponies, who pull the coach Applejack commandeers.

On November 8, 2015, episode writer Amy Keating Rogers posted a scene from the first draft of the script on Twitter that was cut from the final episode. The scene involves Applejack reluctantly accepting a saddle from Rarity before she leaves for the Canterlot Rodeo.

Controversy
Shortly after airing, some viewers complained that Candy Chiu's portrayal was offensive to mentally disabled persons and contradicted the show's lessons about friendship. Amy Keating Rogers responded with a statement which was republished on Equestria Daily. According to Rogers, Derpy's scene was originally longer and included a flashback that showed how town hall was damaged; when Derpy was removing lightning from thunderclouds, she "bucked bolts" too close to the building. Rogers intended this clumsy pony to be called Ditzy Doo as a reference to the episode Winter Wrap Up, but was asked to name her Derpy as a "tip of the hat" to the fans.

The episode was removed from rotation and iTunes due to complaints about Derpy's portrayal, and was later put back up, after Derpy's voice and eyes had been changed, and the mention of her name removed. The original version of the episode is retained in The Friendship Express DVD, but reruns on The Hub and the one on the Season 2 box set are the altered version. Treehouse TV in Canada also airs the altered version. The streaming company Netflix has the edited version, although subtitles on the system retain the original dialogue and, therefore, the use of "Derpy". Discovery Kids Latin America only airs the edited version; dub director Maggie Vera only dubbed the edited version; and most other dubs also only air the edited version.

The uncensored audio is, rarely, available with censored video via the English audio tracks on some foreign channels.

Practicing for the rodeo
Sheriff Lonnie watches her sister, Sheriff Mulan, jump over hurdles and shot put a bale of hay in a practice obstacle course. Lonnie is confident that her sister will win the Multitopia Rodeo Competition. When Mulan responds modestly, Lonnie says that she is the ten-time rodeo champion of Multiville and holds more blue ribbons than any pony in town. The filly says that she can't wait for her sister "to win every blue ribbon in Equestria and bring home the title of Multitopia Rodeo champion!”

The send-off to Canterlot
"I just don't know what went wrong."

- Derpy in her first speaking role

Outside Multiville’s town hall, Candy Chiu tries to help Sally Acorn set up a banner but ends up wrecking a part of the building. At a send-off outside town hall, Mayor Isabelle announces Mulan's participation in the Multitopia Rodeo competition in Canterlot and thanks Mulan for generously offering up her prize money to fix town hall. In turn, Mulan thanks the citizens for supporting her in every rodeo ever since she was little. She promises to make Multiville proud and the crowd cheers. The scene cuts to the Fa family and friends saying goodbye to Applejack on the train platform.

Mulan's letter
"Mulan's... not comin' back?"

- Sheriff Lonnie

A week later, Mulan’s friends and family are waiting for Mulan to come home to a surprise party in the Fa Family Acres barn. However, a mailpony shows up to deliver a letter from Mulan. Amazed, the mailpony asks, "How did you know it was my birthday?" In the letter, Mulan says that she will send the prize money but will not be returning to Multiville. Saddened by the news, Kairi Sparkle, Sally Acorn, Rapunzel, Spectra Vondergeist, and Nene Amano assure the Fa family that they will go to the rodeo to ask Mulan why she won't be coming back. The friends also tell a crying Li Shang that they will search all of Equestria for Mulan if they must.

The search
"I saw her compete at the Multitopia Rodeo. Never saw anybody win so many ribbons in all my life."

- Sid Chang

The five friends go to the rodeo and show a picture of Mulan to the animals there but to no avail. Luckily, a mare points them in the right direction. The friends take a train to a town called Dodge Junction. After they disembark, Rapunzel inadvertently finds Mulan in a nearby restroom. Applejack explains that she has been working at a cherry farm run by a japanese cowgirl tiger called Sid Chang. Sid shows up and recounts how Mulan was looking for "a change of scenery.” Mulan asks her friends to go home without her and tell her family that she's doing fine. The friends believe that Mulan is not telling the whole truth.

The cherry factory
In the factory, Mulan uses a treadmill to power a conveyor belt transporting yellow and red cherries. Mulan frowns when her friends are hired to be red/yellow cherry sorters. Kairi takes the opportunity to ask Mulan what she thought of Canterlot and the rodeo. Sally joins in, asking if she saw Bull-E and Nikki. Nene also leaves her post and inquires how Mulan met Miss Chang. Mulan curtly responds that she befriended Miss Chang at her cherry stand at the rodeo.

Mulan becomes irritated by her friends’ incessant questions and moves the conveyor belt too fast for Spectra and Rapunzel. In an attempt to handle the onslaught of cherries, Rapunzel stuffs their saddlebags and then her own mouth with cherries. Spectra cries "STOP!" and Applejack skids to a halt. The cherries fly off the conveyor belt and cover Mulan with cherry juice.

The five friends are then seen mopping up the juice on the floor and walls. Calling for drastic measures, Sally says it's time to "call in the big guns," and the camera dramatically zooms in on Rapunzel.

Calling in the "big guns"
"It's time to call in the big guns."

- Sally Acorn

When Mulan is bucking cherry trees, Rapunzel asks her if she needs some help, promising to not ask any questions. Rapunzel starts babbling about cherry-based dishes and fun things to say, such as "chimicherry," "cherrychanga," "kumquat," and "pickle barrel." Overwhelmed, Rapunzel begs her to stop. Sally, who is wearing earplugs, tells Mulan that the only way she can stop the madness is to spill the beans. Mulan finally agrees to tell the truth tomorrow at breakfast, and when Rapunzel doubts her, she gives a Rapunzel promise.

The chase
"Giddy up, fellas, I gotta get the heck out of Dodge!"

- Sheriff Mulan

The next morning, the five go to Mulan's bedroom, but nobody is there. Rapunzel is enraged because Mulan broke her Pinkie promise. Meanwhile, Mulan is waiting at the Dodge Junction train station with her luggage. When she sees her friends running towards her, she jumps on a coach and orders the four ponies pulling the coach to run away. The friends start chasing Mulan in a cart pulled by Sally and Spectra. Just as they are approaching Mulan, Spectra suddenly comes to a halt to avoid hitting a rabbit. When they catch up to Mulan again, Rapunzel leaps into her coach to ask why she broke her Rapunzel promise, but Mulan insists that she didn’t break the promise because she did not go to breakfast. Rapunzel accepts her excuse and jumps backwards into the wooden cart, saying, "Nene, catch me." Taken aback, Nene is knocked off the cart, and both of them tumble off. Kairi tells the Pegasi to go back, but Sally refuses. The animals see a train hurtling down a railroad track stretching across their path. The coach animals doubtfully look at Mulan, but she whips them, and their coach crosses the track, narrowly avoiding the oncoming train. Mulan jumps off and says, "Yee-haw!", but the coach ponies say, "Lady, you're trouble," before driving away.

The truth
Spectra and Sally fly over the train, and Sally tackles Mulan upon landing. A bunch of medals spill out of Mulan's bag and Kairi compliments Mulan, but she despairs because she didn’t win a single blue ribbon nor any prize money. She explains that she tried to earn money on the cherry farm so she could send home the money she promised. Kairi contradicts Mulan's belief that she is a failure and Sally says that as friends, they wouldn't care even if she came in fiftieth place. Spectra chips in, saying that the hole in town hall can always be repaired but not the hole in their hearts if Mulan never comes back. Sally quietly cries and says, "Darn it! Now you got me acting all sappy!" "Mulan, we can always find a way to fix that hole in the roof. But if you don't come back, we'll never be able to fix the hole in our hearts."

- Spectra Vondergeist

Aftermath
Mulan learns that there is no reason to hide when you don’t do as well as you had hoped. Instead of running away from your problems, you should turn to your friends and family. When Mulan comes off the train in Multiville, her family and Doodles hug her. The episode ends when Nene and Rapunzel, who were left behind during the chase, use a hoof-powered railroad cart to travel home. Rapunzel still compares the words "chimicherry" and "cherrychanga," and Rarity mutters that Rainbow Dash will get it when they return.

Quotes

 * Sally Acorn: Huh? Now, careful, Candy! Don't want to do any more damage than you've already done.
 * [crash]
 * Candy Chiu: I just don't know what went wrong!
 * Sally Acorn: Yeah. It's a mystery.
 * Candy Chiu: Nice work, Sally!
 * [thud]
 * [wood splintering]
 * Sally Acorn: [yelps]
 * Candy Chiu: You okay, Sally Acorn? Anything I can do to help?
 * Sally Acorn: No! Nothing! In the name of Palutena, just sit there and do nothing.
 * [Candy sits down, floor cracks, Candy and Sal crash through it]
 * Candy Chiu: Oops. My bad.


 * Rapunzel: And drink sarsaparilla! What? It gives you extra sass.


 * Spectra Vondergeist: Oh, I hope Mulan is surprised by this surprise party!
 * Sally Acorn: Well, that is the point.
 * Spectra Vondergeist: I know, but I hope she isn't so surprised she's startled, because while being surprised can be nice, being startled can be... very startling.
 * Rapunzel: Surprise!
 * Spectra Vondergeist: [gasps] Oh, Rapunzel, you startled me.


 * Sally Acorn: I hope this lead doesn't turn out to be a dead end. I don't wanna go back empty-pawed after we promised we'd find her.
 * Spectra Vondergeist: I don't know how we'll break it to the Fa family.
 * Kairi Sparkle: I don't know how we'll break it to Multiville!
 * Rapunzel: I don't know how I'll make it to the next stop!


 * Rapunzel: Have you ever had a cherry changa? Ooh! Sorry, that was a question.
 * Sheriff Mulan: That kind of question is fine, Rapunzel. No, I-I never had a cherry changa.
 * Rapunzel: Well no wonder, because I made it up myself! A cherrychanga is mashed up cherries in a tortilla that's deep fried. Cherrychanga. Great name, huh? Oh, but maybe I should call it a chimicherry. Ooh, that's good too. Which do you think sounds better? Cherrychanga or chimicherry? Or what if I combine them? Chimicherrychanga! What sounds the funniest? I like funny words! One of my favorite funny words is 'kumquat'! I didn't make that one up. I would work in a kumquat orchard just so I could say 'kumquat' all day! Kumquat, kumquat, kumquat! And 'pickle barrel'! Isn't that just the funnest thing to say? Pickle barrel pickle barrel pickle barrel. Say it with me! Pickle barrel, kumquat, pickle barrel, kumquat, pickle barrel, kumquat, chimicherrychanga!
 * Sheriff Mulan: No! Make it stop, make it stop!


 * Rapunzel: Nobody breaks a Rapunzel promise!


 * Rapunzel: Mulan! [lightly distorted] You Rapunzel promised!
 * Sheriff Mulan: Dah!


 * Rapunzel: Nene, catch me.
 * Nene Amano: What? Rapunzel–[screams]
 * [crunch]


 * Sheriff Mulan: Yee-haw!
 * Coach animals: [in unison] Lady, you're trouble.


 * Sally Acorn: Darnit! Now you got me actin' all sappy!


 * Rapunzel: What do you think, Nene? Chimicherry, or Cherrychanga? Chimicherry, Cherrychanga? Chimicherry, Cherrychanga? Chimicherry, Cherrychanga? Chimicherry, Cherrychanga? [continues under]
 * Nene Amano: When I get back, you're gonna get it, Sally ACorn!