Wonderbolts

The Wonderbolts are a group of Pegasus ponies who appear occasionally in. They perform aerial acrobatics, participate in sporting events, and in one episode prove to have some military duties as well. Rainbow Dash has the aspirational goal of joining them. Their evil counterparts are the Shadowbolts, who only appear briefly in one episode of the show, but occasionally resurface as antagonists in fan labor.

Joining the team as a plot element
Rainbow Dash becoming a member is a common topic of fanfics and fan art centering around her. So is her having an accident while trying out for the squad: In the novella Friendship is Tragic, for instance, Rainbow loses her wings after challenging Spitfire to a race; the Wonderbolts are disbanded afterwards. In the fanfic Tales, she dies while trying to impress them.

Becoming a member is also frequently a goal for an adult Scootaloo. In fan art, at least, not being a Pegasus is not an impediment to being depicted in a Wonderbolt - or Shadowbolt - uniform. All members of the main cast are occasionally seen dressed in these uniforms, both with wings and without.

Spitfire
The Wonderbolts' most prominent member is Spitfire. She has had the most lines in the show, and has by far the most fan art produced of her. She is commonly shipped with Rainbow Dash and/or Soarin'.

Her cutie mark is not depicted in the show. In the early days of the fandom, the Wonderbolts insignia on her uniform was quite commonly, and incorrectly, assumed to be her cutie mark. Several different artists came up with designs based around a lightning bolt blazing with fire , and this idea has become prevalent.

Soarin'
Soarin's appearances in fan labor tend to be limited to being the male romantic interest for either Spitfire or Rainbow Dash; the latter pairing is commonly abbreviated "SoarDash". He is associated with pie, stemming from his only substantial scene in the show in The Best Night Ever.

Echo Fleetfoot
Fleetfoot is a female Wonderbolt introduced in a background shot in The Best Night Ever. An Ask blog started up in November 2011, giving her the name "Echo". In this interpretation, which has dominated fan labor, Echo is blind but still capable of flying and keeping up with the other Wonderbolts thanks to her use of echolocation. When she was given the official name "Fleetfoot" in the episode Sweet and Elite, the blog's creator adapted and declared Fleetfoot to be Echo's last name.

Expanding the Wonderbolts roster


Spitfire's cutie mark
