After the bombshells from today’s episode there seems to be some discrepancy and dislike for some of the changes that, personally, I feel fitting.  The bulk of the argument tends to center around the reveal at the end of the episode, rather than where it perhaps should. 

The CMC finally received their cutiemarks, but not the marks that people had expected.  There are some who are upset about it, both in the design and in the reception, but both are very fitting for the characters, and for what a cutie mark is. 

A cutie mark is not just a representation of a talent.  It is a physical manifestation of self-understanding, and as such it doesn’t appear until someone realizes that what they are good at is an intrinsic part of them and not just a desire, hobby or activity.  Going way back to season one when cutie marks were first explained this is made apparent.  They’re almost never cut and dry, and generally have layers of meaning that even the bearer of the mark does not fully understand.

This leads to the first ‘controversy’ over today’s episode, the CMC receiving their marks.  It was not the action of helping others discover themselves that earned the characters’ their marks, but the realization that it was something that they had always been doing with each other, and something that was deeply rewarding and descriptive of themselves that brought the change upon them.

The second controversy is with the design of the marks, which I feel is also appropriate.  Most representations of the CMC’s potential cutie marks dwelt solely in the talents that they had exhibited over time, but not what they meant to the characters.  The new marks do.  They contain within them a representation of the characters’ individuality, as well as a symbol of their unity and shared talents and desires.  They might not be the best designs to many people, but they are very, very fitting for what makes the CMC the CMC, and for what makes a cutie mark a cutie mark.