AppleDash

AppleDash is the femslash ship between Rainbow Dash and Applejack from the My Little Pony fandom.

Canon
The series starts off with them having a previously established relationship as friends. In the second episode, they are shown to both represent Elements of Harmony, Applejack being honesty and Rainbow Dash being loyalty. Because of this bond, they grow closer than before and become part of the Mane Six.

Season 1
In Fall Weather Friends (S1E13), Applejack and Rainbow Dash are competing to see who's the stronger pony. To fairly judge this, they participate in an Iron Pony Competition. In multiple parts of the competition, however, Rainbow Dash uses her wings to make the events easier for her, since Applejack is an Earth Pony. Applejack points this out, and jeers at Rainbow Dash, saying she wouldn't be able to beat her. Rainbow Dash says that she could beat her with or without wings, so they decide to participate in the Running of the Leaves. In this race, Rainbow Dash has her wings tied to her side to make sure she can't get ahead using them. They start off in the lead, taunting each other and pushing each other lightly to get the other off-course. The race continues on, and as they near the finish line, they begin shoving more aggressively, to the point where Applejack accidentally rips off the rope that was holding Rainbow Dash's wings, which makes her try to fly off with Applejack very close behind. They cross the finish line and begin to argue over who came in first, only to realize that they both tied for the last place and that because of their arguing, they lost sight of the true meaning of the race, to bring down the leaves from the trees. They realize how unsportsmanlike they performed, and decide together that it's more important to do things together as friends than to win. At the end of the episode, they run back through the woods together to take care of the leaves that got left behind.

In Over a Barrel (S1E21) Applejack is delivering an apple tree named Bloomberg to Appleloosa, a town to the west where her cousin, Braeburn, lives. They travel on a train, with Bloomberg in the caboose, where Spike decides to take a nap. There is a stampede of buffalo who attack the train, frightening the passengers. Rainbow Dash goes on top of the train to stop one of the younger buffalo but is too late and the caboose of the train, holding Spike and Bloomberg, is left behind. Applejack is upset over the loss of Bloomberg, and Rainbow Dash tries to comfort her. She and Pinkie Pie later decide to go after the buffalo to rescue Spike and Bloomberg, and they learn that because of the trees in Appleloosa, they're unable to travel to their traditional stampeding grounds. Rainbow Dash is sympathetic, and she, Pinkie Pie and Spike return to the town to tell the other ponies about the situation. Rainbow Dash tries to make Little Strongheart, the young buffalo who separated the caboose, to explain the situation to Braeburn, but since neither of them speaks, it leads to Applejack and Rainbow Dash arguing instead. After the entire situation is resolved by a compromise between the buffalos and Appleloosans, Applejack and Rainbow Dash seem to be on good terms again, running side-by-side after the herding buffalo. In The Cutie Mark Chronicles (S1E23), we learn about how Applejack got her Cutie Mark. When she went to Manehattan to live with her aunt and uncle, she missed life on the farm, and one day she saw a gigantic rainbow leading back to Ponyville, and realized that's where she belonged. Later in the episode, we find out that the cause of that rainbow was Rainbow Dash when she performed her first Sonic Rainboom. In Party of One's introduction (S1E25), Rainbow Dash appears to give Applejack a peck on the cheek. (I know this is a stretch but that's what shipping wikis are for... a compilation of possible shipping moments)

Season 2
In the Mysterious Mare-Do-Well (S2E8), Rainbow Dash appears to pull Applejack in what looks like a kiss while taking a photo, after asking her how she would "like to be immortalised" as her friend. The flash obscures the contact, and Applejack trots away, sticking out her tongue in disgust. No homo. In The Last Roundup (S2E14), Applejack participates in the Equestria Rodeo Competition. As the ten-time rodeo champion of Ponyville, the townsponies have high hopes of Applejack winning and bringing back prize money that can fix the damaged town hall. However, after a week, Applejack unexpectedly does not show up, instead leaving a letter saying that she would not be returning to Ponyville. Rainbow Dash is the first to express dismay, insisting that they go find her immediately. The rest agree, and they set off to Dodge Junction where she was last seen. They find her working at a cherry farm, and when asked why, she ambiguously replies that she wanted "a change of scenery". After much efforts at persuasion by the whole group, Pinkie Pie eventually manages to make her promise to explain everything, but Applejack breaks this promise the next morning, jumping on a coach and ordering them to run away. Determined, the group gives chase, with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy pulling the wagon and the rest on the wagon shouting at Applejack. When Pinkie Pie accidentally knocks herself and Rarity off the cart, Rainbow Dash refuses, and doggedly rushes after Applejack's wagon. The two pegasi fly the cart over a train, where they finally catch Applejack who has gotten off the wagon. Rainbow Dash unlatches herself from the cart and tackles Applejack to the ground, spilling an array of rodeo ribbons. They then find out that Applejack did not want to return because she was ashamed of not having won any blue ribbons, but the group comforts her; Rainbow Dash says that as friends, they wouldn't care if she came in fiftieth place. Later, Rainbow Dash quietly cries, saying, "Darn it! Now you got me acting all sappy!"

In Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000 (S2E15), Applejack's family is making their famous cider, which Rainbow Dash is extremely excited to try. However, when it finally comes her turn to get some, Applejack is all out, and cider season is over. Rainbow Dash is upset, and voices her despair over the lack of cider for everyone. This is when the Flim Flam brothers bring in their Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000, which automatically makes cider. Everyone is enthralled and excited to get more cider, but Applejack's family is upset that the Flim Flam brothers are stealing their business. They make a bet, that whoever makes the most cider gets the farm, and the war begins. Applejack's family takes their time with theirs, producing barrels much slower than Flim and Flam who produce barrels almost automatically. As Applejack's family begins to slow down, Rainbow Dash and the rest of the Mane Six help out, speeding up production of cider; panicking, the Flim Flam brothers turn off the quality check on their machine and begin pumping out barrels even faster. When the contest is over, the Flim Flam brothers win by a landslide and the Apple family is told to leave. Applejack accepts this, but not before Rainbow Dash flies in their faces threateningly. However, shortly after, ponies tasted Flim and Flam's cider and hated it. Ultimately, the ponies refused to buy any more of their poor-quality cider, forcing the Flim Flam brothers to leave. The Apple family makes a triumphant return to the farm. In The Return of Harmony Part 2 (S2E2), when Twilight Sparkle uses a spell to reawaken Applejack's most precious memories with her friends in order to break Discord's Spell, the last memory that flashes through her mind is the Running of the Leaves with Rainbow Dash. Right after this, Applejack wakes up from the spell. Later, after Rainbow Dash awakens from her spell, she tackles Applejack to the ground... do I even have to say anything?

Season 4
In Castle Mane-ia (S4E3), Rainbow Dash senses a hoof around her and immediately assumes it is Applejack, saying smugly that if she is scared, she can just admit it. Follow this up with point 3 under Trivia.

Season 5
In Tanks for the Memories (S5E5), Rainbow Dash is sad about her pet tortoise, Tank, having to hibernate during the winter. When her five friends find her sobbing on her bed. Twilight Sparkle envelopes Applejack in a magical aura and telekinetically pushes her to her side. Applejack is awkward in her consoling, but she tries her best.

Season 6
In Buckball Season (S6E18), Rainbow Dash and Applejack train Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie for an upcoming buckball game against Appleloosa. Determined to defend their town's honour by having the Ponyville team win the game, the two employ tactics like reminding them constantly about what was at stake, and how much Ponyville expected of them, placing immense pressure on Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, who they themselves preferred to play the game just for fun. When Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie crumble from the stress and withdraw from the competition, Applejack and Rainbow Dash are confused over why they would act the way they acted, until they realised that Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were different from them and would thus react differently to the pressure Applejack and Rainbow Dash relished. Working together, they pretend to take Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie's places in the buckball team and convince them to play a practice round with them, which helps them regain their confidence and rejoin the buckball team. In To Where and Back Again Part Two (S6E26), when the Mane 6 are freed from the changeling, Applejack immediately helps up Rainbow Dash. It's a stretch, but the look in their eyes... bro...

Season 8
In Grannies Gone Wild (S8E5), Rainbow Dash wants badly to try the Wild Blue Yonder, a well-reputed rollercoaster at Las Pegasus, before it closes down for good. She asks Applejack to cover her classes, and Applejack agrees, on the condition that Rainbow accompanies her Granny and her friends during the trip. Rainbow doesn't like the idea of chaperoning these slow, elderly ponies, but desperate, she agrees. Throughout the trip, she is paranoid about following the instructions Applejack has given her, even having a "phantom" of Applejack nagging at her in various instances. This causes her to go to the extreme with Applejack's rules, which accidentally ruins the fun for the grannies.

In Non-Compete Clause (S8E9), Applejack and Rainbow Dash compete for Teacher of the Month at Twilight Sparkle's Scool of Friendship. In order to win the favour of their students, they take them on a combined field trip in an attempt to teach them about teamwork. When their initial methods clash and result in the students not enjoying their field trip, Twilight Sparkle wants to call off the field trip, but the two decide to change tactics and instead start agreeing with everything the other says, resulting in difficulty trying to come to a consensus on anything. In the end, an unexpected twist leads to the students saving their teachers from a predicament, and the students are impressed at their teachers' "genius technique" of teaching them teamwork by showing them exactly the opposite, thus nominating them for Teacher of the Month. Applejack and Rainbow Dash still privately admit that their shenenigans throughout the trip was for obtaining the title after all.

Season 9
In Common Ground (S9E6), Rainbow Dash mentions that she would be skipping the first few games of the buckball tournament to look at the museum exhibits for Applejack and tell her about it since Applejack was too busy to come herself and wanted to know about the museum.

In A Trivial Pursuit (S9E16), Twilight Sparkle murmurs a sigh of relief that Applejack and Rainbow Dash are not on the same team for a trivia competition, saying that if they are together, "Team Appledash is basically unstoppable".

In The Last Problem, the last episode of the series, the two ponies were heavily implied to have a relationship more than a friendship between the both; they enter the castle as a pair and bicker lightheartedly about chores, implying that they now live together and/or work together. At the ending scene of the

episode, Rainbow Dash also places her hoof on Applejack's head.

MLP:FiM Animated Shorts: Best Gift Ever
In Triple Pony Dare Ya, Applejack"Triple Pony Dares" Rainbow Dash to wait patiently while waiting in line to buy Granny Smith's Hearth's Warming fruitcake. Unable to wait for fruitcake, Rainbow Dash speeds to the front of the line, causing her to lose the Dare. Rainbow Dash, unwilling to accept defeat, challenges Applejack to a Triple Pony Dare competition, and the first pony to complete a Dare will be declared champion. Applejack and Rainbow Dash dare each other to complete various impossible tasks, one of which is where Rainbow Dash dares Applejack to not touch or wear her hat for one full moon, and in the process wears it. This trend of Rainbow Dash wearing Applejack's hat continues in several IDW comics as well as the MLP Stop Motion shorts (see below).

MLP Equestria Girls: The Movie
When Sunset Shimmer is possessed, Rainbow Dash hides behind Applejack and Applejack raises an arm defensively in front of her.

MLP EQG Shorts
In A Case for the Bass, Applejack is trying to get her bass back, one of the Flim Flam brothers get up into Applejack's face questioning her. Rainbow Dash immediately shoots in front of Applejack, driving the intrusive man back. In Constructive Criticism, Rainbow Dash helps Applejack build the stage using her vision board which the latter had initially discarded because she had thought it to be impossible to create. It is revealed that Rainbow Dash had run to her house while she was building, went to her room where she found the vision board and also Applejack's unlocked diary, which she read.

MLP EQG: Spring Breakdown
While singing her solo "All Good", Rainbow Dash glances at Applejack while singing her line "and let me see that smile on your face". Applejack, though visibly holding her seasickness in, gives her a queasy smile. When the ship is about to sink, Applejack volunteers to fix the engine. When Sunset says that she is seasick and that going below deck was "the worst thing [she] could do", Applejack replies that it is "not worse than losing Rainbow Dash".

MLP EQG: Legends of Everfree
AppleJack the first see that Rainbow Dash get lost. After, Rainbow Dash run and falls so AJ helps her up.

MLP Stop Motion Shorts
In MLP Ep. 18: Volleyball Game Between Rainbow Dash and Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Applejack play a game of volleyball. On the last match, Applejack pretends to be hurt and Rainbow Dash rushes to her side to check on her. Applejack then rises up and hits the ball to Rainbow's side, scoring a point and winning the game. Rainbow is surprised, but she starts giggling too, and as Applejack rejoices in her victory, Rainbow takes Applejack's fallen hat and puts it on. Applejack starts chasing her and the both run off into the hills, laughing.

Fanon
One of the main reasons this ship is so popular is because there was a lot of chemistry between the two. They have similar interests, such as a shared drive for and athleticism and competition. They are both not afraid to get down and get rough, and are both characters with straightforward and upfront personalities, leading to them being very good friends and thus, popular ship candidates. At the same time, they are not without their differences, with Rainbow Dash being more ambitious and adventure-loving, while Applejack is more down-to-earth and practical. Despite this, the two have similar-enough thinking patterns to understand the other, so conflict between them is usually easily resolved, like by turning to a petty competition, and they hold no long-term grudges against each other.

Dissidents of Appledash often cite their competitive streak and frequent squabbling as toxicity in their relationship, but people who say this miss a very important aspect of their characters as presented throughout the show: that they both love competition, and that these challenges are not signs of real dislike for one another; they simply enjoy the idea of one-upping each other and pushing each other to be better than they already are. As for the quarrels, Applejack and Rainbow Dash are both blunt and to-the-point about what they think. Though this kind of open communication results in more obvious (although trivial and inconsequential) bickering onscreen, it can be considered healthier in the long run for a relationship as opposed to bottling up bad blood and allowing tension to fester.

Appledash is not a traditionally 'romantic', 'lovey-dovey' ship, but those who are fans of this pairing often appreciate it for its simple and true-to-life dynamic.

A common fan trope plays on Rainbow Dash's love for apple cider, a recurring gag throughout MLP:FiM. Common examples of this fact being used in fanfiction involve Rainbow using getting cider as an excuse to get closer to Applejack, Applejack offering Rainbow cider so she can see her more often, and of course, drunk confessions and similar shenenigans.

Fans often use the zap apple, a magical rainbow-coloured apple from MLP:FiM, as a symbol for Appledash as it is an object that combines the two's visuals. Zap Apple is a typical name for an Appledash fanchild.

An interesting piece of fan trivia is "feathermarking", a headcanon coined by user Tchernobog (also the founder of the AppleDash group on FIMfiction) for AppleDash in 2012. According to them, feathermarking is a tradition where pegasi will brush their wings against a loved one's cutie mark to show their affection. Since then, feathermarking has gotten quite some attention and art has spread beyond just AppleDash, with 100+ images under its tag on Derpibooru and also the tag "never doubt tchernobog's involvement".

Fandom
FAN FICTION
 * Applejack/Rainbow Dash on FanFiction.Net
 * Applejack/Rainbow Dash on FimFiction.Net
 * Applejack (EG)/Rainbow Dash (EG) on FimFiction.Net
 * Applejack (EG)/Rainbow Dash (EG) on FimFiction.Net

FAN ART


 * Appledash on DeviantArt
 * Appledash on Derpibooru.org

Trivia

 * When asked if Applejack and Rainbow Dash, or if Fluttershy and Discord were romantically involved, Jim Miller replied "It’s up to the individual viewer to decide what those two are to each other" and "Open to interpretation."
 * In the My Little Pony: Magic Princess app, there are two info boxes for future Rainbow Dash and future Applejack. Applejacks says she likely has a "loving, loyal relationship", while Rainbow Dash's says she would likely have a "good, honest life", referencing each other's Element of Harmony.
 * The voice actress of Applejack and Rainbow Dash, Ashleigh Ball, is very vocal about her shipping of Appledash, as seen by her Instagram stories and posts, Tweets on Twitter, and during panel interviews, most famously declaring that Appledash was "canon, 100% canon" following a question from a fan in an open QnA segment.
 * Co-executive producer, Meghan McCarthy wondered in a Tweet if Rainbow secretly wished to have Applejack's hoof around her in the episode Castle Mania.
 * Following the season 9 finale, several fans frequently speculated that AppleDash was canon based in the future setting of "The Last Problem" based on just two scenes. In response, series director Jim Miller stated on Twitter that, just like FlutterCord, whether AppleDash is canon is completely left up to individual interpretation.
 * Some official merchandise include pairing the two up. One notable example would be the "Horsin' Around" poster, which features them looking at each other Be29c74cd7101b3ab18bf92814bcd8df.jpg surrounded by hearts/heart-shaped apples.
 * A cover for one of the IDW comics, My Little Pony the Movie: Prequel, features the two of them in dresses against each other, while their  friends offer them flowers and candies. Fans often joke that they look like they are getting married.Prequel idw cover.jpg