I was hoping for a few more responses, but may as well respond to what I have now…
 
@PonyPon  
Those last two would fall under deus ex machina, of course, but finding a hidden weakness would certainly be an exciting resolution. Your set-up, though, would seem to preclude pretty much any existing villains, unless Discord does another face-heel turn or Tirek somehow comes back.
 
@moonlightaveger  
Giving the princesses something else to do or just leaving them out altogether assumes a threat that’s less than Equestria-threatening, else you leave the Royal Sisters open to charges worse than being Worfed. (Is it time we should start calling that “being Celestiaed”, yet?) And I’m not sure what relevance DPDoMS has to this question: Luna was involved with fighting the threat all along and ended up subduing it (after a fashion), while Celestia was just ignored.
 
@ARchy4288  
I understand your frustration, though again I don’t think it’s a matter of the writers “hating” Celestia, rather they just don’t know what to do with her. (And Jeremy Whitley is the writer of this story; I doubt he’s collaborated with Andy Price on the story. Price has repeatedly listed Luna among his three favorite ponies, in fact.) But if you’re not going to be happy with the show or the fandom unless Celestia is given a significant, positive role, though, I think the evidence is clear that that’s never going to happen, so you may as well find some other interest and leave ponies behind. Regardless of how I feel about your rants, you still have my best wishes.

@PonyPon
 
Well I’m happy to disappoint you. Don’t worry. You and your fellow Celestia hating thugs will be rid of me soon.

@cheezedoodle
 
It’s the continuing symptom of lazy princess hating writers. But you don’t care. You just shell out money to support this crap.
 
All so you can continue to fund the hate and continued alienation of Princess fans like me.
 
I get it you want me gone. So fine.
 
I’m requesting a ban.

@ARchy4288  
Ah, knew you’d be back eventually.

And again. You know what? F$&# you Andy price. F$@& you you lazy Celestia and Luna hating motherf€£%#%.
 
F$@& your lazy ass comics.
 
You’re officially out of ideas and just revert to your McCarthy approved Celestia hate.
 
Go ahead admins ban me. Block me. My personal life is shit. I have nothing else to live for. My personal life is ruined. I really don’t care anymore. I can see that I’m not welcome here.

@Background Pony #5E93
 
I would have them be overpowered by two powerful characters combining their forces against them, which they usually don’t have to deal with since villains usually abhor friendship…
 
Oh wait. That’s what they did here. And in Twilight’s Kingdom.

I find amusing how it´s more acceptable to hate the comics, but you have to understand that the bigger consuming force for those are young adults instead of kids, so it’s ludicrous to think you can pull a script yanked from a saturday morning cartoon (from the 80´s) into a comic, and believe that will be enough for a (very known) critic audience.

@rdibp  
I was pretty funny that everyone lost their minds about them being “defeated” by mere vines.
 
Then part 2 starts off immediately with them getting out of the vines and shrugging it off as a nuisance.
 
Didn’t they get already kidnapped by vines in the show? They couldn’t get out of those, so they are more competent at dealing with vines in the comics than the show.

@Background Pony #5E93  
Off the top of my head, give them something important to do that other characters can’t do. “Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep” is a good example. Or don’t include them at all.

Don’t I recall there being another issue with Celestia and Luna tangled up in vines, not being able to get out, and everyone getting pissy about that?

@rdibp
 
Because people aren’t willing to accept the simple fact that:
 
(Celestia + Luna) < (Sombra + Chrysalis)
 
and the fact that this page only shows the result and not the fight that led to it means some non-negligible portion of the drama is from people who are judging the whole issue by this single page without the context of preceding pages.

@Trahzo  
Yeah.
 
Three guesses how I think that’s gonna turn out by the end.
 
Starts with G. Has eight letters.

@PonyPon  
Radiant Hope still has the Crystal Heart in her bag.

@Background Pony #5E93  
Fighting something of equal power? Something of slightly greater power so all they can do is hold it off? Fighting something entirely new or alien so they have no idea how to fight it?
 
Until character X can find something to tip the balance, be it a hidden weakness, a magical keystone, or by salvaging something the villain thought he got rid of in fear?

@PonyPon  
OK, in that scenario: How do you explain that Celestia and/or Luna weren’t able to defeat the Big Bad, but character(s) X could?

@Background Pony #5E93  
Why do they have to be out of the way?
 
Why can’t they just put up a good fight?
 
Long enough for the designated hero of the day to weaken the foe, if that is what must be?

OK, not going to pass judgment on the comic or its critics here, just one question:
 
How would you (yes, you, reading this comment right now) get the Royal Sisters out of the way so the Mane 6/Main 7/CMC/Zecora and Steven could save the day?

@rdibp  
A desire to see something different being unfulfilled.

@rdibp  
The princesses were ineffectual against Sombra, much like they largely have been in the show in present-day.

@Background Pony #9D4D
 
Oh, she’s just realized that the Princesses are naked.

So as someone who doesn’t read the comics, can anyone explain to me why everyone is freaking out over this panel?

oh they got turned to stone
 
this comic is shit and I’m tired of the Worf Effect on the royal ponies

I don’t understand what Chrysalis is laughing at

This thread can be summed up in this gif:
 

 
Guys, it’s just a comic. It may be good, it may be bad. It may be canon, it may be not.  
But who cares?  
More pony is always good.
 
(Especially when those ponies are BG ponies or characters that didn’t have that much development or screentime, but that’s just my opinion.)

@C Money  

 
mostly because, we should stop this. unless you call the actual dreadnoughts. which is me, obviously.