ernesth100
The Traveler, The Genius, The Scholar
Has anyone seen this?!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiBohDujLPs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiBohDujLPs
My Little Pony Friendship is Magic
- Thread starter Mijzelffan
- Start date
Hey guys, check out this review of Pinkie Apple Pie:
This review brings up an interesting point that I never thought of... Pinkie seems to know all about what makes a good family... yet has never been seen talking about her family, or even mentioning it with other ponies. What happened with her family? Why did she leave the rock farm? Considering that we're supposedly meeting Pinkie's two sisters this season, maybe we'll get an answer to that...
This review brings up an interesting point that I never thought of... Pinkie seems to know all about what makes a good family... yet has never been seen talking about her family, or even mentioning it with other ponies. What happened with her family? Why did she leave the rock farm? Considering that we're supposedly meeting Pinkie's two sisters this season, maybe we'll get an answer to that...
GUYS, GUYS, GUYSGUYSGUYS!!!! SNEAK PEEK CLIP WITH WEIRD AL!
http://www.usatoday.com/story/popcandy/2014/01/15/weird-al-my-little-pony/4490001/
THIS REALLY IS GOING TO BE THE BEST EPISODE EVER!!!
http://www.usatoday.com/story/popcandy/2014/01/15/weird-al-my-little-pony/4490001/
THIS REALLY IS GOING TO BE THE BEST EPISODE EVER!!!
...Also, why would Rainbow Dash move to Ponyville on her birthday? Well, whatever.
I really don't know who Weird Al is.
Time to familiarize yourself (with some of my personal favorite songs of his):Anna said:
White & Nerdy (parody of Chamillionaire's "Ridin'")
Fat (parody of Michael Jackson's "Bad")
Amish Paradise (parody of Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise")
The Saga Begins (parody of Don McLean's "American Pie")
Perform This Way (parody of Lady Gaga's "Born This Way")
And before you go thinking he only writes parodies, here are some original songs of his.
Hardware Store
Pancreas
Polkamon (yep, he wrote a song about Pokémon, specifically it was part of the soundtrack for Pokémon: The Movie 2000)
ernesth100
The Traveler, The Genius, The Scholar
All about the Pentiums
Hrm... Well, not to sure what I thought of this episode. I definitely remember getting excited in the middle of it, then actually laughing at one point, yet there's something in the back of my mind, telling me to look deeper into this and be more introspective or whatever. There were moments I wasn't quite sure what to think of, but I can safely say, for the most part, this was a great episode, like most of the episodes this season. I still feel the need to post my initial thoughts of some things, maybe thrown in a rant here or there, so anyone who's interested, hang on, 'cause you're in for a ride.
...I should also note my dad was there. He wasn't really paying attention, thought he did occasionally look up at what was going on from what he was doing. One thing I specifically pointed out to him, and another thing he legitimately laughed at. I'll get to those when I come to them.
And I think that's about it... Ugh, this took so long to write up... I actually feel slightly better now then when I started, but still... I really need to rewind after this... But regardless, yet another great episode. No seriously, I think season 4 might just be the best season of MLP:FiM, without a doubt!
...I should also note my dad was there. He wasn't really paying attention, thought he did occasionally look up at what was going on from what he was doing. One thing I specifically pointed out to him, and another thing he legitimately laughed at. I'll get to those when I come to them.
So, I guess I'll start with Bulk Biceps... I like how they say this guy's name numerous times, as if to tell the fandom: "THIS IS HIS NAME, REMEMBER HIS NAME, WE'RE SAYING IT MULTIPLE TIMES TO MAKE SURE YOU DON'T MISHEAR IT!!!" Quite frankly, I love this name WAY more then "Snowflake", I thought that name was stupid and not fitting in the slightest (yes, I get that it's supposed to be ironic, I don't care, ponies usually have names that relate to who they are and what they do). As for Bulk himself... Eh, I kind of liked him. I was kind of annoyed with the idea of having him get more screen time, especially if this was the supposed "background pony" that will be getting tons of screentime, but he's actually pretty funny. Hard to explain, but just the way he talks kind of cracked me up. Incidentally, this is definitely not the original voice of the guy, not that I care that much. Also, here he's shown to have a lot of trouble flying, whereas he was shown not such trouble previously. That MIGHT be something I'd complain about but I really don't care all that much. Yeah, I'm really not into it right now... Some of you might say to just do this when I AM motivated to do this, but knowing my, I'd procrastinate to the point where I'd NEVER get to it, so I might as well do it now.
Fluttershy is sweet and cute as always. The fact that she's willing to compete in the Equestria Games is either breaking character (she HATES performances) or character growth. I feel like it's one or the other and I know people will be debating on that, but I just like how incredible sweet she was in this episode. I didn't like that Bulk Biceps was basically squishing her on the train ride to Rainbow Falls (speaking of which, why is this the title of the episode? Eh, not that we never had generic titles before, but thinking of all the punny titles we have in general, seeing more generic ones like this sticks out more), though for some reason, I didn't mind when Bulk slapped into her while practicing. Probably because that was an accident...
The rest of the mane 6, sans Twilight later on, don't have much of a purpose, other then to support and cheer on the relay team. I guess it's nice, and it would make sense that the mane 6 would support their friends, but since everyone's been sensitive to the idea of the mane 6 being in too many episodes this season, I almost feel the need to comment on their role in every episode they're included it. I really don't have much to say on Applejack's Brown Betties or Rarity's really frilly dresses (I would think the writes would grow out of this joke; Rarity is able to make more practical and functional outfits, you know?). Pinkie, I guess, was fun; the funniest bit was when Rainbow Dash pretended to be injured and mumbled what supposedly caused her injury, and Pinkie angrily swore vengeance against the mumbles, repeating ewhat Rainbow Dash supposedly said. That, no joke, made me "laugh out loud" more then anything this show has done. ...Ugh, I wanted to get through this cronologically, but I ended up mentioning something out of order, I am so OUT OF IT at the moment. Maybe it's because it's later then I'm used to with these kinds of things, I want to watch it immediately, talk about it, then take a nap (since I wake up early for work), but my dad and sister keep using the only TV several hours after I'm done, to the point where I watch the episode and I'm too tired to want to talk about it, but like I said, I'm bound to procrastinate on this and eventually never get around to doing it!
...And now my mom just asked me to shovel the driveway... Fan-fucking-tastic.
Ugh, I wish I could go through this faster, but my mind doesn't want to work at the moment. But I want to get this done!
So, on the train, I'm glad they explain what all the other pony pegasi are doing... I'm assuming there are more events other then sprinting, as I know there are more pegasi other then Thunderland and... whoever that other pegasus was... Ugh, just keep this up man...
OH, this is something I wanted to comment on the most as soon as I saw it in the episode: GRIFFINS! Griffins are competing int he Equestria Games! Like, oh my gosh, I knew there were griffins living in Equestria, but who do you think these griffins represent? Is there a Griffin Kingdom or something WITHIN the rule of Equestria? Or are they part of a town where only Griffins live? Like, seriously, I'm desperate to know more about griffin culture, so these little hints really stole the show for me!
So Spitfire and Soarin' are back, and Fleetfoot (shouldn't it be Fleethoof, now that I think about it?) gets a speaking role. The Wonderbolts are all familiar with Rainbow Dash by now, as they probably should be by this point, and it really is cool to see Soarin' again. As for their role in the episode... Eh, I'll bring that up momentarily.
Eh, you know what, I guess i should talk about the main conflict: Rainbow Dash's loyalties. I have to admit, I expected this to be a bit different, though the way the episode presented it was still top-notch. See, I was kind of assuming that both sides would be presented evenly, like Rainbow Dash would have a really hard time choosing which side to go with, between her birth home and her current home. Instead, the Ponyville team, the team that clearly wouldn't have a chance without Rainbow Dash, is presented as the team she should obviously stay with, while Cloudsdale is the one who will clearly qualify no matter what, and the fact that Rainbow Dash was born in Cloudsdale is only mentioned in passing, as a means to justify her joining the Cloudsdale team. Yeah, Soarin' gets injured (and Rainbow Dash saves him... yeah, that's twice she's done a goof for Soarin', I like where this is going!), and now they SUPPOSEDLY need a new teammate, and decide to tempt Rainbow Dash to join their team... and this is where I'm conflicted... Like, the Wonderbolts are supposed to be Rainbow Dash's idols, right? And Spitfire, the captain of the Wonderbolts, was previously been established as a reasonable (if a tad oblivious) leader, right? Well not here; here they both take get Rainbow Dash to ditch the team that needs her and join their team of "winners"... Like, I'm okay with Fleetfoot doing this, since she didn't have an established personality until now, but Spitfire? Really? These are Rainbow Dash's heroes? And not only that, they LIE about Soarin's condition, saying he's still injured when really he can fly just fine, JUST so they can get Rainbow Dash to be on their team! What the Hell?! Soarin's been part of the Wonderbolts for a for a while, you'd think Spitfire, who no doubt would know him for that long, would be more willing to let himself heal or at the very least not be so quick to ditch him! Seriously, BOTH of them dump Soarin' just like that, and even though they're BOTH awesome flyers who could easily qualify for the Equestria Games on their own skill, regardless of who they got to "replace" him, they still go with Rainbow Dash... Hell, they didn't even really need to replace him, he could fly just fine, maybe not at his 100%, but come on, they already have TWO other teammates that could pick up the slack for him! And at the end of this all, Rainbow Dash calls them out on this, they're all like "oh yeah, you're right, we're sorry", like it's not big deal, like we're still supposed to expect that they're still somehow good ponies. Honestly, if I were Rainbow Dash, a situation like this would have caused a broken pedestal situation, I wouldn't want to be part of the Wonderbolts if THIS is how they treat their teammates... Speaking of which, what the Hell happened after Wonderbolts Acadmeny, did Rainbow Dash progress? How close is she to becoming a Wonderbolt now? Will we get any actual answers to this?! Either way, I CERTAINLY wouldn't accept Spitfire's badge, like it's supposed to be an honor or some shit (I'll get into that bad later, hint hint).
Ugh, wait, I said they presented the conflict in a good way, this isn't doing that justice... Okay, aside from, you know, the Wonderbolts being revealed to be assholes, the actual conflict IS great, because it's about Rainbow Dash's loyalties versus what she wants. She wants to win, AND she wants to fly with her "supposed" heroes, but her team really needs her. I've been in situations where I'm "needed", but my personal desires get in the way of what I need to do. Twilight comes in and calls her on this, and what's awesome about this, is that I expected her to chew Rainbow Dash out for even attempting to ditch her friends, but then I realized, this is not only in character for Twilight (she didn't mind when Rarity did the same thing in Sweet and Elite), but it also helps solidify her as a supposed princess of friendship. See, THIS is what she should have done in Bats!, instead of choosing a side and joining them in ganging up on somepony, she instead is more of a mediator, or at the very least, neutral. She doesn't outright tell Rainbow Dash what to do (unlike The Mysterious Mare-Do-Well), and tells her this is something she needs to figure out for herself. You can tell Rainbow Dash REALLY wants to be with the Wonderbolts and on the winning team (not to mention, the episode seems to go out of it's way to make the Wonderbolts the unquestionable bad choice here), but she ALSO doesn't want to let down her friends. She, instead, fakes injuring herself so that basically she doesn't have to make a choice (which Twilight sees through, and claims that this isn't choosing to Rainbow Dash), but it's here that we see just how nice Rainbow Dash's friends are, and how much they care about her, and Rainbow Dash feels guilty about almost ditching them. Of course we also find out here that Spitfire and Fleetfoot never bothered to visit Soarin' even ONCE, once again, making them look like assholes. Hell, even if they were competitive, you'd think they'd show at least SOME consideration for their teammate!
Then the rainbow thing happens, her eyes glow, and Rainbow Dash tells the truth, she returns to her old team, the Wonderbolts take back Soarin', and they all qualify for the Equestria Games! Yeah, Ponyville's team just barely qualified, like seriously, Rainbow Dash really WAS pulling all the weight there! I've seen some people complain about characters winning against the odds when really they didn't need to win. Since the Equestria Games are going to be a "thing" this season, I think they're building up to something with Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Bulk Biceps qualifying for the games... I just how they do something interesting with the Griffin team!
So yeah, like I thought with the reveal of "Rainbow Power" and what happened in Rarity Takes Manehatten, this is the season-long story arc (along with the Equestria Games itself). I like how people were just lumping it together with the Pony of Shadows, the disappearing comic book, and Fluttershy's fang as one of the many ending gags we've been getting, and making things confusing, even though, given the attention the whole "rainbow" theme got in Rarity Takes Manehatten, and because Meghan McCarthy teased in on Twitter (oh, I DEFINITELY have a lot to say about this, give me a moment), I think it was obvious that THAT was going to be what the season will be all about, and this confirms it. What's weird is that both Rarity and Rainbow Dash seem to see a rainbow, they get a rainbow glow in their eyes, and then they realize what they must do... Are ALL the mane 6 going to go through that? It's a little weird, considering they really stretched to have a rainbow show up in both episodes. Plus, even though I bashed the trinket Rainbow Dash got from Spitfire, it would appear that THAT'S going to be another key... somehow... So, how is that going to fit into the lock? I remember when a lot of us were excited about the prospect of the mane 6 adventuring to find the keys, and a lot of them thought that if they were going to do the whole "the key was inside of you the whole time character realization bullcrap", they'd be pissed. WELP, that seems to be the direction they're going in! TOO BAD!! I don't really mind all that much, but I AM curious as to how this is going to resolve...
Oh... And then there's Derpy. You know, I probably would be more excited about this if Meghan McCarthy didn't spoil it and tease it right before it aired. Seriously, if there's one thing I HATE about Meghan McCarthy, it's not her choices as a showrunner, and it's not the episodes she writers, if the fact that she's ruining a lot of the fun of this show by being a fucking tease about everything! CR! (of Familiar Faces fame) said he didn't like Meghan McCarthy because "she lies about stuff, J.J. Abrams-style", and now I finally get what he means by that. JUST like J.J. Abrams, she makes a big deal about stuff that either shouldn't be that big of a deal or something that would be more fun if we were left to figure it out on her own. In the case of Derpy in this episode, I think a lot of people would have went crazy and flipped out more if Meghan didn't tease it. For me, personally, it RAISED my expectations; since I knew she was coming, I was wondering in what capacity, or if she'd actually speak! She doesn't do that much and she never talks, thus leading me to be disappointed. So thanks, Meghan, thanks for ruining what would have been a fun thing if you didn't butt in! Worse yet, Mike Vogel said that they kept Derpy a secret this season to make her reveal in this episode more of a surprise. YEAH, GUESS MEGHAN MISSED THE MEMO ON THAT ONE!!! Gosh, seriously, I said this before I'll say it again, SHUT THE FUCK UP MEGHAN MCCARTHY, and stop being a fucking tease about everything!
...Yeah, that was a little rude and uncalled for, but I really am annoyed with her constant Tweets. They really do hurt more then help, since it looks like she's trying to get Bronies to side with her and do what she wants, which I can understand, she wants to have a close relation to the Brony community and she wands to dispel the "Meghan McCarthy is a liar" thing that's been going around for a long time, but this really is hurting more then helping! You want connect with the Brony community, quit patting yourself on the back for everything and just let the Bronies judge for themselves! Seriously, just don't say anything, you're not obligated to tell us anything! No one else blabs this much about what they're doing, and they ESPECIALLY l don't hint at thing that are supposed to be a mystery! Yeah, telling us what is and what isn't significant (not commenting on any of the ending gags, but commenting on the rainbow thread) is taking the fun out of the mystery! Ugh, again, sorry, but I'm really bitter about all of this! Just please, someone put a cork in Meghan McCarthy's mouth...
...Oh yeah, Derpy. Like I said, I almost expected her to talk, since knew she was coming. When she didn't, I was a little disappointed, but I understood why she didn't talk. Last time, they overloaded us with not only giving Derpy a role in the episode but having her talk as well! ...Thing about this episode and The Last Roundup, though, is that it pretty much fixed all the problems that episode had. In that episode, Derpy was just a throwaway thing, something they wanted to include "as a shout-out to the Bronies" without any thought put into it, thus leading to Derpy not only stealing the spotlight from what was supposed to be an Applejack episode, but also leading her her sounding more like a guy, since no one bothered to tell Tabitha St. Germain that Derpy was a girl. Here, if feels like there was more thought put into this. Yeah, Derpy doesn't speak, and she's never called Derpy, but doing so, ESPECIALLY after the fallout of The Last Roundup, would seem like a bit too much. Plus, they have to consider the consequences of including her, and what she'll do. Not to mention... ugh, and I guess this is what makes Meghan McCarthy's teases a good thing, having people expect Derpy meant we weren't taken completely off guard, and thus, it didn't blindside us to what was happening in the actual episode. I mean, in The Last Roundup, not only did Derpy do a thing, but she was also called Derpy ONSCREEN, AND SHE TALKED! That was WAY too much for Bronies to process. Here it's a lot better, since it's like "DERPY, YAY!" and we stick to the story. Ugh, there's just too much to say about Derpy here, but one good thing that can be said is that we can probably expect more of her, since supposedly, she's here to stay:
http://www.equestriadaily.com/2014/01/muffins.html
...Okay, so, since my mind wasn't working properly, I re-watched the episode on YouTube to see if I forgot anything. I pretty much talked about all the important stuff above, but here are some minor things I noticed:
Bulk Biceps really is funny. Like, seriously funny. And Rainbow Dash's own "YEAH!" was freaking hilarious, too! Like, I'm serious, I can't believe how much I actually find this stuff funny, the show NEVER seemed this funny before! Yeah, I'm probably one of the few people that never found My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic season 1-3 funny, not to mention I found the comedy to be one of the weaker elements of the show (along with continuity), so imagine how awesome this show is doing when I mention how an episode is funny! Also, in retrospect, it's pretty surreal to see such an incidental gag character like Bulk here actually be one of the major characters of an episode.
Thunderlane sounded a bit different this time around... Another new voice actor, I guess... Thunderlane is still one of my favorite minor characters, BTW.
Is that Flitter or Cloudchaser training? Are these general pegasi competitors, or are these only for the relay? If so, why is she here?
The fact that so many ponies recognize Rainbow Dash on sight leads me to believe that the writers have FINALLY listened to the people complaining that people should know who these ponies are. They apparently still need work on what to do when your main character is a princess, but, you know, it's a learning process.
Twilight's delayed cheer... what was that about? Ah well, she dresses up as a cheerleader later, so it's all good!
OH, a pony that looked like Mickey Goldmill! I pointed that out to my dad, who likes the Rocky movies, and when he didn't say anything I went "It's Mickey!" and he goes "Mickey who?" and I go "Mickey from the Rocky movies!" and he said "Is that what it's supposed to be?" I was a little annoyed that he didn't get the reference.
Those pony cheerleaders are cute...
I didn't notice this at first, but... the way the ponies are talking about the competition, it sounded like the qualifications involved an actual relay race between each of the representatives, even though at the end, it was revealed to just be a timed thing. Rainbow Dash said they needed to be one of the first four teams to cross the finish line... but her team barely made the qualification time... AND THERE WERE FIVE TEAMS AT THE END! It seems like, much like with Rarity Takes Manehatten, there are a lot of minor hiccups in the consistency of what's going on...
Does a baton need to be a pole or can it be anything? Also, how do the horseshoes stick to the ponies' hooves? Are their hooves made of magnets or something?
Another thing... didn't Bulk Bicepts also make it into the Wonderbolts Academy? What happened to HIM?!
Can't help but notice Bulk didn't react at all to the butterfly Fluttershy was being all friendly with. Got over his fear pretty quickly, huh?
Why couldn't Fluttershy do wing-ups in this episode? She could do so in Hurricane Fluttershy, even doing so while overcoming her fear of being mocked by other ponies! Bulk Biceps trying to do wing-ups was funny, though.
Rainbow Dash, Spitfire and Fleetfoot... eating out of bags like actual horse... OMG, I don't know why I'm smirking at that, it's just so silly! :P
Rainbow Dash used her hoof to get some water... why? How could she scoop up the water with her hoof, anyway? Can't she just bend down and lap it up like a normal pony, like how they ate out of those bags? Besides, don't they have water bottles?
Funny how Twilight mentions how much Pinkie, Rarity, and Applejack worked, but not Fluttershy and Bulk Biceps... you know, the actual ponies PART of the team?
When Rainbow Dash bent over the side of her wheelchair, and I heard a cracking noise... I almost thought she ACTUALLY injured herself... What was up with that?
I'd also like to say that I'm glad Cloudsdale's team started rooting for Ponyville after they qualified. I always liked friendly competition more then... well, normal competition, I guess...
Twilight as a cheerleader... so ridiculous and adorable!!!
Applejack took a bite out of her Brown Betty, and had this... weird look on her face when she did so... What's in that stuff, anyway?
...What the Hell were the mane 6 doing while Rainbow Dash was writing in the journal? ...Playing tag?
Fluttershy is sweet and cute as always. The fact that she's willing to compete in the Equestria Games is either breaking character (she HATES performances) or character growth. I feel like it's one or the other and I know people will be debating on that, but I just like how incredible sweet she was in this episode. I didn't like that Bulk Biceps was basically squishing her on the train ride to Rainbow Falls (speaking of which, why is this the title of the episode? Eh, not that we never had generic titles before, but thinking of all the punny titles we have in general, seeing more generic ones like this sticks out more), though for some reason, I didn't mind when Bulk slapped into her while practicing. Probably because that was an accident...
The rest of the mane 6, sans Twilight later on, don't have much of a purpose, other then to support and cheer on the relay team. I guess it's nice, and it would make sense that the mane 6 would support their friends, but since everyone's been sensitive to the idea of the mane 6 being in too many episodes this season, I almost feel the need to comment on their role in every episode they're included it. I really don't have much to say on Applejack's Brown Betties or Rarity's really frilly dresses (I would think the writes would grow out of this joke; Rarity is able to make more practical and functional outfits, you know?). Pinkie, I guess, was fun; the funniest bit was when Rainbow Dash pretended to be injured and mumbled what supposedly caused her injury, and Pinkie angrily swore vengeance against the mumbles, repeating ewhat Rainbow Dash supposedly said. That, no joke, made me "laugh out loud" more then anything this show has done. ...Ugh, I wanted to get through this cronologically, but I ended up mentioning something out of order, I am so OUT OF IT at the moment. Maybe it's because it's later then I'm used to with these kinds of things, I want to watch it immediately, talk about it, then take a nap (since I wake up early for work), but my dad and sister keep using the only TV several hours after I'm done, to the point where I watch the episode and I'm too tired to want to talk about it, but like I said, I'm bound to procrastinate on this and eventually never get around to doing it!
...And now my mom just asked me to shovel the driveway... Fan-fucking-tastic.
Ugh, I wish I could go through this faster, but my mind doesn't want to work at the moment. But I want to get this done!
So, on the train, I'm glad they explain what all the other pony pegasi are doing... I'm assuming there are more events other then sprinting, as I know there are more pegasi other then Thunderland and... whoever that other pegasus was... Ugh, just keep this up man...
OH, this is something I wanted to comment on the most as soon as I saw it in the episode: GRIFFINS! Griffins are competing int he Equestria Games! Like, oh my gosh, I knew there were griffins living in Equestria, but who do you think these griffins represent? Is there a Griffin Kingdom or something WITHIN the rule of Equestria? Or are they part of a town where only Griffins live? Like, seriously, I'm desperate to know more about griffin culture, so these little hints really stole the show for me!
So Spitfire and Soarin' are back, and Fleetfoot (shouldn't it be Fleethoof, now that I think about it?) gets a speaking role. The Wonderbolts are all familiar with Rainbow Dash by now, as they probably should be by this point, and it really is cool to see Soarin' again. As for their role in the episode... Eh, I'll bring that up momentarily.
Eh, you know what, I guess i should talk about the main conflict: Rainbow Dash's loyalties. I have to admit, I expected this to be a bit different, though the way the episode presented it was still top-notch. See, I was kind of assuming that both sides would be presented evenly, like Rainbow Dash would have a really hard time choosing which side to go with, between her birth home and her current home. Instead, the Ponyville team, the team that clearly wouldn't have a chance without Rainbow Dash, is presented as the team she should obviously stay with, while Cloudsdale is the one who will clearly qualify no matter what, and the fact that Rainbow Dash was born in Cloudsdale is only mentioned in passing, as a means to justify her joining the Cloudsdale team. Yeah, Soarin' gets injured (and Rainbow Dash saves him... yeah, that's twice she's done a goof for Soarin', I like where this is going!), and now they SUPPOSEDLY need a new teammate, and decide to tempt Rainbow Dash to join their team... and this is where I'm conflicted... Like, the Wonderbolts are supposed to be Rainbow Dash's idols, right? And Spitfire, the captain of the Wonderbolts, was previously been established as a reasonable (if a tad oblivious) leader, right? Well not here; here they both take get Rainbow Dash to ditch the team that needs her and join their team of "winners"... Like, I'm okay with Fleetfoot doing this, since she didn't have an established personality until now, but Spitfire? Really? These are Rainbow Dash's heroes? And not only that, they LIE about Soarin's condition, saying he's still injured when really he can fly just fine, JUST so they can get Rainbow Dash to be on their team! What the Hell?! Soarin's been part of the Wonderbolts for a for a while, you'd think Spitfire, who no doubt would know him for that long, would be more willing to let himself heal or at the very least not be so quick to ditch him! Seriously, BOTH of them dump Soarin' just like that, and even though they're BOTH awesome flyers who could easily qualify for the Equestria Games on their own skill, regardless of who they got to "replace" him, they still go with Rainbow Dash... Hell, they didn't even really need to replace him, he could fly just fine, maybe not at his 100%, but come on, they already have TWO other teammates that could pick up the slack for him! And at the end of this all, Rainbow Dash calls them out on this, they're all like "oh yeah, you're right, we're sorry", like it's not big deal, like we're still supposed to expect that they're still somehow good ponies. Honestly, if I were Rainbow Dash, a situation like this would have caused a broken pedestal situation, I wouldn't want to be part of the Wonderbolts if THIS is how they treat their teammates... Speaking of which, what the Hell happened after Wonderbolts Acadmeny, did Rainbow Dash progress? How close is she to becoming a Wonderbolt now? Will we get any actual answers to this?! Either way, I CERTAINLY wouldn't accept Spitfire's badge, like it's supposed to be an honor or some shit (I'll get into that bad later, hint hint).
Ugh, wait, I said they presented the conflict in a good way, this isn't doing that justice... Okay, aside from, you know, the Wonderbolts being revealed to be assholes, the actual conflict IS great, because it's about Rainbow Dash's loyalties versus what she wants. She wants to win, AND she wants to fly with her "supposed" heroes, but her team really needs her. I've been in situations where I'm "needed", but my personal desires get in the way of what I need to do. Twilight comes in and calls her on this, and what's awesome about this, is that I expected her to chew Rainbow Dash out for even attempting to ditch her friends, but then I realized, this is not only in character for Twilight (she didn't mind when Rarity did the same thing in Sweet and Elite), but it also helps solidify her as a supposed princess of friendship. See, THIS is what she should have done in Bats!, instead of choosing a side and joining them in ganging up on somepony, she instead is more of a mediator, or at the very least, neutral. She doesn't outright tell Rainbow Dash what to do (unlike The Mysterious Mare-Do-Well), and tells her this is something she needs to figure out for herself. You can tell Rainbow Dash REALLY wants to be with the Wonderbolts and on the winning team (not to mention, the episode seems to go out of it's way to make the Wonderbolts the unquestionable bad choice here), but she ALSO doesn't want to let down her friends. She, instead, fakes injuring herself so that basically she doesn't have to make a choice (which Twilight sees through, and claims that this isn't choosing to Rainbow Dash), but it's here that we see just how nice Rainbow Dash's friends are, and how much they care about her, and Rainbow Dash feels guilty about almost ditching them. Of course we also find out here that Spitfire and Fleetfoot never bothered to visit Soarin' even ONCE, once again, making them look like assholes. Hell, even if they were competitive, you'd think they'd show at least SOME consideration for their teammate!
Then the rainbow thing happens, her eyes glow, and Rainbow Dash tells the truth, she returns to her old team, the Wonderbolts take back Soarin', and they all qualify for the Equestria Games! Yeah, Ponyville's team just barely qualified, like seriously, Rainbow Dash really WAS pulling all the weight there! I've seen some people complain about characters winning against the odds when really they didn't need to win. Since the Equestria Games are going to be a "thing" this season, I think they're building up to something with Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Bulk Biceps qualifying for the games... I just how they do something interesting with the Griffin team!
So yeah, like I thought with the reveal of "Rainbow Power" and what happened in Rarity Takes Manehatten, this is the season-long story arc (along with the Equestria Games itself). I like how people were just lumping it together with the Pony of Shadows, the disappearing comic book, and Fluttershy's fang as one of the many ending gags we've been getting, and making things confusing, even though, given the attention the whole "rainbow" theme got in Rarity Takes Manehatten, and because Meghan McCarthy teased in on Twitter (oh, I DEFINITELY have a lot to say about this, give me a moment), I think it was obvious that THAT was going to be what the season will be all about, and this confirms it. What's weird is that both Rarity and Rainbow Dash seem to see a rainbow, they get a rainbow glow in their eyes, and then they realize what they must do... Are ALL the mane 6 going to go through that? It's a little weird, considering they really stretched to have a rainbow show up in both episodes. Plus, even though I bashed the trinket Rainbow Dash got from Spitfire, it would appear that THAT'S going to be another key... somehow... So, how is that going to fit into the lock? I remember when a lot of us were excited about the prospect of the mane 6 adventuring to find the keys, and a lot of them thought that if they were going to do the whole "the key was inside of you the whole time character realization bullcrap", they'd be pissed. WELP, that seems to be the direction they're going in! TOO BAD!! I don't really mind all that much, but I AM curious as to how this is going to resolve...
Oh... And then there's Derpy. You know, I probably would be more excited about this if Meghan McCarthy didn't spoil it and tease it right before it aired. Seriously, if there's one thing I HATE about Meghan McCarthy, it's not her choices as a showrunner, and it's not the episodes she writers, if the fact that she's ruining a lot of the fun of this show by being a fucking tease about everything! CR! (of Familiar Faces fame) said he didn't like Meghan McCarthy because "she lies about stuff, J.J. Abrams-style", and now I finally get what he means by that. JUST like J.J. Abrams, she makes a big deal about stuff that either shouldn't be that big of a deal or something that would be more fun if we were left to figure it out on her own. In the case of Derpy in this episode, I think a lot of people would have went crazy and flipped out more if Meghan didn't tease it. For me, personally, it RAISED my expectations; since I knew she was coming, I was wondering in what capacity, or if she'd actually speak! She doesn't do that much and she never talks, thus leading me to be disappointed. So thanks, Meghan, thanks for ruining what would have been a fun thing if you didn't butt in! Worse yet, Mike Vogel said that they kept Derpy a secret this season to make her reveal in this episode more of a surprise. YEAH, GUESS MEGHAN MISSED THE MEMO ON THAT ONE!!! Gosh, seriously, I said this before I'll say it again, SHUT THE FUCK UP MEGHAN MCCARTHY, and stop being a fucking tease about everything!
...Yeah, that was a little rude and uncalled for, but I really am annoyed with her constant Tweets. They really do hurt more then help, since it looks like she's trying to get Bronies to side with her and do what she wants, which I can understand, she wants to have a close relation to the Brony community and she wands to dispel the "Meghan McCarthy is a liar" thing that's been going around for a long time, but this really is hurting more then helping! You want connect with the Brony community, quit patting yourself on the back for everything and just let the Bronies judge for themselves! Seriously, just don't say anything, you're not obligated to tell us anything! No one else blabs this much about what they're doing, and they ESPECIALLY l don't hint at thing that are supposed to be a mystery! Yeah, telling us what is and what isn't significant (not commenting on any of the ending gags, but commenting on the rainbow thread) is taking the fun out of the mystery! Ugh, again, sorry, but I'm really bitter about all of this! Just please, someone put a cork in Meghan McCarthy's mouth...
...Oh yeah, Derpy. Like I said, I almost expected her to talk, since knew she was coming. When she didn't, I was a little disappointed, but I understood why she didn't talk. Last time, they overloaded us with not only giving Derpy a role in the episode but having her talk as well! ...Thing about this episode and The Last Roundup, though, is that it pretty much fixed all the problems that episode had. In that episode, Derpy was just a throwaway thing, something they wanted to include "as a shout-out to the Bronies" without any thought put into it, thus leading to Derpy not only stealing the spotlight from what was supposed to be an Applejack episode, but also leading her her sounding more like a guy, since no one bothered to tell Tabitha St. Germain that Derpy was a girl. Here, if feels like there was more thought put into this. Yeah, Derpy doesn't speak, and she's never called Derpy, but doing so, ESPECIALLY after the fallout of The Last Roundup, would seem like a bit too much. Plus, they have to consider the consequences of including her, and what she'll do. Not to mention... ugh, and I guess this is what makes Meghan McCarthy's teases a good thing, having people expect Derpy meant we weren't taken completely off guard, and thus, it didn't blindside us to what was happening in the actual episode. I mean, in The Last Roundup, not only did Derpy do a thing, but she was also called Derpy ONSCREEN, AND SHE TALKED! That was WAY too much for Bronies to process. Here it's a lot better, since it's like "DERPY, YAY!" and we stick to the story. Ugh, there's just too much to say about Derpy here, but one good thing that can be said is that we can probably expect more of her, since supposedly, she's here to stay:
http://www.equestriadaily.com/2014/01/muffins.html
...Okay, so, since my mind wasn't working properly, I re-watched the episode on YouTube to see if I forgot anything. I pretty much talked about all the important stuff above, but here are some minor things I noticed:
Bulk Biceps really is funny. Like, seriously funny. And Rainbow Dash's own "YEAH!" was freaking hilarious, too! Like, I'm serious, I can't believe how much I actually find this stuff funny, the show NEVER seemed this funny before! Yeah, I'm probably one of the few people that never found My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic season 1-3 funny, not to mention I found the comedy to be one of the weaker elements of the show (along with continuity), so imagine how awesome this show is doing when I mention how an episode is funny! Also, in retrospect, it's pretty surreal to see such an incidental gag character like Bulk here actually be one of the major characters of an episode.
Thunderlane sounded a bit different this time around... Another new voice actor, I guess... Thunderlane is still one of my favorite minor characters, BTW.
Is that Flitter or Cloudchaser training? Are these general pegasi competitors, or are these only for the relay? If so, why is she here?
The fact that so many ponies recognize Rainbow Dash on sight leads me to believe that the writers have FINALLY listened to the people complaining that people should know who these ponies are. They apparently still need work on what to do when your main character is a princess, but, you know, it's a learning process.
Twilight's delayed cheer... what was that about? Ah well, she dresses up as a cheerleader later, so it's all good!
OH, a pony that looked like Mickey Goldmill! I pointed that out to my dad, who likes the Rocky movies, and when he didn't say anything I went "It's Mickey!" and he goes "Mickey who?" and I go "Mickey from the Rocky movies!" and he said "Is that what it's supposed to be?" I was a little annoyed that he didn't get the reference.
Those pony cheerleaders are cute...
I didn't notice this at first, but... the way the ponies are talking about the competition, it sounded like the qualifications involved an actual relay race between each of the representatives, even though at the end, it was revealed to just be a timed thing. Rainbow Dash said they needed to be one of the first four teams to cross the finish line... but her team barely made the qualification time... AND THERE WERE FIVE TEAMS AT THE END! It seems like, much like with Rarity Takes Manehatten, there are a lot of minor hiccups in the consistency of what's going on...
Does a baton need to be a pole or can it be anything? Also, how do the horseshoes stick to the ponies' hooves? Are their hooves made of magnets or something?
Another thing... didn't Bulk Bicepts also make it into the Wonderbolts Academy? What happened to HIM?!
Can't help but notice Bulk didn't react at all to the butterfly Fluttershy was being all friendly with. Got over his fear pretty quickly, huh?
Why couldn't Fluttershy do wing-ups in this episode? She could do so in Hurricane Fluttershy, even doing so while overcoming her fear of being mocked by other ponies! Bulk Biceps trying to do wing-ups was funny, though.
Rainbow Dash, Spitfire and Fleetfoot... eating out of bags like actual horse... OMG, I don't know why I'm smirking at that, it's just so silly! :P
Rainbow Dash used her hoof to get some water... why? How could she scoop up the water with her hoof, anyway? Can't she just bend down and lap it up like a normal pony, like how they ate out of those bags? Besides, don't they have water bottles?
Funny how Twilight mentions how much Pinkie, Rarity, and Applejack worked, but not Fluttershy and Bulk Biceps... you know, the actual ponies PART of the team?
When Rainbow Dash bent over the side of her wheelchair, and I heard a cracking noise... I almost thought she ACTUALLY injured herself... What was up with that?
I'd also like to say that I'm glad Cloudsdale's team started rooting for Ponyville after they qualified. I always liked friendly competition more then... well, normal competition, I guess...
Twilight as a cheerleader... so ridiculous and adorable!!!
Applejack took a bite out of her Brown Betty, and had this... weird look on her face when she did so... What's in that stuff, anyway?
...What the Hell were the mane 6 doing while Rainbow Dash was writing in the journal? ...Playing tag?
And I think that's about it... Ugh, this took so long to write up... I actually feel slightly better now then when I started, but still... I really need to rewind after this... But regardless, yet another great episode. No seriously, I think season 4 might just be the best season of MLP:FiM, without a doubt!
ernesth100
The Traveler, The Genius, The Scholar
I loved it Dash Derpy and Pinkie!
I've got a lot to say... regardless if I'm in the mood or not.Elsa said:
ernesth100
The Traveler, The Genius, The Scholar
^Thats a dedicated Brony!
Well, I tend to procrastinate a LOT. I still need to catch up on Adventure Time and Steven Universe episodes. I'd rather not have to catch up on ponies.
ernesth100
The Traveler, The Genius, The Scholar
You sir are officially cool to me.
That's very nice of you to say... Most people would just say it's weird.ernesth100 said:
ernesth100
The Traveler, The Genius, The Scholar
We're all on a super mario forum talking about My little Pony. I'd say we're all atleast a little weird.
Kyoko Sakura
Celestial Guide
It IS a pun. :I
Rainbow Falls the location and Rainbow Dash falls. Like "Rainbow is falling." She's not being loyal and her Element of Harmony is Loyalty.
ernesth100
The Traveler, The Genius, The Scholar
^She or he explained it like a boss.
...Princess Puddin said:
Also, this sums up ALL the good points of this episode, and also nicely sums up why I think season 4 is the best season so far:
http://nimaru.deviantart.com/art/Rainbow-Falls-Setting-the-standard-for-MLP-427954930
SonicMario
Star Spirit
It kinda feels like Bizarro World right now. I actually didn't like Rainbow Falls as much xD Maybe I need to watch it again.
But the fact is my thoughts going to the episode is I was worried they'd portray the Cloudsdale team as jerks. And while it didn't go to the extreme where they were portrayed as assholes they did a bit of a mixed thing where one of them was awesome (Soarin'), one was an asshole (Fleetfoot), and one was in-between the two extremes (Spitfire). The point is though, there could have been a way for them to get Rainbow Dash on the Ponyville team which is supposed to be the ending. But not make the Cloudsdale team have any jerkish behavior like trying to recruit someone immediately after they have an injured teammate.
Ponyville is Rainbow Dash's home. They could of made it so Rainbow Dash chose ponyville because if she went with Cloudsdale, she would not be representing the pony she is now. She'd be representing who she was at one time. Rainbow Dash has more attachments to Ponyville then Cloudsdale. As it's where all her friends are, where she learned to be a better pony (See Hurricane Fluttershy, Wonderbolt Academy, and Flight to the Finish) then she was before. They didn't need to make things little too predictable by making the Cloudsdale team have a flaw that Rainbow Dash has to realize at the end in order to stay with the Ponyville team.
How they answered my worries about the episode was how it was going to go. And unfortunately it kinda met with at least some of what I was worried about. I did enjoy some good parts of the episodes though, Derpy's appearence was nice to see especially. And it's nice to have what may be the 2nd out of the 6 keys. (If you didn't see that, the Rainbow eyes things are blatant foreshadowing)
Still even if this holds up as my least favorite episode of the Season this stil speaks something about Season 4, because it wasn't an awful episode in my view. It just took a direction I didn't exactly want it to go with. But I suppose it couldn't help it in this case. I am excited for the next two episodes though. Still loving how the season's shaping up. ^^
But the fact is my thoughts going to the episode is I was worried they'd portray the Cloudsdale team as jerks. And while it didn't go to the extreme where they were portrayed as assholes they did a bit of a mixed thing where one of them was awesome (Soarin'), one was an asshole (Fleetfoot), and one was in-between the two extremes (Spitfire). The point is though, there could have been a way for them to get Rainbow Dash on the Ponyville team which is supposed to be the ending. But not make the Cloudsdale team have any jerkish behavior like trying to recruit someone immediately after they have an injured teammate.
Ponyville is Rainbow Dash's home. They could of made it so Rainbow Dash chose ponyville because if she went with Cloudsdale, she would not be representing the pony she is now. She'd be representing who she was at one time. Rainbow Dash has more attachments to Ponyville then Cloudsdale. As it's where all her friends are, where she learned to be a better pony (See Hurricane Fluttershy, Wonderbolt Academy, and Flight to the Finish) then she was before. They didn't need to make things little too predictable by making the Cloudsdale team have a flaw that Rainbow Dash has to realize at the end in order to stay with the Ponyville team.
How they answered my worries about the episode was how it was going to go. And unfortunately it kinda met with at least some of what I was worried about. I did enjoy some good parts of the episodes though, Derpy's appearence was nice to see especially. And it's nice to have what may be the 2nd out of the 6 keys. (If you didn't see that, the Rainbow eyes things are blatant foreshadowing)
Still even if this holds up as my least favorite episode of the Season this stil speaks something about Season 4, because it wasn't an awful episode in my view. It just took a direction I didn't exactly want it to go with. But I suppose it couldn't help it in this case. I am excited for the next two episodes though. Still loving how the season's shaping up. ^^
EqD follow-up on this episode:
http://www.equestriadaily.com/2014/01/rainbow-falls-episode-followup.html
My post on this article:
Edit: Well, it seems like I'm in Bizarro world... I like an episode I think is genuinely good, and not just in an "it has it's obvious flaws but I still like it" kind of way, yet everyone seems to hate it. Granted, I didn't like Spitfire in Rainbow Falls, but Jumping Jiminy, I didn't think this many people would hate it!
Edit2: I like Gibbontake, he's a silly pony... Also, in his review here, he says something important about Derpy's inclusion, and why it's NOT just blatant "fan pandering":
Basically, Derpy serves a role in the story, and drives the point home that Rainbow Dash's team will definitely lose without her. As Gibbon says, it's "fan pandering done RIGHT!"
http://www.equestriadaily.com/2014/01/rainbow-falls-episode-followup.html
My post on this article:
Angel was there? I'd go back to check, but I hate Angel... Then again, I love Bulk Biceps enough to do it anyway!
Rainbow Dash mentioning "Yeah!"s was awesome... I also love how badass-adorable she is... Gosh, she's cute when she's tough. :3
I'd say "screw you" to Aquaman52 for calling Fluttershy a one-note character, but I don't want to get into that kind of mood right now. Because gosh-darnit, I freaking love Fluttershy in this episodes, too!
A lot of cold openings in MLP aren't necessary, and while I don't think this one was as important, it definitely had it's place in setting up what's going to happen without eating up time in the actual episode, plus establishing Bulk Biceps basic personality, since we didn't get much of it from either Hurricane Fluttershy or Wonderbolts Academy.
Now that they mentioned it, the use of the train really sky-rocketed during and after season 2... to the point where it feels weird that Twilight didn't travel to Ponyville in it for the first episode... then again, Lauren Faust was shaky about the inclusion of trains in Equestria, to the point where she wanted the train in Over a Barrel to be pulled by 4 stallions... and it came off all the weirder for it.
I'm almost certain that's not Blossomforth, she has a differently-colored mane. Also, nice reference to the old Thunderlane gag! :P
Oh yeah, I didn't mention this before, but Corey Powell wrote this episode! From writing fan-favorite Sleepless in Ponyville to writing the bad-end-of-"eh" Just for Sidekicks to writing this... yeah, I'd say she's a keeper! BTW, I REALLY liked Bulk Biceps and Soarin' in this episode, too.
You know, some people honestly complained about why Twilight isn't competing... I think it would be obvious, given her title and status, but then again, since this season has been treating her like she's just a normal unicorn anyway, in retrospect, it doesn't surprise me that some people would bring that up.
I was a little annoyed that Fluttershy was being sat on, though given that Bulk Biceps really is a literal definition of "dumb muscle", I'm... a little willing to let it slide... Same goes for when he accidentally slams Fluttershy into the mountain, especially since he seems genuinely concerned that time.
"Its just another reason why shes the best pony in Ponyville, and I am in no way being bribed, coerced, or threatened with bodily harm in order to ensure that I share that opinion with you all." ...Remind me to bribe, coerce, and threaten with bodily harm Awuaman into saying Fluttershy's the best pony in Ponyville.
You know, since it was pointed out to me that the title "Rainbow Falls" is a pun, since it's about Rainbow Dash "falling" or "failing" her element of loyalty, I have to wonder... is the place they go to actually called "Rainbow Falls"? Do they ever utter the name of the place in the episode? But yeah, it's a great scenic location, really makes me want to know more about it. ...Also, now I'm reminded of Gravity Falls...
OMG, Bon Bon and Lyra were talking to each other on a bench in this episode, I didn't even notice that!
Oh, and the griffons. I am severely disappointed by the lack of discussion about the griffons in this episode, I thought they were the coolest minor/incidental thing about this episode. I'm always curious about griffon culture and how it relates to pony culture, and this just leaves me hungry for more!
Wait... Berry Punch is a pegasus... What. Also, Cloudchaser and Flitter are there... Are they training for another event, are all the ponies there training for different qualification events that happened to be hosted there? ...I'm going to assume yes.
So yeah, I guess I wasn't too surprised that the Wonderbolts were competing... I mean, the show was always fickle about exactly what the Wonderbolts are, and if they're truly allowed to compete in games like this. It's something I can accept, though I can understand why other people wouldn't.
Mickey, the name your looking for is Mickey Goldmill, Aquaman.
GOSH, alicorns are popping up everywhere! ...Part of me wonders is this is intentional, as if they're trying to show that alicorns aren't that unheard off in Equestria... I really hope this is just another animation good, I'm getting a little scared by this! o_o
OH, DERPY'S HEAD IS THERE! I guess I was distracted by Mickey and those cute cheerleaders!
I did find it a little weird that Fluttershy was such a butterfingers... er, butterhooves in this episode... Especially since yeah, those "batons" really stick to your hooves for no reason at all! I feel like this was just put in to show Fluttershy having a problem being in the competition... outside of, you know, being a fairly weak flyer. Again, didn't bother me that much.
I REALLY don't like Spitfire's voice, it doesn't really fit her; it's like a little girl trying and failing miserably to sound tough, you know what I mean?
Yeah, what happened after Wonderbolts Academy? Did Rainbow Dash move on? Is she any closer to becoming a Wonderbolt? And yeah, what of Bulk Biceps, how did HE do?! These don't bother me THAT much, but I REALLY wish they will be explain/explored later on.
I get the feeling Aquaman is like Digibrony, in that they both don't see any problem with Rainbow Dash flying with the Wonderbolts... I guess I don't either, but then again, the episode really seems to make it slightly obvious that staying with Ponyville is the right thing to do, what with them being completely inadequate without Rainbow and with the Wonderbolts being dicks, which is honestly the only real problem I had with this episode... Fleetfoot I can take being a jerk, but Spitfire is supposed to be the captain! You'd think she'd be a LITTLE more responsible and reasonable, and not too quick to ditch and completely abandon a fellow teammate. >:/
I REALLY don't like how that Hub bumper is position... Also, Rainbow Dash rubbing her belly is too cute!
...Oh yeah, Rainbow Dash doesn't like ponies touching her hooves... I forgot about that, since I didn't like Ponyville Confidential.
I like what Aquaman points out, in that I hate the whole "liar-reveal" plotline, since I hate awkward moments... Not to mention, even though Twilight does give reasons for why Rainbow Dash shouldn't leave the Ponyville team, she's still very neutral about the whole thing, in that she tells Rainbow Dash to decide for herself. I totally respect that, and I feel it's what she SHOULD have done in Bats!
Rainbow's mumbled excuse and Pinkie's parroting of the mumbled excuse is literally the funniest thing I've seen in this show... Literally. I never laughed harder at anything this show threw at me.
I've said so much about Derpy, I don't want to repeat myself too much. I'll just say this: I feel like THIS is how they should have handled her in The Last Roundup. What they did with Derpy in that episode was overkill, not only giving her a major role, but naming her on-screen and giving her a voice. It was too much for Bronies to take that it completely overshadowed the rest of the episode. What I think was the worse aspect about it was that Derpy seemed to be an afterthought by everyone involved, without giving her much consideration, and nobody was on the same page about anything involving her, thus leading the the reaction, the removal, and the fallout. This CLEARLY has more thought put into it. She doesn't take, she isn't named, but she's got plenty of screentime and doesn't disappear afterward. It's basically the comeback we've been waiting for, while also acting as an accidental example of how it SHOULD have been done in The Last Roundup! ...Also, Derpy's just so adorable...
Actually, I want Meghan McCarthy to change. I want her to stop this teasing BS. Mike Vogel (or was it Jim Miller?) said the didn't say anything to keep Derpy as surprised. And Meghan freaking blew THAT, as well as the supposed mystery of what the story arc is going to be; not commenting on any of the ending gags but commenting on the rainbow thread in Rarity Takes Manehatten. Seriously, just someone put a cork in her mouth already, it's getting annoying!
I like what Aquaman said about Soarin', and yeah, he definitely seems like an awesome guy... definitely the friendliest of the Wonderbolts we've seen.
lol, Lorax reference!
Ooo, "Split Second", I like that name... Also, Felix Hawthrone pointed out that Twilight's cheerleader outfit could be a reference to Lollipop Chainsaw, in which Tara Strong voiced the main character.
I didn't interpret the standings of each team as how each team finished... Especially since Rainbow Dash said the first FOUR teams to finish the quickest will qualify, and there are clearly five teams in this shot.
Yeah, Rainbow Dash has changed quite a bit... to the point where I don't think I've noticed any one episode of character development, it was more of a natural, progressive kind of development, something you don't notice right away.
I think this ending stinger and the one at the end of Rarity Takes Manehatten are justified, as they are actually building up to something, unlike the the stupid ending gags of Castle Mane-ia, Power Ponies, and Bats!
Rainbow Dash mentioning "Yeah!"s was awesome... I also love how badass-adorable she is... Gosh, she's cute when she's tough. :3
I'd say "screw you" to Aquaman52 for calling Fluttershy a one-note character, but I don't want to get into that kind of mood right now. Because gosh-darnit, I freaking love Fluttershy in this episodes, too!
A lot of cold openings in MLP aren't necessary, and while I don't think this one was as important, it definitely had it's place in setting up what's going to happen without eating up time in the actual episode, plus establishing Bulk Biceps basic personality, since we didn't get much of it from either Hurricane Fluttershy or Wonderbolts Academy.
Now that they mentioned it, the use of the train really sky-rocketed during and after season 2... to the point where it feels weird that Twilight didn't travel to Ponyville in it for the first episode... then again, Lauren Faust was shaky about the inclusion of trains in Equestria, to the point where she wanted the train in Over a Barrel to be pulled by 4 stallions... and it came off all the weirder for it.
I'm almost certain that's not Blossomforth, she has a differently-colored mane. Also, nice reference to the old Thunderlane gag! :P
Oh yeah, I didn't mention this before, but Corey Powell wrote this episode! From writing fan-favorite Sleepless in Ponyville to writing the bad-end-of-"eh" Just for Sidekicks to writing this... yeah, I'd say she's a keeper! BTW, I REALLY liked Bulk Biceps and Soarin' in this episode, too.
You know, some people honestly complained about why Twilight isn't competing... I think it would be obvious, given her title and status, but then again, since this season has been treating her like she's just a normal unicorn anyway, in retrospect, it doesn't surprise me that some people would bring that up.
I was a little annoyed that Fluttershy was being sat on, though given that Bulk Biceps really is a literal definition of "dumb muscle", I'm... a little willing to let it slide... Same goes for when he accidentally slams Fluttershy into the mountain, especially since he seems genuinely concerned that time.
"Its just another reason why shes the best pony in Ponyville, and I am in no way being bribed, coerced, or threatened with bodily harm in order to ensure that I share that opinion with you all." ...Remind me to bribe, coerce, and threaten with bodily harm Awuaman into saying Fluttershy's the best pony in Ponyville.
You know, since it was pointed out to me that the title "Rainbow Falls" is a pun, since it's about Rainbow Dash "falling" or "failing" her element of loyalty, I have to wonder... is the place they go to actually called "Rainbow Falls"? Do they ever utter the name of the place in the episode? But yeah, it's a great scenic location, really makes me want to know more about it. ...Also, now I'm reminded of Gravity Falls...
OMG, Bon Bon and Lyra were talking to each other on a bench in this episode, I didn't even notice that!
Oh, and the griffons. I am severely disappointed by the lack of discussion about the griffons in this episode, I thought they were the coolest minor/incidental thing about this episode. I'm always curious about griffon culture and how it relates to pony culture, and this just leaves me hungry for more!
Wait... Berry Punch is a pegasus... What.
Also, Cloudchaser and Flitter are there... Are they training for another event, are all the ponies there training for different qualification events that happened to be hosted there? ...I'm going to assume yes.So yeah, I guess I wasn't too surprised that the Wonderbolts were competing... I mean, the show was always fickle about exactly what the Wonderbolts are, and if they're truly allowed to compete in games like this. It's something I can accept, though I can understand why other people wouldn't.
Mickey, the name your looking for is Mickey Goldmill, Aquaman.
GOSH, alicorns are popping up everywhere! ...Part of me wonders is this is intentional, as if they're trying to show that alicorns aren't that unheard off in Equestria... I really hope this is just another animation good, I'm getting a little scared by this! o_o
OH, DERPY'S HEAD IS THERE! I guess I was distracted by Mickey and those cute cheerleaders!
I did find it a little weird that Fluttershy was such a butterfingers... er, butterhooves in this episode... Especially since yeah, those "batons" really stick to your hooves for no reason at all! I feel like this was just put in to show Fluttershy having a problem being in the competition... outside of, you know, being a fairly weak flyer. Again, didn't bother me that much.
I REALLY don't like Spitfire's voice, it doesn't really fit her; it's like a little girl trying and failing miserably to sound tough, you know what I mean?
Yeah, what happened after Wonderbolts Academy? Did Rainbow Dash move on? Is she any closer to becoming a Wonderbolt? And yeah, what of Bulk Biceps, how did HE do?! These don't bother me THAT much, but I REALLY wish they will be explain/explored later on.
I get the feeling Aquaman is like Digibrony, in that they both don't see any problem with Rainbow Dash flying with the Wonderbolts... I guess I don't either, but then again, the episode really seems to make it slightly obvious that staying with Ponyville is the right thing to do, what with them being completely inadequate without Rainbow and with the Wonderbolts being dicks, which is honestly the only real problem I had with this episode... Fleetfoot I can take being a jerk, but Spitfire is supposed to be the captain! You'd think she'd be a LITTLE more responsible and reasonable, and not too quick to ditch and completely abandon a fellow teammate. >:/
I REALLY don't like how that Hub bumper is position... Also, Rainbow Dash rubbing her belly is too cute!
...Oh yeah, Rainbow Dash doesn't like ponies touching her hooves... I forgot about that, since I didn't like Ponyville Confidential.
I like what Aquaman points out, in that I hate the whole "liar-reveal" plotline, since I hate awkward moments... Not to mention, even though Twilight does give reasons for why Rainbow Dash shouldn't leave the Ponyville team, she's still very neutral about the whole thing, in that she tells Rainbow Dash to decide for herself. I totally respect that, and I feel it's what she SHOULD have done in Bats!
Rainbow's mumbled excuse and Pinkie's parroting of the mumbled excuse is literally the funniest thing I've seen in this show... Literally. I never laughed harder at anything this show threw at me.
I've said so much about Derpy, I don't want to repeat myself too much. I'll just say this: I feel like THIS is how they should have handled her in The Last Roundup. What they did with Derpy in that episode was overkill, not only giving her a major role, but naming her on-screen and giving her a voice. It was too much for Bronies to take that it completely overshadowed the rest of the episode. What I think was the worse aspect about it was that Derpy seemed to be an afterthought by everyone involved, without giving her much consideration, and nobody was on the same page about anything involving her, thus leading the the reaction, the removal, and the fallout. This CLEARLY has more thought put into it. She doesn't take, she isn't named, but she's got plenty of screentime and doesn't disappear afterward. It's basically the comeback we've been waiting for, while also acting as an accidental example of how it SHOULD have been done in The Last Roundup! ...Also, Derpy's just so adorable...
Actually, I want Meghan McCarthy to change. I want her to stop this teasing BS. Mike Vogel (or was it Jim Miller?) said the didn't say anything to keep Derpy as surprised. And Meghan freaking blew THAT, as well as the supposed mystery of what the story arc is going to be; not commenting on any of the ending gags but commenting on the rainbow thread in Rarity Takes Manehatten. Seriously, just someone put a cork in her mouth already, it's getting annoying!
I like what Aquaman said about Soarin', and yeah, he definitely seems like an awesome guy... definitely the friendliest of the Wonderbolts we've seen.
lol, Lorax reference!
Ooo, "Split Second", I like that name... Also, Felix Hawthrone pointed out that Twilight's cheerleader outfit could be a reference to Lollipop Chainsaw, in which Tara Strong voiced the main character.
I didn't interpret the standings of each team as how each team finished... Especially since Rainbow Dash said the first FOUR teams to finish the quickest will qualify, and there are clearly five teams in this shot.
Yeah, Rainbow Dash has changed quite a bit... to the point where I don't think I've noticed any one episode of character development, it was more of a natural, progressive kind of development, something you don't notice right away.
I think this ending stinger and the one at the end of Rarity Takes Manehatten are justified, as they are actually building up to something, unlike the the stupid ending gags of Castle Mane-ia, Power Ponies, and Bats!
Edit: Well, it seems like I'm in Bizarro world... I like an episode I think is genuinely good, and not just in an "it has it's obvious flaws but I still like it" kind of way, yet everyone seems to hate it. Granted, I didn't like Spitfire in Rainbow Falls, but Jumping Jiminy, I didn't think this many people would hate it!
Edit2: I like Gibbontake, he's a silly pony... Also, in his review here, he says something important about Derpy's inclusion, and why it's NOT just blatant "fan pandering":
Basically, Derpy serves a role in the story, and drives the point home that Rainbow Dash's team will definitely lose without her. As Gibbon says, it's "fan pandering done RIGHT!"
DragonFreak
Everything that drowns me makes me wanna fly!
I finally got caught up and watched all the episodes I missed from Power Ponies to Pinkie Apple Pie. Dang, I missed some fantastic episodes.
Toad Eightyfive
used to be here but peaced out
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- Toad85
I just realized I haven't seen any of the Season 4 episodes all the way through yet, and five of them I haven't seen at all.
I should probably get on that. :P
I should probably get on that. :P
SonicMario
Star Spirit
Farkles14 said:
Yeah, all the episodes (Except for Rainbow Falls, that's the only episode I think is bad out of the episodes we have) have been pretty good so far. Season 4 has a better overall quality consistency in the first 10 episodes then any previous season before it. (Even Season 2 had more duds in the first 10 then Season 4 has had)