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[Captain Sorzo]

Thoughts on Simple Ways:

 

Spoiler

Well, it was better than I feared. It wasn't on the level of most Rarity episodes, but at least it easily topped Look Before You Sleep. Most of my issues still stem with the general premise, as I've never been a fan of love triangles. Beyond that, Rarity's nervousness in the first half seems out of character, as she was much more calm and collected when she met Prince Blueblood, whom she was just as enamored with.

That said, the execution was reasonably decent. I realized halfway through the episode that this was basically Rarity's Lesson Zero, what with the gradual descent into madness, but I'm glad the writer had Rarity come to her senses on her own, and without driving half the town insane first to boot. Spike probably had his best characterization of the season with this one; while it would have been nice for his crush on Rarity to play a larger role, the nod to it was very well done. The humor in general was solid, in no small part because Tabitha continues to be simply amazing.

I'm getting pretty tired of Twilight playing the straight-man role in which she just stands there spouting a few basic words of reason. It's all she ever does at this point and is repetitive, uninteresting, and devoid of meaningful characterization. That's an issue more with the season than the episode itself.

I can't help but feel that the subplot involving the festival should have been dropped. The episode had good pacing, but doing so would allow for more focus on character interactions and motivations. It would have been nice to have a greater understanding of why Rarity has built up such a romantic ideal of Trenderhoof. Being able to get inside her head more would have made the conflict more relatable. One of the many great things about Rarity Takes Manehattan was that, even at her worst, Rarity remained believable and sympathetic; I could easily see myself acting similarly in such a position. This episode was far more exaggerated and, well, cartoonish; there really wasn't much subtlety at play, and rather than empathizing with the protagonist I found myself thinking, "Come on, Rarity, you're better than this."

Overall Episode Rating: Good

[ILOVEVHS]

Equestria Girls 2 confirmed.

...not actually excited.

[Captain Sorzo]

Bleh. This looks even worse than the first film, which is saying something. Equestria Girls turned out to be pretty much what I had anticipated FiM would be like when I reluctantly started watching the series after curiosity finally got the better of me: a shallow, cliched mess. Not even the prospect of a dozen new Ingram songs has me all that excited, as all the songs in the first film, save Helping Twilight Win the Crown, which was great in spite of its moronic narrative context, were nowhere near the standard established in the show. It was especially jarring coming directly off the masterwork that is Magical Mystery Cure.

[ILOVEVHS]

HEY GUYS! REMEBER THOSE HUMAN PONIES YOU LIKED?! WELL NOW THEY'RE A ROCK BAND! YAY! HASBRO LUVS MONEY!

(Changes the channel)

[GamemasterAnthony]

I'm a bit worried about this premise for EG2.  Remember that Hasbro also owns the Jem franchise...

[Captain Sorzo]

Thoughts on Filli Vanilli:

Spoiler

 

Wow. That slice of greatness caught me by surprise. Between my issues with last week's episode and frustration that Flutters would have yet another episode revolving around overcoming shyness, I wasn't very excited for this episode. Once again, however, Amy Keating Rogers more than delivered.

My only complaints were the implication that many previous songs in the series were non-diagetic, which was always a possibility but something I prefer left to the audience's preference, and Twilight's rather ham-fisted line explaining stage fright, a rare moment where it felt like the show was talking down to the audience. Other than that, this episode was wonderful.

The return of Flutterguy caught me off guard and was an awesome callback to the one redeeming quality of Bridle Gossip, while Flutters' characterization was a bit more relatable than usual this time around. Having her actually enjoy secretly singing with the rest of the quartet was a wise decision, as was the idea of having her already be a fan of their songs, which prevented a potential plot hole. The song itself was rather enjoyable, even though I normally don't care for that style of music.

Rarity's supporting role was absolutely spot-on, a delightful return to form after last week. While I can see why people might be annoyed with Pinkie's role in this episode, I feel it worked here. Not only was it funny, she actually seemed self-aware and was embarrassed when Rarity called her out for going too far.

Bic Mac's "explanation" to Applejack was just awesome, as were Pinkie's turkey call and the cameo of Gummy trying to swallow a turkey.

Overall Episode Rating: Great

 

Note that there's an actual spoiler here for a very fun little twist that I'm grateful wasn't given away in any of the previews I saw. I'd recommend watching the episode first before reading.

[GamemasterAnthony]

*walks in with what appears to be a poster under his arm*

 

You guys might appreciate a bit of fanart a colleague of mine named Hazzardous did.  Now...see if you recognize the character that's been ponified...

 

*hangs up this pic for all to see*

 

FYI:  Yes, the picture is work safe.

[furrykef]

It's Antoine!

[Captain Sorzo]

Thoughts on Twilight Time:

 

Spoiler

Meh. The episode felt competently written in the sense that everyone seemed in character (though I did raise an eyebrow at Twilight's manners whilst eating; I'd expect better from someone raised as Celestia's apprentice) and there were a few funny moments, but it never really went anywhere interesting. Then again, there weren't any glaring flaws present either other than it being somewhat bland. I just don't have much to say about his one, good or ill.

After the superb quality of the past two Scootaloo episodes (not to mention Rarity Takes Manehattan, Polsky's last outing, which is probably my favorite of the season so far), I'll admit that seeing this reach no higher than the usual second-rate standard of CMC episodes is rather disappointing. Then again, those two episodes were focused on a single individual rather than the CMCs as a group, leaving room for more substantial characterization. Hopefully the upcoming episodes focused on Applebloom and Sweetie Belle will fare as well, though I doubt it.

Overall Episode Rating: Mediocre

To fair, it's on the upper end of Mediocre, bordering on Good. Certainly better than Pinkie Apple Pie.

[Captain Sorzo]

I don't listen to that much original music created by the community, but this is fantastic:

 

[Captain Sorzo]

Angry Rant Toward Thoughts on It Ain't Easy Being Breezies:

 

Spoiler

ARGH. I just...what....why...who....how....what the heck was that?!

We have a new worst episode of the season; the previous worst was Natasha Levinger's only other episode. At this rate, while I don't wish for anyone to be out of work, I feel the show would be better off if she wasn't asked to return for future seasons.

I liked a couple of the jokes, though none were terribly funny. Seabreeze's characterization was also nice (though I still find the clash between his gender and design rather bizarre), as was the moral.

Everything else felt, at best, off in small ways. It's hard to explain, but this is one of those cases where the feel of the characters and the overall show just wasn't quite right. On top of that, the episode was irritatingly saccharine, a pitfall the majority of the series has against all odds managed to avoid thus far. It's the difference between cutesy and genuinely cute, as well as the whole "show, don't tell" philosophy toward writing. We're constantly told that the Breezies are adorable, but I didn't find that to be the case; having it constantly shoved in my face made it all the more aggravating. By contrast, the last Fluttershy episode, Filli Vanilli, was legitimately adorable, yet it didn't constantly try to emphasize that point and rely on it to carry the episode. It simply was what it was.

Despite all that, I was slowly starting to warm up to the episode near the end, in part because Seabreeze offered a nice twist on this story archetype.

Then Twilight showed up.

I've mentioned before that Twilight has been near the bottom of my Mane 6 rankings lately, largely due to her poor characterization in this season. But this? This?! This takes the flippin' cake. Without so much as asking permission, she zaps her friends, transmogrifying them regardless of their will. Assuming she knows best, she casually decides to violate their bodies on a molecular level. She's essentially playing God at this point, adopting the mindset of "I've got power, and I'm going to use it on others whether they like it or not." This utterly reprehensible act of arrogance cements an opinion that was already on the verge of being solidified: with the possible exception of Sweetie Belle, Twilight is now my least favorite major character in the series.

And what, pray tell, does this ridiculous act accomplish in terms of the narrative? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. The Mane 6 don't help the Breezies get home at all. They just accompany them, resulting in a generic farewell scene that could have been accomplished without punitive abuses of magical power. The only reason the whole segment is even present is presumably to sell toys of the Mane 6 as Breezies, arguably making it the most blatant sequence of advertising in the entire series outside of Equestria Girls. I realize that, from Hasbro's perspective, the entire show is nothing more than a massive commercial and that such mandates do crop up from time to time. But that doesn't mean the writers can't attempt to effectively weave these mandates into the narrative. At its core, Alicorn Twilight was just an excuse to make more toys, but the creative staff still managed to make Magical Mystery Cure an incredibly moving experience.

This? This just rings hollow.

Overall Episode Rating: Poor

 

Thoughts on Somepony to Watch Over Me:

 

Spoiler

Of the first outing episodes this season, this one handily topped Pinkie Apple Pie and Castle Mane-ia; it wasn't anywhere near the quality of Flight to the Finish, but that's understandable considering said episode is among the very best of the season.

I was hoping for a heartfelt conclusion exploring why AJ is so overprotective of her sister, but sadly censorship mandates preventing outright discussion of their parents being dead keep such a topic from being properly addressed. It's a shame, as AJ's position as a sort of surrogate mother is one of the few characteristics about her I find genuinely interesting.

Other than that, this was a pretty average episode...which, after the mess last week, is actually rather refreshing.

The pacing could have been better, with the scenes involving AJ's overprotectiveness and sequence with the chimera being significantly trimmed down to allow for more character interaction. AJ herself was definitely a bit exaggerated, and I'll admit that I probably would have taken issue with it if I was more invested in her character (just as I would probably wouldn't have minded Rarity's behavior in Simple Ways if I didn't hold her in such high regard).

Despite those issues, I had a good time watching this episode. It was entertaining throughout and managed to make me laugh quite a few times, with the double helmet and fake song gags standing out the most. The latter actually fooled me for a moment, leaving me confused due to the numbers McCarthy leaked.

Overall Episode Rating: Good

 

Thoughts on Maud Pie:

 

Spoiler

That was quite possibly the worst Pinkie has been in the entire series. I've defended her for much of the season, but here she was just obnoxious. Or maybe I just need more sleep.

The rest of the Mane 6 spent most of the episode confused, weirded out, and bored, which is more or less how I felt. Having them essentially express much of my own frustration at what was transpiring went a long way toward helping make the episode tolerable. A few of the jokes in general were decent, with the rock slide standing out as the most wonderfully awful pun I've heard in awhile. I suppose the moral was decent, though I feel it could have been presented better. The pacing was pretty poor, however. It's immediately obvious that the Mane 6 (sans Pinkie) have a hard time connecting with Maud, but nearly the entire episode is wasted hammering that point home. It allows for a few fun character moments, but doesn't offer much of an actual plotline.

Maud herself got a few chuckles out of me, but I've seen that type of humor done better elsewhere and overall she was pretty one-note, especially compared to recent single-appearance characters like Cheese Sandwich and Seabreeze.

Not sure if I dislike this episode or Pinkie Apple Pie more. Both were pretty weak outside of some Mane 5 moments and the song, respectively. At least neither left me sputtering with rage, which is more than I can say for Twilight's Adventures in Abusing Sorcery (the Breezies episode).

On the bright side, Rarity and Luna should get to shine somewhat next week, while Amy Keating Rogers returns a few weeks after that.

Overall Episode Rating: Mediocre

Oh, and Tom trumps Boulder any day.

 

Thoughts on For Whom the Sweetie Belle Toils:

 

Spoiler

As I suspected, this was easily the best episode since Filli Vanilli. While it didn't have enough impact to achieve genuine greatness, it was without any notable flaws. The plot was solid in both concept and execution, with the episode remaining engaging despite the lack of humor and thematic depth. As a supporting character, Rarity was understandably not at her most complex, yet her characterization was still strong, without any contrivances thrown in for the sake of the plot. Between this episode and Rarity Takes Manehattan, it's clear that Polsky has a firm understanding of the character. Sweetie Belle herself was, as usual, unlikable for much of the episode, yet even she managed to come around by the end. While the show has touched on jealousy more than once in the past, with Green Isn't Your Color remaining the strongest handling of the matter, the focus on the truth encompassing more than our own perceptions helped the moral from feeling stagnant. The Christmas Carol homage was unexpected, but it worked effectively.

Hopefully future seasons will continue to have CMC episodes focus on a specific character rather than all three at once. It's a much stronger format and likely the only way the girls will actually see substantial character development. Goodness knows Scootaloo went from being a bland third wheel to one of the best characters in the show after a mere two episodes of focus.

Overall Episode Rating: Very Good

 

Thoughts on Leap of Faith:

 

Spoiler

Not much to say about this one. A bit boring, but it didn't irritate me in any way, which puts it above both of Haber's previous outings. The moral's presentation at the end felt a bit more heavy handed than the other key episodes, but it wasn't bad per se. The timing of the rainbow eye effect felt a bit off, however, given that AJ had already started to reveal the truth. As with its predecessor in Season 2, the song was meh. It does a good job of setting up the atmosphere and plot, but as an actual piece of music it was rather wanting, and I don't see myself listening to it again and again like I do with most of the songs in the series. Still better than the Bats song, however.

Haber may have found his niche in AJ episodes, as he writes her at about the same level of quality as everyone else. I still wouldn't mind him giving Flutters, Dash, and Pinkie a shot, provided he's kept far away from Twilight and Rarity.

Overall Episode Rating: Good

[Captain Sorzo]

Thoughts on Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3:

 

Spoiler

This week's episode was the weakest one penned by Amy Keating Rogers of the season.

I still loved every minute of it.

The first half had me laughing nonstop, with the play coordinated by Fluttershy and Spike beating out Pinkie's rapping for the funniest scene of the episode. Rarity's bit was a little jarring in that it didn't seem played for laughs, but it fit in well with her character (drawing motivation from inspiration and passion rather than relying solely on dead, cold facts). Parodying the traditional student/teacher relationship with Dash and Twilight was a very fun idea that lived up to its potential, managing to recontextualize cliches like spitballs and whoopie cushions (or horns in this case) and make them entertaining. Then there was the impromptu musical bit with Dash, Spike, and Owlicious, who was somehow actually funny for once. There were also a few meta jokes, such as Dash poking fun at Twilight's height and AJ throwing out worthless apple trivia.

The transition of the student/teacher relationship from parody to genuine felt natural and managed to give the last few minutes a surprising amount of heart. The moral itself was a strong one, and I'm glad that Twilight learned something along with Dash. Speaking of whom...

Twilight was great in this episode. This is unquestionably the best she's been all season; I've been very critical of her over the past several months, and it's delightfully refreshing to see her in top form again. Twilight Time attempted to highlight her growth from student to mentor, but I felt its execution fell flat. Here, however, it works quite well, in no small part because the writer acknowledges that she has flaws. Rather than being some bland mouthpiece of wisdom like she has been so often as of late, she feels like an actual character again, with a believable balance of strengths and weaknesses.

Bravo, Amy Keating Rogers. You absolutely nailed it this season.

Overall Episode Rating: Great

[GamemasterAnthony]

...and yet still no sign of Twilight's "key".  We already have the other five, so I hope they resolve this soon.

 

Yes, I realize they could be saving that for the season finale, BUT STILL...I'm trying to glean as much as I can about how this reality works, and it's been a cliffhanger laden season for the most part!  (Welcome to the hell that is the work I put into my fics nowadays...)

[Captain Sorzo]

I've seen speculation that it will be Spike, not Twilight, who obtains the final key. Given that he plays a major role in the two episodes before the finale, I'd say it's a possibility.

 

The format used in the other key episodes wouldn't work with Twilight anyway, as "Magic" isn't a character trait.

[ILOVEVHS]

I have no opinion,

I don't watch girls shows.

[Captain Sorzo]

Thoughts on Trade Ya!:

 

Spoiler

Entertaining episode, but nothing special. Twilight and Pinkie easily had the best subplot, with the latter having the funniest characterization and the former receiving what little heart the episode had. Fluttershy and Dash just went through the same song and dance again and again, though at least they seemed in character and had several funny facial expressions. Rarity and AJ really got the shaft here, with largely trite dialogue that never went anywhere and characterization that hearkened back to Look Before You Sleep, a low point for both characters, though that episode at least had the excuse of taking place in the early stages of their friendship. While Tabitha made things more palatable, I would have been fine if they weren't in the episode at all.

Rather irksome that recognition of Twilight's status swings wildly from one extreme to another depending on the whims of the writer.

Also, what about all the animals normally under Fluttershy's care? Was she going to just abandon them for the foreseeable future? The prospect of her having to go work for someone else felt ripped straight from RTM, but it was integrated far less effectively here.

The final line was rather cringe-worthy.

Overall Episode Rating: Good

 

And with that, we're finally finished with the episodes of the season penned by newcomers. While Ed Valentine hit the ball out of the park both times, the rest were a step down from what most of the veteran writers generally produce. Hopefully those that return will improve over time.

 

Next week's episode features Rarity and a mind-altering spell of some sort. I have the feeling I'm either going to love or hate this one.

[Captain Sorzo]

Thoughts on Inspiration Manifestation:

 

Spoiler

This week's episode was not quite what I expected, given that the synopses were flat out incorrect about Rarity losing her creativity; it was just a case of not having enough time to put something together. Actually trying to tackle the subject of artist's block would likely have been more difficult, but would have made for more interesting subtext.

As it stands, the episode feels as though it comes close to achieving meaningful thematic depth, but never quite gets there. I feel that the biggest obstacle is the rather cop-out ending that prevented Rarity from remembering her actions. I actually felt she was in character the entire time, with her increased self-absorbtion being a natural result of her new abilities. I imagine that most artists/creatives, myself included, would become obsessed when given the ability to effortlessly convey the workings of their soul too complex for mundane communication. In Rarity's case, her desire to actively spread those workings stems from her innate generosity, making it one of the more clever usages of one of the Elemental character traits.

All this renders the possession angle rather pointless and unfulfilling. Had the episode made Rarity the protagonist instead of Spike, dropped the idea of possession/memory loss, and gone just a bit further in its thematic exploration, it could have been one of the best episodes of the series, potentially even the most interesting since Suited for Success.

As it stands, it doesn't reach those heights, but to be fair it wasn't trying to. After all, the conflict was ultimately about Spike, not Rarity, and in that regard it was quite competent, if not particularly thought-provoking or groundbreaking. His characterization was easily the best he's had all season, which isn't much of a surprise given McCarthy's involvement. Come to think of it, this was actually the best Spike episode of the series thus far, though that's mainly thanks to Rarity. I was pleasantly surprised that the moral didn't revolve around the secret, with Twilight or someone else coming in to save the day. I've seen it before, of course, but it's still a good lesson.

Unsurprisingly, Owlicious was obnoxious and contributed nothing of value to the episode. Attempts at making him serve as Spike's conscience fell flat and would've been better handled through giving Spike more body language and internal dialogue.

Overall Episode Rating: Very Good...for now. I can potentially see myself giving it a Great rating after mulling over it a bit and hopefully receiving some new perspectives from analysis videos.

 

EDIT:

 

Yeah, I'm going to bump this one up to Great. It could have been so much better, but as it stands it's offered more interesting food for thought than just about any episode of the season, with only Rarity Takes Manehattan managing to rival it in that regard. One of the reviews I read pointed out that it does present a moral on Rarity's end, namely that the quality of art is just as, if not more, contingent on the time and effort invested into it as it is on the catalyzing initial idea. It's one of those lessons that seems obvious on the surface, yet manages to be quite poignant when one begins to analyze it.

 

To use my own work as an example, I've got the rest of The Princess and the Demon mentally planned out and at times would like nothing more than to be able to perfectly transfer all of those thoughts onto the page and move on to new ideas. Yet if I was able to do so, the quality wouldn't be remotely as strong as that of the version that has years of sweat and tears spent on it. While, again, I would have loved for Rarity to retain her memory of the ordeal so she could reflect on this concept, it's still a great idea in its own right.

 

Also, I forgot to mention that Rarity's breakdown at the start of the episode is painfully relatable. I've been there several times over the past few months, minus the ice cream and chocolates. Putting your all into an artwork only to be told point blank that it's awful is a truly miserable experience. Props for that level of realism in what most will sadly likely see as just a silly, exaggerated scene. Speaking of which, I found it very interesting, though not surprising, that the reviews of the episode I saw by people with an artistic background tended to focus heavily on these nuances, while those who didn't largely glossed them over. Makes me wonder about the strengths of non-Rarity episodes that I haven't picked up because I can't relate to the characters as well.

[Captain Sorzo]

Thoughts on Equestria Games:

 

Spoiler

Decent episode, but nothing more, which is something of a shame considering all the buildup that the Equestria Games had. I feel it would have been better if the games received another episode in the place of Trade Ya!, with the parallel plotline structure of said episode and an actual focus on the events. That said, a second viewing helped me to regard this episode for what it is rather than what it could be.

In its own right, the episode lacks any interesting depth (granted, this is the case for many episodes, but it's more noticeable coming directly after Inspiration Manifestation) or particularly fun moments, but it was still pretty solid, with the continuity and character interactions being the strongest elements. No one felt out of character, though some of the dialogue felt slightly off. Good moral as well.

Other than wasted potential, my only major complaint lies with the climax, as everything about it feels contrived. Motivated or not, Spike has never been shown to breathe anywhere near that much fire, it feels like the equivalent of a character receiving super-strength for a moment because the plot called for it. The way the cloud was frozen seemed forced, as I would imagine there would be safeguards against such things. The biggest issue, however, is that four Alicorn Princesses were present, yet they did nothing. There's no way that their magic would have been disabled, and any one of them should have been able to stop the falling ice. Celestia and Luna in particular could likely have done it almost effortlessly, yet they were limited to background roles, which is sadly still more than they've been receiving lately. The whole concept of disabling magic to begin with comes across as slightly racist, even though it likely wasn't intended that way.

Overall Episode Rating: Good. It's around the upper end of that tier and would perhaps have merited a Very Good had the climax been handled better.

 

Now we're down to just the finale. Regardless of how things play out, I'm expecting plenty of fan controversy. To be honest, I'm looking forward to new songs more than the actual story, though I'm a bit excited for that as well. I just hope there's a sense of ambition this time around. A Canterlot Wedding was very, very flawed; on its own, the first part is actually one of the weaker episodes in the series. Yet there was still a sense that they were trying to make something special, and when it shone it really had that oomph to it, with a tone not seen elsewhere in the series. Princess Twilight Sparkle, by contrast, had no major flaws, yet it played things very safe, to the point that it wasn't very memorable, lacking the impact that a two-parter should possess.

[Reed Teran]

In my absence, my views are a bit more lax.

 

This show is fine by me, as long as they steer clear of my WH40K standings. The time I saw ponies in Astartes Armor was the time I screamed heresy so loud that my voice was hoarse for a nice while.

[Captain Sorzo]

Short reaction to the finale: Ehhh....

 

Long reaction will take a few hours to write up.

 

Oh, and there's lots of Discord in the finale, VHS. That should make you happy.