>>/4187/
> They actually mentioned a long time frame this time to travel (one week). I liked it how they didn't spend too much time with them going too the dragon lands and just showed them there as opposed to talking so much time lallygagging around taking one 3rd of the episode
yeah, I cannot imagine how different the episode would have been if they followed that path of said quest. We would get another MLP Movie but with much less time and a rushed plot. Direct to the grain, less new background and focusing on the dragons during all the episode. 
 
> almost odd though for the show to not be under quick travel logic
yeah a little bit strange. Maybe the trip to the Dragonlands wasn´t one week but the entire stay that Smolder would need in order to communicate with her brother properly. But yeah, it sounds weird considering that changelings or even Terramar in the latest episode has managed to visit Ponyville in a pretty short time (and it makes less sense considering the needed signatures of Uprooted with the students visiting their own homelands).

> Move over Rarijack, Apple Dash named dropped this episode! 
shipfags BTFO!An Asleigh Ball character is combined with another one from her. Double win for the VA, she must love herself. 

> Garble manages to have one final appearance in the show. Good for him.
yeah, we talked about Snails being useless and an idiot in the first seasons but with a 2nd chance, he was assigned to have a different role that would fit him and see another layer of his character, changing our opinions about him. More or less this happens with Garble so he doesn´t stay as one dimensional as he was written at first.  
 
> One thing I want to look back at this season and see who managed to make one last appearance or semi-important roll. Because, let's face it, not all are going to make the cut though if we have a repeat of Slice of Life it may come close. 
I think 90% of them are going to come back. The world is so open to anyone (now with the students into account) that it would turn out to be a foolish move to forget about them. Except the buffaloes and the diamond dogs, I think that almost all the cast will appear. 

 >>/4188/
> I originally was baffled by this by I think it was do to there being no other pony than Fluttershy there and Fluttershy would just often be standing alone with only a much taller dragon standing opposite of her. 
> because this still felt a little excessive.
you have a good point. This is Fluttershy who we are talking about,right?!, the pony who was truly scared about dragons and acted like this just to avoid seeing them:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=knzkBD2_H5k

now,she has faced Garble eye to eye to say to him a few words about his convictions relentlessly.The assertive episodes paid off long ago but we have another example just in case anyone forgot about her development. No pony else to help her, she stood there and saw the situation as anything else, without struggling during the conflict. Again, this is a natural step for her considering that she is familiar with the previously feared Everfree Forest and knows that Spike and Ember are dragons of trust. Her confidence has escalated progressively and these circumstances have completed her final steps at maturing and handling these situations as if those fears never existed. I do want to note that Ember has changed a lot the dynamic of their society so the dragons are less rude and a little bit community in comparison to their previous leadership. I suppose that their values clash a little bit less these days because of her so that face to face between Garble and Fluttershy would get resolved in a "ponified" way (basically being more talkative and personal about their problems, not to mention that Garble has shown signs of going into an artistic direction in his private time). 

Either way I am taking off my hat lady for such achievement.  

> Hey, it's nice for reaction images!
cute and badass, you cannot ask for anything else.