/pone/ - World of Equestria

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 >>/11295/
> It did not change with this and I am neither overly impressed or disappointed.
With regard to our differing levels of enjoyment of this episode, I think what really made this episode for me was getting to have the whole Mane 6 in play. It's obviously tricky to pull off, but I really love seeing them as a group - as well as loving the character focus approach, which sounds paradoxical but we got both in that episode and to me, that's a real treat.
 >>/11297/
> This is another instance of Spike seemingly having some sort of other duties/life connected to Canterlot. I had completely forgotten about this. Actually, I am not sure if it has ever stuck out to me before to me. 
This plus the seasons have been standing out to me a lot more on this rewatch - I think there had to have been a 'background timeline' or something similar for this first season, too many things line up too neatly.
> who is ready for a forced meme? 
...110% ready, perhaps?
 >>/11298/
>  but an earth pony raised among unicorns in Canterlot may just be that, he still is culturally hip and a little snobby.
Or even a situation like with the Cakes, where ponies from one group produce a pony from a different group via, presumably, recessive genes in their background. Which makes me think - when Mr and Mrs Cake end up with a Unicorn and a Pegasus for children, that's anything from a non-factor to a blessing for them, but I can only imagine a Unicorn or even Pegasi family having Earth pony children would be a little bit awkward, for both the parents and the children - so much of what would be life's experiences for the parent, they would be unable to share, and the child would almost certainly feel deprived of having those life experiences.
> Here is how I think of ratings in my head, 
I agree with all those, but the ratings are still quite abstract so I find it easier to use episodes as benchmarks for other episodes. 
 >>/11299/
> I hope you get the gist. I think to an extent the fandom is guilty of that, I never brought the complete self guilt or self aggrandizing behavior that the fandom often adopts in viewing itself;we are complex and it is complex. 
I think I get the gist, certainly the sentiment. Complexity is something I'm falling back more and more on as an excuse as I get older - my grandfather always used to say, when asked about something a bit too current or news-y, in a slow and serious voice, "I think it's very complicated". It baffled me back then for such an intelligent man to say such a thing, but more and more I find that on topics where I know something about it intellectually, that really, I can't know much for sure and have to throw up my hands and say "it's complicated". Even something as relatively small as this fandom is large enough that I don't think I could grasp fully what can be truly definitively said about it. The edges are fuzzy and it's more efficient to define it in microcosm than in totality.

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 >>/11348/
> Is there a window of time when something is transformed that it can revert back? Like it needs to be held in place?
My reading was that a transformation needs to be complete to ensure something won't revert, and that the first step of a transformation is an object's appearance, as the least essential of it's characteristics.
> It seems like Spike himself also needed to have his attention on the Twilight/the rock for it to work. What roll does Spike play here?
If intentions, even of non-magic-casting creatures, can help focus or strengthen magic, then perhaps that gives us our answer to why the running of the leaves includes more than just Earth ponies. The underlying magic is being performed by the Earth ponies, but they are aided in what they're doing by the participation of others, strengthening the collective intent. It also gives us potential explanations for things like the power of friendship itself, holding the windigos at bay and manifesting as the most concentrated form of magical power this world has to offer when used by the Mane 6 - since we have an entire nation, Equestria, following the principles of this philosophy of friendship, we could have there the most extreme end example of the power collective intentions have in the magical sphere. 
 >>/11349/
> As for any theorizing, I am going to call a spade a spade and just say Twilight Sparkle doesn’t think straight in a panic sometimes as that explanation makes less sense to me considering what happened with Twilight’s brief confrontation with Nightmare Moon. 
I think the key difference is that when Twilight was confronting Nightmare Moon, she was temporarily isolated from the others and fending for herself in the immediate sense (iirc), whereas here she's defending her friends. It is strange, but people's self-preservation has been known to snap under certain pressures, and Twilight's mind is portrayed throughout the show as in a relatively fragile, snappable state, unfortunate as that sometimes is. I got a chuckle out of it, as it kinda felt like the culmination of Twilight's increasing neurosis throughout the course of this episode.
 >>/11350/
> The wording can be taken here with a very symbolic meaning albeit “leap of faith” doesn’t have to mean “faith” in a strong religious context but also as a figure of speech that just had an unfortunate timing/prescience.
The fact that this was taken at the time to be religion specifically rather than just spirituality or even just superstition I think speaks to the way in which that early-2010s redditor type of atheism was so hostile not just to religion, but to any type of non-empirical thinking or even hypothesis in general. That specific area of the early fandom that was both vehemently hostile to all forms of spirituality and who emphasised the show's value in terms of it's "cleverness" above all else I just find hard to stomach. I never saw MLP as just an ironic, clever commentary on society or something, and sometimes the way early reddit-type fans seemed to talk about the show, it sounds like they viewed it as essentially an early version of Rick and Morty. 
> spoiler
I more or less come from the complete opposite end of the spectrum when it comes to views of the world, so I think it's telling that both of us found the criticism a bit bogus. 
> Now it seems to be an afterthought in our current culture wars sometimes with unclear lines.
As far as MLP's status in the culture war goes, I feel like it's managed to occupy a less contentious space than most other fandoms I dabble(d) in, which is refreshing. I'm in regular contact with both extremes within the fandom (from congoing pride flag types to /mlpol/) and I feel I can more or less get along with both. There is conflict, but compared to something like Star Trek where the core idea of what it's even about is disagreed on, I feel like both extremes in this fandom have more they have in common with regards to how they view the show than might otherwise be the case.

PoLS
Better replies coming later, busy week, but I am doing mostly alright.

 >>/11385/
> If intentions, even of non-magic-casting creatures, can help focus or strengthen magic, then perhaps that gives us our answer to why the running of the leaves includes more than just Earth ponies. The underlying magic is being performed by the Earth ponies, but they are aided in what they're doing by the participation of others, strengthening the collective intent. 

That... wow, need to bookmark and write down this one. Simple point but a strong one I mean, arguably the show short of spells it out but we don't think of applying it to there. Speaking of magic, boy, I just watched Sonic Rainboom and that has had my mind already working on some ideas for that! 


> I more or less come from the complete opposite end of the spectrum when it comes to views of the world, so I think it's telling that both of us found the criticism a bit bogus.

Indeed, /) I can tell religious propaganda when I see it and that ain't it!

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Our opening scene is funny enough and gives us the iconic Fluttershy ‘yay’ meme, but in terms of information, all it actually tells us is that Rainbow Dash is going to involved in some sort of event at which Fluttershy will also be present. As a small moment between Dash and Fluttershy, it’s nice to see.

Speaking of small moments between characters, I enjoy the fact that Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were all helping Twilight tidy up. I wonder what Twilight was studying over the weekend? Then we have the introduction of the titular sonic rainboom, courtesy of Pinkie Pie.  As Rainbow brags that she can do a rainboom no problem, and we as an audience can see that she’s actually nervous, I really like that Rarity chimes in, demonstrating her knowledge and awareness of people. Between this and her focus episode, Rarity is getting some truly great characterisation in this season. It’s also her intervention that goes on to let the rest of the episode happen, as Twilight was more than happy to just go back to tidying up. Pinkie Pie fetching the right book and even knowing what page the right spell is on is fantastic, I even like the explanation she gives to Applejack – even if I do prefer to think of that explanation as an off-the-cuff excuse to hide her powers. Then Rarity even volunteers to be a test subject for the spell! The casting of the spell is also interesting, as Twilight describes it as very complicated and appears drained after casting it. 

As Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash arrive in Cloudsdale, Fluttershy makes a good effort of being assertive. I feel like this is the first we get to see of Rainbow and Fluttershy’s specific relationship being fleshed out more, which carries forward into the rest of the show as I recall. We don’t particularly get this pair-up with the others, but that makes sense since out of all of them, only Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash sort of grew up together, or at least in the same surroundings. After they confront the bullies, Rarity shows up and we get to see her wings properly, which are reminiscent of the Flutterponies from G1, which makes me wonder if those pony’s wings were magically formed too, perhaps by virtue of the Sunstone’s magic. But that’s beside the point. The other three disembark the Twinkling Balloon with a surprising degree of nonchalance – if I knew a spell was the only thing keeping me from falling through the ground, I’d be pretty scared. But then again, magic is a very reliable force in Equestria. Rainbow Dash’s statement of Cloudsdale being the “greatest city in the sky” makes me wonder if there’s more cloud-cities besides this and Las Pegasus. In particular, a lost cloudcity would be a very interesting concept to me. They then go to visit the weather factory – now, I would assume that Cloudsdale is the only place with a weather factory, given the way it’s presented in the show. And since Pegasi have controlled the weather since before ponies even came to Equestria, this would mean that the weather factory is incredibly old, as well as being presumably irreplaceable, since we don’t know of any other cloud cities with weather factories. But it’s fair to assume that it would be a difficult feat of engineering to reproduce, since the weather factory is able to cover all of Equestria with it’s output capacity.

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Now, as they move on to the cloud production floor, we see something that really just puzzles me. The clouds are made more or less as real clouds are made, by condensation of water. However, this raises the question of where Cloudsdale gets the water from. Normally, it wouldn’t be a big issue to get water from the sky, but since the water cycle does not exist in Equestria, they must be getting it from the surface below. All this water needs to be enough to water the crops of all of Equestria with rain, too. My best guess is that Cloudsdale has massive water storage facilities, and it periodically moves to the ocean to refill it’s tanks.

As if to contradict my earlier praise of her character, Rarity has a complete turnaround from her earlier generosity and decides to enter the competition, causing more stress for Dash. It’s not really out of character for her to be distracted by being the centre of attention, but she doesn’t do any favours for her likeability, either. In fairness, she does apologise for it later. Then, as Dash tries to avoid going out by swapping numbers, we see what looks like Dr Whooves (sorry, Time Turner, rather), but he’s a pegasus? I guess in canon they’d be separate but similar-looking ponies, or perhaps even twins. I’d say having the same cutie mark is an issue but there’s so many ponies with that cutie mark that it isn’t really. So Rarity and Rainbow Dash both leave it to the last second and go on together, then we get our Icarus moment with Rarity. And from there, we wrap it up with apologies and Dash getting to meet the Wonderbolts. Altogether, a very satisfying ending – and since I probably won’t have time to do another episode before the new year, a fittingly momentous conclusion to end the year on, I think. 

Overall, I would rate this episode 8.7. It mixes some of the character development of Suited for Success with the adventure of Dragonshy, plus some tasty worldbuilding, so it sits a little bit above those episodes for me.

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Sonic Rainboom, what can I say about this one?  This review is going to be on the shorter side,  had two family members fall ill and one injure himself after a surgery, my mobility isn’t 100% right now, been an interesting holiday season!

Something about the traveling here feels different to other seasons. More cozy, more ‘’intimate'.’ I think some of it is the fresh details we get and how fresh and young the world is. I really shouldn’t compare this to later seasons all the time but I can’t hep it! I liked it! I like the feeling here.  I thought the build up to the conflict and how it was executed was solid enough. I enjoyed Rainbow Dash switching her numbers and avoiding leaving till the last possible moment. It reminded me of the dread of waiting for a shot when I was young. Something that was quick and better to get over with sooner, yet, the fear of it is so strong that I want to avoid getting a shot at all costs and anything that delayed it, even slightly, felt like a blessing. The rainboom was well animated by season 1 standards even if it was outdone later on. 

There is a lot of world building that I should get into on Cloudsdale and the weather but I cannot help but focus on the spells here. It is interesting detail of this  is how they so causally let let Rarity compete in the race without prejudice. How everypony fawns over Rarity and shows an interest? You’d think that, especially with the context of some racial animosity that still lingered on and could rear it’s head that was established within the show even  in, well, next season, this should’ve been an issue! I think though this  “problem” in continuity   can be fairly easily resolved : unicorns are a, pun intended, a rarity!  I couldn’t find it from a few quick searches, but I know Faust before has said something to the effect of, Earth Ponies were the most common, Pegasi a hundred times less common than Earth Ponies, and Unicorns a hundred times less common than pegasi. Thinking along these lines fixes this and actually goes with a lot of the cultural dynamics were see in Season 1 and later on. Unicorns budding in  and doing shenanigans like this would be an uncommon occurrence and a speckle/sight of wonder.. They wouldn’t be taking the spotlight every day of the week.

Also, magical spells are common knowledge but unicorns who can preform a lot of spells, may be rarer still. We don’t see anypony else using that cloud walking spell after all! Goodness, thinking along these lines  could be used to explain a lot. Trixie being a performer to the smugness of Canterlot society even might partly be due to the relative rarity of unicorns in this world. 

This review is a bit of a traffic jam, my rating is a 6.9 out of 10. I liked it a lot, but isn’t isn’t in great territory for me for whatever reason.

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 >>/11458/
Now, for the one line that I have racked my brain for way too long:
’’‘Be careful with those wings, Rarity. They're made from gossamer and morning dew, and they're incredibly delicate.’‘

To start:
’‘Gossamer:’
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gossamer
> a film of cobwebs floating in air in calm clear weather
the specifics of  what these wings are made of. Without these line I would just assume magical energy or material of some kind.  Twilight wrapped Rarity in a magic of sorts and the was under considerable strain from it. I logically think some sort of conjuring is involved but gossamer is a cobweb in  a specific ‘’‘state'.'’ Same for morning dew! I am fine with morning dew and evening rain having different supernatural properties and affects,  the thing that is weird here is that it seems like she generated the wings from magic and... I wonder how one would conjure something with properties like that? 

Flutteryay happened here. A classic meme. Though honestly the payoff of Fluttershy cheering Rainbow Dash the loudest was sweet and I enjoyed that more.

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 >>/11446/
 >>/11447/
> in particular, a lost cloudcity would be a very interesting concept to me. They then go to visit the weather factory – now, I would assume that Cloudsdale is the only place with a weather factory, given the way it’s presented in the show. And since Pegasi have controlled the weather since before ponies even came to Equestria, this would mean that the weather factory is incredibly old, as well as being presumably irreplaceable, since we don’t know of any other cloud cities with weather factories. 
> However, this raises the question of where Cloudsdale gets the water from. Normally, it wouldn’t be a big issue to get water from the sky, but since the water cycle does not exist in Equestria, they must be getting it from the surface below. All this water needs to be enough to water the crops of all of Equestria with rain
This is where your review complements mine. I had a singular focus on the magic and you foused more on the setting of Cloudsdale, as for what you propose here there is an interesting dichotomy with it that I'll (hopefully) highlight. One is a narrative inference based on the show at face value and one is a logical inference based on real world logic to some extent. I think that the weather factory, based on what we've seen so far, doesn't necessarily have to exist. Logically, it could be decentralized/or merely another place or process somewhere else. Hurricane Fluttershy I'll ignore, but considering what we have seen thus far, it doesn't necessarily need to be that much water given how magic works and how (possibly) small scale things often seem to be (one dragon being enough to put Equestria under fog for 1000 years). Now, I've done the reverse to you? Does that make me right, IDK. I actually lean towards taking the show at face value (sometimes though, that is impossible!) but I think calculating real world/real scale of things is still worth it!


> Speaking of small moments between characters, I enjoy the fact that Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were all helping Twilight tidy up
I like little moments of that nature as well!

> The other three disembark the Twinkling Balloon with a surprising degree of nonchalance – if I knew a spell was the only thing keeping me from falling through the ground, I’d be pretty scared. But then again, magic is a very reliable force in Equestria.
Agreed, you'd think a fear of heights more generally would still be in effect. Maybe just from the sheer size of Cloudale? It's hard to be afraid of heights with large buildings and places to cloudwalk? Though there still seemed to be a lot of scary places without any guardrails.

>  a lost cloudcity would be a very interesting concept to me. 
Yes! How long would it be before it decayed? A lost cloud city hidden in the eye of a hurricane? Lots of possibilities there!

> Overall, I would rate this episode 8.7. It mixes some of the character development of Suited for Success with the adventure of Dragonshy, plus some tasty worldbuilding, so it sits a little bit above those episodes for me.
My rating as well this time is just based on personal enjoyment and 6.9 is pretty good  oh no, do I consider this scale logarithmic? LOL.  Anyways, this part of my reply is in the new year and we've been at this for a year now haven't we?Happy to be the bridge to 2025!

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The first thing that struck me with  this episode upon rematch was  how “childish” it was. I don’t  mean that in a negative way. It  is not major, but noticeable, the CMC added a air of more preschool show. I don’t know why it is more present here than it was in  Call of the Cutie for me. This is not something I remembered when watching this Episode previous times. (probably been 7 or 8 years at least). Maybe it’s the power dynamic with the CMC being more present with 
adults (Rarity explaining the saying, “I’ve bitten more off than I can chew”, the fact that their being babysat. Though them explaining things for younger kids  happened other times this season). 

This still doesn’t mean it was a bad episode. The first half I found ‘’slightly'’ wanting but still had some moments that I enjoyed. Scootaloo asking for a hammer and then “handing” (hooving it, mouthing it?) over to herself brought quite the chuckle out of me. The CMC were still funny causing havoc. We have the classic song, Hush Now Quiet Now, not a favorite, but nostalgic! 

The second half is where this takes off. I enjoyed the adventuring around in the Everfree Forest. I feel this relative “low stakes” danger is something that adds charm to a lot of Season 1 Episodes that I have seen so far.  Does comfy mixed with danger make sense? The CMC’s bickering I and hyperactive energy I enjoyed more here and felt good with the situation.  I also like the Cockatrice, nice mid tier threat that is mostly forgotten now (random later seasons not withstanding). Twilight Sparkle being incapacitated I think is very natural and as I (think) I have stated before, most of Twilight’s random moments of panic or instances of incoherent competence are actually mostly explainable and don’t bug me. Raw talent  (and probable minor combat training at least) isn’t skill and Twilight Sparkle was also a shut in who was very inexperienced in real world affairs, especially monsters. It has continuity with the establisshed character trait in Dragonshy but I think this was cooler in a way to have a situation where Fluttershy saved Twilight Sparkle and had a greater understanding of the threats and local dangers. 

I’ll close with this, I loved the dynamic with the CMC and Fluttershy that was established here but I don’t remember if  this was ever referenced again. I don’t think it was major but it would’ve been cool for the CMC to have this respect for Fluttershy and seeing her as kind of cool in a sense from that moment.  6.8 is my rating. A lot of 6‘s past few episodes. 6s = good, but not quite great. This was still close to a great episode.

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 >>/11978/
‘’Scootabloom Monster:'’
I wanted to know if there was a name for the “monster” that Apple Bloom and Scootaloo briefly formed in their hyperactive shenanigans.  A brief check of the boorus and wiki reveal nothing but I’ll update if I find anything. I know it is a rather brief instance of a non remarkable “entity" but this is Season 1 and the fandom would pick up anything. Even if I don’t expect to be much I still wouldn’t be surprised if I ever find something that runs with it.

‘’Sweetie Belle and Rarity’s relationship:'’ 
If I recall, Sweetie Belle being Rarity’s sister was confirmed in this episode and originally people ran with the idea of her being related to Lyra or Bon Bon (and often both). I was in the outer most orbit of the fandom when this was occurring and I remmeber reading/hearing about that in... 2012. Need to dig around and see if I can find any instances of this. 
UPDATE: since this review took over two months before getting out, I didn’t find much but did find a confirmation of this on the not very updated fanlabor wiki:
https://mlpfanart.fandom.com/wiki/Sweetie_Belle
> In a period of time following the episode Call of the Cutie (the introduction of Sweetie Belle as well as a large number of other fillies) and up to Stare Master, Sweetie Belle's relation to Rarity was not clarified in the show. Lyra and Bon Bon's relationship had already been "established" in fanon at that point, and because Lyra attends the cute-ceañera in the former episode, some of the newly-introduced foals were taken to be their children. The most enduring and popular of these "fanon adoptions" is Tootsie Flute, but Sweetie Belle was also sometimes considered part of that family until Stare Master aired.

Side note, I find it funny that the episode that introduced Rarity as Sweetie Belle sister didn’t focus much on their relationship at all!  
  
‘’Overthinking the Cockatrice”
By the looks of the Cockatrice’s magic breaking on Fluttershy, it looks like she is being encased in stone, with the layer breaking off and falling away. This could merely be an effect of the magic being uncast (is that the right word?) on her.  Twilight Sparkle wasn’t conscious 

‘’Chicken'’
> Scoot scoot scootalooooooooooooo!
I chuckled at this. The meme came from here and sure lasted awhile even it didn’t stay at the forefront.

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First off, great cold open. The classic ‘perfectionist faced with chaos’ scenario, with Rarity and Sweetie Belle here, and it sets up the conflict nicely and concisely, as many of these cold opens do. An interesting detail is that Sweetie Belle tries to grab the ribbon Rarity wants with her hoof, and her leaning precariously on the sewing machine then causes the mayhem – she did not use her magic to get the ribbon. Perhaps Sweetie Belle’s magic is still tenuous in range or grip at her young age. Then, after the intro, we have Fluttershy returning Opalescence– in a rather fancy basket, presumably the one Rarity usually uses when Opalescence needs transporting. I’d forgotten that Opalescence actually gets on better with Fluttershy than with Rarity, slightly heartbreaking given how much we know Rarity loves and provides for her cat. And an interesting introduction to ‘the stare’, although arguably we might have seen Fluttershy use it on the dragon, and I don’t personally see that Opalescence would be all that nice around Fluttershy if she had been subject to the stare, given that animal reactions to the stare tend to be fearful. Then we have the great gag with Opalescence slicing off some of Sweetie Belle’s hair. Rarity mentions that the robes she’s making are due in Trottingham tomorrow morning, so Trottingham must be fairly nearby, even if it’s going by train or Pegasus. And it SOUNDS like Rarity even uses the British pronunciation of the -ham suffix, though it was kind of hard to tell even on replay whether she says “Trotting-UM” or “Trotting-HAM”. I love how the arrival of Scootaloo and Apple Bloom immediately cheers up Sweetie Belle and the three quickly descend into loud excitement, it’s very authentically kid-like. The over-the-head conversation Rarity and Fluttershy have also very much reminds me of the adult conversations adults would have over my head when I was young. Then, as the CMC race outside with Fluttershy in tow, they run into Twilight, with a creepy musical sting for the mention of the Everfree Forest. Twilight mentions getting her favourite tea from Zecora – I wonder if it was her favourite tea before meeting Zecora, or whether Zecora introduced it to Twilight?

When the group arrives at Fluttershy’s cottage, the realism continues as they rampage around the house in overexcitement, looking at everything and messing with their surroundings. I would venture to say that they aren’t even being especially rambunctious, it seems to me more as though it’s Fluttershy’s shrinking-violet tendencies that’s failing to really take charge of the situation. The way the genuine suggestion of becoming creature-catchers quickly turns into a simple game of pretend also strikes very true to me, even as I fret about Fluttershy’s rug. My parents and grandparents all had rugs that we had to be very gentle with growing up, so seeing a rug mistreated so does shock me a little, even if I really don’t care one way or the other what happens to any rug. The momentary apology followed by the table operation (now that I’m writing it out, is that a pun on ‘operating table’?) got a chuckle out of me, I’ll admit. Also noteworthy in the background is that the door still isn’t shut – although it is just the top half, and it could be summer. 

As the CMC go into the Everfree forest, I chuckle at the name of the chicken ‘Elizabeak’, and pause to ponder why Fluttershy lives next to the forest if she’s afraid of it, as she reacts to the Everfree with fear as she discovers the CMC are gone and spots their tracks leading away from the cottage. It must be that her love of animals, who afterall live near to and sometimes within the forest, overcomes her fear of that same forest, which is a neat little way for her location and home to reflect her character and core motivation of overcoming her fears. The reveal that Twilight has been petrified by the Cockatrice is neatly done, as well as being set up earlier with Twilight’s mention of going into the Everfree earlier in the episode.

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The very presence of the Cockatrice in this episode gives me fond memories of a book my mother read to me when I was little, The Talking Parcel, in which the chief villains are the Cockatrices. 

Fluttershy finds the CMC and, whilst trying to get them out of the forest, warns them about the Cockatrice – but the CMC seem to disbelieve the existence of such a creature. One might think they’d learn about dangerous animals in school, but it’s not so unbelievable to me – during evacuation of London (owing to the Blitz), there were evacuee children who were reported to be unfamiliar even with the concept of a cow. On top of this, the commonality of Cockatrices in this world is unknown, with Fluttershy being a particular expert in the field it’s quite possible that Cockatrices are so rare that their existence is not common knowledge – I could easily see even modern-day students doubting the plausability of, say, a Komodo Dragon if it was described to them verbally. As they express this, Fluttershy interjects to tell them never to look into the eyes of the Cockatrice – which presents the sort of duality of this episode, represented in the title. Both Fluttershy and the Cockatrice are bestowed with a somewhat-supernatural gaze, although I suppose given that Fluttershy eventually triumphs over the Cockatrice, the Staremaster must inevitably refer to her rather than the Cockatrice. The group then, of course, promptly run into the Cockatrice. The CMC’s flip from cocky disbelief to shrieking panic is both appropriately childlike, and appropriately annoying for Fluttershy. The snail crawling across Twilight’s stone face is a rather bold piece of striking, slightly scary imagery for a kid’s show. As the cockatrice approaches the group and Fluttershy orders the CMC to get behind her, we see that what gives her the strength to stand up to the Cockatrice is the sight of the CMC’s terror. Perhaps her affinity for animals belies an underlying desire to protect and care for the relatively defenceless, which flows quite naturally from her characterisation as a shy and nervous person: as someone who knows what it feels like to be defenceless, it’s only natural that she develop empathy for those who are defenceless. Her central flaw is also the source of her central strength, which actually seems to go for most of the Mane 6, thinking about it. Then we have the staring match between Fluttershy and the Cockatrice, with the Cockatrice increasingly alarmed at how confrontational Fluttershy is managing to be in spite of his fearsome appearance and reputation. I don’t think the length of time it takes the Cockatrice to be turning Fluttershy to stone is necessarily tied to willpower or resilience, as we see that when he turned Elizabeak to stone, it was not an instantaneous process there either, and it’s only natural that such a process should take longer on ponies. If the rate Fluttershy is turning to stone is normal for ponies, then there must be an element of the Cockatrice’s stare that forces it’s victims to make eye contact, because I cannot imagine Twilight being unable to figure out what was going on, close her eyes and deal with the Cockatrice using her magic or otherwise do something to prevent being turned to stone in that amount of time. With the Cockatrice sufficiently cowed, it frees Fluttershy and goes to follow her instructions of setting Elizabeak and Twilight free, too. I like the little detail that you can see the silhouette of the Cockatrice flying away as Twilight enters the shot. As we have the episode wrap up with reflection on the lesson, I reflected that this episode had two lessons in one, in a way, as it was appealing at once to two different type of viewer: slightly older girls who might have to babysit younger siblings whilst parents are out in Fluttershy, and of course the younger siblings themselves in the CMC.

Overall, I found myself not enjoying this episode quite as much as the others. I can’t pinpoint anything particularly wrong with it, I just didn’t feel enthused about it, and writing about it was a bit more of a drag compared to previous episodes. I got more enjoyment out of Call of the Cutie, even – but there’s still nothing I can pinpoint as the reason for my relatively low level of enjoyment, so I’ll give it a close 5.8. On paper I love the idea of this episode – I think one thing I can point to as being some detriment to enjoyment, even though it’s far from handled poorly, is the Cockatrice. His involvement in the story is very short, and his presentation is very much silly rather than scary, understandable as that is – it leaves the episode with stakes that feel quite low. 

Replies coming soon...ish!

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 >>/12021/
 >>/12022/ 
> Rarity mentions that the robes she’s making are due in Trottingham tomorrow morning, so Trottingham must be fairly nearby, even if it’s going by train or Pegasus. 

I believe it maybe possible for Trottingham to be far away but an episode in Season 2 is where I can best illustrate this theory. Unless I see something that brings it up to the forefront beforehand, I'll wait till there. 

> And it SOUNDS like Rarity even uses the British pronunciation of the -ham suffix, though it was kind of hard to tell even on replay whether she says “Trotting-UM” or “Trotting-HAM”

Nice catch. Are you familiar with a Transatlantic/Mid Atlantic Accent?  That is what I usually see fans put Rarity's accent as. Think an old Hollywood ascent. It can have a lot of features of British accent. I though their was an official source that confirmed this but I think all I see on a cursory search is fandom discussion and the wiki, which links to a video that I don't have time to watch through right now. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_American_Speech
(drat wikipedia, but alas, the articles that explain this all were from sites that felt very blogspammy) 

> The very presence of the Cockatrice in this episode gives me fond memories of a book my mother read to me when I was little, The Talking Parcel, in which the chief villains are the Cockatrices. 

That looks like a neat book. 

> then there must be an element of the Cockatrice’s stare that forces it’s victims to make eye contact, because I cannot imagine Twilight being unable to figure out what was going on,

My explanation was her being caught off guard and inexperienced but I think that inference is equally valid. 

 >>/12023/ 
> Overall, I found myself not enjoying this episode quite as much as the others. I can’t pinpoint anything particularly wrong with it, I just didn’t feel enthused about it, and writing about it was a bit more of a drag compared to previous episodes.

I have a theory, to refer back to your review:
> When the group arrives at Fluttershy’s cottage, the realism continues as they rampage around the house in overexcitement, looking at everything and messing with their surroundings.

> but it’s not so unbelievable to me , 

> The CMC’s flip from cocky disbelief to shrieking panic is both appropriately childlike, and appropriately annoying for Fluttershy

The CMC played a larger roll here than in the previous Call of The Cutie and the writing was relying on them playing off each other and being annoyance to Fluttershy. They're written fairly well as children, especially here in this early season, and their comedic antics were from them being child. Charming, yes, it can be, but there is less personality than the Mane 6. 

> – during evacuation of London (owing to the Blitz), there were evacuee children who were reported to be unfamiliar even with the concept of a cow. 

Did not know that!

> Replies coming soon...ish!

Take your time!

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 >>/11458/
> Something about the traveling here feels different to other seasons. More cozy, more ‘’intimate'.
They haven't even been back to Canterlot yet, so it's really the first city we've seen them go to on the show (I think)!
> You’d think that, especially with the context of some racial animosity that still lingered on and could rear it’s head that was established within the show even in, well, next season, this should’ve been an issue!
I think, rather, that even whilst animosity exists, it would be a very ponyish thing to do to not even consider making the competition Pegasi only, simply because it's a given that they can fly. I could imagine them letting other flying creatures participate. That is to say, I think Pegasi just think of it as a competition, not a PEGASI competition, if that makes sense. 
> Unicorns budding in and doing shenanigans like this would be an uncommon occurrence and a speckle/sight of wonder..They wouldn’t be taking the spotlight every day of the week.
I think also, with regard to the awe with which Rarity is treated, that the Pegasi might be assuming that she used her own magic to make the wings.
 >>/11459/
> I wonder how one would conjure something with properties like that? 
She does turn frogs into living oranges at some point - I would posit that unicorn conjuring operates on a basis similar to Plato's theory of forms. Normally we think of Plato's forms as being quite universal. I remember in philosophy class reading the example of a horse (appropriately), where all earthly horses are reflections of a singular, heavenly horse - the 'form' of the horse, thus why horses take a horse-form. But it seems logical that specifics would exist too, especially if we imagine the Platonic forms to be a real, spiritual force - and so we have the forms of gossamer, and of morning dew - in this universe, they are (not just by my theory but by the fact they're specified in this dialogue) spiritually imbued with those properties that make them merely appear magical in our world, but in Equestria, such sentiments make them really, truly magical. No longer is waking up to see the dawn an emotionally magical moment: here in Equestria, it's magical in a very literal sense. Furthermore if we go with the Platonic theory, then it goes quite nicely with the relationship between Magic, Friendship and Harmony: when unicorns summon things from our ethereal, Platonic plane, they summon the pure artifact, the perfect thing which all reality merely imitates the form of. And so, Friendship and Harmony, as sources of collective magic amongst ponies, must too be reflective of the magical sphere: a divine order of things that, when reflected or re-enacted down in Equestria, brings it in line with the magical form and so produces magic. It also makes sense for the forms to reflect things in different states given that ice, water and steam are all different states of the same matter. 
> I wonder how one would conjure something with properties like that? 
Given Twilight's studiousness, I'd like to think it requires intense study in order to determine whatever esoteric principle differentiates morning dew from regular water droplets!
>  but considering what we have seen thus far, it doesn't necessarily need to be that much water given how magic works and how (possibly) small scale things often seem to be (one dragon being enough to put Equestria under fog for 1000 years).
That's very true. At this stage we just have Ponyville, Fillydelphia, Canterlot and Cloudsdale. Later when we get to the buffalo out on the frontier, it's notable that it's the desert - so Cloudsdale clearly isn't operating that far afield. It could also just be controlled 'extra' weather on top of normal or 'wild' weather - when an extra storm is needed, one is made, or when more sunlight is needed, Celestia could just slightly lengthen the day whilst Pegasi clear the skies.

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 >>/11482/
> A lost cloud city hidden in the eye of a hurricane?
Now that you've put it like this, it does occur to me that I've essentially proposed an MLP version of Laputa: Castle In The Sky. (That movie was an extra treat for me when I first watched it, as I'd already read the unabridged Gulliver's Travels from which the original Laputa comes)
> Anyways, this part of my reply is in the new year and we've been at this for a year now haven't we?Happy to be the bridge to 2025!
Late *clink*!
 >>/11978/
> The first thing that struck me with this episode upon rematch was how “childish” it was. I don’t mean that in a negative way. It is not major, but noticeable, the CMC added a air of more preschool show. 
It's also the case that at this stage in-universe, the CMC are also themselves younger, and at a time in their lives when they're developing quite rapidly even if we assume a human pace of development.
> Twilight Sparkle being incapacitated I think is very natural and as I (think) I have stated before, most of Twilight’s random moments of panic or instances of incoherent competence are actually mostly explainable and don’t bug me. 
I don't wholly disagree - it's mainly because the cockatrice is established in such a way that it feels reasonably common and un-threatening as mythical beasts go. The whole situation would go down a lot better with me if we didn't have Boast Busters just a few episodes ago. It's not even that it especially bothered me, it's moreso that I found I had to assume there was slightly more to the cockatrice's powers, again especially given how it takes a fair while both to petrify Elizabeak and to petrify Fluttershy from what we see in the episode. 
> Raw talent (and probable minor combat training at least) isn’t skill and Twilight Sparkle was also a shut in who was very inexperienced in real world affairs
I think where I'd draw the line is where I feel like (bar the possibility of there being more to the cockatrice's powers than what we see) even I could thwart this thing if confronted with it. Just shut my eyes and sock it in the nose, job done. I think there's even an intention to account for the cockatrice having variable powers, such as petrifying with fear as well as with stone, so it's not a plot hole... Moreso just that the situation naturally makes me read more into it, since my baseline for Mane 6 competence is basically that they're AT LEAST more competent than I am, lol. 
> It has continuity with the establisshed character trait in Dragonshy but I think this was cooler in a way to have a situation where Fluttershy saved Twilight Sparkle and had a greater understanding of the threats and local dangers. 
That's actually an excellent point that I hadn't even considered - does Twilight KNOW what a cockatrice is? I just assumed she would, bookish as she is. If it's rare AND local enough though, it's quite possible Fluttershy is familiar with it whilst Twilight isn't, however. In which case I could very easily see Twilight trying in vain to inspect what this strange new creature is and get herself turned to stone whilst distracted. Again I think the fact that she knew not only of Ursa Minors, but of the difference between an Ursa Minor and an Ursa Major too, it created this impression that Twilight's an expert on magical creatures as well as magic. 
> 
I’ll close with this, I loved the dynamic with the CMC and Fluttershy that was established here but I don’t remember if this was ever referenced again.
So long as it's not directly contradicted later, I don't mind so much. Built-up but forgotten details like this help create that elusive sense that Equestria is a real, living place... And no, I don't just mean standard worldbuilding, I think it's something to do with the characters too. Point is I can't narrow it down and I can't really think of any setting which is evocative in the same way as Equestria. I think possibly it's the slice-of-life element.

 >>/12032/
Not a thread regular but wanted to comment on:
> Twilight Sparkle being incapacitated I think is very natural and as I (think) I have stated before, most of Twilight’s random moments of panic or instances of incoherent competence are actually mostly explainable and don’t bug me. Raw talent (and probable minor combat training at least) isn’t skill and Twilight Sparkle was also a shut in who was very inexperienced in real world affairs, especially monsters.

> makes me read more into it, since my baseline for Mane 6 competence is basically that they're AT LEAST more competent than I am, lol. 

Remember by this point Twilight Sparkle willing changed into a manticore and Nightmare Moon as well? I think Twilight's baseline is higher than started by chicken-snake. I'm not sure what I'd headcanon here but I am in full agreement with... whatever the /endpone/ assigned nickname the anon has above that this is closer to being an issue than something easily explained by onscreen context and subtext.

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 >>/12037/
I'm assuming that should have been
> willingly charged at

Did she charge the manticore? Haven't seen the ep recently, of course but why not just cancel her credit cards if she's trying to charge everything?

But yes, charging NMM would have been a level of crazy, which is why we have "you're kidding. you're kidding, right?" as a famous quote - but of course that wasn't an actual invitation to battle but subterfuge to separate NMM from the elements and are you thinking with porta^H^H teleportation spells yet?

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 >>/12032/
Late *clink*! back. My replies and review will come soonish. Actually, the Show Stoppers review has already been ready for awhile but I have debated doing something experimental with a double feature. Though I don't like rushing through them so this would be a one time thing. Plus been a little distracted by all this 4chan getting nuked off the internet business. 

 >>/12037/
> Twilight Sparkle willing changed into a manticore and Nightmare Moon as well? 

This is the kind of mistake I make! LOL, do you post with little sleep and strange medical issues as well? Anyways, I assume you mean charged, as in she attacked forward into the Manticore and Nightmare Moon? 5050's and your point isn't a wrong one that I stronger dispute but we have also seen her be scared of bees and other things by this point. Her fight and flight, she still doesn't have fight take over. Of course, my attempt is trying to reconcile what will gradually give way to some pretty conflicting levels of competence if I recall correctly. In which case I try to compare the average between the weaker and stronger showings to try to determine a baseline. 

 >>/12032/
> Moreso just that the situation naturally makes me read more into it, since my baseline for Mane 6 competence is basically that they're AT LEAST more competent than I am, lol. 

THIS especially is a good way to look at it still. Twilight Sparkle is certainly more competent than I am and I think I would have a shot at fighting that creature as well. 

 >>/12038/
> Haven't seen the ep recently, of course but why not just cancel her credit cards if she's trying to charge everything?

Pony's still use a hard currency and credit cards are new so everypony is naive about them still. 

This caused me to look up images of credit cards and Twilight Sparkle, didn't expect to find a real credit card that actually existed. 
https://twibooru.org/2032721?q=twilight+sparkle%2C+credit+card&sd=desc&sf=created_at

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This episode's start I liked pretty well with the introduction to the CMC clubhouse. Scootaloo's little sequence on her scooter I thought was pretty well done and I think I've settled on how I describe my interest for Season 1's animation more definitively  (more on that later). The CMC, while still childish, have a lot more personality in this episode and their traits are becoming more defined. Not just their implied cutie marks, but personalities more generally. For example, Scootaloo's slight snark she displays when she says: Totally lost cause in regards to Applejack saying her old club house needed some TLC. This actually got a pretty hardy laugh out of me because I had forgotten that joke. 

All and all, the central conflict of the episode, the upcoming talent show was fun enough. I liked the CMC's antics as they tried to haphazardly prepare their act. I also liked them helping each other in the areas they were weaker, oblivious to what they should be doing. The show I enjoyed better than I recalled when I last watched this (several years ago at least, maybe a decade) and there was a certain satisfaction in watching the CMC preforming with a limb but continuing on. Scootaloo's poor but enthusiastic singing. Apple Bloom's awkward kung-fo (karate?) dancing and Sweetie Belle's struggle to keep the show going but not quite failing to the end did hold my interest and amused me. Gives me a recollection of someone saying years ago that the hidden strength of earlier pony episodes was carrying on a joke slightly further than what was typical but not overly beating it to death.    

For as much as I praise this episode. Some might find a slight shock here is that the atmosphere of The Stare Master ( >>/11978/) might still outrank in favored status for me and has a higher comfy factor even if I think the CMC are better characters here. Provisional 6.5/10 for now.

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 >>/12070/
The CMCs old cutie marks implications
Sweetie Belle, most obviously, singing 
Apple Bloom, carpentry.
Scootaloo acrobatics or something related but you could probably fit a few things that would fit. 

Not sure how further I want to go into the timeline with this one as I kind of like keeping it right now with a Season 1 perspective and only taking advantage of our hindsight of earlier seasons over diving too far into later seasons but I will note that the CMC's cutie marks not being these was something that I am very split on. In this rewatch I will be noting how much these secondary traits were emphasized. 

The fan
This fan, ostensibly a normal electronic fan of modern manufacture of at least the 20th century level, is one of the most glaring instances of something very modern in this world of incoherent tech level. Presumably it is magic powered as their is no cord. Though really, the stage lights and smoke machine are also relatively modern but perhaps can be easier hand waved as just magic or one off specialty contraptions.
  
Mr Breezy
...is he involved the manufacture or just selling of these fans? I know the awnser later season but keep in mind Season 1 here. Having a special talent related to these devices though shows that they are ordinary and commonly manufactured on some scale. Boy, I really have been overthinking this one. 

Applebloom's Kung-fu
Is this continuity with Rainbow Dash teaching Apple Bloom karate in Call of the Cutie? 

The lake
For some reason this lake I have always remmebered from this episode. Fasinated by a suid's pressence and a slight desire exists for me to make a fanfic or something invovling this but I don't want to overthink and anyalize this too much as for now it's a one off little gag of less than 30 seconds.

 >>/12070/
I've gone on and on the animation of Season One. Certain moments that stood out to me or impressed me but now I've completely settled on:
 >>/8896/
> It still was more rougher and some different things were being tried at times
 >>/10603/ 
> ...speaking of that, Perspective shots, camera effects. The show would sacrifice artistic perfection (lines on characters or objects looking unnaturally big, some art looking weird) for this, and later got better at hiding those little imperfections. Like the storm clouds, I think such efforts were worth it and the imperfections that do show up from that give it a bit of charm to me.
I think these moments are charming, show effort, and the wonkiness can add a certain stylistic charm. I've already sort of said this but was more fascinated and micro focused on one instance or another without fully contemplating that. It's not just I like the effort but actually like the end results of how some of this looks in it's offness. Scootaloo's wings look slightly too 2D and I like that. Simple as that.

Now, sometime in the future I ought to go and actually compare this to other 2D flash animated cartoons at and before this time (among other cartons). How far did it punch above it's weight? Were some of the things that I am impressed with more common then I remember and it's just a nostalgic rose tinted glasses? I can't know for sure till I really examine some of these factors but regardless I still enjoy how the show looks here.

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 >>/12059/
> I have debated doing something experimental with a double feature
Holding off on double feature.  Though next review is mostly ready. 
I just wanted to post this one no in case I get delayed with IRL or pony stuff. 

 >>/12073/
Forgot to post a pic of Scootaloo's wings in that sequence. 


 >>/12031/
> I would posit that unicorn conjuring operates on a basis similar to Plato's theory of forms
You could go to some very interesting places with this idea and this is a VERY GOOD ANSWER to my question. I could still get lost in the weeds of properties in a whole new way now depending on where you take this. 
> Platonic plane, they summon the pure artifact, the perfect thing which all reality merely imitates the form of
If gossamer and morning dew are heavenly gossamer and morning dew then how does that work when their components breakdown? Like, hmmmmm... Trying to bring back study on Plato. 

> I'd like to think it requires intense study in order to determine whatever esoteric principle differentiates morning dew from regular water droplets!
...and condensation. Droplets from the air conditioner. LOL, I wonder what sort of things you could make with air conditioner condensation and dyer lint. Maybe a bit off track. All and all, a very cool idea!

> . It could also just be controlled 'extra' weather on top of normal or 'wild' weather - when an extra storm is needed, one is made, or when more sunlight is needed, Celestia could just slightly lengthen the day whilst Pegasi clear the skies.
I would lean more into an interpenetration that everything is controlled by the Pegasi except the everfree forest by how exotic and weirded out by the fact that the weather is not controlled. Now, for stuff we see later I suspect a lot of places of the world have less fine control than equestria does. 

 >>/12032/
> Laputa: Castle In The Sky. (That movie was an extra treat for me when I first watched it, as I'd already read the unabridged Gulliver's Travels from which the original Laputa comes)
That is cool to have read the actual novel. LOL, for me, I have never gotten around to either though have a vague familiarity  Gulliver's Travels.

> I could very easily see Twilight trying in vain to inspect what this strange new creature is and get herself turned to stone whilst distracted. 
I think your point here:
>  that they're AT LEAST more competent than I am, lol. 
Is still good. For me, there is a lot of variance in some of the Mane 6's competence level's especially Twilight's. I have so far not encountered anything I consider unexplainable but I know more complicated stuff is coming. Because of course this was written as first magical fun horse show. 

>  Point is I can't narrow it down and I can't really think of any setting which is evocative in the same way as Equestria. I think possibly it's the slice-of-life element.
Slice of life + at least partly thought out magic/depth? Whimsical but taken slightly more seriously in spite of it's silliness?

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 >>/11978/
> Does comfy mixed with danger make sense?
Absolutely! I regularly re-read The Hobbit because it's the first book I ever read, and most of that book is Bilbo and the Dwarves' various brushes with death, but I find it exceedingly comfy.
 >>/12024/
> Are you familiar with a Transatlantic/Mid Atlantic Accent? 
I certainly am! That makes more sense than a British accent for Rarity, although before you pointing that out I had just assumed it was British (or Received Pronunciation, I'm in a pedantic mood) to make her sound 'posh'. 
> My explanation was her being caught off guard and inexperienced but I think that inference is equally valid. 
It could also explain the 'layer of stone' you were noting on Fluttershy, with regards to why Twilight wasn't conscious when she was encased in stone. Well, it's not much of explanation beyond saying cockatrice abilities seem to be more complex than just petrification alone, but then again that's mostly because the nature of petrification itself begs rather a lot of questions in terms of specifics to begin with. 
> The CMC played a larger roll here than in the previous Call of The Cutie and the writing was relying on them playing off each other and being annoyance to Fluttershy. They're written fairly well as children, especially here in this early season, and their comedic antics were from them being child. Charming, yes, it can be, but there is less personality than the Mane 6. 
Could well be - the only reason I didn't think that to be the cause is because I thought they were well-written, but perhaps even well-written children are annoying, which, well - real children are annoying, so realistic child characters might well be too!
> whatever the /endpone/ assigned nickname the anon has above
It might be prudent given current events to namefag... I usually dislike doing this, but the structure of the thread so far would make it very complicated and confusing - like the anonymous hivemind had developed a case of schizophrenia. 
Addressing you personally, Bridge and L23 tend to call me 5050 for getting the 5050GET unintentionally - but I don't mind just being anon!

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 >>/12091/
Howdy! (me, bridge/bridgefag) 

> I regularly re-read The Hobbit because it's the first book I ever read, and most of that book is Bilbo and the Dwarves' various brushes with death, but I find it exceedingly comfy.
We are on the same page then. 

> although before you pointing that out I had just assumed it was British (or Received Pronunciation, I'm in a pedantic mood) to make her sound 'posh'. 
Technically, the history of that accent is trying to emulate a British accent to sound posh, so yeah, in a way it is, just a specific way. 

> but then again that's mostly because the nature of petrification itself begs rather a lot of questions in terms of specifics to begin with. 
Completely agreed. I think I will revisit this when we get to Return of Harmony (even if that probably is a different type of magic involved.)

>  real children are annoying, so realistic child characters might well be too!
Or at least can be annoying or boring. I think there is certain aspects of child centric thought/POV that are overlooked BUT if you are going for the average child that moderately relates to a 21st century  westerner this still might apply. Innocence and wonder versus mischievousness and... hyperactivity. I might be opening a whole can of worms with that. 

> It might be prudent given current events to namefag...
Your call. Namefaging for these reviews might make sense depending on activity. I wouldn't count it as violating our softer anon rules as this is a project. 

> like the anonymous hivemind had developed a case of schizophrenia. 
I think the reviews themselves are easy enough to follow along but some of the back and forth conversation might be confusing. It very well could be a necessary measure depending on how "recent events" go down and if this thread gets some random participation thrown in or other anons join along.

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Watching this episode differently than I usually do! In previous reviews I watched the episode on fim.heartshine.gay on my ThinkPad. Tonight, however, I’m catsitting for my aunt and uncle, so I’m watching this episode on Plex, on a big fancy modern smart TV! I’m not a great fan of smart TVs or adverts, but hey ho, it’s not my TV and I get the luxury experience! Unfortunately, can’t take screenshots!

Despite the CMC continuing to be well-written and well-characterized as accurate/realistic children in my opinion, in one regard they step over the line for me and enter the realm of annoyance: whining at Applejack about the state of their new clubhouse (fun to see it introduced, incidentally!). Now, when I was about 7 and visited my grandparents in Northern Ireland, my grandfather put a couple of planks down across a ditch leading to a crumbled old mill, and that served for a castle, for me. It was an absolute state – vastly overgrown, rubble everywhere… But I loved it! It was MY castle, and if anything the imperfections added to the charm, not to mention giving me something to do with the place. Every effort I made to clean it up or clear it out was impactful because I knew I was making the space my own. So with that whole experience in mind, and given that I would have KILLED to have a bloody treehouse, especially one I could visit regularly, I simply cannot sympathize with the CMC here! Even if the adults had offered to clear out the ‘castle’ for me, I think I would have wanted to do even that myself, so if I were in the CMC’s hooves, I’d leap at the opportunity to spruce up the place!

Anyways… A detail that’s of interest is Applejack mentioning that it was her clubhouse, growing up. I wonder what sort of friend group Applejack had over when she was their age? Well, in spite of my annoyance, I like this cold open, I like how it introduces the CMC becoming more of an actual group!

Interestingly, once Applebloom’s fixed up the clubhouse and the CMC start going around their map of Ponyville testing out as many potential talents as possible, we get that same party music bgm from the CMC’s first episode. One of the things they seem to test for is psychic abilities…? This to me would seem to fall under magic, so just to avoid myself a headache I’m going to assume that they’re practicing the talent of guessing. Then we have Cheerilee and Twilight walking in on the CMC causing chaos in the library. I would imagine that Cheerilee gets her sources for lessons from  the library and that’s why she’s there – it seems she and Twilight were having a bit of a stroll together. I like the idea that the two of them are on friendly terms, and I’d love to see a bit of their relationship… Though from my memory of this show, I don’t think we ever really see them interact.

I love the CMC collecting all their bits and bobs, especially Rarity screaming at Sweetie Belle, which made me chuckle. And I really like their concert performance – both the music and the threatrics. The way that it has a nod to rock music aesthetics, plus ends in disaster with everything getting destroyed onstage, reminded me a fair bit of the rock band episode of Space Dandy, where they found the band DROPKIX.  Another intriguing detail is the ponies in the audience stamping their hooves to clap rather than clapping their hooves together. I’m almost certain this is changed to more humanistic clapping in later seasons/episodes, which is a shame as even indoors, this method of clapping makes a bit more sense for ponies as it involves less effort for them physically. The episode ends with the lesson that your talents aren’t always what you think they are, and the CMC are more or less content with having won essentially a participation trophy. 

I’m giving this episode an 8.1 – it was, for me, one of the solidly good plot/character development episodes, like Boast Busters and Look Before You Sleep (I rated those two at 8), but it nudges slightly above as I feel like they’ve been trying to get the CMC formula right and this is the first episode that I really felt nailed it.

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 >>/12037/
meant to reply to this in  >>/12091/
 >>/12094/
> Howdy! (me, bridge/bridgefag) 
Oh hey! And after you said hello right as I was posting, I went and posted something straight after that ignored you, seeming very rude - I'm sorry, I didn't see your post! It's been a bit flat out with work on top of the catsitting. 
> Technically, the history of that accent is trying to emulate a British accent to sound posh, so yeah, in a way it is, just a specific way.
I feel like I've heard differently (namely, that it was simply the natural East Coast accent of the time that migrated to Hollywood), but I can't remember specifics or where I might have heard that, so - I'll take your word for it
> Your call. Namefaging for these reviews might make sense depending on activity
It works going anon when it's just two of us, but if anybody wanted to join in on posting their experiences or observations with each episode, then it might become tricky to figure out who said what. Normally this wouldn't matter, but if we'd like to seek clarification on somebody's point, or refer back to ideas we've discussed previously, it would be much easier if we namefagged - again, that's IF more people wanted to join in (which they don't need to feel obligated to, either). I'll drop the name for now until it becomes necessary. 

Afraid it's a very early start tomorrow, so I'll have to leave it there for now. But it was nice to chat Bridgefag, and nice to see you to any visitors that have stopped by, too (please excuse my Shimmerfaggotry, I've been diagnosed with a terminal disease known as Orange Ponitis).

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 >>/12099/
> I'm sorry, I didn't see your post! It's been a bit flat out with work on top of the catsitting. 
It's okay, I've been having a time myself  a bit more details in a PM I send to you elsewhere.

> but if anybody wanted to join in on posting their experiences or observations with each episode, then it might become tricky to figure out who said what.
Agreed. 

> (please excuse my Shimmerfaggotry, I've been diagnosed with a terminal disease known as Orange Ponitis).
Keep in mind that /endpone/'s board mascot is pic related. You might be saner than normal around here!

Reviews coming this weekend, hopefully!

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We start off with an introduction to maybe the first character in this show that I – dislike might be too strong a word, so let’s just say the first character that I don’t particularly care for. Which in a sense seems to be the point, but nonetheless I consider this Sapphire Shores to be the first pony I’ve seen thus far in the show that appears to be a somewhat bad person, genuinely a vain, prideful jerk. But that may just be that she’s rather clueless instead, it’s hard to say. The outfit Rarity’s made for her reminds me of something like an Elvis outfit. 

After the cold open and our introduction to Spike helping Rarity dig for gems, Rarity mentions that she promised to share some of the gems (or as we see in just a bit, ONE gem) to snack on, providing the explanation for why Spike is assisting her. My question is, would Spike really have said no if she just asked for his help without any reward? No doubt Rarity offered that deal to him without realizing that Spike would most likely do it for free, but nonetheless it surprises me that Spike didn’t then actually offer to do it for free all the same. Also of note to me is that since dragons eat gems, we might conclude that this makes them rarer – however, as we’ll see later in the episode, within just this relatively small area there is a truly astounding amount of gems, so there may be just more gems in Equestria to begin with in any case. Having said that, it could well be that this area is home to a particularly rich gemstone vein, which would give a perfect explanation as to the presence of the Diamond Dogs. Though, I do find amusing that if that’s true, then in spite of being on the site of an incredibly rich gem vein already, the Diamond Dogs are too lazy to just properly excavate the whole vein and instead nab Rarity to do the work. I prefer this interpretation because it helps to establish that Equestria isn’t just completely studded over with gems throughout the entire continent’s crust, and that the Diamond Dogs aren’t just randomly and conveniently present, especially this close to Ponyville - it seems the ponies are not aware of their presence so I doubt they have permission to mine here.

After Rarity is kidnapped by the Diamond Dogs and Spike gets the rest of the Mane 6 to come and help rescue her, he says that he and Rarity were looking for diamonds in the woods – it looks like a rocky clearing to me, but perhaps a rocky clearing in the woods? So, does that mean the Everfree?

The ponies get pulled down into the mines, and we get a slightly clunky exchange between Spike and Twilight about the gem-finding spell. I believe in a previous episode, specifically Boast Busters, I discussed how it seems like unicorns tend to operate within a limited area of speciality with regards to their magic, and typically seem to struggle outside of that area (at least at this stage in the show). The exception to this of course being Twilight, and here we see that it does not occur to her at first to actually copy Rarity’s area of expertise, in spite of the fact that she has in the past actually inquired of Rarity how the spell works. Given that this is the way it’s presented, that it’s not typical or a readily-considered idea that a unicorn might copy another unicorn’s specialized spells, I feel this strengthens my theory that the majority of unicorns have in fact very limited powers, which I like since it balances out the races a lot more, doubly so since we know the unicorn population is smaller than the other two too.

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Rarity refuses, or rather is difficult about digging up the gems for the Diamond Dogs, and so we see the three Diamond Dogs who brought Rarity down here order these other dogs that are wearing armor (are these also Diamond Dogs? Here the fellow seemingly in charge has just called them ‘dogs’, and I wonder whether ‘Diamond Dogs’ is a species name, or rather a title of these three diamond-collared dogs who seem to be in charge of the operation) to dig instead. Presumably, since our three in the waist jackets (I’ll call them the Diamond Dogs and refer to the armored dogs as just dogs for simplicity’s sake from here on) have ordered Rarity to dig rather than digging themselves, and then subsequently ordered the dogs to dig for them, all these tunnels have been dug by the armored dogs that are seemingly in the employ of the three Diamond Dogs. Each Diamond Dog has a diamond-studded collar and a waistcoat with gems stuffed in the pockets, and the main Diamond Dog has an extra, orange gem dangling from his collar, so I believe it’s safe to say that the collars are markers of rank, with the Diamond Dog that has the orange gem being the overall boss of the whole operation. It seems to me that this must be a sort of commercial enterprise with these three in charge of the overall venture and the armored dogs being both miners and mercenaries – they are wearing armor after all. Which suggests to me that this is a traveling mining company and not necessarily reflective of dog culture, and also suggests to me that given the armor their employees are wearing, this sort of operation has faced or can be reasonably expected to face some level of local opposition from the places where they travel to mine. So, not just a mining company, but a mercenary criminal enterprises that carries out illegal mining operations. 

And I enjoyed the rest of the episode – but didn’t really see much to note after that. I enjoyed the premise, the beats and pacing, the lesson and the interactions between Rarity and the Diamond Dogs, who were all very well characterized. However, there were points where the dialogue was oddly clunky in a way that I haven’t at all noticed in any of the previous episodes, which made those moments stand out a little in an odd way. I’m going to put this episode at 7.9 – in most regards it’s up there with the other solid 8s (Applebuck Season, Boast Busters, Look Before You Sleep), but there’s just a couple of elements that are odd or clunky or just not especially well executed to me.

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This episode is different as I have seen it relatively recently compared to other episodes. Ahem: >>/8771/ 

So, different review format for today. 

Favorite aspect of this episode: The sense of adventure. This is the kind of low stakes adventure I live for. 

Least favorite thing:
Is there anything that is a least? I have no strong negative feelings. Diamond Dogs aren't my favorite villains but that doesn't mean I dislike them. Certain scenes maybe slow, but I like slowness.   

Favorite scene: Depends on what you count as a scene. I liked Rarity messing with the Diamond Dogs probably the best, followed by the Mane 6's confrontation above ground.

Lore implications: Lots of questions mainly centered on the Diamond Dogs. Species name or just name of the gang? How freely do they roam on pony territory? 

Other observations: 
The background cave parts of this episode seemed a little thrown together compared to other episodes. What sticks out to me is that the red gradient for the light feels, well, like a red gradient being used for a light and not a like. We've seen this in the show before to some extent but for some reason this really sticks out. Now, I don't particularly hate it. Reminds me of the older flash style of early Bionicle (actually, I've seen comparisons to Bionicle's old style and FiM in the past, I think I've mentioned it before) though it certainly isn't as good! LOL.

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 >>/12109/
Quickie review: This episode was a fine one. Not top tier but I'm a sucker for low stakes adventure with the mane 6. I liked Rarity's tormenting of the Diamond Dogs, who, while not the most compelling villains, are more than serviceable for a secondary antagonist. 

My rating:7/10

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 >>/12109/
 >>/12110/
I'm testing out quicker review formats. Not for me but just showing if somewhat else wanted to join in they don't need to be like ours, lol! 

 >>/12105/
> Reviews coming this weekend, hopefully!
Yeah, one review very late, but I did mix it up! I'm holding back on Green Isn't Your Color for the moment. T

 >>/12095/
> Watching this episode differently than I usually do! In previous reviews I watched the episode on fim.heartshine.gay on my ThinkPad. Tonight, however, I’m catsitting for my aunt and uncle, so I’m watching this episode on Plex, on a big fancy modern smart TV! I’m not a great fan of smart TVs or adverts, but hey ho, it’s not my TV and I get the luxury experience! Unfortunately, can’t take screenshots!
That ain't a bad experience! Hehehe, A Dog and Pony Show and Green Isn't Your Color I watched on a corebooted chromebook due to a couple of issues with my own ThinkPad T470, so different but similar boat!

> 
Despite the CMC continuing to be well-written and well-characterized as accurate/realistic children in my opinion, in one regard they step over the line for me and enter the realm of annoyance: whining at Applejack about the state of their new clubhouse (fun to see it introduced, incidentally!). Now, when I was about 7 and visited my grandparents in Northern Ireland, my grandfather put a couple of planks down across a ditch leading to a crumbled old mill, and that served for a castle, for me. It was an absolute state – vastly overgrown, rubble everywhere… But I loved it! It was MY castle,
I think this was done more in the spirit of: Adult gives child ill suited old junk that was from their childhood trope. It doesn't bug me but I can totally empathize with this as I would have loved a treehouse or an old mill. (That sounds wondrous actually!).

> Anyways… A detail that’s of interest is Applejack mentioning that it was her clubhouse, growing up. I wonder what sort of friend group Applejack had over when she was their age? 
There is a lot of little information like this that I am surprised to have seen the fandom didn't run with more back at the time. Though this is understandably small with no details so where a bunch of other memes. I guess this is in sort of the category like Spike being somewhat well connected and having some sort of independent life doing things for Princess Celestia or what not.  

>  Another intriguing detail is the ponies in the audience stamping their hooves to clap rather than clapping their hooves together. I’m almost certain this is changed to more humanistic clapping in later seasons/episodes, which is a shame as even indoors, this method of clapping makes a bit more sense for ponies as it involves less effort for them physically.
I think I agree. Though I understand some more human gestures being introduced and some fans forget that certain rules weren't always so concrete (ponies did stand up on two legs in Season 1 some). Their is a certain charm to ponies being ponies and it adds to the world. 

> I’m giving this episode an 8.1 
Completely get that, even if I liked Stare Master more. Probably born out of my preference for certain scenarios like low stakes adventure.

 >>/12107/
> dislike might be too strong a word, so let’s just say the first character that I don’t particularly care for.
Bringing up this point next episode. 


> - it seems the ponies are not aware of their presence so I doubt they have permission to mine here.
I wounder how sovereignty works though in this case? In the vast open areas there is various different monsters with varying levels of sentience. Could they be an independent race that operates in the area?  A future episode might provide an answer but I'll wait till we get to it.

>  it looks like a rocky clearing to me, but perhaps a rocky clearing in the woods? So, does that mean the Everfree?
The White Tail Woods are also a candidate but the presence of the Diamond Dogs makes me lean to in, or at least a place near the Everfree (was Froggy Bottom Bog from Feeling Pinkie Keen established in the Everfree?).

 >>/12108/
> ere the fellow seemingly in charge has just called them ‘dogs’, and I wonder whether ‘Diamond Dogs’ is a species name, or rather a title of these three diamond-collared dogs who seem to be in charge of the operation) to dig instead.
I think IIRC the Diamond Dogs are the species name in official other appearances but I am not 100% sure on that because I don't think they appear in much of anything. Will check later. I do see your point here though and that would be a logical inference that would make sense. 

>  feel this strengthens my theory that the majority of unicorns have in fact very limited powers, which I like since it balances out the races a lot more, doubly so since we know the unicorn population is smaller than the other two too.
I had always headcanoned this as a matter of education. Most unicorns only learn the basics and their own spells or magic related to their talent. Your leaning on this, especially in Season 1, is probably the more conservative to what we see on screen and that position is one with me taking into account other things in the show. In either case though: Magic is hard and while their are spellbooks everywhere with a lot of useful and dangerous spells, few unicorns have the ability to use them! 

> unicorn population is smaller than the other two too.
I thought Lauren Faust wanted something like pegasi were an order of magnitude less than earth ponies, and Unicorns were an order of magnitude less than pegasi, but I'll need to see if I can dig that up or if that is just a false memory.

 >>/12091/
 >>/12093/
 >>/12099/
You don't have to do it for me. I mainly like to read along and comment very rarely. I am in complete agreement that if any place that should consider abandoning anonymity it should be this thread if it gets more posters. Conversations here can be pretty complex as it is. 

> Shimmer 

/endpone/ has it's own way of things with these characters and what characters it seems to autism out on and I generally could care less. 

 >>/12109/
This review format feels like a cannibalized version of your normal one that could use some more work. 

 >>/12110/
If I ever decided to join, this is the style of review I would do.

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Back to a more normal review format (I think). 

I enjoyed this episode more than I thought I would. This is one I did not remember well and the basic premise seemed to be potentially boring. NOPE. Characters carry it all the way. The dynamic of Twilight Sparkle being stuck between Fluttershy and Rarity keeping promises not to tell the other's their emotions brought a fair bit of amusement from me. I had forgotten Pinkie Pie's Foreveeeeeeeeeerrrr originated from here. 

I think this sort of dynamic of Twilight Sparkle being stuck beholden to a promise would've frustrated me stronger in my younger years; I wouldn't see a value keeping a promise that only hurts friends and would find it as an arbitrary plot device and restriction on Twilight Sparkle. I say, would've because I don't remember having much of an opinion on this episode positive or negative and this is the first time I have thought about longer than in passing in years. Truth be told, while IRL it would still be better for the truth to come out, promises are something that shouldn't be taken lightly AND it does replicate true scenarios where one person gets stuck between two friends and something this stupid is something I could see happening with younger children, the show's target demo.  

Photo Finish, I enjoyed her over the top nature, BUT, I want to bring up here this observation here:
 >>/12107/
> I consider this Sapphire Shores to be the first pony I’ve seen thus far in the show that appears to be a somewhat bad person, genuinely a vain, prideful jerk. But that may just be that she’s rather clueless instead, it’s hard to say.
I would argue that Photo Finish fits the bill stronger than her. Sapphire Shores plausibly doesn't know the labor that Rarity would go through to make several of those dresses and made the order as a customer. WIth Photo Finish, at the very least, she is blind to Fluttershy's interests and is far more obsessed with making her into a star at the expense of her personal well being. I don't dislike either of them but I can understand why would someone wouldn't like them (as for me, it can mirror the powerlessness in our own lives with certain familial or friend dynamics, the idea of someone pushing you into something). The vanity of the stardom and a strong herd mentality are on display as well here. 

I think overall this episode had a good conclusion, Fluttershy asserted herself without having to cause a mess and the friendship was mended in a way that felt heartfelt and organic. Solid 7/10.

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 >>/12129/
Forgot to put title again. UH, I'll just stick it here. Green Isn't Your Color.

Da magicks!
Twilight Sparkle causing Fluttershy to do stupid things is further evidence of the idea the magical auras can't be seen. 
Herd mentality
On real strong display. Rarity showing apporval and looking the part completely changed the opinion of the crowd in an instant on what was a disaster in the making. I used to dislike this strongly in the show and considered it evidence of most ponies being, IDK, jerks, morally bad in someway. Though now I see it less as a moral failing and almost can rationalize it as something natural to a species in a herd. Maybe not always, sometimes the writing is stupid, but I don't find myself disliking this so strong all the time and here it does arguably satirize how modern culture can be. 

Fluttershy brief molding career
Burned very bright and was very short. This one, unlike the eventual fame from saving Equestria, I can buy her not getting recognized much after she withdrew from the public eye, even if she seemed to be quite the sensation for awhile. This  only time I really see this episode brought up as a point that Fluttershy must be really attractive by Equestrian standards, even if I suspect their standards a little more innocent than we are in judging that and her demure nature plays a large part as well. 

Photo Finish
Stupid fanfic idea of her name and cutie mark meaning she should've been doing photographs for races and not fashion modeling. 
  
Spike's disappearing shirt
In one brief scene where Spike is wearing what I guess would be called an "I Heart Rarity" T-shirt. I can try to explain away a lot of cartoon logic as pony magic, but I can't explain something like this away outside of the context of an illustrated cartoon gag. Like, uh, did Spike briefly magic up a tee with his dragon breath and then magicked it away? 

Sidemouth
A fair bit this episode. At least at the first scene in Rarity's Boutique. 

Applejack exploiting Fluttershy's fame
Funny as a gag and not 100% out of character but part of me thinks she could just as easily be someone dismissive of such fame or be also critical of such a thing.

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 >>/12129/
 >>/12130/
Despite some iRL stuff, I did get out a review. Actually, I sometimes when I have the time find these kind of relaxing and escape from stress. 

 >>/12119/
>  I am in complete agreement that if any place that should consider abandoning anonymity it should be this thread if it gets more posters. Conversations here can be pretty complex as it is. 
I'll take this as further evidence that if more show up, we should probably consider namefagging. 

> /endpone/ has it's own way of things with these characters and what characters it seems to autism out on and I generally could care less. 
LOL, yeah, that is one way to word it. Our bridge is a lot different than glimmmmmmer as a shitpost or glimmmmmer as a thing to spite oldfags and Twilight fans. Some characters and fan content I don't even see much elsewhere. 

> This review format feels like a cannibalized version of your normal one that could use some more work. 
It was just something I could quickly summarize my thoughts. I do agree it needs a bit more work. I was aiming for a statistical approach here.   

> If I ever decided to join, this is the style of review I would do.
You and any other lurkers welcome! My original plan was to have one anon (me) sustain the tempo and have others come and go as they please. Though it's cool to have someone else (the one who came up with the idea) diving in with me, other anons who are less committed or more intermittent are more than welcome.

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We have quite a long cold open for this episode, around 2 minutes! But there’s several bits I like, and I think it’s worth the extra length. I like that we establish a clear one-on-one relationship between Rarity and Fluttershy, which, as the show goes on, I feel the commonly-used structure of a ‘pairup’ or spotlight on two of the mane six helps to establish precisely the relationship each member of this friend group has to every other member, which gives the mane 6 a lot of depth. I like the contrast – or perhaps I should say juxtaposition – between Fluttershy’s quite mild spa treatment as compared to Rarity’s. And I like the gag at the end of the sequence where Rarity goes through the whole process again at merely feeling as though there might be the onset of a pimple, to the delight of the spa-ponies who I’m sure cherish the patronage of such an obsessive customer. And it does a great job of establishing the fact Rarity has asked Fluttershy to model for her, as well as why, by demonstrating their personal relationship and getting Fluttershy into a sort of closed-off environment where it feels easier to agree to things like that.

After the theme song, we see that Spike, Pinkie Pie and Twilight are all helping Rarity to prepare, with Fluttershy modelling the dress of course and already finding it to be an ordeal. Interestingly, we can see it includes a sort of saddle motif with the pink scale-pattern there, something which seems to crop up frequently in Pony fashion and would be intriguing to know the origin of. And Spike, when asked if using himself as an impromptu pin-cushion hurts, mentions that he has thick scales – which I can’t think of any immediate ramifications of, but it is a detail of interest. In the background of the shot where Photo Finish enters, there’s another saddle, either a saddle on a sort of temporary mount, or a saddle stool, and dangling from it is a design which could be anything from Chinese characters, the poses from the Avatar opening, or even Loss quite frankly. I guess I’ll assume it was going for the look of Chinese characters? I also find her odd pair of helpers entertaining, looking like one of the Fantastic 4 and Freddy Mercury. During Fluttershy’s runway… Walkway scene? I don’t know what the thing is called, it’s the thing where you walk back and forth on a platform thingy. Anyway, during that, we see ponies doing the stomping-the-floor clapping again, just noting it to myself as I stay watchful for when the more humanistic clapping makes an appearance, even if it might still be a few seasons away. From there, we get into just… All the part of the episode where Fluttershy’s doing it because Rarity urged her to, hating it all the while, and Rarity getting jealous in spite of causing it, thinking she only urged Fluttershy to do the star stuff out of generosity and not comprehending the idea that Fluttershy might hate it. This type of dragged-out-misunderstanding stuff is something I really just can’t stand wherever it pops up – I was watching the New Adventures of Gilligan yesterday and there’s a scene halfway through episode one where Gilligan’s monkey tries to tell him there’s instructions on how to build a rescue boat on one of the film reels they found, but Gilligan misunderstands him and starts running to tell the others that a rescue boat has arrived on the island… And I turned it off right then and there, I knew already I’d hate watching this drawn-out misunderstanding. I’d frankly rather only see one side of the story and get the other in flashback, this is one area where I don’t want to have the extra knowledge granted to the audience that the characters are not privy to, it’s just very irritating to me.

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It’s a relief when we get to the spa scene and Twilight gets to share in the audience’s dilemna, as Rarity and Fluttershy both confide in Twilight. Pinky’s little mime routine when Twilight gets her to swear not to tell about her and Fluttershy’s plan is neat, and I liked the gags when Twilight uses magic to get Fluttershy to do unappealing things on the… Fashion platform thing. The ending of the episode makes me question whether this lesson was one that ever actually got written up to Celestia in the end, as Spike was busy in the spa and there wasn’t any parchment or scroll in sight, so we don’t actually know for sure if Twilight ever got round to dictating that letter to him again.

Overall, this episode had a lot of elements I like, but it was just too frustrating to watch the whole misunderstanding plot, it really soured the episode for me. So, I’m going to give it a 6 – still a good episode overall, but with a section that honestly makes me want to skip past it, a mixed bag if you will.

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 >>/12109/
> Reminds me of the older flash style of early Bionicle (actually, I've seen comparisons to Bionicle's old style and FiM in the past, I think I've mentioned it before) though it certainly isn't as good! LOL.
Well-polished flash animation does scratch a particular itch, for sure. 
 >>/12111/
> I think this was done more in the spirit of: Adult gives child ill suited old junk that was from their childhood trope.
See, that's one thing, but a space that is all your own to do with as you please is quite another, it provides a lot of freedom to a kid. I just can't see it much the CMC's way, and honestly I think giving kids a play-space of their own is a great idea by way of teaching them to look after their living space, to keep things neat and tidy.
> There is a lot of little information like this that I am surprised to have seen the fandom didn't run with more back at the time. Though this is understandably small with no details so where a bunch of other memes. I guess this is in sort of the category like Spike being somewhat well connected and having some sort of independent life doing things for Princess Celestia or what not. 
This show very much has the 'Gravity Falls' effect for me, where wherever you care to look there's depth and detail (except in areas like some of the background ponies - Time Turner carrying Photo Finish for instance, though I suppose he could be doing it as a local hire for a quick paycheck) - and that depth and detail makes the world feel very alive, not just real but almost as though you could interact with it.
> Completely get that, even if I liked Stare Master more. Probably born out of my preference for certain scenarios like low stakes adventure.
There's a theme with both Stare Master and Green Isn't Your Color for me seemingly - annoyance can significantly downgrade an episode's enjoyment for me. 
 >>/12112/
> (was Froggy Bottom Bog from Feeling Pinkie Keen established in the Everfree?).
I don't recall, but I would be surprised if it wasn't in the Everfree given the big monster they run into.
> I had always headcanoned this as a matter of education. 
My only issue with this is that as per Boast Busters, it clearly takes actual concentration and effort as well - which has significant overlap as mental effort and the ability to concentrate can help one become more educated, but even cleverness and education fall a little bit short of explaining the extraordinary nature of Twilight's powers to me - I think the fact that her talent *is* magic has a major role to play, given not just how powerful we see Twilight to be, but how multifaceted as well. Some sort of confluence of talent, mental ability and education perhaps. 
> Magic is hard and while their are spellbooks everywhere
The sort of spellbooks Twilight gets really into always seem old and obscure - we know there's a little bit of a scholarly community for them not just given Moondancer and Sunburst, but even Twilight's comments about Starswirl on Nightmare Night, but I would imagine the more mundane type of spellbook is for tasks demanded by modern Equestria, like weather control and the castle's magic shielding. These things may not align with talent, but with a sort of unicorn civil service in place, collectively I'm sure a group of educated unicorns could follow those instructions. We also know that unicorns used to raise and lower the sun and moon as a collective effort, so I wonder whether spellbooks in general are not more often and more generally textbooks for whatever is useful magic to the unicorn community at a given time.

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 >>/12129/
> promises are something that shouldn't be taken lightly AND it does replicate true scenarios where one person gets stuck between two friends and something this stupid is something I could see happening with younger children, the show's target demo. 
I definitely remember stuff at school that was almost exactly this kind of situation, later than fairly young kids. I remember shenanigans of this sort continuing even up into tweenage sort of years.
> I would argue that Photo Finish fits the bill stronger than her.
Photo Finish doesn't bother me so much in that Photo Finish is clearly bananas and ponies recognize that she's completely off her rocker - plus, Photo Finish seems to talk a lot more about 'capturing the magics' than about how awesome she is, whereas Sapphire Shore's "I guess I do have that effect on ponies" made me so instantly mad at her because of the sheer vanity of the statement, not even so much lack of awareness for Rarity's struggles. 
> With Photo Finish, at the very least, she is blind to Fluttershy's interests and is far more obsessed with making her into a star at the expense of her personal well being. 
A common thread with both of them and I think even with the theme of fashion in general is that this is really the first I feel I'm seeing of the idea that pony society isn't all good - this sort of high-society and culture of fashion isn't anything quite approaching evil per se, but I think you'd have to struggle to view it as anything better than neutral if not outright a negative aspect of this society - and to be clear I think it is ultimately coming across as a failing of Equestrian society. But it isn't explored all that deeply - similar to seasons later when we get to Chancellor Neighsay, where he too represents at least what is intended to be a negative aspect of Equestrian society and that aspect too is somewhat under-explored.
 >>/12130/
> Twilight Sparkle causing Fluttershy to do stupid things is further evidence of the idea the magical auras can't be seen
Very well spotted! I'd missed that completely.
> Though now I see it less as a moral failing and almost can rationalize it as something natural to a species in a herd. Maybe not always, sometimes the writing is stupid, but I don't find myself disliking this so strong all the time and here it does arguably satirize how modern culture can be. 
What would feel more natural to us as humans would be to stick to what we were already predisposed to - so to have opinion flip on a dime like that feels weird because we get somewhat invested into the opinion we've formed even if that opinion was just as much formed by herd mentality as it is for ponies. I don't think humans are actually any less herd-minded than this, it's just that humans are more long-term herd-minded, in terms of how humans are socialized and gaining a sort of crystallized herd mentality. I could see certain advantages to ponies being more willing to change their minds, even if it can make them appear fickle at times - for one, it makes it much easier for ponies to learn the moral lessons of these episodes, and also to remain in harmony with one another by reconciling differences peacefully. I think we see throughout the show that other species really quite struggle with this, and a lot are markedly more set in their ways even relative to one another than ponies. An interesting aspect of ponies because generally conformity is felt to be bad in modern society, but I think we see ponies being both quite conformist and quite individualistic at the same time, and I even get the impression that the ponies sort of see these things as intrinsically linked - that being friends with one another and living in harmony under Celestia and generally conforming in those ways is what enables them to then express themselves as individuals, that is the subjective impression I get of the pony 'view' on the matter. And all of what I just said is highly interpretive and subjective and I can't really think of examples of what I'm talking about either, so I totally understand if people disagree here

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Welp, what am I to say on this episode? Surprisingly a lot! 

First off, I enjoyed this episode more than I recalled when I last watched it, a common theme around here. The start was entertaining enough and enjoy pre-drama comfyness (does that make sense?) of them just chattering about and doing their own thing. Applejack's care for bloomberg is comical (is he a character?). I had forgotten this was the episode where Fluttertree emerged, very important!

Anyways, when we get to the main conflict, Buffalo versus Appleloosa, I find the conflict solid but simple. It's just using a classic wild west in American pop culture to teach a lesson in non-violent conflict resolution and understanding. The new round of characters here I don't love as top tier but do want to see again and I am drawn to that dynamic. Which, unfortunately is sullied by cultural sensitives regarding the buffalo being heavily based Native American/Indians, and thus we don't see much of them again. 

Pony in many ways was, in my eyes, is kind of an awkward spot when it came to it's timing of its birth. I've seen people point out that FiM was more rooted in older story telling tropes and paradigms rather than the post 2010 cartoon wave it was sort of part of and I think it shows here. Had Pony came out in 2012 this episode may not have been made at all or at least not had the buffalo be drawn on Native American culture. As for the culture issue itself, let's just say while I can understand someone finding this offensive there was a certain honor and reverence that has died as we have paved over everything with pearl clutching and then being purposefully offensive as a response, I would take that world over the current one. EH, potential hot take aside... 

This review feels a bit more rambly than normal, but my mind is more disorganized (though you may not be able to tell a difference!) due to, eh, some potentially concerning medical stuff. Honestly, I am thinking of revamping my review style to be more like 5050s (on a good day) and more brief and quick (on a bad day). I don't want to get ride of odds and ends though. Sometimes I feel like my main reviews are kind of dry and barren, which is fine, but, some stuff in odds and ends might fit better being noted in the main part.  

Oh, and for my rating, 7.3/10. This was a pretty good episode!

Will happen later, ug, medical stuff started to happen right now.

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This episode opens with the bizarre sight of several engineer stallions running along the tracks pulling the train that the mane six are riding out to Appleloosa – obviously it’s incongruent with how we see trains moving with the use of their own engines later in the series, and the immediate solution that comes to mind is that it’s broken down so it’s being pulled. I also considered that they might be doing it to avoid attracting attention from the buffalo, so the sound of the engine is not a factor, but they blow the whistle so that doesn’t work. The train also very much sounds like the engine is going. I think I’ve heard it said that this was perhaps the intended way for trains to work at the time, but if so the whistle, engine sounds and plow on the front are all very odd details. Poorly thought out, perhaps? Maybe. If so, it’s the first worldbuilding element that I’ve been unimpressed by so far.

Applejack reading to the apple tree is a great gag, though I don’t feel that this particular level of over-caring for her trees is necessarily going to be carried forward in future. It’s really more the sort of thing I’d expect Fluttershy to do – Applejack’s close to the soil, sure, but I never get the impression that she’s fond enough of nature to want to interact with it in such an impractical way. Besides, these trees are planted with an almost factory-type efficiency in her orchard, hundreds of them and no doubt sick ones have to be felled and the trees themselves, if we’re anthropomorphising them, I assume would be happier in the wild where they can freely let their roots beat back the competition for water, unlike at Apple Acres where they have to ensure all the trees are getting a roughly equal amount of water. However, this particular tree could very well be special to Applejack, and I could well believe that she’d want her cousin to get the very best of her trees. She does say the tree is “one of her favorites”, so I guess that checks out.

Next scene, we get both kerosene lamp and Fluttershy being ertree. The kerosene lamp has been noted as an example of a somewhat incongruous tech level shown in Equestria, but given the… Odd situation with the train’s engine, as well as Appleloosa clearly being quite out of the way, I could see this being an older train. Besides, even if newer magic/electric lamps are installed elsewhere in Equestria, I don’t know that it necessarily means it’s possible to install those things on a train. The train is very comfy, especially overnight. I’ve only been on a sleeper train once, it was going overnight up to Scotland. I don’t remember it that well, but it was similarly comfy, quite like sleeping in a ferry cabin. I actually enjoyed those parts of travelling more growing up than the actual holiday.

Then we come to the introduction first of Appleloosa and the settler ponies, then second of the buffalo, setting up the two sides of the conflict. I like the idea of showing ponies to have some flaws in some cases, but with as direct an analogy as this, and not only that but very nearly an ethnic analogy, I really dislike it. It makes it very hard to engage with the world as it is, which is what I want to do, because always my mind is trying to autocorrect to what I know the show is actually alluding to. It’s at times like this I wish I could actually erase good chunks of what I know about the real world and about history and politics, all things on which my opinion matters less than nothing and upon which I can affect no change – it would do me a lot of good in being able to engage more fully with the stuff I love without getting distracted, and I don’t really see a downside to not knowing about those topics.

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 >>/12155/
Spike so enthusiastically applauding and congratulating Pinkie Pie, even as nobody joins in, is great characterization in my opinion. Spike’s interesting in that I feel that he’s characecterized both as afraid of actual dangers, but as very brave in a social sense – not afraid of awkwardness or being singled out. The fake-out joke with the Chief and the Sheriff agreeing on Pinkie’s performance being bad is still very funny to me, and it’s one of the things I remembered about this episode before rewatching it because I found it so amusing the first time. 

It’s not an especially high-stakes conflict (the ‘pie war’ stand-in euphemism for violence was also used on Veggietales), but a little detail that at least for me evokes something of urgency is how Rainbow Dash is still desperately trying to think right as the deadline approaches, seconds before it’s all too late. In a way that really sells the whole conflict for me, because the preparations of the Appleloosans are just a bit overblown and silly in how much they’re snubbing the mane six, and the pies they’re preparing give you the sense that there isn’t really going to be any meaningful conflict. There is a potential long-term consequence of conflict that would be possible: pies are obviously not going to prevent the buffalo from simply coming back another day, and then another, again and again until they remove all the trees and perhaps demolish the town for good measure. Unless the Appleloosans would be prepared to escalate beyond pies, there’s nothing between the buffalo and eventual victory.

It’s pretty much a consensus that this episode was a mistake, and I have to agree. The biggest reason I think, beyond any issues with analogy or historical representation, is that presenting what’s essentially a real-world violent conflict, that is, essentially, a war in the context of a show that is not allowed to show the actual violence itself is never going to work. So how do stakes even work in a kid’s show? Well, I immediately thought back to Dragonshy – that dragon could have killed the ponies, as could the Ursa Major in Boast Busters. The key is that the threat was established without ever having to actually show the threat being carried out – which frankly, I find in live-action and adult ‘entertainment’ that when these threats are actually followed through on, it’s often for me an order of magnitude more juvenile than even the pie-fight excuse in kid’s shows, so I much prefer the implied threat regardless of whether it’s a kids show or not, really. It’s a real shame, because I like so much of this episode, particularly the comfy train and the buffalo characters. So, I’m going to be giving this episode quite a low rating – 4.6. That is to say, still mostly good, but I think everything that’s going wrong for this episode is so wrong that the overall impact leaves it essentially as a bad episode, the first one I would say is actually bad, that they should have radically rewritten it or not made it, unlike somewhat lower-rated episodes earlier in the season that just needed minor fixes.
 >>/12154/
> Will happen later, ug, medical stuff started to happen right now. 
Replies coming soon on my end, for now I've got to get to work!

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 >>/12153/
> The new round of characters here I don't love as top tier but do want to see again and I am drawn to that dynamic.
I liked the Appleloosans and Buffalo as characters, the Buffalo chieftain was a particular highlight I'd say.
> As for the culture issue itself, let's just say while I can understand someone finding this offensive there was a certain honor and reverence that has died as we have paved over everything with pearl clutching and then being purposefully offensive as a response, I would take that world over the current one.
To me I'd say the issue is less so offensiveness, and moreso that there's a very direct comparison being made - that is, ponies to white Americans. I like white Americans, and ponies are clearly in many other ways a sort of mirror to the United States (not least of which being that literal mirrors from Equestria lead to the EQG USA), BUT in most of those cases it's clear that these are just similarities. I want ponies to be ponies, not any particular human group, and I want pony flaws to be pony flaws. When it comes to ponies settling on tribal lands, I'd very much like to think of that within in-universe terms, and I just find that very difficult to do when it's quite so direct an analogy. It's particularly frustrating to me in a way because I don't even find what the US did to the native Americans especially bad or horrifying in the grand scheme of things, not great but every European country has easily done worse. I like Appleloosans as old west types, I like the native American buffalo, but having the two groups fight over who gets the rights to ancestral tribal lands is just too close to irl, particularly when it's trying to both be a real war and a pie fight at the same time. We'll have to wait till the changelings to get MLP showing how war can be done right, even in a kid's show.
> Honestly, I am thinking of revamping my review style to be more like 5050s (on a good day) and more brief and quick (on a bad day)
The lengths and detail of the reviews varying is a good thing, in my mind. In the sense that reviews are a bit of a shared diary, the review we write being more/less detailed reflects the state of mind we were in when we wrote it. And as actual reviews, the level of detail could also reflect a reaction to the episode itself - a good episode with a short review, for instance, says something about an episode in and of itself. Plus I think it highlights when an episode is really special to us, like when I did a 4-part megareview for Winter Wrap-Up.
> Oh, and for my rating, 7.3/10. This was a pretty good episode!
Probably our most disparate ratings difference so far. I think I'd certainly say that prior to the Appleloosans and Buffalo presenting their sides of the argument, the episode is probably around that sort of rating for me too - I just can't get past the way both analogy and conflict are handled in the episode, to me the tone and subject matter are all extremely incongruous. I will say however that I think these are moreso things that bother me and make the episode 'bad' or overall unenjoyable for me to watch, my rating is not intended to be objective. As for whether it's objectively a bad episode or not, I really don't know - it's sort of half-and-half in a way because there's some great stuff in there. Maybe objectively speaking it would be closer to a mid episode? But even that is my subjective opinion of what it's objective quality would be. I don't know, it's complicated. I wouldn't want to go so far as to say I actively disagree with anybody who likes the episode, I think I'd just want to leave it at, I didn't like it, personally.

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 >>/12153/
 >>/12154/
Where was I? Oh yeah... Odds and Ends! I really shouldn't have posted that and then posted nothing, but I had an incident that spooked me a bit and I wasn't thinking straight at the time. 

Appleloosan Flag
I know I am overthinking this x1 billion, BUT, I cannot help but wonder how official this flag being raised is and what would the proper protocol be for whatever entity like    Appleloosa fighting in some sort of war with Equestria properly is, if such a thing exist. We get evidence later on of extensive regulations in some areas and I think with a monarchy some sort of royal code should exist but part of me goes with a different logical inference that a newly unincorporated place such as here the rules aren't well developed and their isn't some large structuring of subdivisions and regulations outside of the town level. That might be an onscreen inference we can make for Earth Ponies...
(This is a rambling mess).

Odd Shaped Characters 
Maybe it's just me, but some of the characters did different poses or looked a little odd in how they were drawn at small moments compared to other episodes. Rainbow Dash's head behind the rock for example, it looks a little more angler.

Slightly Lackluster Backgrounds
Also maybe just me, but some of the backgrounds here look more thrown together. Particularly the Appleloosan apple orchard. Considering a lot of this wouldn't be reused often I find this understandable; similar to the caves in A Dog and Pony Show. 

Horse Pulled Train
Now, don't have a source, but I have heard multiple times that this was because Faust didn't want steam tech to exist in Equestria and wanted it to be more closer to some sort of  medieval tech level. I recall seeing more than one fanfic using the excuse that the locomotive had broken down but I wonder if that would be the best excuse/reasoning? 

Female Buffalo
Is it only Little Strongheart? LOL, obvious budget constraints aside, why would she be the only female there?

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 >>/12155/
> obviously it’s incongruent with how we see trains moving with the use of their own engines later in the series, and the immediate solution that comes to mind is that it’s broken down so it’s being pulled. I also considered that they might be doing it to avoid attracting attention from the buffalo, so the sound of the engine is not a factor, but they blow the whistle so that doesn’t work.
enchanted whistle? :D I just checked and wrote this in my handwritten notes for the episode but had forgotten. Yeah, it's odd trying to pair that to canon in a way that makes sense. 

 >>/12157/
> To me I'd say the issue is less so offensiveness, and moreso that there's a very direct comparison being made - that is, ponies to white Americans. I like white Americans, and ponies are clearly in many other ways a sort of mirror to the United States (not least of which being that literal mirrors from Equestria lead to the EQG USA), BUT in most of those cases it's clear that these are just similarities.
I just might agree that the comparison is too direct. Though I do wonder if the root of any awkwardness is because of the fact that this particular setting became a touchy subject. Because other comparisons do arguably exists that are just as strong, maybe... I have to think on that.I do agree that I like my ponies to be more outside of our world and actual dislike Equestria being too much of an American stand in. Less romanticized of a setting.   

As for Pony culture. Yeah, heavily american influenced but I'd make the argument that Earth Ponies are the only true American analog directly and that the Pegasi and Unicorns have more going on that sets them apart.   

> Probably our most disparate ratings difference so far.
> But even that is my subjective opinion of what it's objective quality would be. I don't know, it's complicated. I wouldn't want to go so far as to say I actively disagree with anybody who likes the episode, I think I'd just want to leave it at, I didn't like it, personally.
Believe me, objectively verus subjectivity is something I've struggled with myself in the past. Back in the reviews in Season 8 and 9, a lot of times I thought a lot of Episodes were executed okay but if I rated my enjoyment it probably would affect my ratings significantly. Now I lean more into my personal enjoyment. One area where I am still split on that is lessons. A bad lesson is arguably a thing that makes something bad regardless of if I enjoyed it. In the past I really cared if lessons were "bad" because I thought people extremely oversold the importance of TV shows and morals. Also I considered some things to not be as bad as people would often be freaking out about. This was based on my own experiences as a child and with how I see others talk about lessons like this I think I was in the minority, lol. I still lean this way but have been giving more considerations to lessons and the influences they could potentially weld.

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 >>/12160/
your destroying my screen