Review: Double Rainboom fan-made episode (by FlamingoRich)

Double Rainboom has been keenly awaited by our fandom for many months now — and, at last, it's here. It was long advertised as the first fan-made episode, but there's a fair case for saying that in that it's been pipped to the post by last month's Snowdrop. Another option is to call Double Rainboom the first full-length fan-made episode... but even that is doubtful, as you'll see if you click past the jump. However, what's unarguable is that this is the first officially sanctioned fan-made episode: creator Zachary Rich has the go-ahead from Hasbro to do this. Was it worth it? Let's see...

The storyline of Double Rainboom is fairly simple (though I think it takes a little too long to be told): Twilight mixes up a new potion that enhances a pony's existing abilities. The visiting Rainbow Dash, learning that it would therefore allow her to fly incredibly fast, can't resist – and, inevitably, things don't go entirely to plan. Not that there's anything wrong with a simple plot — a certain TV show of our acquaintance does some amazing things with simple plots on a regular basis. It's a slight shame that the actual double rainboom idea was used by IDW (in the Rainbow Dash micro) before this cartoon came out, but never mind.

The big surprise to most viewers who watched this was that it's actually something of a crossover with The Powerpuff Girls. This move has caused a good deal of controversy in the discussions I've seen about Double Rainboom, and I'm not surprised. Despite the connections between that show and My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, plenty of bronies — including me — don't know a lot about the PPG universe and so can't really judge how well that (substantial) segment was done. It certainly alienated me a little, which is a shame as the 2D animation looked good; I liked how Rainbow was rendered.

"My wings! What happened to my wings? No, I'm not talking to you, Dash"

Actually, I thought the animation as a whole was fine, and the presence of that name "JanAnimations" deep in the (excellent!) end credits wasn't a surprise. Double Rainboom wasn't quite up to show standard here, but it was certainly nicely done, with the "A Canterlot Wedding" style bit being a nice bonus. Similarly, the voice acting was very good without quite being great: the ponies' voices were fairly easy to get used to, though Dashie's was probably the one that took the longest. Again, I can't fairly judge the PPG voices, as I don't know the originals. Mandopony's music was generally well done, though maybe slightly too loud at times and I'd have loved a song.

Double Rainboom was absolutely stuffed with references, some of them being to popular fandom memes (such as Scootaloo being a chicken) and some being extra nods to elsewhere (like the whale falling from the sky). This was maybe another point where the IDW comic team showed the way: issue #1 of that was filled with references, but avoided seeming obsessed by them. Double Rainboom, I'm afraid, did go a little overboard at times. In particular, the pairing of Doctor (W)Hooves and Derpy was practically smashed over our heads, in case we hadn't noticed the first billion times they were included.

"I can't imagine why you think 'Bubbles' and pegasi go together..."

I did have one major problem with the way the story itself was told — though as it was in the PPG segment, I accept that I may be missing something. The monster destroying Townsville had been calmed and persuaded to stop by Rainbow Dash, in true pegasus fashion. (See "Dragonshy"!) This was true to the spirit of the show and perfectly satisfying. But then in storm the Powerpuff Girls and really brutally attack said monster, to the extent that they appear, at least, to have killed it off. That left a rather sour taste in my mouth, since this is at heart an episode of MLP:FiM, and that sort of thing is quite wrong for our show.

Overall, Double Rainboom was an enjoyable cartoon that I think can reasonably be recommended to bronies, though its near-obsession with sticking in more and more fandom memes, as well as the aforementioned monster scene, does prevent it from actually feeling like a show episode. Although shorter, I think Snowdrop does that particular job better. Nevertheless, this a genuine achievement, and getting both Hasbro and Time Warner to sanction it may be an even larger one! Double Rainboom didn't quite give me the slack-jawed amazement I got when I saw Picture Perfect Pony for the first time, but it's certainly worth seeing.
7/10