Text Review Roundup: "The Last Laugh"

I haven't forgotten about "Sunset's Backstage Pass", and it will get a review – although almost certainly a mini-review. I just haven't got round to it yet. The truth is that EqG doesn't generally mean enough to me for its stuff to get the same scale of coverage as FiM on this blog, with a few exceptions such as the actual feature films. But please feel free to remind me if I haven't put up that mini-review by this time next week.

Back to FiM now, and it's high time TRR woke from hibernation to begin its last half-season! (Possibly not the last ever, but the last for quite some while; G5 is a long way off...) As always, I'll be happy to hear about any other text-based reviewers, so that I can include them in future TRR editions. I am not interested in those who just post a couple of lines and then direct people to a 15-minute YouTube review, as that's exactly what TRR isn't for.

We have anything but a full slate of text-based reviewers this time, I suspect partly because of the clash with the final BronyCon. Looking at those who did post their opinions, you'll see that "The Last Laugh" was not an episode where there was any sort of consensus. The closest we got was the broad agreement that Pinkie was well written. Beyond that? Reviewers didn't agree about the comedy, didn't agree about Weird Al's value, didn't agree about the song... you get the idea.

I was in the middle of the pack once again. This is getting to be a habit!

Cuddlepug – mixed (graded C; "a fine episode, but one that could have been far deeper [...] a shame more wasn't done with the concept")

Dramamaster829 – mixed ("Though the majority of the story’s plot is as bland as a backdrop for ‘Rainbow Roadtrip’, the bits that Cheese and Pinkie share somewhat make up for the grey atmosphere.")

JDPrime22 – positive (rated 9/10; "certainly an unexpected twist this time around, but still awesome")

Louder Yay – mildly positive (rated 3/5; "on first viewing I thought it was really poor [and Weird Al] only got to be fun and silly and wacky in the final third [...] What improved my assessment second time around was that I knew where the episode was going – and I do like the moral here [...] I also warmed to Sans Smirk.")

Mike Cartoon Pony – mixed ("Shrug-worthy, not bad or weak, but very bland [...] the characters are undeniably written well [but it's] technically proficient but dull. [...] And for an episode featuring Weird Al Yankovic, that’s a crippling issue.")

MLEEP Reviews – positive (rated 9/10; "managed to turn what felt like a role reversal situation of a rehash and supply some great comedy not only from Pinkie Pie herself but also [Weird Al]")

Present Perfect – positive ("The Fox Brothers have at last redeemed themselves. I haven’t seen Pinkie Pie written this well since Amy Keating Rogers left the show. [...] For an episode about being unable to laugh, this was really funny [and] Sans Smirk was an interesting character [although the song] definitely pales in comparison to basically anything else you can compare it to.")

The Railfan Brony – negative (rated Bad; "rehashes Pinkie Pride, only based in a factory and none of the humor or charm [...] Pinkie was fairly well-written like a genuine friend who wants to help, and Cheese Sandwich was also pretty sympathetic [but] The Last Laugh is creatively bankrupt.")

TheDragonWarlock – positive (rated 9/10; "easily Pinkie's best episode in a long time [...] While [Cheese is] sadly not bringing too many of the laughs this time, he's still enjoyable as a whole and I liked the little character he did get [...] The comedy is excellent [as is the song] a great way to send Pinkie off on a high note")