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S1E12: "Call of the Cutie"
Written by Meghan McCarthy
7 Jan 2011
My original rating: N/A
IMDB score: 8.0
The one with ultra pony roller derby
Thoughts: Into 2011 now, with Meghan McCarthy's
first second FiM writing credit! This is where we find out properly about cutie marks, and even more importantly, where the CMC get together – albeit not until late on. (Though Apple Bloom seems to abandon Twist after this episode, poor thing...) We see AB demonstrating earth pony mouthwriting, and then... oh, hello Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, how
glorious to see you, not. It's quite fun to see the bigger mares trying to help Apple Bloom get her cutie mark, though AB's desperation is a little saddening by the end. "Cuteceñeara" is a bit of a mouthful, but the party scene itself is fun. We hear the CMC instrumental theme for the first time; I have a vague memory that William Anderson didn't like it that much, but I do. This is a nice, solid episode that perhaps works better in retrospect than it did at the time, when we didn't know any of the fillies except Apple Bloom – although Sweetie Belle's squeaky voice in particular is quite startling now!
Choice quote: Bon Bon: "I didn't put those in my bag!"
New rating: ★★★
One little extra, which is down here as I don't have a source: I've heard that the working title for this episode was "Call of Cutie", but that Hasbro vetoed such a blatant pun on the Call of Duty
games as they weren't suitable for kids. Hence the addition of "the".
Next up is "Fall Weather Friends", which I've always enjoyed a lot. I remember going back to watch it after the utter disappointment that was "Non-Compete Clause".
Nice little review. I am going to have to pick you up on one thing though- Meghan McCarthy wrote Dragonshy.
ReplyDeleteGah! Silly mistake, that was. I'll fix it when I'm gone on the PC. Thank you! :)
DeleteHasbro vetoed a pun on the name of Call of Duty.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet, literally the rest of the show happened?
Well, it's hearsay. I can't prove it's true. But it kind of sounds like something they'd do.
DeleteOh boy, do I have a lot to say about this one.
ReplyDeleteOf the first half of Season One, this is indisputably my favourite episode. That's a decently high bar to clear already when I've got the likes of "Dragonshy", "Look Before You Sleep", and "Bridle Gossip" to choose from (heck, that last one even has Apple Bloom in it!). Most of those are some combination of fun character shenanigans (Fluttershy, AJ and Rarity, Twilight et al and Apple Bloom) and playing around with concepts (a dragon quest reminiscent of The Hobbit, that girliest of concepts the slumber party, and skepticism and speciesism). Some of the issues are pretty relatable (Fluttershy's phobia, AJ and Rarity's opposite approaches rubbing each other the wrong way, and Apple Bloom's/Twilight's skepticism around Zecora's bad image). And they all have a neat element of worldbuilding about them.
Yet I think "Call of the Cutie" is where these benefits all fuse together most strongly, to the point that the episode feels the most reinforced and layered. It's not just useful to know how cutie marks work and why they're important - this very world-building element is fused with Apple Bloom's worries about social comparison and personal purpose.
It becomes a justification for pulling in different characters with their own takes on the issue, none of which are wrong per se but some of which have more value than others (AJ's accepting patience, RD's "go out and try everything" tactic, Twilight insisting it's just life and not something magic can fix - which incidentally gives it some mature heft). The fact that this is all ultimately treated as a psychological part of the life cycle from childhood to adulthood, and that it could easily shape a pony's entire life and its fulfilment thereafter, while also being a matter of social status and identity…
I don't know if I'd call it "profound" – it's a familiar lesson about childhood and growing up, and not a complex one at that – but it feels like an episode that's pushing in that direction. Man, it's hard for me to describe why I like it so much, but that's definitely part of it. It's one of those episodes that feels richer the more I revisit it and ponder over it.
Helps immensely that Apple Bloom's anxieties and fear of embarrassment are super-relatable for me. And it makes her a fascinating character to watch, including how the cutie mark anxiety drives her to explore, go all out, desperately force the issue, even make up lies and play on Diamond Tiara's own social status obsession by pretending the "cutie mark" is just too awesome to show off. Heck, it even inspires some funny gags; Apple Bloom's attempts at being an efficient salespony, and her motormouth whining, are jokes which I know aren't exactly sophisticated, but darn me if I don't laugh every time they come up.
I think the ending to this is both sweet and clever. Sweet, because Apple Bloom finding like-minded foals to share her quest with is a satisfyingly positive way to give her a break after the misery she's put herself through. Clever, because it affirms what's so great about childhood without rebuking adulthood in a sour grapes fashion; childhood's a time of potential, for exploring and learning what can and can't be done. It feels more natural and realistic, even celebrating and warning not to grow up too fast, especially not because you’re worried about what your peers think. It retroactively casts a new and more affirming light on Apple Bloom's exploratory behaviour during the episode, and even if "the CMC are trying to get their cutie marks" has been worn down hard since then, I think it was a great yet understated way to kick off a new, childhood-oriented thread that complemented the more Main-Six-centric episodes.
ReplyDelete(On a sour note, I personally think the actual cutie marks the CMC end up with, and the way they got them, mangles what made this episode so good. Cutie mark fixation seems a natural and understandable feature at this time of life – all part of the life cycle before setting forth for the world of adulthood. Fine. But making cutie marks their main and dominant trait is not fine. It’s boring. It’s reductive. It feels fake and trite. Giving the CMC cutie marks that enable them to police cutie marks and tell others how to interpret their cutie marks because the CMC have layered cutie marks and such unholy designs of cutie mark ugliness all acquired in the cheesiest way at the exact same time with no irony and even managing it by throwing in another goddamned redeemed villain who didn’t need to be redeemed in the first place – well, long story short, my opinion is it turns what was a good storytelling element for its time into a stilted, past-its-sell-by-date "we can keep doing the same thing!" gimmick for the show-writers to milk to death. God-damn do I hate THAT episode.)
But at least that's a long way in the future. Here and now, there’s a lot I like about this episode. “Call of the Cutie” for me marked a turning point for the show, moreso than the Winter Wrap-Up episode did (I mean, I like that one and the song is fine, but the sheer hype completely mystifies me. It's not even in my Top Ten of Season One, though fair’s fair I doubt it’s far behind in the rankings). After “Call of the Cutie”, though, and with one definite exception, Season One becomes pretty much a pleasant ride through and through, and this stretch is (for me) one of the high points of the entire series.
Tremendously interesting comments; thank you! I think it's fair to say that episode is likely to get a rather different rating from me when we eventually get there -- although who knows? That's part of what the MLR series is for.
DeleteP.S. I should clarify the "Unknown" comment up there was me. Had some trouble with the blog comment format, for some reason. It kept disappearing whenever I tried to preview it, and I tried to fix it by trying to "Comment as" something else before I hit "publish" too early and sent it. By the time I got the "Impossible Numbers" comment right, I couldn't go back and change the "Unknown" comment.
ReplyDeleteJust so's you know.
"Heck, it even inspires some funny gags; Apple Bloom's attempts at being an efficient salespony,"
ReplyDeleteOoh, brainwave: This kind of gag is all the better for me because the gag's mechanics also reflect the overall nature and lesson of the episode: growing up too fast. Listening to a little kid act like a no-nonsense suspicious shopkeeper is hilarious enough, but it also demonstrates how Apple Bloom is trying to grow up too soon, and the inevitable result is her going wrong and going overboard.
This episode really is a richly-crafted one, one that seems very ordinary and by-the-books on paper but is elevated superbly by so many things, chief among them just how many layers their are to the script, with the story serving as a wonderful parable of the struggles of tween girl social politics, with plenty of social anxiety along the way. The bit about Twist having her Cutie Mark now, and thus a friend Apple Bloom once shared something in common with no longer has that thing in common with her, and you've got a very layered episode.
ReplyDeleteReally, this episode does so many things that elevate it; coming up with an organic reason for Twilight to be present (reluctantly trying to help Apple Bloom out earlier) so she can give the lesson at the end that she already knows, for instance, sticks out to me. Also, that Apple Bloom was a main role in Bridle Gossip already and acted as the voice of reason there not only gives her a foundation to go off of, but allows the viewer to be more forgiving as her element crashes around her, given we know she has the inner strength inside of her to deal with this situation.
Really, the only thing I find objective fault with is how personality-less Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are from this episode alone, though future episodes help to alleviate that. Otherwise, it has it all: funs gags and sequences, cute moments, a neat Pinkie ditty, and so on - even the snobbish bullies Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are written well enough within their intended character role, with the former doing a good job at making us hate her (her character role is functionally identical to Myrtle from Lilo & Stitch, or Princess Morbucks from Powerpuff Girls outside of "destroy the Powerpuff Girls" moments), and the latter having just enough hints that she could be a good person without Diamond Tiara's influence, serving to offset her being a pretty thing yes-girl otherwise.
But yes, Call of the Cutie is am immaculately-crafted episode, and between Dragonshy on one hand, being a character-rich adventure episode, and this on the other hand, being a character-rich... character piece, it's small wonder Meghan McCarthy rose through the Hasbro ranks so quickly. Fair play!
It's interesting that both you and IN love this episode so much. As my star rating shows, I like it (quite a lot -- that's a high three) but I still don't adore it. I found it a very smooth ride, which is an achievement in itself, but not one that made me sit up and gasp in amazement. There are episodes coming that, unless I've changed my view greatly, will knock me for six in a way "Call of the Cutie" doesn't. Though as I say, I do find it an easy watch, largely free of bumps.
DeleteI wouldn't say I thought it was the best of the best now... when I say that thing with the rest of the CMC at the end was the only part I found fault with I meant in as far as a notable fault. The episode doesn't perhaps have anything that obviously makes it a classic, not the way that episodes like "Winter Wrap Up", "The Cutie Mark Chronicles" and "Party of One" do, among others. To clarify, in my review, I gave it a 8.5/10, which marks it as a great episode, but not quite an absolute top-tier one. A diamond in the rough, if you will.
DeleteI'm slightly nervous to see how the next two CMC episodes, "Stare Master" and "The Show Stoppers", will fare, as I haven't seen either in a long time (outside of clips in highlight reels and the like, usually of the songs). The impression I get is that neither if highly regarded by most, but at this point, with how many Season 1 episodes have trumped expectations, anything's possible.
It's a long, long time since I've seen "The Show Stoppers", but I remember liking it more than much of the fandom. "Stare Master" came up as one of my Random Pony Episodes earlier this year, and I had a reasonably good time with it.
DeleteWatch the opening schoolhouse scene again - someone seemingly noticed, apparently quite late on, that Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle couldn't be shown in shot as it would ruin the big reveal, and so we get the two of them hastily recoloured and with random cutie marks!
ReplyDeleteAdd me to the "love this" camp. I had no idea who Apple Bloom was thanks to our out-of-sequence DVD, but this has always been one of my favourites from season 1. Plus the intriguing idea that Rainbow Dash, through her terrible advice, may well have been the catalyst for the first five seasons of "try everything until we find our purpose" CMC episodes!
Oh yes! I'm pretty sure I had noticed those recolours in the past, but I missed it this time around.
DeleteThis is fascinating... I've always thought of this as the kind of episode people liked, but not one they utterly adored. I would really not have predicted that a high three-star rating would be lower than what my commenters' would have been!
I just think it's wonderfully put together, both in terms of the big picture (introducing the lore of cutie marks from Lauren's childhood games, the establishment of the school and the bullies as new elements, subtly moving the focus away from the Mane 6 when it comes to the most basic lessons - no more crowbarring-in of jarring "giggle at the ghostly" style moments - and the structure of the plot (as others have mentioned) that lets Twilight arrive at the end to report the lesson back), and incredible little moments (Diamond Tiara's quick natural-leader cost/benefit analysis deciding it's not worth calling out AB at the party, Berry and the punch, the excellent "fwyzoom!" noise each time Twilight tries to magically generate a CM, Rainbow's groansome but still funny visual cloud joke, "my racket!", Cupcakes).
DeleteAs I understand it, this was the first episode an awful lot of people seem to have watched, and the CMC focus threw some would-be bronies for a loop? But I've always had a special place for it in my heart.
Although I watched everything in order when I joined the fandom, I do remember finding this episode a bit on the meh side the first time around. I'd definitely class myself as someone who didn't fully warm up to the CMC straight away -- although it didn't take long; by "Stare Master" I enjoyed their appearances.
DeleteIt was this particular episode when we were interested in a ton of topics that would be the standard for FIM: The importance of gaining a cutie mark, the first 'official' union of the CMC, exploits (If we don't count the very first episode), the presence of Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, and the goal of the CMC to do 'everything' it takes to get their cutie mark. In a way, it's relatable that Apple Bloom wanted a cutie mark mainly because she was one of the only students not to have her mark by her age, just like being that 'one' kid in school to not have a cellphone when everyone else has. Initially, she would've gone to Diamond Tiara's shin-dig because Twist, who was initially Apple Bloom's friend, didn't have a cutie mark either... But then Twist gets her mark for all her unique ways of making sweets and... Well they really stopped being friends after that (Call that exaggerating, but when's the last time we've seen the two interact since this episode?).
ReplyDeleteAnyways, there were many takeaways from this one episode. Apple Bloom doing nearly everything to get her mark and surprisingly that was because it was Rainbow Dash's idea to try everything (Even going to a dojo to get a cutie mark in karate... Which we never see again, but that was so cool). Then we get Pinkie Pie teaching her to make cupcakes (Even that catchy 'Cupcakes' jingle) and so desperate Apple Bloom was she tried to get Twilight to use her magic so she'd instantly get a cutie mark (Even though she said that's not how it works). In a way, I felt bad for Apple Bloom because she was given such a hard time just because she stuck out until a faithful meeting with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle would forever change her life. If Apple Bloom hadn't found herself attending that party in the first place, the three wouldn't get to realize they aren't the only ones without a mark... Then again, we did had to thank Diamond Tiara because they wouldn't have gotten together with 'her' unintentionally (But we would not know that for many seasons).
I will say between the two, while Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were still relevant, I felt that while Diamond Tiara was easily the bully I just wasn't feeling it with Silver Spoon. In a way, she was clearly more of a follower only acting out because it seems she looks up to Diamond Tiara. That, or perhaps their parents know each other and it was easy for them to be friends. If anything, this one fan image that showed Silver Spoon as an older mare actually made me like her more as if it makes me think 'How would it be if she didn't always had to rely on Diamond Tiara's guidance and stuck with her own path?' Course, we would not take this into account for another couple seasons... But that's for another topic.
My first reaction to "Call of Cutie" is that it would have been intended as a "Call of Cthulhu" reference.
ReplyDeleteMaybe; I don't know. That wouldn't have the pun value, though.
DeleteReally? I don't know what else you'd call it. A weaker pun, but still a pun.
DeleteMy fault. I meant to write "...the same pun value, though."
Delete