Episode review: S8E13: "The Mean 6"

We only saw this for half a second, but it cracked me up

Well, it's taken a while, but here I am at last getting up to date with FiM again! The final episode before the mid-season hiatus was written by Michael Vogel, last seen sharing writing duties with Nicole Dubuc in the S8 premiere. The synopsis for this one seemed intriguing, but because of my holiday I already knew it had received a rather mixed reaction. (More of that in Text Review Roundup tomorrow.) Beyond the break, I'll say how I felt about it.

I think I'd put this in the category of "flawed but interesting" episodes. I was rather blindsided by the fact that Chrysalis's return didn't lead to a big confrontation with anyone, but the ep's final shot suggests we haven't seen the last of the Bug Queen. It was also a bold departure not to have any of the Mane Six-plus-Starlight realising what had happened, and personally I found that refreshingly different. I wouldn't like to see it every week, but once is fine.

Chrysalis's ability to create new "servants" out of so little is a very dangerous ability, and if that is still intact later on I could see some serious problems for our ponies. I did find it a little odd that two of the fake ponies – AJ and 'Shy – had imperfectly coloured cutie marks but the other four didn't. I don't think we ever got any explanation for that, and that omission I did find a bit irritating. Not faking a Starlight made more sense, as Glimmy can't use an Element of Harmony.

A useful reminder of just how nasty Chrysalis can actually be

Some of the fake ponies' personalities were a little too close to their Discorded selves from "The Return of Harmony" for my liking. Fluttershy, in particular, seemed almost identical. It didn't actually harm the story, but I'd have liked a slightly different approach. Mind you, they all ended up being destroyed anyway, in an admittedly brief sequence that was nevertheless disturbing for a TV-Y show, with them still talking as they shrivelled away.

The plot about Twilight's retreat didn't really go anywhere and was used simply as a framework to hang other stuff on. More fun were the interchanges between the (real) ponies about camping, in particular those involving Applejack, Rarity and Starlight. As so often this season, Glimmy pretty much stole the show: there were yet more priceless facial expressions and a nice independence of spirit in her refusal to be convinced that camping was fun.

There was one scene where Pinkie had to be hit with all the Idiot Balls she keeps all over Equestria in case of Idiot Ball emergencies. This of course was the one where she blithely told fake Twilight absolutely everything about the Tree of Harmony, its location, much of the recent history of the show, etc. While Pinkie can be pretty oblivious sometimes, she's not stupid and I think this sequence may have pushed things a little too far in that direction.

"Rarity, we told you to stop using Zecora's cosmetics on your friends!"

So, a fairly mixed bag, but a pretty watchable mixed bag. I was never quite certain what was going to happen next, which kept things interesting. And clichéd as it may be, I did love the (real) Mane Six and Starlight making up again near the end. Fluttershy's line there was lovely, if rather heartbreaking, and the final scene with the smashed-up tents was nice too. So, by no means a perfect episode, but one I did enjoy watching.

Best quote: Rarity: "I don't know, but I wants it!"

Yays

• An interesting change of format
• Starlight was as good as ever
• Chrysalis remains truly villainous
• Some very fine voice work

Neighs

• A little confused at times
• Not all the subplots added very much
• The fake Six were a bit too close to their Discorded versions

★★★