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| Dash being cute is relatively rare but generally rather adorable |
Written by Corey Powell
26 Jan 2013
My original rating: 7/10 (=★★★)
IMDb score: 7.2
The one with balloon animal Rainbow Dash
Thoughts: Corey Powell gave us the sublime "Sleepless in Ponyville" on debut – but sadly lightning didn't strike twice. To be fair, this isn't the complete bore-fest I'd remembered it as being; I was convinced that I'd find my 2013 review to be absurdly generous now, but that wasn't really the case. It's actually one of Spike's best showings from the first half of FiM, not that that's saying a great deal. As far as the pets go, this is a good outing for Angel, and Powell nicely balances his annoying and cute sides, rather than just representing him as an unmitigated horror as (too) much of the fandom tends to. The CMC play a pretty nice supporting role, especially with their unauthorised (and very brief!) trip to the Crystal Empire. I can't say I'm massively enthralled by this episode, partly because the pets themselves aren't all that interesting, Angel again apart. Some oddities, too: why wasn't Spike invited to the Equestria Games thing? (He does get a somewhat painful star turn there next season, of course.) And how come it's Rarity's jewel that Spike chooses as the first one to give away? Still, I mentioned in 2013 the amusement value of having a scratchy relationship between Spike and Angel. I can't believe that was coincidence. Also, Fluttershy had that huge emerald, which I recall prompted minor discussion about where she actually gets her funds from – never really answered in canon, though fanfiction has had a few goes. So yes, I'm going to let this one keep its three-star rating. It's not that high in that band, but I'll admit it was a bit more entertaining than I had expected.
Choice quote: Rainbow: "You only want to get hit in the head by a flying turtle once."[Tortoise! –Ed.]
New rating: ★★★
Next up is "Games Ponies Play", which takes place at the same time as this episode but which I remember almost nothing about. It really is that forgettable, and despite my decent experience this time I don't have especially high hopes that this will change.
Can we just stop for a moment and thank the DHX staff for caring so much about this show? Upon seeing this episode's script, they twigged that an episode where Spike looks after his pets was absent his own pet baby phoenix obtained from the end of "Dragon Quest". It probably hadn't struck them as odd to that point, but in an episode featuring all the pets, the lack of Peewee was bound to stick out. Unable to change the script, they inserted the visual photo montage of Spike returning him home. They didn't have to do that - all too often on shows like FiM, where the studio producing it has no script authority, staff usually get dispirited from this level of care because they're forced to work with typical kids' pablum and don't even have the freedom to improve it. For this to happen, you know the show meant as much to them as it does to us.
ReplyDeletePast that, it's a fine episode, if a little forgettable and not especially memorable in the long term, though thankfully not nearly as much as the following episode. There's are lots of good tricks here I admire - unlike most Spike episode, the Mane 6 are written out in a graceful way that doesn't weaken the conflict or onscreen entertainment, and they all get brilliant little moments of their own early on (good choice on the header image - that nose rub between Dash and task is too adorable, especially with how she tries to brush it off afterwards).
From a technical standpoint, this one's script shows a lot of the same strengths that were in Corey Powell's debut episode, "Sleepless in Ponyville", being a economical and dense-yet-well-paced script. If the episode has a flaw... well, there's just not much there. I wouldn't expect raw probing character development every time, but it's largely just hijinks and shenanigans, and while they're entertaining, they're not really top-tier by this show's standards - as fun as it can be, they usually only take the show so far, I find. I'm not convinced it's a strength of hers. That, or the show isn't as good as cartoon hijinks for the sake of cartoon hijinks without Lauren Faust and Rob Renzetti around, something I'm inclined to agree with, given the evidence going forward.
It's basically a low-key passable time, this one, which probably goes some way towards explaining why it's easy to forget. But it doesn't really do anything wrong either. Basically one of those episode's I'd gladly watch if I was channel surfing and found it, but would rarely actively seek out. Which, sure, there's worse fates to be had.
P.S. I'll say more about it next time, but the dual-episode gimmick, while fun, is just that, a gimmick. This episode probably handles it better, as the events of the others feeds into this one better then the inverse. And let's not forget these episodes weren't originally going to air back-to-back - in original production order, they were several spaces apart. So there's that to be thankful for, I guess.
Peewee's treatment has always struck me as a weird disappointment. I'm not sure what to make of it being a last-minute edit. Where did you learn that, by the way? I don't remember hearing it addressed as such.
DeleteRainbow's nose-rub is honestly one of my favourite Rainbow Dash moments. I like how the pets are reflections of their owners, but Tank's open affection and Rainbow's more hesitant version is easily one of my favourites (Angel being a self-serving bastard and Winona being a semi-disciplined overgrown puppy come joint-second).
P.S. I'll say more about it next time, but the dual-episode gimmick, while fun, is just that, a gimmick.
It looks even more blatantly gimmicky in hindsight, since such a two-episode gimmick suggests the Crystal Empire's hosting of the Equestria Games would prove a much bigger deal than it turned out to be.
The Peewee photos were added in storyboard - during the Writer's Panel as Las Pegasus Unicon 2013 (yes, that one...), Meghan McCarthy said so when a fan asked why Peewee was returned home rather then being Spike's permanent pet. Obviously I wasn't there, this is from watching the panel online myself, it's at the 59 minute mark if you're curious. She said that the folks up at DHX, especially Jayson Theissen, have such an encyclopaedic knowledge of the show that they catch stuff occasionally missed by the writers due to the practical approach of freelancing. They realised some fans would wonder where he might be, and after thinking it was probably more right for him to be back with his family (Meghan doesn't say that, but the sentiment is there, or I'm remembering this from something else), they decided to have him returned home. This decision was still approved by Meghan - it was just added in boards.
DeleteIs it a little clunky? A bit, but better this then nothing at all.
Nice point on the pet dynamics with their owners! Sans Angel, they didn't get enough during the show, but Winowa especially. Though at least we can praise her characterisation in relation to Applejack even more, confined as it is to small moments and not in the spotlight.
And yeah, the Equestria Games being just a backdrop in two future Season 4 episodes... one of the biggest problems the show started facing in Season 3 which only got worse with the years was it's inability to commit to more then the barest notions of serialised storytelling. Contrary to the implications of that, I don't need the show to be serialised - Season 2 has the least overarching serialised elements, and it's the show best season! The problem comes from it introducing elements that are ripe for serialisation and continuing storylines, and which it and the writers clearly WANT to be serialised, and then not doing nearly enough with them going forward. The Crystal Empire being the first serious case of this, but there's plenty more to come!
Aha, found it!
Delete"Writers Panel - Las Pegasus Unicon 2013"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxLmvBB5X7c
00:59:06-01:00:54
Yeah, I certainly remember that during S4 there was quite a strong feeling that the Equestria Games were going to be the big season finale. And then... they weren't. Okay, not many people complained (at the time, at least) about the finale we did get, but still.
DeleteA.K.A. the last good episode of Season Three, as far as I'm concerned.
ReplyDeleteLet's not beat about the bush, though: of all the main characters, Spike doesn't get the best treatment in the first half of the show despite the fact it wouldn't be that hard to make interesting a semi-chivalric odd-one-out dragon affiliated with one of the most powerful unicorns ever, and who managed to be more of a social creature than her.
Yet in this episode alone, despite having helped save the Crystal Empire, he's arbitrarily excluded from taking part in the Equestria Games inspection. Which is just as well, because that episode turned out to be frustratingly dumb.
Whereas here, it gives us a nice scene of Fluttershy and Spike coming to terms with that and kicking off the plot (how is it that Fluttershy and Spike don't interact more? It makes so much sense for them to do so after the series premier).
Also, Owlowiscious actually has a character and a point now. However modest it is (Spike wanting gems to bake), at least Spike has a definite goal in mind when he starts rounding up the pets. And the Spike-Angel stuff does feel well-balanced here, as you said.
I personally found the supporting cast showcase a lot of fun, including the pets. Sweetie Belle is extra adorable in this one, and I like how even the likes of Tank and Gummy can't stand Angel. Each pet has their own distinctive personality (or personality starting point, technically), as well as distinctive interactions with their owner.
Overall, though, I think it comes down to how much someone enjoys the comedy against Spike. Which I do, because I'm a baaaaaad person and get a kick out of fictional character torment.
This isn't to say that something more engaging than "show Spike as selfish and venal and then dump on him for twenty minutes" wouldn't have been welcome, but I still found it funny. Perhaps it's a British comedy thing: showing a not-necessarily-likeable protagonist and then heaping misery on them as a sort of narrative "retribution" or "rebalance", but Spike being both transparently selfish in looking after the animals, and then being very inconvenienced for his short-sightedness later, felt pretty comfortable entertainment to me. It's simultaneously easy to sympathize with him (because, when you get down to it, his ulterior motive was pretty simple and everyday) and laugh at his failures (because, yeah, taking care of pets solely for the money is a pretty dumb, short-sighted move).
For example, the bit where it sounds like Scootaloo decapitated Tank, and then Spike flat-out panics and rushes back, was a personal burst-out-laughing moment.
So for the burst of comedy and side character spotlighting, I was entertained. Give it a high three stars at least, and the only two reasons it doesn't get a full four from me are because it's mostly just straightforward comedic entertainment rather than anything that particularly speaks to me, and because it does have niggling problems keeping it from reaching the heights of great episodes this season.
We look to be in largely complete agreement here! Though I'm kicking myself now - there were so many great moments you mentioned here, which I did discuss in my original re-review of this episode earlier this year, but forgot to mention here today. Guess then can happen when one comments on the spot and is rushing to say what's important to them.
DeleteBut yes, the expanded characterisation to Owlowiscious, all the other pets being just as fed up with Angel, the distinctive interactions they get with their owners (Opal close-to vanished after this one - the only future moments of hers that spring to mind are her part as Luna in Fluttershy's Wonderbolt history in "Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3" and delivering a message from Rarity to Twilight in "P.P.O.V. (Pony Point of View)", the seamless integration of the CMC into the action - all points I too came to the conclusion of.
You also hit the nail on the head as regards Spike in this episode, and why it works in a way that most of his appearances that have him suffering often don't - here it actually feels like justified, or semi-justified retribution. While most of the time, it just feels like poor, shameless writing. Other then the one plot point of him not going along to The Crystal Empire for plot convenience, which I'm also inclined to forgive given the state of the following episode, there is not a thing that happens to Spike in this episode that doesn't feel like righteous Karma. But at the same time, you're right - we still sympathise with him because him motives are simple and, though selfish, understandable.
So yes, just straightforward comic shenanigans without anything that speaks to a viewer deeply, but it's structured well, and makes no obvious, episode-killing mistakes like quite a few episodes this season do. And some minor issues here and there. But given this season's state - I used to think it wasn't the least of the first five, but after going along with them alongside Logan, I'm editing it is probably the least of those first five - that's something gladly worth taking.
Honestly, all I remember about this is how it was a not-really-two-parter with the next episode in a way that I don't think was ever repeated in the show? And that was really cool. Also, that this one's much better than the next episode, one single visual gag aside.
ReplyDeleteThey repeated the gimmick in Season Five with "Made in Manehattan" and "Brotherhooves Social".
DeleteThat's right, I knew there was a second one! Those episodes weren't quite as thoroughly integrated as these, though.
DeleteAnother similarity, at least for me: both "Games Ponies Play" and "Made in Manehattan" would, at least currently, be on my list of most forgettable episodes of the entire show. :P
DeleteYou're tellin' me! :D
DeleteI liked this one a lot better than most people did. I still wouldn't rate it a favorite, but I appreciated the pets getting that much screen time and Spike finally gets some focus in a way that he comes across not only as competent but responsible. I remember thinking it was odd they seemed to call so much attention to the jewel ending up in the gutter, only for the next episode to quickly tie that in. I thought it was a neat effect. Feels like a 3-star to me.
ReplyDeleteI talked to a couple of friends about this one recently. Split decision: one's feelings were quite well aligned with yours, the other's were that it was entirely forgettable. Take your pick!
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