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S6E19: "The Fault in Our Cutie Marks"
10 Sep 2016 [7 Sep in Poland, fact fans]
My original rating: ★★★★
IMDb score: 8.1
Thoughts: Gabby's debut was a very well received episode at the time: just look at that Text Review Roundup! How's it held up? Pretty well, thankfully. It starts off nicely with Petunia (though it still rankles very mildly that they didn't call her a palaeontologist) and never really falls apart. A lot of that is down to Gabby – if you find her attitude grating, you won't like this episode, but I really like her. It's maybe for the best she didn't become a regular, though, as she's probably best in small doses. More to the point, this is the best example of post-S5 CMC living up to their cutie marks. With only minor issues, their interplay and dialogue is satisfying, as is their perseverance. Twilight is the only Mane Sixer, and she has a solid supporting role as adorkable scientist. Unsurprisingly, she nails it! The song although decent isn't one from the very top drawer, but I'm very happy the ending didn't go the easy, lore-destroying route and magic up a real cutie mark for Gabby from nowhere. Writer Ed Valentine previously did a fine CMC ep in "Flight to the Finish" and a poor one in "The Cart Before the Ponies". This one is firmly in the first camp. It's a three/four boundary episode for me, as it was in 2017, but as then the sheer cuteness pushes it over the line.
Choice quote: Scootaloo: "I know what it's like to want something that's out of reach."
New rating: ★★★★
Next
time, I'll be rewatching "Viva Las Pegasus", an episode that isn't without its flaws but which I generally found appealing viewing.
I'm not sure I found Gabby grating (Autumn Blaze would fit that description a few seasons later), but I was rather irritated by how good she was at everything. She's legit a Mary Sue, and that was grating. Possibly also because the song was meh.
ReplyDeleteWish the episode had been about Petunia Paleo, she was great.
Unless "Marks and Recreation" really knocks my socks off a year from now (and for the record, I do expect my opinion on it to rise), this is pretty unequivocally the best post-marks episode for the CMC (there are arguably better solo outings for the group, though). None of the flop sweat from "On Your Marks" of "so… what can we do with these three now?", none of the character-breaking writing from "The Cart Before the Ponies"… Nope, this is just a competently crafted episode with a compelling hook: "What if a non-pony wanted a cutie mark?". And while I think a lot of the individual beats throughout do get cold feet on occasion – you can tell they're dancing around the brand reasoning for cutie marks being a pony-only thing and the problematic aspects of them foretelling one's destiny not being allowed to fully override their brand usage – it absolutely works.
ReplyDeleteThere are, to be sure, niggles to be had: even here, the CMC do tend to blend into a whole more than they stand out as individuals. Something that did happen before they had their marks, to be fair, but only sometimes as opposed to near-always thereafter. Only Scootaloo's extra sympathy for Gabby's dilemma (a great element when stressed, but rather underused) and the specific types of caution present from the other two that reflect on their personalities and experiences mark them out, which does make many of the dialogue scenes more functional then memorable.
Gabby being great at everything, while making for funky visuals in the fine upbeat (if a bit mechanically so) song, does kind of her lock her into an "over-competent cutie" archetype, so I too am glad she didn't return thereafter (and when she did, said episode's quality wasn't her fault). Also, Gabby's decision to fake her mark for the CMCs' happiness just sort of happens. Otherwise, there's just some small niggles, like Twilight still being somewhat bland even in this adorable scientist mode and the lazy retrofitting of "The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone" to include a backstory for the new character, though Gilda and Dash keeping up mail correspondence was nice. I'd forgotten that.
Otherwise, yeah, it's a good 'un. Compelling character of the day that's bubbly without ever (mostly) being annoying; reasonable extrapolation of a lore concept that, while shackled somewhat by the show's restrictions, still goes far enough to not feel like wheel-spinning; effective if still a little bland usage of the post-marks CMCs.
I don't think this has much in the way of standout or funny moments, give or take the opener with Petunia (I wish the show went for more cold opens that are only related to the episode in theme and not plot; they're often the best part – go back to "Dragon Quest" if you doubt me), but it's a competent piece of writing that largely doesn't bore, and even in the show's prime, I wouldn't take that for granted. Having it here in a solid patch of a rough season is, in many ways, even better.
I'm not sure I've seen this one since it first aired, but I did like it. Gabby was cute enough, and any episode with baseball gets an automatic minimum three stars anyway. I was also very relieved to see they didn't magic up an actual cutie mark for her. Unfortunately, her next appearance let to significant character regression on Rarity's part, which was a problem more than once in later seasons.
ReplyDeleteA nice one! Not much to add here on top of what many others have said (e.g. Mike's point about Scootaloo, your point about Twilight's well-picked support role).
ReplyDeleteAnd I don't think I'm surprising anyone by saying Gabby's hair-trigger excitement gets the lion's share of the appeal. She's so damn adorably hyper that it's infectious.
I will say that, as hugely likeable as she is, she's not that interesting as a character, vis-a-vis flaws or limits or shortcomings or anything really dramatically juicy. The best thing she does is have an apparently disillusioned outburst when the inevitable happens and then keep up a deception, and both of those are easily swept aside by her goody-goody nature as a helper. As already mentioned, it makes her perfect ace characterization a bit much to swallow, even if the "helper" angle is sweet.
I think that "over-sugary candy" aspect sums up Gabby and her debut episode pretty well. Immensely pleasant and colourful and appealing, but not a lot of calories or nutrition to last beyond the sugar rush.
Still... I'd give it a respectable three, simply because it does cheer me up in its own right.
Also, palaeontology/archaeology is such a lovely kid thing whilst being weirdly morbid, and cheerful little Petunia Paleo deserved her own episode too. Seriously! Stop me before I gush about fossils! I'll do it! I'll gush about 'em, I swear!
Yeah, a Petunia Paleo episode would have rocked! I bet your fossil-gushing is similar to what I will inflict on strangers concerning ancient artifacts. No, really! I have this theory about early Sumerian bevel-rimmed bowls...
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