The My Little Pony - Friendship is Magic Thread

[f-22 "raptor" ace]

As I said when I first watched the Perfect Pear back when it was aired early. It is one of the best episodes of the series.

[pokeplayer984]

~REVIEW POST~

Okay, let's begin this double review.  Starting with Discordant Harmony.  Spoilers below.

Well, this was a fun and enjoyable episode.  For such a simple thing as Discord hosting a tea party for Fluttershy, the writers sure made it work.  Discord literally talking to himself, his shopping trip as a whole, the complete makeover of his place... Discord made so many mundane things enjoyable.

I do like how Pinkie Pie, THE expert in party planning, was there to help Discord at first, and she was totally right in the end.  Fluttershy would have had a great time if Discord was just himself.

Then we get to Act 3, and boy do things get surreal.  The fact that Discord NEEDS to have chaos around him for him to exist says a lot.  It's almost as if he causes chaos as a survival mechanism.  On top of that, we have Fluttershy acting out of character to save her friend.  The lengths she goes to save her friend from vanishing in front of her eyes is a testament to their friendship.  Heck, as a fan of Fluttercord, I welcome all they did here.

Very fun and enjoyable episode.  Worth watching!

Now for The Perfect Pear.

Oh my gosh!  This episode is AMAZING!  This is an episode that honors the memory of the parents of The Apple Siblings.  Bright Mac and Pear Butter loved each other so much, they were willing to defy their parents to see one another and dared to have a secret weeding just to be together in the end.  They may not be among the living, but they will always be in the hearts of those who love them.

Also, the choice Pear Butter had to make.  I do not wish this upon even my worst enemy.  Choosing between the family you've loved all your life and the love of your life is a difficult decision and not one to be taken lightly.  I cannot imagine the pain she felt being forced to make the choice she did.  The feud started as a business rivalry and it led to this breaking point.  I am still shocked it went this far.

However, let's talk about my thoughts on the fandom with this.  I am utterly shocked by the fact that Applebloom's line of, "They may not be with us anymore.", a line used as a hint in media for confirming someone has passed on, didn't all but confirm them being dead in the minds of a number of them.  I guess some people need to see a freaking tombstone and a line that confirms they've been dead this whole time just to finally give in!  Ugh!  Sometimes this fandom drives me up a wall.

Enough of that though.  Anyways, I am also surprised with the ones they touched.  Sure, we had a new character in Burnt Oak, but I never expected Mrs. Cake to be Pear Butter's best friend and Mayor Mare to be the one to officiate the wedding.  Mrs. Cake especially came out of left field.  It was indeed quite surprising.

Finally, let's talk about Grand Pear and Granny Smith in all of this.  The fandom has called the both of them hypocrites, and they are not wrong.  One could argue that they should not care about the kids that Bright Mac and Pear Butter had.  However, the fact that Granny Smith loves her grandkids, despite the fact they are half-Pear, shows she was willing to put aside the feud to care for any member of the family.  Deep down, it must have been difficult for her to do such a thing.  She set aside her pride to raise her grandkids after the parents passed on.

Then, there's Grand Pear.  An old stallion, who realized far too late that he was nothing but an old fool.  Forcing his daughter to choose because of his pride.  He regrets it deeply and wants to make amends any way he can.  Now, he's trying to get to know the children his daughter had.  He's setting aside his pride to get to know three ponies who are half-Apple.

Are they still hypocrites?  Yes, but the fact they are making the right decision, makes it not matter.

I dare to say this is the best episode of Season 7 thus far.  A great episode I would definitely watch again.

See ya next week for an episode that debates Friendship Lessons.

[Hypno]

Discordant Harmony reminds me of the PS1 startup error known as Fearful Harmony :blink:

[pokeplayer984]

~SUMMARY POST~

Tomorrow is the newest episode!  Yep, no early release this time around.  Get the summary below.

------------
Title: Fame and Misfortune

Summary: Twilight releases a book on all of the Friendship Lessons she and her friends have experienced.  It becomes super popular and sparks a debate on which Friendship Lessons are the best ones.
------------

Now, due to me being out of town, I may or may not be able to see the episode when it airs due to not that great of internet.  We'll see.  On top of that, I may or may not be able to give the online post when it comes out.  We'll see there too!

Until then, see ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~LIVE STREAM POST~

Good morning, internet!  Today is another episode of pony!  Today, the friendship lessons are at stake.  Get the link to the Live Streams below!

Season 7 Episode 14 - Fame and Misfortune Live Stream

I have much anticipation for this one.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~ONLINE POST~

Got to watching it and I'm surprised a certain someone hasn't posted yet.

Anyways, here's the links.

Season 7 Episode 14 - Fame and Misfortune YouTube Version

Season 7 Episode 14 - Fame and Misfortune Daily Motion Version

Yep, it's been a while, but I finally have a YouTube Version of a pony episode.  Knowing YouTube, it won't last long.

Anyways, will give my review tomorrow when I get the chance.

See ya later!

[The Chronicler]

(spoilers)
After dealing with a friendship dispute between two random fillies, Twilight suddenly remembers the Friendship Journal that she and her friends wrote back in Season 4. However, it's in rather poor condition due to neglect, so Starlight offers to make fresh copies for them and their friends (using a spell she had developed for a certain "manifesto" her old evil self wrote). This and the recent incident with those fillies gives Twilight the idea to make many more copies and distribute them all over Equestria, in hopes that they can teach everyone about friendship lessons they had learned over the years. Once she gets approval from all of her friends, she goes through with her idea.

It isn't long before the results of this effort turn out in ways the Main 6 had not intended: Rarity is devastated that she is so disliked for her dramatic personality; Pinkie Pie is laughed at every time she says something, even when she's trying to be serious; Rainbow Dash is constantly surrounded by obsessive fans who won't leave her alone, not even when she has important weather duties; Fluttershy is accused of never actually learning her lessons on assertiveness; Applejack's home gets severely overcrowded by fans wanting to be part of her family; and Twilight just gets asked all kinds of random questions.

The unwanted attention become so problematic that Twilight's friends are practically forced to barricade themselves inside her castle. Twilight tries to reason with the crowd outside that she only wanted to share the journal's friendship lessons with everyone, but they stubbornly stick to their attitudes and beliefs. Not even a song is enough change their minds. Remarkably, Starlight tracks down the two fillies who had fought at the start of the episode and they reveal that not only did they read a copy of the journal, but the friendship lessons they learned from it actually made them closer friends. For Twilight and the others, that's good enough for them to say that the effort was worth it (despite the crowd still gathered outside).

I have to say, this episode was clearly meant to be a huge series of meta-jokes regarding fans of the show. I'm sure some of us are familiar with the stereotype that some fans obsessively watch certain episodes many times, frequently argue about who is "best pony", and almost never demonstrate the friendship lessons of some episodes.

One little detail I noticed is that the Cutie Mark Crusaders (apparently thanks to the sudden popularity they've gotten from the Friendship Journal) decided to start a so-called "Cutie Mark Camp", and based on what I've heard about the remaining episode summaries for the season, that could actually be foreshadowing an upcoming episode much later on.

I would also like to note that, since that journal was apparently neglected for quite a while, it seems that the last entries may have been from the end of Season 4, right before the Main 6 met Starlight Glimmer. Not only would that explain Starlight's unfamiliarity with it, but it would also arguably indicate that some details in the journal may be a little out of date (like the state of Fluttershy's assertiveness).
(end spoilers)

Anyway, it sure is nice to finally get back into the old routine of everyone seeing new episodes on the intended premier date. I'll definitely be looking forward to next week's new episode.

[f-22 "raptor" ace]

Today's episode was a fun one indeed. You didn't need to get me anything for Christmas this year M.A. Larson. But thank you for this wonder wonderful episode.

[pokeplayer984]

~ONLINE POST~

Oh boy!  What an episode!  This was definitely good!  Spoilers below!

I'm sure I didn't need the lessons of this episode shoved down my throat, but I know members of the fandom that do.  This is one of those episodes where they make fun of the fandom and it's enjoyable to boot.

I mean, all of the comments the ponies gave on the Friendship Journal, I have seen every single one of them more than once in the fandom. (Even the whole "Twilight was better without wings" argument is still going on.  Why can't some people just get over it already?) It has become a hostile place and I'm not sure how much more I can take before I demand some moderation to happen.

Anyways, back to the episode, it was pretty crazy.  You had ponies who only wanted to preserve it, Rarity "stress sowing" one of the worst dresses I have ever seen, (Seriously, even though I have "no fashion sense", even I can tell it's bad.) Pinkie being laughed at ALL the time, Ponies staying at Applejack's, Fluttershy being harshly criticized on having to learn the same thing over and over and Rainbow being told how cool she is ALL the time. (She can't even have privacy in the restroom apparently.) Geez!  Talk about craziness!

Even the song which is meant to drill the most important point of the episode doesn't sway these ponies.  It makes me wonder just how they get rid of them in the end. (FimFiction, ahoy?) I would consider those two fillies that Twilight talked to are "true" fans to their book, but that's just me.

Great episode and worth watching.

Next time, we have a certain dragon and changeling meeting each other for the first time.

See ya later!

[The Chronicler]

I forgot to mention the new Equestria Girls shorts that came out this weekend:
https://www.equestriadaily.com/2017/08/new-...time-short.html
https://www.equestriadaily.com/2017/08/anot...rls-summer.html

In addition, one of the already aired shorts is now available on Hasbro's official YouTube channel, so at least we can look forward to eventually seeing all of them there as well.
https://www.equestriadaily.com/2017/08/mlp-...ad-twience.html

[pokeplayer984]

~SUMMARY POST~

Hello, everyone!  Tomorrow is a new episode of pony with two certain characters returning.  Get the summary below!

-------------
Title: Triple Threat

Summary: Spike accidentally invites Thorax and Ember to meet at the Friendship Castle on the same day.  Due to an old feud between dragons and changelings, can Spike keep them away from one another throughout the day?
-------------

I'm sure shenanigans will ensue.  It should be good.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~LIVE STREAM POST~

Good morning, Internet!!  Welcome to where the dragon waifu of the fandom finally returns, with a character we haven't seen since the first episode of the season also returns.  Get the link to the Live Streams below.

Season 7 Episode 15 - Triple Threat Live Streams

As always, I'll post the online version later today and my review tomorrow.

Until then, see ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~ONLINE POST~

Well, that was not a good episode.  I'll give more why during my review.  For now, here's the link for the online version.

Season 7 Episode 15 - Triple Threat Daily Motion Version

I'll see ya tomorrow for my review, which I'm not looking forward to. -_-

[The Chronicler]

(spoilers)
The episode begins with everyone in Ponyville getting ready to welcome Ember, but while Spike, Twilight, and Starlight are going over the checklist, Thorax suddenly shows up, and Spike suddenly realizes that he invited both Ember and Thorax on the same day and apparently never noticed such a scheduling conflict. Spike immediately assumes the worst and fears that dragons and changelings will not get along at all, so with some help from Twilight and Starlight, he decides to do everything he can to keep Ember and Thorax apart.

Naturally, shenanigans result. Twilight takes Thorax to the castle, but Spike accidentally convinces Ember to visit the castle as well. While Twilight bores Thorax with reading chairs, Ember's visit in the dining room takes an awkward turn due to dragons diet preferences for gems and crystals. Spike suddenly gets summoned by the Cutie Map to solve a friendship problem right in town (certainly didn't see that one coming), so while he heads out to find it, Twilight and Starlight swap places (so Twilight is now with Ember and Starlight is with Thorax), and without realizing the other's actions, they both take their companions out into town. A little later, Spike ends up listening to (and getting bored by) Thorax's many issues, while Twilight and Starlight together causes Ember to get confused by how similar they are (nice little meta joke there).

Inevitably, they do end up meeting, but the initial aggression is due to them both mistaking the other for trying to harm their friend Spike. A few words exchanged make them quickly realize their error before they could come to blows, and they both end up leaving Spike for seemingly not trusting them to get along.

Soon after (in the part of this episode that pleasantly surprised me), Thorax and Ember meet each other and they both end up offering helpful advice that the other desperately needed. Ember teaches Thorax how to be more assertive so he can better handle his new role of leadership, and Thorax teaches Ember that she'll be better able to make friends if she simply talked about her feelings. Using their respective lessons, they both confront Spike, who then apologizes for jumping to conclusions. With everyone finally reaching an understanding, Spike completes his Cutie Map mission (interesting to note that it sent him to solve a problem that he ended up causing in the first place).

Not a bad episode, in my opinion, though there were certainly moments of cringe, which I'm sure I've mentioned before that I'm never fond of. The old trope of keeping two individuals unaware of the other's nearby presence was rather predictable, so it was rather nice to see two things I was not expecting: Spike getting called by the Cutie Map, and Ember and Thorax end up solving their problems on their own without Spike's help at all. I would consider this among my favorable episodes, but not much else to say for it.
(end spoilers)

Edit: Almost forgot to mention, no new Equestria Girls shorts this weekend, but we did get one earlier this week:
https://www.equestriadaily.com/2017/08/eque...ails-short.html
Also, Hasbro's official YouTube channel recently added one of the earlier shorts, so I guess it'll be one every week we'll be seeing this.
https://www.equestriadaily.com/2017/08/hasb...ake-up-eqg.html

[pokeplayer984]

~REVIEW POST~

I'll be making an announcement after this post on a little issue going on.  For now, here's my thoughts on the episode.  Spoilers below.

There is little doubt in my mind just how bad of an episode this one was.  It contained missed opportunities, conflicts that weren't needed and a lesson that the show alone teaches.

We even have Spike be given the idiot ball and hold it through the entire episode.  I really hate when a character is given the idiot ball.  It just shows the writer being non-creative.

If anything, both Ember and Thorax themselves were good characters.  They had problems that those alone would be better to talk about for the episode.  To introduce and expand into.

Ember has such a problem with enforcing friendship into dragon culture, that it's proven to be ineffective.  She's not used to receiving hugs and she misinterprets certain cultures.  She's actually great for all of this.  The core problem she has is that she was being TOO competitive.  To the point where she was bullying other dragons.  This could have been expanded upon and gone more in-depth.  However, because of all that was just wasted time, it's all set to just a few minutes and the problem is solved far too quickly.

Then we have Thorax.  He can sure ramble.  On top of that, he's not that aggressive about his leader roles.  He also has problems with converting changelings to the new way of feeding off of love.  Some changelings are traditionalists apparently and making them change their ways proves to be difficult.  This really could have been expanded upon too, but it seems they'll be saving it for a future episode.

Instead, we have the majority of the episode dedicated Spike freaking out for no good reason and trying to keep them apart to the point where he himself creates such a huge friendship problem that the map responds.  Nice to see the map can even call Spike.  However, I don't feel like this one counts because not only does he cause it, but the problem solves itself.  I'm hoping for a real one in the future.

This was a bad episode.  Only Ember and Thorax were good in it.

For what it's worth, I'm not seeing this one again.

Next time, camping trip!

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

So, now for my announcement.  I've made a decision.  I've chosen to block EqD's comment section from my computers.  The mods there have proven to be ineffective in dealing with trolls to the point where they don't even bother.  They've given the role of "mod" a bad name and I just don't want to deal with their continued disbelief of what Freedom of Speech entitles to.

Now, this will not effect me going there.  I can still read their articles and link to what I want to.  It's just the comment section I have a problem with and it's time I took care of this situation.

So yeah, nothing has changed for here.  I just won't be posting on EqD anymore.  It's just not worth it in the end.

[pokeplayer984]

~SUMMARY POST~

Sorry this is so late, but here's the summary for the newest episode that will air in the morning.

--------
Title: Campfire Tales

Summary: When the CMC's camping trip is ruined, Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash tell them stories and they make the best out of the situation.
--------

I don't expect much from this episode, but hopefully it'll be good.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~LIVE STREAM POST~

Well, here we are!  The newest episode will air soon!  Get the links to the Live Streams below.

Season 7 Episode 16 - Campfire Tales Live Streams

As always, I'll post the online link later today and my review tomorrow.

Until then, see ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~ONLINE POST~

Well, that was fun!  You'll find out why tomorrow.  For now, here's the link to the episode.

Season 7 Episode 16 - Campfire Tales Daily Motion Version

My review comes tomorrow.

See ya later!

[The Chronicler]

(spoilers)
So it looks like the sisters' weekend camping trip we saw back in Season 3 has now become an annual tradition. Some things have changed (like Rarity settling for a more modest tent and packing not quite so heavily) while others are still the same (Scootaloo still apparently has an intense fear of being out in the woods). However, some kind of massive bug infestation forces the six ponies to flee their camp and take shelter inside a cave. While they wait for things to improve, Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash each decide to share their favorite legend. (I'm afraid I can't immediately remember their names, since I've currently seen the episode only once.)

Applejack starts off with a legend about an earth pony stallion who wished to join a group of brave warriors, but was never taken seriously due to how scrawny he was. But then when the nearby volcano erupts and threatens the village, he jumps into action by trying to dig a trench to divert the lava flow. Obviously, this would seem like an impossible task with how little time he had, but then some strange force of magic suddenly gives him the strength to finish the task just in time, saving the village and earning the right to join that warrior group.

Rarity next tells the legend of of a beautiful unicorn mare who, after being away studying at a magic school, returns home to find the once beautiful town has been impoverished by the new empress, who also happens to be a formerly close friend of hers. She confronts the empress, who was so jealous of her beauty that she tried a spell on herself that ended up horribly backfiring, thus corrupting her into removing beauty from everywhere else. After a magic dual, the empress is defeated, and the mare restores beauty to the land, even though it comes at the cost of her own beauty.

Rainbow Dash then tells the legend of a pegasus stallion who was part of a military legion trying to make their way back home, but some dragons wouldn't let them pass and they end up capturing some of his comrades. Against his commander's wishes, he wants to rescue them, so he decides to distract the dragons and lure them out of the cave so the rest of the legion can rescue their fellow soldiers. He manages to fly faster than the dragons, and after the legion sets a trap of a massive storm cloud, the dragons are sent back, and the entire legion is able to continue home.

After the stories are finished, the six ponies manage to find an alternate route to their destination, and despite the earlier infestation, they agree that the camping trip was still enjoyable thanks to all those stories they shared.

I liked this episode quite a lot. I was especially fascinated to see the pony interpretations of the different settings for each of these legends (Norse for the first, Ancient Chinese for the second, and Roman for the third). It certainly does a great job of expanding the pony world beyond Equestria, and I would very much like to see more of this kind of world-building content in some future episodes and seasons.
(end spoilers)