The My Little Pony - Friendship is Magic Thread

[DarkWolf91]

There seems to have been a huge leak of mid-season 8 episodes (without the audio). I thumbed through them just to see if they were legitimate, but of course am not going to bother watching them until they're officially released. Has anyone heard any news about this yet?

[The Chronicler]

I think I mentioned a while back that when those episodes leaked (back in December, I think), I refused to watch any of them because they were not even completed yet (I heard that this leak was due to someone who had actually hacked Hasbro). I'd rather have the full experience when I watch these for the first time, so I'll continue to wait for their official releases. (I recently heard that the specific episodes that were leaked are numbers 6-13, so be extra careful to avoid spoilers ahead of when those episodes officially release.)

[pokeplayer984]

~REVIEW POST~

As promised, here it is at last!  Spoilers below.

Okay, first thing I'm going to say.  Professor Naysay is racist!  He easily proved that.  Yes, he gave "other" reasons to close the school, but it's obvious that the main reason he closed the school is because he disapproves of teaching races outside of ponies.  That's the kind of bullcrap that needs to be removed as much as possible.

Not to mention that the book obviously makes teaching not fun.  Things need to be different.  This Friendship School is meant to be different.  It needs to have a different set of rules and I'm glad Starlight pointed that out to Twilight.  She's going to make a great Guidance Counselor.

I really like the Student Six. (Yes, I'll keep Chronicler's name choice for the time being.  Like it too much, anyways.) Well, all except Silver Stream the Hippogriff.  It's hard for me to like that kind of character.  My favorite is Yona the Yak, followed right behind Smolder the Dragon. (Just because I like dragons in general.) At least for now.  We'll see if things change.

The Student Six all get along very well, despite being different races.  They WANT to learn about what makes them different.  This is a very valuable thing of friendship indeed.

The episode was rather well done.  It devoted a good amount of time to both the old and new characters.  It didn't have much time to work with, but it used it so well in all aspects, it doesn't bother me.

Enjoyable episode and I hope for more.

Next time, Maud appears.  I need to go and mentally prepare myself.  Sorry, but I REALLY don't see what the fandom does with her.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~SUMMARY POST~

Well, here we are!  It's time for Maud.

--------------
Season 8 Episode 3

Title - The Maud Couple

Summary - Pinkie Pie's super-best-friend-sister bond is challenged when Maud gets a boyfriend that Pinkie can't stand.
--------------

And we have Sister Drama!  I'm hoping Pinkie will make it enjoyable.

I'll be posting the Live Streams tomorrow morning.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~LIVE STREAM POST~

Only hours away from some Sister Drama.  Get the link to the Live Streams below!

Season 8 Episode 3 - The Maud Couple Live Streams

As always, I'll post the link to the Dailymotion Version after the episode.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~EPISODE POST~

Well, here's the episode.  I'll make sure to watch it myself tonight after work. (This time I mean it.)

Season 8 Episode 3 - The Maud Couple Dailymotion Version

If all goes well, expect my review tomorrow.

See ya later!

[The Chronicler]

Part 4 of Equestria Girls Forgotten Friendship released on YouTube this week. (Unfortunately, the audio quality got screwed up, and here I was hoping that all five parts would stay clean as they released on YouTube.)
https://www.equestriadaily.com/2018/03/sunset-shimmers-saga-good-cop-great-and.html
And the direct link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tx460u15Q9c
Just one additional scene in this one.
(spoilers)
While Sunset and Trixie are questioning people in search of the memory stone (such as nurse Redhart in her office and Maud Pie in the hallway), they also question Micro Chips in the library. (Honestly, I wish this part had not been cut from the TV version.)
(end spoilers)

And now for my review of today's new episode.
(spoilers)
First of all, this is the first time we got to see the new intro for this season. Previously, the only changes to the intro over the seasons had been rather minor (Twilight gains wings, the tree library is replaced with the castle, Starlight Glimmer joins the group shot, etc.), but even though the audio still remains identical, the visuals are an entirely new sequence altogether. Way too many details for me to list, but needless to say, it really takes into account how much everything has changed since the very first season.

Anyway, onto the episode itself...

As we know from last season, Maud Pie is now living in Ponyville. However, Pinkie points out that they recently haven't been spending as much time together as they used to because Maud frequently claims to have other plans. The next day, when Maud fails to show up for yet another meet-up, Pinkie literally searches all of Equestria before Starlight (who we all know is friends with Maud) suggests Pinkie should simply go ahead with her plan for preparing for Maud's birthday the following day. At the cake shop, Pinkie bumps into a guy named Mud Briar (constantly dull and monotone), though Pinkie ends up frequently frustrated by his behavior (such as how he starts many statements with "technically..."). Pinkie finally finds Maud outside the shop, and after Pinkie frequently interrupts her with random guesses, Maud finally manages to tell Pinkie that she now has a boyfriend... and it happens to be Mud Briar.

Putting them next to each other, Maud and Mud behave pretty much identical, with the only real difference between them is that while Maud specializes in rocks, Mud's obsession is with sticks. (Sticks & Stones, get it?) In fact, they met each other in something that covered both of their interests: a rock show featuring petrified wood. Mud even has his own pet stick to play with Maud's pet rock. It quickly becomes clear that while Pinkie thinks she and her sister are similar in many ways, she definitely does not think the same for Mud (though to an outside observer, it's clear that Maud and Mud are virtually the same while it's Pinkie that's the outlier). Once again with advice from Starlight, Pinkie decides to try spending the day working with Mud on planning Maud's birthday party, but all attempts at bonding fail (for example, he hates the use of pinatas because "that's stick abuse"). Eventually, once they meet up again with Maud and Starlight, Pinkie has completely lost patience with Mud and openly questions how he could have anything in common with Maud, though Mud points out that perhaps Pinkie is the one who probably doesn't have much in common with Maud (even suggesting that Maud simply never spoke up about it to spare Pinkie's feelings).

Pinkie ends up with so much self-doubt that she practically panics and tries returning to live on her family's rock farm. It isn't long before her other sisters, Limestone and Marble, find out what's been going on, and at Marble's suggestion, Limestone uses a geode as a metaphor to explain why Pinkie shouldn't be so hostile to Mud. Cheered up again, Pinkie returns to Ponyville and not only agrees to at least tolerate Mud (even though it's clear she still feels frustration with him around), but also actually listen to Maud and give her exactly what would make everyone happy for her birthday: watching a surprise party she wasn't invited to.

I have to say, this is certainly one of those episodes suited for fans of Maud Pie (I'm certainly not one and therefore don't really get it, but to each their own). I found it quite interesting to see how Maud and Mud behave almost identically, yet Pinkie somehow views them in completely opposite lights (my best guess is that Pinkie probably has some serious bias in favor of her family members). And with Mud suggesting that Maud probably was never fully truthful to Pinkie to spare her feelings (just like we saw with Rainbow Dash last season), it really does make me wonder who else has been dishonest with Pinkie for years just to "spare her feelings". I did like seeing Starlight get involved, and I really liked seeing Pinkie's other sisters get a say in the matter (such as Limestone immediately denying jealousy over Maud getting a boyfriend). So for me, this episode was just fine and not much else.
(end spoilers)

[pokeplayer984]

~REVIEW POST~

Oh boy!  Can't believe I got through that.  I'll explain in my review below.

First off, Maud's monotone voice annoys me too much.  It makes it difficult for me to like her in any way, shape or form.  If she's just doing something in the background, fine, I can deal with that.

So, let's make her a boyfriend that's just as monotone and even more annoying.  Well great!  If things work out between Mud and Maud I wonder how bad their kids are going to be!  Yeah, you can guess how much I didn't like him.

Now, the plot of the episode is fine.  It's just these characters that bring it down for me.  If I found them more likeable, I could have cared more about this one.

However, if there's one thing of interest I can give for this episode, it's further proof that sparing Pinkie's feelings just isn't a good idea.  Yeah, I understand their good intentions, I understand that it shows they care.  However, what Pinkie wants more than anything is for her friends to be honest with her.  Otherwise, it makes her jump to conclusions and take things the wrong way.  Yeah, you may hurt her, but is that really better than the alternative?

Anyways, hopefully we don't see this Mud guy again.  I could do without him.

Conclusion, this one could have been decent, but certain characters just ruin it for me.

Next time, Fluttershy handles one of Rarity's Boutiques for a day?  You know what, I think I can handle it a lot better than I did this one.

See ya later!

[f-22 "raptor" ace]

Loving the season so far.

Mudbriar is so perfect for Maud.

[pokeplayer984]

~SUMMARY POST~

Okay, I'm hoping this one is going to be better.

-------------
Season 8 Episode 4

Title: Fake it Til You Make it

Summary: Fluttershy is the only pony available to look after the Manehattan boutique while Rarity is away and takes on a series of characters to cope with the intimidating clientele. But as her characters get more and more exaggerated, Fluttershy learns that she was already the best pony for the job just by being herself.
-------------

No doubt that I love me some Fluttershy.  Here's hoping for the best.

As always, expect the Live Stream and Episode posts tomorrow.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~LIVE STREAMS POST~

Fluttershy has work to do at one of Rarity's Boutiques today!  Let's cheer her on and hope she pulls through.  Get the link to the Live Streams below.

Season 8 Episode 4 - Fake it Til You Make it Live Streams

As always, expect the episode post later today.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~EPISODE POST~

So, I chose to go back to watching Live Streams.  I feel it to be worth it now.

Anyways, here's the link to the episode.

Season 8 Episode 4 - Fake it Til You Make it Dailymotion Version

Expect my review tomorrow.  This time I REALLY mean it!  Promise!

See ya later!

[The Chronicler]

Part 5 of Equestria Girls Forgotten Friendship (the final part of it) is now up on YouTube.
https://www.equestriadaily.com/2018/04/final-part-of-equestria-girls-forgotten.html
And the direct link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMkWnhCc59Q
Only a few seconds of additional content in this part, so not worth describing in spoiler text. Anyway, now that Forgotten Friendship is complete, I wonder which of the Equestria Girls shorts we'll see starting next week.

And now for my review of today's episode.
(spoilers)
Fluttershy is having a relaxing picnic at her animal sanctuary when Rarity suddenly arrives and desperately asks for help. Because she needs assistance from all of her employees for an upcoming fashion show in Canterlot, she needs to ask a friend to manage the Manehattan store, and Fluttershy agrees to help. (Though Rarity somewhat denies it, she did in fact already ask just about everyone else she knew of, all of whom refused for various reasons.)

At the Manehattan store, Rarity quickly explains how everything works, but Fluttershy is obviously overwhelmed and uncertain. Thankfully, that raccoon family that was there when the store first opened is still living (and even working) there, and are more than happy to help her out. As she and her other employees leave, Rarity begins to have second thoughts, but a run-in with a satisfied customer convinces her that Fluttershy has everything under control.

Meanwhile, in an effort to boost her much-needed confidence, Fluttershy adopts an alternate personality (with a fitting outfit), but when it doesn't help with another customer, she adopts a second alternate personality (with proper outfit) to better connect with that type of customer, then ends up also adopting a third alternate personality (and outfit) for similar reasons, and keeps switching back and forth between the three personalities as she deals with each customer. (I'm no expert on fashion, so I have no idea what the proper terminology is for those three styles, so I won't even bother trying to name them.) It works at first, but as things progress, Fluttershy gradually becomes more intolerant, eventually reaching a point where she turns against the raccoon family that had been helping her and she ends up kicking them out while calling them "rodents" (which they apparently find so offensive that you'd think it was a racial slur).

The raccoons go all the way to Ponyville to tell Fluttershy's friends about what's going on (good thing Spike is a master at charades to understand the message). Twilight, Spike, Rainbow, Pinkie, and Applejack all try to talk some sense into Fluttershy, but they're very appalled when all three of her alternate personalities behave as if she never even knew them. Unable to reason with her, they are forced to confront Rarity about it, and once she finds out how bad things are going, she leaves the fashion show early to deal with Fluttershy. (That really goes to show that, despite her passion for her career, Rarity is more than willing to put her closest friends before her business.)

But even with Rarity finally there, Fluttershy still remains unreasonable, even though it's obvious by this point that her behavior has driven away all of the customers. What finally snaps Fluttershy out of it is Rarity deciding to fire literally all three alternate personalities, one after the other, and Fluttershy immediately apologizes for her awful behavior. She ultimately learns that even though she does in fact have the right confidence within her, what really matters is that she should just be herself.

For me, personally, this episode is among my least favorable. I'm never fond of any cringe moments, and there was a lot of it between Fluttershy and the customers. In addition, I know almost nothing about fashion, and care very little about it, so the subject matter of this episode made it difficult for me to really get into it. Of course, that's all just my opinion, and I recognize that there's no objective reason why anyone should dislike this episode, so if anyone else likes it, I'm fine with that. However, I did like seeing the return of that raccoon family, and the rather significant role they ended up playing.
(end spoilers)

[pokeplayer984]

~REVIEW POST~

As promised, here's the review.

You know, there's a huge stigma against having someone act out of character.  Some people hate it, even if it's justified.  I'm one of the more reasonable people.  Things like mind control, acting and others I find a good reason for a character to act out of character.  So, does it work here?  I'd say kind of.

The second thing is that, depending on the reason, you have a limited range to work with before one can reasonably call you out for it.  While Fluttershy's reason of "it's only an act" can be justifiable to an extent, especially with the fact that it'll help her better identify with her customers, I really think there were points she took it too far.  I bet even with "it only being an act", Fluttershy would not treat the raccoon family the way she did.  THAT is where I call out the writers on.

I mean, she LOVES animals.  She really does treat them as if they were her friends.  For her to lash out like that, call them rodents and tell them to "head back to the forest" really feels like the writers only did that so the lesson could be done.  It's as if they wrote themselves into a corner or something.

Remember, I was fine with her acting like she did to better identify with customers, but it was where she mistreated the raccoon family where I put my foot down.  Sorry to the writers, but you really dropped the ball here.

Oh, and also the way she treated her friends, also quite out of character.  You'd really think she was under a spell or something.  It being an act doesn't justify it in my eyes.

Now, as for Rarity, well you've got to give her credit for at least trying everybody else.  Rainbow had Wonderbolt Practice, Twilight had tons of paperwork due to the new school, Pinkie had a backlog of orders to do, Applejack was probably too busy and who knows what the reasons were for the rest.  So, that left Fluttershy, whom, unless there's an emergency, pretty much has her schedule open. (To this day, I still question how Fluttershy makes money.)

Rarity was reasonable to worry, especially with the fact she was putting a newbie to the whole thing in charge. (Likely another reason she chose to ask Fluttershy last.) I mean, you don't do that unless you're desperate, and boy was she desperate.

Her dropping everything to go back to Manehatten to see what was up felt reasonable.

I also find it hard to believe that it took Rarity firing Fluttershy for the latter to have some sense knocked into her.  So quickly as well.

To me, Fluttershy acting unreasonably out of character is what hurt this one.  It felt too forced here.

Not a good episode.  I had a lot of hope for this one.

Next time, we get some Granny Smith love.  Can't remember the last time an episode revolved around her.

Until next time, see ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~SUMMARY POST~

Here's the summary for tomorrow's episode.

-------------
Season 8 Episode 5

Title - Grannies Gone Wild

Summary - Granny Smith and her elderly friends are headed to Las Pegasus, and Rainbow Dash tags along as chaperone so she can ride the best rollercoaster ever before it closes. Unfortunately, following Applejack's care-taking rules for the "Golden Horseshoe Gals" keep Dash so busy, she doubts she'll even get to see the rollercoaster!
-------------

Well, let's see if Granny Smith can bring something good this time around.

As always, expect the link to the Live Streams tomorrow morning.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~LIVE STREAM POST~

Again, I'm hoping Granny Smith can bring something good this time.  I'd hate to have a third episode in a row that I didn't like.  Anyways, get the link to the Live Streams below.

Season 8 Episode 5 - Grannies Gone Wild Live Streams

Expect the episode post later today after the episode.

Until then, see ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~EPISODE POST~

Whoops!  Nearly spaced on this!  Anyways, here's the episode.

The one on EQD got taken down.  Luckily, I hunted down another.

Season 8 Episode 5 - Grannies Gone Wild Dailymotion Version

Expect my review tomorrow.

See ya later!

[The Chronicler]

I can't believe EqD seems to have forgotten that Equestria Girls shorts are still ongoing on YouTube. Of course, with Forgotten Friendship now done, it's back to the two-minute shorts, and it looks like we'll be seeing those beach-themed shorts rather than the rest of the "choose your own ending" shorts (but I'm sure we'll see those shorts soon enough). Anyway, at least I can still offer the direct link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipDUqvPX-o8
(spoilers)
Sunset is busy playing a pirate-themed video game on her handheld gaming device when she stumbles across a message in a bottle. She shows it to Twilight and Pinkie, and when they find that the message inside is a treasure map, they decide to follow it. They find another message in a bottle, this one requiring a decoding ring that was conveniently provided with the message. They follow the decoded set of instructions and end up at a sushi truck, with a prize of... 20% off for any product at that truck. Despite their disappointment at not finding real treasure, the three girls decide to take advantage of the deal and order some sushi, though Pinkie piles way too much wasabi on hers, with predictable results.

I liked this one because it started off with Sunset playing a video game and then suddenly finding herself with a chance to play a real life version of it with some of her friends (complete with an amusing video game style walking montage). Sure, the prize was rather disappointing, but I have to admit it was kind of funny seeing Pinkie Pie find out the hard way why she should be more careful with certain condiments.
(end spoilers)

And now for my review of today's episode.
(spoilers)
Word reaches the Wonderbolts that a certain popular roller coaster in Las Pegasus, known as the Wild Blue Yonder, will be closing in about a week. Even though riding that roller coaster is practically considered a must-do among all Wonderbolts, Rainbow Dash somehow never heard of it, and once she does, she's very exited about it. However, her teaching duties at the School of Friendship are preventing her from what is almost certainly her last chance to ride it. Fortunately, Applejack offers to cover for her, but on one condition: take Big Mac's place as chaperone for Granny Smith and three other elderly mares on their annual trip to Las Pegasus. With Applejack providing a list of restrictions that she insists must be followed at all costs, it's easy to see why Rainbow is incredibly frustrated, but with that being virtually her only chance to even get close to that roller coaster, she reluctantly agrees.

Once they arrive, Rainbow insists that the four elderly mares go to their hotel room and take a nap. This is obviously an attempt to give her an excuse to leave them for a short while so she can ride the roller coaster, but based on how obviously they fake being tired, it seems the elderly mares have plans of their own. Rainbow gets a ticket for the ride, only to discover the line is incredibly long, and knowing that she shouldn't be away for too long, she reluctantly gives up her place in line, only to come back to the room and discover the mares have sneaked out. She eventually finds them, but in her efforts to follow Applejack's instructions, she ends up ruining any of their hopes for a good time. Ultimately, while the mares get special access to a popular magic show, Rainbow becomes convinced that she has now lost any hope of ever riding that roller coaster.

At the magic show, Rainbow is shocked when the elderly mares have volunteered to participate in an apparently highly dangerous trick, so she rushes to get them out of it. Unfortunately, it turns out that performing for that trick was something those mares had been hoping to do for years (and due to the show's reputation being suddenly ruined because of this incident, it's unlikely they'll ever get that opportunity again). Rainbow finally confesses the real reason why she agreed to go with them (and when she mentions Applejack was involved in the arrangement, the elderly mares seem to consider it a completely reasonable explanation for why Rainbow kept ruining their fun). Ultimately, the mares agree to give Rainbow what she wants by going on that roller coaster with her, and thanks to the express pass they possess due to visiting Las Pegasus for so many years, they're able to bypass the entire line. Rainbow Dash finally gets to enjoy that ride, and for finally ignoring Applejack's restrictions and proving how awesome she really is, the mares allow her to join their group with promises of many more annual trips to Las Pegasus.

This was a rather okay episode for me. Sure, I liked that Rainbow wanted to ride that roller coaster, but I couldn't help but feel some cringe moments (which you all know by now that I hate) every time she tried to follow Applejack's list of instructions. And of course, it's not until the full truth finally comes out that good times are had by all, only by completely ignoring Applejack. I'm pretty sure this is hardly the first episode where a whole lot of the conflict and issues could have been completely avoided had someone simply explained the whole truth right from the start. Even though I figured Rainbow Dash would eventually get on the roller coaster by the end of the episode, I was pleasantly surprised that the four elderly mares were more than happy to join her on that wild ride.
(end spoilers)

Since the next few episodes are the ones that got leaked, I'm honestly worried that said leaks may make videos of these episodes more likely to be taken down, even after they will officially premiere. Based on what I've heard, some of these episodes sound very interesting, and I'd really hate to miss out just because I refuse to watch any livestreams.

[pokeplayer984]

~REVIEW POST~

This was okay, but I had a good time with it.  Spoilers below.

So, we have Rainbow Dash chaperoning Granny Smith and her friends.  Oh boy!  Why did I not see those "adult" moments coming?  I mean, they actually got those past the censors.  It's been a while since I've seen that happen in a kid's show.  If Nostalgia Critic watched this episode, I have no doubt he would bring back the "You know, for kids!" joke that I rarely see in his stuff these days.

However, when it comes to putting in adult material, you have to do it right.  You have to make sure it doesn't make someone feel uncomfortable.  Unfortunately, the idea of old ladies wooing someone who is a young adult is very off putting.  It's one of the thing that makes someone scream "pedophilia" even though nothing sexual happened.  So, as nice as it was to see an adult joke, this wasn't the right adult joke to have.  Worse, it happened not once, but twice.

With that out of the way, let's get to Rainbow.  She was doing her best to follow those rules Applejack made.  However, all they did was get her in trouble.  The whole point of them going to Las Pegasus was about having fun, without any rules.  Perhaps THAT was the whole reason they brought so much luggage.  They didn't NEED that much.  They just wanted to tire out their chaperone so they could have some fun and not be blocked from it by rules that prevented that.

At least it was resolved by the end, and Rainbow got to ride the Wild Blue Yonder like she wanted.  On top of that, she became a member of their squad.  Not sure that was the best choice, but whatever!

Okay episode, but they really missed the mark.  I was hoping for better.

Next time, the CMCs help a Hippogriff.

See ya later!

[pokeplayer984]

~SUMMARY POST~

Okay, here we go with the summary.  It's time to begin the slew of episodes that were leaked.

-------------
Season 8 Episode 6

Title - Surf and/or Turf

Summary - The Cutie Mark Crusaders try to help a young Hippogriff figure out where he belongs. With family members on Mt. Aris as well as Sea Pony relatives in Seaquestria, he can't decide where to live. Unfortunately, the CMCs are so taken with both places, they can't decide either!
-------------

Well, maybe the CMCs can end this streak of not that good episodes.  Here's hoping!

Live Stream Links will be posted tomorrow morning.

See ya later!