Flight To The Finish Review · 6:59pm Dec 14th, 2013
I just first want to say that this episode WAS TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY-
Ahem. A very exceptional episode.
To a lot of you, you'd say this as a run of the mill kind of children's show episode and I definitely won't pretend that it isn't. But you know what? Screw all of that out the window because this was still a really great CMC episode!
To begin with, it was great seeing the Cutie Mark Crusaders again, not having lost an ounce of their fun and cuteness. What was definitely interesting about this episode was that it wasn't focused on them finding their cutie marks, but more about achieving something a little more. It's nice that the writers know how to give them something to do and yet change it up a bit.
In this case, it's about leading the flag for Ponyville in the Equestria Games. We have Ms. Harshwhinny from "Games Ponies Play" returning to give Ponyville's colts and fillies the chance to put together a routine in order to carry the town's flag. Rainbow Dash is hired on as a coach, especially due to the events of Hurricane Fluttershy, and is just as adorkably eager as ever! She's told to be more professional, which she continuously struggles with, but tries to put on the best effort she can because of how important this is. It's a nice step into seeing her being a lot more mature, still having trouble with that, but isn't just breaking the rules all willy nilly.
So the Cutie Mark Crusaders manage to come up with a very nice routine, which has a theme of unity. Ponyville is a town made of all three pony tribes, much as how the CMC themselves are an Earth pony, Unicorn, and Pegasus. Yeah, it may be obvious symbolism, but be quiet. It's adorable and I think something we can all learn from. <3
While it all works out, jealous Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon then play the card of hitting where it hurts; making fun of Scootaloo's lack of ability to fly. I think this was a great little "Take That!" to the people who actually give Scoots a hard time because she can't fly yet. Not to mention the overall feeling in general that if you can't achieve something at the same time and level as someone else, you're a failure.
Scootaloo feels threatened, so she changes up the routine, and works harder and harder to be able to fly. With all the pressure getting to her, it's no wonder that they do badly and end up with her quitting. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom try to help, but end up pretty much tired of Scootaloo's quitting attitude and give up. It's all understandable in why they all feel this way. Scootaloo feels like a failure and that she'll hold her friends back. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle feel like Scootaloo doesn't need them and that her quitting is something they should walk away from.
But it's Rainbow Dash who steps in and helps them all reconcile, and teaches Scootaloo a very important lesson. Especially with the fact that it doesn't matter if she can't fly, she still excels in many other things. She also in turn teaches Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle not to give up on your friends even if they have given up.
It all ends well as they win the competition and are going to carry the flag for Ponyville in the Equestria Games! Yay!
So, how was it? Well, it was a wonderful episode! I was really surprised and it just worked out so nicely! It was a great CMC episode, it was a nice Scootaloo episode to follow Sleepless In Ponyville, and it just worked! One of the things I did like was that they didn't make Scootaloo fly by the end. No, that doesn't mean I don't want her to eventually fly, I mean that it shows she can still do great things, even if she can't fly. I relate to Scoots so much in this episode, we all at times feel like we can't compare to others when we should be able to. But we have to remember that we're not other people, we're ourselves, and we should never let the expectations of others dictate our lives and how it all unfolds. Scootaloo really proved herself in this episode by doing the best with what she has instead of dwelling on what she can't do. I think that's a very important lesson for anyone at any age to learn.
Rainbow Dash was also great in this episode, where she's perfectly in character, but you can see how much she's matured. She's trying to do the logical thing to keep her job and help the other fillies, which you can see she likes to do and encourage them, and she's really great to the CMC as well! Her struggle with trying to be professional was again, very relatable as I think we all go through things like that in our lifetime. I sometimes feel I shouldn't express myself in certain ways because of how others perceive it and that I'd look like a moron if I wasn't professional or acting in a certain way.
Also, I may be alone in this, but I think Rainbow's playful jab toward Ms. Harshwhinny was a callback to the end of Dragonshy.
Anyway, so the song was adorable! It's an uplifting little tune about standing strong and letting your heart shine through even if you're not exactly the biggest one in the league. The CMC performed it very well and the visuals helped so nicely!
Overall, this was a great episode! :D Fantastic! 8.5/10!
I just wish that he writers stop making nothing else with Diamond Tiara that just being the most unlikable bitch ever.
But yeah, great episode, great RD, great Scootaloo, great song, great effects, great CMC interactions, great episode. Even if the end came a little bit too quickly (we didn't even saw the competition) I really liked it
Well what do you know? Also inspired to start off your review while trying to remain professional
I think this is becoming a trend.
I'm not sure how this is a run of the mill children's episode. It dug into some deep themes without making them the entire point of the episode whilst presenting the more common themes of unity and friendship. I can agree with you however on how this was an awesome episode, because it is.
Yeah, it had been a while since we last saw the Cutie Mark Crusaders, though that is more the huge break between seasons. Thinking about it, we hadn't seen Scootaloo within any of the season 4 episodes until now. I'm pleased that this episode featured the Cutie Mark Crusaders to such an extent without the hunt for their cutie marks being the focus. I am even more glad that they did not completely ignore that part of them and for anyone unfamiliar with the show and the crusaders, the point of them looking for their cutie marks is brought up in two small scenes. I really do commend this episode on never giving one thing the primary focus and instead fleshing out several things, all very well to boot.
Rainbow Dash's struggles with trying to act mature was a nice touch to her character. I feel it was little over exaggerated when she commented on the Crusader's performance the first time and that her restrained comment didn't have as much impact as it otherwise could have but it was overall a decent touch. It pays off at least for Dash's comment to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle on the train as well as for the joke with Ms. Harshwhinny.
I hadn't thought on that but that actually makes a lot of sense for the scene. Nice analytical skills there Nintendo Gal.
Once again, I do love how they sympathise with both sides. Rainbow Dash doesn't even scold Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle when she finds out, just tells them they made a mistake and helps them to fix it. It is all really impressive and I do love when both sides are treated equally.
An I agree, it was great how they didn't have Scootaloo suddenly able to fly within the episode. Perhaps they could have went the extra step by having the Crusaders not win and come in 2nd instead (I never thought that one day I'd actually root for Snips and Snails to succeed at something but that opening really made me supportive of them in this episode) but at least they didn't have Scootaloo fly. She has many talents without flight such as lifting ponies her own age and size with ease and traversing all the way to the Crystal Empire at about the speed of a train and within less than a day on a scooter.
An now you're overanalysing things. Nice craziness there Nintendo Gal.
Finally, yes, the song was awesome. I've already listened to it several times and the part when they start to sing it cheer Scootaloo up is real heartwarming. Brilliant review Nintendo Gal, in depth with tons of interesting analytical points and yet not too long at all. Keep up the good work.
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You know,the CMC only really cared about their cutie marks at the end of the show, not at the middle or the beginning, but at the end. I have to wonder if this more of their growth as kids, starting to understand that getting their marks is not the end all and be all of their lives. That there is more to it. Maybe this ill also help their growth with them when they finally obtain their marks as then they would need to understand...what now (I don't believe in some people when they say, if the CMC get their marks, their stories are over. Life doesn't end at happiy ever after and there is a difference between knowing your talent and what to do with it