Power Ponies

Every time Merriwether Williams writes an episode, I die a little inside.

Okay, that's a little harsh. Let me elaborate.

This episode didn't GO anywhere, and that's what bothers me most of all. Nothing happens to advance the plot, no one grows as a character. A new character is introduced, but she's even more one-dimensional than Sombra, and fictional even in-universe. Additionally, since the entire episode seems to reek of the Big Lipped Alligator Moment concept, I can't see it ever coming up again.

But surely Spike learned something, right? Well... no, I don't think he did. This episodes hints at sidekick insecurities that Spike has been fostering, but really, let's think about this for a moment: Has Spike EVER hinted at being uncomfortable with his role before? And, has he really been useless? Fuck no, he hasn't: He's usually right there alongside the ponies, and has only ever complained about being left out once, in Just For Sidekicks. Even then, he was just mildly annoyed, not really upset. Still, I can't be too surprised; this is Merriwether Williams, the same writer who brought us Spike at Your Service and Mysterious Mare Do-Well. I almost expect this level of characterization from her.

Sure, the fandom may joke about Spike being useless, but the fandom also jokes about Celestia sending people to the moon for kicks or Pinkie being a serial killer. I wouldn't want to see those concepts seriously entertained in the show, and I don't want to see meta commentary on Spike's roll either. It's not the characters' place to analyze themselves, it's the fans'. In this regard it felt a lot like the slower, more painful moments of Daring Don't, with fandom traits being analyzed and discussed by the show's characters. Not only does this make the episode inaccessible to people not heavily involved in the fandom, it just feels awkward and annoying.

We got a new villain, but she's... so flat she makes a piece of cardboard look like Mount Everest, in addition to being fictional even within the context of the show. I don't think I need to elaborate on this point. Moving on.

We paid homage to superhero comics, but... this is MLP, not a superhero comic. Maybe if they'd brought a fresh, exciting new twist to the fore the concept could've been saved, but as it was, the entire episode felt like a joke with no punchline. "Hey, aren't superheroes cool? Do you guys like superheroes? Yeah? We do too. Yup... good times." It's anticlimactic, it doesn't go anywhere, and it's unbelievably STALE. I love MLP because it's so very unique, and builds such a magnificent, involved, wholly original world. This episode offered exactly none of that.

And of course, the ending. We finally get our explanation. So the episode was weird as hell, but... what triggered all this? How exactly did the team get sucked into Spike's comic book? Who would do such an utterly bizarre thing, and why?

... The comic book is magic.

... That's it.

... That's the whole explanation.