Season 4 In Review · 12:17am Jun 3rd, 2014
I don't feel like doing big huge reviews on each episode, so I'll just write a brief blurb summarizing my opinions.
Princess Twilight Sparkle: Conflicts are solved too quickly and Applejack comes across in a negative light, but otherwise a fairly solid -though not spectacular- two-parter. Standout moment: Nightmare Moon's transformation. 3/5 twilicanes, 19th place.
Castle-Mania: Strong, fun episode with only a minor flaw in the form of poor Pinkie presentation. Standout moment: Twilight approaching the "Pony of Shadows" at the organ. 4/5 disembodied hooves, 8th place.
Daring Don't: A huge mess is you think about it too hard, but harmless fun if you can turn your brain off. Standout moment: Ahuizotal's hammy entrance. 2/5 golden rings, 20th place.
Flight To The Finish: An overall perfect episode with a perfect moral and pretty perfect in general. Standout moment: Rainbow Dash telling Scootaloo she's fine as she is. 5/5 flags, 2nd place.
Power Ponies: A hypocritical moral and Flutterhulk hold it back, but it also provides an incredibly fun villain. Standout moment: Any time Rarity uses her powers. 3/5 hairdryer cannons, 15th place.
Bats!: Unfocused and often self-defeating in its approach to the moral, but another harmlessly fun episode rife with Fanfic potential. Standout moment: Applejack willingly and instantly sacrificing her Prize Apple for her friend's sake, the tense search through the Orchard. 3/5 apple husks, 16th place.
Rarity Takes Manehattan: Unsubtle and clumsy handling of the central theme and poor development of the guest characters drag back an otherwise very strong episode. Standout moment: Coco Pommel's turn to the light side. 4/5 soap necklaces, 10th place.
Pinkie Apple Pie: Incredibly strong, fun episode without any flaws that spring to mind. Standout moment: Pinkie's conversation with the Apples right before Goldie arrives. 5/5 dust-cats, 7th place.
Rainbow Falls: A confused sense of continuity, the pointless presence of the non-winged Mane Six, plot holes galore, everything about Bulk Biceps (including the name) and some amazingly dickish behavior from the Wonderbolts pull this episode down, though even combined they aren't enough to extinguish the positive aspects - in particular, the location. Standout moment: The entire scene in the hospital room. 3/5 daisy chain necklaces, 18th place.
Three's A Crowd: Not nearly enough Cadence, far too much Discord; though at least the Tatzulworm scene is interesting. Standout moment: The first five minutes, the Tatzulworm fight. 1/5 little glasses of water, 22nd place.
Pinkie's Pride: Pretty much objectively perfect, but somewhat forgettable despite the subject matter. Standout moment: Rainbow and Cheese's conversation with a departing Pinkie, the return of Appleoosa. 4/5 rubber chickens, 9th place.
Simple Ways: A very strong episode with great character humor and a strong showing from Spike, but another one that's easy to forget despite itself. Standout moment: Spike's discussion with Rarity about unrequited feelings, Rarihick's showdown with Apple Jewel. 3/5 stalker shrines, 17th place.
Filli Vanilli: An objectively awkward episode that retreads a tired plotline, repeats a certain song ad nauseum, and utterly butchers Pinkie Pie's personality, this episode regardless has a certain feeling of "Season One-ness" that makes those criticisms completely irrelevant. Standout moment: Every time the Ponytones sing. 5/5 poison joke potions, 1st place.
...Yes, that's right. I just said that an episode about Boring Pony is my favorite of the season. This just goes to show how utterly messed up S4 is, in my opinion.
Twilight Time: Another fun, nostalgic episode held back only by rewatchability factor. Standout moment: Twilight's eating habits. 4/5 coughing plants, 13th place.
It Ain't Easy Bein' Breezies: Despite criminally unsubtle marketing and having more (plot) holes than a changeling's leg, strong character moments and introducing the single greatest of the key-givers put this much-reviled episode among my favorites. Standout moment: Fluttershy's breakdown after evicting the Breezies. 5/5 forgotten pollen bags, 6th place.
Somepony To Watch Over Me: Though objectively harmless, this episode's woeful mischaracterization of Applejack and decision to resort to action scenes over character studies leave me disproportionately disappointed. Standout moment: The arrival at the swamp town. 1/5 safety helmets, 23rd place.
Maud Pie: Character interaction and humor at its finest, despite an ending that undermines the moral somewhat. Standout moment: Honestly, too many to choose from. 5/5 rock candy necklaces, 5th place.
For Whom The Sweetie Belle Toils: A very strong but somewhat forgettable episode with a conclusion that comes out of left field despite being cleverly hinted at throughout. Standout moment: The trippy, creepy, Christmas Carol-esque dream sequence. 4/5 illuminati headdresses, 12th place.
Leap Of Faith: A somewhat predictable plotline doesn't detract too much from a glorious return for everyone's favorite con-ponies, and the strong moral and compelling internal conflict for Applejack certainly don't hurt, either. Standout moment: Flim and Flam's smooth turning of Applejack to the dark side, Applejack's cathartic confession of her dishonesty. 4/5 miracle curative tonics, 11th place.
Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3: Despite the somewhat unappealing premise, the execution exceeds itself in an immensely satisfying (if ridiculously impractical) conclusion, with a lot of fun along the way. Standout moment: Pinkie's rap. 4/5 bell-bottom uniforms, 14th place.
Trade Ya: An exercise in WTFery through and through, this episode has enough fun moments to balance out some very questionable choices and themes, plus a welcome return to Rainbow Falls. Standout moment: every scene with Rarity and Applejack, the revelation of the Discord Lamps. 2/5 rusty pie tins, 21st place.
Inspiration Manifestation: Though some perceived OOC moments at the beginning put me off, the rest of the episode was utterly fantastic, and among the best of Spike's outings. Standout moment: Spike's obliviousness to the obviously evil chamber, him finally working up the nerve to tell the truth. 5/5 crystallized boutiques, 4th place.
Equestria Games: Despite the painful "Cloudsdale Anthem" scene, this episode is virtually flawless, and a highly relatable and refreshingly respectful Spike study, and probably the single greatest of his appearances. Standout moment: The friendship letter, the melting of the ice. 5/5 fireworks, 3rd place.
Twilight's Kingdom: Despite being objectively the best two-parter in the show, even the wonderful treatment of a classic villain can't save this mess of a finale in my opinion. Standout moment: Twilight's attempts to manage the celestial mechanics, SCORPAN. 1/5 hideous goddamn castles, 24th place.
Yeah. No objectivity whatsoever here, but whatever. I honestly am not sure I'll even watch Season 5 at this point, but I'll still be a part of the fandom, and I'll still have four pretty great seasons to look back on. And of course, I have OR and TAS. 
OhgodIhavehitthecrankyoldmanthreshold
Ok so first of all, great to see you back. Second of all WTF!
Ok so I respect your opinions but I couldn't disagree with you more on some of these ratings.
First off, REALLY? Fili vanilli as number 1 ep of the season? I'm not sure if you're trolling or what but in my mind that belongs in upper teens category.
Second. That Twilight's Kingdom rating. I don't... but it... why? You said you liked the classic villain but I actually thought he was one of the least interesting things of this episode and I would rank this in the top 10. I really enjoyed the finale besides the obvious toyrific rainbow power mane 6 and that new god awful catle tree abomination thing (R.I.P Golden Oaks). But even with those things I thought it was great and enjoyed it the whole way through. Once again, not sure if you're trolling or not.
There are some other things that I could go on about but I think these two are the only ones worth mentioning.
2169486 Thanks; it's good to be back! And yeah, I should've seen that coming.
Not trolling. I basically worked out the rankings by going through and asking "If I had a choice between these two episodes, which would I rather watch?" and then adding each and placing it on the list. Believe me, I was surprised to find Filli Vanilli get first place, but that is the one I enjoyed myself the most with, so yeah.
As for Twilight's Kingdom... well, I didn't really enjoy myself during that one nearly as much as everyone else seems to have; I'll just leave it at that. Part 1 wasn't bad, but by the time they started throwing lazers at each other like something out of Dragonball Z (a show which I personally dislike a lot) I just didn't care anymore, and the ending didn't really help things either.
To each their own, I suppose.
You give the finale last place and the worst episode 1st place...
...
I mean, to each his own, but still.
2197390 I dunno about worst episode, but I will admit that, objectively speaking, Filli Vanilli wasn't one of the better ones.