Appleloosa's Most Wanted Review

Admittedly, this episode left me slightly conflicted. But I definitely have some things I want to say about it.

So let's begin! We delve into the latest CMC episode with Appleloosa's Most Wanted!

Our episode begins in the return to Appleloosa, which we haven't seen since season one and the brief moment it had back in Pinkie Pride. The Cutie Mark Crusaders are accompanying Applejack while she's competing in the rodeo. However, things go awry when a pile of bailed hay comes careening down, with Applejack just barely managing to save the girls in time. As it turns out, Sheriff Silver Star discovers a large hoofprint in the dirt. That's the sign that this outlaw known as Troubleshoes is nearby...

The CMC get it in their minds to track down this outlaw, so that they can bring him to justice and obtain their cutie marks. (Wait a second, did I accidentally put in an episode from season one that I missed? ...No, this is a season five episode... O-kay, then.)

They end up getting lost in the woods, as well as caught in a rainstorm. When they find a seemingly abandoned wagon, they go inside and try to settle in. However, they're in for a shock when the occupant comes in, and ends up in a tangled mess. After he comes to, they eventually discover that this is Troubleshoes!

Who is, I swear, inspired by Eeyore. His voice (despite the southern accent), his mannerisms, his dialogue, and even his unique design from most ponies... It's Pony Eeyore! :D

Anyway, he's not the outlaw he was made out to be. He's just a clumsy pony. It turns out that he believes his cutie mark, which is an upside-down horseshoe, to be a symbol of bad luck. He reveals that he also has wanted to compete in the rodeo for the longest time, having a strong passion for it. However, when he tries out for rodeo school, he messes up completely and ends up making the judges laugh. Ever since then, he's sneaks in to watch the rodeo competitions, continuously fascinated and enjoying himself. His clumsy behaviour ends up causing unwitting havoc, which was what led to most rodeos getting shut down in the first place.

When they make it back to Appleloosa, he ends up getting arrested and put in jail. The CMC end up breaking him out, and encouraging him to participate in the rodeo... Except not as a contestant, but as a rodeo clown. He does so, and it works out remarkably well. The entire audience is finds it hilarious! But when the paint is washed off, they discover who he is. The CMC step in and explain everything, as does Troubleshoes.

And so our episode ends with our mistaken outlaw and the CMC having to repair the damages done, and learning quite a good lesson along the way.

This episode did leave me a bit conflicted overall. But that definitely didn't make it a bad episode, far from it. There was still a lot I enjoyed about it, and the comedic bits did still make me laugh. I did really like Pony Eeyore Troubleshoes, he was a likable character, and had an interesting design. I mean, he's bigger than Big Mac! The size of a horse, even!

I also did like the lesson, which was all about learning how misinterpreting what you're good at can hold you back from your true potential. We don't always get to do what we truly want with certain talents, but that doesn't mean they can't be useful elsewhere! I think we've all gone through something like that, and can understand how tough it may be. But it is true that it's all about how you look at it. Troubleshoes may not be able to compete in a rodeo like he wanted to, but that doesn't mean he can't join in on the fun! His true talent was entertaining, and that was still something nice to take away from.

It was also nice that the CMC could see the beauty in helping somepony realize what their cutie mark is all about. It was very mature of them and seemed like a good lesson to learn.

So overall, this episode was very simplistic, and even a bit more formulaic than it normally could be. That definitely didn't make it bad, it just didn't leave very much of an impression. I still did enjoy it and found it to be pretty cute. Compared to the other episodes of season five thus far, it definitely wasn't as strong as it could have been. But it still had good moments and a good lesson to learn. So I definitely still think it was time well wasted. :3