My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic - Season 6 Episode 16: "The Times They Are A Changeling" (SPOILERS) · 4:02pm Aug 20th, 2016
So we have a Spike episode this week, and it comes with a moral about tolerance and acceptance.
Can Spike and this random Changeling drone wash away the stench of the last two episodes? Let's. Find. Out.
Twilight, Starlight, and Spike head to the Crystal Empire to visit Flurry Heart, the royal couple, and Sunburst.
Spike is hamming up his popularity in the Crystal Empire again. The joke is old. It needs to die now. Kthxbye.
The Crystal Empire's in kind of an uproar, with the streets deathly silent. The Crystal Ponies mob Spike when he appears...for a few minutes, until they freak out over whether or not he's really Spike and run.
The Crystal Guards are paranoid and refusing to allow Twilight's party to enter.
Cadance and Twiley do their embarrassing butt dance again.
Cadance, Shining, and Sunburst explain the situation: the Crystal Empire is on alert for Changelings ever since the Crystalling.
While Twilight and Starlight settle in, Spike goes with the Crystal Guards to search for Changelings.
Aaaaaand as is par for the course for Spike episodes, once he's thrust into the spotlight, Spike starts acting like a turd. His acting like a turd gets him into a situation where he bumps right into a Changeling.
Spike freaks out and falls down an ice pit, but the Changeling saves him.
Okay so basically this Changeling, Thorax, is different from other Changelings in that he doesn't want to be like the rest of his hive. He wants to have friends and spread love instead of just feeding on it. Spike decides to be friends with Thorax, who has...a little bit of a hissing tongue problem.
Spike decides to talk to the Crystal Ponies and try to get them to accept the idea of befriending a Changeling. It doesn't go over well.
Shining Armor gets to hold the Racist Ball in this episode.
Spike decides to sneak Thorax into the Empire disguised as a pony named "Crystal Hoof", who he claims is a penpal he met at the Equestria Games. His plan is to get ponies to meet, get to know, and become friends with "Crystal Hoof" and then presumably reveal Crystal Hoof is a Changeling. His plan blows up in his face when "Crystal Hoof" is invited to meet Flurry Heart, and the sheer levels of love radiating from the baby overpower him, forcing him to involuntarily drop his disguise. Everypony gets their hackles up and tries to drive Thorax back, ignoring his stammered apologies and defensive posture. They assume Thorax replaced Crystal Hoof to get close to the baby.
Spike demonstrates just how solid his friendship with Thorax is by caving and saying that's exactly what happened, and Thorax runs off in disbelief, feeling betrayed.
While the Crystal Guards search for Thorax, Spike goes back to where he found him in the first place to apologize. Spike apologizes to Thorax for not being a better friend, then goes back to the Crystal Empire to make things right by telling everypony the truth.
Spike gets a song! Spike hasn't had a solo song until now, right? I mean, other than that disaster in Equestria Games. Spike's song is about accepting that a Changeling can be good instead of evil.
Anyway, Spike convinces Twilight, Twilight convinces everypony else, and the Crystal Empire welcomes Thorax with open hooves.
This episode was a bit slow and a bit preachy, but had a good, solid moral. On the whole I'll give it an 8/10 for having a message that's exceptionally relevant in the here and now, despite being a slow and more cerebral episode with almost no humor.
Yeah, I'm grading the episode based on the moral about bigotry and racism instead of on it being an MLP episode. I'm just in that kind of mood today.
Add that to the ever increasing list of "things we completely disagree on", because I think it's one of the funniest gags in the series.
I think it's pretty cute.
Plus, it's kind of refreshing to see that again after not seeing it for a while.
As for Shining Armor, considering his and Cadance's personal history with the Changelings, I'm not surprised.
And wow, we actually kind of agree on this episode being pretty great.
I don't know if I'd say it's better than last week's, but it IS up there among the season... And is probably better than Gauntlet of Fire.
It's a good moral. I thought Spike did a good job convincing everypony about accepting Thorax. Cool how Thorax saved Spike both times. Flurry Heart was cute. Glad we got to see Starlight come back from her lack of episodes.
*Skips all spoilers*
Uhg. My computer threw a hissy fit and I missed the episode. Now I have to wait for the recordings to start popping up.
The best part is that Spike is living support for his own argument. After all, he's a dragon, arguably far more dangerous than most changelings could ever hope to be... and yet he lives with ponies in peace and harmony, all because of the philosophy of friendship that they have taught him and that he now espouses.
The episode was fairly straightforward, but I agree that it's very timely. Its biggest weakness is that fan fiction has done this plot to death already.
4160724 That's the thing about fanfiction. Have enough and you'll start covering episode ideas before they're even made.
4160724 Spike was raised right.
I think the scene where they check to see if it's really them had a very big missed opportunity.
Remember that alternate "Changeling takeover" timeline where Zecora used that special cream or whatever it was to see if Twilight and Spike were imposters?
There could've been a scene where she was called to the Empire to use said cream on several citizens. Twi & Spike would share a familiar look while Starlight is slightly confused.
4160810 But then they'd just question whether or not this Zecora nobody but Twilight and Spike even know is a Changeling.
I thought this episode was a little slow paced but a very good episode. The moral was important and Thorax was a nice character, hope we see more of him. We also see more of Flurry Heart being cute, and she was the only one who was never scared when she saw Throax's real form, even Spike was scared at first, but then again children are innocent.
ok have NOT watched the episode yet so I cant say anything directly about lines and whatnot for this character.......but truly? On THIS subject your calling him racist? Nope this is a fully justified dislike/HATE at a group of beings that ruined his wedding day, tossed his loved one into a mineshaft, same with bride, AND GOT MINDRAPED by their leader!!!! Sure this may STILL be termed as racist because he hates changelings as a whole instead of individuals, but you really blame him all things considered? If the guy isn't PTSD from his wedding. And considering where he live and with WHO he lives with....yeah, this is healthy paranoia at best.
What really gets me is that they're so concerned about changelings kidnapping Flurry Heart...that they take her out of the castle to the middle of a public square, with no other guards besides Shining around. And take her right up to suspected changelings... Yeah, way to show the ol' guard incompetence once again.
Also, Cadance, you and Twilight need a new passphrase. It's not doing either of your dignities any favors to keep doing that dance in public, especially in public, because if there WERE changeling spies, they'd have gotten wise to it by now.
Finally...Spike needs to learn not to hold important conversations next to a bottomless pit.
This is the second good Spike episode of this series.
And in all a very good episode. A touch of comedy at the beginning and a great moral at the end.
All character act as they should, except the guards who were highly exaggerate (then again they here to suck), but Spike was the best portrait.
, but even so it made the scene more realistic and what follow up showed him at his best.
When Thorax blown his cover and Spike let him down, sure I was "Oh Spike"
As for Thorax himself, well it's hard to say since his the first real interaction with a changeling drone. It did give a little insight about the changeling hive, his crazy behaviour sounds believable since his starving and I don't know what I was expecting for what a Changeling drone would sound like, but I guess the voice was okay.
4160799 I've a theory that this is an old proposal fished out of a drawer in the writers room. It would have made a pretty great third season episode. In current context, it's kind of... yeah, ok. Kinda like a lot of episodes this season, like they dropped a grand adventure theme or something and went trawling through the shelved ideas files instead. Something happened to that "explore Equestria" theme Hasbro was touting before the season opener, after all. It's been a better description of the fifth season than the sixth so far.
4160869
He never claimed it was unjustified.
Why does everyone hate the last two episodes? Okay, I can understand hating "The Cart Before The Ponies"(I had to drag myself through that one), but I found "28 Pranks Later" hilarious! Really, we need to understand that as much as this show is awesome and has more mature concepts than most other little kids' shows, it is still a LITTLE KIDS' SHOW. You have to expect things that are supposed to be funny for little kids to be there. Next time an episode comes out, I beg you to please try and see it like a five-year-old would. So what if the characters are a little OOC? So what if something is exaggerated for the sake of comedy? IT IS A KIDS SHOW, FOR PETE'S SAKE!!!!! I know that not a lot of people will even care about my comment, but still, for those who do read it, please put yourself in the mind of a kindergartener and watch one episode. Just one episode. If you don't enjoy it, well, that's how it is. If you do enjoy it, though, please spread the word, and let the acceptance of our community reach the writers of the show as well.
4161260
Maybe because this is a site full of writers who are allergic to episodes that ignore several seasons' worth of character develoopment?
4161357 Did you even read my full comment or did you stop at the first sentence? Cuz if you only read the first sentence; you haven't noticed the fact that I PROVIDE AN EXPLANATION TO THE CONTRARY!!! Also, the writers are human! You can't expect them to remember the plots of the past 132 episodes!
Hmm.
As a reader of multiple changeling fics, I think a huge opportunity to flesh out changeling culture has been wasted. We get a little confirmation that changelings hatch from eggs, and that's it, no new information. Thorax simply states that the other changelings are evil and he's not. He does say that he can maybe help the other changelings not be evil, but that tells us nothing about how the hive works.
For shame.
4161368
You mean like how the writers on this website, who are also human, remember the plots of the previous 132 episodes?
I only responded to the part of your comment that warranted response; the rest of it was unnecessarily hostile and defensive and wasn't even really a solid argument. Responding to my comment with hostility and faulty logic isn't helping your case.
The changeling's name is Thorax
I feel like they missed the opportunity to have Spike point out that he himself is of a species generally disliked or avoided by ponies and is one of the few exceptions to dragon nature (kind of, *cough* Secret of My Excess *cough*). Ember is a little less of an exception, but still, she is.
They also could've focussed more on Spike singling out Starlight , song or no, especially since she caused the timeline to change from really bad to everything is dead.
Having read some changeling fics, I considered they might be able to sustain themselves by mutual feeding like Anne Rice's vampires but still needed an outside source. I was surprised by Thorax's theory/suggestion that Changelings might be able to make their own love and not have to feed on others. That could open the possibility for Changelings as an ally and possibly coexisters. I don't care if it's probably not a word, you know what I mean.
Spike's cocky, fame reveling, while kind of cringe worthy, I found excusable and a little amusing since he still has the mentality of a child, even though I'm certain he's at least in his early teens. And the crystal ponies are also partly to blame since they indulge him and go so far as to ask him for tactical advice.
Spike's early behavior and plot dependant friendship error aside, I actually enjoyed this episode quite a bit. I think it may replace Gauntlet of Fire as the best Spike episode, maybe.
P.S. Larval changelings are so freaking cute!!!!
Oh yeah, and CITY!!!!!! It's the Crystal CITY!!!!! They called it a city in the premier!!!!
4161260
See, I think you need to specify which parts of 28 Pranks Later you're referring to, because the assumption I feel a lot of people will be making is that you are talking about the beginning, where Rainbow scared the ever loving daylights out of Fluttershy and made her cry. Mainly because that's the assumption I made before I read your post through a second time.
Yes, there were some amusing moments, but that wasn't one of them. And yes, the show needs to cater to it's target audience, but that doesn't mean that people, or ponies in this case, need to be contrary and cruel in order to be amusing.
4161437 No! The part I enjoyed the most was seeing Rainbow get what she deserved.
This reminds me that, although I spend a fair bit of time reading on this site, I haven't watched the actual series in a long time.
I don't think I'd have made it through this episode, so that's just as well. Points for finally delivering the moral that everyone's been waiting for since...both the wedding episodes, though!
4160869
Agreed. I'm actually happy they didn't present the ponies all racist, because Shining Armor's fears made total sense. He made more sense than Spike, I'd argue.
I mean, look at it this way: Thorax succumbed to his taught Changeling behaviour and almost attacked Flurry Heart—and the ponies are still willing to give him a chance. Yes, even Shining Armor.
Honestly, if this and Gauntlet of Fire and going to set a new standard for Spike episodes, I'm happy.
4160724
4161434
I think the reason these extremely valid points weren't brought up is because it can be argued that Spike was hatched by a pony, was raised by ponies his entire life and has had very limited exposure to draconic culture; Which is different from Thorax's situation. While Spike is a great example of nurture triumphing over nature, its not quite the message they are trying to get across here.
After two poor episodes, this came along at the right time.
A very good moral and I do like Thorax, hope we see more of him in the future.
4162862 You make a good point.
Still, I was thinking Spike could've said something along the lines of "Look at me, I'm a dragon and you have no problem with me because your kind showed me a different way since birth. Thorax wants the to learn that way too, he's wanted it since he was born. Can't you give him a chance by giving him the opportunity?"
4161956 What are you talking about? Of course it did, every single one of them.
4162979
Spike could also point out how Equestrians in general don't seem to treat him any differently even though he's obviously a dragon.
4163042 that too
I think this episode is in the same category as "No Second Prances", it could've been a LOT worse than what we got. Plus. at least we got to have Starlight in a non-focus episode where she actually speaks.