School Raze

Friendship is Magic review by Obake

(SPOILERS!)

Credit where credit is due, this special has the funniest ending of the series, which was likely unintentional. I was laughing for awhile.

School Raze is the two-part finale of season 8, and exactly as I expected, takes itself too seriously. The antagonist of the episode is Cozy Glow.

Having a child as the main threat is a recipe for silliness, with a few exceptions. There are cases like TheTwilight Zone's “It's a Good Life”, or Damien from the Omen (which, to be fair, I haven't seen), but those are more in the category of children being controlled by greater, unseen powers. By all accounts, Cozy Glow is just a regular pegasus with a vendetta. Which makes the fact that she is able to start draining magic from all of Equestria more ridiculous.

The Mane 6 do not know Cozy is behind it until they reach Tirek. He reveals that Cozy has been a pen pal with him for awhile, which is how she learned what she needed to do to drain magic. I do not mind this plot detail, in theory. An (actual serious) take that could work is that Cozy reaches out to Tirek. In return, he “befriends” her, promising to give her powers or riches, as long as she promises to help free him. But that would go against Cozy's established character. Part of the problem is that her being a child is inconsequential. Make her an adult, and she could still have the same motivations.

The other issue with School Raze is that it plays everything so straight. As I have said in previous reviews, humor can go a long way in fixing problems. Not all two-parters need to outdo themselves in terms of seriousness. Go goofy! I would not mind an episode revolving around a kid trying to take over Equestria, as long as it was funny and self aware.

Cozy nearly drains all magic from Equestria before the New Six (and the Tree of Harmony) step in and save the day. Apparently the sparkly Twilight from What Lies Beneath was actually the Tree. Tirek, for whatever reason, was okay with his “protege” potentially ruining his chances of escaping Tartarus forever, as long they got revenge on the Mane 6. Which feels out of character for him.

But at the very least, there is the ending. Cozy's punishment is being trapped in Tartarus, which if I understand what is implied in this episode, is an eternal sentence. Perhaps the writer's were trying to fix the lack of punishment for Starlight. Whatever the case, it is hilarious.

Otherwise, the season ends on a whimper.

Extras:

• The students are on a field trip in Cloudsdale, when the spell used to make them able to walk on clouds starts failing. They are all saved from falling to their death by pegasi. When they return to school, Twilight is rather calm, assuring them it is likely nothing to worry about. Okay, then?
• Another strange thing I noticed: the usually quick-to-action Dash watches as Yona starts falling thousands of feet, and does not do anything to help until other students start falling.
• Starswirled is mentioned but not seen in the episode, which is another odd choice.
• Cozy has the Mane 6 go to Tartarus, and traps Starlight in a magic bubble at the school...off screen. It is almost as if the episode wants to keep Cozy's villainy secret, but c'mon.
• I do like that earth ponies are thrown a bone, so to speak, showing usefulness when magic supplies are low. Applejack is able to provide her friends with a lotion to keep flies away.
• As much as the episode tries throwing curveballs, they rarely amount to much. For example, Chancellor Neighsay is not part of Cozy's plan. He takes over temporarily, locking the Young Six in a room to make it a ponies-only school. Soon he is captured by Cozy, and eventually rescued by the Young Six. Which at least softens his view on other creatures. I also like that Sandbar plays a more prominent role in helping his friends escape.
• The Crusaders are in the episode. It feels like such a long time since we have seen them.
• I do not understand why the Young Six do not simply subdue Cozy with brute force. Yona is gigantic compared to her, and Smoulder has fire breathing abilities (though she may be unable to use them with the magic drainage.) Still.
• Tartarus is a lot smaller than I imagined, being only a single, long room with creatures in cages. I expected the Mane 6 to use Cerberus to bust open the door (by throwing a bone at it while playing fetch.) But they just used magic instead, which is a let down.
• The one (intentional) gag I liked was the Young Six in graduating gowns, and Spike burping diplomas. That is a clever use of his abilities.
• As much as the episode wants to establish stakes, season 4's Twilight's Kingdom did the same story a whole lot better.