Episode Re-Review: Somepony to Watch Over Me · 4:25pm Apr 8th, 2021
Now it was time for another new writer to debut, Scott Sonneborn. His writing credentials were not as well known, making him something of an enigma. Considering Sweetie Belle had taken the lead more or less for "Twilight Time" that meant it was now Apple Bloom's turn to be in the spotlight. But this episode was and still is widely regarded as a disappointment among fans. Has it deserved that reputation, or perhaps is it overhated? Well, let's find out.
The episode begins with the CMC waiting while Apple Bloom's family decides something. They eventually come out and tell Apple Bloom she can stay home alone, which Apple Bloom is delighted by. Of course, Applejack insists on leaving behind a checklist for Apple Bloom providing detailed instructions on what to do. But Apple Bloom is still left alone while the rest of her family go off on pie deliveries. She soon starts to enjoy her newfound freedom, and you might think the episode is going to go more into depth on this, having her come to regret being left alone. But nope, there's not even a passing reference to Home Alone. I know part of it is because it's not a Christmas episode, but you'd expect some sort of acknowledgement.
Before Applejack's even really gotten far, she starts worrying about Apple Bloom to Big Macintosh even though they all agreed Apple Bloom could stay home alone. They try to show that Applejack is worried, but the way it's presented makes Applejack think Apple Bloom is a complete idiot who can't do anything. And keep in mind, nothing has occurred yet to spark this concern, it just comes out of the blue because the plot says so. And because the plot says so Big Macintosh lets Applejack go back to check on Apple Bloom, abandoning her pie delivery for no good reason.
So Applejack comes back and causes Apple Bloom to spill some spaghetti on herself, which convinces Applejack that she should totally shirk her responsibilities and go back on her word to take care of Apple Bloom. Again, for no reason other than because Applejack inexplicably is worried, but wasn't worried enough to oppose letting Apple Bloom stay home alone. We proceed to spend several minutes watching Applejack baby Apple Bloom even though Apple Bloom repeatedly insists she's just fine, but Applejack refuses to let her do anything. This is basically taking that brief exchange between the two in "Bridle Gossip" and making an episode out of it.
It gets so bad that Apple Bloom's bed is literally turned into a crib. And somehow, she's able to invite her fellow Crusaders over without Applejack opposing. Sweetie Belle actually thinks it would be delightful to be cared for by Applejack, which of course Apple Bloom rejects because Applejack is going way too far with it and has literally baby proofed everything in sight. And all of it is just because she thinks Apple Bloom "might" get hurt. So Apple Bloom then decides to do the pie delivery Applejack was going to do, sneaking out of the house to do so and having Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo pose as her using bows (we see a closet full of bows and hats, though it doesn't explain why Applejack put her stetson on her head during the royal wedding).
Apparently, Scootaloo knows that Apple Bloom does everything "with sass". And after an earlier start to a song that Scootaloo interrupts, Sweetie Belle is somehow able to fool Applejack despite not hiding her horn. Somehow, this triggers a realization in Applejack that she might have been overreacting, right before Scootaloo blows her cover. Applejack freaks out and looks everywhere for Apple Bloom only to learn she's off making the pie delivery. Then Applejack tells Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle that Rarity will be coming by to watch them. So if she could do that now, why didn't she have one of her friends stop by to check up on Apple Bloom and make sure she was okay? If it's that easy to work around the problem for the episode, then the story needs to be rewritten.
As for Apple Bloom, she ends in some kind of fiery swamp and encounters a sentient chimera. In fact, the three heads are supposedly "siblings" with one being the older sister. Despite this, there's no real acknowledgement or parallel to Apple Bloom's situation. Then Applejack comes to the rescue using a rope, a chair and some cheese. She initially chews out Apple Bloom for her decision, before apparently deciding that because of this Apple Bloom doesn't need protection and can be trusted to be on her own. But the episode has it all backwards, this doesn't even make sense from a comedic stand point.
The episode ends with Applejack and Apple Bloom making the delivery together to some kind of Cajun pony civilization near the swamp. And again, Applejack is furious with Apple Bloom but promises to stick up for her because of what happened.
And that's the story, so what do I think of the episode? Well, I daresay this episode feels like a torture porn for Apple Bloom. She does nothing at all to deserve the treatment she gets from Applejack throughout this episode. Mind you, it's leagues above anything Squidward went through in episodes like "House Fancy" or "Boating Buddies" but it's still there. The episode's logic is completely backwards, the chimera attack should be what motivates Applejack to go overboard on protecting and it should only be when nothing bad happens that she realizes she's gone too far in trying to look out for Apple Bloom. Even applying the "dead parents" angle to this episode doesn't make Applejack's motivations or character make sense, especially not when she could easily have gotten one of her friends to check up on Apple Bloom if she was as worried as she claims she is. There aren't even that many jokes either, the only good ones involve Scootaloo's joke about "no time for a song" and how Apple Bloom does everything "with sass". The chimera is interesting, but at the same time it feels like they threw it in solely for the sake of having a climax. The stuff revolving around its initial encounter and Applejack fighting it off are the only things that really interesting. And even then they can't save the episode from getting an E.
So Season 4's second half seemed to be stuck in the mud, not a single episode could match the high quality seen at the start of the season or throughout most of the first half. It was as if every episode was trying to be the next "Rainbow Falls" or "Three's A Crowd" and squander its potential. Not to worry though, help was finally on the way with "Maud Pie" which would become the first true success story of the second half.
Let commander Firebrand explain just how destructive the moral is:
Yeah, this episode is definitely the worst of the season.
AJ's behavior could at least be partially excused by the fact that this could take place early in the series, but that's it.
I would understand if this episode take place in season 1 or 2 but in season 4 make this episode bad
This should've been in the two first two seasons, Season 3 at the latest. But having this train wreck happen so far into the show? Yeah, Epic fail alert. I honestly couldn't stop cringing during this episode...
Kyle Norty once made a video explaining why he personally believes this episode is funnier than Feeling Pinkie Keen. He even pointed out how the two episodes have some similarities with each other.
* A story driven by something that doesn't make much sense (the Pinkie Sense in FPK and Applejack's overprotective behavior in SPTWOM).
* A climax involving a magical creature that, while threatening, is mostly played for laughs (the hydra in FPK and the chimera in SPTWOM).
* A moral that can very easily be taken into an incredibly wrong way ("It's not okay to have your own opinion" in FPK and "If you run away, you can get what you want" in SPTWOM).
While I respect Norty's opinion, I don't agree with him about this episode being funnier than Feeling Pinkie Keen. One of the reasons being that, much like how I said I think Spike deserved the torment he got in Owl's Well That Ends Well more than the CMC did in One Bad Apple, I think Twilight deserved the torment she got in Feeling Pinkie Keen more than Apple Bloom did in this episode.