*Sigh* well I was going to have to review this sooner or later. This episode was written by Dave Polsky who was already treading on thin ice because of "Feeling Pinkie Keen". This episode is one of those episodes that the fandom seems divided on. Some fans like it and some fans (like me) hate it. It's obvious this episode isn't good because if it was Dave Polsky would've returned for Season 2 instead of coming back in Season 3.

                So I suppose you're all wondering is this episode really as bad as I'm making it out to be? Well to answer your question, yes.

                Now before I start the review I would like to issue this warning. If you like this episode or at the least don't mind it I recommend you click somewhere else now. If you choose to stay do so at your own risk. You have been warned.

                *Sigh* well put on your goggles and prepare to venture into the butthurt storm. Let's review.

                The episode starts off innocently enough with a bunch of stallions pulling a steam locomotive across a desert. Now I know it doesn't make a whole lot of sense but I think you can easily handwave it as the locomotive broke down and the crew decided to haul it to the next station for repairs. Inside a private sleeper car (or caboose) Applejack is reading a bed time story to an apple tree and Rarity becomes jealous. Before long Rarity comments on how Applejack's treating Bloomberg (yes she named the apple tree) like though it were her baby and Applejack as if to prove her right starts making baby talk to Bloomberg and Rarity storms off in a huff.

                The train is bound for Appleloosa where Bloomberg is going to be planted in an orchard. Rarity is of course not happy at having to bunk with her friends and Spike is tired from cooking snacks for the journey. When Rainbow Dash says he didn't pop some of the kernels Spike burns the popcorn with his flame breath and then tries to fall asleep. In the dark Rainbow Dash asks Pinkie Pie if she's awake and then asks if they'll "Have to haul that tree all the way to the apple orchard." Pinkie Pie assusmes Rainbow Dash means Bloomberg and Rainbow Dash sarcastically says Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie tells Rainbow Dash that Fluttershy isn't a tree. We then get a confusing conversation with Twilight nad the joke from Fluttershy on how she'd "Like to be a tree." Spike gets so fed up with the noise that he storms off ato find somewhere else to sleep and Fluttershy cracks a joke about "Huffy The Magic Dragon." Rarity then shouts at them to be quiet and after they get a good look at her face they all go to sleep.

                So far the episode seems to be doing good. The next morning a stampede of buffalo attack the train in an ambush attack and begin to ram into the sides of the cars, tossing the mane six left and right. Then a female buffalo (called Little Strongheart) jumps onto the roof of one of the cars and makes her way to the caboose. Rainbow Dash flys up to challenge her but is out maneuvered after crashing into a sign and the caboose with Spike and Bloomberg inside it is disconnected and the buffalo fall back and carry it away.

               The gang (now having split up) arrives in Appeloosa and are met by Applejack's cousin Braeburn who at first appears to be rather annoying but after Applejack finally gets his attention and explains what happened Braeburn says he's aware of the entire situation, and he says so rather somberly. As it turns out the buffalo tribe have been demanding that the Appleloosans remove the trees but Braeburn says they can't because if they do they'll starve. And this is pretty much the end of the good things about this episode. I mean seriously Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy don't seem to care that two of their friends are missing or that Spike has been abducted.

               Now the episode starts to slip with a joke about Rainbow Dash sneaking around trying to find the buffalo tribe in order to retrieve Spike. When Pinkie Pie shows up and Rainbow Dash tells her to leave Pinkie Pie appears to be completly oblivious to reality (just like in Feeling Pinkie Keen) and ends up getting both her and Rainbow Dash caught. As it turns out though Spike has managed to befriend the buffalo tribe and Little Strongheart says that the Appleloosans built their orchard on the buffalo's traditional stampeding grounds. The gang is taken to the head of the tribe Chief Thunderhooves who not only confirms Little Strongheart's explanation but also says the apple orchard was land owned by his ancestors. Rainbow Dash in a rare display of maturity feels sorry for the buffalo tribe and promises to tell the settlers about it.

              The next day the gang is reunited but the happy reunion is cut short when both sides start issusing demands. At first Rainbow Dash and Applejack try to get Little Strongheart and Braeburn to explain why their side is correct but neither of them do so we get arguing between Applejack and Rainbow Dash. (Like we haven't seen this before.) Twilight breaks up the fighting saying both sides have good reasons and so peace talks are held.

              We get a musical number called "You gotta share. You gotta care." and it's decent but Dave decides to bash Pinkie Pie for telling us the moral by making it so that her song ruins the peace talks. That's total b.s.! It's like saying if I were to sing a song about how we should get along during peace talks between the U.S. and North Korea and it would automatically cause the peace talks to fail. So you don't like the song, so what?! How does one song affect your opinion?! It shouldn't! Sheriff Silverstar and Chief Thunderhooves then threaten war and Pinkie Pie comments on how this wasn't what she intended. And you know what not one of the mane six or even Spike bother to tell Pinkie Pie something like "You did your best." or "I guess a song just wasn't what we needed."

             Braeburn continues to redeem himself by refuisng to support his fellow townsfolk in the impending war. Okay this guy clearly deserves to be the sheriff here, so why isn't he?! At high noon the next day war seems imminent but Little Strongheart very nearly talks Chief Thunderhooves out of it. Okay so the whole war thing was a bluff?! That's another total b.s. moment! You do not bluff abour war! Dave did you even study history or are did you just come up with this idea off the top of your head?! Either way you clearly don't understand the basics of war, and that is you don't joke about it or threaten it and then back down from it!

             Then of course because Dave somehow has something against Pinkie Pie he decides to further bash her by making her be the straw that pokes the camel's back and cause Chief Thunderhooves and his army to attack. To make matters worse no one cares about what happens to Pinkie Pie and the buffalo tribe don't stop with Pinkie Pie, they continue to charge forward and we get a pathetic cop out war with the ponies using pies as G rated guns. Come on you can do better then that Hasbro!

             Everything gets resolved when Chief Thunderhooves is hit in the face with a pie and everyone acts like he's dead. He licks some of the apple pie and after discovering the delicious taste of it offers to make an agreement. The agreement allows for a road to be built through the orchard for the buffalo to stampede through and in exchange they get some of the delicious apple pies. Bloomberg is finally planted and Twilight delivers a moral about how important is to share since even the bitterest of enemies can become good friends. Then because Dave decides to show just why he hates Pinkie Pie so much he has Twilight steal the lines from Pinkie Pie's play and put them into the friendship report. Everyone runs off into the sunset happily but Pinkie Pie breaks the fourth wall to remind us that she tried to teach the same lesson earlier in the episode.

           And that's the story, so what do I think of the episode? Well it's obvious isn't it I think it sucks big time! The first few minutes are good but after the gang is split up the episode starts to go downhill and by the end there's nothing good left to comment on. Pinkie Pie was poorly written and recieved unfair treatment for it. (And you thought Rainbow Dash had it bad in "The Mysterious Mare Do Well".) No one seems to stop and think about what they're doing and the war is a complete cop out. I think after the caboose was uncoupled Dave wasn't sure where to go. I guess he thought the episode would be a train robbery one or something. So I give this episode an E with the opening and the first few scenes being the only thing keeping this episode from an F rating. This episode started off strong but by the end it's a complete train wreck and it fails to pick itself up and get back on track. (Well I said this was going to be a very harsh review didn't I?) If you want an example of how this episode could've been done better click here.

          Up next is A Bird in the Hoof. Finally we get to pull out of this slump and get into the last few episodes of Season 1.