Ranking the Hitch Trailblazer Episodes (From Worst to Best) · 9:25pm Sep 13th, 2023
The only stallion of the group, dragon dad to Sparky, and sheriff of Maretime Bay. Today, we're looking at the episodes of Make Your Mark that have focused on Hitch so far. Like with Sunny, Hitch has four episodes to consider, but no specials for him (and with the way things are now, he may be the only character who doesn't get a special to himself before Make Your Mark wraps up). Which ones have brought out the best in him, whereas which ones have made him look a shadow of the competent and respectable pony he was in "A New Generation"? Well, let's find out.
4. The Cutie Mark Mix-up (Chapter 2, Episode 5)
Why it's on the bottom: Much like with Sunny, I cannot buy this episode's conflict happening the way it does or when it does. This is something that might have happened before "A New Generation", but certainly not afterward. They even acknowledge the secret hoofshake Hitch and Sunny share, so clearly this episode wants you to remember that they've been friends since childhood. And because of that, they should be beyond the assumptions and arguments about who has the harder job. Hitch doesn't have to become an alicorn, and Sunny doesn't have to take care of Sparky, maybe if they'd included those things instead of just sherrifing and smoothie making, this story concept could've worked.
3. Growing Pains (Chapter 2, Episode 2)
Why it's not on the bottom: There was an angle to this episode that could've worked, even if it would've been a stretch. Hitch having concerns about being unable to protect the ponies of Maretime Bay could've justified to an extent him wanting to ban earth pony magic. If they'd put more focus on that and made it clear that Hitch wasn't going to ban the magic forever, this episode would've at least been passible. But Hitch having this knee jerk reaction and becoming a control freak is a complete disservice to his character, turning him into a mockery of the competent sheriff he was in the movie. He was very much a voice of reason, he wasn't one to start panicking the moment something unexpected happened. Sprout was in this episode, so if anything Sprout should've been the one to do what Hitch did here.
2. The Jinxie Games (Chapter 4, Episode 3)
Why it's not on the top: Hitch was actually fine for most of this episode. Him competing in the titular Jinxie Games with Cloudpuff felt like a great way of building on what was shown in the movie. They just needed to spend time actually explaining what the rules of the game were, rather than leave them vague for the sake of jokes. Sparky, however, felt like a tacked on addition that maybe was foreshadowing something, but like with his interactions with the tree in "Growing Pains" it doesn't feel like it accomplished anything. It feels like they wanted to have another dragon dad Hitch episode with him struggling to take care of Sparky and learning that he needs to be more responsible, but he's already let Sparky be in the care of others so why not make that plot at the least be something for Zipp and Pipp, Izzy or even Sunny who got nothing to do all episode?
1. Have You Seen This Dragon? (Chapter 2, Episode 8)
Why it's on the top: Hitch going into dad mode when Sparky goes missing feels very in-character for him, as do his concerns that he might not have been a good dragon dad to Sparky. We saw him go from confident to desperate as time went by, which fits in with the kind of determination we saw of him in the movie. Even if he took a back seat to the antics of his friends for much of the episode, this episode was still very much his. It's the one that offers the best representation of his character, even if Sparky remains a controversial addition.
And there you have it, come back tomorrow when we'll rank all the episodes and specials focusing on Zipp Storm, the character many have said has become the main character since Make Your Mark began.
Funny how Sunny and Hitch share the same worst focus episode. Maybe they are truly meant for each other.
Case in point, MasterCode Ace Analyst.