Ranking the Izzy Moonbow/Mane Five Episodes/Specials (From Worst to Best) · 4:09pm Sep 16th, 2023
I would just do an episode ranking journal for Izzy Moonbow, but Make Your Mark has so far only given her two, both in Chapter 2. Alongside Hitch, she is the only main character from A New Generation who has yet to star in a special (if I had to guess which one will not get a special before Make Your Mark apparently wraps up for good, I'd bet on Hitch). I'm really glad I haven't seen Tell Your Tale all that much, because that series has been absolutely horrible to Izzy, turning her into the next modern Patrick Star.
Anyway, since Izzy only has two episodes to herself in Make Your Mark, I decided to also do a ranking journal here for episodes that focus on the mane five (the main cast before Misty joins them at the end of "Missing the Mark"). So, how do all the episodes stack up? Well, let's find out. We'll start with the two Izzy Moonbow episodes.
2. Izzy Does It (Chapter 2, Episode 1)
Why it's not on the top: Quality trumps quanity, both of Izzy's episodes in Make Your Mark so far have been pretty good to her. You could make a case for either one being Izzy's better episode, especially since she technically shares both with another major character. In this case she shares it with Pipp, though it really feels like Pipp's inclusion was a last minute thing for the sake of having another Pipp episode even when she was going to have two others in Chapter 2. This episode puts more emphasis on Izzy's crafting, and I have to say she looks really cute with her crafting glasses on. Izzy feels a little too OP here though, when she not only solves her own problem by fixing up an old scooter, but also manages to somehow solve Pipp's problem by remixing "All You Need is Your Beat" off-screen. Plus, the climax involving Izzy going back to Bridlewood feels tacked on. If she'd just written a few more words, neither Sunny or Pipp would've had any reason to freak out.
1. The Traditional Unicorn Sleepover (Chapter 2, Episode 6)
Why it's on the top: Aside from the sudden bringing up and resolving of Izzy being homesick, this episode I think really shines a light on Izzy. She's not unlike Pinkie Pie, she wants to make others happy so they don't feel lonely like she used to feel. This is before Tell Your Tale and Winter Wishday would suggest that Izzy is more or less an orphan, but it's possible that was meant to be foreshadowed here with her hosting a sleepover for her new friend Misty. Izzy getting carried away and being obsessed with making the sleepover as good as possible feels believable. It just plays to her strengths more than "Izzy Does It" in my opinion.
And now for the mane five episodes/specials, of which there are five.
5. Make Your Mark Special a.k.a the Make Your Mark Pilot (Chapter 1)
Why it's on the bottom: Considering this special is something of a second pilot for G5, it really didn't put its best foot forward. A lot of the special is spent on nothing of substance happening, it's just our characters fooling around and doing things because potatoes. Even Zipp's plot is mostly just her waiting around for something to happen. And the special really seems to be leaning into Tell Your Tale being canon, seeing as that explains how the Brighthouse and Mane Melody came to be. By the time they try to include a climax, much of the special's time has already been used up. And it just makes most of our cast look dumb for not being the slightest bit worried or concerned even when they have reason to be.
4. The Manesquerade Ball (Chapter 4, Episode 5)
Why it's not on the bottom: As much as I really like this episode and appreciate how well it incorporated Misty into the cast (showing us how she would interact with them once she defects from Opaline), and as great as it was to get away from Maretime Bay for an episode, the focus on the mane five is uneven. Sunny and Zipp are the only ones to get any real plot once we get to the titular ball (although it's called the Maresquerade Ball because I guess that rolls off the tongue better). Sunny's plot is tied to the song "Show Me Your Pony Moves", and Zipp's is just her sneaking away to visit the royal library. Hitch, Izzy, and Pipp don't get to do anything outside of the group. Probably because we have a bit of AlphabittlexQueen Haven antics, which are nice to see.
3. Have You Seen This Dragon? (Chapter 2, Episode 8)
Why it's in the middle: Sunny's entire role in this episode is trying to be a voice of reason while everyone else is off doing their own thing, and our heroes just keeping stepping on each other's toes as a result. It really doesn't make them look competent, it makes them look really weak when they can't even find Sparky when he's no in real danger and is able to elude Misty all on his own. And I really don't see why Pipp's entire plot was just her trying to do a social media post about Sparky being missing, why not just do it the old fashioned way and put up posters? People still do that these days for missing pets. Failing that, why not take over a radio station for a public service announcement or the pony equivalent of an amber alert? Izzy and Zipp doing what they do makes sense, it's in character for them. And Hitch going crazy is nice, though I wish it had happened sooner. All of the mistakes could've been justified if at the very least Misty was chasing Sparky all over town instead of just cornering him at the Brighthouse, and/or Opaline was creating a distraction for our heroes.
2. Missing the Mark (Chapter 4, Episode 7)
Why it's not on the top: This is really more of Misty's story than it is the mane five's story, but they do all get their big moments of heroism when all's said and done. Heck, when Izzy and Pipp are pretending to hold Misty prisoner, Izzy looks legitimately angry for the first time, which is quite scary. And while Sunny is battling Opaline alone, Zipp and Hitch rescue Sparky in a nice call back to them being a battle couple in A New Generation. It's a good showcase of what our heroes are capable of in a crisis, but even so the focus is uneven and eventually boils down to Sunny v.s. Opaline.
1. Top Remodel (Chapter 4, Episode 2)
Why it's on the top: If anything, this should've been the next special after Winter Wishday instead of Bridlewoodstock. It feels like that would've given all the different subplots we saw in this episode a chance to be further fleshed out. Think about it: We have Pipp and Hitch playing off each other about the possibility of the abandoned factory being haunted, we have Zipp trying to solve the msytery of Twilight's message, and we have Izzy and Sunny gathering crafting supplies and trying to figure out what to turn the factory into. Plus, we have the return of Sprout, who is still very much his self-centered self. But he feels more toned down and believable, he doesn't feel like a joke they want you to take seriously. All of these plots were begging to be fleshed out and given more development, because the only one that gets any real resolution is Pipp and Hitch's, which ends with them doing a pied piper routine to lure the mice away. It gives each of our characters a chance to shine, it just doesn't always wrap up their individual stories the best.
And there you have it, come back tomorrow when we'll look at and rank all the Misty Brightdawn episodes.
Wow, only two focus episodes for Izzy so far? I guess someone on the writing staff must've taken Mr. Enter's rant about how giving a comic relief character too much focus can get grating real fast from his review of the Planet Sheen episode Is This Cute? very seriously.
5746752 If anything, I feel like Sparky is supposed to for comedic relief, with what his magical dragon fire burbs and all.
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Now that I think about it, given how much more focus Izzy has in Tell Your Tale compared to Make Your Mark, perhaps this is meant to be some kind of trade-off?