Friendship is Card Games: Mane Smelody · 12:31pm Oct 15th, 2023
I admit, I don’t have high hopes for an episode that sounds like a six-year-old trying to insult Pipp’s business. But hey, I could be wrong. (I’m not sure if this is pessimistic optimism or optimistic pessimism.)
Pipp. Foraging.
There is absolutely no way this is going to go well. This is a mare who thought plants grew in the royal kitchens for the majority of her life and no force on Earth will convince me otherwise.
And she manages to trip on dandelions. Which may actually outmass her. Incredible.
Ah. Pardon me, “inkthistle.” Because that’s the logical name for something with bright yellow blossoms.
Also, I was wondering how Pipp knew the name of that flower, but the plant finder app explained that nicely.
“I think my future’s gonna be bright!” says the princess with a social media following larger than the actual global population.
Never a good sign when they go for stink lines in 3D. If you’re committing to smoke physics for the gag, you know it’s bad.
Poor Jazz. It’s a Make Your Mark episode, so she’s not allowed to have ears.
Also, did Pipp have the Marestream on standby, did she trot all the way back from the Bridlewood, or are we just ignoring the constraints of space and time?
Hmm. I do wonder how concerned Pipp actually is with turning a profit. Jazz is, of course—those profits go into her paycheck—but how much of this is Pipp actually trying to set out on her own and how much is her playing at cosmetologist? The ice cream face mask definitely points to the latter.
I have several questions and concerns about the origins of the phrase “guinea pony.”
Also, A+ observational skills, Zipp. No notes.
Okay, Jazz and Zipp both have their reasons to not bring up the stench of the inkthistle to Pipp. Let’s see how far they can stretch this one before the inevitable crash.
Kicking a door from the pull side to open it.
… Actually, that kind of push-button interface works well for a quadrupedal species without thumbs. Not exactly up to the fire codes, but I can accept it.
Ah. Of course Pipp’s aware of the smell; it’s not exactly hard to miss. Which raises the question of why nopony wants to say anything. I guess the animators were having fun with them trying not to vomit? 
Double ah. Pipp assumed she succeeded in making the resulting hoof polish odorless rather than just acclimating to the smell. The question of why nopony’s saying anything remains… though Sunny’s desire to be polite to her friends does work as well as Zipp’s desire to not crush her little sister’s dreams and Jazz’s to not get fired. We need Izzy in here pronto.
Ooh, high-twinkle filter. The question is whether it’s on the camera or the mirror.
On the one hand, cracking a window means Jazz wont suffocate. On the other, it means ponies will be able to smell the hoof polish before coming in.
Ah, good, a B plot. This was not going to hold up for twenty minutes on its own.
“Ugh, that smell! Let me put on these sunglasses.”
Flawless logician Zipp Storm, everyone.
“Certain things aren’t adding up about the past we’ve all been taught!”
Yeah, that means that something’s false. The question is what… which is admittedly hard to determine when working with lost and forgotten history.
Zipp only asked to look at Argyle’s research now? 
While I am happy to see more delving into the past, this is still a terrible look for the would-be investigator.
… Ah. Most of it being lost with the lighthouse does make sense. Still, calling herself “a master sleuth” is downright insulting to the entire field of investigation.
Does Pipp even have casual viewers? Instead of ads on pegasus-based media, do ponies have to sit through thirty seconds of Pipp’s current stream? It’d explain a lot.
“Gimme a boost,” says the alicorn to the pegasus.
Still, Rarity and Pinkie’s cutie marks on top suggest this box has some valuable data.
“Probably could’ve just flown up there.”
Because it’s not like either of you spent years trying to get ponies airborne or anything. 
Ooh, a bit of map. That always leads in interesting directions.
“A detective never fully abandons a clue!”
Don’t tell Zipp about red herrings; it might break her fragile little mind.
… Oh. That was anticlimactic. I do like the star of Magic compass rose, though.
I can only assume Jazz’s rent is due this week going by how desperately she’s trying to cover for Pipp. Yes, you don’t want to discuss a product’s shortcomings in front of customers, but it’s also advisable to mention those shortcomings before release. Still, when your boss is a princess who’s not used to hearing “No” and doesn’t see problems with her products unless they literally blow up in her face… Yeah, Jazz is in a very unenviable position.
“That’s more like it.”
Yeah, coercion is definitely a factor here.
I do like getting to see Zipp and Sunny work together. I wish we got more of this.
Also, the scan visor seemed to highlight clouds at the north edge of the map. Not sure if it’s cloud cities or just decorative embellishments.
Oh goodness, the stink lines are visible on camera.
Aww, Posey calling Windy “bestie.” Background pony character growth!
Okay, Windy’s afraid to badmouth her princess and Posey’s clearly here for the schadenfreude once the other shoe drops. This still feels artificially extended.
Ah yes. The Night Market. Which will definitely be open in the middle of the day.
Flawless logician Zipp Storm, everyone.
Oh come on, Toots, like you’ve never had to desperately cover for corporate’s terrible decisions.
Also, why is Windy still here? Indeed, I’m amazed anypony is willing to sit in the enclosed space for a second longer than necessary given how much of the polish is in the room. (Heck, the few times I’ve been in nail salons, I could barely stand the reek of acetone, much less crushed weed odors.) Indeed, I’m amazed somepony hasn’t complained about the smell loud enough for Pipp to hear. Again, this is artificially extended past all believability.
Ah. Looks like they reached the Night Market just as it opened. “No one knows when it may come” is apparently code for “protagonist-based opening hours.” I’m not sure what I expected.
And Pipp is actively (if accidentally) interfering with attempts to uncover history and prepare for Opaline. The gag wasn’t funny before, but now it’s officially passed into irritating.
“We’re hitting our stride.”
As opposed to all of the other successes we’ve seen from Mane Melody? I’m reminded of how Sweet Apple Acres’s financial solvency was exactly what the plot needed it to be.
Again, how does Pipp not hear Posey? (And why hasn’t Posey left the salon after getting her hooficure?)
… I’m sorry. This plot is asking me to believe that there’s a social media trend that Pipp doesn’t know about.
I’m giving up on this entire plotline. I’m still going to watch the rest of the episode for posterity’s sake, but I have completely given up on getting any sincere enjoyment from the A plot. The number of contrivances built into it have surpassed my tolerance for such and then some. Appropriately enough, it stinks.
Oh good. Given the episode thus far, I wasn’t sure if the writers would remember that that wasn’t Jazz’s phone.
… and we close with a reminder that in order for the conflict to still work, Pipp has to be blind and deaf as well as nose-blind.
“I think I can translate this with my new app!”
You mean the same app you used to translate Breezies within minutes of meeting them for the first time?
… Ah. No. This app is actually worse since it doesn’t preserve inflection.
Also, given that a breezie just appeared to give something away at the Night Market, I find myself wondering just what they took in exchange. Maybe it was retroactively taking the other app.
Also also, a crystal heart. Not the Crystal Heart, but an intriguing item. Possibly the fire ruby Spike gave Rarity, though there is the question of how it got here.
“What do you think she meant by ’The One’?” asks the pony who reunited the tribes and reawakened magic.
Also, feel free to try touching the mysterious new gem to the map. Clearly neither of these mares have played point-and-click adventure games. The moment you get something new, use it on everything in your inventory to see if something happens.
Ah, and a check-in on Opaline. And Misty, maintaining her cover.
“We suffered some setbacks, losing possession of those ponies before I took possession of their cutie marks.”
Which was definitely always part of the plan and not just Opaline’s dragonfire-addled brain fumbling past events across its few non-cauterized synapses. Also, this makes the upcoming “Secrets of Starlight” special that much more ominous.
I honestly can’t say I’m surprised that a castle Opaline may have built exclusively for her own use has multiple entertainment quarters. I’m a bit surprised that she keeps spiders rather than simply incinerating them, but I suppose she’s been saving her magic for more urgent matters.
“Why can’t I just tell her the truth?”
… Okay, if even Jazz is asking that, we have bigger problems than I realized. This is straight up a warning to the writers that this was a bad idea.
I’d ask why Hitch is challenging Sparky to run in a straight line, but him running evacuation drills is one of the most sensical things I’ve seen this episode. (At this point, I suspect Izzy found a portal to Narnia in a dumpster. Rocky may have gotten dragged along for the ride, or he’s just not on shift today.)
“Why even put the cones down?”
The characters are becoming dangerously self-aware. We may need to shut down this whole operation.
Ah. Good to see Hitch do something useful.
Huh. Sparky’s getting summoned by the Cutie Map?
I really don’t like the idea of Twilight severing magic from the entire world, but dragon hibernation does seem to point in that direction. I may adjust this in my stories.
That said, “brainwashed army of dragons” is certainly a strong midpoint for any world domination scheme.
“There’s evil hoof notes and pie charts to go over!”
I love the idea of Opaline preparing an entire evil PowerPoint presentation. She’s very proud of this plan. And as I noted above, she has reason to be.
Ah! There’s Izzy. And there’s Jazz stretching out the runtime for another few minutes.
Oh. Or Izzy can just explain the concept of acclimation. That works too… though making her the socially aware one for the purposes of this plotline feels very much like forcing the available character into a necessary role rather than finding a way to get that role to an appropriate character. Yes, Izzy’s smarter than she looks, but this kind of social intelligence feels more natural coming from… Well, Sunny. Though in her defense, she wasn’t there when the situation escalated this far.
“Get her some water!” says Sunny, not doing that.
“Get her some room!” says Zipp, doing the opposite of that.
Brilliant work, guys, really.
… Wait, I thought they left the map with Hitch, presumably so he could notice the connection to Sparky’s shining scales. Why did they take it back to the Brighthouse, other than for the dramatic reveal to Misty?
“So, listen. Pipper. Pippito. Pipperoo.”
Okay, I do appreciate a good bit of layering nicknames in an effort to soften the blow.
“Oh, that makes so much sense! You and everypony were acting so funny today!”
Ah. She’s not blind and deaf. She’s just an idiot. (Or, you know, blinded by her own perceived success, but still, how can you look at ponies actively gagging as they sniff their hooves and not put two and two together?)
“This will keep the shine but erase the smell!”
If Pipp can tell that just by smelling the Pinkthistle without actually making polish from it, she’s a much better alchemist than I gave her credit for… or there’s less than a minute until the credits roll and they need to wrap up this plotline so we never have to think about it again.
Ah yes, just shake the pollen out of the flower into already prepared cosmetics. This is definitely how any of this works.
Also, when will Pipp start consulting Izzy on Bridlewood matters? At this point, she only has herself to blame for stumbling muzzle-first into every hazard the forest can throw at her. Sometimes literally.
As I noted, this one was deeply frustrating. Any plot that requires someone to be a completely oblivious rube, especially someone who’s normally very aware of the emotional states and online culture around her, is going to leave me cold. At least there are some background developments leading into future installments… which might be more enticing if the next episode weren’t the end of this chapter. This was a viable Tell Your Tale plot. Trying to extend it to full episode length? As I said, the end result stank, and there's no convenient neutralizing agent for this one.
Let’s just hope the cards come out better than the source material:
Dramatic Necessity W
Instant
Target creature gains indestructible until end of turn. Create a Sorcerer Role token attached to that creature. (If you control another Role on it, put that one into the graveyard. Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has “Whenever this creature attacks, scry 1.”)
Closing Time 2W
Instant
Cast this spell only during combat.
If it’s night and you control a Plains, you may cast this spell without paying its mana cost.
End the combat phase. (Remove all attackers and blockers from combat. Exile all spells and abilities from the stack, including this spell.)
Word of Mouth 3W
Enchantment
Whenever a creature enters the battlefield under an opponent’s control, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature you control.
As far as Pipp could tell, the new product line was an incredible success. By certain metrics, she wasn’t wrong.
Contradictory Evidence 1U
Instant
Investigate, then counter target spell unless its controller pays 1 for each Clue you control. (To investigate, create a Clue token. It’s an artifact with “2, T, Sacrifice this artifact: Draw a card.”)
Reconstructing Equestria’s lost history is fraught with frustration.
Breezie Charmbearer 1UU
Creature — Pony Faerie Rogue
Flying
When Breezie Charmbearer enters the battlefield, target player mills a card for each Faerie you control. You may exile an artifact card milled this way. You may play that card for as long as it remains exiled, and mana of any type can be spent to cast it.
2/1
Evacuation Drill 2UU
Instant
Each player returns any number of nonland permanents they control to their owners’ hands. Then tap all nonland permanents and put a stun counter on each of them. (If a permanent with a stun counter would become untapped, remove one from it instead.)
Stinkthistle Salve 1B
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has menace and wither. (It deals damage to creatures in the form of -1/-1 counters.)
“Do you smell that?”
“I can taste that.”
Streaming Occultist 2B
Creature — Pony Warlock
When Streaming Occultist enters the battlefield, mill three cards.
Soulshift 6 (When this creature dies, you may return target Spirit card with mana value 6 or less from your graveyard to your hand.)
Hunting for ghosts risks finding one.
3/2
Sinister Schematics 4B
Sorcery
Bargain (You may sacrifice an artifact, enchantment, or token as you cast this spell.)
If this spell was bargained, each player mills four cards. Return an artifact or creature card from a graveyard to the battlefield.
Pipp’s Test Subject 3R
Creature — Pony Citizen
Heroic — Whenever you cast a spell that targets Pipp’s Test Subject, you may discard a card. If you do, draw two cards.
Sometimes heroism is defending the realm or uniting its peoples. Sometimes it’s being first to try an experimental shampoo.
3/2
Enthralled Hellkite 4RR
Creature — Dragon Minion
Flying, haste
Lieutenant — Whenever Enthralled Hellkite attacks, if you control your commander, tap target creature defending player controls. Gain control of that creature until end of turn. It’s attacking that player.
The best conquests keep conquering.
5/5
Magmatic Awakening 4RR
Enchantment
When Magmatic Awakening enters the battlefield, create a 4/4 red Dragon creature token with flying.
Whenever a Dragon enters the battlefield under your control, mill cards equal to that Dragon’s power, then put a Dragon card milled this way onto the battlefield.
Acclimate G
Instant
Target creature you control that was dealt damage this turn gains hexproof and indestructible until end of turn.
Draw a card.
”That which does not kill me missed its one chance.”
—Opaline, the last alicorn
Recreation Spiders 4G
Creature — Spider
Reach
When Recreation Spiders enters the battlefield, open an Attraction. (Put the top card of your Attraction deck onto the battlefield.)
Whenever you roll a 6, each opponent sacrifices a creature with flying.
2/5
Serene Beautician 5G
Creature — Pony Monk Citizen
When Serene Beautician enters the battlefield, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature you control, then draw a card for each modified creature you control. (Equipment, Auras you control, and counters are modifications.)
“Outer beauty brings inner peace.”
3/3
Faded Map 2
Artifact — Clue
1, T: Scry 1. Put a landmark counter on Faded Map.
2, T, Sacrifice Faded Map: Draw a card. If there were three or more landmark counters on Faded Map, instead search your library for a card, put it into your hand, then shuffle.
Online Botanical 3
Artifact
Landfall — 4, T: Draw a card. This ability costs 2 less to activate for each land that entered the battlefield under your control this turn.
Old Equestria gathered information on Everfree flora for ages. Zephyr Heights compiled it in a few weeks.
Ancient Locket 5
Artifact
As Ancient Locket enters the battlefield, choose a color.
Spells of the chosen color you cast cost 1 less to cast.
T: Add C and one mana of the chosen color.
It has waited for centuries to find a new pony to cherish.
Stumble Upon RG
Sorcery
Choose a card type, then exile the top ten cards of your library. Choose a card of the chosen type exiled this way at random, then put the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order. You may play that card this turn. If you didn’t choose a card this way, return Stumble Upon to its owner’s hand.
Salon Rats 1WB
Creature — Rat
When Salon Rats enters the battlefield, exile up to one target artifact or enchantment until Salon Rats leaves the battlefield. You may cast that card for as long as it remains exiled, and mana of any type can be spent to cast it.
Clever paws and alchemy mix all too well.
2/2
Willful Ignorance XUB
Instant
Counter target spell unless its controller discards X cards.
“Welcome to Mane Melody! Everything is fine.”
Yeah, I noped out of this one five minutes in. :p I think it might be one of my core problems with MYM that they tend to take a one-note joke and stretch it into a full episode, losing all impact and humor in the process.
Those quietly stopped existing halfway to G4, and it's been at least four generations since.
5750625
Or in other words, that they keep trying to make Tell Your Tale scripts last 20 minutes instead of actually writing a full episode's worth. Sense? What fun is there in making sense?
I always considered that Mane Melody is subsidized by the Royal Coffers. Turning a profit is of course ideal, but a month or two running at a loss won't be a problem.
It does mean she has harder tells when lying to her sister.
This isn't the first time MYM has had a TYT-style plot (like, down to being low-key slice of life things predicted on characters not communicating to drive the conflict to begin with), padded to a lethargic, clumpy conclusion, with a B-plot ostensibly contributing to the main arc to fill out the 21 minutes – this exact situation happened with "Sunny Side Up" last chapter. And to be fair, the B-plot stuff here is properly contributing to the arc, in getting MacGuffins that do have to matter. Even they are acquired Because Script, and even if we get a lot of Idiot Zipp, Bad Detective along the way (most clues are found from her pondering a question the audience has been asking for ages or already knows, and the answer is found for any reason besides her own skill), it's better that Opaline's hammy monologuing to a dragon stone she doesn't even get and returns to retrieve the following episode offscreen.
Of course, "Sunny Side Up"'s main plot of Sunny and Hitch not vibing on how to handle a cooking show was merely the usual insomnia-curing stuff, whereas this… I don't know if I would call it MYM's worst episode, not off how utterly broken the writing was in "Hoof Done It?", but I can't argue with it being the one to finally break charitable, kind, good-natured "see the potential in everything" FoME.
What a load of
s***esocial media viral trend trash with everyone so Idiot Ball as to be beyond the trope.And poor, poor, Jazz – even sidelining her missing ears not holding up to an episode in the limelight, off the brave face she has to put on to Pipp the Entrepreneur, she's as much of an abuse victim of the script here as Misty is of Opaline. It's painful on a visceral level. Congratulations, MYM, you elicited genuine empathy, but not by intent.
You've pointed out all the main issues, so I will only add this: it's sacrilegious of Gillian Berrow and her writers to spend an episode on this stink of a farce as the show's seventh-last episode (and that's counting the last special as two episodes), when the show is this committed to having its overarching story present all the time, we hadn't seen Opaline in four episodes, and she spends the whole chapter basically script frozen until the last episode. And yes, they didn't know the show wouldn't be getting continued, but as this is the initial order of 23 episodes and 4 specials, they're still building towards a suitable stopping point.
Like, at the end of this, there is only 127 minutes left for MYM. That's it. Two hours. With no way for a well-written show to wrap this many plot threads up satisfactorily, let alone this.
Which will only intensify next time, when the figure becomes 106 minutes and only barely more than the usual glacial progress is made. Oy.
There's speculation that this might be the Rainbow of Light.
Huh. Not only would Pipp's streams and influencer schtick being mandatory viewing for all pegasi, possibly by law, explain a lot, it'd also be far, far more interesting than a good 90% of this show.
Oh dear. Oh dear oh dear oh dear.
To be honest, my biggest hope is that the clear implication is so obvious that it's a red herring and they're not going with it. Because no matter where you stand on Starlight as a character, I'm really not seeing an outcome where that ends well.