My Episode Review on My Little Pony: Make Your Mark-Izzy Does It · 2:03pm March 1st
Greetings and salutations, my friends.
This is your top-of-the-line film, TV show, and episode reporter here with another review.
Today, for my 72nd episode analysis, I'm gonna give you guys my take of My Little Pony: Make Your Mark's "Izzy Does It".
Outside of the fact that "Izzy Does It" is the show's 2nd episode, and the first part of "Chapter 2", I hardly think that a summary for it is necessary. Besides, I found that it'd be too difficult to explain what the episode is about.
Anyway...
After I did my review on "Chapter 1", I knew that doing an analysis of Chapter 2's "Izzy Does It" was gonna become a priority since I've been planning on reviewing more of MLP (G5) anyway. At the time I was making plans for critiquing this episode, though, and due to not being a fan of G5, I became concerned that whatever I'd say would be the same as my review on "Chapter 1".
So, in order to ensure my statements wouldn't get repetitive, and be absolutely certain over what I thought of the episode, I watched "Izzy Does It" three more times this year. Also, I decided to try keeping my focus on the episode's core aspects, and I'll probably do so with every G5 installment after it too.
Coming from a guy who watched "Izzy Does It" for the 3rd time recently, I'd like to start off by saying this:
Sadly, I didn't think "Izzy Does It" was much of an improvement over "Chapter 1". I mean, it was a little more tolerable to sit through, but the episode as a whole just wasn't very good.
Most of the reasons for why I found "Izzy Does It" to be far from satisfactory revolve around the story by Jim Martin, as well as the overall direction & execution.
Similar to "Chapter 1", "Izzy Does It" had a multitude of subplots rolled into one story. 4 subplots, to be exact. I was grateful that the episode didn't feel like four stories crammed into one, but still...it seemed to be offering too much for a person to take in one sitting. Not to mention the character inclusions ranged from logical to unnecessary.
Among the characters who clearly weren't needed very much in this episode were Zipp, Hitch, and Sparky Sparkeroni (the baby dragon from "Chapter 1"). Aside from the one exchange between Hitch and Zipp about the new magic developments, the scenes featuring both the 2 of them and Sparky were more of a distraction than anything else.
I mean, what was so important about focusing on Hitch and Zipp cleaning Izzy's stuff beyond the little tidbit I mentioned before? Or on Sparky if all he was gonna do was just unwittingly turn things into food with his dragon fire?
If anything, it seemed like the episode's only purpose for Zipp, Hitch, and Sparky was to have them merely serve as comic-reliefs. Needless ones even, which is fueled all-the-more by Zipp making wisecracks and witty voice loggings most of the time.
In addition, the subplot featuring Misty Brightdawn spying on the Main 5 for Opaline Arcana was both annoying and useless for this episode's story. It was annoying because of how conspicuous Misty was being, and the fact that many of the ponies who actually saw her were idiotic enough to not be suspicious of her fuels the impression that the G5 ponies are sadly lacking in intelligence. And, it was useless because the whole thing neither contributed anything important or carried much relevance.
The only aspect regarding the Misty & Opaline subplot that made it standout was when Misty secretly gave Sunny the magic handheld mirror, but even that wasn't enough to make the whole thing necessary. Heck, the entirety of the subplot would've worked better if it served as the main story for a 6 or 7 minute short rather than be part of a 30 minute episode, because then things wouldn't have felt overcrowded.
On the subject of Sunny's inclusion...there actually wasn't anything wrong with her usage. Outside of making smoothies, the episode didn't have Sunny doing anything big compared to the other characters. And that's perfectly okay. It was clear that Sunny's role in this episode was to be Izzy's source of wisdom & support, and I thought she worked perfectly in that regard. Compared to the other characters I previously mentioned, it didn't feel like Sunny was in this episode for the sake of it either.
Pipp's involvement, meanwhile, was generally a mixed bag.
For a little bit, it seemed like Pipp was going to have the exact kind of role Sunny was given, and the idea of her being Izzy's creativity-advisor is something that honestly fits her so well. But, once the story opens up the subplot of Pipp having creative-block over what her next song would be, everything fell apart at the seams with her. Her focus throughout the episode ultimately caused the story to be conflicted over who the main character was, even despite the title's implication that Izzy was gonna be the star. The fact that Pipp hardly ever did the things she advised Izzy to do before her creative-block came also made her come across as a hypocrite, and in a way...her advice & style started to feel more like a meta-commentary saying that G5 will never change or improve from the problems I noted in both "My Little Pony: A New Generation" and "Chapter 1".
As for Izzy, the "Star" of this episode...she was relatively underwhelming.
It was hard for me to get engaged by Izzy or care about what she was going through. Her antics were more annoying than amusing, and she gradually started to feel more like an afterthought than a protagonist. Also, despite her saying that she learned stuff in this episode, Izzy never gave any signs that she learned anything or grew as a character; not to mention the direction taken with her was more baffling than understandable, because I wasn't able to get how she solved her own problems or helped Pipp resolve hers.
The other aspects in the story & direction weren't well-done either. The comedy in this episode generally made me cringe more than laugh, and there certainly wasn't much in the ways of heart & emotion to give it any support.
Plus, as indicated by my complaints towards the directions taken with Izzy and Pipp, I found myself completely lost on what the morals & messages of "Izzy Does It" were. Every apparent attempt at teaching how to overcome creative-block felt like it was instructing how to do the opposite of that; and it didn't give much insight on how to gain inspiration, create something new, or make the new product better than the last one. Even if those things weren't what the episode was trying to teach in the first place, I don't think I'll ever get what it was intending to educate viewers on. And in terms of lessons regarding friendship, "Izzy Does It" had nothing of the sort.
In the end, "Izzy Does It" certainly wasn't as bad as "Chapter 1", but it wasn't an adequate episode or a good sequel to the last two computer-animated installments either. It has the same basic problems as its predecessors, and the character usage is wonky at the most. In short, the whole thing was a lazy way to kick off this 8-episode 2nd chapter.
So, I rate "Izzy Does It" two out of five stars.
I can't help but feel your review style would be dramatically improved through including concrete examples from the episodes and content you are reviewing. Using your passage on Pipp as an example; if you're going to say she's being a hypocrite, use a concrete example of her being a hypocrite. Making statements without concrete evidence to back them up has the effect of weakening the argument. The model I was taught at school was the PEEL model. This stands for Point, Expand, Explain, Link.
To apply this model to Zipp in Portrait of a Princess:
Point: Zipp's selfish behaviour is the cause of the episode's main conflict.
Expand: During the episode, she shows an intense reluctance to participate in the photoshoot, to the point of tricking her sister into going on a scavenger hunt instead.
Explain: This shows how deep Zipp's selfishness in the situation goes, as she is prepared to mess things up for Pipp, who wanted to participate in the Portrait Day festivities.
Link: As a result, Zipp learns the importance of putting others before yourself and respecting the wishes of others, a fact she acknowledges in the dialogue:
If you need to source dialogue for commentary, each episode of MYM has a transcript on the MLP wiki.
5770435
The main reason for why I said Pipp was being a hypocrite was largely because of her not using any of the advice she gave Izzy for herself.
Other than that, why explain something when people can just see for themselves?
5770438
Because many people read reviews to assess whether they want to watch something.
5770440
You’re right in that regard. Admittedly, I was working on this review for so long that I found myself really wanting to just get it done.
I have to disagree. I thought this was a solid start to the chapter. Remember, the core of G4 was the relationship between the characters and the situations they find themselves in, so it makes sense that the first episode of this show would be a simple slice of life story. And having it focus on Izzy’s creative side really works and provides some depth to her. We already that she’s a really talented artist and crafter and that brings her a lot of joy. When we think of Izzy, we often associate her with her boundless passion for arts and crafts, but what happens when too much is demanded of her and she starts getting creative burnout as she can’t keep up with the demand? That’s what I found very intriguing and it’s juxtaposed with Pipp also having creative burnout about her music. The bond they share here is genuinely great and I loved how the advice they gave each other pays off in the end. I’m honestly surprised you don’t understand the message the episode was trying to convey because it’s really quite obvious. What the episode is trying to say is don’t feel pressured into constantly having to provide for others on a daily basis when you don’t have anything as that just ruins the fun. You should create things because you want to, not because someone is demanding it of you. Pipp’s song being transformed into a remix proves that inspiration can come from the most unlikely of places, and the difference between the original and remix versions is significant enough to call it a new song on its own. I’m not going to say that’s the best way to execute that lesson as I think we could have had Izzy telling Pipp to sing about what speaks to her on a personal level and resolve the plot point that way. But it works the way it does because it shows that you don’t have to be beholden to demands when it comes to artistic inspiration because that comes from within. When you demand too much of a person to create so much of this product, it can dilute their passion and inspiration. The pressure can build up until it’s just not fun anymore. The message of the episode is inspirations from the most unlikely of sources and creating things because you want to.
As for the story, the episode actually subverts your expectations by having the focus actually be on Pipp and Izzy mentoring each other, and how through their shared advice, Izzy realizes that she needs a bigger space to unleash her wild imagination, and Pipp gets inspired by seeing a remix of one of her old songs. It was the means to provide the inner conflict within Izzy and it’s not solved through external means, but internal means. We’re not supposed to care if the ponies get what they want or not. We are instead supposed to care if Izzy finds her inspiration, and if Pipp finds hers.
The reason why this works so well is because the situations that Pipp and Izzy get into build off of each other in smart ways and the episode is about them primarily. Izzy is the protagonist of this story, that’s obvious, and Pipp is meant to be the mentor figure guiding her to that moral. The episode is supposed to be a commentary on creative burnout and both characters represent different sides of the spectrum.
I’m not here to argue with you, just setting the record straight as I feel you might’ve interpreted some things about the episode wrong, which is probably what prevents you from enjoying it. I’d make a more comprehensive point-by-point counterargument as there are a lot of things wrong here, but heck, I’m honestly tired of scripting at this point considering I’ve been adding sections to my defense video like crazy over the past few days.
5770454
Unfortunately, I don’t think either of us would convince each other on this matter. The things you stated were sadly not how I saw everything, and I certainly wasn’t able to get what it was that you enjoyed about it.
Like my review stated, much of the reason for why comes from the overall story & direction, and how things were being executed & played out. If what you stated really was the intention, the production team clearly didn’t do a good job at bringing the vision across, which isn’t helped at all by the all-over-the-place narrative and lackluster character usage.
5770444
I certainly know that feeling well; burning the midnight oil is very common amongst creative types such as ourselves.
5770460
Not to mention the fatigue you get from working on one certain thing for so long. It took me weeks to even get this review done.
5770454
Fanfiction 101.
5770461
I'll admit I usually have several projects on the go at once; it gives me variety to hop between.
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5770461
Hmm, that’s a shame. Like I said, I didn’t find the narrative all over the place at all as it was pretty easy for me to understand, nor did I find any of the characters lackluster. I don’t think I’ll ever understand why you came to many of the negative conclusions you did, but whatever. We’re pretty even in that regard. I don’t really think this an episode worth arguing over unlike some of the more stronger entries, so I’ll just leave it at this. For me it captures the slice of life narratives that FIM excelled at perfectly and succeeded at giving both Pipp and especially Izzy arcs regarding creative burnout. Honestly, considering how hard you work on your reviews, I would’ve thought you’d relate to the episode’s message a whole lot more. I know I certainly do, and it’s a good commentary for kids to learn from.
5770465
I probably would've, if the portrayals of Izzy and Pipp in their creative block moments weren’t so cringy. And if the episode didn’t make it seem like having creative block is a good thing in the long run.
Screenwriting 101 is a lost art. You NEVER have more than a single subplot in an episode. Even in a movie, more than 2 subplots becomes hard to flesh out in the writing.
5770487
EXACTLY! And just like the last episode, “Izzy Does It” seemed like it contained too many stories in one sitting.
In order for a movie or a TV show episode to work with more than one subplot, you have to do the following:
Make sure everything manages to connect in the long run, ensure that things remain relevant, and guarantee that there’s an even balance involved.
5770454
And this is bad. Art is not just releasing you magical yourselfness into wherever. It is communication, and creator isn't the only one who matters. As long as you have an audience in mind, it is they who decide if you actually solved your creativity issues. You, on the other hand, have a right to decide if they deserve your effort and if you should optimize your art towards pleasing them. But the episode barely touches that. We don't even know if Izzy's customers existed at all.
First Pipp posts the hairpin. Then Izzy sneaks into Sunny's wagon and says that everypony wants one because of it. And only then we get to see a customer. Just one. And the only one in the entire episode. There wasn't even a line. So was there some crowd which passed entirely offscreen? Or did Izzy just freak out and fell into creative block immediately? It is impossible to know (probably because they decided to cram several other plot lines into the episode instead of adding details to this one).
And in the end Izzy didn't learn to handle attention without freakouts or to deal with overly demanding fans. She just left the fair and created something unrelated to the hairpin problem, and then that problem was never brought up again. It seems like Izzy returned to crafting only for her friends, but there is just a non-explanation about that magical youselfness. Like, she is always herself, everypony is themselves, and there is no way to not be what you are. That's a fundamental law of logic: A = A. So did Izzy decide to stop crafting for strangers or just took a pause to calm down? No answer. And same with Pipp, who has her established audience, but it remains unknown if Izzy's remix was actually apreciated by it.
5770547
Izzy started having her creative block before her customers were even shown. And the episode does imply that they did before we even saw the stallion who was demanding too much of her. She specifically stated that ponies were demanding more of the same thing from her, which made her have creative burnout.
The conflict wasn’t about pleasing the ponies at the faire. It was Izzy dealing with creative burnout over the demand of her becoming overwhelmingly monotonous. The resolution hinged on her getting her inspiration back and creating something else other than the hairpins, which she no longer wanted to make. By finding the old abandoned cart, she was able to unicycle it into something new. So what if the ponies at the faire didn’t get closure? They were one-off obstacles that added to Izzy’s problem over finding inspiration. The message wasn’t supposed to be about pleasing them, it was about creating something that YOU wanted to make. Sometimes, you can’t please everyone, and you need to make things that you care about making, otherwise there’s no point in anything.
There literally was an answer. I refuse to believe that you didn’t pay attention to that if you’re trying to argue with me on this. The whole reason why she left for Bridlewood because she needed to find her inspiration. She left the faire because she needed to calm down and find inspiration in her hometown, which is where she feels the most like herself. She stopped crafting for those strangers by the end because it wasn’t what she wanted to do. She felt burdened by the responsibility of catering for them, so through Pipp’s advice, she realized that she needed to rediscover why she loved crafting in the first place, which is what the “I just needed to be Izzy” line means.
5770547
Sir or Miss, the things you stated are exactly what I thought in a nutshell.
5770558
This doesn't help at all. Izzy had the block before the customers were shown, but there is a possibility of them coming offscreen. Exactly because the episode relies so much on implications. And no, Izzy didn't state that ponies want more of the same thing. She said "everypony wants one too" which can mean both copy of Sunny's hairpin or any hairpin from Izzy. And when she does another hairpin for that stallion, he discards it with a vague explanation about not being the same special thing. Did he actually want a copy of Sunny's hairpin? Or did he find the new one lacking the magical specialness which comes from Izzy being Izzy?
Actually, you only pointed out another problem with the episode. Is it about repetition or inventing new things very fast? Because these are different problems with different causes, and their solutions are not always the same... sorry, you mentioned somewhere that even different hairpin designs are too monotonous for Izzy. Probably she can't make even two in a row, since she only made one haipin for the fair onscreen. Which I find weird, and probably not I alone.
It was about pleasing the ponies, because Izzy wanted to do it at the fair. And realizing that it is not necessary is a valid resolution, but the episode doesn't do that. It doesn't even make it clear what the demand was.
These people (calling them obstacles is worrying, by the way) caused Izzy's problem, as I said. Not just "added to it". They still exist, they still probably want a hairpin, and dealing with them is part of the resolution of Izzy's plotline. If Izzy decided that these ponies don't deserve her creativity and should not demand, this is fine. But this isn't told, let alone shown.
Imagine two parallel universes. In one Izzy runs off, finds an inspiration, crafts that gear for herself and returns to the fair. In other she runs off, finds an inspiration, crafts that gear for herself and doesn't return to the fair. Do you see the problem? The episode stops before these universes become different. And there isn't enough interaction between Izzy and customer-strangers to show what exactly she wanted from the fair. Maybe she's going to return with renewed vigour and firm position of not taking requests from strangers and only selling what she wanted to make to whoever will accept these things as they are, because this way she could find new friends, make the world better or whatever.
5770633
Sunny was the first pony Izzy made one of these for, so it’s blatantly obvious that they want Izzy to make the exact same product that she has. If you remember, the whole reason why the obsession over the hairpin started was because Pipp livestreamed Sunny’s hairpin to her audience, not any random one. So the customers wanted that design alone. If not, then that inciting incident scene would have been framed way differently. This shouldn’t even be a question.
Yes, because that’s exactly what Pipp advertised on her stream. You just answered your own question. The customers just wanted the exact same hairpin that Sunny had, which was the primary source of Izzy’s creative burnout conflict.
No, I didn’t. The fact that you have these questions that the episode basically tells you proves you weren’t paying attention. It was repetition. Izzy doesn’t have a problem at all with inventing things very fast as she’s a very quick thinker and is often able to think on the spot. The problem was the monotonous routine of creating the exact same product to the point where it became dull and monotonous. To be fair, the growing demand was a contributing factor, but not as much as Izzy’s primary source of creative block, which was the fact that she was forced to make the exact same product for so many ponies to the point where she lost her primary source of inspiration.
No, the episode was NOT about pleasing the ponies. They were obstacles and their plot line doesn’t need to be paid off in order for the episode to feel satisfied. We’re more so focused on the detrimental effects their constant demand for the same thing has placed on her, and how she doesn’t feel inspired to constantly make the same thing. She needed more room for inspiration and ideas, and she needed to rediscover what exactly it was that made her want to create things she loves. And the demand was specifically for a replica of Sunny’s hairpin, which is made explicitly clear in the episode through the framing devices used to kickstart the conflict, such as the inciting incident being Izzy giving Sunny the hairpin and Pipp later livestreaming it.
No, it isn’t. The resolution is more intimate and character-based rather than focused on resolving an external threat, which MLP has done before. “Fame and Misfortune” worked because the payoff was what Twilight and her friends taught Toola Roola and Coconut Cream about friendship, which was at the heart of the episode. The other ponies were never satisfied, but the ending was still satisfying because the lesson was conveyed through the lessons learned by individuals, rather than a selective whole. Or how about “The Perfect Pear?” We don’t ever get an answer as to how the other Pears feel about the Apples all these years later. Rather, the resolution is intimate and character-focused, instead prioritizing Applejack and her immediate Apple Family making up with Grand Pear, who mends his feud with Granny Smith. Sometimes, obstacles are just that. Obstacles. In this episode, the other ponies were plot devices contributing to Izzy’s creative burnout and the whole resolution hinged on her getting away from the faire, away from all that outside pressure, and finding herself again. She needed to get her inspiration back, and Pipp helped with that through mentoring her on how to deal with creative block.
No.
Exactly. That’s what the whole message is. Thanks for proving me 100% right. Look, there are some things you can criticize about the way the story is executed like I stated in my original comment. It’s not perfect and there are some things that can be improved upon in regards to pacing certain things out. But if the only points you have against my take are things you don’t understand about the episode, then no offense, but perhaps these MLP stories are a little too hard for you to comprehend.
If you want to continue to argue with me on it just because I gave a more nuanced take and didn’t outright hate the episode, which is apparently illegal, then be my guest. I’ll indulge you despite my better judgement because there are a lot of things I can say. But like I said to AMU, this episode isn’t worth a full-on debate, which is why I only said so much. There are episodes I’m much more passionate about. I just decided to give my two cents on what I thought he didn’t understand. If you got a problem with that, then I don’t know what to say to you.
5770493 The only time I've seen it 'work' was in a few 'anthology' type episodes. "The Simpsons" did that LONG ago, as did "South Park", but as you say, these many small sub-stories were tied together in some way and all converged at the end in some way, even if it was as simple as the opening characters declaring "Yeah, nothing ever happens here..." to contrast to the insanity the AUDIENCE has witnessed, which makes it a PUNCHLINE and everything in the episode was part of the setup.
At any rate, it's more than clear this series is a total failure with audiences. It's only garnered a PITIFUL 604 TOTAL ratings on IMDB, with an average score of 5.8/10. Oof. So not only is almost no one watching, the handful of desperate Pony fans who have shown up generally don't like what they're seeing.
Compare this to the 2012 season on FIM, where the show already had 10,000 or so ratings on IMBD, with a score of around 8/10.
5770659
Failure? Oof, if only that was really the case. Sorry to bust your bubble, but actually, Make Your Mark was ranked consistently in the Top 10 in over 90 countries as of October 2022. It got a ton of viewership. The biased reactions of critics don’t mean shit in the end as all Netflix cares about is viewer metadata translating into financial success, not critical reviews. Netflix doesn’t care if people hate on their products, just that they watch them. That’s the same for all streaming services. Tons of people watched the show, and this data proves that MYM was actually a success. Here, I’ll let you take a look.
preview.redd.it/infographic-on-the-mlp-brand-shows-that-tell-your-tale-will-v0-aacr867pa3rb1.jpg?auto=webp&s=f20bfa5332fd711eec96b06170df3ffb751c86ec
Also, Tell Your Tale outperformed both MYM and FIM in approval ratings, which is why it got greenlit for Season 2. Next time you want to create a false narrative on something you hate, make sure you actually have the evidence to back it up. I would laugh, but the fact that you don’t know how streaming success works is kinda pathetic, so I won’t out of respect. All I will say is, facts don’t care about your feelings.
5770697
Truthfully, that’s one of the many things I’ve felt critical about regarding streaming. Compared to when you release something in theaters or cable-television, it’s incredibly difficult to understand how releasing something direct-to-streaming works. So, how can you tell if something on streaming is successful or not if you can’t even see the earnings or ratings it gains?
And in this day and age, streaming is everything short of No Man’s Land for media products, meaning that unless they’re released on home video, they basically become lost for good.
5770641
Things don't become blatantly obious because you said they are. There is still a possibility that she actually advertized Izzy's sense of style in general. Or the ponies interpreted it that way. They weren't shown, after all.
But this is a question, because then Izzy and Pipp begin to talk about creativity, as if Izzy needs to invent new designs for her customers. If we translate this to Pipp's situation, it's like struggling to write a new song vs being tired of singing the same song over and over. In the first case the problem is caused by the audience wanting something new, so Pipp has to summon her creativity on demand, in the second - by them wanting the same, so she has to suppress that creativity. They are opposite, and the episode mixes them for some reason.
Also, in Sunny's wagon Izzy was afraid of being unable to make another hairpin, as if she didn't make any at the moment. This and the lack of actual customers onscreen lead me to the interpretation where she just freaked out and the demand for her craft was completely imaginary. Not the only interpretation, mind you, because the episode is just so confusing.
Okay, so we are comparing generations now. Look at "Canterlot Boutique". It shows the growing demand for copies of a dress. It shows how Rarity makes these copies over and over. It shows how she rejects the wrong kind of fame, how she decides to close the boutique and make a sale for it. But Izzy has only one customer and makes one hairpin, which is different from Sunny's, and she doesn't openly decide anything about crafting for sale. Also, in “Fame and Misfortune” the Mane6 confront their fans, and in “The Perfect Pear” Bright Mac and Pear Butter confront their families. Izzy doesn't do that. She isn't shown facing the source of her problem in any meaningful way, even in her own mind.
Why did you cut out half of the phrase?
Where does Izzy do or say anything that clearly points to her plans for a return?
So now you are dictating what others can and can't criticize?
Or I don't create headcanons that ignore half of the episode to then push them as the sacred truth which only idiots can't see.
5770708
Dude, they LITERALLY SHOWED SUNNY’S HAIRPIN IN PARTICULAR BEING ADVERTISED BY PIPP ONSCREEN!!! Are you blind?! What about the scene at the faire do you not understand?! Seriously. The ponies went to get what they were advertised, which was another one of the hairpins that Sunny has! Same design, same everything. No, Pipp wasn’t just advertising Izzy’s sense of style. If it was, the framing of the scene would’ve been drastically different. And no, this isn’t just obvious because I say it is. That’s a suspiciously weird conclusion for you to come to. No, it’s obvious because the episode literally shows us that’s the case!!
Sigh Look, you’re seriously trying my patience. How do you not know what it means to frame a scene? I get not everyone’s not as filmmaking savvy as I am, but still…that’s BASIC shot composition 101. What does the focus of Pipp’s camera on Sunny’s hairpin tell you about what she’s advertising?! What does the dialogue “This mane accessory is THE trend of the day! Come on down to the craft faire and get one for yourself, Pippsqueaks!” right afterwards tell you about what the ponies want?! Sorry if I got angry there, but you really are chipping away at my sanity just by your sheer cluelessness, and I don’t like that.
As I said before, the execution wasn’t 100% perfect and I think it would have been better if like I said in my original reply, “I think we could have had Izzy telling Pipp to sing about what speaks to her on a personal level and resolve the plot point that way.” Pipp’s subplot is a little clunky and I wholeheartedly admit that. But the focus of the episode is primarily on Izzy, so I’m mainly focusing on her for this analysis. But the reason why it still works, albeit with some flaws, is because the main conflict for both of them is creative burnout and they both have to work through that in their own ways. Is it perfect? No. But the two plotlines, however different they may be, are still strung together by that singular narrative thread. The episode is primarily about that first and foremost.
You completely misunderstood why I was comparing the generations. I was detailing the intimate resolutions of both and how the lessons that individuals learned were treated as more important than what the whole of society thinks, which is a very smart and subversive approach to resolving the conflict. You’re too focused on the perceived “lack of customers” to realize that. How do you fumble the ball on my words this badly?
Only in “Fame and Misfortune,” the confrontation is treated like a joke because the ponies go right back to arguing, so that wasn’t resolved. The Mane 6 confronting their fans doesn’t amount to anything. The real heart of the episode was what Twilight and the gang taught those two fillies about friendship. And in “The Perfect Pear,” the resolution was again intimate, with more of a focus on mending the ages-old feud between Grand Pear and Granny Smith than the Apples and Pears as a whole. Again, you COMPLETELY misunderstood why I was comparing the two generations.
I like to cut right to the point.
At the end of the episode, it’s clearly shown that Izzy has her inspiration back by unicycling the old cart into the “Izzy Does It” crafting machine. She feels renewed because she got to create something that she wanted to make. That’s literally the lesson of the episode, finding inspiration in unlikely places, and creating something because you want to make it. Whether or not she goes back to the faire isn’t important, as the whole customer thing you focus on is only a small part of the bigger conflict.
No. I’m just saying there are things you can criticize about the plot. I’m not “dictating” what you can or cannot criticize about it. I just said it wasn’t perfect. Funny how you accused me of only taking parts of your argument, while you do the exact same to me. So you can do it and I can’t? Interesting. The double standard is unreal here.
I can do whatever I want. And these aren’t headcanons. These are literally details in the episode that you refused to pay attention to. Thanks for admitting your behavior is that of an idiot though. I don’t like to call people names when debating stuff as that’s not nice, so the fact that you did it for me is very much appreciated. At least now I can claim zero responsibility. Even so, I personally don’t think you’re specifically an idiot, just your behavior. There is no “sacred truth” here. All I’ve been doing is pointing out stuff in the episode that contradicts your argument and you keep being stubborn as a mule and refusing to admit fault when you’re wrong about something.
You know what? Fuck it. I’m done. I need to stop before my brain explodes from sheer stupidity.
5770697 Outside of this tiny fandom, I've heard of NO ONE AT ALL talking about it. Streaming numbers are HORRIFICALLY manipulated, EVERYONE knows that. No one outside the mainstream media even cares about the reported numbers anymore, because they can be twisted any which way.
I look at ENGAGEMENT. There is NO FANDOM PRESENCE for this show. AT ALL. ANYWHERE. The toys ARE NOT SELLING. AT ALL.
There is a THOUSAND TIMES more interest in the ABYSMAL FLOP "Madame Web" than in this show.
That's reality.
5770903
You can’t argue with the numbers, mate. Rage at me all you want (I actually get enjoyment out of seeing you mentally cope like this, so keep going), but the statistics don’t lie. The show was a success for both Netflix and Hasbro. Perhaps not critically, but like I said, the truth is that streaming services don’t care about that. Viewing numbers translate to commercial success in this day and age. And no fandom presence? I disagree. G5-centric channels like myself and others do exist. We might not be as big as those who don’t like it, which is unfortunate, but that still counts as “fandom presence” by your definition, however minuscule it may be. Regardless of how G5 turned out, the fact that it wasn’t on TV meant that it would never get the same amount of attention that FIM did. It’s got nothing to do with the quality of either series. A YouTube web series and a Netflix-exclusive show just doesn’t have the same widespread appeal as a show airing on television. Sorry I had to dump the truth on you so harshly, but you know…that’s just how life is. Enjoy reality, little buddy.
5770697 Also, who the hell generated that FAKE Netflix data? Because I looked at the TOP 20 most-streamed shows reported in 5 different media sources... NO SIGN OF THIS SHOW AT ALL.
And then... I went to the SOURCE: NETFLIX ITSELF FOR IT'S TOP-10 MOST WATCHED SHOWS, per week in 91 countries... and I clicked back, and back, and back, and back... ALL THE WAY TO SEPTEMBER OF 2022!!! And this show NEVER showed up ONCE in the top 10!
Did you not realize Netflix reports this data ITSELF ON ITS OWN WEBSITE? Did you think I don't know how to find THE REAL FACTS? Reddit ain't reality.
5770907
Hasbro’s team is the one that makes the decisions based on the popularity of their shows and they displayed this data in the 40-years announcement slide. Perhaps you weren’t doing your research carefully. If they decided to continue TYT into 2024 and 2025 based on this data, then there’s obviously a reason for it as that’s their primary concern. My estimate for why you didn’t find it is because the data was from the top 10 Netflix Kids shows in 90 countries, not just any Netflix shows as there’s like a billion pieces of media on that platform daily. You have to specifically look at the kids’ show metrics. Also, the fact that you called it “fake data” is hilarious. I guess anything that doesn’t line up with your pre-established narrative counts as fake to you. Yeah, that checks out all right. That’s the typical delusional G5 hater rhetoric I’ve seen a million times, and it never stops being comical. And for the record, we first saw this data on Equestria Daily, not Reddit, so that’s another point against you. But keep coping though. The more you rage at me, the happier I become. Your tears are delicious.
5770908 Dude, I don't know what crack Hasbro is smoking if this is what they're actually reporting, but their company is going down in flames, stock down 60% from its highs, currently trading BELOW it's Pandemic low of 51/share. And if they're blatantly lying to investors, they deserve it. I went to NETFLIX ITSELF, YOU TOTAL BUFFOON. I looked at EVERY SINGE REPORT OF TOP-WATCHED NETFLIX SERIES I COULD FIND!! The show DOES NOT SHOW UP IN TOP-WATCHED SERIES. ANYWHERE. PERIOD.
You're the one coping, and using fabricated data to do it.
5770909
Keep deluding yourself with that. I would laugh at your continued slamming of actual data as “fake,” but then again, it’s more so pathetic than anything and I feel bad for you that you’re too stubborn to realize that. The only person coping is you, if you can’t be bothered to look up one article on EQD and see that your “failure” narrative has long since been proven outdated. But hey, at the end of the day, I’m not the one putting this data out. Hasbro’s team is. And I’m not the one fabricating the evidence. I’ve showed you a picture literally displaying the facts and you’ve come back with nothing but your own conspiracy theories. I literally said check the ‘Netflix Kids’ metrics and so far, it looks like you refuse to do that. If you’re so convinced that the data is fake or fabricated, why don’t you get in contact with them and tell them to stop deceiving their consumer base? After all, I’m not your enemy here. Hasbro is, and they’re the ones you should be speaking to about this, not me. Go ahead. Give ’em a phone call and tell them how wrong they are. Oh wait, that’s right. You can’t, can you? Because you know they’ll laugh at you all the way to the bank. You’re welcome to try though. I’m sure they’d love to hear all the evidence you have that they’re “lying to their investors.” Oh, and let’s not forget about the very important part about them smoking crack. That’s just the icing on the cake. Be careful not to get sued for libel or slander though, not that I care anyway.
Have a good day, sir.
I’d like to apologize for the whole argument that erupted on this post. Now that my emotions have calmed down after dealing with such stupidity earlier, while I don’t apologize for defending my position the way I did, I can bet it was uncomfortable for you to deal with the whole way through and I’m sorry for that. In hindsight, I should not have let both these wackos goad me into fighting them, and I should’ve just said my piece and moved on. So I’m going to do that. If Alondro wants to continue believing that any facts that don’t agree with his views are fabricated, I’m just going to let him. It’s not worth it. I’ve lost a whole day of editing time over this ridiculous squabble and I’m just going to do what I did with Flora Blossom’s post and just step back from this ridiculous situation. I’ve had time to reflect and I don’t like how I essentially contributed to turning the comments of your review post into a warzone, however justified my motivations might’ve been for defending my opinions.
Like the remaining episodes, hate the remaining episodes. I don’t care anymore. I feel drained and I need to just focus on my own reviews. Again, sorry for everything that’s transpired today. You didn’t deserve to see this devolve into a flame war.
5770560
Also, upon my own rewatch, I got an idea about why Hitch and Zipp are in the episode. They serve two purposes:
1. Give Izzy a reason to make a new storage for her stuff (as Hitch and Zipp clean up the mess she made)
2. Direct the viewers' attention to the earth pony magic as a foreshadowing of "Growing pains".
However:
Reason 1 could be solved without giving so much time and attention to these two characters or without using them at all. Izzy could spill her stuff out and/or lose something in the mess she made entirely on her own, and this still can lead her to the idea of creating a new storage. Or, if they wanted others to complain about Izzy's behaviour, make the cleanup happen offscreen or in the background. It's not that important on its own.
Reason 2... it's cringe. I think, "A New Generation" could have been better if it didn't leave its strange-mysterious details (such as: why no windigoes when racism, who turns the sun and moon, how did Equestria fell...) entirely to the speculations (which at that point had "the writers don't care" as a valid hypothesis), but this episode made me realize that there is another extreme. There is an entire character who walks around and says "Oh, hey, here's a strange-mysterious thing!". The scene with suddenly growing fruits does the job good enough, for example. And if they wanted Hitch to have his burst of magic happen in that particular way, Zipp could bring it up later when it becomes relevant instead of constantly wasting the episode's time on "notes for self". Also, Hitch's burst is bad on its own, but the reson for this requires discussing the morals of "Growing Pains".
And it gets even worse if we consider all the joke "notes for self". Because the notes are supposed to mark Chechov's guns, i. e. details which will become important later. But when so much of them end up as nothing but gags, the important ones will be overlooked because nobody likes to waste attention and memory. Same with Sparky's magic, I think: he has some moments of being an important detail, but they are overlooked because his other magic is so random.
5770974
Admiral Producer actually made an entire video answering those questions utilising evidence from G4. The windigoes were seemingly destroyed when the Battle of the Bell concluded, and even if they weren't they are magic constructs. With no magic they cannot function.
Sun and moon are plausibly powered by artefacts. We know from G4 that magical artefacts are the last magic objects to lose their power, so the mechanism for regulating those is probably in artefacts as yet undiscovered. Admiral, however, proposes an alternate idea; the sun and moon moving by themselves is the natural order and the unicorns hijacked the natural rotation cycle for their own ends. Given that the Everfree has a localised weather system, this would suggest other elements of the world have been controlled by the ponies (not disimilar to how we humans dam rivers and use fertiliser on crops).
We actually do know how Equestria fell. Watch Chapter 6 of MYM and pay attention when Spike is speaking.
5773849
Glad that he did. But I didn't say anything about them being answerable or unanswerable. I was talking about how these questions were asked.
First impression is very important. When people begin engaging with your work and notice something strange like the things I listed, they make up their own explanations for why your story is this way. If they aren't that interested in getting an answer, they simply write the questions off as unimportant and proceed to enjoy the other aspects of your work. But for those who want answers, their absence is a big issue. And this is where you need to to make them believe that expecting answers and speculating would pay off. You don't have to give the actual aswers immediately, it is enough to drop some hints that allow to guess them more or less right or just know that you have an answer in mind.
But ANG doesn't do that. That's what I said. The questions aren't asked within the story in any way, so there is much less reasons to expect that they would be answered within it at any point. It is still very much possible that the writers actually did make these gaps just so the plot could have happened or because they don't know G4, and no amount of speculations on the fans' side can change that.
5773900
I suppose what we are seeing in action here is the conflict being direct and environmental storytelling. I would personally question why a pilot would need to answer all of these myriad questions as that, in my opinion, isn't really the purpose of a pilot. The Hobbit, for instance, doesn't explain the history of Middle-Earth in exhausting detail. Edward's Day Out, the very first story of the Railway Series (the books that would later be turned into Thomas and Friends) doesn't open with a blow by blow account of how Sodor functions. A pilot serves to introduce us to the characters and get the world up and running whilst establishing the core conflicts of the series.
The film, IMO, did this very well. But it may be best to agree to disagree on this matter; I am aware of how easy it is for these sorts of discussions to turn into arguments, and I doubt AMU would want one of those cluttering up his comments.
5773922
I suppose it's not that. Because what I think ANG is lacking can be easily added trough environmental storytelling without changing the plot in the slightest... except maybe the part about Equestria's downfall, but accenting it enough is also quite easy.
I didn't say it needs to answer. I said it needs to ask.
I'm not sure you understand what are you trying to disagree with.
5773926
It possibly doesn't help I'm somewhat sleep deprived.
5773928
How do you feel now? Should we continue or you decided to stop at disagreeing?
5774038
I'm feeling better, so I suppose we can keep going.
If I've understood your point correctly, your main objection is that the questions were not raised in the movie. Is this the case or have I misunderstood? Apologies if this sounds like a really basic question, but I want to ensure I'm debating the correct point, not a strawman.
5774039
Yes, you are correct. The questions about sky and windigoes were not raised in a way which indicates that the writers thought about them. And the question about what exactly happened between G4 and G5 had been handled so poorly that it's barely different from random meaningless references.
5774041
It's entirely possible they hadn't; the writing team admitted that there wasn't much thought as to how the story would continue, with the team under Make your Mark taking the helm beyond the film. Having said that, I would like to bring us back to the point the film is intended to serve as a pilot to the new setting, introducing us to the characters we'll be following from this point onwards. Whether a pilot needs to answer questions about the links between the settings appears to be the sticking point. Personally, I would argue that a pilot doesn't need to answer the questions-but I will agree the film does a poor job of posing them. Another half hour on the runtime may have helped the film.
5774067
Why did you switch to the topic of answering again? Do "raise a question" and "answer a question" mean the same for you?..
Okay. Now, I think that the movie does such poor job in posing the questions about transition between G4 and G5 because the transition isn't treated as a part of the core conflict. Argyle's "research", for example, could be changed to mostly baseless legends and instill the same kind of faith in Sunny anyway. His work isn't about how did Equestria fell, it's about whether Equestria existed. Equestria is seen as some friendship utopia, as follows from Sunny insisting that ponies are meant to be friends and would never use their magic against each other. And Sunny's goal is to recreate this perfect world form her childish fantasies, so she can't question how did it transform into the G5 reality and what this reality is. Questioning would reveal that Equestria and ponies are not that perfect, and this ruins the premise of restoring the good old times. The movie needs to confirm Sunny's belief, not disprove it.
5770909
Why are you trying a game of wits with one without whose winning hand is a joker and a liquid pride stained photo of themself?
Just finished watching this episode. It’s surprisingly really good! Sure, it’s not amazing or anything, but I found myself enjoying it as it has fairly simple storytelling, good character growth, and a relatable lesson about being yourself when trying to be creative.
And Sparky’s kinda cute. Not gonna lie.
5777467
Well, I’m glad you enjoyed it.