Taboo "friendship" · 9:56pm Feb 16th, 2013
If you removed every line containing the word "friendship" from the season 3 finale, you'd have a silent film. The show is no longer about friendship. It's about the word "friendship". The word "friendship" is magic; if you use it often enough, wonderful things will happen. Just recite it out loud, like an incantation.
If you want to write about friendship, you must avoid using the word "friendship". You're trying to study a phenomenon, trying to delineate it from other things, enumerating its properties, seeing how it behaves, what impact it has on the world. You're only entitled to use the word "friendship" after you've completed your studies and know what it is. Every time you use the word, you are actively preventing listeners from thinking about or learning about friendship the concept. The use of the word presupposes understanding the concept.
But it makes it easy to write 20 minutes of story that are allegedly about friendship, without ever having to tackle any problems like, "Who are my friends?" "What if my friends don't get along?" "What if someone else who seems cooler comes along?" or "What if my friends make me look bad?" Things like season 1 used to address.
When you ignore this rule--which applies to all themes in fiction--you end up with something like the 20 minutes of mindless drivel I just witnessed. When you tell people that you watch My Little Pony and they react with horror, the coronation episode is exactly what they are imagining the show is like: 20 minutes of prancing musical ponies acting out a three-sentence plot and hammering over and over again on some simple message designed for five-year-olds.
What made My Little Pony different was that they showed it is possible to write shows that kids enjoy without resorting to mindless drivel.
I'm sorry. I can't talk about the episode because there's nothing to talk about. There's no there there. There were cute bits interspersed throughout the mindless drivel, but the wonderful animators could have come up with other, equally-cute bits to go with an actual story.
(Also: The music sucked. So did the lyrics. But that's a separate complaint. And you can't expect a composer to write 7 songs for one episode!)
Friends friendship friendship? True love, friendship. Friendship friend, friend friend, friendship friendship friend. Magic of friendship friend friend.
FRIEND FRIEND! FRIEND! FR
ND FRIENDSH
P!
So much nerd rage. That's all I have to say.
If this episode was standing on its own, I'd agree. However, it's an ending to a journey. We've all seen what plans Celestia had for purple unicorn, and this episode was just "it" coming to fruition. Sure, there are many problems with it, but one isn't that it's "stupid" or "childish" or whatever (if you don't count the sappy coronation at the end).
The musical element was clever, I thought, simply for the reason that this episode could easily fill an hour. Alas, they had to do this in 21 minutes, so how do you speed things up? Make it into a song. Things happen at lightning speed in a song.
Lastly, this is supposedly a three-parter, and we get to wait on the edge of our seat like good little sheep until season 4 hits. I'm not entirely happy with how season 3 turned out, but I like this show enough that I'm willing to see what's in store.
Yeah... must confess I didn't get much out of it either.
But it's okay though...
...IT'S GOING TO BE FINE*.
[*Not a guarantee. No basis required. Actual results may vary]
835215 Hey... hey... it's okay...
...you know why?
...cos EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE FIIIIIIIIIINE!
835241 Friend. Friendship friend!
835224 I'm not complaining about the presence of something childish. I'm complaining about the absence of thought and story for people of any age, and the pretension that using the word "friend" repeatedly makes the episode be about friendship when it isn't. Twilight turned into a princess--why? Because she did the blindingly-obvious things anybody else in the same situation would have done? What did anything in the episode have to do with friendship?
Here is my challenge to you: From the royal wedding, write thirteen short stories that stand independently, focus more or less evenly on the mane six and the CMC, and end with one short story in which Twilight becomes an alicorn, and it makes sense.
I honestly don't think it's possible. And I can't ask the writers to do the impossible. But I do think they did the best with what they had to work with, which was not complete creative freedom.
I think that this is exactly what they were trying to do. It was time for Twilight to present her findings, this episode was her defending her thesis, not continuing the study. And she had to defend it in 22 minutes, and fit the graduation in there. Whether they pulled that off or not is debatable, but I think they did well within the constraints. I have hope for watching her work on her PhD in princess.
835256 ...but I don't know what else to do!!!
...would it help if I sang?
'It's fine/
With friendship/
It's fine/
With friends...'
I found it better than most of Season 3. While that does put it in the category of "rewatchable", I consider this more a negative reflection on Season 3, which was fairly mindless across the board. The finale raised the bar all the way to mediocre.
835348 ... Friendship love friendship friend. Magic friend!
835260
Of course, but that's only if the episode was meant to stand on its own. It doesn't. It's the culmination of every single thing that happened since season 1.
There's this fic called "Crucible" that plays a lot on how ponies get a power boost through love and friendship and other sappy things like that. I think it's a good representation here. Twilight gets a power boost from all the friendship and all the friends (yes, I'm using that taboo word :P) she made up to this point. Only thing is, nothing ever called for the direct use of the MAGIC OF FRIENDSHIP (
) to solve anything.
So now we have Twilight doing something nobody had done before: using this particular magic to make a spell. I'm going to rewatch it, simply because I don't yet know what to say about the implications of it all, what the spell was even supposed to do in the first place and what the EoH even had anything to do with this. Let's not forget "destiny" or "fate" should be taken into account here.
So basically... *shrug* I 'unno. I'm not hating, but I'm not loving it either. This episode is meant to have a followup or two, and it raised more questions than it answered... SO! I'll leave it at that.
835384 It's the culmination of every single thing that happened since season 1.
835337 It was time for Twilight to present her findings, this episode was her defending her thesis, not continuing the study
It would have culminated in her becoming an alicorn if what happened previously logically led to her becoming an alicorn. If they'd shown some connection between the things, and told us something about what being a princess meant so we could see how the things Twilight had learned were things a princess needed to know, then, yes.
Instead, Celestia gives a speech about how Twilight is becoming a princess because she's proven herself to be kind, generous, loyal, etc., as if the show had been about Twilight learning the different virtues of the elements of Harmony, and as if we had any understanding of what being a princess meant and how those things would help. But the show wasn't about that, and we had no such understanding. This was the culmination of a different show, which we didn't see.
Hmm. I greatly enjoyed the episode; I caught myself smiling at several points, which is one of the primary reasons I watch FIM in the first place.
I agree with you that naming something can be a substitute for understanding something. I don't think that's a problem with this episode. Take a look at the transcript. This is the important line:
Twilight Sparkle: I may not be able to remind them of who they are, but I can show them what they mean to each other. They'll find the part of themselves that's been lost so they can help the friend they care about so much! Come on, Spike!
Fluttershy doesn't think she knows anything about animals, because she mistakes what she feels like she should do (make others smile) with what she's good at (control animals). She's so trapped in her inability to perform at her destined task that she's giving up and running away; the thought of changing professions doesn't occur to her, just changing places.
Twilight knows that Fluttershy is still good at controlling animals, and that if she can just get Fluttershy to try, Fluttershy will realize that controlling animals is actually her destiny. Fluttershy, in the pit of her despair, would never be brave enough by herself to try something new to fail at. How does Twilight get through Fluttershy's depression? By relying on the social bond between Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash:
Twilight Sparkle: Before you go, I was wondering if you might be willing to help Rainbow Dash. She's really struggling with her animals.
Fluttershy: But... I don't really know anything about animals...
Twilight Sparkle: But you do know something about Rainbow Dash.
Fluttershy: I... know that she's a true friend, and I'll do anything I can to help her.
None of the mane six are willing to fix themselves for themselves, but they are willing to fix themselves for each other; they have something to protect. Starswirl didn't have that, and wasn't able to finish the spell; Twilight had it, but wasn't able to finish the spell until she realized she had it.
I wish the dialogue had been more precise, and the underlying mechanisms were more obvious. I wish Twilight's speech had been Buttercup's line "Mutual affection and understanding enables us to transcend our physical limitations" rather than just thanking her friends for teaching her something, and considering herself lucky. But those criticisms aside, it was well-done.
Well, at least I am not the only one wondering what the hell just happened.
Once again, I think we had something that SHOULD have been a two-parter that got crammed into 22 minutes. And they excised most of the story to make it fit.
Also, they didn't explain freakin' alicorns! Again!
This episode was pure spectacle. Music and art and animation and singing and singing and singing. I enjoy spectacle, you enjoy spectacle. But that's all there is to this episode: Spectacle. There's no lesson in friendship here, we just get the word "friendship" thrown around everywhere. And yes, this is intended to be a big emotional "she's now a princess! yay!" moment, but it falls flat because across all of FiM, we have no information about any connection between being a princess and being a good friend. Dear Princess Celestia: Today I learned absolutely nothing about friendship, nothing about myself, and nothing in general.
835669 That would be a better episode, but Twilight already knew the solution to the problem. A short song about how bad this is and suddenly she's got the solution. If she had instead gone around, failed a bit, but then discovered the solution, then it would have been a friendship lesson. This episode wasn't concerned with that at all, however, and most probably didn't notice what you're talking about in the super-fast pace the episode moves at.
835669 I caught that, yes, and it was most noticeable with Fluttershy. But if I wanted to summarize friendship, I wouldn't say, "It's what makes it possible for someone to take a minute out of their day to save someone from being roasted alive by rampaging rodents." Particularly when the interventions that the friends make are all in their own self-interest as well. This gives us friendship = not being a raving unfeeling psychotic incapable of acting in your own self-interest.
835817 Showing Twilight fail, then try again, would be a lesson in perseverance, not a lesson in friendship. The lesson that Twilight learns is Shut up and do the impossible! Twilight is clever enough to see the solution instantly; she just needs to be in the right frame of mind.
I agree that the episode was very fast-paced. I do wish that they had been explicit about the things I mentioned, but I understand their limitations.
I will also note that it would also be odd, in an episode about Twilight knowing what to do and doing it correctly, to show Twilight making fumbling mistaken attempts, like trying to convince Fluttershy to just try and Fluttershy turning her down because of fear of failure. If Twilight had tried the wrong thing first, she wouldn't be ready to be a Princess. (If you look at Twilight's dialogue carefully, there are a number of subtle techniques that I was pleased to catch. As an example, notice how she asks Fluttershy to do something before she leaves, rather than fighting Fluttershy on the point of leaving.)
835858 None of the assistance that the five give is in their direct self-interest before they give it. FS is unaffected by RD's rampaging rodents, or even RD's untimely demise once she leaves town forever; RD is unaffected by R's weather in her cottage by the Everfree; R is unaffected by the failure of AJ's dress shop; AJ is unaffected by the failure of PP's family farm. (Note that the rest of the Apple family does not appear onscreen until AJ is fixed.) PP is affected by the unhappiness of the townsfolk, but that's only when she comes to town.
The statement "helping your friends will grow you" is a meaningful one; the statement "friends are people you'll leave your comfort zone to help" is a meaningful one.
I... Dang it!
I'm going to withhold my judgement until season 4.
836061
Your rage is just and true.
Bad Horse, I thank you for being one of the people with justified rage at this episode... ....also HE SAW THE OPERATION THAT YOU TRIED TO PULL TODAY, BUT YOUR HUMILIATION MEANS HE STILL VOTES NEIGH! AND NOW ASSASSINATION IS JUST THE ONLY WAY! THERE WILL BE BLOOD, IT MIGHT BE YOURS, SO GO KILL SOMEONE. SINGED, BAD HORSE
835337
Your challenge doesn't include having a team of writers having to deal with production limits, brand preservation, and animators and also does not include the ridiculously compressed timeframe. Don't make it too easy, now.
I haven't seen the episode yet (I don't care about spoilers because how a story develops is more important to me than the content), but I stand by what I said when I heard that Lauren Faust was leaving the show: "No visionary, no vision." I think the lack of direction was evident in Season 2, but far more glaring in 3.
I hope that the current writers get a lot of time to get some coherent storylines planned for Season 4, 'cause this past season only had two episodes that I liked. Hell, I still haven't even listened to the Babs Seed song.
835260
Arguably, there was at least a particle of applied friendship involved, the presentation on the part of the authors that friendship is has to do with actions that you take. There wasn't a lot there to work with, as you pointed out; but shaky as it was, it's still a a better exploration of its chosen thematic than the Season 2 finale, whose exploration of "Love" concludes that it is (a) a nebulous force that empowers unicorn magic or (b) the drive to push a mine cart really hard without looking to see if the wheels are chocked.
man, now I'm dreading getting around to watching the episode. I've thought that as the show progressed, the quality of the writing was going downhill (comedy is fine, but comedy without substance gets pretty stale pretty quickly); from your reaction, it looks like the finale solidifies that.
Regarding your point, this isn't even limited to fiction. In my first year labs at school, we were taught not to do that. It looks like the show is following the Simpsons at an accelerated pace; cranking out tropes and visual gags at the expense of any real thought for the themes and undertone.
Oh well, guess it's time to bite the bullet and finally subject myself to it.
836277
The point was to show the growth she's had since alll those incidents, to show that she has taken all that to heart, to show that she HAS advanced in her studies. She's already made mistakes and learned from them, this is just the application of that knowledge.
I award this post 9/10 paperclips.
843838 Paperclips is, after all, what it's all about. You know about this group?
844727 Indeed I do. I joined it briefly, but found it to be of slightly negative marginal utility, as its content seemed to consist mostly of things I either didn't like or already was aware of.
845090 The group's purpose, as I mentioned in its description, is just to let other people know that you're interested in that sort of stuff by being a member of it. People do add stories to it, but I don't do anything as admin.
846464 *shrug* Yeah, okay.