Thanks, M. A. Larson [actual spoilers and analysis] · 11:28pm Jun 15th, 2015
If you hadn’t noticed, I’ve spent the last 72 hours avoiding posting anything like an opinion about this episode, on either my blog or anyone else’s. My friend kept talking over the episode while we watched, so I missed a lot of stuff the first time through and wanted to give it a second chance before I made any decisions.
Well, I’ve had a chance to rewatch the episode, finally. Now I’m going to watch it one more time and liveblog like I used to ages ago. But, whatever happens, once and for all, I will finally answer the question, “Did Present like #100?” Expect tons of images! (Sourced from Derpibooru, if anyone cares.)
It’s long, so bring a snack. :B
Starting off with the scrapbook is great, because it really brings Cranky and Matilda’s story full circle. Now we get to see her sharing in his travels (it’s no surprise that he’d have a bit of the wanderlust still, even after finding her), and him still being grumpy as all fuck. I wouldn’t have him any other way.
He wasn’t really at the coronation, it’s just one of those “same ol’ vector” cardboard cutouts.
Them being all sweet and stuff is music to my ears. I’m so glad that’s what this episode is about! (But seriously, Matilda, wtf do you see in this guy?)
I love that he’s a cheapskate.
“I told you we should have eloped” is perhaps the greatest line ever spoken in this show.
I have to admit, I’m not quite buying that “move an entire wedding up one day” is the easier solution than “tell everypony it’s tomorrow”. Like, the only real complication is inconveniencing Celestia and Luna, I think, and despite everyone living in constant fear of them, I think they’d be pretty chill with it. (Indeed, given what happens later in the episode, I think they would be overjoyed.)
I’m gonna take this moment to drop my first link, to Titanium Dragon’s blog, wherein he details all the plot threads that are introduced and left unresolved. He missed one: the caterers, mentioned by Matilda in her frenzied list. Given that they never even have a plot thread to begin with, I have to assume that catering was the one thing that went off without even the tiniest hitch. Yay, caterers!
This is why you don’t have the printer send the invitations, Cranky.
Okay, so I was not expecting Derpy to be the reason the invitations were wrong. The “Muffin?” gag was eh, but honestly, if that had been all she did, I would’ve been okay with it. That she’s a main character in this episode was just great. :D
“I feel just awful, Doc.” Doc, she says. As in, Doctor Whooves. As in, not Time Turner. Hatred of life increasing.
I love that Horte Cuisine gets a line. Also, did you notice Old Man Waddles having lunch with Bulk Biceps? Headcanonically his grandson now.
I need to stress, I did everything I could to avoid spoilers on this episode, and I’m glad I did. While mute-watching the EQG rerun before the episode, I noticed Featherweight pop up in a promo ad and found myself wondering just how the scene would work in the episode. I’m really glad they gave some lip-service to background foals (I noticed Truffle Shuffle a couple times, too), even if they just stayed in the background, since Featherweight’s ink misadventures were one of the highlights of the whole thing.
So, Dr. Whooves. Despite initial trepidations (and some later irritation), I liked him. The character they gave him, an earth pony scientist competing with unicorn magic, was really great. His house really sold his character, too.
Though what in the everloving fuck was this supposed to be?
This too. She’s almost doing the wet-mane thing, but not quite. It baffles me. Though I love that he got in on it.
Do you realize the first appearance of the “flameless fireworks” is a reference to that old, old, old flash animation of Derpy looking at a lava lamp?
Did anyone else expect him to burst into song? I think I want it more than I know.
Time to bust out this link. I don’t know how truthful it is, but there are some other recent posts on the same Tumblr that should be looked at (like the one reacting to “think of the children”). It posits that the good Doctor’s “traumatic experience as a foal” involved not being able to grasp bowling (I wish that had made it into the final cut), along with a whole bunch of supposed other behind-the-scenes stuff. Again, not sure if kosher.
I love that Derpy’s eyes aren’t always on the fritz. And “Why did we come here again?” “Yeah…” was great. Also, Derpy scrunch face. (Notice how her mouth is really “agk” while she’s talking in this scene? It bugs me.)
THE ONE THING I COULD NOT FIND A GIF OF was Dr. Whooves shaking his head while saying “great whickering stallions”. (It’s in this, but that’s not all it is.) Okay, first of all, that’s a really stupid catchphrase, and the first of many parts of this episode where it feels like Larson went, “Okay, something needs to happen” and then just took the first idea that came to mind. So he needs a catchphrase because the recent Doctor Who’s all have one, okay, I get it. But that’s essentially like saying “Great mumbling men” (not sure how whickering translates, but you get the idea). It doesn’t make any sense. That said, the fact that he does the head-shaky thing every single time he says it makes it extremely endearing as a character quirk.
Okay, so here’s another issue, and it goes hand-in-hand with what TD brought up. We’ve gone from Cranky and Matilda fretting over the wedding to Derpy fretting over the invitations to Dr. Whooves fretting over his suit in just over three minutes of runtime. This episode has a serious case of ADD, and it’s one of the things that initially threw me off.
I dearly wish the scene outside the Boutique had been Vinyl’s only appearance. It would’ve been great, totally in line with her role in Rainbow Rocks. The fact that his “round shape” hoof motion was interpreted as “I want to go bowling” is hilarious.
Hi, Thunderlane. Hi, Allie Way.
Okay, so, Lebowski ponies. Never expected to see them again. Kinda glad we did. Very pleased BL himself talks. I love how they deftly avoid him giving himself a name. I love the lampshading of “man”, too.
This gag was fantastic, and I’m so glad someone took the time to analyze it.
But seriously, if his childhood trauma had actually been stated to be bowling-related, wouldn’t that have made this even better?
>Dr. Whooves is not used to the “straight technique”
OH MY GOD TWIST IS STANDING WITH THE CMCS
And then fuckin’ Octavia shows up. I’ve seen a lot of people very pleased by the meta gag in this scene, but I just can’t hear it over the sound of Octavia being British.
I put far too much work into this, I hope you all appreciate it.
>Big Mac is standing next to Cheerilee
Okay, so, my really huge problem with this episode.
Why wasn’t it called a “bumblebear”?
What the fuck is this thing? (Yes, I know it’s supposed to be a panda because pandering.) Why the fuck is Twilight blasting it with magic?
This will not be the first time I compare this episode unfavorably with another. Just for Sidekicks worked because the story it was written around was an actual story. Granted, Games Ponies Play wasn’t the greatest episode ever, but it had a reason to exist. This is just another of those “oh shit, we need something to happen” moments that amounts to jack fucking squat overall. I couldn’t tell you why that thing is there, why the mane six are fighting it the way they do (seriously, when’s the last time all six of them went out with guns blazing? The last wedding episode), and why everyone else is just fucking standing around watching. I have zero delusions that it will be explained later, or that, god forbid, we actually get the GPP-style second half of this episode. It’s a cop-out, it’s stupid, it cheapens the episode, not like that’s hard to do. (Would it not have fucked all of season 4 up, this would have been a great place for that Cerberus attack. That’s the kind of random monster encounter we needed, one grounded in world-building that can be explained in three seconds, not this garbage.)
Sparkler’s scene was great, and I wish more had come of it. If you read TD’s blog, you know what I’m getting at. I do love that both it and Derpy’s next scene are cut short, that was good comedic timing on both accounts.
These are my ponies.
Y‘know, when asked to come up with a list of ponies I dislike, I always run out pretty quickly (after Cadence, of course) and usually sub in Daisy to round it out to five, because she’s boring and her constant hysterics get on my nerves, I guess? But seeing that it’s not just her, it’s all three of the trio, and they faint at the slightest provocation? Beautiful, I loved it. Headcanon, they’re related to Fluttershy.
Okay, elephant in the room: Lyra and Bon-Bon. I have little to say that hasn’t been said (inelegantly) by this clopfic, which I wrote and posted today. (Seriously, I put a shitton of work into this blog, what is wrong with me.) Explaining how she has two names was clever, but the secret agent thing is another “shit, something needs to happen” moment. (No, I don’t even care that it’s meant to cover her numerous voices, it’s stupid, and I suspect it will not hold up to thorough analysis.) That said, I was pleased that A) she talked, B) she and Lyra seemed to have the opposite personalities from fanon, and C) they actually called her Bon-Bon (also, Lyra’s credited without “Heartstrings”!) I mean, that’s G2 shit right there! (Yes, I am referring to My Little Pony Tales as G2.) Please ignore the fact that G2 Bon-Bon was worst pony. :B
Seriously, though, “bugbear”? How Avatar can you get? (Yes, I know they’re from D&D. That is not a D&D bugbear.)
Though Bon-Bon blending into the crowd was funny. Also, I noticed the jeweler is apparently Royal Riff, one of my favorite blind bags. How random!
I was mildly impressed that Derpy didn’t luck Dr. Whooves into winning the frame. (Angry horse noise!)
Seeing the outside of the spa was great. Not great? Aloe having another fucking voice. Seriously, they cover up Bon-Bon’s multiple voices, when she was never actually a side character, but Aloe? Spitfire? Nooooo. And seriously, that voice was horrid, I kept waiting for her to say “Velcome, my dahlings” or, I don’t know, she sounds like someone and it’s stupid. >:( First time Tabitha has ever let me down.
So. Steven Magnet. Second-best part of the episode. Watching it the first time, I had forgotten by this point the spoiler stating that he would be in it, so it came as a surprise, and a very welcome one. I love how much Lee Tockar can ham it up. I love that he’s totally oblivious to how much worse he’s making Matilda’s day. I love that his supposed adventures with Cranky make just enough sense to work. And I love that he’s officially a sea monster now, setting to rest a five-year-old fandom debate.
Oh yeah, and I like that they actually called him Steven Magnet, but they distinctly overdid it. :B
(Seriously, Matilda, ponies aren’t named Steven. I will just chalk this up to a distinct lack of knowledge about the fine details of pony culture. There was a smidgen of that from the two of them in this episode, and I loved it.)
Ahh, and now we come to the worst part of the episode.
It’s all downhill from here.
I know what you’re thinking: ScratchTavia is canon, right? Let me be the first to say that you are WRONG! LOOK AT THAT FUCKING HOUSE. Sure, there are all kinds of reasons why lovers would live in a house that’s clearly demarcated down the middle, but if you’re going to tell me that proves they’re fucking, then have I got a bridge to sell you.
Now, with that said, I must now admit that we have a canonical reason for them to be in stories in the first place, which is what was always lacking in that ship, to my estimation. And of course, as I myself have proven, you can’t stop shippers, and this is distinctly fuel for the fire. But no, LyraBon was canon first and remains so, even in the face of evidence to the contrary, while ScratchTavia has finally reached the point of “roommates”. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. :V
All I can really say about this scene is that it seems they’re going with “Nowacking or nothing”, so Vinyl is canonically mute, which is great. (I did it first! Well, I’m pretty sure someone else did, but there you go.)
Then this happens.
What the absolute shit. WHAT IS THE POINT OF THIS? You cannot at this point tell me this episode is about anything other than brony baiting. This scene goes on for far. Too. LONG. And it’s ultimately pointless, like TD said, because Octavia never plays at the wedding.
I think this episode has made me hate Octavia. :(
Props for getting Apocalyptica-ic, though.
I really can’t sit through this scene again, it hurts me physically. It takes up two solid minutes of runtime, from the moment Vinyl walks up to the house, to when they burst out the front door on…
Goddammit.
I hadn’t noticed this before, but it explains a lot.
I’ll admit, I could see where this part was going the instant they picked up some riders. Also, taking the ink off Featherweight, oh god, it’s so funny, it gives this a reason to exist.
So yeah, Button Mash WAIT IMMA LET YOU FINISH BUT FIRST I GOTTA SAY HUGH JELLY, MOTHAFUCKAZ okay. So I saw him, and said, “Get ready for it”.
Did anyone else notice he’s riding the turntable?
There’d been a rumor circulating for ages that ShadyVox had been picked up to voice Button in an episode, after the Button Mash takedowns. So that woulda meant this one, right? I was shocked when it never happened. Not that it needed to, mind, but I was expecting at least a cry of pain. Shouldn’t believe everything you hear on the internet, I guess!
Now, if you want to talk canon ships…
I feel for Chris Carrot Top fans. I mean, once again, Bon-Bon got her second name canonized, but CT barely even got screen time. Meanwhile, Berry’s expression here…
”Oh my, it’s another a glorious day in Ponyville!”
What’s the purpose of this barrel? Confirmation that she makes wine? It actually gets its own seat at the wedding, if you noticed.
Meanwhile, I’m watching this shit, and I go, “Wait. Was that a photograph in there?”
Wait for it…
Note this slideshow begins with Twilicane. At this point, we’ve gone from brony baiting to jumping the shark to actively mocking the fans. And if you want to know why I dislike this episode overall, this is why. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Matilda’s wedding dress looks fantastic.
Why the frickity-frack did Cranky not just pick up his hairpiece?
If you watch when the thing trips and everyone goes flying out in slow-mo, Mr. Cake is dead calm and loving it, wtf.
Then we get the best part of the episode, the one gag that saves it from being the worst episode ever created:
Only a small subset of people will get the joke in this caption, but they are my people.
My god, it’s full of stars. And he was voiced by Lee Tockar, too! So Lee is now both best lizards.
DID YOU NOTICE VINYL HAD HER GLASSES OFF JUST LONG ENOUGH TO PISS OFF HALF THE FANDOM. I mean, I find it hilarious, but you can’t deny at this point, the episode is straight-up mocking us.
This scene killed me, because it means I will never get the Princess episode I always wanted. :(
I honestly do wonder, and Luna points this out, why this wedding was so important that the Princesses attended it. I mean, at the end, I think it’s implied that Cranky met pretty much everyone ever while looking for Matilda. (Or, actually, it was more or less stated back in A Friend Indeed, as someone else has pointed out. I think I’ll let this one slide.)
Two out of three characters in this scene are Worst Pony.
This was funny for about two seconds, though Cadence’s punchline was good.
WHAT IS WITH DERPY’S CREEP LAUGH? I CANNOT FIGURE THIS OUT
Equestria-Faily up there points out that “I cooked them up and ate them” is a reference to Llamas With Hats, which was famously recast with Lyra and Bon-Bon. Hands, see? We’re hip to what the kids want!
Most of the rest of this is just gonna be images.
Gee, I guess I’m on board this ship now.
So, I was okay with the scarf, and I realize it’s because it’s a nod to classic Who. Because two seconds later, he says allons-fucking-y, and I just wanted to shit everywhere. Goddammit. As Regidar (I think) put it, “HEY GUYS, WE WATCH DOCTOR WHO TOO!”
At least he did that “look at the time” joke with his fetlock, that was good.
I’m very much in agreement with all those pleased by Steven’s second appearance. Having learned the wonders of generosity and passing it on was just fantastic. He even uses one of his scales, like in the pilot! (I really shouldn’t be getting nostalgic for season one, but I am.) Also, I love “Now you get in there and marry that donkey!” I can’t explain why, but that’s great.
I hadn’t realized the mane six were getting locked out. A strong message, but harsh.
Way to rub in Cranky’s discomfort, Mayor. Sheesh.
>maretrimony
Sorry, FiW.
Up in the balconies, you can see Carrot Top, Zecora and a cow.
>trots of life
Given that “the trots” has been stated to be a disease, that might need rephrasing.
I’m posting this solely because Button is making eyes at Ruby.
The reason, dear uploader, that Spike is watching Princess Luna is because he noticed the two of them making up not five seconds ago.
Or maybe it’s the voice. :V
Speaking of strong messages, way to be meta, Mayor. Sheesh.
The application of memes helps dull the anger.
Seriously, though, I’m pretty sure this is either an inside joke or a non-sequitur meant to irritate fans, because it sets off all kinds of “why?” reflexes. I am not going to read any of those fics if I can help it.
Once again, Steven steals the show. Squeak!
“I now pronounce you jack and jenny.” Do you have any idea how many levels of yes this gives me? I’m so happy for these two. ;_;
I’m not the first to say it, but I feel it bears repeating: the episode ends with ass-kissing.
Yes, I noticed Rose, fuck everything.
Oh my god, the contortions his face goes through in this scene are better than all the goofy faces that have appeared in the last three seasons put together.
Way to be sappy, Twilight. Sheesh.
I will recognize that the bugbear works as a running joke, but it still could have been anything.
So, is this a good episode? No, no it is not. It’s frenzied, pandering, and ultimately stupid, especially since I was really into the donkey wedding plot and it got sidetracked by… all that crap up there. The only thing this has going for it is being distinctly entertaining. But you know what? We already got The Last Roundup, when the fandom was recognized and lauded in the nicest way possible (before a certain shit-stirrer fucked it up). Hearing “Steven Magnet” was almost but not quite as great as hearing “Derpy” for the first time. (Hearing “Bon-Bon” was actually closer.) We already got Magic Duel, which was “Oh, Trixie’s back! Yay, Fluttershy in a bunny suit! Wow, Applejack’s old! Now she’s a stallion!” We didn’t need another one.
And that this started out ostensibly meant to stroke everyone’s dicks but ended up making fun of the adult fans by the end (let’s not forget this tweet from Big Jim), I can’t help but feel abused and disrespected. Only by the grace of a few suspiciously well-timed jokes does this stay off my shitlist. I still think it was a shameful travesty of an episode, and I’m just about done with this show. I’m certainly done with the writers and staff; I’ve been varying levels of angry with them since season two, and now I have no reason to hide my disdain. At least we know their claims of “not reading fanfiction” really are just legalese bullshit.
No.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I spent all day on this fucking blog Celestiawhatiswrongwithme and I have a jam to slam.
The Cutie Map
Make New Friends but Keep Discord
Castle Sweet Castle
Appleloosa's Most Wanted
Tanks for the Memories
Slice of Life
The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone
Bloom & Gloom
Our Town
I'll Fly
Hush Little Sister
Make This Castle a Home
Wow. Been a while since I disagreed so much with a blog.
Eh. Opinions schmopinions, I guess. Then again:
Can't tell if this is genuine or satire, to be honest. If it's satire, it's way too deep, man. Way to do it for the art. If it's genuine... Eh. Eeeeeeh.
This blog amuses me almost as much as the episode did.
Welcome to the "Not Enthralled with Episode 100" club! I'm honestly surprised at how few of us there are.
But yes, Gummy was awesome.
But... who gives a flying f*ck about Button Mash anyway?
And as for:
Who the flying fuck cares what he thinks anyway? Anyone that writes fics and wants to be 100% canonical shouldn't be writing fics anyway. Besides, it's already been established that there's fan fiction way better than anything they have come up with.
3152775
I second all of these.
Here, PP, just for you: Just. For. You.
Edit: Fixed link. Go D!
Only in this fandom
Methinks the lady doth giveth too many fucks.
It was fun, and that's all I really care about. When I watch the show, I expect two things:
1. Cute pones
2. the occasional giggle.
That's it. All the other stuff is window dressing. The character growth, deep-ish plots, thematic stuff, etc. All that comes and goes. To me, this episode was perfect. It was a 22 minute wink to the camera, a very extended Derpy cameo, if you will. A break in the flow and tone of the show for the writers to acknowledge us, the secondary audience, before going back to the core audience. It felt like an omake, and it was glorious. None of it will likely ever be referenced again, save maybe Cranky and Matilda being married. It came and went. 99 episodes directed at the core audience with tiny little nods to us, one episode for us, and now back to our regularly scheduled nonsense.
I don't have a lot else to say, except that this is the strongest I've ever disagreed with you about anything, and I'm honestly unpleasantly shocked to see you say something like this.
At the risk of sounding callous (and bearing in mind this is directed at a wide variety of people in addition to you): learn to take a goddamn fucking joke.
3152764 That, sir, sounds like a challenge.
I think I must have watched a different episode, one where the show-runners were celebrating with us as opposed to actively despising us. Honestly, PP, I think you are nearly 100% wrong in this analysis.
Regarding the tweet from Jim, they get way too much shit from crazy fans who think that their interpretation of the show is more valid than the people who make it, and I can't find it in myself to blame him for poking back a little. I can't help but think of the letter Katie Rice posted way back when that was sent to her by a fan who wanted her to read their fanfic for Cadance & Shining's actual backstory. If you aren't that sort of person, then Jim wasn't talking to you.
3152775
"Button Mash" was a canon background character before that atrocious fan animation came out.
3152764
This episode is a bunch of crazy and awesome bonkers shit. You lose the moment you take it remotely seriously.
3152836
Still. Who gives a fuck about him anyway? Like seriously, how does that even answer my question or is in any way relevant to me?
3152845
I was just pointing out that the "Button Mash" in MLP100 is not the Button Mash from the fan animation. Actually, I was buttdamaged about him being in the episode (my singular complaint) until someone reminded me that he is an actual BG character that the animation used and not an OC.
3152858 Fair enough. Just understand, to me, he has been a non-entity to such extent that I haven't even glanced at whatever canonical episode he appeared at first.
Life is suffering.
In the end, though, I think I'm happier this way. As much as I'd have loved a Carrot Top subplot (and make no mistake, I would have fangasmed hard)... well, I think the farther the writers these days stay from her, the better. This episode didn't do much to sell me on their interest in coherency, let alone quality.
Some things are best left in the background.
Apparently that was the plan, guess it was cut for time or something.
Honestly, a lot of the people I see hating this episode, I think are taking it too seriously. Yeah, pointlessly pandering is annoying, like seeing Derpy in The Last Roundup for no reason, or to a degree, bringing in The Smooze and Maud for rather inconsequential cameos (that episode really felt like a waste of three or four good plotlines). But this went full overboard. Was it dumb and silly? Yes, and it was supposed to be. It was a love letter to the fanbase that got the show to 100 episodes, this one time the writers threw caution to the wind and said "here you go, have it all." What's so wrong with that?
Now, when Derpy and Dr. Whooves begin appearing together in the background all the time, or Octavia starts getting regular speaking roles, that's when we can complain about the pandering. This? It's like a bachelor party, one wild night to go crazy and then we go back to normal lives the next day. Get it all out of our system in one go.
The changeling is really simple and funny if you think about it. Remember, everyone there was invited becasue he met them and they were somehow involved in his life. This includes a changeling that is just sitting there behaving itself like it wants to be there. Granted this is partially just a matter of wanting the changelings make some sort of appearance, but if you think about it there must clearly be some sort of story there since it clearly seems to be there for the same reason as everyone else.
3152744
No, I'm serious.
3152775
3152779
I care because he's part of the show and actively taunting fans.
3152799
Congrats, you're not me.
3152826
I don't like being joked about, not unless I'm in on it, and this is true in any walk of life. This episode was a distinct message, a communique to the fans, and given the direction it took, I have to agree with Chris that the message was along the lines of "We don't give a shit, lol".
3152831
And I'm supposed to know this how? As far as I can tell, it's directed at all fans. You see how this is maybe not a good thing?
3152881
Now there's a hard truth. :(
3152883
There were definitely scenes that could have been cut to give us more insight into the interesting new characters they decided to introduce us to. :|
But we've already gotten that, like I said. We didn't need it, and it didn't amount to anything in the end. I never used to watch a "dumb and silly" show.
3152924
You're probably right about it being there for the same reason the Princesses are. It's just so weird, to have hanging out there. It could have been cut and nothing would have been lost.
3152965
I'd start by not making assumptions that assume the worst of people, which incidentally is also my problem with almost everything else in this post.
Ack, STAP.
The bugbear is an actual mythological creature, guys!
Also, I think I near-100% disagree with you about this episode. A lot of the stuff you thought was good was stuff I didn't, and vice-versa. It's astounding to read an opinion so utterly contrary to my own in every way.
3152965
Okay, I have to preface all of this by saying that you know I love you, PP. Like, for real, I have so much respect for you as a friend and as a reviewer. That said...
To quote 3152826, learn to take a goddamn fucking joke. I have an extremely hard time believing that he was legit making fun of us. How many times have he and the other writers teased us on Twitter and other social media, poking minor fun at us? This is no different, and I think your opinion of the episode is tainting your view on this.
I'm pretty sure that if they didn't give a shit they wouldn't have dedicated an entire friggin' episode to us and all the in-jokes the fandom has built over the past few years. Like I said, this is just a silly love letter to the fans. They spend 99 episodes dedicated to good story telling, deep themes,a dn all that other goodness, and for this one episode, they let their hair down and went buck-wild. Letting us see everything we wanted, an affirmation of all the little things we've been debating and mulling over, most of our widely accepted headcanons, reasonably faithful interpretations of how we collectively see certain background ponies, even an homage to the amazing music and PMV's we've made with the OctaScratch scene, all culminating in an animated fangasm(as signified by the jumping of the shark and Twicane).
I'm 90% sure that if M.A. Larson of Jim Miller were to read this, they'd be saying the same thing I and most other are: "Dude, calm down. We love you guys. I mean... we gave you an entire episode."
3152864
That's fine. I only did when it was pointed out to me. I needed that to assure me they didn't canonize Button's Adventure.
3152988
Except we haven't, we've had brief moments, but not a whole episode. I'd be more annoyed if all these jokes and references were strung out over an entire season, like they were constantly tossing in nods to us. One episode? Sure, no problem.
This is a show where the power of friendship can be weaponized as a beam of rainbow light via magical necklaces worn by six talking, pastel-colored ponies with astonishingly appropriate names and ass tattoos for their personalities.
I love the show, I really do, I'm obsessed. But oh yes, it's silly. And that's okay. There's nothing wrong with a media that knows it shouldn't take itself too seriously. The show wouldn't be as enjoyable as it was if it didn't have that wacky charm to it.
You know, PP, you pretty much covered my take on this episode. The thing that frustrates me about it most is that it didn't have to be bad, you know? A little restraint would have gone a long way.
That said, I am somewhat hopeful because I noticed a new thing. For all that I'm frustrated with Larson right now, he's now credited as Story Editor instead of McCarthy. Given how wretched the overall arcs and coherency of characterization from episode to episode have been for the last couple seasons, this can only be an improvement.
Why can't Time Turner be both Time Turner and "Doc?" He looks like a pony that could have a doctorate. I mean, I get your point, but until they expressly call him Doctor Whooves or just The Doctor or whatever, he's still Time Turner to me.
Yeah, this episode was crazier than a chromium-plated banana; but I had fun and it made me laugh on several occasions, so therefore I consider it well worth the 22 minute investment of my time (44 minutes if you count the re-watch).
I'm honestly surprised at the amount of negative feedback I've been seeing around this episode, but then again my standards and expectations of the show are a lot different than many people.
I was expecting "Great Scott!" in reference to a certain other time-travelling Doc.
More importantly, why didn't they go with My Little Pony vs.
BarbieBearbee?3153021
I am genuinely surprised by this. :O
3153028
They already gave us an entire episode! Two, in fact! Those were fine!
3153036
Yeah, his touch as story editor seems to be doing wonders.
3153060
This is such a bizarrely convoluted train of thought to follow, I'm getting vertigo. @_@ (Not a knock against you, I just whoosh.)
3153156
Heh, the Doc Brown references are cropping up left and right.
And honestly? The majority of the feedback I've seen has been positive. I can think of maybe three people aside from myself who had generally negative reactions to it (and we're getting shit on, fancy that).
*Reads blog post*
I probably should've brought some popcorn for that one. Aside from the Octavia part going on for a bit too long and resolving everything through the power of wub, I thought the episode was fun. Sadly, I'm not surprised at how much offense folks take to things like this on the Internet, but the possible repercussions of this one particularly is on par with the Princess Twilight controversy. Many fics now are unintentionally AU because they added some depth to background characters. But as far as the resolution to the issue that is brought about from it, it's not an issue for me. I still like unicorn Twilight better and generally write her as such, but on the whole I still enjoy the show. Overall though, it's just rather painful to see arguments erupt from people reading the worst into things.
Also, the bit about this messing up canon, especially with the tweet, I have to agree in part with 3152775 aside from the exclusionary bit. To me, Fanfiction is a way to explore the joys of writing in a community of fellow creatives. I'd never discourage anyone from expressing themselves, regardless of how closely they want to adhere to the source material.
Side note: It took me about 20 minutes to decide whether or not to hit the "Post Comment" button as I don't see this doing anything but unintentionally fueling someone's fire somewhere. Apologies in advanced.
3153217
It's not about canon and it never was.
No disrespect meant, but I couldn't disagree more on your overall opinion of the episode. I need to give myself more time to process it in the context of the rest of the show, but Slice of Life may well end up taking a spot in my top five episodes ever (of course this is coming from the guy whose favourite episode is still Magical Mystery Cure, so make of that what you will). I may write a blog or something to express my opinions later, but I've never really felt the need to justify why I like any given episode. I'm content to just like it.
Sorry it pissed you off so much, though. Hopefully the rest of Season 5 will brighten your spirits!
3153227
Err... I know. You're very clear in your disdain towards the writers and how you perceive their intentions with this episode. If I was in the same boat as you, I would probably see the Bon Bon and Lyra hammering their "best friendship" into each other as hateful spite to all shippers. Me bringing up canon thing was just an example of something I feel detracts from show as a whole in the long run as did Princess Twilight ascension before it.
That aside, despite my initial discomfort with public posts like this, I think it's a good thing you are so unapologetic in your stance against something you don't like. You should never tolerate something as that is the most hateful thing you can ever do. Toleration being a virtue? How is pretending to accept something and quietly seethe about virtuous? You're lying to yourself and others when you do, which shows contempt for everyone that believes you are okay with whatever it is. Be clear and honest so that you don't have to put up a facade of indifference.
So in the end, though I disagree with your opinion on almost all fronts, I applaud you for taking the time to share it with us.
It was around this point that I went "This episode isn't going to make any sense, is it?", put my brain into neutral, and settled in to enjoy the ride. And it was a rollercoaster.
I honestly enjoyed the whole Scratch and Octavia "wubulance" sequence - the whole thing was just so absurdly out of far left field, but what got me laughing was that it just kept on escalating, capped off with Introspective Gummy. There are very few moments in television shows and movies that make me go "what the actual f
?!" in a good way, and this was one of them.
3153213
I've seen a bit more than that, but it may be because the negative reactions stand out a lot more in all the positive responses?
Herd mentality?
)
(Sorry!
I respectfully disagree on most points, though I do agree that the episode lacked coherence. And that allons'y was utterly, painfully gratuitous. Still, to me, this felt less mocking than a case of the writers letting their figurative hair down for an episode.
Of course, given the major presence of Derpy, I am far from unbiased in this regard.
Yeah, they absolutely overdid the Doctor Who references.
I do like that his personality is closer to... well, Doc Brown. Which is his canon name now as far as I'm concerned, all canon sources be damned.
I...really think you're taking this wrong. Here's a couple of other tweets to stack against the one you've mentioned [repeatedly]:
--M.A. Larson
--Jim Miller
--Brian Lenard
For my part, I choose to believe the show's creators when they say they were trying to give something back to us, regardless of how successful one feels the end product ended up.
3153213
Well, I wasn't here for either of those. Watching them as past episodes, they...well...just seem like episodes to me. So for me, this was special. No, the episode itself wasn't objectively great, but I still had fun with it...and yeah, I guess I got a thrill
from them "stroking everyone's dicks". Will I go back and watch this one as many times as "Sonic Rainboom", "Hurricane Fluttershy", or "Pinkie Pride"? Probably not. But I'm still glad it happened, and I'm glad I was here for it.
I am, though, truly sorry you don't enjoy the show anymore.
3153296
According to M.A. Larson, he'd intended The Doctor to be a tribute to Doc Brown, but the VA and story boarders pushed it towards Doctor Who
3153156
See this comment for an unofficial explanation.
Okay, after at least an hour putting this response together, it's time to let the comments have at me...
This feels like "Magical Mystery Cure" all over again, as if some people watched an alternate reality version of the episode. Can't say this is my favourite episode ever, but it is certainly top 10.
Also, I read the whole thing, and I have no idea why you would actually take offense for those things. Their intent felt like precisely the opposite to me. Also, I don't quite believe that anything on there actually relates to fanfiction, but instead to more other, more specific fan creations.
3152757
Hah, I was about to say that. I'm starting to think that that's the actual show: the crew produced this episode just to watch us have a collective meltdown
I was flattered to see all the references to my blog entry throughout your post. Good to know I can serve as a cantankerous touchstone.
I find it interesting both that Larson did not want to do this episode and that Hasbro was pushing so hard for it. Some folks were overjoyed, but frankly, I think Larson was right in not wanting to go with it to such extreme lengths - and I think Hasbro made a mistake in trying to push it so far. Had they focused on the actual plot, I think it would have worked a lot better.
However, Hasbro's also rather strongly implies to me that Hasbro knows on what side its bread is buttered, which has... interesting and kind of worrisome implications. But it also probably indicates that they're selling a LOT of shit to bronies (not that that is a real surprise).
One thing I will note is that the episode was not a slight against the fans at all. It may have insulted your intelligence by thinking that throwing together a bunch of fandom references without actually following through on things was enough, but I think that the episode was motivated by Hasbro wanting to make fans happy without really understanding what they were doing. Some of it was good, and some of it was pandering so blatant that I'm sure to some it kind of felt insulting that they thought we would need them to stoop to that level, but insulting? I don't think it was meant to be insulting.
Maybe the fact that they thought that people would WANT this over something more coherent was a bit insulting, but apparently a lot of people just don't care. As I noted in one of my comments, the depressing thing is more that it means that they don't have to try to get a lot of people on-board with things, which is actually kind of sad because it makes it less likely that they'll produce really brilliant stuff when they can be lazy and get mostly the same response from a large segment of the fandom.
Big Jim was just being Big Jim. Frankly, I think that some people really shouldn't have Twitter because they can't keep it in their pants sometimes and say stupid shit, and I think that was an example of it. I didn't think it was insulting, but I can understand why some people might take it that way.
Clearly this is a holdover from old pegasus weddings. If at least three ponies weren't bleeding by the end of it, it wasn't a good wedding.
She had the same accent back in her earlier speaking roles, and then randomly lost it for Castle Sweet Castle, only to get it again this episode.
I suspect that Larson actually remembered that she had an accent, whereas they forgot for Castle Sweet Castle.
I didn't think her voice was that bad, though.
Ponies aren't named Steven, but I suspect donkeys may be. She is named Matilda, after all.
And to be fair, Pinky Pie's full name is Pinkamina Diane Pie, so clearly humanish names are not unknown amongst ponies. Or possibly Pinkie Pie is part donkey, or the rock farmers embrace donkey culture or something.
Or, you know, Larson went out and actually read fanfiction to do research for the episode at Hasbro's behest. It wouldn't surprise me.
I actually liked that sequence. My problem with it was that, like so much else in the episode, it had no payoff in the end. "Hey, here's Octavia and Vinyl Scratch!"
Okay, cool. Uh, so why are they in this episode?
Honestly, the Lyra and Bon Bon thing was even more extraneous, much as I hate to say it. That plot thread had nothing to do with anything else. Did Bon Bon help fight the Bugbear in the background in a later shot? If not, that is a total lost opportunity.
Though god, they said best friends so many times. It was weird as hell. Who says best friends that often?
No one. It is like the awkward "sister in law" thing that kept getting repeated in Three's a Crowd.
I have to wonder if they were told to put in the "best friends" thing to avoid people deciding that they were lesbians. You know, with the whole living together and touching each other's faces thing.
Anyway, yeah. I would have preferred to see the actual main plot followed through on. I was actually terribly disappointed by the lack of Ponyville's second-best purple planning pony in the entire rest of the episode; the preview clips of the episode were the Octavia and Vinyl Scratch bit and that scene outside of the bowling alley, and it made me think that we were going to actually focus on the scramble to get ready for Matilda's wedding, but in the end it all just kind of happened offscreen and never got satisfactorially resolved.
I was also kind of excited by the prospect of them actually making use of Sparkler/Amethyst Star, which I would never have expected and was interested in seeing their interpretation of, but then... nothing.
Frankly, had they run around town organizing stuff and talked to a bunch of background ponies in the process, I think I would have been quite happy with it, and I think most of the fans would have still gone apeshit over it. They could have still included the ridiculous gathering-the-background-ponies sequence but had more space to actually resolve stuff.
3152883
I'll be real honest - them throwing ponies into the background won't ever bother me. Everyone loves seeing Lyra and Bon Bon walking around together, and having various background references that build up background pony interactions is a potential source of bonus material that doesn't really eat up real screen time. Lyra and Bon Bon's background scene back in... I think it was season 2 was a neat thing, and I don't mind them slipping stuff like that in.
As far as them actually making use of the background ponies - frankly, I wouldn't really mind them making use of the townsfolk. Thunderlane and a few other pegasi exist, and I wouldn't mind seeing a few more random recurring townsfolk show up from time to time. Heck, that waiter has shown up in a bunch of episodes at this point, and I don't even know his name.
I just don't want them to focus on them at the expense of characters who I'd rather see get screentime, like the princesses. But if they had to use some random musician for something, using one of the Ponytones or Octavia wouldn't rustle my jimmies at all.
I just don't want them to be like HEY GUYS YOU EXIST. If they throw in stuff, either make it a background thing or make it an organic part of the plot, don't just throw stuff in for the sake of doing so.
Also, for the record, I didn't hate the episode. I thought it was okay; it earned a high 2/5 in my book, falling below Swarm of the Century and above Bloom and Gloom for me. I was entertained.
It just wasn't as good as it could have and should have been. Frankly, I think the core idea behind the episode could have been a 5/5, but it wasn't.
Cranky was great in the episode, Matilda freaking out over moving the wedding was amusing, and the idea of her mobilizing a bunch of background ponies to deal with her wedding while the mane six battled some sort of monster (which, frankly, was kind of disappointing - I would have rather it been a more interesting/dangerous threat that was almost completely ignored by the ponies because monsters invading the town happens like once a month) was a solid one. The episode just didn't end up really following through on a lot of it.
3153156
Man, I didn't even think about Doc Brown, but I think you're right.
Heck, he even IS brown. That... actually is a pun that totally escaped me.
Hell, why did that escape everyone else? I've never seen anyone make him more Doc Brown, even though he IS brown. That's an obvious pun.
I am disappointed in you, fandom!
3153334
It wasn't an alternate reality issue at all - it was a matter of understanding what people actually want.
The problem is that shout-outs can be funny, or can be "hey, look at this thing! Laugh!" When shout-outs come at the cost of core content, that hurts the product as a whole. And I think that's what happened here - they tried to cram in too much and just never resolved any of it.
Seriously, would anyone have been upset by the episode if it had just been Matilda, Derpy, and the Doctor running around town trying to fix her wedding, with random interactions with background ponies? I doubt it. I'm sure people would have been overjoyed.
Some of the stuff (Twicane in particular) felt like they were just HEY LOOK AT THIS THING! rather than actual jokes. The same applied to the Doctor Who quotes. And that's not good comedy. Sure, some people will laugh, but they'll laugh at real jokes, too.
Some people are content with HEY LOOK AT THIS THING! But a lot of folks have higher standards than that, and for them, a ton of shout-outs without actual coherency hurts things.
I also suspect that if you have more focus on story, you probably would like it less as well because the story in the episode was very weak.
The general reaction I saw from most of the people who weren't thrilled with the episode was not that the episode wasn't entertaining but that it felt like it was just a mess of references and didn't really come together or follow through on things, and thus left them disappointed even though it was not boring.
I don't think most people think that the episode was actually horrible, and indeed, as you'll note from the end of PP's post, he didn't put it on the bottom for this season so far.
People getting butthurt over Magical Mystery Cure was because it involved actual permanent and important change, and some people really fear change (which is why they should never become panhandlers). This was more of an issue of whether or not the episode actually did what it was trying to do well.
3153552 Oh, the ep wasn't perfect, by no measure. I didn't mind the random events plot since by nature "slice of life" stories tend to be that, but I think it would have been better to have a more coherent story. I discussed with friends back during Season 4, an ep where the Mane Six are away when a monster attacks, and background ponies have to step up and fight it. You've got the "alt Mane Six" with Dr. Whooves, Derpy, Octavia, Lyra, Bon Bon, and Vinyl, and an episode focusing on them meeting up for some reason and going on an adventure could have worked better.
I also agree with your other post, some of the references were too in-your-face. Random Changeling, random Twilicane, random Button Mash! The Gummy cutaway worked because it was just so surreal and weird, the rest was them throwing references at us with no rhyme or reason.
A bugbear is an actual legendary creature from English myth. A sort of hobgoblin used to scare kids.
Also the complaint about a lack of plot annoys me every time its made. Of course there was a plot. The wedding arrangements are the plot. There are several interlinked subplots within that, each a slice of life that by definition will not have a complete narrative structure. Look up up 32 short films about Glenn Gould for the inspiration of this sort of thing.
You have screengrabs for everything except the apes pretending to be equines:
img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20150615114842/mlp/images/e/e1/Crew_members_in_horse_masks_hidden_frame_S5E9.png
* Tim Packard
* "Big" Jim Miller
* Katrina "Lunchie" Hadley
* Jayson Thiessen
* Ishi Rudell
Post Scriptum:
I just read the article and noticed that the image is part of a GIF. The GIf was too slow to notice on the skimthrough. I recommend that you make the GIF faster.
3153569
To be honest, I think that's why they went with "Doctor/Doc"; that way they could dish out Doctor Who and Doc Brown references. I was fully expecting to be teased with Doctor Who, only to have it turn into a massive Doc Brown joke at the end. Somewhat disappointed that they didn't make any "88 m.p.h. / 1.21 gigawatts / flux capacitor"-type references, but my new headcanon of Doctor Time Turner, Earth Pony Mad Scientist and Inventor? Yeah, totally happy with that.
3153576
I'll disagree that Button Mash was random. If you look at the scene, the Vinyl Scratch DJ Pon3-mobile (which has been dubbed the "wubulance" in other parts of the fandom I frequent) collects Button Mash ("too young"), Dance Fever ("too flashy"), and Hugh Jelly ("strangely obsessed with tubs of jelly") all at the same time - it's all a callback to The Perfect Stallion song in Hearts & Hooves Day. Button Mash is no more "random" than Davenport ("Quills & Sofas" pony) or Crafty Crate (delivery pony from Feeling Pinkie Keen).
That WAS me! Thanks for the shoutout!
As my blog will state, I disagree with you. There were choice moments of this episode that were fucking awful, but overall it was a fun way to fuck with the fanbase that's steadily been moving into the target audience of the show. Little kids aren't the main target anymore, and haven't been for a while. Sure, they still market to them, but the actual show at this point has taken the brony fandom into account for the past two seasons (three if you wanna get real technical), and I think I can safely say that this episode cements that idea.
I think this is a horrible entry-level episode, and can only be watched after watching all the episodes leading up to it. I also think that any of the original target audience watching this episode would be confused as fuck. However, kids are easily entertained and will watch anything.
But this is a turning point in the show. This is the first episode where they openly accept the fact that the path they've taken since late 2012 is geared towards the fans who 1) keep the show running with a higher amount of demand (because little kids don't have nearly enough money nor creative driving force to keep this show going like we have) and 2) have tons of more cash in order to sink ridiculous ventures into this show and its fan content.
Will I consider this episode canon? Yes, I will. Will this stop me from doing all the shit that gets invalidated by this episode? No, it won't, because fanfic writers who live and die by the show's canon are miserable and shouldn't be writing fanfics anyway. Canon is a loose guideline to be followed, and a great spring board for ideas. And guess what? I'm gonna keep treating it as such.
Also, don't leave us, Present; I'm sure the rest of the season will be up to snuff for you. Hell, GM Barrow wrote a Pinkie Pie episode that will show up by the end of the summer!
Thinking about what you wrote, I cannot see how you do not like this episode. The framing story is the wedding, allowing for vignettes about background ponies getting ready for the wedding. I suppose that you hate Pulp Fiction too.
To quote myself:
Also, fuck Jim.
3153596
They weren't slice of life pieces. A slice of life - in the literary sense of the term - is not an incomplete story, but rather a different sort of writing which is more about capturing a moment or a scene. If you leave off the ending to a story, or the middle, that's not a slice of life piece - that's just a story which is missing bits.
That's the problem. We have Matilda running around trying to throw together the wedding and panicking over it, with that theme being reinforced time and again, and then no payoff for it - we never get any resolution. Why isn't she the nervous one at the wedding? How was it all resolved? What happened to Amethyst Star/Sparkler?
That's not a slice of life - it is a story which is missing a piece, namely the climax/first part of the resolution.
The same applies to other bits - we see Octavia worrying about her music, we see her working out what she's going to play, but we never see her actually play it at the wedding.
We see Lyra and Bon Bon talking and Bon Bon leaving, but never see the middle part and just see the ending where they make up.
Same with the Doctor and rushing around town and running off after Derpy over the fireworks.
These weren't slices of life, but rather incomplete stories.
3153630
Each story in Pulp Fiction is a complete story. They aren't missing bits.