Doctor Perseus Reviews: "Crusaders of the Lost Mark" and "Before the Flood" *SPOILERS* · 7:29am Oct 11th, 2015
In this week's episode of MLP, the Cutie Mark Crusaders agree to help Pip run for student president. But, in doing so, they end up unintentionally helping themselves and Diamond Tiara in an unexpected way...
...Wow. Just...just wow. This episode...I mean...wow. Not only was this a great musical episode. Not only did it act as a wonderful redemption story for Diamond Tiara. But this episode showed the Cutie Mark Crusaders FINALLY getting their cutie marks! Pardon my French but HOLY SHIT! Five years. Five years and nearly five full seasons of this series. And now, FINALLY, the Crusaders' search for their cutie marks has come to a close. So...yeah. I think it's obvious that I loved this episode.
When talking about the CMC in this episode, the biggest thing to talk about is, obviously, them getting their cutie marks. It turns out that they're absolutely nothing like the leaked images we got a while back. And were they really worth the wait? As far as I'm concerned, they were. I liked how their cutie marks didn't reflect the talents we all predicted the CMC to have all the way back in The Show Stoppers. We definitely saw hints of their true talents back in Appleloosa's Most Wanted. I find it pretty fitting to see the CMC find a shared talent in helping others find the fullest meaning of their cutie marks. A big running theme with this season has been further exploring the concept of cutie marks and what exactly they can mean for each pony. And, as we saw with Trouble Shoes and now Diamond Tiara (more on her in a bit), there are many different aspects to the main traits that come with a pony's cutie mark. Of course, I'm sure this isn't the end to CMC-focused episodes. In fact, this feels like a whole new beginning. This episode was pretty much the CMC's version of Magical Mystery Cure...but with better execution than the aforementioned episode. I look forward to seeing what the future holds for the CMC now.
Now let's move on to Diamond Tiara. Wow. One episode. It took just one episode to turn Diamond Tiara from a character I loved to despise to a sympathetic character who I was glad to see get redeemed. We finally get introduced to her mother, Spoiled Rich, and learn that a lot of Diamond Tiara's behavior and bullying stems from the ideals of her incredibly condescending and demanding mother. Diamond Tiara is very much the Draco Malfoy of MLP. She's not truly evil at heart and a lot of her behavior and beliefs are a result of how she was brought up. We got to see Diamond Tiara sink lower than we've ever seen her sink before only to see her rise higher than we ever thought possible. I never thought I'd be saying this but I'm looking forward to seeing what her future on the show holds. It'll be interesting seeing her on a friendly basis with the CMC.
Silver Spoon also got her time to shine. Seeing her finally stand up and break off with Diamond Tiara was great and it felt even better to see the two friends make amends at the end while becoming better ponies in the process. I also liked seeing Pip again and was glad to see him become the student president. Spoiled Rich has now become the new character I love to despise. I don't think we'll see her again, unless they find a way to make an episode involving her getting redeemed, but I was glad we were introduced to her so that Diamond Tiara could become more likable.
The songs in this episode were great and, oddly enough, the pacing was great as well. While Magical Mystery Cure moved by like a cheetah on meth, this episode felt like it had the right pacing for the right story. My favorite moment had to be at the end with the CMC being congratulated by their respective sisters/sister-figures. I also loved the mentions to past conflicts with Discord and Tirek at the beginning of the episode. Yay for continuity! The only problem I have with this episode is that it's forced me to rethink a future episode in my Doctor Whooves series that was going to involve Diamond Tiara.
Overall, I loved Crusaders of the Lost Mark. It was a great musical episode, a fantastic redemption story for Diamond Tiara, and a wonderful end to the first chapter of the CMC. And now a whole new chapter has begun!
Next week's episode is The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows!
Pinkie Pie struggles to keep a secret that involves Princess Cadance and Shining Armor.
What did the rest of you think of Crusaders of the Lost Mark?
In this week's episode of Doctor Who, the Doctor travels back into the past to learn the secrets behind the ghosts on the Drum. Meanwhile, Clara tries to deal with the Doctor's ghost in the present...
And so the second 2-parter of Series 9 has drawn to a close. It's weird that we're already four episodes into Series 9 and yet we've only finished its second story. And how did this episode turn out? Pretty good, as far as I'm concerned.
The Doctor and Clara continued to shine (as is expected). I loved seeing the Doctor face off with the Fisher King and the opening scene with the Doctor talking to the audience was great fun. I liked how this episode continued to explore Clara's gradual transformation into her own Doctor persona. Series 8 showed Clara's travels with the Doctor becoming somewhat of an addiction and that addiction has never been more apparent than it was in this episode. Of course, the Doctor surviving at the end came at no one's surprise. But, when it comes to problems like this, a lot of the appeal comes from seeing how the Doctor will overcome the threat. Here, we got to see the classic "did the chicken or the egg come first" situation with the Doctor surviving and flooding the town only by seeing his ghost, which helping provide its past self with the clues. I also had a pretty good hunch that the Doctor had been the one in the stasis chamber.
The supporting characters continued to shine. I was actually pretty saddened to see O'Donnell die and I felt for Bennett. Cass continued to shine as a great character. One of my favorite moments in the episode was when she was being stalked by Moran's ghost with the axe. The moment where she knelt down and felt the vibrations was oddly similar to Toph's ability to sense vibrations in Avatar: The Last Airbender. I was really happy to see Cass and Lunn end up together at the end, even if it was a bit predictable.
The Fisher King was also a great villain for this episode. He had a huge, intimidating presence and the moment where he was stalking the Doctor, Bennett, and O'Donnell was really intense. The Fisher King also has one of the greatest alien designs this show has ever had IMO. I really hope we get to see more of his species in the future because that design was way too good for just a one-off appearance.
This episode felt just as intense as the previous episode. There were a lot of "hold your breath" moments and the feeling of impending doom was felt throughout the whole run time. The also liked the bit where the Doctor and Bennett went a half hour into the past. I always love time travel stories like that. The return of Security Protocol 712 from Blink was also a nice addition. And that rock version of the theme song for the opening credits was freaking AWESOME!
Before I end this review, I have to go into a short rant. Even now, there are fans who are still complaining about the sonic sunglasses. We're all entitled to our own opinions but I am getting REALLY annoyed by all the bitching and whining now. The sonic screwdriver will be back! It's not gone forever! The screwdriver is like the Master, Davros, the Cybermen, and the Daleks. It will always come back! And please for the love of all that is holy in this world, how in the name of all that is are sonic sunglasses more stupid than a sonic screwdriver?! Honestly! People are signing petitions and crying like it's the end of the world! For a fanbase dedicated to a show that's ALL ABOUT CHANGE, they seem to really have a hard time accepting change when it comes. THE DOCTOR'S TOO YOUNG! THE DOCTOR'S TOO OLD! BRING BACK THE SCREWDRIVER! Shut up already! The sunglasses are apparently here to stay for at least all of Series 9. Build a bridge and get over it! Basically, all the complaining and whining from the fanbase at the moment can be summed up like this:
Sorry for the rant but I REALLY needed to let that out.
Overall, I really liked Before the Flood and found it to be a great conclusion to Series 9's second 2-parter.
Next week, we get our first sorta one-shot of Series 9: The Girl Who Died!
So what did the rest of you think of Before the Flood?
I loved the new episode. I cried when they got their cutie marks. I've only seen the first two episodes of season 9 I'm having troubles trying to keep up.
I can only imagine how many head canons were destroyed by Crusaders of the Lost Mark! Have you also noticed how season 5 has been focusing mostly around cutie marks more than any other season?
Seconded. It's part of why I love Back to the Future Part II a lot more than Part III.
As for "Crusaders of the Lost Mark," you seem to be a lot more enthusiastic about it. But you already knew that.
My main concerns with the episode still remain Diamond Tiara's redemption being rushed, the pacing overall being kind of off, and the music not being that great. But still, it was a really good episode.
As for "Before the Flood," I also enjoyed it. I've always been fond of paradoxes. (That's why I like G.K. Chesterton.) And the Bootstrap paradox is a particularly interesting one. Where does the stuff come from?
I particularly enjoyed the moment where the Doctor played the opening of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony on an electric guitar. I like classical music. I like rock music. That was just awesome.
Really. I couldn't get over how the Fisher King's face looks like a vagina. Pardon my French.
As for the sunglasses....
....
Never mind.
I will say they at least make it easier to cosplay as the Doctor.
Most people already have sunglasses. Not everyone has a sonic screwdriver handy.
Heck with the rewrite, just say you're in a custom timeline.
As for the Fisher King (always sounded like "Fissure" to me), I think he looks like these guys, Elementary Inves from Kamen Rider Gaim:
vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/kamenrider/images/b/bd/Invase_Warriors.png/revision/latest?cb=20131007030629 vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/kamenrider/images/7/7b/Combined_Invase_Warrior.png/revision/latest?cb=20131007030630
Now, with Crusaders of the Lost Mark, it felt a bit fast for me, particularly with Diamond Tiara's turnaround, and the songs were mostly forgettable (after only one viewing). I dunno, but musicals always seem to just move a bit fast. Now, I could believe DT's seeming one-decision reformation if she'd been contemplating on these thoughts for a while leading up to this, and she was just waiting for an opportunity to act, and seeing as she for the first time found herself with nothing else to go back to, she went for it in this situation. I'd have to rewatch it to see if that's really what was happening. I still think it was done better with Pacifica Northwest in Gravity Falls, as she had a gradual turnaround throughout her redemption episode.
If you notice that's been happening in shows a lot lately. Star Vs, Steven Universe, Gravity Falls, even Missy turned into a likable character in the season premier lol though she is very much still evil.
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I can definitely understand your problems with it. It's just that the episode's pros FAR outweigh its cons for me to the point that I didn't even really notice them during my first viewing.
I guess you could make the argument that the Fisher King's face had a...distinct facial design but I still loved the design overall. It was towering, threatening, and held a real presence onscreen IMO.
And don't take my rant about the sunglasses as being directed towards you. You've at least been respectful about it and haven't let it ruin episodes for you. I've just seen fans constantly complaining about them and, honestly, I can't understand why aside from them not being the screwdriver (which is a poor reason to hate the sunglasses IMO). People are acting like the screwdriver is gone forever and it really isn't. We're just getting a temporary change. But, in all seriousness, I implore you (and all of the other naysayers) to explain to me why the sonic sunglasses are more stupid and worse than a sonic screwdriver. Please. I want to understand!
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I can see how it felt rushed. I do agree that this concept was handled a bit better with Pacifica.
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Well..unlike Peridot, Pacifica, Diamond Tiara, and whatever character who was redeemed in Star Vs. (I haven't seen it), Missy wasn't really so much redeemed as much as put on the same side as the Doctor for a story. She hasn't been redeemed nor do I think she/he ever will. The Master will always be evil.
3463823 Don't worry. I never took it as about me. I just thought those choice portions of your rant followed by ".... Never mind" would be amusing. I'm weird like that.
Oh, there are plenty of reasons. There's.... And of course.... But most importantly.... I got nothing.
It's like in your gut and stuff. Like screwdriver! 
Sunglasses? 
3463831 What I meant was that the personality and screentime she got made her a lovable character in some peoples eyes
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Not a naysayer myself, but...when you run into a room, you can point a screwdriver at things! With sunglasses, you just have to stare intensely for the same effect, but since the sonic sunglasses don't look any different from a normal pair, you'd just come off as weird instead of as a weird alien. It's just not the same.
I don't know if you're aware of this, but Diamond Tiara and her mother share the same VA in Chantal Strand. Before Friendship is Magic, she was the voice of StarSong and Tiddly Wink in G3 MLP. Just felt like sharing.