The Optimum Strategy for Rewatching Pony Episodes · 5:32pm Apr 10th, 2016
As we moved into season 6, it seems I am not the only one who let out a cry of “But I still haven’t finished rewatching all of season 5!”
Back in the old days before season 3, when there were fewer episodes, there was plenty of time to rewatch everything. But now we have a legacy of over 120 episodes, plus Equestria Girls films and shorts… and the books and comics... And that’s before we even start on the fanfiction.
Of course no one would want it any different. The more pony the better. But it sometimes makes you wonder: How do we cope?
We could of course just treat each episode as ephemeral entertainment. I guess this is what most viewers do. Enjoy the weekly instalment of magical coloured ponies, chat about it with friends, then move on without worrying too much about the details. But the long term stories and character development is one of the great things about the show. For the hard-core fans, rewatching episodes is a difficult habit to break. It is also a great way to get ideas for new stories. It might be tempting to just keep watching favourite old episodes, but even the worst episodes have some good bits in them, and maybe after watching it the fifth time, you might find new things to appreciate in it.
A traditional method is to watch all episodes in order. Starting with Friendship is Magic, part 1, and going through the list until reaching the latest episode. But even with continuously watching, without toilet breaks, that comes to over 44 hours, and it keeps getting longer. That’s difficult to fit around our busy schedules.
We need a sustainable strategy to deal with the continuous stream of new pony, allow us to consolidate our appreciation of the last season, and not neglect the early days.
During the week between new episodes, we could watch one from each past season. This way we cover everything by the end of season 6. However this approach gives an equal weighing to season 1 and season 5. Which maybe isn’t quite right as most of us know season 1 very well, but there are some episodes of season 5 which I’ve only seen once. We need a strategy for watching pony which puts a greater emphasis on more recent episodes.
This is a familiar problem, which nearly all students reach at some stage in their studies. When you begin, it is easy to revise by just rereading your old notes. But there comes a point where you are taking in a pile of new information every day. You need to keep on top of it, but you also want to reread the bits you didn’t quite get last week. Revising everything is out of the question as there’s so much of it!
The way to cope is to be a Good Student, and draw up a proper Study Schedule and Revision Timetable.
Due to the way our memories work, the best revision schedules will revise new material often. Once you are familiar with it, you can increase the length of time between reviews. Eventually it will be firmly lodged in your long-term memory. But it is sensible to still occasionally revisit it to make sure it is not forgotten.
A mathematical way of saying this, is we need to revisit material at regular logarithmic intervals. First you revise what you studied yesterday, then what you studied 2 days ago, then what you did 4 days ago, then 8 days… 16 days… 32… 64... Following this approach, we can write down a formula for rewatching pony. Following the release of episode L, watch episodes E, where
So following L=121 (On Your Marks), we rewatch:
120 The Gift of the Maud Pie
119 The Crystalling (Part 2)
117 The Cutie Re-Mark (Part 2)
113 What About Discord?
105 Canterlot Boutique
89 Equestria Games
57 Magic Duel
This method will ensure you consolidate your knowledge of new episodes well. By the end of the season you will have seen the first few episodes of the season six times. But it does mean that you won’t get through all past episodes until some point in season 8. And while this approach is good for a regular stream of new episodes, it doesn’t provide a strategy for rewatching during the gaps between seasons.
Further work necessary.
That darn Pineta! Giving us genuinely good strategies for studying under the guise of frivolous equine entertainment! Damn him and his blog posts!
In another few episodes, even that review method will necessitate rewatching nine episodes each week. Manageable, yes, but it still feels a bit much.
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He's more cunning than we thought!
I think the last time I watched all th prior episodes of Pokemon was back about Episode 600 or so. took a couple weeks.
Awesome! I never knew the strategy of review of material at regular logarithmic intervals was a thing, but now that you've explained it, I can see that method in several places, notably the Pimsleur language lessons.
Encyclopedic knowledge of pony, here I come!
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You can adapt it to a different base. Use: E=L - x^i where x=L^(1/N) and N is the number you want to rewatch each week.
But yes, the reality is we cannot keep rewatching episodes at the same frequency without finding more time to do it.
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This was something I figured out years ago when I wrote a program to manage my Italian vocabulary lists.
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If your exponential value is the ratio between miles and kilometers.. approx 1.61, then thats the Golden Ratio, or Fibbonacci Series.
Well, here's how I do it:
Season 1
Season 2
... etc.
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kbondale.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dilbert-danger-of-multitasking.gif?w=470