Spike Kills Dumbledore [episode spoilers!] · 5:49pm Apr 16th, 2016
So the lesson of On Your Marks is that ponies are dumb. Bulk Biceps is dumb (but funny), Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are dumb, and Apple Bloom is about the dumbest pony ever. And while it's not as bad as The Gift of the Maud Pie, I found myself more bored by this on a second watching. It's another episode with a majorly nothing conflict, and while Polsky's sight gags were good, they aren't enough to carry a whole episode. Apple Bloom is just that dumb and boring. :| I might actually be done with the CMCs. And since he didn't end up kissing anyone, I didn't really care about Tender Taps, either.
But more importantly, did you notice that bubblegum pony during their "try to help ponies who obviously don't need help" sequence? I swear she's based off a G3 pony, but I can't think who. Or maybe a G1. Maybe Fizzy? But even more importantly, the pony after her in the sequence is Barber Groomsby, the manliest blind bag pony ever. :D I'm glad they snuck him into the show!
At least the song sequence is great. I'm not sure which scene is better: the one with Cherry Berry and Berry Punch stomping grapes, the one with all the artist-reference ponies (naked Tree Hugger aside), or the one that suggests that not only is Diamond Tiara still reformed, but Silver Spoon is right there alongside her. But yeah, none of these are the episode. :B
When I heard today's episode was written by Lewis and Songco, I was hoping it would be more Rarity Investigates than Hooffields and McColts. And while the comparison isn't completely apt, Gauntlet of Fire is definitely an overall positive episode.
I have to admit, I was thinking at first that it would be another Griffonstone, with a ton of worldbuilding that I ultimately wouldn't care about. But somehow, about halfway through, I suddenly found myself really caught up in what was going on. I mean, yes, Ember's character arc is severely predictable, yes, Spike's arc is severely predictable, and yes, it was incredibly weird just how stilted the name "Garble" came out every single time it was said (but they said it!), but gosh darn if I didn't enjoy this.
From the amazing plethora of dragon designs (why is Torch Australian? Who cares.) to the fucking awesome outer plan of the Flamecano (because "volcano" wasn't metal enough), this was just full of striking visuals. And for all that she's tsundere-as-fuck porn bait, I kinda like Princess Ember. (It is really funny that I just read Love Is a Drag-on. XD) Heck, I liked Dragon Lord Torch, too. This episode taught me that most dragons have a hate-boner for Equestria, but not Torch. He's chill as fuck. (Granted, it also taught me that the only way to keep dragons in line is mind control, but we're just gonna ignore the implications of that.)
I don't think I have anything negative to say about this. There were a couple awkward lines here and there. Garble wasn't high on my list of characters to make a reappearance, but I definitely like the humiliating punishment he ends up with at the end. Also, they fucking terrified me with that momentary thought of "IS SPIKE GOING TO BE THE DRAGON LORD? ARE WE FUCKING DOING THIS?" Thank god it ended like it should have. :B
But yeah. Good episode. First actual good episode of the season, I would say. (And on that note, a Spike episode where he doesn't fuck everything up for once. Rejoice!) And just in time; I was starting to worry.
Gauntlet of Fire
The Crystalling
On Your Marks
The Gift of the Maud Pie
Out on My Own
I am digging these Dragons a lot.
This was my comment when that whole thing of him competing came up:
i.imgbox.com/a9d3Rdc6.png
Seriously though, the dragons, for all their jerk-ness, are much more relatable as a species when it comes to world-building than with Gryphons. Maybe it's because with the catbirds they decided to cram too much? I dunno.
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Both societies suffer from "You've read fifteen fanfics with far better ideas already" syndrome. But I dunno, maybe dragons are more relatable. Griffons seem to have built their society around being jerks, dragons just kind of are jerks naturally. Something like that?
3874407 Could be. Like... I feel like dragons act tough in MLP, but aren't, really. I mean. Even Garble.
Best Spike episode to date.
For once, having Twilight in an episode was annoying as she was little more than a nuisance.
So does the Crystal Torch actually mind control the dragons, or is it just the only authority they respect. I didn't see any of the classic "swirly eyes" mind control victims get in cartoons on Garble, but on the other hand, mind control magic appears about every other episode in MLP, so I guess we're due.
It's always fun to read opinions so different from your own, it's why I read your blog even though I almost always disagree with your opinions.
I thoroughly enjoyed the first four episodes of this season, but I found this episode incredibly dull. It's hard to describe, but it felt like the writers were playing connect-the-dots with the scenes rather than telling a story. I didn't like it at all.
The episode would've been improved if Twilight and Rarity weren't there. The stakes would feel higher if Spike was on his own.
I mourn that we will never know the reign of Dragonlord Crackle.
But yeah, very fun episode. I just wish Rarity and Twilight either had more a purpose or weren't there. They were kind of vestigial.
I just loved that the ponies had no trouble at all navigating all the hazards, while mostly maintaining their cover.
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They lampshaded it when Ember asked, "How did you get in here?" Ember confirmed for not knowing some ponies can teleport.
At several points, I imagined Twilight doing a silent count-down before she used her magic to pull Spike out of the soup... only to have it end up unnecessary.
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All I can really say to agree with this is that the story was fairly predictable. It was still more entertaining than the last two episodes.
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+1 for silent offscreen teleportation -- but why was Twilight threatened by Garble? I can understand wanting to keep a low profile, but once their cover's blown and it's Garble and good guys, it seems like Twilight could have pacified him pretty decisively without any other dragon's help. Maybe she just wanted to let Spike feel like he (and his friendship with Ember) was helping.
3875352
Yeah, I think Twi was giving Spike his "space." Either that or she's taken a page from Celestia's book and is letting him sink or swim.
I think Twi could have easily managed Garble, but that would have risked drawing the attention/ire of Lord Torch, who is probably far beyond her capability to handle.
Plus, we've got shouting dragons. I predict Dovahkiin PMVs in our future.
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Twilight and Rarity were the first step on Ember's slippery slope to friendship. They were her first questions on friendship: (paraphrased) Why would you risk your life to protect them? Why would they risk theirs just to cheer you on?
What they did was vestigial. What they did was paramount to Ember's arc.
One thing, though. Besides the dragon lord, where were the actually large, adult dragons, like the one from S1, or either of the times Spike got big, or (mostly in the background) "Dragon Quest"? (I think I might have seen one, plus Crackle, in a background shot at one point, but I'm pretty sure not in the gauntlet itself.) Did he just summon the adolescents and babies? Why, and if so, why the focus on size if the selection process gets rid of everyone who would really fit that criterion?
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They were excellent character catalysts, yes, but that's the problem. They were catalysts, speeding up the reaction but not actually involved in it, even when they needed to defend themselves. That metaphor rapidly denatured, but I think you see what I mean.
3876010
Things tend to denature when subjected to extreme heat, like what you'd find in a flamecano.
But yeah, I did feel like they were just there as much as everyone else seems to. I still got laughs out of their disguises and Twilight's nerd-outs, so I'm content.
I still can't get over Rarity's compulsion to wave that branch around when she was talking in that tree disguise. It's more surprising that she gets covered in all sorts of gunge in this episode and barely bats a (false) eyelash. What an elegant, if puzzling, mare.
I was also wondering where all of the adult dragons were, too, and it's still a little weird that the dragons had their own Golden Goblet, but just given how entertaining the episode was as a whole it worked out for me
3876506
I've been seeing a lot of criticisms of this episode that I can't deny -- Twilight and Rarity's lack of agency, the quick and oddly-structured friendship arc for Ember, the fact that we've definitely seen this plot before -- but I think it all comes down to "it was entertaining". There was some fun new stuff to latch onto, and while I was watching, I was absorbed enough not to be thinking about what was being done wrong. And that counts for a lot, sometimes.
3876570 Fo sho, there's some merit to the "But Twilight KO'ed an Ursa Minor way back in Season 1!" argument when it comes to agency. I was more willing to buy into the notion that under duress or panic, ponies aren't gonna make rational decisions. And outside of going SSJ4 on Tirek, I don't really see Twilight as combative -- and even then that was only because others were in danger.
Would've loved to see Rarity break out the kung fu, all said. I guess in the end, what matters to me more is just that Twilight and Rarity somehow accompanied Spike and Ember all the way to the Bloodstone Scepter, which, any way you explain it, says something positive about what they can do.
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Also the fact that they're just able to show up at the various stopping points without any particular fanfare or hardship on their part is pretty funny, when you get down to it. :D
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There's also a non-zero percent chance that having three alicorns worth of extra magical energy pumped into you is basically like being on candy-horse methamphetamines.
But that's just my opinion.
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How to turn that into a story...
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"Twilight Saves The World And Also Twitches a Lot And Says 'Bitch' All The Time"
3874493 That's what fanfic is for. To make sure that Dragon Lord Crackle happens.