Newbie Dash S6E7 Recap · 4:13pm May 7th, 2016
Rainbow finally realizes her dream. Time to soar high or crash and burn.
First segment of the episode, I liked where the episode went. Because it made perfect sense. Yes, Rainbow Dash is naturally talented, but she's never been very disciplined, and while I presume it's happened in the reserve off-screen, we don't see her fly in formation with other pegasi much. There's a big difference, and yeah, of course Rainbow bungles the routines. The return of the "Rainbow Crash" nickname was a good callback, because it's time Rainbow got over her childhood bullying and that nickname.
Then the second act happened. I have no idea where the writers got this "Rainbow imitates the other Mane Six" idea from, but it was awful. It did not advance the episode's plot in any way, was not very funny, and made Rainbow look like an idiot. I can only presume the writers heard that Rainbow with Twilight's mane style from S5 was popular and wanted to milk it. I know it's cringe comedy, but it wasn't cringe comedy. It was just cringe.
Then comes the third act where Rainbow tries to go and show off and be awesome to earn a better name. Of course, she bungles it, and in an annoyance it turns out the trailer they released during the week was the end of the episode. Dumb idea. Spitfire chews out Rainbow, and when Rainbow confesses it's about the nickname, Spitfire explains the Wonderbolts all have nicknames about embarassing things they've done that they rib each other about, but they really do respect Dash and want her on the team because she is awesome. The episode ends with Rainbow still officially on the Wonderbolts.
The first act is promising, and there's many ways they could have gone with it. Rainbow can come to terms with her childhood bullying, showing her growth and maturity in the name not bothering her anymore. She can confront Spitfire about the name and they agree to let it go, the moral being to not be afraid to talk to people about your problems. Or they could go the way the episode did, with Spitfire explaining the nickname isn't a sign of disrespect, it's just how they roll. And that's fine, but it doesn't solve the other two problems. Rainbow Dash really is going to be called "Rainbow Crash" by the Wonderbolts from now on, and the nickname still bugs her and reminds her of flight camp and the bullies. It doesn't develop her character to avoid that issue, in fact I could see this coming up again. It won't, not in canon, but it will off-screen if this was really happening.
Beyond that, the episode is uneven. Spitfire says in the end that they've been waiting for a spot on the team to open up for Rainbow ever since she made the reserve, but then Rainbow shows a serious lack of discipline and maturity, making it seem like favortism. Rainbow is clumsy and lagging behind during practice, but during the third act she's performing the routines just fine until she breaks off to do her little stunt, and she was never all that clumsy before. And, again, the middle act is just awful, grinding the episode to a halt for the sake of cringe comedy that provides lots of cringe but no comedy. They could have used it to build character better for Dash, which was sorely needed. There is no real moral or lesson from this episode, the Wonderbolts assure Dash she's awesome and the nickname is just a joke, but the underlying problems in how Dash reacts to the name are still there.
I like that the writers didn't just dangle the carrot in front of us and then yoink it away by having Rainbow not join them after all, but otherwise, this episode missed the mark. It had a promising start but was directionless once Rainbow actually put on the uniform. Rainbow's characterization is mishandled, the Wonderbolts come off looking like dicks (again), the story is stretched, and the moral is weak.
For me this is the first big flop of the season.
They're less like dicks then in Rainbow Falls.
Personally, I decided to skip out on this episode because I could see what was coming with the Wonderbolt's characterization and didn't even want to see it. Oh well, if the track record keeps up they'll be back to normal next time around eh? Of course, on the other hoof there was no real way for the Wonderbolts to have known Rainbow's childhood name hurt her unless they just went around and asked.
You missed another glaring issue with the episode, Soarin got his nickname when he clipped his wing during a performance. That's not funny, that's like making fun of someone who fell and broke their leg through no fault of their own!
For me, it's the second, and a sign that season six is gonna be another season four at best.
3927961 ? I thought Season 4 was either best or second best season.
3927978
It's second-worst in my estimation. :B