Applejack's "Day" Off first impressions

Friendship is Magic first impressions

S06e10 Applejack's "Day" Off

by Obake

This one's peculiar. It almost feels like an amateur slice-of-life fanfiction put to the screen rather than an actual episode. The writing is at bare levels of competency, with an aimless story, characters that feel out of character, and a hamfisted resolution. At its best, the episode is mundane, at its worst, it reaches WTF is going on.

Rarity is sick of Applejack being too busy with chores in order to meet her at the spa. That's right, Applejack has a weekly steambath with Rarity. I have no problem with the idea that AJ's grown to enjoy steambaths. But the episode treats this as if it's always been the norm. It certainly hasn't.

She has spent time at the spa before (Ponyville Confidential), and enjoyed it. But at heart, Applejack's a rough and tumble farmer, loves to till the earth and get dirt on her hooves. She's always been weary of the city-lifestyle, donning makeup, wearing frilly, frufru dresses. Weekly visits to the spa would not normally be part part of her routine, and the episode attempts to explain her sudden change of heart.

Speaking of mischaracterization, the worst to receive it in this episode is Rainbow Dash. Despite her immense fears of losing her awesome reputation if she was caught being pampered, she secretly enjoys going to the spa on a regular basis. By secretly, I mean attending in the middle of the day while the spa is brimming with customers. Shouldn't RD at least don a disguise?

I've gone so much over the missteps the episode makes in terms of characters, I've barely gone into the story. Applejack agrees to let Twiligt and Spike watch over the farm while she and Rarity get a steambath. The only chore Twilight and Spike are assigned is feeding the pigs, but due to the cryptic list of instructions AJ left them, they end up failing.

Meanwhile, at the spa, Rarity and Applejack find the line to the steam room backed up. Unwilling to receive any treatment but a steambath, Applejack goes sleuthing. She figures out that the reason behind the steam room not working is all of the hot water being used to wash towels, and a leaky pipe nearby keeping the hallway cold. Donning a tool belt and goggles, Applejack fixes the issues with the pipes, and gets the spa up in shape again. For some reason, Rarity is angry because AJ's spent her time fixing things instead of going through another of the spa's treatments. But I think helping solve potentially detrimental problems to the spa's revenue was a worthy cause.

So much happens in this episode, but it's all so unfocused that once it reaches the resolution it is difficult to even care. Applejack and Rarity check how Twilight and Spike are doing on the farm. Of course with instructions such as "1: open the gate, 2: close the gate", and other seemingly meaningless task just to feed pigs, Twilight and Spike have failed the task spectacularly. Applejack goes on feeding the pigs herself, using ritualistic maneuvers beforehand to do what should be one step, as if she has severe OCD.

Her rituals include the aforementioned opening and closing the gate, dancing and clucking like a chicken (what in the actual eff), making scary faces, and dangling from the top of the barn on a rope in order to...I can't even explain it. It is that incomprehensible. It is supposed to drive the point home that it sometimes takes an outside eye to see obvious problems. As AJ did in fixing the spa, and her friends in helping her cut down the rituals. To me it just makes Applejack look particularly incompetent as a farmer, especially as Twilight and Rarity give a hoof to her on the rest of her chores, and AJ is barely able to do anything right.

I should have mentioned the reason the rest of the Apple's aren't there: they are taking the harvest to town. Now to the extras, finally. This has been a long one.

Extras:
-I'm truly befuddled by RD's appearances at the spa. She tries to play it cool, behaving as if she's there for a sports massage after vigorous training with the Wonderbolts. These scenes are supposed to be a barrel of laughs, but they aren't at all. In fact, I don't remember a single joke in the episode working.
-More dialogue that the writers know the show is in a bad position: "Twilight's a princess and an alicorn, but not a farmer." Says Applejack, who unrealistcally goes through ridiculous steps just to accomplish possibly the most non-taxing chore on her own farm.
-It is interesting seeing more of the spa itself, including maintenance areas and the laundry room. The outside of the spa is shown as well, something not often for this location in the series.
-The dialogue and characters would feel right in place as part of a mediocre fanfiction. The way Rarity and AJ are so snippy when they have no reason to be, AJ's immense fix-it powers only applying at the spa, and her being totally inept everywhere else, RD's casual visits to the spa in her own hometown, not even with attempts to hide her identity. It all feels off.