Thoughts on... "Hard to Say Anything" · 5:52pm May 29th, 2017
Decided to post this closer to the US airdate so that I don't burn myself out on 2 episodes a week (though Canada's now just airing reruns and we've got a mid-season hiatus thing now...). My Memorial Day celebration was done yesterday, so I'm pretty much doing things as normal at work and home today.
Welp, guess I better get this one over with... I was putting this one off for a bit... I wasn't exactly looking forward to this one...
~When I first watched this, I completely forgot that it was a CMC episode. So when they appeared in the beginning of the episode, I was wondering what the heck they were doing there. And then I remembered their role in the story.
~So, uh... did Big Mac walk all the way there, or did he take the train at some point? Because that place is pretty far away and out of the way.
~I'm still going to ignore how barren Our Town still is and stick with the growth I gave it between the Our Town arc of Brotherly Bonding Time and the beginning of Escape from the Dreamscape.
~I was wondering how they had met in the first place, but then I remembered that Sugar Belle was at that honoring ceremony/Starlight's graduation. Okay, that makes sense that they'd have bumped into each other at some point.
~Still, why Sugar Belle? 
~Well, that's a lot of apples. I sure hope she has enough room to store them in. That caramel apple looks good (I love those, and hated not eating them when I had braces as a young teen). Though, I do wonder how long it'll take before her customers are sick of the apple treats and want lemon treats or chocolate treats or whatever kind of treats.
~First crush? Really? I give them points for bringing up the love potion incident and saying that it doesn't count, but that kind of ignores all the cute background stuff that went on between Mac and Cheerilee. Let's not get started on the whole MarbleMac debacle and the question of "Is it incest?" News flash, it isn't--incest is if the two parties are closely related--as in parent-child, brother-sister, and arguably first cousin. I've got a cousin who married someone that was her third-cousin or something (more closely related than the Pies and Apples might be), and nobody gives a crap, especially since their son's a healthy toddler.
~Aaaaand we have Justin Bieber playing the role of Gaston. Okay, so I thought Feather Bangs would be a pegasus, but nope. He's Bieber Gaston. Complete with hitting on a "Belle" and swooning Bimbettes in the background. All he needs is a LeFou.
~Oh, no... they're gonna do the whole dumb cliche ways of impressing a girl. And Bieber Gaston is going to get in the way over and over.
~Again, I ask, "Why Sugar Belle?"
~So, the stopping the purse snatcher thing? Check.
~NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO THIS IS NOT SLEEPING BEAUTY NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO FOR ONCE I AM THANKFUL FOR BIEBER GASTON GETTING IN THE WAY.
~"Hey! That's our metaphorical sunset to ride off into!" Okay, I laughed at that line.
~As someone who likes country music, I'm okay with Big Mac singing.
~And Bieber Gaston hijacks the serenade with a cheesy pop number. Um, okay, thanks for reminding me why I scrapped the "jerk pop star" idea for Tomato Sandwich and made him a grumpy business student. Even the character created as a reference to First Draft Tommy, Snapdragon Apple, would cringe at this.
~Okay, I love how Sugar Belle's getting increasingly fed up with the boys' crap. Then again, any sane girl would get fed up with this.
~Sorry, Bieber Gaston, only Cheese Sandwich could pull off getting covered in hot cheese fondue without burning himself. Unless you've secretly got a well of party pony magic inside you. In which case, go away, Our Town already has a local party pony... speaking of whom, where's Party Favor? I want to watch an episode about him instead of this nonsense.
~Wow, watch out. Sugar's getting so heated that she's gonna get caramelized. That was a bad joke and I should feel bad.
~Oh, found Party Favor. He's just having lunch with Night Glider and trying to force himself to get over the fact that he took too long to make a move with an increasingly impatient Sugar Belle, and suddenly, the other fish in the sea get attracted to Sugar's apparent beauty, and poor Party feels like he can't compete. Night Glider can see through those fake bedroom eyes, and is still trying to figure out how to help her friend. Shut up and let me have my stupid theories, this episode is determined to try to crush me... but I won't let it! 
~So, uh... why Sugar Belle? I don't feel like I've learned anything new about her that would justify the SugarMac ship to me. It's just "sweet and likes to bake"... which I've already gathered from her first appearance (I also gathered that her telekinesis is scary strong in that episode, because she threw a snow pie pretty far and and with apparently enough momentum that she broke Starlight's cart), except maybe this time she's recovered from the whole "cutie markless cult" thing.
~Okay, so, uh... guess we learned something new about her now? She's kind of snarky, I guess. And doesn't put up with crap? I guess her formation of the conspiracy group (for lack of a better name) with Party Favor and Night Glider in the S5 premiere could count, but I don't know. For that matter, there's bananas in her bag--might as well just ship her with Bananas for all I care! I can think of better ways to justify it than with SugarMac.
~At least Big Mac rebuilt the display case as an apology. It was really nice and all, but I still don't feel it. Maybe it's because they're trying to force this ship on me instead of having some sort of fun chemistry for me to enjoy. It's how I started shipping CheesePie and QuibbleDash--the interactions of both pairs were just beautiful. Here, it's just "Oh, you're a sweet mare!" and "Oh, you did something nice for me!" and then "nuzzle nuzzle nuzzle". It makes me feel awkward and want to cleanse my soul with a good Disney movie--at least I can connect with most of their romances.
~And no worries! Bieber Gaston goes with the Bimbettes! Wait, what? Which one? Or are you going with all of them? This scares me.
Well... that was something. While it's not something that I'd call absolutely horrid (that dubious honor still goes to "Somepony to Watch Over Me"), and I did actually find some fun parts about this episode, it's generally "meh". As for the canon status of SugarMac... eh, I have my doubts about whether they'll follow up on that (if they did, I'd be simultaneously impressed and annoyed with it).
But, one's enjoyment can depend on whether or not they think the SugarMac romance was well handled. And frankly, I don't think it was--it just feels like a by-the-numbers story of how (not) to impress a girl, with Sugar Belle just slapped in with little consideration of her overall personality instead of just "that sweet baker", which is ironic, given the episode's moral. Even with "Hearts and Hooves Day" and the whole love potion nonsense, I could see something coming out of the genuine Cheerilee and Big Mac interaction at the end, even if they are just teasing the Crusaders. This episode just feels so cheap. I want my money back.
I'm sorely tempted to write some more SugarFavor to spite this episode, and call SugarMac a temporary thing that ended with them just being friends in my 'verse. I didn't even feel super threatened by this episode; just really, really confused and annoyed.
Also, fight between Bieber Gaston and Cowboy Gaston (Cortland from The Rock Farmer's Daughters). Who wins?
I did not like it either. The one thing I did like about it was Feather Bangs turned out to be as socially awkward as Big Mac, beneath that annoying flipping mane and pretty-boy facade; it just made him less of a cliche and more realistic
As you noted, we have a Gaston, three admirers, and a very large person with crippling self-esteem issues. We needed a Belle of some kind to complete the set, and Sweetie's underage.
With regards to the MarbleMac issue, I cite Apple Bloom not picking up on the very, very quiet signals. For most ponies, it takes at least a bachelor's in Pie Sister Communication to determine which "Mm-hmm"s are the flirtatious ones. (By that point, one can also determine Maud's emotional state, Limestone's blood pressure, and Pinkie's caloric intake at a glance. It's a niche field, but it has its uses.)
I can definitely by your interpretation of the PartyGlider lunch. This could certainly be the face of desperately trying to let a friend down easy.
As for the pairing itself, we'll see what, if anything, the show staff does with it.
Well the thing before the episode started Applebloom stated the Mac has been going to Starlight's village a lot lately, before this episode. yeah it's all Mac the he goes out the way for her. here's another reason I can think of it be how she bakes those Apple treats. I noticed in show Mac has never cooked which leads me to believe he instantly admires anyone who takes the apples and make them delicious. it's possible that the love she put into baking those treats is what attracts him.
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Oh, I didn’t miss that part about his “fifth time that week”; I just didn’t mention it because I had nothing to say, it was already obvious to me why he was taking multiple trips. I was just questioning the whole distance issue, because the Cutie Map’s montage of the girls heading to the village implied... yeah, it’s pretty freakin’ far away. But then future episodes start to stretch my disbelief by making it seem like just a day trip. With cities named “Manehattan” and “Las Pegasus”, placed on the map in similar areas to their real life counterparts, that kind of implies that Equestria’s almost as big as America, so that’s how I doubt the whole “day trip” angle.
As for your theory on the why of SugarMac... why didn’t they show that as the reason he’s attracted to her? Not to mention that it doesn’t solve the issue of how in the episode’s context, I still have no idea who Sugar Belle is. She’s “that sweet baker”... okay, but Pinkie Pie’s a “sweet baker” too. And so is Mrs. Cake. They could likely make delicious apple treats. And yet, they’re still clearly distinct characters with traits outside of their professions--what does Sugar Belle have besides that? If I have to rely solely on Fridge Brilliance to understand a canon romance, then, well, it’s a poorly written romance that does not make the why of the attraction clear.
Seriously, Sugar Belle was wasted in this episode. She (and the other three) had so much potential to be interesting characters, and I was hoping that this episode would give me more insight on who she is. But all I got were stupid, pointless hijinks and Sugar reduced to generic love interest... that just so happens to like baking. Whoop de doo.
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Expect that in the show, the Apples make long trips all the time for their business. I mean both Mac and Apple went all the way through a dangerous swamp just to deliver apple pies. So it's possible that long trips are not a big deal for him.
Also, I see your point about not knowing much Suger Bell but maybe more it don't need to be explained, Maybe suppose to be irrational after all it is just a crush maybe we'll see more later.