Triple Threat Problems(spoilers) · 9:39pm Aug 20th, 2017
So let me start off with saying that I liked this episode. I loved seeing all three of them again, Spike (who may I point out really hasn't been seen at all since episode 4) Ember and Thorax. But with that in mind I have a pretty big issue with one part of the episode. Spike getting called by the map. I've been around and I've seen various reactions ranging from "Oh so the map is calling anyone now" to "finally we made a full circle of seats around the map" The latter of which I agree with. Spike has a seat by the map and is therefore important. We know now that he even has his own way of being called.
But here's the problem. The way he gets called in this episode is self defeating to that point. Spike wasn't particularly important in this episode... like... at all. He was a plot device for getting the two main characters together. He was important in each characters individual episode, but not this one. Even him being called by the map wasn't anything groundbreaking or revolutionary. The map had literally no choice but to call him as he both caused the problem and, worse off, caused it in the very vicinity of the map itself.
In a similar situation, lets say it was Derpy who somehow caused the friendship problem with Lyra and Bon Bon and they were visiting the castle as it happened. It'd seem hypocritical of the map to call on anyone else to fix it. When you think about it like that it seems like Spike being called is no big deal. The very situation in which Spike gets called undermines what should be a special occurrence. Starlight getting called was a bigger shock by comparison.
The whole thing leaves me with a bitter taste in my mouth when consuming what was otherwise something enjoyable. And it leaves my stranded inbetween the two reigning opinions of Spike this episode. Not as bad as wasted potential from Spike... just misuse of his potential that I talked about in an earlier blog post.
What do you guys think of this whole situation.
Pretty much agree, and this episode was unnecessarily harsh on Spike. The plot device issue I also had with A Royal Problem (after the cutie mark switch, Starlight didn't really have a meaningful interaction with the princesses post switch), the map in general feeling very clunky this season. My issue was how much flack Spike got for essentially pulling a Twilight. He knew he made a mistake (and he's a kid as well, or at least significantly younger than the rest of the cast), but when he tried to apologize, he got told off by both Thorax and Ember, who left, bonded, and came back to tell him off again, denying him the chance to apologize until after (essentially kicking him while he's down twice). Spike pretty much got more flack this episode than anyone else this season.
Didn't see it. But I expected complaints; it is a Spike episode, after all, and they'll never repeat the success of "Gauntlet of Fire".
Besides, anything looks bad after
"Fans and Mistreatment""Fame and Misfortune".The map interrupted him working on the problem to distract him with a wild goose chase? Scumbag map!
4642186
At least it was less unnecessarily harsh than Princess Spike... that left a really bad taste. This was just cringey and predictable (and yes, let's make fun of Spike for pulling a Twilight).
4642378 Nah man, don't get me wrong the episode as a whole I think was alright. Definitely not the worst of this season. I will say Fame and Misfortune annoyed me a tiny bit tho.
4642186 But the issue isn't that they told him off, if you look at it, he kinda deserved it. Both of them came in vulnerable states and Spike just ignored them, especially Thorax. And since both were emotionally hurt, a sorry doesn't exactly work. Honestly I don't blame any of them for what happened except Twilight who, realistically should have helped Spike with the whole exaggerated imagination issue. I almost wanna believe she went with it on purpose to teach Spike a lesson.
4642783
It's more of a case where if anyone but Spike pulled the same thing, they wouldn't realize their mistake until being told off then would be instantly forgiven on apology. Spike knew he screwed up and tried to apologize, but they told him off and left. It would've been fine if they left it at that and Spike got a chance to apologize, but then they come back again and stop him from apologizing while he's clearly distraught so that they can tell him off again. Combine that with him being a child (at least the show treats him as one), that he pulled a Twilight (except the consequences, however unlikely, could have actually been devastating unlike Lesson Zero), and that he was the reason Thorax was able to make friends at all and he introduced Ember to friendship (and made her Dragon Lord), it felt needlessly harsh. Yes, Spike freaked out over nothing and hurt them, but he knew he made a mistake and wanted to try and fix it. Instead, they essentially kick him while he's down. I don't know, the entire thing just felt dirty to me.
4642783
I can't see how it couldn't annoy anyone. It basically told us that it's impossible to be an adult, a Brony and a decent human being all at once. I figured any episode, let alone a Spike episode, would be a failure after that, and I seem to be at least half-right.
4642999 lol gonna be honest, i have no idea how you got that pessimistic impression. To me the message was more akin to the writers poking fun at the fans who want perfect and logical characters and those who complain when something they dont understand or agree with happens. When these writers are trying their best to give us realistic flawed growing characters who make illogical choices and don't always learn their lesson. yeah they were poking fun at us but not to the degree of saying that we can't all be decent people. Though i will say it would have helped my point if they showed us some ponies who were fine with the book lol.
But anyway, it annoyed me because it didn't have the consequences releasing a book like that should have had. For example, im downright positive that Daring Do's secret identity was revealed in RDs chapter, and we didn't so much as get a comment on it. Anything that would be considered private, like something involving the Royal Sisters, the betrayal of the Wonderbolts towards their own team, etc. That kinda stuff should have taken front page as news and the central conflict. But i'm all about meta commentary so i don't mind the episode being like it was. I guess i'll leave the other stuff to the fanfics.
4643020
When we complain when something we don;t like happens, it's called "criticism". This basically told us that they are excusing themselves from criticism just because some of us are being jerks about it.
Which leads to their flawed and hurtful representation of the fans. You show me one grown mare or stallion in that episode who wasn't a childish argumentative asshole, and I might reconsider, but until then, they proved that they think we're all unlikable dregs who do nothing but complain.
And these are the same people who gave us "Slice of Life". That's like giving us cake, then turning around and punching us in the gut. It's ungrateful and juvenile, and frankly, I've been made fun of enough in my life and I don;t need from the only good thing I had in it.
That's because these writers are not skilled enough to pull off a deep message like that and instead focused on their little meta joke that they thought they were so proud of. They didn't think anything through and thought it more fun to insult us after we gave them the success they got (MLP wouldn't be nearly as successful without Bronies). At best, it's poorly-thought out, and at worst, it's just mean-spirited and ungrateful. And either way, I'm willing to bet it didn't turn out the way M. A. Larson wanted it to.
4643530 No bruh Complaining about something you don't like is called whining and is what the episode is specifically calling out. If you were criticizing you'd be giving a logical analysis and critique of the work because you thought something was wrong or seemed off from a literary or artistic standpoint, not because you didn't like it. There's a fine difference and the line that separates them is the line where you gain either respect or loathing from ppl. A good critic gets respect because they analyze fairly and without bias, a bad one brings their personal feelings into it and comes off as unprofessional and not worth listening to.
The characters in this episode where complainers, not critics. They disliked and hated what they didn't understand and didn't for a second try to analyze why what they read was what happened. They got angry and yelled at the writers of the book. In response, the writers weren't excusing themselves, they were explaining themselves.
4643623
So, you recognize that there's a difference. That's good, because they don't seem to think there is one.
Again, this episode paints us all with the same brush and doesn't even attempt to remember that not all of us act the same way, for the same reasons. These "fans" are strawmen, pure and simple.
4643020
It's possible that Dash could have written about meeting Daring Do without also mentioning 'turns out she's AK Yearling'.
Though, it would still be quite a reveal as it's been previously implied that nopony thinks DD is real.
As for the current episode, it seems as if the Map decided that the best way to solve the problem was to distract Spike and make him mess up even harder than he would have done.
It's kind of tragic when a mystical object that perceives time non-linearly considers your most useful attribute to be your ability to screw up whatever you're trying to accomplish.