Campfire Tales · 8:04pm Aug 26th, 2017
Friendship is Magic first impressions review: Campfire Tales (s07e16)
by Obake
(SPOILERS!)
From the promotional trailer for Campfire Tales, it was immediately apparent the episode would be referencing season 3's Sleepless in Ponyville. Having now seen the episode, I can say that it does borrow, but is mostly its own thing. Applejack, Rarity, Dash, and the Crusader's are once again camping, with Scootaloo (once again) afraid of her own shadow. The camping concept is fine, but making Scootaloo such a wreck for most of the episode grew tiresome. There is not even a catalysts for her fears, like a scary story or nightmares. Just remembering the events of Sleepless are enough to make her jump out of her skin, even in daylight and with good rest. I would not mind if the episode made a small reference, or if Scootaloo's fears were integrated more naturally, but it's so forced.
The story here is that the ponies get stranded inside a cave during a Fly-der swarm. Fly-der's are a mix between flies and spiders, with the ability to projectile vomit webs. They are a neat menace with cool design. While stuck in the cave, Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash tell stories of their favorite legends, in an anthology format.
Applejack's story is set in a viking style village. A stallion named Rockhoof wants to be one of the village protectors, a group known as the Mighty Helm. But he is too scrawny, and is laughed off. When a volcano erupts, Rockhoof proves his worth by digging a trench to lead the lava away from the town and into the ocean. Rainbow and Sweetie Belle interrupt to say how implausible it is that he could dig a trench fast enough to do that, which Applejack responds with (non verbatim) "luckily Rockhoof did not know the word impossible." In the process of digging, Rockhoof suddenly transforms into a hulking, muscled hero. It is an explanation akin to actual tall tales like Paul Bunyan, but not done in a way that feels purposely far fetched. Rather, it just comes off as lame.
Rarity's segment is the best. In imperial Japan or China, a unicorn named Mist Mane is sent to a prestigious magic school. After years of studies, she returns to her village to find it under the tyrannical rule of a one-time friend, a servant named Sable Spirit. Sable had grown tired of Mist Mane's fame, and in a misguided attempt to make herself more beautiful, cursed herself with an ugly visage. Enraged, she used her magic to take over, getting rid of everything beautiful. She and Mist get into a battle, resulting in Sable's overthrow. Unsatisfied, Mist Mane makes a selfless decision. She casts a spell that restores both the beauty to the village as well as to Sable's features -- at the sacrifice of her own. Mist Mane's face becomes wrinkled and tired, but she nevertheless lives on to restore beauty to everything else around her. Though her sacrifice holds weight, I feel it could have been made clearer as to whether the effects on her were permanent. Even so, the segment does a lot of things right, and has a unique style to the setting and characters.
The final story is told by Rainbow. Flash Magnus is a cadet in the royal legion, a group similar to the Wonderbolts but founded long before. When two of his fellow cadets are captured by a pair of dragons, Flash bravely decoys the dragons away from their lair, and leads them into a skyward chase. The dragons are defeated after being lead into an electrified storm. Flash is lauded as a hero, and receives a fireproof shield called Titus, which had been lent to him by his Commander, Ironhead. This segment is fine, and has decent action, but it's nothing amazing. It is neat seeing Dragon Lord Torch again, though, even if he does not get any lines.
What hurts Campfire Tales most, besides Scootaloo's needless panicking, is the schmaltzy ending. After realizing they are trapped (Rainbow purposely caved in the entrance earlier, to keep the Fly-ders out), they venture further in, riding down a stream which eventually leads them outside of a waterfall, to where they were headed to before their diversion: Whinsome Falls. I would not mind this if the characters behaved normal, but the Crusader's gush about how wonderful of an adventure they just had, which rings false. Getting attacked by bugs and stranded in a cave would be irritating, not fun. Heck, the cave was not even dangerous. Despite my gripes, Campfire Tales is simply okay, some segments stronger than others, but not much to remember.
Extra notes:
-One justified moment for Scootaloo to freak out: Rainbow was hungry enough to almost eat random berries, which Scootaloo warns are "extremely poisonous." Good to see the world of FiM can still show its fangs every now and again. Alongside deadly berries are the Fly-der's, whose web spewing skills can tie ponies up. They bite incessantly, whether to draw blood or as defense, it matters not. They have a strong presence, certainly, though it is not explained why they don't enter the cave right away.
-I don't know how to explain it, but the banter in this episode feels unnatural. First off, Scootaloo is nearly always a mess, and the way the other characters interact does not feel quite right. The characters in the story segments at least behave how you would expect, so there is not too much to complain about there.
-The Mist Mane story has the most potential, at least in my eyes. Little attentions to detail, like the unicorns horns being longer and slightly curved, like katanas, help elevate it. I like that the villain is threatening, but not directly malicious. Her redemption feels earned. Also, ponies in samurai armor: awesome!
-There is not much more to say about the other segments, except for a line from Commander Ironhead that could be used out-of-context: "I can't think of a worthier flank for Titus to protect."
-Remember season 1's Cutie Mark Chronicles, which turned the trope of schmaltz on its head? If only this episode could have borrowed from that.
