Doctor Perseus Reviews: "My Little Pony: The Movie" *NO SPOILERS* · 3:05am Oct 6th, 2017
Been a long time since I last wrote a review. For those of you who are still interested in that, I am planning on giving an overview of my thoughts on the second half of Season 7 once it finishes. For now, here's my thoughts on the highly anticipated MLP movie (spoiler-free since it just came out)!
I'm going to jump right in and say that I really liked this movie. It's not perfect, there are a few things to nitpick, but it was overall an incredibly satisfying experience for a long-time fan such as myself. There are so many fun Easter Eggs throughout the movie. Several characters from throughout the series make at least one cameo. Most of these cameos are non-speaking roles but their presence on the big screen was good enough. Though there was one character whose omission sort of bugged me. I won't say who it was here (I might have even missed them in the crowd at some point) but their absence is a bit nagging considering the appearance of another certain character. But I'll save that for a later spoiler review that I may write after Season 7 finishes up.
The overall story was really good. The predictability fluctuates a bit. Some spots are very predictable while there were a few turns that surprised me. Some were a bit more obvious due to me reading the prequel comics though. But it was definitely a story worthy of the big screen. This plot wouldn't have worked as well as a simple two-parter.
Now let's talk about the characters. This is definitely Twilight's movie and she's absolutely great throughout. But the other characters get to shine as well. Now, in a movie with quite a roster of characters, it is a bit inevitable for some characters to get more of a spotlight than others. Focusing on just the Mane 6 (Spike gets plenty of focus as he's among the group); Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash do appear to get a bit more of a focus than Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy. But the movie makes sure to at least give each of the Mane 6 (as well as Spike) at least one awesome and/or heartfelt moment. Fluttershy gets a moment during the final battle that's absolutely hilarious and perfectly fitting for her character. And Pinkie is just a ball throughout.
We also got to meet a bunch of new characters throughout this movie and all of them were likable. There was one instance where I felt the pacing was a bit off with some of these characters. It wasn't really bad but it did leave me a bit annoyed how the characters in question went through a simple heel-turn in about the course of a song. But, hey, that's MLP for ya. If I had to pick a favorite new character, it would have to be Capper. It's been confirmed that Princess Skystar is going to appear in Season 8. I hope we get to see these new characters again as well.
The villains were also pretty great. Tempest was a threatening villain (voiced wonderfully by Emily Blunt) and the Storm King was a fun, Discord-esque antagonist. We also got a nice mix of the sympathetic villain and the completely evil villain. I've leave you to guess who was who.
The animation took some time getting used to. But, for the most part, it was excellent. The odd mix of CGI in some parts is a bit distracting but nothing too terrible. The animation worked especially well in the facial expressions. There's an argument between Twilight and Pinkie Pie at a point in the movie that left my jaw open. Not just because of the argument itself but just how perfectly the facial expressions added to the emotional punch of one line. You'll know it when you see it but the little details really do matter.
The voice acting was great all-around. The show's VAs of course do a splendid job. I was a bit nervous about the celebrity voice actors though. Celebrities aren't known for being the greatest VAs. But I am pleased to announce that they all did a pretty good job. I heard their voices as the voices of their characters rather than a celebrity's voice coming out of a character's mouth.
The music was great as well. There were certainly some songs that I enjoyed more than others but no song was boring and each had a very fun animation sequence to accompany it.
Overall, My Little Pony: The Movie is a must-see for any fan. I give it a 9/10.
I was considering writing my own review for the MLP movie now that I've just seen it tonight. Might do it in few days or so. Also been considering doing my own thing for the second half of Season 7 as well.
For now, I'll just say that I though MLP the Movie was a good movie. But not a great one. It was what I expected, but it failed to surprise or impress me.
Really?!
When was that confirmed? Does that mean Kristen Chenoweth will be guest starring next season?
Capper was also my favorite of the movie characters. I think it has to do with him being one of the first of the Mane 6's allies to be introduced, meaning he has the most screen time. His song "I'm the Friend You Need" ended up being my favorite of the film due it kind of having a Latin flavor and a certain Disney-esque quality. But I still like "Rainbow", but I kind of consider it separate for some reason. "Time to be Awesome" is probably my second favorite.
You're right, the voice actors did do a good job. I had a time telling it was Liev Schreiber as the Storm King and Michael Peña as Grubber. (He sounded more like John Leguizamo to me for some reason.)
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Thinking I may have given it a bit high of a score. But I really did enjoy this movie a lot. I guess I should put it anywhere from the 7-9 range. I'm not going to say it was the greatest movie I've ever seen. Not even the greatest thing MLP has done. But it was a successful move to the big screen nonetheless. I think everyone will enjoy it at least. I don't see anyone seeing it as a outright awful movie. But I'm sure there's someone out there like that.
"Time to be Awesome" was probably my personal favorite song. Though I really liked "Rainbow". It's a song I like more and more each time I listen to it.
I forgot where I read the Skystar news. I at least remember reading that elements from the movie will make appearances in Season 8, like the seaponies.
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I've listened to the soundtrack some more since I viewed the movie. Gotta say that "Open Up Your Eyes" is a great villain song. Emily Blunt's really got a good singing voice. Now that I'm thinking about it, I might even write up a review of the soundtrack in a couple days. A bit odd for me, I know, but I guess I might as well do something else special for Friendship is Magic's big move to the big screen.
I've seen some people already discussing the possibility of a sequel. What do you think about that. Personally, I'm not thinking about any sequels since the movie JUST CAME OUT. We've also got the rest of Season 7 and Season 8 to look forward to. And who knows if FiM goes beyond Season 8. What if Hasbro decides to push FiM into Season 10 territory? Ten years of MLP. That'd be interesting. Here's hoping the show can maintain its quality. Though I'm not really worrying since Season 7 has actually been quite a step up in quality over Season 6. Maybe even Seasons 4 and 5. Your thoughts?
I dunno, i feel i have to disagree with a few things here. Yes the movie was amazing, and animation, score, sound effects aside, the story was a bit too cheesy with what it was going for, especially near the end. I don't cringe at most things but the line "Friendship didn't fail me, I failed friendship" nearly had be going there. It was just a bad line.
I would also criticize that the movie focused so heavily on Pinkie and Twilight that you could have had almost the entire movie with just those two with Spike and Rainbow as supporting characters and most of the movie would stay the same. Aside from Rarity who charmed Catters, AJ and Fluttershy did almost nothing except be there. Fluttershy's shining moment came at the end but it was mostly as a gag which amounted to nothing story wise. AJ's big moment was what? Lassoing Twilight? Killing the mood Catters set? Rainbow had far more stand out moments and lines than either of them combined and she still felt back seat to Pinkie Pie the majority of the time just through sheer amount of dialogue split between the two of them.
I also would say that The Storm King isn't a pretty good villain, probabaly the lamest out of the roster so far. Tempest was far more intimidating. He had nothing backing him except size without the staff. He displayed no cunning, no power, no way to back up his threats or (fake as they were) promises. Tirek had cunning and a silver tongue. Discord had insanity and god like powers. Heck even Starlight had magic and a strategic mind on her side when she was evil. He just seemed bland and unintimidating for who he was supposed to be, and raised questions on how he came into power.
But my biggest gripe was how many questions this movie raised. Aside from how he came into it, he HAD power. He dominated the outside world, and absolutely no precautions were taken for the Friendship event. Nobody looking up at the clear sky to see no less than 5 warships. Not a single royal guard or Wonderbolt on patrol? Celestia not knowing the Hippogrifs were gone but still willing to have them be the first line of backup? I don't like to poke holes in stories, I REALLY don't. But this movie left me no choice. I loved it. but any story that raises more questions than it answers is a haphazardly written story. I give the movie a 6.5/10.
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I personally didn't think that particular line was any cheesier than any other friendship lessons placed in past MLP stories. Even in premieres and finales, there have been "and here's the lesson" or "here's why friendship is the best" type of moments. I won't deny that it was a cheesy line but MLP's always had a bit of a cheesy feel at times. But I can understand how it can bee too much at times.
I agree with the Fluttershy and Applejack problem. In a movie with such a large roster of characters, most of the time it is inevitable for some to get somewhat pushed to the sidelines. Maybe they should have gotten the writers of Captain America: Civil War on this. They knew how to properly balance characters. I still think they had some nice moments but it would have been nice for all of the Mane 6 to shine equally in their big movie.
I would say the Storm King had a much better presence in the prequel comics than he did here. But that is an issue. These new characters should have all stood on their own in the film without a need for anyone to read their prequel comics. I would say that all of the new characters were able to stand well enough on their own. Except for the Storm King, of course. While I did enjoy his presence in the film, it could have been handled a lot better. Tempest always felt like more of a threat. Maybe we should have gotten some scenes of the Storm King terrorizing the ponies back in Canterlot while our heroes were on their journey. Just some scenes for him to show his true power. The prequel comics did that pretty well (I highly recommend them, especially for Capper's backstory). But, thinking about it, I do agree that the Storm King could have been handled way better in the movie.
I agree there are some holes to find in the story. Like you, I still like the movie. Probably gave it a bit of a high score. But, then again, I was on a post-movie high when I wrote this review. Though I'd still range the movie in the 7-8 range.
4693143 I still like it. It's a pretty good movie. But my hype is towards the Doctor Who Christmas special. Have you seen the new trailer?
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You mean the trailer released during Comic-Con? Of course! Can't wait!