Ranking the Mid Season Premieres (From Worst to Best) Version 2 · 4:56pm Aug 3rd, 2019
Now that "The Last Laugh" has officially premiered in the U.S., I can safely update this list without worrying too much about spoilers. And for now, it seems the early airings in China have stopped all together. Word now is that it won't be until Mid August that they resume, but I suspect it'll get pushed back again and again, Hasbro seems to have finally stepped in to stop the leaks (perhaps because of the trailer they just released that says you can only see the final episodes on "Discovery Family"). And before you ask, no, I haven't seen the trailer for the finale and neither do I intend to do so. Trailers either always give too much away or give nothing away, it's in their very nature to be either as descriptive or as vague as possible.
Anyway, the same rules as the first version of this list applies. We're not just looking at how the episodes function as their own but also how they function as a return from hiatus or even just the start of the second half of their season. Since Season 3 only got half a season, that means we have eight to consider including the newcomer. Here's the original version, let's see what changed.
8. Fame and Misfortune (Season 7, Episode 14)
Why it stayed on the bottom: M. A. Larson's recent interview that was posted to Equestria Daily has set the record more or less straight on what happened and why this episode became what it was. Larson had an idea to make it a Pinkie Pie episode in Season 5, but only wrote a rough sketch of the concept before it was rejected by Hasbro. They told him they wanted it to be a calling out of critics, so Larson wrote the script but then shelved it when he didn't like what he'd written. I'm not sure if that made him quit the show (in the interview given he said specifically that he didn't like being story editor, which might explain why he gave the reigns back to Meghan McCarthy for the second half of Season 5) but in any case he did. Then someone took his script, tweaked it to fit Season 7 (probably adding in Starlight Glimmer), and Hasbro told Larson about it and aired it despite his pleas for them not to do so. The end result was a mess that saw the show staff take to social media to do damage control, yet sadly it seems like Hasbro has been sneaking this similar call out into some of their other works. And I'm getting sick of it, you don't succeed by angering your fans and ignoring your critics. If Hasbro had come right out of the gate and shunned the Brony fandom, the show would've died. The show flourished in part because Hasbro didn't try to shun the Brony fandom and let it thrive. And putting this at the start of Season 7's second half, at a time when the season had only just found its footing, it didn't do anything to help. It's why Season 7 almost didn't top its previous season in quality.
7. Filli Vanilli (Season 4, Episode 14)
Why it moved down: Even putting aside the controversy over Pinkie Pie's portrayal in this episode and how the fandom reacted to it, this episode didn't do anything to get Season 4's second half started on a good note. It made the second half so rocky that it would take until "Maud Pie" for the season to regain its footing and ultimately end on a high note. This episode basically gave itself away when its working title was "The Return of Flutterguy", just fanservice for the sake of fanservice and a plot created solely to justify that. If "Fame and Misfortune" is the end result of ignoring your fans all together, then this episode is the end result of trying to pander directly to fans by giving what they want instead of what they may need. Season 9 has shown how to do fanservice properly (more or less).
6. A Matter of Principals/Yakity-Sax (Season 8, Episode 14 in production order/15 in airdate and Season 8, Episode 18 in production order/14 in airdate)
Why it moved up: Ultimately, because of what was included here, this mid season premiere of a dual nature moved up from second to last to third to last. Not much of an improvement though. "Yakity Sax" airing early as a special premiere was confusing, and the episode itself was a chore to get through. Pinkie Pie was unbelievably selfish and her friends basically told her to stop playing instead of trying to make her take lessons. It's a misstep that has taken Pinkie until now to more or less bounce back from fully (though considering what's around the bend it seems like sadly it was too good to last, and her last time in the spotlight before the finale may not be a memorable one if indeed the episode airing two weeks from now is her last focus episode). "A Matter of Principals" isn't much better, but at least it's tied to the school which was a big theme of Season 8 (despite ultimately turning out to be a bad concept, maybe it could've worked but the show staff just don't seem capeable of working with it). Granted, it's a Starlight Glimmer torture porn episode, but the idea of Discord competing against Starlight for the title of acting headmare was nice. And hey, give it credit, it ultimately more or less predicted at least two of the student six ships that would be canonized: GallusStream and YonaBar (you could say it also predicted SmoldCellus but that one's kind of been forgotten and I don't think anyone really ships them).
5. Canterlot Boutique (Season 5, Episode 14)
Why it moved down: It only really moved down because now it's not in the middle, it's in the bottom half. I kind of hope we'll get something with Rarity and her boutiques before the series wraps up, but with only one or two episodes left before the finale (depending on whether it's a two parter or three parter) that may or may not happen. Yes, in light of other dream achieving episodes such as "Newbie Dash" (which seems to have more or less killed off any promising storylines of Rainbow Dash as a Wonderbolt, Season 7 was the last one to try) and "Fluttershy Leans In" (which at least the sanctuary has occasionally popped up since then) this episode is stronger. But even then it really feels like Rarity takes a back seat to the inevitably reformed antagonist of Sassy Saddles. Rarity pretty much lets Sassy control her entirely, only finally standing up to Sassy when she claims Canterlot Carousel is her boutique instead of Rarity's. Maybe if Sassy Saddles didn't share the same VA as Starlight Glimmer (Kelly Sherdian) they'd be able to utilize her and the boutique more? It kind of feels underwhelming that they quickly moved on from it to Rarity opening a boutique in Manehattan (it feels like the two should've swapped places, first Manehattan and then Rarity's dream boutique in Canterlot).
4. The Last Roundup (Season 2, Episode 14)
Why it moved down: If this episode had followed on the heals of "Hearth's Warming Eve" it probably wouldn't have been as impactful, especially if that meant waiting weeks or months for it. But since it ultimately followed the lower key "Baby Cakes", this episode did kick off Season 2's second half on a high note. Even if it's mostly because of Derpy and the controversy that surrounded her appearance, this episode stood out. Thankfully, even to this day you can still find the original airing of this episode online and on DVD (the show's first DVD release in fact). It's just too bad that Derpy and Pinkie Pie ultimately suck all the attention away from what's supposed to be an Applejack episode. And to think that this was but the start of her bad luck in the spotlight.
3. The Last Laugh (Season 9, Episode 14)
Why it's in the top three: I gotta admit, Weird Al is great at playing against type casting here. Ever since Cheese Sandwich came along he's started to branch out and pick up a few more voice acting roles, but it was great to see that he could still pull off the role made for him with ease. And of course, Pinkie Pie was in top notch form here. This is her at her best, able to empathize with others and make them smile. However, the serious nature of this episode works against it, some scenes feel like a drag to get through because you're expecting a joke. It's great that they didn't make the factory proposer an antagonist (it would've been so easy to do so), but it feels like we only just got to see Pinkie and Cheese in top form by the time the episode ends. And then there's the stuff about Pinkie trying to find her life's purpose, which just feels tacked on. Still, I can't deny that this is a great start to Season 9's second half (which from what I've seen is just as all over the place as the first half was).
2. Suited for Success (Season 1, Episode 14)
Why it stayed the same: The top two spots haven't changed, so you can probably skip to the end at this point. Ultimately, the reason why this episode isn't on the top is because of what it builds up to. More specifically, what that something ultimately amounted to. The Grand Galloping Gala was an underwhelming event of focus, they spent a couple of episodes hyping it up and this was one of them. Yes, the focus is on Rarity, who becomes the show's breakout character in what would be the show's breakout episode, the episode that showed that this wasn't just a good kid's show. This was the first time they'd truly shown her as a fashion designer instead of just a fashion follower. But she spends much of the episode at the mercy of her friends, and some of the things her friends decide to add onto the dresses feel like a stretch (why does Applejack want goloshes if her old dress had boots?).
1. Stranger Than Fanfiction (Season 6, Episode 14 in production order/13 in airdate)
Why it stayed on the top: Even now that Patton Oswalt returned to voice Quibble Pants again (along with his daughter and his second wife), and even though this episode got bumped up a number in airdate, it's still very clear that this was the second half premiere of Season 6. Considering Season 6 mostly opted to play it safe (perhaps because they thought the movie would be done and so they would build hype with a safe season), an episode like this was just the sort of thing to get people interested in what had been an admittedly lower key season. This is the kind of episode that "Fame and Misfortune" could never hold a candle to in comparison, an episode that pokes fun at the fandom while also showing respect for it. An episode that shows the importance of respecting diverging view points even if you don't agree with them. And the return of Daring Do was a welcome addition, not to mention the inclusion of a Daring Do convention (how fitting to talk it about during what will be the last ever Bronycon). So ultimately it stays in the top spot.
And there you have it.
Just counting the official 14th episode, here's how I rank them:
1. Matter of Principals
2. The Last Laugh
3. Fame and Misfortune
4. Filli Vanilli
5. Canterlot Boutique
6. Suited for Success
7. Cart Before the Ponies
8. Last Roundup
5098892 Why is "The Last Roundup" dead last?
5098932
It's mostly because of the song and montage in Cart Before the Ponies
Just came across this while looking for your more recent episode reviews. For the sake of it, here's my ranking of 14th episodes based purely on air dates -- so the same set as 5098892 used:
1. Suited for Success (still one of Rarity's finest episodes, some zinging dialogue ("She only has one cat. / Give her time...") plus a great song)
2. Filli Vanilli (Fluttershy taking early "baby steps" towards the development she'd get in S5 onwards, plus adorableness -- shame about Pinkie)
3. Fame and Misfortune (I wish Larson's name wasn't on an episode that isn't his, but I thought it was largely very funny, not mean-spirited)
4. The Last Roundup (Derpy apart, this was an Applejack episode -- and a very solid one)
5. The Last Laugh (a mixed bag: Sans was great and Pinkie had her moments, but the first half was fairly uninspiring)
6. Canterlot Boutique (here because it's one I find utterly forgettable)
7. The Cart Before the Ponies (a great song, but the rest is a bit of a mess with iffy characterisation)
8. A Matter of Principals (Discord putting Yona in fear of her life is not something I want to see in FiM)