"The Last Laugh" Review: The Beginning of the Last Ride

.
The last ride has begun..... Now we are only half a season away from the end of the best TV show of all times. And I have to be really careful to not turn this into an obituary with bemoaning what will come in a few months.....

The episode starts with Pinkie Pie feeling the desire to find a purpose in her life, after she heard about it that Cheese Sandwich has opened a factory to manufacture party gags and supplies and got jealous about it that he progressed in his life, while her life remains the same. The fact that all of her friends reached their life goals, as well, contributed further to her decision.
I love in what a subtle way Pinkie Pie has broken the fourth wall right at the beginning of the episode. When she recounted how Twilight will soon rule Equestria, Rainbow Dash became a Wonderbolt, Fluttershy has built her animal sanctuary, Rarity has opened own boutiques and Applejack has her farm life, and her hat, it felt like Pinkie Pie was specifically doing this to remind the audience who watches them on it how they have all reached their goals (if they had one, Applejack doesn't have one) since the times of Season 1 when we got to know to them all. It's the most subtle fourth wall break we've ever seen from Pinkie.
And it's also a touching moment full of nostalgia. Pinkie did this to give us a chance to relive the memories of everything that happened in the last 8+ years. This season is full of moments that let us think back on past seasons of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and it's clear they're putting such moments into the episodes on purpose.

My prediction about the episode turned out true. When Pinkie Pie arrived at Cheese Sandwich's factory to get help from him with finding her purpose, she discovered that he lost his laugh. I was predicting that Cheese Sandwich would go through an existential crisis just like Pinkie. The only difference being that his own was much, much worse than Pinkie's.
We had a few episodes this season that carried the message of staying true to yourself already, all of them presenting that message in a different light, one of the strengths of MLP: FiM, but the approach in this episode is one of my favourite ones (right after "Common Ground").
The entire problem of Cheese Sandwich, and reason why he lost his laugh, was because he didn't do what he was meant to do. He built a whole factory for manufacturing party gags to fulfill the demand of individual gags he has started making for each guest at his parties, but didn't realize that, by running the factory and overseeing the work in it, he wouldn't be able to see ponies laughing about his gags anymore. Which made him depressed, because he thrives on not just making other ponies laugh, but on seeing and hearing their laughs, as well. He can't be happy without that.
This makes for an interesting example. What Cheese Sandwich went through there, losing his laugh because he couldn't see other ponies laughing anymore, is what can happen to anyone who climbs to high up on the career ladder. You have a job that you love and you are really good at this job, so good, that you eventually get into the same position as your former boss. You are a baker and you love creating creative cakes, but after rising to the top position of your bakery chain's store, you suddenly have to realize that you do nothing but boring paperwork and phone calls anymore. Or, you are a party planner in Equestria, and eventually open a factory to fulfill the demand for party gags at the parties you throw, and then you realize that you don't get to see any parties from the inside anymore. That's not something that is healthy. You might be proud of having made a career, but if you can't do what you love anymore, it defeats the entire purpose of the career you made.
This episode also has a smaller lesson, as someone on the livestream of Brony Network pointed out, there is a message about capitalism and how money alone won't make you happy here. This reminds me a little on "Canterlot Boutique" in Season 5. It also dealt with the subject of capitalism, criticized it and showed downsides of it, although in a different way. While "Canterlot Boutique" focused on it how capitalism can be detrimental for artistic diversity because of mass production, this episode draws parallels to people who take on a better position in their company to earn more money and end up being unhappy with that decision because money isn't what makes one truly happy, by focusing on the psychological effects it has to do a job that doesn't fulfill you.
It's a very important lesson that "The Last Laugh" teaches here. Don't let money bait you into doing something that you don't love and always stay true to yourself.

What didn't get fulfilled, however, were my hopes that Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich would seek advice from Applebloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, our #1 experts at preventing existential crisis by helping ponies find the purpose in their lives. I was hoping for a turnout like that a lot, with the fear that "The Last Crusade" could be the final Cutie Mark Crusaders episode. Thankfully, these fears are alleviated now, as one more Cutie Mark Crusaders episode has been announced.
And, speaking about fillies, here I come to my favourite part of the episode:

It's time for haikus.
Because Kettle Corn is back!
Can you write poems too?

.
.
She might not be a Cutie Mark Crusader, and she isn't one of the three top fillies I love most, but she's a filly regardless and I'm happy to see Kettle Corn again! She's one of the ponies I really didn't expect to see another time, after "Marks and Recreation" in Season 7. She looks so very much adorable in this dress! It covers her flank, which sadly didn't allow me to make a rough estimation of when that party happened since I couldn't check if she already had her cutie mark there, but how huggable she looks in that dress makes up for that.
Her appearance also allows for an interesting analyzis of her personality. Cheese Sandwich said that he has gotten the idea of making "individual, one-of-a-kind novelty gags for each and everyone at his parties" while reminiscing on the party Kettle Corn was at. He let her pop open a pinata, but instead of the pinata, it was the bat that broke open eventually and that contained the candies.
Since Cheese Sandwich spoke about it that he wanted to make gags that are tailored to each pony at this parties, this means that Kettle Corn loves surprises, but not just any surprises, the kind of surprises that completely turn your expectations upside down by doing the exact opposite of what you expected. She is a filly who loves the unpredictable.
Now, there are of course many different situations where one can get surprised like that. One example for that would be when reading a book. If the story in the book you're reading has a plot twist that goes completely against the expectation the plot of the story has built up until that point, you got a surprise that turned your expectations upside down by doing the exact opposite of what you expected. And I think that is exactly when Kettle Corn loves those kinds of surprises.
If you think about it, she loves writing haikus and her special talent is writing haikus. That means she is likely into other forms of literature too and that she likes to read exciting novels. But not just any novels, she prefers novels with completely unexpected plot twists that subvert the expectations of the reader. Kettle Corn is a filly who has a deep love for plot twists in novels.
Once more I love how much you can read from an episode, even the personality of a pony who is merely a side character, if you pay attention to detail. This is something I will miss so much once My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is over, seeing a background or side pony (again) and analyzing their appearance and learning about their personality that way.

And thinking about Kettle Corn's unexpected return made me wonder which other fillies we'll see again before Season 9 and the show are over..... I hate that I have to end this review on a somber note again, but I can't help it, it's the last season and this thought rushes painfully through my head right now.
It just fully occured to me that we haven't seen Dinky yet in this season. We have to see her. And Sparkler too. Derpy, Dinky and Sparkler, they are the most important background ponies to me. They are the first background ponies I actively paid attention to; first Derpy in Season 1, then Dinky and Sparkler in Season 2. All three of them even have a central role in the first MLP: FiM fanfiction I ever read. We've already seen Derpy, but the show can't end before we see Sparkler, and especially Dinky again, too. I'll go on strike if we don't.
I also want to see Lily Longsocks one last time. And Peach Fuzz. We still haven't seen them this season, either. And I also want to see Berry Pinch, Liza Doolots, Cotton Cloudy, Aura, Noi, Alula, Boysenberry and a ton of other background fillies and foals whose names I just can't recall right now again. Yet I know there won't be time for all of them anymore and this thought pains me.
Who will we see one last time? And who not? Only time will tell. But there will be quite a few who we won't see anymore, who we've already seen the last time without knowing that yet.

Well, I guess that is all I had to say about this episode. For now. I look forward to "2, 4, 6, Greaaat" next week and to see if Lightning Dust will return for revenge on Rainbow Dash again, if Wind Sprint has gotten another role in this episode and if we'll also see some other students than the Student Six in the spotlight, like Lemon Crumble.
I'll see you next week for that.

Stay easy as a filly!

~ Fluttercheer

Comments

[Bronycommander]

Nice to see this filly back on screen!