Help! My Heart is Full of Pony! - The First Crusade · 5:15am May 19th, 2020
After re-watching Stare Master and Show Stoppers back-to-back, I remember why I disliked the crusaders in the early years. Looking back, I find these two episodes delightful for what they are, and I, of course marvel at how far Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo have come.
However, these two episodes are the very first stories ever to feature the CMC's (after they got together at the very end of Call of the Cutie), and neither story is truly told from their point of view. The running gag of Stare Master is how shrill the CMC's are, and how difficult it is for Fluttershy to manage them. The running gag of Show Stoppers is that the CMC's are looking for their talents in all the wrong places. We, as the audience, are invited to shake our heads at their foibles rather than connect with their struggles (like we had in Call of the Cutie).
They gave us very little opportunity to get to know Sweetie Belle or Scootaloo.
Season One is definitely a favorite of mine, but one thing that improved over the years was the CMC's. Perhaps it was the simple act of developing each of them individually as side characters. Sisterhooves Social is a powerful episode that really brought Sweetie Belle into my heart, Hearts and Hooves Day, and Ponyville Confidential manage to tell excellent stories about the crusaders screwing up, but unlike the earlier episodes, these stories are executed in such a way that makes the CMC's relatable. Everything they do connects somehow to their dream of earning their cutie marks, but that aspect of their ambitions are mere leaping off points, and seldom become the actual focus of these episodes.
Somewhere along the way - and it's impossible to nail down a precise moment - the crusaders, as a trio, and as an organization, came to actually mean something noble. It's hard to put words to it, but childhood dreams, hopes, fears, and wonders - that's powerful stuff, and it's all tied in to the life of a Cutie Mark Crusader.
This sisterhood of misfits started as a pact to devote themselves to help one another - to brave the torrents of childhood existential crises together, instead of alone. As Stephen King put it, "I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve - Jesus, did you?"
Discuss.
-Sprocket
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:)
Though I did find their final episode in the show (Growing Up is Hard to Do) disappointing. I recall it actually being alright-to-good in and by itself, but terribly placed; it seemed to me like it'd much better fit the CMCs significantly earlier. As it was, it felt to me like a lot of character development and growth had suddenly and mysteriously gone missing. Do you have any thoughts on that one?
(Oh, though I recall also being disappointed because I'd happened to see a bit of information on it ahead of time, which I don't usually do, and had thought it likely that the show was giving them a sendoff by finally giving them adult character models, capping the growth we'd followed them through through all nine seasons. The juxtaposition between expectation and reality unfortunately cast the latter in an even worse light for me.)
It has been great watching these three grow up. Some of my favorite episodes are the "Lunar Crusade" trilogy, "Sleepless in Ponyville," "For Whom the Sweetie Belle Toils," and especially "Bloom and Gloom." They allow us to see deep into the heart of each Crusader and watch Luna claim a place in the hearts of the next generation. Win-win.
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As a counterpoint, "The Last Crusade" was a fantastic celebration of all they've achieved through the series. Sure, it focused more on Scootaloo, but it really did emphasize just how much their friendship means, not just to themselves but to so many others.
But yeah, even just swapping those two would've helped... I blame the same drastic hormone shifts that turn Twilight into a puddle around human Flash Sentry. Abrupt age shifts play merry havoc on the brain, even without changing species.
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Oh, thanks for the explanation! Among other parts of the comment. :)