My Little Pony - Friendship Is Magic: Episode 311 - Just For Sidekicks

 

Rating:

How good an episode is going to be can often be told just from the premise, or at least its range of potential.  Corey Powell really got the shit end of the stick here, as Just For Sidekicks sounds like another two star or worse outing at best.  Spike has to take care of all the other pets who aren’t worth hav­ing on the show most of the time, and since he’s obviously going to be ex­tremely incompetent at this, hilarity will certainly ensue.  Every other terri­ble Spike-centric episode focuses on what a disaster he is, so it’s to Powell’s credit that she found a way to write a decent episode from a storyline that shouldn’t be part of the series.  Still, there is only so much that could be done with this premise, and the episode can never shed the feel­ing that it’s mostly meaningless filler.  It’s doubtful that any of the other writers could have done bet­ter though, so Powell’s second effort proves she belongs on the writing staff even if Just For Sidekicks is no more than an average episode.  Her cin­ematic style really suits the show very well, and she found a way to in­corporate a large amount of the characters (mane six, Cutie Mark Crusaders, and all six pets plus Spike) and an impromptu trip to the Crystal Empire.  Powell’s characterization is again excellent, although the dialogue is hampered by a few too many clichés (“am I right or am I right?”, “you wouldn’t dare”, “lucky guess”) and the plot is a bit predictable in that Dis­ney sort of way (the ragtag group of misfits naturally reconcile at the end).  Despite be­ing rather painful and Spike proving once again that he can’t carry an epi­sode, Powell’s solid writing and some fun touches from the animation staff (like Spike’s “bionic” throw sound effect) make Just For Sidekicks better than the disaster it was otherwise going to be.

My Little Pony - Friendship Is Magic: Episode 310 - Keep Calm And Flutter On

 

Rating:

Originally, I had hoped M.A. Larson would write Discord’s return as opposed to Trixie’s, but it’s difficult to complain considering how both episodes turned out.  Dave Polsky was probably the best second option among the rest of the writers, although he didn’t quite find all he could from the premise.  Hard as it is to believe, My Little Pony is a series that is calling out for arc-based stor­ies, so another episode that openly refer­ences many of the previous shows is quite refreshing.  Immediately then, Keep Calm And Flutter On feels more substantial than most of the other episodes in the third season since, holy shit, something is actually happening.  Unfortunately, Polsky kind of loses control after a strong opening act, and the episode crash lands its way to an ending everyone but me foresaw (I assumed “predictable” meant TV laws would rule out and Discord would return to stone at the end).  This conclusion only exists to accomplish something that I actually thought should happen while watching: to make Discord a part of the series going forward.  Successfully fitting Discord into the show will continue to be challenging given his established character, but  John de Lancie is so good and fun in the role that he is worth having on the series.

My Little Pony - Friendship Is Magic: Episode 309 - Spike At Your Service

 

Rating:

 

Unlike most of the bad episodes of My Little Pony, Spike At Your Service is at least somewhat fun.  The episode is extremely lightweight, but charmingly so, even though it’s disappointing that such a short season would need obvious fil­ler.  A split writing credit makes its second appearance, as once again Merriwether Williams is cleaning up another scribe’s unwanted story.  Knowing who to blame for this then is difficult then, since the episode doesn’t really feel like either Williams or Dave Polsky, and it’s unclear how much of a contribution the “story” credit means.  At the very least, Polsky seems to have kept Wil­liams inside the land of Ponyville for one episode, but there still wasn’t any­thing that could be done with this premise.  Williams did find a few laughs, but not enough to make up for the headshaking and painful moments which abounded.  Without thinking about it, Spike At Your Service could almost qualify as a solid episode, but unfortunately that is the exact task in front of me.  Let’s just say it’s always bad news when a character announces they’re bored and have nothing to do.  And it’s equally onerous when a writer invents something that dictates a specific character’s actions that they’ve al­ways had, yet this is the first time we’ve heard about it 3½ seasons in.  Even if Spike At Your Service is enjoyable filler at times, it’s much too lightweight to be considered anything other than a minor episode.

My Little Pony - Friendship Is Magic: Episode 308 - Apple Family Reunion

Rating:

The problem with Apple Family Reunion is that it turns out ex­actly like Applejack’s plan: any potential for great interactions between rarely seen Apple family members is wasted by a bunch of dumb activities.  Thankfully none of the reunions or family gatherings I’ve gone to over the years involved building a freaking barn.  Applejack’s oblivious behavior is clearly leading to a message, but most kids won't really need to hear “don’t plan to do too much at a family party”.  They’ll learn pretty quickly that the adults just want to sit around and chat, and can come up with enough things to do by themselves to not need other activities.  Of course, the “lesson” has been growing more irrelevant as the series goes on, so lacking a meaningful one isn’t necessarily a deterrent.  Unfortu­nately, Morrow had a difficult time finding anything memorable or worth­while from the premise.  We get snippets of potential, such as Granny Smith reminiscing with family members her own age, or the natural return of Babs Seed despite it seeming like she wouldn’t be seen again.  But noth­ing is explored at all, as Applejack’s activities get in the way of anything in­teresting happening.  While there aren’t really any terrible moments to bring things down, Apple Family Reunion feels like we missed out on a fun episode and got a whole heap of nothing instead.