My Little Pony - Friendship Is Magic: Episode 514 - Canterlot Boutique

Rating:

Canterlot Boutique consciously tries to be Suited For Success’s sequel, but it never probes deeper than the surface level.  Rarity has somehow scraped up enough money to open a second shop (thanks, Princess Exposition!), and few premises scream “reset button” more.  At least she found a manager to help, but Sassy Saddles’ outgoing marketing persona feels predictably evil.  Thankfully, Amy Keating Rogers goes some places you won't expect, and does try dealing with fashion issues.  Whether she actually cares about fashion is debatable, although her topics don’t only pertain to that discipline.  In a country where the percentage of successful people constantly dwindles, marketing and mass production are almost more important than good ideas and creativity.  Sassy understands this, but Rogers doesn’t portray that as bad.  Her attitude differs from Rarity’s, but she isn’t uncaring or heartless.  Also discussed is how most people believe fashion means wearing “what’s in style” and looking like everyone else.  With hundreds of orders for the “princess dress”, this will literally be true in Canterlot, but that fact (and the morality of doing so) goes unmentioned.  What doesn’t though is whether Rarity is ready for the next step or not, and what being famous will take.  Rogers starts off slowly, but eventually spins her show into focus through tackling many different subjects.  Choosing stereotypes over new characters admittedly may not have been inspired, but it does accurately describe working in customer service.  And having everyone discover their own fashion sense is a positive if utopian message.  Unfortunately, Rogers clearly doesn’t care about fashion, while too much disconnect and questionable scene choices exist for a better rating.  Canterlot Boutique may mostly have Rarity’s heart, but its mean-spirited parts detract from the overall effect.  Considering Rogers has had early-episode focus problems before (A Friend In Deed, Testing Testing 1, 2, 3), this aspect can’t be glossed over or forgiven.  Most episodes don’t attempt to deal with so much though, and Canterlot Boutique is successful enough that it earns a passing grade despite needing another script draft and better editing.  Most of the supporting ponies don’t return often if ever, but like the other background characters in season five, that doesn’t mean they’re not realistic or deserving.

After much exposition, Rarity shows her friends the new boutique, which has two levels and looks rather high class.  Since this whole place is retconned, she also introduces her similarly “new manager” Sassy Saddles.  Having already apparently set everything up, Sassy is actually more in charge of marketing than employees (no others exist yet), and she has big plans for making Canterlot Carousel a world-famous boutique.  Since Twilight is now a “celebrity”, most of Sassy’s strategy involves having her wear a dress from Rarity’s new royalty inspired collection.  The “most popular” princess readily agrees since this will help her friend.

Although Rarity’s dream of owning a shop in Canterlot hasn’t specifically been vocalized before, drama occurs when Sassy announces the store’s opening instead and welcomes new customers.  Rarity ends the first act with a horrified expression, while her friends exchange unpleasant words regarding Sassy “taking over”.  Considering Rarity later welcomes her customers anyway, nothing was really lost from an employee trying to do her job.  Rogers was apparently trying to create a “villain” or conflict, but this part feels manufactured for two reasons.  One was making a first act cliffhanger where none really existed, and the other was giving the mane six something to do before they completely disappear from the episode.  This section finds Rogers talking down to the audience and giving Pinkie Pie more bad jokes, and is unquestionably Canterlot Boutique’s low point.

Rarity’s subsequent debut of her collection comes close though, but mostly from the debut of another “fashion” pony.  Fashion Plate becomes Canterlot Boutique’s Hoity Toity, but his vocal mannerisms are much more annoying.  He voices unquestioned love for every dress (they are all solid, but no fashion critic does this), while also making absurd faces that are already memes.  The worst happens shortly before Rarity’s signature dress “The Reign in Stain” (a complicated but understandable pun) premieres, but Sassy quickly renames it the “Princess Dress” instead as Twilight descends down a staircase.  With a boring but much less of a mouthful name, that dress is an instant success and nets Rarity one hundred orders from the crowd of ten or so.  Having probably been busted for her earlier sweatshop tactics, Rarity sends the mane six packing and vows to finish every dress herself.

Obviously such an amount of work calls for a montage, since making hundreds of dresses by yourself probably takes months.  Ingram’s song doesn’t exactly rewrite “Art Of The Dress”, but its purpose and feel are pretty much identical.  That’s not entirely problematic, but it still seems unoriginal.  Naturally Rarity’s mundane assembling work quickly wears her down, which only worsens when Sassy starts featuring the Princess Dress exclusively and a customer rebuffs her attempted design change.  This hard work does pay off by landing the cover of Cosmare magazine (these puns), but that also brings yet another hundred orders (the number totaling exactly 100 three times is extremely unlikely and rather sloppy writing).  Rarity can’t take anymore despite her success and announces she will close the boutique.

Everything must go, which includes the royal collection’s other dresses.  While confused at first, Rarity’s various customers look around and actually enjoy choosing from a wide selection.  Picking out dresses more suited to their personalities brings happiness to both them and Rarity, who soon declares the shop will stay open after all.  Since she of course has no plans to leave Ponyville, Sassy will still run things in Canterlot while Rarity isn’t there, but with a better selection this time.

Rogers plays the trope of Sassy Saddles being “evil” and selfish so well that the other characters actually believe it.  Sure, she does slightly misspeak by referring to “her” boutique near the end, but notice how nothing she actually does tries to make herself famous in front of Rarity.  Sassy’s many-step plan not only involves Rarity’s worldwide success, but also freeing her from making hundreds of the same dress.  Her vision isn’t perfect, but she has studied hard and tries being an exceptional employee.  Why should Rarity be constantly dealing with customers when no store general manager ever does?  It’s not Sassy who scores a magazine cover, and she clearly doesn’t want to lose another job in an unforgiving industry.  Many people could miss this subtlety, but Rogers’ creation is very commendable for coming very close to crossing the line but never doing so.  While grating at times, Sassy’s characterization absolutely succeeds.

Rarity doesn’t need quite so much development at this point, but we do see her both trying to grow and being in completely over her head.  She doesn’t have a strong enough personality to control Sassy at first, but her lack of experience also factors in.  Rarity hasn’t really dealt with being a successful artist before (her new job in Rarity Takes Manehattan was quickly given to Coco Pommel), and it’s not nearly so glamorous.  Balancing time for creativity amid fame and demands isn’t something most people ever have to plan for, but Rarity comes very close to burning out and losing herself.  Consequently, the concluding scene of her showing customers different dresses that they all love is the episode’s best moment since it highlights what fashion should be all about.  Not necessarily feeling like a “princess”, but feeling beautiful in strikingly creative clothes.  That people may need a push toward exploring this can’t be forgotten.

Boutique succeeds in showing these angles, but doesn’t completely follow through either.  If Rarity hates making the same dress, why shouldn’t she employ an assembly line?  Oodles of cash roll in while she has time for creating the clothes she wants.  Granted, the public might keep buying it without exploring other styles, but they’ll probably get tired of all wearing the same dress eventually.  Rarity’s made up TLC values are nice but not practical since they require her to make every article of clothing.  Some compromise wouldn’t destroy her artistic integrity, but that subject was never broached.

Rogers’ supporting characters do not match the stars unfortunately.  The other mane six members contribute practically nothing, and Fashion Plate only makes absurd faces while saying dumb things.  Additional, Rogers’ final scene is almost fatal as a rather overweight pony barges in and asks for the Princess Dress but is laughingly told no by Rarity and Sassy.  While they don’t appear to be making fun of her for any reason, their reaction has understandably been interpreted as fat-shaming.  This particular pony is apparently a meme whose picture appeared in a locker during Tanks For The Memories.  Her appearance might be an in-joke, but it was handled very poorly and the scene should have been cut.

Even though Suited For Success remains the better fashion episode, Canterlot Boutique explores how fashion is a personal artistic expression rather than rich people telling the masses what to wear.  That Sassy Saddles represents this latter point while (mostly) selflessly working hard for Rarity’s sake indicates the confusion which pervades this episode.  Rogers’ other characters offer little, and her attempts at humor are rather poor (another Pinkie cupcake meme and some almost orgasmic faces from Fashion Plate).  Her slow start and mean-spirited end obscure what could have been Rarity’s defining episode.  Canterlot Boutique still adds positively to Rarity’s character, but must count as a missed opportunity since Rogers just couldn’t make her entire script compelling.