And he used to watch a cartoon about guys in giant robot suits playing ping pong.
After the jump, he'll break down another episode and discuss what makes it good, what makes it bad, and what makes it just outright crazy. This week's theme? Performance anxiety! And not the kind that bumps the rating of this blog! ...or does it?
The episode starts with Rainbow Dash educating Fluttershy on the art of a good "cheer." It's a bit obvious that Rainbow Dash would easily be a fan of the San Francisco Giants since the three ingredients are "control," "screaming and hollering," and "passion."
I do like the growth these two characters have had, relationship-wise since we first met them. I'm going to pay a little more attention to it later, but for now I'll focus on the story.
Now, Fluttershy is to cheering what Tempestt Bledsoe (not a typo) was to daytime talk shows.
...what, you don't remember her show?
Well, there you go.
It turns out Rainbow Dash is practicing for a rather large event coming up, planning out a routine that involves weaving back and forth between (at the moment) trees, flying so fast as to actually make clouds spin like tops (seriously, I hope we get some science here soon), and then, by all appearances, attempting to break the sound barrier.
...cartoon physics never fail to amaze me. Especially when Rainbow Dash hits a limit where pushing the air in front of her becomes more difficult than all of it pushing back on her, and it promptly snaps like a rubber band (?!) and launches her into the sky.
We're then immediately presented with the set-up for our next joke, as apparently the other four ponies were helping Twilight Sparkle organize her entire library during the weekend. This lasts for about two seconds before Rainbow Dash manages to thread the needle of the nearest window and knock everything down.
All that's missing is that sad trombone that Pinkie Pie played after the encounter with parasprites.
We learn that Rainbow Dash is taking part in the "Best Young Flyers" competition up in "Cloudsdale" (see what they did there?), and wishes the others could come to be her cheering section instead of just Fluttershy. (The moment Fluttershy goes "were we arguing? I'm sorry." struck a nerve, I'll admit)
The others express excitement for Rainbow Dash and wish they could go, especially if Rainbow Dash can pull off what the others are calling a "sonic rainboom." That's actually a pretty cool name, and apparently it really does involve breaking the sound barrier, causing a huge rainbow (?) to appear.
Mythbusters, get on this. I know you have the Blue Angels on speed dial.
Oh, and it also turns out that Rainbow Dash is the only pony ever to do it. So while everybody's excited to happen again, we get the first touch of nerves from, apparently, the focus of our story. Plus, the prize is pretty important to Rainbow Dash as well, since it involves spending an entire day flying with the Wonderbolts, who...wait, have these characters been mentioned before? Hold on.
Oh, okay, we learned about them back when Twilight Sparkle was sorting out that ticket debacle. They're pretty much the Blue Angels of My Little Pony, except I guess they actually do combat stuff as well.
Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy leave, and Rarity immediately takes the "magic solves everything" route, prodding Twilight Sparkle to find a spell to let them go cheer for their friend. While the others think Rainbow Dash is full of herself and bragging, it seems Rarity can actually see through it ("I know stage fright when I see it") and full-out hip checks Twilight into a pile of books to find a spell.
This might be the most physical thing we've seen Rarity do yet to another pony.
We also get one moment where Pinkie overwrites reality, in that when Twilight bemoans how hard it's going to be to find said spell in the mess around them, Pinkie just happened to have the appropriate book land with that particular page open land on her head. Pinkie Pie must be co-opted by Warner Brothers or something, since I'm pretty sure that if she were to paint a tunnel on a cliff, she could promptly run through it while everybody else got hit by Amtrak.
Twilight points out the spell is pretty complicated (and as anybody who read fantasy books knows, when spells go wrong, bad things happen), but Rarity steps up to the plate to be their guinea pi- er, pony.
Oh, and this spell? Yeah, that's actually pretty terrifying how it works.
I've watched gritty shows that didn't have magic look that terrifying. I do like that little touch of "what did I get myself in to?" that Rarity has towards the end.
Once back from commercial break, we get to see this city in the sky, Cloudsdale, and I'm going to say right off that bat that it's a very well-made visual. It manages to look both like something Disney would come up with to represent ancient Greece while maintaining shapes and curves that remind you that it's just clouds.
Note the "waterfall" on the left. We'll be back to that in a minute.
Upon arrival, Rainbow Dash is immediately mocked by a group of boy pegasi (the first I think we've seen so far?) who claim she's their old friend, "Rainbow Crash." I think that was the same name Spike gave to Rainbow Dash in the episode with Zecora, which suddenly makes that teasing seem worse once you know it's a childhood trauma.
Oh, and it appears Rainbow Dash might've, at some point, been kicked out of flight school. Interesting.
We get a brief moment of Fluttershy challenging the bullies (it doesn't last long), and once the bullies leave, Rainbow Dash admits to being a bit panicked about having to perform in front of an entire auditorium of people. Watching. Judging. Eating...whatever kind of food they have in clouds (Skittles?). Rainbow Dash flips out, figuring she'll be laughed at, the Wonderbolts will want nothing to do with her, and Princess Celestia will flat-out banish Rainbow Dash to the Everfree Forest.
Which, I think, would be like the President banishing an Olympics athlete who doesn't bring home the gold to the Alaskan tundra. Or the everglades. Sports in My Little Pony are serious business.
However, Rainbow Dash's panic attack is interrupted by the appearance of Rarity and...okay, I know it's a cartoon, but I seriously have to ask how this works.
Just....how?
The others show up via hot air balloon, and we learn an interesting trait: only pegasus ponies can walk on clouds. That is, unless Twilight casts a spell letting the others do it, too. Cause magic, that's why.
The ponies get taken for a quick tour, and we start to see a little bit of Rarity's "do it for Rainbow Dash" start to falter as she spends a lot of time staring at herself in the mirror.
But then we get the moment I've been waiting for since day one. The first time I ever saw a pegasus kick a cloud into submission, this is what I wanted to learn about. We get to see the weather factory.
I'm going to say that again. Weather. Factory.
Let me give you the rundown. Snowflakes? Made by hand- er, hoof. Personally inspected to make sure each one is unique. Clouds are created in giant vats filled with water that puffs them out like an assembly line would. Rainbows are giant pools of liquid, like something out of a demented trip to Wonka's factory. And remember how I said that Pinkie Pie is a walking plot device? She dips her hoof in a rainbow and then licks it. My mind has no idea how to react right now.
...wasn't there a competition, or something? Oh right. So it seems that since everybody the ponies meet dotes on Rarity so much, she's gone ahead and entered the competition as well (so much for "be there for Rainbow Dash.") Princess Celestia's there, the Wonderbolts are in attendance...so how's Rainbow Dash holding up?
...oh, right. Nerves.
I highly recommend watching the episode, as it shows the costume Rarity designs for herself. I refuse to show it, because while I know absolutely nothing about the fashion world besides the times I stumbled onto the Bravo channel (pleats are out, apparently), Rarity looks like someone dressed a chicken up for Cirque Du Soleil and then ripped its skin off to be her costume.
The performances also have to happen simultaneously, so, no pressure, Rainbow Dash.
Rarity does a simple little ballet show while Rainbow Dash tries, and botches, the first two parts of her act. It's obvious her nerves have completely gotten the best of her. She and Rarity both head up high for the final part of her performance. One to get speed, the other to let the sun shine through wings made of gossamer and dew...and, well, you remember the story of Icarus?
Yes, I know that's not how the sun works, but work with me here.
So Rarity's plummeting to her doom. If only there were some people whose job it was to be heroes and- oh, hey, the Wonderbolts. I'm sure they'll manage to rescue her.
Ooooor, much like lifeguards are warned about being killed by the person they're trying to save from drowning, Rarity manages to knock all three of her rescuers unconscious. Man, Rarity packs some power in this episode.
So it's up to Rainbow Dash! Does she save one of her dear friends and three of her idols from being turned into red smears on the ground?
Of course she does. It's a kids show. Sheesh.
Oh, and she also happens to nail the sonic rainboom in the process. No, I'm not showing that either. It's actually pretty cool, and there should be some reason to watch this thing besides seeing what happens when Rarity does her best to look like a drag queen pony performing on a tropical cruise ship.
Rarity apologizes to everybody, Rainbow Dash wins the competition, and gets to fly off with the Thunderbolts.
The Good:
A WEATHER FACTORY. I've kept saying that I wanted to see how weather works in this cartoon, and this is probably the best glimpse of it I'm ever going to see. The fact that every single aspect of weather (well, except for wind, I guess, but who needs it when you can push clouds around?) is mentioned or shown, and it shows an attention to detail that most cartoons would ignore.
Likewise, the detail work on the characters is really noticeable this episode, and I mean that in a good way. The fact that Rarity needs to stay in the basket of the hot air balloon once her wings vanish is a nice touch. The glimpse of "uh-oh" on her face when the spell takes effect, and Fluttershy's switches back and forth from being aggressive to her usual self are all very well done.
It's also really nice to get a glimpse into what a character was like when they were little. The fact that Rainbow Dash has gone from a "flight school dropout" to being in charge of weather for Ponyville gives a real sense of depth to the character. I hope the others get this kind of attention.
The Bad:
Rarity's heel turn into becoming Rainbow Dash's primary competition comes pretty suddenly. I mean, sure, they build it up, but even when Rarity, dressed in her ridiculous costume, is talking to Rainbow Dash about "doing her best" it still doesn't take away from the fact that she was telling the pony she went up there to cheer for about how she had changed/ruined her routine. I mean, there's becoming self-centered, and then there's being a jerk. It would've been nice to see at least one other pony call her out on that (Twilight tries, but quickly gets distracted a half second later).
Of the main six characters (fandom calls them the "mane" six, but I refuse to do that), Rarity is still at the bottom of my list, and there's still a good ways to go for her to catch up to my fifth place character.
Overall:
This is one of the more solid episodes we've had in a while. We had character development, a look into some one's past, a careful look at how this world works, exactly, and I have to say I spent a lot of time looking around at the background details even while the story was continuing.
Sure, the whole "Rarity becomes the competition" thing felt a bit forced, but I still rank this episode ahead of some other episodes (the one with the Griffon, for instance). Plus, of course, it didn't have a song, but I somehow doubt any episode spotlighting Rainbow Dash would bring one in. It wouldn't really be "her thing."
So, what happens next in the show? Oh hey, it's Fluttershy's turn in the spotlight! Fighting mythological monsters! With her only back-up being...the kids. ...this will be interesting.
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