As I said in the last two reviews, there are three of the last four episodes in Season 1 that I consider to be among the show's finest; "Party of One" is MOST DEFINITELY one of them! Oh wow, where to even begin on this episode. I guess let's start with the obvious: Pinkie Pie.

Of Pinkie Pie's episodes, I would definitely say with the utmost confidence that this is hands down easily her funniest episode to date! Of the Season 1 episodes, it's a little trickier if this is the funniest; for me, I really can't pick between this episode and "A Dog and Pony Show". They're both simply too funny!!! That said, let's get down to Pinkie Pie and all things Pinkie Pie that make this episode the wild ride down the rabbit hole that it is. AND AWAYYYYYY WE GO!!!

This episode from start to finish is simply one big, delicious helping of Pinkie Pie! Randomness, hilarity, and just plain insanity galore abound in this episode every second. First, we get a lovely dose of Pinkie Pie doing what she does best of course: throwing a party, namely for Gummy (in probably his funniest role in the series to date as well, impressive considering he mostly just stares blankly at the screen ). It's a great opening scene; we get to see Pinkie at her best doing what she does best, having fun with her friends, and still being whacky, random, and just plain Pinkie. And then the crazy train starts pulling out of the station...

So Pinkie of course gets the not-so-good-idea that she should hold a "after-birthday party" for Gummy. When her friends start mysteriously avoiding her and coming up with excuses as to why they can't be there (a very funny sequence of events like most in this episode, especially Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy's increasingly insane excuse!), Pinkie comes to the conclusion that her friends are avoiding her (which is right, but for the wrong reasons). Increasingly erratic, Pinkie confronts Spike and, in a misunderstanding, he "confirms" her fears that her friends don't want to be her friends anymore.

That's when things get really scary. We are henceforth introduced to the insane entity that is simply known as... Pinkamena, confirming once and for all that Pinkie truly is insane.

After a sequence that can only be described as insane, hilarious, and all-kinds-of-disturbing all at once, Rainbow Dash finally shows up, and, well, I think we all know where this is going...

NO NOT THERE!!! Get your heads out of the gutter. No, after experiencing the madness that is Pinkamena, RD finally manages to drag her (quite literally) to Sweet Apple Acres, where she is given... A SURPRISE PARTY!!! Yes, it turns out that good ol' Pinkie Pie has just forgotten that her birthday was that very day (which means that she must've gotten Gummy as a birthday present if his birthday is the day before hers now that I think about it), and once she realizes that her friends have simply been doing their best to throw her the best surprise party they could, she's back to her old Pinkie self and all is right with the world.

Now, hilarious as this episode is (and I really can't go over every point because there's simply too many great comedy bits to cover them all), after viewing it this time, I came to the realization that this is not only Pinkie's funniest episode, but also probably her best episode in general. When you think about it, everything spirals out of control for a very big reason: Pinkie displays an extraordinary amount of anxiety and insecurity throughout the episode. This shows from the very beginning; the whole reason she wants to throw an after-birthday party for Gummy in the first place is all because she wants an excuse to bring all her friends together again. As events get more and more out of hand, it becomes apparent that Pinkie Pie, beneath the bubbly exterior, is, at least in a tiny corner of her subconscious, extremely insecure to the point that she believes that the only thing she really contributes to the group is great parties and that that's the only reason her friends hang out with her. Of course, this is rubbish, but that just goes to show how terrible Pinkie's insecurity really is, even if it barely ever surfaces. I mean, that kind of anxiety doesn't just come out of nowhere; clearly Pinkie treats being the bestest, bestest friend in the world for as many ponies as she can be like a full time job, HER full time job, and that seems to be quite stressful to her at times. She obviously has some sort of deep-seated fear of losing her friends, of things going back to the way they were before she got her cutie mark. And don't think I'm just grasping at straws here, we've seen signs of this since then in other episodes, like "Too Many Pinkie Pies". So, that said, I have to say that I think this episode is a very revealing episode for Pinkie Pie, and goes to show that she's far more than a perpetually chipper, random, whacky character always ready to put a smile on somepony's face. She's very well-rounded like the rest of the Mane 6 and, if anything, far more complex than some of them in that her fears and anxieties barely if ever surface even though they're quite clearly there and, if pushed far enough, can even drive her to the brink of real insanity as displayed quite clearly in this episode.

OK, well, with Pinkie covered there isn't too much else to look at. The rest of the Mane 6 are really great in this episode; they make a really kindhearted effort to give their favorite party-planner a fantastic surprise birthday party of her own (really, really sweet gesture, I mean, seriously sweet), they all provide plenty of laughs (especially Applejack; I swear, every time she tries to cover up what's going on around Pinkie it's simply hysterical and I just lose it!!!), and in the end they show just what great friends they all are by this point in the show. The comedy's gold, the writing's gold, the lesson is gold; what more can I possibly say in praise to an episode as good as this? "Party of One", you're among the finest MLP:FiM has to offer, and I can't think of a better episode to serve as the penultimate episode to Season 1 than this one!