Deus Ex Machina Is Being Increasingly Overused In The Show

[Shanks 10,811]

Deus Ex Machina has been present in MLP since the beginning with examples dating back to G1 and while G4 has used it as of season 3 I have noticed an increasingly annoying overuse of deus ex machina. For those of you unfamiliar deus ex machina is a situation that seems insurmountable and nearly impossible gets a highly unbelievable/improbable solution out of nowhere. The elements of harmony and other things similar are while good examples of this were somewhat more forgivable with the show not having a heavy action focus. But in season 3 and to an even greater extent season 4 this has become so blatantly obvious as to be quite irritating.

 

In the Crystal Empire two parter Twilight conveniently managed to master dark magic seemingly overnight which while we know she is a quick study and the element of magic this seemed rather convenient. And of course there is the princess of all deux ex machina's where Twilight became a "princess" in a rushed season 3 finale that had almost nothing to do with the season itself with only some vague hints like her "destiny" for example that could be interpreted as anything tying it together. The cutie mark switching idea and trying to master a spell even Starswirl The Bearded couldn't both had great potential but were executed unbelievable poorly. The situation was solved by fixing the problem which is understandable but the solution was because Twilight understood "friendship" and Starswirl The Bearded didn't making the lesson of the episode if you "understand friendship" and a teachers pet that you can ascend to the pony equivalent of godhood.

 

In Rainbow Falls the fact that Rainbow Dash is a gifted flier has indeed been established but the fact that she is some pegasi Obi Wan Kenobi by being the only hope for Ponyvilles team to make it and so good that even the Wonderbolts want to use deception to steal her is completely ridiculous. Bulk Biceps or Macho Pony was a cadet at the Wonderbolt Academy and all of a sudden he can't fly? And it has been established on multiple occasions that Fluttershy is not one for crowds or public performances and yet she is on Ponyvilles team? The episode treats it like Rainbow Dash is the only pegasus in Ponyville that can even fly properly which again is ridiculous and inconsistent. We know Rainbow Dash is fast and has a lot of potential to make it into the Wonderbolts but while Rainbow Dash is fast so is Soarin and Soarin also has years of experience to back it up as well yet this episode treats Soarin as if he were completely incompetent. 

 

At the end of Twilight Time we saw the CMC all of a sudden master tasks Twilight tried to teach them that they had trouble with, tasks which they admit they haven't been practicing at lately. And in the latest episode

 

 

the fact that Rainbow Dash is able to learn more easily while flying is entirely believable but the fact that she was all of a sudden able to remember all these facts within mere minutes is completely unbelievable. It would have been far more understand if things merely started to click and that by putting in more time and effort Rainbow Dash managed to get that perfect score.

 

[applejock 358]

To quote Pat and Matt from 2Bestfriends,

 

 

"It's fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine"

[Thunderchild 875]

It may be that you're analyzing all this a wee bit too much. The existing premise as a stand alone-you are required to buy into a world ruled by an Alicorn, and populated by horses who talk, and can either fly or have magical powers-or in some cases have neither or both.

 

In short, it's a cartoon aimed at kids. To level this kind of scrutiny at it may find it wanting in many areas. It's not written with an in-depth analysis in mind-in my opinion it's there to be enjoyed as it is, for what it is.

 

No offense intended-Just my $.02 fwiw.

[Truffles 2,033]

RD's test score being sudden: Explained because she's not just Rainbow Dash, she's RainMAN Dash.

Edited April 5, 2014 by TruffleShuffle

[Shanks 10,811]

In short, it's a cartoon aimed at kids.

Yes it is, but that dosen't mean that dosen't excuse lazy writing, inconsistencies and contrived conveniences for the sake of plot. One of the reasons why I like this show is because it dosen't take the "its a kids show thing" as a license to dumb things down, of course it has backslided from this in a few ways lately.

[M'aiq the Liar 5,804]

22 minute limit. Most of the proper conclusions to those issue would take more time. They do not have that much time, so a bit of deus ex'ing is excusable. As long as it isn't episode breaking (like the focus of the newest episode was that different ways to learn are all valid) Dash suddenly remembering all the details of her flight may be a bit machina (or she may have sherlock holmes tier autism), but as it was not the focus of the episode, alot of the time in a kids show the issue gets wrapped up in order to keep with the time limit, and get the moral out the door. 

[DryGuy84 (Inactive) 927]

Of all the failings Rainbow Falls has in it a deus ex machina is not one the premise for the team was the flaw not Rainbow being an extremely talented flier. Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3 doesn't count either, because her cataloguing and memorization of every was shown in the very first scene of the episode. Twilight Time could've been shown better, but all of their tasks were done on a smaller scale, showing they have been learning, but weren't diligent about it after it got them noticed. A deus ex machina comes completely out of left-field to solve a problem with no prior buildup. Episodes guilty of using deus ex machinas are:

 

Friendship is Magic

Dragonshy

The Cutie Pox

A Canterlot Wedding

The Crystal Empire (arguable)

Too Many Pinkie Pies

Magical Mystery Cure (arguable)

Princess Twilight Sparkle

Bats!

It Ain't Easy Being Breezies

 

I may have missed some episodes, but these are the ones that come to mind.

Edited April 11, 2014 by DryColt84

[Andaasonsan 3,205]

I think I can say that Deus Ex Machina will have good company with OOC and Mary Sue for overused terms that aren't being used correctly on this forum.

[Scootalove 10,684]

I noticed that it's been used a lot, but for a 22 minute episode to have perfect writing with no mistakes is not easy. Maybe the writers have a problem with consistency.

[Shanks 10,811]

 Maybe the writers have a problem with consistency.

That certainly has been the case this season big time and the deus ex machina's aren't helping. I keep hearing people say that "the episode are 22 minutes so it must be impossible to not have them" but there have been plenty of shows where this was the case where it hasn't been used that much. Batman the Animate Series episode often felt like mini movies and same with Superman the Animate Series episode and yet Deus Ex Machina's, inconsistencies and rush jobs didn't happen very much in those shows.

[DryGuy84 (Inactive) 927]

I think I can say that Deus Ex Machina will have good company with OOC and Mary Sue for overused terms that aren't being used correctly on this forum.

 

I hope that wasn't directed at me. 

[Thespian 78]

I think most people in this thread have got the right idea. 

 

1. Its a kids cartoon show, the intended audience members aren't going to question or care about these sudden easy answers to their problems. Even though that might be considered "lazy writing", they are on a tight, heavily monitored (Big Hasbro is watching you) schedule.

 

2. They only have 22 minutes to accomplish an end goal. You have to make sure there are enough jokes, enough serious moments, enough morals, and it all wraps up within a 22 minute time-frame. Also there are shots that are there for viewing the background or transition scenes. They may only be 3-5 second shots but over an episode they can add up.

 

3. Everyone wants their favorite characters in the show as much as they can so they do bend the rules to allow that (fluttershy being in a competition even though she is very shy) AND writers like to throw nods to characters that have received a positive liking from the audience (even though all these character nods are because of us). I'm sure the writers could think of hundreds of new characters for every episode so that we don't get contrasting character developments, but since the audience latches onto specific characters they reuse those characters to please us.

That's not to say this legitimately hasn't happened during the run of this series. I personally feel that, given the circumstances, the show has done a pretty good job covering their trails and making sure everything works out in the end.

[Darker 1,351]

Well, G1 had also Deus Ex Machina, so probably G4 also ripped off that.

[JessicaHearts 3]

I really liked deus ex human revolution!

[Dattebayo 2,850]

Well, G1 had also Deus Ex Machina, so probably G4 also ripped off that.

Holy sh*t. What are you taking about.

 

How.

[Pinkamena-Pills 6,838]

I really liked deus ex human revolution!

This post. Is golden. Thank you for making this post. 

[Darker 1,351]

Holy sh*t. What are you taking about.

 

How.

Well, alteast the Breezies didn't defeat Tirek just like the Flutterponies did to Arabus, which was basically the same scenario

[Jeric 46,834]

Yeah I already commented on this once today, and I am reluctant to talk about DeM again on this board. Yes, FiM does have a few moments of <insert plot contrivance here> but rarely is it a simple DeM inclusion.

 

I will say this

 

Deus Ex Machina = Harry Potter v Prof. Quirrell.

Eucatastrophe* = Gollum falling with the Ring

Peripeteia via MacGuffin = Friendship is Magic, Return of Harmony, Magical Mystery Cure, Twilight's Kingdom

 

*coined term for a type of DeM, but is a more artistically expressed version and is specific to deliberately saving the protagonist, and not because the writer needed to resolve or move forward the plot.

[Dattebayo 2,850]

I gotta agree with the others, Earthbending

I don't really think you have a firm grasp on what exactly "deus ex machina" applies to. Not many people do, in fact

Edited August 25, 2014 by Dattebayo

[Pinkamena-Pills 6,838]

Yeah I already commented on this once today, and I am reluctant to talk about DeM again on this board. Yes, FiM does have a few moments of <insert plot contrivance here> but rarely is it a simple DeM inclusion.

 

I will say this

 

Deus Ex Machina = Harry Potter v Prof. Quirrell.

Eucatastrophe* = Gollum falling with the Ring

Peripeteia via MacGuffin = Friendship is Magic, Return of Harmony, Magical Mystery Cure, Twilight's Kingdom

 

*coined term for a type of DeM, but is a more artistically expressed version and is specific to deliberately saving the protagonist, and not because the writer needed to resolve or move forward the plot.

 

I have learned something new -- i knew not of those words/phrases,thank you Jeric. 

[Orablanco Account 3,705]

I don't agree what @ says about all that stuff being deus ex machinas; for instance, the solution in "Testing Testing 1,2,3" is actually very clever and required hard work on the characters' part to pull off, and Bulk Biceps sucking in "Rainbow Falls" was just inconsistent writing.

 

However, I do find that the show is relying a little too much on items of ultimate friendship power that blasts the bad guys into oblivion. I'd like to see something like in "Magic Duel," where defeating the villain requires a lot more thought than "Being friends will unlock the power we need to defeat everyone." It's not exactly a Deus ex Machina and more like a Peripeteia via MacGuffin like @@Jeric said, but it's still getting old.

 

I resent the argument that it's a kids show and that this somehow excuses the writers using the same plot structure and solution over and over again because apparently kids don't deserve more thought out writing because kids are dumb and can't appreciate quality, but that's for some other thread.

Edited August 25, 2014 by CITRUS KING46

[Pastel 7,627]

Am I the only one who thinks there's almost no Deus Ex Machina in the show?

I'm reading 's list, and I think none of them used DEM.