Welcome back everypony to another edition of Batbrony Reviews. OK, third episode of Season 6 with a new team of writers. How did I think this turned out? Well, all in all pretty good, I'd say. This was hardly my favorite third episode of a season ever (and yes, I do categorize those because I think they play an important part in setting a tone for a season), but it wasn't awful, that's for sure. Without further ado, let's take a look at "The Gift of the Maud Pie"!

 

 

 

So I suppose the best way to go about covering this episode is looking at its three main characters, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Maud Pie. Starting things off with Pinkie, my feelings on her here are a tad mixed. I think with her it was most apparent that this was a new writing team, because given how over-the-top she was, I never felt like they were completely comfortable writing for her, like they were hitting so many Pinkie-tropes just to prove they know how to write her. It felt somewhat forced, but on the other hand one can justify her behavior here as well. We know that Pinkie Pie absolutely loves her family and totally goes the distance for them even more than she does with most ponies, so sometimes with something like a special day like this with her sister, she can get over-the-top even for her. None of the actions she took felt wrong for her character, just some of the reactions went on just a bit too long at times, is all. But that said, I could totally see the dilemma here being a problem faced by Pinkie Pie, she was fun, a good sister and friend as always, and just plain ol' Pinkie. Plus it was nice that she was the one learning a lesson, and from her older sister no less, which feels very natural; it feels right that if she's going to learn a lesson at this point in the show, it should be from someone older and a bit more mature than her like Maud who gets both her sister's flaws and strengths. Overall, she was just fine; it was hardly my favorite Pinkie episode ever, and I might've liked a little more nuance with her character, but she was good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our supporting Mane 6 character, Rarity, was great here. With her, I actually liked her more dramatic side coming to the fore just because that makes sense when she's with Pinkie. When the Mane 6 are coupled with each other, they tend to bring out different sides of each other; Rarity by her nature is a bit of a drama queen already, so paired with the most over-the-top member of the Mane 6, it makes sense that she'd be more dramatic than usual. Her impression of Pinkie Pie was possibly the best humorous moment of the episode, and it didn't feel like she was unnecessarily going out of her way to help Pinkie either. She's generous by nature in all things, including with her time, and especially to one of her closest friends who she knows cares so deeply about her sister, this makes perfect sense for her. I did like too that we continue to see her business expanding, as it's a nice recognition from the writers that time is not static in this show, but continues to pass; these girls grow older, they have new achievements in their professional lives and are not defined solely by being friends with each other and heroes of Equestria. Hopefully we eventually get to see this shop open up, and maybe even Coco Pommel will get involved in it somehow! Finally, I'd be remiss if I did not mention Rarity dressed up as Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast at Tiffany's. I mean, my gosh, it's about time that reference happened! Audrey was simply the walking, living, breathing definition of chic and style, so it's just a perfect fit using Rarity to make such a reference, and my goodness, she looked fabulous with that look! Overall, Rarity had a solid outing here, it was nice seeing her with Pinkie and Maud, and she filled a supporting role very nicely in a not-so-serious episode.

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, we come to the best character in the episode: Maud. I would just like to reiterate that when Maud was first introduced, I was not a fan, not in the slightest. I didn't like the schtick they were doing with her for a long time, but I think they started winning me over around the time Rainbow Rocks came out. I think what changed was that at first, it felt like they were treating her personality too seriously, but now when they use her they have a nice combination of self-awareness in satirically using her while still treating her like an actual character and not just a walking joke. Case in point, she was hilarious here. Maud, as always, was just Maud; neutral as anyone can be, interested by the last things any pony ever expects (including, yes, cracks in the sidewalk), and just doing her thing with Boulder. But, as always too, she surprised in pleasant ways. Her delivery of the lesson was perfect in its setup and execution; she gave back Pinkie's gift without a second thought and then very soundly explained to her sister what giving a gift is really all about. It's gratifying to see a lesson about selfless love coming from that character because it reinforces that yes, Maud does indeed have a lot of personality and cares about the ponies around her, she just does it in her own way. But when you get down to it, in the end, she does care about the ponies in her life, even if she doesn't show it as most ponies would. Hopefully we get to see some more from the other Pie sisters this season, but for me, this was a great appearance from Maud and she carried herself very nicely; for a new writing team, they struck a wonderful balance with her in having her be both funny as only Maud can without coming across as just a caricature, but still a character whom we can take seriously and care about unironically. Great episode from Maud, and definitely the strongest character here, I thought.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As for the rest of the episode, it had a lot of highlights. We got to see a lot more of Manehattan this time around than we have in past episodes there, and I loved as always seeing more of that city and its ponies. The couple of references they made were great (it was very nice seeing a return of the Planes, Trains, and Automobiles reference in the Steve Martin and John Candy ponies, and fitting in both a Big and Breakfast at Tiffany's reference in the same episode was pretty awesome too), the settings themselves were very colorful and I look forward to rewatching this episode and trying to spot things I might've missed the first time around. The one thing that kind of rubbed me the wrong way with the animation was I felt they were doing a bit too much at certain points with some of the faces Pinkie and Rarity were making, like the expressions were a bit more than what was called for, even for ponies as dramatic as these two. The party cannon gag was almost abused, especially early on, but once you saw how they fit it into the episode it made a bit more sense and was pretty forgivable in that regard.

 

 

 

Overall, this was a nice third episode of the season; like I said before, it was hardly the best one we've ever had and certainly less impactful on the rest of the season than third episodes in the past have proven to be, so a little more akin to Too Many Pinkie Pies from Season 3. But it was funny, had some really great sights and animation to take in, and hit just enough high notes to be plenty enjoyable. I look forward to rewatching this one and, like I said, catching bits I might've missed, and all in all, I think the season is going just smashing so far. Until next time everypony, this is Batbrony signing off. I'm off!!! *cue dramatic exit*