Welcome back, fillies and gentlecolts, to another RHYTHM RED’S RADTASTICAL REVIEWS!!!  (...it’s about time!)

Today, we’re talking about Surf and/or Turf! Even though it’s been out for a little while. I’m lazy.  

I believe this is the first leaked episode (correct me if I’m wrong), though I haven’t watched the leaked episodes myself. Why would I want to spoil the surprise?  

With all of that out of the way, here we go!  

First off, we get something pretty unique: the CMC’s are being called by the map! This is good, I’m all for the CMC’s solving a friendship problem instead of a cutie mark one for once. You can only have so many “CMC’s help ponies find their cutie marks” episodes before it gets a little repetitive, so this is a great idea, in my opinion!  Plus they get to go to Mount Aris!  

One train ride and a few funny comments later, and we get to Mount Aris, home of the hippogriffs! Oh, and I think we all know Twilight just wants a vacation. (“Research”. You silly pony. )

Next, we meet Terramar, a young hippogriff who can’t decide if he wants to live on Mount Aris or in Seaquestria. Both have their positives and negatives, and hippogriffs on both sides are trying to make him choose. This is a FANTASTIC episode idea. I’ll get to why that is in just a moment. 

A short while later, Terramar and the CMC’s go to Harmonizing Heights. Sweetie Belle falls in love with the place, of course, and wants Terramar to stay on Mount Aris. Then, they go to Seaquestria, and Scootaloo tries to persuade Terramar to stay there instead. (I also liked watching her ‘fly’ underwater!) Apple Bloom doesn’t pick a side.

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo get into an argument over where Terramar should stay, and he runs off, angry that the ponies who were supposed to help him only made things worse. 

The CMC’s then surprise him with a big beach party- one that both those living on land and those living in the water can enjoy! Terramar’s parents apologize for pressuring him, and he decides to enjoy both worlds, rather than limit himself to one. 

YOU GET THE BEEEEEST OF BOTH WOOOORLDS!!!

...excuse me.  

Back to why this episode idea is such a good one: It resembles divorce. Obviously Terramar’s parents aren’t divorced, but them choosing to live in different places (and having strong opinions about it) are like a disagreement, and Terramar going back and forth between houses is like a kid going to visit both of his parents. Just like in a real divorce, this takes a toll on Terramar. The fact that this is shown in the episode is pretty neat, in my opinion. It references divorce in a very subtle way, but it’s still there. 

Okay, so a pretty good episode overall. But what about the downsides?

First off, the solution was kinda obvious. I knew how it would end from the very moment the conflict was introduced.

Secondly, depending on how you look at things, the theme could either be divorce or making difficult decisions. If it’s divorce, the ending was perfect, because a child should get to spend time with both his parents. If the main theme is decision-making, however, there’s one teeny-tiny issue: You don’t always get to choose both options. Sometimes you only get to pick one.

Anyway, I enjoyed it! I think I’m gonna give the episode a 7/10! It was a pretty solid episode overall, but I still think Grannies Gone Wild is the best episode of season 8 so far. Will that change soon? Maybe.  

Thanks for reading, and I’ll catch you all in a couple days for another RHYTHM RED’S RADTASTICAL REVIEWS!!!