Gosh dang, this episode tried to fit A LOT in, and boy howdy did it ever! Quite a bit to cover in this one, so let's get going.

First of all, "Just for Sidekicks" might be the funniest Spike episode yet! Much as we all love the little guy, I think it's safe to say that his best role is as a comedic character, and that's certainly what we got in today's episode. The gem eating (or losing) was too rich, his "WHYYYYYYY" at the beginning and end of the episode was a nice extension of and homage to his Season 1 "NOOOOOOO," and his bits with the animals and CMC were too funny!!! Not his best episode ever, but definitely a far better Spike episode than "Spike At Your Service" was; don't get me wrong, that was a fantastic AJ episode, but Spike was way too much of a dunce in that episode to do him much credit, even if he did take down Super-Robo-Bigfoot-Megatron-Timberwolf at the end.

Second, the pets were simply AWESOME!!! The first 7 minutes when Spike was going around promising to take care of everypony's pets was incredibly hilarious and adorable, especially getting to see Tank and RD give each other some loving, and Pinkie's ridiculously funny scene with Gummy (and no, I'm not going to ask why the buck she was in that chair; c'mon ya'll, it's Pinkie, is it really even worth asking at this point? ). Angel was the Satan bunny we've all come to love and hate throughout the episode (save for the very end there); Owlowiscious was, for once, not annoying (although he still didn't really contribute anything, he was just, well, there, and seriously, they're still going with that tired "Hoo" gag... seriously, was that ever funny after the first time they did it in Season 1???); Opal was pretty darn funny, especially when Rarity was going through all of her needs; Winona was adorable as usual, and looked hilarious under that industrial sized blow dryer; Tank was awesome, just plain and simple, AWESOME; and Gummy was... ummm... well, Gummy, I guess. I don't really know how else to describe that little enigma of a pet, he's possibly the only resident of Ponyville stranger than Pinkie Pie. Overall, the pets were awesome, funny, adorable... what more could you possibly ask for from DHX!!!

Third, the CMC were quite funny and adorable as well, and I was pleasantly surprised to see them getting some screen time in this episode. The skydiving bit was a riot, I can't even begin to imagine just how they bucked up taking care of all the pets (but, once again, that industrial sized blowdryer was AWESOME!!!), and they all had cute moments, whether alone (especially when they were talking about the Crystal Empire) or with their sisters. I will say though that, once again, Sweetie Belle takes the cake as cutest CMC; sorry Scootalovers, but Squeaky Belle is just too adorable, and she had about three or four squeaks in this episode that almost landed me in an ER!

In addition to the CMC, there were some pretty funny supporting and background pony bits scattered throughout the episode. Zecora had a pretty cool cameo (and apparently we learned from her scene that a Girl Scout/Salvation Army hybrid exists in Equestria; very cool to know that charitable institutions are now canon in the show! ), Granny Smith's was quite funny, and hey, we even got a quick appearance from Donut Joe!

Finally, it was very cool that DHX FINALLY explained what happened to PeeWee with that picture at the beginning that showed Spike returning him to his parents. Yeah, it's a little thing, but going out of your way to make sure you cover all loose ends is one of the true signs of a high quality studio, and DHX further reaffirmed with that bit that they are, undoubtedly, a high quality studio!

The only thing that really came across as a bit rushed was the lesson itself I suppose, and that's solely because there were so many shenanigans. Still, Spike learned a good lesson about greed and its dangers, a very good lesson for both him (being a dragon and all) and younger viewers. Overall, this was an adorable and hilarious episode that, quite honestly, surprised me with how good it was; I initially didn't see the point of another Spike episode, but the large number of supporting characters, especially the rarely seen pets, really made the episode work. Very nice follow up to the last episode, very nice set-up for the final two episodes, and a solid episode in and of itself, one that I personally think is far too underrated by many bronies. Yeah, there's not much to it, but it's not like it pretends to be a serious episode; it's just a fun episode that knows it's a fun episode and is a blast to watch all the way through. Overall, definitely a fun one to rewatch, especially back-to-back with "Games Ponies Play".

Dang it Owlowiscious, stop making that joke, IT'S NOT FUNNY ANY MORE!!!!!!!!