Batbrony

Good evening, everypony, and welcome back to another edition of "Batbrony Reviews"! The hits just keep on coming in Season 7 with, yet again, another episode that was more than exceptional. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that "To Change a Changeling" was downright inspired in certain moments, especially in its writing. Let's not waste any more time dawdling on introductions and just get to it, without further ado, this is "To Change a Changeling"! Starlight Glimmer and Trixie - Imperfect Mediators Given how influential the Cutie Mark Map has become as a plot device in the show for helping the main cast find new friendship problems, most of us going into this episode were assuming that Starlight and Trixie would be chosen by it to visit the changelings. Much to our delighted surprise, this was not the case. Now, make no mistake, I don't mind the Cutie Mark Map in concept, nor in how it's used most of the time; DHX has shown restraint in not using it too much to the point that it would become an obvious and forced plot device crutch, and it is definitely a staple of the show by this point, but not in a tired or overused way. Still, given how likely it seemed that it would be used here, it was still pleasantly surprising and noteworthy to see that Starlight and Trixie were simply on hoof to help by accident more than anything else. They were simply coming by to surprise their friend Thorax with a visit and see what the state of the Hive in general was, but they had no idea what exact problems they were facing. This both helps make perfect sense as to why Spike wasn't there, and also helps put into context why Starlight and Trixie weren't the best prepared to help with this specific issue; while they share similar backgrounds with Pharynx, Starlight was a true ringleader (and as such shares more in common with the still-unreformed Chrysalis) while Trixie was (and to some extent still is) just an annoying nuisance more than anything else, who just so happened to get incredibly dangerous at one point by virtue of acquiring an incredibly powerful magical artifact. What really made them most helpful in this situation is that they both knew how much it can hurt to not really feel like you belong anywhere or are a part of anything, which was definitely at the heart of Pharynx's issues. We'll get into those more later on, but probably the biggest reason they weren't willing to give up on Pharynx is because they could sympathize with his situation; if somepony else had been there, they may have focused too much on how Pharynx was affecting the Hive, not how the Hive's situation was affecting Pharynx as well. Now, some may raise that Starlight was willing to recommend that Pharynx be kicked out of the Hive, but in her defense she (1) didn't believe that Pharynx had any willingness, inclination, or personal reasons or potential to change for the better at the time, (2) was trying to figure out what was best for the most parties involved, which did in fairness have to put precedent on the Hive first and foremost, and (3) changed her mind about this after learning more about who Pharynx was as an individual and realizing that he did have the potential to find his own place in the Hive again. Even though her initial recommendation that Pharynx be kicked out as well as her plan to lure maulwurf to the Hive so that Pharynx might have the chance to protect it and prove his worth to it both backfired, she did remain perseverant in her efforts to help both Thorax, Pharynx, and the Hive, and ultimately her and Trixie's efforts forced them to confront Pharynx's issues head on, instead of letting them fester and grow worse. On top of that, Starlight and Trixie were, as always, an entertaining pair. Trixie's ego is still as hilarious as when it backfires on her (her "teleportation spell GO!!!" bit was especially amusing, as was her constantly being a thorn in Starlight's side), Starlight found herself confronted by more than a few problems she wasn't necessarily very well equipped to handle (largely because of cultural differences between the ponies and changelings) which led to many amusing results, AND to top it all off, Starlight had a Braveheart moment that inspired absolutely... NOPONY!!! Well, at least for five minutes, but to be fair, it DID eventually work! All in all, while neither Starlight or Trixie had all of the answers for the changelings here, they still found a way to help them confront their problems and ultimately resolve them, which is to be commended considering most ponies probably would have balked at a problem like this. Good outing from the both of them, all in all, very solid indeed! "HELLO! My name is Starlight Glimmer, and today I am here to tell you about the maulwurf: Half Mole, Half Bear, Half Razor Sharp Claws!" In all honesty, that thing is bucking terrifying The Changelings - Old Habits Die Hard Oddly enough, the changelings themselves were at the heart of the Pharynx issue, or rather why it wasn't resolving itself all that well. As we can see, the whole Hive by this point has been reformed by Thorax's efforts and is now attempting to build a society built on giving and sharing love with one another rather than taking it, and for the most part those efforts are going quite well. The changelings still have to take many baby steps, but they are definitely getting there. However, what seems to be taking FAR longer to change is an interesting tendency of the changelings we haven't really discussed, largely because we've never gotten to see all that much of it: group-think. What do I mean by that? Let me explain. Now, clearly the changelings under Queen Chrysalis were essentially her thralls; she would call them things like her children, and even though she had some level of affection for them, they had no choice over the direction of their lives. This seems to have gone on for as long as changelings have existed, which could be hundreds if not thousands of years, meaning in all of that time they got very much used to every single member of their society "agreeing" to follow every single one of Queen Chrysalis's orders about the direction of their society and what they should do for it. Under King Thorax, they now have free will, but they are clearly still getting used to it; this was very well evidenced in both the scene where Thorax shows off some of their new cultural activities, as well as the Feelings Forum scene, by a number of clear examples. (1) Thorax shows the changelings engaging in very simple, basic cultural activities, like theater, potluck, swing dancing, and arts and crafts; with all of these activities taking place in the same space, the scene almost felt like an adult version of daycare was on display. I do not say that condescendingly, it actually makes perfect sense in fact that the changelings would need to start with very basic cultural activities like that; they've probably never had any opportunities to do anything like that given that their entire existence has always been devoted to only fulfilling Queen Chrysalis's wishes or surviving from taking the love of others. (2) Building off of that, the Feelings Forum scene shows us a changeling explaining that she thinks she's supposed to be a green changeling since that's what she transformed into, but sometimes wants to be a blue or a purple changeling; given that she can easily change into these, she's tempted to, but since she was transformed into a green changeling, she thinks that might be living a lie and not who she really is. (3) In the same scene, another changeling shares how arts and crafts time helped him cope with his own personal insecurities. OK, that's bucking adorable All of these scenes show us ways in which the changelings are grappling with their emerging individuality as they struggle to embrace their newfound free will; new cultural activities give them opportunities to discover differences between themselves and become more comfortable with their identities as unique individuals. Yet at the same time, it's a struggle because not only were they once a society where every member followed the same exact direction and path, but they also largely looked the same in their base changeling form, and were used to impersonating others; now, they have both free will and unique appearances, and while they clearly want to find out who they are as individuals, they're also scared of doing so, and some still love the possibilities of being whatever they'd want to be with their changeling powers, even though they know that wouldn't necessarily be who they really are, and would feel like they're both lying to themselves and others. The biggest thing by far, however, making it harder for them to break their old habits and way of thinking is without a doubt the Pharynx problem. Pharynx is, to most of the changelings, just being a pain in the flank, and when they are all agreed that he's a problem, they fall into a bad habit of group-think. It's still hard for them to have disagreements with one another, so given that Pharynx is universally disliked by all in the Hive when the episode starts, it's easy to see how they'd so easily agree with one another that they just want him to go. It's the easiest course of action, and all of them seem to want it, so of course it makes the most sense to them all! The problem with this is that, in their earnest universal agreement with one another, none of the changelings besides Thorax consider what they'd lose in kicking out Pharynx. They're too caught up in agreeing with one another that he's got to go that they never ask themselves what he might have to offer to the Hive instead; he's the most different from the rest of them now, the new Thorax essentially. And where Thorax had no place in the old Hive before, Pharynx in their eyes has no place in the new Hive now. But the first time around, Thorax being away from his people clearly wasn't the right call; sure he needed to live with ponies in order to discover what sharing love is truly like, but ultimately he needed to go back to them in order to help save them. Likewise, Pharynx leaving his people wouldn't have been the right move either, but again, the changelings dangerous habit of wanting universal agreement and accord among themselves in directing their society almost led to this happening. Overall, we got a fascinating look at the state of changeling society in the midst of a massive societal and cultural overhaul which told us a lot about who they used to be, who they are now, and what they aspire to be, probably the most of a look we've ever gotten at changelings as a whole. Also, I can't lie, some of the background changelings were amazing. We got "splashed by Pharynx with paint" changeling, Feelings Forum moderator changeling, Feelings Forum identity crisis changeling, Feelings Forum arts and crafts changeling, but by far my favorite had to be "My soup is too hot" changeling! That guy CLEARLY has his priorities straight and knows exactly what folks are coming to the Feelings Forum for! Soup on, my man, soup on. Soup Changeling, the only changeling who got exactly what he wanted out of the Feelings Forum!!! Pharynx and King Thorax - A Tale of Two Bros As much of a douche as he was, this was hilarious So now we finally come to the crux of this episode, King Thorax and his older brother, Pharynx. These two by the end of this episode serve as an interesting converse to the Two Sisters, Celestia and Luna, in Equestria, especially given Pharynx's late episode transformation. Whereas with the latter, the elder sibling, Celestia, has always been more bureaucratically minded (not just in her duties, but much fanon speculates this is the case as well) while the younger sibling, Luna, has always been the more aggressive of the two (to the point that some fanon has speculated that she is the more involved of the two in Equestrian military affairs), Thorax as the younger sibling is the far more diplomatic of the two while Pharynx, the elder sibling, is far more aggressive and militaristic (which makes sense given that such aggressive behavior used to be the norm for the changelings). Another interesting development is that, as pointed out earlier, Thorax used to be the odd-man out among the changelings, while Pharynx was as in as one could be as head of patrol for the entire Hive; the changeling transformation and reformation, however, flipped this on its head. Pharynx, when the episode begins, is by this point universally reviled by the rest of the Hive, with the exception of his younger brother, but even Thorax doesn't know how to deal with him. This is where things get most interesting. Initially, when we heard the premise of this episode as well as saw the beginning, it seemed like the most likely route it would take would be in showing that Pharynx alone had to change. The idea that he might even be in open rebellion against Thorax was not off the table. However, it quickly became apparent that that was not the case. Pharynx did not initially capture Starlight and Trixie out of spite against Thorax, in fact, he didn't even know who they were; instead he brought them to Thorax, claiming they were trespassers and enemies of the Hive, but then begrudgingly accepted Thorax's vouching for them. This right away made clear a couple of things: (1) Pharynx recognizes Thorax's authority as head of the Hive, even if he doesn't agree with or understand the new direction he's taking the Hive, (2) who's in charge of the Hive mattered less to Pharynx than the state of the Hive itself. Now to be fair, I'm not letting Pharynx off the hook entirely. He was clearly a pain in the flank of most of the Hive, and for confusing reasons at times. He needlessly tears down or destroys some of the Hive's new decorations, constantly was butting heads with the other changelings and frightening them (even doing crazy shit like pouring black paint on a changeling to make her look more intimidating), and even seemed to miss sucking love from other ponies like they used to (he did not hide his disdain of ponies much at all, though that never really stopped him from working with Starlight or Trixie if he felt it was worth working with them). However, in his defense, most of this nostalgia seems to stem not from his enjoying being evil for the sake of being evil, but simply having a FIERCE protective streak in him, both for Thorax as well as the rest of the Hive; if he simply wanted to be evil for the sake of being evil, he'd probably have left already and joined Queen Chrysalis, wherever she's at. Instead, Thorax stayed loyal to the Hive, even if he hates what it's currently like and can't wrap his head around it because, like the other changelings, he's not used to the idea of a society where its members have different likes, interests, and ideas, including things they disagree on. Despite his stubbornly refusing to embrace things like a softer outlook on life and gentler activities like Thorax was promoting, Pharynx does actually love something; he loves the Hive, he loves the changelings in it, and he'd do anything to protect them. No joke, I ADORE Deer Bug Pony 2.0's design and coloring, the antlers especially tie the whole look together (@PathfinderCS agreed?)!!! Now, Pharynx is clearly a placeholder for ANY group of people (or an individual) who another, opposing group just wishes would go away, the idea being that life would be so much simpler if he/she/they were gone, rather than finding a way to work with them instead. More specifically, however, he is clearly a stand-in for a conservative individual; I do not say this, even as a moderate conservative myself, because of some victim complex or anything. Pharynx had his own issues to work out, certainly, especially in figuring out how he could still appreciate a place he very much still loved when it didn't look anything like he wanted it to and he felt he had no true place in it. But nonetheless, I have to very much commend DHX for making him so sympathetic in this instance, because while Pharynx was certainly acting like a jerk, the show was far more critical, it seemed, of the idea of kicking him out. The "progressive" changelings, if you will, for the most part thought the best solution would simply be kicking him out of the Hive, rather than finding a way to live with him and incorporate him into it, even if it was harder. The only reason Thorax even stood up for Pharynx wasn't because he was his brother, but because Pharynx showed him when they were younger that he did have his own ways of caring for others, even if he still had a gruff exterior. But it took Starlight and Trixie forcing a confrontation with the maulwurf to show the whole Hive how Pharynx still belonged; Thorax's initial plan to lure the maulwurf away from the Hive may have worked, but it might not have been a permanent solution. Pharynx, on the other hand, was the only changeling acting like he had any gonads left; now it makes sense that the changelings, now having to share love with one another, would initially try to avoid as much aggression as they could, but still, they clearly went too far and in their earnest embracing of their new lives, forgot that sometimes protecting yourselves requires force, not just peaceful solutions. Pharynx was far more a protector than an aggressor at his heart, even if he overcompensated for his new role as outsider in the Hive by putting on far too aggressive of an exterior. Some bronies have also pointed out that Pharynx isn't even just a stand-in for a lone conservative voice who feels like the world he has always known has, all too quickly, left him far behind, but also a stand in for military veterans. This is a very curious but accurate point, I believe. Pharynx, like many military veterans, feels that his efforts to protect the Hive are misunderstood and unappreciated by a soft public that doesn't understand why he has to do what he does. With how gentle the changelings have become by this point, he's clearly at a point in life where not only does his role in the Hive feel muddled, confused, ambiguous and uncertain, but downright pointless and thankless. This is probably at the core of most of his aggression, aside of course from his background as a servant of Chrysalis. He clearly needs to change and find a new place in this new changeling society, but he doesn't need to change as much as most of the changelings think he does. He can still have his gruff exterior and tough as nails persona, he just has to be willing to accept that the other changelings aren't like that now while still finding a way to work with them. In turn, the other changelings need to accept that Pharynx is the way he is to their benefit, that it's OK if he isn't as gentle or loving as the rest of them, that he can still love the Hive just like they do in his own way and even help them be better at protecting it too. At the heart of this episode is the complex message that difference is not a dirty word, even if that which is different from you may, on the surface, be a pain in the ass. When dealing with something or someone like that, you have one of two things you can do. You can either take the easy route with someone like that and just have nothing to do with them, ignore them, even cast them out from your life and society as much as you can; this is even easier if everyone else you know wants to do the same. But just because it's the easiest route doesn't mean it's the best route. In doing so, you keep both yourself and the person or group you loathe so much from discovering what you may have in common, that you both are, when you get down to it, both perfectly decent for the most part even if you look at things very differently, and that you both have valuable things to contribute to your society and each other, and can even make each other better when you find ways to work with and cooperate with one another. Taking the hard route and finding a way to do just that, live with, love, and appreciate someone who lives their life and views things completely differently than you do may be much more difficult, but it is also far more rewarding to you, the 'other' and society as a whole. I've made many friends myself, both in real life and on the forums, who have VERY different world views than I do, and while I may not share all of the same views with them, I know that deep down they're still good people who I am more than happy to know and be friends with, and that when we're friends with each other, we're both better for it. Pharynx AND the Hive both go through this transformation by the end of the episode, understanding that they both need each other and still love and appreciate each other, even if they don't always get each other. Not always getting someone else is OK as long as you don't let it blind you to whether or not they are a good person. This subtle and complex message is why I highly appreciate what this episode did, and why it is yet again another amazing addition to an already amazing season of MLP. Don't think there's really much else I can cover, so that's all I've got for ya today everypony! Until next time everypony, this is Batbrony signing off. I'm off!!! *cue dramatic exit*

This was a positively delightful and complex episode, another A+ effort from DHX this season! I gotta go run a quick errand ya'll, but I should be back quickly and promise to share my extensive thoughts on this episode later. Later ya'll!!!

This episode is handling the issue at hand PERFECTLY!!! The changelings have KINDA gone a little too... shall we say, tree-huggy, for lack of a better way of putting it. OK, they're being a bunch of pussies, alright? Well, Pharynx is the only one with any gonads left, and he clearly still cares about the Hive. They just need to find a place for him in the Hive, which will also help them see what contributions he could give to their own lives as well! Very complex and well done indeed!

"It might take slightly longer with Starlight..." I swear, if Trixie ever becomes a princess, she shall be the Princess of Ego Trips! Also, very nice to see that Pharynx still WANTS to be part of the Hive, and even recognizes Thorax (to a certain extent) as ruler, he just doesn't know how to cope with the changes. He had authority with Chrysalis, purpose, everything made sense, and now it simply doesn't. This is a far subtler approach to Pharynx's problem than I was initially expecting, I like it!

Ahhhhhhhhhh, very interesting, the Cutie Mark Map did NOT send them! That's actually a nice change of pace, recognition from the show writers that it'd be a bit too forced and formulaic if the map was directing them to EVERY friendship problem these days. Also, Trixie is hilarious as ever, I like very much.

A chance at winning any awards? Hmmm... possibly in a musical category for animation-specific awards. Nominations, on the other hand, are far more interesting to consider. As @Jeric pointed out, 2017 has been a dumpster ground as far as animated films go; I noticed this back at the beginning of the year when, out of curiosity, I checked what animated films were getting released alongside of the MLP Movie, pondering this very question. If My Little Pony: The Movie is good enough, and has a solid critical response as well, there is a definite possibility it could get a nomination for Best Animated Feature. It would also depend heavily on what kind of Oscar campaign Hasbro, Paramount, and Lionsgate launched for it, if any, as well as the clout with the Academy that several of its celebrity VAs do most definitely have, such as Kristin Chenoweth, Zoe Saldana, and Liev Schreiber. The only animated movies this year that I am sure will get Best Animated Feature nominations will be Coco (most definitely the front runner for the award in general; the premise alone of Pixar focusing on Hispanic culture has critics already salivating to give it to them, I'm sure, especially as a statement award in the first year of Trump's presidency... and look, I don't say that to take anything away from what looks to be a very good movie, I'm just saying, the Academy does like to get political with its awards sometimes, that's a fact) and The LEGO Batman Movie (the top dark horse contender for the award). Disney could probably buy Cars 3 a nomination as well if they wanted to, though I don't know if they'll get that greedy with Coco already almost guaranteed a nomination in such a piss poor year for animated films; WB could probably buy The LEGO Ninjago Movie a nomination if it's even half as funny as The LEGO Batman Movie, but as with Disney, I don't know if they'll get that greedy and risk splitting voters who could vote for The LEGO Batman Movie instead; Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie actually has a decent shot at a nomination since by all accounts it was actually good; and Smurfs: The Lost Village and Despicable Me 3, mediocre as they were, could probably score nominations IF Sony Animation and Illumination Animation, their respective studios, put together ambitious enough Oscar campaigns. Outside of that, there may be some independent or foreign features I haven't heard anything about that could deserve nominations, but they would need the Academy to give a crap about the animation category in general to come under consideration, and frankly, I can't figure out from one year to the next how much the Academy does even care about the Best Animated Feature category (The LEGO Movie getting snubbed from even a nomination in 2014 comes to mind, even if that was a better year for animation than 2017 has been). So that all said, if a lot of things go its way, My Little Pony: The Movie could definitely stand a decent (at least) shot of earning a nomination for Best Animated Feature from the Academy. If the music is good enough, I'd dare even say they could be up for some Best Original Song and Best Original Score awards at a number of shows, though again, most of those, I believe, would be for award shows specifically devoted to animated features. But hey, ya never know, if it's good enough, maybe shows like the Golden Globes or the Academy Awards will be feeling the Magic of Friendship this year! Here's hoping they do, as any nomination would be a huge PR win for the movie and show, and possibly even bolster both viewership and video sales!

Ah yes, I see Thorax is going to be having that age old "My brother wants to remain a love-sucking, vampiric creature hellbent on enslaving all of Equestria and stripping its denizens of all of their love and free will" family problem. I remember having that issue once with someone in my family back in the day like it was just yesterday... Ahhhhhhhhh, memories, good times, good times. Anyways, hopefully this proves to be a splendid episode, and Starlight and Trixie are an endearing and entertaining pair as always! Also, YAY FOR MORE KING DEER BUG PONY!!!

I actually don't agree with that point you raise, at least not for this joke. It didn't seem that gross or over-the-top to me, and I don't think it was the butt of the joke either; the butt of the joke was that Rainbow did something VERY impulsive for the sake of making a very minor point about her bravery (in the grand scheme of things) and may have gotten far more than she bargained for. The show avoids gross out humor enough anyway that I think it can get a pass for doing it every now and then. I agree with Jeric's point that the Rarity face from "Applejack's Day Off" was FAR more terrifying and out of place given that it was largely there just to be gross, not to make a particularly fun or clever joke. Bucking nightmare fuel, that face!

"And then... the brash, hotheaded, boastful pegasus Prism Sprint painted ALL of the Peach family's peaches as a prank along with the earth pony who eats too much sugar, Blue Brownie, costing the Peach family an incalculable amount of loss in time, labor, and product! OOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" "Why does this story sound familiar when I've never heard it before?" "Just think about it, sugar cube, I'm sure it'll come to ya eventually." Good afternoon everypony, and welcome back to another edition of "Batbrony Reviews"!! Me oh my, this show has seriously got to stop throwing so much amazing at us, for real! I have not seen track records of flat-out great episodes in this show, this consistently, since Season 2 (in my estimation, at least). We got a break last week with an episode that was very much just good, not great, but the show returned to giving us more great episodes again this week in the delightful "Campfire Tales"! This one's gonna be a pretty easy episode to review as I can simply go sequentially through the episode itself, so without further ado, let's dive right in. This is "Campfire Tales." Alright, so this episode set out to do not one, but two things, and given that it had writers who've never written for the show before (Barry Safchik and Michael Platt, respectively), that was no easy feat. However, unlike with Becky Wangberg's atrocious debut in "Hard to Say Anything," these two clearly did their homework, and the result was a great episode. So, just what exactly did the episode aim to do? First, it needed to act as solid continuity to Season 3's amazing "Sleepless in Ponyville," which we all of course remember most for being the first episode in which Rainbow Dash decided to start acting as a surrogate older sister to Scootaloo, but was also just as enjoyable for the camping subplot in which Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo all go on a camping trip together. Now, for the most part the episode handled the continuity great; it's one minor flaw was that the dialogue at the beginning suggested that this was their first annual camping trip since the last one, suggesting only a year had passed in the show since Season 3, and I refuse to believe that given everything that has happened. But that's easy enough to ignore, so I don't need to gripe about it too much. The other thing that the episode set out to do was add some very cool canon of its own to the MLP:FiM universe canon, while still juggling it's primary plot in the present, and in this the episode splendidly succeeded as well, introducing us to characters recently introduced to the MLP comics themselves in the still ongoing "Legends of Magic" series! Let's take a closer look at just how the episode succeeds in both of these respects. So to start things off we get an absolutely delightful opening scene setting up the camping trip itself, establishing that this is now an annual tradition of these three pairs of sisters. We see that Applejack is, as always, the grounded center of this group of six ponies (no surprise given that she's been trying to be a family matriarch since a young age due to the untimely death of her parents, especially for Apple Bloom, and she has the most experience being a dependable sibling of any of the older ponies here, so she can run a show like this no sweat); Rarity for her part has become considerably more practical for a trip like this, though delightfully still brings her own unique touch to it, just in a more reasonable manner; and Rainbow Dash for her part is mostly focused on using this time to hang out with Scootaloo, which makes sense considering (1) she's very busy as a Wonderbolt these days, so probably doesn't have much time to regularly hang out with Scoots, and (2) she has the most reason to do as much bonding with her surrogate sister as she can, seeing as she's been treating her like family for the least amount of time of all three older siblings and thus has the most developing of her relationship to do with Scoots. As for the CMC, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle seemed pretty chill in their activities, but Scootaloo's own behavior further emphasizes my point that she and Rainbow Dash's bonding is especially important to each other on this trip. While the other two pairs of sisters clearly see this as one of many things they do together, Scootaloo and Rainbow both clearly see this as an event that will always be special to them seeing as it was the foundational event of their "sisterhood." On top of that, Scootaloo also clearly is far more nervous in nature now than Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle are; her nightmares on their previous trip clearly left a bad impression on her, and this was, for me, one of my favorite bits of continuity. In a lesser show, she'd be over these fears by now as if they didn't happen, but here the writers had fun with the idea of Scootaloo instead kinda not doing too well in nature, which added variety to the group as a whole. Some people can camp no sweat like the Apples, others do it while still needing as many comforts from home as possible, like Rarity and Sweetie (though Sweetie would probably do better without them than Rarity would), and others are either bad at survival skills, like Rainbow (given that she almost ate poisonous berries before Scootaloo told her what they were) or just do not do well in nature at all and find it to be an unsettling place they don't ever get used to, like Scootaloo. But anyway, moving on, the trip is off to a lovely start... that is until of course it's interrupted by a fresh spawn of hell in this show's canon, FLY-DERS!!!! Yes, Fly-ders, little bastards that are apparently flies crossed with spiders and all the more terrifying for it. These bastards from the Luna Bay area way up in Northwest Equestria will bite you, web you (apparently they're even carnivorous considering AJ, who seemed to know the most about them, was doing everything in her power to stay away from them), and web up all your shit too just because they can! In other words, they are the Equestrian equivalent of the hyena: NATURE'S ASSHOLE!!!!!! So after the swarms of fly-ders appear, the group is forced to flee into a nearby cave, and the older ponies (after Rainbow quite hilariously and recklessly fetches their campfire from the fly-der swarms) decide to raise their younger sisters spirits and pass the time (hoping the fly-ders will soon leave) telling them all campfire stories, namely stories about their favorite Equestrian legends. Applejack starts off with the legend of Rockhoof, a legendary earth pony whose sheer determination in the face of impossible odds magically unlocked his strength as he saved his village from certain destruction! The story itself was delightful, especially in seeing the Norse-type culture that Rockhoof belonged to, but the real highlight for me was in how Applejack told it. Unlock the other two pairs of sisters, this was a story that Apple Bloom had already heard many times (further highlighting how naturally close those two are as sisters, and delightfully conveyed in how excited Apple Bloom got at certain parts of the story, even squeeing in anticipation, which was too adorable). The backgrounds were especially impressive to me; while Rarity's story probably had the most artistically beautiful backgrounds, and Rainbow's even had the biggest, this somehow felt bigger, even though it was technically a more confined story than Rainbow's was. I think it has to do with how the volcano so nicely contrasted the blue sky; normally an erupting volcano would be surrounded by a sky full of ash and fire in a scene like this, but here you had this massive volcano overlooking this tiny pony village, but contrasted wonderfully by a picturesque blue sky. The lava effects as well, although hardly the first time we've seen them, were very cool, and Rockhoof was quite an awesome character. Since we know that the Season 7 finale is going to tie into the Legends of Magic somehow, I cannot wait to see more of this guy in the finale when it comes around! Aside from being an earth pony, Rockhoof didn't tie too explicitly into the Apple Family like the other two stories tie into their respective characters, but I was OK that; it's easy enough to believe this is a favorite story among earth ponies in general, so Applejack probably heard it from her parents too when she was younger, plus of course I could easily see a character like Rockhoof overcoming his smaller size to do the impossible inspiring younger earth ponies like Applejack used to be before she could do greater feats of strength. Huh, I wonder what he's screaming at... Oh... yeah, that makes sense The next interlude leads into my favorite segment of the entire episode, Rarity's story. Things are set up nicely when Sweetie Belle expresses boredom at their current plight. Rarity in turn starts to do something I wish we saw in the show more often, use her generous nature and eye for aesthetic beauty to the benefit of others in creative ways most would never think of doing. First she shows Sweetie Belle that there's more to the cave they're in than meets the eye, showing how flecks of gold dot its wall (further emphasizing her eye for spotting gems and precious minerals as well), and even uses their campfire to create beautiful shadow puppets (and a pretty humorous throwback to ballerina Twilight as well). I love now knowing that Rarity can both do this, as well as the fact that she clearly used the shadow puppets to help tell her story. While it's possible that Twilight told Rarity about what she did, for some reason I find it more likely (and amusing) that Starlight told Rarity when they were both talking about how OCD Twilight can be sometimes Then she proceeds to tell the best story of the lot, about a unicorn by the name of Mistmane. Mistmane lived in a corner of Equestria where some type of ancient Japanese-inspired culture was prevalent, and the scenery we got to see there was too amazing to describe! So many colors, beautiful buildings, backgrounds, and clothing we've never seen in the show before, and even unicorns with curved horns, something that has only appeared, to date, in either the MLP comics or fan art! As for Mistmane herself, she was a beautiful unicorn and powerful sorceress who was forced to defeat her best friend Sable Spirit, now the empress of their region, who, after trying to magically make herself more beautiful, only made herself more ugly instead, and in her rage chose to have all of her subjects spend their days doing nothing but beautify her palace. Mistmane easily defeats Sable, but then does an even greater act of heroism; saddened by the state of her home, and simply wanting to bring back hope to her people, Mistmane puts all of her magic into restoring both her home and Sable, at the cost of her own beautiful features. While it doesn't fix everything her people have lost, their hope is restored, as is the Sable's perspective upon being shocked by how generous and selfless Mistmane was for the sake of others. Sable resolves to reflect Mistmane's generosity as best she can for the rest of her days, and the land is restored as ponies return to leading their old, happy lives. Mistmane herself spends the rest of her days wandering the countryside, assisting ponies with her magic wherever she can, and spreading beauty along the way as she does; even if there's nothing she can do or nothing for her to do to help someone, the least she can do is make their day a little brighter with something beautiful. What makes this story the highlight of the episode is not only the fact that it's a beautiful story in its own right about generosity, the value of true aesthetic beauty when used appropriately, and self-sacrifice for the good of others and how that is the highest beauty of all, but also the fact that it gives us so much insight into Rarity's own philosophy about both aesthetic beauty and generosity, and how they tie together for her so naturally. This didn't sound so much like a story she would have grown up with like Applejack did, on the contrary, this felt more like something she would have come across when she was growing older, possibly during her college days (so to speak); the story was far more refined and developed than Applejack or Rainbow Dash's were, and it clearly held dear personal meaning to Rarity. She very deliberately saw herself, or at least a pony whose example she wants to follow, in Mistmane, though unlike Rainbow she did not flat out state it either. For her, in this moment, it was most meaningful sharing something so personal and beautiful with her friends and her beloved sister, further illustrating how, even in telling this story, Rarity's generous nature was on display, and also went hoof in hoof with her love of spreading beauty to others as well. Hands down the best segment of this episode for me, it just might also be Rarity's highlight moment of Season 7 thus far, making "Campfire Tales," oddly enough, Rarity's best appearance in Season 7 to date, which is incredibly odd given that she was not the primary focus of the episode itself. I cannot even begin to imagine how complicated and technically difficult some of the animation and backgrounds were in this story... I mean... JUST LOOK AT ALL OF THIS!!! Easily some of the best, complex, and most beautiful animation we've seen in all of Season 7, or the entire show for that matter, so far! Finally, after Rainbow causes a cave in when the fly-ders (little bastards that they are) start advancing on the group again, Scootaloo has a near panic attack, and Rainbow decides it's her turn to tell a story. Uh, Rainbow, I think ya got something on your... ya know what, nevermind, I'm sure you'll notice eventually The best part about the set up for this one (as well as the story itself) is that Rainbow is clearly telling this to calm Scootaloo down. It fits Rainbow's demeanor and personality that she is protective to her surrogate sister, and doing something like this is about as much of a softy as she typically gets. She may have acted a bit gruff at times, acting as though she were annoyed at Scootaloo's panic, but really you could tell she was just trying to put on a brave face for her as she reassured her everything was going to be OK. The story itself wasn't particularly remarkable (especially after Rarity's), but Flash Magnus is easily the best Flash on this show (suck it, Flash Sentry), and it did feature some pretty awesome flying scenes as well as some of the best dragon action of the show (including with, presumably, Ember's father, the former Dragon Lord Torch). I did find it super cool on a personal level that the commander of the pegasi in the Royal Legion was called Commander Ironhoof; I say this because I have a minor character featured in Equestrian history in my own fic-universe in my fic "Batmare Begins" whose name was Eisenhuf, that is, German for Ironhoof! Total coincidence of course, but it was pretty cool seeing the show runners decide that's a badass name for a pony just like I did some time ago. Other than that, the story featured some cool action and a cool new Equestrian hero (I'm going to presume it took place before the Sisters arrived since the pegasi seemed to be in old Pegasopolis armor), but a fairly standard lesson about one's loyalty bringing out your most heroic side. This felt more like a story Rainbow would have learned in school than from her parents, but instantly latched onto when she first heard it; being totally awesome as a result of your loyalty to your companions and friends is something she clearly prizes, so it's unsurprising this was one of her favorite stories. OK, that is admittedly bucking awesome... ...but holy shit, that's adorable!!! After the close of Rainbow's story, (and a failed attempt from Applejack to clear the cave in, but to her credit, she did come close; let's say she had her very own "Captain America almost lifts Mjolnir" moment and almost channeled some Pie-family magic into her strength) the sisters decide to go through the back of the cave, and follow an underground river. Their spirits have all been bolstered at this point by the stories, both young and old, and the river, fortuitously enough, leads to Winsome Falls, their destination for the camping trip. The younger sisters, emboldened by the stories they've just been told, are determined to salvage the trip here, and the older sisters are happy to oblige, glad to see their younger counterparts happy. The episode closes on a happy note, and all is well. Woah! Check out the return of wet-mane Rarity (bonus points for a lil' wet-mane AJ too ... oh don't look at me like that, YOU KNOW YOU WERE THINKING IT TOO!!! ) If this episode has any lesson at all (besides those contained in the stories themselves) it's in the power of older siblings to impact their younger siblings lives for the better in the low moments. Older siblings, especially when their siblings are genuinely smaller than them, can do things they can't, but more importantly are figures they look up to. This doesn't mean the things older siblings do always have to be big, rather, small acts are often some of the most important that their siblings will remember years later. The little ways they went out of their way for them when they didn't have to. As an older sibling myself, I loved getting to see these sides of Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash once more, always do whenever it happens, and so I found myself very, very appreciative for everything this episode did. It's another great episode of Season 7, and me, I got no complaints on my end about that. Until next time, everypony, this is Batbrony signing off. I'm off!!! *cue dramatic exit*

It was her "Captain America almost lifting Mjolnir" moment! Sphinx must be showing up in a later episode, they wouldn't show that in promos if it wasn't in the show. My best guess right now is the Daring Do episode coming up, but it could be another one.

JAPANESE PONY CULTURE EXISTS AND IT'S SO, SO, SO PRETTY!!!!!!! Also, DAMN IT RAINBOW!!!!!!!!