Them's Seeing Ponies

Who names their kid "Farmer" anyway? The Cutie Map is an extremely conspicuous plot device and has been since its introduction in S5, most notably in that its rules remain undefined and inconsistent (how does the map decide which ponies to summon, what is stopping the M6 from defying or subverting its commands (most notably how seriously Twilight treats her exclusion from missions during S5 - what is preventing her from accompanying Pinkie/Dash and AJ/Rarity exactly?) and how can Sunburst, Starlight and Spike be summoned if they're not connected to the Tree of Harmony as the M6 are?) yet the show utilizes it as an integral catalyst for a number of episodes in recent seasons. Needless to say, I'm not holding out for much explanation regarding the subject in season 9.

The Lady Writers' style of comedy still doesn't do much for me, which is why I believe the dialogue of S8 to be an improvement. I guess we should agree to disagree in this case.

It was okay. S8's was simply sharper and funnier.

Season 1: The inclusion of subtlety and pacing of the M6's introductory arcs - S1 is usually generalized into being 'an introduction to the cast', which is true to an extent, but I feel it often remains overlooked for the way it paces and balances the arcs of its main cast, which no other season manages to pull off in a comparable way. Even the 'filler' episodes are typically filler in that they happen to be written poorly ("Boast Busters", "The Show Stoppers") or oversimplify certain conflicts (therefore rendering them somewhat dull after seven seasons of successively greater bombast) as opposed to true 'filler' where the entire episode could easily be omitted from the lineup without any effect at all. I should also mention that I vastly prefer Pinkie's quirky optimism here to her less grounded hyperactive zaniness in later seasons, but that's debatably yet more subjective. Season 2: The crisper colour palette and sharper comedy. The latter in particular is a major influence - many of S2's greatest episodes carry a surprising amount of their weight both on tackling their themes in an introspective and compelling way (I guess S2's treatment of its themes is another of its major strong points - episodes like "Hurricane Fluttershy" are simple through a surface-level lens despite their ability to build upon these themes in a way which renders them head and shoulders above the vast majority of kids' TV to take on these themes) and adding memorable comedy - "It's About Time" and "The Last Roundup" (should I even mention the Pinkie Promise sequence?) are the ultimate examples of this to me. The two-parters also emerge into their own here, with "The Return of Harmony" debatably lying among the best of the group due to providing dually introspective and comedic views into the M6 whilst structuring the narrative to incorporate the six in a way which doesn't occur again until "The Cutie Map" while maintaining a solid plot which matches its level of ambition (which places it above "The Cutie Re-Mark" and "Shadow Play" in that regard, despite both of the latter episodes being technically more impressive). Season 3: The number of shifts in the status quo over the relatively brief 13-episode order. In the span of half a season, the show introduced one of the first significant non-Ponyville locations, increased the CMC's ranks (albeit in a sloppy and tepid way), 'reformed' (I guess?) Trixie, expanded upon Scootaloo's character and her relationship with RD, featured RD ascending into the ranks of the Wonderbolts Academy, introduced the entire Apple family, reformed Discord and drastically upended the status of the series' main character. The hit-to-miss ratio here was far from perfect, but that's a pretty interesting move nonetheless for a season tasked with maintaining the brony craze at its height whilst living up to the sky-high expectations set by S1 and S2. Season 4: The employment of more ambitious material, including the increased grandiosity of the musical numbers, in addition to the more ambitious directorial techniques and greater scope for experimentation compared to the previous season. I already said my piece here in the recent season 4 thread. Season 5: The direction and animation in this season is incredible by the standards of Flash, which elevates even the more tedious filler episodes to bearing some merits - as meaningless and tepid as "Scare Master" was, the art direction and lighting was surprisingly dramatic and visually appealing (particularly the sequence of Fluttershy walking through Twilight's castle), whilst the frenetic pace and looseness (possibly also courtesy of Sibsy's and Nicole Wang's storyboarding) of "Party Pooped"'s animation adds flavour to an otherwise underwhelming narrative. I should also note that, while it isn't typically as effective as the writers seem to believe, the notes of finality and grandiosity to S5's episodes render even its failures at least interesting failures for the most part (save for "Princess Spike" and "What About Discord?", which are both generally among the show's most irredeemably tedious). Season 6: The worldbuilding provided to the dragons and changelings was genuinely compelling - particularly the way in which the changelings' social structure ultimately catalyzed the events of the finale. Spike's treatment as a character (courtesy of Josh Haber, who is surprisingly adept at writing him despite his other shortcomings) also proved to be a major step up. Season 7: The season's focus on the families of the M6 was a nice touch, particularly considering that the writers either framed them in the season's more memorable plots or gave them relatable and understandable traits. The fact that they somehow created authentic characters out of Twilight's parents (both of whom were scarcely even the episode's main characters) was the main redeeming factor of "Once Upon a Zeppelin" to me. Season 8: The dialogue has noticeably improved from S6-7 to the extent where, despite the underwhelming quality of several episodes, the comedy actually proved to be a redeeming factor of several episodes in a way I felt was largely absent from the show since around the S2 period. Similarly, S8's lore and worldbuilding also marks a considerable improvement over previous seasons due to its greater sense of creativity (as opposed to merely being allegories of human fables or simple fantastical regions).

"Hard to Say Anything" is probably the worst. It doesn't exactly glorify obstructive moralizing in the way that episodes like "One Bad Apple" or "Magic Sheep" debatably do, yet it feels so unbelievably asinine and painfully unfunny (which tends to be an issue for an episode which clearly wants to focus on the humour aspect of its narrative) in a manner which violates everything that I feel elevated the show to greatness. FiM has played dumb comedy successfully before and since (Madame Pinkie and "but it could've FALLEN IN THE FIRE!" stand out here) but never in such a sloppy and pervasively brainless way, which additionally leads to a certain obnoxious tone that doesn't fit FiM in the slightest.

In light of the thread a while back on the 'earlier seasons vs. later seasons' debate, I noticed that a number of replies voting for the later seasons detailed specific differences in why they had voted for them - some cited seasons 4-5 their favorites, whilst others preferred 6-7 or 6-8 (or some mixture of the above), with some even expressing mild disappointment over the quality of specific later seasons (most noticeably S8) despite the nature of their voting preferences. Although the division in this case is understandable (the shift from S2 to S4 is one of the most noticeable in the show's duration when watching in chronological order), I suspect that the voting percentages for each option may be a result of the way the poll divided 'earlier' and 'later' seasons, with 'earlier' standing as S1-3 and 'later' as S4-8. Resultantly, this led me to suspect exactly which subdivision of 'later' seasons are generally considered the best (at least by the section of the community represented here). As subjective as it may seem, for the purposes of this thread the show's run will be divided into the following 'eras' based on tone, thematic focus and creative team: The 'early' seasons (1-3): Noted for a more lighthearted and comedic tone than their successors. Tend to focus on mining plots from simple themes and satirizing typical kids' TV conventions (I considered lumping S3 in with 4 and 5 due to lack of Faustian input before realizing that the tonal canyon between S3 and 4 is far wider than that of 2-3). The 'McCarthy' seasons (4-5): More outwardly ambitious, high density of fanservice. Tend to feature more grandiose direction and execution than their predecessors whilst retaining specific fragments of the early seasons' charm (most noticeable in AKR and Larson's output during this period). The 'Haber' seasons (6-7): Produced during/following work on the MLP movie. Noted for focus on non-M6 characters (Starlight Glimmer and the Student Six), their more experimental styles/sardonic comedy and Josh Haber's increased creative influence (I guess you could also call these the 'true later' or 'Big Jim' seasons, but I digress). Considering the differences between each era are fairly clear, it should be interesting to hear what you guys think, as overdone as topics like this have arguably been getting lately.

I'd personally prefer for FiM to close out at season 9. Although the show never exactly experienced any major downturn in quality, it's better to allow the crew to wrap up the series in a worthy manner and allow it to remain one of the decade's most influential/iconic animated shows as opposed to trudging onwards into significant seasonal rot.

Judging from the poll on the 'earlier vs. later seasons' poll, that actually isn't that unpopular an opinion, particularly considering this board's reception to season 5 and 7.

I'm still actively watching. Today's episode is "Bloom and Gloom", if I recall correctly. In regards to a restart, I'm unsure if it's absolutely necessary (particularly considering that we're honing in on "Amending Fences" and "Crusaders of the Lost Mark" at this point) but the thread does seem to have become a desolate wasteland over the past month, so I can at least understand your point here.

@CypherHoof That's actually an incredibly interesting way of viewing the episode. I still believe the narrative handles those themes clumsily, but it's easily comprehendible that the episode would have proven more effective to me were the tone not as serious as it is (one could contest an episode chronicling the relationship between the two deserves a more heartfelt tone, but I don't think Dash's extreme actions in the episode were the most in-character/effective way of showing her attachment towards Tank). Thank you for the insightful perspective though - these replies are the reason I gravitate towards threads such as these.

I understand your point. S3's shorter length may also play a role in its experimentation being more conspicuous from the perception of some (the intertwined Equestria Games episodes were definitely experimental, but accommodated two of thirteen episodes of the season (imagine if Pinkie and Applejack's journey to visit Goldie Delicious was intertwined across four episodes of S4) and were closer in tone to the Faust seasons, which is more noticeable against the McCarthy seasons' more experimental tone.

I mostly dislike "Tanks" for the way it handles its own themes. The story is treated in a surprisingly serious manner, and this tone (and Dash's actions in the episode) would work if the plot featured Tank being released, or some form of event that actually separates Dash and Tank for a longer period or in a more final way. As it stands, the episode attempts to lean towards a grief allegory, but when applied to Tank simply hibernating, it feels more disproportionate than intended and Dash's behaviour comes off as more irrational than usual as a result. I probably overreacted when I called it a 'nadir', but I still believe it's deeply flawed.

S5 is one of the show's more divisive seasons to me. Whilst the best episodes of the season are, in all honesty, some of the show's greatest achievements (the psychologically disturbing and uniquely maudlin "Cutie Map", the psychedelic complexity of "Bloom and Gloom" (still probably one of Haber's greatest achievements), the unapologetically goofy absurdity of "Slice of Life", the heart evident in "Amending Fences", the extremely entertaining "Rarity Investigates!" and the cinematic "Lost Mark") and remain mostly unsurpassed in terms of sheer grandiosity since, the lows are also some of FiM's absolute nadirs ("Tanks for the Memories" presents Dash as a karma Houdini, "Princess Spike" is far too simplistic and contrived for the series' own good and "What About Discord?" is a textbook example of wrongheaded narrative experimentation) and a number of the episodes feel overblown at times - I like both "Canterlot Boutique" and "The Mane Attraction" a fair amount, but both treat their relatively simple stories with a grandiosity and finality which I find a little disproportionate, whilst a handful of others such as "Magic Sheep" strain against the show's limits to the extent of generating an atmosphere of empty spectacle. That being said, I admire the season for heading into much darker and more cinematic territory than debatably any season has endeavoured into since, and the sense of progression from the M6 of S1 can be felt here debatably more than ever (even if the M6 tend to end up being thrown into blander mentor roles at times and much of the comedy of previous seasons winds up sacrificed in the process save for episodes such as "Party Pooped"), which counts for something significant.

It's an instance of different strokes - I liked that the best episodes of S2 were able to combine their emotional cores with more effective comedic moments (just see the infamous "Pinkie Promise" scene as an example), which is ultimately why I consider them to be among the show's best, but the highs of S4 are more polished and dramatically executed. I can fully understand your opinion here.

I would debate that season 4 is more experimental as well, even if the success rate isn't 100% - material such as Daring Do being nonfictional, a legitimate emotional exploration of Scootaloo's disability, the Power Ponies, Flutterbat (even if it was basically little more than a distraction from the episode's main conflict), Pinkie and Applejack's familial ties, major guest stars (Weird Al), development of the M6's (previously) largely enigmatic family members (Maud Pie), intense action sequences (the infamous Twilight vs. Tirek fight) and two simultaneous season-long narrative arcs (the keys and the Equestria Games, the latter originating in the previous season, which the show hasn't attempted since in any comparable form), when combined with the more ambitious lighting and storyboarding (particularly within the premiere and finale), renders S4 the most experimental of the show's initial half and a significant transition from the more comedic slice-of-life capers of the Faust era into the more bombastic and ambitious (and fanservice-laden) plots of Meghan McCarthy's tenure, a move which pays off for the most part. Although some of the episodes have soured a little on recent rewatch (largely due to lack of successful comedy, although the more dramatic angles of several episodes are strong enough to absolve this) and the season's treatment of Pinkie's character (outside the character monument that is "Pinkie Pride") leaves much to be desired (with a few exceptions, such as her rap in "Testing" and a number of isolated gags across the season), I find S4 to be one of the show's most refined and unique seasons, owing to its multiple potent explorations of the M6's characters in a way which affirms their past progress whilst endeavouring their entrance into new territory (many of the key episodes are prime examples). Even the duds (with the exception of "Rainbow Falls", which I dislike largely due to its unusually wooden and cumbersome approach to writing dialogue) are far from bottom 10 material. "Power Ponies" contains a handful of successfully executed "dumb fun" moments ("it's been quite the maaaanneee-raising experience!" still causes me to crack up when combined with the animation of the Mane-iac's eyes rolling idiosyncratically), "Simple Ways" features some great dialogue and dry comedy courtesy of Spike (like him or not, Josh Haber is undeniably talented at writing Spike as a character, which may explain the popularity of his roles in S6 and S8), "Somepony to Watch Over Me" features the genuinely compelling chimera fight and "Trade Ya" is a fun watch regardless of its messier elements (although I dislike Pinkie's role in the episode more than most bronies seem to). It's seldom as charming and hilarious as S1 or as stratospheric as the highs of S2 (although "Rarity Takes Manehattan", "Pinkie Pride", "For Whom the Sweetie Belle Tolls" and "Twilight's Kingdom" are definitely up there and possibly equivalent or better in some regards), but S4's polish and more successful attempts at pushing the envelope of the show's content (ultimately resulting in the darker and more climatic tone of S5) pay off and make for a legitimately solid season.

Season 1 was additionally saddled with the E/I rating, which led to a number of issues in the type of content they could express (Faust notably described this in that 2011 EqD interview), which is why I'm inclined to judge S1 on a slightly different level from other seasons, considering that the content of episodes such as "Lesson Zero" and "The Cutie Map" would have been radically modified by the rating's limitations, although the rating isn't the sole contributing factors to S1's more awkward moments, which, while not exactly majorly egregious, can lead to several examples of early-installment weirdness (such as Rarity being treated as more of a mandated 'feminine' character in several earlier S1 episodes prior to the advent of her more dignified portrayal in "Suited for Success").

S1 is a solid and underrated season. There are definitely a few duds amidst the run (mainly episodes such as "Boast Busters" and "The Show Stoppers" which fail largely due to lazy writing as opposed to the more specific issues of the bad episodes in subsequent seasons) and the E/I standard confined to the season led to a handful of hamhanded moments, albeit the lighthearted and charming style employed by the season (leading to a number of otherwise cliched plots being reinvigorated into surprisingly strong and entertaining experiences), in addition to the effective comedy (S1 and S2 debatably feature the show's comedy at its most consistent until around the S8 period) and the admirably subtle and consistent character arcs undergone by the M6 throughout the season (particularly the way that Faust and Renzetti paced their flow, leading to possibly the most balanced season in terms of character focus in regards to the M6) creates a unique, almost avant-garde quality which a number of later seasons (approximately S3 and onwards), despite their objectively more ambitious and outwardly complex highs, somehow lack (although S1 actually contains some of the show's best installments anyway, such as "The Cutie Mark Chronicles", "Party of One", "The Best Night Ever", "Sonic Rainboom" and the like).

I'm not going to lie that S1 and S2 had some pretty deep lows as well. I was using 'other seasons' in relation to them as well - I wasn't stating that I thought the lows of later seasons to be objectively lower. The dud episodes of later seasons are approximately comparable to those of earlier seasons, just in different ways (some may take more issue with the aspects earlier-season duds falter at whilst others are more frustrated by the qualities of later-season duds).

S2 is definitely my favorite of the series. I concur that the duds were terrible ("MMDW" speaks for itself, "The Cutie Pox" was essentially a 22-minute compilation of nothingness (although I did love Pinkie's confession in the third act), "Putting Your Hoof Down" had potential and a few great comedic moments courtesy of Iron Will and Pinkie but is soured by an uncharacteristically uncomfortable atmosphere by FiM standards and "Dragon Quest" was egregious thematically, although I personally wouldn't say it's as horrible as others perceive it), but the average quality of the better episodes, including the season's stratospheric highs (the surprisingly irreverent and well-structured "Return of Harmony", the hilarious "Lesson Zero", the touching and subtle "Sisterhooves Social", the incredibly satisfying (I can only call an episode hilarious in so many ways) "Last Roundup", "Read It and Weep", the sheer comedic fiasco of "It's About Time", the rock-solid "Hurricane Fluttershy"... the list goes on) is just that good. It's almost difficult at times to determine why I enjoy certain episodes of the season as much as I do, but I suspect that the general tone of S2, although it doesn't always show through that consistently, is what appeals to me - the sharper wit and greater outward nuance of the series, when compounded with the innocence, charm and Craig McCracken-esque comedy of S1, lead to a season that feels like an edgier and more ambitious version of the previous season. Definitely a worthy season of animated TV in general. On a side note, returning to the earlier seasons recently has definitely caused me to miss earlier-season Pinkie more than I expected. She seems to be more... human in the Faust seasons (in that she seems to have a greater degree of volume control and behaves more akin to an actual functioning individual as opposed to a random cartoon gag machine with major emotional fragility/canyons as she seems to have become in later seasons at times) and her cartoonish antics are played off as stemming from her optimistic and quirky/fun-loving demeanour as opposed to being almost delusionally/religiously wacky as she is from S4 onwards (which tends to be more overbearing by comparison).

Season 3 is a pretty middling one. The season definitely has a number of standout episodes (including the obvious two, although I actually was surprised to find I enjoyed "Apple Family Reunion" more than I recalled, whilst "Too Many Pinkie Pies" and "Magic Duel" hold up better than expected) and even the 'lows' are not actually that bad (unlike the lows of other seasons (most bronies would be hard-pressed to name one redeemable aspect of "Rainbow Falls" or "Non-Compete Clause", myself included) - "One Bad Apple", as terrible as the moral is, at least featured a certain immortal musical sequence and is largely dull and forgettable outside of its third act (as opposed to consistently terrible throughout its duration as a handful of the series' absolute worst are) and I actually kind of enjoy "Spike at Your Service" on a guilty-pleasure level (everything involving Spike and his role in the actual plot is contrived and out-of-character, whilst the M6 (save for specific scenes such as Twilight merely glossing over Spike's resignation) are actually extremely well-characterized, particularly by Merriwether Williams' standards). If anything, the most significant flaws of the season are its short length (which causes the season's weaker points to become more conspicuous) and its general 'atmosphere', which resembles S2, albeit more ambitious and ultimately less charming/Faust-esque - the latter is possibly symbolic of the show's first noticeable 'growing pains' away from the comedy and simplicity of the earlier seasons, but isn't ultimately a major problem, just a mildly disappointing one at worst - for example, "The Crystal Empire" attempts to craft an epic narrative with significantly higher stakes than many previous two-parters, but a few major issues (mainly how underpopulated/underdeveloped the Crystal Empire felt to me, which dissented with the grandiose way the story treated it) held it back and led to a 'style-over-substance' feel (to a more noticeable extent than the S2 two-parters, which at least featured more effective humour despite CE's sporadically more intense character moments on the parts of Twilight and Spike), whilst parts of other episodes such as "Magic Duel" and MMC are possibly the first examples of the series beginning to strain against its own limitations at the expense of a solid plot/characterization (which isn't helped by the decrease in the number of genuinely hilarious moments compared to S1 and S2). It's still a good season with some amazing episodes (particularly WBA, which ranks with some of the series' absolute best), but it's not the show's highest point either.

FPK and Spike at Your Service stand out the most to me. FPK is typically panned (rightfully, might I add) for the clunky and awkward execution of its moral, but the remainder of the episode, despite some repetition at times, is genuinely hilarious and entertaining (moreso than many of the more popularly-cited comedy episodes later in the series) in typical lighthearted Faust fashion (particularly the random slapstick befalling Twilight whilst stalking Pinkie, which speaks for itself as one of S1's quintessential moments). Conversely, Spike at Your Service does feature a mischaracterized Spike and unfortunate implications regarding his loyalties towards Twilight, but Whomps is right on the money regarding some of the comedy/dialogue between the M6 (the false Timberwolf scheme, Dash's fanfiction and the reactions to the rock tower being absolutely golden in particular), which redeem it from being terrible from my perspective.

One aspect of the writing that actually has improved since the Faust era is the treatment and depiction of Spike - no, scratch that, of a number of the other Equestrian species. During the Faust era, the show's focus was set more onto humourous and lighthearted slice-of-life material (obviously with a few fantastical elements) than worldbuilding or lore, which often showed when the earlier seasons attempted to stretch beyond their comfort zone into sloppy material such as "Over a Barrel" and "Dragon Quest". Having spent the past two months marathoning S1-4 chronologically, I would actually contest that the Spikeabuse is nowhere near as bad as many bronies note, but it's nonetheless present and tends to bog down several of his appearances, particularly in episodes such as "Spike at Your Service" where he is deprived of his agency and competence (despite being Twilight's personal assistant and having a established level of skillfulness at specific tasks similar to those he blunders at in the episode) merely so the plot can be contrived into happening. On the other hand, the later seasons' shift in priority towards worldbuilding, whilst it often comes at the expense of the humour, story consistency (as the priority now leans towards more ambitious themes which the show often tends to slip up at portraying in a deservedly nuanced manner) and intangible charm of the earlier seasons, has ultimately benefitted this issue (aided by Josh Haber's surprising talent at writing Spike as a character, which can be witnessed as far back as "Simple Ways" in S4) - the introduction of the Student Six as rounded and likeable characters, in addition to Spike's growth and increasingly dignified portrayal since S6, evidences this clearly.

11 episodes into season 4 (just finished "Three's a Crowd") and I must admit that a surprising number of episodes were disappointing on rewatch. Having not viewed many of S4's episodes since their original airdates, my thoughts can be summarized as follows: Princess Twilight Sparkle: Generally good as an address to the rushed nature of MMC (an episode which increasingly sours in hindsight), albeit with a few awkward scenes (the Nightmare Moon scene was impressive but ultimately filler-esque and dissented with established backstory on NMM) and the first major instance of flanderized Pinkie (the coloring book gag). That being said, both the animation (note the more ambitious cinemateography/storyboarding and lighting techniques, both of which provide this season with a unique visual element from its predecessors) and Discord genuinely absolve the flaws of this one. Castle Mane-ia: A relatively fun romp (with some great dialogue, save for Rarity referring to the castle as a living entity for some reason), albeit one which wore out its welcome when stretched to fill a 22-minute runtime, not to mention the nefarious scene of Pinkie ringing the school bell (she isn't that bad here otherwise, but this is around the period of the show when the writing team began to slip regarding Pinkie's character outside of specific focus episodes). Daring Don't: A mild letdown (although "Daring Done?" remains worse by a country mile) considering the ambitious nature of the premise - as Cypher noted above, the episode plays out in a surprisingly conservative manner following A.K's unmasking, which leads to the impression that the creative team presumably considered an episode revealing Daring Do to be real but didn't exactly have that much of a story to tell about it. That being said (and this being a Polsky episode), a fair number of the gags definitely hit their mark (the birds in the cold opening and Pinkie painting the red line in particular stand out), although the episode just falls short of evoking enough of a pulpy atmosphere to dissuade the viewer from the dryness of much of the second act. Flight to the Finish: Touching and well-written but suffers heavily from pacing issues (as much as "Hearts Strong as Horses" was a good song, it feels somewhat shoehorned, as if the creative team wanted a song in the episode merely because it worked in past installments, although at least it thematically links mildly to the second and third acts) and awkward humour (the Dash/Harshwhinny reaction gag is particularly odd, as if they desired to comedically contrast the two but went too over-the-top (against the CMC's act, which is never depicted as spectacular enough to warrant such a reaction from either) in the process). Power Ponies: An incredibly awkward episode caught between its own ambitions - while I appreciate what it attempts, the creative decisions made (particularly the mane six being nerfed, which undercuts the theme entirely, although the cast being flanderized mildly here is also an issue) ultimately undermine the episode's credibility and trap it in an awkward middle ground between being intelligent enough to absolve the inherent bizarreness of its premise and being absurd enough to mine humour from the narrative. Bats!: As much as I'm going to disappoint here, I felt as if the Flutterbat development ultimately served as a distraction from the moral - Applejack's side of the argument is built up as concerning valid and major consequences and yet her side's credence is neglected for much of the remainder of the episode, whilst Fluttershy is pretty much brainwashed thanks to a spell-based accident which was not ultimately affiliated with AJ (but with Twilight), which causes the episode to lose focus in its third act. "Stop the Bats" is a great song though, and the direction and references are at least entertaining, which absolve some of the episode's clumsiness to me. Rarity Takes Manehattan: One of the best of S4 thus far (and a refreshing dose of everyone's favorite white unicorn over a month after completing her previous focus episode). The extent of Rarity's generosity was kind of ham-handed (as awesome as "Generosity" is musically), but serves a vital purpose to the plot and creates a fascinating contrast between Rarity and Manehattan - the show has established that one of Rarity's longtime aspirations is to expand her career to one of Equestria's metropolises, yet the reality of her dream seemingly contrasts with her values, which the episode wisely places focus onto. Pinkie Apple Pie: A decent outing, although Pinkie, while well-intentioned and understandably motivated, was a little too over-the-top for my tastes here. She almost seems to be losing her... humanity (what tall fleshy two-legged thing?) in favour of becoming more hyperactive and joke-driven as opposed to the quirky and fun-loving optimist of S1 and 2, although the presence of the Apple family (some of the dialogue between them is a riot) serve to counterbalance well here. Rainbow Falls: I concur with pretty much every criticism towards the episode, although I feel its most grievous error to be the dialogue, which is incredibly laborious and wooden to the extent of generating a general aura of emptiness around the cast. FiM is seldom this vacuous. Three's a Crowd: Similar pacing issues to "Flight", but a great outing interspersed with a healthy dose of Discord awesomeness ("Glass of Water" is possibly one of the show's most hilarious sequences), despite the resultant by-product of Cadance being sidelined in her final major solo outing (I believe?). Looking back on this, I definitely come off as pretty cynical, don't I? Don't get me wrong, each of S4's episodes thus far (even "Rainbow Falls") have something to offer to an extent and many feature some amazing and surprisingly ambitious elements for the show (many of the musical sequences in particular have a heightened level of grandiosity compared to S1-3, although the effectivity of this varies) - however, it tends to be the execution and focus (not to mention Pinkie's encroaching flanderization) that let down some of these episodes. With "Pinkie Pride" next, I hope to be enlightened once again.