S02:E06 - The Cutie Pox

[Starlight Song 43]

Actually, Applebloom's cutie mark most likely has something to do with art. Her talent was clear in "The Show Stoppers"...

Defintily. I was kinda just joking around. It's just that, wouldn't it be, assuming they ever get their cutiemarks, the best plot "Twist" (see what I did there) if their cutiemarks were something other than what we thought it was going to be? Also, there is another factor involved. The Apple Family. Her name, the generations of ponies with apple related cutiemarks. So when Twlight conjured up that applecart as her cutie mark in "Call of the Cutie", I thought that might be foreshadowing.

[True Rarity 1,240]

Defintily. I was kinda just joking around. It's just that, wouldn't it be, assuming they ever get their cutiemarks, the best plot "Twist" (see what I did there) if their cutiemarks were something other than what we thought it was going to be? Also, there is another factor involved. The Apple Family. Her name, the generations of ponies with apple related cutiemarks. So when Twlight conjured up that applecart as her cutie mark in "Call of the Cutie", I thought that might be foreshadowing.

Ah. Good point. You could be right. Actually, in "Call of the Cutie", Apple Bloom did mention making apple art. So maybe her cutie mark has something to do with apples AND art...

Nice Twist pun, by the way!

[Starlight Song 43]

Ah. Good point. You could be right. Actually, in "Call of the Cutie", Apple Bloom did mention making apple art. So maybe her cutie mark has something to do with apples AND art...

Nice Twist pun, by the way!

I'm sure she gets the appleart abilites from her sister. She made the exact same "art" in Dragonshy, one of my favorite epsiodes (even thought technically it wasn't supposed to be art, but it was the exact same way that Applebloom made it).

[Righteous Fury 344]

OK, after some thought, I'm declaring this episode, in my opinion, the worst episode of MLP. And since I seem to be the only one who even moderately dislikes it, I'm going to explain why this is OBJECTIVELY the worst episode so hopefully you all will hate it too!

 

This is going to be a big post.

 

Let's start with the opening. The CMC are going to try and get their cutie marks in bowling. Now, don't get me wrong, I really like the CMC. They're adorable, hilarious, and most of all, I like their attitude. They're all about making the best of a bad situation. They are proud of who they are, even though many think they're flawed, lesser ponies for not having their cutie marks, they've achieved far more than most kids. And at some point, I don't know where, they decided that the journey was more about the destination. Their goal isn't just to get their cutie marks, it's to TRY EVERYTHING until that happens. The CMC do more living in one day than most of us do in a week. It's nothing short of inspirational. In essence, they represent the very best of this show: that infectious positive attitude. That kind of optimism is what makes this fandom so damn awesome.

 

So that's what makes a good CMC episode. In The Cutie Pox however, we don't see that. For some reason the CMC are absolutely convinced that THIS time all three of them will get their cutie marks in bowling. And we know it's not going to happen. Let me repeat that: EVERY SINGLE VIEWER FROM THE LITTLEST GIRLS TO THE OLDEST BRONIES KNOW THEY ARE NOT GOING TO GET THEIR CUTIE MARKS. This makes the entire opening sequence UNBEARABLE. It's like taking two minutes to tell a joke when we already know what the punchline is. Now, it's a kid's show, it's always going to be somewhat predictable. And that's fine. But we are still watching three cute fillies build up their hopes and get excited while knowing that it's all going to come crashing down and end in disappointment. The show is deliberately toying with these characters.

 

I know the CMC have been the punching bags for a while now. They're never going to get the one thing they want most. Normally though, this doesn't matter. The CMC pick themselves up immediately and go on to something else. And that in itself is a good lesson: just because things don't turn out the way you expected them to, it doesn't mean it wasn't fun or a waste of time. Here, Apple Bloom is depressed. Like, seriously depressed to the point of suicide.

 

Yes, suicide. You can't tell me otherwise. It's glossed over on the show, but watch the episode again and try to find another explanation for what happens next. You can't, because APPLE BLOOM GOES INTO THE MOST DANGEROUS PLACE FEATURED ON THE SHOW ALONE. A place so dangerous six strong adults are nervous about entering. This is a damn suicide attempt, whether Apple Bloom is fully conscious of it or not. Her two best friends try everything to cheer her up, and she barely reacts. This isn't a "oh I'm sad I want to be alone" thing, this is flat-out "I don't care about anything at all". And then she wanders in the Everfree. Just look at her as she walks away from the other CMC. That is a pony who doesn't care if she lives or dies.

 

Sure, they probably just couldn't think of a way for her to meet Zecora and advance the plot. But that's not an excuse for showing this. They should have seen how it looks. Or some animator should have realized what they were drawing. I have no idea how this slipped past Hub, someone there is not doing their job properly. You just don't air a young girl subconsciously trying to kill herself on a show for young girls. And the best part is, NOBODY CARES! Her friends just walk away like it's no big deal. Zecora shows no concern over the fact that Apple Bloom's been wandering on her own. And don't tell me she knows the way to Zecora's and it's perfectly safe because FREAKING TWILIGHT SPARKLE ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL MAGICIANS IN THE WORLD nearly died trying to visit her. OK, the cockatrice was an unusual event, but STILL! THERE IS NO WAY WHAT APPLE BLOOM IS DOING CAN REMOTELY BE CONSIDERED SAFE.

 

So Apple Bloom hangs out with Zecora, and eventually gets interested in her potion making, particularly something called 'Heart's Desire'...

 

I'm going to take this moment to talk about something that's present in the whole episode: the adult fan pandering. Now there's nothing wrong with throwing a few things in for the parents and bronies. But this episode just has SO MANY GAGS! It starts with The Big Lebowski themed background characters, which is kind of funny. But now we have to suffer through this innuendo-laden Zecora scene to introduce the heart's desire. I have no idea what Amy Keating Rogers was thinking when she wrote that. Actually wait, I bet I do. This has to be one of those jokes that creative people do to make the censor's job a little more interesting. That is the only logical explanation I can think of.

 

And after that, the gags continue. We randomly have Twilight's hairstyle change to Rarity's, and Spike loves it. We have Pinkie Pie confess to eating a ton of treats. A couple ponies pull hazmat suits out of thin air. Every new cutie mark, every time the CMC try to cheer up Apple Bloom, it's another short 'haha look at this' gag. These moments don't add to the show. They're just there to distract you from the weak plot. It's as if the creators knew this episode wasn't up to par, and so they crammed in all this filler to try and make up for it. They know we love Zecora, Spike's crush on Rarity, and outside references, so they shove these things in and hope for the best. At some point it stops being amusing and gets a little insulting.

 

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Now we (finally) get to the main plot of the episode after a couple false starts that do nothing except fill time.

 

Look, in order to show how bad this plot is, allow me to show you how it should be done with another kid's show show that's almost exactly the same plot: VeggieTales' Larry-Boy and the Fib from Outer Space. I can't find the episode on YouTube, sadly, but here's the summary.

 

I loved VeggieTales as a kid, and I still think it's a great show. Larry-Boy and the Fib was one of my favourites, and it's quite similar to The Cutie Pox. Both have a well-liked child character tell a lie for their own gain, get in over their head, and finally confess the truth.

 

Except it's really hard to sympathize with Apple Bloom at this point. She stole something from a friend that just healed her. She eats a powerful potion ingredient without knowing what it will do. Compare with Larry-Boy, where Junior simply lies so his dad won't be angry with him. There's a big difference there, particularly since Junior is coerced by the titular Fib, a malevolent alien. Which brings us to the second main difference, the nature of the conflict. In Larry-Boy, the villain is unquestioningly Fib. Although he first appears as a cute, harmless blob, he quickly grows into a monster, wreaking havoc on the city King Kong style. An abstract idea is made into a tangible bad guy, making it easy for kids to learn that while a small fib is harmless, it can quickly grow out of control. The lesson is to tell the truth, and as Junior confesses, the Fib shrinks and vanishes. Which makes sense. Your enemy is a lie, to defeat the lie, you tell the truth.

 

The Cutie Pox isn't as clear. The lesson at the end is to tell the truth, but it's awkwardly shoehorned into the script. As I was watching, I expected the revelation that Zecora tricked Apple Bloom into a confession, and already had the real cure ready. That would make more sense than the cure randomly being a plant that grows in the presence of truth. Because that doesn't make any sense. Larry-Boy had a clear villain with a logical weakness, the central conflict and the moral were one and the same. The Cutie Pox goes all over the place. We have a plant, heart's desire, that is never fully explained. The name indicates it gives you what you want, although that's not what Zecora used it for in the first place. Still, Apple Bloom thinks it will give her what she wants most: her cutie mark, and it does! Except it doesn't work like that. At all. It instead gives her a disease. A disease that makes cutie marks appear. So is it a 'be careful what you wish for' deal? No, because Twilight claims cutie pox is a real disease that's infectious, not a curse. I get that the line between science and magic is blurred in this show, but come on. Luckily, Zecora has a cure even though Twilight said there was no known cure. Also, Zecora knows Apple Bloom stole the heart's desire. She knows what it will do to her, yet waits an entire day, then saunters into town with the cure's ingredients, not the cure itself, to chat with Twilight. A kid has been poisoned, what the hell was Zecora doing? She obviously knew, otherwise why take the seeds of truth with her?

 

So to summarize, eating a plant that's supposed to give you what you want gives you a disease with no known cure, but this plant is safe to use in a potion to give a rooster his voice. And that village Twilight says was infected with cutie pox... they all ate heart's desire? And the heart's desire acted the same way for each of them? Or is the disease really contagious and just didn't happen to infect the ten or so kids who were swarming Apple Bloom earlier? If so, why didn't Zecora take appropriate action when she noticed the heart's desire was stolen? Those questions can't be answered because THIS PLOT IS COMPLETE TRASH. It somehow manages to both be horribly contrived AND make no sense. The moral comes out of nowhere, seeing has how Apple Bloom's biggest mistake wasn't lying to her friends, it was stealing something from someone who's only shown her great kindness and generosity, and then having the option to help her loyal friends get what they want the most as well, but not telling them how. Apple Bloom acted horribly. She cheated Zecora and her friends for her own personal gain. But the only moral is 'don't lie'?

 

The plot is awful. The moral is nonsensical. But it still could've been an alright episode. Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000 had an bad plot and moral, but it was still mostly fun and entertaining. The Cutie Pox isn't. The entire time, we know what is going to happen. We know the CMC won't get bowling cutie marks. We know Apple Bloom's cutie marks are fake. We know there's going to be a cure for her. We know what will trigger the seeds to grow. There are no surprises. No interesting character development. No funny jokes, except for a couple unrelated moments with Spike, and maybe a few of the cutie mark compulsions. The majority of this episode is painful to watch. It's painful to see the CMC get their hopes up only to see them dashed, to see Apple Bloom get severely depressed, to watch as she takes advantage of Zecora and her classmates, to know that she's suffering from the cutie pox while Zecora takes her sweet time showing up. It's not interesting or entertaining. The episode's only redeeming qualities are short gags that could've been in any other episode. It is the worst of the series.

Edited April 25, 2013 by Righteous Fury

[Stellafera 3,836]

OK, after some thought, I'm declaring this episode, in my opinion, the worst episode of MLP. And since I seem to be the only one who even moderately dislikes it, I'm going to explain why this is OBJECTIVELY the worst episode so hopefully you all will hate it too!

 

Oh, believe me, you aren't. This episode CONTINUES to make me have an irrational dislike of Applebloom as a character, long after it aired. Plus, the animation, especially for Zecora, felt... off. Did anybody else find that she looked really strange in this episode?

[Toxicobra 0]

When i first saw this episode i was a bit confused because really Applebloom never did anything relating to a hula hoop so i was a bit skeptical about what the writers where thinking until the other cutie marks showed up.

[Sony 106]

That was so weird o.o

[WishingtotheStars 15]

I liked this one because Apple Bloom actually got her cutie mark. Even though they were fake, it still sort of counted as her cutie marks.

[Nerdy Luigi 2,065]

I thought Apple Bloom had actually LEARNED from the Cutie Pox, and then the end. I was like, "Nope," after she went back into normal CMC stuff.

[Lil'Cinnamon 1,587]

This is my favorite episode of all the episodes right now, I dunno if another episode about Bloomy will change that, it might, but for now I like this episode.

 

Even though she didn't really seem to learn much about it I can still tell she learned. We can say she learned not to take shortcuts like that because it can really mess things up.

 

But as Apple Bloom expressed in this episode is that she is impatient. Just like I am, which is one of the reasons she got on the top of my pony list. xD

 

But I think that's really all to say about this right now, but I thought I'd give it a comment since this is still my favorite episode of the entire show so far.

[Speedy_Dashie 11]

This is a good thing to help teach Apple Bloom to have patience and not to rush. And especially to not take things with permission. 

[ReverseFaller 2,483]

Wait...holy crap! I've don't think I've ever seen this episode? Impossibru, I thought I'd seen them all! How could I have missed it on netflix? I simply MUST go watch it right now. I'll come back here later once I've seen it. 

[Geminii 71]

Am I the only one that noticed the reference for the movie "The Big Lebowski" in the beginning of this episode? It's at the 1:10 mark when Scootaloo kicks her bowling ball down the lane, and it begins ricocheting all over the alley. 

 

I just watched this episode again and noticed The Dude and the others from The Big Lebowski in the bowling alley. Who says this show is for kids?! Awesome reference! I lol'd hard when I saw that! Had to come here and see if anyone else had noticed it.

Edited August 28, 2013 by Geminii

[~Silver Essence~ 2,625]

Another good episode.

 

Not the best, but I do like most of it, although, I do think that apple bloom is the most anxious to get hers, unlike her friends who are willing to wait, but glad to see she learned her lesson, for less than a second at the end. X/

[Batbrony 16,043]

Alrighty, this should be a fairly short review seeing as "The Cutie Pox" is hardly what I'd call one of the greatest episodes of MLP.  Don't get me wrong, this is a fine, run-of-the-mill, normal episode, but it's definitely the first of Season 2 that did not overtly impress me in some way, shape, or form.  It plays a fine role as a comedy episode with a good CMC lesson to boot, but other than that, there's not too much to say about it, and the fact that it's somewhat of a chore to rewatch definitely proves it to be just an average episode at best.  So let's focus on the few highlights to be found in the pretty average episode, "The Cutie Pox".

 

Now to be sure, the laughs are pretty good, but not really great, in this episode.  Most of the episode is pretty standard fare as far as comedy goes for a CMC episode.  It is pretty funny seeing all of the different talents Apple Bloom starts getting once the cutie pox get out of control (my personal favorite being her French cutie mark; Michelle Creber speaking in French is too funny!!! ).  Applejack and Zecora are pretty funny in their one scene together (I always get a kick out of AJ going, "Was your zebra sense a-tingling?" ).  But by far the most epic laugh in the whole episode comes at the very beginning, in a reference designed specifically for adult viewers of the show that only they would get.  Ya'll know what I'm talking about of course; that's right, I'm talking the Big Lebowski references in the bowling alley!!!

 

For best experience, read while playing the following:

 

 

Let's see, we've got...

 

Pony Jesus "The Jesus" Quintana

 

 

Pony Walter Sobchak

 

 

Pony Theodore Donald "Donny" Kerabatsos

 

 

And of course, Pony Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski

 

 

I can't speak for the rest of you of course, seeing as I don't know who has and who hasn't seen "The Big Lebowski" on here, but for me, seeing as "The Big Lebowski" is my all time favorite comedy, this reference is SIMPLY EPIC!!!!!!!!!!!    Lauren Faust, I cannot thank you enough for throwing this gem of a pop culture reference into this episode!  The Batbrony abides!!! 

 

 

Alright, that's pretty much the comedy covered for this episode.  So what else works?  Well, I like seeing the other two CMC, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, at the beginning just having fun with their entire endeavor.  The fact that those two still had fun at the bowling alley despite failing entirely to get their cutie marks at all shows that the CMC as a group of friends are growing closer and closer, that most of them just enjoy each others company even if their cutie mark endeavors fail, and I like to see that growth being displayed pretty naturally and subtly.  Michelle Creber once again brings a lot of personality to Apple Bloom in another starring role for the young filly, and the only reason it gets boring at all is just because this episode is pretty much retread ground (AB wants her cutie mark NOWWWWWW and is going to do anything to get it, yeah, yeah, yeah, we've seen this episode before).  Zecora is fun as usual, even if her rhymes get a little annoying or are a bit of a stretch at times (seriously, who doesn't groan when they hear her say "What has happened to you youth?  Ahhhh, you've gone and chipped your tooth!"  Seriously, somepony please slap whoever wrote that line!!! ).  Other than that, most of the episode is filler leading up to AB learning (once again) that she just has to be patient and let things work out as they will before she gets her cutie mark.

 

The only other notable thing in this episode for me are the cutie pox themselves.  I find this disease to be pretty interesting, seeing as, depending on the level of seriousness, if you think about it, an outbreak could have pretty catastrophic results for ponies.  I won't say much more beyond that I'm trying to work it into a fan fiction I'm working on in a way that I think is fairly interesting, but suffice to say I think it's an interesting addition to MLP canon that gets overlooked by too many in our fanbase.  Other than that, this is a solid average episode; nothing spectacular aside from one amazing reference, but not lacking at all either or falling short in any way.  Hardly what I'd recommend as a must-see, and there are plenty of episodes I'd recommend you watch before this one, but it's also a perfectly harmless episode as well that makes for some good entertainment.

 

So... yeah, that's all I really have to say about that episode.  Here, have some ROFLPWNY! 

 

[Singe 2,111]

Every time I see Applebloom covered in Cutie Marks and pumping iron, I keep thinking she just got out of prison. lol

[Life Giver 1,063]

The Cutie Pox. This was a entertaining episode. I really like CMC ones. You just don't know what could happen.  

[Ellie 36]

The weird affliction that was taking control of Applebloom actually creeped me out in the scene where Applejack finds her at night.  It was pretty suspenseful for the genre.  c:  I loved it.  

[ANGEL33 87]

Here's something everypony should learn about. When AJ and Applebloom walk through the front door of the Apple home. A few inches beside the door is a photo of two ponies. Possibly AJ's parents!

[Pastel 7,630]

Good episode with an original plot.

My favorite scene is when Apple Bloom speaks in French, and Applejack says "My sister's speakin' in fancy!"

I think that's my favorite Applejack's line.

Edited April 24, 2014 by Blobulle

[TheJLeeTeam 914]

This was a decent episode. It involves Applebloom playing with a potion and she gets Cutie Pox which causes cutie marks to appear randomly over her body. But I don't think you have to keep doing what your cutie mark looks like. I mean just because your cutie mark is a hula hoop doesn't mean you have to hula hoop forever. 

 

 

Twilight has the same manestyle!

 

 

Yes Applebloom. Wait for your cutie mark.

 

Edited October 2, 2014 by TheJLeeTeam

[10InTheTardis 509]

if there was a real life equivalent of this i wouldn't want a cure, i would just be like 

"hmm, i can't stop scuba dviving while shooting 3 pointers and baking at the same time. okay."

[CC_Maud_Pie 6,431]

Interesting episode that exposes the dark side of cutie marks.

[RainbowTashie 378]

You mean they're getting the Scootaloo pox.

 

1303684289361.png

best pic ever! but poor scootaloo nopony loves her

[Wicked Funky 2,955]

 

I didn't like this episode... I'm not sure why, I just felt... Uneasy(?) watching it.... Reminds me of s5 e4 "Bloom and gloom"... I didn't like that either...