spoiler About S05E06's resolution/lesson

[pony.colin 156]

So I was going over the episode and thinking about the solution/lesson/resolution of S05E06 'Appleoosa's Most Wanted'. I thought it was an average okay episode, but I think one of the biggest problems that most people (including myself) had with this episode was the resolution over Trouble Shoes' personal conflict. So I spent some time thinking to myself about this episodes' lesson and I think I've come to some sort of conclusion. Feel free to call me crackpot or overthinking but I went on some train of thought that made claim that this was a sort of brutal honesty type of episode without the brutal honest bit (or at least a much softer touch). Actually what I mean by brutally honest doesn't sound what it means, but sort of the reaction and situation that is addressed by one character to the other in the situation of telling them to let go of their former idealistic dream/aspiration. Probably better put, I think I should just refer to Mick Jagger for this lesson as the “you can't always get what you want, but sometimes, you get what you need” (and the House MD bit is also coming up too).

 

Let me explain what I mean. If you've ever watched House MD, you've seen this type of situation before (variations of it at least). House's team saves their patient's life at the end of the episode, but at a great cost. The end result is that the patient has to let go of their former dream/desire/occupation/aspiration because in their current medical state, it is no longer realistically possible to pursue that dream anymore, and then must learn to let go and move on with their life. I can't remember a particular House MD episode, but its a reoccurring trope that plays itself often into House MD and in a number of different variations as well. A more smaller scale example from House MD would be like in House MD episode S04E02: The Right Stuff – in the situation of Henry Dobson (aka number 26, aka 'the old guy'). In this episode, House is looking to hire new doctors to re-create his team. Henry Dobson is 64 years old and is nicknamed the old guy, (in his case, it's surprising to see a senior medical doctor looking to apply at a hospital at his age, and not be assigned at one already.) Near the end of the episode House confronts Henry and its revealed as to what Henry (aka 26) has been secretly withholding from the rest applicants: (transcript below)

 

• 26: Buddy Ebsen actually was allergic to...

• HOUSE: Yeah, I know. How old are you?

• 26: 21.

• HOUSE: You don't think it's relevant?

• 26: I'll likely have less time to use the skills you teach us, but I don't think that's significant to you.

• HOUSE: How about the fact that you never went to medical school? Which is why you let the unlucky number do the trans echo. At least you're ethically unethical.

• 26: Thirty years I worked in the Columbia med school admissions office. Audited all the classes. Most of them more than once. I just never got a diploma.

• HOUSE: You had to know I'd find out sooner or later.

• 26: I know you break rules. I thought maybe you'd break one for me.

• HOUSE: I can't hire you as a doctor. But you can still tell me what you think. You can also fetch me coffee, pick up my dry-cleaning, until I can decide whether or not to keep you.

• 26: So I'm playing this whole game to be like... Your secretary?

• HOUSE: Assistant sounds marginally less demeaning.

• 26: It's not my dream job.

• HOUSE: Actually it is. It's just not your dream title

 

Henry (aka 26), never graduated with a medical degree and so it would be completely illegal for House to hire him as a doctor (not that he hasn't done anything outrageously illegal in the show before). But anyways, House can't hire him as a doctor. So Henry must accept that his dream job to work as a 'legally certified' doctor on House's team is not possible. But House explains that continuing on in this “game” is actually as close as Henry gets to working as a real doctor (alongside one of the most brilliant asshole doctor), since he's allowed to stay on House's temporary diagnostic team to solve real patient cases and obtain a lot more knowledge, theory and practice. Which still fulfils some of Henry's desires, if only for a short while.

 

Sorry, long example side, this is the situation that I'm referring to with Trouble Shoe's resolution over his own personal conflict, although, his was resolved with more happiness and less bitter-sweet. IMO, Trouble Shoes seems like he was really written to be a simple character, which will be important later on with what I have to say about many who criticized his end resolution. We know about mid-way through the episode, that when Trouble Shoes was a young colt, he had always watched and enjoyed the rodeo shows and dreamed to one day becomes a rodeo star, even given his poor balance coordination. But he practised long and hard to try and work his nerve up and skills to try out for the test for entry into rodeo school (yes he says its 'rodeo school' in the episode, ~12:42). Of course we know his cutie-mark appears and that Trouble Shoes ends up messing up by mistake infront of the judges who end up laughing from his performance. Trouble Shoes becomes so depressed at his performance that he ends up not finishing and leaves early. However, Trouble Shoes still had a love and passion for rodeo shows so he still continues to go to Appleloosa to visit the shows, it's just his unfortunate clumsiness usually causes a mess. Anyways, later on the CMC want to help Trouble Shoes by trying to get him to dress up as a rodeo clown and perform in the rodeo show as a clown (now this is the real bit I'm sure everyone, including me, criticized as being poorly executed and I would say, was really under-emphasized). While Trouble Shoes messes up the rodeo clowns' routine (seriously, they were more like acrobatic performers rather than clowns), he entertains the audience who react with great laughter (yes I know many of you pointed out, this crowd is not 'laughing with him' – 'they're laughing at him' for being a foolish clown – let me get to that). Remember how I said that Trouble Shoes seemed like he was written to be a 'simple character'? This is where I believe it was made on purpose where 'Trouble Shoes' doesn't necessarily consider his situation fully, but also, learns to accept it, but also importantly, is encouraged by the CMC to try and continue with the clown act. He knows that he's been laughed at before for his clumsiness, but he looks towards the CMC for encouragement in trying to gain legitimacy and belief that his clown performance is still very good as entertainment. Again, consider that for Trouble Shoes that it was his dream to perform in rodeo shows (initially as a rodeo star). But over the years, due to his clumsiness, he's become depressed and believes that is forever doomed to be a walking disaster that will never be able to entertain and be a part of the rodeo show. He had to let go of that dream, but he never let go of his passion for the rodeo show. Its here, where Trouble Shoes finally gains something he never thought he'd get back, being a performer in the rodeo show. It's not his dream job, but it's also something he was still passionate about and cared for, its sort of like therapy for him at this point to deal with his depressing state. Again, the 'laughing at him' part, I think that Trouble Shoes is a simple character and is one of two things. Either he knows that the audience is 'laughing at him' and he just learns to accept it, but also understands that its part the aspect of being a clown performer or that he doesn't think critically enough about his situation because resurrecting his desire to being an entertainer in the rodeo show overrrides this thought. And yes, I think the episode, extremely under-emphasized this, and was somewhat executed haphazardly. It probably would have been great if it tried to make point more obvious in the episode, and helped it along.

 

 

TL/DR: - the resolution of this episode seemed like (to me at least) it was about, “you can't always get what you want, but sometimes, you get what you need” type of aseop. But I do feel it was extremely under-emphasized in this episode and that's something to be critical about. Also, this was a much more sweeter, less bitter-sweet way of sort invoking this trope (I'm sure there's a trope that this is called on tvtropes, I just can't find it. Somepony else feel free to look and say). There are other problems about this episode as well, but that's enough for this thread. So, your thoughts, views and other things you thought about this episode's resolution? What else did you think? Am I reading too much into it? Responses please? Other thoughts about the lesson/resolution about this episode?  Other criticisms about the resolution? Or did you like the resolution?

Edited May 3, 2015 by pony.colin

[sweetolebob18 728]

This is some what related to another thread about The Tyranny  of Cutie Marks (ICR the exact title -I'm terrible at names) & also Starlight's argument against Cutie Marks.  Troubleshoes thinks his whole life is ruined because of his cutie mark (which goes clear back to Episode 65 Magical Mystery Cure song "What My Cutie Mark is Telling Me").

 

It is a Free Will vs Destiny argument.