S02:E07 - May the Best Pet Win

[Jeremy 128]

Who actually won that race in a snapshot:

 

 

He didn't stop and was halfway around the world after Rainbow made it to the finish with Tank, and nopony saw him because he was so fast.

 

Also, maybe Fluttershy has a business as a pet shop owner?

Adopt a pet today! Come on down to Fluttershy's Pet Emporium and be motivated like mad through a belated season two musical number! How can you say no to the hundreds of options she will throw at you!?

[Senn555 242]

When I saw rainbow pinned under the boulder it reminded me of the movie 127 Hours.

 

Which only makes sense because...

 

1 pony

Season 2

Episode 7

 

 

[KBz 499]

Reference there.

[Feather Spiral 1,892]

Holy frickin Trollestia. I would've noticed that, if I were more interested in numbers than words.

[Silver Spoon 3]

I noticed that too.

[Crazy Misty 653]

Rainbow Dash and her sunglasses are gonna make great avatars

 

You damn betcha.

[Lupus 127]

In pony terms, I found this episode absolute crap. Of season 2 so far I'd give the two-part opener 9/10 each, Lesson Zero 8/10, Luna Eclipsed 7/10, Sisterhooves 6/10, The Cutie Pox 9/10 and this.....this thing 3/10

[Senn555 242]

In pony terms, I found this episode absolute crap.

 

Why's that?

 

I thought Rainbow was being a tad abusive and arrogant, but the Find a Pet song and the Ride of the Valkyries musical sequence made up for that.

[Makai 3]

In pony terms, I found this episode absolute crap. Of season 2 so far I'd give the two-part opener 9/10 each, Lesson Zero 8/10, Luna Eclipsed 7/10, Sisterhooves 6/10, The Cutie Pox 9/10 and this.....this thing 3/10

 

Come on, that has to be one of the best Turtle and (hare) Falcon episodes ever done. What was it that you didn't like? Too much Rainbow Dash? Hawks, Eagles, and Bats? Was a turtle with a flying propeller not cool enough? What did you want out of the episode?

[Lupus 127]

Rainbow Dash has to EARN her coolness; she isn't cool just by existing, and, similarly, looking really pretty is not the same as being cool. Looking really pretty makes great screenshots. Being cool makes great animation.

 

I never liked Owlicious. The episode where he first appears was absolutely fantastic - right up to the moment that he appeared. If he had simply helped Twilight then turned around and gone it would have been an excellent episode, but that he stayed and we had the whole Spike jealousy story just made it "meh"

 

Playing with pets - its a nice thing to do, but hardly the hook for a great episode. Lesson Zero, Luna Eclipsed and The Cutie Pox all had great hooks, whilst Sisterhooves lacked one, but even then it had what to my mind is a powerful formula - Applejack plus Applebloom. That's why I would watch Sisterhooves again.

 

This episode had what precisely? Rainbow looking pretty, a race between animals we'd not met before? A tortoise who was so obviously always going to be the winner? The worst song of the entire series?

 

Up to now, The Staremaster had pretty much been my worst ever episode, but even that one would probably have scraped a 5 out of 10, even if by rounding up 4 1/2 to a generous 5. This pets one was just so DULL it is worse than that by a significant amount...

 

And OF COURSE it is all personal opinion. For reasons that I cannot even begin to fathom some people do not at all like The Cutie Pox whereas for me it was a 9 out of 10 episode, one of the absolute best that the programme has achieved. For me both 2-part season openers are 9/10 rated, as would be such classics as Party of One, The Cutie Mark Chronicles, The Best Night Ever, and my personal favourites like Over A Barrel and Call of The Cutie.

 

Maybe it comes down to best pony. There was an interesting poll done on favourite of the Mane Six, favourite secondary character and favourite background pony. For me these are Applejack, Applebloom and Seafoam - and The Cutie Pox ticks all the right boxes, as well as showing Scootaloo at her best, in terms of both animation and characterisation; I am always open to seeing a character I initially loathed develop until I absolute love her. In terms of characters what did "May the Best Pet Win!" have for me? Virtually nothing.

 

The ONLY moment I laughed was when Rainbow told Twilight that was why she would not make a good pet for her and petted her on the head - the ONLY moment I laughed, whereas many another episode is hilarity all-through. And there was no pathos at all...no that's actually not true. There was about 2 seconds pathos when Rainbow was trapped by her tail under the rock, and doomed for ever - but you KNEW that the bloody tortoise was going to come and rescue her, so the power of the moment was so absolutely completely missing. On first watching, an episode should be full of fun and surprises, but this one had neither.

 

I am not disagreeing that VISUALLY there were some good moments, but as I said those are screenshot moments, not animation moments. They would make a nice background or a cool picture, but not be part of a good story. Given how pretty a pony Rainbow can be, even the dullest moments of her life are bound to be visually interesting, but they don't make good animation. Rainbow having a dump, Rainbow washing the dishes, Rainbow reading a book - they would all be visually interesting, but they would not be great animation.

 

And I did not WANT to find this episode so dire. After the fantastic achievemet that was The Cutie Pox I knew not to expect another 9 out of 10, but to dive so low as to be a 3 out of 10 was to take contrast to a ridiculous extreme. I would have expected perhaps something a bit dull but on the whole interesting enough like Sisterhooves Social, but May The Best Pet Win was just...awful (to quote Twilight from The Best Night Ever)

 

Best Regards

Lupus

[Jeremy 128]

and this.....this thing 3/10

 

I get where you`re coming from. It would have been more interesting if the tortoise had actually retired from trying earlier in the competition.That way, it would have at least been less predictable who was going to rescue Rainbow. I know someponies around here are upset because Scootaloo didn`t make an appearance, but now that you bring this up it would have been a perfect opportunity for her to save the day (somehow) and maybe make things more interesting.

 

...Anypony know if it is actually physically possible for a tortoise to lift a boulder?

[Triforce 4]

the turtle won and iam happy. rainbow dash es a great pony!

[Amelia Monocle 112]

all the way through i was like, COME ON FALCON, and when he won i was like, YES!!! and then realised she wanted the turtle instead. and i was like, RAAAGE :angry:

[morethanicecream 116]

all the way through i was like, COME ON FALCON, and when he won i was like, YES!!! and then realised she wanted the turtle instead. and i was like, RAAAGE :angry:

 

Well, at least we see her softer side. Maybe it would be cool to have a falcon, but, remember, this show does have morals. Rainbow Dash needs to have a soft side, but an awesome fierce side

[BaBaBrony 111]

I appreciated how the falcon was able to admit defeat and shake hands with the tortoise. A class act all the way.

[snakeman1992 6]

This is my absolute favorite episode of all. I love this episode for so many reasons:

1: The dream Rainbow has at the beginning is funny as Hell, especially because it shows what kind of pet Discord would probably have if he had a pet.

2: The song was perfect for the first song of the season; it wasn't bad but wasn't spectacular either (in my opinion). If it had been too dull it would have spoiled the fun of it being the first song of the season, but if it had been spectacular like Smile Smile Smile it would have set the bar too high for the songs that came later in the season. Aside from all that, I think the song was adorable.

3: All power to the Hypno-Butterfly!

4: Rainbow-colored flames!

5: Rainbow Dash always dresses in style.

6: The radicalness competition was funny as Hell: a tap-dancing duck, eagle knitting a sweater, magician falcon, and all those others were just so absurd that they were hilarious (once again, in my opinion)

7: Gesundheit.

8: The race through the gorge was epic, especially with the incorporation of the music of Flight of the Valkyries.

9: Troll Tank stealing the toy mouse.

[Twixie Shores 2]

Let's see what makes this episode great:

1) A really great song

2) Fluttershy throughout the entire episode and her excitement

3) The bat playing the My Little Pony Theme on glasses

4) Rainbow Dash's character development when she ends up choosing Tank over the falcon.

[angels_gal 204]

firstly, the song was  really amazing.  I really love fluttershy's excitement over rainbow wanting a pet.  Every time the bat plays the MLP theme  on the glasses it always cracks me up. This story is soo reminiscent of the tortoise and the hare lol.   I was really  pleased with rainbow dash and the fact that she did the right thing and chose the tortoise instead of the falcon. 

[Sylvester 350]

The Contraption strapped around Tank reminds me of Pinkie Pie's peddal helicopter in Season 1 episode 5 "Griffon the Brush Off"

[Moon Rat 4,772]

This episode almost got me worried with Rainbow Dash's attitude. I didn't really like the way she treated all the animals in scaring them but I will say, I am quite glad she learned her lesson when the rocks fell on her and the Tortoise helped her out. It just goes to show you that just because an animal is slow, does not make them any less awesome :3

 

Also, my favorite part would have to be when RD strapped a propeller harness onto Tank.

That was pretty cool :3

[Rainbow Dash 1,472]

I hated this episode sooo much. sure its a RD focused episode but the inaccuracies really put me off. i know she choose the turtle for character development reasons but really now? you're not going to tell me the eagles and and falcons aren't loyal to their masters even when in competition?

[TheGreatandPowerfulZecora 16]

I thought this was annoying, because when they have that race at Ghastly Gourd, the Eagel gets stuck, and she doesn't help it, even though it could have injured it's wing so bad, it could fall into the brambles, therefore killing it, or maybe just some serious injury. She gets stuck, and no one helps her, yet she still is a little passive aggressive to the pets at the end saying how the turtle was the only one who helped save her and such.

[Klanterlot Klastle 0]

Find a Pet is the best song of the series

[Starlight Song 43]

opelescence? however, nyan cat is only 6 months old, so this is unlikely.

 

Brilliant idea though

Funny you should mention that... nyan cat is brought up in another Rainbow Dash episode, the Mysterious Mare do Well. you can see a poster of it in the CMC clubhouse at the beginning.

[True Rarity 1,240]

This was just a funny episode!

Somehow I had a feeling Rainbow Dash would want the turtle(TORTOISE![whatever]) in the end. Although the falcon really would have been an awesome pet!