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S05:E25+26 - The Cutie Re-Mark


Jeric

S05:E25+26 - The Cutie Re-Mark  

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    • Hated it
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    • Meh. It was OK.
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    • I liked it
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    • That .... was ....AWESOME! <3
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Although it wasn't built up with a season-long story arc like "Twilight's Kingdom", this episode has built up just as much anticipation by confirming Starlight Glimmer's return to the show. However, this episode failed to capitalize on its strongest asset by instead stalling on the superficial entertainment value provided by its alternate scenarios. It pushed Starlight Glimmer's character introspection and subsequent reformation into the final five minutes when it could have provided enough material for the majority of the episode that Twilight was given.

 

Although alternate scenarios were provided for many of the villains, only one or two would have been necessary to the plot, and one of them should have been Starlight Glimmer herself. In this scenario, where Starlight Glimmer would replace Twilight as Equestria's savior, Starlight would be heavily convinced that she has won. However, she herself would have to witness her empire falling around her, either when another villain seizes the opportunity to exploit the stagnation of Equestria in this situation due to its insistence in putting Starlight's ideology on a pedestal, or when the effects of emotional repression and thought control finally lead to Starlight Glimmer inevitably getting what would have been coming to her. In that case, a more clear moral would have been presented: Don't build an empire for yourself, as eventually it will turn on you.

 

Instead, we get Twilight along for the ride as she's thrown between every other possibility. By the second time it happens, it becomes predictable. Such is also the case with Twilight's forced obliviousness towards scientific concepts, such as thinking that her friends will still remember her in an obviously alternate timeline, as well as repeatedly loose-lipping on the fact that she is time-traveling (including in front of Nightmare Moon).

 

It seems this episode falls into the typical two-parter trap of being too focused on Twilight and the Mane 6 while leaving out or marginalizing any contributions others make to the story. Such a thing seems to be against some of the messages this show is trying to send; if friendship is really as important to Equestria as it's made to be, why is the Mane 6's friendship seemingly the only consequential one? This really isn't a hindrance as much as it is a plate of missed opportunities and issues the show has developed as its need to push boundaries with storytelling has started to hit the barrier of the show's rigid formatting.

 

As for Starlight Glimmer and the reformation itself, it was the episode's strongest asset, which was unfortunately crowded out for the most part, but thankfully not enough to eliminate it entirely. Early in the episode, Starlight defusing the bullies and actually succeeding in morally prevailing over Twilight continued to show how effective of a character and villain she was; by convincingly hiding her fanaticism in a layer of moral superiority, she seems to have Twilight beat in both smarts and strength at one point. Only when she gets to the end of her rope by realizing she's in a no-win situation does her threat mitigate. Her motivation of having been shown up by another's achievements was a great addition to the episode and pretty much confirms a headcanon I and many others seem to have shared. The resolution and song, however, seem to raise more questions than they can answer. That is something that can only be judged when Season 6 comes around, if and when they continue developing what has effectively become Sunset Shimmer's Equestrian surrogate.

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am I the only one that geeked out at seeing the palace of the 2 sisters RESTORED - even if it was just to make it lunas palace?

 

it was so cool :)


 

3 things. 

 

  1. This proves once and for all that changelings aren't just looking for a food source. They want to take over Equestria and are just like any other parasite
  2. Nightmare moon is the only villain that the ponies will be willing to fallow. Not because she isn't a tyrant but, because she is a good leader. Seeing as though ponies tour the castle
  3. Finally Who's future was the last one? In every example one of the villains took over Equestria until we got to a reality that looked like a scene from Fallout. Unless. Don't quote me on this one but, what if It was Starlight Glimmer's? A future where no pony can do their job and Equestria dies. Cutie Mark magic is what makes the very weather happen so if it was taken out of the equation it would make sense that the world would fall apart like that.

 

what if its the ending of season 6's villian, and everyone dies at the end of mlp? A bleak outlet.

 

also one thing that bothered me - the table is clearly shown in ruins in every present eventuality, but it is always ruined the SAME WAY in EVERY eventuality - this seems like an animation laziness... at least change the look of the table more in each alternate present...

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One little thing I've noticed is that in the Discordverse, we see that Luna is reverted back to her regular self. Since she was still in the moon during the events of the Sonic Rainboom, her appearing like that caught me by surprise, but it's easy to not realise this during your first watch. It doesn't sour my viewing experience, but it's just an odd observation.

Edited by Odyssey
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This is such a cool episode. I also like how the concept of time travel is used throughout most of the episode and how no Sonic Rainboom could affect the future. I also hope Starlight Glimmer will be a new addition to the Mane 6.

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I never would've thought that Starlight would reform after everything that happened. I never thought Twilight would've gotten through to her. :pinkie:  BUT IT WAS AMAZING!!!!

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One little thing I've noticed is that in the Discordverse, we see that Luna is reverted back to her regular self. Since she was still in the moon during the events of the Sonic Rainboom, her appearing like that caught me by surprise, but it's easy to not realise this during your first watch. It doesn't sour my viewing experience, but it's just an odd observation.
 

 

I think that it comes from this 

 

Step 1 - Somehow Luna was saved without the Mane Six as we know them (Possibly Discord himself when he was freed by the CMC)

Step 2 - Due to the lack of the Mane Six Discord was able to take over the world and bathe it in glorious Chaos. 

 

 

Ultimately each slight change may have inadvertently impacted situations within the AU without the Mane Six that may have allowed Equestria to defeat specific enemies but not others ... or one enemy was able to defeat other enemies. It sets up some cool what ifs that are bound only to your imagination. It is actually this reason that I have upped my initial rating from an 8/10 to a 9/10. 

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Howdy folks!

 

Great Googly Moogly what end to the 5TH season!

 

Josh Haber wrote a heck of a of a 2 parter!

(He & Daniel Ingram wrote the song in part 2)

 

Fun to see Moon Dancer again.

 

I was like UH OH when I saw Starlight Glimmer in the castle.

 

Those alternate time lines sure scared the beejeebers outta me.

 

King Sombra, Chrysalis, Nightmare Moon. Tirek, :wau:

 

Liked the scene with Twilight and filly Rainbow Dash. :lol:

 

Kelly Sheridan did a spectacular perforamce as Starlight Glimmer.

(Not to mention a great singer)

 

I was like :(  during her back story with Staburst.

 

In a way she kinda reminded ,me of Sunset Shimmer.

 

I hope she returns for season 6.

 

See ya!

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I gotta say, I really liked it. The alternate futures were really cool, (especially Rainbow's appearance in the Sombra Future) And the song was sweet. 

If I had to gripe about anything it would be that the other mane 5 were brushed aside the entire episode, and Starlight's redemption happened too fast. 

Well, hopefully season 6 will address that.

I'd probably give it a 9/10

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I hope I don't get backlash, but I found it better than the Season 4 finale, *hides behind sofa*, but yeah I loved Starlight in this episode and loved the different versions of the future that were shown and the time travel aspect, seeing Nightmare Moon, King Sombra, Tirek, Queen Chrysalis, Discord, and even the Flim Flams was great and I loved seeing the mane 6 as fillies even if it was for a short period, I also loved Starlight's backstory and it explained why she was the way she was, I didn't really have an issue with her being reformed, but I do wonder why Pinkie and Fluttershy had the same cutie marks, I thought Starlight was preventing them from getting their marks? Also was Twilight unaffected by the time spell? It didn't seem to affect her in any way from what I could tell.  Great season finale and I can't wait for Season 6!! 10/10!!

 

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Bring on the Crystal War Fanfics! 

 

Seriously, as the first season I got to follow from beginning to end as they air, I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. So much Fanfic fuel to keep the fandom going during this hiatus.

 

I'm okay with the reform of Starlight, because they have done wonders with Sunset, I'm ready to see what season 6 will do with her.  

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I gotta say, I really liked it. The alternate futures were really cool, (especially Rainbow's appearance in the Sombra Future) And the song was sweet. 

If I had to gripe about anything it would be that the other mane 5 were brushed aside the entire episode, and Starlight's redemption happened too fast. 

Well, hopefully season 6 will address that.

I'd probably give it a 9/10

 

I getcha there. It's amazing how a two-parter still felt like it needed more room. But I guess that's just our job: to demand more episodes.  :icwudt:

 

On the other hoof, Starlight didn't go through much of what Twilight did in those other timelines. What she saw and experienced was less consequential and dramatic I think. Maybe it doesn't excuse a rushed reformation but it does factor in. I would have loved seeing this as a three or four-parter but there I go wanting more episodes.  :grin2:

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Am I the only one who thought it was cute when Moondancer gently nudged Spike?

 

I thought it was cute too! I'm thinking she sat next to him as a thank-you for getting her that present after Twilight accidentally ruined the original!

 

 

Wait shouldn't Twilight have lost her wings since if Celestia had never taken her on as her pupil, then she would have never met her friend and discovered the elements of harmony...

Wait... shouldn't Spike not exist since he was never born? I guess even time forgets about Spike... :derp:

 

It actually makes sense the way it worked: Twilight and Spike were displaced from their own timeline, so they wouldn't suddenly change because there were already other versions of them in the AU that -were- affected. So if alicorn Twi had met herself in one of the present-time AUs, she'd meet the unicorn one and Spike wouldn't exist so the best he could do is meet his egg. :lol:

 

 

Twilight? y u do dis weird face to young rainbow dash, seemed weird lel

Also, Twilight! Why U act like creepy pedo-pony!

I know what we're all thinking ^here:

 

LOL.. I'm glad I'm not the only one who got the creepy pedo vibe from Twilight air-stalking Rainbow and trying to get her to race her. "Hay little filly, race ya to that cloud waaaaaaay over there, far away from where any of the ponies around here can see us, heh, heh, heh!"

 

I swear, these animators trollin' us for memes again...

 

Which begs the question: Why weren't there any camp counselors around noting the strange magic ponies and dragon trying to get near the foals? Heck, you'd think they would have sent out the Wonderbolts after the big magic battle started to put a stop to all this!

 

 

Did no one else notice that poor Celestia was BLASTED TO THE MOON???!!!!!

 

I did! I guess this ends the headcanons that somehow Celestia can only be locked away in the sun.

 

 

I knew it! Next to all the finale villains, the Flim Flam Brothers are the most heinous to ever grace the screen. Their elegance, their diction, their trickery. If it weren't for the Mane 6, Equestria would be forced to bow to their machinations!

 

Can Twilight report to Celestia what she saw of this one possible future and pull a "Minority Report" deal here and have them pre-emptively tossed into Tartarus? :smug:

 

One little thing I've noticed is that in the Discordverse, we see that Luna is reverted back to her regular self.

Step 1 - Somehow Luna was saved without the Mane Six as we know them (Possibly Discord himself when he was freed by the CMC)

My thinking is whether or not Luna had been successfully reverted to her normal self or was still trapped in the moon, Discord would insist on having her around. The reason being is the last time he saw her was when they locked him in stone. It would make sense for him to "complete" his revenge by freeing her from the moon if she were still trapped there, just to have her suffer his chaos in the AU.

 

Oh yeah, this finale confirmed one of my headcanons - Pinkie has the same cool Earthbending powers as her sister!

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She just chooses not to exercise them, except for eating the rock candy actually made from rocks. :)

Edited by Truffles
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This was a very good special episode, but it didn't grab me as much as Twilight's Kingdom. The alternate realities were awesome, the plot was pretty cool, and the humor was spot-on, don't get me wrong.

 

...

 

But I have to come clean and confess that I wasn't a big fan of Starlight Glimmer getting reformed.

 

It's not that the scene where she gets reformed is an asspull or anything, it's actually very well written. My problem with it is just a personal one. I personally feel we have enough reformed villains. While I am aware that we still have Chrysalis, Tirek, and Sombra on the evil side, I also feel we've seen more than enough minor villains be redeemed in the end. It also might be my bias in that I just don't like Starlight that much.

 

But yeah, one year later, they're probably going to do something really awesome with Starlight that's going to make me look back on what I wrote this day in disbelief, et cetera, et cetera, whatever. Long story short, the special was pretty cool.

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I am still confused about the nightmare moon future - how are things still growing now that nightmare moon has made the night last forever for the couple of years that she has been back? Without sunlight everything should have died and all the ponies should have starved, but SOMEHOW this has not happened - and luna has not taken charge of raising the sun, as it is dark during the day. This made the least sense to me.

 

also something to consider..

 

starlight glimmer

starswirl the bearded

 

what if starlight glimmer is starswirls descendent, and that scroll was passed down? Might explain her power level..

Edited by Chronamut
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This episode is pure fanfiction fuel and I love it~! That alone will keep fans occupied until season 6.

 

This season seem to have challenged the status quo in more ways than one. We saw more world-building than in any other season. Background ponies and even one-shot characters are given more spotlight. CMC are now advisers for identity problems of young ponies. Princess Twilight now has a student and we added a new member to the main cast.

 

As long as the writers are able to avoid retelling past morals and story arcs, the future is bright~!

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That's almost as much as a whole movie. I doubt that Hasbro would ever break that much new ground.

 

Not only would they, but they have done it in the past (Beast Wars is a good example).  Not to mention, Hasbro really isn't dictating much when it comes to what the actual episodes are about.  Their only mandates as far as the show is concerned are related to product placement.  They really haven't been that concerned with how it gets there, just as long as it's there.  When Twilicorn happened, it was because they wanted to sell toys based on that concept, the same with the Rainbow Powers and the upcoming Cutie Mark Magic (which is probably going to be seen in Season 6).  

 

It's the same thing with Starlight Glimmer.  If she becomes a permanent member of the main group, it's because Hasbro wants to sell toys based on that concept.  What happens in the episode beyond that is secondary.

Edited by SBaby
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It felt way too deus ex machina. Aside from the time travel trope being so dated, Starlight being this powerful, the overdramatized sad back story and the ending was out of left field so hard...not to mention already done. The ending was bad, and could've been done so differently to make it better....like reuniting Starlight with her old friend, and getting her to work things out. Fuck, after her speech about friendship, and the Amending Fences episode, you'd think Twilight WOULD have done that.
Season 5 felt so much like a "Twilight Sparkle? Eh..." season.

 

Rebel Zecora was the best part of the episode...and even rebel Fluttershy was better than all the attempts at some "badass" rainbowshit.

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Just gonna get this over with

 

That was easily my least favorite finale in the entire show.

 

They lengths they'd go to change or prevent changing the future was pretty funny. Most of the alternate universes were pretty fun, though admittedly underwhelming. And the ending was cute

 

But unfortunately it did everything I was hoping it wasn't gonna do, such as the rushed glimmerdemption. And watching the different universes got a little tiring after a while. And it was mostly Twilight and Spike doing everything, which is a trend I'd really wish they'd ease up on these multiparters.

 

Overall, it's not a bad episode by any stretch, but one I don't care much for

 

That said we need more Sombra-verse Dash. Easily up there with Detective Rarity and LionJack as best outfit of S5

 

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