S06:E07 - Newbie Dash

[Leere 8,291]

5.5/10 - Not terrible, but not great either.

[PacificGreen 1,163]

I found this episode to be overall enjoyable. But the Wonderbolts' treatment of Rainbow was a little cringey at times, and it was a little hard to tell whether they genuinely were just playing around, or being kinda mean to her.

 

My favorite part was Rainbow's imitation of the others.

 

And as amusing as I found the Wonderbolts' nicknames to be, I kinda feel like it was an ass-pull, since we had never heard those nicknames uttered before. But maybe it's not, I don't know, maybe I'm expecting too much.

[Makazi 317]

It was decent, but the one thing that I really felt like they needed was to have RD's goggles land on Scootaloo when she got flung out of the tree, lol. Could've been some interesting foreshadowing.

[Scootalove 10,689]

I understand that they wanted to show Rainbow Dash the ropes and how things work regarding the Wonderbolts, but there is a difference between playing it up for laughs and treating a new member among their midst in a downright uncomfortable fashion.

 

The episode did, however have some comedy and chuckled at Rainbow acting like her friends using their usual mannerisms. Would I recommend this episode? No, but maybe others will find enjoyment in it.

[Amethyst Splash 86]

I thought that the episode was pretty good. I mean it could have been better if there was a song. But most of it was great.

[ElegantNerd 39]

I bet that crossed their mind, but I'm guessing DHX decided that would be too harsh of a nickname.  Calling someone trash is a pretty mean thing to say.  Plus Rainbow Crash was canon already, so nice callback as well.

 

I would have called her "Rainbow Trash."

 

That can be her gimmick. She throws trash all over the runway and then she eats the garbage.

Nice reference to "Always Sunny in Philadelphia," LOL!!!  

If only this episode had been 20% (or more) cooler.  I'd been expecting something on par with "Crusaders of the Lost Mark."  When the series builds something up for YEARS, fans hope to be blown away by something awesome.     

 

I'd been hoping this achievement of Dash becoming a Wonderbolt would've been done as an epic musical.  They could've mixed  and updated the "I've been dreamin', I've been waitin'..." part of "At the Gala" from Season 1.  This could've worked as a musical episode SO well.  I could've gone like this:

 

Act 1:  finding out her dreams have come true...trying on the uniform for the first time...reflecting on the years she's admired the Wonderbolts and the significant steps she's taken along the way to join them.....then imagining what her first day will be like.  

 

Act 2:  Reality hits.  The training's tougher than she expected.  She has very little time to learn the most complex routine she's ever attempted.  She struggles and doubts herself.  She stresses out big time.  The other Wonderbolts try to be supportive to the newbie but Dash can tell they're thinking she's going to mess up the show.  (They're not jerks about it, though).   

 

Dash wanders off by herself.  Cue a Dash solo song that hits you right in the feels.  She doesn't know if this is her true destiny, after having been so certain her entire life.  It could start with her singing somberly, "I had been dreaming, I had been waiting/ to fly with those great ponies...."   (I imagine something similar to "Pinkie's Lament," but without the optimistic ending).  It would emphasize that her dream, once realized, hadn't turned out the way she'd thought.   

 

Act 3:  The day of the big show.  Dash is ready as she'll ever be, and it's showtime.  She looks out in the crowd and spots Scootaloo waving a flag with Dash's cutie mark on it (or something like that).  It reminds Dash of when she was Scootaloo's age, and of how excited she was to see the 'Bolts perform back then.  (There could be a cool flashback here of Dash's parents taking her to her first Wonderbolts show). 

 

Dash resolves to do her best, because it's what the fans deserve.  Dash does a decent enough job.  Not perfect, but passable and the crowd still loves it.  (Plus, there's no lame slapstick and none of Dash FORCING  Scotaloo to do something that could've harmed others.  I mean, WTF?!)

 

Pinkie gets to wrap it all up with a congrats party for Dash (a great opportunity for an ensemble song).  At this party, Dash could express both the ups and downs she's experienced.  She knows that being a Wonderbolt won't be 100% awesome right away and there were challenges she hadn't expected, but with a lot of hard work and practice it will become the best thing ever.

 

**********************

 

I know different fans will have different ideas on how the episode should've gone, but it seems that overall a lot of people here had been hoping for a LOT more than what we saw today.  

[Sunny Fox 5,950]

No Second Prances, I apologize to you. Because, as bad as you were, you were not THIS episode.

 

I haven't found an episode as hard to sit through as this one, not even Spike's disastrous Equestria Games anthem scene. I have not double-face-palmed myself so much since Slice of Life. This episode is making me consider placing it as my least favorite episode in FiM ever, and that takes some doing, since I'm usually a person who tries to find the good in the series. And for people who like this because (and only because) "it's the episode where Rainbow Dash becomes a Wonderbolt", I think you're missing something. Under that logic, you could have had Rainbow Dash literally dying by the end and still be required to call this a great episode because "she become a Wonderbolt". How something happens is more important than that something happens. I'd be the first to say that the subjective enjoyment of media is more important than its objective quality, but this...

 

First, the imitation scene throws the moral of "Testing Testing 1 2 3" (everyone's different, and you have to find the way that works for you, rather than imitate others) right out the window. Second, we've always known there was some event in her past that caused her to be dubbed "Rainbow Crash", but to literally have her fall into a trash can TWICE seems far too contrived... sometimes specificity is not a good idea. And how does that gel with the "Dash got kicked out of flight school - I didn't get kicked out - Face it, Rainbow Crash, flight school had too many rules and not enough nap times" comment from Sonic Rainboom?

 

If you do like it, no shame to you. But I cannot pretend that I was anything less than contemptuous towards this step backwards for poor RD. And I'm not even an avid RD fan... just fail, utter fail. I'm not saying I'm going to stop watching the series, but this episode really was a terrible experience for me. No offense.

[chronos911 22]

To be fair about the OOC moments of the Wonderbolts: This episode WAS written by a new writer named Dave Rapp. 

 

As a rule, I believe you shouldn't judge an episode too harshly for OOC moments. Because the episode was the first one written by a new writer, you can't expect the writer to know the show and characters as well as the fanbase does!

 

The point is,  they shouldn't just hand an important episode like this to a new writer, especially one that is an amateur or is unfamiliar with the show and it's fanbase. 

[Guest]

Well, the way that Rainbow Dash's dream has finally been realized means the show will draw to an end soon. Closure always mean the end

[weesh 690]

Well, the way that Rainbow Dash's dream has finally been realized means the show will draw to an end soon. Closure always mean the end

 

I find that to be silly.  the show doesn't revolve around dash, and it didn't' even end when Twilight became a princess.

[Foliha 395]

Closure?  No, I don't think so.  She just realized a dream.  It's another chapter heading.  And that means episodes where she finds her place in the Wonderbolts and has adventures with them.

[Guest]

Well I guess that's true. Sorry, not trying to be a bummer

[Rarity Is Best Pony 634]

Out of all the episodes thus far I find this episode to be the most underwhelming. The only real take away for me is a resounding meh. To me the best part of this episode was seeing Rainbow Dash impersonate her friends especially her take on how Rarity behaves.

[Trinitron Keys 89]

I'll admit, the character impersonations by Dash seemed a little odd, though I guess trying to portray Dash as lacking confidence was a tough feat, since this is an unusual state for her to be in. I won't lie, I've occasionally acted out when I was nervous about a situation, but this was an interesting episode. It was more that episode where Rarity imitated Applejack that felt cringy for me, just cuz I felt bad for her as far as how she ended up looking to everypony. Too Many Pinkie Pies still stands as the one canon episode that I definitely disliked. So in comparison to past episodes, this was about average. Not terrible, but it could have been 20% cooler.

 

Needs more epic high-flying pegasi stunts and action. MOAR!

Maybe they could do one where Fluttershy temporarily gets super-peg flying ability just for one episode and her and Dash pull off some combo-moves. THAT'D be a must-see.

[Dark Qiviut 22,388]

This wasn't a bad or good episode; It was bad or good in your opinion.

Wrong. Objective measures of quality exist. Quality characterization, coherency of plot, steering clear of unfortunate implications, not conforming to stereotypes, and making sure the actions and plot elements make sense are some of them. Because FIM is teaching lessons (of friendship), is character-development-driven, and is supposed to be backed by welcoming characters, continuity matters a ton; disregard continuity, and your whole plot risks falling apart massively.

 

Gauntlet of Fire from earlier this season is objectively good. The plot is well-written. Ember is an fully-fledged, likable character. Spike is in character, responsible, and likable - the show plays into his strengths and has him trying to solve problems, not be them. Even more importantly, it openly critiques the stereotypical roles of femininity and masculinity without opening any implications. How is that? By not making Torch, Ember, or Spike fall for stereotypes nor have Spike utter xenophobia at dragons like in Dragon Quest. In fact, the episodes openly communicates that dragons have good in them just like ponies, and both sides can come together, communicate, and learn from each other. And it also has an excellent moral: Great leadership doesn't come from brute strength or size, but from the personality instead. DQ really broke the lore of the dragons, GoF fixed it.

 

Rainbow Falls from season four is objectively bad. Continuity it references (Wonderbolts Academy) is completely broken, from Fleetfoot and Spitfire becoming major assholes on the Wonderbolts's behalf to Bulk Biceps suddenly becoming incapable of flying. Rarity, Pinkie, and AJ are flanderized. Everyone other than Derpy and Soarin' is out of character. The jokes are poor because they sacrificed character and plausibility just to pop one in. Dialogue lacks flow, and the exposition gets in each other's way. None of the writing choices in this story make any sense.

 

The first EQG film is objectively bad for a host of reasons. There are major plot holes in a story that tries to take itself seriously and wants the audience to take seriously. But how can they when the logic behind the plot points lacks any sense? And how can the story try to take itself so seriously when blatantly lazy high-school stereotypes are not only used and extended, but embraced and pivotal to the plot? It's a broken story with characters being defaulted into idiots just to make Twilight look better. And it's a shame because Spike had his best role since Lesson Zero.

 

This is a small sample size, but the point is story is king here.

 

Newbie Dash is objectively bad, because it has several story-breaking flaws. Rainbow Dash willingly put at least a hundred of lives at stake just to heal her own ego, a complete contradiction of her characterization in episodes such as Hurricane Fluttershy, Sleepless in Ponyville, Wonderbolts Academy, and Flight to the Finish. The fact that she made Scootaloo a part of a dangerous act is beyond stupid. The whole joke of her impersonating her friends is doesn't work due to its mean-spirited backdrop; she did it to try to hide her hurt feelings, not in an agitated response to a friend's trait like from last season. Jokes like the Spikabuse fail because Spike did nothing to deserve it. The Wonderbolts claim to call Dash "Crash" in good fun, but Dash had no idea about this part of their culture and wasn't in on the joke. The WBs gave her no clear clue that it was good fun until about halfway in, yet it's too dubious in nature, and the fact that each "nickname" is based on incompetence doesn't help. So rather than be "good-natured ribbing," the WBs hazed her, and hazing is a major worldwide problem in so many fraternities, including the U.S. military. Were they right to be annoyed? Absolutely. Dash acted arrogant, disobeyed Spitfire, and suffered the consequences, but they pushed it beyond necessity, and their attitude didn't help. On top of that, the moral is reprehensible; I already explained why in my review and will consider an extensive analysis of it.

 

In fact, don't blame anyone at all. They didn't break your knee, they made a cartoon episode.

That's a lazy stereotype of criticism, and one I'll never tolerate. DHX — whether it's the editor, writer, or whole body — is thoroughly responsible for developing the story and having it in high quality. Time and time again, it's delivered excellent episodes, including Party of One, The Cutie Map, Amending Fences, and many, many more. Newbie Dash wasn't close to it. When the story is terrible, expect people like myself to pan it.

 

Criticism of professionally published works is very important. Why? Because kids are very smart and understand what makes a story work or not, but they're also impressionable. The fact that children are one of the most prominent demographics this show is marketing to makes the standards of good stories stricter, not more lenient.

Edited May 9, 2016 by Dark Qiviut

[PacificGreen 1,163]

I personally think Soarin's nickname should've been something like "Pie Guy". #notreally

[Jangocoolguy 433]

Man...

 

What is it with Rainbow Dash episodes being mediocre or just bad?

 

In fact, I kept having repressed flashbacks of "Rainbow Falls" (and "Tanks for the Memories" and even *shudder* "The Mysterious Mare Do Well") of Dash doing dumb, even self-destructve things without thinking and the Wonderbolts being total jerks (Dash, do you REALLY want to join these people???  )​

Also...that bit about her imitating the Other 5 wasn't as funny as it wanted to be. It was just annoying/counterproductive and gave me more repressed flashbacks of *shudder again* "Simple Ways"

 

I'm glad things worked out in the end, but couldn't they have had that little chat sooner or done it better? Or couldn't Dash have told the Wonderbolts about how the nickname was used against her as a foal? There are better ways of making up for an embarrassing incident besides making an even bigger fool of yourself...

[SawmillTurtle 56]

I think people are unfairly judging this episode. Among the criticisms I've seen here and on EQD are claims that Rainbow Dash reverted to her S1 arrogance and self-reliance and that all of her character growth was ignored for some cheap laughs.

 

I disagree. I think Rainbow Dash was honestly just a victim of circumstance which was exacerbated by her hero worship of the Wonderbolts. She was a bit overenthusiastic at first, but she was doing fine. Things did not go downhill for her until she forgot "RULE NUMBER ONE" and walked onto the runway without looking first. The end result of this was Rainbow Dash/Crash/Trash/Smash/Splash/etc ending up in the trashcan. This whole incident happened to her before, as we saw in the flashback.

 

Without explaining that her nickname was in good fun, the Wonderbolts began calling her "Crash." All of this led her to believe that she had disgraced herself and that she'd lost the respect of the ponies she'd idolized her entire life. Add to this her fear that she might lose out on the position she'd coveted for so long and you have a recipe for full-on panic. This explains everything about her behavior in this episode. She wasn't behaving out of character; quite the opposite. If you take a moment to recall all of her other misadventures, like breaking into the hospital to steal a Daring Do novel, or inadvertently sabotaging all of Cloudsdale because she didn't want her turtle to hibernate, then you'll remember that she is not above erratic or extreme behavior when she feels strongly about something.

 

Therefore, Rainbow's goofy behavior can be, erm, mostly excused for this episode. She was, after all, only trying to save face in front of ponies that she'd elevated onto pedestals they didn't really deserve. The only thing that I found odd for her was her mimicry of her friends. She might have misinterpreted the advice her friends gave her, but I don't know if she would have misinterpreted it that badly. It was a bit jarring, but she's not the only one to ever be guilty of this. Remember when Rarity was in love with that socialite pony who was in love with Applejack? This led to Applejack and Rarity imitating each other in ridiculous ways.

 

All in all, I found the episode enjoyable. Some have wondered about the absence of Twilight's new slave in this episode, but I for one was glad to be rid of her. She didn't need to be in this episode, as she would have contributed nothing and probably would have learned very little from Rainbow's mid-air demolition derbies.

[LHfunk 422]

It was ok, glad for Rainbow, but that middle bit was cringier then Discord at the Gala. And this could all have been avoided had the Wonderbolts used their nicknames for each other instead of just Dash.

 

Also, Spitfire's voice makes me think of Monsters Inc. for some reason.

Edited May 9, 2016 by LHfunk

[weesh 690]

Closure?  No, I don't think so.  She just realized a dream.  It's another chapter heading.  And that means episodes where she finds her place in the Wonderbolts and has adventures with them.

 

agreed.

life doesn't end just because you fulfil a dream.

in fact, the idea of discussing what to do AFTER you fulfil a dream could make an excellent episode!  

it would be quite relatable.  

Wrong. Objective measures of quality exist. Quality characterization, coherency of plot, steering clear of unfortunate implications, not conforming to stereotypes, and making sure the actions and plot elements make sense are some of them. Because FIM is teaching lessons (of friendship), is character-development-driven, and is supposed to be backed by welcoming characters, continuity matters a ton; disregard continuity, and your whole plot risks falling apart massively.

 

Very well said.

It is certainly possible to like something that is objectively bad, or to hate something that is objectively good, but the creation of media has a lot of study and theory behind it, and to throw all that out doesn't do anyone any good.

 

 

I think people are unfairly judging this episode...

 

I'm not going to deny that there is some hyperbole in this thread (even in my own posts), but the episode was poor enough that the superlatives used have not been THAT far off the mark.  

 

...I think Rainbow Dash was honestly just a victim of circumstance...

 

 

She was taunted mercilessly...the hazing took her past the breaking point.  

It's one thing to have a shitty thing happen to you, and it's another for a group to rub your face in it continuously.  

She was victimized not only by circumstance, but by the whole team.  

 

I'd have been fine with it, if they had dealt with it.  How awesome would it have been for Rainbow to say "guys, has it ever occurred to you that taunting the new recruits might not be the best way to welcome them?  can't we be better than that?  we're role models for thousands of ponies...do we want school kids doing this to each other?"

 

But instead, they JUSTIFIED it.  

[Totally Nyx 36,016]

She was taunted mercilessly...the hazing took her past the breaking point.  

It's one thing to have a shitty thing happen to you, and it's another for a group to rub your face in it continuously.  

She was victimized not only by circumstance, but by the whole team.  

 

I'd have been fine with it, if they had dealt with it.  How awesome would it have been for Rainbow to say "guys, has it ever occurred to you that taunting the new recruits might not be the best way to welcome them?  can't we be better than that?  we're role models for thousands of ponies...do we want school kids doing this to each other?"

 

But instead, they JUSTIFIED it.

 

 

I have to disagree. They weren't taunting her or making fun of her. They just wanted to make sure she knew that was her new nickname. Yes, I do think the wonderbolts came off a little more mean-spirited than they intended to, but mostly why it hurt Dash so much was because it was the exact same name ponies around her had given her all her life. It carried a lot of bad memories for her and if the wonderbolts had chosen any other name I think the episode would've gone a completely different direction.

 

 

That being said though, I think a couple things could've been done differently (those impressions were a bit cringeworthy), but overall I really liked the episode. I'd give it a solid 8/10.

[MovieLord101 140]

HOLD IT! Did Rarity call RD "Dashie"?? Damnit, Rarity, that's OUR name for her! You ponies get no claim to it (except Pinkie Pie)! 

[Sonic5421 423]

I think people are unfairly judging this episode. Among the criticisms I've seen here and on EQD are claims that Rainbow Dash reverted to her S1 arrogance and self-reliance and that all of her character growth was ignored for some cheap laughs.

 

I disagree. I think Rainbow Dash was honestly just a victim of circumstance which was exacerbated by her hero worship of the Wonderbolts. She was a bit overenthusiastic at first, but she was doing fine. Things did not go downhill for her until she forgot "RULE NUMBER ONE" and walked onto the runway without looking first. The end result of this was Rainbow Dash/Crash/Trash/Smash/Splash/etc ending up in the trashcan. This whole incident happened to her before, as we saw in the flashback.

 

Without explaining that her nickname was in good fun, the Wonderbolts began calling her "Crash." All of this led her to believe that she had disgraced herself and that she'd lost the respect of the ponies she'd idolized her entire life. Add to this her fear that she might lose out on the position she'd coveted for so long and you have a recipe for full-on panic. This explains everything about her behavior in this episode. She wasn't behaving out of character; quite the opposite. If you take a moment to recall all of her other misadventures, like breaking into the hospital to steal a Daring Do novel, or inadvertently sabotaging all of Cloudsdale because she didn't want her turtle to hibernate, then you'll remember that she is not above erratic or extreme behavior when she feels strongly about something.

 

Therefore, Rainbow's goofy behavior can be, erm, mostly excused for this episode. She was, after all, only trying to save face in front of ponies that she'd elevated onto pedestals they didn't really deserve. The only thing that I found odd for her was her mimicry of her friends. She might have misinterpreted the advice her friends gave her, but I don't know if she would have misinterpreted it that badly. It was a bit jarring, but she's not the only one to ever be guilty of this. Remember when Rarity was in love with that socialite pony who was in love with Applejack? This led to Applejack and Rarity imitating each other in ridiculous ways.

 

All in all, I found the episode enjoyable. Some have wondered about the absence of Twilight's new slave in this episode, but I for one was glad to be rid of her. She didn't need to be in this episode, as she would have contributed nothing and probably would have learned very little from Rainbow's mid-air demolition derbies.

 

Very nice way to sum up the episode to show that you still liked it while some Bronies did not.

[weesh 690]

I have to disagree. They weren't taunting her or making fun of her. They just wanted to make sure she knew that was her new nickname. 

 

sooooooooooooooooo....

its ok to call someone a mean nickname that they hate..........

because you want to make sure they know it is their nickname?

they knew she hated it because she told them TWICE. 

[Thrond 3,263]

I have to disagree. They weren't taunting her or making fun of her. They just wanted to make sure she knew that was her new nickname. Yes, I do think the wonderbolts came off a little more mean-spirited than they intended to, but mostly why it hurt Dash so much was because it was the exact same name ponies around her had given her all her life. It carried a lot of bad memories for her and if the wonderbolts had chosen any other name I think the episode would've gone a completely different direction.

 

 

That being said though, I think a couple things could've been done differently (those impressions were a bit cringeworthy), but overall I really liked the episode. I'd give it a solid 8/10.

 

It'd be nice if the history of that nickname actually meant anything in the long run. I think the episode's intent with bringing that up was to have her reclaim what was once used to torment her as a symbol of her success, and I actually respect that idea immensely. I just wish the episode showed a lot more introspection regarding that, and maybe had Rainbow Dash actively reveal why the name bothers her so much. I don't think the Wonderbolts had any intent of being mean-spirited; they gave no sign of realizing Dash was seriously bothered by it until the very end. It wasn't a "reminder" that Rainbow Crash was her nickname; it was just what stuck, and all they saw in Rainbow resisting it was a new rookie whose pride had been wounded. Again, it would have worked significantly better with more introspection instead of, say, the impressions scene. 

 

Still, it's not really what I wanted from this episode. Part of the idea here seems to be to take Rainbow Dash's ego down a peg, but that's what her character development in the past five seasons was for. I think I'd prefer if the episode showed her at her best, ready to meet the challenge that the Wonderbolts's atmosphere provides for her. This is fine too, I guess, but it'd be more fine if it were done a little better.