S07:E04 - Rock Solid Friendship

[Zachary 5,517]

I really like that Episode!

Maud Pie is Great in this Episode!

A solid 8/10

[Lambdadelta 1,462]

This ep is AWESOME. SO MUCH YES . Nick suprised me again with his choice of character, which is Starlight, i cant think anyone can be friend of Maud, but Nick can and he made perfect sense of this story. Maud's character development is so great, to me, Maud is just a gag-character with rock-pun but now she is a real character with 3 dimensions. Thanks Nick, you gave Starlight another wonderful friend. 

Ok, talk about the Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

The Good:

Maud and Starlight bonding is another suprise element of this ep, and they works perfectly.

This ep is funny.

Rarity get rekt.

Maud's character development made Maud not just a gag-character, but a real character.

Another friend in Starlight list.

Maud is the reason Starlight found the magical rock can contain Cutie Marks!!!???????? FUCKING BRILIANT, Nick is another Larson.

The Bad:

Pinkie is a little bit annoying in this ep, which is not a big deal, i can handle her in A Friend in Deed (talk about that ep, Pinkie got check mark made by rock in this ep....  another briliant callback), but i wish they can tone down her craziness a little bit.

The Ugly:

Derp-abuse. HOW DARE YOU, PINKIE PIE? Abusing derped pony is a biggest crime that you have ever done yet, that is the line you cant cross. She definately love free pizza, but its because she DIDNT KNOW WHAT WENT WRONG. I am sentenced to you to the moon.

 

I love this episode so much, i cant write any good words to express my love of this ep because my writting sucks. I give it a 9.5/10

 

Bonus: Rainbow Dash is no longer the impersonation champion, Pinkie took that crown because she can became recolored Maud, nothing can beat that. Rainbow is now just the meme champion, she better keeps that title... 

[silvadel 1,393]

1 hour ago, snowflame said:

I wonder if we should expect some butterfly or bonsai tree interest from Starlight next.

Pinkie should have been toned down a bit and expecially after she had the discussion with Starlight. But she was supposed to be grating so it was not unintentional even if it was meant to be funnier so the episode still functioned well. We should have been more uncertain what Maud felt too, it was clear that she liked Starlight but Pinkie just got into the way.

Hopefully Maud's move will lead to Limestone and Marble visiting too and Maud's friendship with Starlight to interacting with Trixie (hopefully her stint in the rockfarm is remembered). 

Rarity has episode soon coming so it would be fun to see Rara again after she was mentioned but I feel it was merely a reference.

Actually, bonzai tree horticulture fits very well with her personality.  It is that kind of intricate incremental personal thing that I could see her enjoying very much.  Plus, it is another thing I could see her and Maud liking. 

[Steve Piranha 28,778]

I'm getting scared. Last two seasons, they started with a rough start, now, they've pretty much started right, but hope they don't mess up mid season 

[Thaliel 116]

 like what Maud did to that cave, looks like a nice place to stay

[Will Guide 21,325]

First minute in and again something to relate to: Maud Pie graduating like I recently have! 

First Zephyr Breeze from Mane Therapy Training, then me from College with a Degree in English, then Starlight Glimmer from Twilight's pupil, and now Maud Pie from Rock Studies!

Congrats to us all!

Hey! A short, but nice flashback that gives a little explanation to how pre-heel-face-turn Starlight Glimmer enslaved a village of ponies!

Wow! a Beautiful Underground cavern with pristine lakes fed by waterfalls and beautiful gemstones!

[Jangocoolguy 433]

It's usually a good time with Maud. Especially since this time she got some much needed extra depth and facets. (and Go figure she'd not notice a giant eel had ate her)

But the episode loses points for having Starlight. Even if it did give her a desperately needed facet, and she told Pinkie what needed to be said. Them joking about her misdeeds is seriously getting old... 

What really bothers me is Pinkie. She redeemed herself in last act, but before that it was one of those episodes where she's thoughtless (both ways) nuisance. When you're own family is annoyed with you, you're failing.

There were parts I liked and parts I didn't. I'm gonna have to think this over some 

Also, I think emerald jasper may or may not invite some Steven Universe references...

[Sonic5421 423]

I really liked this episode. We got to see Maud again, graduating and getting her degree, her family, including her parents and her other sisters, Limestone and Marble, and some backstory involving Maud unintentionally helping Starlight in her bid to get rid of cutie marks before her reformation, and how Starlight and Maud find some common ground with things they like, while Pinkie proves to be too proactive in trying to convince Maud to move to Ponyville, resulting in Maud dropping a bombshell on her by choosing Ghastly Gorge instead.

Once Starlight reveals to Pinkie the truth of her actions are what drove Maud away and had her chose the gorge over Ponyville, Pinkie apologizes, asks for a second chance, and upon asking Boulder for his two cents, Maud agrees to move to Ponyville, setting up her new home in the beautiful cavern she and Starlight found earlier.

Very nice episode, so I give it a 9/10.

[Batbrony 15,994]

Ahhhhhhhhhh, good afternoon everypony, and welcome back to another edition of "Batbrony Reviews."  First of all, my apologies for not getting this review posted yesterday, I was feeling tired and under the weather by the time I was able to write it so it just wasn't happening last night.  That said, I am glad I waited and rewatched the episode, because I now feel much better equipped to review this one than after my initial watch of it.  Let's not waste anymore time dawdling about and dive right into "Rock Solid Friendship"!!!

So this review will largely be broken down by character analysis because I believe you can best review it by analyzing the three main characters in it, Pinkie Pie, Maud Pie, and Starlight Glimmer.  So to begin, let us start with Pinkie... in this instance, a bit of an elephant in the room.  It brings me no pleasure to write this, but upon watching this episode twice I have to say that this was the worst that Pinkie Pie has been written in the show since "MMMystery on the Friendship Express" back in Season 2.  Those of you who know me will recall that that is to this day my least favorite episode of the show, so yeah, this does not bode well.  The good news is that this episode on the whole is MUCH better than that one, namely because, unlike in that episode, the majority of the characters here are not vapid idiots, completely inconsiderate, or just plain OOC.  The bad news is that Pinkie is, and when Pinkie is written badly, she is written BADLY.  Pinkie Pie when written as a stereotype of herself is unbearable, and it feels insulting to the character, like the writers have forgotten that, despite being as hyper and energetic as she is, this is a character who has grown so much since the show began.  The perplexing news is that really she was only written terribly for the middle 11 minutes of this episode; she's actually alright in the first 5 minutes when the conflict is getting set up and the last 5 minutes when it's getting resolved, it's only when she's creating the conflict that she is horrible.  This somewhat makes sense since the biggest reason she was written so badly was simply so that a conflict would exist in the first place (much like in "MMMystery on the Friendship Express") and it is not excusable here anymore than it was there, in fact, even less so since this is Season 7 Pinkie.  Not only should she be mature enough by this point not to cause such a bad conflict, it just doesn't make sense for her character on a number of different levels.  First, Pinkie Pie has never considered herself to be a "friendship expert," so why does she here?  I could see Twilight having that problem, but Pinkie embodied the Element of Laughter from the start, NOT Friendship.  She's the fun expert, all things party and social gatherings and get-togethers and jamborees, that is her schtick!  Heck, just last week we even saw how this has been a part of how she's grown more mature; she's really got stuff that she's into down to a science at this point, like that list of every pony in Ponyville's favorite desserts, and that just makes sense for a character like her, she should be on top of stuff like that in an over-the-top way that somehow makes sense for her.  I don't even care if you use the excuse that this is because it involved her sister, because that brings up yet another reason why her behavior here doesn't make any sense.  When has Pinkie ever felt such distrust toward Maud?  From the first episode that Maud was introduced, Pinkie has done nothing but adore her and seems to have complete respect for her!  If anything else, Pinkie was probably the least aware of anypony else that there was anything unusual about Maud's behavior; she always loved Maud for who she is and never showed the slightest inkling that she understood that others wouldn't get her.  Heck, what about what Starlight and Maud were doing together even made Pinkie think they weren't getting along???  THEY WERE FLYING KITES TOGETHER WHEN PINKIE STARTED FREAKING OUT FOR PETE'S SAKE!!!  On top of that, she is Maud's YOUNGER sister!  We know that Limestone is the oldest of the Pie sisters, followed by Maud, and that Marble and Pinkie are twins, so why in Equestria would Pinkie belittle her older sister like that by being so clingy, protective, and doing just the most boneheaded, obvious behavior in the name of making a friendship work out that could only lead to running it into the ground?!  Heck, this type of behavior seems more suited for Applejack than Pinkie Pie, we've seen her go to over-the-top lengths for her family tons of times, especially being protective a ton to Apple Bloom.  Again, I don't care if the stakes were that Maud might move to Ponyville, because Pinkie has never even shown that she misses her family so much that she'd do anything for any of them to live by her.  I mean, I'm not surprised she was thrilled by the idea, but at the same time, I cannot justify any of Pinkie's behavior in the middle of this episode just because she really, really, really wanted Maud to move by her.  So many forced jokes (Lyra is a rock, really Pinkie???  Even when you're losing it I can't believe you'd seriously try something so stupid), so many boneheaded attempts at forcing a friendship to happen, and most of all, an inexcusable and unbelievable lack of faith in her own sister knowing when she'd found a friend, or even being capable of finding one.  I get the set-up, I get Pinkie wanting Maud to move by her.  And to be fair, the second Starlight pointed out her problem to her (hilariously, I might add) Pinkie realized her errors and resolved to fix them.  But that doesn't excuse that a conflict existed when it shouldn't have, and this conflict was very, very, very painfully forced to the detriment of Pinkie.  It is especially painful at this point in the show when any of the Mane 6 are written badly in the name of forcing a conflict because it just feels like they are being regressed and infantilized in the name of making a conflict work, especially when supporting characters like Maud and Starlight are involved who DO know FAR less about friendship than the Mane 6 do.  Pinkie should have been able to make a healthy contribution to Maud finding a friend, heck, SHE DID when she encouraged Maud to hang out with Starlight, but then for whatever reason the writers decided that she needed to have a hundred brain farts just so a lesson could be learned.  It was bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, and I did not like it at all.  Pinkie Pie, I'm sorry, but you get an F here, or rather, the writers who botched you do.  If you want to see Pinkie Pie losing it in a way that is believable for her character, there are far better episodes to watch that have just that, like "Party of One."

Good Pinkie

Bad, bad, BAD Pinkie!  Very bad!!!  Like... just don't... at all... please.

Anddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd... exhaleeeeeeeeeeeeeee.  OK, rant over!!!  Did you have fun everypony?  Cause I sure did! 

OK, now that that is out of the way, onto the good parts of the episode.  Because yes, unlike the irredeemable "MMMystery on the Friendship Express," this was a good episode all around.  Not great, but good, and that is largely because the primary plot point, that being Maud finding herself a friend outside of her family, was executed quite nicely (outside of anything involving Pinkie Pie).  First of all, it was pretty awesome and hilarious seeing Maud, oh I'm sorry, Maudalina Daisy Pie (which is amazing) getting her "rocktorate" that opening scene was just gold from start to finish, plus it's just damn cool that a kid's show would acknowledge the existence of doctorates as part of its canon and show a character actually earn one.  But on top of that, Maud probably developed here more than she ever has as a character, and I liked that a lot.  Really, it was necessary in order for her character to remain endearing at all, because just maintaining the status quo with her would be unbearable.  Some of her bits at the beginning were confusing, like I have no idea how she wasn't slightly impressed by Twilight's Castle, even if it was just to be a joke.  But all in all, the idea that she'd never found a pony who got her outside of her family was a good one and made sense (though I will ask how the Mane 6 don't qualify as friends for her?  I mean, they seem to enjoy her, and they may not entirely get her, but they certainly seem to appreciate her for who she is, it's not like they just tolerate her, I mean, heck, Rarity was thrilled to see Maud and not just because she could help her find a gem!).  Best of all, her interactions with Starlight were just plain fun, they had a very solid rapport with each other (I have some issues with some of it but I'll bring that up in Starlight's section).  It was especially fun getting more of a glimpse of Maud's sense of humor, as well as insight into why she likes rocks so much while still coming to grips with the fact that rocks aren't enough for her, even if she does love them.  I was happy that she's essentially living in Ponyville after this episode, and in a pretty cool new setting too, that underground cavern looked pretty snazzy (and hey, no rent, she basically got herself free real estate, unless of course she did have to buy the land, I wonder if that's the case, I mean, she clearly had to get it registered as a new address, we saw a mailbox there and everything).  So even if Pinkie Pie was written so stupidly so as to make Maud look like the more mature of the two (which she was), that doesn't mean that Maud wasn't executed well, she was, very much so.  Hopefully we'll get to see more of her around Ponyville now, cause when she and Pinkie have good rapport, they are awesome together.

Finally, we come to Starlight, who was pretty solid as well.  I have a few issues, but mostly with just some of the ideas surrounding her presence, not her execution here.  First, that flashback connecting Starlight to Maud was as hilarious as it was deliciously evil; I have some problem with the idea that Maud wouldn't be concerned with pointing some pony to an object that could enslave others, BUT the execution was so good and snappy as a joke that I couldn't help but love it for what it was!  As I said before, she and Maud have great rapport together and were very fun to see being friends with one another.  It didn't feel like Starlight and Trixie do, where those two are clearly BFFs and Starlight very often has something to teach Trixie about friendship, this felt more like just a, ya know, friendship, where two individuals are just happy to share some interests with each other and spend some time together now and then.  I like that because sometimes that's all a friendship is, just digging someone's company now and then, and I can also see that being the type of friendship Maud would desire.  Although I don't exactly get why both of them said they didn't want to talk about feelings with each other when that's kind of exactly what they did when Maud explained to Starlight why she likes rocks, giving her insight into her own struggles with ponies, but whatever.  The bigger issue I had with Starlight's presence was the episode never really explained WHY Starlight gets Maud.  And really, why does she?  Why does she get Maud and the other Mane 6 supposedly don't?  As I said, I'm not quite sure why Maud doesn't even consider the Mane 6 to be friends.  Does she think they just like her because she's Pinkie's sister?  And again, what about Starlight makes her qualified to get Maud more than others?  Sure they've both struggled with making friends, but for totally different reasons.  Starlight just felt alone after Sunburst left her when they were younger, she never felt like ponies were judgmental about her.  She has even today a fairly grounded and even-keeled personality, and I don't even get why she thought that liking kites was some kind of weird thing she should largely keep to herself (don't get me wrong, that bit with the kites was hilarious and I loved learning that it's something she really likes, but I still don't get why she acted like it was some big secret, I mean, they're kites, sure not everyone is into them but nobody thinks you're weird for liking kites, they're just bucking kites!!!).  But overall, Starlight was fine here and had some great chemistry with Maud.  I don't want the show to start having her befriend every major supporting character outside of the Mane 6, because I don't want her to develop her own Mane 6 and don't want the show to send some kind of message that "Starlight is better at some kinds of friendships than the Mane 6 are, because... reasons," but this one I can dig because it felt different from a lot of the other friendships Starlight has made.  Overall, despite a few nitpicky issues, I really liked seeing little ol' Glim Glam here, and hopefully we get to see more of her, Maud, and their kites in the future!

Oh, also, I completely agree with Starlight, jalapeno-red velvet-omelet-cupcakes sound terribly disgusting, c'mon Pinkie, what're you even thinking???

These two, I totally dig these two 

A few extra notes to wrap things up.  What was up with that Rarity scene?  Like, all of it.  What was up with it?  Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy did Rarity freak out when Maud told her that all of the gems there were common gems?  I figure Rarity might know more about gems by this point than even Maud, and it seems like in Equestria that gems grow almost as common as apples, so it seems like a ton of gems would be common.  I mean, she couldn't bedazzle the s*** out of so many dresses if they weren't.  On top of that, there were so many gems in that cave that how could they not be common???  I mean, it was literally covered in gems ground to ceiling, there's no way they could be anything but common!  I don't know, this is a nitpicky point, but it bugged me, because if gems were supposedly rare, it seems like Rarity would rather sell them then go to the trouble of putting so many on dresses.  But in this world, I've never gotten that impression about gems, heck, Rarity's not even the only one who puts them on dresses, that's how common they seem to be in Equestria, so I have no idea why she was on the verge of tears when Maud told her that, even if it was for laughs.  Confusing scene overall and in the end it had no major impact on the episode.

The bit with Lyra and Bon Bon, while obnoxiously stupid as far as Pinkie Pie's contribution goes, was pretty hilarious on their end.  Lyra's terrified face was too funny and she just seemed so confused by what was going on (although oddly accepting of the idea that she was supposed to be a... rock, but hey, I guess that's just how scared ponies get of angry Pinkie), and Bon Bon looked so terribly annoyed at Pinkie (plus I'm not surprised that she wasn't taking any of her s*** either, I mean, she was a monster-hunting secret agent at one point).  The return to Ghastly Gorge and seeing the Quarray Eels make another appearance were both cool callbacks to Season 2, though I refuse to believe that Maud wasn't aware they were there when she was looking into moving there, she's too smart not to have thought of that.

"Find your own mint pony, ya pink menace!"

Finally, most importantly of all, DERPY HOOVES, BEST PONY FOREVER AND GREATEST GEM THIS SHOW HAS GIVEN US TO DATE, made her first appearance of Season 7, and it was most enjoyable indeed!  She first showed up when Maud and Starlight were in the market, just walking around, but then she had her own little bit when Pinkie Pie threw a pizza at her and she gleefully chased after it (hey, at least she got a free pizza out of Pinkie Pie's stupidity, that's more than most ponies can say in this episode about what they got from Pinkie's OOC behavior)!  I look forward to seeing more of best pony this season, and cannot wait for Derpy's next appearance.

I apologize for all of these upcoming pics but I just had to post this as a sequence...

Ha ha, best pony has pizza and you do not, BE JEALOUS, FEEL ENVY!!!

Overall, this was the first episode of Season 7 that, for me, was just good.  It wasn't great, it wasn't terrible, maybe it wasn't even very good, but it was solidly just good, and given how bad Pinkie was here, it really should be commended for even being that good.  I did care about what was happening, I liked what ended up happening, and ultimately something was accomplished, Maud has a friend and lives adjacent to Ponyville, good stuff overall, even if the road there wasn't entirely smooth.  That's all I've got for you this time folks, until next time everypony, this is Batbrony signing off.  I'm off!!! *cue dramatic exit*

HOLY S***, BUCK YES!!! 

[Redhatbrony 59]

This was the best episode in a while.

I think everything works in it and all three main ponies are perfectly written.

Oh and Derpy is back.

If you want look at my review.

Thanks for your time.

[Music Chart Fan 818]

Overall, I didn't much like this episode. Of course, as many others have mentioned, the main issue is probably that Pinkie is in maximum oblivious/tactless/obnoxious mode, and no one wants to tell her so because she'll overreact and get super depressed. It is amusing, in a trolling kind of way, to watch Maud deadpan and give no concession to Pinkie as she gets more and more agitated (similarly to how Cranky repeatedly rebuffed Pinkie's desperate attempts to be friends in "A Friend In Deed"). But at the same time, that reaction isn't solving the problem of Pinkie's desperate and wild behavior, and Maud displays her own issues with tactlessness and lack of social skills. Finally, I suppose it's nice that Starlight and Maud are becoming friends, but I don't find it very satisfying that their main shared traits are being misfits and wanting more friends but seemingly not putting forth much effort to see what they can do differently to make that happen.

The first major issue with Pinkie illustrated in this episode (and many others) is her obliviousness, tactlessness, and obnoxiousness. Pinkie is the one who supposedly wants to be friends with everyone, make everyone smile, pick them up when they're down, etc. But then episodes like this one show her to have near-total obliviousness and tactlessness, and she comes across instead as an incredibly self-centered jerk. She just seems to do what she wants to do and doesn't pay attention to or care at all about how others are reacting to that, as we see with, for example, her cheering and shouting at the graduation ceremony when it's pretty clearly not wanted or called for, or her high-pitched screeching on the train that causes everyone else to wince and cover their ears. And it seems that a lot of people (including Maud in the episode) are willing to overlook this because they say that, well, Pinkie has good intentions. But I question just what her intentions are sometimes. If Pinkie supposedly intends to be friends with everyone and do things that make others happy, but then fails to notice or adjust when her behavior is doing the opposite of that, then can we really say that those are her intentions in the first place? How many times must others display their displeasure before Pinkie actually changes her behavior to accomplish her supposed goals? I guess I'm not as willing to handwave away Pinkie's faults because she supposedly has good intentions when the actual results are repeatedly not in line with those intentions.

The other major issue with Pinkie that this episode (as well as other episodes like "Maud Pie") illustrates is how her friends seem to have to walk on eggshells with her, not telling her things that she needs to hear because she'll become super depressed and might even do things that would endanger herself or others in her wild desperation. There are several times in this episode when Starlight and Maud are clearly annoyed by Pinkie's stalking and imposing activities on them, and of course Pinkie appears too oblivious to notice, but they never can quite tell Pinkie to just shut up and leave them alone. When Maud is talking to Pinkie just before going to sleep, Maud appears almost to tell Pinkie to stop obsessing over trying to make Starlight and Maud friends, but then Maud never does. And then when Starlight (finally) tells Pinkie that she got in the way and ruined everything all the time, Pinkie overreacts, gets super depressed, and runs out of the room in tears. Again, isn't Pinkie contradicting her own motivations when she makes her friends unhappy and drives them away by overreacting to necessary criticism and making them feel like they can't tell her to being overbearing and obnoxious?

Next, when it comes to Maud in this episode, I could often sympathize with her deadpan reaction to Pinkie's antics, but then Maud has her own issues with tactlessness and lack of social skills. It often seems like Maud puts zero effort into social interactions, leading the other pony to put in all of the work and/or waste a lot of effort. When Maud says "Slow down, Pinkie Pie" and Pinkie starts talking in annoying slow motion, Maud doesn't say anything like "Stop, that's not what I meant", but just lets Pinkie continue to do it. When Pinkie wants to move on from the gem cave, Maud makes no effort to walk on her own, rather than forcing Pinkie to continue pushing her. As Pinkie, in increasingly desperate fashion, tries to pass off sting-bush seed pods, Tank, and Lyra as interesting rocks, Maud doesn't ever tell Pinkie to stop. When Rarity asks Maud "What are you doing now?" and Maud replies "Talking to you", Maud doesn't seem to consider that that's an absurd answer, and maybe Rarity was asking about something other than what Maud is doing at this exact moment. Even if Maud can't deduce what Rarity meant, Maud never asks Rarity to clarify. And when Starlight asks if she and Maud have met before, Maud just says "Yes" rather than elaborating with "Yeah, we met at this time and place" or "I think so, let me see if I can remember". Instead, attempting to have an ordinary conversation with Maud turns into a game of 20 questions, where the burden falls entirely on the other pony to phrase questions in exactly the right way to get the desired responses. Maud says that it's hard to find someone who "gets" her, but then, does Maud ever consider why no one seems to "get" her? If Maud wants to make friends, does she ever ask herself if there's something that she could do differently to help make that happen?

Finally, I suppose that it's nice that Starlight is making another friend with Maud, but I don't know, I just don't find it very satisfying. It seems the main shared trait we see in the few friendships that Starlight has made so far is "Wow, you're a misfit like me!". And I think that's an outgrowth of one of Starlight's main character traits that I find rather tiresome - that Starlight often frets about social interactions for fear of being judged for her past behavior, while seemingly not actually doing anything about it. Maybe Starlight could articulate an understanding of why her past actions were wrong and try to demonstrate that she's going to act better in the future, but we don't see her doing things like that. Starlight says she likes Maud because Maud accepts Starlight for who she is. But, again, if others are not accepting Starlight for who she is, and Starlight doesn't like that, then does she ever think about why that is, and what she could do about it? I guess Starlight and Maud have that in common - they both haven't made many social connections, and apparently would want more, but don't seem to put much effort into seeing how they might improve themselves to make them.

Now for some other miscellaneous observations:

I know the opening scene is probably just one giant gag, but from what I've seen, if graduate students complete their degree requirements at a time when few other students have done so, then they can choose to walk at the next soonest commencement ceremony, but there's no ceremony just for them. Also, my impression was that graduate schools generally don't name class valedictorians or salutatorians, because of the divergent degree requirements, the greater importance of research (which can vary widely and thus may not be easily compared) rather than GPA, non-uniform graduation times, etc. And of course, that would especially be the case if Maud is the only one graduating at the time of the episode.

The gems in the Ponyville gem cave are even pre-cut, apparently.

Why does Tank seem to be wandering around outside by himself? Where is Rainbow or any other pony who might be watching him?

Speaking of Tank, Pinkie yells at him so loudly he goes bouncing off inside his shell; Pinkie grabs Lyra out of the blue and growls threateningly at her when she looks at Pinkie wandering what the heck is going on; and Pinkie later climbs on top of Starlight's bed and screams in her face to wake her up. Gee, it sure is great having Pinkie as a friend, huh?

Maud says one reason she likes rocks is because "they don't exclude you if you're different", but then, neither does any other inanimate object. That wouldn't in itself explain why Maud doesn't study, e.g., fossils, ancient ruins, the weather, celestial bodies, chemical reactions, etc.

Starlight thinks that a wall of the gem cave is hollow, so she immediately casts magic to tear the wall down. That seems just a little dangerous, doesn't it? How does she know she won't, say, bring the whole cave down on top of her and Maud? Of course, the same can be said for Pinkie dynamiting the exit to the underground cavern after that.

Right after Pinkie reads Maud's note in the morning, Pinkie runs off to the train station and sees a train just pulling away. But who's to say that Maud didn't leave hours ago, at any time after Pinkie fell asleep?

Was Maud's "What eel?" response to Pinkie supposed to show that Maud was unaware that she was eaten by an eel and standing in its mouth? I didn't think Maud was supposed to be that unperceptive of her own surroundings.

Why do Maud and Pinkie continue to converse while Maud hangs off a ledge? If either of them thought Maud was in danger, then why wasn't Maud pulled up off the ledge? Or if either of them knew that the ground was right below, then why didn't Maud (and Pinkie) hop down off the ledge?

Pinkie begs Maud to "give me another chance...to leave you alone". Where have we heard this message that sometimes "others just like to be left alone" before? Maybe in Pinkie's letter to Princess Celestia back in "A Friend In Deed"?

Near the end of the episode, I wonder how the string to Maud's string appears to be slack for that long a period of time.

I'm not so sure that the underground cavern would be as amazing a place to live as it's made out to be. All the waterfalls would probably make a lot of background noise to deal with. Plus, the cavern looks as though the air would be saturated with water vapor all the time, which could lead to things like Maud's bed sheets, fuzzy slippers, and books being ruined by the constant dampness. Plus, with the ceiling being open and it being a water source, the cavern might end up attracting all kinds of nuisance animals.

Finally, I've never liked the repeated gag where everybody takes Maud's pet rock seriously. The professor awarding Maud her rocktorate addresses Boulder and has no reaction to Boulder being given a seat and Maud waving to Boulder. Maud says she might like having someone to talk to besides Boulder, and we see Maud ask Boulder serious questions and tell Boulder to do things. And Starlight has no reaction as Maud tells Boulder "you don't look a day over 600", and Starlight even tells Boulder "That was awesome!" after she and Maud exit the underground cavern.

[Soaring Symphony 372]

22 hours ago, AlbaTross said:

ugh!  I almost wanted to shout at the screen.  "Go away Pinkie!"  Seriously.  

I actually did that.  And immediately got some weird looks.  oops.

[Ganondox 899]

I remember awhile back there was an interview with some of the show staff were someone asked if where a planning an episode where a pony with autism would be taught about friendship, and they said they actually were considering that idea. I think this might have actually been that episode, due to the word choice that was used. Anyway, this is by far my favorite Maud Pie episode, her personality was really fleshed out in this one. She's not longer just a flat horse obsessed with rocks, she's a lonely horse who sees rock as literal friends, who has a wicked sense of humor which most ponies overlook. 

[Cadance of Love 1,118]

First and foremost.. If nopony makes a Starlight Kite then it needs to be done ASAP.  

Pinkie was really annoying in this one. Even more annoying than she was in "A friend indeed" 

Though that uhh.. Would that be called a brohoof with Boulder? Or just a hoof punch into Boulder? Either way it was gold lol. Also Boulder breaking the sandstone like it was nothing . 

It was a good episode despite Pinkie's crazy antics  

[Peppermint Larry 203]

This is my favorite episode this season so far. I enjoyed the small call backs from previous episodes, I enjoyed seeing two unlikely pones hanging out. I'm not a huge fan of derpy, but seeing her reaction to the pizza made my day. Seeing Rarity's face when told the truth about the gems made my day (not in a sadistic way or anything, it was just funny). This episode had a lot of small things that when put together, really made my day. It's been a long while since an episode had that effect on me.

As a person who has social anxiety and goes mute when I don't know how to respond to normal conversation, I thoroughly admire how Starlight handles Maud, compared to the mane six when Maud was introduced. She didn't call attention to it, and she didn't turn away from her. That's a small thing that makes me happy. And it's a thing that I've personally experienced- I have people who run away from the awkwardness, and I have people who still talk to me, without expecting much response. While Pinkie's extremely annoying in this episode, (and nearly every episode she's in,) I think it's very easy to see why. She knows her sister is lonely and struggles with pone-to-pone interaction.

[weesh 690]

so, we've seen maud happy before...but have we ever seen her smile before?
the happy things she's said and done you've had to GET.

but we got an actual, if very tiny, smile from her this episode.

they've done such a great job with her character that this was pretty spectacular to me.

[BlinkZ 1,151]

Wow that song long reviews on this one episode.

But yeah Pinkie attics were making me cringe.. I mean yeah she does ocme across having some mental issue. (i say autism but who knwos) They cranked her up to 11 adn it just threw me off a bit. 

But yeah STarlight get Maud because "she don't judge me" ugh is EVERY single freind she get going ot be like that.

[Regent 77]

On 4/29/2017 at 7:07 PM, maris99 said:

I want know why there is a whole new world underground. Its very beautiful, and why is there a huge gem cave that anyone can just walk into?

It's clearly a Genesis cave.

[BlinkZ 1,151]

Aslo 

this is basically how STarlight makes freinds 'misfits " lol

[Glaive9Gko 82]

I LOVE MAUD! Like seriously, she ties with Trixie for my fave pony spot, and both of them are in the GlimGlam crew now! Actual Trixie / Maud

shenanigans can happen now! Canonical, awesome shenanigans! MAKE THIS HAPPEN, WRITERS!!!

[Ganondox 899]

1 hour ago, BlinkZ said:

Wow that song long reviews on this one episode.

But yeah Pinkie attics were making me cringe.. I mean yeah she does ocme across having some mental issue. (i say autism but who knwos) They cranked her up to 11 adn it just threw me off a bit. 

But yeah STarlight get Maud because "she don't judge me" ugh is EVERY single freind she get going ot be like that.

The entire Pie family comes across as having autism or something. In the very least something runs in the family that can manifest in many different dramatic ways. Schizophrenia also works, but I think it's a worse fit. 

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,151]

If it weren't for the glorious ending as well as the terrific bonding between Starlight and Maude this episode would've been a dud. Overall; I'm pleased with it! Yes, Pinkie was a bit annoying, but her motivation was understandable, so I can live with. In the end; the conclusion was very satisfying.

Also; Starlight building up her team of close friends?

[Justin_Case001 4,855]

After reading through a lot of the posts in this thread, I wanted to expand a bit on something I said in my main review.  It's true that Pinkie was obnoxious and went overboard, but I find it a bit sad that so many fans seem focused on that, while perhaps one of the best developments we've had on this show seems to have gone largely unnoticed.

9 hours ago, Batbrony said:

it's just damn cool that a kid's show would acknowledge the existence of doctorates as part of its canon and show a character actually earn one

This.

I think this fact deserves more acknowledgement than it seems to have gotten.  I think that having a pony earn a doctorate of the sciences is an extremely great message for children, especially girls.  Compare this to G3, for example, where Princess Wysteria made all of the ponies in town honorary princesses for the day, because that's apparently the aspiration of every pony in the land.  Also, in G3, the role of princess seems to do nothing but allow one to wear a tiara and ride on a float.  It's prestige and nothing else, as far as I can tell.  But in FIM, we now a have pony who earned a doctorate in geology.  I think that's pretty damn awesome.

One other quick thing--I thought it was cool that Rarity mentioned Coloratura again.  I hope we get to see her again at some point.  But one thing confuses me: didn't Rara decide that she didn't want to be called "Countess" anymore?

[Batbrony 15,994]

2 hours ago, Justin_Case001 said:

One other quick thing--I thought it was cool that Rarity mentioned Coloratura again.  I hope we get to see her again at some point.  But one thing confuses me: didn't Rara decide that she didn't want to be called "Countess" anymore?

Well I think it's her stage name still.  I think before her episode with AJ everypony in and out of concerts was referring to her as Countess Coloratura, but now I imagine it's just her stage name even though she might be going by Rara outside of work.  Even if she's rebranding her image, it'd be really hard to sell tickets by completely rebranding her name as well; after all, everypony in Equestria already knows her as Countess Coloratura.  Lady Gaga rebranded her image very much without changing her stage name, after all.

[Baykush 328]

I don't know, I guess my impression of this episode is mostly positive but I have mixed feelings about it. Aside from one element that I thought was excellent i feel like almost every other element makes me feel confused, because I'm not sure if they were good or if they were bad. Anyway, here's what I loved, disliked and have mixed feelings about in the episode:

What I loved:

• Maud and Starlight, they make this episode and they're the reason my impression of it is more positive than neutral. It was very impressive how much chemistry they shared, because it not only felt very genuine but for Starlight it was also very casual. They didn't become instant best friends, they didn't share a tragic past, they weren't enemies first, they didn't help save Equestria, they sort of just met and happened to get along, which is very refreshing for her. Sure, Starlight did relate her struggle to Maud's at some point but imo it was the weakest part of their friendship. Starlight excitedly yet awkwardly screaming she liked kites was the best part.
• The dialogue. I'll give the writers credit, the dialogue this season has been really good and memorable. My favorite quote is "See. I was hoping you'd tell me while I pretended to remember".
• The moral, or at least one of the morals, "even if you have the best intentions you might be hurting someone you love without realizing it". I think that's a very mature lesson for both kids and adults, and it was very understandable the way it was presented.

What I have mixed feelings about:

• The comedy. First thing's first, this is a Nick Confalone episode staring Pinkie Pie, you'd think she'd be the center of the comedy or at least have some funny moments, but most of the time I didn't find her funny, if anything she was kind of annoying (specially with that scream at the beginning). The episode still had some very good comedy aside from Pinkie, but (and this is a weird thing to say) it kind of worked against it at some points. It just felt like the episode sometimes forgot to be funny and then became funny again out of nowhere, and sometimes the times in which the jokes were placed weren't the best to me. For example, when Maud said "this way" while she was confronting Pinkie, it was funny but out of place.
• Pinkie Pie. I did understand her motivations and I think it's very cool that we're getting to see this side of hers that isn't so good, but she was made very unlikable and annoying at some points, and as I said before, the comedy surrounding her wasn't the best so it was very hard to enjoy watching her. I'm not sure if I respect or hate that the writer did that to her.
• Maud. I loved both Maud and Starlight together, but individually I have some problems with both. I understand that Maud still wants to connect with other ponies and it's very cool they're giving her the opportunity to do so, but I think the episode pushed a little too hard the "she was lacking something in her life and that something was a friend" narrative. First of all, she decided she would move to Ponyville if she made a friend, but Pinkie was already there, wouldn't it make more sense for her to go to Ponyville because she wants to be with her sister? And also how she suddenly started saying ponies constantly judged her... I know, it's not bad to give her more depth, but it just seemed like a way to force her friendship with Starlight in instead of revealing more about Maud, and as I said before what made Starlight and Maud work so well as friends was how casual their friendship was. Aside from that she was great, I specially loved her reactions when Pinkie was planning more activities for her and Starlight to do.
• Another episode with Starlight. I really liked her but, and I can't believe I'm saying this, I'm getting tired of seeing her so much. 

What I disliked:

• While I liked Starlight in this episode it's a little distracting how she keeps messing up stuff right after having an episode about her not needing more friendship lessons. Also, even if Pinkie was being annoying Starlight almost never seemed to act like they were friends to begin with.

 

This is an episode I need to re-watch in order to know how I actually feel about it, but in case I don't like it in the end the Maud-Starlight interaction saves it from being too bad, and in case I end up liking it then it'd just make it better.

Edited May 1, 2017 by Baykush