bad episodes Things you did like in bad episodes

[Steve Piranha 29,424]

Hey, I know that we can get passionate about episodes we don't like personally, but I've figured out that there can be things, scenes or other stuff on those episodes, be it because they are objectively bad, didn't liked personally, underwhelming, etc. Just make sure that the opinion of these episodes are mixed at best. Also, feel free to include not necessarily just FiM episodes, as I'll consider books, comics, EGs, and whatever with a plot, as long as it's official. Here are some of mine

1-Magical Mystery Cure: I may be breaking my own rule, as I LOVE this episode, but for personal reasons. Objectively speaking, the episode was mixed at best, by being ruched, jumping from scene at too much of a quick pace. But I've loved it specially for 

 

2-Appleloosa's Most Wanted: Damn, that episode was BOOOOOOOOOOOOORING, except for the whole Troubleshoes rodeo clown scene. Seriously, while I lovee FiM, it's humor rarely works with me, but this is one of the few scenes that made me laugh outright

3-Slice of Life: I love this episode because it was just a love letter for us, and it has to be appreciated as such. Objectively, it's mixed at best, but as previously stated, we should be a bit lenient this time. It's hard to pick one single scene, but I liked the ones with Octavia speaking with the cuties breaking the fourth wall, the Doc, Derpy, Celly and Luna arguing, and finally the final speech of each one of us having a story, and not just the main characters

 

4-Scare Master: The ponified anime characters, and the costumes

 

5-The Crystalling: Definitely Starlight and....

DIABEETUS

 

 

6-28 Pranks Later: The Cake twins going along with the mass prank

 

7-Honest Apple:

 

8-Equestria Girls: I think the overall design of the girls is appealing overall, at least they didn't used the toy designs  . Plus Sunny had the best looks overall 

 

[Zachary 5,521]

Honest Apple: Rarity Playing the Guitar! That's the Only Great Part!

[Megas 27,622]

Newbie Dash- Rainbow Fash actually got a few laughs out of me 

Yeah forget it this episode can go straight to Hell

Edited September 9, 2021 by Soundwave

[Hierok 11,831]

For example:

Forever Fillie - Sweetie and Rarity eating the ice cream and talk between them!

[PlzDelete 2,456]

That episode with Maredowell (i forget the full title), Rainbow Dash's jealousy kinda made me laugh. XD 

[cmarston1 5,959]

Applejewel was definitely the highlight of Simple Ways.

[heavens-champion 1,905]

Thorax becoming the new leader of the Changelings in To Where and Back Again. The rest is forever tainted by the writers' refusal to explain how Twilight and friends were captured by Queen Chrysalis (a.k.a. Miss Thinks-Less-With-Her-Brain-And-More-With-Her-Ego). Say what you will, but if you're going to leave THAT much to our imaginations, then Twilight and friends might as well just walked over to the Changeling Kingdom and asked Chrysalis to take them prisoner.

[Will Guide 21,360]

Feather Bangs from Hard to Say Anything isn't really a bad staillion at heart. He just has a hard time talking to mares, despite being good at showing off. I can relate somewhat to him. And compared to jerks/villains like Gaston, Feather's a saint with morals.

I just wished they've shown him more as insensitive to Big Mac's attempts to woo Sugar Belle, instead of making it seem like he hates Big Mac. Feather was at least a grateful loser who accepted that Sugar Belle wanted Big Mac instead of him. He'll actually find some pony to love, unlike Gaston who ended up dead trying to kill his target's true love when he couldn't have her for his wife.

[Thrond 3,263]

Hmm. As far as episodes I dislike, I don't remember older ones as well. 

Let's see...

Some of the songs in "Magical Mystery Cure" sound nice, I guess. 

I at least like that "Princess Twilight Sparkle" addresses how Twilight feels about becoming a princess. 

The Flutterbat stuff in "Bats!" is kinda fun. 

I still appreciate how "Rainbow Falls" tries to put Rainbow's loyalty against her ambition. None of those key episodes are without worth. 

The ending of "Simple Ways" is kinda sweet. 

"Appleoosa's Most Wanted" shows some maturation from the Cutie Mark Crusaders. 

Some of the banter betwee Pinkie and Gilda in "The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone" is funny. 

"Made in Manehattan" has a pretty good third act. It's nice that Applejack and Rarity realize what little they can offer counts. 

Fluttershy's friends are pleasantly sensitive in "Scare Master." 

I appreciate that "No Second Prances" at least tries to be complex. Trixie's parts actually come close to revealing something. 

"Applejack's Day Off" makes AJ's stubbornness into more of a proper character flaw than it is in most other episodes. 

"The Cart Before the Ponies" has a solid moral, and it's nice to see the CMC trying things other than their established interests. 

"All Bottled Up" has a very solid moral. 

In "Fluttershy Leans In," it's nice that Fluttershy pursues and achieves a goal. 

[Lambdadelta 1,462]

Hard to Say Anything. I like Feather Bangs songs.

Spike At Your Service. Timber Wolfs are cool, they are CGI creature in the series ;).

Princess Spike. Adorable sleeping Twilight.

Honest Apple. Guitar Rarity, obviously.

Somepony to watch over me. AJ's rescue.

Rainbow Falls. Derpy.

[Dark Qiviut 22,393]

For the first four seasons, in order (will do seasons 5+ later):

• Griffon the Brush Off: The opening and first act were great. (Musical contrast b/w Dash and Pinkie during the chase is excellent attention to detail.) The practical jokes were lighthearted, funny, and cute.
• Boast Busters: Trixie gave Rarity, AJ, and Dash got what they deserved.
• Bridle Gossip: The comedy aimed at all of the Man Six, primarily Fluttershyguy.
• Feeling Pinkie Keen: Derpy, the hydra, Twilight's science experiment on Pinkie, and Looney Tunes hijinks against her.
• The Show Stoppers: The moral, animation, and graphics.
• Over a Barrel: Judging it on its own merits, the moral about compromise to achieve equal footing is really excellent.
• A Bird in the Hoof: Philomena's gorgeous, Celestia's laid-back antics with the Cakes, and Celly forcing Philo to apologize to 'Shy.
• Owl's Well: Twilight and Owlowiscious go out into the night to save Spike, the shooting star scene.
• May the Best Pet Win!: Rainbow Dash learns her lesson and gains a friend in Tank, who's beautiful.
• MDW: The costume's great. And like OaB, the moral about not being arrogant about your talents is important.
• PYHD: Iron Will was great…for the first couple of minutes.
• Dragon Quest: Excellent graphics. Love the lava pool. Spike had some of his best characterization to date.
• Ponyville Confidential: The ending with the CMCs stepping down is one of the most mature moments of the entire show. That moment saves it from being abominable.
• MMMystery: The final cake looks good enough to eat, the lack of high stakes, both Twilight and Pinkie show their way to learn the moral rather than by telling everyone.
• TCE: Spike has some of his best moments of the show, including being the one to help save TCE. The ReMane Five have a strong purpose for being there: distract them so Sombra doesn't feed off their fear.
• One Bad Apple: Babs Seed (the song).
• Spike at Your Service: Aside from Twilight, the others were really good. Rainbow Dash blurting AJ's autobiography idea, discussing her own fanfic, and Rarity were great. The final scene was a nice touch, too.
• Games Ponies Play: Dash being flung to the dome as Rarity takes care of Cadance's mane. XD
• Daring Don't: Excellent moral. Sometimes we treat our mentors or role models like proverbial gods that we may diminish our self-worth.
• Bats!: Flutterbat design, Stop the Bats, and the moral on its own.
• RF: Derpy, the griffons, Rainbow Falls's gorgeous design, (even though she's OOC) Fluttershy deciding on her own to join the aerial team.
• Filli Vanilli: Fluttershy's decision to become Flutterguy's one of the season's best moments. She chose to become BM's "singer" because of the need to raise money for the fundraiser and kept going because she cared about others. The episode may suck, but that's mostly due to Pinkie and lack of attention to continuity. Fluttershy was marvelous.
• Breezies: The breezie designs are really cute, I love Seabreeze, and the moral is both mature and gray.
• Watch Over Me: AJ rescues AB from the chimera.
• Trade Ya!: Spike is the only one to get what he wanted without looking like an idiot, acting OOC, or being flanderized.
• Equestria Games: Rainbow Dash acts very humble by encouraging them to do their very best, and Spike is the one to actively save the day. The moral about you being your worst critic is one of the most mature of the show.

Edited June 27, 2017 by Dark Qiviut

[Truffles 2,033]

Spike's dragon song is the best part of the OOC wreck that is "Spike at Your Service," but even that scene makes me feel bad for him because the low self esteem he has is most evident during this part of the episode as he goes through a rapid-fire list of things he can do for AJ as her slave. 

[Shrug 9,953]

There are too many to count, so I'll just name some that come to mind first. This is in no order.

Spike at Your Service: There is actually some funny dialogue in this episode, some good character interactions.

TMMDW: the moral taken on its own is good. Unfortunately, it is handled so terribly that it barely matters.

Flutter Brutter: Fluttershy

No Second Prances: The relationship between Trixie and Starlight felt really natural and was well done.

OWTEW: the beginning scene where they watch shooting stars.

Bridal Gossip: The practical jokes that the poison joke played on the mane 6.

Rainbow Falls: Derpy

One Bad Apple: The song is really catchy and fun.

Dragon Quest: Spike is characterized pretty well.

Hard to Say Anything: Big Mac getting Sugar at the end

PYHD: Iron Will was kind of funny. I don't know if I'd call him a good character, though.

Princess Spike: The deligates help Spike rebuild the statue.

28PL: the animation was really great here. Especially during the zombie part.

 

Like I said, there are many more bad episodes that I could mention positives for, but these are the ones that stood out to me as positives that stop these from being completely unwatchable. They are also just the first that came to my head. I am definitely forgetting some.

[Dark Qiviut 22,393]

Now for S5+:

• Tanks: Gorgeous environments, great moral, and Fluttershy telling Dash the harsh truth is one of her best moments.
• AMW: Troubleshoes is a great character, and AJ had every good reason to go into "mother mode" with the CMCs (including punishing them for deliberately disobeying her).
• Princess Spike: Twilight sleeping was cute.
• Brotherhooves Social: Big Mac opening up to Apple Bloom was really sweet. Until the vile Adam's Apple reveal, Sisterhood was really heartwarming.
• What About Discord: The moral of not containing your frustrations to your friends is really good. The Bob Ross reference is hilarious.
• Hooffields and McColts: Eh…FS and Twilight have an episode together, I guess?
• NSP: Starlight and Trixie show a really close dynamic that makes them feel like they're friends.
• Newbie Dash: Dash becomes a Wonderbolt. (Other than that, it still terrible.)
• Flutter Brutter: If Zephyr isn't involved in the episode, the episode's decent. Fluttershy has every reason to put her hoof down at her lazy, insufferable brother. Dash (who was great) gave him the lightning strike that he deserved (would've loved seeing that in action). The moral of being okay to fear failure is my favorite of season 6.
• Stranger Than Fan Fiction: Unlike the other celebrity guest episodes, the stakes here are more toned down, meaning they can get away with the cartoon pizzazz. The convention itself is an excellent homage to dedicated fandom cons all over the world. And, yes, the voiceover in the credits was pretty funny.
• Cart: Rarity's funny reason to join the derby. (Filly Derpy = cutest filly! <3)
• 28PL: The whoopee cushion and Dash's prank on Rarity.
• PPOV: Pirate!AJ and Spike.
• To Where and Back Again: Starlight was able to manage a team with two brutal, inflated egos. Chrysalis did NOT reform!
• Hard to Say Anything: The first eight minutes or so was okay, and Big Mac talked more than the tired one-liners.
• Honest Apple: Give AJ credit. When she realized how stupid she behaved, she wanted to make things right, apologized contritely, and worked to make things right.
• A Royal Problem: Starlight was great. Love Daybreaker's design. On its own, the moral of appreciating each other's bond and efforts is really great. Excellent foreshadowing of The Perfect Pear.

Edited June 27, 2017 by Dark Qiviut

[Castle Bleck 19,351]

Rainbow Falls:

The Griffon team, and Derpy.

Edited October 15, 2021 by Anti-Villain

[Jeric 46,851]

Hard to Say Anything -- I adore the idea of SugarMac. 

38 minutes ago, Dark Qiviut said:

Newbie Dash: Dash becomes a Wonderbolt. (Other than that, it still terrible.)

Agreed. 

38 minutes ago, Dark Qiviut said:

28PL: The whoopee cushion and Dash's prank on Rarity.

Also Agreed

 

38 minutes ago, Dark Qiviut said:

Princess Spike: Twilight sleeping was cute.

And this makes three. 

[Megas 27,622]

2 hours ago, Jeric said:

Newbie Dash: Dash becomes a Wonderbolt. (Other than that, it still terrible.)

The fact that one of the most pivotal moments in the show is attached to such a trainwreck that does the opposite of what it's supposed to only manages to make me hate it even more. It's like how Megaman and Metroid's 25th anniversaries were celebrated with inexcusable garbage like Xover or Federation Force, or how the Undertaker's Wrestlemania streak was ended with one of his worst matches

Edited June 28, 2017 by The Undefeated of the Weast

[Thrond 3,263]

Alright, let's try some others.

Boast Busters - Some funny moments, especially from Rarity. The scenes where Trixie shows up the mane six on stage are entertaining enough. 

The Show Stoppers - The song has some charm out of context. 

Over a Barrel - Decent moral. 

The Cutie Pox - A few funny moments, i.e. "My sister's speaking in fancy!" Enough onscreen energy to make the episode watchable, if still useless. 

The Mysterious Mare-Do-Well - Some memorable visuals.

It's About Time - A couple funny moments, like Twilight wearing a rut into the library. 

Games Ponies Play - The Crystal Empire looks nice. One or two decent gags early on. 

Power Ponies - Okay character development for Spike. 

Twilight Time - Twilight eating burgers. 

Somepony to Watch Over Me - Decent moral. The chimera is cool. 

Castle Sweet Castle - It's not exciting, but it's at least agreeably sentimental. 

Princess Spike - Twilight sleeping. 

Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep? - It's a nice idea, I guess?

The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows - Twilight's reaction to becoming an aunt. Getting a little more personality from Shining Armour. 

What About Discord? - A couple decent gags. 

Pony Point of View - Pirate Applejack is hilarious. 

Hard to Say Anything - The moral is okay I guess. Feather Bangs is enjoyably smarmy at first. When they actually get together, Big Mac and Sugar Belle are a cute couple.

Honest Apple - Rarity shredding the guitar, even if it's tonally jarring. Strawberry Sunrise is funny.

[Number62 1,258]

Dragon Quest - Twilight, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash were saying farewell to Spike, but the ponies were also talking to each other through their teeth while wearing huge smiles. That actually got a laugh out of me.

[Sparklefan1234 170,506]

Some of the things I liiked in episode's that were bad, IMO were:

• A Friend in Deed: The Smile Song
• The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows: Shining Armor's reaction to all his childhood stuff.
• Pony Point of View: Pirate Applejack
• Twilight Time: The hayburger scene with Twilight Sparkle.
• Simple Ways:  Rarity's farming outfit 

Edited August 3, 2017 by Sparklefan1234

[Shrug 9,953]

4 minutes ago, Sparklefan1234 said:

• Twilight Time: The hayburger scene with Twilight Sparkle

Aw. You didn't like Twilight Time?  

 

How come if you don't mind me asking?

[Sparklefan1234 170,506]

3 minutes ago, King Clark said:

Aw. You didn't like Twilight Time?  

How come if you don't mind me asking?

 

I'm not a fan of episodes where the Cutie Mark Crusader's are together, I hope that makes sense. 

Edited August 3, 2017 by Sparklefan1234

[Shrug 9,953]

Just now, Sparklefan1234 said:

 

I'm not a fan of episodes where the Cutie Mark Crusader's are together, I hope that makes sense. 

Hmm. I suppose they can be seen as annoying. Is that what you are getting at perhaps? 

 

Btw, thank you for the follow. Really appreciate that  

[PlzDelete 2,456]

Newbie Dash- I absolutely HATED this episode but I liked Rainbow's impressions of her friends. XD

[Sparklefan1234 170,506]

3 minutes ago, King Clark said:

Hmm. I suppose they can be seen as annoying. Is that what you are getting at perhaps? 

Btw, thank you for the follow. Really appreciate that  

1. Yes, I find kids in cartoons to be obnoxious.
2. You're Welcome, My Friend 

Castle, Sweet, Castle: The tree chandelier

Edited August 3, 2017 by Sparklefan1234