Was The Perfect Pear worth waiting for?

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

Well, we've seen who Applejack's Parents really are. The backstory was great, the whole episode was just... Idk how to put it. Great episode overall. Here's the big question: Was it worth waiting for?

Edited June 27, 2017 by Stickman, The Legend
Added a 3rd option to the 1st part of the poll.

[Will Guide 21,376]

Oh, it was so just most excellent and more! It made up for that mess of an episode, "Hard to Say Anything"!

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

Just now, WiiGuy2014 said:

Oh, it was so just most excellent and more! It made up for that mess of an episode, "Hard to Say Anything"!

Agreed.

[Angle Alastor 3,806]

yes it was worth waiting for its like the title of the episode says (the perfect...episode)see what i did there   lol.

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

Just now, GiantStarGamer said:

yes it was worth waiting for its like the title of the episode says (the perfect...episode)see what i did there   lol.

Yes, I see what you did there. Nice.

[joshyang908 85]

Yes, it was a powerful and emotionally charged episode. However, I do wish I didn't watch it last Wednesday because it really messed up my week. I'm trying to watch as many people's reaction, reviews, comments, and thoughts on the episode as possible. I get teary eyed every time I watch it or watch someone else's reaction to it. It is probably the best episode in the entire show (definitely most emotionally moving and sympathetic love story).

The episode also keeps me up at night thinking about what really happened to the Apple parents. The parents being gone is thunder-strikingly tragic as I wonder what must've happened to the most adorable/cutest couple in the entire show. Their love is so strong coupled with their strong devotion/commitment to family. It makes me wonder.

 

Edited June 25, 2017 by joshyang908

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

Just now, joshyang908 said:

Yes, it was a powerful and emotionally charged episode. However, I do wish I didn't watch it last Wednesday because it really messed up my week. I'm trying to watch as many people's reaction, reviews, comments, and thoughts on the episode as possible. I get teary eyed every time I watch it or watch someone else's reaction to it. It was probably the best episode in the entire show (definitely most emotionally moving and sympathetic love story).

The episode also keeps me up at night thinking about what really happened to the Apple parents. The parents being gone is thunder-strikingly tragic as I wonder what must've happened to the most adorable/cutest couple in the entire show. Their love is so strong coupled with their strong devotion/commitment to family. It makes me wonder.

 

Now we have ANOTHER loose end to tie up: What really happened to Applejack's Parents? We got to see them, but what happened to them?

Also, whoever voted for the first option in the "Bring-around" portion of the poll that I put up better explain themself for voting that.

[Nerdy Luigi 2,065]

1. I don't know who would consider the episode worse than Hard To Say Anything.

2. The response I gave was the closest to the accurate one. I was crying on the inside, I really don't cry on the outside often at all.

3. I think that there must be a little more to the story than what we're shown, honestly. We also still don't know exactly what happened to them.

[Jeric 46,890]

 

1. It was very much worth the wait. I would have waited longer for an episode of this caliber.

2. There is not any association I am making with the two episodes so I will side step the use of bring-around. I usually use it as phrasal verb only. If x brings around y changing how y behaves or is seen ... and no matter how good Perfect Pear was it did not do anything to bring-around Hard to Say Anything. Was it better? Yes. Night and day.

3. I touched on the emotional connection the episode had with me in DQ's topic 

 

[Megas 28,357]

Yes that was definitely worth it, and this comes from someone who was never that interested in the AJ's parents mystery from the start. It was just a fantastic episode that does everything perfectly. No I didn't cry, but that doesn't mean I don't think it wasn't heartfelt

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

7 minutes ago, Barik the Luigineer said:

1. I don't know who would consider the episode worse than Hard To Say Anything.

2. The response I gave was the closest to the accurate one. I was crying on the inside, I really don't cry on the outside often at all.

3. I think that there must be a little more to the story than what we're shown, honestly. We also still don't know exactly what happened to them.

Agreed, and some brony named @Nsxile was the one who voted that option, Luigineer.

6 minutes ago, Jeric said:

 

1. It was very much worth the wait. I would have waited longer for an episode of this caliber.

2. There is not any association I am making with the two episodes so I will side step the use of bring-around. I usually use it as phrasal verb only. If x brings around y changing how y behaves or is seen ... and no matter how good Perfect Pear was it did not do anything to bring-around Hard to Say Anything. Was it better? Yes. Night and day.

3. I touched on the emotional connection the episode had with me in DQ's topic 

 

I agree. Also, I wasn't meaning about it bringing around Hard to Say Anything, if you noticed by looking at the 1st option for the first question of my poll, I was talking about if it bombed like Hard to Say Anything, @Jeric.

6 minutes ago, The Undefeated of the Weast said:

Yes that was definitely worth it, and this comes from someone who was never that interested in the AJ's parents mystery from the start. It was just a fantastic episode that does everything perfectly. No I didn't cry, but that doesn't mean I don't think it wasn't heartfelt

That makes sense

On 6/22/2017 at 11:22 PM, Jeric said:

 

The tears flowed completely and without mercy several times, and there was a 10 minute stretch where at seemed that the show didn't give me a break.

I have been misty eyed multiple times with this show. One of these days I should make a list of them. Crusaders of the Lost Mark actually brought tears, but it was a completely different emotion that drove them. You see, most my tear related emotional moments when watching the show tend to revolve around some form of personal relatability or similar with a moment in my life. CotLM was all about the characters and their journey reaching a milestone in the way they had. This type of reaction is actually quite rare. 

Perfect Pear was one of those that brought the waterworks because of both  aspects. It was both due the character's journey, and because it carried such a strong air of relatability. It also had the distinction of creating second-hand tears. There were moments I was emotionally composed and then something would set off one of the kids and ... boom ... I'm swimming in my own tears again. I was watching it on the laptop with a kid flanking me on each side. I would feel the steady vibration from discord going off consistently, which was actually DQ commenting, but I knew the limited composure I did seem to muster took so much effort that it would have limited my ability to hold anything that resembled a conversation. 

A few moments from the episode that got me in no particular order. 

1. Goldie's line about how Pear and Bright loved each other - this was my confirmation that the parents were indeed deceased. 

2. The buttercup scene - this was something from both my childhood, and something the wife did with the kids. This was a second hand moment. Kid #2 broke down.

3. Big Mac asking Burnt Oak about sharing stories. This was the first time it started pouring. 

4. Pear Butter's gift of a song. Ok. This entire bit broke me for many many reasons. You know how I said that the show has done something's that are very personal? This scene was the most personal moment in any cartoon ... period. I had an @Ariida-chi  commission done a few months back to ponify the moment that I realized I was hopelessly in love and that I was going to marry the women in front of me. 

This is the moment. The story behind this moment will eventually be told, but for now I'll just say that it isn't hard to see how Pear Butter's musical gift could have done what did. The connection was also instantly recognized by the kids. The fact that Pear Butter told Bright Mac, 'Quiet you' perfectly primed the scene. During the song, the little 'secret dance' they did -- made the tears even more prominent as that was simply adorable. 

5. The wedding -- they freaking eloped! My wife and I did that, albeit for a different reason and definitely not due to a feud. 

6. "The Apples are my family" line coupled with Granny's reaction. Perfect execution. 

7. The fucking tree! This the moment that I actually realized that I had come to really like Pear and Bright so much that I actually felt real sorrow that we won't get to ever see them in the show. To be sad when a death is touched on is one thing, but to actually feel grief and separation for a fictional character ... to realize that you miss someone who you've only known for less than 15 minutes is fucking crazy. What the hell is it about trees and this show that can invoke empathy? Poignant symbolism is poignant. 

There are a few more, but those were the scenes that basically said, "You! Time to make you go bankrupt on Kleenex fool". I Even got tears watching it again with @PathfinderCS.

 

 

TL;DR - yeah I cried. A lot. 

Are you talking about this, @Jeric? If so, then wow, I gotta admit, the song has an emotional connection to everyone. I guess I have an emotional connection to it too, I just don't know what it is yet! (I quoted this from DQ's post. Wasn't that hard to bring it over here.) There's one thing I gotta put though. Are they REALLY deceased? For all we know, they could still be out there, and the tree was a clue to them still being alive. We'll probably have to see in Season 8 or 9!

Edited June 25, 2017 by Stickman, The Legend

[Dark Qiviut 22,656]

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1. Was this the perfect bring-around for Hard to Say Anything?

Yes, it's factually better in every way. Pacing, visual storytelling, song, humor, dialogue, characterization, romantic development, thematic execution, and overall execution. The differentiation between the episodes in their overall quality is staggering.

Quote

2. Did you cry at the end?

Not right away. When I first watched it, I wasn't crying. A few rewatches later, I started bawling. And not simply the end. Tears a-flowed in a few other places throughout the episode. It's such an emotional roller coaster that it's now difficult for me to rewatch it for the time being.

Quote

3. Do you think there's more loose ends to tie up thanks to this episode?

No. This episode's isn't about how they died, but a celebration of their lives, the ability to grieve, and heal. Chances are we won't hear a peep about their parents ever again.

Edited June 25, 2017 by Dark Qiviut

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

Just now, Dark Qiviut said:

Yes, it's factually better in every way. Pacing, visual storytelling, song, humor, dialogue, characterization, and romantic development. The differentiation between the episodes in their overall quality is staggering.

Not right away. When I first watched it, I wasn't crying. A few rewatches later, I started bawling. And not simply the end. Tears a-flowed in a few other places throughout the episode. It's such an emotional roller coaster that it's now difficult for me to rewatch it for the time being.

No. This episode's isn't about how they died, but a celebration of their lives, the ability to grieve, and heal. Chances are we won't hear a peep about their parents ever again.

No better way to put it. But you never know, we could hear about their parents again. We'll just have to see as time goes on.

[AlbaTross 1,586]

Well, this is how to do a Hatfield and McCoy spoof, so second time really is the charm here.  I have to wonder why it's always Apple Family episodes that seem to trigger some kind of emotional response, but for the most part I think season 7 has been head and shoulders over season 6.  We can forget about the dud that is Hard to Say Anything and remember this as the current season's defining Apple episode.

[Jeric 46,890]

3 hours ago, Stickman, The Legend said:

Now we have ANOTHER loose end to tie up: What really happened to Applejack's Parents? We got to see them, but what happened to them?

Also, whoever voted for the first option in the "Bring-around" portion of the poll that I put up better explain themself for voting that.

They died. They only mystery is how, and it's not really important to development nor will it ever be stated on the show. Best left to imagination. From this point on you will likely get the occasional dialog with "Mom and Dad" in it, so there is no sweeping under the rug of the episode. 

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

Just now, Jeric said:

They died. They only mystery is how, and it's not really important to development nor will it ever be stated on the show. Best left to imagination. From this point on you will likely get the occasional dialog with "Mom and Dad" in it, so there is no sweeping under the rug of the episode. 

K'den, fine

[Jeric 46,890]

2 hours ago, AlbaTross said:

Well, this is how to do a Hatfield and McCoy spoof, so second time really is the charm here.  I have to wonder why it's always Apple Family episodes that seem to trigger some kind of emotional response, but for the most part I think season 7 has been head and shoulders over season 6.  We can forget about the dud that is Hard to Say Anything and remember this as the current season's defining Apple episode.

I'd agree with that. This season almost has the feel of Season Five with some big moments that the fans have waited for with a highlight being the emotional episodes. 

[Abstract 832]

I was kind of dissappointed, honestly - I mean, it's neat we got to see that cool origin love story and everything, but all the hype around it had me thinking it was going to be a much more emotionally powerful episode: not that the romance wasn't moving, but I don't know... I was just expecting more questions to be answered, just more overall from the episode I suppose.

[Steve Piranha 29,499]

Fuck yeah, this episode was more than I've bargained for 

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

12 hours ago, Steve Piranha said:

Fuck yeah, this episode was more than I've bargained for 

Indeed it was

[Sugar Cube 4,843]

Hard to Say Anything was fine. I would like an option for that on the poll. 

I definitely cried at the end. It was a precious and heartfelt episode from start to finish. 

I think the episode implied there were more stories to be told, if the conversation between Burnt Oak and Big Mac is anything to go by, so I definitely don't think this has to be the last story about the Apple parents. I love all of the flashback scenes depicting Apple Family members and I would absolutely love to see more backstory on the Apple parents.

[LongGoneGr 1,305]

I haven't had these kinds of feels with MLP in a long time... so my goodness, yes it was worth it. I cried for the first time in so long at it...

Once again, bringing my love for the show back full force.

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 42,207]

Perfect Pear was beyond worth waiting for. The episode is as close to perfection it can get. The characters were all done flawlessly, the voice acting was top notch, including William Shatner as Grand Pear, it had such a good ending that made me feel joy and sorrow at the same time, but sorrow in a good way. If that makes any sense. XD All of this done in a 22 minute timeslot. I don't think I can ever give the episode enough praise.

[Stickman, The Legend 333]

4 hours ago, Kyoshi said:

Perfect Pear was beyond worth waiting for. The episode is as close to perfection it can get. The characters were all done flawlessly, the voice acting was top notch, including William Shatner as Grand Pear, it had such a good ending that made me feel joy and sorrow at the same time, but sorrow in a good way. If that makes any sense. XD All of this done in a 22 minute timeslot. I don't think I can ever give the episode enough praise.

Agreed.

[Steve Piranha 29,499]

6 hours ago, Kyoshi said:

 it had such a good ending that made me feel joy and sorrow at the same time, but sorrow in a good way. If that makes any sense. 

I think the term you are looking for is bittersweet. Indeed, bittersweet endings have the joy of a happy ending and the sad emotional connection of sad endings in one package