S07:E16 - Campfire Tales

[Senko 459]

8 hours ago, Lord Midnight Madness said:

This was one of my favorite episodes from season 7. Mainly because I was a Boy Scout at one time and I enjoyed camping and yes we had are share of times being attacked by bugs and other pests. I really liked how rainbow dash took scotaloo under her wing for the trip and made her not feel left out. 

As I've said before the fact that Rainbow dash who is usually flying even when talking willingly walks on the ground so she can put a wing over Scootaloo and hold her close when she's scared say's a lot about how important she is to her.

[qwerE 96]

The stories were so interesting! I loved the tales, Flash Magnus, Mist Mane, and Rockhoof were all admirable characters and the new clothings and backgrounds - especially the oriental style ones were refreshing to see. I love these tales from the past- type episodes.

[Moony the Cat 3,702]

This Episode was fine in my eyes. The first of the three Tales was pretty bad for me since the hero character just got strong out of nowhere and also the story wasnt all that interesting, the second story however was pretty good and the third one was almost pretty good, i found the climax to a bit boring. So the Episode was mostly fine i guess.

[CypherHoof 26,483]

8 minutes ago, Nanotek said:

This Episode was fine in my eyes. The first of the three Tales was pretty bad for me since the hero character just got strong out of nowhere and also the story wasnt all that interesting, the second story however was pretty good and the third one was almost pretty good, i found the climax to a bit boring. So the Episode was mostly fine i guess.

It's scene-setting - S4 does a much better job of building an overall story arc (in my opinion, of course), while the Pillars are rushed in near the end of the season, in preparation for the finale.

Not sure I agree with the "official" Elements for the pillars either, but they ARE canon, so I can't argue so much.

If Rockhoof were Dependability (rather than Strength) it would seem to fit better with AJ's Honesty; similarly, Mistmane's Beauty seemed more to me as Sacrifice (contrast with Rarity's actions in S1 with the river dragon) and not sure about Flash - Bravery, while appropriate, doesn't seem to be a good match to Loyalty (but not sure what would. Duty?)

Nevertheless, we get the first three Pillars and their backstory; the Legends comic series does quite a good job of expanding on this, too.

[Senko 459]

10 hours ago, CypherHoof said:

It's scene-setting - S4 does a much better job of building an overall story arc (in my opinion, of course), while the Pillars are rushed in near the end of the season, in preparation for the finale.

Not sure I agree with the "official" Elements for the pillars either, but they ARE canon, so I can't argue so much.

If Rockhoof were Dependability (rather than Strength) it would seem to fit better with AJ's Honesty; similarly, Mistmane's Beauty seemed more to me as Sacrifice (contrast with Rarity's actions in S1 with the river dragon) and not sure about Flash - Bravery, while appropriate, doesn't seem to be a good match to Loyalty (but not sure what would. Duty?)

Nevertheless, we get the first three Pillars and their backstory; the Legends comic series does quite a good job of expanding on this, too.

I think Duty would work well for Flash and the same as Sacrifice for Mistmane not sure about Rockhoof as I can't really match dependability with honesty. Maybe something similar with a slightly different connotation of him being exactly what he appeared unlike the other members of his villages elite order.

[Arkadios 91]

Fly-ders: proof that MLP is not a little girls' cartoon.

[bigbertha 414]

What a waste. If the point of the episode was just to show some fun legends, it fails because all of the legends in this episode are so generic and dull. If the point of the episode was to expand the world of Equestria and explore new cultures, it doesn't work because the episode doesn't show that much about each culture. There is no contextualization, meaning there's no sense of what time period the stories are taking place in or how they connect in any way to what we already know. We know that the Mighty Helm existed, but that's about it. We know that this Asian inspired land of Unicorns existed, but that's about it. Where was this land located relative to the Equestria we know? Was it close or far away from Canterlot? Was Canterlot even a thing at this point? These are questions that can breed actual expansion of the world. World building is not just about creating new creatures and cultures. It's about connecting these new cultures and creatures into what we already know to make the world feel real.

And the framing device isn't much better. It's just bad jokes and reminding the audience of a much better episode.

Score: 3/10

 

Edited March 18, 2019 by bigbertha

[darknessrising24 56]

On 3/19/2019 at 5:14 AM, bigbertha said:

What a waste. If the point of the episode was just to show some fun legends, it fails because all of the legends in this episode are so generic and dull.

"Generic and Dull"? I'd like to know what episode you are watching, because what you described was clearly not the same one.

For those of us IDW fans, this is the first time we ever see ANY characters from the comics make an appearance in the show.

As for characterisation, Shovel Knig-I mean Rockhoof, may have been scrawny when he was young, but damn if he didn't have the determination to do what was right for his village! I mean, digging a giant trench all on his own despite the odds being against him? This guy's got some huge stones right here.

Mistmane's character actually feels like a combination of both Twilight and Rarity, looking past ones villainous deeds to extend the hoof of friendship once more, and yet being so generous as to give up one's physical beauty restore the inner beauty to everything around her.

And finally, Flash Magnus' (a possible ancestor of Flash Sentry) story is not only amazingly action-packed, but it's also a perfect blend of both military strategy, and another showcasing of friendship and true loyalty.

As for the settings and  of the world it's self, you'd remember that he's a story being told by the main character to their younger siblings, so it makes sense that they focus more on the events taking place than the entirety of the world around them. Getting straight to the point also not prattling on too much.

Seriously, you come off as one of those fans who just can't be satisfied with anything the show gives you these days just so you can have an excuse to complain more.

 

[Caligari 7]

Still deciding how I would rank this. From a world building perspective, I appreciate the presence of the camp fire stories, as the lore they provide is nice. I think my favourite moment was when Rarity played with light and shadow on the cave wall. Something I took a class on once was Proto-cinema, which was how we made motion pictures before the invention of film cameras. This included things such as panoramas, magic lanterns, etc. It is thought that cave painting might have been one of the very first forms of this, as when you move a light source, such as a torch, past the cave walls, it makes it look like the images are moving. It was interesting to see a reference to this in the context of digital animation, showing how far animation and media technology have come. That being said, I do not assume the creators of the episode were going for this, they might not have been thinking about it at all. But seeing Rarity animate images across cave walls with light and shadow is a cool way of calling attention to this history.

[Astralshy 26,676]

Interesting to learn more about the world. Those legends where nothing to special but interesting. Of course also important for the final of this seasons. The overarcing plot was also nice because it show's a continuation of the sleepless in poynville episode from season 3. Keep it up girls :D

Overall I would think this is a good episode and I enjoyed it even if there is nothing majorly happening except introducing three of the pillars.

[GloryForShame 26]

i was for some reason, waiting if Maud Pie would show up nowhere and destroy those rocks like they are nothing lol

[Antiyonder 1,153]

The episode is present on this compilation at the 21:32 mark:

A solo video will be posted when uploaded.