spoiler Shadow Play Review

[bwrosas 252]

I finally got a chance to view (skim through) the 2parter, and I have to say that they did a great job with this one.  I did enjoy Twilight's Fangirling over getting a chance to meet Starswirl pony to pony.  I also liked how when they went to Ponhenge, that thanks to Starswirl's journal being set down on his pillar, that they got to see what exactly happened to Starswirl and the other Pillars in their final fight (at the time) with the Pony of Shadows.

Now some folks may not like the fact that Starlight was the one that basically was trying to be and ended up being the voice of reason in this, but I actually enjoyed her role here.  The reason being that, when Twilight and Sunburst were planning to free the Pillars from Limbo, that she was the one that pointed out that maybe they (The Pillars) had a reason for letting themselves be imprisoned in limbo with the Pony of Shadows, and that perhaps they shouldn't really mess with what was done.  Heck, she even twice (before the spell was cast to free the Pillars) used/mentioned her past example of using StarSwirl's Time-Travel spell (S5 Finale) and how that almost turned out badly as a way of getting her point across to Twilight and Sunburst.

She also was the one the realized that when The Cutie Map Called all the Mane 6's Cutie Marks at once, that it only does that when there's a Friendship Problem to be solved. And her reaction when Rainbow's calling the Cutie Map a Super-Duper Villain Tracker, after Rarity referenced the last time they were all called by the map, was to her village, I found hilarious.

And Yes, I did like the fact that despite feeling down because Twilight wasn't listening to her (due to Twilight trying to impress and prove herself to Starswirl), she still stuck up for Twilight in the end and used her past experience to help Twilight free Stygian from the Pony of Shadows.

 

Now speaking of that moment, after Twilight enters the POS and she meets Stygian, I loved how the Pillars all had the look of surprise and realization that they actually caused Stygian to be manipulated by the POS, because they didn't realize that he wasn't betraying them, all he was doing was trying to help them, by trying to make copies of their artifacts, so he could join them in their missions to protect Equestria. 

To me this was a good moment for the Pillars character development , because once they finally heard Stygian's reasoning for taking their artifacts, they all realized that they screwed up, by assuming something that wasn't true and not giving Stygian a chance to explain his reasoning.  And that everything that occurred 1000 years ago could've been avoided had they just listened and not assumed.

 

One thing I did really enjoy was when StarSwirl dismissed Twilight's plan (to trap the POS) at first, that the rest of the Mane 6 (finally having enough of his treatment of her at the time) stood up for her and explained to him that she never does anything half way when it comes to magic. Rainbow even mentioned her getting her wings, because she finished writing one of his spells. (Someone get a group screenshot of the Mane 6 from this scene)

 

And finally, Starswirl's interaction with Luna and Celestria at the end, I thought was well done and cute.

 

Overall, this was definitely a good Season Finale, and one I would highly recommend seeing again and again.  The animation was good, the Mane 6's , along with Starlight, Spike and Sunburst character development's during their search for the Pillars artifacts and throughout the 44min finale was done very well.  And surprisingly there was no musical numbers in this one, which I will (as good as some of the songs are throughout the series) admit is a welcomed bonus, because it allows the story to flow much smoother, and nothing feels rushed, so kudos for that.

I can also see, where some felt that this could have served better, story wise for the MLP Movie, than what we got instead, but hey both were very good in the end.

Now this does open doors for S8, S9, and S10 (which with the last two I believe we will get), and the stories and arcs that can be explored in those seasons, because of this finale.

 

Rating A+ 10/10

Comments and Replies are Welcomed.

[Castle Bleck 19,390]

Only real downside was that The Pony Of Shadows was literally just an R63 Nightmare Moon.

 

Corrupted ex-hero with an inferiority complex? Check. Goal of eternal darkness/night? Check. Domain in some kind of haunted forest? Check. Mostly just laughed and monologued instead of actually proving his threat? Check.

 

P.S.: Admittedly, after the pilot, NMM started getting more credible (especially in the Nightmare Rarity comics, FIENDship Is Magic #4, and The Cutie Re-Mark).

Edited November 7, 2017 by The Artist Formerly Known As A.V.