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Like or Dislike?  

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  1. 1. Like or Dislike?

    • Twilight Snarkle: "Imbeciles, YOU RUINED EVERYTHING!" ("I HATE IT!" >__<)
      5
    • Boredie Pie: "Bored. Bored. Bored!" ("I dislike it!")
      6
    • Pinkie: "Last one to the Tre of Harmony is a parasprite! Woo-hoo!" Twilight: *grumbled sigh* ("…meh…")
      12
    • Rarihoard: *jumps into wagon* "This is mine! And this as well! Oh, and this is absolutely mine!" ("I like it!")
      33
    • Pinkie: *laugh* "This was…the worst…day…ever!" ("I LOVE IT!" <3)
      52
  2. 2. Which Mean Six did you enjoy most?

    • Liarjack
      7
    • Rarihoard
      15
    • Flutterbrute
      8
    • Lazy Dash
      5
    • Bordie Pie
      4
    • Twilight Snarkle
      69


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(edited)

To be completely honest, I wasn't a big fan of this episode. Chrysalis' plan of creating evil versions of the Mane Six to use the Elements of Harmony is ingenious, or at least it would be if the tree wasn't omnipotent. The tree is so powerful that I'm not sure how Chrysalis can realistically combat it. Poor Chrysalis, humiliated over and over only to be eventually reformed probably by Starlight Glimmer.

The Mane Six were pretty stupid in this episode all things considered. How could they not realize their best friends were acting the complete opposite of how they'd normally act? Why would Twilight cruelly disregard Fluttershy's feelings for the sake of the trip she planned? Why would Rainbow Dash just abandon Fluttershy for no reason? Why would Rarity be interested in Applejack's stuff and so on. It's like they completely forgot how each other acts for the sake of the plot.

The only one of the clones that didn't get on my nerves was Twilight. She would've been a great little antagonist.

Edited by RulesofRarity
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(edited)
15 hours ago, Truffles said:

It wasn't that they didn't meet up with Chrysalis that bothered me (for some reason I never expected they would, maybe because she could pretend to be anything to hide from them if they did happen to bump into her?) but what did bother me is the Mane 6 never got a chance to figure out there were a bunch of evil doppelgangers parading around as them.

In my perfect ending, the Mane 6 would have met up with all of the others together at the Tree of Harmony. Chryssie would have camouflaged herself because she doesn't want blow her cover and her minions were expendable, anyway. The Mean 6 would have gloated that the Mane 6 were too late - they were about to take control of the ultimate power in Equestria and that's when the Tree turns them back into wood. The Mane 6 wonder what just happened, and what these things were, leaving them with a disquieted feeling that some new unknown evil is afoot as the show rolls into the Summer hiatus. That would have been a lot more dramatic and satisfying IMO. (And Chrysalis would still be free to move forward with her plans - especially now that she knows the location of the ToH and some of its defenses.)

But I still liked this episode, even though I didn't love it. It was quite funny, and seeing a reprise of a version of the Discordant 6 was entertaining.

Straight into the miscellaneous comments today. (I was busy for most of the day and will be for the next 2 weekends, too - good timing for a hiatus, I guess? :) )

  • Are those trees that were used to give birth to the Mean 6 the same ones Nightmare Moon possessed in the second episode of the series? I'd like to think so, just for the joy of having another callback this season.
     
  • The creation of the Mean 6 seems like a bit of a nod to the alternate changeling lore the MLP comic introduced that states they came from rotten acorns growing under a cemetery.
     
  • I'm not sure how her plan of controlling the Elements by using the mean 6 to wield them would allow her to control the 3 pony races, other than threatening them into servitude. If she really wants a new hive, however, she should act like an actual queen bugpony, find a fertile drone, and get busy. :orly:
     
  • Rainbow Dash: "Rarity, why is Applejack carrying all your stuff?"
    My answer: Spike isn't around to do it this time out. :lol:
    Yeah I know it was AJ's camping stuff anyway, but when I heard that question asked, it was the first thought that popped into my head.
     
  • Only Pinky could roll around in a rosebush and find the thorns fun. Either that, or she has no perception of pain. :sealed:
     
  • There were a few non-sequiturs that I found confusing. Rainbow Dash asks "Greedarity" if she's seen Starlight, and her answer of "If I knew that" sounds like Starlight was part of the clones as well, but she isn't. This version of Rarity shouldn't even know who Starlight since Chrysalis never mentioned her after they were spawned. In fact, later in the episode that notion is proved when LiarJack asks who the hay Starlight is when the two of them meet for the first time.
    For that matter, how did evil Pinkie know anything about the retreat when she's talking with Twilight? Unless she was simply acting like a chatbot and giving an appropriate canned response for her anti-element.
     
  • Greedarity channeling Gollum/Smeagol was hilarious.
     
  • Even though the Mane 6 + Starlight work it out in the end, the episode reveals it doesn't take much to have them get at each other's throats. It was only because Twilight stepped in and conceded did the fighting stop. It kind of bothers me the Mane 6 didn't ask more questions of each other to try and figure out why some of them in their group were acting so weird. The concession scene helps explain this a bit, but I still have that nagging dissatisfaction due to none of them getting to the bottom of things.
     
  • On a similar note, It's strange Chrysalis doesn't question Twilight Snarkle about how she found the location of the tree. If Chrysalis had taken a pause to ask some questions instead of constantly interrupting and berating her creations, she might have figured out the Mane 6 were out in the woods and could have planned accordingly. I suppose since the ToH took matters into its own...branches it may not have mattered, anyway.
     
  • The one thing that really bothered me about  the schism caused by the Mean 6 was Fluttershy being hated by her animal friends. While the Mane 6 resolved everything between themselves, no such thing occurred between the animals and Fluttershy. Ugly rumors spread like wildfire, and I can imagine eventually even her animal friends that live near her will find out about what "she" did to those baby birds. Will the misunderstanding will be revealed at that point? Or will the animals forgive her but keep in their thoughts that Fluttershy isn't as nice (or mentally stable) as they always thought? It just frustrates me even more wondering if the episode's unresolved ending has left a permanent stain on the record of all of the Mane 6.
     
  • I'd like to think the ToH killed the Mean 6 because it saw they were all abominations of nature. At least, that sounds cooler, anyway. And hooray for a powerful entity on the side of good that doesn't get felled by a villain so easily. Yes, princesses, I'm looking at you. :sunbutt:

Actually Pinkie having a different pain response than the rest would explain a lot of her crazy behavior throughout the series. My theory would be she generally has physical "hypo sensitivity" meaning less sensitive to physical pain and this is caused by her having a hypersensitivity to other things through her Pinkie sense i.e her body regulates senses differently. Of course I could be wrong. 

Actually friendships can get just like that. Last month I witnessed a few friends going at each other the same way. Friendship is hard. 

As others have stated I think the Tree Of Harmony sensed that the clones were the opposite of the elements and also sensed they were totally not natural. It would be interesting if those sticks they turned into could be re hydrated into clones since it seems the main thing the tree did was magically dehydrate the clones which is very creepy. The sticks still had the colors of the mane six so I think it would be possible to bring them back through magic since they may still contain pony DNA. 

Edited by StitchandMLPlover
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It's hard to summarize what I think about this episode. We've seen the idea of distorted mane six characters before, multiple times. One was from the queen herself when she ordered Changelings to turn into fake versions of them in her bid to take over Equestria. Her transmuting these doppelgangers out of thin air in the mid-season episode makes me wonder where she gained that power. Did she always possess it? Then why not use it when trying to take over Canterlot so long ago? Sounds like it would have been useful for an evil Cadance to have existed.

This episode just drags. I wondered when something would kick start the episode, but it doesn't come. Perhaps this is done intentionally to emphasize a lack of power which Chrysalis possesses now that she no longer controls the hive. But, I feel that there must have been some kind of purpose to the "mean six" and the plot in general. By the way, the title is disappointing. I thought perhaps that Chrysalis had gathered a collection of past rogues to oppose the mane six and Starlight somehow...and that would have been the plot.

Anyway, a bunch of competent writers.could easily tie this plot into the season finale and possibly beyond into the final season. I would say that if the "mean six" could have somehow corrupted the elements, it would mean that the bond between the mane six and the elements would break down. It could lead to more trouble ahead which can only be solved by appointing new guardians to the elements. The role could be filled by the six student friends, representing the newly established intercontinental harmony which was brought about by pony friendship. It would then show that the role of protector is not limited to just ponies. That's just speculating of course, but I would rather see some greater purpose in this episode than something limited.

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(edited)
5 hours ago, RulesofRarity said:

The Mane Six were pretty stupid in this episode all things considered. How could they not realize their best friends were acting the complete opposite of how they'd normally act? Why would Twilight cruelly disregard Fluttershy's feelings for the sake of the trip she planned? Why would Rainbow Dash just abandon Fluttershy for no reason? Why would Rarity be interested in Applejack's stuff and so on. It's like they completely forgot how each other acts for the sake of the plot.

Ehh, they had no reason to consider any other possibility until near the end. I think it was kind of a missed opportunity to not have them figure out something fishy was going on. Besides, Applejack and Rainbow Dash did try to come up with explanations for why Rarity was acting strangely. 

Edited by AlexanderThrond
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Well, compared to what I did see of the leaked version, the full version seemed a little more amusing to say the least. Not to mention that having been on the run since losing everything back in To Where and Back Again has not had a good effect on Chrysalis' tactical mind or her sanity. Talking to herself like that before creating the clones of the Mane Six indicate that she's starting to lose it now that she's out of power. If she goes completely insane, I won't blame the Mane Six or the Royal Family actually feeling sympathetic for Chrysalis, despite the crap she's put them through in the past, especially in To Where and Back Again.

As for her plan, it was doomed from the start. Chrysalis had no idea that the Tree of Harmony was sentient enough that it could tell fake Element bearers apart from the real ones, and when the fake Mane Six tried to take the Elements, the Tree defended itself and punished the fakes by turning them back into the wood they were created from, just still sporting their faded colors from their coats, proving that it won't let the Elements fall into the wrong hands that easily.

As for the real Mane Six and Starlight, I'm surprised they were oblivious to what Chrysalis was planning, and the encounter with their evil clones only allowed them to strengthen their bonds of friendship more than ever.

I'm giving this episode at least an 8 or 8.5/10 for my score.

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I liked that they never found out about the MEan 6. The whole "theme" of the episode is that the cast are good friends and through good times and bad they'll stick together. Contrast with Chrysalis and her crew who were constantly breaking up, bickering, needing to be held in line through fear, and ultimately got themselves killed through their own flaws. Chrys almost got killed by her own creations.

 

Plus, it's a different dynamic that I haven't seen before in this show. Where the antagonist is an unknown entity.

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3 minutes ago, eventyraren said:

Dose anyone know when season 8 will be back?

No, but given its track record dating back to S5, the show returns approximately two months later. Chances are it'll be back after about six to eight weeks, so July 21, 28, or August 4.

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When the mean 6 turned into logs, i pretty much started thinking, "this isn't over." I think that anti-Twilight will be back with her plan at some point due to, that anticlimactic ending.

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10 hours ago, bwrosas said:

LIVE!, On this Sunday Morning (6-10-2018), I give my review and take on the Mid-Season 8 Finale, "The Mean 6", and talk about the various things that some fans found good and not good about it.

Comments are Welcomed

LIVE!, On this Sunday Morning (6-10-2018), I give my review and take on the Mid-Season 8 Finale, "The Mean 6", and talk about the various things that some fans found good and not good about it.

Comments are Welcomed

I said what I had to here. And I still believe the mystery for the Mane 7 not knowing adds more intugie to the situation.  As the mystery as to why the Tree didn't get Chrysalis, when it got the Mean 6, I mean it should have sense her magic inside of them, but still it didn't go after her.  Which I as one rift café member put it, it can sense the worthiness and good in creatures, so did it not go after Chrysalis, because it could sense some good in her?  Makes you wonder.

 

Also as I mentioned in the video, I believe S8 (most examplified by this episode and others before it) is going to be a season that truly test the Mane 7's friendship, I mean 

Spoiler

you have upcoming episodes in the 2nd half that focus on RD's and Rarity's Friendship, Pinkie's friendship with other Mane 7, etc.,

, also I believe this season is not going to be a test for their friendship, but one that shows true friendship is accepting Friends for they are and their likes and dislikes.

And I ended the video with, they are going to really have to step their game in the 2nd half and go from being 50/50, like this first half was, to something like 80/20 (in a positive way).

But we have to wait and see.

Good news for me, is I got the whole first half recorded onto DVD via my DVD Recorder, thanks to me DVRing the episodes when they aired, so I could DVD record them later on.

Comments are Welcomed

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The last part when the Mean 6 shrivelling and turning into "raisins" before they were "killed" is a bit disturbing tbh...but the rest of the episode is really good because the real Mane 6 never really acknowledged them and they finally made-up and forgiven each other without further complicating the conflict. The resolution is good and leaves the speculation of Chrysalis's further plans for revenge. 

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(edited)
6 hours ago, AlexanderThrond said:

Ehh, they had no reason to consider any other possibility until near the end. I think it was kind of a missed opportunity to not have them figure out something fishy was going on. Besides, Applejack and Rainbow Dash did try to come up with explanations for why Rarity was acting strangely. 

I wouldn't even say near the end there was a possibility. They probably just thought some animals destroyed the campsite (to spite Fluttershy would be the best rationale). It's interesting upon re-watch I realized that the Mean 6 also never figured out the Mane 6 were there either. Mean Twilight actually thought she was walking with a strangely enthusiastic Mean Pinkie. And Mean Applejack thought Mean Rarity stumbled upon Starlight Glimmer just alone in the woods. That little attention to detail in each of their interactions was really nice to keep the charade going for each of the parties. It also helps add to the suspension of disbelief when even smart characters, like Mean Twilight, don't realize they're talking to the originals, like Pinkie and Fluttershy.

Edited by KH7672
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Overall, it doesn't seem like there's much to this episode, and I didn't really find what's here to be all that entertaining. I liked Mean Twilight's scheming, and it was fairly amusing to see Chrysalis getting upset at her plan's falling apart, but I didn't find most of the other interactions involving the Mean Six to be very amusing or compelling. This episode seems like one that would mainly be setting up a conflict for later in the season, rather than standing as its own episode, but then, I'm not sure what this episode would be setting up. The one plan Chrysalis had for trying to get the Elements of Harmony under control failed, with the Mean Six being turned back into wood by the Tree of Harmony. Chrysalis runs off, apparently without her or her failed plan ever having been discovered by the Mane Seven. I suppose Chrysalis now knows about the Tree of Harmony and where it is, but her plan for obtaining the Elements of Harmony failed, and we're not aware of any other plans she has right now. She had a line about how "servants always fail you in the end", perhaps indicating that any of her further plans will involve her working alone. But that's about all that I can think of.

One driver of the plot here is that Fluttershy says nothing to the others as she wanders off away from the group. Fluttershy says to the bird "I'm sure your home isn't too far away", but couldn't Fluttershy have asked the bird first? And if the bird's nest wasn't just off the path, then tell the others what she was going to do? Some of the other group members also walk past her as she's stopped and talking to the bird, but apparently none of them looks back to make sure she's coming, or says anything like "You coming, Fluttershy?", until after she's already gotten herself good and lost.

It also seems like there were at least a few clues that something fishy was going on, but those are never followed up on by the Mane Seven, which serves to artificially increase the conflict among them, and also means that they never find out or even suspect that there were "mean" versions of themselves running around. When Rarity and Starlight stumble upon Mean Applejack, Rarity seems to realize that there's at least something wrong with the way Mean Applejack looks, and tells Mean Applejack that the two of them are "going to have a serious talk" later. Rainbow and Applejack also both seem to realize that there's something wrong with Mean Rarity, with Rainbow's suggesting that it's "some kind of curse" or "maybe poison joke". And even after Rainbow and Applejack suspect that Rarity was cursed or otherwise not acting of her own volition, Applejack still later says that "Rarity ran off with all my stuff", and never talks about how she and Rainbow thought Rarity might have been cursed or something, even when Rarity denies that she did that. And when Twilight gets upset about Mean Pinkie's saying that this is a "boring, lame, no-fun retreat", real Pinkie says that she never said that, but that's also never followed up on. (Plus, there are all the instances of "mean" and real characters leaving/entering the frame right after each other, so we might think that they could see or hear each other in at least a few of those cases.) So there are at least a few puzzle pieces there, but after Twilight shouts for everyone to be quiet and starts the apology session, those anomalies are apparently just forgotten about, and the Mane Seven thus never find out that Chrysalis was there at the same time trying to obtain the Elements of Harmony.

Now for the rest of my miscellaneous observations:

Twilight's single hair pulled by Chrysalis has two colors in one strand, and Rainbow's single hair has all the colors of the rainbow in one strand. I wouldn't think that their strands of hair would work like that.

I didn't know that the location of the Tree of Harmony "isn't something made known to just anypony". Is that deliberately being kept a secret? Or does it just so happen that the few ponies who are aware of it (the Mane Eight, Celestia and Luna, the six Pillars) haven't talked about it to anyone else, and it's in a remote enough location that random residents of Equestria haven't just stumbled across it?

I would expect Pinkie's rolling in thorny rose bushes to hurt. Is one of Pinkie's inexplicable mysterious powers not to feel pain, or to have a high pain tolerance?

When Applejack asks Mean Rarity "Where's Starlight?", Mean Rarity starts saying "Well, if I knew that—" before being distracted by Applejack's stuff. What did Mean Rarity think Applejack meant by that question? If Mean Rarity knew "that", then...what?

I'm not sure if it would be that obvious to Twilight that something was wrong with Pinkie; since Pinkie often acts so randomly and just does whatever she wants, it might be difficult to tell if Pinkie is being "out of character" just from a couple of sentences.

Why does Starlight say "I'll never like camping" in this prideful and condescending way? Does she think that her never liking camping is something to be proud of? Does she want to rub Applejack's face in how stupid she thinks camping is? Is that really an appropriate attitude at a time when everyone is apologizing and trying to patch things up?

Finally, considering that the campsite was set up in the middle of the Everfree Forest, with who knows what kinds of wild and vicious animals running around, I wouldn't consider it that big of a surprise that their campsite was trashed, particularly if Twilight had any unsecured food at the campsite.

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26 minutes ago, Music Chart Fan said:

Why does Starlight say "I'll never like camping" in this prideful and condescending way? Does she think that her never liking camping is something to be proud of? Does she want to rub Applejack's face in how stupid she thinks camping is? Is that really an appropriate attitude at a time when everyone is apologizing and trying to patch things up?

2B564AC7-CAE8-488D-8283-6EE246DFEAE0.png.ab9b19be1dd7804f14abb39180badfca.png

This kind of absurd level of projection is why the analysis community is starting to be widely disliked and considered toxic, to the point where EQD users were loudly asking why reviewers and analysts are being given any attention at all, and even more were saying they didn’t deserve their own unique posts.

How could this possibly be considered condescending, let alone prideful? It’s mild teasing at worst, and towards a character who herself often teases her friends. And she never once called camping stupid, she only said she didn’t like it, and she still did her best to accommodate AJ’s desire to show her a good time and be a good sport about it.

If you can’t approach scenes with characters you don’t like without leaving your biases behind, maybe you shouldn’t approach those scenes at all. Trust me, it would be to everyone’s benefit.

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34 minutes ago, ShootingStar159 said:

If you can’t approach scenes with characters you don’t like without leaving your biases behind, maybe you shouldn’t approach those scenes at all. Trust me, it would be to everyone’s benefit.

That part of my post was commenting on the content of that line, how it was said, and the situation in which it was said; it was not intended as a comment on Starlight's character in particular. If a different character (say, Rarity, for example) had said that same line in the same way in the same context, I would have reacted the same way to it. It just came across to me as mean-spirited at a time when everyone was apologizing and trying to stop the fighting, and I would have thought that regardless of which character said it.

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1 hour ago, Music Chart Fan said:

That part of my post was commenting on the content of that line, how it was said, and the situation in which it was said; it was not intended as a comment on Starlight's character in particular. If a different character (say, Rarity, for example) had said that same line in the same way in the same context, I would have reacted the same way to it. It just came across to me as mean-spirited at a time when everyone was apologizing and trying to stop the fighting, and I would have thought that regardless of which character said it.

Starlight was kinda the character who had it roughest that day. She was literally out of her element and miserable being weighed down by a whole heap of garbage, then she thought that AJ was rubbing it in and mocking her when it was actually liarjack. Starlight has always been snarky. She was just getting back a bit of control and playfully teasing AJ after giving the whole thing an honest go.

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(edited)
On 6/10/2018 at 3:05 PM, Silver Letter said:

It's hard to summarize what I think about this episode. We've seen the idea of distorted mane six characters before, multiple times. One was from the queen herself when she ordered Changelings to turn into fake versions of them in her bid to take over Equestria. Her transmuting these doppelgangers out of thin air in the mid-season episode makes me wonder where she gained that power. Did she always possess it? Then why not use it when trying to take over Canterlot so long ago? Sounds like it would have been useful for an evil Cadance to have existed.

This episode just drags. I wondered when something would kick start the episode, but it doesn't come. Perhaps this is done intentionally to emphasize a lack of power which Chrysalis possesses now that she no longer controls the hive. But, I feel that there must have been some kind of purpose to the "mean six" and the plot in general. By the way, the title is disappointing. I thought perhaps that Chrysalis had gathered a collection of past rogues to oppose the mane six and Starlight somehow...and that would have been the plot.

Anyway, a bunch of competent writers.could easily tie this plot into the season finale and possibly beyond into the final season. I would say that if the "mean six" could have somehow corrupted the elements, it would mean that the bond between the mane six and the elements would break down. It could lead to more trouble ahead which can only be solved by appointing new guardians to the elements. The role could be filled by the six student friends, representing the newly established intercontinental harmony which was brought about by pony friendship. It would then show that the role of protector is not limited to just ponies. That's just speculating of course, but I would rather see some greater purpose in this episode than something limited.

My theory was always that the Student Six are going to become new element bearers in the finale because the real Mane 6 are overpowered or captured in some way. The whole concept of the Student Six screams protectors of Equestria given Twilight's lines about dealing with threats by teaching friendship in "School Daze". If the Student Six do battle with the Mean 6 that would be amazing! If done right, it could be a fantastic lesson on diversity without being forced or preachy. 

Edited by StitchandMLPlover
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I love this episode. I think them finally bringing back Chrysalis was awesome especially since we haven’t seen her in a long time and we finally get an idea of what she is planning to do now that she lacks a hive. I think the mean six were improved versions of the discorded version of the mane six back in return of harmony. I personally enjoyed Twilight the most out of the six as an evil twilight is a very cool idea for a character to me. I think this episode basically confirms chrysalis will be in the proper season finale as it would be unlike the show to show or hint to a previously seen villain and then not use the in the same season. This episode makes me excited for what they are going to do with the rest of the season. I genuinely was shocked when chrysalis revealed herself in the beginning as I knew it was an antagonist but I didn’t know it was chrysalis! I hope the mean six return somehow in that someone find the wood they left behind at the tree and maybe revive them. Awesome episode! The writer deserves appreciation for this!

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On 6/10/2018 at 12:09 PM, StitchandMLPlover said:

It would be interesting if those sticks they turned into could be re hydrated into clones since it seems the main thing the tree did was magically dehydrate the clones which is very creepy.

I've seen this train of thought in a few reviews now, and the more I hear it the more I like it. If they really aren't dead but simply in a dehydrated state of suspended animation, then it's plausible a strong rain could create puddles in the ToH cave and cause them to suddenly regrow back to life - and now not only out to rule Equestria, but get revenge on Chrysalis. (There seems to be a web of revenge going on if that's the case, lol)

I will say this: If this was just a pause and we haven't seen the last of the Mean 6 yet and there will be a final showdown with the Mane 6 someday, then a lot of the frustration I had about the ending will fade away.

22 hours ago, Music Chart Fan said:

One driver of the plot here is that Fluttershy says nothing to the others as she wanders off away from the group.

Upon thinking about Fluttershy further, I'm trying to figure out why was she actually lost period. Instead of walking in circles after she rescued the baby bird, why didn't she fly straight up well above the tree line and look around for her friends? If the forest canopy was too thick, then she had two prominent geographical landmarks nearby to allow her to get her bearings - the Castle of the Two Sisters and Twilight's castle.

She already knew the destination of the retreat and should have remembered TCotWS is where the ToH is located, so flying there would have made the most sense. If she was too scared to be alone, she should have flown back to Twilight's castle and had Spike (with his handy new wings) come back with her to help locate the others. But I suppose there's no story if she does either of those things.

It makes me think the episode would have worked better if it took place almost entirely in the Castle of the Two Sisters to begin with. Instead of Chrysalis thinking the ToH is "somewhere in these woods," she could have thought (and had good reason to) the ToH was somewhere in that castle. And instead of the story covering the Mane 6 + Starlight trekking to the retreat, they'd already be there and the Mean 6 would wander in and out of scenes like they did in the actual episode, except it would be the castle and not the Everfree.

That's treading a little on "Castle-Mania," I suppose, but the point would be to create misunderstandings instead of scares. And really if the mix-ups are following a similar theme, what difference would a change of location make, anyway? Besides, I wouldn't mind seeing it revisited again since it seems to have been mostly forgotten after S4.

23 hours ago, Music Chart Fan said:

Or does it just so happen that the few ponies who are aware of it (the Mane Eight, Celestia and Luna, the six Pillars) haven't talked about it to anyone else, and it's in a remote enough location that random residents of Equestria haven't just stumbled across it?

I imagine because it's in the middle of the Everfree, any pony who actually does happen to know where the ToH is located probably doesn't want to risk getting eaten by a roc, hydra, or cragadile. Though like I said in my comments, the Everfree wasn't particularly dangerous for some reason on this outing.

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23 minutes ago, Truffles said:

I've seen this train of thought in a few reviews now, and the more I hear it the more I like it. If they really aren't dead but simply in a dehydrated state of suspended animation, then it's plausible a strong rain could create puddles in the ToH cave and cause them to suddenly regrow back to life - and now not only out to rule Equestria, but get revenge on Chrysalis. (There seems to be a web of revenge going on if that's the case, lol)

I will say this: If this was just a pause and we haven't seen the last of the Mean 6 yet and there will be a final showdown with the Mane 6 someday, then a lot of the frustration I had about the ending will fade away.

I hadn't seen that suggestion before. I was thinking that this episode didn't seem to have set up much of anything for a later conflict, but that would be an interesting (and somewhat clever) possibility.

26 minutes ago, Truffles said:

Upon thinking about Fluttershy further, I'm trying to figure out why was she actually lost period. Instead of walking in circles after she rescued the baby bird, why didn't she fly straight up well above the tree line and look around for her friends? If the forest canopy was too thick, then she had two prominent geographical landmarks nearby to allow her to get her bearings - the Castle of the Two Sisters and Twilight's castle.

Somebody needed to teach Fluttershy (and maybe everyone else) some basics of hiking and navigating terrain, haha. There is an orienteering merit badge in Boy Scouts, but I never earned it. I did earn the Hiking merit badge as an Eagle Scout requirement, though, which involved taking five 10-mile hikes and one 20-mile hike. (Most of the other Scouts earned the Swimming merit badge instead, but my immediate family and I generally weren't strong swimmers.)

If Fluttershy, and at least some of the others, didn't have much experience hiking or navigating, though, I might think that would be even more reason to stick with the group and not wander off unannounced (in addition to the Everfree Forest being dangerous, at least theoretically). In my experience taking hikes with my family or with the Boy Scout Troop back in the day, it was understood that everyone would be aware of and check on at least the hiking mates right next to us. In the episode, I noticed that Rarity, Applejack, and Starlight, at least, all walked by Fluttershy as she was stopped on the side of the trail talking to the bird, but apparently none of them checked to make sure Fluttershy was coming before continuing very far past where she was stopped.

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3 minutes ago, Music Chart Fan said:

In the episode, I noticed that Rarity, Applejack, and Starlight, at least, all walked by Fluttershy as she was stopped on the side of the trail talking to the bird, but apparently none of them checked to make sure Fluttershy was coming before continuing very far past where she was stopped.

It could be because they have done this trek through the Everfree at least a half-dozen times before, they may have let their guard down. Though after what happened to Rarity just two episodes ago, you'd think she'd at least be on guard and would notice Fluttershy wandering off. :)

In any case - no merit badges were earned on this day. :lol:

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Oh, well, huh, that was a surprise.  I was expecting a resolution.  I'm relieved, in a way, but it's just prolonging the inevitable.  I emphatically expressed my dread of a reformed Chrissy on page 1 on this thread.  I want her to stay bad or get dead.  I don't want a happy neon Chrissy who's friends with the ponies.  Please, Celestia, no.

So, I guess this was just the set-up for later.  I wonder if the Chrissy saga will resolve in the S8 finale, or if they're waiting for the series finale?  That'd be kinda cool actually.  So, it wasn't a bad episode.  It was aggravating that they never found out about the clones.  I'm really surprised that they couldn't put 2 and 2 together and figure out that they weren't doing or saying those horrible things.  And apparently they're colorblind as well.  That's the only explanation.  Oh well.  I just hope that they find out later.  Something tells me that they won't, which really pisses me off.  I want them to find out that they weren't a**holes to each other.  I want satisfaction, dammit.

So...um....

Spoiler

208762247_PlotShot.thumb.jpg.d264d89313b82dfe2ff5edd4ea4adc98.jpg

Nice plot shot of Rainbow, there, Chrissy.  You uh....got something you want tell us?  Huh?  HuuuuhHmmmm?  *Nudge nudge, wink wink.:orly:  It's okay, Chrissy, you don't have to be embarrassed.  I totally get it.

So, the highlight of this episode by far was:

Spoiler

127.thumb.jpg.a354de7bfec8b8ec6fbc44b5cb83d77a.jpg

 

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4 hours ago, Justin_Case001 said:

So, the highlight of this episode by far was:

  Hide contents

Oh, that's clever! I remember the story of that guy, but forgot they made it into a movie with that title! Great catch!

Another fun ref in that same scene with Liarjack is the one to Jon Lovitz's pathological list character from SNL: She ends her sentence with his trademark, "That's the ticket!"

And finally she gives us a ref to "Slice of Life" by claiming a bugbear is partially responsible for the disappearance of the others.

Good stuff.

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I really liked this episode. For one, I thought it was humorous how members of the main 6 would encounter members of the mean 6 and only Rainbow Dash and AppleJack figured out there was something wrong with Rarity. Even though no one actually discovered what was going on, they all managed to resolve their problems and forgive each other even if they weren't sure why certain others had taken issue with them in the first place. It's a good lesson in loyalty and conflict resolution and giving the benefit of the doubt. I wish I had friends like this. Maybe I do, maybe it's something I need to work on. Anyway, I liked a lot. And I completed related to Starlight with the whole camping thing. 

Also, somewhat noteworthy was Pinkie comforting Fluttershy. She did a lot better than in Filli Vanilli. No jokes, no shouting, just plain comforting an upset friend. She's matured. It was nice to see. Pinkie is a good person but sometimes the writers take her comedy thing a bit too far. 

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