S09:E03 - Uprooted

[SharpWit 2,472]

It'd be strange to have a member of the Hippogriff Royal Family to become a member of a foriegn military body. It makes one wonder, why aren't there any Griffons among Equestria's ranks if the only criteria for the Wonderbolts other than successfully going through the academy might be a part time residency and ability to fly.

The episode was ok, felt mostly like a filler one, though I suppose it's good to calm things down before the storm. Ooh! Imagine if the Storm King were brought back by Grogar! 

I did get really tense towards the end, worried that the Castle of the Royal Sisters was about to be destroyed by a Harmonious Tree House 

As far as locations of historical importance go, that one is at the top of the list for me, and it's preservation is far more important than a memorialization for the Tree. Sure Equestria has been forever changed and saved thanks to the pillars, the tree, and elements, but beyond holding back the Everfree Forest, Equestria has mostly relied on itself thanks to Luna choosing a different path.

[Kevin 160]

Even though this episode was predictable for the most part, I was not expecting that conclusion at all and have to give kudos to the writers on that part!

No doubt they're both doing a season-long arc now and setting it yp for the Student Six to succeed the Mane 6's roles as the elements of harmony after this Season is done!

[Sparklefan1234 161,672]

My favorite things about this episode were seeing Twilight Sparkle a lot & Silver Stream & Ocellus's contributions to the tree memorial.

 

[Steve Piranha 28,752]

58 minutes ago, Kevin said:

Even though this episode was predictable for the most part, I was not expecting that conclusion at all and have to give kudos to the writers on that part!

 

Oh yeah, the tree is revived, and it actually manages to NOT look jarring 

[Ganondox 899]

This one was pretty mediocre, with a forced conflict just for the sake of having a conflict. It's clear they are just trying to get this out of the way to set something up for later. Still, it was nice to see the Spirit of Harmony and the Student Six again. 

[Cash In 21,493]

I enjoyed this episode a lot.

Well, it's good to see that the Tree of Harmony remains alive and well, despite the madness from the last two episodes. The conflict within the Student Six was rather predictable, but I liked the way it was handled overall. Their ideas all clashed, though they initially couldn't see the bigger picture. Like the Mane Six, the Student Six will experience conflict, especially on account that they're newer towards the concept of friendship. Because of that, I'm really not that upset over something predictable. I did like how Yona was portrayed as a neutral ground, who was struggling to overcome siding with one student over the other. She had the right idea and I liked how she explained the overall message in her own way, without coming off as unnecessary exposition: "Yaks know things not forever. That's why smash and rebuild" - that got a laugh out of me. The song was okay, though I did like the appearance of the transformed Tree of Harmony and it's pretty clear that it will prove to be very important. I was expecting to get a look of the interior of it, but it seems that I'll have to play the waiting game.

[Dark Qiviut 22,160]

The one moment from this episode that annoys me the most is Sandbar revealing to stashing the Tree's broken parts in a wagon out in the open. The whole dilemma is bound by Sandbar cleaning up in favor of the little plant. Throughout Act 2, they argued over how to honor it best and couldn't agree at all. Additionally, the cave has no second exit. For Yona to find it really easily (especially after Gallus asked him where it is beforehand) and nearby one of Silverstream's murals makes the remaining five look incompetent throughout their argument.

[Kevin Tang 2,422]

Won't say it's good and won't say it's bad

Somewhere in between

I wasn't really excited about this one

[qwerE 95]

An episode about the student 6. As with the mane 6, great to see them back!

The story was also fine, despite its simplicity. I usually dislike plots that involve the main characters arguing with each other, but I think the writers got it right this time. Most of the times I hated characters fighting each other was when the mane 6 were doing it. It just made no sense that adults would behave in such a childish way, and everypony just felt out of character. In contrast, this episode used the student 6 instead, making for a much more plausible story. After all, they are just kids in the process of learning friendship right now, so it makes sense that they'd get into arguments here and there. A clever move by the writers, I guess.

[Steve Piranha 28,752]

I wonder if the tree will produce crystal berries, like Posie’s crystal tree 

[Lambdadelta 1,462]

This is an episode about cute kids doing silly things to mourn for the Tree, that's cute but it's really funny that their faces when they knew tree was gone look more sincere than the mane 6 in the premiere. The kids see the tree more like a sentinel being because it/or she talked to them, so they have emotional attachment to it/or her. The mane 6, on the other hand, just see the tree as a tool so they don't have some reactions like the student 6 do, that's my 2 cents. Yona is best student confirmed, she should be the leader of the group. I don't know why the tree doesn't have some communication with the mane 6 until now, they are the current bearers, why not talk to them to give them advices instead of some indirect influences like the map missions, the keys etc. And thanks god, the tree still alive and it gave us another toy house. A decent episode, Ok song, ok plot, cute characters, 7/10. 

Edited April 14, 2019 by Lambdadelta

[Live Spark 163]

My initial impression of the episode was rather disappointing I thought it was going to be something similar to What Lies Beneath where the Student 6 would have to complete some series of tasks in order to become worthy successors of the elements. But instead it was just them auguring about how to memorialize the tree for the majority of the episode, I also thought the song was pretty generic as well.  But after re-watching the episode for a second time, this time putting aside any predetermined notions I had about it I ultimately found the episode to be okay. It was nice to see the Student 6 again (one of the only decent things to come out of Season 8 IMO) and the new sanctum of harmony looks interesting, just wish they gave us a look inside before the episode ended. Overall not a bad episode but not a great one either just okay in the end. Also the song did grow on me a little as well, Ingram sure does know how to compose a catchy song even if the lyrics are a bit meh.

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,543]

2 minutes ago, Live Spark said:

My initial impression of the episode was rather disappointing I thought it was going to be something similar to What Lies Beneath where the Student 6 would have to complete some series of tasks in order to become worthy successors of the elements. But instead it was just them auguring about how to memorialize the tree for the majority of the episode, I also thought the song was pretty generic as well.  But after re-watching the episode for a second time, this time putting aside any predetermined notions I had about it I ultimately found the episode to be okay. It was nice to see the Student 6 again (one of the only decent things to come out of Season 8 IMO) and the new sanctum of harmony looks interesting, just wish they gave us a look inside before the episode ended. Overall not a bad episode but not a great one either just okay in the end. Also the song did grow on me a little as well, Ingram sure does know how to compose a catchy song even if the lyrics are a bit meh.

I think that Season 8 is perhaps the most underrated in the show, and part of why I thought it worked was because of the students' inclusion.

[The Nth Doctor 652]

I wonder how Twilight feels about the Student Six getting an actual tree-based castle while hers is an eyesore and a crime against nature

The Tree of Harmony is petty as heck

[Props Valroa 25,980]

As much as I like how the new 'treehouse' thing looks, I would say it was far too soon to happen. I wish the tree was kept destroyed, to add a sense of urgency and such to the show and to show the everlasting effects of Sombra.

[bwrosas 252]

The tree of harmony treehouse is for all, not just the students. And maybe it's just me, but the way the tree spoke at the end here, that confirms it's (to me), that it's Gusty The Great and her spirit residing in the tree.

[ImpctR 155]

Here's the episode at 1080p , this brony has saved the day multiple times, also when away to watch it even for episodes like season 4's finale twilight's kingdom, the episode that grew her castle. Funny I mention this in a thread for an episode that erects a similar building:

Spoiler

 

 

[Drunkfrank 1,125]

57 minutes ago, bwrosas said:

The tree of harmony treehouse is for all, not just the students. And maybe it's just me, but the way the tree spoke at the end here, that confirms it's (to me), that it's Gusty The Great and her spirit residing in the tree.

I like this theory, perhaps when Starswirl and others planted it it became a reincarnation of sorts of the first hero of Equestria.

[Zestanor 98]

I’m not a fan of the “old people don’t die” thing. We hand waved it for the sisters, because their existence was thought to be foundational lore... though their retiring slightly cripples that idea. We can hand wave it for Starswirl because he’s a sorcerer. But for example, Mage Meadowbrook was said to have “disappeared” centuries ago. We would later find out that that was true, but the character who said it had no way of knowing her final fate, and should have assumed it was death.

If Gusty is the Tree, then I fear they’ll have to do some dancing to explain why she’s a spirit not a pony. I feel like that’s too obviously an example of death that they won’t be able to explain it away skillfully. Because I doubt they’d straight up say “old person died because that’s what happens.”

[RDDash 18,848]

19 hours ago, SharpWit said:

It'd be strange to have a member of the Hippogriff Royal Family to become a member of a foriegn military body. 

That kind of thing happens all the time between Royals actually, at least back in the old days they swapped family members between each other.

[Goat-kun 2,496]

Told you so. The destruction of ToH, the freedom of Everfree, nothing matters. The damn thing exists beyond the reach of canon characters. Only another divine power can vanquish Harmony. In other words: only in fanon can there ever be a serious threat to Harmony. Only in fanon can there ever be balance in all things. It is for that reason that we, the haters, must claim all the Creation Stones.

[SharpWit 2,472]

30 minutes ago, R.D.Dash said:

That kind of thing happens all the time between Royals actually, at least back in the old days they swapped family members between each other.

This isn't anything like that however. She'd be doing it not to strengthen alliances or to obtain knowledge and experience she can bring back to her homeland (Although she's doing that for friendship) but simply because she wants to.

[Thrond 3,257]

I feel like we've seen this story in this show several times before, but this is a very well-done version of it. I really enjoyed seeing these kids interact with each other, and each of their attempts to build a memorial was sweet in its own way. Yona has become one of my favourite characters in this entire show by now, whereas Sandbar still holds the group back a bit. I agree that this one feels less fresh and substantial than some of the show's best episodes, but there's a charm here which I don't feel has always come across in the show's less significant episodes. To me this is a significant improvement over the premiere simply because it takes more time with character interactions. Some other points:

• I still can't quite get used to the Tree of Harmony taking Twilight's form, and having Twilight in the same episode makes it all the more strange. 
• I like that the students working together brought the tree back. That's the kind of simple, naive quality that has always been most appealing about this show's world. It's like a fairy tale. I don't want to watch this show always afraid that the villains will come back. I just want to see people working through their problems and learning to be better friends. 
• I like Twilight in this enough that I really wish the show knew what else to do with her and her friends. I want to see them react to adult situations in adult ways, but I know the show can't do that, because it wouldn't be very relevant to the kids watching. 
• Does Silverstream want to be a Wonderbolt? That's interesting. 
• Poor Gallus. Went through all the trouble of trying to get the permission slip signed just to be reminded that nobody cares. 
• The changelings are up there with yaks and ponies for my favourite species in the show. Every little glimpse we get of their society is cuter than the last. 
• I was really surprised by how much emphasis was placed on continuity. You have a whole big section here where Twilight tells the kids what happened in the premiere. I don't think My Little Pony really benefits from this kind of overarching adventure storyline, but I'm happy that all of the major improvements of the last season have carried over here. 
• I'm really glad that the tree is back. After last season, I was really excited for what the show might do with it as a character. Last year the show did so much to make me care about its mythological elements, and I would have been sad to see one of the best parts of that thrown away. 
• Now, if it were the map that was destroyed, I'd be singing a different tune... alas. 

[bwrosas 252]

something tells me, that tree's "spirit" will reveal itself to Twilight and the rest of the Mane 8 very soon.

[Music Chart Fan 818]

Overall, I would have to say that I didn't find the main story of this episode very engaging. It's difficult for me to buy into the idea that the Student Six have a special deep connection to the Tree of Harmony, such that they're personally devastated that it was destroyed. And I thought the whole middle section - where the Student Six argue, go off to do their own things, ruin each other's ideas, then argue some more - wasn't very interesting and dragged on a bit. But there were some other smaller things that I liked - such as Silverstream's apparent desire to become a Wonderbolt, the return of Thorax in another speaking role, seeing a little bit of the Student Six interacting with their families and societies, etc. And the crystal treehouse at the end of the episode does look pretty nice.

One thing I noted was how, after hearing that the Tree and Elements of Harmony are gone, Ocellus anxiously asks a question that I had in the last episode: "But doesn't that mean the Everfree Forest will take over Equestria?!". And Spike just says "We've got that part under control, and Sombra won't be coming back". But how do they have the Everfree Forest under control with the Tree and Elements of Harmony destroyed? I don't think that's ever answered. Just last episode, the Mane Six prioritized fighting the Everfree Forest over stopping Sombra or freeing the enslaved residents of Ponyville, and it apparently took the powers of Celestia, Luna, and Star Swirl to keep it at bay. And in this episode, the Student Six make multiple trips out to the Tree of Harmony, and tourists even make their way out there. So that seems like a significant thing to just gloss over with no explanation. It might also tell us just how much of a place of solace and safety the new crystal treehouse is - after all, it might be more difficult to find solace and safety there if the trip there is dangerous and stressful.

Next, when the Student Six ask to stay to do something to memorialize the Tree of Harmony, I noticed that Twilight said that it's okay "as long as you get permission from your kingdoms", while not mentioning their parents/guardians. But I suppose if this is analogous to studying abroad, then the Student Six would be getting the equivalent of clearance from their home countries. And it appears that most of the Student Six get permission from their parents/guardians, anyway.

We see Ember signing Smolder's permission slip (after Smolder proves herself worthy), but after that, the permission slip appears to have four signatures, so Smolder may have gotten her parents to sign already. Yona has to do chores to get her dad's (I assume) signature, although we never see Yona getting Prince Rutherford's (or some other leader's) signature. Grampa Gruff may act as both Gallus's guardian and a "leader" of the griffons; I don't know if the griffons really have a formal leader. Ocellus gets (what appears to be) her parents and her two baby siblings to sign her form; I suppose Thorax's nod to Twilight already counted as permission from him. Silversteam gives a presentation to get her parents and Terramar to give their signatures. There's no scene of getting Queen Novo's permission, but maybe if Silverstream's parents are related to her, then they count as high-enough-ranking officials? It's a bit weird that, in at least two cases, students seem to get their siblings' signatures, too; would their siblings have standing to stop them? And I guess this episode didn't feel any need to show us Sandbar's parents, although we did see them back in "The Hearth's Warming Club".

I don't have any other major observations, so here are the rest of my miscellaneous observations:

Gallus was the one to help Silverstream face her fear back in "What Lies Beneath", so in this episode, Silverstream returns the favor and saves Gallus from his fear (while no doubt adding fuel to the shipping fire).

The Tree of Harmony tells the Student Six in the dream "Good. You have all answered my summons", which seems like a bit of a strange way to put it. Did they have a choice in the matter? They didn't even seem to be aware that they were being summoned.

To all of us in the audience, the Tree of Harmony's manifestation as Twilight is obviously sparkly and translucent, and looks different than the actual Twilight. But Ocellus refers to the Tree of Harmony's manifestation as Headmare Twilight, so can the characters in the show not see the same differences?

Twilight's worrying about the highlighters raises a question: at the School of Friendship, is the school itself responsible for students' writing supplies, etc.? Most of us are probably used to the model whereby individual students (and their parents) are largely responsible for their own school supplies, hence the annual start-of-school-year supply lists and shopping trips. Are the School of Friendship students not considered responsible enough to buy their own supplies? Is it that they come from different societies, such that they may not be familiar with the supplies that will be used?

It's nice to see Thorax, and he does push back on the "dragon quest" idea from Smolder (and Ocellus's transforming into a dragon), but after he first scolds Ocellus for sneaking off, he doesn't appear to doubt or question Ocellus's vague rationale that "it was an emergency!". So Thorax might still exhibit at least some signs of still being a pushover.

I'm kind of curious as to how Sandbar cleaned up the Tree of Harmony as well as he did, at least if he did so without significant help. Did the Tree of Harmony not have a whole root system that wouldn't be easy to dig out and clean up? I had a big tree cut down in my backyard, and while the stump was ground down as much as possible, there's no way that the root system was going to be removed.

Also, as soon as the rest of the Student Six were upset and not on board with the Tree of Harmony's being removed, why didn't Sandbar just tell them "Hey, okay, I have the pieces of the Tree of Harmony right over here"? And I guess none of the rest of them saw the wagon with the pieces in it (or were curious about it) prior to Yona's bringing it out, either.

During the song, we see Ocellus and Silverstream putting together pieces of what appear to be the broken Elements of Harmony. However, in this episode, each Element is only broken into 2 or 3 pieces, whereas if we look at the end of "The Beginning Of The End - Part 1", we see each of the Elements shattering into at least 8-15 pieces.

With how precarious the treehouse looks, I wouldn't have trusted its structural integrity to hold the weight of the Student Six, and I thought the rumbling was going to be the whole thing collapsing.