FiM Special: Rainbow Roadtrip

[Plonkett 341]

58 minutes ago, bigbertha said:

Okay I just rewatched this and I can safely say that I was way too harsh originally. I think a lot of my initial hatred came down to watching this with commercials, which contributed heavily to the special feeling dragged out and leading to me tuning out a chunk of the special from boredom, and generally going in expecting to dislike it. I know that's not a healthy mindset and I usually try not to do that, but we all make mistakes.

Anyways, now that I've rewatched it I can see why people love it. There is a charm to the special that I haven't seen from MLP in a long time and many of the new characters are interesting to watch since their dialogue is much more engaging than I expected. There's isn't much of a conflict, but there is enough of a general goal to keep things focused enough while still allowing the characters to breathe and go off on some tangents. And Sunny Skies's guilt, while nothing great, does the job for keeping the audience invested in an otherwise uninteresting main conflict.

And that leads to the negatives. The biggest one is that we never learn why everyone stopped getting along. The initial exposition song doesn't go into detail and it's brushed off whenever it's brought up again. The lack of an explanation makes the entire story feel contrived and makes me care less. It's a similar problem to The Crystal Empire. Also, I'm not a big fan of the two kids who look up to Rainbow Dash. They're not particularly charming and the schtick is something we've already seen before. 

Overall, I like this special. While the story feels kinda contrived and not every new character works, the down to earth charm and interesting characters make this an enjoyable time.

Score: 7/10

 

The special is a character study at best. I just don't think it warranted a full hour of runtime, it probably would've worked better as a two-parter for the show.

[Misty Shadow 7,085]

I give it an A for effort...but also an A for average. The animation was really nice, even if constantly looking at the faded parts of the town grew hard on the eyes. Writing and directing-wise is where this special's weaknesses lie in my eyes, which isn't too surprising considering that the writer had only written two episodes of the show before and the director had never directed anything for the show before. However, that does not excuse the obvious recycling from The Crystal Empire and The Cutie Map and the lack of both conflict and twists, even if I did like the one minor twist of it not being the generator that gave the town its color, but the will of the people. There were also a few decent jokes, like how Rainbow Dash got called a "sir" instead of a "ma'am" by those kids, but overall, for a special with bringing back color as a big part of its message, it's ironically lacking in excitement. 

[Ganondorf8 11,118]

Now that was a special that I enjoyed thoroughly. It had a little bit of everything that has made MLP such a popular cartoon these past nine years including some new ideas that haven't been fleshed out until now. I was afraid that the choice of using Toon Boom Harmony would be a problem but I'd say it was a wise decision to go with it instead of using Flash. Sure, the plot didn't have much in terms of stakes and no true villain was responsible for what happened, but then stories don't always need to be overly complex and be against true evil.

The songs weren't entirely the best but again they didn't have to be. They did what they set out to accomplish and that is what matters. In terms of the ponies of Hope Hollows, some of them weren't all that memorable while others will definitely have a lasting impact for quite some time. I will agree with others that in terms of the lesson, it was pretty much by the books and nothing exciting, but I'll let it slide this time. The Mane Six were shown in a positive light and that there are still influential to others around them.

Yeah... I don't really have anything else to say. Again, I enjoyed this special thoroughly. I'll give it 94%. How do I come up with my ratings you ask? I have my ways, strange as they are.

[Partialgeek514 4,920]

I felt like it was a heart-warming special. It wasn't super amazing compared to regular episodes, but I liked the return to the movie style animation and it was nice to get a story that lasted longer than 20 minutes. Overall, I enjoyed it.

[BastementSparkle 20,312]

So, if I could describe this special in any way, I'd say it was...Comfortable. Calm. Cozy (No, not the psycho filly.). It was a relaxing little adventure with no particularly high stakes and no real rush. The characters all felt like themselves, the new characters were all pretty cute and likable, and the movie's style worked pretty well for a TV special. Wasn't quite as exciting as I was hoping but was enjoyable nonetheless. Only real gripe I have was that the recolored background ponies feel way more noticeable with the movie's animation and it kind of took me out of the experience a bit, but that's not too big of a deal.

[CastletonSnob 3,025]

Is MLP in good hands (hooves) with Boulder Media?

Edited June 29, 2019 by VG_Addict

[MangoFoalix 24,898]

5 minutes ago, VG_Addict said:

Is MLP in good hands (hooves) with Boulder Media?

Yes. Need any other reasons?

[FlareGun45 2,221]

It was an alright special. The story was AMAZING and so is the moral of the story, which is so relatable! Unfortunately, this special just dragged on so much! I don't care if there wasn't a villain, but it was just so bland! I liked the characters though, each of the Mane Six had the chance to do something, and The End of the Rainbow was an awesome song! The other songs were meh. This special woulda worked out so much more if pacing wasn't an issue! It shoulda been a 44-minute special instead of a 60 minute one, cause then it mighta worked better!

Trust me, this story and moral were excellent, and it sucks that the potential was wasted by poor execution. For the people who are gonna watch G5, I sure hope it doesn't end up like this! 

[Sparklefan1234 161,880]

Another positive for this special is I thought that "Rainbow Roadtrip" looked really good even though I'm still not a huge fan of the "MLP Movie" designs.

 

I liked how even the grays seemed to give the characters personality.

 

One thing I did *not* like however, were the recolored Equestrian ponies

 

like, a green "Big Macintosh" that I saw while I was watching that made me think to myself: "Really, they're going to be *that* lazy?". 

[n1029 224]

26 minutes ago, VG_Addict said:

Is MLP in good hands (hooves) with Boulder Media?

 

Still can't say, but I don't imagine the adult following will last very long if the G5 movie and series are as dull as this. 

[DonMaguz 1,023]

I'm pleasantly surprised about this special.

It is a sort of fusion between 'The Crystal Empire' and 'Made in Manehattan' with great side plots for every mane pony.

- Rainbow Dash as an idol/coach is the best Rainbow Dash! (Seen already before on her interactions with Scootaloo).

- Rarity encouraging a younger fashionist to believe in her own designs is also beautiful.

- No one better than AJ to appreciate the hard job of a specialist on repairs. One of those difficult jobs that is less noticed the better they're done.

- Pinkie and Fluttershy using their best charms to make grumpy neighbors acknowledge and opening up to each other.

- Twilight trying her best to help the mayor and Petunia was also great, and the fact that she was just another one of the mane 6 and didn't get all the spotlight is refreshing for these kind of special.

Overall, it is a very nice special with some issues on predictability. But it makes up for it having amazing interactions between our lead characters and 9 spot on new characters.

[MangoFoalix 24,898]

31 minutes ago, n1029 said:

I don't imagine the adult following will last very long if the G5 movie and series are as dull as this.

Well, it probably will despite what you say. Others including myself didn't really feel that is was dull. It's actually a fun special to watch with a bunch of cute moments.

[Lucky Bolt 34,914]

I loved it. The animation was adorable and the story was really good. Rainbow Dash had some really cute scenes which was my favorite part of the whole special honestly. 

And the proposal at the end. That was super cute. We need more pony romance. 

[Rebel the Wolfgirl 5,585]

1 hour ago, Lucky Bolt said:

And the proposal at the end. That was super cute. We need more pony romance. 

Spoiler

Was it between RD and Applejack?

 

[Lucky Bolt 34,914]

Just now, Renegade the Unicorn said:

  Reveal hidden contents

Was it between RD and Applejack?

 

I wish!

[n1029 224]

Apparently this was directed by Gillian Comerford who ran the LPS: World of Our Own series. 

 

Judging from clips of the show it seems like it has better pacing and humor than this special did, so hopefully it was just a weak script here.

[Thrond 3,257]

I found this irresistible. I mean, it's one of the blandest stories the show has ever had, and the last act is kind of drawn out, and the Toon Boom art style is at best a sidestep from Flash and at worst a major step backwards, and the songs seem forgettable, but it's just so cute. To me, this is as charming as the show has ever been, plus I laughed at every joke, and those two qualities really made up for a lot. I love how it expanded on one of the best parts of "Best Gift Ever" and showed both Rarity and Rainbow Dash inspiring their fans. I love how Twilight is a total nerd from start to finish. I love Applejack as the most grounded and observant of the lot, and I love Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy's team up for maximum empathy points. Most of all I genuinely do love how this never spills over into the kind of high-stakes peril that the show's two-parters and the movie had. I kept expecting something to go wrong and it never did. The mane six just entered, fixed the situation, and left. I don't want the show to be like this very often - there's no introspection here, and nothing about it is surprising - but it's just so charming. I was delighted. 

Other points:

• This looks a fair bit better than the movie, if only because it doesn't have any horrible 3D objects, but I'm still distracted by the sparkly eyes, and I still think that the characters sometimes look like cardboard cutouts planted into the environments. The faces don't look as weird as they did in the movie, but instead they seem weirdly inexpressive; at best, this doesn't look all that different from Friendship is Magic, and at worst it seems like the ponies are just holding the same blank expression all the time. But I can see how this program might make a better-looking show than Friendship is Magic once they work out all the kinks. Plus, this has solid character designs, which already puts it several leagues ahead of the movie.
• Although, was that a Big Mac recolour? Minus points if that's the case; if you're gonna use shortcuts, just import the Flash models into the new program. 
• I have a theory that Twilight doesn't like being a princess, so the fact that Rarity and Rainbow had fans in this town but Twilight didn't seemed appropriate to me. Though I can imagine she would enjoy teaching them about magic. 
• The romantic subplot seemed a little like overkill - the idea of ponies getting along bringing colour back to the town is corny enough - but I found those characters charming. 

[Dark Qiviut 22,173]

I'm over 1/3 of the way through. So far, the pacing's really sluggish. A lot more could be done to speed it up. That said, I feel really awful for Mayor Sunny Skies. He tried to make the Rainbow Festival memorable and persuade everyone who lived there to stay. Instead, his accident only made everyone feel, well, hopeless.

[Thrond 3,257]

Of course Twilight likes grading exams. Of course she does.

[Dark Qiviut 22,173]

Already 2/3 through. Y'know, as slow as this TV film is, it spends a great deal of time building the conflict without rushing. Also, the M6 from the film were very basic sans Twi, Pinkie, and perhaps Rainbow. Here, each personality is very balanced, and there's no plot contrivance that holds someone back.

[Adamgreen 1,129]

Despite how slow the plot is, I kinda enjoy this special more than I thought. I love that the world building for this town is well executed through its song despite how direct it is, and I enjoy Sunny Skies as a character. I really feel bad for him and how much hopelessness he felt when he blamed himself for ruining the festival for everyone. I’m glad he finally have his hope again and finally propose his lover. It really gave me a warm feeling inside.

And of course, he Toonboom style is freaking beautiful. It’s a bit limited but make sense since there’re no big budget for this one. But it’s still smooth through and through.

Overall, I feel like this was a nice surprise. While the story could’ve been paced better, I think it’s a right step in the right direction for this kind of animation style. The MLP staff could’ve jus made it flash and it would’ve been an ok special, but given that they decided to animated it with Toonboom left me wondering what will they do with this style of animation? We’ll just have to wait and see I guess lol

[Ganondox 899]

I was iffy at first, I guess something about the animation style was throwing me off, but I ended up really liking it before long. The one thing that is keeping me from calling it great is that once the conflict is introduced the episode stays at a relaxed pace throughout, which causes it to just kinda fizzle out rather than having a real climax or anything. There isn't necessarily anything wrong with this and I think it fits with the moral of the episode, but it's not something most viewers find particularly entertaining. The issue has nothing to do with dragging things out due to a longer writing, if anything it would actually take MORE run time to fix the problem as the actual issue is a lack of events that build up tension. They did use all the time efficently, it was just devoted to building up characters rather than building up the conflict. There was just no stakes, it just an exploration where the problem was solved incrementally. It reminded me a lot of certain adventure games like Kings Quest in that regard, except there was no final challenge to cap it off when the different threads recombine, just a celebration. That being said, I was surprised to learn who wrote this, as this is by far the best thing she's written, overall I really enjoyed it. I guess that one thing that marked her as writing it was I disagreed with some of her characterization interpretations for the existing characters, which is common with her. 

Edited June 30, 2019 by Ganondox

[Dark Qiviut 22,173]

Finished watching it. Yeah, it's really slow, doesn't have really good songs, takes about a third of the plot before it really gets going, nowhere nearly as exciting as Best Gift Ever or even the Movie, and doesn't have the best dialogue. But it has its own strengths.

1. It's competent. The movie ignored a world of continuity to connect the story, mainly Twilight's inability to possess the staff through her magic or teleport. In BGE, Fluttershy's intelligence was zapped. Here, despite no stakes at any point, it doesn't contain any big mistakes, and it especially not an ableist library scene. Everything makes sense.
2. Everyone's in character and not basic at all. Already wrote this before, but I'll write it again. Applejack and FS were there in the movie, and neither Dash, Spike, nor Rarity did much. Twilight and Pinkie were easily the most complete with the former taking over most of the spotlight. (The movie had the M6 saving the day, but Twilight had one of the two biggest character arcs.) RR balances all six much more naturally, using their best strengths to help revive hope within Hope Hollow.
3. There's no antagonist, and do we need one? Not at all. Everyone is grumpy, because they feel Hope Hollow won't return to its glory days. The fact that there's no Rainbow Festival to cheer ponies up increased the hopelessness and grumpiness of the whole town. Mayor Sunny Skies also felt responsible for causing the town to lose its color and ruining the legacy his family left behind for him, even though Petunia tried tirelessly to convince him otherwise. Because he felt so guilty over his supposed accident, you can't help but root for him and the M6's quest to revive the festival so he can alleviate his guilt.
4. Its biggest strength: It's so wholesome. Hope Hollow's split and bitter, and after he told his story, they worked to strengthen each others' relations. Their methods to help them and kindness were genuine, and they really worked with everyone to help them recreate the Rainbow Festival's magic. Kerfuffle was shy about sharing her creations with others, so Rarity worked with her to showcase her talents. Dash realized Barley and Pickle had trouble flying, so she gradually trained them. It's charming, heartfelt, and warm, and you feel so happy to see them succeed.

This special's a very pleasant surprise. I didn't expect much, but I'm glad to be wrong. Between the film, BGE, and this, Rainbow Roadtrip's the best of the trio, and it's Kim Beyer-Johnson's best episode so far.

[Rising Dusk 26,083]

A nice special that had a warm comfort food feel to it.  Not the best, not the most complex, but it doesn't need to be.  It was nice to see the Movie's art style return, even if it does limit the expressions compared to what we've seen in season 9 thus far.  I'll admit, I was expecting a very different story from the moment they entered Hope Hollow.  I didn't read the synopsis so once I saw them enter a town void of color, I was expecting a classic horror/gothic mystery.  With a FiM twist of course.  The Mane Six summoned to a Rainbow Festival on false pretense by a color stealing monster after the ultimate meal, Rainbow Dash's color, or maybe her Sonic Rainboom.  What we got was good too though. 

Each of the Mane Six got to shine in their own elements and to see how each moment brought just a little bit of color back to the town with each pony they helped was just a delight.  Twilight had it right, this really is what their the best at.  Really it was a Friendship mission without the map having to make it happen.  Also for whatever reason, seeing Twilight react to a library just never seems to get old.  

The songs were nothing to write home about, but the last one was decent.  But how did the actual FiM song... Rainbow, not end up in the special?  Well, if anything it sure made me want to go listen to it after the special was over. 

Edited June 30, 2019 by Rising Dusk

[Splashee 28,537]

Seeing the My Little Pony logo without the "Friendship is Magic" brand attatched to it, made me feel slightly angry. No references to Lauren Faust also.

But I guess the story was okay, especially for the Main 6 having equal time. In the movie, it was more or less Twilight and Spike with background characters and one time celebrities. I do not like the art style! Never did. Cheeks, odly places noses, and glitter stuffed in their eyes (ouch). Animation is okay, but in case of this special, I think it is being on par with season 9.