S03:E07 - Wonderbolts Academy

[Winona the Dog 1,984]

Im trying to avoid spoilers (especially your comments!!!)  I couldn't help but watch the first 2 minuets of it. Let me say that i think this will be a great episode. It's just too bad no more Derpy appearances ,oh well let parents be the one who ruin everything =(

[Meirno 550]

 

Best episode. Ever. This is my new number 1 episode. Not only is my number one the star today, she got a great lesson in what being a wonderbolt is truly about. Discipline, courage, loyalty and duty. I had so many different feelings with this episode, especially considering the Wonderbolt Academy sure does look a lot like Basic Training in some ways. I'm so glad Snowflake(I thought his name was Roid Rage?) and Cloud Chaser and so many of our favorite back ground ponies were here, as well as Spitfire being the head honcho? Pretty cool I'd say. 

 

Great episode, and like I said, my new favorite. Plus, the very end where Rainbow guided the rest of the cadets out, beautiful. She will make an awesome Wonderbolt.

 

Edited December 13, 2012 by Meirno

[Harmonic Revelations 8,837]

The leak randomly starts and stops for some reason. I have no idea why. But this is so cool. The only leak of anything I've ever used before was when Halo Reach was leaked before it was released.

[Zenoctilles 102]

This episode was one of the most amazing MLP: FiM episodes ever. I'm certain it resonates with anyone who is an athlete or has been through recruit training in the military. And the lesson presented at the end wasn't vague or superficial, it actually has some basis in reality. 

 

This season keeps getting better and better. 

[PonyEcho 1,610]

well its the best Rainbowdash episode on the bast that its the only one that aloud her to develop her character with making her shallow.

i also love some of the shout out to the ponies from Hurricane Fluttershy (especially Roid Rage)

 

the moral was good pushing you self is good but you should be pushing you're self in the right direction (as i former Athlete i can relate very well to this moral)

 

Lightning Dust was a good character too and was a mirror to RD in almost every way hence making RD's change and development all the more stronger. however her punishment was unjust it looked like she was getting kicked from the academy when rely this would have been a time to teach by giving her RD's badge instead. 

 

also i think the key fault of the episode is SpitFire, yes i'm made the the voice actor changed and so did her personality trading it in for the professional drill sarge stereotype. she should have just been the captain of the wonderbolts (she's just the leader of the team and takes point) but she is given this authority and it doesn't fit. honestly it should have been a older Pegasus in charge somepony more grizzled that SF would likely look up to (i actual think i have a OC that would have fitted that role much better HighLight)    

 

the mane six part of the episode were off too i would have rely like it to be a stand alone episode with no Pinkie Pie to fill up extra seconds.

 

 

all an all good episode

Edited December 13, 2012 by Thereisnospoon303
The point about the Mod Queue is needless.

[Dark Qiviut 22,681]

Just finished. It was not just good. But EXCELLENT! There was plenty of great world-building here in this episode. From the previous seasons and how the Wonderbolts behaved and flew, it looks like an extremely difficult and stressful job. Wonderbolt Academy demonstrated the skill, force, and heart to try to join. Some will make it, some won't; and the Academy's tasks and obstacles show that.

 

Not a good reason whatsoever, but it was great seeing past characters again, namely Thunderlane, Raindrops, Cloudchaser, and Snowflake/Horse Power*. Summer Sun, meanwhile, also looks to be a really nice addition to the already huge pegasus cast. Maybe we'll get to see more of her in upcoming episodes.

 

Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie again! XD I love how she tends to overthink and closely guard her mailbox. They were funny, but also heartwarming. Throughout the series, we've seen that both Pinkie and Rainbow tend to have a pretty close friendship, and she doesn't want to lose it. Overreacting, but also very telling of her caring character.

 

And then Lightning Dust, the antagonist of this episode. She and Rainbow Dash have so much in common. They're fast, willing to push to the limits, and vie to be the best. But there's one big difference between them: Lightning Dust is reckless and wants to be the best no matter the cost. Rainbow Dash's main quality is loyalty, hence her Element, wants to be the best, too, but NOT at anyone's expense. Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust were complete foils as a result. I wouldn't be surprised if we see some incoming fanart and fanfic of her in the upcoming days and weeks.

 

Spitfire was portrayed really well. In previous episodes, she was written as more laid-back, and she was rough, neutral, and sergeant-like here. I can see why some feel surprised by this, but someone else made a very good point. Off the drill field, sergeants can be the most laid-back and nicest people out there. You can dance with him or her and maybe even be a drinking buddy. But on the drill field, they're tougher than nails and will yell and burst your confidence so hard that LUNA'S EAR-BLOWING, ECHOING, ROYAL CANTERLOT VOICE seems small. Her role as a drill sergeant shows how passionate she is as a Wonderbolt an how seriously she takes this position. Rainbow Dash and Spitfire can play fun and games some other time. But not here, and I really liked Spitfire's exploration of character here.

 

And now Rainbow Dash. This is her first episode as the primary protagonist since Read It and Weep. The three episodes starring Rainbow Dash last year were among the weakest because they tend to overblow one of her flaws or just have an average to poor structure. RIaW was decent. MtBPW! was meh. TMMDW was awful! Not the case here. Rainbow Dash's character was explored excellently here. She showed the confidence, occasional cockiness, and joy. But there were a few areas that were really explored:

1. Dash's humbleness. Rainbow Dash has a decent, but sensitive ego, and she had to put it aside. Normally, she would be the leader because of her ability to push herself and her extreme tenacity. This time, she's second-in-command, so she had to put it aside for the good of the team. Dash likes to be the leader and won't push for anything less. But she doesn't want to sacrifice her chance of being a Wonderbolt, either.
    
2. How her character was balanced. Throughout the season, Rainbow Dash's character has been written much better. Last week's episode showed exactly she cared, yet still kept that eager, proud, and impatient side of her. We saw all of that here. We saw her confidence that she'll perform, cockiness ("Yeah, they should," with an important laugh in reply to Lightning Dust), her self-importance ("So, which one of you lucky gals gets to be  my  wing pony?"), her forced humbleness (being Lightning Dust's wing pony), and even her character development from previous episodes, especially one… Look below. 
    
3. How she does not want to fly so recklessly. In Read It and Weep, she made a very reckless mistake, resulting in her breaking her wing. In this episode, we saw how she's learned from this: fly fast, fly well, but fly safe. Anytime there's a possible reckless flying move going to occur, her conscience rings and tells herself that it isn't worth it. We saw how much she regretted injuring her wing from that dive as well as not being so keen on the tornado and how she told Lightning Dust that diving that fast was a bad idea. In previous episodes, she wouldn't think of something like this and, instead, would push so hard to the point of exhausting herself. This episodes demonstrates her restraint.
    
4. Her full conscience. She loves to be a Wonderbolt, but  not  to the point of anyone getting hurt. She wasn't keen on diving so fast that she bruised her wing. She wasn't keen on seeing her competition stuck in the pack. She wasn't keen on Lightning Dust's tornado idea. And she surely wasn't keen on seeing those she's so close with get hurt or killed. Rainbow Dash went beyond the call of duty and did the right thing to save her friends from certain death. If being a Wonderbolt equaled recklessness to the point of her friends being DEAD, then that crosses the line.
    
5. Her loyalty to her friends. For her, it's her friends above anything else, even being a Wonderbolt, and her talk with Spitfire in her office near the end of the episode showed how much she's willing to sacrifice her dream as a result. It's a really touching part of this episode and my highlight here.

There have been extremely harsh criticisms and responses of Merriweather Williams for her not writing Rainbow Dash's character that well, especially in TMMDW. Although some of them have been extreme, I  do  understand how they feel. When your debut episode was so bad, especially with the most popular Mane 6 character at that point (and the other Mane 6 ponies, too) being that out of character, it's going to leave a lasting impression. Brony or no brony, first impressions in general really matter. That's why Cindy Morrow, who wrote Owl's Well that Ends Well, doesn't get the sc rutiny; she wrote great episodes previously. Williams didn't, so her episodes will be looked at with restraint to (un)reserved pessimism.

 

But since then, she has learned from this and has shown how much she's grown to understand the world of MLP:FIM as well as the characters. Since then, she's written easily much better episodes and has improved dramatically, too. Hearth's Warming Eve was well-told (but I haven't watched it in some time, so I'll have to go back and re-watch it to refresh my memory). Putting Your Hoof Down is a dramatic, but extremely well-done episode that explored Fluttershy's conflicted psyche. Dragon Quest is quite possibly the best Spike-centered episode, and I adored how much his friends back him up and just want him to be that great, sweet, sly dragon we grew to know and love. So she wrote much better.

 

Wonderbolt Academy, however, was a turning point, because this was a Rainbow Dash episode, and Williams was given another chance to execute her complex character well. The Bearer of Loyalty is the most complicated to write amongst the rest of the Mane 6 because there are so many facets that make her her. This time, she prevailed and executed, quite possibly, her strongest and best episode so far. This episode was an absolute joy to watch, and it's fantastic getting the chance to watch the best Rainbow Dash-centric episode since Sonic Rainboom. BRAVO!!

 

Because we're at the halfway point, I'll rank my episodes (from most-favorite to least favorite):

1. Magic Duel and Wonderbolt Academy (tie)

3. Sleepless in Ponyville

4. The Crystal Empire, Part 1

5. One Bad Apple

 

6. Too Many Pinkie Pies

 

7. The Crystal Empire, Part 2

 

*I prefer calling Snowflake "Horse Power" because he has the strength, will, but kind sensitivity.

Edited December 13, 2012 by Dark Qiviut

[CrystalRose 637]

I loved seeing Snowflake again. He's amazing.

 

But what happened to Spitfire? I loved her, and now she's been given a complete personality overhaul. I dislike the idea too of the Wonderbolts' training being like a military camp. Just... Ugh no.

 

I am a Pinkie fan though and this episode seemed to bring back some of the Pinkie spark we saw in the early episodes.

[Sam Polson 25]

For me this episode is the best ever for all years Mlp fim existed. Character development, animation, plot - everything is awesome.

I swear, I forgotten sometimes, what I watch a children show - this is so good and has such high-quality.

And there aren't any of this annoying long morals, like in previous episodes. Just short and cool conclusion.

Pure awesomeness. It's the masterpiece.

Edited December 13, 2012 by Sam Polson

[Mister Jack 566]

So uh...is Dash a Wonderbolt now or not?  Are we gonna have her going to school from now on?  Is she gonna be a Wonderbolt in future episodes?  How is this going to affect her?  This is too big a development to just ignore like they did with Tank.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,828]

I just finished watching the episode and I have to say, I think Rainbow Dash showed her element to the fullest in this episode. 

 

Lightning Dust was just an increase on Rainbow Dash's arrogant personality. But I was surprised to see how Rainbow Dash humbled out this time. Even though her time was nearly beat in the Dizzitron, she still is the best. 

 

I loved the moral of this episode. It kinda reminded me of the time I when I was a martial artist. My dad would always say "push yourself to the best you can be and never give up." Oh sure in Tae Kwon Do, there were times I felt like I could give up. But I strived to become who I wanted to become, and just like Rainbow Dash in this episode, I am now a 3rd degree black belt.

 

It is like, just because you want to be the best, doesn't mean you have to put others in danger for the sake of yourself. I like how they showed Lightning Dust as slightly better than Rainbow Dash, but in the end, she got what she deserved, and paid a terrible price. My heart dropped when Rainbow Dash said she was gonna quit, but somewhere inside me, a voice said, "It's not over yet". I finally got to see Rainbow Dash complete the first half of her dream. 

 

As for Spitfire, I finally got to see her play a major role. I just hope they bring back the old voice actor in future episodes, but the old actor represented her as kinda chill and cool. This new one made her like a general and Princess Luna's canterlot voice. 

 

Overall I'd give this a 9.5/10

Edited December 13, 2012 by Thunder-Dash

[CinemaBrony 1,276]

So uh...is Dash a Wonderbolt now or not?  Are we gonna have her going to school from now on?  Is she gonna be a Wonderbolt in future episodes?  How is this going to affect her?  This is too big a development to just ignore like they did with Tank.

Yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking at the end. I thought this episode was great up until the last 30-something seconds. Not that it was a bad ending, but I hope this doesn't mean that we're gonna see less and less Dashie for the remainder of the season.

[FALCON PUNCH 244]

Watched the episode today (I still feel like I should have watched it on Saturday.) and felt that this episode was one of the best it just feels like it was really developed.

[Rooish 47]

That episode was great! Spoilers below. Not sure why people are waiting for Saturday but I am not one to defer gratification  Awesome development for RD, although it was kind of a no-brainer--rescue your friends from certain death? Well, duh. But quitting the academy over the incident--that is a sign of loyalty.

 

It was really cute seeing all the ponies in the hot air balloon, so eager to see RD. Awwww. 

 

My guess is that this will be RD's new job, but it won't change her level of screentime much.

 

Speaking of screentime though, when is the last time Fluttershy talked? LOL. I kind of miss her. This episode was great for all the proponents of RD and Pinkie being closest (I was thinking "DashForever will like this" as I watched) and RD and AJ/Twilight (who kept getting all the RD hugs--Fluttershy and Rarity just stood there!).

 

For whomever says Pinkie has mental health problems... yeah I'm pretty sure she has no object permanence, among other things. 

[PonyHag1 591]

A good episode. A few scenes reminded me of one of my favorite movies, An Officer And A Gentleman - The chewing out of the rookies, the Dizzitron (Dilbert Dunker scene in the movie) and Dash holding Pinkie in her arms (the movie's end credits.) Not sure if it was an intentional homage, but it looked cool anyway.

 

Fluttershy forgetting that she can fly was funny

[duidamasterXD 9,627]

Well, I told myself I wouldn't post my thoughts on this episode until Saturday but I changed my mind. You probably shouldn't read this unless you've seen it.

 

1st -I'll admit that I was slightly nervous when I saw that Merriwether Williams wrote the episode, mainly because I had constructed several worst case scenarios for the episode and that was a common trait of them. I don't hate or even dislike her, she actually wrote one of my favorite episodes in Hearths Warming Eve, but I was nervous about her writing another Rainbow Dash episode after how the last one went over. I was very pleasantly surprised though and I think this is her best episode yet.

 

2nd- The shipping fuel. Holy crap the shipping fuel. Generally it is somewhat subtle at least, but with so much Pinkiedash stuff I actually questioned whether I was lucid dreaming about watching the episode, since that is my favorite pairing. I enjoyed it, others may not have, others may not see it at all. Any response is fine by me.

 

3rd- This episode continued with something present in Too Many Pinkie Pies that I really liked. Just as the Pinkie clones refuted a misconception that Pinkie is only obsessed with fun, Lightning Dust existed to show a character similar to how some people perceive Rainbow Dash and to definitively say " See this person? This vain, reckless, elitist, cocky shallow person?" Rainbow Dash is NOT this person." This episode did a very good job of balancing Rainbow's character flaws with her positive traits, which is something that at least the first half of season 2 somewhat failed to do and I'm pleased to see that they are portraying the depth of her character better.

 

4th- I liked the use of supporting characters in this one. Lightning Dust, combining the callousness and ego of Mare Do Well Dash with the elitism and douchebaggery of Gilda made a good antagonist and foil for Rainbow. Spitfire behaved about how I would expect for a drill sergeant to act, and it was good to see more of her even if I wasn't the biggest fan of her new voice. We got to see Horse Power again, which made for some good laughs and Pinkie's freakout was enjoyable.

 

5th- I was disappointed by the lack of a song but hey, the episode was great anyway.

 

6th- I'm confused by the ending. Did she become a Wonderbolt? If she did, how will this affect the series? I'm not sure how I feel about this at the moment.

 

Overall an episode with great art, great development for Dashie, and a great message. Hats off to Merriwether Williams, she did right by this one.

Edited December 13, 2012 by DashForever

[Creamy Arty 6,252]

I wanted to watch this in the stream on Saturday but a Hearth's Warming Eve party at noon won't permit it.

 

 

There's a "Wonderbolts Academy." Does this mean there are more Wonderbolts than those we've seen so far, or has every student washed out? How long has the school been around? What about those instructors/guards/whatever at the school, are they officially Wonderbolts as well? Every episode that answers questions introduces new ones. I can only hope the writers see these questions for the future episode potential that they are.

 

Spitefire's new VA: what's up with her? Could they not get Hendrikse to reprise? Spitefire's personality wasn't an issue for me. She was just doing her job. If they're the elite group they claim to be then they have to have a no-nonsense attitude towards training. We've seen that Spitfire isn't like that at more casual events, so the only conclusion I can make is she's in professional mode this time. That doesn't mean that she's changed; we're seeing another side of her. People have multifaceted personalities, life would be pretty dull if we were otherwise.

 

Rainbow Dash's exhibition of loyalty in this episode was exemplary. She has always been true to her element I believe, but never more so than she was here. She had no hesitation about walking out on her lifelong dream for the sake of her old friends and companions at the academy. Not my "favorite" pony by a longshot, but I definitely respect her for being so dedicated to them.

 

Lightening Dust didn't seem better than Rainbow Dash from my perspective, she was just reckless and too individualistic to bee a good team leader. If Rainbow threw all caution to the wind she could easily catch up to LD in any area in which she may have seemed lacking.

Edited December 13, 2012 by Artemis

[Party Cannon 876]

It was odd how Spitfire kind of acted like she has never met Rainbow Dash before. Wtf?

 

Poor Pinkie. BTW, it is annoying how as season three progresses they make her seem more filly-like than ever before as opposed to quirky.

 

Apple Jack commenting on the tornado was stereotypically funny.

 

Like all episodes it kept my interest and was a treat, yet it was one of my lesser liked episodes. I like Rainbow Dash, and her Wonderbolt aspirations, yet this was something I didn't ask for/need to see. Last episode was much better, as well as Rainbow Dash's role. It was cool that she came through as a leader, but the ending of this episode is way to open ended for my tastes.

 

 

 

BTW, I was waiting the whole time for a full on Full Metal Jacket reference....disappointed.

Edited December 13, 2012 by Party Cannon

[Sepraxian 36]

Oh hey, they've realised that Gilda was a terrible character and reworked her into Lightning Dust, much better character! I like how she isn't a rival to RD, but a colleague. Also I like that they became close to each other from the start, without any rival phase, even.

 

What I really dislike is the ending. When RD walks out of the office, it is perfect. It shows character development. But then it spirals back into some weird position of "Well, she's kinda there, but not quite".

 

By the way, I can't be the only one who was waiting for some kind of Sonic Dustboom, can I?

Heh heh, "Dustboom". Sounds weird.

Edited December 13, 2012 by Sepraxian

[Mister Jack 566]

We've seen before that Spitfire is usually pretty nice so I don't have a problem with her keeping Dash at the academy.  I just wish I knew what was going on with Dash now.

[Obi_Hooves_Kenobi 17]

You guys worrying about Dashie leaving... If you recall to the beginning of the episode, the academy was only a week long. You have nothing to worry about. They aren't just going to ditch one of the most popular characters like that; that's a terrible idea, and they know they'll lose viewers and money that way.

 

Other than that, I thought it was a good episode. I personally despise the "OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH" line and wish it would just die out already, and I thought Pinkie Pie was hilarious. L.D. reminded me of all the jocks from High School that would slam you out of the way so that they could hit the volleyball back over the net, and even at the beginning I could sense that there was something off about this pony. 

 

I'll be honest. I dislike Rainbow Dash. She's cocky, arrogant and overrated in my opinion. But after this episode, if her character continues to be more akin to this new Rainbow Dash, I think I can start considering her to be one of my favorites.

[Windy Flicker 16]

Pretty good episode overall. Spitfire was awesome! I was expecting Spitfire to explain to Dash that she was Wing because she would be in a better position to keep her Lead in check. In fact, I expected Spitfighter to have caught on to LD's flippant bluster early on and be ready to smack her down and back in line with the others.

[Whofch 128]

Fudge, I caved in   Soooooo my thoughts after first viewing.

 

Wasn't what I was expecting, with the whole military vibe and all but we've been shown that the Pegasi came from a militarily background so it sorta makes sense.

 

Anyway, near the beginning, they made a point of telling us that twilight was learning new spells from Celestia. Always nice to hear about and not just suddenly find out

 

Pinkie being weird as per. Always entertaining in small doses.

 

The return of some characters from Hurricane Fluttershy. Always nice to see some familiar faces.

 

Spitfires different attitude. Is this because of the whole training camp business or not? Who knows.

 

Before the episode I thought that this new fast flyer and RD were going to end up as friends. Was wrong on that. Then during the episode I was expecting RD to mess something up trying to be better than her (even though she technically was anyway). Was wrong on that too.

Was very pleased to see the not so jerky side of RD and that she doesn't like to intentionally be an ass. The whole loyalty thing was nice.

 

RD is defiantly not 1 of my top characters but I thought this episode did her well.

 

All in all, I'd rate this with Magic duel. No great peaks in enjoyment but no real drops in it either. A steady episode.

 

Liked Rarity hugging Thunderlane(I think?) and the look Fluttershy got when she was 'saved'.

 

Will have to watch again before any real thoughts can be put together.

 

 

[king error 50]

When I first found out about this episode being around the wonderbolts academy I was hoping Spitfire would have a big role in it seeing as she's my favourite and all, shame its not the same VA as S1 SF, but I guess it does suit her role more.

 

One small gripe though, why suddenly change her cutie mark? Couldn't get a clear look at but its definately different to her previous one.

[duidamasterXD 9,627]

Lightening Dust didn't seem better than Rainbow Dash from my perspective, she was just reckless and too individualistic to bee a good team leader. If Rainbow threw all caution to the wind she could easily catch up to LD in any area in which she may have seemed lacking.

 I agree with this completely. Also, anyone operating under the assumption that Lightning Dust is the better flier out of the two of them is forgetting something pretty signigicant...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WImRs-nWW48&feature=player_detailpage#t=71s

[MorningFlash 214]

They need to put at least one Buzz Lightyear reference in here. Seriously, I can just see it now. "I had it pounded out of me at the academy" seriously, it needs to happen.