S04:E12 - Pinkie Pride

[PartyWithPinkie 189]

This episode was amazing.... And it completely debunks the theory that Pinkie has become "one-dimensional" this season.

I did not want any part of Cheese Sandwich near my Pinkie or Ponyville because of how he was making her feel.

But when it was revealed that he became a party pony because of Pinkie, I saw a lot of myself in him.

I would love to be as awesome as Pinkie *.*

 

I really enjoyed the amount of songs, and I thought they were all really good.

Pinkie's song really moved me, and I enjoyed seeing an actual live Gummy

[MatrixChicken 879]

So this is probably my favorite episode of season 4 so far... Loved all the new faces, it was very funny... it was just very entertaining. Of course, there were a few awkward parts that I thought could be done better, but it was overall really fun. From the introduction of Cheese Sandwich (maybe it was just late, but Boneless had me laughing really hard) to the songs and aforementioned new faces... Very enjoyable indeed. This one, again, had no correlation to the overarching storyline of season 4 (other than revealing Pinkie's key, of course). I think I like the one-off episodes more than the story arc ones. Anyways, I'm glad there's finally an episode in season 4 I like a lot, and I hope I enjoy the rest!

 

P.S. I'm not the biggest Weird Al fan, so that's why I'm not raving about him in my "review". xD That's not to say I dislike his work, I just haven't seen a lot of it. I do like the songs of his I've heard, though. I think it's really cool that he appeared on MLP.

[Music Chart Fan 819]

Bro relax.

 

I don't know if you know this, but I've made a lengthy post about every episode of Seasons 3 and 4 as they've come out, so I put the last paragraph mentioning you and Rivendare on a post that I was going to make anyway. I just wanted to clarify that, since it looks like you might have thought that my huge post was all an overreaction to you and Rivendare, when that's not the case.

 

In my post earlier today I never explicitly said that people who hated the episode were trolls (though, in retrospect, I can see how it would merely suggest as much). Simply put, I figured my post carried obvious sarcasm and it was said with a lack of seriousness. I didn't think anyone would take it too seriously. To the extent of your post, it seems you did. 

 

Seeing your and Rivendare's posts, among others, brought to mind a couple of phenomena I've been seeing on MLP Forums with which I disagree. First, I've seen forum members on several occasions post something to the effect of "no real fan of the show could dislike this episode" or "anyone who dislikes these episodes is a troll/hater/whiner/etc.". Such posts seem to imply that there is no possible legitimate criticism of the episodes, when I obviously think there is, and such posts also seem to reflect an unwarranted expectation that forum members and fans of the show should all hold certain opinions, when in fact I would expect diversity of opinion, since the fandom ultimately consists of individuals with their own perspectives.

 

A similar phenomenon I've seen is forum members saying (sometimes to me in particular) that other forum members need to stop overthinking things, stop nitpicking, stop being negative, etc., because those things ruin other people's experiences and drive new fans away from the forums and the show. I don't really see why that would be the case, but more significantly, the implication of some of these posts seems to be that a narrow range of opinions should be enforced on the forums, and people who post "unapproved" negative opinions or nitpicking should be silenced and ostracized, which again is something I disagree with.

 

Because of these phenomena I've seen, sometimes directed at me, I can't help feeling a bit defensive and sometimes feeling like fighting back (although I usually don't). I'm not saying that you or Rivendare necessarily believe these things which I disagree with, but your posts brought them to mind, so that might explain my reaction.

 

I visited your profile and you said that you like analyzing things and pointing out their flaws. That's something that kind of annoys me, but it's great for certain people who want to go into certain areas of study. It's just that people getting into the minutiae of the show kind of ruins the experience as a whole for me. I don't watch the show to analyze it and find flaws and plot holes. I watch the show solely for the appreciation of it. Now, sure, if something is bad and blatantly obvious then that bugs the crap out of me. But you seem to be the type who notices everything, and even the tiniest detail stands out to you like someone wearing a lime green shirt and short shorts to a formal business meeting. 

 

One of our differences, then, is that for me, analyzing episodes is an inseparable part of the viewing experience. That is, I notice these inconsistencies, oddities, actions that don't make sense, etc. just as a matter of course when watching an episode. It would basically be impossible for me to "turn my brain off" or "just appreciate it" and not notice these things. Further, as I have mentioned in a previous post, for me, part of the enjoyment of the show and the forums is finding and documenting these inconsistencies and questions that I observe, then seeing if other people spotted them too, finding out what other people think about them, and maybe seeing if plausible explanations for some of them can be found.

 

I know that there are a lot of other forum members who aren't interested in, or even dislike, my in-depth analysis of episodes and specific parts of them, and there are also forum members who apparently only want to read posts that confirm their own positive opinions. I've always figured there are plenty of other simpler and/or more positive posts for such people to read, if that's what they want. I assume that such people probably don't bother reading my posts at all, or if they do, that they probably don't think twice about what I wrote. But I still write my lengthy analysis posts, in part just to try to organize and archive my thoughts on each episode, but also in the hope that a few people will read them and find something interesting or funny that they didn't notice or think about before, and maybe even do the same for me.

 

Regarding your thoughts on the episode, I'm not denouncing any of them. You pointed out a lot of things that most people probably missed. But most people likely weren't paying attention to these things. I never noticed the paint thing. Pinkie's friends just going of with Cheese Sandwich on his word and leaving her behind did kind of bug me, but you also have to keep in mind that the show has a 30 minute runtime. And even so, at least 6 or 7 minutes of the show's slot is taken up be advertisements. So in reality, they only get 23 to 24 minutes to develop this character, develop the plot and establish conflict, hit the turning point, climax, and resolve. Unless an episode gets two parts, pacing is virtually always going to feel a little rushed.

 

You know, I was actually thinking the same thing while watching the episode. I like finding silly errors and gaps of logic in shows as well. The way I see it though, is that you need to suspend reality to an extent when watching something like MLP. Every cartoon has something like this (i,e, Spongebob is full of stuff like this). So i let certain things pass. As long as it isn't a glaring inconsistency that makes the episode less enjoyable or creates an obvious plot hole then I'm willing to look past it.

 

Again it's one of those "cartoon" moments that I'm willing to look past as it doesn't bother me and it doesn't make the episode worse. I loved that song. It was fun to watch and I was entertained throughout.

 

You raise an interesting ongoing question of mine: when we, as viewers of the show, see inconsistencies, unrealistic actions, breaking continuity, etc., when should we let that slide and when should we call that out? When are such things forgivable in the service of making jokes or advancing the plot and when are they not? The two of you acknowledge that are criticisms to be made of the episode, yet those things apparently didn't affect your positive opinions of the episode much (if at all). For me, on the other hand, the annoyances, questionable character actions, etc. all ended up contributing to a general dislike of the episode.

 

I know that some of the things I've pointed out in all of my lengthy analysis posts were just jokes or plot convenience, and while I have occasionally liked a joke despite it involving an inconsistency or whatnot, ultimately, I don't like breaking continuity, consistency, or realism too much for the sake of jokes and plot convenience, and especially so when the jokes aren't funny or the plot is unengaging. I've been told that I have unrealistic expectations of the show, that I expect too much continuity between disparate events in episodes or between the world of Equestria and our world, or that I expect everything to have an explanation when it shouldn't. But I don't know what the right balance is supposed to be, and in addition, it's hard to imagine myself significantly changing the way I watch the show.

 

There's something I have to question: your opinion of the show in general. You said you don't feel strongly about any of the episodes. Therefore, if you voted, your vote would have been "Meh" or "I didn't like it." If the show is either bland or unenjoyable to you, then why do you watch it? If I don't, at minimum, derive some form of actual enjoyment from something, I'm not watching, listening to, or reading it. I don't quite understand watching something for the sole purpose of just picking it apart. If that's your thing, then that's fine with me. I just can't wrap my mind around watching something I don't thoroughly enjoy lol

 

Well, as I mentioned above, analyzing the episodes and documenting my observations is indeed part of my enjoyment of the show. But also, even though you can't really tell from my posts, most episodes do have at least a few good moments, and there are certain aspects of the show overall that I (mostly) like. I don't usually write about such things for a few reasons. One is that I find it easier, more comfortable, and more interesting for me to write about inconsistencies, etc. Another is that the good parts of episodes are almost always already mentioned and explained many times by other posters. I usually have nothing to add to many others already wrote, so I don't bother becoming the 72nd comment to say I liked X or Y in the episode. On the other hand, I don't feel like there are nearly as many posters who analyze details, implications, character actions, etc. more in-depth, so doing that helps me feel like my posts are a little more worthwhile and contributing something (however much that may be) to the discussion.

 

Part of the issue about voting in the episode polls is that I'm not very good at ranking things or quantifying my feelings or preferences in general, and that extends to trying to judge overall episodes. Every episode has its flaws, but most episodes also have at least a few positives. There are all the individual good and bad moments to consider, and furthermore, some episodes have plots that are contrived or need a lot more explanation or are just unengaging, while other episodes have plots that are solid and entertaining enough, even if they're not spectacular. How should I weight and add up all of these things to make a final judgment? It doesn't seem right to me to say that I liked or loved an episode as a whole when I can always think of flaws (big and small) that I noticed and the good parts usually didn't have a huge impact on me.

 

Speaking of which, part of the issue, too, is that I probably don't get into the show or relate to the characters, their situations, and the actions they take as much as others do. I'm not a terribly emotional person, I tend to be analytical and skeptical, I'm more prone to inaction than action, I usually don't seek social attention, I have less tolerance for things that seem to be a waste of time, money, and effort, etc. These things could be why I end up questioning and disliking characters' actions quite a bit, since they don't make much sense to me and I feel like I wouldn't (or shouldn't) do many of the things that they do. And these personality traits could also explain why I end up viewing the show in a more analytic way and don't have strong feelings about any particular episode.

 

As for "thoroughly enjoying" the things one chooses to do, that depends on what the definition of "thoroughly enjoying" is. For example, as my user name and avatar suggest, I look up Billboard singles charts from the past 50+ years. There are some aspects of this that I enjoy and get excited about: looking up artists and songs I've heard and seeing how popular they were, using the chart databases to discover songs to listen to, seeing the trends in popular music over the decades, etc. But in order to do those things, I have to find and print out thousands of charts from the library's microfilm archives and manually type those thousands of charts into Excel databases, both of which can get to be tedious and boring. So would it make sense for you or I to say that I "thoroughly enjoy" this hobby? I don't know; there are negative aspects to it that aren't insignificant, but I've devoted a lot of time and effort to it, and I obviously like it on some level.

 

Similarly, I can say that watching episodes, commenting on them, and reading the forums and other spinoffs of the show are ultimately just more things I do to pass the time (often as a break from chart work), and there are aspects of episodes and the forums that I find annoying, boring, etc. But the fact that I still do those things, even though I probably don't "thoroughly enjoy" My Little Pony as much as or in the same way as others, must mean that I like it on some level.

[Singe 2,111]

Even though Pinkie realized her pride was preventing RD from enjoying her party, she still continued to make it worse by choosing to run away. There was no way RD could have enjoyed her party when PP bails on them in the end.

[PoisonClaw 8,164]

Every once in a blue moon, one such episode manages to stand leagues above the rest. You name it, they not only did it right but blew even the worst of critics' expectations not only out of the water, but clear out of the solar system. Pinkie Pride...is such an episode.

 

Even way back at the start of Season 2 when I started watching, one thing a huge number of fans wished and hoped for was a possible cameo appearance from none of other than Weird Al Yankovic. Finally after many years, those hopes of been fulfilled and it. Is Glorious. Yet again we have an episode bursting at the seams with songs (which should really be no surprise once you realize this is Weird Al!) but this is the rare occasion where I can say I enjoyed every single song this episode had to offer. Right out of the starting gate "Pinkie's Party Planner" sets the mood of the episode, Cheese Sandwich's introduction is everything you could wish for, "Pinkie's Lament" starts out somber but gradually rises into an impressive upbeat melody, Cheese's confession is sweet and heartwarming and to top the whole thing off we have the surprisingly catchy "Make a Wish". Musicians, you have your work cut out for you this week!

 

If I really had to complain about something (because I'm me) it would be that Pinkie's "Eye-Glow"moment felt rather shoehorned in, like they couldn't figure out a better moment to include it. Also, it bugs me that the moment Cheese shows up they all abandon Pinkie at the drop of a hat, but at least they acknowledge it so I'll forgive that little detail.  Besides those inconsequential nitpicks, I'm calling Pinkie Pride the best episode of Season 4 and the newest addition to my list of all time favorite episodes.  

Edited February 2, 2014 by PoisonClaw

[Blaze Bronson 343]

My thoughts about this episode, without wall-of-text'ing the post

 

Me and Pinkie Pride

[Sugar Cube 4,843]

I gotta say, for all of the hype surrounding this episode it sure was amazing. A well-characterized Pinkie Pie? Check. Quality humor? Check. Excellent storytelling and pacing? Check. And to top it all off it was a fantastic musical episode with a really fun guest appearance by Weird Al who I’ve always been a pretty big fan of. After two somewhat mediocre episodes, it’s good to see season 4 back to the high quality standards set by the three string of Bats!, Rarity Takes Manehattan, and Pinkie Apple Pie. This episode is top notch, not just as a Pinkie Pie episode or a season 4 episode, but it’s one of the very best in the series.

Pinkie Pie was absolutely stellar throughout this episode. She’s been a bit hit and miss as a supporting character throughout this season and the last, but as a focal character Pinkie Pie has been incredible, and I would even go so far as to call this her best portrayal yet, surpassing A Friend in Deed in terms of being a quintessential Pinkie episode. In Pinkie Pride, we actually see Pinkie Pie question her own life's purpose when she feels like she’s an insufficient party planner compared to Cheese Sandwich. I rarely find FiM to be very tear-jerking but I honestly felt very unhappy seeing Pinkie Pie so down and out, especially during all of the scenes where she's teary eyed. I'm not ashamed to admit that I was almost touched to the point of waterworks myself! This is the character that's supposed to bring laughs and smiles, but the episode proves that there's so much more to Pinkie Pie than just being a lovable joker. I don’t think Pinkie Pie has ever been this close to flawless. Even at her lowest point, she was able to remind herself of all of the laughs and smiles that she was so adept at putting on other ponies’ faces that she was able to put aside her insecurities and summon the courage to challenge Cheese for the right to plan Dashie’s birthiversary. It was a joy seeing the usually optimistic Pinkie Pie change heart all on her own. Then at the end of the episode we see Pinkie Pie actually forfeit to Cheese Sandwich, proving just how mature she's become. When Pinkie Pie shows the kind of depth, competence, and resolve as she did in this episode while retaining all of the things that make her so uniquely Pinkie Pie, there’s not another character in the show who’s more entertaining to watch.

As far as entertaining characters go, Cheese Sandwich was incredible. I was looking forward to this character just for the sake of hearing Weird Al’s voice, but this pony even looks like Weird Al! Cheese is so much like Pinkie Pie as far as his love of partying, crazy antics, and generally good-natured demeanor goes, but he was different enough in his quirky sense of humor, particularly during the moments where he tried to act and sound as a serious stallion. The Clint Eastwood allusion won me over in a big way. MLP has had some hits and misses as far as male characters go, but Cheese is flat-out exceptional in his likeability factor. The fact that it was Pinkie Pie who inspired him to become a party pony back when they were children made for some great feel-good storytelling that left me wholly satisfied. I’m not even a shipper but I already think Cheese Pie is adorable, it makes sense, it has chemistry, and I wouldn’t mind seeing Cheese again later on down the road just to further stimulate the possibilities. This ship could be canon and I’d probably be okay with it. He’s an unforgettable addition to MLP’s varied supporting cast.

As a musical episode, I thought Pinkie Pride was outstanding. I loved the fact that every song in the episode was based on an already existing song from popular culture. We had Beauty and the Beast, Mary Poppins, Brady Bunch, and even P!nk were referenced. Pinkie’s Lament has to be the most emotional song in MLP to date, and is easily my favorite of the episode and possibly my second fave of the season behind Apples to the Core. The song told us as much, if not more about Pinkie Pie as a character than even her Smile Song from season 2. Pinkie the Party Planner had a very Morning in Ponyville vibe to it as well. All of the songs were a lot of fun to listen to and I have a feeling I’ll be watching this episode as much as I did Magical Mystery Cure just for the sake of the songs. And compared to MMC, Pinkie Pride had far superior pacing and was the better musical overall. Nothing felt rushed or clunky. The episode flowed beautifully from start to finish and the songs felt much more natural.

Little things I enjoyed: Pinkie Pie wore the same silly attire that she did in Dragonshy. When Twilight Sparkle was reading the rules of a goof-off, she referenced Pinkie Pie’s Giggle At the Ghosties, and later Cheese sang parts of Pinkie Pie‘s Smile Song. Pinkie Pie had several pictures on her wall from past parties, but it seems Twilight’s birthday party from Sweet and Elite was missing. Pinkie Pie singing in Spanish was a lot of fun too! I was blown away by the live action scenes of Boneless and Gummy. Only in a Pinkie Pie episode will you find something that wild and whimsical. We also got to see the map of Equestria in this episode which gives me hope that there’s plenty more locations that we’ll be seeing in the near future. I also got a kick out of this exchange of dialogue between Applejack and Fluttershy:

Fluttershy: Oh, no! Not a goof off!
Applejack: [whispering] What's a goof off?
Fluttershy: I have no idea, hehe.

Lastly, this face is priceless!


Yeesh, Pinkie. Are you looking for a goof-off? Because you seem a little cheesed off.

If I hadn’t already stressed this enough, this episode is a slam dunk, a homerun, a touchdown…  you get the idea. Pinkie Pie has never been better, Cheese is a great newcomer, the songs are well-done and the pacing is about as smooth as silk. I laughed and felt joy yet my heartstrings were pulled to the brink of tears more than once for dear Pinkie. I expected this episode to be a hit but it really was stupendous in every way. Amy Keating Rogers, it is so good to have you back!

So with Pinkie Pie having her rubber chicken as a key, that leaves three ponies left to go at the near halfway mark. Who’s going to be next I wonder? Next week is Simple Ways which I expect to be crazy controversial but highly entertaining.

[CM Pony 30]

Okay, the assumption should be that since Pinkie is my favorite pony, that I should like this episode.  But honestly, I like Pinkie Pie central episodes just fine, but I think Pinkie shines more in episodes where she is not the main character.  Her special brand of zaniness works well when she appears suddenly, makes a bizarre comment or reaction and everyone is left scratching their heads.  When we have too many Pinkie central episodes, we begin to learn what is going through her mind and that might not be the best way to go.

 

That being said, "Pinkie Pride" is the best episode of the fourth season so far.  I try not to read ahead about the plots, so I was lucky enough to not realize that Weird Al was going to be doing a voice.  Funny thing is, I didn't even notice until he started singing.  I have seen him in concert a couple times and this brought a smile to my face.  Maybe I should have realized when the name was Cheese Sandwich, which is a common Weird Al mentioned object.

 

This episode was so great.  When it seemed like it was going to go with a cliche plot of Cheese Sandwich doing the party and Pinkie feels neglected, ending with Pinkie winning some sort of victory over Cheese Sandwich and him being a jerk, I sort of groaned.  But it was great that they did not take the easy way out.  The goof off was fun, and I thought Pinkie would lose.  But Pinkie did the only thing that we know Pinkie can do, she realized the central issue was her friend's happiness and she was willing to put aside her own happiness to make that happen.  But when Pinkie conceded and Cheese Sandwich admitted his admiration for her and they worked together, I had a couple tears in my eyes and I was very happy.

 

"Pinkie Pride" had everything in it that has made me love this show and it is great to know that the creativity and passion for the characters is still here.  I am just beaming over this and can't say enough about it.  Four stars.

[roptiriolg 49]

I find it strange how many of the imo cool episodes so far are considered bad and this one goes for 'the best of Season 4'. I guess it all has to do with what pony you are fan of and what kind of episodes you like. For me the contest/adventures are the best and as such, I found this episode nothing that special. It was fine and although  I am not a fan of musicals, for a Pinkie Pie episode it fit well. It was a typical Pinkie episode and I think nothing went off for that but it's not my type. I think the episode could have used more fun like - some more funny moments, tricks, pranks since it is Pinkie episode. Maybe then I too would have liked it more.

[Antismurf9001 1,271]

Finally got a chance to watch it and it was... surprisingly good!  Beforehand, I only knew the name of the episode and that Weird Al was guest starring, and for some reason I wasn't expecting it to be that good.  I think that my thought process was that it would become 22 minutes of "LOOK!  LOOK, WE GOT WEIRD AL!  SEE?  WEIRD AL!"  In some respects, that happened, but not to as bad of an extent as I imagined.  Overall, I feel that they incorporated his character really well, while still allowing for a deep, and also somewhat dark lesson for Pinkie.  I also feel that they incorporated the musical aspect very well (in my opinion, much better than was done during MMC).  Finally, Derpy was there, but she wasn't in your face, "LOOK!  LOOK, IT'S DERPY!  SEE?  DERPY!" as it was in Rainbow Falls.  It was obvious, but it wasn't thrown in your face.

 

All in all, I think that this is now my favorite Pinkie Pie episode, and one of the best episodes this season.  Keep going season!  You're on a roll!

[DarligPegasi 315]

After weeks of glaring at Season 4 with great distaste I finally manage to crack a smile for this episode. And it's crazy because Pinkie is my least favorite character. (Actually more than least favorite because I really really dislike her).

 

But this is the episode that gave me back my MLP Joy feelings, that I had been slowly losing touch with since the beginning of this season. 

 

I absolutey loved every bit of it, and I started shipping Cheese Sandwich and Pinkie Pie immediately. My mom even said that the two of them should get married and I shed a tear, cause 'Ohmygawd mom your first ship!'

 

But yeah I loved it. The songs were freaking awesome and when Cheese started singing the 'Smile' song, I screamed "HEY THAT'S PINKIES' SONG!" at the same time that Pinkie said "Hey that's my song!" 

 

And when Pinkie started singing in spanish! xD 

 

Yeaaaah that was a great episode. 

[CM Pony 30]

I find it strange how many of the imo cool episodes so far are considered bad and this one goes for 'the best of Season 4'. I guess it all has to do with what pony you are fan of and what kind of episodes you like. 

 

I think a lot of times expectations play into it as well.  In season three, there was only one Pinkie based episode and it was rather mediocre.  But Pinkie's best season three moments came in her supporting roles.  I love when she was wearing a Fluttershy costume and removed it and ran off.  The look on Fluttershy's face was priceless when she almost touched it.  Also, "Pinkie Apple Pie" was sort of medicore as well.  So i had no reason to expect this one to be good.

 

But the thing that got me the best was just how there was no typical conflict at the end.  Usually an episode like this would have had some sort of challenge with Cheese Sandwich losing and Pinkie victorious.  But that would have been very non Pinkie.  Just the fact that everyone was able to be happy at the end made me happy.  We rarely see that in real life or tv.

[Flying V 2]

Best episode ever I am the biggest pinkie fan ever!

[MLPFanatic34 3,234]

Can I just say these two songs are the ones I listen to the most, although all the songs in this episode were amazing and so catchy!

 

 

[Slick Scootaloo 6]

I swear. If I saw this episode back then, it would instantly make me a brony 

[Blaze Bronson 343]

@@MLPFanatic34, 

 

Yeah great songs, Make a Wish and Pinkie's Lament make my favorites, and the ones I just keep listening to =)

Edited February 3, 2014 by Blaze Bronson

[Pixel Stick 927]

Once again, not having read much of this thread before posting, so my opinions may restate things said by others.

 

Overall, I voted "Meh, it was okay" on this episode.

 

Things I liked:

- Pinkie Pie had DEPTH - in fact, I think this was the strongest she's been since "A Friend Indeed".

- I was happy with the level of depth in Cheese Sandwich's character as well.  He was a good, strong antagonist without a shred of evil, and he was humble and forthright enough to realize how he'd stomped all over Pinkie's party planning.

- The moral overall was good.

- Weird Al's polka (you knew it had to be a polka) was awesome.

 

Things I didn't like so much:

- Gah! Another episode where songs outweigh dialogue!

- The opener to the plot felt extremely forced - like, just as bad if not worse than that of Daring Don't.

- The live-action clips screamed "Shark jump" to me.

 

On that second point: I get that Cheese Sandwich comes along and offers a more exciting party idea, but when everyone follows him without even giving Pinkie a second thought (as though completely forgetting about her), that just felt like a big blow to the friendship thing - it was a form of betrayal.  And then Rainbow's comment, given right in front of Pinkie, followed by the "No offense" bit, just felt like the nail in the coffin.  Obviously, something like this had to happen in order for Pinkie to have her sad moment, her realization of how she's brought joy to her friends, and then her resolve to set things straight... but man, you might as well have just said "Pinkie Pie is a moron and her parties suck" there.  It felt way too ham-fisted.

 

And on the "shark jump" comment: Yes, I get that this is a Weird Al polka, where zaniness happens at breakneck speed.  And as Pinkie and Cheese try to out-goof one another, things get farther and farther out of hand.  And the way they resolve that "Goof-off" is obviously integral to the plot and to Pinkie's character as a whole.  But the live-action clips of the dancing rubber chicken and the alligator stock footage were so jarring and out-of-place that all I could think was "Oh no, they just jumped the shark".  I was really afraid they were going to do something like that this season.

 

I still think there are episodes I like far less than this one.  This one has its great moments and, again, I thought Pinkie Pie was in top form here.  But as soon as I'd heard Weird Al was going to be on the show, I'd been looking forward to seeing him playing opposite Pinkie, and I was left with really mixed feelings.

[Forlong 1,726]

 

You know, I have two reasons for doing my reviews before hearing anyone else's.  First, it assures that I won't repeat what others say, except through coincidence.  The second is that sometimes others will point out things that end up making or breaking the episode for me.  Digibrony's analysis of this episode made it my favorite, because I found I could relate to Pinkie's predicament in it.  I'm trying my hardest to be the best analyst I can be, yet I can't match the fame (and perhaps quality) of other analysts.

 

Look at Silver Quill.  Seriously, look at him, his videos are great.  He's a perfect parallel to myself.  We started at the same time, but he managed to get over 10,000 subs already.  Maybe he was just better prepared than I was (in fact, I'm sure of it).  Maybe he just hit that magic button.  But, even though I respect and admire him, it still hurt to watch my channel struggle while his thrived.  I kept wondering what I was missing.

 

But I'm not missing anything.  I joined the brony analysis community because I'm passionate about the show and want to celebrate it, not to become popular.  So, if you want to subscribe to me, that's great.  If you don't, that's fine.  I'll just keep making videos to celebrate how amazing this show is.

 

I used to wonder what friendship could be

Until you all shared it's magic with me

Edited February 3, 2014 by Forlong

[VenomTrixie 57]

Hearing some of you guys criticize this episode made me realize there are two things I didn't like. Pinkie caring about being the best and greatest at parties, goes back to my problems with the main 6 giving Trixie a hard time in BB. Rainbow Dash just like that dumps Pinkie and wants Cheese to do her party. All she says is something like ''You understand don't you Pinkie?'' Course she later apologizes for getting caught up in the moment. But she sure didn't display loyalty when she gave Cheese, Pinkie's job without a second thought.

[XxConfusedUnicornxX 834]

The episode is PERFECT! Omg Cheese Sandwich is now the best stallion! 

[Singe 2,111]

The point that Cheese Sandwich won over the other ponies shows that Pinkie's idea of parties has generally been the same formula for 4 seasons and it's worn out some. Rainbow Dash has been to several PP parties and doesn't expect her to have anything that would make it any different from the others. PP will need to up her game and have new ideas in store for the future to make them unique.

Edited February 3, 2014 by Singe

[DiscordAnarchy 770]

I believe we all need to take a moment to appreciate Al some more.

 

Edited February 3, 2014 by DiscordAnarchy

[Blossomshy 39]

What a great episod. Season 4 is getting better and better. The plot the depth of the characters made it great. Seeing pinkie not all happy and over excited really made it work as well as Al Yankovic. The songs although short were really well done. In short an AMAZING episode!!!

[Blaze Bronson 343]

I don't know about all of you ponies, but I am starting to think that season 4 is gonna be the best season.

 

It has had some really bad episode, but also some of the best. It has truly been a hit or miss, either it's kinda terrible or else it shines above all.

 

And with that in mind, i'd rather have a handful of amazing episodes, than a whole season of mediocrity. Not saying that the previous seasons have been bad, however I easily forget a bad episode or two when we get episodes like Pinkie Pride.

[Acchan 232]

I watched it again. I loved it again. I cried, I laughed, and I meeped in 23 minutes.