S02:E20 - It's About Time.

[More_Fluttershy 127]

So, pretty good episode. Not much to build upon that. 

[Mrain901 216]

This is my favorite episode from the entire show. This is the kind of thing that drew me in with the pilot, how things happen that seem sort of irrelevant at first, but it then makes a lot of sense at the end.

[TheJLeeTeam 914]

This was a very interesting episode and also a confusing one. A Future Twilight warns Present Twilight about the future. And while preparing for the disaster, Twilight gets damages to her body. It turns out it wasn't a disaster. What's very interesting is that it uses a bootstrap paradox which is information from the future being sent to the past where the same traits of the future are passed down to the present without an origin.

 

Also Tirek must have escaped when Cerberus wasn't guarding but it took him 2 years to gain enough strength. That's interesting, I didn't realize this episode was connected to Twilight's Kingdom until now.

[10InTheTardis 509]

my reaction to seeing this episode for the first time on equestria.tv

 

[Dulset Tarn 441]

My favorite episode of the whole series, and among many other things a phenomenal example of how Pinkie can be hilarious without a single gag to distract the audience!

[PSP (Dizzy) 201]

My favorite episode of the whole series, and among many other things a phenomenal example of how Pinkie can be hilarious without a single gag to distract the audience!

 

You liked "It's About Time" that much? What did you enjoy about it?

 

The episode seemed fairly predictable to me, and recycled plot elements from many other cartoons. 

[Dulset Tarn 441]

You liked "It's About Time" that much? What did you enjoy about it?

 

The episode seemed fairly predictable to me, and recycled plot elements from many other cartoons. 

Sooo many things. As mentioned, it has Pinkie being hilarious organically rather than relying on gags (which is hit or miss (hit in seasons 1 and 2, miss after)). It also had completely logical and self-consistent time travel in a kids' show, while blockbuster movies released around the same time (Looper) don't have a clue about time travel. Time travel by the way is my absolute favorite trope, so there's definitely plenty of subjectivity going on. To be honest I think that Return of Harmony is the best episode, but IAT is still my favorite. In spite of subjectivity, the episode is still flawless. Everything the characters do is spot on, the humor is fantastic, the story is perfect, Spike is amazing... I know I'm not really saying anything here but damn.

 

Ok like, the way Twilight only realizes she hasn't changed the future because the things she recognized from Future Twilight are appearing on her body? That's brilliant. The guard just letting her into the restricted library because she's Twilight, freakin great. "Happy Tuesday" omg. I challenge you to find one thing wrong with the episode, and trust me I can find sooo many things wrong with just about any episode (especially after season 2).

[PSP (Dizzy) 201]

Sooo many things. As mentioned, it has Pinkie being hilarious organically rather than relying on gags (which is hit or miss (hit in seasons 1 and 2, miss after)). It also had completely logical and self-consistent time travel in a kids' show, while blockbuster movies released around the same time (Looper) don't have a clue about time travel. Time travel by the way is my absolute favorite trope, so there's definitely plenty of subjectivity going on. To be honest I think that Return of Harmony is the best episode, but IAT is still my favorite. In spite of subjectivity, the episode is still flawless. Everything the characters do is spot on, the humor is fantastic, the story is perfect, Spike is amazing... I know I'm not really saying anything here but damn.

 

Ok like, the way Twilight only realizes she hasn't changed the future because the things she recognized from Future Twilight are appearing on her body? That's brilliant. The guard just letting her into the restricted library because she's Twilight, freakin great. "Happy Tuesday" omg. I challenge you to find one thing wrong with the episode, and trust me I can find sooo many things wrong with just about any episode (especially after season 2).

 

It seems a lot of the episode revolves around fairly standard tropes and humor from other cartoons, and I could argue that is why there's so little actually "wrong" with it. There were moments I laughed, for sure, but the plot was incredibly predictable and felt lacking in emotional/thought-provoking content.

[RainbowTashie 378]

I'm looking forward to this episode, why?

 

It has time travel, so Doctor Whooves may have a bigger role.

They shoud've done that he needs some love! 

[Luna_tic 120]

Pinkie Pie and Spike's poses in Canterlot were hilarious.  I crack up every time I see them.  I enjoyed the cliche "The future I saw only happened because I saw the future" deal.

[powerpuff-tsubasa 448]

episode was too vague and nothing made sense

[cmarston1 5,959]

Despite the predictable ending, I found this episode to be pretty enjoyable and funny.

[twiia 1,843]

Very interesting episode indeed! Twi as 'Solid Sparkle' was interesting/ weird too.

[Thrond 3,263]

I think this was the first new episode of the show I watched, and I hated it. I still hate it, although certain things play better to me than they used to. I understand that Twilight's completely broken logic comes from her lack of sleep, but simply having Twilight go crazy without adding a sympathetic element to it makes the episode come across like a half-baked "Lesson Zero" knockoff - in the same season. It's the same idea, too: the moral is about not making a mountain out of a molehill, except there's so much less subtlety and nuance to it than "Lesson Zero," and I don't get a whole lot of pleasure out of watching Twilight act like a complete idiot, even if it's excused by her tiredness. I just don't feel like there's much of a point to it all. There's funny moments here, but they're all in the periphery of Twilight, who's maybe amusing once or twice. Mostly, I just hate that the episode replays the ENTIRE cold open at the end - is there any reason for us to spend so much time watching something we already seen? We'd probably get the point without it. 

[Sovereign Leader Rarity 12,006]

Yes....... I agree.

 

I think it IS about time.

[GrimGrimoire 4,973]

Yes....... I agree.

 

I think it IS about time.

 

What if I told you the episode was a lie, and it was actually about pudding?

 

At least I think (hope) it was pudding.

 

 

 

Personally I liked it alright... for some reason it kind of dragged on in some parts for me.... I did think the series of events happening to Twilight was comical though. I also liked how later on there were repercussions to Cerberus escaping.

[Moony the Cat 3,702]

I think this is one of the few Episode/Films that shows some more realistic time travel, so i think it was good^^

Even though i like the Amityville Movie with the same name, a bit more. XD

[Thrond 3,263]

I don't know, I just don't find it fun to watch Twilight make completely incoherent leaps of logic due to lack of sleep. Wasn't Future Twilight's appearance the reason Twilight thought there was a future calamity? Then why would Twilight think all those "signs" meant anything? I get that she already lost two nights of sleep before she starts making no sense, but we don't really see that in her model or her other behaviour, and the moral doesn't even have anything to do with those first two nights. 

And besides, it's all a little contrived as well, isn't it? A lot of things happen just right to make Twilight's thought process works. Even when the loss of sleep becomes more visible, I just don't find it particularly enjoyable to watch Twilight acting so dumb for a whole episode's length, and all of the humour occurs around her. This was actually the second episode I watched fresh, and I've warmed on it slightly because of all of the creative humour on the sidelines, but I dunno, I still don't have much patience for this. It just feels kinda pointless, something emphasized by the closed time loop Twilight creates at the end.

On top of that, I'm not sure Twilight's right to "let the future take care of itself." I think worrying about what might happen can be a pretty decent motivator, and since I find Twilight's logic in thinking there would be a big pony war really confusing, I can't really relate the moral to anything substantial either. And her decision to warn her past self is just one more thing which doesn't make any sense, and again, I know she's tired, but I don't think she's funny enough for that to justify any of this. 

Did they take this one away from you too, Mitch? 

Score:

Entertainment: 5/10

Characters: 5/10

Themes: 4/10

Story: 3/10

Overall: 43/100

[Meushell 52]

I wonder if Twilight really can read two books at once, or was she just being desperate.

When future Twilight first showed up, I first thought something happened to her purple fur, like it burned or something. It took a second to realize it was just an outfit.

Pinkie Pie makes this episode. That is one prepared pony. To quote SF Debris, “I’ve been wondering if she did this before or after Twilight announced the pending disaster. If her response was to prepare for any ball or eyepatch emergency, or if she thought such an emergency might crop up and better be prepared. Either way, you got to admire the girl’s foresight. No eyepatch pun intended.”

Pinkie Pie looks strange in her ninja costume with her mane hidden. It just looks wrong.

I didn’t mind the scene being repeated because we see it differently now. Of course, that only works with the first time you have seen the episode.

[Jedishy 3,548]

This episode shows perfectly a lesson I had to write during my Apprenticeship. It was called self-fulfilling prophecy. Often in an attempt to beat our fates, we run right into them. It also proves that if you act in fear you act with blinders and that does not turn out well for you. 

[bigbertha 414]

This episode was a ton of fun. It's similar to "Lesson Zero" but adds enough of a spin on it to not feel like a rehash. The biggest difference here is how prominent Pinkie is. Pinkie makes this episode. Twilight is fun too, but Pinkie is what takes this from decent to amazing. I think this is the best Twilight and Pinkie episode. The way they play off each other is so funny.

Score: 10/10

[Cash In 22,232]

I could easily rank this as one of my favourite episodes in the show,

yeah some plot elements are certainly confusing due to the time shtick, but I found the overall episode to be really entertaining. Silly yes, but fun!

[Phosphor 11,528]

I enjoyed this episode. Twilight Sparkle going overkill to avoid something she didn't understand was hilarious. I also liked the part where Spike was eating a lot of ice cream while Twilight was trying to "do nothing". lol

Another favorite part was when Twilight asked Pinkie Pie to recalibrate a catadioptric telescope.  

[bigbertha 414]

This is such an entertaining episode. We get to see a much more logical interpretation of crazy Twilight instead of one that's completely insane and that helps to make this one stand out from Lesson Zero. There's also the fact that this episode is much more low stakes than that episode. 

The comedy really is great. Crazy Twilight is a lot of fun and there's always something new happening. There's constant changes in characters, locations, and situations. It helps to keep the episode fresh instead of getting repetitive. And there's Pinkie, who plays off of crazy Twilight really well. This is actually my favorite Pinkie appearance of the season. 

Score: 10/10

[TheAnimationFanatic 3,594]

For my money, this is the funniest episode in the Season 2, right behind "Luna Eclipsed" and "Lesson Zero".