S04:E20 - Leap of Faith

[MLPFanatic34 3,234]

I enjoyed this episode, it was nice to see Flim and Flam again, while they aren't my favorite antagonists, they're still very funny and the fact that they're con ponies, I like. I loved the song in this episode and the moral was very good, Granny Smith was so funny and she was such a badass jumping off the high dive. Nice to see Applejack got her rainbow item and while she did lie in the beginning about the tonic, she finally realized to be honest, which is her element. All in all a good episode, 10/10!!

[Flutter's lover <3 8,205]

So AJ finally got her key episode, it was alright. I liked how there was more back story to Granny.

 

Nothing really popped this episode for me. Flim and Flam's song was cool, but I could hear bits of their previous song in it.

 

Though I feel AJ,Big Mac and AB over reacted when they seen Granny Smith swimming....they could plainly see she was in no danger, and she was swimming on her own.

[DubWolf 17,212]

Pretty good episode. I like it when they test the mane 6's elements, and I think they did a good job here. One thing that bothered me was how Apple Jack kept being bothered with "approving" the tonic, as if the lie kept coming back at her. She did tell everyone at first that it did make Granny Smith happy. She didn't say the tonic made them physically stronger, which is what I believe the ponies continued to misunderstand.

 

Other:

-Heheh, I liked when Flim and Flam were talking about time in their song, and you see Time Turner in their slide show.

-How was Granny Smith supposed to land into that tinyyy tiny barrel of water :okiedokielokie: ?!?! What were they thinking?!

-Derpy!

-Lyra and Time Turner are best judge ponies.

-Whoaa so many diseases and shist :7.

Edited March 29, 2014 by Super80 Wolf

[Pastel 7,630]

Good episode! It was obvious that the guy with glasses was part of the act though.

We finally have Applejack's key !

Good song, and I liked that it was only on the Apple family.

The end was a little boring maybe...

[InkyJay 21]

Pretty good episode. I like it when they test the mane 6's elements, and I think they did a good job here. One thing that bothered me was how Apple Jack kept being bothered with "approving" the tonic, as if the lie kept coming back at her. She did tell everyone at first that it did make Granny Smith happy. She didn't say the tonic made them physically stronger, which is what I believe the ponies continued to misunderstand.

 

Other:

-Heheh, I liked when Flim and Flam were talking about time in their song, and you see Time Turner in their slide show.

-How was Granny Smith supposed to land into that tinyyy tiny barrel of water  :okiedokielokie:    ?!?! What were they thinking?!

 

They were thinking that cartoon logic would save her from breaking all of her bones.

[ggg-2 3,552]

*watch the opening with the apples at the watering hole with big mac apple bloom and AJ playing in the water like good, loving, siblings should* oh....my.....celestia! where is some insulin? that was WAY too celestia-darn adorable!   :D :: :D

[Cirrus. 1,089]

I'm sorry, but is Ponyville a collective amnesiac? Didn't they learn ANYTHING about last time?

 

 

LOL- that's one thing I think is funny in the show- crowds always seem/look clueless.

Edited March 29, 2014 by steve88

[Noemi Roronoa 29]

Has anypony else noticed that rainbow thing that's been going on with the Mane 6!? It must lead to something! And so far, Luna has visited Scootaloo and now Sweetie Belle.... APPLEBLOOM IS NEXT! O.O Secrets.... Many secrets....

[Venomous 18,862]

The return of the Flim Flam brothers was certainly a surprise; a welcome surprise at that!

I thought maybe we'd see them in the Equestria games facing AppleJack or something along those lines, but this is okay too.

 

It makes sense that the two would lie about a product just to make money. I mean, people in the real work do it all the time.

The two just seem to fit that description.

 

The lesson AppleJack learned at the end was just fantastic.

Sometimes, you don't want to be honest because it may hurt someone else's feelings. THAT was a lesson I wanted her to learn for a long-ass time.

 

The episode as a whole was a bit boring, though =[ I don't find Granny Smith to be anymore interesting than a wet dishcloth.

[Shawn Parks 1,798]

I had been wondering how they were going to handle Applejack's test of honesty.  I am quite happy that they did not make her dishonest for selfish reasons.  

[Anilewe 2,178]

I had been wondering how they were going to handle Applejack's test of honesty.  I am quite happy that they did not make her dishonest for selfish reasons.  

 

Me too That's part of her character I love - she always puts others before herself. It's somehow her biggest flaw, but also advantage. I can't even imagine Applejack doing something for selfish reasons O_o' It'd be extremely out of character for her. 

Edited March 29, 2014 by Anilewe

[Guest90210 3,568]

I enjoyed this episode. Second best in the season behind Pinkie Pride. It taught a great lesson and featured the return of the Flim Flam Brothers. My only real complaint though is that the Brothers weaseled their way out of trouble once again. They defrauded the entire town twice. You'd think they would at least apologize or face the consequences this time around.

[OtakuBrony 349]

Howdy all!

 

Good episode with the Apple Family.

 

Tabitha,Peter, Ashleigh, & Michelle were good.

 

Fun to hear Sam Vincent & Scott McNeil return as the Flim/Flam Brothers.

 

Josh Haber wrote a dandy of an episode while Daniel Ingram doesnt disappoint in a new tune for the FF Bros.

 

See ya!

[joecal97 340]

Erm...

No, sorry but no.

I can't compliment this episode.

I hope this doesn't start a debate war or anything, but I genuinely think that was one of the worst episodes ever.

Yeah, I said it

First time I've ever thought there was no redeeming feature in an episode of MLP

[Scootalove 10,689]

After seeing the return of the Flim Flam Brothers with another plan to make bits and with AJ getting her key, we are now down to the one final key for Twilight. This episode showed me more about Granny Smith's past and why she doesn't go in the water anymore, but thanks to the fake tonic she had the confidence to swim once again.

 

What can I say but, not only was the episode entertaining it also showed once again where Applejack's honesty lies and even with only a few flaws to her element. Still, a fantastic episode. I liked it.

 

[Jorguil 54]

This episode in of itself was well excecuted again with the flim flam bros no one could say "Oh dey be good dis tims!" the obstacle what Applejack faced is something we are all guilty of at some points and that is our own ignorance: a lack of knowledge, understanding, or education or how many like to state ignorance is bliss 10/10.

 

 

 

P.S Fool me once shame on you fool me twice shame on me.

[True Rarity 1,240]

Ohhhhhhhh! Is it sad that I JUST NOW realized that in each key episode, the Element that pony is tied to is tested?

Anyway, this was a nice episode. It was fun to see Flim and Flam again. I especially liked the part when the brothers were talking about time and the picture changed to a graphic of a clueless-looking Dr. Whooves.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

This was a totally awesome episode...and it definitely applies to today. It's like those exercise programs, that say that you'll be tone fit and defined in like 30 days, and those weight loss pills that make you end up getting sick in the hospital, as it eats up healthy muscle and body fat. Applejack was totally the star of this episode. It's happened to all of us, we've been skeptical until someone fakes it out and makes us believe. Before you know it, we're lying to others about it and losing people's trust. 

 

All in all, when something's too good to be true, then don't even bother. 

 

10/10

 

The song was really awesome too! Gonna do an arrangement of it soon. 

[Cirrus. 1,089]

I bet Twilight is going to get her key from Discord of all people in the season finale. She'll probably think that her key was from someone else at first, but later in the finale, she'll realize that Discord has the other half of the key.

You might be right- Discord has the other half of the necklace thing from "Three's a crowd"

[Rainboom Dash 1,055]

Definitely one of my favorites of this season. It was great seeing the Flim Flam brothers again, and we got another great song. Was also satisfied with the way Applejack's element was tested. Just one key left to find!

[NavelColt 22,878]

Despite how swimming and myself do not mix, I've always liked ponies swimming together in that pond we've now seen in episodes from Griffon the Brush Off to Too Many Pinkie Pies. Now the Apples are spending time together there. And Big Mac's hair is wet. And that totally isn't going to be abused in Stupid Sexy Big Mac meme that'll pop up, I'm sure.

 

Big Mac's gotten more screen time across three episodes this season than he's gotten altogether in the past three seasons combined, and then multiplied twice. And we won't even get started on the lines. Bet Peter New had loads of fun this season.

 

Yay for more old film flashbacks for Granny Smith! Yay for more Granny Smith in general! The more story, lines and screen-time she's gotten the more I've enjoyed her as the seasons have gone on.

 

Yay most of all for returning antagonists! For some reason I've seen a lot of people who didn't care for these two, yet I seem to recall their first episode being up with some of the best episodes in season two. Not to mention their song, which I know for a fact was insanely popular for a while afterwords. But eh, fans are fickle so I suppose I'll just chock it up to humans being ridiculous again. I for one am really happy to have seen them return, as they're probably some of the easiest bad guys to bring back, seeing as they left only because their won cider business didn't work out after all. New flim flam scam, new storyline, new episode.

 

The tonic idea overall is pretty neat, and I think it even better represents what these two are about than their initial appearance did. 'A Flim Flam' means a scam, or a deceitful way of getting people to buy a product through false-advertising using half-truths, lies, and in advanced cases like these two used, knowledge of how getting people to think positively through giving them the 'perfect product', can create the desired effects of being 'cured' that you advertise, even if your product doesn't actually heal or cure anything physically. This is precisely what this episode was about. In their first appearance, their cider machine did no such thing. It did the job correctly, and the only reason it started producing bad product was because Flim and Flam decided to sacrifice quality for quantity, after the fact. That episode was less about a scam, and more about the Apple Family being challenged by the speed and self-automation of modern technology. So yeah, I like this episode's premise because it's fairly unique (more on the 'potions' front that isn't coming from Zecora for once), and because I feel it's a great return for these bad guys.

 

Also, Flim and Flam successfully taught children about germ spreading through song. That's pretty cool, yo.

 

So was the little run-through of pony diseases, defects and ailments. Some more creepy than others xD

 

I love how Flim and Flam were right there to jump in and claim the fame from the paparazzi as soon as Granny Smith mentioned the tonic at the swim meet, too. God, they were funny, as well as clever as always this episode. Neigh-sayers be damned, I really like those two as antagonists and am super glad they came back.

 

Overall, this was a decent episode for numerous reasons:

• The return of some antagonists that was handled very well and was all-too realistic, with a premise that fit their characters even better than their first appearance in some ways.
• Everyone was in-character so shut up people who claim otherwise every single episode.
• More Granny Smith episodes.
• Learned quite a bit about pony diseases, defects and ailments thanks to Flim and Flam's presentation.
• A life-lesson that adults can learn from, not just kids.

 

And so now we await next week, where Scootalove signs have been potentially hinted towards. Here's to hoping it's true.

 

Erm...
No, sorry but no.
I can't compliment this episode.
I hope this doesn't start a debate war or anything, but I genuinely think that was one of the worst episodes ever.

 

Long as you're not a twit about presenting your opinion, no one's going to care :3 That said, some explanation might be nice. 'It sucked, oh god I'm sorry guys but it totally sucked' isn't very much insight.

[M'aiq the Liar 5,804]

My favorite screen cap of the episode.

The good

>Applejack, I mean who doesn't like hardworking southern gals?

>We learned a bit more about granny smith, even though it did seem to just be contained to this episode, development of a secondary character is rare in this show, and I like it whenever I can get it. 

>The episode atleast presented a uniqe moral. Either be truthful, or take happiness from an old woman who may not have it otherwise have had it

The bad

>Resolution felt kinda by the book.

>The song didn't feel as grand as "opportunity", it was a nice little tune, but it didn't have the town involving feel like flim and flams original song. 

 

[ggg-2 3,552]

"What do you say Big mac-a-doo! up for some afternoon apple-buckin'?" "uh, no" did anyone else find that hilarious? what really sells it is, it's not even a "nope" it's a flatout "no"!

[That One Guy 39]

i liked this episode very good not bad not bad at all and Big Mac without his yoke was weird but got me really excited i couldn't get over it. it wasnt the best episode but a good episode one of the antagonists came back morals some new ponies a some other thing a good and it made me if applejack could do that to a tree what could Big Mac do *pondering*

Edited March 29, 2014 by That One Guy

[rjrgmc28 130]

Before I begin the write up of this weeks episode, this will take on a different perspective from my usual posts and will cover a lot of things in depth.

 

With that said and quoting from one of the many live reaction tweets....

 

"That's the Element of Honesty! 30 years on and still going strong!"

 

So with that said, here we go.

 

Applejack. Love her or hate her, for over 30 years she has gone from being a silly pony to a force to be reckoned with. So most of this episode write up will be focused on her plus the usual things. I'll be honest with you, this episode really captured the true spirit of this veteran of the My Little Pony brand and it's hard not to explain in a few simple words why she is the Element of Honesty. If you were to ask me three years ago what I thought of Applejack when I first started to watch the show, I would have given a different answer along the lines of being destined for the rubbish bin and hating her guts.

 

However, if you asked me the same question today, I would give a more positive answer along the lines of a very honest, hard working and a stand out pony who for 30 years has overcome the odds time after time. They say don't judge a book by it's cover, but Applejack has come a long way since day one from being a silly pony in the 80's and 90's to being the Element of Honesty in the new millennium.

 

For me, the episode for me can be summed up in this tweet:

 

"Calling it now! Another great episode in the books. Applejack has come a long, long way since those season one days."

 

This episode, apart from being for me a chance to rip apart and shred Flim & Flam to pieces was pretty good with a few mentions and shoutouts to the days of old, especially the flashback sequence with Granny Smith. The old time music, the sepia tones and the film leader sure brought back some memories, especially if you got a interest of old school film and TV in your blood, even right down to the technical difficulties:

 

"Oh (insert choice word). Can we get a technician to have a look at that video machine? The tape is stuffed!"

 

The song number was great as well, although I couldn't bare to watch Flim & Flam flogging their wares and weave a tale of lies. 

 

Speaking of those two colts, while I forgave some villains in the show like Discord and Sunset Shimmer after their dirty deeds (done dirt cheap!), there is no forgiveness for two ponies who almost put Sweet Apple Acres out of business two years ago and their performance in this episode was an exact mirror match. 

 

For some reason, I hate, and still do hate their guts even after two years of reflection time on their crimes. Enough said. 

 

On a final note, even before the episode went to air, fans including myself were guessing what the tonic would do to Granny Smith. Would it heal her health issues? Would it make her sick? Or would we have a Mr Hooper style situation where Granny Smith suddenly passes away and we have an episode on the topic of death and grieving? Surprisingly, the tonic didn't cause the last option, nor it did make her sick. I would have hated to see option two or three play out in front of a worldwide audience to be quite honest with you, seeing Apple Bloom crying her eyes out would be the icing on the cake.

 

Instead, Granny Smith was up and about without a care in the world swimming in the lakes and completing in synchronised swimming with Apple Bloom and diving from the 10m platform without any regard for her body. Big Mac even got involved in the action!

 

Apart from that, at the end of 30 minutes, this episode was a great one to watch despite most of the live reactions tweets from me being a bit biased.

 

Now I would go on and cover more in this post such as how the tonic works, but as always my full thoughts can be found on the blog here.