Analyzing Applejack's Stopping of Granny Smith from Her High Dive

[Music Chart Fan 819]

In a scene from "Leap of Faith" (S04E20), Granny Smith, in her overconfidence, tries to break the Equestria high diving record by jumping from the highest diving board into a deep dish pie pan of water. Applejack, at the top of the high-diving platform, then throws a lasso around Granny Smith's hind legs and stops her just before she hits the ground by pulling Granny Smith back while holding the rope in her teeth. I think the physics of this scenario are a bit dubious, and I'll try to explain why below.

 

First, it's extraordinarily fortunate that there's a rope at the top of the diving platform for Applejack to use, and furthermore, that it's just long enough to be able to reach Granny Smith, yet just short enough that it can be pulled taut to stop Granny Smith before she hits the ground. On top of this, in the period of time between Granny Smith jumping off the diving board and just before she hits the ground (a little under 6 seconds, by my observation), Applejack is somehow able to gasp in horror, grab the rope, tie it into a lasso, and throw it both quickly and accurately enough to catch up to Granny Smith far below (while overcoming air resistance) and wrap around her hind legs before she hits the ground. Finally, as @@Wingnut pointed out in the discussion topic for the episode, the rope acts strangely elastic for looking like an ordinary rope, stretching out the time over which Granny Smith is stopped and reducing the average force exerted to stop her.

 

One aspect of this whole scenario that amazes me is that Applejack supposedly exerts the force necessary to stop Granny Smith's free fall by pulling back on the rope held between her teeth. So, below, I'll try to make a quick-and-dirty calculation of the average force required to stop Granny Smith's free fall before she hits the ground. If you don't want to read the details, feel free to skip to the FINAL RESULT AND IMPLICATIONS below.

 

CALCULATIONS:

 

In order to calculate the average force needed to stop Granny Smith's free fall, I'll first calculate the impulse, or change in momentum, which Granny Smith undergoes, then divide this by the time period over which she experiences this impulse.

 

To calculate the impulse, we need Granny Smith's mass and velocity just before Applejack stops her. I don't know any good source for the weights of ponies in the world of Equestria, so I'll use a rough guess of 100 lb for Granny Smith's weight. To calculate Granny Smith's velocity just before Applejack stops her, I'll use this online calculator that finds free fall distance and velocity with air resistance. I'll use a mass of 45.36 kg (= 100 lb), and I observed a free fall time of 5.75 seconds between the apex of Granny Smith's leap off the diving board and the time at which the lasso around Granny Smith's hind legs first becomes taut. I'll use the calculator's given air resistance coefficient and gravitational acceleration, which I assume are the same in Equestria as they are on Earth.

 

mass = m = 100 lb = 45.36 kg

free fall time = 5.75 s

free fall velocity (from online calculator) = v_i = 37.21 m/s (= 83 mph!)

free fall distance (from online calculator) = 129.83 m (= 426 ft, or about 35 stories!)

 

Note the calculations above of just how fast Granny Smith was free falling, and just how far the high-diving board was off the ground. Those numbers in themselves are astounding. Would Granny Smith really be unharmed after being suddenly stopped from that speed? Why would the ponies build a high-diving platform that tall (and not even have it facing over the pool)?

 

So, with the above numbers, the impulse, or change in momentum, of Granny Smith from her free fall velocity to zero is:

 

J = mv_i - mv_f = (45.36 kg)(37.21 m/s) - 0 = 1687.85 N·s

 

Now we need to know the time period over which Granny Smith experienced this change in momentum. To get this, I counted the frames between the frame when the rope around Granny Smith's legs first becomes taut and the frame when Granny Smith first "springs back" from the bottom of her fall, which I counted as 10 frames. Since the video is 24 frames/second, this means that Granny Smith was stopped in a time period of 5/12 of a second:

 

t = (10 frames)/(24 frames/second) = 5/12 s

 

Thus, the average force needed to stop Granny Smith's free fall is the impulse divided by the time period over which the impulse takes place:

 

F = J/t = (1687.85 N·s)/(5/12 s) = 4050.84 N

 

To get a sense of how big this force is, let's re-arrange F = ma and, again using Earth's gravitational acceleration, find the equivalent mass for this force:

 

m = F/a = (4050.84 N)/(9.81 m/s²) = 412.93 kg = 910.35 lb

 

FINAL RESULT AND IMPLICATIONS:

 

The average force needed for Applejack to stop Granny Smith's free fall is roughly equivalent to the force needed for Applejack to suspend a 900 lb weight off the ground, and by holding a rope tied to the weight in between her teeth, no less! For comparison, even the largest Atlas stones used in the World's Strongest Man competition are about 350 lbs. The necessary force is probably even greater than I calculated once other factors are taken into account, such as the angle at which Applejack is pulling the rope and the coefficient of static friction between the rope and her teeth, which could be substantially reduced by, for example, saliva in her mouth. Thus, it seems a little unlikely that Applejack's jaw muscles are powerful enough to exert the necessary force to stop Granny Smith.

 

In fact, I can think of several failure points in this whole scenario of Applejack trying to stop Granny Smith, even assuming that she successfully lassos Granny Smith's hind legs:

 

1. The rope, once pulled taut, simply slips out from between Applejack's teeth;

2. Applejack dislocates her jaw trying to hold on to the rope;

3. Applejack holds on to the rope, but is pulled right off the diving board;

4. The lasso around Granny Smith's legs slips off under the sudden force on it.

 

In short, after analysis, the scenario in "Leap of Faith" where Applejack lassos Granny Smith from atop the high-diving platform and stops her by pulling the rope held between her teeth seems extremely unlikely to be able to happen as depicted.

 

What do you think? Do you agree with this analysis? Thanks for reading!

[The Mane-iac 1,648]

I think the title is meant to read "Over analyzing..." 

 

But yes, your points are valid for a real world scenario like this.

[Scootalove 10,689]

I agree with this analysis, because there would have been a lot of different scenarios if this came from a real world standpoint. So, yes you are right.

[Ace O. Jade 122]

The entire scenario is explained and made logical by one simple fact:

 

It's a cartoon.

[Something Floaty 1,334]

In four seasons of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, we have seen Discord turn Ponyville into a lunatic asylum complete with floating trees, ballet-dancing bulls, chocolate milk rain, a hedge maze that literally sprung up at a moment's notice, and fields of popcorn. We've seen a flying pony break the sound barrier in order to create a rainbow, seen Pinkie Pie jump roping with no one holding the jump rope (even with magic!), watched her duplicate herself and then watched the duplicates duplicate themselves, saw the entire main cast sucked into the world of a comic book, and seen Bulk Biceps fly with wings smaller than the average sparrow. In these four seasons of talking ponies, talking buffalo, dragons, and various and sundry types of blatant magic, you're waiting until this point to challenge the scientific validity of MLP? I'm sorry, but if you want your cartoons to rigorously adhere to the laws of physics and thermodynamics, you're going to be pretty disappointed no matter what you're watching.

[Adachi 772]

In a scene from "Leap of Faith" (S04E20), Granny Smith, in her overconfidence, tries to break the Equestria high diving record by jumping from the highest diving board into a deep dish pie pan of water. Applejack, at the top of the high-diving platform, then throws a lasso around Granny Smith's hind legs and stops her just before she hits the ground by pulling Granny Smith back while holding the rope in her teeth. I think the physics of this scenario are a bit dubious, and I'll try to explain why below.

 

First, it's extraordinarily fortunate that there's a rope at the top of the diving platform for Applejack to use, and furthermore, that it's just long enough to be able to reach Granny Smith, yet just short enough that it can be pulled taut to stop Granny Smith before she hits the ground. On top of this, in the period of time between Granny Smith jumping off the diving board and just before she hits the ground (a little under 6 seconds, by my observation), Applejack is somehow able to gasp in horror, grab the rope, tie it into a lasso, and throw it both quickly and accurately enough to catch up to Granny Smith far below (while overcoming air resistance) and wrap around her hind legs before she hits the ground. Finally, as @@Wingnut pointed out in the discussion topic for the episode, the rope acts strangely elastic for looking like an ordinary rope, stretching out the time over which Granny Smith is stopped and reducing the average force exerted to stop her.

 

One aspect of this whole scenario that amazes me is that Applejack supposedly exerts the force necessary to stop Granny Smith's free fall by pulling back on the rope held between her teeth. So, below, I'll try to make a quick-and-dirty calculation of the average force required to stop Granny Smith's free fall before she hits the ground. If you don't want to read the details, feel free to skip to the FINAL RESULT AND IMPLICATIONS below.

 

CALCULATIONS:

 

In order to calculate the average force needed to stop Granny Smith's free fall, I'll first calculate the impulse, or change in momentum, which Granny Smith undergoes, then divide this by the time period over which she experiences this impulse.

 

To calculate the impulse, we need Granny Smith's mass and velocity just before Applejack stops her. I don't know any good source for the weights of ponies in the world of Equestria, so I'll use a rough guess of 100 lb for Granny Smith's weight. To calculate Granny Smith's velocity just before Applejack stops her, I'll use this online calculator that finds free fall distance and velocity with air resistance. I'll use a mass of 45.36 kg (= 100 lb), and I observed a free fall time of 5.75 seconds between the apex of Granny Smith's leap off the diving board and the time at which the lasso around Granny Smith's hind legs first becomes taut. I'll use the calculator's given air resistance coefficient and gravitational acceleration, which I assume are the same in Equestria as they are on Earth.

 

mass = m = 100 lb = 45.36 kg

free fall time = 5.75 s

free fall velocity (from online calculator) = v_i = 37.21 m/s (= 83 mph!)

free fall distance (from online calculator) = 129.83 m (= 426 ft, or about 35 stories!)

 

Note the calculations above of just how fast Granny Smith was free falling, and just how far the high-diving board was off the ground. Those numbers in themselves are astounding. Would Granny Smith really be unharmed after being suddenly stopped from that speed? Why would the ponies build a high-diving platform that tall (and not even have it facing over the pool)?

 

So, with the above numbers, the impulse, or change in momentum, of Granny Smith from her free fall velocity to zero is:

 

J = mv_i - mv_f = (45.36 kg)(37.21 m/s) - 0 = 1687.85 N·s

 

Now we need to know the time period over which Granny Smith experienced this change in momentum. To get this, I counted the frames between the frame when the rope around Granny Smith's legs first becomes taut and the frame when Granny Smith first "springs back" from the bottom of her fall, which I counted as 10 frames. Since the video is 24 frames/second, this means that Granny Smith was stopped in a time period of 5/12 of a second:

 

t = (10 frames)/(24 frames/second) = 5/12 s

 

Thus, the average force needed to stop Granny Smith's free fall is the impulse divided by the time period over which the impulse takes place:

 

F = J/t = (1687.85 N·s)/(5/12 s) = 4050.84 N

 

To get a sense of how big this force is, let's re-arrange F = ma and, again using Earth's gravitational acceleration, find the equivalent mass for this force:

 

m = F/a = (4050.84 N)/(9.81 m/s²) = 412.93 kg = 910.35 lb

 

FINAL RESULT AND IMPLICATIONS:

 

The average force needed for Applejack to stop Granny Smith's free fall is roughly equivalent to the force needed for Applejack to suspend a 900 lb weight off the ground, and by holding a rope tied to the weight in between her teeth, no less! For comparison, even the largest Atlas stones used in the World's Strongest Man competition are about 350 lbs. The necessary force is probably even greater than I calculated once other factors are taken into account, such as the angle at which Applejack is pulling the rope and the coefficient of static friction between the rope and her teeth, which could be substantially reduced by, for example, saliva in her mouth. Thus, it seems a little unlikely that Applejack's jaw muscles are powerful enough to exert the necessary force to stop Granny Smith.

 

In fact, I can think of several failure points in this whole scenario of Applejack trying to stop Granny Smith, even assuming that she successfully lassos Granny Smith's hind legs:

 

1. The rope, once pulled taut, simply slips out from between Applejack's teeth;

2. Applejack dislocates her jaw trying to hold on to the rope;

3. Applejack holds on to the rope, but is pulled right off the diving board;

4. The lasso around Granny Smith's legs slips off under the sudden force on it.

 

In short, after analysis, the scenario in "Leap of Faith" where Applejack lassos Granny Smith from atop the high-diving platform and stops her by pulling the rope held between her teeth seems extremely unlikely to be able to happen as depicted.

 

What do you think? Do you agree with this analysis? Thanks for reading!

 

These notes tell a different story (taps paper stack). MLP: FiM exists in a cartoon world, where the laws of physics have gone out to lunch. So tell me, just how could AJ's lasso or Granny Smith be subject to terran physics laws?

[Icedog68 71]

Maybe earth ponies can lift/pull heavy things, by exerting most of their energy into the task. This would explain how earth ponies are able to pull trains, and after all, isn't strength their special thing? Unicorn=Magic Pegasus=Wings Earth Pony=Strength

[Adachi 772]

If there is any explanation, maybe it would be that it's a magic lasso that was given to her by somepony (maybe Twi, or even Celestia). Or AJ is just awesome enough to be exempt from the laws of physics.

Edited March 31, 2014 by Assertive Fluttershy

[The Mane-iac 1,648]

Maybe earth ponies can lift/pull heavy things, by exerting most of their energy into the task. This would explain how earth ponies are able to pull trains, and after all, isn't strength their special thing? Unicorn=Magic Pegasus=Wings Earth Pony=Strength

 

Partly true.

 

Unicorns = Magic (each one seems to have a special skill set and then spells like levitation or other psychokinesis that all seem to know)

Pegasi = Weather "magic" (in the sense they can walk on clouds, move them around, etc.) Flying is just natural since they have wings

Earth = Nature "magic" (good at growing things, working with the earth, etc.) Strength seems to be inherent like how the pegasi can fly

 

[Truffles 2,033]

All earth ponies have some innate level of earth bending skills. Most are not nearly powerful as Maud (though even her sister Pinkie can literally move mountains with just the power of her voice and a megaphone) so if AJ and Pinkie are related it stands to reason AJ should be able to stop the equivalent of a 910lb weight and GS should be able to withstand the sudden stop.

[Anilewe 2,178]

If there is any explanation, maybe it would be that it's a magic lasso that was given to her by somepony (maybe Twi, or even Celestia). Or AJ is just awesome enough to be exempt from the laws of physics.

 

Well, she's probably related to Pinkie Pie, so everything is possible XD

[DryGuy84 (Inactive) 927]

Nice work, but may I just say I hate math, mainly because I'm god-awful at it.

[Mywas 687]

No this is over anal lyzing.

[dekutree64 713]

I was more worried about Granny's joints getting pulled apart... and the blood exploding her brain.

[Pixel Stick 927]

I have to agree with others here.  I'll just repeat what I said in another thread: It's a cartoon.  Don't think too hard.

 

So many things to find fault with when you try to take a show like this too seriously.

[Ellie 36]

I skimmed your post and I believe you missed the fact that Granny's leg would have also broken and/or been torn off of her body had Applejack actually managed to stop her fall. 

Anyway, who even has time to analyze this?  XD  It's there for entertainment value and not scientific/physics accuracy.

[mars 4,862]

Ooh! I love it when people overanalyze the show. It makes for such an interesting read.

 

As others have said, I'm gonna just chalk this up to it being Earth Pony strength.

[Flutter's lover <3 8,205]

Bit of an over analysis...

 

But Who's to say Equestria has the same laws of Physics, is the same size as Earth or has the same gravitational pull as Earth? We don't really know how large of a planet Equestria is onto make any sort of technical analysis. Hence the above formulas have a low probability of working.

[Adorkable 2,737]

Wow, you went hard on that.

 

Very nice job, MCF! That's a good head you have on your shoulders! ^^

 

Please, take a bow. ^^ (\

[VenomTrixie 57]

I was more concerned with how being stopped like that in mid air would be painful, let alone for someone older. It's just a cartoon but yeah I thought it didn't seem realistic either. 

[A Talking Dragon 257]

Strength seems to be inherent like how the pegasi can fly.

 

Maybe earth ponies can lift/pull heavy things, by exerting most of their energy into the task. This would explain how earth ponies are able to pull trains, and after all, isn't strength their special thing? Unicorn=Magic Pegasus=Wings Earth Pony=Strength

 

^ Disagree. More than once the ponies that have been shown on screen doing weight lifting have been pegasus--it wasn't small amounts either, so this idea that pegasus have to be weaker to fly is baseless. I won't say that the pegasus are the stronger ones of the three but they do have the history of being more battle prone.

Edited April 1, 2014 by A Talking Dragon

[Music Chart Fan 819]

In these four seasons of talking ponies, talking buffalo, dragons, and various and sundry types of blatant magic, you're waiting until this point to challenge the scientific validity of MLP? I'm sorry, but if you want your cartoons to rigorously adhere to the laws of physics and thermodynamics, you're going to be pretty disappointed no matter what you're watching.

 

MLP: FiM exists in a cartoon world, where the laws of physics have gone out to lunch. So tell me, just how could AJ's lasso or Granny Smith be subject to terran physics laws?

 

But Who's to say Equestria has the same laws of Physics, is the same size as Earth or has the same gravitational pull as Earth? We don't really know how large of a planet Equestria is onto make any sort of technical analysis. Hence the above formulas have a low probability of working.

 

I think that we, as viewers, inevitably use some kind of basis or paradigm to view the show; that is, I don't think we watch the show with absolutely zero preconceptions or expectations of how things work in the world of Equestria. Consequently, my impression of the show is that we are meant to assume that the world of Equestria is generally like ours, but with certain specific exceptions. Obviously our world doesn't have things like sentient ponies, pony civilizations, unicorn magic, and flying pegasi. But we have observed throughout the show that the ordinary flora and fauna are similar to ours; standard inventions like clocks, phonographs, projectors, and bathtubs seem to work the same way as on Earth and serve the same functions; the general familiar rules of physics like gravity and friction seem to apply; Equestria has similar landscape features to Earth like mountains, plains, swamps, and an atmosphere; etc. And this is what I would expect; retaining a significant amount of continuity both within Equestria and between Equestria and Earth serves to make the show relatable and relatively easily understood.

 

So, I would ask, is there a particularly good reason to believe that the general rules of physics we've observed don't apply in this specific scenario? The theory that "Earth ponies have magical super-strength" could possibly answer this question, but I would still have some questions about that explanation. Has it ever been explained in the show that this is the case? Is there any kind of limitation to this super-strength? Should we expect it to apply to Applejack's jaw muscles, and to the extent necessary for this scenario? And even if Applejack does have magical super-strength, there are still physical limitations that Applejack would run up against which I described in the original post: the small window of time in which she has to grab the rope, tie it into a lasso, and throw it in such a way that it accurately reaches Granny Smith in time; the limited coefficient of friction between the rope and her teeth or the diving board and her body; etc.

 

And @@Something Floaty, I haven't waited until this point to challenge the validity of scenes in the show; I've consistently raised questions and pointed out inconsistencies I've noticed in new episodes as they've aired, both in the posts I've made (and discussions I've had with other members) in every episode topic of Seasons 3 and 4, as well as several topics which I've made myself.

 

If there is any explanation, maybe it would be that it's a magic lasso that was given to her by somepony (maybe Twi, or even Celestia).

 

In the episode, Applejack is shown running toward a rope hanging on the side of the diving platform, as if to grab it, before the shot cuts away to Granny Smith falling, and Applejack isn't shown to be carrying a rope up to the diving platform. So I think that Applejack used the rope hanging at the top of the diving platform. I don't think that the rope is magical, either; it doesn't have the typical magical aura or glow that we usually see with such objects, and it certainly looks like an ordinary rope. In any case, the rope itself is just one part of the whole scenario.

 

I was more worried about Granny's joints getting pulled apart... and the blood exploding her brain.

 

I was more concerned with how being stopped like that in mid air would be painful, let alone for someone older.

 

I did mention this possibility in the CALCULATIONS section of the original post: "Would Granny Smith really be unharmed after being suddenly stopped from that speed?" It is a good point, but a lot of other things have to go right first before we even get there; I listed four such things which could go wrong in the sequence of events near the end of the original post.

[Pixel Stick 927]

 

 

So, I would ask, is there a particularly good reason to believe that the general rules of physics we've observed don't apply in this specific scenario? The theory that "Earth ponies have magical super-strength" could possibly answer this question, but I would still have some questions about that explanation. Has it ever been explained in the show that this is the case?

 

Lemme ask you this: Have you watched movies like Die Hard? Speed? Fast and Furious?  You know how many "yeah right" moments there are in those movies too, right?  They're all special effects - cars don't really flip over like that when they hit the corner of a semi crossing their path.

 

But if you're going to sit there and pick apart all of the things that are physically, realistically wrong with the movie, you're not going to enjoy it for its pure entertainment value.  I think that's even more true for a cartoon world in which Pinkie Pie can break virtually all the laws of physics at will.

 

Don't get me wrong, I like a good analysis for trivia's sake just as much as the next pony.  I just think you're losing yourself too much in questioning so many fine-grained points about a world that is as entertaining as it is inherently unrealistic.  Do you enjoy the show?

[Icedog68 71]

^ Disagree. More than once the ponies that have been shown on screen doing weight lifting have been pegasus--it wasn't small amounts either, so this idea that pegasus have to be weaker to fly is baseless. I won't say that the pegasus are the stronger ones of the three but they do have the history of being more battle prone.

I didn't say that they are weaker than normal, but that the earth ponies are stronger. If the unicorns can have horns and the pegasus can have wings, why can't earth ponies have inherently strong muscles?

[Music Chart Fan 819]

@@Pixel Stick,

 

This isn't the first time I've addressed criticism or questions like yours; I've written about similar criticisms and questions in my posts here and here, for example, if you care to read them. I'll respond to your post, but I'll probably end up repeating myself in some instances.

 

Lemme ask you this: Have you watched movies like Die Hard? Speed? Fast and Furious?  You know how many "yeah right" moments there are in those movies too, right?  They're all special effects - cars don't really flip over like that when they hit the corner of a semi crossing their path.

 

I saw Die Hard for the first time a few months ago; I've never watched Speed or Fast and Furious. I haven't watched very many movies, to be honest, but that's probably beside the point.

 

But if you're going to sit there and pick apart all of the things that are physically, realistically wrong with the movie, you're not going to enjoy it for its pure entertainment value.

 

First, must these two things necessarily be mutually exclusive? Is it impossible to notice dubious physics, unrealistic character actions, etc. and yet still enjoy watching a movie or TV episode? I've had several people tell me something to the effect of "You need to learn to turn off your brain and just enjoy it", and I don't see exactly why that's necessarily the "right" way to watch a movie or TV show. I feel like noticing these things as I watch an episode is just an inherent part of the viewing process for me, and often is part of the enjoyment, too. It seems like it's just part of my personality to enjoy analyzing things. After all, my main hobby is compiling databases of singles popularity charts from the past 50+ years so I can see how popular the music I listen to was at the time; I've enjoyed watching things like Mythbusters, the Angry Video Game Nerd, and various videos on That Guy With The Glasses; and even my PhD research with polymer simulations involves collecting and analyzing lots of data (as well as a fair bit of programming).

 

But I have seen the theory that people nitpick media they're watching when they're not being engaged by it, when they're not so engrossed that they overlook the flaws and inconsistencies. That theory could explain why I thought Die Hard was generally entertaining, even as I noticed and knew that a lot of the events taking place were unrealistic - the movie was otherwise engrossing enough for me to overlook those things. And to that point, I'll admit that I probably am not nearly as engaged or emotionally invested in the show as a lot of other people on the forums. That almost seems like a strange thing to say, given that I've made a lot of lengthy posts about episodes, and it usually takes me hours to organize, write out, and sometimes research all of the questions and observations in my posts. But a lot of that is probably just my tendency to be a perfectionist and a completionist. Most of what I write about episodes just naturally came to mind the first or second time watching the episodes; I don't comb through episodes trying to look for every last possible flaw. Most of the time, I'll notice (and write in a post) dubious physics or character actions or whatnot, and it might provoke a reaction when I see it, but ultimately, I know it's just a show and not to take it too seriously or personally.

 

I think that's even more true for a cartoon world in which Pinkie Pie can break virtually all the laws of physics at will.

 

I will admit that the vast majority of the time, I find Pinkie's character to be stupid and annoying, and the repeated "Pinkie breaks the laws of physics!" gags are a part of that. But while those gags do irritate me a little, I also think they've been played to death and they're just not funny or entertaining to me. I have other reasons to dislike Pinkie, too: she often acts totally socially unaware and like a complete jerk; her character seems to almost never stray from the same one-note shtick; and her personality is close to diametrically opposite of mine, so I don't really relate to her at all.

 

Don't get me wrong, I like a good analysis for trivia's sake just as much as the next pony.  I just think you're losing yourself too much in questioning so many fine-grained points about a world that is as entertaining as it is inherently unrealistic.

 

I did intend for this topic to be fun and interesting, and who knows, maybe even to facilitate someone learning something about physics. But when other forum members challenge my calculation methods or even question why I made the topic in the first place, then I understandably feel a bit of an obligation to try to defend myself and to explain why I think what I did was reasonable.

 

Your statement here raises the question in my mind of what criteria you're using to make this determination. How are you judging that some analysis is fine, but my level of analysis "crosses the line"? I don't really know what other people's standards or thresholds are for this kind of thing; it's hard to me to get out of my own head, where I have so many questions and little things I notice and think about that, even after trying to shave them down and streamline them so as not to be excessively long or boring, I still end up making posts longer than a lot of other forum members.

 

I'm just curious, what problems or negative consequences are you envisioning as a result of me losing myself too much in questioning fine-grained points about the world? Also, what do you mean when you say that the world is as entertaining as it is inherently unrealistic? Are you saying that the world being inherently unrealistic is what makes it entertaining? Are you saying that the more inherently unrealistic a world is, the more entertaining it will be? I don't necessarily see why those things would be the case.

 

Do you enjoy the show?

 

Heh heh, just as I mentioned at the beginning of the post, you aren't the first person to ask me this, and I addressed this question in some detail in the first post I linked. Basically, I do enjoy the show to some extent, but it's hard to say what exactly that extent is. It's probably true that I don't enjoy the show nearly as much as a lot of other forum members, though. Most episodes have at least a few good moments or aspects, although they may sometimes be few and far between. I just don't usually post about those things, mostly because I don't have much to say about them, and moreover, what I think about them isn't very novel or interesting, especially when tens or hundreds of other forum members usually post about them away. On the other hand, I don't see very many posts that examine the questions and observations of inconsistencies, dubious character actions, physical impossibilities, etc. which I usually write about, so in focusing on those, I feel like I'm doing something different and maybe contributing a little more.