S04E17: Somepony to Watch Over Me

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Re: S04E17: Somepony to Watch Over Me

Postby Dexanth (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:03 pm

Wayoshi wrote:Still a good ep, but AJ having the idiot ball (necessarily, I guess...) held it back quite a bit.


I agree with this. It was fun, but committed the sin of 'Character is forced into the plot, rather than plot flowing around the character'
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Postby Frith (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:03 pm

That was a sweet episode :allears:
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Postby Quanta (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:03 pm

I liked this episode a lot. I think Mir, Robotzor and I are going to have to fight over avatars now. :anticipation:
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Postby The Doctor (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:04 pm

+ Jokes
+ :ohboy: :scootawoo: being more adorable than :flail: with bows
+ Fire Swamp
+ Chimera

- :bluh: You never go full retard...
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Postby Applepie (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:04 pm

There was no key yet for AJ, so I guess AJ gets her key in Leap of Faith.

But better than last episode.
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Postby Star Platinum (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:04 pm

Wow, the swamp and chimera scenes were legitimately intense. I like it when the monsters are actually smart. Applejack was slightly over the top, but I think it was within believable parameters because it was the first time she had left AB home alone.
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Postby SoundMonkey44 (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:05 pm

Cute episode. Chimera wad neat, song interruption was funny. And AJ is best overprotective sister/ surrogate mother. XD
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:05 pm

I really loved this episode. Aside from the theatrics with the chimaera in the flaming swamp, this managed to deliver plenty of jokes (the song fakeout, holy shiiiiit) and also plenty of feelings. A very fine debut for Scott Sonneborn.

Wayoshi wrote:Still a good ep, but AJ having the idiot ball (necessarily, I guess...) held it back quite a bit.

Was it really that bad? Applejack has always been highly concerned about her family. She actually had reason to worry, too, once Apple Bloom left with the pies. Exaggerated a bit, maybe, but it felt natural to me.
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Postby The Falcon (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:06 pm

Bah, this episode was hilarious and so was Applejack. I feel like I'm alone on this, but I like it when the show goes over the top with the characters, my favorite episode is still Lesson Zero after all. :twiright:

At this point, I honestly think the CMC eppisodes are my favorites, they are always just so funny. Everything with Scootaloo was just the best, "Like Applebloom does everything, WITH SASS!" :scootawoo:
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Postby The Doctor (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:07 pm

Fizzbuzz wrote:I really loved this episode. Aside from the theatrics with the chimaera in the flaming swamp, this managed to deliver plenty of jokes (the song fakeout, holy shiiiiit) and also plenty of feelings. A very fine debut for Scott Sonneborn.


Was it really that bad? Applejack has always been highly concerned about her family. She actually had reason to worry, too, once Apple Bloom left with the pies. Exaggerated a bit, maybe, but it felt natural to me.


Baby proofing the house? Putting AB in a crib? They went to far with the joke.
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Postby TheNegaverser (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:07 pm

I really enjoyed that!

A bunch of great moments from AJ and AB, lots of laughs, and a dash of sweetness to boot! I liked the Chimera as well. It's neat to be reminded that this show can pull of awesome visuals and scary imagery when it wants to.

Another week, another splendid outing of pony goodness! :anticipation: :twasnothin:
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Postby PonyHag714 (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:08 pm

Well, that was interesting. I thought AJ was channeling Twilight for a while, until we saw she had a reason for her concern over AB making the delivery.

The Chimera was sort of cool. Neat twist that she turned out to be female(s). :awkward: I got a kick out of the song being cut off, almost like Pony poking fun at itself. :-P

I also liked Big Mac's "Eeeyuuup" and Cajun ponies. :yay:
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Postby Sailor Yue (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:08 pm

This episode may not be solid gold, but it definately takes a silver... Aj's idiocy aside this episode was cute.

Loved the Cajun ponies :gotcha: I knew they were Cajun the moment that one pony regretted insulting his mama. :twonk:
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Postby Highbrow Dash (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:09 pm

Wayoshi wrote:I'm kinda hoping that town at the end was Hollow Shades. Someone ask on Twitter. :-P


Didn't the book say that Cadence was from Hollow Shades? If so, I hope that was it :gotcha:

That was a fun episode, bunch of fun moments and a nice ending. I'll have to give it a rewatch later :-P
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:09 pm

And now that I think about it, the chimaera really is the darkest thing the show has ever done. She was literally going to eat Apple Bloom, right there. With her talk of pies I first thought it was going to be one of those "ha ha, big scary monster is actually nice after all," but not this time! I'm glad the show is willing to go up to that level now.
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Postby Discord (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:10 pm

Holy shit that third act. :starity: That was unexpected.

Loved this episode. A pretty relatable dilemma with Applebloom, a pretty funny second act, and a surprisingly exciting third act that was really awesome. Plus a pretty adorable conclusion :3:


Fizzbuzz wrote:I really loved this episode. Aside from the theatrics with the chimaera in the flaming swamp, this managed to deliver plenty of jokes (the song fakeout, holy shiiiiit) and also plenty of feelings. A very fine debut for Scott Sonneborn.


Was it really that bad? Applejack has always been highly concerned about her family. She actually had reason to worry, too, once Apple Bloom left with the pies. Exaggerated a bit, maybe, but it felt natural to me.


I agree with this. Applejack has a charted history of going overboard with micro-management of her family sometimes. She's kind of similar to Twilight in that regard. It was a believable thing for me- Applejack over-compensating for her perceived failure to look after her sister. Exaggerated for comedic and cartoony effect, but not so much so that I thought it out of character.

You can also do psychoanalysis and explain AJ in this episode with dead parents. :scheming:
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Postby TheNegaverser (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:10 pm

Equestria be full of dangers for the unprepared.
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Postby Mr. Big (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:10 pm

The Falcon wrote:Bah, this episode was hilarious and so was Applejack. I feel like I'm alone on this, but I like it when the show goes over the top with the characters, my favorite episode is still Lesson Zero after all. :twiright:

At this point, I honestly think the CMC eppisodes are my favorites, they are always just so funny. Everything with Scootaloo was just the best, "Like Applebloom does everything, WITH SASS!" :scootawoo:

Yeah. Honestly, I think they should do a CMC spinoff by now, soley because that would mean more episodes with those three doofuses :allears:

And Apple Bloom is confirmed to be the sassy one of the trio :v:
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Postby Rarietty (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:10 pm

Well...okay then. This is probably the first MLP episode this season that I'm not really feeling. :pinkieshrug:

Some great jokes, but my expectations going into this were stupidly high. I assumed that they would bring up Applejack's parents somehow, even just like a callback from Apple Family Reunion with the shooting stars (the last shot over the redneck camp thing would have been PERFECT for that). However, that's not my problem, it's that Applejack's stupidity wasn't justified, which was what really annoyed me. I know it's comedic exaggeration, but Twilight in Lesson Zero actually worked because she decended into it. Twilight got worse as the episode dragged on, and she started off sane. Her craziness was justifiable. Whereas Applejack here just kind of randomly started to let her overprotectiveness blind her with no explanation. I didn't find it funny at all. Even so, quite a few funny jokes with the CMC. Also some brilliant animation and staging during the fighting scene.

Still, it's the 17th episode of the season and this is the first episode of it that I didn't really enjoy or feel up to rewatching. That's pretty amazing.
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Postby Sailor Yue (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:11 pm

Applepie wrote:There was no key yet for AJ, so I guess one of the untitled eps must mean another Apple Family episode.

But better than last episode.

Are you a spoiler reader or avoider.?
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:12 pm

Discord wrote:I agree with this. Applejack has a charted history of going overboard with micro-management of her family sometimes. She's kind of similar to Twilight in that regard. It was a believable thing for me- Applejack over-compensating for her perceived failure to look after her sister. Exaggerated for comedic and cartoony effect, but not so much so that I thought it out of character.

You can also do psychoanalysis and explain AJ in this episode with dead parents. :scheming:

I'm glad I wasn't the only one reminded of Twilight Sparkle in that regard. Given the similarities between the two of them (particularly their determination), I'm surprised we haven't seen them together more.
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Postby PonyHag714 (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:13 pm

I was half expecting to see the shooting stars at the end. It would have underscored how the Apples are always together. :twasnothin:

Also, WHERE ARE THE PIES :twonk:

I actually got a bit of a Diamond Dogs vibe from the Chimera.
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Postby ROBOT B9 (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:13 pm

I also really enjoyed that they didn't cop out with the chimera and have it be nice...nope, it's still evil. So, that's another cool mythological creature that has appeared in the show.
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Postby Mr. Big (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:15 pm

Man, I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought the Chimera would turn out to be nice. Didn't happen that way.

Meat does exist in the show's universe ("filly filet" :v: )
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Postby Wayoshi (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:15 pm

Fizzbuzz wrote:Was it really that bad? Applejack has always been highly concerned about her family. She actually had reason to worry, too, once Apple Bloom left with the pies. Exaggerated a bit, maybe, but it felt natural to me.

Once she left with the pies, sure. But AB actually did her fucking chores right away like a good girl! AJ came in at exactly the wrong time (cartoon logic!) and she tripped. Then a precariously (cartoon logic!) placed jam on top of the fridge falls. AJ checking on AB one more time? Yeah, I'll grant that. Blowing up over those two things without letting AB argue back at all? Idiot ball.

AB was totally right and, in her usual sassy way (this was a great line by Scoots) went headfirst into the delivery. AB was great this ep at the expense of AJ.

Sonneborn definitely has an interesting style between the sass line, the song fake, and the Cajun ponies at the end.

Fizzbuzz wrote:And now that I think about it, the chimaera really is the darkest thing the show has ever done. She was literally going to eat Apple Bloom, right there. With her talk of pies I first thought it was going to be one of those "ha ha, big scary monster is actually nice after all," but not this time! I'm glad the show is willing to go up to that level now.


:overanalysis: - The fact they were willing to eat the pies before AB was interesting. Seems to have a shred of moral values, but it was still hungry.
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:17 pm

Honestly, this episode had too much action and excitement for it to also bring up the issue of their parents. If they cut out the chimaera and used all that time to instead provide a touching flashback, then that would've been nice, but without that added danger Applejack's worrying and fretting would've been too dumb and unjustified.
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Postby The Falcon (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:19 pm

Mr. Big wrote:Yeah. Honestly, I think they should do a CMC spinoff by now, soley because that would mean more episodes with those three doofuses :allears:

And Apple Bloom is confirmed to be the sassy one of the trio
:v:


I cannot adequately describe how much it amuses me that Applebloom is apparently the "sassy" one. :lol:

And yes, CMC spinoff please! :awesomedash:
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Postby Mr. Big (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:20 pm

It's interesting that we have a new writer (Scott Sonneborn) so late into the season. I wonder if he'll have one more episode, or, like somebody else said, he's a one-time writer hired because they didn't have enough scripts.
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Postby The Doctor (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:22 pm

The Doctor wrote:Come on guys, this is My Little Pony, there's something like a 50% chance the Chimera is kind and playful.


I was SO close on this one... :saddershy:
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:22 pm

Wayoshi wrote:Once she left with the pies, sure. But AB actually did her fucking chores right away like a good girl! AJ came in at exactly the wrong time (cartoon logic!) and she tripped. Then a precariously (cartoon logic!) placed jam on top of the fridge falls. AJ checking on AB one more time? Yeah, I'll grant that. Blowing up over those two things without letting AB argue back at all? Idiot ball.

I agree with you on those two cartoon logic examples. But Applejack taking charge of her little sister fit right in, as I always saw her. Applejack, ever steadfast and determined, can't be dissuaded from something to which she's stuck her mind. Take leaving a little sibling alone, something that is naturally a bit stressful and worrisome, multiply that by Applejack's love for her family, add her stubbornness, and this episode comes out.
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Postby Wayoshi (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:26 pm

Another thing - AB doing the cliche "headfirst into dangerous area, actually getting the pies across w/o screwing up, AJ is wowed" was kinda meh. No deviant branch there from the millions of other endings like this. :pinkieshrug:

I'll stress again this was a pretty solid episode, it just has some fundamental rot that hold it back. Act II was very good on its own merits.
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Postby LardLad3545 (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:27 pm

I definitely liked the episode a lot. I'll admit, it didn't quite reach the emotional warmth I was hoping for, but that didn't detract from it too terribly much and now that I know what to expect I'll enjoy it even more upon re-watch. As for AJ being so over the top as to detract from the episode? I'm not seeing that. It wasn't a sudden out-of-nowhere about face. She was clearly shown as growing increasingly worried while with Big Mac delivering the pies. I dunno. It seemed to flow just fine to me.

Loved the dialogue. Sass, song, bows and hats, double helmet, and cajun ponies. My god, the cajun ponies. I loved that so much. I know it's a long shot, but I really really really want to see them again. I was also under the strong impression that the town was Hollow Shades which, if true, wold make me extraordinarily happy. I don't know why, but ever since that map of Equestria was released something over a year ago, I've had this little nagging obsession with Hollow Shades. :amazing: Just something about it... dunno. But yeah, hope to see it again.

So, in short, because so many people care, I'd give it a solid B+ or maybe even an A-. Very good episode that just lacked a little punch.
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Postby Ransom (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:28 pm

This episode was pretty funny and clever, with doggone chimera fight, so I can't say i don't like it.

I would have liked there to be a reason for AJ's behavior. I don't mean (necessarily) something like this being tr anniversary of her parents dying but some factor to cause her to spiral. Rarity at least had Trend.
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Postby Adelor Lyon (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:28 pm

A lot of people criticize fanfiction as being "random story with pony inserts." That's what most of this episode felt like. It was "random cartoon story with added ponies." Applejack was way out of character (comedy!), Apple Bloom was "success until plot dictated she trip and fall" (comedy!), and the insanely cute extras like the "hats and bows" closet was a great gag, but not much more (I'm okay with gags for the sake of gags as long as the entire show doesn't rely on them, which Pony certainly doesn't!). I enjoyed the episode, but it felt like "random cartoon story but with ponies." That's not a bad thing since it's rare with this show; I'm just not sure the writer "gets" the show the way some of the others do.

The third act was bad-ass, though. I'm not sure if it was very intended-target-market, but it's "pony" in my book, given the success of other dark elements and how they've been integrated into the show. Besides, it's been a while since we've seen a new mythical monster, and the thing saying it was going to eat Apple Bloom was pretty :black101:

And what was up with that moral? "Well, I didn't trust you to stay at home safe, so when you ran away to do something dangerous and got this far, I guess I was wrong and I can trust you to stay home alone in the future!"

:v:
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Postby Wonkadoo (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:33 pm

I found it interesting that by staying home and fussing over Apple Bloom, Applejack was managing not to go on her legitimately dangerous trip. :smirk:
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Postby SoundMonkey44 (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:40 pm

Fizzbuzz wrote:Honestly, this episode had too much action and excitement for it to also bring up the issue of their parents. If they cut out the chimaera and used all that time to instead provide a touching flashback, then that would've been nice, but without that added danger Applejack's worrying and fretting would've been too dumb and unjustified.



Sad but true. It would be nice to see the show adress the parents death, and explain why AJ tried to fill not only the big sister but mother role as well, but that seems to be A punch that Hasbro wont let DHX hit its audiance with.

But yea A "you're not my mother". moment would have made the ep infinitly better IMO. But what we got was pretty good too!

Also was Caujin pony town supposed to be Hollow Shades?
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Postby Mr. Big (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:41 pm

In response to some of you, Chimera are always female in myths, so it makes sense that they bicker like sisters. :pinkieshrug:
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Postby ROBOT B9 (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:42 pm

Huh...I did not know that! Well, I guess I better check my mythology books again.
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:46 pm

And one more thing: In the episode's closing dialogue, I was expecting some sort of status-quo-maintaining speech from Applejack, and it started to go in that direction, but then she actually admitted that she'd underestimated Apple Bloom and would actually trust her to be left alone in the future. I'm definitely glad this episode avoided that and actually let the two of them grow up some.
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Postby RudeCyrus (?) » Sat Mar 08, 2014 4:49 pm

Apple Bloom and the other CMC were adorable, the chimera was scary, yet amusing, Applejack was waaaaaaaay too overprotective. I liked it.
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