S04E24: Equestria Games

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Re: S04E24: Equestria Games

Postby ROBOT B9 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 5:55 am

ShieldedDiamond wrote:I think Mayor Mare wandered into that shot and pretended to be important. I still maintain the headcanon that she has no real roll in Equestria Government, but pretends to be important. :-I


So, basically, she's like The Mayor from Powerpuff Girls? :gotcha:
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Postby Mr. Big (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 5:56 am

ROBOT B9 wrote:
So, basically, she's like The Mayor from Powerpuff Girls? :gotcha:

I was thinking the King of Town, but it's the same thing :smirk:
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Postby Strangest Letter (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 5:59 am

If were on topic of the crowd then I want to shamelessly restate my observation.

Image

Twilight's Parents. :ponydrugs:

and Octavia and the Orange Couple apparently.
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Postby Brunellus (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 7:27 am

Headless Horse wrote:I'm not sure what it means that it takes a Spike-centric episode to tackle the subject matter and the stylistic details this maturely. But I love that the show still has this kind of variety in it.


Probably the best so far this season.
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Postby Chaos Sonic (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 7:56 am

Corpy wrote:Dubbing Spike's awkward singing with various music is going to be a thing... Space Jam, please :allears:

Kazakhstan national anthem. :lol:
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Postby Just Scuds (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 8:08 am

Bravinim wrote:If were on topic of the crowd then I want to shamelessly restate my observation.

Image

Twilight's Parents. :ponydrugs:

and Octavia and the Orange Couple apparently.


And the Roger and Joan ponies above her.

Have you ever seen a crowd scene and saw it full of discrete background characters instead of a board full of oddly shaped dots?

Thank a Background Pony! :crack:
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Postby ROBOT B9 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 8:14 am

I think they only did the oddly shaped dots only once, in A Canterlot Wedding.That's probably because the crowd was too large there but it seems like they had no problem doing it here.
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Postby Star Platinum (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 9:43 am



This made me cringe worse than the anthem scene. That's not a reference, those three things never happened in the same context, they're just random concepts from different points of the episode! :facehoof: That's like taking Rarity's Blueblood fantasy from The Ticket Master and going "how'd you guys like the LORD of the RING in this episode???" :iamapony:
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Postby DaBatGuy (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 9:44 am

Two good Spike episodes? In the same season? In a row? What is this madness? :psyduck:

After all these years it's nice to have a story (other than FF #3) that shows how Spike is really helpful BECAUSE he's different from ponies, not in spite of it. Unfortunately I feel this episode will get negatively judged based on the unfulfilled hype of the Equestria Games. With several connected episodes and over a year of anticipation having it all amount to the backdrop of a single episode Spike story is really underwhelming.

Bravinim wrote:If were on topic of the crowd then I want to shamelessly restate my observation.

Image

Twilight's Parents. :ponydrugs:

and Octavia and the Orange Couple apparently.


They still have to sit among the plebeians, despite both children now being royalty, one of which is for all intents and purposes the king of the empire hosting the games. Equestrians never fully grasped the concept of nepotism I see. :scheming:
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Postby !saak (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 10:46 am

Perfect.

This is one of those episodes that elevates the show as a whole and expands on what's possible with it. Not so much a new yardstick as a new kind of yardstick.
It's not unlike Suited for Success and Hurricane Fluttershy in that it casts a character's growth against a larger backdrop (fashion show, big Tornado thingy, Equestrian Games), but it ends up feeling... more like a personal, intimate portrait of someone dealing with his issues than SFS or HF.

:starity:

Yeah, I'm floored.

Headless Horse wrote:So what struck me about this episode was that it's one of those very "grown-up" ones that stand out from the rest by daring to tackle a kind of mental difficulty that adults will find just as relatable as kids do, and perhaps more so. And what's more, this ep really underscored that focus by being directed in a very "grown-up" way. What with the generally downplayed humor and the intense focus on Spike's psychological state, and what with all the short scene intercuts (I'm thinking of that whole bit through Act 2 where Twilight is trying to coax Spike out of the dressing room, and the scene keeps cutting back and forth from there to the relay race and other stuff going on in the stadium), it felt less like a kids' TV cartoon and more like a feature film. I don't think I remember any other Pony episode going nearly so far down that path—not even stuff like Suited For Success, which took advantage of its strong plot to make comedic hay rather than to show off how "movie-like" its presentation could be.

I mean, god, that one cut that begins on the feather that Spike is blowing up into the air? Inventive and intriguing and just damn good. Someone was really earning their paycheck that day.

SO MUCH THIS. They were having an absolute field day. The episode as a whole ended up not feeling like an actual episode thanks to its pacing.
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Postby Gnot Syndrome (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 11:03 am

That anthem scene was pretty much perfect. I think the only other time I've laughed that much at a Pony scene was during Lesson Zero. I didn't think Pony was capable of making me that uncomfortable. "Wish this song was over... still not over... still going..." :lol:

Other than that, I think that little moment between Twilight and Celestia was my favorite of the episode.
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Postby Headless Horse (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 11:53 am

What I want to know is how much of that anthem was scripted and how much was ad-libbed against actual music.

It sure sounded like the latter, for maximum authenticity. And that's part of what felt "feature film-y" about it: it's like they made an exception and did the underscore first for that scene just so it would end up sounding "bad" in just the right way. Like they ate the cost of doing things out of order this time just because that's how they knew they had to do it right.



E: And the setup! The setup was so marvelously well-written and organic. Spike traipsing out onto the field with a perfect (but ill-thought-out) plan to sing the Ponyville anthem because obviously Ponyville would have won, and he grabs the spotlight onto himself before Shining Armor has a chance to dissuade him (even though he tries his best and in a very realistic taking-him-aside way), and only when it's too late does he realize his terrible mistake and the depth of the shit he's in and through nobody's fault but his own. The Cloudsdale anthem?

All of a sudden every mention of Cloudsdale and the Wonderbolts and the EqGames running all the way back to Games Ponies Play makes sense retroactively as setup for this one Spike moment. The Cloudsdale/Ponyville rivalry had to have been set up that far in advance to feel this organic, for it to sneak up on us (and on Spike) so insidiously. I no longer regret GPP not ending with "And the games will be held in.... Cloudsdale!" and Rainbow Dash insensitively doing an aerial endzone dance. :-I
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 12:10 pm

I really love the fact that they actually bothered to populate the crowd scenes with recognizable ponies (and other characters; Gilda and Gustave le Grand are in the background of one shot). All that effort... to DHX's layout artists, if you're reading this, I salute you. :jingo:
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Postby Headless Horse (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 12:59 pm

I'm a little disconcerted by the comments in the thread that suggest we ought to have had a longer (or even two-part) focus on the Games themselves, and that Spike's story kind of stole the spotlight, as it were. Are you guys sure that would really have been that entertaining? A lot of quick cuts of event after event without enough time to get invested in any of the individual contests or their internal dramas? I mean, if you're prepared to take it to an hour or more, you can pull off something like Animalympics—but then it would have felt copycattish, and it's such a gimmicky concept that I don't think it would really work for Pony anyway.

I'd much rather they did it the way they did: have the Games be a background thread to the main Spike event, something whose importance comes and goes in the narrative, and something that is made all the grander by being told to us through allusion and fleeting glimpses of the action rather than painstakingly showing us every single event. I feel like all that would have done would be to make it feel smaller and more unsatisfying.

It's all about the parts you don't show.
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 1:18 pm

I agree with you. To me, saying that is kind of like saying that the wedding should've focused entirely on the preparations and the actual wedding ceremony, instead of on Twilight's possessiveness over her brother and later the threat imposed by Chrysalis and the changelings.
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Postby Space Ghost (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 1:37 pm

I never cared for the games to begin with, so for me this is the perfect outcome. Get a few scenes to get the idea that there's something going on in the backround, but focus on the (relateable) character story, the thing where this show shines.
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Postby ROBOT B9 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 1:41 pm

Yeah, I was surpised at how well the games turned out. Though I was kind of hoping for a Pony Parade Of Nations, it gave a lot of good world building and still focused on excellent character moments.
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Postby die Fledermaus (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 2:13 pm

Tailspin wrote:I never cared for the games to begin with, so for me this is the perfect outcome. Get a few scenes to get the idea that there's something going on in the backround, but focus on the (relateable) character story, the thing where this show shines.


Yea the games, to me, never seemed important. I mean, the point was that Rainbow Dash wanted to be in them, and we got an episode about that, and then the point was everyone wanted them to go well, and that's what this episode was. We saw enough cool pony games (ice archery was legit cool and I'm stealing that for shit like D&D games and all), we didn't need an epic sports drama about ponies, the games were just the background.
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Postby Wayoshi (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 3:19 pm

What bothered me was jumping from Cloudsdale / Ponyville having single digit medals mid-ep to like, 37/36 at the end. That's a huuuuuuge jump, several days where Spike is moaning in his room? A bit more could have been shown there. I think two eps where you have Spike's plot, something else a bit, and some more EqGames would have been a nice balance.

Also, the games should have still been in Cloudsdale, Spike could have shit himself in a slightly different way. :rainbert: :v:

EDIT: One problem also that isn't the ep's fault is a lot of those quick cuts Headless mentioned was back and forth to the same event, the aerial relay, whose result was spoiled by Hub ads. At the same time though, Bulk Biceps and Fluts raced quite statically, not much interesting there until the end.
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Postby PonyHag714 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 3:20 pm

:notgonnadoit: And now, as part of the opening ceremony, Princess Twilight and Princess Cadence have a special feature.

:excite: :allright: Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake... :butt:

Image You have GOT to be joking...

When Cadence waved at Twi during the opening ceremony, it did make me think of ladybug dance. :sheepish:
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Postby ROBOT B9 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 3:27 pm

Honestly, I would have liked to see that just to see Harshwhinny's reaction.
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Postby acksed (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 3:55 pm

I think that might have been the first time I've laughed at cringe humour instead of running a mile.

Nailed it.

How good was that moral? I think I actually learned something! It always bothered me how I could come up with cogent arguments for people that deconstructed every insecurity, yet their and my own confidence would collapse a few days later. Now I know why.
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Postby PictishBeast (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 4:03 pm

Pretty great. The episode had this weird, approachable, naturalistic vibe that felt less like watching an episode of a TV series and more like having a magic mirror view into Equestria. Like, that part where Twilight is in the stands looking for Spike. She's talking to Pinkie, and meanwhile there's stuff going on in the stadium that everybody else is watching but we're not, and oh look here's the CMC so let's interrupt them for one sec... It was like playing an open-world RPG or something.

The griffon flag is pretty badass:

Image

I didn't think Spike singing the anthem was funny at first, but the longer it went on the funnier it got. Any edits would have ruined it. The punchline was the length.

Pretty great. But Ponyville winning the medal count was still :grumpydash:
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Postby Sailor Yue (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 4:07 pm

Episode was pretty good. I liked it
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Postby ROBOT B9 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 4:19 pm

Huh, the stream might have cut out during that part because I don't remember the Griffon flag. Are there any others in the episode?
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Postby Dilbert As Fuck (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 4:22 pm

Bravinim wrote:If were on topic of the crowd then I want to shamelessly restate my observation.

Image

Twilight's Parents. :ponydrugs:

and Octavia and the Orange Couple apparently.



Is that... Marker pony, right by spikes head?

http://i.imgur.com/yyYUwuL.png

This could be the greatest thing since when we saw the general in EG.
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Postby Venusy (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 4:22 pm

Yeah, the CMC plant Ponyville's flag on the hill, the other flags should be visible during that bit.
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Postby Perpetual Lurker (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 4:40 pm

Octavia is also in the picture, near the top, and I think that that's Trenderhoof standing next to Twilight's parents.
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Postby PonyHag714 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 5:08 pm

Spike is now Serious Business. Awesome pic.

http://dimfann.deviantart.com/art/Mr-The-Dragon-451798317
:speakest: The fun has been doubled!
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Postby SlateSlabrock (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 5:31 pm

Venusy wrote:Yeah, the CMC plant Ponyville's flag on the hill, the other flags should be visible during that bit.

I don't think we ever get a clear shot of all of them.

Image
Image

On the other hand, the teams are wearing jerseys with their logos, except the griffons, who have armbands:
Image

Cloudsdale:
Image

:anticipation: :ohboy: Ponyville forever! Yay! :scootawoo:
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Putting the "Empire" in "Crystal Empire"
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Their flag still doesn't have many hues. :ohrarity:
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Postby PonyHag714 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 5:43 pm

Glad to see Spitfire looking friendlier than in recent episodes with her. Also making nice with Dashie after thier race. :3:
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Postby Fizzbuzz (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 5:47 pm

I still wonder if the griffons came from one city in Equestria or if their nation was allowed to send a team from their homeland across the sea. Either way, hopefully we'll get to see them more in S5.
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Postby Cthulhu Inc (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 5:54 pm

I'm imagining it's like the Germans in Belgium, or the Catalans & Basques in Spain--they have their own little community inside Equestria.

After all, it's called the Equestria Games :v:
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Postby citric (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 6:06 pm


That cherries flag and the presence of Cherries Jubilee in the bandstand with Twilight? Seems she's more important than she let on in her debut episode. Wonder why a mayor/president would run a cherry ranch :ponder:

Dilbert As Fuck wrote:Image
Is that... Marker pony, right by spikes head?
Image
This could be the greatest thing since when we saw the general in EG.


Image
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Postby Rainbow Crash (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 6:22 pm


Man, Soarin is looking worse than usual. That dude needs to get more sleep.
Image I'd never flown like that before! The freedom was unlike anything I'd ever felt! The speed, the adrenaline, the wind in my mane! I liked it... a lot.
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Postby Just Scuds (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 6:32 pm

SlateSlabrock wrote:Image
:anticipation: :ohboy: Ponyville forever! Yay! :scootawoo:



:3: :"Soooooo... I guess making the flag carrying routine more elaborate would have been completely inappropriate, huh?"
:nngh: :"I guess."
:3: :"And that whole hullabaloo about not being able to fly all that much was just a total overreaction?"
:nngh: :"uh-huh."
PonyHag714 wrote: :notgonnadoit: And now, as part of the opening ceremony, Princess Twilight and Princess Cadence have a special feature.

:excite: :allright: Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake... :butt:

Image You have GOT to be joking...


:allright: But this time, it features streamers!
:excite: And fireworks!
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Postby die Fledermaus (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 6:47 pm

The fireworks are shaped like butts though, really missed the ball there in not making them ladybugs.
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Postby WandereringPony (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 6:57 pm

Wayoshi wrote:So that confirms that Polsky implied that alicorns also got TSA'd, which is a bit dumb. :-P


Considering Chyrsalis managed to get in disguised as an alicorn?

Noooo. Cadence was taking zero chances here. She, of all ponies knows the costs of a security failure, considering and would have anyone with a horn submit to the same thing- and was likely the first one getting horn-bound for good measure. Twilight actually "cheating" on the lighting ceremony was icing on the cake.

Chipping in with Spike's anthemic dissonance being one of the most cringe-worthy bits in the show. Spike. You. Poor. Bastard. The only thing in my real-life experience to compare it to was...this.



On the other hand, going Super Mario on leaping from pegasus to pegasus and flaming the icy chunk of destruction? I think with that many bounces, not only did he get the job done, he might have gotten a 1UP from landing that many pony stomps in a row! Good thing, too. I think he actually died of shame doing the anthem. :)
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Postby ROBOT B9 (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 7:01 pm

shotgunbadger wrote:The fireworks are shaped like butts though, really missed the ball there in not making them ladybugs.


Hey, The Crystal Empire has a proud tradition of butt shaped fireworks. :rainbert:
Last edited by ROBOT B9 on Sun May 04, 2014 7:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby Brunellus (?) » Sun May 04, 2014 7:02 pm

Rainbow Crash wrote:Man, Soarin is looking worse than usual. That dude needs to get more sleep.


Sleep nothing. That dude high.
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