MLP Forum Archive - Page 12932

#323276 Psi 001 Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:11:48 PM

It was an okay role on paper, but I feel in execution AJ's 'frustration' was too subdued and didn't seep out enough personality. Pretty much all the other ponies show more amusing distinctive reactions to Spike's brief favors to them than AJ does the whole episode.

Night Applelight.

Egh. Page topper again? Oh well, here's some music.

edited 29th Dec '12 3:15:19 PM by Psi001

#323277 storyyeller Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:12:31 PM from Appleloosa

Oh, and before I forget, what was everyone else's general opinion about the episode? I kinda went to bed and skipped over everything. If that wasn't already obvious.

Want me to repost it?

Life is simple: it has no nontrivial normal subgroups.

#323278 Alesiopdv Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:15:10 PM

what Teeth said.

I still can´t get over how cool that little snippet Spike got today. Each character has a diferrent music theme but I don´t recall Spike having one before and this is really good. It fits him so well.

#323279 Kyler Thatch Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:17:23 PM

It was pretty much Applejack trying for a gentle let-down against a stubborn person.

What I love about Applejack is that she doesn't fly off the handle so often. If you don't like that, fine, just don't try to make her into something she's not. (That goes for other people too, fictional or otherwise.)

These changing years, they add to your confusion.

#323280 Psi 001 Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:19:43 PM

I don't think it was wrong she didn't completely tear into Spike, I just think the episode would have been funnier showing more visible neuroses or frustration at Spike's screwups. The very fact she is trying to bottle it up in may have actually made it funnier (similar to Rarity's very enforced restraint in Sisterhooves Social) compared to most instances before she just speaks her mind.

edited 29th Dec '12 3:23:04 PM by Psi001

#323281 Japanese Teeth Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:19:49 PM from Meinong's jungle

Yeah, it's honestly pretty nice to see someone actually react in an appropriate manner, and lay off on the zany scheme until it's evident that nothing else is going to work.

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#323282 Badwolfwho Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:20:08 PM from Stardust Road

I liked the episode. Highlight was probably the Timberwolves, really like the look of them. To spare the dignity of AJ and the Titan Timberwolf I'm going to imagine the penultimate scene occurred differently.

Tealove is best pony.Pony Fanon Index

#323283 Japanese Teeth Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:22:12 PM from Meinong's jungle

Yeah, more than anything else, I kinda wish they had found a way to make that a little less anticlimactic. I mean, they could have had Spike rebuild the rock tower, only to accidentally knock it over onto the wolf or something.

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#323284 Bluespade Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:22:14 PM from Fort Worth, Texas

Y'know, I think Season One Applejack would have handled the episode quite differently.

She'd have told Spike NO in no uncertain terms, and spent the rest of the episode stubbornly refusing as he constantly followed her around and tried to help her against her will, getting more and more irritated the whole time. Instead she pretended that she was okay with it and sort of weakly protested every now and then.

This isn't really a complaint, just an observation. Again, I like that she's the reasonable one.

Fight. Struggle. Endure. Suffer. LIVE.

#323285 Kyler Thatch Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:22:28 PM

I like how Spike tore into the fake timber wolf, though. Like, "haha, nice try, but I wasn't hatched yesterday".

These changing years, they add to your confusion.

#323286 Badwolfwho Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:24:18 PM from Stardust Road

@ Kyler: Didn't he think it was perfect except for the lack of smell?

Tealove is best pony.Pony Fanon Index

#323287 Psi 001 Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:24:55 PM

It may have actually been amusing to see Season One Applejack but in the modern AJ's role in this episode. Since S1 AJ was so used to speaking her mind and letting it all out, it may have been amusing seeing her in a position she is actually trying not to lash out at someone in fear of hurting them, showing much more strain and desperation in keeping her cool. I get the idea S1 AJ would have had a lot more problems trying to hold it all in.

If anything it would have played to her flawed role more, ie. trying to be the nice guy despite her short temper.

edited 29th Dec '12 3:27:13 PM by Psi001

#323288 Kyler Thatch Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:26:45 PM

Yeah, pretty much that. Someone a little more gullible would have missed that, I think.

Since S1 AJ was so used to speaking her mind and letting it all out, it may have been amusing seeing her in a position she is actually trying not to lash out at someone in fear of hurting them, showing much more strain and desperation in keeping her cool.

She actually does this in one of the season 3 episodes. It's called Spike at Your Service.

edited 29th Dec '12 3:29:15 PM by KylerThatch

These changing years, they add to your confusion.

#323289 Japanese Teeth Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:26:46 PM from Meinong's jungle

It was less "perfect" and more "well, you put in a good effort". I think it was fairly obvious that it was fake, but at least they tried to account for all the attributes.

edited 29th Dec '12 3:27:02 PM by JapaneseTeeth

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#323290 Psi 001 Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:29:28 PM

As said, I just think it was way too subdued in this episode. She seemed slightly exasperated and worried at her very worst, and it never really came to a point she really had to bottle things up.

The Stop Helping Me! plots have been made time and time before in cartoons, and I've much more exasperated roles without the victimized character snapping and ever stopping acting like the Nice Guy.

edited 29th Dec '12 3:32:12 PM by Psi001

#323291 storyyeller Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:34:29 PM from Appleloosa

I still don't get why AJ didn't just tell him, 'I wish you would stop trying to help me'

Life is simple: it has no nontrivial normal subgroups.

#323292 Kyler Thatch Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:34:31 PM

The thing about bottling things up? You never see it. Not until it spills over. And when it does, it's usually very big, very dramatic, and very nasty.

I should know. My life is a big game of "bottle up ALL the things".

If I recall, she did. Spike just won't listen. Dragon Code, and all.

edited 29th Dec '12 3:35:48 PM by KylerThatch

These changing years, they add to your confusion.

#323293 Alesiopdv Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:35:37 PM

You know, while I like Season 1 better because of the general feel and the united theme of the Grand Galloping Gala, I don´t like calling the characters by seasons. It makes it seem like they are diferrent characters. To me they gradually change episode after episode, S1 Applejack is the same as S3 Applejack, she just had some development but the character remains the same. All of them do.

#323294 Seraphem Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:35:58 PM from Delamare

Okay just watch the ep and, pretty good. Enjoyed it, Plenty of great moments, Like Dash admitting to writing bad self insert fics, and well, overall damn good. Do think Spike was a bit TO incompetent, but that could just be because of him being over eager. And the Mega-Wold went down like a chump. but loved that all of the Mane 6 played a part in the ep.

And now, we have two weeks of no pony.

My random thoughts FOE liveblog

#323295 Psi 001 Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:37:15 PM

I wouldn't refer to her as 'Season One Applejack' unless I thought there was a noticable difference in character to that and later seasons. I just feel she seemed a lot more vibrant and versatile in personality early on.

Admitedly though S3 and to an extent S2 AJ are mostly just S1 AJ diluted to her Straight Man traits.

edited 29th Dec '12 3:38:49 PM by Psi001

#323296 Kyler Thatch Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:38:11 PM

If I had to hazard a guess, Titan Timber Wolf was just freshly reassembled, still in the process of regenerating and all, so he only had a handful of hit points.

These changing years, they add to your confusion.

#323297 Bluespade Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:46:20 PM from Fort Worth, Texas

It would have been more interesting if the wolf actually attacked AJ, but Spike distracted it by running around under it (make use of that size disparity) and breathing little blasts of fire on him to get his attention. THEN he could have done the rock choking thing after being backed into a corner.

And now, we have two weeks of no pony.

What, really? How come?

Fight. Struggle. Endure. Suffer. LIVE.

#323298 Crowfall Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:47:19 PM

All right, saw the episode. Thoughts:

Really liked AJ in this one. I thought she had a good mix of being put off by Spike's behavior but not wanting to hurt his feelings. I guess some people were saying that season 1 AJ would be more likely to get angry at him, but I don't see it. Yeah AJ can get upset, but usually at ponies that will get angry back, like RD or Rarity. She never gets angry at Fluttershy for instance, and I don't see her getting angry at a baby dragon either, even if he is being annoying.
RD writing cheesy self insert Mary Sue fiction is hilarious and perfect.
As is OCD Twilight stopping her reading to readjust an inkwell.
I didn't mind the CGI on the timberwolves. I've seen some pretty bad uses of CGI in cartoons, and this blended pretty well. Besides, those things look like a pain in the ass to animate in flash.
Loved the attempt at a fake timberwolf attack.
My biggest issue with the episode was Spike's sudden incompetence. I think it would have worked just as well if he was capable but AJ wasn't comfortable with him helping so much or was annoyed with how overbearing he was, but I guess then we wouldn't get wacky hijinks. Just sort of weird that he immediately goes back to being useful when he returns to Twilight.

#323299 Hourai Rabbit Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:47:48 PM from the Gates of Fire

oh, and before I forget, what was everyone else's general opinion about the episode?

Enjoyable. I liked that Spike and AJ came to an understanding at the end since I don't think there are a whole lot of lessons left for AJ to learn about life; she always struck me as the most mature of any of the Mane 6. I also liked the fact that the Mane 6 all turn up again for an episode after the past few. More than any other episode, I liked reading the discussion about this one given that I couldn't really come up with anything to discuss and people were bothered by loads of things that hadn't even occurred to me.

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Wise Papa Smurf, corrupted by his own power. CAN NO LEADER GO UNTAINTED?!

#323300 Alesiopdv Sat, 29th Dec '12 3:48:46 PM

[1]

A pantheon? Well, they certainly were going with many boscure references. I still like the timberwolves better, even if the cel shading was kind of odd.