My Little Pony's Justice 2 - Official MLP Thread v2

[Applejack1973]

Good to see Pips again.

[Kevin]

So we have two teaser images for Saturday's episode, Canterlot Boutique. It looks like we're getting another new character.

[Nix]

Pretty solid episode; nice to see that they didn't go with obvious plot that everyone thought it would be, but what.

wat

Edited September 12, 2015 by Nix

[gato]

I can only wonder what kind of incredible self esteem one should have to get a cutiemark that resembles Twilight's but has your own face in the center.

[Kevin]

Not a bad episodes at all! Once again, we're shown how gradual yet great character development the characters in the show have been making and it's nice to see Rarity make further strides in her goal to open a boutique in Canterlot.

 

Rarity's problem of having to fulfill the same request over and over instead of having creative freedom is a very relatable one. I know that I've been in that situation before as well as many other people I know, so it definitely hits home for me.

 

One thing about the song's tone I really liked is the emotional change in them. It really makes them stand out more and gauge the mood of the character.

 

There's only one flaw I have with this episode; Sassy went down too easily. I know that Rarity was technically the boss, but given Sassy's personality and namesake I expected her to not back down so easily.

 

All in all, a nice start from the mini hiatus.

[Dr. Mechano]

A great start to the month of Rarity! 

One thing I've always loved about Rarity is that she's a successful businesswoman. For her to finally achieve her dream of opening a second store in Canterlot (and to now be overseeing employees of her own, no less) is quite a big step forward for her. Carousel Boutique is officially a franchise, and not just a local business. Way to go, Rarity!

Aside from that, Rarity totally shined here, as she always does in her focus episodes. While we've been down a similar path before, with "Suited For Success" also focusing on Rarity's creative freedom being stifled, this episode still manages to feel fresh, exploring the commercial side of the issue rather than an interpersonal one. 

"Rules of Rarity" is a catchy little number, and Kazumi Evans knocks it out of the park again, as per usual.

All in all, great episode; I didn't expect anything less. Looking forward to next weekend's continuation of the month of Rarity, when "Rarity Investigates" airs!

[Mercina Melancholy]

Oh lord, this one's was good. An anti-conformist message fit for the 21st century, a good song with enough changes in it to make it less like an interuption and more in tune of her character and a new pony to boot. And those meme faces. God, those meme faces. So good. 

[Dark Qiviut]

Oh, goody, an obese pony comes in simply to make a joke.

 

Ha-ha-ha. *eyeroll*

[Dr. Mechano]

Oh, goody, an obese pony comes in simply to make a joke.

 

Ha-ha-ha. *eyeroll*

Except they didn't laugh at her weight or make any jokes about her. She was simply there, like everyone else, and the only humor in her scene was that Rarity simply wasn't selling that old princess dress anymore.

Believe me, I'm with you; If they had made a joke at the expense of overweight people, I'd have been very disappointed in them for doing so. But that simply didn't happen here. An overweight character can exist without necessarily being a joke.

[Emperor Robrainiac]

Oh, goody, an obese pony comes in simply to make a joke.

 

Ha-ha-ha. *eyeroll*

And it seems that this character is being dubbed "Tumblrina Hamplanet" by fans... Yeaaaaahhh... 

Anyways, I haven't seen this episode yet. When I get the chance, I'll probably give it a watch.

 

Edited September 13, 2015 by Emperor Robrainiac

[Dark Qiviut]

Except they didn't laugh at her weight or make any jokes about her. She was simply there, like everyone else, and the only humor in her scene was that Rarity simply wasn't selling that old princess dress anymore.

Believe me, I'm with you; If they had made a joke at the expense of overweight people, I'd have been very disappointed in them for doing so. But that simply didn't happen here. An overweight character can exist without necessarily being a joke.

The problem isn't the ponies' responses. The problem is the fact that the mare simply exists to be the joke. The audience is supposed to see the mare, point, and laugh at her "because she's fat." She's a visual gag.

 

And it seems that this character is being dubbed "Tumblrina Hamplanet" by fans... Yeaaaaahhh... 

 

Don't remind me. I've seen too much of that offsite already. (And some have dubbed her "Diabetty," a name even Sethisto isn't a fan of.)

Edited September 13, 2015 by Dark Qiviut

[Strickerx5]

A fine episode to start off the second half of season 5. I don't particularly have much to say on this one so my usual pros and cons list deal won't really work here.

Can I just start off by saying how much I love that the main characters are slowly but surely starting to realize their greater dreams on screen. First it was Rainbow in actually starting to get into the Wonder Bolts, Twilight in becoming a princess, and now Rarity getting her own shop in Canterlot. It's some spectacular continuity. I also like how this was a Rarity focused episode through and through. The other mains were there but didn't over stay their welcome. Really helps to keep the plot center as I feel this was one of the more stronger ones of this season so far. Being true to your morals is a good thing to teach especially if you start to see the negativity forming around you.

Here are just some general points that stuck out to me:

- The amount of varied background ponies is staggering. I might just be more prone to seeing this since I've been watching some of season 1 and 2 lately but the amount of detail going into the show nowadays can't be said enough.
- While Spike didn't get one line in the entire episode (which is seriously weird since you'd think he'd have a lot to say in a Rarity episode), I did like how he wasn't just excluded from the episode like he usually is.
- I like the song. Though, I think I'm starting to get numb to them. Not quite as itching to re-listen to them like I was before. There definitely has been an increase of them pure season so I guess I might be getting burned out on them.
- Continuity everywhere!
- I like how not everyone in Canterlot was a jerk this time around. It really is a rare occurrence for some reason.
- Twilight was voted most popular princess!?!? Eh, Equestria needs to step up their princess game man. :V

So yeah, this was a very enjoyable episode for me. Glad that the hiatus is finally over. On to next week with... another Rarity episode!? Ok, that's cool. She has been lacking her own episodes for a while so I guess it's a good time to play catch up... wait... she's getting two more after that?!? Um... ah, ok then... I guess it's going to be a 4th best main character (Yellow Shy, Boy Dragon, The Pink One, Fashion Pony... she'd be too low if I was going off of general characters) month....

yay!?

[AdventChild]

Rarity is my least favorite of the Manes and of course, episodes I don’t anticipate much for. However, she does share a few good eps like Suited for Success and Sweet and Elite. Compared to those two, Canterlot Boutique felt awfully lackluster and forgettable for me, song and all.

The only things that I have probably liked were some Pinkie antics and that one magazine pony.

First off, not a fan of Sassy Saddles. Her design feels like an awful fusion of ilovekimpossiblealot’s pony persona and Fleur de Lis. Not to mention she wasn’t much of a compelling or interesting character for me.

The song was kinda meh/okay. Definitely not as memorable as Art of the Dress or Becoming Popular.

I don’t think Rarity could really carry an episode of her own. In fact, I think that it would have been beneficial to keep the rest of the mane cast involved since it worked well with the other Rarity episodes mentioned. Again, I didn’t think Sassy was much of a compelling character than others so when it was just Rarity and her most of the time, the episode fell kinda flat and empty.

Also, at the end, unnecessary, unfunny fat joke is unnecessary and unfunny. Is this really the best they can do to end the episode? There wasn’t any other way?

This was rather a weak episode to come back on, IMO. And the fact that we’re getting more Rarity episodes feel like someone had forgotten to split things up.

[gato]

To add my two cents about the chubby pony design, part of me clearly recognizes that it was supposed to be a visual gag no different from Bulk Biceps as in "look at this weird looking pony, it's funny because of that" which upsets me a bit... But other part of me is a little worried that we might be causing some backslash from complaining about it to the people of the staff. I mean, I personally like the design, and I wish we could go with it and do like we did with Bulk until the point the one off gag turns into a legit character (be it fanon or canon) and I'm worried that if we were to keep this going and acting offended over the pony existing instead of showing her some love we are going to make the people over at DHX feel a little wary of using her (or any similar designs) again... And that'd disappoint me.

So I'm a bit on the fence on this one.

But I hope we can all agree that this is a lovely piece:

<3

 

 

 

Anyway, as far as the episode goes I loved it. I read someone on Derpi commenting about how adult this episode is and I'm feeling a bit inclined to agree, I can't tell if that's something good or something bad but the theme of this episode is something that will resonate a lot more with those people who actually have jobs than the younger ones whose information of the business world might be a bit too basic.

The episode begins with Twi spouting exposition about how much of a business savvy pony Rarity is, but as it turns out her friend is way out of touch with everything that happens across the following 20 minutes, she certainly didn't expect Canterlot Carousel to become an overnight sensation nor that she'd have to work 100 (and later 100 more) dresses for some eager costumers but yeah, she was not as prepared for the big jump as one would expect...

I did find it surprising that she didn't end up putting her friends to work with her as it happened on Manehatten... Maybe she still feels guilty about it? I like that.

Of course none of this would have happened to begin with if her new employee Sassy Saddles wouldn't have gone out of her way to... Make the business a rotund success?... It's kinda hard to put this on a negative light honestly.

Sassy was the co-star of this episode and IMO the most interesting point (call it re-watch bonus if you will since I mostly expected her to be a jerk), at no point of the episode she sounds like she's a Suri Polomare who is just faking being kind only to backstab you as soon as she can, her feelings are actually quite legit, she cares for the boutique and she really wants her to be a success, it's just that she wasn't doing it for Rarity. She was a mare that got hit with several failures in her career and it's obviously desperate to turn things around (and I think most of us would on a similar position, no one wants to be remembered only for their failures) but she just forgot about her employer in the process, she even calls it her boutique at some point, which is what breaks Rara's last straw and crashes down the entire plan.

Some people have pointed that Sassy was a bit thick headed and that she tried the same approach (releasing one more product until it lost it's novelty leading to all her failures) several times only to fail and only stopped at Rarity's but I don't think anything on the episode hints that her current method was the same one she used on all the other jobs she had, I actually think this "sure success" plan she executed was a result of everything she learned in past experiences, maybe she had some bad bosses before that led to the place shutting down and this time she wanted to take full control of everything. 

And the plan itself wasn't so bad either! She opened the store and made a great show out of it (without Rara's consent mind you), spread the word to the point it got viral (or as viral as word of mouth on a land with no internet can get), made something incredibly popular and milked it for all its worth and I'm pretty sure that if the plan kept going she'd keep releasing different single dress lines that'd be hits (or at least try to be) it only costed the sanity and soul of the one actually making the dresses... Which also happens to be her boss... Whoops!

Which leads me to the other point of contempt on this episode, why didn't Rarity just fire Sassy as soon as she could? This is another one that became clear to me after a rewatch and I feel this one goes back to Season 1 and that episode known as Suited for Success. While the lesson of that episode seemed to turn around the nature of presents most people took it as "Could you please let the artist do their job? You guys don't know anything about fashun!" and I can see Rara being the pony who'd believe that since she was on the receiving end of ponies undermining her vision on that episode. So I think she believed in Sassy, even when things were going downhill for her the manager kept bringing good news, everything was perfect except for herself. And even after they finally got that argument and Rarity decided to keep doing things her way it seems like she still had some belief on the lean unicorn since she let her keep the job at the boutique when everything pointed that the partnership was over.

 

If anything I think the biggest flaw of this episode is that what I liked about it wasn't developed enough, since the focus of the episode is Rarity, Sassy's history of failures and the reason behind her actions are left in open, and while the episode might have ended up in a point of compromise between the Management/Advertisement and Design/Production it wasn't as explored as it should, the good things Sassy managed aren't brought up when she and Rara make amends and it all gets overshadowed by the RULES OF NATURE Rules of Rarity. Of course, it was her the one that had to concede but I'd still have liked to see the pros as well as the cons of her plan (kinda makes me thing of how the Flim Flam brothers ended up, albeit slightly better in this case)

 

But yeah, I liked this episode quite a bit.

 

Also, I'm surprised so few of you guys have made the connection between these two:

 

Her design makes a lot more sense when you look at it that way >_>

 

EDIT: Forgot to mention, Rarity should also learn to do a background check >_> (or maybe this is another reference to "Prada" and Sassy received a glowing recommendation from one of her ex bosses? Admittedly that'd be referencing the wrong character but still...)

Edited September 14, 2015 by gato

[Dr. Mechano]

The month of Rarity continues with "Rarity Investigates," a thrilling noir mystery in which Rarity must prove Rainbow Dash's innocence! And man, this was a fun episode. Seeing all the mystery tropes parodied was amusing, and the actual investigation itself was intriguing, if predictable. Just seeing Rarity don all those costumes and geek out over her favorite fictional detective was great.

Also, hey, Rarity and Rainbow Dash are friends! While this statement should be obvious, it occurs to me that the two of them have yet to have a focus episode until now, or even to share very much dialogue with each other. Their friendship has always been one of the less-explored relationships on the show, so it was refreshing to see it get some much-needed highlighting here.

Oh right. And the continuity with last week's episode was a nice touch too. Glad to see both Sassy Saddles and Canterlot Carousel again.

Overall, I loved this episode. It was Rarity at her best, and I can't wait for next week, when the month of Rarity concludes with "Made in Manehattan." See you there!

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

New trailer out for the second half of Season 5:

 

Hidden Content

Second half? They're splitting them nowadays? 

[Kevin]

That was a fun episode! I loved how they started with a bit of continuity from the last episode right from the start.

I will say, Rarity was just fantastic in this episodes and this is the most I enjoyed her character so far both from her internal monologue playing the detective and her interaction with Rainbow. Heck, I actually enjoyed this more than MMMMystery on the Friendship Express.

I think it's obvious that anyone could see the ending coming from the mile away. It's not a huge hindrance to the episode though.

One last thing, I also enjoyed Rainbow's character development in this episode. It's obvious she's basically a Wonderbolt now and just needs the official title. I'm hoping she'll get it soon.

[Strickerx5]

Another interesting episode as we progress into this month of fashion pony:

Pros:

- Loved all the noir aspects of this one. Especially the grayscale in half the scenes. Really added to the feel.

- Nice to see some more continuity. Seeing Sassy actually working with Rarity and seeming to have learned her lesson was very cool to see.

- It was pretty neat to see Rarity getting caught up in a good fiction story. I can definitely relate to that.

- It was nice to see some Rarity and Dash interactions. You strangely never see much of that for some reason.

- This was just a fun episode to watch really. I don’t really know why, but it definitely kept me engaged throughout the entire thing.

 

Cons:

- While I enjoyed watching it, I do feel like there was A LOT of dead space in this episode. Like time when the stuff on screen really didn’t have to do with anything.

- It was kind of off putting to see the wonderbolts turn on Rainbow so fast. I mean, they barely had any reason to assume that it was her.

- Can’t really say I was a fan at how everything was solved. The episode hit all the noir marks but the facts leading up the person behind hit just sort of came out of nowhere and didn’t feel earned. Especially when this was the first time Rarity has ever been seen to like noir and is probably still new to the concept.

 

Have to say this was a strange one for me. I felt like I enjoyed watching it more than last week’s episode but I seem to have more problems with it. Eh, don’t really know if that’s a good thing but I guess if it was fun that’s all that mattered.

Anyways, it seems that next week we have a double header with another Rarity episode and that new Equestria Girls movie. Maybe we'll get some actual Flash character development this time around?... Yeah, probably not. Either way, next Saturday will certainly be interesting,

[Your Vest Friend]

Well, the intro sequence of the film is on Youtube.

So we get to see such names like a basic sugary term for covering up truths, a sweet-themed pun on being two-faced, a different colour rip on Rainbow Dash, a reference to To Kill a Mockingbird, usual saccharine stuff.

[AdventChild]

Another week, another Rarity episode for some odd reason. Did someone seriously mess up the scheduling?

Well, Rarity’s Investigates seemed to be just alright. Liked it slightly better than last week’s and liked some of the noir aspects/backdrops. Also, Rarity and RD interactions and Soarin getting more lines too.

Predictable culprit is predictable along with the plot. But it isn’t the only issue here. The pacing felt odd in places as it seemed to drag a bit in the beginning and the ending felt kinda rushed. The Wonderbolts were way too quick to convict Rainbow of the crime. Not to mention didn’t explain how Wind Rider managed to pull off sounding and looking like RD (or that maybe ponies were holding the Idiot Ball to notice). Also, some of the facts/evidences leading towards the real culprit felt kinda cheap. The writing/dialogue at points feel bloated and some scenes feel like filler.

Even though like I like it more than last week’s, I don’t think it’s better than MMMMystery on the Friendship express and has Pinkie Pie mannerisms that work in its favor and that it was just more fun. Not to mention multiple suspects that made the culprit made less than obvious than it was here.  

[gato]

We interrupt the usual reviewings to announce that Scare Master got leaked.

I'd usually say wait for the episode to air but we are talking about one that's at the very least 6 weeks ahead of us so if you plan to not spoil it well....Good luck.

 

[Kevin]

I caved and watched it.

That was a fun episode! I have to say I wasn't expecting Fluttershy's setup in regards to the corn maze and her get up with Flutterbat towards the end was absolutely priceless and was some brilliant writing! Heck, we even get a call back to her singing incident in Filli Vanilli!

Boy did they really turn the facial expressions up to 11 in this episode! I also want to say Derpy's costume made me laugh so hard! They even made a reference to the horse head mask as well not to mention an anime reference!

This was a great episode that made for some good laughs and brilliant writing!

[Applejack1973]

One of the best S5 seps until now.

[gato]

Can I leave a single picture post just this once? Because I found this on Derpi and I HAVE to share it.

HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNG

Enjoy the sudden increase in sugar levels!

 

 

Man I really wish I had the time to go over how Bacon went from Diamond Tiara tier to this but alas... Life always gets in the finds a way.

[Nix]

Bacon was just a horrible antagonist.  She's supposed to be a threat who wants to take over two worlds, and she's just a petty school bully the entire movie... I mean, she stole the crown once, why not do it again?  And even when she got the power to do what she wanted, she immediately regretted that decision the second she started transforming into a raging she-demon.  She works better as a protagonist in every possible way and she's the best.  I'm curious about what she's going to do in The Friendship Games; as far as I'm concerned her character arc doesn't end till she apologizes to Celestia in person... pony.  Sunset also has the best human character design out of everyone twice and that's also why she's the best.

Another side note, the fact that Sunset does legit photoshop work with a pair of scissors is impressive and hilarious at the same time.

Another, another side note, I fully support the Bacon and Pancake ship.

And speaking of antagonists, I hope they touch on what the Dazzlings are doing now that they don't have their powers.  Seems like a waste to let them go away when they were actually pretty good in their role.