Best of Season 5

>>25942792
"The Mane Attraction"

>>25942792
It was all downhill from the opening two-parter.

This thread is going to die.

>>25942836
Yep, slippin' right off the board unnoticed.

>>25942792
I loved it. I think it'll end up tied with S2 for my favorite.
Amending Fences and CotLM are top 5 for me in the series for sure.

>>25942861
That's what happens when the OP isn't concise or controversial enough.

>>25942877
>controversial
I'm the OP, and I think that's probably the problem. Relevance and topicality hurt, too.

>Amending Fences and CotLM
I had a hard time picking between those two.

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>>25942792
Amending fences caught me off guard, moreso than the cutie marks for the CMC.

It was wonderful

>>25942892
CotLM is my favorite. Amending Fences is awesome, but between the CMC finally getting their marks on the show's 5th anniversary, the great songs, and the show actually getting me to care about Diamond and Pipsqueak at all I have to hand it to that episode. Felt weird considering Twilight's my favorite pony and I think all her friends up there in Canterlot are top qts.

>>25942914
>Amending Fences is awesome...
It surprised me, because Twilight hadn't caused a childish, light-hearted little problem. She had absolutely destroyed that mare.

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>>25942931
>any of us could've indirectly caused someone's life to be ruined and we could've lived the rest of our lives not knowing about that.

>>25942931
The fact that it crushed Twilight to know that to the point that it drove her to stick around down there for a few days to make it right was a nice feeling when she made it right at the end. My favorite part about that one is it showing Twilight's picture with the main 6 at the start and Moondancer with her's at the end. The promise of a long lasting friendship that shows put an incurable smile on my face for a few days after it aired.

>>25942942
We probably could have. It beat the fuck out of recycling the old Hatfield's and McCoy's feud.

>>25942960
>It beat the fuck out of recycling the old Hatfield's and McCoy's feud.
Probably the weakest season 5 episode after Princess Spike.

>>25942960
That one sucked. It was one of those where you knew the whole plot just from reading the title. As soon as you saw that one family was good at farming and the other at building, it was over.

>>25942965
I don't know why they can't write a good episode around Spike.

>>25942971
I honestly think they just don't know what to do with him other than being the straight guy when the mares he's with are going crazy for whatever reason.

>>25942946
>...she made it right at the end.
But, could one really? Moon Dancer seemed pretty far gone. Old scars, man, old scars...

>>25942997
It just took time, thought, and luck to figure it out.
For Moondancer it was just literally going into a book to spark interest enough to get her to talk.

>>25942984
>straight guy
I think that might be the problem. He's generally a smart, normal kid of about fourteen. They have to make up problems for him to put him at the center, and they always feel contrived.

I get the impression that Lauren built polar opposites into all the main characters but him, and the writers aren't particularly good at that part.

>>25943013
Well, I wouldn't have expected anything less. This show never ends on a tragic note. That's it's biggest weakness.

>>25943028
>it's
its
(I'm correcting myself.)

>>25943020
I want Spike to maybe start having issues with is place in life and wonder if there's anything else for him outside the castle and Ponyville. Could make for a fun arc that would inevitably end him back in Ponyville by the end of the season.

>>25943028
I think it's one of it's best qualities too though. It's always going to end up being a genuinely happy resolution at the end and likely feel good to the audience too. Part 1 of two parters don't count for that. Cute ponies doing cute things is a commonly cited reason for liking the show so much anyway

So far, the only episodes that have been mentioned as being among the best are "The Mane Attraction," "Amending Fences" and CotLM. That's no surprise, really.

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>>25943058
Mane Attraction didn't do as much for me as I thought it would.
Apart from the meta feels I got from pic related I was kind of underwhelmed.

My favorite episodes this season were Amending Fences and Crusaders of the Lost Mark. Hard to choose a definite first place, but it's definitely one of those.

>>25943048
>I want Spike to maybe start having issues...
They gave him a good one in "Dragon Quest," but Merriwether turned it into crap. I'm not sure she knows how to write without falling back on cliches and old tropes.

And "Spike at Your Service" could have been good, except they changed the focus from Rarity to AJ, thereby removing the only reason for him to act like a doofus. I'm sure Merriwether's involvement didn't help that one, either.

>I think it's one of it's best qualities...
I'm not saying I'd like to see anything too dark, but sometimes they could try bittersweet. "The Best Night Ever" would have been perfect if they'd been comforted by one another's presence, but not exactly happy. Having Celestia show up in a donut shop was too much.

>>25943079
Amy Keating Rogers is out? I am NOT happy to hear that.

>>25943113
She's going to Disney which I can only guess is a better place.
I'd be really worried for the show if Larson were out too.

>>25943079
If they do a great job with the music (and they did in that one), I'm satisfied. I'll forgive a thin plot in a musical, and TMA's plot wasn't even all that thin.

>>25943169
Rara was a nice character regardless. Good addition to the show's long roster of available ponies. I hope we see more of them in relevant places in the background when the main 6 travel now that we have so many.
>tfw have to go to sleep and this thread's likely going to die because it's dead hours

>>25943121
I'm sure it is. Disney is entertainment first, toys second (if at all). Hasbro is the opposite. If Hasbro produces good characters and stories at all, it's an accident.

>>25943187
>I hope we see more of them...
They'll have to hurry. I can't imagine them going beyond Season Six. The Friendship Theme is already worn thin.

They could spin the Mane Six off into a less-thematic show, but that would require a level of savvy that I don't believe Hasbro has.

>>25943058
Amending Fences and CotLM were my favorites too, but Rarity Investigates was really good as well.

>>25942965
I'm probably one of the few who actually liked The Hooffields and McColts. It's definitely not the best or most special of S5, but I liked the simplicity for a chance. And Flutters and Twilight being really cute together.

>>25942792
Can't just pick one m8 so I made my top 5
1.The cutie map
2.Amending fences
3.Hearthbreakers
4.Bloom & Gloom
5.Make New Friends but Keep Discord

these were all fantastic although lots of good episodes in this season

>>25943262
>Rarity Investigates
Considering what a steaming pile of crap "MMMystery on the Friendship Express" was (similar themes), I was surprised that it was as good as it was.

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>>25943324
The Discord episode felt lackluster, but I applaud them for such a weird less conventional episode.

which in turn, was about memes and how they wear out after a while

>>25943446
>The Discord episode felt lackluster...
And unfocused. I had the impression that they were trying to force a message where none was needed. Somebody (probably at Hasbro, not in the show's production) need to learn that you don't have to provide a moral ever... single... time. Or at all, really.

>>25942792
I like the on where pinkie pie knows. shiny got dat ponut.

>>25942914
/thread

>>25943446
There really hasn't been a good Discord episode yet. I am not among those who thought "The Return of Harmony" was good. Actually, I consider it the first where a couple, Rarity and Pinkie, specifically, went way out of character. And I don't mean when they were supposed to.

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>>25943555
>when they weren't supposed to

>>25943547
Why? Because it's gonna be CotLM across the board?

I just saw someone call it "pretentious" here a few days ago, but I'm not sure they actually knew what the word means.

>>25943568
One of us is, but it's you.

They were supposed to go out of character when Discord forced them to, genius, but Rarity and Pinkie were OOC when Celestia was giving them their orders.

>>25943588
what? pink was still drinking CHOCOLATERAIN and rarity was admiring the windows. pretty in character to me.

>>25943609
The Pinkie we had seen up until that point would have never questioned Celestia, and Rarity wouldn't have been so gauche as to say, "Forget the elements, just give me that case!"

Of course, Season Two sent them both spiraling out of control (and Dash even worse), but it felt completely wrong at the time.

>>25942792
It's definitely Crusaders of the Lost Mark for me, even though I also loved Amending Fences.

The worst episode is obviously Princess Spike. No contest.

>>25943649
>The worst episode is obviously Princess Spike
You know, I don't even remember it.

"Appleoosa's Most Wanted" is the only one I recall as a stinker.

>>25943695
Those two episodes really are at the bottom of S5, but I agree with you. Princess Spike was really shitty but still more entertaining than the borefest that was Appleloosa's Most Wanted. I rewatch every episode once in a while, but I have yet to watch that one back.

>>25943839
I guess "Princess Spike" was so unremarkable, it just didn't stick with me.

>>25943839
>...I have yet to watch that one back.
Really, all I remember about it was that the unfortunate, misunderstood focus of the episode actually looked like a horse.

>>25944107
And, his Special Talent was being a stooge.

Biggest disappointment: "Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep?" With a title like that, it should have been awesome. Meh.

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>>25944855
One would expect a Celestia episode

But NOOO, Celestia had to keep up with the contract of "appearing important only in 2 parters (screen time per season may vary)"

>>25945127
>One would expect a Celestia episode
That would have been nice -- or it would if it added depth and complexity to her character.

>>25945166
>depth and complexity
I'm not sure they can do that without Lauren or Corey Powell.

>>25943262
>Rarity Investigates
It was pretty good, but why did it take four people to write it?