Season 3 Overview

[P51Mustang]

My first thought about this season is this: The leaks this season has been too **** high! Seriously, we already knew some of the major plot points in not only the Season Premier but some hints of what was to come in the Season finale (although we dismissed Twilicorn out of hoof at first). Season 3 had more leaks than the Titanic, which isn't a good thing; it kills the anticipation of a new episode. The fact that iTunes released a few episode early didn't exactly help either.

I do think the fact that there was a longer wait between Season 2 and 3, and coupled with the fact that Season 3 only had 13 episodes hurt it greatly. As we've seen all season long in season 3, there was serious pacing problems in several episodes. I contribute this to the fact that the writers, realizing they only had 13 episodes tried to cram in as much as they could per episode. I also think the wait between the season hurt Season 3 because it seem the fandom went from waiting with anticipation to waiting with annoyance.

Now the season had some great character development, most notably from Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle. Wonderbolt Academy, Sleepless in Ponyville & Games Pony Play, Rainbow Dash clearly shows that although she is very competitive, athletic and wants to be the best of the best, she won't do it at other ponies expense. She was also instrumental in getting the Crystal Empire The Equestrian Games. She also took Scootaloo under her wings, which was d'awww worthy. Twilight Sparkle grew as well, in Games Pony Play, with Cadance help she learned how to remain calm in the face of crisis and of course she became an Alicorn Princess.

The season didn't have that strong of a start, The Crystal Empire part 1 and 2 did not live up to Return of Harmony Part 1 and 2, most notably in the villain department. Sombra was just lacking from my perspective. I just didn't feel like he was that much of a threat up till the very end, and even then he came off lackluster. Where as Discord was more engaged in not only the Mane Six but the audience as well. He was the spirit of Chaos, he's able to warp reality, etc. Throughout the entire Season 2 opener, you could feel the threat Discord poses to not only the Mane Six but to the MLP Universe as a whole.

Despite the "could've been better" season opener, Season 3 did have great episodes early on. From Too Many Pinkie Pies up to Wonderbolt Academy. Even the obvious fanservice episode Magic Duel was pulled off beautifully by the writers and DHX. The canon building of Princess Luna being a pony Morpheus (greek god, not The Matrix's Morpheus) was awesome. We also had much needed development on Scootaloo which was appreicated.

Now I'm probably going to get a lot of disagreement from the next part, but here goes. Apple Family Reunion, Spike At Your Service, and Keep Calm and Flutter On, were the weak points of the season. Apple Family Reunion didn't really do anything for me because honestly, it was boring. Oh look, Applejack is trying too hard...didn't we already see this in Applebuck Season? The thing about Applejack, her greatest strength: being dependable, being honest, and basically being the straight man to the other members of the Mane Six is also the same reason why she can't be a lead in an episode. Her personality and characteristic makes her a great supporting character, but makes for a weak star. It's why we have Adam Savage on Mythbusters, because Jamie Hyneman realized he would be boring by himself.

Spike At Your Service honestly followed a too predictable path in terms of plot and I thought the writing was weak. I wasn't expecting a plot twist and it's true that DHX have done tried and true plots before in an episode, but they usually put their own spin on things to keep it fresh and entertaining. The most notable thing out of this episode is that Rainbow Dash is apparently writing a Mary Sue fiction.

Keep Calm and Flutter On was weak because it honestly took away MLP's best villain. This episode had sooo much potential, not only to delve deeper into the whole "Chaos is part of nature, it's neither good or evil" motif, it was also a chance to show that not everyone can be saved by the power of friendship. I mean yea, it's a darker lesson for a kid's show, but it could've been better. I honestly loved the episode up till the end, and the ending ruined it for me.

The season did recover with Just for Sidekicks and Games Pony Play. Just for Sidekicks was hilarious and it was great to see dragon greed come into play again. Games Pony Play also follow a tried and true sitcom format, but they did it well enough that I actually loved that about the episode. A contradiction from my earlier statement about Spike At Your Service I'm sure, but it all comes down to how well an episode is written.

Then we have Magical Mystery Cure, an episode that had a lot riding on it as well had the fandom on the edge of their seat and biting their nails leading up to the episode. Despite the fact that this episode would've be better as a two-parter and the plot was rushed, DHX's writers pulled it off. Not only did they deliver an awesome musical episode, but they pulled off the creation of Alicorn Twilight very well. They explained (and show) why she became an Alicorn and what she did to deserve it. It was an episode that could've ended in disaster but was written and produced beautifully.

All in all, while I am thankful for another season of pony, and I'll be here for Season 4, I do think that Season 3 is the weakest of the three seasons. While not horrible or terrible in any stretch of the imagination, I do think that it could've been better. The 13 episode limit and the obvious executive meddling didn't exactly help. When it's all said and done, Season 2 is still the strongest MLP season.

I do hope the fact that Season 4 will have 26 episodes and hopefully a shorter wait time will mean an improvement in writing and in terms of episode quality.

Season 1: 8/10

Season 2: 9/10

Season 3: 6/10

[elsporko]

Doesn't it go against chaos being neither good or evil if it is personified by an evil protagonist?

[P51Mustang]

Doesn't it go against chaos being neither good or evil if it is personified by an evil protagonist?

Well evil is all a matter of perspective. I mean yea the ponies consider Discord evil because he threw Equestria into disharmony, a country that values harmony. However from Discord perspective, he's just having fun.