Thoughts on Season 3 and Why it's Weird (and possibly somewhat inferior) · 2:09am Jan 21st, 2013
If I had more than a couple dozen readers this would be the point at which I fear that I was about to put my foot in something. No matter, then. This is OPINIONS ON THE INTERNET--SEASON 3 75% COMPLETION EDITION!
So I was watching Keep Calm and Flutter On yesterday, in what was essentially the 1-year anniversary (maybe minus a week?) of a bunch of friends introducing me to ponies (Note: I did not mark down the date, but it was at Ohayocon, and we were just at Ohayocon again. It was early this year though). I liked it pretty well, but like everyone else thought that the turnaround for Discord was kind of abrupt. Also I was a little legitimately surprised/disappointed that they "reformed" him... I mean if you want to get technical, Nightmare Moon was reformed too, but her story was about a good pony who fell. Discord was the embodiment of Chaos... which doesn't mean he can't be good, but I feel like an eternal being of Chaos with a mean sense of humor doesn't realize that friends are what he's been missing in life without something pretty major forcing him to reevaluate.
That, and the perspective the ep gives us is very weird... we know that Fluttershy has a plan to basically train him in "correct" behavior, like a dog or a small child. I'd say like an ex-convict except there was no therapy-equivalent involved, so she's really not using tactics on him that would be recommended to change an adult human's way of dealing with the world. That, and there's no real sign that Discord is at all lonely being king of crazy mountain all by himself. I think what I needed was a stronger development phase for everything to have clicked: either Discord is legitimately starting to like Fluttershy because she's giving him a chance nobody else ever has (and personality or whatever), or he's having too much fun driving her crazy to ruin it by having her relinquish him as a friend. That, and the episode doesn't -guarantee-, strictly speaking, that Discord isn't playing a long-game con, but I doubt that show would veer in that direction. That's more plot setup than they've ever used in the past (and before anyone says Gala, The Best Night Ever was entirely understandable without knowing where the dresses and the tickets came from and the trouble they went to to get them. The show does allude to its own continuity, but it rarely if ever makes specific past events plot points in new episodes).
I think part of the episode's problem regarding the climax is that it plays Discord a little too close to the vest. If Fluttershy is really having a positive effect on him, we should know that--if we're to believe his transformation at the end. The episode wanted us to be suspicious of Discord the whole time though, and therefore we got a surprise reversal instead of a particularly strong character arc.
Which brings me to my main point--and where I finally get to talking about Season 3 as a whole: IF you look at it that way, this episode was Discord's story, not Fluttershy's. Discord makes the important decision at the end that changes who he is. But we're not viewing it from Discord's perspective. Curiously my first pony ep, The Last Roundup (yeah Derpy was totally lost on me at the time) had the same deal, being about Applejack but from the perspective of other characters. It worked better there because Applejack's transformation came about -after- we understood what was going on with her. Discord's "transformation" is technically happening throughout the episode, until it gets him to the point where he's willing to make a real decision that solidifies that change.
Mind you I still think there's a nice subtlety to how, even as he's screwing over AJ, Discord still wants Fluttershy to come have fun with him. I think it's the first time we've seen him include someone else in his joke, although he seems to want Twilight to find his antics as amusing as he finds himself in his last appearance.
Anyway, that confusion of "who is the main character" vs "who are we following" is, I think, sort of a problem throughout this season. There's not been many letters to Celestia, I'm sure you've noticed--and while it may not be necessary that every episode include an explicit lesson, the lack of them is pretty strongly felt, and here's why: For this season, the show has not been (as much) about characters learning, it has been about how they're already good enough to do what needs to be done. Take the season opener. Twilight had to abandon her attempt to please Celestia by doing things herself and trust Spike to get the job done--dramatic, but not something she "learned."
That's not inherently a bad thing. Lots of shows get by on characters who don't necessarily grow or develop over the course of an episode. But, it can make for somewhat sloppy drama (in the loosest sense of "a story propelled by conflict"), because MLP has relied on "Character A has to learn X" as the main "obstacle" for a majority of its episodes. There has to be a reason why the character can't solve the conflict immediately, and one of the most popular ones is "lack of knowledge," which can range from "Pinkie thinks her friends are ditching her when they're really planning a surprise party" to "The evil overlord is invincible until you find the one thing that can kill him." This is opposed to a model where, say, characters have to give up what they want in order to get what they "need" (so, say, sacrificing the credit for a major political coup in West Wing in order to make sure that the legislation actually gets passed), which is the model S3 seems to be built on.
So like, take Wonderbolts Academy for instance. That episode still works pretty well, but if you break it down, Dash is basically "right" all along. Her mistake is letting her partner get away with stuff, until it pushes her too far and she decides her dream isn't worth it anymore. Which all works, but is missing that element of character growth that the show uses in almost every episode of the first two seasons.
I think that's partly what people are reacting to when they say they don't like Season 3 as much. Part of what makes MLP great is that it takes such a kiddie convention as "every week a lesson about friendship," and, by having very strong, likeable characters, manages to own that convention and make it engaging. And part of how it does that it by letting the characters screw up, and have to own to their mistakes.
Fluttershy says at one point, "Do you think I'm such a naive fool that I can't see what Discord's doing?" That line reflects a change in philosophy that I'm not sure is bringing out the best in the show. Don't get me wrong, I love to see characters who are decidedly not being stupid (or simply not paying attention to what's going on at all). But I think I love to see characters who have to struggle with themselves, and with their own limitations even more.
Note: This wasn't fully studied, it's sort of an off-the-cuff reaction to the episode looking back on things. If you've ever spoken to me at length about stuff I tend to start out complaining about one thing, talk for an hour and come around to some other complaint driving at the same thing. I'm like a whirlpool circling prey. Or something. Anyway feel free to prove me wrong in the comments.
Note 2: Just to clarify, I think it's the transition that's weird, not the idea of making a show where characters have the skills they need to succeed but need to use them properly. For instance, Burn Notice, at least in terms of its overarching plot, is very clearly about "how far are you willing to go?" The ultimate question, of course, is "Will Michael sacrifice the life he's been building in Miami if he manages to get back into his role as a government spy?" But before that there's "Will he help people who are working against the interests of the state he wants to serve to gain the chance to serve again?" and so on. That's compelling for that show. But it commits to that idea pretty early on and sticks with it, and a lot of episodes work on the principle of "what are you willing to do?"--abandoning plans because the circumstances change, pretending to shoot at your comrades to keep a cover intact. They're not necessarily big turning points, but the idea is embedded all over the place that you have to make sacrifices to necessity.
I've dubbed this season, "Loose Ends."
Good points, all around. I've seen this season picked apart from one angle to the next and it's amazing how many points of view each fan has. My mind is whirling with all the opinions!
That said, I've been very pleased with things so far. If there is something a little off with an episode, I know that someone out there will write a fanfic about it to fill in the gaps. That's part of the reason fanficion exists. So, I don't mind that some things don't make sense in an episode, as the show runners have a limited amount of time to get their message out there. I think they've been doing a commendable job despite the restrictions.
That's my two bits. Lay it at me!
733213 That's an interesting attitude to take. I can see the appeal--but I actually read very little fanfic, being a pretty busy college student. There's also the issue where it's murder to find people who write well who also -don't- write novel-length fics that I hesitate to start lest I get bogged down in the middle and never finish them. Not much excuse for someone who wants to write fanfic, but if it's any consolation I don't read enough for someone who wants to be a writer -generally-.
That being said, I think that good dramatic writing is really about making all the pieces fit. Not necessarily eliminating any room for expansion or alternate explanations, but clear character arcs are part of what makes MLP so good--it's that rare beast of a truly character-driven western cartoon (as opposed to gag-driven or action-driven). The other example that comes to mind is As Told By Ginger (which, of course, is a completely different show), though I'm sure there are more, and there are plenty of shows that do good character work despite not being character-driven (Justice League Unlimited).
Anyway, yeah, I'm not so willing to give a free pass to unclear character arcs. In part because I think a lot of times in the first two seasons that sort of thing is rock solid (and the times when it isn't are the eps I don't like as much). It's not enough to make me hate this season but it's enough that I think I've come away feeling "huh..." a lot more often than in the past. But as you say, there are many interpretations, and it could come down to "the lack of letters at the end means that I'm not getting the resolution I've come to expect, so I walk away feeling different from how I would feel at the end of a S1-2 episode."
I think the knowledge that two people can argue completely contrary points with equal logic and eloquence is one of the most terrifying things you can learn. At least, if you place any sort of faith in words and argument as a means of arriving at truth. *shrugs*
I like the majority of S3, but I'll agree that I prefer the format of the previous seasons a bit more, and while a few episodes this season did feel somewhat rushed, the only one that I really think was unresolved was "Wonderbolt Academy."
Also, it's nice to see someone be seriously critical without being hateful. I kinda wish there were more people like you on the internet.
733391 Thanks. I also wish there were more people like me on the internet, but then, I think everyone wishes the internet didn't disagree with them so much. I am a firm believer though that outside of kvetching the point of thinking about stuff and what it does right/wrong is to educate -someone-, and that just spewing venom doesn't really help with that. I'll probably never be a particularly entertaining critic but I think I've helped a few people tighten up their work, so *shrugs*. Plus I'm trying to teach myself to write cartoons.
I don't genuinely dislike any of the episodes from this season either, but I think taken as a whole they seem less... endearing, maybe, than the previous seasons. There's also a lot of rumors and hype and whatnot and the fact that the fandom is freaking out so hard about everything is probably a little infectious, because the stuff that's floating around sounds like it would totally derail the show, and then you start looking for ways in which the show "feels different" and maybe you double-think yourself into seeing them.
Although, I do genuinely regret that mane six interactions as the driving force behind an episode's plot are waaaay down in this season, which probably also ties to the lack of friendship lessons. Part of why I was glad to see the whole gang assemble to help AJ with Spike was that there's been so much mane six character/side character interaction, rather than dealing with the relationships between the six of them. It feels a little like this season assumes their friendships as a given rather than actually spending time looking at them.