MLP SEASON 6 REVIEW #3: Gauntlet Of Fire

ORIGINAL AIR DATE: 16/4/16 - Written by Joanna Lewis & Kristine Songco

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

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After last weeks episode, I knew that whatever followed next would have a difficult task living up to it. Upon realising that this weeks episode was not only Spike-centred, but focused on the other members of his species that made Season 2's "Dragon Quest" so turgid to watch, I felt this was going to be a disaster. Knowing the quality of Spike-centric romps and that certain episode that first aired FIVE years ago, my hopes were not high for it. Even with that in my mind, I had to keep my composure, with all hope that my premonitions would be proven incorrect.

One thing that I want "Gauntlet Of Fire" to do more than anything else, is to do what pretty much every Spike episode since this series inception has failed to do, make him look strong. Not "Roman Reigns" strong where it looks so forced it loses its meaning, but showcasing as more than a weakling who needs assistance to overcome whatever problem he has. After 5 seasons of being displayed as a confidence lacking, self-absorbed and greedy embodiment of negative male characteristics, it would be great that like Apple Bloom last week, Spike is given the progression he deserves. After his mature episode-stealing role in "The Crystalling", I have the confidence that Lewis and Songco will do the right thing.

So here begs the question, can Spike have some positive development and not have it be a tense, irritating watch knowing the other dragons are around? This episode has a lot to accomplish in its 22-minute run-time, lets see if it can pull it off.

STORY AND NARRATIVE

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is a show mostly rooted in comedy. Not matter how action-packed or dramatic an episode can be, there is always a Pinkie Pie or something else to bring the laughs and produce the 'family friendly good time' vibe that this shows morals promote. Sometimes however, just like the original 1988 series, there are times where you have to throw the frivolity of the series cute, cuddly appearance out of the window to produce an episode of quality. In the Friendship is Magic 'verse, you have prime examples in its finales and premieres such as "Return Of Harmony", "Twilight's Kingdom", & "The Cutie Re-Mark" to name a few. Rarely do the regular season episodes pull the same tonal shift but examples such as "Dragonshy", "Bloom And Gloom", "Hurricane Fluttershy", "Bats", and "Do Princesses Dream Of Magic Sheep" showcase proudly that it can be done well. Knowing the danger the characters would be in given the surroundings, the the appropriate decision was made to keep the comedy to a minimum and rarely shift the dramatic tone to keep its head above water, much to this episodes benefit.

While many episodes are forced to balance both tones and genres, this one had no such expectation, and thanks to the use of great continuity with Garble's involvement it drove antagonism and conflict that hadn't been seen along with the tone since last seasons' finale. It was refreshing to see this light-hearted show take a decidedly dark tone at times (one of which we'll get to later) not just in music and colour scheme. However in doing so they balanced them out by playing the thematic character development card by playing off the strength Spike and the newly introduced Princess Ember had to show in order to prove themselves and ultimately survive. While some may not appreciate a Spike episode being usurped by Ember's strive for female empowerment against the draconian views of her father, it provided for me a refreshing change in narrative storytelling as we'd not seen this happen in a show that has long made its male characters suffer for similar reasons. To see SPIKE be the one to help the subverted female overcome adversity was a nice changing of roles that made the episode feel special. Adding Princess Ember's role to the story helped buffer it out and give Spike some breathing room and stretch out the meaning of the themes while allowing the new characters intentions initially remaining unknown, bringing some more indecision and tension to the table. While this may be seen as padding, if it doesn't effect the episode in a bad way, I see no problem with it.

The episode followed Todorov's three-act structure to a tee, which was complimented by superb pacing to coincide with the tense tone exhibited throughout, we felt on edge going through it all. Everything seemed to be going great, right until the last six minutes though. Who thought a wipe transition and a character's change of heart could ruin the flow of what was at that point great on all counts? Well, it could be done. This is where the shortness of time this series episodes are set can hurt its natural progression. If Spike had been left at Flamecano beach by Ember ten minutes earlier, then her alignment shift would have felt drawn out, making you question whether Ember would come back rather than its have it happen after a MINUTE of screen time, thanks to a wipe showing the transition of time compensating for the episodes length, we were robbed of a more satisfying conclusion. With the good pacing's work undone and the ending being made very predictable, they weren't the only problems, especially considering how this episode started. Celestial & Luna, or as I will be calling them from now on: 'The Royal Princesses of Exposition' threw an absolute clanger which irritated me to no end. They stated they knew little about Dragon Culture, but somehow knew about the key plot device that brought this episode to light. It was highly suspicious and in my opinion felt shoehorned and like the pacing fell victim to timing constraints. I could also give negative attention to the Bloodstone Sceptre being a MacGuffin, but at least it mattered to the story and wasn't highlighted before entering the Dragon Lands or I would have been angrier.

As you can see, this episode got a lot right. When it came to story, continuity, themes and tone, they were all executed nicely, but thanks to pacing and timing issues as well as an exposition blunder for the ages, it can't take home full marks despite a glowing resume.

RATING: 4 out of 5.

WRITING AND VOICE ACTING

As you read in the introductory paragraphs, my one worry was whether Spike could be portrayed in a good way. In "Dragon Quest", he was portrayed as an emotionally fraught dragon looking to his species for guidance, only to be showcased as wimp whose social skills were flawed had peer pressure decide his movements and leave him so vulnerable that he had to be saved by his friends rather than fully face up to the problem himself. Going forward four seasons and five years later, I was hoping there would be a massive change reflecting his growth in that time. Thankfully, this was proven correct, and even better, the way in which Spike showed it surpassed ALL my expectations.

Not only did Spike show selflessness by putting his life on the line for Ponykind (which drew a tear from Twilight & Rarity), but he then proceeded to risk his life in saving Rarity, Ember and Garble from certain death over the course of the episode. Now THAT is character development and personal growth on show that I can get behind. For the first time, he has shown fortitude, composure and bravery in the face of adversity in his OWN episode. He also showed fantastic restraint being written to 'sarcastically' respect Garbles' presence which drew some unintentional comedic moments from their conflict thanks to his lack of intelligence. While some would say that like his prior episodes, Spike was helped by Princess Ember to achieve his goal, he did it by showing a great trust in her character and made the decisions for himself, which undermines that negative point completely. When looking at how Spike was written in this episode, Lewis & Songco hit a home-run straight out of the ball park into the sky.

I can also say the same in their writing of Princess Ember, who balanced the alignment spectrum of her species perfectly in being full of herself and proud while also showing compassion that no others dared show. Her 'critique' of typical pony fare was hilarious, showing her social flaws while allowing her to still look dignified and composed. Both dragons came across as a natural pairing despite their differences on said alignment spectrum, both of their scenes were endearing and tense without being overbearing and irritating. I couldn't ask for more there. Garble was written as expected considering his last involvement with this series, as easy to hate and dense as all hell, holding up to the dragon's typical archetype portrayal with a clenched fist. While I was afraid that he would simply be an inflated version of his prior appearance, the fact he stated he would commit mass-genocide on the Pony species if he became Dragon Lord really added a lot of depth to his character, and highlighted how much HE had grown from that prior episode alongside Spike. The outgoing Dragon Lord Torch while unintentionally funny at times with his calls to heed needed to be more present in the episode for me to have his domineering presence be more pronounced. As for Twilight and Rarity, considering how much Spike had done on his own, I'm certain they really didn't need to be in this episode at all as they didn't add much. However I will give them credit for providing the minimal comedy this episode needed to not become overbearing thanks to those random but sublime costume changes.

While writing aspect is glowing, I can't say the same for the voice acting. While Ember's vocal performance as the soft spoken and headstrong dragon was superbly executed, the other characters rarely brought anything to the table. While Torch's booming dramatic voice was nice, the British accent that complimented it was bordering on stereotypical and hurt my impression of his dialogue with every word spoken. Garble and Spike's vocal performances were pedestrian and outside of Rarity's shrieks, neither her or Twilight did enough to make me take notice. When you combine that with two writing irritants such as Twilight & Rarity moving with no explanation and Torch contradicting his own statement by restricting his daughter from competing yet that any dragon has the right to be in the Gauntlet, it proved that even though there was great character development and great action and subtle comedic writing to balance the tone, the voice acting wasn't the only reason this category is stopped from being something to out and out praise this episode for.

RATING: 4 out of 5.

ANIMATION

If you've read the prior reviews thus far, you'll have noted that the episodes have relied on piecing together a portfolio of smaller animation elements, without some 'big set pieces' to make the jaws drop to the floor, mostly due to story and writing weight stopping it from happening. I'm happy to say this time, we got given those set pieces I've been craving, much to this episodes advantage.

Those set pieces start small by taking a page out of the "Gift Of Maud Pie's" minimal good book by using the flurry of bats and a flying rock as ingenious and intuitive transitions before exploding literally with the range of light power emitted by the Bloodstone Sceptre's activation, Torch's hyperbolised design and as you can see above, the detailing on that sublime lava pool shot. The refraction of light changing the colour and the flow of the lava as it fell down was just icing on the cake. Then you have some well constructed camera angles that with some fantastic framing provided scope of size and great distance such as the lava pool shot above, Torch's greeting of the dragons at the start of the Gauntlet and the tense but albeit short Flamecano walkway confrontation between Garble & Spike. Even as the smaller elements proved their worth too, with the opening sequences' lovely showing of light and shadows complimenting the size of the cave and creating nice refractions off the crystals, while Rarity's creative disguises were superbly designed to fit in brilliantly while also being extremely comic in their movement and execution as practical viewing objects. I also have to compliment the seaweed costume looking like Chrysalis, which was an unexpected surprise, which was a nice laugh to get from seemingly nothing. Finally I have to praise Ember's design, which was extremely well done, just like her voice. She's been made to look elegant but still have the menacing look a dragon is expected to have, all in all feminine but not losing any of the qualities that her species and her robust personality puts on show.

While this may not have as many elements as "On Your Marks" or even "The Crystalling" showed, these bigger ones stood out more and had a much bigger impact. While this all sounds like it could get a perfect five, I have to clutch at straws and state that even if they were sublime to see, just like the story, pacing hurt the animation as well. These lovely pieces of quality animating were routinely spread out, with showcases of the barren and lifeless landscape proving not that enticing despite being be nicely designed. While this has limited it away from top marks like the rest so far, I can give the animations credit for stepping up their game for this one.

RATING: 4 out of 5.

MESSAGE

Just like "On Your Marks" last week, this episode had to deal with two separate plot points co-existing and trying to fight to be the best way to draw a moral or message from. Last weeks moral was executed superbly, balancing the plot points and allowing for them to compliment each other on an agreeable message that both could promote without undermining one another. I can happily say for the most part, this episode followed on from its immediate brethren and succeeded just as good.

Spike and Ember wholly lived up to the message that you don't need to be big and strong to be brave and showcase leadership qualities by highlighting their selflessness and resilience respectively. They both showed a willingness to succeed all without compromising anyone else's welfare in the process, and while that does kill the 'spirit of competition' that this show has noted as 'good' in the past, the episodes story didn't contradict their values that held the message up strongly. However even with that being as positive as it can be, inevitably, subtle foreshadowing ruined this message's execution from being flawless.

With Torch's emphasis on the traits needed to be shown by a dragon, it was inevitable once Ember spoke up against them that this episode would be dedicated to subverting and rising up against them. The outcome was easily predictable as noted above in the Story & Narrative section, which lessened its impact. While the shoehorning of the female empowerment angle was nice for the story, it hurt the message by enforcing that foreshadowing and predictability to a higher degree than it would have been if Spike had just been left too it. If Ember helped Spike suddenly, having her qualms about her fathers' morals come to head at the end of the episode it would have played out much better and made the message be robust enough to not fall under the weight of this criticism.

However, with that addition, the message comes across as nicely executed in terms of meaning and layering in the narrative, but it falls at the final hurdle thanks again... to pacing and laboured predictability. Therefore, I have to mark it down, away from the top spot.

RATING: 4 out of 5.

MUSIC

If there was one aspect along with Spike's portrayal in this episode that had me worried, it was the music. As this was an action packed and dramatic episode, I was fully expecting to hear intense orchestral segments to compliment the action set pieces and insight the tension that naturally comes from a challenge of this size in a place full of rocks and fire. It was predictable and repetitive but they were put together well and didn't overshadow the visuals, so I can be happy with it in that regard. While I was worried that this was the only calling card that this episode had in its Rolodex, it surprisingly hit me upside the head with four pieces of music that really caught me off guard, helping this episode look much brighter in an audible sense.

These four pieces were all cut from the same cloth, symbolising the characters that were on screen at the time, adding extra depth and meaning to their presence. Firstly, Torch's segments while short were accented by a booming low tone brass and trumpet section to emphasise his imposing size and power. Secondly Ember's scenes were accented by a woodwind section, symbolising her grace, elegance and intelligence despite her robust and menacing appearance. Thirdly, Garble was accompanied by low tempo brass (mostly from tubas) to inflate his negative presence and enforce his alignment. Finally, the high pitch minimal orchestral cues whenever Twilight & Rarity revealed a new disguise helped as did the writing, to break the tone and give some the moments of brief comedic clarity which the music complimented beautifully.

This episode could have been as dull as dishwater on a musical front, but these four additions did their job to make this episode one that was better than it rightfully should've been. I may be overrating the mark somewhat, but with little room to impress, this category did a lot to grab my attention and as a result didn't need to convince me it was worth it.

RATING: 3 out of 5.

FINAL THOUGHTS

As you've probably been aware of for some time having read this far, "Gauntlet Of Fire" managed to do what I didn't think it could and live up to the quality of last weeks episode. While it may not be at the same level as its predecessor, this episode could have been flatter than a flatfish at the bottom of the sea, but the writers and animators did all they could to grab my attention, and boy did it work.

This episode did EXACTLY what I outlined at the beginning of this article, showcase Spike as a strong character whose development finally paid off while not having it be done in a laboursome environment by providing enough action to stop the tenser moments from being overwhelming. That alone was enough to put it over a certain hurdle, but when you combine everything else together, it goes ever higher, more so than I originally anticipated. It wasn't an episode that did everything by the numbers, as the strong characters, drama, comedy, music selection and animation quality proved. While it did suffer from below-par pacing and voice acting along with some message and story issues, they weren't big enough to overshadow the good that this episode put out in front of me. Those problems may have carried this episode away from what I consider "Wall Of Fame" worthy on my rating scale, but the episode fought back, shrugged them off and proved to be a highly enjoyable watch, which at the end of the day is all I can ask of from Hasbro & DHX at this point.

Next week there is no episode to review, but alas I expect the quality continue. With the synopsis of "No Second Prances" finally being revealed, my excitement levels are through the roof, especially after these past two episodes surpassed all my expectations. I can't wait to see if the consistency will carry forward, but we'll have to wait and see on whether it does.

FINAL RATING: 19 out of 25.

LETTER GRADE: B+

In relation to other Season 6 episodes, it lines up as follows:

ON YOUR MARKS - 22/25, A-
GAUNTLET OF FIRE - 19/25, B+
THE CRYSTALLING - 12/25, C-
THE GIFT OF MAUD PIE - 7/25, D-

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I've been Freddy Thomas, you've been people reading. This has been an MLP Episode Review for The CC Network Blog. I'll see you all in two weeks time for the next review. Cheers!

MLP SEASON 6 REVIEW #2: On Your Marks

ORIGINAL AIR DATE: 9/4/16 - Written by Josh Haber & Dave Polsky

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

There was no "The Gift Of Maud Pie" review due to WrestleMania week taking up my time, if you were looking forward to it, I apologise for not delivering. The final score and letter grade for the episode will be listed after the Final Thoughts. 

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It's safe to say that the common themes showcased in Season 6 so far have been trepidation, hesitation and tension. The three episodes exhibited so far have relied on awkwardness and unease to drive themselves forward, with less than satisfactory results in this humble reviewers opinion. Luckily though, we didn't have to wait long to get an episode that had the potential to turn the season around.

With the conclusion of arguably Season 5's best episode, many were collectively asking themselves, what would become of The Cutie Mark Crusaders now they'd finally achieved their long enamoured goal? Many have come into this episode feeling the same tension and unease alluded to above, but at the same time are bringing a sense of joyous anticipation and bountiful excitement with them, unsure of what this rambunctious trio have in store for us hoping it won't disappoint. This isn't only the first episode of a new journey for these three young characters, but it's the first episode in this entire series that has none of The Mane Six or Spike making an appearance. Which knowledge of such a historic first for this series hanging over this episode added to the hype and pressure for it to deliver. It's now time to see if it did. 

STORY AND NARRATIVE

Coming into this episode, I will admit I was a tad worried. Upon reading the synopsis, I feared the worst, thinking this episode would focus on the CMC's embarrassing themselves, reflecting the tentative attitude that I alluded to in the above introductory paragraphs. Thankfully, this episode was much more than I ever anticipated it would be, and I wouldn't have needed to worry.

The episode was paced superbly, transitioning time smoothly by not taking too much time on a single moment, this is complimented by the writing balancing the episodes tone well (which will be explained in detail later), and created ample place for the two aspects of the story to co-exist wonderfully and not feel out of place. While I expected the issues surrounding the CMC's new initiative and goals to be looked into, I didn't see Apple Bloom's personal dilemma coming, and it made the episode better for it. If the CMC's were to just go around finding out if ponies needed their help the entire episode it would have become a tired, tepid and tumultuous viewing experience. While Apple Blooms predicament did seemingly come out of the blue, it was entirely needed as it fleshed this episode out, making it a much fuller viewing experience. On top of that, enough time was being dedicated to them, with each plot point bookending the episode, meaning neither one of them felt forced or unnecessary With 5 seasons gone, I'd completely forgotten that Apple Blooms social life was non-existent until Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo came along, and to have that familiarity (in her mind) be taken away, forcing her character to grow suddenly was a fantastic piece of storytelling and continuity that gave a lot of weight to the character and this episode as a whole. This meant that by the end, the plot development of the group and Apple Bloom herself while being different, ended up complimenting each other superbly.

When the only critique I can muster in this section is that it deviated from standard narrative structure for no real reason form the start, using the immediate follow-on in-media res disequilibrium to keep this episode in negative equity tone wise, then you know an episode's plot has been constructed and executed well. This was an episode that surprised me, and kept me guessing from the moment it started, blowing my exceptions into another lifetime. I couldn't have been happier with it.

RATING: 5 out of 5.

WRITING AND VOICE ACTING

I say it almost every time I review an episode that this show tries to balance drama and comedy evenly, which is something that is extremely hard to do at the best of times. When trying to do that with such heavy emotional weight surrounding Apple Blooms quandary and STILL make it come across as fun when needed made the task even tougher. I do have to say, that Haber and Polsky managed to pull it off by balancing the tone with the pacing to create something quite outstanding.

They achieved this by throwing comedic curveballs whenever a negative moment or tone proceeded it. There were a few examples of this throughout the episode: Firstly, in the aftermath of the montage scene the CMC's were worried about their future, and Bulk Biceps hilarious cameo was there to help break the tension. Secondly, the individual activities and their mixed results were followed up by some well written and funny anecdotes, combined with Apple Blooms revelation of being allergic to bees. Thirdly the fillies cutely finished each others sentences while complaining about their issues in the venn diagram scene. Finally, the opening scene had Apple Bloom get frustrated at her friends while faking out the viewer by disregarding her newly marked status, and resuming 'old business' as usual. These moments meant that one aspect of the tone wasn't overbearing and overdone, which unlike "The Crystalling" would not be drag this episode down as a result.

When it came to the characters, Apple Bloom stole the show, being written as a passionate character who in spite of her independence and strong will still has flaws in neglecting her individual social profile outside her core group, striving to build herself up as it progressed. Tender Taps provided perfect foil for this in the latter stages, as he was as talented as can be but not as confident in how others thought of him, just like Apple Bloom used to be. With both characters reflecting themes of social ostracisation and anxiety on different ends of the spectrum, they felt like a natural pair that didn't feel forced or have differences that made them clash when together. Tender Taps made me smile, especially seeing as he's a male character who didn't become irritating, and he's one character I would like to see more of. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were fine in their roles of being more socially confident and willing to explore their hobbies while still being unable to fully read their friends feelings properly, showing their lack of maturity that their bow wearing counterpart has gained more of. Scootaloo's bluntness came back in a damning way with description of the mundanity of their prior Cutie Mark goal, which supplemented the noticeable lack of growth that would spur this episode into life. Bulk Biceps appearance was wonderful and a great reminder of why he's a great in small doses to increase his impact.

While this section may seem glowing at this point, it isn't without its problems. The CMC's themselves forgot lessons they'd learnt in past episodes, primarily surrounding WHY they wanted to get a Cutie Mark so bad in the first place (which was avoiding social ostracisation if I recall correctly), having characters who could remember their escapades but not the reason why is quite concerning. Finally, while Bulk Biceps, Apple Bloom and Tender Taps showed range in their vocal performances on occasion, the episode felt quite flat in that area, especially with Hoofer Steps, the dance teacher was predictably voiced stereotypically with a Russian accent, which was grating for the minimal amount of screen time she got. This episode almost got everything right here, as the CMC's are now well-built individuals characters, but overall, this episode needed a louder voice or two to shine it through to the highest mark.

RATING: 4 out of 5.

ANIMATION

With the story and the characters writing doing a good job, I knew it was going to be tough for the animation to try to hold its own and stand out, as its been a problem in all the episodes so far, I've come to expect it. While it may seem I'm quick to write off this category, it's very much mistaken, as I'm only doing that so I can use the rest of the time to focus on all the little things it got right.

Firstly, the scope and lack of space exhibited by Bulk Biceps inside the CMC's clubhouse was a wonderful execution of framing an positioning, that made me howl with laughter at the sight of it. The simple drawing in the venn diagram and the elaborate map of Equestria within the clubhouse were surprising, adding a piece of charm to the base as a whole, which the combined with the variety of similarly executed hobbit suggestions, you'd be thinking how long it took to render ALL of those individual sheets of paper, but I do like the dedication put into them, no matter how insignificant they may seem. Out On My Own had a few good moments, as all MLP musical numbers need, with the art references and artist designs were wonderful to see, showing a lot of attention to detail was made in this small but significant parody, the refraction off the river under the bridge as the sun set in the songs closing show was poetic and wonderful, and while the transitions were nice, they could have been framed a little better to allow it flow smoothly, but that's a small complaint. Speaking of parody, Tender Taps movement in his reveal scenes were done without having frame rate issues and containing a lovely 'Singing In The Rain' reference that was a joy to see. The shadows and lack of light in Apple Blooms 'descent into madness' along with the flash transition really gave the scene meaning and scope that exacerbated her suffering nicely. Finally, when you add the costumes in the opening scene, the exploded faces in the potion class and the blur effects around Scootaloo's silhouette as she made that jump on her scooter, it all adds up into a nice collection of animation pieces.

While they all may be small bits, when putting them together it makes this episode feel like the animation, while understated still tried to make itself be noticed against the grain. For that, I have to give the animators a lot of credit, as it would be quite difficult to match up to a narrative that is so well made and with writing that delivered a lot. So to have what little they could do be interesting enough to grab my attention is good enough for me.

RATING: 3 out of 5.

MESSAGE

I had a LOT of problems with "The Gift of Maud Pie" last week because it looked to re-use a message a previous episode had tackled better (in that case, "Maud Pie" from Season 4). In the case of this episode, we have the exact opposite happening. Last season's "What About Discord" had it's message and moral focus on your friends doing something without you and how it will effect that sole character in question. While the episode was flat and left a lot to be desired on the execution front, "On Your Marks" rectified a lot of its problems and delivered in spite of having to duel with story progression for core focus at the same time. Its safe say even with that, this episode prevailed with its head held high.

While "What About Discord" focused on the jealousy of missed events and friends flaunting it to your face, On Your Marks instead observed at ones realisation that without friends, they have nothing. Apple Blooms distinct lack of hobbies, and a lack of real meaning to her social existence without her friends was stark and surprising, and making her confront her individuality head on was superbly executed. It slowly crept up on the viewer as the episode wore on, and resolved itself with her finding a new activity, a new friend and proving that on her own, she will be okay. While the message of doing something that your usual group of friends won't enjoy and exploring new things was great to watch, it did have to compete with the CMC's core ideology and goal for screen time, which made the episode feel split into two halves, however in spite of that, the message carried itself through to be emblematic of both sides of the narrative and came through the episodes end without any problems at all.

With that in mind, it was a message and moral executed nigh on perfectly. It was able to connect all aspects of the story and characters together and come through not feeling shoehorned or needlessly drawn out. That's all I can ask from a message, and thankfully it delivered emphatically.

RATING: 5 out of 5.

MUSIC

The Cutie Mark Crusaders episodes of past season are well known for utilising musical variety to ensure they remain vibrant and light hearted, even when dealing with some heavy themes and messages at times  While that does prove to be the case once again, they did it providing arguably the most tender, emotional and bluntly eye-opening song in this series run so far. To have it come from a character we've seen grow leaps and bounds since her Season 1 cameo, that says a lot as to how unexpected this show can still be. I will tip my hat to Dan Ingram and Michelle Creber for this one, as they crafted a surefire winner.

Out On My Own delivered to proverbial emotional kick to the balls that the episode was slowly building up to, taking us through Apple Blooms shallow social existence and that despite her growth, she's still empty inside. It was heart wrenching but a reminder of the deep flaws her character still has. To have that come across in a soft country ballad, backed without much pomp to ensure the emotion hit comprehensively made you really feel a connection, especially to those who cherish time with those they care about. Michelle Creber delivered an incredible, powerhouse vocal performance, being able to hit higher notes effortlessly without breaking the character voice, conveying her characters pain with the subdued orchestral and soft plucked acoustic guitar accenting it to make it a song that was tonally and audibly perfect. It may have just stormed its way into my Top 5 MLP Songs, it's THAT good.

Outside of the standout musical number, there was a lot of variety to keep an ear out for, something which the prior episodes this season had failed to deliver on. The orchestral sections of Tender Taps reveal scenes while simple changed in tempo and volume to accent his movement superbly, implying the grace he has as a performer. The same tempo and volume techniques were also applied well to the montage scene of the CMC's trying to find others to help, going in line with their frustration as the dialogue decreased into their facial expressions accompanying the music. Scootaloo & Zecora's activities offered up their tribal and rock genres to the table, Bulk Biceps appearance paired with slow tempo tubas to compliment his size and bumbling mental capacity. Finally, the contrast of simple piano and complex showpieces during the dancing scenes added variety in what was necessary to show how varied styles of dance need different styles of music to shine.

Overall, the musical variety this season has been lacking up until this point, and I'm so happy it has finally delivered here. This episode came across as important, fun and varied, and to think it was the music that had a major part to play in that is a great thing to know. While it did have a barnstormer of a musical number to help it along, I'm pleased that they had the wherewithal to not forget about William Andersons score, allowing to come together musically as quite a complete episode indeed.

RATING: 5 out of 5.

FINAL THOUGHTS

As noted above, I was expecting "On Your Marks" to be the episode that brings Season 6 to life after a surprisingly lacklustre start. I'm delighted to say that it achieved that goal, but I wasn't expecting to have loved it as much as I did. Even after subsequent viewings in the days following its release in preparation for writing this review, it's grown on me even more. For an episode to do that is quite rare, so I have to applaud Haber & Polsky for a job well done.

Given this episodes emotional weight and occasional comedic relief, it was a roller coaster that never became overbearing and kept me on edge at every turn. When combined with its well written and paced story, characters, a great musical number, multiple references, some small but great animation elements and a great male character that looks to be sticking around, it came through as an episode that kept enthralling from start to finish. For the first time this season, I didn't leave the episode irritated or angry, mostly because it did what none of the previous three did well. It showed progression without being restrictive in dialogue and action, built on an existing storyline in a satisfying way and brought new character developments to the table without feeling forced or out of place. While it did end on a predictably happy ending, I was too happy to care as not only was I loving what I'd seen but also revelling that one of my predictions for the season could be ticked off too. The Cutie Mark Crusaders showed in this episode why there is a lot to look forward to from their subsequent episodes, as we are likely to see new things befitting of their position as ever growing characters. While The Mane Six are showing themselves to becoming tired entities who seemingly have no new avenues to explore, these three fillies adventures are going to be ones that I will anticipate with excitement, especially is this episode is any indication of their what their quality will be.

This was an episode that did what a great episode should do. It made me laugh, nearly made me cry and gave me substantial growth and story progression, all while presenting it together in an almost perfect package. "On Your Marks" was the episode I needed to keep my faith in the season alive, and I am very happy that it exceeded all my expectations. The question now, is whether from this, they can keep the momentum going. That will be answered by "Gauntlet Of Fire" this upcoming Saturday, as for now though, I will just sit back and congratulate Hasbro and DHX on a job well done. Hopefully this season hasn't reached its highest point yet.

FINAL RATING: 22 out of 25.

LETTER GRADE: A-

In relation to other Season 6 episodes, it lines up as follows:

ON YOUR MARKS - 22/25, A-
THE CRYSTALLING - 12/25, C-
THE GIFT OF MAUD PIE - 7/25, D-

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I've been Freddy Thomas, you've been people reading. This has been an MLP Episode Review for The CC Network Blog, and I'll see you next week for the next review. Cheers!