As usual with my reviews, it will contain spoilers. Those of you who have not seen the episode yet, you have been warned.
The premise of this episode is that Applejack is spending Hearth?s Warming Eve with Pinkie Pie and her family, but soon discovers that they celebrate the holiday a little bit differently to how she?s used to.
So, as you can tell from the premise, this episode features a return of the Hearth?s Warming Eve holiday, the Equestrian counterpart to our real-life Christmas. As I mentioned in a review some time ago, this is one of several events introduced during the show?s second season that is getting a second outing this year, with the first being the Sisterhooves Social in ?Brotherhooves Social? and the second being Nightmare Night in next week?s ?Scare Master?. However, this episode actually intrigues me a little bit more because, while the last time it showed up we got a good lesson on both the history of Equestria and the origin of the holiday, we never really got a good feel for what the ponies actually do to celebrate it other than hosting plays. This time, we get a better showcase of the thing, which is always an interesting thing for me as it helps to flesh out fictional worlds when you see how they spend time like this. Granted, having a Christmas-theme episode in October is a bit odd for me, but hey, we can?t have everything.
As you also saw from the premise, this is a team-up episode of both Applejack and Pinkie Pie, and in many ways, this pairing reminds me a great deal of Applejack?s episode with Rarity a few weeks ago. Applejack has always been the more grounded of the main six ponies, the ?straight mare? that acts more practically while everyone else around them can be more over-the-top or comedic. As such, pairing her with Pinkie makes the latter?s antics all the more evident. However, this is far from a bad pairing, as the rare times they?ve been the focus of an episode together have always been a treat, like in last year?s ?Pinkie Apple Pie?, and even when they were paired up during the original ?Hearth?s Warming Eve? back in season two. In fact, I would not be surprised in the slightest if the decision to be the focus of this episode was in some ways due to their being paired up in that original episode. Regardless, having them together always provided a great deal of interesting character interactions, and this episode is no exception.
Now, the big discussion point that many will focus on in this episode is the full-on introduction of Pinkie Pie?s family. Like many fans, I?ve been wanting to see these guys ever since they were given to us in flashbacks back in season one?s ?Cutie Mark Chronicles?, and while having Pinkie?s sister Maud make her infrequent appearances has always been nice, this is the first time we got to see the entire family. Each of them had their distinct personalities, from the shy and confrontational nature of Pinkie?s other sisters, to the more mellow attitude of her parents. They were an interesting group to be around, and having them interact with a whole other family, in this case the Apples, provided a lot of interesting moments to see, especially since it also gave the latter family a chance to develop as a group, given that this is supposedly a branch of their family tree they never knew about until recently.
The idea of having difficulty adjusting to another person?s way of doing things is something that I think many of us can identify with. Although many of us will like to think of ourselves as being open minded or flexible, I think the truth of the matter is that, however unaware of it we are, we all have our little rituals and routines, and that having them disrupted in some way, however slightly, can be a jarring experience. And for Applejack, having to spend a special holiday with an entirely different family, and one who does things so differently to how her own family would act, would probably be a lot to take in for her, especially since she?s often been portrayed as being stuck in her ways and hesitant to change in past episodes. And as for Pinkie, you can just tell that she?s doing her best to make Applejack feel welcome in her home and to give her a happy time here, which is just an incredibly endearing thing to see, even if it didn?t always work.
When it comes to humour, I think we all know what to expect when it comes to an episode that features a heavy dose of Pinkie Pie. Lots of over-the-top antics, out-of-nowhere remarks and just general randomness. As I?ve said in past reviews, and even earlier in this one, those sorts of behaviour somehow become all the more noticeable, and even all the funnier, when you have her paired up with a character how is so much more grounded and serious, in this case, Applejack. And that brings me onto something I?ve been meaning to remark on for some time now. Applejack is probably the LEAST funny of all the main six. Now I?m not trying to bash her character or anything. But the fact of the matter is that she seems to me to be often used to contrast with the other characters whenever humour is needed to be emphasised. Put her next to Pinkie, and Pinkie seems all the funnier. And while Applejack has certainly had her fair share of laughs, they?ve often been muted when compared to those caused by her friends.
Onto the songs now, and this week, there?s none to talk about.
As for the moral of the episode, it seems that, this week, there is a lesson of learning to accept the fact that other people may do things differently to how we would normally do them ourselves, but that this is no reason to be any less friendly to them. Now, granted, when you just look at the premise of this episode, you can probably predict that this is going to be the lesson they?re trying to get across, and granted, it?s a lesson this show has done a few times before. However, that does not diminish the lesson in any way. In fact, I applaud this show and any other for trying to let that lesson across to kids, or even the show?s older audience. We all have moments in our lives when we find it difficult to accept other people?s way of doing things, and perhaps we let it bother us a bit more than we should. Accepting how they do it is not the same as rejecting our own way, and making trouble for them because of those differences is never a good thing. So again, kudos to the episode for trying to teach this.
So, how did the episode fare overall? Well, I found myself really liking it. While Pinkie and Applejack may not be the show?s most common pairing, it?s nevertheless one that works very well every time it?s used. There were plenty of humorous moments to keep me interested, we had a slew of new characters to get to know, the premise was an intriguing one from a character perspective and it provided a lot of interesting interactions between the two main leads. Like a lot of the episodes of this season, I would not call it a spectacular outing. However, the message at its heart is nevertheless a good one to get across, and there were plenty of positive elements in its favour to warrant one or two viewings. Not one of the great ones, but certainly one of the good ones, and I very much recommend you watch it.
The premise of this episode is that Applejack is spending Hearth?s Warming Eve with Pinkie Pie and her family, but soon discovers that they celebrate the holiday a little bit differently to how she?s used to.
So, as you can tell from the premise, this episode features a return of the Hearth?s Warming Eve holiday, the Equestrian counterpart to our real-life Christmas. As I mentioned in a review some time ago, this is one of several events introduced during the show?s second season that is getting a second outing this year, with the first being the Sisterhooves Social in ?Brotherhooves Social? and the second being Nightmare Night in next week?s ?Scare Master?. However, this episode actually intrigues me a little bit more because, while the last time it showed up we got a good lesson on both the history of Equestria and the origin of the holiday, we never really got a good feel for what the ponies actually do to celebrate it other than hosting plays. This time, we get a better showcase of the thing, which is always an interesting thing for me as it helps to flesh out fictional worlds when you see how they spend time like this. Granted, having a Christmas-theme episode in October is a bit odd for me, but hey, we can?t have everything.
As you also saw from the premise, this is a team-up episode of both Applejack and Pinkie Pie, and in many ways, this pairing reminds me a great deal of Applejack?s episode with Rarity a few weeks ago. Applejack has always been the more grounded of the main six ponies, the ?straight mare? that acts more practically while everyone else around them can be more over-the-top or comedic. As such, pairing her with Pinkie makes the latter?s antics all the more evident. However, this is far from a bad pairing, as the rare times they?ve been the focus of an episode together have always been a treat, like in last year?s ?Pinkie Apple Pie?, and even when they were paired up during the original ?Hearth?s Warming Eve? back in season two. In fact, I would not be surprised in the slightest if the decision to be the focus of this episode was in some ways due to their being paired up in that original episode. Regardless, having them together always provided a great deal of interesting character interactions, and this episode is no exception.
Now, the big discussion point that many will focus on in this episode is the full-on introduction of Pinkie Pie?s family. Like many fans, I?ve been wanting to see these guys ever since they were given to us in flashbacks back in season one?s ?Cutie Mark Chronicles?, and while having Pinkie?s sister Maud make her infrequent appearances has always been nice, this is the first time we got to see the entire family. Each of them had their distinct personalities, from the shy and confrontational nature of Pinkie?s other sisters, to the more mellow attitude of her parents. They were an interesting group to be around, and having them interact with a whole other family, in this case the Apples, provided a lot of interesting moments to see, especially since it also gave the latter family a chance to develop as a group, given that this is supposedly a branch of their family tree they never knew about until recently.
The idea of having difficulty adjusting to another person?s way of doing things is something that I think many of us can identify with. Although many of us will like to think of ourselves as being open minded or flexible, I think the truth of the matter is that, however unaware of it we are, we all have our little rituals and routines, and that having them disrupted in some way, however slightly, can be a jarring experience. And for Applejack, having to spend a special holiday with an entirely different family, and one who does things so differently to how her own family would act, would probably be a lot to take in for her, especially since she?s often been portrayed as being stuck in her ways and hesitant to change in past episodes. And as for Pinkie, you can just tell that she?s doing her best to make Applejack feel welcome in her home and to give her a happy time here, which is just an incredibly endearing thing to see, even if it didn?t always work.
When it comes to humour, I think we all know what to expect when it comes to an episode that features a heavy dose of Pinkie Pie. Lots of over-the-top antics, out-of-nowhere remarks and just general randomness. As I?ve said in past reviews, and even earlier in this one, those sorts of behaviour somehow become all the more noticeable, and even all the funnier, when you have her paired up with a character how is so much more grounded and serious, in this case, Applejack. And that brings me onto something I?ve been meaning to remark on for some time now. Applejack is probably the LEAST funny of all the main six. Now I?m not trying to bash her character or anything. But the fact of the matter is that she seems to me to be often used to contrast with the other characters whenever humour is needed to be emphasised. Put her next to Pinkie, and Pinkie seems all the funnier. And while Applejack has certainly had her fair share of laughs, they?ve often been muted when compared to those caused by her friends.
Onto the songs now, and this week, there?s none to talk about.
As for the moral of the episode, it seems that, this week, there is a lesson of learning to accept the fact that other people may do things differently to how we would normally do them ourselves, but that this is no reason to be any less friendly to them. Now, granted, when you just look at the premise of this episode, you can probably predict that this is going to be the lesson they?re trying to get across, and granted, it?s a lesson this show has done a few times before. However, that does not diminish the lesson in any way. In fact, I applaud this show and any other for trying to let that lesson across to kids, or even the show?s older audience. We all have moments in our lives when we find it difficult to accept other people?s way of doing things, and perhaps we let it bother us a bit more than we should. Accepting how they do it is not the same as rejecting our own way, and making trouble for them because of those differences is never a good thing. So again, kudos to the episode for trying to teach this.
So, how did the episode fare overall? Well, I found myself really liking it. While Pinkie and Applejack may not be the show?s most common pairing, it?s nevertheless one that works very well every time it?s used. There were plenty of humorous moments to keep me interested, we had a slew of new characters to get to know, the premise was an intriguing one from a character perspective and it provided a lot of interesting interactions between the two main leads. Like a lot of the episodes of this season, I would not call it a spectacular outing. However, the message at its heart is nevertheless a good one to get across, and there were plenty of positive elements in its favour to warrant one or two viewings. Not one of the great ones, but certainly one of the good ones, and I very much recommend you watch it.
