Hey folks! So this is a look at how the first movie measures up to the second. This is being written with the expectation that you’ve watched the trailers and shorts leading up to the film but won’t spoil anything else. So if you’re not aware that a certain blue-haired male shows up or that Sunset has some emotions, you’re not gonna enjoy this.
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Better pacing
The first movie really felt like they didn't realize they had longer than a single episode to flesh things out, so it suffered from feeling very sudden and rushed in spots. While Rainbow Rocks was only about 5~ minutes longer than its predecessor, the story proceeded really well and it felt as if they weren’t as rushed. Definitely an improvement from the first one.
The Flash Sentry Question
To no ones surprise, Flash showed up and was a factor in the movie. It might just be because we’ve seen him before but Flash seemed to have a bit more “character” this time around versus the first movie. He has a presence but it felt like he wasn’t as forced.
More Subplots
This has to do with the fact the writers better understood how much time they had to build a story around and it also helps that the overarching plot has more involvement with minor characters. By
allowing this, you suddenly don’t have the focus primarily on the villains.
Sunset gets a decent amount of focus on this and even the main six get more fleshed out. In the first film some of them were very “one note” characters and they managed to avoid it this time around.
Spike also felt like he got some more attention, respect and even gets to play the hero a little. He’s still pretty shoved to the side, being a dog and all, it’s hard to justify him in a classroom but he feels a bit more comfortable with it and does get some fun lines.
More Shoutouts
Several of our favourite background ponies got lots of love in this one, both in the background and in the foreground without making it feel too heavy-handed. Part of this is because the story does have more focus on background characters but every character feels distinct and stands out.
Bigger, badder villains
Sunset Shimmer got pretty scary towards the end but she was never really much of a threat. Her powers are very minor and are mostly because she’s manipulative and a jerk. The Dazzlings really get a chance to show that they’re much bigger threats and really do seem to amp up the danger level.
Fewer Plotholes
The original Equestria Girls movie was filled with plot holes that made it hard for us fans to overlook. In Rainbow Rocks, the amount of plot holes is relatively small in comparison. Unfortunately we can’t really provide examples without spoiling large portions of the movie, but you’ll know what they are when you see them.
Even with those small plot holes in Rainbow Rocks, fans can overlook them and still enjoy every aspect of the movie without worrying about how something doesn’t fit in.
Attending to the Fans
Fans of the TV series will see a lot of background characters getting the spotlight and a few other surprises. Rainbow Rocks catered to us, the fans, in many aspects of the film but without blowing it out of proportion or even making it seem out of place. The original movie was created to explain the story and explain how Twilight gets to Canterlot High. Most of the shoutout here were simply giving certain background characters more screentime or even some dialogue.
What do you guys think? Feel free to debate in the comments but be warned that spoilers will likely abound.
