Another glorious season is behind us, and as with all good things, some liked specific aspects of it better than others. 26 episodes aired, but only 10 can be the best of the best!
We ran a poll last week and the results have appeared. Instead of us choosing, we are letting you choose! Luckily most of our favs were right up there with yours. DHX kinda knocked it out of the park this season, so the competition was fierce!
Anyway, I'll stop blabbering so you can see more blabbering below. Head on down below the break for the top 10 pony episodes of season 5!
(Reminder: These are community voted! Blame your fellow brony before attacking me :P)
#10 - The Cutie Map
After the most ridiculous year long hiatus ever, and half the fandom temporarily switching to Five Nights at Freddies, there was a collective sigh of relief when we FINALLY got pony episodes again. The Cutie Map was the perfect way to start us off, with a brand new antagonist and her creepy little cult village giving us a big juicy steak after months of 50 cent ramen packets.
Starlight Glimmer charged in with a literal World War 2 inspired propoganda song, followed by full on 1984 level indoctrination. It set the stage for what kind of boundaries the show can stretch as we moved on to 24 more episodes.
#10 is a healthy spot for this one, and I'm glad it made it.
#9 - Make New Friends But Keep Discord
Discord episodes have always been about completely shattering anyone's hopes that things will go smoothly, and "Make New Friends but Keep Discord" was no exception. The return of The Smooze from G1 days had a lot of us eager to see what happens. They took a completely different approach, and I'm glad it worked.
I think my favorite part of Discord episodes is his banter against Twilight. Throwing chaos against order is always going to be entertaining, and they play the parts perfectly. Adding Tree Hugger to the mix for the hippie fans out there was a good touch, even if she ended up being a bit on the obvious side. More characters to play with is appreciated.
Overall, I definitively expected it to be in the final selection of the best of the season, and you all didn't fail me. #9 fits perfect.
#8 - Tanks for the Memories
I actually thought this would rank higher. Maybe it's just due to how early it happened? Tanks for the Memories was sort of that point where I knew I'd love this season. I'm not a huge fan of Rainbow Dash episodes in comparison to other ponies, but this one shifted gears and focused on an entirely different subject than her usual competition driven trope.
If you have ever had a pet, you know how much it sucks to lose them. It's inevitable. This was as close as we could get to it in pony.
Add an awesome song to it, and we had a perfect candidate for one of the best pony episodes yet!
#7 - Rarity Investigates!
Rarity got a TON of love this season, all back to back. She revisited Coco Pommel, opened a boutique in Canterlot, and saved Rainbow Dash from a life of being shunned by her idols. Usually these fashion focused romps aren't the most well loved of pony showings, but this one definitely set itself apart with the plot. It's no surprise that you all gave it the #7 slot.
Would you watch an entire series dedicated to detective Rarity? I kinda wish she'd give complete control over her growing fashion empire over to Sassy Saddles and just focus on this. Complete with the costumes of course.
Seventh place it is!
#6 -Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep?
Airing right after an army of background ponies suddenly got canon personalities and an entire episode dedicated to their shenanigans, the guys over at DHX dropped this bombshell on us giving our fandom creations even more love. this was the perfect one-two punch to lead us into that mini hiatus for the second half of the season. Derpy giant derped, Lyra and Bonbon FRIENDSHIPPED, and Big Mac was a princess.
It's a Moonbutt episode first and foremost though... and wow. How far do you have to fall to literally torture yourself every night? Luna kinda took Emo to a whole new level with her Tantabus. Who would have thought her pain cut so deep?
I'm honestly on the fence when it comes to this version of her. The silly variant that plays living chess with her subjects in the comics is more my style. I'd love to see a bit of that in the show. Outside of Luna Eclipsed, we still haven't gotten to watch her awkwardly adjust to modern Equestrian society.
The Tantabus resolution worked in the end though, and the overall episode was solid enough for a #6 slot thanks to your votes!
#5 -The Mane Attraction
Did anyone else notice how bouncy she is in that opening piano scene? For some reason it really stuck out to me. I guess this show has been doing that bounce thing to show dialogue for a while now.
Anyway, pony got itself a professional broadway singer for one of the most well-loved feels songs we have seen the show so far, and Lena Hall did not disappoint! Joining that, we got a bit of cute Applejack backstory and Coloratura herself spawning a 31 image strong dedicated art post 24 hours after her debut. I'd say she was pretty popular.
Some did dislike how quickly the episode moved, arguing that it felt more like a celebration of having such a talented singer on staff as opposed to a fully fledged plot, which is probably why it's down here in the #5 slot. Regardless though, I'm probably not going to be the only one with "The Spectacle" and "The Magic Inside" on a playlist long into the hiatus.
And butt veils are cute.
#4 -Amending Fences
I'm not going to lie. This was my #1. I've watched it at least 10 times just on the side while doing various EQD duties. Everything from Minuette being adorable to Moondancer promoting the ultimate feels; it was just an all around excellent episode.
The fandom reaction was pretty interesting too. There seemed to be a pretty big 50/50 split on how it effected people. If you are an extrovert, it may have not been that big a deal. Moondancer would probably be kind of alien with that mindset. Introverts could relate though! Nerd Glasses pony is our spirit animal! I kinda wish I did a poll on that looking back.
A well deserved #4, and if you are like me, probably higher.
#3 - Slice of Life
This one was no surprise at all. In one fell swoop, DHX and Hasbro went all out on celebrating a huge amount of what the pony fandom has created over the years. Lyra and Bonbon became BEST FRIENDS, Derpy and Dr. Hooves did SCIENCE, Octavia and Vinyl performed a concert duo, and the fandom collective exploded.
An entire essay could be written to explain why this episode got the accolades it did, but you are probably sick of words already by now, so lets stop stating the obvious and dive into the next one.
#2 - The Cutie Remark
Usually I'm a bit wary of posting a poll like this right after a season. Typically the finale always ranks higher compared to some of the early episodes just due to how fresh it is in people's minds. I'm not 100% sure if that effect took place here, but there is no doubt that we had an awesome finale this season.
Five years ago, I never would have expected something like this to happen in Ponyland. It's our perfect utopia with happyness everywhere right? Imagine my surprise when we got an entire World War 2 style section, a much more aggressive changeling vs. pony invasion, and a straight up wasteland. Depression-ere misery in ponies isn't something we are used to.
Is this a good thing for pony? It's open to interpretation. On one hand, we now have a much more realistic world that has the potential to be just as violent and dangerous as ours. On the other, I do kinda miss that "utopian" feel Equestria tends to have. Or at least "better than Earth" vibe. It has never been a perfect world, but it has been largely peaceful. I even wrote an editorial on that.
Anyway, there was no doubt that this episode was awesome, which reflects it's current poll standing at #2. I guess the popularity of Fallout Equestria was a testament to what we like to see all along.
#1 - Crusaders of the Lost Mark
What a way to end the saga of the Cutie Mark Crusaders chasing their butt tattoos! There are several layers of "that bitchy character no one really likes", and for four seasons, Diamond Tiara was right at the bottom. I rarely saw anyone love this filly. Her every word has been the epitome of douchebaggery since her first appearance way back during Call of the Cutie. Nothing could possibly salvage this tiny pink monstrosity right?!
Four awesome songs says I was WRONG!
Diamond Tiara is now TOP tier foal status. Pony took that usual trope of "killing the character everyone hates off in a GLORIOUS fashion", and shifted it into a "making everyone feel bad for and love the character everyone hates"! In the end, Spoiled Rich was the real demon causing this little filly to embrace her element of assholery, and I can't wait to see her lose horribly on that poll over on the side bar.
Oh, and the CMC got their marks.
While I still lean toward Amending Fences for my personal favorite of the season, there is no doubt that this one resonated most in the fandom.
Though, her "command ponies to do things with money" cutie mark destiny is a little weird.
HONORABLE MENSION: Trixie's Lost Episode
It is true. Trixie was seen only once this entire season. This is not due to a dislike of the character by the writing staff though. On the contrarty! Trixie had an entire 3 episode arc dedicated to her amazing magic. It turns out she teamed up with Sunset Shimmer (HOOVES version) to start a brand new magical school with Luna's blessing. We had an entire episode about Sweetie Belle making friends with ponies from other countries and cultural barriers, a look into the Great and Powerful Trixie's tragic past, and finally an epic climax where she joins up with Moonbutt as the princess of MAGIC. Turns out Twilight going friendship mode left a gap in the elements or something.
Too bad none of you will ever see it. I can confirm, it was awesome.
That's your top 10! As mentioned above, you all chose these, so don't hate me if your favorite wasn't here!
If you want the rest of the results along with exact numbers, check out the poll here.
Be sure to hit the side bar for the currently running, 3 round best of season 5 character battle!
