Rarity Investigates

…In which Rarity plays a femme fatale detective in a parody of film noir. It’s got special credits music and is perhaps weirdly suggestive for a kids’ show at points.

Made in Manehattan

…In which Rarity and Applejack help Coco Pommel put on a play in Manehattan. It’s a friendship map episode, and like the previous episode, it has special credits music. It also takes place at the same time as the next episode.

Brotherhooves Social

…In which Big Mac presents himself as a mare named Orchard Blossom, in an attempt to get closer to Apple Bloom by substituting for Applejack at the Sisterhooves Social. This episode is controversial for obvious reasons — some say that it’s basically just transphobic dreck and rotten to the core, while others say that it’s a problematic episode, but does ultimately take a pro-trans stance by deconstructing tropes or something along those lines. I guess we’ll just have to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

I remember in any case comparing this episode to Þrymskviða when it came out, and enjoying it on the whole, so clearly there was something about it that spoke to me while I was still deeply repressing my own transness. Not that this episode actually is particularly similar to Þrymskviða, I had just coincidentally learned that story in school not too long before this episode aired, so I was basically primed to say that literally any story involving male-to-female crossdressing was “like Þrymskviða” — I mean, I was a preteen, you couldn’t exactly expect great literary analysis from me, right?

Crusaders of the Lost Mark

…In which the Cutie Mark Crusaders finally get their cutie marks! Yes, I’m serious, it’s actually happening, and I certainly know that some ponies among us have been looking forward to this. This is the show’s third musical episode, right, after the season 3 finale and the Weird Al episode last season. This episode also features a plot about Diamond Tiara having a tragic backstory and getting reformed and forgiven and so forth. I think you’ll all agree with me in any case that this is tonight’s standout episode, given that it’s the culmination of five seasons of Cutie Mark Crusading.

The CMC’s cutie marks I remember were controversial when they were first revealed, but they soon grew on everypony. So we’ll see how you all feel about them when you see them — in all likelihood you’ll have no strong feelings one way or the other, though.

The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows

…In which Princess Cadence and Shining Armor announce their pregnancy to the Mane Six in a roundaboutmf’in JOJO referenc??? way. Thankfully, they didn’t also do a gender reveal like frigging Mummy Pig did earlier this year.

This episode is really pretty mid, but hay, at least it sets up the season 6 premiere… Which is also pretty mid. Hm. Well, at least Cadence and Shiny’s baby herself… Only has one significant appearance after the season 6 premiere. Cool cool cool.

…Do you think Princess Cadence’s Royal Baby thing was just a ploy to sell more toys by reproducing patriarchal gender roles? But Hasbro would neeeever do something like thaaaat, would they? Would they? Nawwww.

This episode’s title is a Friends reference, by the way. You’d think a show with friendship as its main theme would have more Friends references, really. I never could get into Friends myself, though…

Hearthbreakers

…In which the Apples and Pies celebrate Christmanksgivindependence Dayofficially known as Hearth’s Warming together at the latter’s rock farm. Pinkie’s autistic-coded sister Maud Pie appears, as do their other sisters Limestone Pie and Marble Pie — who have previously only appeared as non-speaking fillies in photos and flashbacks, so this episode will be their first speaking appearances and first appearances as adults. Pinkie’s Amish-coded parents also have their first speaking roles in this episode.

So yeah, this is a good worldbuilding/lore episode for the holiday of Hearth’s Warming. It’s also I believe the fourth episode of MLP:FiM to feature mixed media, the others being S2E18 “A Friend in Deed”, S4E12 “Pinkie Pride”, and S5E7 “Make New Friends but Keep Discord”, which we watched two weeks ago.

This episode also very blatantly ships Big Mac with Marble Pie, and this fact will be the first piece of setup for a notorious minor background detail in the Best Gift Ever holiday special, which, barring any unforeseen consequences, we’ll watch on December 6.

“Hearthbreakers” is incidentally also the 111th episode, which makes it the exact midpoint of MLP:FiM if you count Best Gift Ever as an episode.

• Weirdly sexually charged at points…? (Rarity Investigates)
• Building collapses and almost kills somepony (Made in Manehattan)
• A character’s potentially valuable possession is destroyed (Made in Manehattan, The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows)
• Stallion in a dress jokes (Brotherhooves Social)
• Child in peril…? (Brotherhooves Social)
• Children forgive their former bullies (Crusaders of the Lost Mark)
• Parental abuse (Crusaders of the Lost Mark)
• Body shaming and similar (Crusaders of the Lost Mark)
• A dead fly is briefly shown (Crusaders of the Lost Mark)
• Classism (Crusaders of the Lost Mark)
• Eavesdropping / threatening to expose secrets (Crusaders of the Lost Mark)
• Allusion to dead parents (Crusaders of the Lost Mark)
• Pregnancy / pronatalism (The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows)
• Eye stuff that some viewers might find disturbing (The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows)
• Characters eat rocks (Hearthbreakers)
• An adult intimidates a child (Hearthbreakers)
• Earthquake (Hearthbreakers)