it's so bad... MLP Make Your Mark Review

[@emminations2907]

To be fair Earth ponies did originally have magic in Friendship is Magic, otherwise Tirek would not have been able to drain them the same way he did the unicorns and pegasi, which he was able to do. Every species of pony had a unique ability or trait associated with them. Unicorns tended to be more knowledgeable and used their horns to cast spells, Pegasi would faster, had the ability of flight, and could control the weather, while Earth ponies were the strongest of the three pony kind and we very attuned with nature, which is why a lot of them were gardeners and farmers. Each kind of pony had an important job to keep things balanced, without the Earth Ponies then no one would have any food, without Pegasi the weather would be in chaos, and before Celestia and Luna Unicorns we're responsible for lifting the sun and moon. So Earth ponies getting magic in this new show isn't really something new, it's actually on point with the original lore.

[@ddrddr-pq3tz]

Yes it was strength that was their magic

[@aprilcastaneda3028]

THANK YOU Someone said it!!

[@emminations2907]

@@aprilcastaneda3028 Well, I felt like that needed to be brought up. It was just kind of weird for someone to get upset that Earth Ponies suddenly got magic when they were always supposed to have it. Like I said before if they didn't then Tirek shouldn't have been able to take their magic when he tried to destroy Equestria. The only ponies he couldn't drain were the princesses and that was only because they gave all their magic to Twilight! Plus Earth Ponies have been the only known species of pony to have anything to do with farming, you don't really see the Unicorns or Pegasi doing it in the show, and in the backstory of Equestria it shows that Earth Ponies were the ones responsible for supplying food to the other tribes, which proved difficult thanks to the Wendigos. Actually, I'm kind of surprised the Wendigos seemingly didn't show up when everyone was fighting, I guess you could argue that the storm was them but there wasn't any wailing or snow so I doubt it was them.

[@StressResponseAbility]

Yes, they all had their especial talents and cutie marcs

[@jessicacallender]

true....while reading your points it struck me that..this new world of ponies works on its own...the sun and moon raise on their own. whether also moves alone without assistance. animals and plants don't need special special care...it makes sense that these happen because of the lost of magic and these roles could not be fulfilled by ponies..but better writing would've helped I suppose which would intertwine with what you said about earth pony magic.

[@underfirebutok]

I'm not entirely sure what they mean by earth ponies not having magic; wasn't it pretty heavily implied when Tirek invaded in G4 that the earth ponies' equivalent to pegasi's flight and unicorns' spellcasting was their strength?

[@nameynamd9212]

Considering the mention of how new magic could be brought forth, maybe instead of new magic, the state of it isn't entirely returned and is slowly doing so with better relations amongst other ponies(maybe later it'll extend to other species as well), hence why a conflict in one town can start glitching out magic everywhere if the start is anything to go off of

[@mohdghazali3473]

It's what the character belief not the actual truth. The crystal is the evidence of magic.

[@jacobcampbell4011]

Not just that, but a few of the earth ponies showed that they could influence plant growth, and certain earth ponies also had special abilities that others did not

[@kirazookalex5401]

Yea, earth ponys have always had magic. The most subtle sort too. They aren't called earth ponys for no reason lol. How else would AJ get all the apples off the tree and into baskets in one try? Or be super good at growing things in general.

[@esmetheexpressohyena9337]

@@kirazookalex5401 Rewash the episode family appreciation day

[@VeronicaStorm98]

The edgy villain Alicorn's design makes my eyes hurt. The brightness of the hair against that particular shade of purple does not look good. I know, based on Princess Luna and Queen Chrysalis, that the MLP staff can make good pony designs using darker colors, so the villian's design is disappointing to me by comparison. She literally looks like a kid's edgy, cringey, pony OC with those colors.

[@HackiePuffs]

That could be the dark lighting tho

[@82dorrin]

I get the feeling she's a corrupted Flurry Heart.

[@babsbitches6225]

i think the problem is the lighting. it was a few seconds clip in a dark room, in a special known for bad lighting so far. i say hold judgment on colours until she is seen in proper lighting

[@nuotatorre8741]

@@82dorrin That could actualy be interesting

[@TheSultan1470]

It's just the way the lighting is falling on her

[@anobody4606]

This series does NOT feel like it belongs in the same world as G4. I think that was their biggest mistake, first and foremost. :/

[@tillychee]

Yeah i am a firm believer of G5 having the POTENTIAL to be great but ironically by having it be related/tied to G4 it is actively shooting itself in the foot

[@Pulapaws]

I truly agree they should have just started completely fresh line they do with all gen.

[@Subject_Keter]

@@tillychee It like jumping off from Gen 4 opens soo[ many plot holes off the bat.

[@emsiyes]

I think they're just trying too hard to attract G4 lovers to G5 and so far it's not going great at all

[@rainbowcraft2694]

@@tillychee I think being related to the world of G4 would be fine if they actually wrote it well and had everything properly planned out in the planning stages of development. Because what we have right now is not continuing off G4, it's retconning it.

[@PatchworkRose567]

The show definitely still has potential but it’s certainly got a way to go. If this special was split up into multiple parts then it would have flowed much better than condensing it into one 44 minute special. The animation felt alright, albeit a bit stiff, but the lighting is really gross in some scenes, mainly indoors, like with the ending alicorn scene that has such harsh lighting that makes her colors much darker than they probably are, same goes with Pipp and turning very pale pink when indoors and in some paler lighting outdoors.

[@ImmaLittlePip]

I wonder if the first season is going to be like s1 of g4 Meaning it's mostly focus on character driven slice of life Though I think that's what Tell your tale is supposed to be

[@christopherstehn]

i dont need this movie at all

[@fluffyfetlocks]

There were times where there were: - bad continuity (the mailbox being knocked over then being stood up in one shot). - animation errors (izzy's eyes twitch and desync in a couple shots.) - Missing textures (sunny's twilight badge is missing a texture in one shot and is just grey) - The strap on the bag regularly clips inside of sunny's shoulder and some characters glasses clip inside their face - Shots with zip atop the lighthouse.. sometimes the city is in the background and sometimes it's just.. a green hill that's cropped off straight kinda like a gmod map.. - Some scenes have camera focus issues - Annotations left on rendered frames. If you look clearly you'll see black pen lines in some scenes that appear for a frame or two. - Bad lighting where sometimes shadows will go different directions on two different things in one scene.. and sometimes things being incredibly brightly lit in dark scenes - Screen space effects and texture resolution mismatch.. it's evident they used a game style real time renderer instead of using a ray traced render like you normally would in a 3D film. And then a weak story with a random villain that appears at the end. it's maddening

[@aaronmarkenson7717]

Your Right Because That what The Film Did

[@ChronosChris]

I'll be perfectly honest I don't think this does have potential.. It's no where near as good as the G4 series in terms of writing, animation, art.. everything just seems so flat and boring. This 3d animation is so ugly compared to g4's colorful 2d art. This story about racism everywhere is just completely non-sensical and silly. The main characters don't hit nearly as strong as the previous cast. The world itself feels so small.

[@al.trash.41]

For animation, it really feels like they’re trying to make it like the movie rather than working with their limitations. Considering budget, i really wish they had just done more 2D content for this. If they had done a simpler art style that could look nice while keeping their low budget, I feel like it would’ve been a lot more enjoyable. But considering they’re targeting a preschool demographic, it really feels like theyre trying to grab the cocomelon viewers with this type of animation.

[@BuizelCream]

Not the best plan to use this not good 3D look to capture their attention tho 😅 Little ones have taste, and they will be able to see the quality drop when they compare it with other shows they watch. Seriously, this should not be the standard for any show.

[@nameynamd9212]

I wonder if something like the small clip of animation at the start of the G5 movie would be better in that regard

[@imp-tweekakarainbow_washov8991]

wait weren't they originally going to try and target a teen demographic? what hapenned to that?!

[@3v1l73ddy]

@@imp-tweekakarainbow_washov8991 they should go back to that especially since G5 ties directly into G4 whose fanbase consists mostly of adults and older viewers. They'd honestly have more success.

[@theelevatedsheep]

fr i thought it looked ok but even if they used the same style from the tell your tale shorts it would look better coz at least in that they all look pretty decent in motion aside form maybe hitch

[@evilira718]

Let’s be honest, the pilot of the original g4 is pretty mid at best. It took some time to really be aquatinted with the characters to get fully invested.

[@PeacePetal]

That’s true.

[@ImmaLittlePip]

Yeah rewatching the first season and those early episodes are more character building and the quality isn't the highest

[@marlyfics]

if you mean like between the nightmare moon episodes and the movie then yeah g5 had a better pilot but if we compared the special with episode 3-4 then i think g4 did a much better job imo, i think make your mark tried to bite more than it could chew and it feels like a mess

[@aprilcastaneda3028]

I disagree fully Season 1 & 2 are still the best seasons of the show

[@pre6253]

@@aprilcastaneda3028 Facts

[@haloo_haybay]

The voice acting of the ponies on the beach was laughably bad. Otherwise, I thought it was ok. However, Hitch and Izzy feel like completely different characters from the film. Also, the animation was clipping at times. I hope the series is more polished when it comes out in September.

[@TheSultan1470]

Relatively inexperienced actors

[@sweetyc410]

Yeah I thought the same, I feel like the voice acting was just as rushed as the animation. I really hope the quality improves...

[@UnboxingAlyss]

Agree completely with the VAs. I will say that Hitch and Izzy sounds better here than in Tell Your Tale. Their personalities have changed, but Izzy's was bearable here, as opposed to TYT. She was obnoxious and thoughtless and it was grating.

[@MellowLuvv]

It didn’t idk about quality but the voice acting is not ok

[@o_oo_o1812]

let's be honest, lauren faust was the rare exception of an artist having a strong vision for an animated show. r.i.p.

[@mckenzieeliza]

Is Lauren Faust dead, or is it just MLP that's died?

[@joanmitchel1406]

@@mckenzieeliza I think she passed on. She was like in her 60s I believe

[@runezunn6655]

​@@joanmitchel1406 No, she's still alive because if she did passed on, it would be in the headlines everywhere.

[@john_o]

@@joanmitchel1406 No, Lauren's like mid to late 40s. She was a child who grew up with the original MLP, remember?

[@alyssabullock6421]

@@joanmitchel1406 who said she died?! I thought she just quit mlp after season 3. I've never heard about her dying. If she died, we'd be seeing it everywhere

[@orwellianwiress]

As an edgy pony lover, I actually quite like the villain's design. She also has a totally blacklight look to her (which is an aesthetic I also love). Maybe we'll get glow-in-the-dark pony toys?

[@Maczcheese]

I would love that toys

[@gigiisaweirdo8175]

Omg yes lol

[@ambientlightofdarknesss4245]

her design looks ho hoooottt shit!

[@K0ira]

She look like Nightmare Moon lmao.

[@kiddfaith4397]

Judging from the last few MLP generations, and the toys those turned out, it’s an inevitability. 😆 But yeah, I do like her design, and she probably isn’t as dark if she’s not in the shadows; I get the feeling they did that to make her more menacing, as well as to not reveal too much of her full look too early.

[@paolopol05]

The weather was normal in the first movie cause the crystal were separated, sunny confirmed it

[@pinkdiamond1847]

Yeah that's what I was thinking. The bad weather in Make Your Mark was caused by Windigoes but Windigoes couldn't exist in a world without Magic because they are made of magic.

[@nuotatorre8741]

@@pinkdiamond1847 Also Windigo feed of hate, and there wasn't any they could feed of when the tribe were separated.

[@Beyondthe5thPanel]

Only problem I have with the crystals is that they didn’t exist in G4. Magic more than likely came from the land of the whole world. It was established by Celestia that magic couldn’t be destroyed, it could only be transferred which makes sense. Chancellor Neighsay confirms this further when talking about magic being housed in artifacts that they poured into being the last of the magic to go when Cozy was siphoning the magic into a different dimension. I don’t have a problem with the unity crystals in practice, but with those, there had to be a reason why suddenly all of the magic that was in the land was poured into these. The theory for a few months has been that the more humans in the human world used magic as it continued to seep into it, the more of an imbalance it created, and Equestria couldn’t compensate fast enough. So Twilight decided on a fail safe. Unfortunately that presented the problem we have now

[@paolopol05]

@@Beyondthe5thPanel i guess they'll give a explanation about this, in fact Zipp saw this as one of the principal questions to solve

[@RockstarChuckPTW21]

I watched Make Your Mark I didn’t like it and I didn’t hate it. The plot was okay but parts of it in my opinion made no sense. I can’t remember but I’m sure Lauren Faust said that Earth Ponies have magic just like Unicorns and Pegasi (they can connect with nature and make things grow). When Zipp asked “Why didn’t Earth Ponies have Magic’s before?” I was like: BUT THEY DID!!! I also found Posey extremely unbearable to watch. I found her so annoying that I would skip past any scene she appeared in. I am glad she changed in the end. feel like it might get better. Some shows start out pretty crappy but as it goes on the writing usually gets better (for example the first episode of Rainbow High sucked but as the show went on it got better). I’m not really sure how I feel about the new Alicorn villain though. To me her design is all over the place. I don’t know why but parts of her design just bugs me. Although the writing kind of sucked I did like Make Your Mark. Edit: Also this may sound a bit weird but I really want Tex from G1 to come back in G5 and have Rob Paulsen voice him just like in G1. I want him to voice Tex again not just because he’s my all time favorite voice actor but I feel like he’s pretty underrated. I would love if Tex was either one of Hitch’s relatives or if he was just a reoccurring character in the show. I feel like he would make a great addition to Make Your Mark.

[@Chopper7272]

They could if meant the earth ponies didn’t have magic before the storm

[@witherslayer-7315]

Earth pony magic was literally never actually shown to us in the show. Lauren Faust can't just say something and not even show it to us.

[@animallove232454]

@@witherslayer-7315 yes it was?? Tirek was literally shown stealing magic from the earth ponies and it was mentioned multiple times that earth pony magic is their connection to nature and that Earth ponies were the main source of food in Equestria. It's why Appleloosa was able to thrive and grow so many crops despite being in the desert

[@skaynne54]

Zipp maybe said that because she was born, not knowing that Earth ponies had magic..? Little reminder that this takes place far into the future. Ponies from G4 knew of earth ponies' magic. But what if you're born in a world where magic was gone for years ? You would probably understand Zipp there.

[@RockstarChuckPTW21]

@Skaynne That’s very true. I didn’t think about that.

[@Aysisse]

I feel like the new pony's magic is way too close to unicorn's magic. We did see Izzy healing flowers too after all... I liked the idea of earth ponies being stronger, having a longer life expectancy and everything. It made them more uniques, now they just look like unicorns but with magic coming from their hooves.

[@KiaraLionessTM]

I didn’t really think it was that bad to be honest I found it really good plus I love the new villain and her design honestly I don’t get the hate towards make your mark I really enjoyed the first episode ❤️

[@dinopony2910]

Yes exactly I've been thinking the same way. The show definitely has a little bit to go but I loved this first episode so far and I'm really excited to see more.

[@edit_master2118]

Not saying I hate the show it's just from G4 there was wendigos but it's a storm but before they got the Cristals there was no storm it's confusing the story is all over the place

[@launacyko4523]

@@edit_master2118 Windigos feed of the fighting and hatred of the three pony species. While the pony species were seperated in A New Generation, they did not actually hate each other nor fight. Sprout did try to fight but that was one idiotic earth pony "emperor" and his reluctant followers, not three kinds actively fighting and hating each other. They were in fear of each other which is something that Windigos would not take interest in since they only feed off on hatred and fighting

[@mohdghazali3473]

@@launacyko4523 Exactly, people claim Posey as a villain but she's not jealous but feel it's unfair if Earth Ponies got nothing but only the short end of stick. Not to mention, Maretime Bay is their country and hometown and there's two pony race "immigrants" is coming in large numbers to their "country" and they're not that good in magic and fan expect Earth Ponies to be happy ? Shocking. Posey feeling is actually legit.

[@flowersshy16]

They hate the whole new generation just because ""it "ruined" g4!""....

[@edwardcarlisle5580]

I would say the story here is "How the earth ponies discovered their magic". The now realize this, and Equestria becomes that much more in harmony. Everything else simply happened around this point.

[@VcSaJen]

"Why the weather normal when there was racial segregation" Looks like someone didn't pay attention. Sunny explicitly says that it didn't happen because crystals were separated. Crystals Separated = No Magic = No Bad Weather.

[@andyreacts]

Eyup. MLP Fever also said there is no story or nobody had anything to do or that you have to watch Tell your tale to get how the characters got there (as she points out they don't explain mucgh there either), but all of that is pure nonsense that feels like she didn't pay much attention. While I don't think the special was great it was not awful in my opinion. This review though... Pretty bad

[@drom5970]

Brony fan boys connecting dots that don't exist.... typical. "As long as there's pretty ponys on screen who needs good writing" so tell me why didn't earth ponys get their magic back? G4 showed us they have magic but when the three magic miguffin christals are united (includeing the earth pony christal) only unicorns and peggisie got magic back? You should go back and watch her video properly, I think you missed (ignored) some very good points.

[@KitsunetheWolfdog]

@@drom5970 actually there is a credits scene in the movie that shows the earth ponies DO have magic, in this they just now have OBVIOUS magic

[@supersmashproductions9890]

Zipp got on my nerves alot in this mainly because she just refuse to tell anyone ANYTHING and the voice actors don't even feel like their trying hopefully that improves

[@FlameyFiredog]

I personally loved it but thats just my opinion. I do see some room where it can improve though.

[@TeddieSage1987]

I liked it. I didn't love it, but I liked it. It's just the start of the series, so I expect it to have a slow start and some graphic hiccups, here and there.

[@Elpresidente98]

It was mid. Let's be honest, BUT so was the opening for G4. The animation should have definitely been polished 2D instead of this underwhelming 3D. The story could still turn out good, I mean we're off to a rocky start but the train hasn't flipped over just yet, maybe it just needs time. Like G4. I hope it gets better from here on out. The villain is meh. Kinda interesting, kinda corny looking. I hope she's more interesting than she looks. I can deal with the animation if the storytelling gets good. I'ma keep my hopes up for G5. It isn't dead yet!

[@keylimetea]

I feel like the animation doesn’t add to the storyline at all and good animation should bring a show to life

[@midnightthesmartfox9981]

I honestly enjoyed it It wasn’t perfect but I wasn’t expecting it to be Just a nice fun special to tide us over until the series I do admit the Alicorn is a bit eh but that could just be the lighting She might look different in the sunshine

[@Sera666]

I don't like how she has glittery makeup. Like why give them makeup. Also did the quality go down a bit since the movie? Shouldn't animating and adding details be easier with 3d models.

[@midnightthesmartfox9981]

@@Sera666 That’s really more of a budget thing I honestly knew we weren’t gonna get the same quality as the movie so I don’t see the specials animation as anything to write home about

[@Sera666]

@@midnightthesmartfox9981 But it's just so BAD like they over did it on the expressions and the makeup for the villain. The villain didn't need any makeup. Also with 3d modeling as long as you have the texture files you can just rig up the base model and have the same quality from the movie in the show, unlike with drawing it out. You're saving money by doing it with 3d models and rigging. I'm not an expert so if I'm wrong let me know but just going off the the experience I have with vrchat and blender/unity. Then again Netflix recently fired most of their animators so *Shrug*

[@aruaruarui]

@@Sera666 Could be render time as well. Lower budget , lower end computers, not able to handle as much detail as it was in the movie. Less people on the team compared to the movie as well, so less polished animation, less time on the script or whatever

[@Celeste_51]

Yeah I agree the animation is not as good but it’s understandable and I still think it’s super cute

[@soapyfoam]

Ngl, I actually liked it. Lauren Faust did say Earth ponies have magic (growing plants and harvesting food). But a lot of people assume earth ponies don’t have magic so perhaps when technology advanced, earth ponies never realized they lost magic around the same time the Pegasus and unicorns did. It’s clear that other pony kinds never had a problem with the lack of weather control from the pegasi so they were still able to grow food. Overall, I think people are crapping on g5 because it contradicts a lot of g4 stuff. But we have to remember we know very little about G5’s lore so far and g5 is it’s own thing.

[@jeshuarestituyo284]

Unfortunately it is not it's own thing when the opening of the movie literally shows G4 and how this is clearly set after G4. If they wanted it to be its own thing they should have made it that it's own thing it's own universe with its own lore. Cuz most of the lore the show has will have to be connected to G4 at the end of day cuz hasbro wants it like that.

[@Subject_Keter]

You cant want to piggyback of Gen 4 and get mad when they havent addressed key things they seemingly forgot to do.

[@soapyfoam]

I meant it is its own show, not its own story. There’s a difference when it comes to production.

[@soapyfoam]

@@Subject_Keter Again, the series is just beginning. We will learn more of the lore in the future. It wouldn’t make sense learning every bit of lore right away. You just need to be patient.

[@witherslayer-7315]

I don't think there was really anything "bad" about this tbh. It feels just like a normal G4 episode. It wasn't anything spectacular but it curtainly has potential. I mean, it is a first episode for goodness sake. I also don't think it's a bad thing that earth ponies got magic as well. The "you don't need magic to be special" is a lesson we've already learned in G4 and it's also a lesson that have been done like a million times already.

[@pinkdiamond1847]

I also think earth ponies had magic in G4 related to their cutie marks and Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich are the best examples of this.

[@paradoxfox3561]

@@pinkdiamond1847 It is confirmed in the Tirek story that earth ponies have magic

[@TheSultan1470]

Yeah, this

[@Sway22]

Yeah earth ponies DID have magic before which was their strength. Buuut that is why it's super wierd now that they seem to not have it? It was compleatly replaced by the "grow plants" power. Why? Who knows. It would make much more sense if the new ganeration would takle place in a different world, but since it's the same... I have no idea.

[@FloatingClouds000]

Idk if its just me but i feel like 70% of the whole special was this: Zipp: Somethings going on with the crystals Everypony else: Nothing is going on *random jealous earth pony noises* Zipp: Somethings SERIOUSLY going on with the crystals Everypony else: OHHHH no your right lol my bad *random jealous earth pony noises intensifies*

[@kaleidola]

In all honesty, I think Make Your Mark could’ve done better, but seeing with the budget of the animation and writers as well I can sort of understand where they’re coming from, g4 had a long way to go when it began, the voice actors didn’t put their best performance on all that much until later within the show, however they were still good. I feel like if the story was written better it could’ve had a nice impact on to what would lie ahead for the future writing. Although work needs to be done, character development needs to be achieved for majority of characters, I think this could end up going with a good direction for the series if they actually develop better writing. I’m unsure about the alicorn villain, however it could lead as to what happened to twilight and cadence, possibly kidnapped them or left them where tirek used to be imprisoned. I’m actually glad Sunny had a bit of development inside the series or some kind of challenge, she was oblivious and naive about the magic disappearing or so. I hope to see more challenges for the characters, while it’s okay for a show intended towards kids they definitely do need to explain some things. I liked some of the newer songs better than the g5 movie (except Izzies song), felt much like the equestria girls series or some songs felt like it was from the actual series. However this intends to go, I hope they develop better writing for the continuation of the story, as long as it’s as well made with passion and not just for marketing. Edit: What does make me curious about the new alicorn villain is that the crystals created void magic, and it’s the fact that they were able to watch over the main 5. I wonder if this has any relevance to do with Midnight Sparkle (evil twilight from equestria girls who would’ve been a nightmare moon in mlp). The color palette looks sort of the same to her with the cyan and purple. It makes me wonder if they stole key parts of the magic of friendship between all kinds of ponies from twilight somehow, possibly other creatures and trapped them within the crystal.

[@lucariodash4874]

I agree with u tbh i really think people are not giving this a fair chance with budget cuts n all they had to change a few things sure.... but like an example of giving things a chance would be like compare this to star wars the clone wars n then star wars rebels... where rhe animation was different by miles due to budgets n the first season/few episodes was not the best however they did get better n better after a while... same gose for this new MLP it just needs to be given the right chance to get used to the changes the voice actors n the story after all it might get bettern better as it progresses.... i think people should at least give it a chance after a few episodes instead of dismissing it straight away n hating it on 1 episode....

[@allister_story_dump31]

@@lucariodash4874 agreed, g4 started out as a slice of life story, but as it continues it became more lore heavy. I think there are 2 reasons why people aren't giving it a chance. 1) there's nothing really a Connection with the g4 story line: this one i can agree with to an extent. But at the same time we haven't gotten far in the series to see the connections with g4. 2) It's new....That's literally the reason i can think of. People who haven't wanted the show but are because it's new they're not giving it a chance. Now i get it. This special doesn't tell it's story well and the youtube shorts aren't the best. But we just started the generation, I'm sure the story will get better over time when the actual series is out.

[@lucariodash4874]

@@allister_story_dump31 the thing is people want it to continue from GEN 4, but not really thinking how different everything is from a timeline where GEN 4 is in the past now n classed as annicent equestria by sunnys dad in the movie, but there is still alot of things that are showing up from GEN 4 like twilights cutie mark, map of equestria, pics n things in sunnys home from her dad that had things from twilights time, tbh i kinda like the new idea of it being in a more future timeline its different n the thing is if they did make it like GEN 4 n continue it from GEN 4 storyline then people who like GEN 4 would end up complaing that its the same or that its not different but its these same "fans" who seem to be dissappointed, the 1st season of this new generation has like only 8 episodes i think they said.... that is really short for a season 1 of a new mlp series.... but if they just testing things out then maybe they will do better as the seasons go on if they are doing more then one season of this..... besides we might find out some things along the way like they might try to find out why magic was seperated n gone by visiting some sites from twilights time like ponyville or whats left of it or maybe they will find an abandoned forgotten canatlot or something maybe ponyvilla is also abandoned with only like 3 or 4 ponys who stayed there when everything happened could be like an accesstor of apple jacks family who didnt wanna let the farm end up being gone forever n stayed behind or discord without magic decided to live in fluttershys house n look after her pet sentuary after fluttershy died "assuming she grew old n died by now" discord wouldnt have been able to handle that he would feel alone n probably he is just in ponyville n living in fluttershys house when magic dissapeared alone n depressed.... like i said anything can happen in this new series they might go on adventure n find stoned ponys or something that was turned to stone, maybe twilight n her friends are not dead but been turned to stone making them not died of old age yet cuzz being turned to stone im sure they wouldnt continue to age while frozen in time sorta, this new generation is meant to be new n fresh n different to GEN 4, GEN 4 was good theres no reason to started making GEN 5 a copy n paste of GEN 4.... also your right GEN 4 season 1 started off a little rocky some hated appleblooms voice in that zecora episode but as seasom went on voices n epsisode became better, every new show or tv series normally has a bad or slow 1st season n then they get better n better over time

[@Thikachu]

But can we just talk about how *creepy* that dragon design is? It will never replace Spike

[@mylife-23]

I always believed earth ponies had magic even in G4

[@LuigianoMariano]

The worst thing you can do with a strong start is to squander it with a weak follow-up. I sincerely hope that they can learn from this mistake or else there's no chance of getting back on the right track and recovering from this.

[@Highland_Schleich]

Hii I just watched the special today. I did really like how Zipp was kinda the main character in this story. But the mysterious dark Alicorn at the end really makes me want to watch the upcoming series in order to see what happens.

[@mrsisimlp8469]

I liked the special! there were parts that I didn't like so much of course and there were some glitches in the animation, but let's realize one thing! we have to wait for the series, I'm sure most things will be explained there, and maybe until then they fix the animation better (because we all know it wasn't the best). being judgmental like that is not the best, wait, I don't even think the story was bad (although it was a bit rushed)I'm from Portugal, friendship is magic it wasn't complete here (seasons 7, 8 and 9 were missing) and I finally have new content pony since 2018 lol (except for the 2021 movie of the new generation that they give was dub)

[@TheAwes0meo]

What do you mean wait for the series? Isn't this the first episode of said series?

[@mrsisimlp8469]

@@TheAwes0meo yes, this is the first episode of the series, so I say we have to wait

[@pinkdiamond1847]

I noticed from the trailer that they upgraded from PlayStation 2 graphics to Xbox 360 graphics so that was nice.

[@the-guy-who-asked]

ok I didn't watch the entire video, but the story takes place after tell your tale makes a lot of sense. After all, they are canonical events. It doesn't matter if it's different style And I liked the earth ponies having magic. Seriously, being a pony that doesn't have magic, in a MAGIC world must be the worst feeling ever. After all, humans are boring because they don't have magic

[@DrachenKaiser]

I think it takes time at the same time as Tell your tale, because there are spoilers in Episode 11 :D

[@marlyfics]

earth ponies not having magic isnt so different from humans that might not be as capable or talented as others and giving them magic now kind of takes away from how meaningful it was (at least to me) that they were able to live and feel joyful without having to be "special" like the rest i honestly found them relatable but now that they Have the special thing it feels like its all gone

[@the-guy-who-asked]

@@marlyfics nah, i don't want something that reminds me of the boring reality, so i love fiction and fantasy, but i understand your point

[@mohdghazali3473]

@@the-guy-who-asked Agree, I have enough "relatable to human" crap. Why would you need a cartoon relatable to humankind? I just don't understand. If you want a character that's relatable to you as an individual and experience, I understand that but a race that relatable to humankind? I don't want that.

[@flowersshy16]

I'm REALLY glad we don't have magic... the things the corrupted humans would do....

[@paintedsandwich2]

I don't think the special was bad, its the first episode, theres time to work on this, and as for the villain... were not seeing her under normal lighting conditions, the scene is really dark, with a lot of blue coming in from the back, it looks bad here, but I wonder if she will look better in a lighter lit scene. I'm willing to still give this show a chance, lets see what the team will do, and if they listen to the fans, and make the proper adjustments. After all, this is a whole new animation medium for this show. You do have valid concerns here though, because issues are issues, and the show does have them, lets just hope it's worked on

[@tenshi.kurama]

I hated that that the episode was saying that feeling negative emotions is wrong, its ok to be angry or sad or nervouse. Being angry is ok, being depressed is ok, what is not ok is commiting crimes and such if that makes any sense

[@Maieveryday2]

I agree, how is no one supposed to fight ever? It was pretty absurd

[@nameynamd9212]

@@Maieveryday2 At the crystal, this does apply, but with how it was done at the stage, it certainly starting developing into something bad, no?

[@EpsilonStar17]

Personally I really liked the new special, I like how it's sets up the plot points for the series, and I'm intrigued to see where the plot with the new Villan goes

[@briancurtis6022]

Hmm... maybe if the premise of the show becomes traveling around to *find out* what makes each pony special and confer a magical talent on them that suits their character? It would make the main five into some sort of "cutie-mark fairies," but it's at least some kind of friendship theme that could focus on recognizing and appreciating everyone for their unique traits? Maybe? And it could follow a restoring-the-magic theme that sorta lines up with the "MAKE Your Mark" title, i.e., discover your true talent and thereby *create* your cutie mark. But wait... all the ponies already have cutie marks. So that doesn't work. And if that DOESN'T turn out to be the theme of the show, then this is just a one-time bad idea for an episode with a bad message. "Those of us who love MLP will watch this show because it's Ponies, and not because it's good." That's been a recurring issue with several franchises lately for a lot of fans, such as Doctor Who and Star Trek.

[@Sway22]

I agree with most things. Side note is that earth ponies did have magic before which was their strength. Aaaand that is super wierd since now they seem to not have it? It was compleatly replaced by the "grow plants" power. Why? Who knows. It would make much more sense if the new ganeration would takle place in a different world, but since it's the same... I have no idea.

[@HYPERIONNakayama]

Ya know, the ending was bad for obvious reasons. But what struck me the most was that the edgy villain was watching in her edgy lair. That has got to be the most reused introduction of a villain ever. Personally, I don't think that this world is ready for a villain. There still needs to be a lot of world building before we can focus on the big bad evil. This takes away from the original intent of the first movie, that there was no actual villain, but now there is. But personally, I'm not going to focus on those things because I'll end up hating the series. In the army, we do something called (searching for the good) in all situations. And I did enjoy some aspects of the special.

[@moonbowcraze1632]

We barely had any worldbuilding with Nighmare Moon, did we not? G5 has had a movie, KZbin series, and special.

[@HYPERIONNakayama]

@@moonbowcraze1632 yeah, you got a good point there. Fair enough. I just hope that this new villain has a backstory that makes sense (like they did for nightmare moon at the very beginning of the g4 show)

[@moonbowcraze1632]

@@HYPERIONNakayama Agreed.

[@nameynamd9212]

It's interesting though, as this shows a force in the shadows that seems to be more knowledgeable about the world(and potentially an idea as to how an alicorn/ascension to one works)while the comics seem to be focusing on the first connection with G4 with Discord, so potentially, that source of media might actually tie in further this time around

[@kiddo6925]

I CRIED WHEN PIPP SAID "when we don't vibe" in that one scene 💀💀 mlp what happened??!

[@thescrumpus]

It was fine. Don't see why everyone had these sky-high expectations for a new generation that is going to, obviously, target MLP's core demographic instead of the adult/older fan collective that has been barely existence the last few years.

[@PeacePetal]

The adult fandom still VERY much exists, but that’s beside the point. So G5 is marketed to children, so what? Do children not deserve a good show? “It’s for kids” is no excuse for it being bad.

[@thescrumpus]

@@PeacePetal It is BARELY around compared to the even the end of FiM lol, saying "it exists" doesnt disprove my point. :P This isn't bad media for preschool children, as a parent, and the bulk of complaints should focus on the visuals (ex: pony model missing ears 80% of the time she was onscreen) instead of the story which.. again.. was absolutely fine. I feel like everyone who tries to pull the "kids deserve better" out of their butt doesn't actually have very much experience viewing children's media that doesn't directly appeal to them in some form and so are inherently biased and are being insincere about the concern being "quality for children" when the reality was they put up expectations that were probably ridiculous for a show with a preschool demographic compared to shows they've watched that obviously ALSO targets parents who they assume will be watching with their children. Those are some of the best children's media according to the internet but they ignore that the media was TRYING to present something for two very different age groups to enjoy, and not EVERY cartoon has to do that. It's perfectly okay for children to have media their parents, and especially random adults, aren't going to enjoy with them lol. You'll get over it, as will everyone on /mlp/, and various other tiny circles of adults fans which barely exist. ;)

[@randymancan8186]

@@thescrumpus I mean you make some good points but saying the adult fan base barely exists anymore is incorrect lol. Sorta depends on where ya look but it’s far from “barely existing”

[@thescrumpus]

@@randymancan8186 I think barely exists is accurate when you compare it to previous states of the fandom; continually declining and not even the aspect of G5 has revived it (yet?). Toy producers seem to agree with a small handful of exceptions (Mighty Jaxx, Pop Mart..) as focus shifts to typical toys centered on G5/children rather than collector items. Maybe that'll change sooner than I anticipate but I personally assume it'll take adult fans not reacting like MYM/G5 is the worst thing ever, and luckily the general consensus seems to be "it was okay" with some vocal exceptions- Which is how these things always go, for ANY new show in ANY demographic imo? 🤞

[@traciestreet4019]

@@randymancan8186 I think what he means is the fandom is not a big as it one was. it is a decently big fanbase today.

[@daddymarcus8343]

Wait.. so if earth ponies didn't have magic how the hell would they even get their cutiemark with the absence of magic.? (Also that villain legit looks like Chris'chan's pony sona)

[@pinapologist101]

I had this on in the background so I wasn’t really paying attention,Although it wasn’t TOO bad imo The rising action was too slow,The Climax is FAR too rushed I’m still going to watch the series when it’s released because I want to see where the “story” goes because the movie gave it so much potential!

[@nameynamd9212]

Though for one, the void that was created from magic starting to become negative/berserk does mean Sprout isn't going to be the only threatening part of this series.

[@liongod360]

If friendship is magic is naruto shippuden, Then G5 is boruto The next generation.

[@christiansilvermoon]

I really can't agree with this review. Right from the beginning everything is *quite* interconnected. The primary story of the special is the ponies trying to make the first re-unified Maretime Bay Day a success, while dealing with the tension of how different their lives are now and the jealousy of others. The alicorn at the end I don't think has a terrible color scheme, but what the scene does have is an atrocious shader and far too much bloom that makes her look downright awful because of it. Zipp becomes a detective at the end as the conclusion to her trying to figure out WHAT she wants to do. After working hard to piece together what's going on during the special, she decides she likes figuring things out and wants to keep doing it: Hence, she becomes a detective. To say that nothing had to do with any of it and that there was no story feels like attention simply wasn't paid. The story WAS trying to make Maretime Bay Day work and everything standing in the way of that, from Posey being unhappy to magic glitches. I agree that Queen Haven's change of heart could've been handled better. I do agree that the Izzy's 'fixing' of the lamp should've kept it closer to the original design. Especially disliked the removal of the Earth Pony, Unicorn and Pegasus iconography from the lamp, as it it was a special and symbolic part of its design. The dragon I have... numerous issues with. Namely the fact that his head for some reason has to resemble a human child, despite being... y'know... a dragon. And also the fact that he has wings, something FiM established does not happen until dragons reach puberty... soooo it's kind of like an infant with a mustache. Weird. Earth Ponies also always had magic; and even in the special it's stated that this is believed to be a new kind of Earth Pony magic that did not exist before. Zipp's line which you claim is the "Worst line in 2022 film" is the explanation of this. Her line wasn't meant to be anything profound or speech worthy. It was an observation. Sorry that you didn't enjoy the special, but hopefully you can enjoy what's to come ^^

[@chronicbrightside8757]

I've been watching the show with my girlfriend and wow, just wow. This is bad. The "A New Generation" movie had its issues but was, for the most part, pretty darn enjoyable. The series simply is not. We're legitimately hate-watching it at this point. The continuity is all over the place, there are plot holes, nonsensical dialogue, the most barebones characterization, clumsy attempts at analogies for current societal issues, even clumsier attempts at "hip" humor and references, lines of dialogue that is so cringeworthy and nonsensical that we've frequently rewound it to listen to them again and laugh hysterically... and also just the fact that none of the voice actors from the movie and only one of the main writers from the movie returned definitely shows. Honestly, it doesn't even seem like a desperate cashgrab, because "desperate" at least implies some level of passion. It's a half-hearted cashgrab, it feels like a knock-off of MLP rather than something actually meant to represent the brand. Saying it's a preschool-level story is spot-on. Something made for little kids who are too young to have developed actual taste yet. FIM had its issues, but it was very competently put together. This was made by throwing a bunch of random garbage into a blender - and then throwing that blender down a flight of stairs. And at the bottom of the flight of stairs is a volcano.

[@malakamr1129]

I hate to agree but I really have to say That new alicorn is ugly And I am not trying to be mean to the Ones who made the film But seriously Mlp friendship is magic WAS ALWAYS better I have been trying to connect the New Mlp and old Mlp because I am confused alicorns don't seem to age in friendship is magic yet twighlight Princess Celestia princess Luna princess cadence NONE OF THEM ARE HERE

[@cv4raz]

opaline is SO ugly...and the ony character that should be named opal is raritys CAT

[@thegreatveritas]

my biggest issue: the eyes! the whole time they all looked so... tired.

[@artemisrose6098]

I started make your mark, watched five minutes, and then went to do something else- could not handle it.

[@hasrield39]

I actually liked it. I think we have to see this for what it is, an introduction to what's to come in the series. My only complaints are the animation and the fact that for some reason I think they made Hitch a bit silly. I think the team in charge of the G5 is still learning to handle this new generation.

[@moth8455]

i hate the new design in G5.. i stopped watching a minute in because the character designs weren’t that good in 3d (imo) and they were kind of annoying.

[@AmanthaRM]

Tbh, the villain alicorn looks a bit different than what we see. Take a look at the lighting, it's pretty dark/gloomy. So we can expect kinda less edgy design. Honestly, just based on this observation, i can tell the mane is white/minty. And, here's a surprise, if you read the newest issue comic from G5, that seems to take place somewhat after the movie (at least i think because Hitch seems to talk with Cloudpuff easily), and just like in the story description, someone stole one of the crystals. And Zipp, being yet again a detective, finds a long string of hair. What color? White! It's long, so it deffo isn't Discord (who's horn appeared in one of the covers that brought the questions if he'd be back), and considering the lighting in the scene of the Villain Alicorn (who was named Shadowy Alicorn and something else in the credits for different languages at the end of the special) and that she might have white hair, it fits. I don't know tho how would they fit all of that comic with series, since introducing a mysterious villain in series and resolving the conflict in a comic kinda sucks as an idea :/ Just my thoughts and comparison that i couldn't just skip because it's been plaguing my mind since yesterday I'm up to theorizing if anyone wants to say something about it

[@benjamindavey4782]

I don't understand why they moved to 3D. The style wasn't broken, so they shouldn't have wasted money fixing it. They should've stuck with the Friendship Is Magic animation style, which was memorable and allowed for a style of anthropomorphism that made for some rather humorous moments and great comedy potential. What's more, it'd have been way cheaper to produce- someone tell Hasbro money doesn't equal quality.

[@yondaime500]

I like how the ending of the special sets up a mystery story for the rest of the series. This could be very interesting if done right (think Sherlock Holmes or Harry Potter). They asked a lot of questions I was afraid they would forget about, like who created the crystals. If our countless hours of obsessively scanning the show frame by frame finally get paid off, I'm all for it.

[@teeafy]

I miss when kid shows had actual story telling, good writing, good animation etc. honestly. I felt like I was watching a toddler show :/ I miss Lauren Faust :'(

[@sweetdreams1028]

Then again, Lauren left after season one.

[@teeafy]

@@sweetdreams1028 at least the writers still cared about the story instead of using the franchise as a cash grab 😅

[@sproutglob7126]

Looking back at G4's start, it definitely wasn't the best animation or voice acting until it later developed in other episodes. I really hope G5 also improves as I got excited at the first scene with the amount of detail in Zipp's feathers while she was flying, but then quickly went on a roller coaster both in Visual and Animation quality.

[@thelittleal1212]

Watching this back again, like, what got me the most is the new magic system with earth ponies, wich in my opinion not only ruins the earth ponies them selfs but also ruins almost the G4 universe „in a way“ And I definitely should do a video about it…

[@SunIsLost]

Yeah, at this point, I'm doubting the success of the G5 series. If it isn't improved over this special, then it's over and they should consider shelving it and focus on G4 (which is what I would do anyway if I was CEO of Hasbro). Also, G4 needs more movies and spin offs.

[@SunIsLost]

It needs to build Ponyverse.

[@SunIsLost]

It needs a strategic leader like Marvel's Kevin Feige. Maybe it may not be the best pick, but I am thinking maybe Lauren Faust?

[@SunIsLost]

Hasbro did almost NOTHING to promote G4 and now it tries EVERYTHING to promote G5. (I think they are wasting money)

[@SunIsLost]

I declare G5 as being NON CANON (or being a alternate universe)

[@runezunn6655]

Honestly the special could had been done better and I'm not a fan of Hasbro toning down the stakes of things especially when the OG draft of the G5 movie was much more dark and had some interesting things about it. The difference from the movie to this feels more of a downgrade and not just by aesthetics, but story-writing and such. Plus, in terms of the new villainess, she could really had been better designed and it doesn't help when her colors mostly blends in with the terrible lighting. To add, each of the main group's storylines all don't add up together but is blatantly all over the place in terms of story beats. Another thing, for the villainess part, the fact is that Nightmare Moon was more intimidating as a villainess and that's from the first season of G4 alone, let alone for a two-parter premiere. In all honesty, this so-called mysterious new alicorn villainess for G5 looks like she would be like a Rita Repulsa-like type. Let's just hope they fix things up before G5 actually premieres this autumn. Sure, G4's beginning wasn't the best at first but atleast overtime, it gotten better, just hope it wouldn't fall down the same spiral as it did with the later seasons (I'm looking at you Season 5 onwards, special mention goes to Seasons 8-9) and keeps things interesting.

[@randymancan8186]

Your last two statements are contradicting each other. You said G4 got better in the later seasons and then said you hope it doesn’t fall into the spiral of G4s later seasons….?

[@crash10125]

We only saw the new villain for some seconds while those episodes were specifically about Luna.

[@runezunn6655]

@@randymancan8186 I mean by the fact that from Season 2 and onwards were good (up to Season 4 in my opinion) but Seasons 5 to 7 was the steady decline, especially from the post-G4 movie (the first one and not Rainbow Roadtrip), which happened around Season 7. Additionally, Season 8 was a train-wreck as Season 9 was the final nail in the coffin. I didn't bother with Season 10 with the comics but I heard it was bad.

[@randymancan8186]

@@runezunn6655 I mean I disagree. Hell I think season 7 is the best season of the series (or season 2) personally I think the each of the shows seasons have their good and bad episodes. But yeah I gotcha I was just confused about what ya meant at first

[@runezunn6655]

@@crash10125 True.

[@yourbunnygirltay1421]

the dragon gave me nightmares man

[@mollycurrie_radiance]

So agree with you! What a dissapointment 😔

[@BD-three3]

To be real I am literally so sad right now because I’ve been searching on Amazon for like three hours now to find original my little pony dolls Not like the old ones the one from like the 2015 show and I can only find ones that have like the pony mark for a game and most of them are the newest ones and I’ve been looking all around. I can only find them on eBay, so I’m very upset and I feel like Hasbros made the worst decision for their choice in their life

[@kingtrophyguide4362]

Does the NEW MLP G5 series feature some references like the G4 Ponies or maybe something else? 🤔

[@paolopol05]

Probably will, g4 Easter eggs were everywhere in the movie and in tell your tale, expect them in make your mark too

[@randymancan8186]

You could always just like..ya know….watch it and find out..

[@ZentaBon]

I honestly hate it. The cellphone character sucks. It's her whole character. I've been addicted to my phone before and it's a terrible character trait to have I hope part of her arc is quitting her social media use.

[@HackiePuffs]

I don’t think that it was that bad I actually enjoyed it. Other than the animation being choppy at times I was genuinely invested in the story, the characters, and the lore. I feel like a problem a lot of people are having is that there’s so many questions which let’s not forget they’re going to be answered the show just needs to put out more of its episodes for that to happen. Edit: I disagree with your complaint about Tell Your Tale this is just lore being fleshed out through different formats. Several franchises like FNAF for example have multiple outlets to produce one big overarching story that has different pieces of lore. I wouldn’t say that lore being a thing is bad writing that’s like saying the Owl House sucks for having things established in previous episodes that you have to watch in linear order to understand everything. Edit 2: I think it was always implied that Earth ponies had a special connection to earth and the land around them it’s just taking a different form here because the crystals are a different source of magic. And I think what you said about different talents could be applied to different magic types. Different people can do different things and it’s amazing what can be done with that talent. Edit 3: I think Sunny learning to control her powers was kinda interesting it’s like Anne learning how to control her calamity powers. And the dragon wasn’t useless it does answer the question about the other species outside of ponies still existing and the series hasn’t had a chance to answer those questions yet it’s only been the first episode I don’t think the “it leaves questions” is a fair argument right now. Maybe later on if they don’t get answered but fresh out of the oven?? Be patient!! Edit 4: where did you hear that Gen 5 was going for a more preschool demographic last time I checked the demographic was for older teens who were fans of Gen 4 as kids. Edit 5: “but I guarantee that no one will love it” it’s barely had a chance to tell it’s story in completion let at least some of the overarching plot come out before you jump to that conclusion. And yeah I love it already. I love the characters especially Izzy.

[@drom5970]

I hate when a fan tells me whats going to happen in a show like it's obvious. All we have to go on is the movie and the specials, if you don't work on the shows writing staff then you can't say what answers we're going to get, its nothing more than wishful thinking. Trust is something that's earned not given freely, and so far the writing has been weak. Nothing to indicate the writers care about continuity (quite the opposite in fact)

[@SonGoku-e7q]

I agree with you on everything, especially with Zipp's flip phone.

[@Sugarsoleil_uwu]

Man Posey was really likable before. She was kind and soft spoken. People (also me lol) literally compared Fluttershy to Posey because of how alike they were as well as their appearance. Now they just turned her into a hater. Damn

[@joanmitchel1406]

Fluttershy was based off of Posey

[@fluttershyisnotadoormat4678]

well... that didn't ended up as well as expected after this great movie we got earlier...

[@82dorrin]

I have a theory about the obviously evil alicorn, and it involves Discord and his actions in the comic. Wall of text coming. Turn away now if you have an aversion to them. I think she's the reason Discord is trying to stop magic in the comics. He thinks there's no other choice. In the distant past, she was Twilight's student or one of her successors. She made herself a dictator using powerful magic (maybe a corruption of friendship magic) and used it to enslave Equestria, but in a subtle way. Ponies and other creatures were effectively in a deadened "bliss" much like Starlight's villagers. They never questioned the way things were, because they seemed so good. Essentially, she had control of their very minds. But, as Discord discovered, her ultimate plans for the ponies were much darker than mere enslavement. Something so horrible that he was driven to the point of desperation. He knew he had to stop her, and the only way to do it was to separate the crystals and end magic. To do that, he had to divide the ponies first. He had to break the strongest magic of all, the magic of friendship, because that's what the evil alicorn was using to maintain control. That couldn't happen without creating strife among the ponies first. Who better to create strife disharmony and break the evil alicorn's hold on the ponies than the Lord of Chaos himself? So that's what he did. He brought disharmony back and eventually weakened the magic of friendship enough so that the crystals could be separated and end magic, which also broke the evil alicorn's hold on the ponies. To save Equestria, he had to effectively destroy it. To be the hero it needed, he had to become a villain again.

[@yondaime500]

"My mission is simple: neverending strife" I could buy that if the comics were actually coordinated with the animated series. But they already open with the lighthouse rebuilt the way it was in the movie, and Sunny able to fully control her alicorn powers, so unless this takes place long after the Make Your Mark special, it's just an alternate universe.

[@HedleyOnTheHill]

not gonna lie the animation is on the same level as video game animation in cut scenes. This feels like a massive compilation of cut scenes

[@Subject_Keter]

On like 2000 games

[@Mike.spark1e]

Okay so, this *thing* is just like mlp but before the 2010 one was published they are just making this cuz they ran out of money lol

[@SunIsLost]

lol

[@rainbowcraft2694]

I haven't seen it but I'm really upset with how this is going if your review is even remotely accurate. Typical corporate selfishness. They had a really good thing going, and instead of taking MLP to new heights, they decided they'd glide down to try and squeeze as much out of the success of G4 as possible and ruining the franchise in the process. The movie was not a strong start. I was hoping they'd get stronger, but it seems like it's only getting worse. It's really upsetting. I remember being a bit hyped hearing that supposedly they'd make the new generation TV-Y7 (same as pokemon) because they got away with much in G4 at a lower age rating and I thought there'd be *more* room for cool stuff. But instead we get this series that is dragging G4's name through the mud.

[@oswinclankk]

The 3D, the story and the conclusion "Oh i can control my magic i forgot"... i was so sad to know that MLP G5 was going this way...

[@Starthecatloverr]

A lot of what was going on in this special seemed to not matter at all, and it was quite all over the place! Both the animation and the storytelling. I hope we will have a better storyline and that we’ll get some more answers in the upcoming series.

[@sergioandrescontreras5251]

Despite what everyone says, I love this special. Sunny is still learning how to use her alicorn form, Izzy does something very thoughtful and fixes Sunny’s lantern, Hitch can understand animals now and is the dad of Sparky the baby dragon, Pipp has her own salon and writes a song for Maretime bay day( that we may hear in the future), Zipp is a detective now, Earth ponies have plant magic now and there’s a new villain incoming. I can already see Sunny, Izzy, Hitch, Zipp and Pipp facing this ( Shadowly alicorn) together and defeating her. Not to mention that more villains may be coming soon. For example, King Sombra could return. My point is that this special is great and people out there should keep an open mind. MLP forever.🦄❤️

[@nameynamd9212]

For at least Sombra specifically, either Discord didn't think his plan would work with Sombra and he can still be revived or harmony magic actually erased him, and for the others, it'll just bring up a question as to if they're just as immortal as Discord(and maybe alicorns)or maybe have an longer lifespan like potentially alicorns(only Discord has been brought up as immortal while the alicorns are a bit more mysterious given the small number that have been recorded/known, though it's possible they're a secret society like the Knights of Harmony in season 10 of G4)

[@ronaldpagar6513]

What about every creatures in Equestria that are united each other?

[@sergioandrescontreras5251]

@@ronaldpagar6513 Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll see them again soon.

[@ronaldpagar6513]

@@sergioandrescontreras5251 and to explain what's going on? Why these creatures because since G5 is a sequel to G4

[@lordblu4316]

I liked the special myself. True, the animation wasn't as good as the movie, but it was the characters and story I was interested in, and this special delivered. Now, a couple of brief points: 1) Queen Haven changed her mind because Zipp was honest with her, and told her why she wanted to stay in Maretime Bay. 2) Considering this is essentially the first episode of the series, it's a little early to be talking about "story progression".

[@bunny_xx]

In my OPINION i like the old mlp more

[@jyoats7959]

To be honest I don’t think it was perfect whatsoever but it kind of gave me the vibe of some of the 2000s care Bears episodes. I also got some G3 vibes as well. I have really enjoyed both G3 and Care Bears, but I will definitely agree that the quality just isn’t as good as FIM. I think the characters are pretty nice and the story is good, but it kind of feels like it’s missing something and it seems a bit corny. Izzy didn’t really have an important role in this special at all, and Pipp only slightly did. I really liked how they developed Zipp and kind of made her the main character, and I think they’ve done a terrific job with Hitch because he’s definitely becoming one of my favorites. Sunny definitely had an important role but I also felt like they could’ve focused on her a bit better and her alicorn magic was kind of confusing and didn’t really have any part to play until the end. I still find her magic confusing. I think Posey was a decent antagonist and it made sense why the earth ponies felt left out. The random evil alicorn at the end seemed a little bit unnecessary but as long as they do something good with her later I can excuse it. And while the earth ponies feeling left out is understandable I think kind of just giving them magic randomly and that is what solves the problem is a little counterintuitive to the message they were trying to send. I think it would’ve been better if maybe they discovered Magic they already had or learned to be less jealous instead of just getting magic in their hooves. I don’t actually mind the concept of earth ponies having hoof magic I just think it could’ve been introduced better. What I liked about the special was getting to know some of the characters more even if it kind of left out Izzy and Pipp. But yeah overall I think the special was enjoyable and good but it’s definitely pretty flawed. However as long as the specials continue to increase in quality I feel like I can have some hope for the series. It’s really not going to be G4 and I think that’s what we kind of have to accept. While it does have some loose ties to G4 it’s not at all and it shouldn’t hinder the enjoyment of it. It’s so far detached that it’s really just it’s own thing. Though I will say I think it’s better than G3 because it seems like the characters actually have some substance. I think right now Zipp is doing the best job showing that, and so did Sunny in the original movie. I would hope that in the future though we get to see more substance from the characters that aren’t the mains in the story.

[@mintypuffproductions369]

That alicorn really does look like an early 2010s pony oc LOL! 😂

[@jameshamilton7913]

It was nothing special but i'm still so excited to see where it will go- even though it was just a bunch of things that would sell well as toys crammed together, the little bits of hitch and zipp working together and having a fun dynamic that does have direction? Its a tiny part of nearly a whole hour long special but detectives hitch and zipp would be a really cool series by itself. I just wish the story as a whole actually worked

[@sunstone7827]

Does anyone know where i could watch it? (i don't have netflix)

[@ruubiks8258]

given that some shots in this special were either godawful or super impressive, im definitely going to hop onto the mindset that this is a series that's just getting it's footing. G4's animation in the beginning wasn't spectacular either so i feel like it's best to understand that this is just the start of things and it can possibly get better as the series progresses.

[@pinkdiamond1847]

It's my head cannon that Earth ponies have always had magic and Earth Pony magic works similarly to unicorn magic in Boast Busters Twilight or Spike (I don't remember which one says that unicorns can only do a certain amount of magic relating to their special talent unless their talent is magic) and I think earth ponies have a similar thing form of magic that relates to their special talent. In G4 for instance Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich have been shown to have magic relating to their special talents which is why they can seemingly: teleport, produce party cannons out of nowhere and throw parties on the fly as well as clean up instantly when the party is over and Pinkie Pie can also play 10 instruments at once all things that will be impossible without magic oh and there's her pinkie sense as well which could be related to her talent of spreading joy by warning other ponies of things that will cause them sadness. Maude Pie also displays magic relating to rocks she can crush them in seconds and can tell everything about a rock just from looking at it and she can seemingly talk to rocks as well at least Boulder although that could just be her imagination. Maudes powers are more realistic than Pinkie Pies but there could be some magic going on there. The Apple Family also may have been shown to have some form of magic in the form of growing Zap Apples through Granny Smith's rituals and Applejack seems to have some form of super strength but due to actually being related to the earth the apple families powers are more subtle than the Pie Families. I think earth ponies have always had magic and that no new magic was actually created but earth pony magic was awakened instead.

[@danielmalinen6337]

I think... this new villain is or could be a corrupt Flurry Heart who now has own nightmare form. Maybe it’s those eyes and her mane that make that impression. But if so, the unicorn that is with her is then a crystal pony and the background resembles the architecture of crystal empire. However, this is just a theory because nothing has been confirmed, not even the character's name or history. But if it's Flurry Heart it would be ironically funny because Flurry Heart is the "princess of merchandise" what is that irony.

[@pinkdiamond1847]

It's my personal head cannon as well. I think she got jealous of Twilight and got infected by the same magic that turns Princess Luna into Nightmare Moon. But this time Twilight didn't have the elements of harmony. So she had no choice but to temporarily confiscate magic. So that corrupted Flurry Heart couldn't hurt anyone. But before she could come up with a plan and after many attempts at trying to convince flurry heart to come back to herself, something must have happened to Princess Twilight which caused the war Which caused a tribes to separate which caused all the rumours afterwards.

[@ronaldpagar6513]

@@pinkdiamond1847 what about luster dawn and her friends can't they stop flurry heart or something? Even her mother,aunt and spike?

[@lionelwhiskerknot]

I'm surprised they never filled in the large plot holes of earlier generations. For example in the future generations of MLP they never explained the disappearance of humans. We know they existed in G1 as there was a whole kingdom run by them. Did they go extinct? Move to another world? Or is the whole G1 world just written out of existence?

[@PeacePetal]

G1 does not exist in the same continuity as G4. Patching up that “hole” is not G4’s job, because there’s nothing to patch.

[@lionelwhiskerknot]

@@PeacePetal Interesting. So it is like Star Trek vs JJ Abrams Star Trek.

[@VcSaJen]

G1 fantasy continuity, G1 80s Earth Pony continuity, G2 game, G3, G4 are all separate universes. They're not connected. MLPT is not the future of G4. G1 and G3 is not the past of G4.

[@LilacLycanvic]

Well I liked the story and stuff, practically I liked it all. But as an aspiring animator, the animation and graphics could be loads better, but I get it if they have a low budget. Also what- where did this Alicorn come from? Where has she been this whole time??

[@LiquidToast42]

honestly, i really don't much care about other people's opinions I enjoyed it and that's enough for me

[@razziechkn]

Make your mark confused me cause earth ponies had magic and it was strength, right!??

[@renamon5658]

I wonder what the villain alicorn will look like in the daylight. Though queen chrysalis she is not

[@sra_crhst]

Omg I tought i was the only one who had a bad opinion abt this movie.

[@tiredsmashbros]

the episode may have not been the greatest but it was still genuinely good. it has lots of potential and i can understand what reasons they took for the episode. the reason they may have not given everyone a special role for the short is cause likely they were not meant to. my theory is they might led everyone new episode main focus to be one of the main five for development until the big finale. this episode focused on zip and her struggles for the future and where her place lays within the group. hitch was to find the dragon which is likely to be very important for the story but short, while the rest weren't meant to be a big since it wasn't their time to shine or face their struggles. with the 'villian' i will admit was quite lacking and didn't reach the focus that you don't a power to be special. yet the idea of new magic could be something to look forward to for the future. otherwise yee and the main villain's color coat at the end really doesn’t sit right but mayhaps due to bad lighting idk we'll see soon.

[@Klau5e]

I hate how people think they have the right to come in and hate on people, it’s rude :(

[@morgplays2286]

I actually quite enjoyed it, I think we hold very high expectations of G5 because of G4. MYM was never going to live up to that. It’s good for what it is.

[@redpanda881]

I have an idea for a future episode. How about Pipp deals with body insecurities. It could save this show. I have a idea for a plot Zipp and Pipp are at a race but Zipp gets annoyed that she always has to wait for her to catch up so she gets angry and tells Pipp that she's a bad runner and should go away. So Pipp becomes insecure. They said they wanted to deal with darker topics! Also sense Pipp is supposed to be the element of confidence this could actually work.

[@Plommatype]

Why is the dragon so ew

[@benjaminbarriga7821]

I know right?

[@Subject_Keter]

I take back all the hate I gave Spike! Spike come back!

[@777Rowen]

I saw this episode yesterday. I liked it, but it is all over the place. I like your review. The various ideas needed to be their own separate episodes. Earth ponies didn’t need magic, but I think they had it in the original show shown through their strength and power to grow things. It’s like Oprah, “And you get magic, and you get magic, and you get magic!” etc just to give the Earth ponies superpowers with a very rushed ending.

[@WerehogFan18]

This makes G5 even more confusing than the movie; it doesn't feel like a sequel to G4 at all. If G5 was its' own thing instead, we probably wouldn't have many issues with it. It was initially going to be a reboot to FIM, but people didn't like the redesign of the Mane 6, so they had to start over from scratch. The movie was planned to be released in theaters but thanks to Covid-19, it became a Netflix movie instead.

[@SunIsLost]

Yea

[@graveyardshift2100]

Is it just me or did the cgi take a dip?

[@sidneyg7145]

I think make your mark was OK in the sense that everybody is still trying to figure out their magic again I have a Lotta questions how do you dragons disappear they weren’t related to magic at all they were a completely different creature and also what happened to the changelings how did the other Alcorn survive and also where is she watching this from I think the next episode could probably be sunny somehow figures out how do I make her Alcorn magic either appear when she wanted to or somehow make it like to be like a permanent thing

[@asorento3072]

4:01 Thank you for pointing that out, because I haven't seen anybody talking about it and this one minor detail really bothers me for some reason. Why is the lantern completely different before and after Izzy's done with it? I guess you could say that it's her "fixing" it and putting her own touch to it but I'm sorry, this two items doesn't look even remotely similar to each other besides maybe the wavy part at the top. How does Sunny even recognize it as her own childhood lamp? One is a a carousel night light made with the imagery of three tribes that is both a tribute to history and symbol of hope for the unity between ponies and the other is a generic store-bought lantern devoid of any meaningful connection to anything, even Izzy. The simplest answer is that it was probably easier to structure and animate action scenes with the second design (the night light would be a lot harder to handle). The thing is, the lantern was so pivotal to the whole "falling into dark scary void" segment that this change makes the scene seem less impactful. Maybe I'm very nitpicky, but the sentimental value of the scene is lost for me. Ironically, the childhood lantern doesn't really matter after this point so it really could've been any lantern present at the moment. If you need to justify it somehow, you could've easily introduced the tradition of decorating/making lanterns for the Maretime Bay Day alongside wreaths. And if you really need a push for Sunny to jump into the void besides rescue, it could've been, let's say, Izzy's first serious project for the festival that she was super proud of and happy to be a part of. Something important, something meaningful. In my opinion, this whole "fixing the lamp" plot point could've been structured differently. The first part is fine, just move the gift giving to after the crisis with glitching magic is resolved. Sunny opens the gift and there it is, her old childhood lamp repaired, fresh coat of paint with Izzy's personal spin on it - instead of three columns, there are five, each one has a little pony figure representing each member of their new friend group. The old hope is reignited, the change is coming - the friendship is back. But hey, maybe I'm just petty.

[@jparante4830]

Why is the CGI so bad?

[@micahweber2331]

for some weird reason i also liked the phone zipp has