Was MLP:FIM episode 100 really that bad?

_{(Written June 2023)}

If you've been online or watched TV in the last decade, you shouldn't need an intro on how notorious My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is. But fine, I'll do a minor one anyway...

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic was the fourth generation of the My Little Pony franchise, airing from 2010 to 2019. There were nine seasons overall, but shortly after the first started airing it attracted an unexpected fanbase... No, this page isn't really about Bronies or the fandom. Or, it kind of is. Hasbro and the show's staff caught on to it pretty quickly. (To be fair, they weren't quiet about it.)

Slice of Life is the ninth episode of the fifth season, and the 100th overall. Sounds like a pretty big milestone, huh? And it focuses on the fan-favorite background ponies too!

This episode really is a love letter to the fans who've supported the show to allow it to go this far. #MLP100
- @TheBiggestJim

Was that unfair of me? Probably. But like I said...was it really that bad? It's been quite awhile since it aired and most of the commotion caused by the fandom was long ago enough to not still have baggage over it. Let's sit and watch this.

The episode opens with Cranky Doodle and Matilda. They're getting married. Awww! But it turns out the wedding invitations have the wrong date - to today! AAAAHHH! They have to reschedule everything! How could this happen? Well, it turns out Derpy was hired to print the invitations, who she subcontracted to Featherweight.

Yeah, you heard me. I said the "D" word. I was never on board with the Tumblr keyboard warriors trying to rename Derpy to something else. It's very noble they tried to fight for the rights of this moderately-disabled cartoon horse, but it's time to get some real problems. Anyway, she feels so bad for this! Why she got Featherweight (a literal kid) to do it, I don't know, but she really messed up again! "I feel just awful, Doc." Wait... Doc? Who is she talking to? Could it be...

To be clear, I have never cared much about the Doctor Whooves fanon. Despite my father being a sci-fi nerd, I've never seen any incarnation of it and know nothing about it outside of memes or fanwank. I've always been aware that in most fanon, Doctor Whooves and Derpy are friends. Something about this being canonized kind of kills the fun for me, somehow. Very contrarian of Whooves to focus on studying science in a magic-based universe, though. I'm not sure if this is similar to David Tennant's character, but he goes off-track until he's reminded the wedding is today.

Whooves tries to stop by Rarity's Carousel Boutique to pick up his suit, but the Mane 6 is conveniently not the focus of this episode. A different white unicorn is here, though. She's listening to some shitty techno with her noise-cancelling headphones though... I never thought Vinyl Scratch was so rude... She takes Whooves to the bowling alley, Whooves doesn't understand why since there's no way in hell Rarity would be here! Here's the cue for another background pony to show up!

Okay, this is a pop culture reference I am (shockingly) familiar with, even though I only watched this movie once. I'm assuming mostly people who are already familiar with Friendship is Magic are reading this, but at the off-chance you aren't: Yes, there were background ponies based off characters in The Big Lebowski in some episodes. Don't like it? Well, that's just like, your opinion, man. Whooves can get a suit tailored for him, if he joins their bowling team. (Spoiler: He doesn't.)

Oh, so THAT'S where the Mane 6 went! Also, here's when background pony Octavia appears. What's going on here, though? It's either a friendship problem or a monster attack... Octavia sure hope it's just the former. It's not, of course. That would be boring! It's a bugbear attack instead!

I always liked the weird non-pony fauna in Equestria. This guy got some swag markings. The Mane 6 is busy taking care of him...on Matila and Cranky's wedding day! How terrible! Luckily, a new background pony is introduced in this moment to organize the wedding. Amethyst Star was the best planner in all of Ponyville. Wait, who? I didn't think she was a fan favorite by any means, besides having a funny scene in a season two episode. Well, whatever.

Derpy shows up again, she still feels so bad about the invitations but has no idea what to do. "FLOWERS!" Matilda yells. Okay, let's see if she can do this simple task without fucking things up. (Sorry, was that a microaggression?) I always really liked the flower ponies, especially Roseluck. Too bad they had to play up that annoying "The HORROR" meme. They also don't have Matilda's flowers arranged, so I answered my own question.

Well well well, it's Lyra and Bon Bon. ...Why are they making that face at each other? They're apparently just "best friends" though, so don't get any ideas... (Just kidding, they got married in season nine.) Apparently that's not really Bon Bon though, her real identity is Special Agent Sweetie Drops. Wait, what? I actually like this integration of her fanon name with her toy name. "Bon Bon" was formerly a part of a monster-hunting agency in Canterlot that was disolved when a bugbear escaped from Tartarus. Don't worry, her friendship with Lyra was real even if her identity was fake... Props to canon for making this ship interesting. I like this more than Lyra being obsessed with humans and Bon Bon...I don't remember what Bon Bon did in fanon. Oops.

After a brief scene where Derpy interrupts Whooves bowling with the proposition of using fireworks (bad idea), Matilda is fretting over her mane at the spa. Wait...now there's a face I haven't seen in awhile! (Steven Magnet can fit in the building?) He's Cranky's Best Monster at the wedding! That's interesting, I never took Cranky to have a sassy gay friend. Steven proceeds to drop a truth bomb that nobody actually gives a fuck about the marriage itself, but the wedding! (Free food, duh.) Cue Matilda stressing more.

I see another commonly accepted fanon that was canonized in this episode is Octavia and Vinyl Scratch living together. Octavia is practicing at home, but the traditional wedding songs are so boring! You guessed it, the roomates (they're just really good friends, okay?) start to collaborate - but Octavia is going to be late! Cue both racing on a mobile DJ booth playing dubstep, picking up other background ponies among Ponyville on the way. Also, an unfunny fake deep monologue from Gummy of all characters.

Celestia and Luna have a slight bickering over not bringing gifts, and Shining Armor literally cries before the wedding even started. Derpy replaced the flowers with Doctor Whooves flameless fireworks (??? is that a reference?), and Bon Bon announces that the bugbear has been defeated. (Lyra's not mad about Bon Bon's secret, by the way.) Doctor Whooves also ditches his suit for a long scarf (probably another reference).

Cranky lost his wig on the way, but since he's smart enough to have a sassy gay friend, that's remedied pretty quickly. Right when the wedding starts, Derpy ends up slamming the town hall shut so the Mane 6 misses it. D'oh! Well, this episode isn't about them anyway. As Mayor Mare says during the ceremony,

"It makes you realize that everypony is the star of their own story. And it's not just the main characters in our stories that make life so rich! It's everypony – those who play big parts and those who play small. If it weren't for everypony in this room and many more who couldn't be here today, Cranky and Matilda's lives wouldn't be as full and vibrant as they are."

Awww!

No! I actually was expecting this page to be riffing on the entire episode, but it wasn't nearly as terrible as my knee-jerk reaction years ago. Maybe it aged better? I don't know. It's far from my favorite episode, but it's not as purely pandering as I thought since it had it's own share of ideas on its own.