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  1. - Top - End - #931
    Firbolg in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    I'm here to make an observation: new pink crazy horse now has access to actual unicorn magic.

    The Pink One Rises


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    Evoker avatar by kpenguin. Evoker Pony by Dirtytabs. Grey Mouser, disciple of cupcakes by me. Any and all commiepuppies by BRC

  2. - Top - End - #932
    Spamalot in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    She's more of a purple/lavender color... but her balancing act got game for sure.

    It's funny to count how many videos are out there speculating on what the tennis ball on her horn means.
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  3. - Top - End - #933
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by DigoDragon View Post
    She's more of a purple/lavender color... but her balancing act got game for sure.

    It's funny to count how many videos are out there speculating on what the tennis ball on her horn means.
    Maybe it's just there for safety, to avoid accidentally stabbing other ponies with her horn.

  4. - Top - End - #934
    Titan in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by Form View Post
    Maybe it's just there for safety, to avoid accidentally stabbing other ponies with her horn.
    I really hope that's the reason. That or she keeps getting her horn stuck on stuff and decided to put an end to that nonsense.
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  5. - Top - End - #935
    Librarian in the Playground Moderator
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by MCerberus View Post
    I'm here to make an observation: new pink crazy horse now has access to actual unicorn magic.

    The Pink One Rises


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  6. - Top - End - #936
    Spamalot in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by Form View Post
    Maybe it's just there for safety, to avoid accidentally stabbing other ponies with her horn.
    I was thinking similar-- the two pegasi guards put the ball there for their own safety. Though Izzy is probably the least dangerous pony in that image.
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  7. - Top - End - #937
    Firbolg in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by DigoDragon View Post
    I was thinking similar-- the two pegasi guards put the ball there for their own safety. Though Izzy is probably the least dangerous pony in that image.
    She's still pink crazy horse to me, so my guess is that it's to awaken the bright powers

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  8. - Top - End - #938
    Spamalot in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Shadowtrot is getting close to the grand finale!
    https://youtu.be/E8yP6Px6ebQ

    I am excited for the upcoming final showdown.


    Quote Originally Posted by MCerberus View Post
    She's still pink crazy horse to me, so my guess is that it's to awaken the bright powers
    Alright, fair enough then!

    I hope that prophecy comes with cake. Most of the time it's just doom, and that doesn't taste like anything good.
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  9. - Top - End - #939
    Ettin in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by digiman619 View Post
    Or it could be an Earth-2 situation where what was viewed as fictional was happening in a parallel universe. That'd give them leeway to crossover if they want to down the line.
    Well, at least until someone blew it up. Then had our world’s Superman going insane, and Earth 2 Superman dying.
    The. Decided to undo the first storyline for good.
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  10. - Top - End - #940
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Last gasp, because I finished what I start, even if shouting into the void:

    (*sigh* of course it is too big for one post.)

    Bleakbane Re-Watches Skeleton Warriors
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    Spoiler: Skeleton Warriors 7-9
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    Harmonic Divergeance

    We open on Baron Dark and Cyborn leading a raid on a village to capture a load of humans to put to work in their new factory - and also test out their new bombs.

    "Now they hve bombs?" syas Lightstar. Yes, Ligthstar, funnily enough, the high-tech society with energy weapons and FLYING CYCLES has bombs, one of the lowest-tech flying weapons ever developed. THIS IS A SURPRISE HOW?

    As they round up their thousand new prisoners, the Legion of Light rush in to try and save the people the Baron didn't borther to collect.

    Guardian starts off strong this episode, knocking Cyborn off his cycle with a shot. Talyn picks off Dagger. Guardian then knobble Shriek; having his pistol run out of power, he just chucks it at her and blows her cycle up.

    Cyborbn,m meanwhuile, has managed to get back o his cycle just in time to accomapny the Baron on a an attempt to bomb Lightstar, Talyn and Grimskull on the ground. Lightstar just shoot the bomb, though, and blows up the Baron. (Possibly Ctborn too, but we don't see him, so it doen;t count.)

    Back the Legion's base, Guardian is powering up his new invention, using bicycle power, because apparently this will charge an energy cell "just as well as a fusion reactor" only "with a little more sweat."

    SUUUURE.

    Anyway, this new weapon will allow the Legion to harmomically shatter a heart gem at fifteen feet, which beats having to physical grab one.

    Intel comes in, though; the Baron is sweeping Luminicity for more plebns to work (to death, it is Implied But Not Stated) in his factory. Except for know resistances fighters who Implied But Not Stated get executed. (If there was any doubt that people are getting killed in this show, it's pretty dispelled at this point; just because they can't show it or say it outright doesn't mean they haven't tried hard to make it clear to anyone observant nontheless.)

    So the Cunning Plan is to send Guardian in undercover to get the lay of the land, then goign charging in.

    He and Talyn go in for recon to ascertain the place theink is the factory is - which it is. Shriek spots them, through (MAYBE TRY WEARING SOMETHING INCONSPICOUS GUYS). Guardian shoots her off her cycle and she falls into anearby pool/ In a moment of uncharacteristic stupidity, Talyn goes and leans in like a muppet, and thus ois nearly drowned when Shriek pull her under, only escaping as Guardian drops a job-off massive rock on Shriek.

    Meanwhile, whiel Dark overflies the city, gleefully watching all the fleshies get taken to his fatory, some revel takes a shot at him from a building. Talk about a completely wasteful act of stupidity. Not only does the dude miss, but EVEN IF HE HIT, he wouldn't have done more than annoy the Baron anyway. As it is, he and his mates get immediatley captured and sent off to be exectued by firing squad by Dagger of all people. (Just in case you forget that just because you can't SEE Dagger murdering people, here's the proof that Comic Relief Inept Sidekick though he might be, he still will have a body count.)

    But here comes the Legion so save hte day. Dagger gets one of Talyn's wrist-rockets. Lightstar manages to get shot down, while Grimskull takes three soldiers down in one salvo.

    The freed rebels make short work of the rest, and now it's time for phase two. Guardian cover the retreat by dropping a building on the just recovered Dagger and then ACTUALLY putting on a disguise and getting captured. (Though as he's escorted into the factory, Shriek spots him from underwater.)

    Guardian soon ingratiates himself into the slaver-master's good graces, saving some people (and sky-cycles, more importantly) from an accident, and tuning up one of the sky-cycles. The other prisoners and not impressed (having detuned it on purpose). Guardian suggests in no uncertain terms that the other slaves follow his example in tuning the bikes (since he says its their only way out of there), though they refuse.

    But this little exercise ends soon enough, since the pool Shriek is trapped in is being used for cooling water. Guardian is snagged righ away (though the prisoners now are like "oh SNAP!")

    Guardian is carted off to the Baron for enhanced interrogation, and Ligthstar puts the plans on hold to go rescue him. 'Kaaaay...

    The Cunning Plan is apparently that all the Skeleton Warriors are stupid, since nothing spots them flying up and smashing right into a giant window. Talyn and Ligthstar cycle-tackle Shriek and a mook, then make very short work of Aracula and Cyborn. Guardian, freed by Grimskull, tests otu his harmonic doofer and Dark shoves a hapless mook in the way (or this would have been a short series). Dark, seeing the results, legs it, leaving the Legion free to attack the factory.

    They do this by just bursing in, Lightsrtar shouting "everyone out, this place is coming down" and immediately shooting the ceiling. In fact, that's pretty much all they do, run around shooting the roof, while the prisoners overrun the guards. The slacve master makes the mistake of charging a man (Guardian) with a gun with his whip and promptly gets his heart gem shattered and flees to the Baron. Guradian then switches his modular to, like,m wide beam or something and shoots a critical Explodey Thing which totals another three goons as the factory asplodes.

    Dark has still got most of his armada, though (he regrouped with them), and they give chase. Only the supercharging Guardian did and the slaves then copied causes all the cycles to explode. Guardian only did the one, so I'll award him the takedown for that, but not Baron Dark himself, since it could have been any of them...

    And so we end with Dark swearing revenge.

    Guardian has taken half the season, but he's actually got off his arse and made a pretty spectacular attention to catch=up on the takes downs.

    Talyn villain knobbling count: 4

    Lightstar villain knobbling count: 3 (of which Baron Dark x 1)

    Grimskull villain knobbling count: 3 (of which Baron Dark x 0)

    Guardian villain knobbling count: 9 (of which Baron Dark x 0)


    Past, Perfect, Future Tense

    The Legion of Light are sneaking into a mine to get some ore to improve the range of their harmonisers. Clearly not very well, since Baron Dark, Shriek, Aracula, Cyborn and Dagger are right behind them. The hapless heroes head in, with Guardian pausing for a moment, confused, having a vison of seeing an explosion of water and a sense he's seen the place.

    Once the Legion are inside ("I can't believe it's so steep," Lightstar exclaims as they walk down the ENTIRELY FLAT section of mine...), Dark lays an explosive in the entrance, connected to a second one he dumps in the nearby lake. In the cave, Guardian again seems to have a spell, and yells at the others to leave, to their confusion.

    Too late, the bomb goes off... Doing apparently sod-all to the entrance, it appears... Bu the fuse to the other one (currently carried by Dagger underwater) burns (underwater...) and boom (like Guardian saw). Mine flooded with water.

    Dark once again undrestimates the Lightstars, assuming they would have drowned, as he sends in Shriek and Aracula to fetch the bodies, but of coruse, the Legion has escaped up through a drilling shaft to the top of the mountain. (The cover of the shaft is disguised as a tree, which makes you wonder the hell they were doing here...)

    Seperated from the vehicles, they have to hide. Overnight, they grill Guardian about the frack just happened. See turns, out apparently he and his mentor (that lady from Mind Games) once made a See The Future Machine with VERY dubious technobabble (nearly Jayce levels) that caused Guardian to see the future and become a nutter who believed the world would be invaded by skeletons. Tuns out all the guff about "possible future" mentor-lady talked about was bovine-excrement, since literally everything Guardian has seen (and does see) comes true.

    Anyway, in the morning, Grimskull spots a wolf, and runs away from the camp, leading it away from the other who were sleeping - just as Dark attacks. Talyn and lightstar go one way, Guardian after Grimskull.

    Dark chases the prince and Talyn into a cave occupied by a Giant Bear-Cat thingy, but they rather depressingly easiil out-maneouver them and cause Dark, Cyborn and Dagger to crash into the wall. (1.5 takedowns each).

    Meanwhile, the wolf keeps finding Grimskull when he shadowports (just because apparently), so Joshua gives up and befriends it. just in time for Shriek and Aracula to attack. Guradian shoots Shriek down, and the frickin' dog takes out Aracula.

    A good chunk of what follows it them all bumbling around the mountain looking for each other, before finally Guardian has a vision of Lightstar falling off a cliff and screams at Grimskull to go through the shapows, but he doesn't know where to go, obviously.

    Lightstar, because he is an idiot (apparently, he wasn't paying attention in the earlier flashback to Guardian leaving when Guardian told him to grow up to become "strong, loyal and quick-witted" decides the best way to avoid detection by flying enemies is for him and Talyn to walk across and explosed ridge.

    Naturally, they are spotted immediately. Grimskull realises he can locate them via Dark (who is merrily trying to kill them), but they shadow-jaunt too late - Lightstar is off the cliff with Talyn behind him. Talyn. Who can FLY. It's, like, her special THING. Who here is concerned? Yeah, that's what I thought.

    Guardian and Joshua managed to get take out Shriek and Aracula. (Well, one of them hits her cycle - unclear who, and she crashes into Aracula, so they get half-each for two, which evens out).

    Ligthstar, mid supposed-plunge-to-death decides to crank up his harmoniser to max and cause an avalanche.

    OH LOOK TALYN, WHO CAN FLY, SAVES HIM.

    Dark, meanwhile sees the avalache coming behid him as he dives down right next to the cliff-face and, rather than just PULL UP, instead does a "nooooo!" while face-planting into the snow. One for Justin.

    Dagger someone manages to get a slight drop on Joshua and Ursac who actualyl just drpop their weapons when he tells them to. Instead of, y'know, just blasting him like every other time; to prove the point about how bad Dagger is, the wolf pounces and takes him AND Bad Dog (y'know the skeleton dog) out.

    And so the herpoes escape, and Grimskull names the wolf Stalker, because among his talents, creativity isn't among them.

    This was kind of a bad episode. This is a bit of a case of a little bit too much "we suddenly had this idea" with Guardian's visions. It never comes up again. Which is unfortunate, since they are apparently pivotal to his while character.


    Talyn villain knobbling count: 1.5 (of which Baron Dark x 0.5)

    Lightstar villain knobbling count: 2.5 (of which Baron Dark x 1.5)

    Grimskull villain knobbling count: 1 (of which Baron Dark x 0)

    Guardian villain knobbling count: 2

    Stalker villain knobbling count: 3

    (He took out more skeletons than anyone else this episode, he might as well get frellin' count.)

    Brawl and Chain

    Dark has built a new super airship battleship, the Gorgon. It's even got impenetrable ion shields, Guardian explains. Once completed, he can take over the world. So it is vitally important the Lightstar and Talyn's diplomatic mission succeeds.

    See, they';ve gone to the islans nation of the Simians (who are - shock - gorilla-ish people (don't call them apes, they get upset. Actually, as sub-par faux British toff steriotypes, they get upset over everything.)

    Talyn is like "Lightstar, you have to be diplomatic!" Bear in mind, this is the guy who's supposed to lead the country.

    He got full marks on diplomacy at Prince Scholl, he informs us.

    AHAHAHAHAHA! He's a moron!

    Aaaaaaand within a few moments, as they waltz into the throne room (no guards on the door...?) they blow it, Lightstar immediatle going itno his "Baron Dark must be stopped!" spiel. (Talyn questions his "full marks.") Worse, when Shriek and Dagger show up, his first instint is to blast them without a second thought.

    Yes, good plan. Don't stop to think that wow, maybe Dark has sent diplomats. Which he has, to negotiate for the the Simian's fuel in their outside of town refiniery.

    The Simians don't give a monkey's (pun intentional) about what happens off their island, since they are impregnable Lightstar is all "look at this recording we brought to show Dark's airshp thing" and Shriek is all "it's lies!" and the king harumphs (literally) and says tomorrow they will decide, tonight party!

    Baron Dark meanwhile, can't even wait the two days for Cyborn to finish tests (idiot!) and demands he get ready to fly in twenty four hours...

    Dagger and Shriek report in. Dagger reports and then Dak thanks him and then asks Shriek waht's really goign on. Dark says the Lightstars must not succeed, and Shriek says she has a plan. (Though why, really, they could just have done nothing and Justin would have fracked it up without any help.)

    At the party, Shriek tells Dagger they need to get the Lightstars to offend the Simians, so they all get locked up.

    Justin meanwhile, mopes about. When the queen comes to speak with him, he manages to knock his food all over the floor (apparently she pretends not to notice but seriously, WOW he is bad at this). He's mopey because his dad used to like all this formal crap abnd its the first thing he's been to since his dad died or something. It's a half-hearted attempt at pathos, which completely fails to cover what a terrible statesman and complete diplomatic bumbler Ligthstar is.

    After needling them all evening (bonus spite for implying Talyn is fat - thought I supposed from a skeleton's point of view...), Shriek finally pushes Talyn into an old Simian with a cane (spilling food all over the king and queen). When Talyn picks up the dude's can to hand back to him Shriek shouts "she's going to hit me" and pulls a gun in self-defence.

    They all get locked up, cleverly being put in the SAME dungeon cell, because locking up quarreling parties in the same place is ALWAYS smart...

    Meanwhile, Dark launches an hour early to Cyborn's frustration. But maybe it wasn't so stupid, since it means Grimskull and Guardian, having snuck on board and planted explosives, now can't get out safely with the shield up.

    Shriek won't spill what Dark is up to, showing she has more people skills than Ligthstar (on this occasion anyway). But then proceeds to try and seduce Justin. (I agree with Talyn, I feel like being sick too.) He reciprocates, but of course it's just chance to grab her heart-gem and yank it out. Followed by doing the same to Dagger, after kicking his head off. Dagger's head flies back before he unskeletonises, which is fortunate, or this would have gotten messy.

    Dagger now cracks instantly (Shriek doesn't though, interestingly), panicking about how they are all doomed. Dark is on his way to bomb the Simians to oblivion and take the fuel; they were just here for distration (since who would level a place when their own ambassadors are there?) But now he's flesh again, he will die along with the rest of them.

    Shriek relucatanly agress to help, as the palace quakes as Dark's attack begins.

    Grimskull and Guardian meanwhile, lose their detonator and are now in trouble, being chased down by Aracula as they attempt to disable the shield.

    Lightstar's genius plan is, once he's blasted out of the cells, to get on the communicator and have Shriek call off the attack (because of COURSE Dark will give two excrements about Shriek and Dagger...) Shriek clearly thinks this plan is dumb, as she grabs a sword off the wall the moment Lightstar and Talyn's backs are turned. Sadly, the Simians intervene. Lightstar says they need something huge to punch through the shields, so the king suggests they just blow up their nation's livelihood, the refinery. Sure, okay. He apparently just happens to have the exact same model of sky-cycle Justin normally rides (the pair came in by boat), so it's loaded with a bomb (OH WOW A BOMB EXISTS HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE, RIGHT JUSTIN) and off they go.

    Dark sees them coming and launches all his interceptors teams (apparently all of three dudes, of which Lightstar gets one and Talyn suckers the other two to shooting each other).

    Meanwhile, Guardin gives up trying to disable the shield mechanism and just shoots it, while Grimskull punts Aracula into the machinery. They have now disabled the shields and put a big hole in the side of the ship! Talyn spots them, so they jump out for a rescue.

    Great, now the shields are down, there's no need to destroy the refinery, as the Simian's anti-air defence will be able to... Aaaaaaand Lightstar blows the refinery up.

    Asshat.

    Things are not helped by Dark pushing the Gorgon's engines because he wans what he wants now, dammit, so all he does is manage to exactly over the explosion.

    (Lightstar gets two takedown counts, as we see Dark and Cyborn asplode.)

    We ened with the Simians decorating the quartet for bravery or something, and saying they would be pleased to learn how to work with other people and join the fight.

    Ahahahahahaha! We never see them again.



    Talyn villain knobbling count: 3

    Lightstar villain knobbling count: 6 (of which Baron Dark x 1)

    Grimskull villain knobbling count: 1

    Guardian villain knobbling count: 0

  11. - Top - End - #941
    Troll in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by Aotrs Commander View Post
    Bu the fuse to the other one (currently carried by Dagger underwater) burns (underwater...) and boom (like Guardian saw). Mine flooded with water.
    Not that unusual - I've not seen the type of fuse in the episode, but some fuses do indeed work underwater if the fuse has the right kind of wrapping - the fuse itself contains the oxidant.
    Warning: This posting may contain wit, wisdom, pathos, irony, satire, sarcasm and puns. And traces of nut.

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  12. - Top - End - #942
    Titan in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by Manga Shoggoth View Post
    Not that unusual - I've not seen the type of fuse in the episode, but some fuses do indeed work underwater if the fuse has the right kind of wrapping - the fuse itself contains the oxidant.
    Not entirely sure I'd believe they thought of that, but we'll give them the benefit of the doubt, then.


    Bleakbane Re-Watches Skeleton Warriors

    Spoiler: Skeleton Warriors 10-13
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    Overload

    Baron Dark, demonstrating once again his Villain ADD, instead of doing something sesnible like rebuilding the Gorgon, now has Dr Cyborn working on another new, untested device, something that uses four reflectors and Dark's half of the Lightstar crystal.

    As usual, his security is appalling, allowing Lightstar, Talyn, Grimskull and a band of rebels to attack the camp. But charging out of cover shouting, because Lightstar has the tactical acumen of a used teabag.

    Talyn does a stelar job of taking out two of the four reflectors, but Shriek managed to use the next one to do a blinding blast that takes her down and bogs up her eyesight.

    But Dark seems to have mined the entire mountainside and an explosion makes the attack halt. Ligthstar orders a retreat. Grimskull stays behind (flat-out ignoring Lightstar's orders), because Talyn is the only member of the strike team not reporting in.

    Dark and Cyborn moves the remaining reflectors (maybe all of them? But then what did Talyn blow up...?) and set the base to self destruct. Dark is rather blase about it, which is a bit silly, considering he's carrying half of the Lightstar crystal and they set off enough explosives to DESTROY THE ENTIRE MOUNTAIN, with the last blasr dor only closed on the count of "one" on the auotdestruct...

    Talyn, meanwhile, crashed into the river. She scrambles out, mostly bluind and tells herselrf not to panic - and is INSANTLY attacked by a single small cat thing half her size (it must be deserparate or the local equivalent of a wolverine or something). And Seraphina, (~the pet hawk, who is here from some reason) chases it off. Talyn then sends Seraphina off to find her brothers, because apparently she doesn't have a communicator now for Reasons.

    (She also seems to cry a bit when she sends Seraphina away. I'm going to very charitable assume this is because her eyes are watering because they got hurt, not that she's Having A Cry Because She's the Girl One and Things Are A Bit Pants.)

    Back at base, apparently Grimskull did come back, because he's around when Lightstar sends everyone else out to search for the Baron, while Grimskull does off searching. *shrug*

    Shriek, Dagger and Aracula are searching for Talyn, and spot the hawk flying away. Talyn, wjo has some sort of... audio-enhancement system (she used it erlier to eavesdrop on the Baron) - it's not a comm-system, since it picks up the skeleton warriors talking). In a piank, she grab a branch and step backwards into some sort of man-made shoot (old larger well or bore shaft?)

    At the bottom, she's in a cave system. (Old mine?) Naturally, as she stoops to get water, she hears the sound of the cat-thingy fast asleep. Also naturally, and because this episode loves conveniance, Dagger picks up a pulse on his pulse detector at the exact same moment, as his group stands outside the cave. But it's fine, the cat-wolf thing chases him out of the cave (Talyn hides on the ceiling, because she can still fly, of course.)

    Guardian has now figured out waht Dark is up to - he's trying to supercharge his half of the crystal. If the energy is JUST right, it will be as powerful as the whole. Of course, this is extremely dangerous, because if it is NOT just right, it will explode.

    Dark is never careful. (Case in point, he shoots out one of Cybron's minitors because the noise of the static the crystal is generating - which is interfering with everyone's comms AND Talyn's audio-doofer- is annoying him.)

    Shriek spots Grimskull approaching on the pulse scanner (having finally and wisely took it off Dagger). And with three to one odds... Grimskull mops the floor with them with barely a break in stride and carries on looking for Talyn. Sad.

    Dark heads out, annoyed that he's lost contact with the search team.

    Guardian reveals more of the plot. Dark is apparently just charging the crystal with solar power (oh... Really...? I... Okay...), so in order to stop him just doing it again, they have to overload the crystal which will somehow cause it to explode and destroy the entire area but also fundementally alter its structure so Dark can't do it again because... I'du'o?

    So they now have an hour to get Talyn and Grimskull out before they get ka-spifflicated when the detonate the crystal.

    Talyn is in her cave, druinking water (for the third time... Maybe cut back a bit there lass. She throws a rock at an approaching skeleton warrior and IT EXPLODES because... I... She's Voiced By Jennifer Hale? Sure, that makes as much sense as anything else.

    It isn't a skeleton warrior, though, just Grimskull, and she missed, 'cos she is more or less chucking blind.

    Lighttsra has run out of time; their last ditch effort to find Talyn and Grimskul is to send Seraphina with a recorded message. (Gee, sure glad they met up in the previous scene, or else Grimskull'd be fracked...) Then he heads out to overload the reflector. On the way, he rather trivially destroys three skeleton warriors, Shriek and Dagger (stealing Dagger's cycle when his own gets shot down). Well, at least THIS time, Dark had SOME sort of observation set-up. No clue as to how Shriek and Dagger got back. Speaking of Dark, he too spots Seraphina and follows her.

    Lightstar overloads the crystal with about two hand-blasts (WOW that was easy). Seraphina has already found Talyn and Grimskull (conveniant), just in time for Dark to step out. Seraphina flies to attack him, and like a dope he's all "huh?" and then Grimskull blasts him, pciks up Talyn and shadwowalks the frack away.

    Ka-boom, mountain explodes and after a bit of a rest, Talyn's eyes are fine, again presumably because she's Voiced By Jennifer Hale or something.

    (Also, Talyn-focussed episode and she gets to be basically the damsel in distress. Nice, guys, nice...)


    Talyn villain knobbling count: 0

    Lightstar villain knobbling count: 5

    Grimskull villain knobbling count: 4 (of which Baron Dark x 1)

    Guardian villain knobbling count: 0



    ...Long the Live the King

    Hello, continuity? When did YOU get here?

    Seems last episode did a real number on the Baron's half of the crystal. It keeps going all explodey, and not even Shriek putting a lab-coat on seems to help stopping it. (Seriousyl, WHY though?)

    Dark meanwhile, is venting his frustration by flying around the city and shooting up those homeless people braziers in the street, while loudly shouting his patience is at and end and how unfair it is that Lightstar won't just give up and die. (Dark, you HAD patience? This is news to anyone watching...)

    Just to prove humans are always little excrements, though, some criminals are running a protection racket, but they are captured by some big scary animal-looking dude.

    Dark gets back as the crystal asplodes again. Showing his usual ADD (no, honestly, I'm starting to think he genuinely has an issue here), he pauses on spotting a damaged tapestry of the old king and concocts a plan to eliminate the Legion of Light, using their father (by getting Aracula to make a call). THEN he remembers the crystal, which remains vey explodey.

    Ouside the city, Lightstar thinks they had better make a near-suicidal attack on Luminicity to get the crystal before it destroys the world, showing his usual sense of tactical acumen. (He said himself last episode nthey weren't sure if it would re-unite with his half after overliading, so what are they doing to do if they get it and is doesn't? Does he think Guardian, with less resources, is going to stand a better chase of making Not Be Explodey that Cyborn...?)

    Next scene - he INSTANTLY has changed his mind (no, he says "reason prevailed") and will instead lead a scouting team in. (Rendering that prior scene - COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT! Good scripting!)

    But before Lightstar can lead the assault, Talyn calls him to the comms room. She's found a singal on the royal frequency coming from the Araculan Divide. Which is twelve hours away from the sea where the royal armada "went down" (no suggestion as to whether it was accident, foul play or an attack), and the Legion (even Guardian, who is at first sceptical) admots that maybe they've just never been looking in the right place. So off they will go, and bugger the scouting mission. Guardian gets put in charge of that. (He says when Justin issues that order he reminds Ursac of his brother. Apparently the king was prone to making poorly-thought pre-empatory decisions too.)

    Dark meanwhile, loses another lab to Explodey Crystal, but this time, they discover that that a horse has been skeletonised by a stray pulse of energy from the crystal - meaning that if harnesses, Dark won't have to skeletonise everyone one at a time. And in the time in takes for a brief Legion interlude (some of that in the last paragraph), Cyborn has not only made a crystal cannon, but someone has found or made some armour for the skeleton horse. DAMN, Cyborn works fast, don't he?

    The Legion of Light arrives at the Araculan Divide and are promptly jumped on by three Araculans. (I just realised, is "Aracula" really his name? I mean, I guess Dragonlance had that "Huma" guy and that's about the size of it...) Justin gets one, Grimskull gets one, and then has to rescue Talyn from the second one. (Apparently, the series has now decided Girls Suck or something, if the way that Talyn has seemed to be getting progessively worse as the series has progressed. Remmeber how in the first few episode she knobbled way more than the boys?)

    Back to the good Baron. Now, you might have been thinking, "well, Bleakbane, maybe it took Cyborn the however many hours (presumably twelve plus?) it took to for the Legion to reach the Araculan Divide to make that stuff?" But no, because it was night last scene, and now, during their test of the cannon (on the hapless protection thugs), it's daylight. Guardian is watching, and tells the rebels to prepare for an immeidate attack, since that cannon must be destroyed.

    Why? Why though? Cyborn can literally just make another on in five minutes? Is he assuming Dark's ADD will cut in and he'll immediately abandon the idea for some other daft scheme?

    Talyn is permitted, finally, so save Lightstar from another Araculan, and when he crashed, he runs into Duke Edens, a member of the armada, lost since it went down. Turns out, the armada diverted course because someone told them the Araculans wanted a peace treaty; but they didn't, and it was an ambush, and the armada went down very quickly, and without being able to send a warning, because that same someone sabotaged the armada's system.

    No prizes for guessing who that someone was, but his name might rhyme with Schmaron Schmark.

    Long story short, Edens is the only survivor and this was, of course, A Trap. Hands up, anyone surprised? No? Didn't think so. Hell, it's purely random chance the Legion ran into Edens - perhaps an earlier observation made by Dagger they are more lucky than smart (hilariously ironic though it was) is actually the truth.

    Oh, and there is a recorded message of farewell from the old king, because of course there is. (I laughed out loud when he said Justin could be the king of kings if he remembered "ruling is an obligation and an honour," because Justin is a TERRIBLE leader; I'd nearly choose Lion-O (Thundercats ROAR Lion-O) over him...)

    Back at Luminicity (it's night again now), Dark's appalling security is on display, and Guardian leads a load of troops in, blow up a skeleton warrior and the rebels destroy the cannon, like, INSTANTLY. Yay rebels? Then they run off.

    For reasons best known only to him, the scary-animal dude who brought the prisoners for the test-firing decides to jump in front of the cannon's discharge before it finally explodes again. He speaks now for the first time, saying "he'll get the ones that did this" but his price has gone up, and then runs off before Dark can even say a word. I dunno. You guess is as good as mine.

    Lightstar leads the others back to the sky-scylces to be attacked by more Araculans. THIS time, Talyn is actually allowed to Do Fighting again, and takes out two, to Grimskull and Lightstar's one each. Justin is having a heroic break again, flying off before they others are even in the air swearing revenge on Baron Dark. Apparently, Talyn is flying all the way back on her own power. (Also, the heck did those other two or three sky-cycles come from following the Legion? Are they other survivors, because if so, this is the first we;ve seen on them... They don't LOOK like pursuing Araculans...)

    They arrive back at the camp, just in time to find the scary-animal-skeleton warrior (Claw, I think?) attacking it. To be fair to Claw, he's pretty badass, tanking a direct hit from Grimskull's rifle, swipign said rifle and grounding Talyn with it, and tanking a direct hit from Lightstar's blasting power. I concur with Claw, the Duke's charging headbutt (after seeing that) is a "brave move for a fool."

    Lightstar beats him, though, managing to hammer his hand into the sky-cycle when Claw jump on it, sending it out of control to crash, while telling Claw to pass his message of revenge onto the Baron. Then rebels then scarper, wuith Justin still going on about how soon they will re-take the kingdom, because making rash decisions because you're angry is always the best time.

    And Baron, given how half-arsed the Araculan's attempts at stopping Lightstar was, is learning he's still alive REALLY worth a grand "nooooo?"

    Talyn villain knobbling count: 3

    Lightstar villain knobbling count: 3 (of which Baron Dark x 1)

    Grimskull villain knobbling count: 3

    Guardian villain knobbling count: 1



    Conflict and Consequence Part 1 & 2

    We start out the final two-parter with Baron Dark having a statue of himself made and preparing for a rally. Lightstar sneaks in to slap a bomb on some canisters, before getting back to the safe camp. The Legion of Light is planning a final, major assault on the capital, using guerill tactics to spread the force thin so that they can strike at the palace and get the crystal half back. Well, Lightstar has gone into full Emo-Revenge-rage-Obsession mode, proving again what a hopelessly poor leader he is.

    Both sides are set-up for the final conflict. Lightstar's little stunt merely causes the skeleton warriors to stirred up (of dubious tactical merit, sicne they were supposed to be distracted anyway).

    Dark meanwhile, has figuired out the really simple way to find the Lightstar crystal - he's simply having his troops scan for and eliminate security grids. (Apparently, the Legion of Ligfht was so dumb they didn't spirit the Lightstar crystal miles away weeks ago.)

    Dyuring the raids, Grimskull takes out Shriek with a water tower. Guardian, meanwhile, is woth a couple of rebels that shoot down Dagger and Aracula and Ursac realises what they're doing. He recalls the three royals immediately - the Lightstar crystal needs to be moved at once to the "Caverns of Light" and it's down the Grimskull to do it. (Because he can avoid the worst of the swarming skeletons by walking through the shadows.)

    Lightstar arrives just in time to be ambushed by Baron Dark, but as usual, the Baron waffles instead of SHOOTING HIM and Loighttsra blasts him and Shriek away. They recover just in time to be blow right out of the secret base that Guardian just set--up to self-destruct. But this means Dark realises the crystal is in transit, and sics Claw on the job.

    Grimskull, meanwhile finds out that the KLightstar crystal is starting to become intangible in shadow-walk space.

    Lightstar, Guardian and Talyn have moved onto the arena where Dark held his rally, to rescue the prisoners slated for exectution. Well, and Lightstar to arse about climbing he statue of Dark to blow it up because he's a moron. As proved when Aracula nearly shoots him off the statue while he's a sitting duck. Talyn deals with Aracula, but isn't quite fast enough to catch Lightstar) just grabbing his cloak and ripping it just as he lands uncerinmoniously on his arse like a pillock.

    But Dark has a little surprise (custesy of Dagger) - a fricking skeleton dragon. Which STILL BREATHES FIRE!

    It's basically impervious to their attacks, but Lightstar finally suckers it into position to detonate the bombs he put on the statue to crush it and Dagger. Yeah, they really are more lucky than competant, I think...

    Grimskull is being hotly pursued by Claw, whp presumably figures out where he's goign and tells Dark, because next thing, just as Grimskull, now having to be in the corporeal world, is crossing a giant frack-off bridge, Baron Dark shows up.

    He shoots a hole in the bridge, but Grimskull deftly shoots his cycle and the Baron vanishes into the ether, screaming. Grimskull attempts to leap over the gap, but Dark shows back up, on Claws' sky cycle. Dark blasts the bridge cutting off the retreat (and seperating Grimskull from Stalker), while Claw blows the other side of the span as well, so Grimskull can't jump from the isolated span. Dark then lands and...

    ... throws his gun over the side. No, not Grimskull's gun (which is behind Dark's feet at this point), HIS gun.

    HNNNNNNNNNNNG.

    See he is going to do the whole "join me and together we will rule the galaxy thing."

    Dammit Dark, you really are a hapless idiot.

    Well, specifically, it's "give me the crystal, and I'll turn you into a skeleton warrior and then you can either stay that way or take out your own heartstone and become a human."

    Yeah, Dark, we're kind of past that point like three-quarters of a season ago. Dude knows you murdered his dad now, it's not gonna work.

    Spoiler: It does not work. But Dark gets the upper hand in the struggle, finally the Lightstar's luck runs out. Dark grabs the crystal and bodily chucks Grimskull over the side. With no Talyn to save him this time. Also, please note Dark had already commented that it was such a nice, sunny day and there were no shadows to hide in (plus Stalker is also there..)

    Guardian, Talyn and Lightstar arrive to see a greiveing Stalker. Lightstar, of course, does his heroic BSoD "nooooooo" while Talyn dramatically falls to her knees...

    And that's part one.

    We open again after the usual spiel by I'm-still-three-quarters-convinced-is-Lord-Death-Despoil floating helmeted skull, this time serving as "previously, on..." with Justin scrambling down in a tizzy, trying to find Grimskull and nearly falling to his death due to his own stupidity. Sadly, Talyn saves him, but then Lightstar discovers the empty crystal pouch (which has miracuolously changed colour from red to blue in probably the most glaring animation error I've seen in the past several episodes). And just like that, KLightstar is back to Revenge Mode, though again, quite what his plan is escapes me. Especially since he Has To Do It Alone, because he is SUCH a tiresome man-child. (Somewhere, Wolverine shakes his head and tsks, before taking a swig of his bear and Batman just does the Bat-Glare.)

    "You can't take them all on yourself" Talyn yells over the comms.

    But he doesn't want to take them all, just the Baron, he says, and turns his comms off. Because that's how that works, apparently.

    Look, Baron Dark's competance may be deeply questionble, but YE GODS.

    Mate, the universe won't suddenly make things happen just because you're angry and you want them to. Trust me, sunshine, I've been trying a LOT longer than you have; and if it worked that way, reality would bloody KNOW about it.

    While in his rage-tunnel-vision he totally flies over Dark and Claw, as Claw's cycle has broken down, and doesn't even notice. Dumbass. Dark just calls ahead to let Cyborn know Lightstar is coming and bring Dark's half of the crystal to him.

    But again fortune (and the writers) favour the stupid and Lightstar charges ahead, right through the middle of the defenses, knobbling loads of skeleton warriors (except two, who have their heads banged together by a Mysterious Cloaked Figure and... yeah, I'm sure you guessed it), and then Dagger and Cyborn as they try to flee with the crystal. Of course, dumbass manages to let the crystal fall out of Cyborn's hand and Shriek, on a cycle outside the building grabs it and flies off woth Dagger and Cyborn.

    Nice job, frackwit.

    It is only NOW, after he's thoroughly fracked it up, Lightstar think "gee, whiz, maybe I should work as a team with my team now."

    HNNNNNG.

    Little late, as Dark has now assembled the crystal (no problems there after all) with suitable over-top-monologue, and getting a snazzy new costume (and spontaneously created floaty-thing to stand on) as well as Ultimate Power.

    Dark immediately puts this to use, returning to Luminicity and blowing crap up all over the place. A couple of rebels fleeing from the skeleton warriors and Dark's wanton urban renewal are saved by some blast From The Shadows and if you haven't figured it out now, you must be as dense as Lightstar.

    Lightstar, Guardian and Talyn charge in to attack.

    One at a time.

    Individually.

    With no plan other than "hit him from different angles," which only works if you DO IT AT THE SAME TIME. IDIOTS.

    Dark blastes Guardian's sky-cyle and he crashes, only to see a crowd of civilians beong turned into skeleton warriors (being pure of heart is no barrier now). Lightstar engages in a beam'o'war with Dark and loses, being trapped in a force-bubble and bonuced miles away.

    Talyn goes to help Guardian and knobbles a boatload of skeleton warriors, but Shriek manages to land a shot on her and she crashes. Apparently, she can't fly now (huh?) but before she can suicide attack, a Strange Figure pulls her into the shadows.


    Guardian is captured by Dark. The good Baron decides before Ursac dies, he ought to do a bit of showing off so he CREATES A VOLCANO in the middle of the city, levelling the palace.


    Lightstar is still trapped in the bubble. Aracula makes the mistake of bursting it, with the intention of being a firing squad with his two mates, but from the shadows, more shots ring out. To the surprise of literally no-one other than Lightstar, it is Grimskull. Who somehow survived (it's handwave how) and has been "lying low and helping from the shadows."

    *sigh*

    Still, the moment is kind of spoiled when they remember DARK JUST MADE A VOLCANO and they probably ought to stop standing around jabbering while ther in mortal danger, as the translated mechanoid saying goes.



    Dark and Guardian are now standing at the top of a volcano-tower on little islands surrounded by lava. Guardian asks "why are you doing this?"

    "Because I can."

    And - okay, here's the thing. That IS a genuine reason. It often gets laughed of as shallow, but that's just the usual dismissive reductionism of Evil and misses the point entirely. That there are people for whom that is reason enough. (How, in the end, is it different to "why climb a mountain"/"because it's there.") And for Dark, as frankly unstable as he is, that's all the reason he needs. As has been observed, some skeleton warriors just want to watch the world burn.

    (Hell, he's not even doing something I wouldn't do, and honestly, with rather less spite than me. After all, Dark is content to JUST kill people... And that's where I START.)

    On the way up the hill, Talyn falls over and slides down towards some lava, so Grimskull and Stalker have to stop, so Lightstar can go ahead On His Own, because 1990s.

    He, of coruse, stops to Heroic Posture at Dark, a tactic which only Dark is daft enough to ,let him get away with. Guardian is like "you can't fight him alone!"

    Lightstar shouts that he can (oh this is so pathetic). And apparently, his sword, being part of the crystal, can deflect Dark's shots. When Guardian shouts out thjis to Lightstar, Dark blasts a hole in the side of the crater, dragging Guardian's rock out with the lava flow. All this ACTUALLY acheives is dropping lava on Cyborn, Shriek, Dagger and Aracula, and Guardian managing to Batman onto a hanging root... Wait, hang on, this mountain was just raised out of the ground, why is there a random tree on the side... Whatever.

    Lightstar and Dark go at it.

    Guardian encounters Cyborn and co, but then they are put to flight by Grimskull, Talyn and Stalker showing up. And no, they have to keep Cyborn and co away from the fight, because otherwise this wouldn't be a tedious one-on-one confrontation, would it, and we can't have that, can we.

    So they fight and they fight, and Dark turns the crystal into a sword and they fight and the fight and at no point does Dark ever consider, I dunno, flying out of sword-reach and cuasing a massive lava eruption or something.

    Eventually, the inevitable happens. Lightstar is disarmed (for the SECOND TIME) and Dark closes in, transforming the crystal back from sword-mode. And Lightstar kicks it out of his hand and into the lava, and tosses Dark in afterwards.

    *sigh*

    And the mountain explodes and bury all the skeleton warriors in lava; the Lightstars escape via the shadows.

    On a ledge overlooking the city... Well, there ain't much left of it, frankly. They beat Dark, but the cost was tremendous (let's not forget, there probably VERY few people left after all that, between Dark's rampage, the occupation in general, the final skeletonisations, then mountain and lava, so it's a pretty hollow victory.

    Lightstar makes the old speech about how they'll confront whatever's next as a family (no, you mean you'll go off and try and do it all by yourself again).

    Guardian says that his borther, their father woudl be vey proud of them (REALLY, between Joshua and Justin they managed to DESTRY THE ENTIRE KINGDOM).

    They look out across the dawn.

    Not-Lord-Death-Despoil concludes with one last speech, hinting that it's not over...

    But, like it's screen mate BattleTech (which I have been watching a fan-digitally-restored version of on Yuotube, as fate would have it at the moment), it never got a second season, so this is the end.

    Final take-down tally then.


    Total Villain Knobbling Count:

    Talyn villain knobbling count: 34 (of which Baron Dark x 2)

    Lightstar villain knobbling count: 48.5 (of which Baron Dark x 5.5)

    Grimskull villain knobbling count: 46 (of which Baron Dark x 4)

    Guardian villain knobbling count: 19 (of which Baron Dark x 0)


    Lightstar - sadly - took it in the end, but a staggering 16 of his score was in that final episode. Talyn started off really well, as did Grimskull, but Lightstar was the Designated Hero, apparently. Guardian very rarely got allowed to do much fighting, despite being good at it nwhen they let him. But 1990s, what can you do.


    So, how does it hold up. Well... Eehh. To compare directly to the aforementioned screen-partner BattleTech (they aried back-tpback when showed over here), I think Skeleton Warriors had an edge in animation. I think they must have had a little higher budget, because it shows. There are not really all that many obvious animation errors, and in general, the production values seem slightly higher.

    That said, storywise, while BT made a spirited attempt at being as true to the source material they could, Skeleton Warriors is more... Generic.

    Dark is, at least while marginally more EFFECTIVE than his 1980s predessors (with the notably exception of Doc Terror from Centurions) and being a much more credible threat, cut from much the same cloth. That's not necessarily a bad thing, and he certainly carries the most screen presence of any of the other characters. And, looking beyond the obvious, Dark perhaps is a genuinely troubled individual with serious attention problems. His blunders are consistent enough you can ALMOST forgive Lightstar taking advantage of them, if it had been clear that Lightstar had thought about it.

    Dark's counterpart, then, Prince justin Lightstar is... Yeah, I'm pretty sure you gathered I REALLY don't like him. He's every tiresome The Leader One cliché (and I never liked The Leader One to start with - no, I wasn't EVEN that fond of Optimus Prime), slathered onto of Rash Callow Youth and without, say, Naruto or Goko's charm. In fact, Lightstar is largely devoid of charm completely, with only a vague Matt Tracker-esque occasional attempt at wisecracking. He's rubbish. Possibly marginally better than Jayce (of the Wheeled Warriors) but I wouldn't lay odds on who'd win a lack-of-personality off.

    He's a terrible leader, and I personally suspect that his deficiencies would become clearer and clearer in non-combat situations, with him coming to a stupid and pointless (if heroic) end when his luck really does finally run out. Grimskull, matured by his experiences, would genuinely be a better king than Justin, who is reckless, headstrong, arrogant and self-righteous to a fault.

    Guardian was kind of... Yeah. His one bi of background was pretty mcuh ignored, and other than that he, was just the Mentor One. Which is a shame, since he wouldn't need a lot of polish.

    Grimskull... I liked a little bit more in my old age. His early emo start didn't engage me at ALL, but after really Zara, that aspect was largely dropped, as he became a sort of deadpan Teal'C-y sort of person.

    Talyn... *sigh* I really wanted to wax lyrical about Talyn, because Voiced By Jennifer Hale, but really, that's the most positive thing I can say about her. She's not bad, just woefully under-developed. She certainly had the snark-ist wit of the quartet, but we never really got much of a sense of her outside maybe that early episode with the defector.

    Dark's henchmen were just okay, Dagger was pretty bad, being a steriotypical Comic Relief bumbler; Shriek was The Girl One, who was marginally competant because 1990s, but was otherwise characterised by Being Evil and Wanting To Bang The Hero ine essence.

    Cyborn was... Again, potentially a much more interesing character if polished; his annoyance at Dark's constant "I want it NOW!!!" hinted at stuff they maybe could have done.

    Aracula didn't talk, so he had no characterisation, and Claws was only in the last few episodes.

    So it feels in the end as though really at no point do the Lightstars - and ESPECIALLY Justin - actually deserved to win, Justin just self-righteous and lucked his way out on top. If there was any justice, it would have ended as a tragedy (in the true Greek style), with a warning about recklessness.


    That said, from watching the documentary, it's clear that they WERE planning on taking it a olot further, and they'd always planned to do more seasons. Grimskull (rightly) would have become more the focus character, especially in the second season, apparently. They definitely tried quite hard. I think they were clearly styimed somewhat by the times - and some times constraints - but unlike a lot of the shows, they did their best not to talk down and heck, they Heavily Implied people died.

    Like some of the other 80s/90s shows, then, Skeleton Warriors would stand well with a remake (or a straight continuation, even), and made as more of a continous arc than it was - and perhaps more like it was intended to be. (Heck, with a remake, a lot of the plot points in some of the episodes could be expanded out to full season and more made of them. (Zara, Guardian's psychic visions...) Again, I would, as with Jayce, ditch Lightstar entirely, or totally re-write him.

    (If you DID get two season, season one would be ACTUALLY kill Justin off at the end, when his headstrong rush finally gets him killed and truly have Grimskull be the lead character.)

    Like many of the others, thanks to stuff like Clone Wars spearheading the way, where you can deal more overtly with stuff than back in the 90s, I think a more modern version would be even better with the extra freedom. (But then again, everything made nowadays gets turned to [excrement], so it's perhaps better than it never does.

    As it stands, as it was, certainly several cuts above Jayce or MASK or 1980s Thundercats (it doesn't hurt to watch), but it does suffer a bit from the same "this happens because the plot says so". Hell, despite the multi-arc plan, the one season stands as a complete story nontheless, which is more than some shows get.


    Next, last two seasons of Korra (though in significantly less depth).
    Last edited by Aotrs Commander; 2021-04-07 at 11:03 AM.

  13. - Top - End - #943
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    Korra is on my list of things I need to go watch, but for the past couple days I have been busy writing the finale for my Sunday group's Shadowtrot campaign.

    The big stress is delivering a good final boss fight (especially when a major villain from the show is involved) that challenges but doesn't feel like rocket tag.
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  14. - Top - End - #944
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    Bleakbane Watches Legend of Korra



    Season Three and Four:

    Spoiler: LoK 3
    Show

    1:

    Gee Korra, it's almost like tipping the world upside-down had managed to make thinsg difficult or something. Who'da thunk it.

    Bumi is now an airbender. This is going end badly.

    Hi Asami! Hopefully you won't get under-utilised this season!

    And new bad guy? I think? Still, whatever, initial impression is pretty good.

    2:

    Gee Tezin, it's almost like people with actual lives and wants don't want to drop everything to become asethics on your day so. Who'da thunk it.

    (You are so bad at this!)

    But seriously, I am reminded (as it's been a while), why I liked Tenzin.

    And the bad guys are making their own quartet of Evil Benders. Neat.

    Oh hello, Zuko! Did NOT expect to see you here and... Oh crap, you're gonna die, aren't you?

    3:

    And the Earth-Queen is a complete [expletive], isn't she? I do hope someone kills the crap out of her.

    Kai,mate, this ia karma. (Also show? I I'm supposed to feel sorry for the kid, maybe not make him an unrepentant thief, or I'm just going to laugh when he gets beat up and put in jail.)

    Ha, Zuko and Bo Lin's crazy ex bonding over times they nearly killed the Avatar.

    Oh CRAP, the mysterious forth member of the Evil Benders is Azula, isn't it?


    4:If it isn't Azula, I'll be astounded if it isn't a relation, since she even has the same eyes... She appears too young, but... third eye in the forehead, I wouldn't put it past Azula to have found a way to become ageless...

    Oof, they took Zuko down fairly easily, too.

    Meanwhile, the Earth Queen continues to be a little expletive, but Korra continues to be damn awesome, so screw queenie with a rusty plasma cannon.



    Wow, it's like having a decent villain (no, not the Earth Queen, the Evil Benders) who isn't awfully written means the series stays at its high points.


    5:Off to see the city of the metal benders...

    Tenzin's kids are doing a grand job of sergeant-majoring the new air benders.

    Wait, oh snap, did Zaheer shave to sneak in? Devious motherfracker.

    And yes, this episode reminds me why I DON'T like Lin Beifong, she's just an asshat.

    Also, good job show. Have a girl tell Bolin to his face that his trying-to-hard is really annoying. Especially since he'd previously managed to stay the right Sokka-alike side thus far.

    Nice to hear Toph is still theorhetically kicking around somewhere.

    Crap, I was right, Zaheer did shave. Kya didn't do too badly, though, considering how hard he is. I mean, she lost, but she got a lick or two in first.

    6:

    And we get some Lin backstory. Oops, sister gave her those scars.

    Hi, Toph cameo!

    Korra starts to learn metal bending and Bolin maybe sorta will?

    Oh, hey, I didn't twig until this episode, the Evil Waterbender lady uses water tentacles because she does't have any arms. Neat. I approve of the equal opportunities evil. Never let getting you arms cut off (or, I dunno, maybe being born without them I guess) stop you from being a grade A villain, kids!

    Oh frack me, did Lin actually mellow just a smidge? Good, maybe I won't want to punch her in the face all the time.

    Can I just say, though, how REFRESHING it is that half the main cast and characters in this show are, like *looks at wiki to confirm*, in their fifties? It's just nice for a damn change.

    7:

    Speaking of that, now we are treated to a Tenzin episode (well, plus Bumi and Jinora) where Korra basically just cameos.

    Neat!

    8:

    And back with Korra, she comes within a hair's breadth of being kidnapped by Zaheer.

    And, once more, we hve GOOD villain writing. While competant, Zaheer isn't flawless (he gets isolated from his mates by some Random Guards) and the attempt fails. This is good, because there is nothing more tiresome than when things always one-sided in the bad guy's favour right up until the protagonist flips the magic I win button. And we get WAAAAAAY to much of that in media, in all generas. (Amoron was a particularly bad example.)

    This is, frankly, a vastly better season (and season two was already an improvement over season one.)

    9:

    And we finally get to see what is motivating Zaheer. Turns out he's (slightly disappointingly) basically just a sort of anarchist.

    I mean, I don't disargee that the Earth Queen and the republic president are rubbish... But frankly, humans have at this point completely convinced me that the alternative of putting power in the hands of the majority of unskilled, willfully ignorant, unshakably self-centric, pathetically faction-obsessed, petty bickering, moral complacents who have as a species never shaken off the stubborn and completely misguided "I can do it all by myself" independant attitude of a two-year old, is, frankly also never going to be a solution.

    But Zaheer doesn't quite yet what to make me grab his skull in both hands and squeeze it until it cracks and his eyeballs burst, so on that basis he's doing better than the overall collective of humanity, so go him, I guess.

    And Korra and Asami got captured by the Earth Queen. Who I DO want to do that to.

    10:

    Okay, Asami was on fire this episode. It's just kinda of a shame after all her effort, the airship got eated just after they'd fixed it...

    Zaheer might be an anarchist, but at least he's polite about it.

    AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Also, he killed the Earth Queen, so he's not all bad!

    We're definitely having 1990s X-Men Issues though. Just say the damn word, show. DEAD. DEAD. It in and of itself will not kill you.

    11:

    Hi Iroh! Apparently being the Old Wise Guy was something you just really can't let go of even in your afterlife.

    (The look on Zuko's face when Korra casually just told him she'd spoken to him in the spirit real, like, twice.)

    Yes, Bolin's Granny. Korra is "rather muscular." This is a very good thing.


    In which Zaheer attacks the Air Temple.

    And Tenzin is a complete badass. Gee, Zaheer, it's almost like book-learning about Air Bending doesn't, in fact, mean you can compete with a master!

    Frack, Zaheer only won because they ended up out-numbdering Tenzin FOUR TO ONE and he didn't make it bloody easy on them THEN.

    Cam I just say how much better it is to see the bad guy actually have WORK for his victory, rather than simply have it handed to him on a platter like Amoron did, by author fiat?

    As I have said before, I am WAY PAST TIRED of the near-universal cliché of "one-side wins overwhelmingly until the other suddenly reverses and wins because Reasons" whether its the bad uy winning more and more until the hero final beats them (and this magically ends everything else because Other Reasons) or the bad guy getting pummelled but then managing to one-up the hero Because It's Not The Last Episode Yet?

    It's all in the execution. Sure, it was reasonably clear that Tenzin was going to lose, but at least he did it while being a bad ass and dealing out and arse-kicking that Zaheer really had to work for.

    Though JUST ONCE, I'd like to see something set up like the old Naruto/Sasuke Adora/Catara blahblahblah rivalry and then half-way through a season or two in, The Antagonist ends up figthing somelike The Mentor or the Has Been Getting Death Flags Since The Start Guy, in the rain, when the hero is elsewhere, the whole shebang... And then The Antagonist is just straight-up KILLED in the fight, instead of winning. (And STAYS dead, for the entire rest of the show/comic/book/movie and completely ruins all the shipper's days.) If you want, you can make a big philosophical point about it's how death is never predicatable and people die before their "arc" is completed. Just fricking ONCE.

    Of course, the only chap likely to do was Joss Whedon, who is very good at setting up the clichés and going "boom, surprise!" But apparently everyone hates him now or something.

    12:

    So, Korra decides to hand herself over to Zaheer to save the Airbenders... But Zaheer doesn't want to hold up his end of the bargin. Now, maybe he was just expecting Heroic Nonsense or something, but up until now, he has seemed generally reasonable in dealing with people who aren't his enemy, ruthless, yes, but not unecessaril so. So quite what he needs the Airbenders FOR, I don't know.

    Again, while Zaheer does get away with Korra (Because It Isn't The Last Episode Yet), at least, ocne again, he has to work for it, and he doesn't get away free, either, as his missus, Combustion-Lady... I'm not entirely sure what happened, but I think Su may have CRUSHED HER HEAD by encasing it in metal.

    Oh, show, what, you can say "you killed my father!" but you can't say "Zaheer killed the Earth Queen?!" I... But... Okay, we KNOW Korra's father isn't dead, because Su's guard captain saved him (and oh-ho, had she taken a shine to him..!) So because he ISN'T dead, you can SAY he is, but becuse the Earth Queen IS dead, you CAN'T say she is? Look, whoever made up that rule needs to have the metaconceptual essence flayed for sheer, mind-numbing Stupid.

    And Zaheer's sudden ability to fly does not come off as cheap, because enough hints that he's been learning something from that Airbender sage have been shown.

    And Bolin is a LAVA bender. Okay, show, I tip my hat to you, going over the "Bolin tries to metalbend" thing and then averting it with that? Well-played.

    On the last one, where Zaheer is apparently going poison Korra with something, which will probably cause her powers to go crazy or something, because if they wanted her dead, they could have done before now.

    13:

    Aaah. No, they DO want her dead, but they need to poison her into the Avatar State first, so the Avatar dies forever.

    Unforunately, Zaheer makes the mistake of explaining this and JINORA IS LISTENING. Becuase Jinora is a badass. So she has the Airbenders start to escape, and they get about halfway through before the cavalry arrives in the form of Asami (who doesn't get much this episode, but what she doesn't is FREAKING awesome.)

    Once again, Zaheer's Cunning Plan doesn't go all the way he wants it to, because of the a sliiiiight technical hitch. See, the problem with putting Korra into the Avatar State so they can kill her is, well, she's in the fracking Avatar State!. So she Hulks out, busts free and starts kicking his arse all pover the place, using [i[firebending jets in her feet[/i] to fly.

    So, it's down to Mako and Bolin to tackle Evil Water Lady and Lava Bender. And yes, Bolin, you DID earn that I-'m-gonna-kick-your-arse wink. Bad guy's arses kicked? Check.

    However, the problem with Korra kicking arse over the shop because she's been poisoned into nthe Avatar State is, well, she's been fracking poisoned. So eventually, she starts running out of steam. Zaheer then takes the smart approach to killing her to just flying past her and using the wind to smash her into cliffs and stuff toi literally beat her to death. It's a clever approach, not falling for that old "I'll now land and Stab The Hero."

    But he reckoned without Jinora, who just gets the Airbenders to works together and make a MASSIVE WHIRLWIND and bam! Job done.

    But Korra is, like, in a really crap state. Jinora once again saves the day (three-for-three this episode, you go girl!) by telling Su the poison is metal can can be metalbent out.

    Zaheer's angry rants are cut short when Bolin shuts him up with a sock-in-the-mouth. Deserved. Sorry mate, you were a generally well-executed bad guy in practise, but your motivation is typical human "I Don't Want To Be Told What To Do!!!!" so I don't feel even the slightest bit sorry. And, on a more thematic level, the I-am-dead-serious bad guy being made into the joke is also a fitting punishment.

    (Well, as far as the show is going to go, personally, I'd have... Actually, I probably would have only killed him a lot, or maybe, at worst, just bound his screaming soul into a pebble and chucked into the sea, as opposed too the void between galaxies or something.)

    We close out with Jinora getting her tattoos AND RIGHTLY SO. Korra, however, has had severe heavy metal poisoning and is in a wheelchair and looks (and seems to feel) like complete and total [excrement]. But the world needs someone to save it while (if?) she recovers, so Tenzin says that the Airbenders, having had the temple cark it, will instead become nomads because, like, maybe if they can't save the world, they can at least Airbend it.

    Or something.



    MUUUUUCH better season. No complaints. This felt much more like Avatar, while still being its own thing. Seriously, guys, what happened in season one? You still got it, clearly.

    Korra, Asami, Tenzin and Jinora remained awesome. Bolin managed to stay on the right side of the line between silly/quirky and annoying this time. Mako was... Mostly just still there, but there's nothing really wrong with him. Lin is... Upstaged by her sister, frankly, but there we go.

    So let's hope the momentum is carried on into season four.


    Spoiler: LoK 4
    Show


    1:'Kay...

    Three year timeskip.

    That metal-bender captain lady (Kovera?) is now ruthlessly co-opting Earth Kingdom states into her dominion (is she the baddie now?)and it looks like she's an opposing faction (tacit or otherwise) to the soon-to-be-crowned Earth Prince. Who is a useless fop, seemingly, to whom Mako is stuck (perhaps forever) being bodyguard to. (Why they need a Republic City cop to do that is a good question.) The Airbenders are really like the X-Men or something now. Opal and Bolin (the latter working for Kovera) are on the outs, and Jinora and Kai are seperated too. Asami has been doing Asami Things around Republic City.

    And it seems very strongly likely that at least some of the bandits are secretly Kovera's troops, strong-arming the Earth states into playing nice (since I find it hard to beleive the bandits have an aircraft and that skilled s dude just to hand...)

    And Korra, apparently having taken two-and-a-half- years to recover at home ran off six months ago to Do Earth Bending Fights. Where she apparently gets the excrement kicked out of her.

    Hrm.

    This is not what I expected, I'll be honest.

    2:

    Wow. Ooof. Okay, yeah, that poison did a REAL number on Korra, both physically and mentally, worse than I'd thought. Even a couple of years with Katara's healing (Hi Katara!) only got her up and about and she's really lost it and being haunted by visions in her head of herself in Angry Avatar State Mode.

    Still, at least it was only that one fight and that was because hallucinations, that's somehow better than her havign just given up and stuff, which was my first thought.

    Maybe Toph can straighten her out (Hi Toph!)

    (Between the girls and an Aaang-cameo-via photo, it's practically a whole re-union.)

    Dammit, now I really want Zuko, Katara and Toph to meet up before the end...

    3:

    Hahahaha! Never change, Toph!

    Apparent, Su didn't get all the poison out, so that'd be why Korra's struggling so much...

    And Kovera, shockingly, takes charge and creates the Earth Empire.

    I mean, er, yeah. WHY would ANYONE want Prince Clearly-Will-Be-As-Bad-As-The-Last-Queen (If-Maybe-Not-As-Much-Of-A-[Female-Canine]) Boy as king? Did at no point anyone, not Tenzin, not Zuko (or his daughter) or the Water Tribe folk, no-one stop and go, "uh, yeah, no, let's not put back as big a muppet in charge?"

    I mean, given the choice, I'd not hestitate to go for Kovera, frankly. Sure, she might be a little bit tyrant, but frack me, hey, um, Lord Death Despoil says hi.

    So, um, I kind of don't care that they are clearly going to try a grow-up-and-not-be-an-asshat arc for prince-y boy, since, sorry, Kovera is just a better leader NOW.

    (Though the Horrible Experiments that are likely to come from fuzting around with that bit of spirit-vine is likely to be the thing that changes my mind a little bit, but all THAT will merely do is prove that unilaterally, Humans Shouldn't Be In Charge Of Anything Ever, which the events of the last couple of years have already fundementally convinced me of.)

    4:
    Jinora, Meeko and Iki search for Korra in a suitably daft manner, while Korra gets Dispensed Wisdom by Toph (in a suitably Toph way), and ends up at that Big Tree I'm sure Aang saw before and that lets Jinora home in on her and get brought up to speed.

    Korra FINALLY manages to metal bend a distressing large amount of metal poison out of herself, like a ball and inch or two in diameter. No frellin' wonder she's been struggling.


    5:

    Aaaaand Kovera has offically gone off into the Crazy Train now, threatening to kill Varik if he doesn't keep working on her superweapon. Trying to use Bolin as a way to get su (her city being the last one not under control) was... A bit silly, really.

    Yep, it's all going pear-shaped. And you just know after Zafou falls, Kovera will be starting on Republic City, and then the rest of the world under her Earth Empire...

    Oh, and we are Reminded Asami Exists. Once again, she's sidelined. A little bit of character stuff with her father, but she's really out of the rest of it.

    6:

    Nope, you lost it again guys. PAINFULLY obvious Kovera was going to win her little duel, and unlike Zaheer, you didn't make her actually work for it and instead kick the [excrement] out of Korra until she used the Avatar State (WHICH SHE SHOULD HAVE USED FROM THE START) and then only won by Because Korra Has Plot Problems.

    Shoddy.

    You're gettign very close to Amoron againing guys. Come on, you're better than this.


    7:

    Korra meets back up with Asami and Mako just in time for a kidnapping attempt on Prince Idiot. Sadly, it is always That One Time you don't do something that is when it goes wronf, ain't it Mako?

    And Bolin resuces some more benders and Kovera is harvasting spirit vines from the Giant Tree now. I'm not really clear exactly what she's planning, unles it is as mundane as world conquest or something.


    8:

    What. Why... Why have we got a clip show in an animated series in this millenium? SURELY it wasn't necessary... And as mildly amusing as the framing is (but that's all it is), there's not really any point to it at all that I can see.

    *checks*

    Okay, no, they ACTUALLY had to do it, because some frackwit CUT THEIR BUDGET mid season.

    And before the episode went out, Bryan Konietzko pre-emptively did a blog post-thingy and explained why they had to do it.

    So, okay, no, that's fair play guys. I can appreciate that you made a good stab at it when things went south and I have seen a lot worse. (Poor old Starfleet had to have two clip episodes inside trhe space of five episodes in a 25-episode series...)

    I'm just FLABBERGHASTED that it was made NECESSARY in 2014.


    9:

    Korvera cutting up all the vines is making them go yampy and they swipe some people and Jinora. Korra can't get into the spirit world because of the Zaheer flashbacks, so she... goes to see Zaheer.

    And, surprisingly, that went okay. I mean, he IS an anarchist well all's said and done, and clearly realising he's managed to make the worst tyrant in memory does make him eager to help, so he gets Korra into the spirit world and whats-her-face wot got all blowed up by the Evil One in season two is back (no sodding old Avatars back thought, dammit) and now Korra's back to something like full strength.

    And Bolin's attempts to win Opal back are a bit cringy, but he IS trying and again manages to stay on the right side of the Sokka border.


    10:

    Toph helps Bolin and Opal and Lin rescue the other Beifongs; Kovera tests her weapon. As I three-quateres expected, Ju Li was working to disrupt the weapon all along.

    This is clearly Toph's last ride; ashe resolves things (kinda) with her daughters, but aside from kicking a bit of arse, doesn't get too involved, because she's knocking on a bit.

    And Kovera is to the surprise of no-one, planning to attack Republic City with the new spirit cannon.

    11:

    Okay, what IS a surprise is Kovera shows up a week early with the spirit cannon mounted as a dinky little wrist mount on a GIANT FREAK*UNG ROBOT!

    I mean GIANT. Like, Korra reckoned it was twenty-five stories tall (so a good couple of hundred fet) and I'm inclined to believe her. The thing is four times the height of a freaking BattleMech!

    So, um, duh, the Republic president surrenders after she nukes the navy.

    Korra and co manage to kidnap Su's lad Batar, Kovera's finance. Aftera round of pointless threats of physical harm, Korra (and this is why I liker her) comes up with a better one - she'll disappear and take Batar with her so he will never see Kovera again, ever.

    That threat actually works... On Batar. Kovera, is of course, a traditional super-villain (to a cliché, the only reason she's not twiddling her moustache is because she doesn't have one) and instead tracks the radio signal down and blasts away with her beam cannon.

    Of course, as will likely be the case, this act of supreme stupidity and impatience could easly turn Batar against her.

    If she was as smart as she thinks (which she isn't, she's as dumb as Baron Dark, really, just microscopically better controlled), she'd bide her time a little bit, stall, pretend to agree and rescue Batar. (Because on the purely practical level, it's not worth the risk of alienating him in an assassination attempt when you can't garentee (no, not EVEN with the superweapon, as I'm sure we'll see) it will work. Also, if your superweapon breaks, whose gonna fix it dumbass? 'Cos it sure weren't you that made the GIANT ROBOT.)

    But she isn't, is she.

    12:

    GEE LOOK KOVERA, IT's ALMOST LIKE EXACTLY WHAT I JUST SAID HAPPENED.

    Wow, you're dumb.

    So, aside from that, what this episode mostly was a big action set-piece. Because fighting a GIANT ROBOT oes make for a good big action scene.

    Bonus points to Meelo for coming up with the "paint-splatter the windscreen" though it would appear Batar, at least, was smart enough to install windscreen wipers. (Though how honestly effective that would be a good question.)

    Also, I'm pretty sure making a GIANT ROBOT out of platinum would make it rather fragile. And stupidly heavy. As platinum is many things, but weapons or armour-grade it is emphatically NOT.

    (Aluminium might have been a better choice if only ferrous metals can be metal-bended, that would at least make some kind of sense, as would titanium. Platinum is about as daft as gold.)

    And Varik proposes to Ju Li in the most Varik way possible.

    Despite the benders doing a rear guard action (Korra, WHY aren't you just staying in the Avatar state, seriously?) it's down to the nonbending humans and their flying machines (all two of them) to try and cut through this strange magic platinum which is apparently not at all like real platinum at all, because they need plasma torches to cut through it.

    And the only succeed because Asami's dad (out of prison to help) Does The Heroic Sacrifice Thing.

    But, then Korra and co are inside the GIANT ROBOT.

    Whoops.

    13:

    Yeah, funnily enough, things go wrong for Kovera very quickly. With almost trivial ease, Su and Lin disable the weapon. And the Kovera, because she is a true Baron Dark, rips the arm arm and throws it away.. Sure, THAT won't make a BIGGER hole in your armour, dumbass.

    So, Korra, still refusing to go full Avatar State for some reason, isn't quite kicking Kovera's arse, so it's down to Mako and Bolin to blow the power generator up (which gets a bit dodgy for Mako.)

    Kovera still wont' surredner, and runs off into the spirit vines, which seems like a REALLY BAD IDEA, as it's just ASKING for the spirits to Take Karmic Revenge.

    No, though, she instead fonds the weapon and fires it manually. Which goes about as well as expected, and means Korra has to Avatar Up and save her when it All Goes Horribly Wrong.

    This blows a new spirit portal in the middle of the city. Korra and Kovera get blowed-up into the spirit world and then Korra Does A Speeching and Kovrea surrenders and stuff.

    So, the last we see of Bolin is him officiating at Varik's wedding and getting dragged onto the dance floor by Opal.

    Mako and Korra have a moment, Useless Pricne Guy (who was actually capable of some level of competance in the end, and certainly can Badger-mole wrangle with the best of them) decides he wants to set up a republic instead of a monarchy, and then Tenzin and Korra have a moment.

    And then Korra and Asami have a moment, and decide to take a holiday in the spirit world and we see them walk into the portal hand in hand and SERIOUSLY?!

    That's IT?

    THIS is the famed Asami/Korra relationship I heard of years ago by osmosis and tried to avoid spoilers for?

    REALLY?

    They spent, like, two or three scenes together TOPS, this season, and the vague hints of anything was Asami bringing her a cup of tea and Korra saying she was sweet.

    Wow.

    I was expecting SOMETHING there, not this... Last minute thing that feels tacked-on. It's only just BARELY out-of-the-blue, but that's maybe EVEN only because I had heard it was going to happen and so was interpreting in that fashion and had I not I'm sure I would have been "like, whut? Where did that come from?"


    So, a bit of a kinda paffy ending, really.

    So.

    Mmmm.

    I think, on balance, season three was the best one.

    The bad guy was the best executed.

    Season four did definiately have probably the best action-packed climatic battle in the penulimate episode, but it overall just didn't quite hold up. Kovera was just not all that great a bad guy. Which is damning, considering twice now the series has had villain paradigms I usually like, but failed hard with them. But, she's infinitely better than Amoron, so there's that.



    Spoiler: Legend of Korra overall conclusion
    Show

    Overall then Korra was a bit variable compared to Avatar. Season one was the roughest, and Amoron's writing was so shoddy it made me angry, but it did get better. While I think I like Korra more as a character than Aang (she's got sharper edges than he did), it struggles in places to hold itself up. Which is a shame, since the overall production values (shameful budget cutting aside) was up to it, and the time-skip, the technology advance and a singificant focus on middle-aged characters were all very big points in its favour.

    Tenzin was great, Korra was great, Asami was horribly under-utilised, Mako was... mostly just the straight foil, Bolin fluctuated around being discount Sokka, Lin was... Yeah.

    Still, considering some of the continuations of stuff we've gotten (hell, the MOVIE), Korra could have been SO MUCH WORSE.


    And that, is pretty it, then; done and ticked off my list. One more thing concluded in a time of nothing but endings.

  15. - Top - End - #945
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Oh cool, Bleakbane reviews. Those are a nice read. Though as enjoyable as those are, I'm a little curious on why you watch them. I mean, you do seem to view them as somewhere between low quality and mediocre so why not watch something you like better?
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    here[/URL]
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    The Lost Dragon: A story about a priest who finds a baby dragon in his church and decides to protect them.



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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by Forum Explorer View Post
    Oh cool, Bleakbane reviews. Those are a nice read. Though as enjoyable as those are, I'm a little curious on why you watch them. I mean, you do seem to view them as somewhere between low quality and mediocre so why not watch something you like better?
    1) With the exception of Stuff From the 1980/90s that is Worse (Sometimes Much Worse) Than I Remember (and that I have now offiically run out of, bar Thundercats), I can't know that until I watch it.

    2) If I've paid money for the DVD, I'm damn well going to watch it at leastb once, if its not so bad it's actually painful, since these are usually Supper Watches (as Skeleton Warriors languished at the end of When I had Time To Do It During The Day).

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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by DigoDragon View Post
    Korra is on my list of things I need to go watch, but for the past couple days I have been busy writing the finale for my Sunday group's Shadowtrot campaign.

    The big stress is delivering a good final boss fight (especially when a major villain from the show is involved) that challenges but doesn't feel like rocket tag.
    I might tune into that one just to see who it is and what their evil plan was.

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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Anyone else following the G5 stuff? They recently revealed a couple pegasi, but in one of the images...
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    That pegasus is using a smart phone! :D
    I was pretty curious about what level of technology this new series was going to have, and this now puts us at a pretty modern day setting!



    Quote Originally Posted by Form View Post
    I might tune into that one just to see who it is and what their evil plan was.
    Cool. I'll have to post an announcement and link later when we get closer to show time. :3
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by DigoDragon View Post
    Anyone else following the G5 stuff? They recently revealed a couple pegasi, but in one of the images...
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    That pegasus is using a smart phone! :D
    I was pretty curious about what level of technology this new series was going to have, and this now puts us at a pretty modern day setting!
    Apparantly, people are going into meltdown over this!

    Spoiler: Grumpy Old Git Mode: Activate!
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    Things change over time, especially in the last centuary.

    When I was born, and for most of my childhood, technology was pretty much the G4 level. Computers, if you had access to them at all, took up a large room and needed serious ventilation. I had one of the early home computers in my late teens (ZX81, if anyone is interested). Mobile Phones were very rare until I started work, and even the they were the size of bricks. Now I am carrying a phone with more video and computing capacity than most of the AV equipment and computers I owned up to my mid-30's put together.

    That's just how things have changed in approximately 50 years. Under the right circumstances technology can really shift. My daughter lives in a completely different world to me, and I work with computers.

    (And to my parent's generation, a Computer was someone who did mathematical calculations for a living, wireless was something you listened to music on and this black and white television thing was just becoming popular).

    "But pony with smartphone????"

    Well, why not? In G4 we were quite happy to have ponies with flagons, ponies with helecopters and all sorts of human-centric technology. We could still just about get away with "sorta 50/60's tech level" back in 2010, but tech is far, far more prevelent these days. It makes perfect sense for the show to have simillar technology to the modern day, both because there is a resonable level of time for it to have developed, and the target demographic will be happier with a familliar technology.
    Last edited by Manga Shoggoth; 2021-04-10 at 10:00 AM.
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  20. - Top - End - #950
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    Spoiler: G5 tech
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    Smartphones or no smartphones is inconsequential to me. If G5 gives off the same friendly & positive vibes as G4, then I'm sold. With a less magically dependent setting a higher tech level makes sense and pony life has also already introduced such devices.

    It's also one of those details I'd be content to gloss over even if it would be somewhat misplaced. It just doesn't strike me as very important to the essence of the show or distracting either way.

  21. - Top - End - #951
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    Quote Originally Posted by Manga Shoggoth View Post
    Apparantly, people are going into meltdown over this!
    *fills some plastic bottles with the tears to sell later*


    Spoiler: Grumpy Old Git Mode: Activate!
    Show

    Things change over time, especially in the last centuary.

    When I was born, and for most of my childhood, technology was pretty much the G4 level. Computers, if you had access to them at all, took up a large room and needed serious ventilation. I had one of the early home computers in my late teens (ZX81, if anyone is interested). Mobile Phones were very rare until I started work, and even the they were the size of bricks. Now I am carrying a phone with more video and computing capacity than most of the AV equipment and computers I owned up to my mid-30's put together.

    That's just how things have changed in approximately 50 years. Under the right circumstances technology can really shift. My daughter lives in a completely different world to me, and I work with computers.

    (And to my parent's generation, a Computer was someone who did mathematical calculations for a living, wireless was something you listened to music on and this black and white television thing was just becoming popular).

    "But pony with smartphone????"

    Well, why not? In G4 we were quite happy to have ponies with flagons, ponies with helecopters and all sorts of human-centric technology. We could still just about get away with "sorta 50/60's tech level" back in 2010, but tech is far, far more prevelent these days. It makes perfect sense for the show to have simillar technology to the modern day, both because there is a resonable level of time for it to have developed, and the target demographic will be happier with a familliar technology.
    I agree with your inner git mode.
    Spoiler: Sharing G5 setting thoughts
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    I've been running a few Shadowtrot campaigns for close to a year now. It's "20 minutes into the future" kind of tech and the players have a lot of fun with that. I personally will enjoy pony societies that have advanced to the information age with smart phones and whatever else they got. It offers new conflict ideas. Like, what happens if earth ponies build airplanes and fly through pegasus airspace?

    And as Form below mentioned, magic has disappeared from this Equestria. Technology is the obvious side that would advance,

    Heh heh, take that, unicorm overlords! XD



    [QUOTE]
    Quote Originally Posted by Form View Post
    Spoiler: G5 tech
    Show
    Smartphones or no smartphones is inconsequential to me. If G5 gives off the same friendly & positive vibes as G4, then I'm sold. With a less magically dependent setting a higher tech level makes sense and pony life has also already introduced such devices.

    It's also one of those details I'd be content to gloss over even if it would be somewhat misplaced. It just doesn't strike me as very important to the essence of the show or distracting either way.
    Spoiler: More G5 setting thoughts
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    Yeah, the technology level seems to just be the background for the world the ponies live in. It probably won't be the focus. I'm all on board with this.
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    G5 Stuff:
    Spoiler: Background Tech
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    After all the early complaints about how the G5 premise completely ruins the legacy of G4, now the complaints are about how far in the future of Twilight's Kingdom the setting appears to be, as evidenced by Pipp's phone. It makes sense to me that if the Era of Harmony is now just stories of a distant past, the setting would reflect that.
    *sniff* I'm so touched with nostalgia.
    (Seriously, I've been reading back through the old Ponythreads; and having gotten to early Season Three, I'm currently in between the Cadance Hate and the Alicorn Twilight Hate.)

    Spoiler: Pipp's design
    Show
    So she's apparently got petal wings (my term) instead of typical pegasus wings. I wonder if that's unique to her? Perhaps we'll see Bat Ponies in G5.
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by Topaz View Post
    G5 Stuff:
    Spoiler: Pipp's design
    Show
    So she's apparently got petal wings (my term) instead of typical pegasus wings. I wonder if that's unique to her? Perhaps we'll see Bat Ponies in G5.
    G5 Pegasi
    Spoiler: Pipp's Design
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    Petal wings... I like it.

    I too am curious if her wing design is unique or if pegasi will have a variety of different wing designs.
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  24. - Top - End - #954
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by Form View Post
    I might tune into that one just to see who it is and what their evil plan was.
    Before I forget, the stream is this Sunday (18th) at 5pm Eastern Daylight Time on this twitch channel.
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Pony Pony Pony

    Pony?

    Pony!

    Spoiler: PONY!
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    Pony.

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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Happy Mary G Wanha day everypony!
    Ponies not only make ME want to be a better person than I was before they entered my life, they make me want to HELP OTHERS be better people too.

    And that is a GOOD thing by any definition.

    full size avatar

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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Shadowtrot is down to the finale pair of sessions! Here's part one--
    https://youtu.be/5AJ0SWQYbes



    Quote Originally Posted by otakuryoga View Post
    Happy Mary G Wanha day everypony!
    Who?
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  28. - Top - End - #958
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Pony Pony Pony

    Pony?

    Pony!

    Spoiler: PONY!
    Show


    Pony.
    Guilliman?
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Quote Originally Posted by t209 View Post
    Guilliman?
    I think it's part of a series depicting G1's Megan as the conquering Crystal Queen.

    Spoiler: Here's another
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    Default Re: My Little Pony C: Friendship Carries On

    Counting down to the finale of my Shadowtrot campaign this Sunday. Yeah, I'm a bit nervicited about it, to borrow a word from Pinkie Pie.

    I am pretty happy to see I got people wanting to line up for the next one, whenever I get around to writing a new plot. I really need to clean up my campaign docs and make them public...

    ...do anyone else around here still participate in pony RPGs or has that played out?
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