awkwardreviews

 

“Not bad” Says the tyrannosaurus Rex who just got arm-extensions! We get the return of the great and powerful, the all-knowing, all seeing, TRIXIE! Perhaps that was over-exaggeration? Yes… definitely over-exaggeration.

Let’s forget that previous episode, and move on to this one, an episode bereft of terribly bad pacing and awkward character introductions! Enter the gritty world of Trixie! After two entire seasons of Trixie-less episodes, we finally get the long awaited return of the fan favorite character! Anyone here waiting for a Gilda return? Anyone? Anyone…? No? Ok…

This time Trixie has a plan, a plan to apparently enslave all of Ponyville! She accomplishes this by secretly buying an ‘Alicorn Amulet’ that makes her only slight-evilness into an all-out hatred for all the ponies that wronged her! I hope you can already see that just by the unique start of this episode, it is something different and MUCH better.

Not only is this episode of a darker hue/tone than the previous episodes (even the season starter), it also includes great references and some fantastic humor! Every character in this episode is utilized, and is squeezed until they show us some fantastic material. After Trixie single-handedly takes over Ponyville, she quickly proceeds to enslave everyone!  Que evil laugh.

May I just say that this was totally awesome, the entire enslavement bit was dark, it was serious, and it was hard to believe for a show like this. To the point where the poor mayor gets locked in a cage! Twilight of course goes off to train with Zecora. While this was an awesome idea, it wasn’t quite utilized perfectly, causing a slightly disjointed plot. However, Fluttershy quickly redeems this by trying to sneak away to find Twilight.

Once Twilight comes back to face Trixie, I loved that entire face-off. Although it wasn’t quite the thing I had in mind (a massive battle that levels Equestria), it did its job in providing laughs, as well as a clever resolution. As I have said, they utilized every character in this episode, which is something of a Rarity (get it?).

Although Trixie ends up apologizing and all is well, I couldn’t help but feel sad that we no longer got to see her revenge-schemes and ideas to overtake ponyville. I suppose that is a fitting end to a decent villain.

This episode really does its job well, in fact, it does its job fantastically. It’s fast paced, and it doesn’t drag on at any point. We even get Pinkie breaking the fourth wall, and whirling around the entire episode with no mouth. “Magic Duel” is definitely the first season highlight, it’s unique, entertaining, and very creative. It doesn’t get peppered with cliches and has a truly original way to defeat the villain.

I’m going to stop this review here, as I feel I have explained myself well enough… now what are you waiting for? Go watch this episode!

 

Pros:

–          Trixie’s triumphant return!

–          Finally! Great pacing!

–          Great conclusion

–          Awesome ideas surrounding all the characters

–          Operation “Occupy Ponyville” was wildly entertaining

–          Wheels suck

Cons:

-The training sequences were unfortunately not utilized properly

-Trixie will be missed!

 

Grade: A-