WHOA NOW! Yeah I know I am a few days behind, but the lack of a PC at home, the Christmas holiday, and complete chaos at work has made me a very busy geek. So today, the day before Christmas, AKA Christmas Eve, I am posted up at my office and getting all of my writing done.

This week is probably THE biggest must see MLP episode yet. Especially if you aren’t a huge fan. This is the COMIC BOOK EPISODE! Not to give it all away just yet, but lets just say things get SUPER! So let’s breakdown “Power Ponies”.

We open up in Twilight’s bedroom. Spike is up late reading those silly comic books and all the ruckus woke Twilight up! Spike gives us the rundown of his favorite book “The Power Ponies”.

The evil villain of the story, the Mane-iac (there is going to be A LOT of horse puns this episode, so get ready) was once a power hungry owner of a hair care company. One day she fell into a vat of product, that gave her super powers! BUT IT ALSO MADE HER GO INSSAAAANNNNEE! Her and her hench ponies plan to break into the Maretropolis Museum to steal the Electro-Orb, the ultimate power for her doomsday weapon. After some scolding, and some forgiveness from Twilight, Spike gets back to his book. Role dat intro!

At this junction I would like to point out the complexity of Spike’s animation when he’s on his comic rant. The team who works on this show has this amazing ability to synchronize complex movements that looks natural. The walk cycle of the ponies alone is something to behold. If you really watch the characters they all flex and bend like they have real muscle. This season especially, we see the characters becoming more and more animated, and it’s the subtle things that make the biggest difference.

When the song of friendship ends we see the Mane 6 and Spike are once again back at the old castle from “Castle Mane-ia”. They’ve decided to restore the old castle for Luna and Celestia… for reasons unknown to me. Dat place is nasty!

So, wanting to feel helpful, Spike tries to pitch in and lend a hand hoof, but it appears that everyone has the restoration on lock down. Being the nice princess she is, Twilight suggests Spike go finish his comic book. She makes an uneducated and very “Mom” statement about his book. DOESN’T SHE KNOW HUMDRUM ISN’T A HERO IN THE POWER PONIES BOOK!? According to Spike he is there just for comic relief, just as Spike comically relieves his foot into a soapy bucket of water. Dejected and feeling useless, Spike goes back to the library to read his book.

This point I’d really like to talk about his mistreatment of his comic. I mean COME ON! No bag… no boards, consciously rolling it up. Come the fuck on Spike.

Anyway, Spike goes to finish his comic, and makes an offhanded statement about him and the character Hum Drum being the same, both useless. THIS IS FORESHADOWING! He goes to turn the page and it’s BLANK! How unbelievably disappointing! But whats that tiny writing on the last page? Spike goes searching for a magnifying glass to read what is written. Just as he finishes the tiny writing the Mane 6 walk in. Just in time for the comic book to turn into a portal to another dimension! OH NO! Twilight goes to stop Spike from entering the void, but she is pulled in with him! Soon there is a big pony chain as everyone is getting pulled into the book!

When the team comes to it appears they’ve actually entered the world of Power Ponies! On the rooftops of Maretropolis Spike utters the funniest line in the show.

Now this is where the episode goes from adorable to AMAZING! The Mane 6 have turned into the characters from the comic, and they all have DC/Marvel equivalent powers! This episode is total geek fan-service from here on out. Here is the superhero rundown; from left to right.

Fluttershy/Saddle Rager (The Hulk), Applejack/Mistress Mare-velous (Wonderwoman Batman combo), Rarity/Radiance (Green Latern), Rainbow Dash/Zapp (Storm), Pinkie Pie/Fili-Second (The Flash), Twilight Sparkle/Masked Matter-Horn (Kind of a Captain Planet meets Superman).

Suddenly the evil Mane-iac hits the scene, causing a ruckus. Each of the Ponies get a quick brief on how their powers work from Spike, but they all seem to mess it up. Applejack ends up tied to a lamp post. Rainbow Dash causes a tornado. Rarity created a Tea set, and Fluttershy just can’t get mad enough to Hulk out. During the entire disaster of super proportions, Mane-iac makes off with the Electro-Orb!

Mane-iac is voiced by Ellen Kennedy and she absolutely steals the show. Her long insane laughing fits and evil diatribes really make her seem like the bad guy. Besides her flawless voice acting, the animators really brought their AAA+++ game on her character. Between her facial twitches and how she moves (her mane is a batch of tentacles, very Doc Ock) they blew their proverbial load on her sprite. I mean, look at this face!

With the team beaten, Spike starts to beat himself up. Not literally, emotionally. He’s all sorts of sad that he is Hum Drum, the same character he talked all that smack about earlier. He quickly informs the team that they need to roll up to Mane-iac’s hideout, regulator style.

When the Power Ponies hit the scene, Mane-iac sends out her hench ponies to dispatch our heroes. All of them have hair care themed cutie marks, and most of them look like 70’s era Mods.

The Mane 6 are finally starting to get a sense of their powers. Applejack is dishing out golden horseshoe throwing stars, while Rainbow Dash is blasting fools left and right. And yet, Fluttershy still can’t get mad enough to Hulk out. Just when we think the Power Ponies have the villains on lockdown, Mane-iac blasts them with an evil hairspray freeze ray! OH NO! She tosses them all in a cage and leaves Spike all alone.

Now this is where we get some serious character development. Spike pulls a Solid Snake and sneaks into the building through the vents, all the while his monologue is self deprecating. He is feeling so low and useless. Soon inside he sees the terrible fate his friends are facing.

The Power Ponies are held up in a cage, getting resprayed with the Hairspray. They are helpless! We get more of the same from Mane-iac, and she pulls a James Bond villain classic maneuver: Explain your evil plan in great detail to your enemy. After some trash talk from Mane-iac, directed at Spike, Twilight stands up for her friend. Some real uplifting words, and that is just what Spike needs!

He sneaks down onto the floor and sets a giant trap for the Henchponies, getting them all caught up in a giant curtain. This gives the Power Ponies enough time to break free from the Hairspray and get out of the cage. A brutal Avengers level fight ensues. Everyone has mastered their powers and they are all going ham on the baddies.

Just as the fight is getting good, Fluttershy tries to sneak out. Nothing is making her mad and she has no powers. That is until Mane-iac tries to squash a firefly. When Fluttershy catches her in the act, she finally gets mad and Hulks the fuck out.

Fluttershy straight up glacks Mane-iac and destroys her evil weapon with flair. And as soon as everything is over with, they comic book shows back up and sends them back to the castle. Back home everyone shows their gratitude to Spike, without his comic know how they wouldn’t have been able to stop Mane-iac and get sent back home.

Final Thoughts

This is probably my favorite episode so far, even if it was a Spike episode. It was a HUGE upgrade from last week’s offering. All the super powers, and nods to other superheros, really made my geek insides warm and fuzzy. My girl Rarity was in top form, and Tabitha St. Germain had a great performance. But, I have to give it to Ellen Kennedy as MVP for this episode. She played the villain perfectly, and the way the animators had her move was really impressive. When she was slithering around her doom weapon it really creeped me out.

If you are on the fence about MLP: FiM, and are a geek, then you MUST see this episode. If you know any comic book fans then show them this episode, and I bet you they will love it!