Does anypony know how to fly an airship!? So we learn a valuable lesson in this episode; NEVER sign something without reading it first!! Sparky and her family on a cruise... about Sparky and her sister-in-law, what could go wrong? It was really cool to see Iron Will again and as I thought, he's just as manipulative as he ever was. I enjoyed this one quite well and got a bit of a kick out of the fact that it was centered around an airship the day after the movie premiers! Spoiler alert: the movie has flying boats!! Pretty good episode and it seems like every time a certain minotaur is involved, the lesson is about standing up for yourself. Well, that and not pestering the hell out of your celebrity idols. Tidbits: Somepony get Shining Armor some Dramamine!! Also, who knew Twilight Velvet was such a daredevil!? And I get the feeling that the tree may have had something to do with sometime BEFORE Shining and Sparky were born... if you get my meaning. Overall: 8/10
Wow, how did I only just notice that correlation? A really alright episode. This show just loves pushing the "fanboys/fangirls are annoying" message. XD I wanted some closure with Spike at the end, but at least Iron Will's dramatic leap was badass. Also loved Flurry Heart stacking those babies like blocks. She is evil, confirmed.
One thing I can find fault in, thought, is the choice of Iron Will as the villain. Iron Will wasn't really a villain in "Putting Your Hoof Down". He was just a motivational speaker doing his job, it was just that Fluttershy took his lessons too far. And at the end of the episode, he parted on good terms with Fluttershy (and Pinkie Pie and Rarity). It seems wrong that he would be one behind the scheme, especially since he has no real grudge towards Twilight. I could maybe see him wanting to get "revenge" on either Fluttershy, Rarity or Pinkie Pie, but Iron Will never even interacted with Twilight before this episode. And really, I don't see him as being vindictive, since he seemed genuinely impressed by Fluttershy's "middle ground" approach to assertiveness, and he didn't seem to be malicious in any way.
Don't make fun of people who are air sick or any motion sickness. That's not fun to have. Shining Armor should have let some vomit lose on them, then see if they laugh.
Iron Will didn't strike me as villainous in this episode, just manipulative and greedy. He never lied to Twilight's parents about what was going on --they just didn't bother to read the fine print.
