[7.5/10] This episode is a lot more fun the second time, if only because I watched Jenny Nicholson’s entertaining and informative Brony retrospective in the interim, so I get a lot more of the gags about the culture and some of the insanity around it. The “Equesticles”, the intricate details of the Equestranauts’ cinematic universe, and the “confused sexually charged” atmosphere about the whole thing lands with a lot more force.
But honestly, the things I like most on rewatch would work regardless of which subculture the show chose to spoof here. It’s Bob doing a ridiculous but caring thing because he loves his daughter, and it’s the mean girl-esque head of a clique within the fandom.
Bob dressing up as a minor character from Equestranauts, learning all the lore and major details to be conversant, and infiltrating a convention all just to get his daughter’s treasured childhood toy back is really sweet. His coaching by Tina, replete with the mixing-in of fan fiction, gets some good laughs, and the lengths Bob will go to for his daughter are endearing amid all the craziness.
Likewise, the weird iron hoof that Bronconius rules his corner of the fandom with makes for an entertaining dynamic and a surprisingly rousing story when his underlings stand up to him. His obsession with using rare collectibles to supposedly literally make him younger is appropriately deranged, and as always, Paul F. Thompkins brings something fantastic to the role.
There’s a lot of good gags apart from the story and setting, like Bob thwarting Bronconius by simply contacting the hotel’s front desk to open the safe or him demanding that Tina play with her toy after all he went through to get it back. There’s a specificity to a lot of the bits that adds to the ridiculousness and the laughs. The episode even lands on the idea that what Bronconius is doing is contrary to the spirit of the show, and that apart from people like him, this can still be a wholesome thing, even for middle-aged men. I can’t say I’ve ever watched an episode of My Little Pony before, but it’s nice to see the show offering a bit of kindness to its grown-up fans.
Overall, this is an episode that works based on a sort of affectionate parody of a particular fandom and subculture, while also just telling a good, out there Bob’s Burgers story.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2020-09-15T23:42:22Z
[7.5/10] This episode is a lot more fun the second time, if only because I watched Jenny Nicholson’s entertaining and informative Brony retrospective in the interim, so I get a lot more of the gags about the culture and some of the insanity around it. The “Equesticles”, the intricate details of the Equestranauts’ cinematic universe, and the “confused sexually charged” atmosphere about the whole thing lands with a lot more force.
But honestly, the things I like most on rewatch would work regardless of which subculture the show chose to spoof here. It’s Bob doing a ridiculous but caring thing because he loves his daughter, and it’s the mean girl-esque head of a clique within the fandom.
Bob dressing up as a minor character from Equestranauts, learning all the lore and major details to be conversant, and infiltrating a convention all just to get his daughter’s treasured childhood toy back is really sweet. His coaching by Tina, replete with the mixing-in of fan fiction, gets some good laughs, and the lengths Bob will go to for his daughter are endearing amid all the craziness.
Likewise, the weird iron hoof that Bronconius rules his corner of the fandom with makes for an entertaining dynamic and a surprisingly rousing story when his underlings stand up to him. His obsession with using rare collectibles to supposedly literally make him younger is appropriately deranged, and as always, Paul F. Thompkins brings something fantastic to the role.
There’s a lot of good gags apart from the story and setting, like Bob thwarting Bronconius by simply contacting the hotel’s front desk to open the safe or him demanding that Tina play with her toy after all he went through to get it back. There’s a specificity to a lot of the bits that adds to the ridiculousness and the laughs. The episode even lands on the idea that what Bronconius is doing is contrary to the spirit of the show, and that apart from people like him, this can still be a wholesome thing, even for middle-aged men. I can’t say I’ve ever watched an episode of My Little Pony before, but it’s nice to see the show offering a bit of kindness to its grown-up fans.
Overall, this is an episode that works based on a sort of affectionate parody of a particular fandom and subculture, while also just telling a good, out there Bob’s Burgers story.