“If somepony doesn’t like you for who you are, it’s their loss.” ~Rarity

‘Simple Ways‘ looked to be one of the more peculiar episodes of Season 4. For one thing there wasn’t much info given prior to airing. MLP despite having an all female main cast pretty much never deals with the subjects one would expect, such as crushes. So when the ‘rarity’ (yes that was intended) of one episode showcasing it comes about, it isn’t too bad. This one has Rarity at odds with Applejack due to the former’s crush liking the latter. It’s an entertaining episode. Though for the first half it was the weakest of the season, the final part made it rise above ever so slightly.

Here’s the official episode description from The Hub:

Trenderhoof, a famous travel writer who Rarity happens to have a crush on, comes to Ponyville and Rarity tries to get him to notice her, only to discover that he’s more interested in Applejack. Believing that Trenderhoof is interested in farm ponies, Rarity decides to try and act like one in hopes that it will get his attention.

This would be Josh Haber’s second written episode, after ‘Castle Mane-ia.’ I wasn’t too crazy about that one, it was rather Scooby-Doo-ish. (Which isn’t a bad thing, it was fun but nothing ‘great.’) This episode is a little better, the end moral is perfectly placed. How we get there however is the key thing. Rarity has been friends with Applejack for a long time, so it could be hard to picture her being resentful to the latter because of this crush ordeal. It’s obvious Applejack isn’t interested in this Trenderhoof character, Rarity sees that. But she’s so blinded and simply mad at Applejack for existing! Perhaps if the writing was better some of it wouldn’t have been cringe-worthy.

Trenderhoof won’t be anyone’s fan favorite. He isn’t a terrible character, but after Cheese Sandwich it’s hard to find him entertaining. Some of the best scenes which make the episode are Rarity trying to be like Applejack (complete with farming overalls and southern accent!) and vice versa. Applejack is incredibly smart and cunning, so to see her use Rarity’s own thing against her was pure genius. But the main thing I like about this one is how perfectly the end message comes together. It’s a classic, on that if someone doesn’t like you for who you are, it’s their lost. You shouldn’t change yourself for impression management. And it looks like Spike has finally matured about his crush on Rarity, which was nice to see.

Overall, ‘Simple Ways‘ was a relatively weak episode but was saved by Tabitha St. Germain’s incredible voice acting, (seriously she deserves an award) Applejack using Rarity’s trick against her, and the excellent end message. If you want to classify it as a Rarity episode, it’s definitely the weakest one yet. But it’s still a fun watch.

3.5/5

Daniel is a huge fan of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. His favorite is Fluttershy and you can follow him on Twitter: @Destroyer_199