We're on the home stretch! Only three more regular episodes of season seven to go, and then we can move onto the season finale. Let's kick off with Once Upon a Zeppelin!
This episode, after seven seasons, finally gives Twilight's parents some screentime. And they were pretty entertaining characters, especially when Mrs. Sparkle gets excited. It's also a nice showcase of family relationships; they tease each other, but they still care for one another at the end.
Something that's worth noting is that they got voice changes; instead of being voiced by Tara Strong and Andrew Francis, they're voiced by Patricia Drake and Charlie Demers, respectively. Honestly? I don't care for the new voices. Much as I don't care about The Crystalling, their voices in that episode seemed rather fitting and sounded like an older variant of their kids, so... why the change? At least with Rumble, there's the possibility that as he got older, his voice deepened.
Other funny moments with the family included the gag of Shining Armor getting airsick (how'd he become Captain of the Royal Guard with such a weakness, I'd like to know?), and the bit near the end with Flurry Heart and the ice cream. Seriously, how'd such a cutie like her become so charismatic at her age?
Oh, and Spike forcing Twilight to take a vacation and his reaction to her asking if she's to make a schedule for said vacation? Definitely deserves its own mention. It's little things that can be so entertaining at times, and even the mention of him being part of the family was really sweet. So... what kind of problems does Once Upon a Zeppelin raise?
Well, I think the biggest issue with the episode is that the plot is rather thin, and needed to rely on strong characters to see through it. And it works. Mostly...
Remember Iron Will from Putting Your Hoof Down? Well, he's very much a total prick in this episode; in his debut, he was very much seen as the antagonist when it was Fluttershy who brought her own behavior upon herself. Here, Iron Will very much ruins Twilight's vacation - I'm not even kidding - and even makes away with the cruise ponies' money. Yeah, he makes Rainbow Dash look like Fluttershy in comparison.
The other bothersome character was that cruise pony whose name I don't care to remember. I hate him. He serves no point to the story, and only serves to come off as a nuisance to Twilight; in fact, I felt more for her when she stamped on his hoof.
Also, why does he not apologize for bugging Twilight, and yet she apologizes for hurting him (something he actually deserved)? I don't know about everyone else, but that presents a slightly toxic theme for the episode. Yes, I know; it doesn't affect the rest of it, but still. That cruise pony could be cut from the episode, and nothing would change.
Speaking of cruise ponies, they do obsess over Twilight and Cadance (mostly the former), which gave me vibes of Fame and Misfortune, but unlike said episode, however, they at least realized they'd been tricked and rightly turned on Iron Will. Plus, they had the intelligence and decency to give Twilight and her family some privacy.
Final Thoughts
In a lot of ways, this is better than Fame and Misfortune, but still suffers by bringing in the worst new character of season seven, having a rather thin plot, and Twilight's parents having a voice change because... reasons. Despite the issues, it's still a pretty decent episode for the most part, and the ending was full of charm. Although, can poor Shining Armor catch a break next time he appears? Surely, he's a more competent Captain than we're seeing...?
Rating: 7 out of 10
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