An investigation is ordered after a cake Pinkie Pie is guarding for a contest is ruined on the way to Canterlot.An investigation is ordered after a cake Pinkie Pie is guarding for a contest is ruined on the way to Canterlot.An investigation is ordered after a cake Pinkie Pie is guarding for a contest is ruined on the way to Canterlot.
- Twilight Sparkle
- (voice)
- Applejack
- (voice)
- …
- Pinkie Pie
- (voice)
- …
- Rarity
- (voice)
- …
- Carrot Cake
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
- Big Macintosh
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
- Gustave Le Grand
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
- Donut Joe
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
- Directors
- Writers
- Lauren Faust
- Amy Keating Rogers
- Bonnie Zacherle(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaGustav Le Grand is the second griffon to appear in this series. The first was Gilda, back in "Griffon The Brush Off."
- Quotes
Gustave title: [Pinkie Pie imagines a black and white silent film scenario where Gustave is a "dastardly" evil mustached villain who tries to take the cake on board the train. Pinkie Pie slaps his arm away from the cake] Ouch!
[Pinkie Pie angrily points and shouts at the villain]
Pinkie Pie title: Get your claws off that cake you cur!
[Gustave grabs her and ties her to the railroad tracks. He laughs while twisting his mustache. A train starts to approach the tied-up Pinkie]
Pinkie Pie title: Oh goodness!
[Gustave pulls a lever that starts a giant spinning saw preparing to cut the cake as a conveyor belt brings it closer. Gustave twists his mustache happily]
Gustave title: Muhu ha ha!
[Cake parts splatter all over him]
- ConnectionsReferences I Dood It (1943)
"MMMystery on the Friendship Express" is a decent, albeit not a great episode. Was expecting more considering those two things, and the episode title come to think of it. The potential for it to be there was there, but it isn't fully realised and felt a bit bland and ordinary. There are a lot of great things and Pinkie Pie is done justice, more consistently and better so than the other Pinkie Pie-centric Season 2 episode "A Friend in Deed" (though that was a little better as an episode). What spoiled it was the at times bland execution and that the characterisation elsewhere felt off.
Whatever issues "MMMystery on the Friendship Express" has, the animation is not one of them. This is especially true in the attention to detail for the treats (everything with the desserts was so creative and one of the episode's most striking assets) and in the parodying, the episode even parodies 'Samurai Jack'. The music is as dynamic as one hopes, the placement and how it fits with everything being very cleverly done. Pinkie Pie is a lot of fun, as are most of the supporting characters.
As far as highlight moments go, the highlight is Pinkie Pie's theories regarding the ruination of the cake (who, how and why). Pure genius. There are a good deal of funny moments, especially in the theories and parodying. The voice acting from particularly Andrea Libman is great.
Not so great is the characterisation for some of the other characters. Fluttershy and Rarity are very unlikeable here and their out of character is rather left field. Fluttershy is particularly bizarre. Applejack is completely wasted, what was the point of her when she is barely in it and what little she has is forgettable.
Furthermore, Mulia Mild is a very bland, almost charisma-void character. Generally the supporting characters were more fun than the regulars but she was the exception. The ending finally felt a bit too contrived.
Summarising, nice episode but there was room for more here. 6/10
- TheLittleSongbird
- May 21, 2020
Details
- Runtime23 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1080i (HDTV)
- 480i (SDTV)