Tag: Hub

Weird Al Yankovic Is Guest Starring On My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic! And We Got You A Sneak Preview!

by Shane O'Hare

You read that right my fellow Geekscapists! The legendary Geek musician himself, Weird Al Yankovic will be lending his voice to this weeks episode of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic! We got our hooves on a couple of stills and some clips for you as well!

“Pinkie Pride” — An elated Pinkie Pie is planning the biggest and best “birth-iversary” party ever for Rainbow Dash, but when another party planning pony named Cheese Sandwich rides into town, plans change. Soon, everypony is so excited about Cheese Sandwich’s party that they forget about Pinkie Pie, but her pride won’t let her go down without an official “goof off,” on “My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic,”Saturday, February 1 at 10:30 a.m. ET/ 7:30 a.m. PT on the Hub Network.

http://youtu.be/09m1LBX0Jc0

http://youtu.be/NfIrTE_fY-E

http://youtu.be/3AonDMSAfh4

So I better see all of you here this Saturday for the newest episode, and while you’re here catch the latest in the Brony Breakdown!

Brony Breakdown: Season 4, Episode 6 – ‘Power Ponies’

by Shane O'Hare

WHOA NOW! Yeah I know I am a few days behind, but the lack of a PC at home, the Christmas holiday, and complete chaos at work has made me a very busy geek. So today, the day before Christmas, AKA Christmas Eve, I am posted up at my office and getting all of my writing done.

This week is probably THE biggest must see MLP episode yet. Especially if you aren’t a huge fan. This is the COMIC BOOK EPISODE! Not to give it all away just yet, but lets just say things get SUPER! So let’s breakdown “Power Ponies”.

We open up in Twilight’s bedroom. Spike is up late reading those silly comic books and all the ruckus woke Twilight up! Spike gives us the rundown of his favorite book “The Power Ponies”.

The evil villain of the story, the Mane-iac (there is going to be A LOT of horse puns this episode, so get ready) was once a power hungry owner of a hair care company. One day she fell into a vat of product, that gave her super powers! BUT IT ALSO MADE HER GO INSSAAAANNNNEE! Her and her hench ponies plan to break into the Maretropolis Museum to steal the Electro-Orb, the ultimate power for her doomsday weapon. After some scolding, and some forgiveness from Twilight, Spike gets back to his book. Role dat intro!

At this junction I would like to point out the complexity of Spike’s animation when he’s on his comic rant. The team who works on this show has this amazing ability to synchronize complex movements that looks natural. The walk cycle of the ponies alone is something to behold. If you really watch the characters they all flex and bend like they have real muscle. This season especially, we see the characters becoming more and more animated, and it’s the subtle things that make the biggest difference.

The skeleton of an animated pony. Note how the haunches stretch and the mane bounces.
The skeleton of an animated pony. Note how the haunches stretch and the mane bounces.

When the song of friendship ends we see the Mane 6 and Spike are once again back at the old castle from “Castle Mane-ia”. They’ve decided to restore the old castle for Luna and Celestia… for reasons unknown to me. Dat place is nasty!

So, wanting to feel helpful, Spike tries to pitch in and lend a hand hoof, but it appears that everyone has the restoration on lock down. Being the nice princess she is, Twilight suggests Spike go finish his comic book. She makes an uneducated and very “Mom” statement about his book. DOESN’T SHE KNOW HUMDRUM ISN’T A HERO IN THE POWER PONIES BOOK!? According to Spike he is there just for comic relief, just as Spike comically relieves his foot into a soapy bucket of water. Dejected and feeling useless, Spike goes back to the library to read his book.

This point I’d really like to talk about his mistreatment of his comic. I mean COME ON! No bag… no boards, consciously rolling it up. Come the fuck on Spike.

Anyway, Spike goes to finish his comic, and makes an offhanded statement about him and the character Hum Drum being the same, both useless. THIS IS FORESHADOWING! He goes to turn the page and it’s BLANK! How unbelievably disappointing! But whats that tiny writing on the last page? Spike goes searching for a magnifying glass to read what is written. Just as he finishes the tiny writing the Mane 6 walk in. Just in time for the comic book to turn into a portal to another dimension! OH NO! Twilight goes to stop Spike from entering the void, but she is pulled in with him! Soon there is a big pony chain as everyone is getting pulled into the book!

When the team comes to it appears they’ve actually entered the world of Power Ponies! On the rooftops of Maretropolis Spike utters the funniest line in the show.

"Holy New Persona Ponies!"
“Holy New Persona Ponies!”

Now this is where the episode goes from adorable to AMAZING! The Mane 6 have turned into the characters from the comic, and they all have DC/Marvel equivalent powers! This episode is total geek fan-service from here on out. Here is the superhero rundown; from left to right.

Fluttershy/Saddle Rager (The Hulk), Applejack/Mistress Mare-velous (Wonderwoman Batman combo), Rarity/Radiance (Green Latern), Rainbow Dash/Zapp (Storm), Pinkie Pie/Fili-Second (The Flash), Twilight Sparkle/Masked Matter-Horn (Kind of a Captain Planet meets Superman).

Suddenly the evil Mane-iac hits the scene, causing a ruckus. Each of the Ponies get a quick brief on how their powers work from Spike, but they all seem to mess it up. Applejack ends up tied to a lamp post. Rainbow Dash causes a tornado. Rarity created a Tea set, and Fluttershy just can’t get mad enough to Hulk out. During the entire disaster of super proportions, Mane-iac makes off with the Electro-Orb!

Mane-iac is voiced by Ellen Kennedy and she absolutely steals the show. Her long insane laughing fits and evil diatribes really make her seem like the bad guy. Besides her flawless voice acting, the animators really brought their AAA+++ game on her character. Between her facial twitches and how she moves (her mane is a batch of tentacles, very Doc Ock) they blew their proverbial load on her sprite. I mean, look at this face!

Brony Breakdown Maneiac Laugh
This is only one of the many hilarious freakouts.

With the team beaten, Spike starts to beat himself up. Not literally, emotionally. He’s all sorts of sad that he is Hum Drum, the same character he talked all that smack about earlier. He quickly informs the team that they need to roll up to Mane-iac’s hideout, regulator style.

When the Power Ponies hit the scene, Mane-iac sends out her hench ponies to dispatch our heroes. All of them have hair care themed cutie marks, and most of them look like 70’s era Mods.

The Mane 6 are finally starting to get a sense of their powers. Applejack is dishing out golden horseshoe throwing stars, while Rainbow Dash is blasting fools left and right. And yet, Fluttershy still can’t get mad enough to Hulk out. Just when we think the Power Ponies have the villains on lockdown, Mane-iac blasts them with an evil hairspray freeze ray! OH NO! She tosses them all in a cage and leaves Spike all alone.

Now this is where we get some serious character development. Spike pulls a Solid Snake and sneaks into the building through the vents, all the while his monologue is self deprecating. He is feeling so low and useless. Soon inside he sees the terrible fate his friends are facing.

The Power Ponies are held up in a cage, getting resprayed with the Hairspray. They are helpless! We get more of the same from Mane-iac, and she pulls a James Bond villain classic maneuver: Explain your evil plan in great detail to your enemy. After some trash talk from Mane-iac, directed at Spike, Twilight stands up for her friend. Some real uplifting words, and that is just what Spike needs!

He sneaks down onto the floor and sets a giant trap for the Henchponies, getting them all caught up in a giant curtain. This gives the Power Ponies enough time to break free from the Hairspray and get out of the cage. A brutal Avengers level fight ensues. Everyone has mastered their powers and they are all going ham on the baddies.

Just as the fight is getting good, Fluttershy tries to sneak out. Nothing is making her mad and she has no powers. That is until Mane-iac tries to squash a firefly. When Fluttershy catches her in the act, she finally gets mad and Hulks the fuck out.

Brony Breakdown Flutterhulk
This is actually kind of terrifying.

Fluttershy straight up glacks Mane-iac and destroys her evil weapon with flair. And as soon as everything is over with, they comic book shows back up and sends them back to the castle. Back home everyone shows their gratitude to Spike, without his comic know how they wouldn’t have been able to stop Mane-iac and get sent back home.

Final Thoughts

This is probably my favorite episode so far, even if it was a Spike episode. It was a HUGE upgrade from last week’s offering. All the super powers, and nods to other superheros, really made my geek insides warm and fuzzy. My girl Rarity was in top form, and Tabitha St. Germain had a great performance. But, I have to give it to Ellen Kennedy as MVP for this episode. She played the villain perfectly, and the way the animators had her move was really impressive. When she was slithering around her doom weapon it really creeped me out.

If you are on the fence about MLP: FiM, and are a geek, then you MUST see this episode. If you know any comic book fans then show them this episode, and I bet you they will love it!

Brony Breakdown: Season 4, Episode 5 – ‘Flight To The Finish’

by Shane O'Hare

Whoa now! This Brony Breakdown is a few days late, as I had a massive computer accident (bottle water meet motherboard), coupled with my busted laptop, I have to find time to get my writing out at work. So the extra day or two should have given you enough time to watch “Flight to The Finish” a couple of times, and get your own opinions on it. We got ourselves another Cutie Mark Crusader episode and I foresee major cute going on. Lets jump right in and break down “Flight to The Finish”!

We open up on Cheeriliee, the school teacher for Ponyville, addressing her class. She soon introduces the head of the Equestria Games (equine themed Olympics), Miss Harshwhinny. She informs the class that she will be picking a group to attend the games as flag carriers for Ponyville, and the best part is IT’S A COMPETITION! Nothing builds self confidence in a little filly than ruthless competition against their friends! Roll the intro!

Once back, we get the rundown for the contest. The class will break up into teams and choreograph a flag carrying routine. Whoever scores the highest (in grace, style, and originality) will get to perform their routine at the Equestria Games! During Miss Harshwhinny’s instructions, Rainbow Dash blares in and interrupts her. Rainbow introduces herself as the coach for the competition. She regales the class with and old story of when SHE carried the Cloudsdale flag at the games. The amount of innuendo in her story was palpable. “I spread my wings…flag flapping in the breeze…I did tricks with that flag that no one has ever seen and hasn’t since.” Nothing too perverted there…but sometimes I wonder what the writers are doing.

Miss Harshwhinny soon puts a stop to Rainbow Dash’s celebrating and reminds her to stay professional and not get to emotional. Miss Harshwhinny is kind of a bitch, BUT WE MUST STAY PROFESSIONAL!

The entire time this is going on Rainbow Dash’s biggest fan, Scootaloo, is looking on in awe. We can see where this is going, can’t we? After class is over the Cutie Mark Crusaders (CMC from here on out) convene in the playground to discuss their plans. The competition calls for them to demonstrate what makes their town special. Only after standing back and actually looking at each other do they realize what makes Ponyville special. It is a place where all kinds of different ponies can live together. Earth ponies, Pegasus ponies and Unicorns. DIVERSITY UNIFIES! So it’s settled, they need to emphasis the diversity, and even though they are little fillies; they have hearts that are strong as horses. CUE THE SONG!

But before that, lets talk about the voice actresses. The CMC are voiced by Madeleine Peters (Scootaloo), Claire Corlett (Sweetie Bell), and Michelle Creber (Apple Bloom). Unlike male voice actors, young girls are typically hired into roles for characters their same age. Most of the time when a young male character is in the show, a female usually ends up voicing them. Best example outside of MLP (Spike is voiced by Cathy Weseluck) is The Boondocks. The two main characters Huey and Riley are voiced by Regina King. The idea is that an adult female can pull of a young male voice a lot longer than a boy can. We all know how much havoc puberty can wreck on a 12-15 year old male voice.

The voice actresses for the CMC are 17, 14, and 14 years old, and keep in mind that when they started on MLP:FiM they were all four years younger. Normally this doesn’t mean much for female voice actresses but in the case of the CMC it does. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Bell are both voiced by now 14 year old girls, and both characters have accents. It is now very apparent that both actresses have had their voices change over the course of the show. Most notable is Sweetie Bell. Gone are her cute little voice cracks and squeeks. Claire Corlett’s voice has finally settled, and this is presents a possible narrative route for the entire CMC.

Now that the characters sound like they’ve gone through puberty, it could be time the CMC do the same. Now, when I say “Go through puberty” I’m not expecting some Seventh Heaven level type story arc where one of the daughters “becomes a woman”. No I am talking about CUTIE MARKS! It has been three seasons of them furiously trying to get their Marks (the pony equivalent of puberty). I think it is time for the CMC to get to the next stage as characters just like Twilight did. Their voices sure have changed, and it is very apparent in the song, which is where I left off!

Hearts as Strong as Horses is the first song composed by Daniel Ingram for Season Four. You can really hear his style coming through on this one. The lyrics are cute and adorable and it really conveys the CMC’s motivation. Take a listen to the song here, and enjoy the awkward straight on animation that this season seems to be enjoying way to much!

As soon as the song is over, those two stuck up bitches show up. Yeah that’s right, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon come into frame to ruin the CMC’s day (am I really calling small, child equivalent, horses bitches? Yeah I am!). Their stuffy attitude comes across as really mean this time around (it gets worse even!) and their mocking of the CMC not having their cutie marks is just par for the course.

Silver Spoon & Diamond Tiara mock the CMC with their cutie marks. Looks like their favorite movie is Requiem For A Dream.
Silver Spoon & Diamond Tiara mock the CMC with their cutie marks. Looks like their favorite movie is Requiem For A Dream.

After the encounter with the Blue Bloods, Rainbow Dash joins the CMC for their first demo of their routine, while Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara watch on from the bushes. What the CMC show off is actually a pretty impressive display. It shocks Rainbow Dash and the bullies in the bushes! Mouths agape! Rainbow is about to bust over it but remembers her need to be “Professional”. Instead of gushing she restrains herself.  Feeling threatened the Blue Bloods have to resort to nefarious methods. They approach the CMC and focus their torment on Scootaloo. They praise the team for their routine but scoff and mock them for having a Pegasus that cannot fly. They point out that a filly Scootaloo’s age should be able to fly and her not flying will keep them from winning the competition. This obviously gets to Scoots and she demands that they rework their routine for the competition, much to the chagrin of Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom. She is confident that she can get her undersized wings to lift her off by the next morning. So goes a new montage, Scoots forces her friends to work all through the night on a new routine while she tries to fly.

So comes the day of their final walk through and the new routine is nothing to write home about. Rainbow Dash isn’t pleased and neither are the CMC, so Scoots takes another night trying to fly without success. Next comes the day of departure and Scootaloo decides to bail on her friends. She doesn’t want to let them down, but ultimately they are fed up with her and make the decision to leave her in Ponyville.

On the train Apple Bloom and Sweetie Bell break the bad news to Rainbow Dash, that they left Scootaloo in Ponyville. OH BOY! Does she give them a scolding! Reinforcing the whole friends don’t leave friends behind, and Friendship is Magic. They all ditch the train and hurry back to get Scootaloo. They catch her throwing out all her precious possessions. Her posters, memorabilia and even her SCOOTER!  When Rainbow and the girls show up they explain to Scootaloo that they’re her friends and she can be a great pony even if she can’t fly.

This is where the show pulls a great move. They don’t shy over the fact that Scootaloo is kind of handicapped. They talk about the tough situation she is in, they don’t just gloss over it.

They get her confidence back and head to the Crystal Empire for the competition, and wouldn’t you know it their first routine wins it all!

Final Thoughts

I really liked the message this episode conveyed. Be who you are and do not let anyone get you down. Though that’s pretty much all I enjoyed: the Blue Bloods were really mean, beyond just a couple of bullies in school and the story was kinda boring. I just want the Mane 6 to get that six keyed chest open! Daniel Ingram stole the episode with “Hearts as Strong as Horses”.

All in all, the episode was just OKAY.

Brony Breakdown: Season 4, Episode 4 – ‘Daring Don’t’

by Shane O'Hare

Whoa, is it that time of the week already? I’m excited, aren’t you? This episode is a huge call back to “Read It and Weep” from Season 2. The episode where Rainbowdash ends up in hospital and her only entertainment is reading some crummy old books! Turns out that she loves the novels about an adventuring Pony named Daring Do, written by Equestria’s most famous author A.K. Yearling. I hope you can see the joke in that name. Let’s get deep into this weeks episode: “Daring Don’t”

Our show opens up with Fluttershy trying to teach some baby birdies to fly. A diagram so simple a caveman could understand it is hanging up in a tree as she flaps her wings. Suddenly Rainbowdash comes zipping into frame shouting “FOUR MORE MONTHS” Ad Nauseum. When Fluttershy gets a hold of her to ask about all the shouting, we get brought up to speed. The next book in the Daring Do series from A.K. Yearling is set to hit book stores (can we expect to see it at BARNS & NOBLES?! Get it…Barns…horses…heh) in just four months! Can she wait? Well Fluttershy doesn’t think she will be able to. I really think it’s funny how the writers are portraying Rainbowdash’s extreme fandom. It’s like how I imagine some fans of MLP can be… but I can only imagine. It’s not like I would know first hand. It’s not like I have all the Happy Meal Toys, talking Celestia, multiple hand made vinyl figures, numerous shirts and even the We-Love-Fine leggings. Yeah, so I can only imagine.

Brony Breakdown S04 E04
Yeah…I lied.

Roll dat intro. We join back up with Rainbowdash as she is chattering a new countdown. Three months and 26 days. Three months and 26 days. She walks into Twilight’s library only to find everyone is having a party, WITHOUT HER! A holiday party, National Random Holiday Party Day. This is just another time where I feel Pinkie Pie’s character has just morphed more and more into “Katy t3h PeNgU1N oF d00m”, and her lines are just there to seem wacky. I know I am trying to give too much weight to a show for children, but even as a kid I found characters like this boring. Ed from Ed, Edd and Eddy comes to mind, but his moments of clarity made up for it.

Applejack tells the angry Rainbowdash that she herself came to invite her to the party, but she was way to busy re-reading the last Daring Do book. AGAIN! Cue the countdown again. Thanks Applejack. Twilight interrupts her chanting to inform her that the publisher of the Daring Do books said that they release was pushed back two whole months! Rainbowdash proceeds to lose it all over Twilights face.

Brony Breakdown Rainbowdash Squirting
I don’t think there is anything wrong with the file name I chose.

The panicked super fan suddenly resorts to the ultimate level of creeper. She wants Twilight to find out where A.K. Yearling lives so they can help her with her everyday life so she may get back to writing the book. Naive Twilight agrees and the Mane 6 are off on another adventure! Next scene is one of MANY Indiana Jones references. We get a Sepia Tone map with a red line moving across it with some very suggestive music. As the team approaches the author’s house we see that Pinkie Pie has been painting a red line on the ground the entire trip. OK random Pinkie Pie…you’ve earned a few points in my book for that. When they get to the domicile we see that the whole place has been wrecked up! Everyone rushes in and begins the search for the writer. Rainbowdash’s motivation is just for more reading material and not the well being of A.K. Yearling.

A.K. demands to know who they are and what they are doing in her home, as she frantically searches for something. She finally grabs a book that seems pretty mystical if you ask me. On it are three dials forming a combination lock, A.K. Yearling flips each tumbler to the proper code…funny enough her combo is 000. The book opens up and a glowing golden ring emerges. Hmmm. I am starting to suspect the writer isn’t all she appears to be. Rainbow’s pushiness to get the next book finished ticks Twilight off and she pulls the Pegasus outside. As Twilight gives her the proverbial chewing out about invading someones privacy, a group of mean looking Stallions roll up and demand the golden ring.

A.K. Yearling rips off her dorky looking outfit to reveal that she IS Daring Do! They are one in the same! An action packed fight scene ensues, but unfortunately Daring Do is bested. The leader of the evil Hench-Ponies walks in to exclaim his victory. Dr. Caballeron (from the fourth Daring Do book) outlines his plan to sell the ring to the equally evil Ahuizotl so that he may use it to complete the Dark Tower. Twilight and Rainbowdash proceed to get into a nerd fight over the Daring Do books and spout out a buncha geek shit. I was really reminded of the Nerd fight from the cartoon Eltingville Comic Book Club (everyone should really check out this fight. Its hilarious).

The crew decides they must go and help Daring Do get the ring back. As Rainbowdash catches up with Daring Do her inner fangirl comes out and she suddenly becomes overcome with nerves. How can she keep her composure around her hero? Well she can’t, and her rambling alerts Daring Do to her presence and she gets jumped. At this point I’d like to point out how Daring Do is essentially just a pallet swap of Rainbowdash. If Rainbow was in a fighting game Daring Do would be her alternate color.

Brony Breakdown Rainbow Daring Do
Mirror world!

Daring Do is voiced by Chiara Zanni, and I recognized her voice right away. She is one of my favorite voice actors, and hearing her in this show was a treat. Rainbow convinces Daring Do to let her help, but her nervousness of being with her idol is going to get her in trouble. DUH OF COURSE IT IS! How is Rainbow going to grow as a character?

The duo moves onward and approaches Dr. Caballeron and his cronies (hey, that’s kind of like ponies). She devises a cunning plan, she dons a disguise and approaches the group. She offers up a nice sack of coins in exchange for the golden ring. At this moment, her arch enemy Ahuizotl (I am getting serious Mola Ram vibe from this guy) rolls up and demands the ring. Caballeron ditches the ring and scoots with the cash. Ahuizotl summons a team of evil, fierce jungle cats (and one little kitty) to attack Daring Do. An action packed fight ensues, and Daring Do is looking like she will come out ahead. The whole time Rainbow is cheering her on from the bushes. As it looks like the adventure pony is about to escape with the golden ring, Ahuizotl demands he gives her the ring. Daring Do drops a cheese filled one-liner. “Ahuizotl, you know I love you, but I can’t give you the ring until I properly propose!”. What follows is currently the most popular MLP GIF on the internet. Seriously, everyone is blowing this up.

Brony Breakdown S04 E04
The noise she makes is equally adorable.

This is one of those rare instances where the characters being animated from head on actually works out. In fact I think this is the only good one out there.

The fight rages on and Rainbowdash suddenly gets the urge to impress Daring Do. She jumps out into the open and tries to give Daring Do her hat. Her shouting is brought to the attention of Ahuizotl and he grabs the multi colored pony. This distracts Daring Do and the evil cats jump her and snag the ring! Ahuizotl takes Daring Do  AND the ring to the ancient temple where the Dark Tower is. Rainbowdash is ashamed and gives up the adventure. Just as she starts on her journey back home, the rest of the Mane 6 meet up with her. She expresses her shame and defeat, and that she just wants to go home. She let down her hero. Like the good friends, Twilight and the rest try to cheer her up. Twilight says that in every Daring Do book, the ending doesn’t always appear so cut and dry and that they need to try and help Daring Do. With her new found confidence, thanks to her friends, they charge the temple in an attempt to save the adventurer.

The Mane 6 roll up right as the ceremony begins. The golden ring is the last to be placed on the tower. The tower actually looks like an ancient version of a popular childrens toy. Just off screen Rainbow saves Daring Do from a watery demise, though her lack of a thanks just reinforces her want to be a lone wolf adventurer. Back in the main chamber Ahuizotl and his guards. A comical fight ensues for the last ring, each of the different characters showcasing some sick fighting moves. Mean while Rainbowdash and Daring Do begin to take the stacking rings off the tower. As the rings get bigger they get heavier, and only with the help of Rainbowdash could Daring Do expect to get them all off. THIS IS CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT! As the fight rages the color swapped ponies manage to get the last ring off of the tower. Doing so causes the tower to crumble and our heroes barely make it out. The ring is destroyed and Daring Do thanks the crew from Ponyville and runs off to finish her book.

Rainbowdash then learns the lesson of the day, she shouldn’t get so wrapped up in other ponies favorable qualities that she forgets her own. Her exact words: “I got so wrapped up in how awesome she was that I forgot how awesome I am”. As her thought is finished, there is a knock on the door. The mailpony has a package for Rainbowdash. It’s the newest Daring Do book a whole week early! AND SHE IS ON THE COVER! So excite!

Final Thoughts

I really liked this episode. I especially appreciated all the Indiana Jones references and nods. All the background music had a very Dr. Jones feel to it. I really have to give props to the musical department on this show. The conclusion was the typical self confidence boosting message you’d expect. Believe in yourself and others will believe in you. Technically this was a filler episode, as none of the main story was touched (mysterious six keyed chest), but it was a great one. Let’s hope we start to get to the meat of the story soon. I am starting to get anxious!

Brony Breakdown: Season 4, Episode 3 – ‘Castle Mane-ia’

by Shane O'Hare

It’s that time of the week again folks! Season 4 of My Little Pony is off to a great start and this week we got ourselves a NEW WRITER! Josh Haber cuts his teeth with this wonderful mystery episode. Lets Breakdown “Castle Mane-ia“!

The episode opens with out beloved Twilight Sparkle, PRINCESS TWILIGHT SPARKLE, furiously going through every book in her library for some sort of clue as to what the mysterious six-keyed chest the Tree of Harmony gave her is. The one thing I noticed right away is her nonchalantly flying around in her library. It shows that she is deep down actually comfortable with her new wings, and doesn’t mind them at all. Her flying phobia only comes out when she is making a conscious effort at it. Kind of like manual breathing. Which you are now doing. Breathe in… and out.

Twilight’s worrying soon comes to an abrupt halt. Spike upchucks a letter from Celestia that says Twilight should skedaddle on out to the ancient castle that Celestia and Luna used to live in (before Luna went all grimdark on Equestria) and check the library there! She knows there will be a book there with the answers Twilight seeks. So an adventuring we go!

Again she opts for walking instead of flying, she still isn’t comfortable with it. When Twilight and Spike get to the ruined castle, she pulls a card from the opening scene and goes all hummingbird again. The site of books gets her all nerdcited and she forgets she has wings. I feel as if this is going to be a sudden realization she will have half way through the season. While she is totally engrossed in the stacks, Spike is slowly starting to notice the true level of creep this place gives out. *FORESHADOWING!*

We quick cut to Pinkie, Applejack and Rainbowdash at… the Bee farm? OK, I’ll roll with it. Applejack and Rainbowdash are having a competition to see who is the most “Daring Pony in Ponyville!”. So the most logical way of finding this out is to cover themselves in Bees. Yeah, they’re recreating their favorite scene from The Wicker Man.

Brony Breakdown Bees
Even Pinkie knows this is weird.

Well, the Beekeeper needs his Bees and this competition ends with no winner. After some creative accounting Pinkie determines that Applejack and Rainbowdash are sitting tied! This becomes the motivation for these two ponies to head to the Castle (while Pinkie goes to her job ringing the school bell). Only the most daring pony could spend a night in the old Castle, where the rumored “Pony of Shadows” resides. JINKIES!

This setup scene feels kind of contrived. Yeah I’m calling the writing for a show about Pantone colored horses use the power of friendship to defeat evil, contrived. What isn’t contrived is the sound design. This scene I really began to notice the subtle sounds. The beekeeping outfits rubbing together, the birds in the background and the airy echo Applejack and Rainbowdash have while outside was really impressive. The one thing I didn’t really comment on during the premiere was how sophisticated the show’s sound has gotten. Complex combinations of SFX, VO and Music really have this blowing shows of a higher caliber out of the water.

The sound also had me start to notice the upped animation quality. The next scene was the setup for Fluttershy and my girl Rarity getting to the same castle. While Rarity outlined her desire to get her hands (hoofs?) on some ancient tapestry to restore and use for inspiration for a new clothing line, I noticed the new walk cycle for the ponies. The human walk cycle is one of the hardest things for an animator to…animate, and the pony walk cycle a close second. The folks who work on this show have always had an impressive eye to detail on how the characters move, but this season it has been pushed up to the next level. Raity’s legs move and stretch in a realistic way, while her hair has weight and moves realistically.

Cut back to the castle library, Twilight and spike discovery a secret room behind a bookcase. Inside is Celestia’s and Luna’s old double diary! Yeah, from about a thousand years ago. Literally, this book has been there longer than Christianity has existed, and Twilight’s first instinct is to run over and thumb through it like it’s an old Highlights at a doctors office and she is hoping the hidden image puzzle hasn’t been solved yet. What is inside is pretty much the user manual for the castle. Each time Twilight gets to a new passage about the castles secret passages, traps and ins and outs, another pair of ponies runs into the same thing. All the while Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack and Rainbowdash are submitted to scare after scare a mysterious cloaked pony wanders the shadows. Watching. Waiting. Commiserating.

This set of scenes is full of the hardest part of a cartoon horse to animate properly. The straight on face shot. These characters were designed from the ground up in profile. Their profile and silhouette are distinctive. That is why the toys for this show are mostly in the old G3 styling, it doesn’t translate well to other angles.  There is a lot of running, and screaming and looking terrified in these scenes and it is mostly done from straight on. These characters just don’t work that well. They rely to much on their pronounced mouths (muzzles? snouts?) to provide definition. Take the famous “FlutterDash Singing” scene from season 2. We’re setting up shop in the uncanny valley here.

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Seriously. What the hell!

Twilight soon gets to the part of the diary about the “Organ to The Outside”, just as the cloaked mystery pony starts to play it. This organ is like the master control for all the traps and secret doors. So while the organ is played the four wandering ponies get thrown around like rag dolls. The single best frame of this episode is after Rarity is tossed in a bush and then immediately thrown back inside and gets hit with a rock.

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Thats my waifu!

So all the while the four ponies of the apocalypse are going about their four individual crises, Twilight is happily reading through the Princess’ private journal. Only until some serious whining from Rarity does she come out to see what is going on. Honestly watching the four characters all freaking out was pretty hilarious. Twilight zapped them with her magicks and knocks some sense into them. They don’t have ANYTHING to be afraid of thanks to the power of friendship! BUT! The organ keeps playing, time for Mystery Inc. to investigate!

As the team sneaks up on the organ player, the riffs that were being played felt really familiar. They kept leading up and I was expecting a certain drum riff to kick in and one of the most famous words of the 60’s to be sung.

Twilight walks up to the playing pony and pulls off it’s cloak. ITS PINKIE! DUHHH! Her logic if flawless as to how and why she got to the organ, but it makes sense. I guess. The team retires to the library to have a friendship pow wow and close things down. Right before the credits roll we see ANOTHER shadowy figure spying in on them…with evil yellow eyes.

Final Thoughts

This episode was very enjoyable to watch. Josh Haber put together a nice episode, though the plot lines were a little weak. I mean really? MOST DARING PONY COMPETITION? I was most impressed with Tabitha St. Germain’s performance. Her rarity voice was absolutely fabulous and I loved every line. Besides the next level VO and SFX, this episode was just OK in the long run. There wasn’t really any conflict, everyone just ended up at the castle for random reasons. Speaking of random, they need to stop turning Pinkie Pie into “Katy Teh Penguin of Doom”. She can be goofy and not come off sounding like she has late stage dementia.

That’s all until next week!

Celebrate Christmas With ‘The Aquabats Supershow Holiday Special!’

by Shane O'Hare

This just in! This just in! Aquabats! Aquabats! It looks like our favorite teenaged superheroes are returning to television with three brand new specials! When do you ask? Well this Christmas of course!

After the first five episodes of Season 2 aired, The Aquabats kind of went radio silent for a while. No news of when the next episodes will air, or if they would even get filmed for the matter! Looks like the silence was a good thing, as they have three brand new specials ready and raring to go for our viewing pleasure. The first one, simply titled “Christmas With The Aquabats” hits your TV screens on December 21st!

The first special titled “Christmas with The Aquabats!,” Ricky’s perfect Christmas is threatened when the Aquabats arrive in a strange village and are convicted of breaking a law that forbids any Yuletide celebration. Their only chance at saving themselves and Christmas is for the big man himself, Santa, to lend a mitten! The special includes guest stars Matt Walsh (“Veep”) as Santa and Robert Smigel (“TV Funhouse,” “Triumph the Insult Comic Dog”) as the voice of The Krampus. “The Aquabats! Super Show!” is produced by Awesome Forces! Productions.

The Aquabats have said in the past that they try to bring people they enjoy as artists onto the show to work with them, and we can clearly see this special is full of great talent. The other two episodes will air on December 28th and January 19th respectively.

The second special, “Shark Fighter!,” finds the Aquabats face-to-face with mutant land sharks and when the legendary Shark Fighter (Rhys Darby, “Flight of the Concords”) arises to take on the Bats, he ends up being the big brother Crash has always wanted. The third special is “Kitty Litter!,” where the Aquabats encounter a new villain who blames them for his villainous condition and devises a plot for revenge that uses the cuteness of kittens to battle his enemies.

This aquacadet is super stoked! This is the best Christmas present an Aquabats fan could ever hope for!

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Brony Breakdown: MLP Season 4 Premiere!

by Shane O'Hare

If you’re a fan of MLP like we at Geekscape are, then you were more than elated when Season 4 of our beloved cartoon premiered this Saturday. We were greeted with two wondrous, BACK TO BACK episodes, kicking off the newest season with a bang! There be SPOILERS here on out so if you haven’t watched it then GO DO IT!

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We’re greeted with a lovely scene of the Mane Six, trying to teach the newly winged Twilight how to fly. See, if you didn’t remember, she became a PRINCESS! A Unicorn with wings is an Alicorn (or Peggacorn, viewers may choose their mythical animal naming convention on their own accord). Her friends are more than excited to help her with her Royal Duties, and all bow and praise her as the new Princess of Ponyville. This is when we are reminded of this show’s very positive qualities. Twilight is a very humble individual and doesn’t feel that she deserves to be worshiped. Her friends bowing to her just doesn’t feel right. We can see that even though she has changed physically (dem wings baby), she hasn’t gotten up to the level of Princess emotionally or mentally. Yeah, I am getting next level on the deconstruction of this cartoon horse.

We are soon thrust quickly into the plot. Our dear Twilight has to get things ready for the Summer Sun Celebration. Yeah, we’re getting some season one call backs here. The Mane Six all pack up and head to Canterlot to help their friend with the preparations. Here we get a few glimpses of some evil afoot. Black, devilish looking vines come cropping up out of the ground. They seem to have an objective. An EVIL objective, but that is for later on. While the entire city is getting all hyped up for the Summer Sun Celebration, Twilight’s friends decide they need to go back to Ponyville to get their town’s own party ready. This is when Twilight is faced with another new daunting change in her life as Princess. Isolation; her friends all seem to eagerly leave her in the city. In reality they’re excited and happy for Twilight and just want to celebrate with her.

On the eve of the celebration, Twilight wakes up in the middle of the night to something very out of the ordinary. The Moon and the Sun are both in the sky, like together. So of course the citizens of the city begin to flip their proverbial Horse Apples. We are quickly informed that Princess Celestia and Luna are both MIA, thus explaining the Moon/Sun issue. When it is decided for Twilight that she is in charge, due to the fact she is the only Princess around. I mean, they COULD go get Cadence, but she is written off as being “too busy” running the Crystal Empire. I’m sure she’d find the time to rescue the two horses in charge of controlling the day night cycle, but whatever. Twilight, the President pro tempore of the Senate, quickly jumps to action. This is where I start to get impressed with the show’s writing again. Her timid, shyness is quickly replaced with a fast-acting plan-making pony. She orders the citizens of Canterlot to bunker up and wait while she goes to Ponyville to get the show’s Deus Ex Machina. The Elements of Harmony, which are stored in her library back at home.

MLP S4E01 (2)
Is it really a good idea to keep the most powerful defensive magic items unattended in a library?

She quickly returns to Ponyville to see it overrun with mischievous happenings and the evil vines from before. The Mane Six are soon reunited and they gear up with the Elements of Harmony. All the “pranking” magic that is plaguing the town gives Twilight an idea of who is the culprit. She summons up some heavy looking magic and who of all people shows up but Discord! Voice amazingly by the one and only John de Lancie. After a back and forth, we’ve come to the conclusion that he is NOT the cause of the evil goings on! What ever will the Mane Six do? The vines all seem to be coming from the Everfree Forest, so the team gets all Fellowship of The Ring on us and gets ready to go adventuring, but not before they run into Zecora, the voodoo witch doctor Zebra that lives in the woods. She produces a potion that only an Alicorn can activate, and once activated will grant the user the ability to find the source of the evil goings ons. Of course Twilight zaps it and doses up with the magical stuff. What follows is a series of narrative plot points dumped in our laps. We are shown, through Twilight’s eyes, three major events in the Equestria Timeline. Starting with the more recent, turning of Princess Luna into Nightmare Moon and following banishment. Then the first defeat of Discord, and finishing it all up with where Celestia first found the Elements of Harmony.

Many years ago the great Princess harvested the Elements from the Tree of Harmony. The  only magic powerful enough to defeat Discord, she says that the Tree has enough magic in it to keep things in…harmony. Well it appears that magic has run out! The team now has their objective, find the Tree of Harmony and fix it. Soon into the journey it is decided that this is dangerous work, too dangerous for the likes of Royalty, and Twilight is sent back to the safety of the town. The feeling of abandonment hits Twilight harder than Rob Ford hits an innocent constituent. She finds comfort and personal growth help from the strangest of places, Discord! She soon realizes that splitting up the Deus Ex Machina in the name of royal safety. She braves the bramble once again and joins up with her friends.

The Fellowship soon finds the Tree of Harmony and it is in a bad way. The evil vines have sucked its energy away. The only way to fix things is to return the Elements to the Tree. Sacrificing the writers get out of jail free card for the sake of plot. WHAT A TWIST! Twilight gives the Tree back the Elements and once powered up, it pushes back the evil and Celestia and Luna are returned safely. The Tree then buds a new flower and inside of it is a crystal box with six key holes. Season 4’s plot is then dumped in our laps. No one knows where the keys are but they all know that they must find them, for some reason. Back at town we soon find out that the evil vines were actually planted by Discord way back in his first tussle with Celestia. He just figured it wouldn’t take this long for them to kick in. OH YOU!

MLP S4E01 (1)
The Tree of Harmony in all it’s glory!

Hard cut back to Canterlot for the Summer Sun Celebration. Just as it is wrapping up, the once embarrassed Twilight jumps in to give the ceremony a little bit of Swag, and joins Luna and Celestia on stage, she finally accepted her roll as princess. Credits.

Final Thoughts

First off, this was a long read and if you made it this far I commend you. It being a double episode full of plot and narrative it really was a lot to cover. I was giddy as a schoolgirl when the show started, and had a visible smile on when the end credits rolled. I was a little leery about the direction the show was going; the coronation of Twilight was rumored to be the cause of Hasbro executives wanting to sell more toys (as well as the idea of the Equestria Girls movie). The writers of the show really know how to create something charming together. This premiere was intelligent, funny and really showed Twilight’s growth into the big shoes (or tiara) that a Princess needs to wear. I am very excited to see what happens next week, and you can be sure that I will have plenty to say about it!

Gerard Way Co-Directs A New Aquabats Super Show Episode As They Face The ‘Anti-Bats’!

by Shane O'Hare

The fifth episode of The Aquabats Super Show is airing this Saturday. This one looks like it is going to be the biggest, and craziest episode yet! It has a stack of awesome guest stars and written by Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance fame! Check out the promo for “Anti-Bats” below!

“Anti-Bats!” — Two competing bands seeking revenge on The Aquabats! unite with evil Silver Skull and become the Anti-bats! Meanwhile, Ricky abandons The Aquabats! for newfound love and must choose between his new girlfriend and saving his friends as the mighty Anti-bats close in, on “The Aquabats! Super Show!,” Saturday, June 29 at 1 p.m. ET on the Hub Network. Martin Starr (“Knocked Up”) and Noel Wells (“Upright Citizens Brigade”) guest star in an episode co-directed and co-written by Gerard Way (“My Chemical Romance”).

That promo has be freaking stoked! It is awesome to see the new villains The Anti-Bats! Back in the day a buddy of mine had made his own custom Anti-Bat costume, so seeing these guys made me happy!

So with all these new characters in the show we gotta have a huge list of guest stars, and it is a doozie of a guest list!

Martin Starr (Shred Center M.C.)

Noel Wells (Rachel Moonbug)

Mikey Way (Asthma Lead Singer)

Matt Gorney (Skillsawz)

Kyla Broderick (Asthma Bass Girl)

Brad Davis (Asthma Beard Man)

Derrick deVilliers (Asthma Mask Drummer)

Mark Fordham (SilverSkull)

Bob Walkingshaw (Army General)

Jamey Anthony (Governor Robot)

Paige Terry (Teenager)

Mark Fordham (Government Official)

This all could have only come from one place, the mind of Gerard Way. After he hosted the Aquabats Panel at San Diego Comic Con last I was excited to know that he had an episode planned. I think this time I am going to get up nice and early (Alaska Time sucks for TV sometimes) and watch it live instead of my DVR.

See you Saturday!

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Geekscape Exclusive! This Drum Chopper was based off the Gyrocopter from Mad Max!

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Be sure to follow our friends from the show and the Hub!

Ian Fowles @ianwfowles

Jason deVilliers @JasondeVilliers

Hub Network @HubTVNetwork

www.Facebook.com/HubTVNetwork

http://www.facebook.com/TheAquabatsSuperShow

Hub Network Online: www.hubworld.com

Geekscape Exclusive: ‘The Aquabats Super Show’ Newest Episode Sneak Peak!

by Shane O'Hare

The second season of The Aquabats Super Show is in full effect! With the triumphant return of our masked super heroes and an adventure at summer camp already behind us you may be asking yourself ” What possibly could The Aquabats be getting into next? “. Well our friends at the HUB have got you covered with a pair of exclusive screenshots from this Saturday’s episode, ” Bad Apple ” !

AQB_203_WormEXCLUSIVE

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This is one thing I love about this show is the creative monsters and costumes the team comes up with. These two new buggy baddies look great!

From the release:

“Bad Apple!” — The Aquabats! visit Jimmy’s parents on their farm for genetically enlarged produce. Afterward, the awkward homecoming is interrupted when a giant worm swallows Jimmy’s mom whole and The Aquabats! must act fast to save her, on“The Aquabats! Super Show!,” Saturday, June 15 at 1 p.m. ET on Hub Network. Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo) guest stars as Mr. Goodman, the father of Jimmy the Robot.

You read that right! Legendary musician Mark Mothersbaugh is guest starring in this episode! So be sure to tune in or set your DVR for Saturday!

While you’re at it check out our interview with the shows producer Jason deVilliers  and star Ricky Fitness!

Geekscape Interviews: Jason DeVilliers & Ricky Falomir From ‘The Aquabats Supershow’

by Shane O'Hare

Yesterday I got to experience one of those amazing life moments that only Geekscape could provide me. I had the opportunity to talk with Executive Producer/Director Jason deVilliers and Composer/Actor/Drummer/Superhero Ricky Fitness (Falomir) of The Aquabats Supershow! We talked about new, old and what to expect in the future. Follow me!

First off, how are you guys doing?

Jason: We’re doing great!

Right on. Lets jump into it then. I just watched the first episode of Season 2. Was completely blown away. How are you guys feeling about it? Do you feel like its the right progression from Season 1 and what are you overall thoughts so far.

Ricky: I am very excited about this upcoming season. All The Aquabats are more comfortable, and the whole crew really has found it’s groove. Everything is tighter, bigger explosions, better locations. I love it I am really excited.

I know what you mean. I re-watched Season 1 last night and this morning the first episode of Season 2. I can see how everything is tighter. Now the new animation style for the cartoons was really interesting. Where did you guys come up with that? It seemed like a HUGE departure from what you had in Season 1 and the original pilot.

Jason: The animations from Season 1 were serialized from episode to episode. In the Season 2 episodes, the ones that start airing June 1st, will have it’s own animation style. The one you just saw, the Heavy Metal/Ralph Bakshi style with the hand drawn over shot footage will only be in that one episode. Each episode will cover the origin of The Aquabats from the eyes of each member of the band. It will provide a perspective from each Aquabat on how they joined the group. You’ll see stop motion, computer graphics and hand drawn animations. They will change from episode to episode quite a bit.

Now I saw that you had Tony Hawk and Eric Koston as guest stars in the new episode. Can you talk about any of the new guests stars you have coming in and is there anybody that you’d really like to have guest star?

Jason: We completed shooting on the first five episodes and we hope there will be more this year. We definitely have an idea of who we’d like to have involved but I can’t talk about it yet, I can talk about who we have already filmed. Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance co-wrote and co-directed an episode with us, the Antibats episode. His brother Mike Way, the bassist of MCR, plays a character in that episode. Then we have Marks Mothersbaugh from Devo who is a really talented composer, will play Jimmy The Robots father in an upcoming episode. Leslie Hall, she is a cewbrity who makes some awesome stuff online and  has a pretty big following, she will be playing a camp counselor in the summer camp episode. Then Martin Starr from Freaks and Geeks will be making a guest starring role. We definitely have a big variety of guest stars.

Do you feel like with the show being as successful as it was, that you now have a bigger reach and are able to get bigger guest stars? Were there people you weren’t able to get in the first season that you could now?

Ricky: That’s hard to gauge.

Jason: I know that there are celebrities that love the show that watch it with their kids, and there were a few people we tried to get last season that were unavailable that we hope to get on a few episodes. Last season we had Lou Diamond Phillips, Jon Heder, Samm Levine, Al Yankovic. We had some really really great stars who were apart of last season. We have relationships with some great people through Yo Gabba Gabba and we know of people that watch that show that really want to be in it but it’s all just a matter of scheduling.

Now the scoring you guys do in all the little parts is really amazing, and in this first episode you have a nice little homage to Monkees with the chase montage. Do you guys have a different goal from episode to episode or are there any major songs that you couldn’t get into the first season that you were able to get into this second?

Ricky: There’s definitely going to be some awesome new songs. We can really go in any direction we want and that’s OK because that’s how The Aquabats are, and that’s also the point of the show. To be random and have fun. There are good songs that are going to be coming out in the second season. We all had a hand in scoring and that was a huge learning experience in it’s own. I believe the music this season will be a lot better.

Do you guys plan on bringing any of your back catalog from your albums to the show or doing remixes? When you guys did Pool Party for Yo Gabba Gabba you kind of changed it up for the younger audience, so will you guys be doing anything like that for this season?

Ricky: We just talked about that, we’re trying to figure that out. We want to re-record some of our older songs and put a new spin on them. That’s definitely in the works. There weren’t any back catalog in season one. We’d like to bring some back, and we think the kids will like it.

I’m also a huge Mega64 fan, and was totally stoked to see that you had them do some of the commercials from season one. I noticed that in the first episode of season 2 Rocco Botte did the voice over for the Sonic Boom commercial. Are you guys going to be doing more with them, possibly have them be guests on the show or do you guys plan on doing anything in any of their work?

Jason: That’s a good question. We shot the first episodes up in Utah and that made it harder to work with our friends out in California. I think we have Rocco doing voice overs on three commercials for the new episodes. Those guys are really really funny and we’d love to have them ON the show playing characters. With the next episodes we have planned it’s a definite possibility. They’re very talented.

I think it’s interesting to see their humor, toned down a bit, because they can be crude compare to you guys.

Ricky: Yeah haha, but working with kids programming you have to do that.

Now, as far as the progression from Season 1 to Season 2, was there anything in Season 1 that you weren’t able to do. Like you ran out of time or money or something that even the network said you couldn’t do that you were able to do in Season 2?

Jason: You know, the network, The HUB has been so gracious with us. They very rarely say we can’t do something. You know, we only get restrictions like if someone is riding in the Battletram that they have to be wearing their seatbelts. It’s more like just TV regulations for children’s shows. When it comes to creative stuff, the HUB has been really good at letting us do what our imaginations come up with. But, working on a tight budget, our show doesn’t quite lend itself to doing everything we want to do the way we want to do, but there is something about having that low budget that forces you to think outside the box. If you want to have a massive explosion or blow up a building, and you can’t, you have to think of another way to do it. I think a lot of our gags and things we have and the way we do things in the show have to do with having to get really creative to make things work. That also goes along the path with The Aquabats Show, trying to pay homage to the shows we grew up with in the 80’s. They had a kind of camp to them, the way they introduced model work or monster costumes where you can see the zipper. We don’t try to hide that kind of stuff. And I think really have a lower budget helps us with that.

Well I asked everything I wanted to ask, is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?

Jason: Just having the show become what it has, having the band grow as much as it has, having the reviews and ratings. It’s constantly growing bigger and bigger from word of mouth. When we got picked up by the HUB after filming our pilot, we’d never dream in a million years we’d be where we are now. Just having wrapped shooting  on the first episodes of Season 2 that start airing in June and having Season 1 on DVD just came out yesterday, and the fact the show is what we want it to be. We make the show we’d want to see if we were kids today, and the fact that there are people out there that support it and the fact we got nominated for an Emmy is is unreal. Rick?

Ricky: You pretty much covered it, very well said. I love to keep doing what we’re doing. There is such a loyal fanbase that support us that have stuck around forever and to all of our new fans thank you so much for watching. It’s a lot of fun and I hope you guys enjoy these new episodes!

And with that our call ended. I can’t be anymore excited for Season 2 to kick off. Keep and eye out for my review of the Season 1 DVD set and the Season 2 premier episode coming soon.

BE SURE to watch the first episode of Season 2 of The Aquabats Super Show on Saturday June 1st at 1 P. M. EST (10 A.M. PST) !

Geekscape Interviews Daniel Ingram Composer For My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic

by Shane O'Hare

Yesterday I had the great opportunity to interview Daniel Ingram, a two time Emmy nominee for his work on My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. Being a huge fan of the show, and moreso the music I was so excited to be able to talk to the man behind the tunes. I was even MORE nervous. So about 3:30 my time I started to stammer my way through a very interesting interview.

I’ll have my questions posted in BOLD and Daniels responses will be quoted.

 

So lets get to it, how did you get started making music for cartoons and how did you end up working on My Little Pony?

 

I’ve always enjoyed making music, I love to make music. I performed throughout school. When I got out of College I was writing music for various shows. Then I got a job making music for the show Martha Speaks, which was really fun.  One day I got a call from the shows producer, Sarah Wall, and she said that she was working on the new My Little Pony with Lauren Faust and that she wanted me to do the music for it. The first song I did was the Pinkies Laugh song from episode two. Then it all kind of grew from there.

 

I’m a huge fan of the show myself, did you ever think it was going to blow up like it did? And did you ever think it was going to be like by so many different kinds of people?

 

I never expected it to blow up like it did. I had put Winter Wrap Up on YouTube so that I could show it to somebody, and a few days later I get a call from them saying I was working on something big. That I had a million views on the song. It was crazy.

 

So last year you were nominated for two Grammies, how was that like?

 

I was nominated for Emmys, you have to actually have made a soundtrack for Grammies, I WISH I could be nominated for a Grammy.

OH YEAH! Thats right! So how was that like? HAHA! (My nerves had gotten the best of me and I had gotten the two awards mixed up…great.)

 

It was really awesome. It was really an honor to be nominated. It was fun to go through the whole process.

One of the great things about the Brony fandom for the show is all the music being created around. Do you ever listen to any of the remixes or original songs?

 

I try to stay away from the original songs, mostly because of conflict of interest. I don’t want to listen to something then a year down the road write something that sounds too familiar. As for the remixes I really like them, it’s exciting to see what some of the fans can produce. Like when Babs Seed came out I was blown away by how many remixes were up so quickly. There is so much out there.

What kind of direction will you be going in Season 4?

 

Well, I can’t really talk much about Season 4 just yet. I think everyone will like what I have planned.

What do you think about new and emerging genres? There are a lot of Electronic artists in the forefront right now, and are there any new directions you want to go?

 

Its always exciting to hear new stuff, there is a lot of amazing new music coming out. As for new genres, We have some new things planned for later this year, again I can’t talk about it, but the fans will definitely like it.

Walk me through your recording process, do you work on the tunes first or lyrics? And do you record everything, I guess traditionally or do you use synths and tools like Ableton?

 

I use a little of both really, first I like to plan out the lyrics. Its good to have something upbeat and happy to start with. So I write the lyrics and then play a piano or play the guitar while I sing them. Then I get with a singer and record a Piano Demo which is just the song in it’s rawest form. That is what we submit and then when it gets the go ahead we record the full piece.

So I guess this is kind of a cliched question, but are there any artists out there that you would love to record with?

 

Living or dead?

Why not both?!

 

Haha, well I’d love to play with Gregory Alan Isakov. I really like what he is putting out and it would be fun to play with him. As for someone just to pick their brain I’d have to say Randy Newman. It would be really great to talk to him.

I know the coronation concert is…is it this week or was it last?

 

It was just this last week.

How was that were you able to go?

 

Yes! I did get to go, I flew down for a few days. It was awesome. It was really cool to go to the event and be able to hear some of the stuff I wrote performed live. It was a great experience seeing all these kids having fun.

So I think I asked all that I wanted to, I am just a really big fan of your work.

 

What is your favorite song from the show?

Winter Wrap Up hands down. I was just going along with the show watching a few episodes, and when I heard it I was blown away and hooked. I couldn’t believe something that good was coming from a cartoon.

 

Haha! Thanks! It’s funny you mentioned that, I was on a plane recently and that was the only song I had on my iPad so I thought “Hey, I wrote this over a year ago why not listen to it”. It was a fun listening to it again after so long.

Do you have a solo career or do you write music outside of shows?

 

Well, I’m pretty busy right now. The HUB has got me on My Little Pony and Littlest Petshop, so I have a full schedule. I’d love to try something eventually.

After that we had our goodbyes and said farewell. Daniel is a very soft spoken guy and it is obvious from just talking with him that he really loves what he does. Making great music for some of our favorite shows.

 

Be sure to check out the newest episode of My Little Pony: Friendship is magic this Saturday the 16th at 10:30 AM EST to hear more of Daniel’s work!

 

 

EXCLUSIVE! Check Out This Clip For ‘My Little Pony: FiM’ Next Episode!

by Shane O'Hare

Our very good friends over at The HUB have given us a nice sneak peak at the next episode of our favorite pony show, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic! Watch it below!

 

 

From the Press Release:

 

In this episode entitled “Just for Sidekicks,” Spike finds himself in over his head after convincing Twilight and her friends to let him pet-sit all of their critters in exchange for a few gems when they go to the Crystal Empire to help Princess Cadance welcome the Head of the Equestria Games. In the beginning of the episode, he decides to bake a cake with all the gems he’s saved, and then realizes that he has eaten all of them while preparing the batter.

 

As the resident Brony here I am ECSTATIC to be able to bring this news. I cannot wait for the next episode!

 

You can of course, check out this episode on Saturday 26th at 10:30AM ET only on The HUB!

EXCLUSIVE: My Little Pony Coronation Concert Contest Sneak Peak!

by Shane O'Hare

Our friends over at The HUB have given us a sneak peak at their newest My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic promo! Running tomorrow, it is for an amazing contest where you could win a trip to LA for an awesome MLP event! The Coronation Concert! Check it out below!

 

 

From the Press Release:

 

 The Hub is holding a one-day, call-in My Little Pony Coronation Concert Sweepstakes on Saturday, January 26 during the telecast of an all-new episode of “My Little Pony Friendship is Magic,” where one lucky fan will a trip for four to the “My Little Pony Friendship is Magic” Coronation Concert.  During the episode, viewers will be asked to call a number provided for a chance to win the tickets. The invitation-only concert will be held in Los Angeles in February to celebrate a special episode of the series.

Being the resident Brony here at Geekscape, I am super excited to bring this to my fellow MLP fans. Keep and eye out for this promo starting tomorrow, and get your touchtone phones ready for the 26th!
 

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Ponies Are Back In Town! MLP:FiM Returns THIS SATURDAY!

by Shane O'Hare

Fellow Bronies, let us rejoice and praise Celestia! My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic returns to the HUB this Saturday November 10th at 10 AM ET!  Check out this sneak preview of the two part premiere titled “The Crystal Empire”!

Are you as excited as I am? I’ll be waking up after a night with Bond to breakfast in bed WITH PONIES! TWO WHOLE EPISODES OF PONIES!

Also new from The HUB is a new show centered around My Littlest Petshop, titled Littlest Petshop, and it features some familiar voices! Tabitha St. German and Nicole Oliver will be the star talent on the newest show. You can see that right afterwards at 11 AM ET!

See you in Ponyville Saturday

Celebrate Labor Day With ‘The Aquabats! Super Show’ Marathon AND Sweepstakes!

by Shane O'Hare

You read that right, this Labor Day the super rad folks over at the HUB will be running six episodes of The Aquabats! Super Show! PLUS They will also be giving away some rad back to school gift cards! Check out the promo for “Aqua Bat to School”below!

That is so super rad! The more and more the HUB supports The Aquabats! the more I love them as a whole. I cannot wait to see what else they do with the band. The full details from the Press Release here:

Monday, September 3, noon-3:00 pm ET – “The Aquabats! Super Show!” Labor Day Marathon

“The Aquabats! Super Show!” Labor Day marathon will feature six back-to-back episodes of the outrageous comedy-adventure series that follows the greatest crime-fighting rock band ever assembled. On-air messaging during the marathon will reveal a show-related code and a toll-free number for the tune-in-to-win “Aquabat! To School! Sweepstakes.” Six viewers chosen at random from those who call will each win a $1,000 back-to-school shopping spree. Details and rules regarding the “Aquabat! To School! Sweepstakes” are available onwww.hubworld.com.

And if that wasn’t cool enough The HUB will start showing episodes of Hercules AND Sliders! Two shows that I guarantee you loved when you were a little geek. So come labor day, before you go out partying make sure you check out The Aquabats! on The HUB!

SDCC 2012 Wrap up: The Aquabats Super Show!

by Shane O'Hare

The legendary group of super powered teenagers return for their 2nd SDCC, this time with an entire season of their hit show “The Aquabats! Super Show!” in the can. Come with me, we’re going to dig into what went on during their panel, roundtable interview and the concert at the House of Blues!

The day started off fantastic, working the booth in my Aquabats! gear feeling pretty much a pimp. Time for the panel and interview and I am walking at a nice pace towards the meeting room. High as a kite, so excited to see what great things will happen, when the absolute worst happens! My SD card in my phone imploded. All my pictures and notes from the week were toast. Gone. POOF! My big Aquabat fanatic heart sank. Then it fell even further into depression when I saw the line. It went down the hall, around the corner and looped back THREE times. I slumped down in the hallway and nursed the dieing battery in my phone. Sadness overcame me. I was defeated even before I started. Then I spied the guys from Toddland. The great group of guys that make the new Aquabats! merchandise! I walked over to say high again and to chat more about their products. I walked up and talked to the head beard himself, Todd Masters.

Shane: “So how did you guys come about making this new merchandise for the Aquabats?”

Todd: “Well we all are the old Paul Frank Kids. We created the original belt for the Aquabats. So we were already fans.”

Shane: “Now all your products I’ve seen on the floor are REALLY cool. Where do the designs come from and what is the logic behind them all?”

Todd: “Well we basically make things we like, we make the shirts and wallets and sweaters for us and like minded people are attracted to us. Also everything kind of goes together, the Aquabats wallet goes with the Adventure Time sweater and so on.”

Todd assured me they were just fans making gear for a group they appreciated. Being able to make the pajamas from the “Floating Eye of Death” episode was really really fun for them.

After our brief chat I returned to my wall charger of despair. Knowing I’d never be able to make it into the panel, I was just going to wait for the press round-table. Then again, my eyes spied another friend. JP from The Hub wandered into view. I ran up to say hello and he recognized me and quickly pushed me into the panel. Then my bad luck with my busted SD card started to balance out when I saw our own Matt Blackwood up front saving a seat for me! PLUS HE HAD A WORKING CAMERA!

Photo Credit Todd Williamson/ Invision for The Hub/ AP Images.

The panel started out with normal ‘bat vigor. The lights went out and the opening from the Super Show! played on screen while the ‘bats ran up and took their places. Also joining them were directors Matt Chapman (AKA Strongbad) and Jason deVilliers. The most surprising guest was the panel moderator. Gerard Way!

Photo Credit Todd Williamson/ Invision for The Hub/ AP Images.

The panel went smoothly. Finding out how Matt Chapman met the Aquabats and conversely how they met Gerard Way. Way back when, before MCR, Way was making vinyl figurines in a small shop in New Jersey. One day the Homestarrunner crew came in and wanted some of their own. The rest is history.

We saw some funny bloopers and clips, and even were able to see a commercial that was removed from air just DAYS before the episode went out. It was one directed by Mega64 and it was called “Garage Door Escape”. It was a product that mimics some of Indiana Jones greatest escapes. We see a kid hit his garage door close button, and run through an obstacle course consisting of skeletons, poison darts, boulders and magma. The ultimate goal is to slide under the garage door before it closes, insuring survival. They said The HUB pulled that at the last minute, I’m assuming it’s because if the kid didn’t make it he wouldn’t have “survived”. At the end of it his Dad watering the lawn says “Nice survival son!”. Kind of morbid, but very hilarious.

It also wouldn’t be an Aquabats event if a baddie didn’t show up. This time Snakey walked in from down the hall and caused a ruckus.

Photo Credit Shahab Zargari of Verbicide Magazine
Photo Credit Todd Williamson/ Invision for The Hub/ AP Images.

As you can see he was a menace. He knocked over an easel and pulled all the mic’s off the table. Shortly thereafter the panel was over and all who were there to interview them stayed in the room preparing for the round table. Mulling around I started talking with a couple of guys. I met Ryan Brunty of Insert Coins 21+ arcade in Las Vegas and Shahab Zargari of Verbicide Magazine. Shahab really saved me with these pics from the interview, my SD card was still fried.

The actual interview was fairly mellow. The Aquabats looked very tired, and The Bat Commander was answering most of the questions. The most crucial piece of information was that the HUB is in talks to get the show renewed for a second season, but nothing is confirmed. When asked about a possible soundtrack for the show the band did say they had full length versions of all the songs either recorded or planned out. My hopes are high for some great music to come out of the show. We all shook hands and the group went and recorded some clips for HUBWORLD. I gathered my things and headed home. The next day called for all my energy as I was going to the concert at the House of Blues!

I arrived at the House of Blues and got my press ticket. Brandishing my entire Cadet Uniform I was ready to have a great night. I got some food and partook in the free bar. Now everyone who told me they would be at the show, WEREN’T! I’m looking at you Ben Dunn and Molly Mahan! I did bump into Matt Blackwood again and he snapped some more pics for me. I walked up to the bar and realized I was standing next to Shawn from Mega64! I said hi and we chatted for a bit and I followed him back to the group.

Eric Baudour, Garret Hunter, Shawn Chatfield, Rocco Botte, Lovable-Bill, Bryan Abou Chacra and Derrick Acosta of Mega64

What comes next is stories that are only told in movies and dreams. Eric Baudour and Bryan Abou Chacra and myself, right before the band came on, drank some pretty big shots of tequila and went downstairs into the pit. The second The Aquabats came on stage the crowd erupted into a frenzy. I instantly lost Eric and Bryan for the rest of the show. The ‘bats opened up with “Cat with Two Heads”, a classic from way back when. They played some old, some new and some that wasn’t theirs.

In normal fashion a monster showed up to terrorize the band. A GIANT DINOSAUR!

Photo Credit Matt Blackwood

After he was defeated the Bat Commander shouted “MAN! THAT WAS A TOUGH DINOSAUR DRAGON!”. Then we hear a voice exclaim that this wasn’t a real dragon and he knew who a real dragon is! Out walked Strongbad, from Homestarrunner. In reality it was Matt Chapman in a wrestling mask. Then a childhood dream came true. I witnessed Strongbad sing his hit song Trogdor while the Aquqbats played the tune!

Photo Credit Matt Blackwood

I was having a blast. The show just kept getting better and better. Another great guest was a San Diego local band that had been around forever called Rocket from the Crypt. They played one of their classic songs “Young Livers”. I had never heard of this band before but I was very impressed with their performance. More and more great songs churned out. When the band played “Burger Rain” the crowd from the VIP balcony dropped paper cheeseburgers down in a wonderful rain. It was truly a sight to behold.

The show ended and the crowd dispersed. I was sore, wet and satisfied. The HUB really has a passion for their fans and their shows. They put on a fabulous panel and a one of kind concert.

So you. If you don’t already have the HUB call whoever is your TV provider and demand it. Let’s keep support great people who love to make the world happy.

The My Little Pony Friendship Express Trolley Sighting

by Shane O'Hare

We recently posted about the My Little Pony goings on during Comic Con. Specifically that San Diego Metro and The HUB were turning one of the trolleys into the MLP:Friendship Express! Now a intrepid user Fabian has spotted and recorded the Trolley in San Diego. Check it out below.

OMGOSHOMGOSHOMGOSHOMGOSHOMGOSH!!! I am jumping with delight! I cannot wait for Comic Con! If you are attending the convention be sure to ride the trolley, and come by the Geekscape Booth #3919 and say hello to your truly!

The Aquabats Have Super Rad Merch for Comic Con 2012

by Shane O'Hare

The crazy cool teenaged superheroes The Aquabats! will be some heavy hitters this year at San Diego Comic Con! Not only will they have a panel on Friday, but merchandizer ToddLand will be selling some crazy cool gear at their booth! Take a look at their menu of cool!

 

So if you are able to attend the con, check out booth #3449

Exclusive: Official My Little Pony: FiM Inspirational Posters and Trolley for SDCC

by Shane O'Hare

The super rad fine folks over at The HUB have clued the Geekscape team in on some of the special things they have planned for this years San Diego Comic Con. They have made eight official “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic” inspirational posters that will be part of the decor at their booth and their special Trolley car! Check out the awesome below!

They also let us know that they will have an “MLP:FiM” trolley that runs on the San Diego Trolley lines! It is a special trolley car called The Friendship Express. It starts running on the city trolley tracks this Saturday, June 30th, and runs through the entire month of July!

Also, SDCC released their Friday schedule today and there IS a pony panel going on.

10:00-11:00 Hasbro Studios: My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic— Panelists from Hasbro Studios and The HUB TV Network’s My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic share details of the making of the animated series and how the “friendship” and “magic” are brought to life. Fans won’t want to miss it! Also includes Q&A time. Room 23ABC

So if you are going to be at the convention, make sure you get a ticket to ride with the Mane 6!