Recap / My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic S6 E22 "P.P.O.V. (Pony Point of View)"

"I don't know what happened on that boat trip, but once Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie have some tea and talk it out, I'm sure everypony will feel better."

Story by Kevin Burke, Chris "Doc" Wyatt, Michael P. Fox, & Wil Fox
Written by Michael P. Fox & Wil Fox

Twilight is excited to hear all about the boat trip that Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rarity took, as it allowed the three of them to get out of their element and try something new. However, when the three of them arrive at the train station, they're covered in mud and seaweed, all refusing to speak to each other. Confused, Twilight tries throwing a tea party to help them talk it out, but nopony comes. Twilight and Spike resolve to get to the bottom of what happened on the boat, starting by questioning Rarity.

Rarity says that she had prepared a set of cucumber sandwiches to enjoy on the trip, but Applejack, as a salty sea captain, sank the boat by sailing it into a maelstrom, ruining the experience for everypony. Twilight thinks Rarity is exaggerating, but Rarity insists she's being honest. Twilight and Spike question Pinkie Pie next, who says that she brought a lot of fun games to play, but Rarity ruined everything by having her cucumber sandwiches being thrown overboard and being a stuffy know-it-all. Next, Twilight and Spike ask Applejack about the boat trip, who says she planned a high seas treasure hunt that Pinkie Pie ruined by being way too reckless. In all three cases, none of them explain how they got back to shore.

In her castle, Twilight notices that, despite all of the inconsistencies, there are a few elements to their stories that overlap. Eventually, Twilight appears to figure out the story, and invites her three friends back to the boat dock under the guise of a friendship emergency — namely, their own. On the boat, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie still won't speak to each other, but Twilight is confident she knows what happened. Rarity's cucumber sandwiches falling into the water, a series of bubbles and the swell of the water were caused by a three-horned bunyip, a creature living in the sea who liked the sandwiches. She also figures out that the boat never left the harbor; after the boat capsized, the trio just walked back in the shallow water. Meanwhile, the three friends finally talk it out about what they wanted: Applejack wanted them to have a high seas adventure, Pinkie wanted them to party, and Rarity wanted them to have a luxury cruise. Finally seeing each others' points of view, the three friends make up, having a good time with the bunyip, Twilight and Spike on their boat.

---

Tropes:

• An Aesop:
  • Even long time friends need to work at communication.
  • Every story has multiple points of view.
  • This is yet another episode about Friendship requires Compromise. Applejack wanted to go on a treasure-hunting adventure, Pinkie Pie wanted to have fun and play games, and Rarity wanted to relax and enjoy the cruise. Now they're blaming each other for ruining the trip and not getting what they wanted.
• Aesop Amnesia: The first time that Rarity and Applejack found some common ground between each other was in "Look Before You Sleep". Since then, they've become great friends throughout the series. Now Rarity and Applejack seem all too eager to pin the blame on each other.
• Anti-Climax: In-Universe example. Spike spends the whole time curious about how Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie made it back after they all say they were stranded in the middle of the ocean. After he has his Rage Breaking Point, shouting for someone to just tell him, it is revealed after an awkward silence that they were all exaggerating. They weren't really stranded in the middle of the ocean, they washed back up on shore after their boat sank. Or perhaps they never even left the shore at all.
• Arbitrary Skepticism: Despite all the monsters of various folklores that have been shown in the series, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack all have trouble believing Twilight's theory that a bunyip sank their yacht until they see it behind them.
  Pinkie Pie: Sounds like a stretch...
• Arc Words: Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack all "wanted to get 'out of their element'" on the boat trip.
• Ascended Meme: While Rarity is cleaning herself up, she finds a crab hiding in her mane — a reference to the "Rarity fighting a giant crab" meme.
• As You Know: The episode opens with Twilight doing plenty exposition that summarizes the whole premise of the boat trip. She's doing it for Spike, who we might assume probably knows all of this already.
• Bag of Holding: In Rarity's flashback, she pulls a big food tray out of a bag that's too small for it. It's probably the first hint that she's an Unreliable Expositor, as she's more known for Lots of Luggage.
• Brick Joke: Pinkie Pie is seen putting muffins in the oven at the start of her part of the story. Then, when she's about to answer Spike's question about how they got back on land, she smells the smoke of the muffins burning. It also shows how upset she is, since she boasted in the previous episode that she never burned cakes.
• Brief Accent Imitation: When Twilight reads the notes from Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie out loud, she slips into copying their vocal mannerisms.
• Chewing the Scenery: Applejack, of all ponies, goes full "YAARRR! Talk like a pirate, matey!" at least according to Rarity's version.
• Continuity Nod:
  • Spike's ongoing Precocious Crush on Rarity is briefly raised when he and Twilight receive news that Rarity has canceled.
  • Rarity once again pulls out a fainting couch out of nowhere, and even briefly partakes in a tub of ice cream.
  • When the trio exit the train at the beginning of the episode, Rarity is wearing the same trench coat from her Femme Mystique Chic line in "Rarity Investigates!".
• Enemy Rising Behind: The three-horned bunyip ominously rises behind Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie while they're turning their backs to it. Thankfully it's not hostile.
• Epic Fail: The boat didn't even leave the harbor when it was sunk, which means the trip ended before it even got started.
• Eyedscreen: Combined with Split-Screen Reaction. Upon the train arriving, the screen splits in three rows to show a close-up on Applejack's, Rarity's and Pinkie Pie's frowning eyes.
• Facepalm: Spike's reaction to learning that the trio never made it out of the shallow harbor is a face-claw with snout-pulling.
• Fair-Play Whodunnit: To a degree: the three elements Twilight recognizes as common to each story are clearly present to the viewer. However, the leap of logic from those clues to the bunyip comes out of nowhere (though otherwise fairly manages to make all the stories agree) ^note  It might not be as big a leap of logic for someone living in Equestia as pointed out in Arbitrary Skepticism.
• Feud Episode: One between Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie over the best way to enjoy a boat trip.
• Fish Eyes: At the start of Applejack's flashback, Pinkie Pie shows up staring blankly into space, both eyes pointing opposite directions.
• Flanderization: Each pony's story exaggerates one of the others. Rarity makes Applejack into a rough and ocean-mad sailor, Pinkie makes Rarity into a stuffy and prudish snob, and Applejack makes Pinkie into an immature and fun-crazed marechild and Rarity into an even more obnoxious snob while turning her use of the word "Darling" into a borderline Verbal Tic.
  Rarity: Oh, darling, that food isn't fit for a pony of proper breeding, darling, and refinement, darling! Now my cucumber sandwiches, on the other hoof...
• Flashback: The main gist of the episode is constituted of contradictory flashbacks of the boat trip, showing Rarity's, Pinkie Pie's and Applejack's versions.
• Foreshadowing:
  • Each of the pony's version of events depicts bubbles in the water after Rarity's cucumber sandwiches are thrown in, and a large swell coming in from nowhere shortly after. It is later revealed that bubbles on the water, followed by a swell, is what happens when a bunyip comes to the surface, which one particular bunyip did when enticed by the cucumber sandwiches. The bunyip itself is also visible on Applejack's map.
  • When getting Pinkie's side of the story, this exchange foreshadows even more that they're all embellishing.
    Twilight: Wait, wait, wait. That doesn't sound like Rarity.
    Pinkie: Just you wait until you hear how much more unlike her she sounds!
• Freeze-Frame Bonus: Applejack's map is visible at a readable angle for only a few moments, but it clearly shows that there's a bunyip in these waters.
• Fun with Acronyms: The title.
• Giant Wall of Watery Doom: Each of the girls' accounts of the sailing trip ends with the ship getting hit head-on by a gigantic wave.
• Group Hug: The ponies (and Spike) gathers into a hug when they finally reconcile. The bunyip wants in too, and when allowed by Applejack, it hugs the whole boat.
• Here There Be Dragons: Applejack's map shows a wrecked ship, which turns out be an actual landmark, and three-horned sea monster, which also turns out to very much exist.
• Human Notepad: Pinkie Pie wrote her excuse for not attending the tea party on Gummy's belly and sent him to Twilight's castle. Twilight apparently uses the same method to get Pinkie to come to the dock later on.
• Irony:
  • Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity all manage to "get out of their element" on the cruise. Applejack is the Element of Honesty, yet she can't get her facts straight and believes her side of the story to be the most impartial of the three. Pinkie Pie, the Element of Laughter, isn't very mirthful after the cruise, and Rarity, the Element of Generosity, is less than generous with Applejack's "colorful seafarer attitude".
  • In "Rarity Investigates!", Rarity has shown that she has a keen eye for details and makes a great detective. All of a sudden, she has a skewed story that doesn't add up with Applejack's and Pinkie Pie's stories. Add to that the ruined trenchcoat which is exactly the same as the one she wore in that episode.
  • Applejack employs verbal irony in her flashback to describe how unhelpful Pinkie Pie was when the three of them were fighting over the map.
    Applejack: And Pinkie Pie was just about as helpful as a weasel in a hen house.
• Kappa: The bunyip shares some characteristics associated with this monster, being an aquatic, reptilian creature that loves cucumbers.
• Large Ham: Applejack, according to Rarity (see Chewing the Scenery), is definitely "out of her element" in the pirate persona. Seems like Ashleigh Ball was having a ball recording those lines.
• Lots of Luggage: In Pinkie Pie's flashback, Rarity brings so much luggage to the ship that she needs a dozen ponies to carry them all. It's likely exaggerated somewhat, but knowing Rarity it's probably close to the truth. Ironically, in her own flashback she carries just a little bag, except it contains a food tray way too big for it.
• Mythology Gag:
  • Twilight tells Spike that Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy are busy attending their flight camp reunion, which is covered in the comics.
  • Rarity's overuse of the word "darling" in Applejack's flashback can be traced back to G3's version of Rainbow Dash, who was decomposited into G4 Rarity.
• Never My Fault: Each of the trio blames one or both of the others for the boat sinking. Especially notable for Applejack, who blames Rarity and Pinkie Pie, while they each blamed only one other pony.
• Non-Malicious Monster: The Bunyip is actually quite friendly, and even apologizes for capsizing the boat.
• Ocean Madness: According to Rarity, the boat trip went bad when Applejack caught some sort of sea madness and steered their ship into a storm while laughing maniacally.
• Offscreen Teleportation: After Applejack and Rarity run to the dock in response to Twilight's friendship emergency, Pinkie Pie pops in between them.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Rarity accuses Applejack of being an abrasive old salt. Pinkie accuses Rarity of being a snooty socialite. Applejack accuses Pinkie of being a clumsy ditz. The accusations are so absurd that it's obvious that all three ponies are lying about the way each of them acted on the boat.
  "That sure doesn't sound like Applejack/Rarity/Pinkie Pie."
  Pinkie Pie: Just wait until you hear how much more unlike her [Rarity] sounds.
• Our Cryptids Are More Mysterious: Bunyips are some of the most notorious Australian cryptids, and this one is a sea creature so mysterious that neither Applejack, Rarity or Pinkie Pie believe it exists despite all the other monsters they've seen.
• Pass the Popcorn: Spike eats from a bag of popcorn while listening to Pinkie's side of the story.
• Poor Communication Kills: Each of the trio wanted to help the other two go out of their comfort zone and try new things, but they didn't really express that to the others. Later, Twilight has to trick the trio into meeting her together at the docks so she can explain things and avoid this because of the feud.
• Rage Breaking Point: Spike spends the whole time curious how Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie made it back after they each say they were stranded in the middle of the ocean. He gets more annoyed when everyone avoids answering, and when they mention it once again after luring them back to the boat dock his frustrations reach their peak and he lets out a scream, demanding everyone just tell him how they made it back. He is also clearly not satisfied with their embarrassing answer, giving an annoyed Facepalm in response.
• "Rashomon"-Style: Rarity, Applejack and Pinkie Pie all have different and mutually contradictory accounts of what happened on their disastrous boat trip. Twilight has to figure out what really happened by cross-referencing their stories and noting the details in common.
• RevengeSVP: Inverted. Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Rarity all snub each other by pointedly refusing to go to the tea party.
• Running Gag:
  • Twilight wordlessly magicking a scroll and quill into Spike's claws when each of the other three start their story, much to Spike's annoyance.
  • Spike can't get a straight answer about how the trio got back to shore, and grows increasingly frustrated.
• Self-Serving Memory: The episode shows how flexible memory can be, especially when strong emotions are thrown into the mix, as each of the three ponies seem to honestly believe their account is the correct one and that the others were lying.
• Shout-Out:
  • The flag on the boat mimics the one from British Columbia (no surprise, given DHX's home turf).
  • In all three stories, the boat being drawn up the giant swell mimics a similar scene from The Perfect Storm.
  • Rarity in Applejack's flashback has the same dress and hat worn by Rose from Titanic in her flashback. Rarity even reenacts Rose's "King of the World" pose on the bow of the ship.
  • In two of the flashbacks, Applejack wears a reddish-orange wool cap, much like oceanographer Jacques Cousteau. Or perhaps Steve Zissou (who is a parody of Cousteau anyway).
• Split-Screen Reaction: Combined with Eyedscreen. Upon the train arriving, the screen split in three rows to show a close-up on Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie's frowning eyes.
• Stealth Pun:
  • A Visual Pun as well; Rarity is brushing her hair after the incident, and pulls out a live crustacean. Rarity went on a cruise and got crabs. (Jim Miller even posted on twitter to confirm this was intentional.)
  • Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie do manage to "get out of their element", from a certain [Pony] point of view.
• Stop Drowning and Stand Up: Spike keeps trying to ask how the ponies made it back from the capsized ship. Turns out, they never even got out of the shallow area by the docks.
• Swivel-Chair Antics: When delivering Applejack's excuse for not attending the tea party, Winona enjoys a spin on a stool, thanks to the fanning action of her wagging tail.
• Take a Third Option: Pinkie Pie climbs over the train rather than follow either Applejack or Rarity.
• Talk Like a Pirate: Applejack in Rarity's flashback has a squinty eye and a pirate accent (and keeps saying "Yarr!"). Kudos to Ashleigh Ball for doing it all without losing too much of Applejack's Tennessee accent.
• Tempting Fate: Rarity, just before their yacht sinks in Pinkie Pie's version of what happened on the boat trip.
  Rarity: Oh don't worry, dear. Luxury cruises never sink.
• Trademark Favorite Food: Bunyips really like cucumbers, apparently.
• Truth in Television: Rarity, Applejack and Pinkie's renditions of the boat trip being colored by their grudges just shows how fallible and easily twisted memory can be.
• Unreliable Expositor: Each of the three ponies has their own version of the events of the boat trip.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: The Bunyip has no idea that it is endangering a major friendship.
• Vegetarian Carnivore: An unusual case with a mythological creature. Bunyips are commonly described as carnivores in accounts, but the one in the episode enjoys eating cucumbers despite having some carnivorous features such as sharp teeth. Maybe it's an omnivore?
• Wide Eyes and Shrunken Irises: Spike and Twilight get these when they learn Rarity has declined her invitation to the Tea Party.
• Worldbuilding: The episode takes place at a seaside town on the eastern coast of Equestria.
• Yowies and Bunyips and Drop Bears, Oh My: The boat was accidentally sunk by a bunyip. Interestingly, folklore typically describes bunyips as carnivores that live in rivers and lakes, but apparently Equestrian bunyips live in the ocean and love cucumbers.^note Of course, since Twilight specifies it as a "tri-horned bunyip", it may be a subspecies.

---