Update + Meet TheHarisayBrothers + Defense

Hello, everyone! Sorry I didn't wish you all Merry Christmas or Happy New Year last month.  I've been pretty busy, not just with X-Mas, but with an arts-related project that's actually bigger and more challenging than anything I've ever done.  What's the project, you might wonder? Well, that's a surprise, and you'll find out when I complete it, then post it.  But I will say that I'm helping FlyingBrickAnimation and TheHappySpace with a few things of their own--neither of which is my said project; if anyone is contributing to it, it's not Kirb or Dan.
In other news, I've been to my local gym, the Kroc Center in Coeur D'Alene, ID, at least once a day in the morning.  I don't know about you, but it's about time I was able to keep in shape each day again.
And that's it for my status report.  Now, there's a few interesting people I'd like you to meet.

As some of you may or may not have known, TheHarisayBrothers are a brotherhood, apparently of metalheads, some of which are bronies.  But my discourse is on two in particular, Christian and Joseph, who have made an astounding two-part review of The Crystal Empire.  In the videos, they give rather interesting points as to why the premiere failed: how the "Scary Door" failed as a story element, how "Behold, the Crystal Princess!" made Cadance a Voodoo Shark, and why the episode's highlight that was Twilight's test was actually the most inadequate story element.  I kid you not; see for yourselves!
Part I: youtu.be/2sNxFAAXfR0
Part II: youtu.be/DHwMUBuv7Pk
Now, few, including the Brothers, have gotten from me a lot that I'm a big fan of their videos, and why.  Well, there are just a few things I must do before I finally bury this dead horse, and what better to start with than a journal entry in their defense?!
After Antony C gave them a shout-out not too long ago, their reviews got some pretty mixed feedback.  The Brothers said things in their review that were, well, no cup of tea for some viewers.

One problem people seem to have with them is that they demanded extra screen time and character development for King Sombra.  I know Sombra wasn't really meant for that, but when you give him a character like the holographic flashback scene did, it's obligatory to do something interesting with it.  They told us King Sombra was a conqueror and a tyrant, but then he's practically absent for Part I; then in Part II he just prowls around outside while just laughing and creating the Michael Bay version of Cybertron; Twilight walks into traps that storywise lend nothing in the long run.  In the end, Sombra becomes wasted even worse than Darth Maul, and that's the villain.  I admire that fans like Anzu18 and InkRose try to fill the gaps the episode left; but character depth shouldn't have to stem from outsourced headcanons.  To people who try to justify how Sombra was handled, I won't hear any of it.  Seriously, once he taints the Crystal Heart, casts a shadow of evil over Equestria and bests the princesses, come and talk to me.  In the meantime, take my word for it--giving fans of your writing a blank slate to work with is a big no-no.

The next problem is that people who liked TCE think the Harisays nitpick too much, and assume the review's being awfully negative.  They particularly are bothered by the Brothers "judging the episode by what it didn't do, rather than what it did."  Well, I don't know about you, but the episode is full of missed opportunities that, if only built upon, would have made it much more enjoyable.  For one thing, they embed black crystals in Shining Armor's horn, and it doesn't lead to anything... unless Voodoo Sharks count (Shining Armor's shield magic wouldn't have been disabled if he didn't wander around outside in the first place).  If Shining Armor maintained the barrier, Cadance could bond with her subjects, at least to keep "Behold, the Crystal Princess!" from being yet another Voodoo Shark.  Then, there's the "Scary Door:" it shifted the spectral limelight to Celestia and Twilight's stupid test, instead of keeping it on either King Sombra or dark magic itself, both of which we were supposed to be dreading.  Point being, what the episode did is precisely why it failed.  When the Harisays pointed out what was left to be desired, they were simply giving constructive criticism.  When you assume they're being too negative, there's a term for that kind of fallacy: I believe it's called the "straw man."  Bottom line, telling them otherwise is mean, rude, and disrespectful, and there's just no excuse for it.

Next we move on to what Christian said at the beginning of the video:
"It was unbelievably bad; what I find more unbelievable is how many people actually like it! I know some of you still do, but... you don't know any better."
People seem to have taken that line WAY too seriously.  Well, say what you will about it, but I'm actually with Christian there.  You may have a right to your opinions, but in MY opinion, there's practically nothing to like about this premiere.  I've heard people try to explain what there is, but those reasons turn out being completely ignorant.  We can see just fine what's going on when King Sombra tries to re-take the empire; but his efforts were ultimately meaningless, and made no difference in the long run.  Also, King Sombra only abused and haunted ponies with the character depth of tepid sheep; he tried to hide the Crystal Heart to... stay alive while continuing to be a dick to his subjects.  Spike helped save the Crystal Empire; but again the empire is weak and worthless, plus Spike had no reason to tag along to begin with.  Also, if Spike AND Fluttershy were out, who was caring for the pets? You understand where Christian and I are coming from now, don't you? Now, if anything was good in the episode, the Crystal Fair Ballad deserves that honor in all fairness: it moved the plot along, gave info on the setting, and it was catchy.  But I digress.  When you get so strung up about what the Brothers said, it only shows how butt-hurt you really are.  What Christian said does not offset the fact they elaborated and gave evidence, so, to those who took offense to Christian's line, take a chill-pill, alright?

Next we move onto--oh my God!--them saying "fuck" and "shit" in their video.  To me, that argument is yet another straw man fallacy as far as I'm concerned.  To put it plain and simple, TheHarisayBrothers are not MarioTehPlumber.  They don't swear that much, they don't swear that often; they don't trade elaboration and evidence for every word in the sailor's encyclopedia of profanity.  And this goes back to me saying, when you let every little thing they say get under your skin, you're only hurting yourself.

And that's my defense.  The Brothers did make a few mistakes, like not realizing that King Sombra has a goal, but it's not a well-thought out one in terms of writing.  All in all, though, the review isn't perfect, but it's really not that bad.  If you find any mistakes in their video, WAIT UNTIL YOU'VE WATCHED BOTH PARTS of the review before commenting, at least to make sure said mistake isn't arbitrary.  And whatever you do, don't insult their acting.  One, they're metalheads.  Two, they aren't really being that serious.  Saying things like they're "whining" or "being long-winded and annoying" is borderline stupid.  So do yourself a favor, and read a book before judging it.

That's all.  Hope you are all having a happy new year!