 Both parts of the episode received largely positive reviews from critics . Carina Belles from We Got This Covered , in a review of the first part , called the series " plain awesome " , noting that it was " basically Lord of the Rings , only with ponies . " Belles praised the expressing animation , writing that " the already incredible art has also improved , with a wider variety of styles being used . " A review from Republibot of the first part of the episode called the plot " an interesting revisit of the premise of the pilot [ ' Friendship Is Magic ' ] " . Furthermore , the review called John de Lancie 's performance " superb " and praised the animation . Reviews for part two were positive as well . Republibot gave the episode a largely positive review , however , the site did note that the episode " feels a bit rushed , even as a two @-@ parter " and that " Fluttershy 's and Rarity 's restoration sequences in particular feel rushed and inadvertently echo [ the mind wipe sequences from ] Men in Black . " 
