If you pull his tail hard enough, his beard will zip right back in.
It wasn't an earth-shattering episode, but IMO it wasn't meant to be. No giant monster threat means the stakes, deadly as they were (It's ponies versus CANADA!!) didn't have the same weight as an actual physical threat personified. Still, I did like the expansion of the family and the mythos, and actually having the whole Sparkle family united AND speaking, however briefly.
Still not completely sold on Starlight. I know why she was added, but it stole a lot of focus form the Mane 6, which is still what I think most of us want to see.
Mark