Ponyfic Roundup 274

Read it Later story count: 233 (-1)

And we're back! I read one story last week when I wasn't feeling very well, and I added another four this week. That means there are five fics under the microscope this time around – the first time for a little while that I've managed that. I'll also quickly remind folks that my star ratings are largely a measure of how much I enjoyed reading a story, not an attempt to measure the story's objective literary worth. With that in mind, let's get going!

Keeping Your Hooves on the Ground by InsertAuthorHere
Save the Records by TheBandBrony
The Derpy Files by Soge
The Gift of Winter by Banana Prince
RadioActivity by Zh3sh1re

★: 0 | ★★: 4 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0

Keeping Your Hooves on the Ground by InsertAuthorHere
Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash
Comedy/Slice of Life; 8k words; May 2012; Everyone

Dash tells what happened to her and Fluttershy immediately after her first Sonic Rainboom.

Very sadly, IAH died last year, but while he was alive he built up a very large following on Fimfiction. This is one of his earlier stories, a cute little piece with Dash and 'Shy as fillies. (Well, for the told-in-flashback majority of the story.) Rainbow is scared of going down to the ground, as Cloudsdale stories – at least among other Flight Camp foals – hold that it's a terrifying place full of monsters. Fluttershy being happy and unconcerned down there rather throws her. There's some nice world-building around the edges, eg the need to excercise caution about drinking water in Cloudsdale in case it's going to be rain, and a mildly-but-not-overly sad theme of Flutters' parents being a bit disappointed she hasn't become a great flier. The story does have a bad case of Lavender Unicorn Syndrome, eg "the socially nervous pony" for 'Shy, and the ending is unexciting (though it is cute). Overall, a nice, nostalgic story if you like old-fashioned fics. I rather do. ★★★

Save the Records by TheBandBrony
Other
Slice of Life/Alternate Universe; 3k words; Jan 2015; Teen

Whether you tacet or play along, all songs must end in silence.

This is an RCL-inducted story, and several reviewers have raved about it. Me? I'm afraid I didn't really understand it. Each paragraph is introduced with a musical chord, and it starts off in what is apparently a post-nuclear-apocalypse world. I can't really work out what's actually happening here, though. There's a song mentioned to play alongside the story, and it does help to do so, as does reading it aloud so you can hear the rhythm. I guess it's sort of a Beat story, but then Kerouac et al have never really been my thing either. As for PaulAsaran, I feel I'm missing something deep and impressive, the same way I do when I fail to get anywhere with Finnegans Wake. As with that book, I can glimpse something mighty on the edge of sight, but I can't properly grasp it – not even with the extensive Author's Notes provided. As such, the fic makes me feel frustrated more than anything and I can't say I enjoyed the experience all that much. Hence my rating – though if you truly live music, I suspect you may find this a four- or even five-star fic. ★★

The Derpy Files by Soge
Derpy, Spike, Lyra and Bon-Bon
Comedy/Random; 3k words; May 2012; Everyone

Derpy uncovers a conspiracy that runs to the very core of Equestria.

This is a very early Soge work, and in places that does show in the writing quality. Even so, it remains a fairly amusing mish-mash of conspiracy theories as seen by our favourite Muffin Mare."Nightmare Moon was an inside job" will give you a flavour of what's going on here. We also get a nice little jab at ponies' obsession with singing – Soge wasn't the first or last author to go down that route, but it's done quite well here. Unfortunately, there's a more significant problem, which is that every single one of the embedded pictures is now broken, and in some cases I couldn't work out what it would have been. That makes this fic feel incomplete, hence the lowish rating. ★★ Edit: see Soge's comment below for how to find the pictures. You can add an extra star if they still work when you look!

The Gift of Winter by Banana Prince
Other [Minty]
Slice of Life; 1k words; Nov 2014; Everyone

The autumn wind seems to have a magic of its own. It blows bringing the past back. Minty falls under the spell and she's taken back.

Yes, this fic stars Minty – everyone's favourite G3 pony. (Well, most people's favourite.) Don't expect a whole lot of substance here, but if you like Slice-of-Life then ambling gently along with Minty for company is not the worst way to spend five minutes. For those who remember G3, socks do indeed play a fairly significant role in this story, and Minty benefits in a frankly slightly unbelievable way, but oh well. Problems? Well, technically it needs quite a bit of work (using "greeted" as a saidism, that sort of thing) and there's a rather forced reference to Lyra's human obsession. Still, it's pleasant enough. ★★

RadioActivity by Zh3sh1re
Twilight
Dark/Human/Slice of Life; 1k words; Mar 2014; Everyone

This place should not be disturbed...

A very short, atmospheric piece in which Twilight descends a dark passageway untouched for many thousands of years and finds... well, that would be telling, although I suspect many readers will guess before reading the A/N at the end that reveals all. The fic was inspired by a documentary that I haven't seen, but still I enjoyed the claustrophobic atmosphere as Twilight walks alone into the abyss. I would have liked more of that, to be honest. Twi isn't entirely convincing in her reactions later in the story, and it's too short to build up enough of an effect. Note that the chapter title, "Kuolema", has a meaning in an Earth language; if you know that meaning and which language, you may find the story itself holds fewer surprises. ★★

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Next time on Ponyfic Roundup: stories reviewed should include Georg's Twilight Sparkle Lays an Egg.