Sounds of 2013: no. 1!

Whew, I've made it before the end of the year. Just! We've now been all the way through Everfree Radio's Top 100 of brony songs for 2013, as voted for by their listeners at the time. I don't see any reason to use a page cut on this one occasion, since there is only one song left... the number one! And here it is:

01: SlyphStorm – Pegasus Device

Rule 1: uploaded to YouTube 31 Oct 2013

SlyphStorm took third place in this Top 100, but that was only his second most popular song. This is the one that was voted top of the 2013 Pony pops. It's a follow-up to WoodenToaster's 2011 classic "Rainbow Factory", taking certain musical cues and (at the end) even whole lines from the older song, but with slick presentation and notably high production values. Something interesting is that WoodenToaster's song wasn't specific about the nature of the horrors that went into making rainbows, but then the fanfic appeared. By 2013, therefore, "Pegasus Device" was able to be much blunter and more brutal in telling its own take on the story. Indeed, this is a very grimdark song indeed if you know its background and concentrate on the lyrics. However, if you let all that wash over you a little, it's just a great piece of music. Would I have placed it first? I'm not sure. But I'm almost certain it would have made my top ten. I'm happy that the final entry in this series is one whose popularity I can get behind. Pick up the HQ version for $1 on SlyphStorm's Bandcamp.

And there you have it! As far as I can tell, 2013 was the last year that Everfree Radio did a Top 100 like this. As such, I don't know whether I'll be able to do a similar series for 2014 or beyond. I am not ruling out the idea, but I'm not ruling it in either!

My Little Repeats 65: "Magical Mystery Cure"

Derpy finally making a clear (if very brief) S3 appearance was a huge deal at the time

S3E13: "Magical Mystery Cure"
Written by M. A. Larson
26 Feb 2013

My original rating: 9/10 (=★★★★★)
IMDb score: 8.1

The one with Spike dancing Gangnam Style

Thoughts: And here we are at last! When this finale first aired, we still didn't know whether there'd ever be another episode of Friendship is Magic, though we were all relieved to finally see the end of the fandom's miserable months-long Twilicorn Wars. Few people were unspoiled as to Alicorn Twilight's imminence by this time, so the biggest surprise was the full-on musical nature of the episode. The songs are mostly excellent, and "A True, True Friend" may be my favourite FiM song of them all – it has a wonderful message, and that "PINKIE!" is pure joyous delight. That aspect, at least, was an unambiguous triumph. The actual story? Interesting but very, very compressed. This desperately needed 44 minutes rather than 22, especially for the cutie mark stuff, but Larson did a surprisingly good job with so little time to play with. Twilight saying a spell "to see what it did" was pretty stupid, but seeing Celestia bowing to her was quite a moment – although the actual "alicorn reveal" moment has inevitably lost some of its impact now. Nicole Oliver's lovely singing was the focus at the time, though! I know some have mixed feelings about "MMC" because of what it led to later in the show's run. But I'm judging it here on its own merits, and I enjoyed my rewatch a great deal. The rushed pace niggles a little more than it used to, so I'm nudging it down from its original five-star rating to a (high) four. It's still well up there, though.

Choice quote: Twilight: "Is there a book about being a princess I should read?"

New rating: ★★★★

And that's all for Season 3! I'll be rewatching S4 in due course, but before that (in the first half of January, I hope) there'll be a look back at S3 as I saw it this time around, including the ever-popular(?) star chart.

My Little Repeats 64: "Games Ponies Play"

Strengthened changeling-minion-proof glass these days?

S3E12: "Games Ponies Play"
Written by Dave Polsky
9 Feb 2013

My original rating: 7/10 (=★★★)
IMDb score: 7.2

The one with Coach Shining Armor

Thoughts: The big gimmick for this episode is that it takes place simultaneously with the events of "Just for Sidekicks". Which is great and all, but the episode itself is, for the most part, one of the dullest I've rewatched in all these three seasons. The extended period of mistaken identity at its heart is as contrived and tiresome as these things often are, for a start. And did we ever hear of "Mustangia" again? I can't remember it if so. About the most interesting part of the ep is the fun little bit with the pony pyramid act. That said, I do like the way that "Ms Peachbottom" (not actually named in the episode) is shown as claustrophobic, a thing you rarely see taken even halfway seriously in a fun cartoon – seeing that here was perhaps a slight surprise from a humour-loving writer like Dave Polsky. Mind you, we never did get a canon answer as to who the rainbow-maned stallion taking Filly Dash to the Games was. At the time there was speculation he was Rainbow's dad, but "Parental Glideance" in S7 put the tin lid on that idea. Despite a few fun moments, I don't really know why I enjoyed it so much in 2013, as I now feel I clearly overrated it back then. For some reason Ms Harshwhinny was adored by the fandom at the time, though I feel she was considerably better value in S4. As I did say back then, Pinkie is rather weirdly written, too. I'm taking back the three-star (equivalent) rating I originally gave this one and returning only two of those stars. Sorry.

Choice quote: Rainbow and Fluttershy: "Bump-cha!"

New rating: ★★

Next up is "Magical Mystery Cure", and we all know what that means. I'll say it right now: I like "MMC" despite its flaws, and I don't expect that to change. I know that's not a universally held opinion around here, but that's all right.

Ponyfic Roundup 325

Read it Later story count: 173 (nc) 

As promised, at the end of this post you'll find out which longfic I'll be spotlighting in the New Year! (No PR on 30th December.) This week, though, the usual three shorter stories. I couldn't resist the temptation to include one very seasonal offering, plus one that was chosen randomly from Fimfiction's search and one by an author who I felt deserved a little more attention:

Say Goodbye to the Hollandaise: A Hearth's War(ming) Tail by WishyWish
What a Surprise... by Rainbow
The Quiet Day by Lets Do This

★: 1 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Sounds of 2013: nos. 3 and 2

It's no secret that I haven't been updating this blog as consistently recently as I would like. There's no specific reason for that beyond the general "It's 2020" syndrome affecting so many of us in various ways, but at least I should be able to get Sounds of 2013 finished before the end of the year now I'm finally posting the penultimate part! The usual quick refresher on the criteria for inclusion:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

Today's dynamic duo are:

03: SlyphStorm – Sinking Ships [cover]
02: BlackGryph0n & Baasik – Crusader (Are We There Yet?)

What's beyond the cut below? Waffling, YouTube embeds, you know the score by now. If you're interested, come past the break with me!

My Little Repeats 63: "Just for Sidekicks"

Dash being cute is relatively rare but generally rather adorable

S3E11: "Just for Sidekicks"
Written by Corey Powell
26 Jan 2013

My original rating: 7/10 (=★★★)
IMDb score: 7.2

The one with balloon animal Rainbow Dash

Thoughts: Corey Powell gave us the sublime "Sleepless in Ponyville" on debut – but sadly lightning didn't strike twice. To be fair, this isn't the complete bore-fest I'd remembered it as being; I was convinced that I'd find my 2013 review to be absurdly generous now, but that wasn't really the case. It's actually one of Spike's best showings from the first half of FiM, not that that's saying a great deal. As far as the pets go, this is a good outing for Angel, and Powell nicely balances his annoying and cute sides, rather than just representing him as an unmitigated horror as (too) much of the fandom tends to. The CMC play a pretty nice supporting role, especially with their unauthorised (and very brief!) trip to the Crystal Empire. I can't say I'm massively enthralled by this episode, partly because the pets themselves aren't all that interesting, Angel again apart. Some oddities, too: why wasn't Spike invited to the Equestria Games thing? (He does get a somewhat painful star turn there next season, of course.) And how come it's Rarity's jewel that Spike chooses as the first one to give away? Still, I mentioned in 2013 the amusement value of having a scratchy relationship between Spike and Angel. I can't believe that was coincidence. Also, Fluttershy had that huge emerald, which I recall prompted minor discussion about where she actually gets her funds from – never really answered in canon, though fanfiction has had a few goes. So yes, I'm going to let this one keep its three-star rating. It's not that high in that band, but I'll admit it was a bit more entertaining than I had expected.

Choice quote: Rainbow: "You only want to get hit in the head by a flying turtle once."[Tortoise! –Ed.]

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Games Ponies Play", which takes place at the same time as this episode but which I remember almost nothing about. It really is that forgettable, and despite my decent experience this time I don't have especially high hopes that this will change.

My Little Repeats 62: "Keep Calm and Flutter On"

Four seasons later, this kind of thing was happening for real

S3E10: "Keep Calm and Flutter On"
Written by Dave Polsky
19 Jan 2013

My original rating: 8/10 (=★★★★)
IMDb score: 8.0

The one with the Discord table lamp

Thoughts: There was a three-week break between "Spike At Your Service" and this one, so anticipation had had time to build. In the event, the first ep of 2013 turned out to be much more important than anyone really appreciated at the time. Even some of the little things, like at the end where Fluttershy says Discord is "a real sweetheart once you get to know him". However, I have more problems with the bulk of the ep than I used to. Rarity does have a point when she says Flutters is being "silly and gullible" – it's not at all hard to imagine her gamble going horribly wrong, although personally I think that would nullify her promise not to use her Element, so it probably wasn't quite as dangerous as it seems. Still, I think it might have been more convincing from the 'Shy of a few seasons later; here, it all feels a tad forced. There is a lot of fun in this episode, from the continuing subplot with the beavers to the Beauty and the Beast nod with the candlesticks. Rainbow is enjoyable as the main sceptical voice, too. Discord himself has become less of an outright threat than he was in S2, perhaps partly because he recognises that Twilight has more power to counter him, though that's theorising on my part. Not the near-classic I thought it was seven years ago, but still enjoyable. A high three, I think, though perhaps a part of that is because the likes of "Discordant Harmony" would never have beeh possible without this episode.

Choice quote: Pinkie: "Make that bunny cute again! Now!"

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Just for Sidekicks", otherwise known as "the pet episode" and one of two remaining S3 eps for which my main thought at the moment is simply "Meh." Can it salvage some pride? Find out next time!

Ponyfic Roundup 324

Read it Later story count: 173 (-3) 

Herewith the penultimate pre-Hearth's Warming edition of PR. As I've mentioned, there won't be a Roundup on the 30th, and instead I'll be using the extra week to read a longfic for Spotlighting in early January. I hope. Which fic will it be? You'll find out next time! Today, though, I have these three to look at:

Ambergris by Pascoite
Routine Company by Monochromatic
Suddenly, potatoes by Techy

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 1
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 61: "Spike At Your Service"

Why yes, I am picking this as my header pic because it's adorable

S3E09: "Spike At Your Service"

Written by Dave Polsky
29 Dec 2012

My original rating: 6/10 (=★★★)
IMDb score: 6.3

The one with 24,567,837 blades of grass

Thoughts: This episode has long been considered a bit of a mess by most of the fandom. And, well, they're right. It is. I mean, it does have its moments: Rainbow Dash's self-insert fanfic is one of my favourite moments of the entirety of S3. Fluttershy also has quite a good episode: right at the start, we see her walking Winona, and later there's her mild sassiness ("If she needed help, I think she'd realise it") and her adorable part in the fake timberwolf setup. Rarity was fun in her all-too-brief "how to be a damsel in distress" masterclass, too. Talking of timberwolves, the real ones are really quite interesting monsters (and variously animated) and  they could perhaps have been used a little more in future eps. On the downside, though... Spike's "Dragon Code" both comes from and goes to pretty much nowhere. It stretches credulity to think Twilight wouldn't even notice Spike saying he was off forever. Also, the central story itself feels like a subplot stretched (somewhat thinly) to main plot status. Considering the actual risk to life we see more than once, it's surprisingly emotionally uninvolving for the most part, too. But the worst thing about this episode is the way it treats Spike. He's shown as frankly a bit of a fool. Whatever faults he may have, he really is not that. This wouldn't be my pick as worst episode of FiM, far from it. But it's not a particularly good effort, not even by S3 standards. My review in 2013 was a little too generous; two stars it is now, then.

Choice quote: Spike (to Rarity, natch) : "You even look good when you're chewing!"

New rating: ★★

Next up is "Keep Calm and Flutter On", a considerably more significant episode in retrospect than was immediately apparent at the time. Also an ep that divides opinion to this day.

Right, here's an actual schedule!

Subject to anything coming up that I really can't push through, I am determined that I will finish my rewatch of Season 3 by the end of 2020. To increase the chances of my actually sticking to that, here's how I plan on posting each episode's review:

Sun 13/12: "Spike At Your Service"

Thu 17/12: "Keep Calm and Flutter On"

Sun 20/12: "Just for Sidekicks"

Thu 24/12: "Games Ponies Play"

Mon 28/12 "Magical Mystery Cure"

Thu 31/12: Thoughts on S3

A reasonably paced schedule, I think, and nearly a regular one at that! The exception is because I know from long experience that I tend to do almost nothing productive on Boxing Day (unless eating counts as productive). Given E13 is not one I want to rush, I've given myself an extra day to get that one done.

Ponyfic Roundup 323

Read it Later story count: 176 (nc) 

One of those weeks when there's not a lot for me to say up here. Hearth's Warming moves ever closer, and as ever I suddenly find that I'm running out of time to complete my shopping. (Obviously harder than usual this year as so much is dependent on Royal Mail et al.) I have three stories to cover this week, and here they are. Let's go.

Worshiping At The Altar Of Knowledge by TCC56
Crash Course by Kimono Rabies Pronger
Kill Your Heroes by pokefreak13

★: 1 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Getting back on the horse

Well, so to speak. I'm not sure these horses would be particularly happy about that! But I've been mildly unwell for a couple of days, and so I haven't really felt like doing anything much here. Ponyfic Roundup will be appearing as planned tomorrow, however, and I intend for my "Spike At Your Service" rewatch review to be up by the end of the week. :)

Ponyfic Roundup 322

Read it Later story count: 176 (-6) 

I'm going to follow my usual practice and have a week off Ponyfic Roundup at the end of the year. I intend to take advantage of that extra time to read a longer fic and give it a spotlight when PR returns in January. I know which story I'll be reading, but I'll keep you all in suspense for a little while longer. Now we turn to this week's three:

In Bloom by Pascoite
The Fault in Our Immortality by The Ravenclaw Queen
Winona the Immortal Dog by sunnypack

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 60: "Apple Family Reunion"

"Whaddayamean, ya never heard of batway surfin'?"

S3E08: "Apple Family Reunion"

Written by Cindy Morrow
22 Dec 2012

My original rating: 5/10 (=★★)
IMDb score: 7.1

The one with firelighter Spike

Thoughts: Surprise afternoon episode review! Back when I first reviewed this, I didn't think much of "Raise This Barn". My opinion of that song has improved quite a bit since, but what about the episode as a whole? Well, that has too. I still wouldn't put this in the same class as "Sleepless in Ponyville", but these days I find its down-home feel comforting in the way I do much of S1. Applejack also gets a proper letter to Celestia after her amusing get-out last season, and the moral she finds in the Reunion's events is one that I think has a lot of resonance for many of us in 2020 looking forward to seeing our family and friends again. There are some nice little touches – the fruit bats, baby Applejack, and of course the shooting stars representing AJ's absent parents – and Cindy Morrow gives the character interactions a warmth that I didn't quite grasp first time around. It's a real shame Babs never had a proper role again, as she had potential. Oddly, Braeburn doesn't get a speaking line, either. All in all, this goes into the "superior filler" category for me nowadays, and instead of the original two-star rating I gave it, I'm bumping it up to a solid three.

Choice quote: Applesauce: "A lady never reveals the age of her teeth."

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Spike At Your Service", one of the worst received episodes of the first half of the show's run – but one I didn't actually mind too much at the time. Now? We shall see!

Desert Island Ponyfic

It's over to you today. Not permanently, I hasten to add! I do intend to do some work on this blog still. :P However, I have a medical appointment on Wednesday; it's a routine one, but it does mean Ponyfic Roundup will be on Friday again this week. So, in the meantime, here's a question for you:

If you were marooned on a desert island for one year without internet access, but you could take with you FOUR ponyfics, what would you choose?

You cannot choose stories you wrote or had a significant hand in bringing to completion. (I'll leave what counts as "significant" to your conscience.)

The stories you pick must also be currently and publicly available, so that readers can give them a shot if they like.

Other than that, no special rules. If you want to take four million-word unfinished behemoths, you can. If you want to take four perfectly crafted shortfics, you can. If you want to make all your fics crossovers with some weird anime I've never heard of, you can. Your move!

Sounds of 2013, nos. 6 to 4

It's getting very near the end, as the Beatles once sang. Only three more editions of "Sounds of 2013" remain, including this one. I'll be covering three songs today, two next time, and the track voted number one will get a post of its own. As usual, here are the criteria used to determine inclusion or otherwise:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

The three songs included today are:

06: YourEnigma – My Roommate is a 'Bassist'
05: Ponky & Eccentrifuge – Bright Eyes (A Wonky Anthem)
04: EileMonty – I Am Octavia

As ever, if you want YouTube embeds and waffling from me, you'll find those after the page break. If not, I'm sure you've got more interesting things to do! But for those who do want them, read on.

Ponyfic Roundup 321

Read it Later story count: 182 (+1) 

I haven't really got a great deal to say in this space today. I know, I know, when did that ever stop me before? Let's get on to the week's three stories, though. Without those, you'd only have my ramblings to read here, and that really is not a fate I would wish on anybody. Today's trio:

The Wagon Repair Mare by Admiral Biscuit
Who We Are in the Dark by NaiadSagaIotaOar
A Package in the Rain by Church

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 1
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 59: "Wonderbolts Academy"

This shot really underlines how Rainbow has matured emotionally and LD hasn't

S3E07: "Wonderbolts Academy"

Written by Merriwether Williams
15 Dec 2012

My original rating: 7/10 (=★★★)
IMDb score: 8.2

The one with Pinkie emerging from the mailbox

Thoughts: For reasons I now can't remember, The Hub had a two-week gap between "Sleepless in Ponyville" and this next episode. For my money, it's one of Merriwether Williams' few definite hits. Lightning Dust is a hugely watchable character, though it's a bit of a shame that (as we learn five seasons later) she doesn't really learn much from her ejection from the Academy. Rainbow herself demonstrates how she's matured since the start of the show, and that's something I really do appreciate. As for Spitfire? I've softened a bit towards her portrayal, but this is a kid-friendly version of Sgt Hartman, a character type I find frankly tiresome. (Most real-life militaries do not take this very American "break them before you make them" approach, incidentally.) The two best scenes are confrontations: first when Rainbow snaps at Lightning Dust for her who-cares attitude to the tornado's consequences, and second when Dash quits. That scene had a real gut-punch impact when we saw it the first time. A bit less so now we know Rainbow's future, but still. Pinkie's portrayal can feel a bit over the top for this late in the series, and I'm afraid I still don't much like Bulk Biceps. Nice to see Twilight Sparkle's Balloon, though! Overall, an entertaining episode with a little extra emotional punch, but slightly let down by its flaws. I'll stick with a three-star rating.

Choice quote: Applejack: "Is anypony else followin' this?"

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Apple Family Reunion". I was distinctly underwhelmed with that episode in 2012, but I'm cautiously hopeful I may enjoy it more this time around.

Ponyfic Roundup 320

Read it Later story count: 181 (-1) 

Three stories again today. Unfortunately the mid-length fic I was going to review was something I ran out of time to finish, so that will be part of next week's collection. Instead, I fired up the random number generator and read the first thing it found that was actually complete and not a crossover. Did it pay off? We'll see later on. The three fics are:

The Ship-Off by TheBrianJ
Six More Weeks by Cold in Gardez
The Memory Stealer by cherryfeather101

★: 1 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 58: "Sleepless in Ponyville"

Lighting effects really do help the atmosphere of this episode

S3E06: "Sleepless in Ponyville"
Written by Corey Powell
1 Dec 2012

My original rating: 9/10 (=★★★★★)
IMDb score: 8.7

The one with sleep-scootering

Thoughts: Well, here we are: the first episode I ever reviewed for this blog! Back then I called it "a flawed classic, but one in which the flaws didn't hurt it much at all", and I stick by that. I'd change a few details, for example the "flight" at Winsome Falls would be my closing scene, but not much significant. I love Applejack in this episode – she clearly knows what's going on with Scootaloo, but she doesn't want to embarrass her by saying so openly. I'd forgotten how long it takes for Luna to show up at all; this is her first dreamwalking episode, so it's very significant lore-wise. Rarity is perhaps not at her best in terms of her treatment of Sweetie Belle, but I have to admit she's immensely entertaining to watch. Rainbow I didn't mind so much, as I felt her slight emotional insensitivity worked here while Scoot was trying way, way too hard to impress her idol. Besides, Dash showed another side to her character – when nopony else was looking! – at the end, in a heart-melting scene that I unashamedly adore to this day. Objectively, this is probably a four-star episode: very good, but not perfect. But you know what? I'm not going to be objective. I love "Sleepless in Ponyville", and it's a major reason Scootaloo is my favourite CMC and second favourite character overall. Corey Powell went on to write a few more eps, but as we'll see none of them could touch her remarkable debut here. This episode remains, seven years on, a five-star gold slice of Pony for me.

Choice quote: Scootaloo: "Here, branches branches branches..."

New rating: ★★★★★

Next up is "Wonderbolts Academy", which I quite liked but which I know some people find really irritating. I'll be interested to see what I make of the first appearance of Abrasive Spitfire.

Sounds of 2013, nos. 10 to 7

We return you now to Everfree Radio's Top 100 of 2013, as voted for by its listeners seven years ago. Herewith a quick reminder of the criteria I use to determine whether a song should be included – though you can take it as read that something that made the top ten qualifies under Rule 3 regardless of anything else.

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

Only four instalments of this series left now! Four songs today, then three, two and one for the remaining editions. Here's today's mixture:

10: BlackGryph0n & Baasik – Faster Than You Know
09: Aviators – Equestria Girls (Helping Twilight Win the Crown) [remix]
08: AcoustiMandoBrony – Kindness
07: SlyphStorm – Castle of Shadows

YouTube embeds, rambling and in some cases links to HQ downloads follow after the break. Meanwhile... here is some music!

Ponyfic Roundup 319

Read it Later story count: 182 (nc) 

In the real world, it's been rather an incident-packed week one way or another. Here on Louder Yay, however, we spend as little time in the real world as possible, so it's ponyfic that's our main concern today. Here are the three stories I've read over the last seven days:

Exiles by Coyote de la Mancha
The Blue Feather by TheLegendaryBillCipher
Mittens by breeziebee

★: 0 | ★★: 2 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 57: "Magic Duel"

The bunny suit is cute, but it makes absolutely no sense

S3E05: "Magic Duel"
Written by M. A. Larson
1 Dec 2012

My original rating: N/A
IMDb score: 8.4

The one with Saddle Arabians

Thoughts: Trixie's (first) return is more popular with the fandom as a whole than it is with me. I dislike the way it treats Fluttershy, for a start: in particular that bit near the start where she threatens Twilight, but also the way she reverts to almost early-S1 levels of timidity. From a writer as accomplished as Larson that's a real disappointment. Thankfully there are a number of good things, starting with the (at the time) eye-opening look at the less salubrious backstreets of... well, probably Canterlot, but who knows? We also get the first use of the word "alicorn" in the show thanks to the eponymous Amulet, as well as Zecora playing a major supporting role with both actual magic and what Granny Weatherwax would call "headology". The spells in the first magic duel are variable: the age spells are a bit dull, the gag with Pinkie's removed mouth is funny but slightly overused, and so on. The tricks Twilight uses in the second one are nice (double Rainbow!) though it's best not to consider too closely how convincing they'd actually be. I'm also not sure I quite buy Trixie going as far as getting the Alicorn Amulet in the first place, though the "magical item corrupts wearer" thing is straightforward enough. I didn't like Trixie at this point and still don't find this ep as strong as a lot of the fandom do. It's probably right at the top of the two-star band for me these days. Among my least favourite Larson episodes, at any rate.

Choice quote: Trixie: "The Great and Powerful Trixie doesn't trust wheels."

New rating: ★★

Next up is "Sleepless in Ponyville", which I have adored ever since I first saw it. I cannot imagine it will get a low rating: unless something remarkable happens it'll merely be a question of whether I rate it four of five stars.

Sounds of 2013, nos. 14 to 11

Time to get back to Everfree Radio's Top 100 of 2013, as voted for by its listeners at the time. As ever, here are the criteria that guide my decision as to whether to include a track – although from here on up, Rule 3 would apply to everything even in the absence of any other reasons.

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

Down to four songs this week (and indeed next time too) as the tension starts to mount! What will be number one? That will have to wait a little bit yet, but for now we have:

14: Foozogz – Make It Special (Reflection Mix)
13: Sand Josieph – Mother Changeling
12: AcoustiMandoBrony – Generosity
11: Claire Anne Carr – Magical Mystery Cure Rock!

After the break you'll find YouTube embeds of the songs in question, as well as a briefish bit of rambling from yours truly. I'll also mention higher-quality downloads if I know they're available somewhere.

Ponyfic Roundup 318

Read it Later story count: 182 (nc) 

It's time for some ponyfic. In a roundup. Because I'm really brilliant that way, you know? Anyway, three stories this week, and in their different ways all of them have something interesting to mark them out. Here they are:

A Grand Day Out by Pearple Prose
Daring Didn't by Hoopy McGee
That Isn't Me by wishcometrue

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 56: "One Bad Apple"

I remember this gag being very widely appreciated back in 2012

S3E04: "One Bad Apple"
Written by Cindy Morrow
24 Nov 2012

My original rating: N/A
IMDb score: 6.6

The one with Sweetie's first little spark of magic

Thoughts: From one of S3's most popular episodes to one of its least: "One Bad Apple" has the second lowest IMDb average of any this season. It's not hard to see why: this is pretty much a Very Special Episode about bullying, and not an especially subtle one at that. Its high point is definitely the fantastic song, which is one of the catchiest FiM ever produced. The accompanying animation was apparently deliberately given a Hanna-Barbera feel, right down to the recycled sequences. It's beautifully done, though: watch how well the Crusaders' eye-blinks are fitted to the beat. The low point? Well, Babs Seed herself doesn't have much of a motivation to be a bully (and no, "she was bullied in Manehattan" isn't good enough), but for me it's that the CMC are nowhere near their most likeable here. Sweetie partly excepted, but I mean, getting a foal to drive a float over a cliff? It's surprising, since Cindy Morrow is usually pretty sure-footed when it comes to character interactions. Not, unfortunately, this time around. There are some wonderful moments, not least the little A-Team montage when the CMC are building the golden float, but they can't disguise the episode's central weakness. Great song or no great song, this has to end up down in the two-star bracket. Watch it for its fun little touches, not its hackneyed message. Oh, and Pinkie's "veggie salad!" line is still near incomprehensible.

Choice quote: Sweetie Belle: "That must be what Rarity uses on her emergency edible boots!" [Yeah, I know SB's "ironic" quote from the tub is a classic, but I wanted to choose something else for a change!]

New rating: ★★

Next up is "Magic Duel", which I've generally been able to take or leave, though now I like Trixie more from her later appearances that may change. As always, wait and see!

Ponyfic Roundup 317

Read it Later story count: 182 (-1) 

Back down to two fics this time, though it's not for want of trying: one story had to be dropped because its author nuked their account. They'd only recently published the fic in question, too. This seems to be happening a little more these days than it used to, though I won't speculate on the reasons. Anyway, the two I can cover are:

What is Left by OnionPie
Stormriders by Penalt

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 0 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Another little bit of rescheduling

This is happening a bit more often than I'd like, but once again I'm going to have to delay Ponyfic Roundup slightly. It's remarkable how many things can crowd in on you even when you're spending most of your time at home! Anyway, PR 317 will now be with you on Friday. I hope to return to the usual Wednesday slot for PR 318.

There. Wasn't that interesting?

Oh, all right. Have it your way.

My Little Repeats 55: "Too Many Pinkie Pies"

This extraordinary (even for Pinkie) G3 moment was sadly spoiled by a pre-season trailer, but still

S3E03: "Too Many Pinkie Pies"
Written by Dave Polsky
17 Nov 2012

My original rating: N/A
IMDb score: 8.6

The one with frog-oranges

Thoughts: "Fun! Fun! Fun! Fun!" If you were anywhere near a Pony convention for about a year after this episode came out, you'll have had enough of that to last a lifetime! Anyway, this, Dave Polsky's first writing credit since S1, is an ep I've never really loved as much as a big chunk of the fandom seems to. While it is, well, fun I don't really get invested in it emotionally. Odd, considering there's an existential threat to Pinkie's very existence – Twilight is zapping pink horses with gay abandon. Somewhat worrying when the episode opens with her magic shown to be still very much imperfect. My real complaint, though, is how thick Twi is when she and Spike are trying to work out who the real Pinkie is. It's obvious the only one who actually has emotions beyond hyper-ness is the real one, yet Twilight can't see that. On a more superficial level, it is enjoyable to see so many Pinkies animated, especially given the entertaining little unique touches each one has. The Mirror Pool legend is also fairly interesting, though unfortunately we only ever encounter it once again (in S7's "Uncommon Bond"). The "convenient secret compartment" thing irritates me a bit, though. Really, the whole episode just doesn't click that much with me. As such, I'm going to break with IMDb opinion here; I really don't think this is a classic or even a near-classic. A moderate three-star rating, but no more than that. Amusingly, this entertaining ponyfic appeared some months before the episode. Pure coincidence of course, but a fun one.

Choice quote: Fluttershy: "I can promise to not do anything fun at all if that would help."

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "One Bad Apple", which I've never held in especially high regard among CMC episodes, except for its song. It also contains an apparent joke that nobody seems to understand...

Ponyfic Roundup 316

Read it Later story count: 183 (nc) 

Hey, would you look at that? I'm back up to three fics this week! Life outside the world of Pony continues much as it has done for many months now. Pretty dismal, in all honesty. Certainly lonely. However, ponyfic has been doing its usual thing of giving me at least brief moments of escape. Here are this week's three fics:

On Wings of Love by ocalhoun
Vengeance by Shaslan
Open to All by Casketbase77

★: 0 | ★★: 2 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Sounds of 2013, nos. 19 to 15

At long last, it's back! Into the top 20 we go, and with any luck this series might be finished by the end of 2020. As always, I'll be deciding whether to include a track by using several criteria. A refresher of the rules follows:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

This will be the last week with five songs, as I like to up the tension by slowing down towards the top of the chart! No skipping required today, I'm pleased to say.

19: Chief Doggingfood – Summer Sun Celebration
18: dBPony – Daddy Discord
17: Poni1Kenobi (feat. HardCopy and ShadyVox) – Button's Mom
16: dBPony – Wonderbolt
15: ShadyVox – Don't Mine at Night

As ever, there are YouTube embeds of the featured songs after the break, along with a few details about each one.

"Sounds of 2013" will return this weekend

I am indeed aware of the fact that it's been a long time since I did my last "Sounds of 2013" post. You may or may not be pleased to know that I intend to do something about this in the next few days. We're into the top 20 now, so it would be good to finish off at number one before the end of the year.

Everfree Radio didn't do a Top 100 poll in 2014 as far as I can tell. The nearest equivalent is probably the Equestrian Trot 100. I'm undecided at the moment as to whether to go for a "Sounds of 2014", but we'll see. It's not as if Pony music suddenly disappeared when 2013 was over!

Ponyfic Roundup 315

Things are going from bad to worse in the real world, with post-con blues for some of us on top of that, so how about we take another trip to the magical land of Equestria?

Read it Later story count: 183 (-4) 

Largely because of UK PonyCONLINE and its associated time-sinking, this is going to be another minimal edition of Ponyfic Roundup. Today's two fics are:

Oxygen Factory by Liquid Truth
Never Stop Smiling by DustyPwny

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 54: "The Crystal Empire, part 2"

My PC has rather mangled this screenshot, but it does look gorgeous in the episode!

S3E02: "The Crystal Empire, part 2"
Written by Meghan McCarthy
10 Nov 2012

My original rating: N/A
IMDb score: 8.3

The one with Knight Rainbow Dash

Thoughts: Let me say here and now, I liked this more than I remembered liking it. Oh, I'm not going to say it's a classic – although quite a scary villain, Sombra's still not got much if any depth to his character. It's interesting seeing him "die" on screen, though of course we did eventually – if quite briefly! – see him return in S9. To be honest the excitement didn't really need Twilight's test coming back at the end. (Of course, we need it to for the sake of the season finale, but we didn't know that then!) And this is exciting. It's mostly about Twilight and Spike, though AJ and Rarity in particular have their double act going nicely. (Dash is a tad mean to Flutters, and Pinkie doesn't do much.) Twilight's race against time to find the Crystal Heart, with Spike desperately wanting to help but not being allowed to, does build things up quite nicely. It does bring in one of my irritations, though: there is no way Celestia would prioritise the strict rules of the test over saving the Crystal Empire, and Spike would surely have reminded Twi of that. The crystal ponies' animation late on is dazzling, and the song though not amazing is solid. All in all, I think this is another high three-star episode. That's a bit higher than I would have rated it not so long ago.

Choice quote: Twilight: "Stairs. Lots and lots of stairs." (I say this a lot, including outside the fandom. It's a nice stealth phrase.)

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Too Many Pinkie Pies", Dave Polsky's return to writing duties. I remember finding it fairly fun, but not being as enthused about it as much of the fandom.

"I panic bought a bread costume"

That would be Bexi, events staff at UK PonyCONLINE. And yes, it means exactly what it sounds like. She bought a costume and dressed up as bread for the Sunday opening ceremony. Conventions, eh? Anyway, this was a huge success, and the nearest thing in feel to an in-person convention I've experienced out of any of the online cons I've attended this year – and those run into double figures.

Admittedly UK PonyCon in all its forms is very special to me, not least because of the friendship associated with it, so I am biased. But nevertheless it was a wonderful weekend all round. The RDA charity fund-raising has reached £1,197 and so has beaten the first UKPCO's total from June, with more income to be added from various merch sales and the like.

And some of that merch income was from me! It was made clear in the closing ceremony that UK PonyCon will return next year, which is excellent to hear. Whether it's the hoped-for in-person event in May or another online con isn't something we'll know for sure for a few months yet, but either way I hope to be there again. Having this one over the tenth anniversary of FiM made it special, too.

This is where the magic happens, after all.

UK PonyCONLINE returns this weekend

Head to the official website for details, including the schedule. Make sure you refresh your browser cache if you've been there before, as otherwise it can show an old version of the site. I shall most certainly be attending, as I had a fine time at the one-day version of this back in June. The question, as ever with cons, is how much money I can afford to spend on merch! :P

Edit: it has correctly been pointed out to me that, this being a convention, the amount of money I can afford to spend and the amount of money I actually do spend are not necessarily that closely related...

Ponyfic Roundup 314: Spotlight on Drifting Down the Lazy River

Read it Later story count: 187 (-1) 

A week late, but at last here is another Spotlight edition of Ponyfic Roundup! I can't even remember when I last did one of these, though with luck the wait before the next one won't be quite so absurd. Off we go:

Drifting Down the Lazy River by Georg
OC, Seaponies, Celestia and Luna
Romance/Adventure; 99k words; Feb 2017; Everyone

A frustrated young orphan with a talent for painting attempts to run away from his rural village and escape to Baltimare on a raft, only to find out that the river Fen holds an unexpected answer to his problem: Seaponies

This is the sequel to The One Who Got Away (PR 233), and it definitely helps to have read the original although I'd suggest it's not strictly necessary. This fic, which has significant and deliberate echoes of Huckleberry Finn, is both longer and better than the first. Our hero this time is not Baron Gaberdine, though both he and young seapony Ripple are major supporting characters. It's an orphan named Turpentine who is deeply set on being an artist. His devotion to that shines through all the way through the fic, and though very occasionally I wondered whether he was sounding a bit adult for a ten-year-old colt, Turpentine's unhappy foalhood has reasonably made him old beyond his years in some ways. I was pleased to see that his orphanage wasn't a place of terror and misery, which makes a change in fiction! PaulAsaran says, "The pacing is perfect, the plot moves from point to point with enviable smoothness, the characters are endearing," and I can't improve on that summary. Recommended! ★★★★

There's a bit more comment – spoilery comment! – after the break.

And yet more delays :(

The manifold glories of the year we call 2020 have struck again. Twice. Not only do I feel rather unwell today (no, it's not the dreaded lurgy) but some other stuff has come up that can't be delayed. Nothing horrendous, just home maintenance stuff, but it's time consuming and needs attention straight away. As a result:

There will be no Ponyfic Roundup this Wednesday. Drifting Down the Lazy River will now be reviewed on 7th October. No other fics will be reviewed until DDtLR has been.

My apologies to everyone, but especially to Georg. He's waited a very long time for this review and I'm sorry he's going to have to wait another week.

My Little Repeats 53: "The Crystal Empire, part 1"

The shadows in this early scene were really remarked upon back then

S3E01: "The Crystal Empire, part 1"
Written by Meghan McCarthy
10 Nov 2012

My original rating: N/A
IMDb score: 8.4

The one with Pinkie's Fluttershy costume

Thoughts: Here we go with Season 3! This is a premiere that's had a slightly indifferent reception in some quarters, but which seems to have been rehabilitated a bit in the fandom in recent years. It certainly has its good points: for one, it's visually pretty lush, and I remember the feeling that it was a step up from S2 in that regard being noted at the time. Sombra's first appearance is genuinely frightening, especially given he manages to cripple Shining's horn, and the flashback to him overseeing his chained slaves is quite shudder-inducing too. At this point you really do have hope he'll be one of the best villains ever. Shame it doesn't quite work out that way. Dark magic gets the first of only a very few outings in FiM, and it's quite a shock to see Celestia wield it. A couple of songs, neither in the very top tier overall but both pretty decent. Spike gets to sing for the first time, too! There are certainly a few weak points here, such as Twilight just happening to fail to notice a very obvious missing page. Celestia's vagueness about Twi's test and Luna's unexplained frowns are a little annoying, too. Still, overall it's good entertainment, with not merely Pinkie but Rarity providing many of the laughs, and the cliffhanger at the end is pretty nail-biting as these things go. I don't think it does quite enough for a four, especially as it's a little disjointed, but I certainly place it in the upper reaches of the threes.

Choice quote: Cadance: "One of these days we need to get together when the fate of Equestria isn't hanging in the balance."

New rating: ★★★

Next up is, of course, "The Crystal Empire, part 2". We'll see how Sombra's plans work out (or not) and whether I still think the episode was something of a missed opportunity.

Ponyfic Roundup 313

Read it Later story count: 188 (+1)

Well, if real life isn't coming back for six months, then made-up life will have to fill in the gap. That at least is nothing to fear in the wonderful world of ponyfic! Three more stories under the somewhat battered magnifying glass this week:

Empty Nest by The Descendant
Future Considerations by Chris
Mise en Abyme by Slavoj Zizek

★: 0 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Sounds of 2013, Nos. 24 to 20

After rather a long break, it's time to return to Everfree Radio's 2013 list of the fans' favourite 100 tracks. The usual refresher on the criteria for inclusion – to get in, a song has to satisfy at least one of the following rules:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

Here are this week's five songs. The run of skipless instalments has been broken, but oh well.

24: skipped
23: Replacer and &I feat. Feather – Until the Sun
22: David Larsen ft. MandoPony – Double Rainboom
21: DJ Pon-3 – Vinylicious
20: Forest Rain – A Summer in the Stars

As ever, there are YouTube embeds of the featured songs after the break, along with a few details about each one.

Griffish Isles 2020 cancelled; GI 2021 scheduled for November

Twitter thread here announcing the news.

Officially this is being called a postponement, and I understand why the Griffish Isles people have used that term – but in the everyday world away from careful contractual language it's a cancellation. Though frankly one pretty much everybody I know was expecting. GI 2020 had been scheduled for October, and the situation in the UK is such that a convention in October is very much in "not happening" territory.

The Twitter thread does state that GI's new venue "could have accommodated us within government social distancing rules" – though I must admit I'm at a loss as to how any indoor gathering of several hundred people would have been permitted in Manchester. Maybe they were planning on having it all in the hotel car park with one person per alternate space! Okay, not a serious suggestion.

GI have said that they're now going for the weekend of 21st and 22nd November 2021 for their con. The May date used in previous years isn't practical as UK PonyCon 2021 will be then... if that can go ahead, which of course is itself up in the air right now. (For what it's worth, I think UKPC is a possible if a lot of things go right in the next few months, but it's well short of being a surefire bet.)

The dates GI have chosen is roughly the time the now-no-more BronyScot convention used to happen, so people in the UK are used to doing cons in November. The venue has agreed to the new date, as have the guests. So we'll see how it goes. I enjoyed my half-day at GI in 2019, so I may be open to attending this. If and only if, of course, I consider that it's sensible for me to do so. 

One other point: unlike many other conventions, Griffish Isles have chosen not to do an online version of their event. There isn't really a reason given for this beyond "we are interested in providing an in person event" – which is a bit of a non-answer really, as they're not mutually exclusive. But as I said the other day, maybe the online con field is a bit saturated by now anyway.

This blog isn't really the place for me to go into detail about my views on the wider health, societal and political issues connected with Covid-19, but I think it's fair to say that November 2021 is so far off right now that nobody but a fool would claim certainty about what that date will bring. It'll be great if the con can go ahead in recognisable form. I do have hope that it will. But as ever, time will tell.

PonyFest 4.0 today!

 The fourth iteration of the original MLP online convention happens today. It's sticking with its usual one-day format, and to be honest there aren't a huge number of things on the schedule that really grab me this time around. No unmissable musical acts, only a couple of panels... to be honest, I may well not take so much interest in most future online cons, with the big exception of UK PonyConline in October. I think I've almost had enough of them now.

However, there's no doubt that real-world developments here in the UK recently mean that many people could badly do with a distraction and a trip to Equestria. As such, I think I will still pop into PonyFest for a bit of fuf from time to time. For anyone considering attending, head to ponyfest.horse for the schedule, the vendor list and the various other things you expect of an online con. Things kick off at 3pm UK time.

Ponyfic Roundup 312

Read it Later story count: 187 (-3)

I want Blogger to keep letting me use the old editing interface, but if it would stop giving me the option to "revert back" to that it would be appreciated. Department of Redundancy Department again. Anyway, I'm back up to three stories this week, which these days is probably something to cheer at. Unless you don't like PR, in which case why are you reading this? Anyway:

Killing Time by Prak
Loving the Nightmare by Penalt
But, I Don't Want To Become A Wonderbolt! by Deep

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Looking forward to rewatching Season 3 of FiM

 

( YouTube text link if you can't see the video )

Yes, this is why that Network Musical Ensemble song hit the fandom!

All being well, I will shortly start the next chapter of "My Little Repeats" as I rewatch S3. This, of course, is the first season where I got to experience the hype and the build-up as it happened – see video above! I remember having huge expectations for the S3 premiere, along with much of the fandom... and being disappointed, along with much of the fandom. That may – may – change this time around, since I now know what comes later.

One thing that thankfully won't be happening alongside the season now is a seemingly interminable fandom-spanning argument. Not that one, anyway. Twilicorn was, I think, the most miserably wearying row that I experienced in the entire run of Friendship is Magic. It seems almost quaint in 2020 that people were so exercised about whether a picture of Twilight with wings was real that some left the fandom over it, but that's the way it was.

S3 is also of course the only half-length season. I can remember many people predicting that 65 episodes would be all we'd get, I think because that was some magic number in terms of syndication on US television. (Come to think of it, even the idea that TV is the be-all and end-all also seems almost quaint today.) That brevity does hurt the season a little, I think, though perhaps not as much as most of us felt it did back in 2013. Having a one-part finale definitely did hurt, though.

That finale provided another long-running, though generally less heated, argument: did the episode work? I generally come down on the side of yes, but not as well as it could have done. Being the first of several musical eps gave it a different texture. The season doesn't have an awful lot of other obvious highlights, though: "Sleepless in Ponyville" is really S3's only cast-iron classic. Though maybe I'll change my mind about that as well! As always, we shall see.

Ponyfic Roundup 311

Read it Later story count: 190 (nc)

This week has been a bit of a struggle at times, for reasons that have nothing to do with ponies or the fandom. I have managed to feel in the right frame of mind for enough time to get two stories read, so at least there is a (minimal) Ponyfic Roundup for you! Here's what I've got:

The Carnivore's Prayer by Cold in Gardez
Teacher, Instructor, Dash! by HapHazred

★: 0 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

More meta stuff

Ponyfic Roundup will be on Friday this week. That's because I've had a rather off few days and so haven't felt in the mood to read. Nothing startling, just another bout of 2020 fatigue. Hopefully it'll sweeten the pill a little if I say that I plan for the final PR of September (30th) to see my first Spotlight review for some considerable time.

This will be Georg's story Drifting Down the Lazy River, which I chose from my shortlist partly because it's a sequel to a fic I've already read, partly because it looked interesting and partly because... well, partly because I wanted to read it. Not sure there's any better reason than that, really! Before then, expect regular PRs on the 16th and 23rd.

My Little Repeats: Reflections on Season 2

It's taken me far too long to get through S2; in fact, I posted my "Reflections" post about S1 back in February! Admittedly, world events since then have been somewhat distracting, and look like remaining so for some time to come, but I still seem to have taken an age. Anyway, I'm here now, so let's get cracking.

I'd been looking forward to Season 2, and indeed it proved to be a generally entertaining experience. As it happens, my mean star rating of 3.38 was the same as it was for S1. There's list of each episode's rating beyond the cut. Perhaps I was slightly generous to "Ponyville Confidential" and slightly harsh on "Dragon Quest", but that balances out. I think on the whole S2 was about as good as I'd remembered it being.

Come with me past the cut for more waffling!

People getting excited that the "Elements" song series will be completed

Which is certainly good to hear. Not entirely sure why this is considered news though, since Re:Make / Acoustic Brony said during their set at UK PonyCon last year that they intended to finish the set. Above is embedded their performance of "Honesty", though I imagine this will be a bit different in its final form, and after the song it's stated very clearly that they intend to do "Magic" as well. This is why you need to pay attention to happenings outside the US, fandom. ;)

Ponyfic Roundup 310

Read it Later story count: 190 (-3)

For those of you interested in the longer fics I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I expect to have the first one reviewed this month. I won't yet give away which fic it is, except to say that it's one that's been on my radar for quite some time. This week, I'm looking at these three:

Yours Truly by Thanqol
If My Heart Was A Compass by Astrarian
A Feather in Her Cap by GaryOak

★: 0 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Sounds of 2013, Nos. 29 to 25

Today we're returning to Everfree Radio's Top 100 tracks of 2013, as voted for by fans at the time. The usual reminder of the criteria I use to decide whether a track is featured:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

Here are this week's five songs. Again, there are no skips this week!

29: Sherclop Pones – It'll Be OK
28: The Living Tombstone – Rainbow Factory (remix)
27: FIMFlamPhilosophy – Sinking Ships
26: Awkward Marina – Sombra's Door
25: Coconeru and Steven, A.D. – Tavi and Scratch (A Tropical Octav3)

After the break, we'll get right on with the YouTube embeds and semi-random wibblings that you surely expect from me by now.

My Little Repeats 52: "A Canterlot Wedding, part 2"

This was really quite shocking the first time I saw it

S2E26: "A Canterlot Wedding, part 2"
Written by Meghan McCarthy
21 Apr 2012

My original rating: N/A
IMDb score: 9.3

The one with the mine cart ride

Thoughts: This was the first time the season finale was broadcast all in one go, meaning that the cliffhanger from part 1 was resolved almost immediately. A slight shame if you ask me. Still, what an episode this is, and what a ride. We have Chrysalis, in my view the best villain the show ever had, and one we now know never got reformed. Quite brave really to have someone who's effectively a succubus in a kids' show. Her reveal scene is breathtaking, and I really like her voice here – the distortion was sadly removed at Hasbro's behest for later episodes. We get our first real fight scene, something that was a huge talking point in 2012. We get "This Day Aria", one of the finest songs of its kind in any cartoon, up there with many of Disney's. The Elements of Harmony are a diversion this time and don't actually matter in the end, which I didn't see coming. Yes, the love-drenched resolution is a bit silly and a bit sappy, and Twilight's laser spell became overused later in the series, but right now I don't really care. Plus we get custom end credits music, with a reprise of the theme from "The Return of Harmony". I always liked it when they did that, and it's a real shame Hasbro vetoed its return for the S9 epilogue. Still, this episode is a triumph. It's exciting, it's moving and it's supremely watchable. It's also, as you'll long since have realised, another five-star episode.

Choice quote: Pinkie Pie: "Meh. I've seen better."

New rating: ★★★★★

Next, I'll make a post looking back at my S2 rewatches and reflecting on what I've seen, along the lines of the one I did for S1.

Fluttershy says hello

Those of you on UK of Equestria may already have seen this photo, but I'm posting it here as well. Why? Because I've been lazy and haven't got my rewatch review of S2E26 done in time. So here's some Pony content of a sort. The other day I had a quick trip to Worcester and took Flutters along with me for company. Here she is by the River Severn, with Worcester Cathedral at top left.

You'll note that this is Rainbow Power (remember that?) Fluttershy. From memory, I think she was in one of those odd three-packs of blind bag figures, along with some unlikely combination along the lines of Derpy and Thunderlane. Those two are probably in a box somewhere, but I do take a travel 'Shy quite often. I even managed not to lose her on the train! :P

Ponyfic Roundup 309

Read it Later story count: 193 (nc)

I met two friends, both fandom members, last Thursday. Separately, and one meeting was only for a few minutes as they were working, but it was the first time I'd seen any friends in the flesh for more than five months. It actually felt quite odd, though in a very pleasant way. Anyway, three more stories for me to look at today, which are:

Scald by Casca
Wasting Time by Pascoite
Sketchwork by Casketbase77

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 51: "A Canterlot Wedding, part 1"

"Anyone, and I mean anyone, who quotes Friendship is Witchcraft at me is going to regret it."

S2E25: "A Canterlot Wedding, part 1"
Written by Meghan McCarthy
21 Apr 2012

My original rating: N/A
IMDb score: 9.0

The one with Pinkie sneezing confetti

Thoughts: This was my first watched-as-aired episode after joining the fandom, and I remember plenty of people whinging that a wedding episode meant a reversion to G3-ness – especially since a Miss America was co-hosting The Hub's coverage. Didn't work out quite like that! Anyway, this is where the break was finally and decisively made with Lauren Faust's plans, with the appearance of a third alicorn in Cadance. Strange now to think how controversial that was in the fandom at the time. Twi's "Oh yeah, I have a brother" bit was mild by comparison, as was the continuing diminution of the sonic rainboom's specialness. I loved this ep, though, especially the way Twilight's belief in Cadance's evilness – which turns out to be right, but for the wrong reasons – leads to her being shunned by her brother, and her best friends, and Princess Celestia. Watch Twi's face after "You have a lot to think about" and you can see her heart breaking. There are so many great touches here: Spike's brony act with the cake figurines, the talking sandwich spell, the introduction of "Twily", the "ladybugs awake" cuteness, Shining Armor and "Cadance" having their muttered argument, you name it. Lyra even got her first speaking line – that was quite a big deal in the fandom at the time. Add to that an excellent cliffhanger, with Twilight not only in great peril but seemingly without anyone left on her side to help her, and part two couldn't come soon enough for most of us. This episode isn't perfect, but you can't take your eyes off it – and it still works wonderfully even though we know what's coming next. I still love this ep. If there's such a thing as a low-end five, this is it.

Choice quote: Applejack: "Why the long face, sugar cube?" Yep, they went there...

New rating: ★★★★★

Next up is "A Canterlot Wedding, part 2, startling as this may seem. I remember adoring it. Will I adore it again? Join me, some time or other, probably same channel.

Sounds of 2013, Nos. 34 to 30

Off we go again! Remember, these tracks come from Everfree Radio's Top 100 tracks of 2013, as voted for by fans at the time. I don't include everything, as to get in a track will have to satisfy at least one of the following criteria:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

Five more songs this week, and happily enough there are no skips! :D

34: SlyphStorm ft. Amadhia Dreamsong – SoulSinger
33: TAPS ft. Feather – Sound Barrier
32: TwentyTen – Moving On
31: PrinceWhateverer ft. P1K, Scrambles and ISMBOF – Not Letting Go
30: Sim Gretina – A True True Friend (remix)

I expect you know this by now, but just in case: you'll get YouTube embeds and some waffle from me after the break.

Reviews of longer fics will return soon! I hope...

I've had a couple of queries recently about when/whether I might get back to reviewing longer fics, perhaps returning to doing the odd Spotlight post. This does remain on the agenda, and now life in the UK is a bit (a bit) less stressful than it was earlier in the year it may actually happen. Time to give you a sneak preview.

So, here are the next ten 30k-plus-word fics that I hope (no more than that) to feature in Ponyfic Roundup over the next mumble mumble period of time. They're listed in alphabetical order, though it's most unlikely I will read them all in that order. Their word counts are in brackets after the author name:

Contraptionology! by Skywriter (134k)
Drifting Down the Lazy River by Georg (99k)
Fluttershy's Bad "Hare" Day by Pegasus Rescue Brigade (59k)
Friendship is Optimal: Always Say No by Defoloce (109k)
Nine Days Down by JoeShogun (144k)

Oversaturation by FanOfMostEverything (37k)
Romance Reports by SleeplessBrony (185k)
Synchronicity by Sev (86k)
Twilight Sparkle of the Royal Guard by King of Beggars (80k)
A White Mare by RandomBlank (39k)

I do not guarantee that I'll get to your personal favourite, or indeed any of these fics, any time soon. I do not guarantee that I won't just throw my hooves in the air and continue to review 2k-word one-shots for the rest of time. I do not guarantee anything much. But hay, it could happen. Only on The Hub Ponyfic Roundup.

Ponyfic Roundup 308

Read it Later story count: 193 (-4)

Nothing much to report today, so I'll get straight on with the list of fics. Three again this week, and they are:

Symphonies Rock by Soap Box
Daring Do Bakes a Cake by Lucky Dreams
Anxiety by Bad_Seed_72

★: 0 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

A straw in the wind?

I notice that NordicFuzzCon 2021, a Swedish furry convention scheduled for next February, will not take place as planned. Although this isn't a Pony convention, it is the first one I've personally noticed in a reasonably similar fandom to be called off that was scheduled for next year. The organisers say in the linked announcement that they are keeping their options open as to what to do, since "[t]he world is too unpredictable for us to be able to make any promises or to give any dates at this time".

This suggests to me that right now, in August, time is already running short for cons in the early months of next year. I suspect some organisers are already deep into negotiations with venues about postponements. I wish I could be more optimistic about this, but I suspect that the resumption of large fandom gatherings may well be further off than any of us would like to think. (I think some kind of MLP con did happen in China recently, but I'm essentially talking about Europe and North America here.)

Pandemics are generally long hauls. This one doesn't look like it's going to be very different in that regard, and I would not be especially surprised if there were no more than a handful of full-scale Pony conventions in 2021. I would absolutely love to be proved wrong on this one. As ever, we'll see.

My Little Reviews 50: "MMMystery on the Friendship Express"

But what have you done with the real conductor, Fluttershy...?

S2E24: "MMMystery on the Friendship Express"
Written by Amy Keating Rogers
7 Apr 2012

My original rating: N/A
IMDb score: 7.9

The one with alliteration. Lots of alliteration.

Thoughts: First things first: I find it pretty poor that three of Pinkie Pie's best friends can't be trusted to respect a valuable item Pinkie is responsible for. (Ironic that in "A Friend In Deed" it was Pinkie who disrespected another character's valuable possessions...) I'm not impressed at all, and even being played for laughs doesn't entirely overcome that. It's a real shame, as there's a lot to like in this episode. The whodunit is nicely written, with a fun Poirot tinge, and if you look very carefully you can pick up several clues yourself before Twilight reveals her findings. The Sherlock Holmes costumes are amusing, too. I like that Applejack, the only other baker in the Mane Six, is entirely innocent – though I'm told a deleted scene did have her guilty too. Of course, the Three Bakers do succumb to temptation with the other desserts. And then there are the three little homages to various filmic styles – all of them nicely produced and very amusing. We meet our first non-Gilda griffon, too. This would be quite a highly rated episode if only it weren't for Rainbow, Fluttershy and Rarity behaving so badly. I realise this may seem a bit petty, but it does leave a sour taste in my mouth (yes, I know the cynicism in "Ponyville Confidential" didn't. Go figure) and so I have to penalise it; the best I can do for it is a low-end three. It might even have been a two without so many fun touches.

Choice quote: Pinkie Pie: "Huh? Who turned out the Moon?"

New rating: ★★★ (just)

Next up is "A Canterlot Wedding, part 1", the very first episode I ever watched as it aired! I've always liked the S2 finale very much, so I'm hoping I still will.