Ponyfic Roundup 386

Read it Later story count: 92 (nc)

Been a bit quiet around here, hasn't it? Don't worry, there's no sinister reason for that. I've just been very busy. I hope to get "The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows" rewatched later in the week, and to manage a shorter gap between that and "Hearthbreakers" than the one we're experiencing now. Still, at least Ponyfic Roundup is here on schedule, so let's get to the four fics I've been reading this week.

Minor Details! by Tchernobog
Moondancer Reads Every Book In Equestria by Madame Ponka
That First Night by KayeStar
Hidden by FabulousDivaRarity

★: 0 | ★★: 3 | ★★★: 0 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Ponyfic Roundup 385

Read it Later story count: 92 (nc)

For a little while I thought that external factors (nothing too bad) would mean I'd have to delay this week's PR by a day. In the event, though, things have resolved themselves and so I'm here on a Wednesday as usual. Four more fics for your perusal today, and be prepared: precisely none of them this time are of the silly knockabout comedy variety. Anyway, here they are:

Schemering Sintel by N00813
All the Time in the World by Vis-a-Viscera
Tatters by Habanc
Below the Dream by Sumiye

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

My Little Repeats 109: "Crusaders of the Lost Mark"

Despite its fast pacing, the clubhouse scene was really touching

S5E18: "Crusaders of the Lost Mark"

10 Oct 2015

My original rating: ★★★★★
IMDb score: 9.2

The one with super teeth

Thoughts: This episode is very special to me. It came out not only on the fifth anniversary of Friendship is Magic, but while I was at UK PonyCon 2015. And I adore it. Sure you can find quibbles: Spoiled Rich is a bit of a caricature, and while I don't mind the CMC's mark designs they are a bit awkward-looking at first. But my honest view of that is: yes, but who cares? This works. Even now I find it hard to watch the "cutie marks" scene with dry eyes. I'll never quite forgive Hasbro for denying Diamond Tiara another speaking line in the entire series, but reforming her here – something which blindsided everybody, even those who suspected this might be the Crusaders' cutie mark episode – works really well. Having Silver Spoon finally rebel is quite a moment – and the literal "mending fences" shot post-DT-reformation is lovely. This is of course S5's musical episode, which inevitably reduces the time available for speaking storyline progression, but the songs help with that – and in any case they're just so good. "Light of Your Cutie Mark" is among my favourites in the entire series. I believe it was a deliberate choice that this episode be written by one of the OG writers, and Amy Keating Rogers really made it work. This is an episode I have watched many times, and that I will watch many times more. No, it's not as beautifully constructed as "Amending Fences" – but, as I say, I really don't care. For me it's as worthy of its five-star rating as ever it was. I love "Crusaders of the Lost Mark".

Choice quote: Silver Spoon: "You wanna hear how? Sorry, I'm not allowed to speak."

New rating: ★★★★★

Next up is "The One Where Pinkie Pie Knows", which was G. M. Berrow's FiM writing debut. Generally remembered as "Oh yeah, that one" given what came before. Unfairly so? We'll see.

cond after Sassy's "Everypony loves royalty!"

S5E14: "Canterlot Boutique"

12 Sep 2015

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 7.9

The one with strawberry cinnamon cilantro cupcakes

Thoughts: After the first of FiM's irritating mid-season hiatuses, we did at least have the stalwart Amy Keating Rogers in the writing saddle for the show's return. It's a good episode, too, albeit perhaps the least of the run from "Amending Fences" to "Rarity Investigates!" We see Rarity in her fashion designing mode more centrally than since "Suited for Success", and personally I prefer Canterlot as the big target for her than Manehattan as happened later in the series. Sassy Saddles (voiced by Kelly Sheridan, incidentally) is a decent sidekick, albeit not one with enough sass to be truly memorable. A hint of a troubled past career ("another failed boutique"?) but she was neither unpleasant enough to be a "love to hate" pony or sympathetic enough for the redemption to really click. I still don't like the very last joke, which is a bit too close to "let's make fun of the weird-looking pony" for comfort, though it wasn't AKR's fault. A couple of the other shop customers were fun, though, especially the gothy Moonlight Raven. One small criticism of Rarity: the customer who complained her Princess Dress wasn't what she ordered was correct, yet she was portrayed almost as the bad guy for saying so. Still, overall the episode's core plot of "creative job made into a chore" was fine and appropriate. It was executed pretty well, there's a nice song by Jona Lewie and even though it's not an outstandingly memorable episode it is good. I think it's perfectly worthy of a very solid three. No change to this ep's star rating!

Choice quote: Rarity to Twilight: "In every poll Sassy Saddles took, you were the most popular princess!"

New rating: ★★★★★

Next up is another Rarity-centric episode, "Rarity Investigates!" – it's widely seen as an excellent ep. Certainly in 2015 I agreed with that consensus. I hope I shall have at least as much fun with it this time around!

Ponyfic Roundup 384

Read it Later story count: 92 (-2) 

Here we go again with another quartet of stories of our favourite multicoloured equines. A fairly decent week this time, as you'll already have noted if you've let your eyes drift down to the star summary. Actually, from memory I think only one of these authors (Softy8088) is someone I've read a fic by before, so those scores are quite encouraging for my hopes of finding more new people to read! Today's foursome are:

My Sweet Baby by Harmony Charmer
Speed Demon by Boltstrike58
The Noodle Incident by Icenrose
Peak Performance by Softy8088

★: 0 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 4 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Happy 10th to... me!

It was on 15th March 2012 that I first posted my thoughts on an episode of My Little Pony to my LiveJournal. (Remember LiveJournal?) It was the opening two-parter, unsurprisingly. I wasn't quite yet hooked – that came a few days later when I reached "Dragonshy". I'd posted a "Which pony are you?" meme on the 13th (Fluttershy. Did you really have to ask?) but it was the 15th that really started my now decade-long involvement with this utterly absurd fandom. So happy tenth birthday, brony Logan!

My Little Repeats 108: "Brotherhooves Social"

There are some very amusing CMC faces in this episode

S5E17: "Brotherhooves Social"

3 Oct 2015

My original rating: ★★★★
IMDb score: 7.4

The one with Rainbow and Scootaloo skipping together

Thoughts: Three weeks between the last episode and this one, thanks to... actually, I can't remember. Was it just the release of Friendship Games? Anyway, "Brotherhooves Social" is a somewhat strange episode, with a mixture of slightly unsubtle gags (hey, it's Dave Polsky) and some really nice moments. I don't think it's especially controversial to say that the closing scene is the best of all, really very touching and nicely judged. The Social itself is often fun, and it's especially sweet to see Rainbow and Scootaloo doing the "honorary sisters" thing again after too long. On the other hand, "cross-dressing stallion" is a joke that's not really strong enough to drive an entire episode, even with the secondary joke that everypony knows that Orchard Blossom is Big Mac. The song is... odd, though I suppose that was at least deliberate. Mind you, Apple Bloom herself comes across at times as the stroppy early teen she by now is. (As my 2015 review shows, the next episode wouldn't come as a total surprise.) It's quite a fun watch, but it's nothing amazing. My original four-star rating is no longer something I can justify, therefore. A moderate three it is, and it only really gets that due to that final scene.

Choice quote: Sweetie Belle: "That's Big Mac in a dress."

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Crusaders of the Lost Mark". Do I really have to say anything else at this point?

econd after Sassy's "Everypony loves royalty!"

S5E14: "Canterlot Boutique"

12 Sep 2015

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 7.9

The one with strawberry cinnamon cilantro cupcakes

Thoughts: After the first of FiM's irritating mid-season hiatuses, we did at least have the stalwart Amy Keating Rogers in the writing saddle for the show's return. It's a good episode, too, albeit perhaps the least of the run from "Amending Fences" to "Rarity Investigates!" We see Rarity in her fashion designing mode more centrally than since "Suited for Success", and personally I prefer Canterlot as the big target for her than Manehattan as happened later in the series. Sassy Saddles (voiced by Kelly Sheridan, incidentally) is a decent sidekick, albeit not one with enough sass to be truly memorable. A hint of a troubled past career ("another failed boutique"?) but she was neither unpleasant enough to be a "love to hate" pony or sympathetic enough for the redemption to really click. I still don't like the very last joke, which is a bit too close to "let's make fun of the weird-looking pony" for comfort, though it wasn't AKR's fault. A couple of the other shop customers were fun, though, especially the gothy Moonlight Raven. One small criticism of Rarity: the customer who complained her Princess Dress wasn't what she ordered was correct, yet she was portrayed almost as the bad guy for saying so. Still, overall the episode's core plot of "creative job made into a chore" was fine and appropriate. It was executed pretty well, there's a nice song by Jona Lewie and even though it's not an outstandingly memorable episode it is good. I think it's perfectly worthy of a very solid three. No change to this ep's star rating!

Choice quote: Rarity to Twilight: "In every poll Sassy Saddles took, you were the most popular princess!"

New rating: ★★★★★

Next up is another Rarity-centric episode, "Rarity Investigates!" – it's widely seen as an excellent ep. Certainly in 2015 I agreed with that consensus. I hope I shall have at least as much fun with it this time around!

Happy (slightly belated) 10th, "Join the Herd"!

Forest Rain – Join the Herd

 

That's right, I'm late again! But I really couldn't ignore Forest Rain's "Join the Herd", one of the most famous song parodies either she or the fandom in general has ever put out. This first went up on 12th March 2012, with a "Rock Vocals" version following a few days later. A little fandom history for those who don't know. Back in the dim and distant days of April 2011, The SlutFox (now known as Zab) made this Rainbow Dash PMV [explicit lyrics] to a nightcore version of The Offspring song "You're Gonna Go Far Kid". The PMV was hugely popular: as of today, it has over 27 million views. Forest Rain, with lyrical help from Decibel, put together a purely Pony-lyriced (and SFW) song using basically the same tune. The pop and rock versions together now have over 2.5 million views of their own. Yes, it shows its age a bit these days. Who cares?

And as I said back in 2016, perhaps the "we will never fade" lyric here is unduly optimistic – but what we won't do is fade to black. There'll always be a Pony fandom, and "Join the Herd" has been a significant part of the reason why.

Another milestone approaches

I'm actually cheating slightly by making this post, since it actually affects that. Why? Because this is my 1,983rd post on Louder Yay. It doesn't really seem possible, but yes: before too much longer, I will be up to two thousand posts here. I'm really not sure whether I'm going to do anything special to mark the occasion – from memory, I don't think I did for my thousandth – but if anyone has any ideas, preferably ones that don't require hours of hard work, then I'm all ears!

Ponyfic Roundup 383

Read it Later story count: 94 (nc) 

If you didn't see me mention it earlier, we have a new regular ponyfic reviewer on the block! Ghost Mike's Monday Musings kicked off this week, and you can read issue 1 on his Fimfiction account and my thoughts about this newcomer in my last post. Right, I'm going on with my own reviews now. Things may come and things may go, etc, but Ponyfic Roundup carries on through the ages. Today's four consist of one mid-length story and three quickies. Let's get going...

Unchanging Love by Azure Notion
The living end by Cackling Moron
Absense of Chaos by The Ancestor
Late-Night Conversations by EileenSaysHi

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

New regular ponyfic reviewer: Ghost Mike

In truth this is not something I thought I'd be writing in 2022, but I'm delighted to say there's a new reviewer on the block. Ghost Mike, known to many of you here as Mike Cartoon Karma, the provider of those long and fascinating comments about production changes on Friendship is Magic episodes, is branching out! His Monday Musings will appear every... well, guess. I wish him a long and happy career in ponyfic blogging.

On the basis of the first edition, Mike's reviews will be a very welcome addition to the scene. He's said he's unlikely to review many longfics on time grounds, which is fair enough! If I had to pick an existing reviewer that Mike's approach reminds me the most of, it would be PaulAsaran, though naturally he has his own quirks. The reviews are medium length, meaning several paras each (which may be slight overkill for a 2k-word one-shot) but not so long you need a run-up each time.

This week Mike has reviewed seven fics, but he says in his intro that five is the likely amount he'll settle at. The whole post is a bit over 4,000 words, with substantial intro and outro sections, so it's not something you can skim in 30 seconds but nor is it something you'll need to invest hours into. He also uses a seven-point rating scheme, running from Excellent at the top to Bad at the bottom, though no fic this week ends up with either of those.

Read issue 1 of Ghost Mike's reviews over on Fimfiction.

My Little Repeats E3: Friendship Games

After this, Crystal Prep's double-decker bird house just doesn't cut it

Friendship Games
Written by Josh Haber
26 Sep 2015 (Discovery Family) / 23 Oct 2015 (UK cinemas)

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 6.6

The one with Twilight about to sign for Everton (on the wing?)

Thoughts: With Meghan McCarthy by this time working on the FiM film, Josh Haber stepped up to write Friendship Games. The movie is quite fun and has its moments, but to my mind it's a step down from Rainbow Rocks, and not only because of the music – indeed, Friendship Games actually has several excellent songs, such as "ACADECA", "What More is Out There?" and my own favourite, "Unleash the Magic". However, there's nothing here to rival Sunset's redemption journey in the previous film, and Principal Cinch is a rather by-the-numbers antagonist without much charisma. The series seemed to be losing interest in Flash Sentry's feelings for Twilight by this point – the few "mistaken identity" scenes are lacklustre, and I'm glad Legend of Everfree took Flash's story in a different direction. This being a Josh Haber film, inevitably we have some flashy set-pieces: yes, the motorcross event is lampshaded as over-the-top in-film, but it's still rather ridiculous. I do like Applejack's archery lesson for Sci-Twi, though. Talking of whom, she's a solid part of the sub-franchise by the end, though Pony-Twi's reason for being late really stretches plot convenience. I enjoyed seeing this in the cinema in 2015, but it just doesn't have the coherence that Rainbow Rocks – even beyond its songs – manages with Sunset's arc. I gave Friendship Games three stars when it was new, and I think that's a reasonable mark now. I'm not sure it's an especially high three, though. Above the run-of-the-mill certainly, but not outstanding by any means.

Choice quote: Fluttershy: "Not everything has to be magic to be important."

New rating: ★★★

Next time, it'll be back to Friendship is Magic and the somewhat strange episode "Brotherhooves Social".

Re:Make's Elements EP will be released on 26th March

Exciting news today: Re:Make's Elements EP will be published to all the major online music platforms on Saturday 26th March. This EP includes updated and reworked versions of the four existing songs ("Generosity", "Laughter", "Kindness" and "Loyalty"), plus a finished version of "Honesty" (which was played in unfinished form at UKPC 2019 and possibly somewhere else too)... plus of course "Magic", the final song which I believe has never been heard anywhere in public before.

I'm typing this after hearing the EP played at a Twitch pre-release party. The musicians were giving commentary, so there was a fair bit of talking, but I was pretty impressed. Enough that I'm going to buy it? Yes, I think so. Review coming later on, assuming I do buy the thing. Re:Make have said that a "very limited" physical release is likely, on CD and conceivably even vinyl. I suspect those may be too expensive for me, but I don't imagine they'll have much trouble selling them.

It's so nostalgic to have a really big Pony fandom music release again. Things have changed quite a bit since the original release of (most of) these songs back in the Acoustic Brony days -- no MandoPony now of course, an updated Re:Make-like sound, all that kind of thing. All in all, I think this new version is just a better record all-round. It's been a great experience.

G5 Merch Review: Tattle Tales

With thanks to Oilyvalves for lending me a review copy!

Thanks also to Caffe Bolero, Worcester for the table :P

As happened with G4, merchandise for G5 of My Little Pony is inching its way onto the shelves, at least on this side of the Atlantic. We still don't have much, but things are very gradually improving. This Tattle Tales book and figure set is an example, and since it's now easily available to us in the UK it's probably about time I wrote something about it. Get ready for the lowdown, folks! Just make sure you're "3 years and up", all right? Wouldn't want you to see something unsuitable for your age...

At top left, you can see how everything fits together

From the publicity photos and the fact that both series are published by Phidal, you might be expecting something similar to the My Busy Book collection. In fact, Tattle Tales is quite a bit smaller than that – roughly speaking, think A5 rather than A4 and you won't be too far off. Inside the front cover, the top part holds a, well, holder for the small figures within. It's fairly fiddly to fit back once you remove it, but not too bad. The bottom part has the removable board book, which causes fewer problems.

That's my Pipp, conscious of the camera as always

There are four pony figures in the set. Can you guess which one gets the short end of the stick? Got it in one. This is rubbed in a bit by the fact that Hitch is quite prominent on the front cover – and in the story itself, although even there he's given the second-class treatment. I suppose it's spoilery to say too much, but the very last page of the storybook does rather underline Hitch's position as the fifth-gen Applejack. See the last para of this review for a few more details. It's a very simple tale about the ponies learning to work together, but no complaints about that.

Cutie marks on one side only, in traditional Hasbro fashion

On the plus side, the figures themselves are really quite nicely made. For the price, that is: don't go expecting custom quality. They're slimmer than the magazine-mounted figures, but that's the general level you're looking at. It is good to see very different moulds being used for Pipp and Zipp, though: no repeat here of the infamous early days of G4 blind bags, in which Fluttershy's model was simply a recoloured Rainbow Dash. There's a notable variety in height, with Izzy the tallest, followed by Sunny, Zipp and Pipp. Yes, all those "smol Pipp" memes live on!

Not the most imaginative cover design, but it's bright and cheerful

In truth, there's not a lot more that needs to be said about the Tattle Tales set, since I suspect that nearly everyone likely to be reading this blog will be getting it for the figures rather than the storybook. I personally wouldn't be keen on paying much more than a tenner for the set – but at that price it is, if not quite a steal, nevertheless a pretty solid purchase. It's not as if there's much choice just yet when it comes to small G5 figures, after all. Just... can we maybe have a Hitch as well next time? Please?

A very rare sighting of your genial host('s hand)

Edit: on second thoughts, I will say a little about the book itself, so avoid if you're really fussy about even minor spoilers. The book introduces the mane characters, starting with Sunny and then progressing through Izzy, Hitch, Zipp and Pipp. Each gets a double-page spread, though (why does this seem so inevitable?) Hitch's section has only one pic of the stallion himself, with the other side taken up by... Sunny and Izzy. Right at the end there's a wrap-up about how the ponies ("with Hitch") are off on an adventure.

At the time of writing, you can pick up Tattle Tales for £9.59 from Amazon UK.

Ponyfic Roundup 382

Read it Later story count: 94 (-2) 

It's been a rather tiring week, though nothing exceptional and I don't want to complain too much about it. But still, some ponyfic has been a good idea. Four stories once again this week – maybe, just maybe, I'm getting the hang of this lark now! Not a lot else to say in this space today, so let's get to the business end of the post. I've had worse weeks...

An Old Tale in a New World by Impossible Numbers
Love Me Not by Moonlit Path
General Amnesty by Cynewulf
Trade of the Trix by FanOfMostEverything

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

Thoughts of a Ponyfic Reviewer 3: Just Another One?

Most of the time, reviewing ponyfic is a good deal of fun. I wouldn't have been doing it for seven and a half years if it wasn't. But not everything about it is sunshine and rainbows, and one of the things I don't enjoy is having to give a story a negative review – setting down a one-star rating at the end of the paragraph is always a disappointing experience, and all the more so if I'd gone into the fic with high hopes.

I'm always conscious that there's a real person on the other end of this. The author of the fic may or may not have a realistic idea of their writing level, although in my experience it's really pretty rare for anyone to be that far out. Not all writers care what external reviewers write, and there's no shame in that. But for those who do, seeing that single star can be a harsh experience. How much should I take that into account when writing?

One thing I am not going to do is to write only praise. There's a place for recommendation blogs, certainly, but that's not the same thing. It's imperative that a reviewer is honest, otherwise what's the point in reviewing at all? But I do always try to look for some good in a story, whether it's an interesting choice of character or an imaginative setting. Putting praise first can help to draw some of the sting of the criticism that follows.

The most usual reason for a one-star rating is that a fic simply doesn't hold together well as Pony fic – for example, a story that might work well enough on Earth but completely ignores the presence of flight and magic among ponies. Fics with a lot of technical errors, to the extent that they become actively wearying to read, also tend to get ones. Moral considerations are rare, as if I hate a premise that much I won't read a fic in the first place.

In any case, I don't want to drive anyone away from writing ponyfic. If the author enjoys doing it, that's reason enough in itself. But Fimfiction is a place where, in general, ratings and reviews are considered a part of the game. That isn't always the same in other fandoms and interests (that could one day be a Thoughts entry in itself) but it is here. I'm comfortable that an honest one-star rating is a fair thing to give – just so long as it is given fairly.