My Little Repeats 159: "Campfire Tales"

One thing I will say for this episode, it's very visually interesting

S7E16: "Campfire Tales"

26 Aug 2017

My original rating: ★★
IMDb score: 7.6

The one with cave-wall shadow pictures

Thoughts: Ah yes, the only episode credited to Barry Safchik and Michael Platt is the one where we meet the Pillars (in the show; the comics got there first) for the first time. I've never found them all that interesting, which doesn't help this episode in my book. It's not a bad ep, but it just feels too disjointed and irritating for me. Not the least of my issues is Scootaloo's demeanour, which suggests she hasn't toughened up at all since "Sleepless in Ponyville". I find that hard to credit. I'm not fond of the flyders, either as interesting critters or for producing those unappealing bites (especially on Dash). Rockhoof's apparently hopeless task is fixed out of nowhere with "and then magic happened!" Good things there are in here: Mistmane's legend is more interesting than the other two. The episode looks very nice, and the background music is very fittingly chosen. The brief moments of Rainbow/Scootaloo sisterly bonding are adorable, and the other Crusaders aren't bad either. It's maybe slightly risen in my estimation since 2017, but not enough to lift it much. A top-end two now, but still a two. It's all a bit blah.

Choice quote: Apple Bloom: "I've seen the way you two get when you miss breakfast."

New rating: ★★

Next time, I'll be rewatching "To Change a Changeling", which I enjoyed in 2017, albeit not entirely without reservation. I hope I shall enjoy it again this time around.

Announcing: Sounds of 2014!

It's been a long time coming – I first posted about my hope to do this more than a year ago – but I think it's high time I got music back on these virtual pages. As such, in the next few weeks I will be starting "Sounds of 2014", in which I look at the Top 100 fandom tracks of that year as voted in the Equestrian Trot 100. The format will be similar to that I used for "Sounds of 2013", although with a few small changes to account for the move from the Everfree Radio chart (which didn't continue into 2014).

When will this start? Soon™! Not immediately, though, not least because the next thing I'm going to post here will be my rewatch of "Campfire Tales". That will be coming in the next few days.

Ponyfic Roundup 483: 2,000th review and 10th anniversary special: Spotlight on The Silver Standard

Read it Later story count: 95 (-1)

Words read this week: 296,450

Okay, okay, I didn't read all those words this week. But I did read them all for this review! It is ten years to the very day since my first Ponyfic Roundup, and The Silver Standard is also my 2,000th PR fic. I didn't plan that the two should coincide, at least not until very recently, but I'm not complaining! Today's fic is the fourth longest I've ever featured on these virtual pages,¹ and as such it took me quite some while to read. Was it worth it? Yes it was. Read on...
¹ After Fallout: Equestria (PR 5), The Life and Times of a Winning Pony (PR 68) and The Immortal Game (PR 154).

The Silver Standard by PatchworkPoltergeist
Silver Spoon, Diamond Tiara, CMCs and Other
G4; Drama/Slice of Life; 296k words; Apr 2015–Apr 2018; Everyone

Once upon a time, Silver Spoon's life made sense. Now she lives in Ponyville.

For many, perhaps most, MLP fans Silver Spoon isn't a character they spend a lot of time thinking about, except in a vague "Diamond Tiara's sidekick" kind of way. The Silver Standard may well change your mind. A tale running from before S1 of Friendship is Magic until after the events of "Crusaders of the Lost Mark", the fic gives us a far wider and deeper insight into what it's like to be Silver Spoon. The story's length allows substantial sidelights such as a grippingly vicious battle of wills and words at Silver's old school or the gently running mystery of what "battletag" actually is, while other foals such as Dinky "The Dink" Hooves (interestingly portrayed as almost playground royalty) and Berry Pinch are given plenty of development too. Canon events happen all the time – Twilight's ascension, Tirek's attack, the bugbear, etc – but only rarely is Silver front and centre and the story is written to reflect this. Written very well, at that, with consistently excellent character work. A really satisfying read that easily justified the time I spent reading it. Top marks! ★★★★★

As usual with Spotlight reviews, if you continue reading then expect spoilers!

Hat Man Reviews

I don't know whether this is a one-off or the start of something more, but it's always great to see new ponyfic reviewers around the place! Well-known Fimfictioneer The Hat Man has posted a fairly detailed review of Bandy's adventure story H A Z E. That's not a fic I've read myself, but I still enjoyed reading The Hat Man's thoughts. The more people putting the time into writing MLP fanfiction reviews, the better!

Ponyfic 2,000 (so to speak) – Feeble attempts at hype

I did promise/threaten you all that a post like this would be coming! As you'll know if you've been paying even marginal attention, my next Ponyfic Roundup review will be the two thousandth story I have covered! I'm also going to be publishing it on Tuesday 26th, since that's ten years to the day since PR 1. (For the sake of it, the first fic I wrote about was Capn_Chryssalid's The Best Night Ever.)

Now, I am not the only person who knows the story I am about to name as the 2,000th! Why? Because I revealed it at the last Worcester Shires ponymeet. (Come to Worcester Shires for exclusive ponyfic review revelations!) However, I'm pretty sure the number who already know is in single figures... until now. Are you excited, 'cause I'm excited, I've never been so excited— [Oh, get on with it! —Ed.]

Okay, here goes. The 2,000th Ponyfic Roundup review will be a Spotlight for...

The Silver Standard by PatchworkPoltergeist

Wait, what? Logan's been reading a near-300,000-word fic? About Silver Spoon? Surely some mistake? But no! I was told by several friends that The Silver Standard was really good and easily worth the time investment. I therefore decided that it was time to find out whether I agreed – and what better place to publish my thoughts than in a landmark review? You'll see how it fares in just six days' time!

Some very early G4 merch!

YouTube: Toy Fair 2010 and MLP/SSC/RB updates

One or two of you will have already seen this, but I thought it might interest a few others. I found this by accident while looking for very old fandom stuff. It's a video of some of Hasbro's exhibits at the 2010 Toy Fair, an important annual trade-only showcase. Lots of Strawberry Shortcake in there and a little G3.5 MLP, but at 3:45 (and in the video thumbnail!) we get a little time with a few very familiar characters!

This video was uploaded on 17th February 2010, so as of this moment it stands as the oldest G4 video I've ever seen. If you know of anything older, please do let me know in the comments!

Ponyfic Roundup 482

Read it Later story count: 96 (+3)

Words read this week: 23,796

Four stories only to review today, since that will take me to 1,999 of the things since I started out doing this almost a decade ago. Imagine all the actually useful things I could have done with my life in the time it's taken to write all these posts. But hay, would any of them have been as much fun? Well, okay, probably one or two would, but an awful lot would not. It's mostly been a blast, and it mostly still is. Off we go...

Fly Hard by Aragon
Alabaster by DawnFade
Wake-up Call by Cyrano
Top Edge by Raugos

★: 0 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 2 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I enjoy an average amount scores two stars.

My Little Repeats 158: "Triple Threat"

"And that's how Equestria was... destroyed."

S7E15: "Triple Threat"

19 Aug 2017

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 7.2

The one with Twilight's chairs

Thoughts: IMDb ratings are to be treated with caution, but this episode gets a score 0.6 points lower than "Fame and Misfortune". Although fewer people truly dislike it, I'm not sure many people adore it either. Like a large chunk of the second half of S7, it's not an episode that forces remembrance. Thorax doesn't help: the reformed changelings just aren't that interesting, with the occasional exception such as his spiel to Spike about "renegades" (foreshadowing "To Change a Changeling"). Ember is a good deal more fun and certainly has the best of the humour and dialogue, though Starlight has a nice supporting role. The third act feels a little flabby, but it does the job. So does the obvious plot convenience of the Cutie Map summoning Spike in the first place, for that matter. Plus a little Derpy spot. I'll stick with the three-star rating I gave this first time round.

Choice quote: Ember: "I had no idea it was polite to decorate your walls in your friends' favourite foods!"

New rating: ★★★

Next time, it's "Campfire Tales", in which we'll meet the Pillars for the first time in the show itself.¹ I've never been an enormous fan of either them or this episode, giving it only two stars in 2017. As ever, let's see how it goes.
¹ They debuted in the "Legends of Magic" IDW comic subseries.

My most prized Pony possession? Maybe this

On Friday, I asked you fine people what your most prized Pony possession – excluding plushies – might be. I also said that I would reveal my own answer before long. Well, here goes! This wasn't actually the easiest choice for me, partly since I'm not that big on merch and partly since a couple of options had very specific personal significance that wouldn't make much sense to most people. This item, though, is one I do like a lot:

Back in 2012, I was in my first year in the My Little Pony fandom and I very much got caught up in the hype about the then-imminent release of the IDW comics series. So much so that I spent more time in comic shops as a result than I'd done in my entire life up to that point! I went with a great friend to purchase issue #1 in Nostalgia and Comics in Birmingham on release day. That alone would give the IDW series a special place in my heart.

This first edition, though, had a lot of variant covers, more than 20 in the end. I bought a few myself over the next few months, and this is perhaps the most special to me. The Hastings Comics variant of that first issue, signed by artist Andy Price, writer Katie Cook and cover artist Amy Mebberson. I don't care about commercial value (fortunately, as I like reading the comic!) but I am very happy every time I see it on my shelf. So I'll pick this.

What's your most prized non-plushie Pony possession?

As the subject line says! I'm simply curious. I'm excluding plushies because they tend to be chosen again and again when this kind of question is asked, and I'd like a little more variety. As usual with this type of post, I do intend to give my own answer in the near future – but not until I've seen a few of your replies! :P

Ponyfic Roundup 481

Read it Later story count: 93 (-2)

Words read this week: 31,925

A little hint about something I'll be doing after the 2,000th review: I'm currently picking out five stories for a themed edition concentrating on one author. I intend to post that in the nearish future – by which I mean before summer, all being well. No, you won't yet get to find out who will be featured. Other things to come first, such as today's quintet:

Ladybugs Awake by Uz Naimat
The 41-Second Goddess by Bicyclette
"Teach Me Goodness" by Posh
End of Our Story by qiley
Persephone by PresentPerfect

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

UK PonyCon 2024 ticket details!

Much earlier than was the case last year, UK PonyCon has announced ticket details! They will go on sale at 7pm BST on Saturday 6th April. Although that's over a month away yet, the official tickets page is now online, so you can see what will be available.

The convention is sticking to its four-tier ticketing setup: Standard, Bronze, Silver, Gold. There have been tweaks, however, notably in that Silver places have increased from 60 to 75 and Gold from four to five. Last year all four Golds went inside two minutes, so I somehow doubt UKPC will have any difficulty in selling the extra one!

Now then, prices. As I usually do, I'll concentrate on Adult Weekend tickets, but one-day, child and family rates are also available. Also, a reminder: since this con handles its own ticket processing, there are no booking fees – the price you see is the price you pay. I'll just pause for a moment to say that I think this is something really worth applauding.

Standard: £60 (+15% on 2023) – entrance to the convention on both days (including the Saturday night concert), con book, basic blue lanyard. Book before 1st August and you'll also get a personalised con badge.

Bronze: £85 (+5%) – nicer lanyard, Bronze sponsor badge, name in con book (if you want it), Bronze button badge, vinyl sticker sheet, £5 donation to the con's great friends at the RDA.

Silver: £185 (+23%) – priority queue, silver sponsor badge, messenger bag, Silver/Gold sponsor-exclusive T-shirt, art print, mug, enamel pin, two autograph/photo tokens, £10 RDA donation.

Gold: £450 (+12.5%) – all the Silver perks and sponsor hoodie, Sewpoke Britannia plushie, top-table seating at Afternoon Tea, personalised welcome letter, four autograph/photo tokens, £20 RDA donation.

I haven't listed absolutely every feature of each tier above, but that should be enough to give you an idea.

So, a few thoughts? The one that immediately stands out is that the respectively small and large increases in Bronze and Silver prices mean that the gap between those two is now much wider than it was in 2023: the difference was £69 then but is a full £100 in 2024. To my eyes, that makes the Bronze ticket probably the best value for what it offers if you're willing and able to spend that amount.

UK PonyCon will be keenly aware that annual 15% rises would eventually make tickets unaffordable – if they did it every year, a Standard ticket for the 30th anniversary in 2034 would cost over £240 and by the 40th in 2044 it would be very close to £1,000! It'll be interesting to see how they handle this over the next few years. I don't intend to dwell on that, though, since here I'm more concerned with providing information.

With that in mind, there is one more very interesting innovation tucked away on the tickets page. This year there will be optional Friday pre-registration! If a substantial number of people opt for this, then there will be fewer needing to register on Saturday morning, which with other (as yet unspecified) changes ought to improve on last year's sometimes excessive queue waits.

If you've been around me for any length of time, you'll know this next part by heart, but: no, I don't know whether I will be able to make UK PonyCon this year, and if so for how long. I won't know for ages yet, so don't hold your breath! But as you'll also know, I have a lot of time for UKPC and I think it's an event that really enhances this country's part in the MLP fandom. Here's to a great 20th!

How Ponyfic Roundup will mark the upcoming milestones

The plural in the title is correct. Read on to see why! Assuming next week's edition goes according to plan, Ponyfic Roundup will then have reached its 1,995th story. I've been debating with myself recently about how to go about marking the big double thousand, and I've now decided. So, here's how it will go down:

6th March: PR 481, which as you already know will feature five fics.

13th March: PR 482, which will feature four stories, taking me to review number 1,999.

20th March: No PR! Instead there'll be some feeble attempts at hype.

26th March: Wait, a Tuesday? Why?! Because that will mean that PR 483 (featuring review number 2,000) will appear ten years to the day since I started all this fic-related rambling back in Ponyfic Roundup no. 1. An opportunity like that is just too good for me to pass up.

3rd April: Back to Wednesday for PR 484, which will see reviews number 2,001 to 2,005 inclusive. Sorry folks, no more anniversary excitement from there on in until I get round to doing PR 500 in the summer!

Now, the observant amongst you will have noticed a couple of things. One is that I've arranged my schedule so that the 2,000th fic to be reviewed will be a Spotlight. Indeed so! I feel I'd like to make the lucky (or unlucky, depending on how things go...) fic stand out for a double occasion such as this one.

The other thing you'll have noticed is that I'm not saying which fic I've chosen. That reveal will be part of the aforementioned feeble attempts at hype on the 20th! So for now all you get is that it's long enough (my guideline is 40,000 words or more), isn't Mature-rated and isn't a crossover.