Read it Later story count: 95 (+2)
Words read this week: 29,541
Sombra Omega by Azure129
Larger Than Life by Equimorto
Mended Hearts and Wings by BronyBrozly
Sol Invictus by Seer
Mindscapers by Heroic412227
★: 1 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I enjoy an average amount scores two stars.
Sombra Omega by Azure129
Sombra, Celestia and Luna
G4; Dark/Sad/Tragedy; 7k words; Apr 2015; Teen
Sombra's final mad thoughts before encountering the pony sisters, his reaction to Twilight 1000 years later, and how the sisters (and Radiant Hope) mourned the Crystal Empire. A companion story to the recent "Fiendship is Magic" comic about Sombra.
Okay, so it's no longer recent, but I still strongly recommend you read the Sombra comic before starting this fic. It's perhaps the best of the FIENDship comics in any case. In Sombra Omega, the story is narrated in first person by Sombra himself, which adds a nice touch of immediacy. Characters such as Radiant Hope who play such a major role in the comic are seen from another angle here, and it largely works, even if post-2015 canon has inevitably altered Sombra's story a little bit. We can see that his mind is warped, something that helps justify that [Tragedy] tag perhaps even more than the ending. An ending that is itself thought-provoking, given the suggestion that Sombra was himself a trigger for another significant and dangerous event in Equestrian history. Top-end three, especially for fans of the original comic. ★★★
Larger Than Life by Equimorto
Trixie and Rainbow Dash
G4 EqG; Romance/Comedy/Drama; 15k words; Apr 2023; Teen
Rainbow Dash and Trixie get together, break up, and get together again.
Each chapter of this fic is an exact thousand number of words. I don't think that really matters. What does is the interestingly different portrayal of teenage romance. The complex, sometimes contradictory feelings of the participants is nicely on show, and the author's decision not to explain everything (eg Trixie's family backstory) works well. The final chapter shifts gear into a semi-stream of consciousness style, which is a brave and at first satisfying choice eventually let down by the chapter's length. 1,000 words of this would have been great; at 4,000 it rather outstays its welcome. The contest it was written for had a 15k max word count, but this seems to have been written as though it had to be exactly that length. A high three-star rating, one which might well have been a four without that overlong ending. ★★★
Mended Hearts and Wings by BronyBrozly
Gilda, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy
G4; Slice of Life; 3k words; Feb 2012; Everyone
A short redemption story of Gilda that I wrote. Enjoy.
This is one of those fics where you have to bear in mind the publication date – at the time, canon still had Gilda as a toxic permanently-ex-friend. In this story, she heads to Ponyville seeking redemption but injures herself in the process. A fairly promising setup, but the execution is all over the place. One example: Rainbow agrees to accept Gilda's apology only if Gilda can beat her in race. Even for 2012, what? Gilda's timeline doesn't make a lot of sense, and Fluttershy is weirdly accepting. The fic is also seriously flawed technically – not just a few typos, but in places hard to understand at all. Maybe the writer isn't a native speaker? There's a potentially interesting story here, but sadly this isn't it. Top-end one is all I can manage. ★
Sol Invictus by Seer
Sunny and Rarity
G4/G5; Dark/Sci-Fi; 4k words; Aug 2021; Teen (Death)
Just keep digging. As long as we break through soon, we'll stay alive. Just keep digging.
First: it is essential to have read Silent Whisper's Symbiosis (PR 443) to understand Sol Invictus. This is an intriguingly interwoven tale, with Rarity's story from the first fic blending into the teenage Sunny's here. The world-building is done with quite a light hand, but the world it portrays definitely justifies that [Dark] tag. We get a solid explanation for why Sunny is named as she is in this harsh, dark world and the G4/G5 link (always a YMMV thing) is necessary for this story, rather than just being put there because the author felt like it. This isn't a very happy fic, but remember that there isn't an [AU] tag here and you may understand why I don't see it as being devoid of hope. This was quite a read. ★★★★
Mindscapers by Heroic412227
Pinkie Pie, Mane Six, Zecora and Other
G4; Adventure/Random; 3k words; Feb 2022; Everyone
The group must journey into Pinkie's mind in order to save her.
When Pinkie Pie is infected by a bizarre flower (no, not Poison Joke) that threatens to destroy her mind, the Mane Six – assisted by Zecora, who is quite well written – must go inside Pinkie's consciousness themselves. All a bit Fantastic Voyage I suppose, but this is Pinkie we're talking about, so candy and cupcakes feature in there. It's a nice concept and having Zecora on hoof is a good choice. It does feel a tiny bit lacklustre, though: considering this is Pinkie Pie we're talking about, the adventures just aren't funny-weird enough. I was hoping for Lewis Carroll level oddness, and for the most part I didn't get that. Highish two, therefore. ★★
And that's a wrap for another Roundup! Next week, I'll be looking at these five stories:
What's in a Name? by RB_
The Seeds of Grief by eemoo1o
Gobbling and Other Traditional Pursuits by LadyMoondancer
Final Regrets by ObeySaturnGod
The Clever One by Winston
that first one sounds particularly good :D
ReplyDeleteIt's very interesting. I think before recentish canon it might have slipped into the fours. A bit unfair on the author of course, but S9 isn't something I can very easily forget!
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