UK PonyCon 2025 ticket details!

You know how when I posted a revised schedule on Tuesday I said that "[i]f any big news intervenes then so be it." Well, about that...

With exactly 100 days to go until UK PonyCon 2025, last night saw ticket details announced! They will go on sale at 7pm BST on Saturday 12th July. That's still over a fortnight away, but nevertheless the tickets page itself is now live, allowing you to see what you get for your money. I'll put some thoughts after the main bit, for which I'll keep to the format I used in 2024:

I'm using Adult Weekend ticket prices here, since I imagine the large majority of people reading Louder Yay will be buying those. There are also one-day, child and family rates – and a cheaper (£15) option granting entry only to the new-for-2025 Friday night music event. The tiers remain as they were last year, except that Silver numbers fall from 75 to 60 and Gold from five to four. That returns the totals to where they were in 2023.

Standard: £75 (+25% on 2024) – entrance to all days of the convention (including the Friday night music), con book, basic blue lanyard. You can have a personalised con badge if you book by 15th August.

Bronze: £99 (+16%) – nicer lanyard, Bronze sponsor badge, name in con book (if you want it), Bronze button badge, vinyl sticker sheet, £5 donation to UKPC's long-standing charity, the RDA. New for this year is the option to purchase (for £60) the sponsor hoodie, which previously could only be obtained by Silver or Gold ticket-holders.

Silver: £210 (+14%) – priority queue, silver sponsor badge, drawstring bag, Silver/Gold sponsor-exclusive T-shirt, art print, water bottle, wooden pin, two autograph tokens, £10 RDA donation. New for this year is a special guest signing session just for Silver sponsors.

Gold: £525 (+17%) – all the Silver perks and sponsor hoodie, Britannia plushie, top-table seating at Afternoon Tea, personalised welcome letter, four autograph/photo tokens, £20 RDA donation. New for this year is custom artwork from a member of the UKPC Arts Team in both digital and various physical forms. The Britannia this year is not a Sewpoke one. It's the mass-produced one from last year, but with a fitted-to-size themed shirt (with each buyer getting a unique design) from the highly regarded shadowonthemoon.

There are more perks I haven't listed, especially for the top two tiers, so go and read those on the Tickets page itself if you're curious! (And why wouldn't you be?)

Anyway, thoughts. First, I'm happy and relieved to see tickets announced. Except for the 2021 iteration, which was held in very unusual circumstances as we emerged from the Covid pandemic, this is by some distance the latest tickets have gone on sale since I started attending UKPC over a decade ago. In 2018, the last time the con switched venues, they could be bought before the end of April. So yeah, this is unusually late even considering the fact that the con has a new location.

Prices? Well, I would first like to compliment the UK PonyCon folks on fronting up on this issue in their announcement blog post. One of the reasons (though by no means the only) that this convention is so trusted is that its staff don't try to sweep things like this under the carpet. I also recognise the amount of effort that went into keeping the popular Bronze tier under £100. I think it's probably still the best value tier, as was the case last year. The gap between Standard and Bronze is in fact now very slightly smaller than it was in 2024.

As I said last year, annual rises of roughly 15% are not sustainable in the longer term and have to end before too much longer.¹ But that's the only real note of concern I'm going to sound in this post. So to get back to good things! I'm glad Friday pre-registration is staying; it was an excellent innovation last year. With that and a Friday night concert this year, it may become more challenging to fit in the informal pre-meets that a lot of us really enjoy, but that can be worked out. Of course one unknown is the venue staff. If they're as good with attendees as the Nottingham ones were, we'll be in good shape.
¹ A 15% rise for the next 15 years brings a Standard ticket to £600+ by 2040, four times what it would be with 5% rises. 

At this point it is traditional for me to say that I don't know whether or for how long I'll be able to attend. This year, with the convention in a city that's convenient for me to access, I'm cautiously on the side of "I will be there". The question for me this time will be whether I stay over or commute in each day – or even adopt a hybrid approach, perhaps staying on Friday night but not the much more expensive (in hotel terms) Saturday. That's not something I yet know, but we shall see!

This post is long enough now, I think. I remain of the opinion that UK PonyCon is a wonderful event that is run in a way that reflects very well on the British My Little Pony fandom. It is, after all, the longest-running MLP convention in the world, and you don't earn that status by accident. In the old days, coming of age used to be your 21st birthday. Unless you're an American wanting to buy beer, turning 21 now has less resonance – so I'll borrow UK PonyCon's 2025 theme title and simply say... Adventure Awaits!

Yep, yet another of those meta posts

Honestly, if you've been here any length of time, you probably know what this is without even reading the body text! The lack of a "My Little Repeats" post on Sunday might have tipped you off, too. But yeah, I've run out of time to do stuff again thanks to life being life. Nothing especially bad, just that I've been ludicrously busy and expect to continue being so for a little while yet. (And yeah, this is also why I'm still behind with my Ponyfic Roundup courtesy notes on Fimfiction.)

So here's the deal:

• I have managed to get "Sounds of 2016" out, as you saw earlier today.
• Ponyfic Roundup should be up on Friday or Saturday, with a low-word-count week to follow.
• "My Little Repeats" should happen on Sunday.
• Things should be back on an even keel by this time next week. 

I can't promise any of these (well, maybe the first one) but it's what I currently think is likely. If any big news intervenes then so be it. But one thing I can reassure you all about: I am definitely not losing interest in this fandom. Ponies still rock!

Sounds of 2016, nos. 75 to 71

It's time once again to return to the Equestrian Trot 100 for 2016, which as you may remember actually runs (in terms of voting period) from December 2015 to November 2016. It's the best you're going to get from me, though! Comforming to my usual custom, here are the inclusion rules:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

It's always nice when I can feature all five songs in a week's selection, but it doesn't always work out that way. This time, though, it absolutely did! Huzzah! How many tracks do I receive? [Five. That's kind of the point. —Ed.]

75: Spectra – Welcome to the Show (remix)
74: JoinedTheHerd – I Can Do It On My Own (remix)
73: Forest Rain ft. Luna Jax – Let the Magic Fill Your Soul (cover)
72: Crusader! – Power Ponies GO!
71: Aurelleah & Kadenza ft. PegasYs – Firelight

You can make up your own pre-break waffle here. I'm going straight to the tunes!

Ponyfic Roundup 544

Read it Later story count: 87 (nc)

Words read this week: 42,149

A mini-heatwave is happening here over the next few days, with temperatures nudging the low 30s – notable for England. As it's almost exactly midsummer, there's not much darkness overnight, but what there is, is also pretty warm and humid. It's not the easiest weather to do things in, though I can at least manage reading! A good job too, as this week's word count is the highest for some time, barring Spotlight editions.

The Long Payoff by totallynotabrony
I Want to Dance with Somepony by ThunderChaserCreate
Zephyr Breeze Doesn't Know How To Flirt by alafoel
Pinkie Pie Swear by Annuska
Rainbow Shadow by RainbowShadow [sic]

★: 0 | ★★: 3 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I enjoy an average amount scores two stars.

Sounds of 2016, nos. 80 to 76

Back to 2016 again now, and today it's the final part of the bottom quarter of the Equestrian Trot 100 chart. Look, I have to say something up here, all right? :P Let's start with the usual reminder of the inclusion criteria:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

Last week I had to skip the very last song of the quintet. This time, I'm delighted to say that we're back up to a full complement of five! Here's the full list of tracks:

80: OhPonyBoy – You are Wonderful
79: Silva Hound – Diamonds
78: µThunder – Lost on the Moon (remix)
77: AwkwardMarina – Open Your Eyes (a cappella cover)
76: Aviators – Dragonheart

After the jump break, if you're using a computer to view this page, I'll post the songs and some waffly waffling about them.

My Little Repeats 192: "The Washouts"

The facial expressions are great in this ep: strong without being overdone

S8E20: "The Washouts"

8 Sep 2018

My original rating: ★★★★
IMDb score: 7.2

The one with the limited edition half-eaten tomato sandwich

Thoughts: Nick Confalone is usually a decent choice for a Cutie Mark Crusaders episode, in this case a Scootaloo special, and so it proves here. We have a clearly "rebellious teen" Scoots here, and it largely works. She's no longer obsessed with Rainbow Dash, and that's leaving Dash herself confused and somewhat bereft – obvious analogy of course, but again it largely works. Lightning Dust's part was apparently spoiled in 2018, but you could guess it was coming. It makes no sense that Scoot didn't know about Dusty, though, given "Parental Glideance". Mind you, Scootaloo was superbly animated in her "caught in the middle" role during Dash and Lightning's argument. And, of course, her "I... can't fly!" which was quite something for us fans at the time. Dusty's sidekicks, the Aussie (why?) Rolling Thunder and the well-named Short Fuse, are... mildly fun. Spitfire's rant was inspired by this SNL sketch, and SNL isn't an "everyone will get this" reference in the UK. Twilight, where's the, well, loyalty to Rainbow? And why are you waiting until Scootaloo is potentially going to die before acting? Sod personal responsibility for teenagers at that point. the episode again looks fantastic, with heaps of inventiveness in the stunt setups. A fun episode, but there are enough irritations that four stars was too high. One of those is being cut.

Choice quote: Rainbow Dash, to Twilight: "Please tell me you got that stuff so you could rip it up and throw it off a cliff."

New rating:★★★

Another decent score, and though not without its flaws this episode was enjoyable enough for me to feel good about having watched it again. Next up is "A Rockhoof and a Hard Place", an ep which may have a bit more to do. I'm not that interested in the Pillars on the whole

Ponyfic Roundup 543

Read it Later story count: 87 (-2)

Words read this week: 30,385

It's been dry and warm today, but in classic "English weather" style, there's plenty of rain – and perhaps thunder – on the cards for tomorrow. I may have to spend the evening sitting indoors reading ponyfic. I know, how dreadful! Anyway, it's Wednesday and so I'm back again with another edition of Ponyfic Roundup. Here's today's selection:

Hypothetically by _Undefined_
Javelin by McPoodle
Tacet by Jade_Turtl
Numbers by The 24th Pegasus
Twilight Sparkle Has a Type by errant

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

Sounds of 2016, nos. 85 to 81

Now we return to the Equestrian Trot 100 chart for 2016. I haven't really got anything much else to say up here this time, so it's a pretty short introductory section today. Here's the usual reminder of my inclusion criteria:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

We've had two weeks of being able to feature all five tracks in the relevant portion of the chart, but unfortunately the very last song this time wasn't one I could find anywhere online from the actual artist. It's not super-famous, so it has to be skipped. Sorry! Here's what I can feature:

85: FritzyBeat hugs Port Blue – Seagulls
84: GhostXb ft. Wubcake and many more – Unleash the Magic (remix)
83: Aurelleah – Rainbow Factory (remix)
82: Exiark & Chi-Chi – Life Still Left in Me (Club Mix)
81: skipped

All right, now you know what songs await you, let's get to them!

My Little Repeats 191: "Road to Friendship"

This is what I mean about the visuals. So many little details for a short scene.

S8E19: "Road to Friendship"

1 Sep 2018

My original rating: ★★★★
IMDb score: 7.9

The one with the world's longest-lasting cup of tea

Thoughts: With Pinkie's yovidaphone disaster behind us, here's a far more fondly remembered episode, and perhaps one of my favourites from Josh Haber's. Yes, it's StarTrix time! Well, not officially, but even Cadance in an admittedly slightly disconnected early scene openly notes Starlight and Trixie's chemistry together. They really are great together, even when they're bickering for days on end about carrots and juice. I enjoyed the snarkiness of their grumbling. The song is wonderful, and it's nice to see something inspired by a classic musical – reminiscent of the Sondheim homages of the early seasons. We now know "nine [seasons] at least" was indeed foreshadowing! Hoo'far was okay as a guest character, but his not being named in the episode seems bizarre: he's even "that pony from Saddle Arabia" after StarTrix have known him for ages. The pacing didn't quite keep up the snappiness that this kind of plot demands. Buuuuut I still had a lot of fun. Was some of that because I'd come off a short run of poor episodes? Well, yes. I won't deny that. Still, it both looked and sounded superb – all the little details in the inns we saw for only a second each, for example. We didn't see Saddle Arabia (the new animation would have been too expensive, according to Jim Miller) but still. Objectively "Road to Friendship" is probably a high three, but the happiness of really enjoying an episode again pushes it over the line. It can keep its four.

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

New rating:★★★★

That's a bit more like it! If anything this ep has become more popular as the years have passed, perhaps partly since it's one of the last examples in FiM of the successful cementing of a team-up. Of course Starlight and Trixie had worked together before, but this was the ep that truly underlined how good their chemistry was. Anyway, next up is "The Washouts", which being a Scootaloo-heavy episode I naturally liked last time – although not without reservations.

Ponyfic Roundup 542

Read it Later story count: 89 (-2)

Words read this week: 23,630

Before I forget again, I really must note that the excellent Thousand Words Contest is back for its fourth edition. Bicyclette and co have done a superb job in running this since its creation, and the sheer level of interest it's gained even in today's smaller fandom is testament to its popularity. And yes, I shall make every effort to ensure that I have a story in there somewhere! But talking of stories, here are five that I didn't write, and they're the subject of today's PR:

Love Defenestrates by Liquid Truth
Mistmane and the Torii of Time by Impossible Numbers
The Dangers Of Teleporting While Intoxicated by naturalbornderpy
Dinner with Rose by Admiral Biscuit
Reminiscing by Gleaming

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

Sounds of 2016, nos. 90 to 86

It's time we paid another visit to the Equestrian Trot 100 chart for 2016 – though, as I noted last time, it's not quite the full calendar year as its voting period ran from December 2015 to November 2016. Close enough, though! Certainly the closest you're going to get in these parts. Here's the usual reminder of my inclusion criteria:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

I was able to feature all five songs last week, and this time around I can do that again! This is always the best-case scenario, all the more so when – as has happened this week – all the songs remain on their creators' YouTubes and discoverable without much effort. The five this time are:

90: WeimTime – Rainbow Factory (orchestral arrangement)
89: StrachAttack – The Spectacle (remix)
88: OhPonyBoy – Mox Super Jupiter
87: Synthis – Hold Me Close
86: PON3 – Secrets

There we go; now you know what's on the way! Talking of which...

My Little Repeats 190: "Yakity-Sax"

Well, this isn't disturbing at all...

S8E18: "Yakity-Sax"

25 Aug 2018 (previewed by Discovery Family 20 Jul 2018)

My original rating: ★★
IMDb score: 5.3

The one with randomly Irish Lily Daisy

Thoughts: This ep was not in fact hated by everyone from the start. But it had a negative reception overall, sometimes very negative – and if anything it's got worse over time. A few nice touches, such as AJ's callback to "Horse Play". The way Pinkamena gradually gets greyer and greyer. I quite like the Pinkie Pie Appreciation Party, too. But. But. Here we have Pinkie valuing a hobby we've never seen before over her friends. Twilight making a mess of wording the "you're bad at this". Pinkie deciding the best response is to run away to Yakyakistan, saying that without the yovidaphone her life has no meaning. The Manes being unutterably thick about how they need to talk to Maud. And the rotten cherry on the whole stinking mess of a cake, the appalling moral. "Sod everyone else, Pinkie, your personal obsession beats their welfare any day!" So: don't be honest with your friends when they're keeping a whole town awake, just encourage them to annoy everyone even more! Besides, there is a canon silence spell ("Amending Fences") which Twi doesn't even mention. Use that, for Celestia's sake! There's actually a fun episode somewhere in this basic premise. The teeny, tiny snag? This ain't it.

Choice quote: Pinkie Pie: "Those apple turnovers aren't gonna apple themselves!"

New rating: ★

And breathe. Next time it'll be "Road to Friendship", which isn't a perfect episode by any means but is on another level to this. It's one of Josh Haber's most popular eps, helped by the chemistry of its principal characters and a very catchy song. I liked it a good deal in 2018, and I hope I'll like it a good deal again this year!

Ponyfic Roundup 541: Spotlight on Redheart's War

Read it Later story count: 90 (-1)

Words read this week: 46,081

I've been really looking forward to reading Redheart's War. It's had such a impressive reception, including from multiple reviewers I read and respect, and I've badly wanted to see whether it would hit the spot for me as well. For that reason, I accelerated its progress up my Read it Later queue. I can say right away that I didn't regret that decision. Here's the review!

Redheart's War by SockPuppet
Nurse Redheart, Shining Armor, Celestia, Cadance and Hippogriffs
G4; Adventure/Drama; 46k words; Jun 2020; Teen (Gore, Violence)

A nurse has seen it all. A combat medic has seen even more.

Although this can, as SockPuppet says, be read as a standalone, I strongly recommend having read A Story to Relate To (PR 507) and, especially, The Ponies in the Caves (PR 523) first as certain elements are referred to here. Anyway, this is Nurse Redheart's backstory as a member of Celestia's Own, Equestria's storied elite combat unit. The admittedly fairly thin domestic modern-day framing allows her to tell series of stories about her role, which show a mare of immense character who rises above her doubts to become a hero of her country. There's a lot of blood and guts here, but the emphasis is always on character rather than history, and that's a huge plus. It's an extremely exciting fic, with highs and lows of emotions – one particular very hard-to-read scene had me white with fury and in tears. Its flaws are few and minor, and vastly outweighed by the pluses. I'm not a huge war fic fan, but I now consider this essential, if not always easy, reading. ★★★★★

As usual, major spoilers lurk beyond this line!

Sounds of 2016, nos. 95 to 91

Ready to join me again on a trip into the dim and distant world of, er, nine years ago? At this point in 2016, the last two FiM episodes had been "A Hearth's Warming Tail" and "The Saddle Row Review", so there was a fair degree of optimism around regarding the show. It's the fandom music scene I'm interested in here, though. As usual, the ratings come from the Equestrian Trot 100 chart, whose voting period ran from December 2015 through to November 2016. Here's the usual reminder of my inclusion criteria:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

Last week, I had to skip the very first song (ie no. 100) but the other four could be included. This week, on the other hoof, it's plain sailing all the way, since I can feature all five songs. Woo-hoo!

95: Synthis – Into the Everfree
94: WoodLore – Flowers
93: 4EverfreeBrony ft. Joaftheloaf & Relative1Pitch – Without Me
92: The Wasteland Wailers ft. Brittany Church – When the Sun Comes Back
91: Eurobeat Brony ft. Odyssey – Luna's Future (Euro Cast Mix)

As ever, that marks the end of the introductory waffle. Now it's on to the songs themselves. Woo-hoo again!

My Little Repeats 189: "The End in Friend"

Lyra and Bon-Bon's colour co-ordinated ice creams are a nice touch

S8E17: "The End in Friend"

18 Aug 2018

My original rating: ★★
IMDb score: 6.4

The one with an adorable tiny cloud

Thoughts: To my surprise, when I looked back I found that several prominent reviewers (notably Dark Qiviut) liked this episode in 2018. I wasn't thrilled by it, though, and I'm still not. Another ep with a good and quite rare team-up largely wasted. The setup grates: Gallus tells Rarity and Rainbow they have "nothing in common". Nah, apart from repeatedly saving Equestria together, nothing whatsoever. By the time we get to "banter" things look fairly bad. The story drags horribly to fill a full-length episode. It's contrived in the first place, and Twilight and the students being there as spectators is just weird. The Bufogren is pointless. Good things? Starlight had a pretty solid minor role, which helps. The visuals are excellent – I wonder who'd have believed in 2010 that Flash could look like this? The moral itself isn't too bad. But it takes forever to get there and the setup requires two good ponies to be dislikeable for most of the running time. A two-star rating like the last episode, but this one goes quite a bit lower in that band.
NB: One small and sadly (this being S8) almost certainly unintentional nice touch, pointed out by a friend: real-world horses cannot see reds, so actually magenta and blue gems would appear similar – though Rarity apparently can tell the difference.

Choice quote: Rainbow Dash: "Unless you like tripping with every step, heels on a horse are pretty useless."
Note she says "horse", not "pony". Hmm.

New rating: ★★

Not an unmitigated disaster, but not a great episode by any stretch of the imagination. It would be nice if I had an unquestioned classic with which to follow up, but sadly I haven't. Instead the next episode is "Yakity-Sax". Oh boy. Maybe it'll click with me this time. [Yeah, and maybe you'll win three lottery jackpots in a row —Ed.]

Ponyfic Roundup 540

Read it Later story count: 91 (-1)

Words read this week: 20,712

Not a lot for me to say in my introductory paragraph this week, so I won't bother! Thanks to the lower word count this week, I've been able to get back on track with PR's release date. Four very short fics and one just a bit longer this time around. Here's the list:

"Do wings turn you gay, Headmare Twilight?" by semillon
A Letter to Father by Silvermyr
The Roles We (Are Fated to) Play by AltruistArtist
Lumen de Lumine by Noriko Nakayama
The Only Way is Forwards by Once In A Blue Moon

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

Sounds of 2016, nos. 100 to 96

It's now time to set off on another journey into the past, with "Sounds of 2016". As for the 2015 series, I will be taking chart positions from the Equestria Trot 100. I should note right at the start that this does not quite use the calendar year: it is based on "chart points" from 5th December 2015 to 26th November 2016. These were based on monthly votes, weekly views and weekly likes, but I don't know the precise formula. I assume the eligibility period was so that they could do a big Hearth's Warming special with the list, but I don't know for sure. Anyway, my criteria for inclusion remain as they were:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

It's often the case that some of the songs down in the lower reaches of these charts have disappeared into the ether with the passing of the years, and so it is today. Somewhat disappointingly, the very first song I would have liked to have featured today is one I have to skip. Still, I've managed to find official uploads of the other four, so we're not too badly off! Here we go:

100: skipped
99: PrinceWhateverer ft. CookieSoup – A Place That We Call Home
98: PON3 – We Can Fly
97: Synthis ft. Sora – Insane
96: PON3 – Proxy

The four tracks I can feature will be past the jump break (if you're on a computer) and as ever will include a YouTube embed of the song, a few brief details and if possible a place to buy a high-quality version of the tune. Off we go!

My Little Repeats 188: "Friendship University"

Surely the natural way for unicorns to wear 'em in any case...

S8E16: "Friendship University"

11 Aug 2018

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 6.5

The one with friendship through sewing

Thoughts: This episode was moderately – but no more – liked by most in 2018. Anyway, here the FlimFlams bring freemium education to Equestria (h/t FOME). Their episodes have never really matched their debut for me, and by now they were becoming rather one-dimensional. Neighsay's approval of their university's "pony-first environment" isn't exactly cheering, either. Starswirl's support act is fun, though, and naive as he is, he does have a point. So, I have to admit, does Neighsay: Twi is reacting as though she had a Tia-given right to have the only friendship school in Equestria. Best thing about the ep? Plainity, surely. She carries that off with real verve. A pity there's the unbelievable bit where FlimFlam don't recognise her even out of disguise. And the other one where nopony notices there's an alicorn in the uni. Still, the final scene with Cozy Glow hits a little harder than it did in 2018. So, too many niggles to get a really good rating, but in truth not as bad as I was remembering. A top-end two seems about right now.

Choice quote: Twilight: "My name's Eyepatch. I have an eyepatch."

New rating: ★★

In the end, "Friendship University" just about managed a passing grade. Next up is "The End in Friend", which I don't remember especially fondly. Maybe that too will have its moments. Join me to find out, same channel but whenever I get round to it!

Ponyfic Roundup 539

Read it Later story count: 92 (+2)

Words read this week: 31,117

Two days late this week, but I think I can be excused that given my need to accompany a relative to a hospital as mentioned in my brief post on Tuesday! Things have calmed down a great deal since, and I'm pleased to be able to bring you the usual selection of five stories. I haven't really got anything else to say, so I'll move on to the story list now:

The Scars of the Past by Lil Penpusher
Hobby Horse by a kobold
The Tower of the Fallen Star by Raleigh
All Our Villains are Horny by billymorph
Night of the Living Plushies by Moonlight Bloom

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

Another PR delay, I'm afraid

Spending the night in a hospital waiting room with a relative will do that to you! Don't worry, it didn't turn out to be anything too terrifying, but there's no chance I'll be ready for Wednesday now. (It's also the reason for no G4 rewatch post this week.) So again, Ponyfic Roundup will be on a Friday this week.

Ponyfic Roundup 538

Read it Later story count: 92 (+2)

Words read this week: 18,252

The hot weather has gone now, although it's still pleasant enough. Not a lot going on in terms of small-scale domestic stuff. People are preparing for tomorrow's VE Day 80 celebrations, but those are mostly of the fairly low-key "put a few Union Flags¹ up" kind. As far as ponyfic goes: as trailed last time, only having five days instead of seven to read this week's stories (and write up their reviews) has meant I couldn't risk having a high word count. I hope that the lack of words will not mean a lack of interest!

¹ The common modern insistence that "Union Jack" is only correct when it's flown from a ship's jackstaff is pretty footling. The term "jack" as applied to flags predates the use of jackstaffs by over a century, as the Flag Institute points out.

Wrong Turn by saarni
Reflection by Moproblems Moharmoney
Fixer-Upper by hoofbeatsoftime
Spike Destroys (Creates) Everything by Surry
The Wealth of the World by very trustworthy rodent

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

My Little Repeats 187: "The Hearth's Warming Club"

Only tangential to this, but relevant to many of us who remember its use at past conventions: Skype has finally shut up shop. I'm sure all of us who went to cons years ago remember what a pain Skype could sometimes be, but it certainly played a significant part in that part of the fandom in the pre-Covid era. Consider this brief comment an acknowledgement of that.

"That means character, students, not random hoof raise! Have you even played charades?"

S8E15: "The Hearth's Warming Club"

4 Aug 2018

My original rating: ★★★★
IMDb score: 7.7

The one with the Mt Eris Board of Tourism

Thoughts: This episode aired on the same day as "A Matter of Principals", and unless you find the Young Six boring or outright off-putting, it's more enjoyable. After the fine "Surf and/or Turf" I expected good things from a Brian Hohlfeld story, and so it proved. A friend noted recently that a good chunk of 2010s TV writers adore referencing The Breakfast Club, so probably this setup wasn't that surprising, but good execution can make almost anything work. Twilight's threat of collective punishment (no holidays for anycreature) really rubs me up the wrong way, but the rest is highly watchable, even if Gallus's guilt is fairly obvious from the start if you think about it at all. I didn't see his sad home life story coming, though. Changeling Hearth's Warming ("Carols carols carols carols carols!") is genius, and the Yak Song is great too. Sandbar's stories are dull, but I just suspect he's doing that deliberately as a deadpan satire on his boring old pony image. This is an episode where my initial four-star rating might be just a tad generous, but "THWC" really doesn't do much wrong, and by mid-S8 that's notable and refreshing. In the spirit of August Hearth's Warming, I'm going to let it stand!

Choice quote: Gallus: "Two whole weeks without classes, how will Ocellus survive?"

New rating: ★★★★

That was an entertaining experience. Unfortunately I now enter a short run of episodes which I don't expect to do so well: "Friendship University", "The End in Friend" and "Yakity-Sax". If any of those get more than two stars from me I shall be pleasantly surprised, but I will as always give them a fair go! First up will be Flim and Flam's time in academia.

Ponyfic Roundup 537

Read it Later story count: 90 (+1)

Words read this week: 30,956

I was in Cheltenham yesterday and it was ridiculously warm. 27 °C wouldn't be at all exceptional for England in the middle of July, but on 1st May it was pretty close to an all-time date record. So, there's the intro. Not very interesting, but then I haven't got a lot to say this week, other than that two days later than usual here's Ponyfic Roundup once again!

All But Two by Caisius
Rivers of Babylon by A Hoof-ful of Dust
Silver String of Love by foxmaster
The Monster We Made by Corah Il Cappo
Twilight Sparkle and the Elements of Bootlegs by TheDriderPony

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

One of those little meta posts

I've been much busier than I'd expected this past week, so this will be one of those times when Ponyfic Roundup needs to be slightly delayed. The current plan is to post it on Friday, then have quite a low word count next week to allow me to return to Wednesday from the 7th. This busy week is also why I'm having a short break before getting going on "Sounds of 2016" – though it's coming soon!

My Little Repeats 186: "A Matter of Principals"

Note: I'm reviewing "A Matter of Principals" now because I'm going by the episode order used in the Wikipedia article. That means "Yakity-Sax" will be treated as episode 18, despite having been previewed (and first seen by me) at the end of the mid-season hiatus. I did go back and forth about this a few times, but in the end I chose to stick with what I'm doing now.

Maybe they should just have made the marmoset a substitute teacher...

S8E14: "A Matter of Principals"

4 Aug 2018

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 6.4

The one with Limburger cheese

Thoughts: Apart from the preview of "Yakity-Sax" as noted above, part two of S8 began with a double-header, of which this was the first. The whole Mane Six are called away on a map quest, and finally realise how the School of Friendship's setup is stupidly idiotic requires backup in these circumstances. So Starlight is made acting head mare, since Twilight couldn't be bothered to make her deputy to start with. Anyway, the ep gets going with Discord's interference with the selection of substitute teachers.¹ Iron Will's cameo is disappointing, we weirdly don't see Maud teaching at all, and Trixie's appointment is somewhat nepotistic but Discord's "how do you do, fellow kids?" take-off and bananaphone are mildly amusing, if both over-extended. (Pacing is often off by this point, as many have observed. So is dialogue, which doesn't much zing here.) Spike has quite a solid episode, and Starlight does too for the most part. But Discord is far too unpleasant to the students, and what he does to Yona is indefensible. He had that zap coming. I actually do like the idea that Discord feels left out of the School, and after that apology to him I reckon Starlight was clever enough to have it out with him later, away from the rest. But the execution before that rubs me up so much the wrong way that it significantly harms my enjoyment of the episode as a whole. Sadly, another one I'm knocking down to a two, albeit not as low a two as I'd feared.
¹ Supply teachers – though the American term is starting to gain ground in the UK too.

Choice quote: Gallus to Silverstream: "You've been underwater a long time. Haven't you?"
The gap before the last two words sounds weirdly unnatural, but it's still a fun line.

New rating: ★★

Next up, of course, will be the second episode in the aforementioned double-header, "The Hearth's Warming Club". That one was well received at the time, and I know I enjoyed it quite a bit. I hope I do again!

Ponyfic Roundup 536: Comedy Special

Read it Later story count: 89 (nc)

Words read this week: 30,946

Before I get going today, I'd like to acknowledge the fact that DrakeyC has announced their retirement from ponyfic and from fanfic as a whole. A very fine writer, good enough indeed to have been asked to write official MLP content (several of the claymation shorts). I certainly wish them well for the future. Back to the matter in hoof, and today it's all about the [Comedy] tag. I'm looking here for stories that are actually funny, which isn't quite the norm is should be when it comes to this genre marker! Let's see what these fics can do:

Beating the Deadbeat by BikerPon3
Metagaming by Snowday_Pegasus
Starlight Saves Equestria With Custard by hawthornbunny
Lyra's Deepest Secret by Palm Palette
Regarding the Need for Sex Education by GaPJaxie

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

Sounds of 2015, nos. 5 to 1!

Here we are at the grand finale! The top five songs, as voted for by users, in the Equestrian Trot 100 chart for 2015. As a reminder, the tracks don't have to have been released in that year; as you'll have seen if you've been following along, plenty of 2014 songs (and one or two from even earlier than that) have been featured in the 2015 list so far. Now, up until now my inclusion criteria have been as follows:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

However, the top five of an annual chart open internationally is not just anywhere. At that point, I think a song is famous pretty much by definition. As such, Rule 3 applies across the board today. That means every song will be featured, even if it's no longer available officially. As it happens, though, all the songs are still available officially, so it doesn't matter anyway! :P Here's the list:

5: OhPonyBoy – We Dreamt Our Dream
4: Scratch21 ft. EileMonty – Strangers
3: Black Gryph0n & Baasik – Fighting Back
2: WoodenToaster – Prototype VIP
1: MandoPony & Silva Hound – Wild Fire

That's the (not very exciting) build-up finished. If you're reading on a PC or in Desktop Mode, there's a jump break below, but either way beyond this point are the tracks themselves. Read on...

Ponyfic Roundup 535

Read it Later story count: 89 (-2)

Words read this week: 30,861

As I anticipated last week, the endless blue skies have... ended. The weather now isn't awful, but it's much more typical of England in April. That means plenty of cloud, some brisk winds, scattered showers and the like. Just the weather for sitting inside with a good ponyfic! Talking of which, here's what I've been reading recently:

The Same Scenario Repeated Three Times by Seer
Celestia's Prophet by Aegis Shield
Late Night Snack by GrangeDisplay
A Little Bittle of Sunshine by River Road
In His Image by daOtterGuy

★: 0 | ★★: 2 | ★★★: 0 | ★★★★: 3 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I enjoy an average amount scores two stars.

Sounds of 2015, nos. 10 to 6

It's been quite a ride, but here we are at the penultimate "Sounds of 2015" entry! Yes, I absolutely will be doing the same for 2016 when the time comes, but let's not get ahead of ourselves. As a reminder, this is based on the chart given in the Equestrian Trot 100 for that year, as voted by users – sadly I'm not certain of the precise voting mechanism. My usual inclusion criteria follow:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

We're into the top ten now, everyone! I was going to think about whether I should invoke Rule 3 as a blanket thing at this point in the chart, or just for the top five next time, but in fact that's not an issue as all today's songs are still officially available. Yay for people making my job here easier!

10: Pinkie Rose et al – Friendship Through the Ages (cover)
9: Michelle Creber, Black Gryph0n & Baasik – Getting Stronger
8: Sayonara Maxwell – Cupcakes (remix)
7: Wasteland Wailers – Fly Like You
6: SquareHead – Under Our Spell (remix)

Well, there you are. Usual intro bit over with, so let's get into the music...

My Little Repeats 185: Rollercoaster of Friendship

Look, just be grateful I resisted the temptation to use a pic where they're gazing into each other's eyes!

Rollercoaster of Friendship

6 Jul 2018

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 6.7

The one with Megan Williams

Thoughts: This just got a three-star score from me first time out. It's where we encounter villain/antagonist Vignette Valencia, who by chance got a look-in last Ponyfic Roundup. Amazingly, a seven-year-old cartoon's social media stuff doesn't come across as unbearably prehistoric now; nice work, Nick Confalone. Valencia's zapping phone thing is silly, but that's okay. The solution to the "white room" problem, though, is idiotically stupid and a significant mark against the special. Vignette reforms much too quickly and easily, but the end song is okay if not amazing. Mostly, though, Rollercoaster of Friendship is remembered for the RariJack shipteasing, of which there is plenty almost from the word go. Just a little FlutterDashing on the side, too. Other notes: (some) Americans pronouncing "caramel" as two syllables always gets me. Vignette's dog being called "Yas Queen" is... strange. The ponying up late on is pointless, but apparently Hasbro demanded it, so... I think my overall view is the same: not quite as good as Forgotten Friendship, but though bitty and imperfect it is still quite fun – and so it maintains its rating as a low-end three.

Choice quote: Sunset: "It's not about the parakeet!"

New rating: ★★★

Unlike in 2018, I don't now have to wait ages for the next Friendship is Magic episode, which is nice. As I said last time, in strict release order the next ep would be "Yakity-Sax" – but although I did watch it early back then, pretty much everyone places it at E18 nowadays. That being so, I will have to put off the misery experience for another time. "A Matter of Principles" will be next on this blog.

Ponyfic Roundup 534

Read it Later story count: 91 (+2)

Words read this week: 27,058

It's been another week of sunshine and blue skies here, which is really different from the same time a year ago! Last month was the sunniest March in England since modern records began over a century ago, and early April has continued in the same vein. It should last a few days longer before showers start appearing again. Also appearing again right now, the list of this week's ponyfics:

Villains aren't supposed to Die by IGIBAB
Waking Up is Hard Sometimes by RB_
Captain Twilight by Moonlight Eclipse
No Filter by ReedHoarse
The Brave Little Caretaker by Estee

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

Sounds of 2015, nos. 15 to 11

You'll doubtless have noticed the lack of a "My Little Repeats" this week. I just haven't had the time, what with various things including the PoniesOnline virtual convention. I might have squeezed it in had it been a normal FiM episode, but as it's the Rollercoaster of Friendship special I thought it best to leave it for a little while. Don't worry, it'll be here before too long!

Back to music, and it's the last edition of this series before we get to the top ten. Exciting, eh! Oh, be like that then. I think it's exciting and it's my blog, so there. Here's the usual reminder of my inclusion criteria; for this week, Rule 3 is still not being automatically applied.

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

Last week I managed to feature a full set of five tracks. This week, as happened fairly recently before, I got all the way to the end and then found I needed to skip. It's frustrating, but the track in question just wasn't famous enough for Rule 3. So, here's the list:

15: PrinceWhateverer – Frailty
14: Animated James – Winter's F***ed Up
13: µThunder & FritzyBeat – Sinking Ships (remix)
12: EileMonty & David Larsen – I am a Parasprite
11: skipped

There's your list of songs. Now to see what they actually sound like!

Starlight turns ten

Season 5 of Friendship is Magic began exactly a decade ago, on 4th April 2015, with "The Cutie Map". Widely seen (including by me) as one of the best episodes the series ever produced, this also marked the debut of Starlight Glimmer. Opinions on that vary rather more, although personally I like her even as a reformed character. Whatever your feelings, the double episode itself remains, I think, a classic. Since Hasbro has been nice enough to upload it in full to the official YouTube channel, I can legitimately embed it on Louder Yay, so here it is!

Ponyfic Roundup 533: RNG Choice Edition

Read it Later story count: 89 (nc)

Words read this week: 22,153

I forgot to update this bit earlier – oops! Anyway, this time the stories I read were largely determined by the random number generator. I say "largely" because I did have a slight restriction, over and above my usual ones such as stories needing to be incomplete. For today's edition, I only allowed one Mature fic. Here's the list:

Liable for Content by Sarcasmo
Sentinel by Xenos
The Truth That Lies Within by Ps3luver
We Can't All Be Friends by Awesomo3000
Fear Itself by saarni

★: 0 | ★★: 3 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I enjoy an average amount scores two stars.

Sounds of 2015, nos. 20 to 16

We really are getting to the sharp end of things now, as we move into the top 20! As a reminder this chart was decided through votes from people following Equestrian Radio at the time. I'm afraid I'm not entirely certain of the precise voting mechanism, but that doesn't really matter for our purposes. Here's the usual reminder of the inclusion criteria:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

Last week, I had to skip one of the five tracks that made the chart. We're not quite at the point just yet where Rule 3 will apply across the board, but it doesn't matter this time: a full five tracks today!

20: SlyphStorm ft. 4EverfreeBrony & Midnight Melody – Soldiers of the Night
19: PrinceWhateverer – Your Own Sky
18: Silva Hound ft. Odyssey Eurobeat – Come Alive
17: MandoPony & MegabyteBrony – Spitfire (Give It All You Got)
16: ponyphonic – Applejack

So, we've reached the end of the introductory stuff, which means we can get on with the actual point of all this: the music!

My Little Repeats 184: "The Mean 6"

Honestly, I'd be on Starlight's side at this point

S8E13: "The Mean 6"

6 Jun 2018 (in the UK; 9 Jun 2018 in the US)

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 7.8

The one with smelling the roses

Thoughts: This was one of those rare and precious occasions when the UK got an episode before the US – although the scale of early international releases and indeed leaks going on by this point made it all a bit moot. As a mid-season finale, though, this is a bit on the weak side, largely because of all the potential it wastes. Chrysalis here starts out properly villainous, as she should be, but then shows surprisingly little of the intelligence we know she possesses, not least in not nipping Twilight's plotting in the bud sooner. The Mane Six are absurdly – let's face it, unbelievably – dense not to realise that their friends are behaving way out of character, some with very obviously wrong cutie marks, and the one "maybe it's poison joke" reference isn't enough to save that. (Special boo for Twilight "We know each other really well" Sparkle here, given she personally observed something very similar happening to said friends in "The Return of Harmony".) Now, I don't think this is a terrible episode. Even if Starlight's presence is a bit superfluous, she is good value in her part. The voice work, visuals and incidental music are all excellent. Evil Twilight, more than the others, actually has a certain depth of character. The famous "melting faces" scene, even though short and diluted from the draft version, remains memorably unpleasant. The real problem here is that this is an intriguingly ambitious setup that in the end doesn't really deliver the goods. Knocking it down to two stars.

Choice quote: Starlight: "Home has books, tea... fewer bugs... a roof."

New rating: ★★

That brings us to S8's mid-season hiatus. The next Friendship is Magic episode in term of broadcast was "Yakity-Sax", which was pushed up the schedule as part of a Discovery Family promotional event, but it's nevertheless generally considered to be E18 and so I'll review it in that spot. That means next up for FiM will be "A Matter of Principals". However, before then we have the second Equestria Girls special, namely "Rollercoaster of RariJack Friendship". That one was a mixed bag for me first time around.

Ponyfic Roundup 532

Read it Later story count: 89 (-2)

Words read this week: 26,587

I've had quite a busy time this week, not really for any bad reasons but just because several things have come up at the same time. I am therefore rather tired as I write this and could do with sleeping for about 18 hours. As such, I'm pleased to have managed to get this edition of Ponyfic Roundup out on time. The usual five stories on the slate today, so first of all let's see what's coming up:

Remember Vigil by Golden Paw
Interloper by Raugos
One of Them by ThePinkedWonder
Filly à Deux by UmberRose
A Charmed Life by BlazzingInferno

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

Sounds of 2015, nos. 25 to 21

It's time for another look at what was making the Equestrian Trot 100 fandom music chart ten years ago. We've seen quite a bit of variety in the songs featured so far, and I've certainly discovered some forgotten gems among all the more famous tracks. I'd like to think there'll be more of those in this upper quarter of the chart, but we shall see! The usual reminder of my inclusion criteria follows:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

A rather more frustrating week this time, as I've had to skip a song for the first time in a while. Even more annoyingly, it was the very last track I reached for this edition. I looked around, but it wasn't officially available anywhere that I could find, and it wasn't famous enough for Rule 3 to be invoked. Sorry folks!

25: Vylet Pony ft. Strigidae – My Past is Not Today (remix)
24: SlyphStorm – Neverending Strife (redux cover)
23: PrinceWhateverer ft. Dreamchan – Awesome as I Wanna Be (extended cover)
22: oodorato2 – トワイライト Sunshine Remix
21: skipped

That's the intro stuff done with, so on we go to the music, what we have of it at least.

My Little Repeats 183: "Marks for Effort"

I have my problems with the number of late-series meme faces, but "I see" is a true classic

S8E12: "Marks for Effort"

2 Jun 2018

My original rating: ★★★
IMDb score: 7.2

The one with empathy cocoa

Thoughts: "I found Cozy Glow rather irritating," I said in my 2018 review of this episode. Of course, at the time I had no idea whether she'd be anything more than a one-episode guest character!¹ Indeed, she doesn't even appear until the second act of what is mostly a CMC story. But with the benefit of hindsight, Cozy's emotional manipulation is very obvious. At the time, this mostly felt like a pretty nice Crusaders-centric tale, and watched in that light it's still an enjoyable one. The stilted dialogue in the staged "fight" had me giggling. The pacing is rather uneven, and Twilight behaved frankly poorly in immediately believing the CMC were guilty and not even apologising later on. Still, there's some fun stuff in here, and Starlight's supporting role as guidance counsellor is very amusing. I think "Marks for Effort" can still get a three-star grade.
¹ This was known at the time, since as usual by 2018 the show leaked like a sieve, but somehow I'd managed to avoid this one.

Choice quote: Students (to Spike) : "Oh dragon, my dragon."

New rating: ★★★

Next time it will be the final episode before the mid-season hiatus, "The Mean 6". Opinions of this were all over the place at the time, and that hasn't really changed in the intervening years. I liked it with significant reservations. Soon we'll see whether that's still the case now!

Ponyfic Roundup 531: Spotlight on The Night Guard - Night Mares

Read it Later story count: 91 (-3)

Words read this week: 45,884

It's been ten Roundups since we had a Spotlight looking at a longer story, so let's fix that right now. I'm sure the author of today's fic needs no introduction if you aren't absolutely new to ponyfic, but I will say here that this is the sequel to the much shorter and explicitly [Comedy]-tagged A War of Words - the Opening of the Guard. I read and liked that one a long time ago (PR 49!) and you should probably have read it too before starting on this sequel.

The Night Guard - Night Mares by Georg
OCs, Celestia and Luna
G4; Slice of Life; 46k words; Nov–Dec 2024; Everyone

For centuries, the stallions of the Royal Guard have protected Equestria from every danger imaginable. Now they face a new threat to their position that will not be so easy to defeat. Mares.

This story has inevitably dated somewhat since 2014 since in more recent years Royal Guard mares have become established canon. You really have to accept that this isn't so as the fic begins, and accept that it's still so in the matriarchal world of Equestria, otherwise much of the story doesn't work. Of course, you could imagine that the events described here are what led to these changes! Anyway, four mares are attempting to become the first female Royal Guards, and Luna in particular is very keen to see them succeed. In the background and steadily becoming more significant are the events of the S3 premiere up in the Crystal Empire. This is quite a fast-paced story, with a fair amount squeezed into under 50,000 words, but wasn't a dealbreaker for me. The four candidate mare OCs are quite good fun, though I became rather tired with an overused running joke about one of them lactating (she has a young colt, and he plays a significant role later). It's also one of those stories where I occasionally wonder about that [Everyone] rating, but don't quite object to it. A high three. ★★★

Naturally, from here on in there are spoilers aplenty!

UK PonyCon dates and new venue announced!

Given the importance of this news to so many My Little Pony fans in the UK, I've chosen to post this tonight rather than wait. For that reason, and to give people a little time to digest the news, Ponyfic Roundup will now appear on Friday. Apologies for any inconvenience, as they say when there are temporary traffic lights in the town centre for 874 days running. Anyway...

Earlier on this evening, UK PonyCon announced the dates and venue for this year's 21st iteration of what has become the world's longest-running My Little Pony convention. And they are:

Friday 3rd (evening), Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th October 2025

The Birmingham Conference and Events Centre

That's right – after being in Nottingham since 2018, UKPC is on the move! Those who've attended (or at least known of) the convention for many years will recall that, before it moved to Nottingham, it tended to move around the country. In a way, then, this is a return to the event's roots. Although I know Birmingham fairly well (since I only live 20-25 miles away) I don't think I've ever attended an event at this particular venue, so I can't comment on that.

What I can say is that the place is extremely well connected. As the BCEC's website shows, it's within sight of Birmingham New Street Station, the city's main rail hub – and that is a ten-minute train ride from Birmingham International Airport. As you'd expect from a city with a population of well over a million, 3-4 times that of Nottingham, Birmingham has no shortage of hotel options in the centre either. Whether I'll actually stay over or commute in (if I go – as usual, I can't commit just yet!) I don't know.

As the PonyCon folks say in their announcement post (not yet fully updated) this year it will be possible to stay at the venue, with a special rate for attendees forthcoming. That's not yet live, so be aware of that if you do the instabooking thing. UKPC hasn't been held in a hotel since it was in Leicester in 2014 and 2015, but I remember that plenty of people took the opportunity to stay on site back then. The other big change is the addition of an extra music event on Friday evening, The last con I attended that did that was BUCK 2014!

Lots to think about, but this has blindsided a lot of us as we didn't really expect UK PonyCon to be able to secure a venue in Birmingham city centre. The initial reaction I've seen has been really very positive, though, so I'm feeling pretty optimistic about it all as I type this. Many thanks and congratulations to the convention committee for managing to get something so complex and impressive worked out.

Sounds of 2015, nos. 30 to 26

On and on we go with this series. I was asked by a friend recently how long I intended to keep the "Sounds of..." posts going, and the honest answer is that I don't know. I'm pretty sure I have charts available up until 2019, but after that Covid sent a lot of things into a tailspin and so 2020 onwards might be a bit trickier to organise. Still, 2015 definitely works. As usual, a reminder of the feature rules:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

Yet another week with a full house of five tracks being featured! This is always a good thing, and so we can go right on to the list of songs:

30: WoodLore – Down South in Appleloosa
29: SlyphStorm vs Forest Rain – Duelling DAWs
28: OhPonyBoy – The Blob Symphony
27: Aviators – Heaven Knows
26: dBPony ft. Mic the Microphone – No Chance

Okay, now you know what you're in for this week, let's get a move on and listen to the actual songs!

My Little Repeats 182: "Molt Down"

"You mean to make these spots go away I have to drink all that?"

S8E11: "Molt Down"

26 May 2018

My original rating: ★★★★
IMDb score: 7.6

The one with the school tour

Thoughts: Or "Moult Down", as it clearly should have been spelt. :P Another episode I really liked seven years ago, but to be honest I think I overrated it. This is very obviously A TV-Y Puberty Episode and, while that's not a bad thing, it does get a bit one-note at times. The best parts here are the little sections with the likes of Smolder (especially) and Pinkie, and of course it's very nice to finally see Zecora get a significant role again. The roc is okay if not amazing, but Josh Haber's dialogue generally isn't overly memorable: Rarity's "This isn't the first time I've been in the clutches of a horrible giant creature – but it doesn't get any easier" doesn't exactly snap. Rarity's temporary deafness is stretched out for too long, although as ever Tabitha St. Germain aces the voice acting. I'm fine with Spike getting his wings and happy that Twilight reassures him he's still welcome. "Molt Down" is still fun, and I like that Spike isn't just the butt of jokes, but it's missing the real pizazz of an episode like "Gauntlet of Fire". I think "Molt Down" is a solid three, not a low four.

Choice quote: Spike: "I slept like a roc!" (Okay, I'm being silly. But nice foreshadowing!)

New rating: ★★★

Next comes "Marks for Effort", which as the debut episode for Cozy Glow was a rather more significant ep than I realised at the time of its initial broadcast. I had mixed feelings about it in 2018, so it will be interesting to see whether now knowing Cozy's future character arc will make a difference.

Ponyfic Roundup 530

Read it Later story count: 94 (+1)

Words read this week: 31,727

The RiL list count is creeping up again, I know, but don't worry: it will creep down again by the end of the month! Not a lot has been going on in my corner of England over the last week, although up until the last couple of days the weather has been superb for early March, with temperatures reaching the high teens and plenty of sunshine. Anyway, here's today's slate:

The Joy Hive by TheDriderPony
Counting Crows by VashTheStampede
Why Celestia Never Helps... by Huk
Pony Play by Bad Horse
Whatever I Shall Meet On The Road by astrolatryy

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

Sounds of 2015, nos. 35 to 31

This week's "Sounds" will take us into the top third of the Equestrian Trot 100 chart from a decade ago. You'd think that by this point all the songs would be at least moderately famous to this day, but these charts do tend to throw up some surprises. Remember what was number one on the 2014 list? As I type this I don't actually know what this week's selection will throw up, so let's go and see! First, though, the inclusion rules:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original 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. 

We've had a couple of weeks now with all five tracks able to be featured. At the very top end of the chart Rule 3 will probably apply anyway, but that doesn't kick in just yet. Never mind, we get all five today anyway!

35: Aviators ft. GatoPaint – The Surface
34: Black Gryph0n & Baasik – Tell Me
33: PrinceWhateverer – 12115
32: Sim Gretina – I'll Fly (remix)
31: BassBeastJC – The Magic Inside/I am Just a Pony (instrumental cover)

That's all the introductory bit done and dusted, so it's time to move on to the actual music. Here goes!

My Little Repeats 181: "The Break Up Break Down"

Aw, even matching wrapping paper!

S8E10: "The Break Up Break Down"

19 May 2018

My original rating: ★★★★
IMDb score: 7.9

The one with cool leanings

Thoughts: This was a much-needed tonic after the mess of the last episode. I'm usually not a huge fan of romance being brought to the fore in Friendship is Magic, but this story is very enjoyable. You do have to accept one or two clichés, not least Big Mac and Sugar Belle repeatedly managing to miss the simple explanation, but that aside it's fun. The Guys Night stuff is entertaining and it's always nice for Peter New to get to talk a bit. The pacing is without the long saggy periods that some episodes suffer. There's some nice dialogue, especially between Discord and Spike; and the animators managed to sneak a few same-sex couples into the celebrations (one of them especially prominent!) without US TV bursting into flames. The CMC subplot was a little more ordinary, and it's a slight stretch that nopony thought of the other "Belle" given the setup. But hay, we got a Derpy cameo! It's possibly a tad over-generous to give this a four, but I smiled a lot, so it's keeping that rating.

Choice quote: Discord: "Please! Can't you see that that holiday is a commercialised ruse pushed on you by the greeting card industry?"

New rating: ★★★★

Well, that was quite an improvement on "Non-Compete Clause"! Next time, it'll be "Molt Down", which apart from annoying my spellchecker (and me) because of the title's US spelling isn't an episode I dislike much. I can't remember much beyond the very broad-brush details, though.