BUCK 2013 official film preview video published

The sheer volume of material to work through has meant that it's taken some time, but it seems that the BUCK team are getting closer to releasing the official video of the 2013 con. Above (or here) is the preview, which gives just a glimpse of what we can expect. The preview is very interview-heavy, and concentrates on the Friday, but there are a few minutes of Saturday-shot footage near the end. I was particularly amused that the very last word said by the narrator was... "Fun!" (Also, yay retro LWT-style opening ident! ;))

The 2014 BUCK train is getting up steam

Over on UK of Equestria, Nethesem (BUCK's Deputy PR Manager) has been posting some interesting information. Not least this Q&A thread. As you can see if you take a look at it, almost everything is still up in the air – really the only thing we're sure about is that a 2014 convention is indeed being planned. Birmingham has been mentioned as a potential venue, while the con may well be brought forward a month, to late July. This should help to avoid too many clashes with other events.

One of the things that does seem likely to happen, though, is the a "grass-roots, community-oriented approach". This isn't surprising, given that so many of the participatory events (pub quiz, flashfic contest, gaming tournament, karaoke etc) were very overcrowded last year. It should also help to give BUCK 2014 a distinct, fresh flavour, rather than having it just being a slightly different re-run of this year's con in a different place. So far so good on that score, though!

Everyone, including me, wants to know what tickets are going to cost, but that won't be announced for a while. Nethesem's post states that a Kickstarter campaign may be utilised: everyone pays the same for the actual ticket, but perks are added at certain Kickstarter donation levels. I believe that GalaCon in Germany makes heavy use of crowdfunding, and although BUCK's model isn't likely to be the same, that does prove it can work for a brony convention. All in all: looking good so far!

Episode review: "Princess Twilight Sparkle" (S4E01 & S4E02)

It's all too beautiful...

It's been a long, long time in coming, but the premiere of Season 4 of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic has finally arrived. Was the (probably deliberately blandly titled) two-parter, Meghan McCarthy's "Princess Twilight Sparkle", worth the wait? I'll spare you the suspense this time: yes, it most certainly was. There's no need to leave the fandom; the ride continues; everything really is going to be just fine. Well, for us the fans it is, at any rate. Perhaps a little less so for our favourite ponies, but for more on that you'll have to come with me past the break…

Comic review: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic issue 13

Sara Richard's cover has seaponies, guys. Of course I chose it!

And yet another IDW comic appears... I haven't been too well recently and I have a lot to catch up on; I hope this review won't be too bad, though! This time, my £3.15 went on a collaboration between writer Heather Nuhfer (who wrote the #5-8 arc) and artist Brenda Hickey (who drew the AJ micro). As it's all over the covers, there's no spoileriness in my saying that this is a pirate-themed story. No, it's not called "Wintarrr Wrap Up". You silly, silly people. It's actually "The Salty Sea Mare". Past the jump for more, me hearties!

Comic review: My Little Pony Art Gallery

Clearly pegasi are somewhat cold-resistant!

Back in August, we had the Cover Gallery, to which I gave only a moderately good review. Now, IDW have followed up with the Art Gallery. This is the same size as, and sells for the same price as, a regular comic (which means £3.15 for me) but is printed on noticeably thicker paper than the standard issues. It's something for which a number of fans of IDW's My Little Pony comics have been waiting for quite a while — and that number includes me. Past the break, we'll find out whether or not it's worth shelling out for.

The Brony Broadcasting Corporation?

Well, it had to happen sooner or later: the BBC has noticed our fandom! As part of their Real Time strand, they've put up the video above. (If you can't see it, this link should help.) The con parts of the film were made at BronyDays in France, which is why this doesn't quite merit a UK-specific tag, but it is nice to have actual British bronies interviewed. Oh, and MA Larson. And is that EileMonty I spy? I think it is! There's nothing in the video that's likely to come as a surprise to anyone reading this, but it's a fair-minded piece and refreshingly free of tabloid stupidity. Not bad, BBC. Not bad.

Comic review: MLP:FiM Micro-series issue #9: Spike

Sara Richard's RI cover — what is is a homage to?

After a gap last month for the Equestria Girls annual, the My Little Pony micro-series is back in action this month with the penultimate issue, featuring Spike. A lot of people seem to have it in for the baby dragon, and I can't say his episodes are my favourites, but I hope this sells decently. We have a new creative team: Rob Anderson writes while Agnes Garbowska (who's done covers in the past) provides the artwork. For once I picked up the RI cover, which cost £4.00 from Nostalgia & Comics in Birmingham. Review after the break!