Sounds of 2013: no. 1!

Whew, I've made it before the end of the year. Just! We've now been all the way through Everfree Radio's Top 100 of brony songs for 2013, as voted for by their listeners at the time. I don't see any reason to use a page cut on this one occasion, since there is only one song left... the number one! And here it is:

01: SlyphStorm – Pegasus Device

Rule 1: uploaded to YouTube 31 Oct 2013

SlyphStorm took third place in this Top 100, but that was only his second most popular song. This is the one that was voted top of the 2013 Pony pops. It's a follow-up to WoodenToaster's 2011 classic "Rainbow Factory", taking certain musical cues and (at the end) even whole lines from the older song, but with slick presentation and notably high production values. Something interesting is that WoodenToaster's song wasn't specific about the nature of the horrors that went into making rainbows, but then the fanfic appeared. By 2013, therefore, "Pegasus Device" was able to be much blunter and more brutal in telling its own take on the story. Indeed, this is a very grimdark song indeed if you know its background and concentrate on the lyrics. However, if you let all that wash over you a little, it's just a great piece of music. Would I have placed it first? I'm not sure. But I'm almost certain it would have made my top ten. I'm happy that the final entry in this series is one whose popularity I can get behind. Pick up the HQ version for $1 on SlyphStorm's Bandcamp.

And there you have it! As far as I can tell, 2013 was the last year that Everfree Radio did a Top 100 like this. As such, I don't know whether I'll be able to do a similar series for 2014 or beyond. I am not ruling out the idea, but I'm not ruling it in either!

My Little Repeats 65: "Magical Mystery Cure"

Derpy finally making a clear (if very brief) S3 appearance was a huge deal at the time

S3E13: "Magical Mystery Cure"
Written by M. A. Larson
26 Feb 2013

My original rating: 9/10 (=★★★★★)
IMDb score: 8.1

The one with Spike dancing Gangnam Style

Thoughts: And here we are at last! When this finale first aired, we still didn't know whether there'd ever be another episode of Friendship is Magic, though we were all relieved to finally see the end of the fandom's miserable months-long Twilicorn Wars. Few people were unspoiled as to Alicorn Twilight's imminence by this time, so the biggest surprise was the full-on musical nature of the episode. The songs are mostly excellent, and "A True, True Friend" may be my favourite FiM song of them all – it has a wonderful message, and that "PINKIE!" is pure joyous delight. That aspect, at least, was an unambiguous triumph. The actual story? Interesting but very, very compressed. This desperately needed 44 minutes rather than 22, especially for the cutie mark stuff, but Larson did a surprisingly good job with so little time to play with. Twilight saying a spell "to see what it did" was pretty stupid, but seeing Celestia bowing to her was quite a moment – although the actual "alicorn reveal" moment has inevitably lost some of its impact now. Nicole Oliver's lovely singing was the focus at the time, though! I know some have mixed feelings about "MMC" because of what it led to later in the show's run. But I'm judging it here on its own merits, and I enjoyed my rewatch a great deal. The rushed pace niggles a little more than it used to, so I'm nudging it down from its original five-star rating to a (high) four. It's still well up there, though.

Choice quote: Twilight: "Is there a book about being a princess I should read?"

New rating: ★★★★

And that's all for Season 3! I'll be rewatching S4 in due course, but before that (in the first half of January, I hope) there'll be a look back at S3 as I saw it this time around, including the ever-popular(?) star chart.

My Little Repeats 64: "Games Ponies Play"

Strengthened changeling-minion-proof glass these days?

S3E12: "Games Ponies Play"
Written by Dave Polsky
9 Feb 2013

My original rating: 7/10 (=★★★)
IMDb score: 7.2

The one with Coach Shining Armor

Thoughts: The big gimmick for this episode is that it takes place simultaneously with the events of "Just for Sidekicks". Which is great and all, but the episode itself is, for the most part, one of the dullest I've rewatched in all these three seasons. The extended period of mistaken identity at its heart is as contrived and tiresome as these things often are, for a start. And did we ever hear of "Mustangia" again? I can't remember it if so. About the most interesting part of the ep is the fun little bit with the pony pyramid act. That said, I do like the way that "Ms Peachbottom" (not actually named in the episode) is shown as claustrophobic, a thing you rarely see taken even halfway seriously in a fun cartoon – seeing that here was perhaps a slight surprise from a humour-loving writer like Dave Polsky. Mind you, we never did get a canon answer as to who the rainbow-maned stallion taking Filly Dash to the Games was. At the time there was speculation he was Rainbow's dad, but "Parental Glideance" in S7 put the tin lid on that idea. Despite a few fun moments, I don't really know why I enjoyed it so much in 2013, as I now feel I clearly overrated it back then. For some reason Ms Harshwhinny was adored by the fandom at the time, though I feel she was considerably better value in S4. As I did say back then, Pinkie is rather weirdly written, too. I'm taking back the three-star (equivalent) rating I originally gave this one and returning only two of those stars. Sorry.

Choice quote: Rainbow and Fluttershy: "Bump-cha!"

New rating: ★★

Next up is "Magical Mystery Cure", and we all know what that means. I'll say it right now: I like "MMC" despite its flaws, and I don't expect that to change. I know that's not a universally held opinion around here, but that's all right.

Ponyfic Roundup 325

Read it Later story count: 173 (nc) 

As promised, at the end of this post you'll find out which longfic I'll be spotlighting in the New Year! (No PR on 30th December.) This week, though, the usual three shorter stories. I couldn't resist the temptation to include one very seasonal offering, plus one that was chosen randomly from Fimfiction's search and one by an author who I felt deserved a little more attention:

Say Goodbye to the Hollandaise: A Hearth's War(ming) Tail by WishyWish
What a Surprise... by Rainbow
The Quiet Day by Lets Do This

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

Sounds of 2013: nos. 3 and 2

It's no secret that I haven't been updating this blog as consistently recently as I would like. There's no specific reason for that beyond the general "It's 2020" syndrome affecting so many of us in various ways, but at least I should be able to get Sounds of 2013 finished before the end of the year now I'm finally posting the penultimate part! The usual quick refresher on the criteria for inclusion:

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

Today's dynamic duo are:

03: SlyphStorm – Sinking Ships [cover]
02: BlackGryph0n & Baasik – Crusader (Are We There Yet?)

What's beyond the cut below? Waffling, YouTube embeds, you know the score by now. If you're interested, come past the break with me!

My Little Repeats 63: "Just for Sidekicks"

Dash being cute is relatively rare but generally rather adorable

S3E11: "Just for Sidekicks"
Written by Corey Powell
26 Jan 2013

My original rating: 7/10 (=★★★)
IMDb score: 7.2

The one with balloon animal Rainbow Dash

Thoughts: Corey Powell gave us the sublime "Sleepless in Ponyville" on debut – but sadly lightning didn't strike twice. To be fair, this isn't the complete bore-fest I'd remembered it as being; I was convinced that I'd find my 2013 review to be absurdly generous now, but that wasn't really the case. It's actually one of Spike's best showings from the first half of FiM, not that that's saying a great deal. As far as the pets go, this is a good outing for Angel, and Powell nicely balances his annoying and cute sides, rather than just representing him as an unmitigated horror as (too) much of the fandom tends to. The CMC play a pretty nice supporting role, especially with their unauthorised (and very brief!) trip to the Crystal Empire. I can't say I'm massively enthralled by this episode, partly because the pets themselves aren't all that interesting, Angel again apart. Some oddities, too: why wasn't Spike invited to the Equestria Games thing? (He does get a somewhat painful star turn there next season, of course.) And how come it's Rarity's jewel that Spike chooses as the first one to give away? Still, I mentioned in 2013 the amusement value of having a scratchy relationship between Spike and Angel. I can't believe that was coincidence. Also, Fluttershy had that huge emerald, which I recall prompted minor discussion about where she actually gets her funds from – never really answered in canon, though fanfiction has had a few goes. So yes, I'm going to let this one keep its three-star rating. It's not that high in that band, but I'll admit it was a bit more entertaining than I had expected.

Choice quote: Rainbow: "You only want to get hit in the head by a flying turtle once."[Tortoise! –Ed.]

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Games Ponies Play", which takes place at the same time as this episode but which I remember almost nothing about. It really is that forgettable, and despite my decent experience this time I don't have especially high hopes that this will change.

My Little Repeats 62: "Keep Calm and Flutter On"

Four seasons later, this kind of thing was happening for real

S3E10: "Keep Calm and Flutter On"
Written by Dave Polsky
19 Jan 2013

My original rating: 8/10 (=★★★★)
IMDb score: 8.0

The one with the Discord table lamp

Thoughts: There was a three-week break between "Spike At Your Service" and this one, so anticipation had had time to build. In the event, the first ep of 2013 turned out to be much more important than anyone really appreciated at the time. Even some of the little things, like at the end where Fluttershy says Discord is "a real sweetheart once you get to know him". However, I have more problems with the bulk of the ep than I used to. Rarity does have a point when she says Flutters is being "silly and gullible" – it's not at all hard to imagine her gamble going horribly wrong, although personally I think that would nullify her promise not to use her Element, so it probably wasn't quite as dangerous as it seems. Still, I think it might have been more convincing from the 'Shy of a few seasons later; here, it all feels a tad forced. There is a lot of fun in this episode, from the continuing subplot with the beavers to the Beauty and the Beast nod with the candlesticks. Rainbow is enjoyable as the main sceptical voice, too. Discord himself has become less of an outright threat than he was in S2, perhaps partly because he recognises that Twilight has more power to counter him, though that's theorising on my part. Not the near-classic I thought it was seven years ago, but still enjoyable. A high three, I think, though perhaps a part of that is because the likes of "Discordant Harmony" would never have beeh possible without this episode.

Choice quote: Pinkie: "Make that bunny cute again! Now!"

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Just for Sidekicks", otherwise known as "the pet episode" and one of two remaining S3 eps for which my main thought at the moment is simply "Meh." Can it salvage some pride? Find out next time!

Ponyfic Roundup 324

Read it Later story count: 173 (-3) 

Herewith the penultimate pre-Hearth's Warming edition of PR. As I've mentioned, there won't be a Roundup on the 30th, and instead I'll be using the extra week to read a longfic for Spotlighting in early January. I hope. Which fic will it be? You'll find out next time! Today, though, I have these three to look at:

Ambergris by Pascoite
Routine Company by Monochromatic
Suddenly, potatoes by Techy

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

My Little Repeats 61: "Spike At Your Service"

Why yes, I am picking this as my header pic because it's adorable

S3E09: "Spike At Your Service"

Written by Dave Polsky
29 Dec 2012

My original rating: 6/10 (=★★★)
IMDb score: 6.3

The one with 24,567,837 blades of grass

Thoughts: This episode has long been considered a bit of a mess by most of the fandom. And, well, they're right. It is. I mean, it does have its moments: Rainbow Dash's self-insert fanfic is one of my favourite moments of the entirety of S3. Fluttershy also has quite a good episode: right at the start, we see her walking Winona, and later there's her mild sassiness ("If she needed help, I think she'd realise it") and her adorable part in the fake timberwolf setup. Rarity was fun in her all-too-brief "how to be a damsel in distress" masterclass, too. Talking of timberwolves, the real ones are really quite interesting monsters (and variously animated) and  they could perhaps have been used a little more in future eps. On the downside, though... Spike's "Dragon Code" both comes from and goes to pretty much nowhere. It stretches credulity to think Twilight wouldn't even notice Spike saying he was off forever. Also, the central story itself feels like a subplot stretched (somewhat thinly) to main plot status. Considering the actual risk to life we see more than once, it's surprisingly emotionally uninvolving for the most part, too. But the worst thing about this episode is the way it treats Spike. He's shown as frankly a bit of a fool. Whatever faults he may have, he really is not that. This wouldn't be my pick as worst episode of FiM, far from it. But it's not a particularly good effort, not even by S3 standards. My review in 2013 was a little too generous; two stars it is now, then.

Choice quote: Spike (to Rarity, natch) : "You even look good when you're chewing!"

New rating: ★★

Next up is "Keep Calm and Flutter On", a considerably more significant episode in retrospect than was immediately apparent at the time. Also an ep that divides opinion to this day.

Right, here's an actual schedule!

Subject to anything coming up that I really can't push through, I am determined that I will finish my rewatch of Season 3 by the end of 2020. To increase the chances of my actually sticking to that, here's how I plan on posting each episode's review:

Sun 13/12: "Spike At Your Service"

Thu 17/12: "Keep Calm and Flutter On"

Sun 20/12: "Just for Sidekicks"

Thu 24/12: "Games Ponies Play"

Mon 28/12 "Magical Mystery Cure"

Thu 31/12: Thoughts on S3

A reasonably paced schedule, I think, and nearly a regular one at that! The exception is because I know from long experience that I tend to do almost nothing productive on Boxing Day (unless eating counts as productive). Given E13 is not one I want to rush, I've given myself an extra day to get that one done.

Ponyfic Roundup 323

Read it Later story count: 176 (nc) 

One of those weeks when there's not a lot for me to say up here. Hearth's Warming moves ever closer, and as ever I suddenly find that I'm running out of time to complete my shopping. (Obviously harder than usual this year as so much is dependent on Royal Mail et al.) I have three stories to cover this week, and here they are. Let's go.

Worshiping At The Altar Of Knowledge by TCC56
Crash Course by Kimono Rabies Pronger
Kill Your Heroes by pokefreak13

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

Getting back on the horse

Well, so to speak. I'm not sure these horses would be particularly happy about that! But I've been mildly unwell for a couple of days, and so I haven't really felt like doing anything much here. Ponyfic Roundup will be appearing as planned tomorrow, however, and I intend for my "Spike At Your Service" rewatch review to be up by the end of the week. :)

Ponyfic Roundup 322

Read it Later story count: 176 (-6) 

I'm going to follow my usual practice and have a week off Ponyfic Roundup at the end of the year. I intend to take advantage of that extra time to read a longer fic and give it a spotlight when PR returns in January. I know which story I'll be reading, but I'll keep you all in suspense for a little while longer. Now we turn to this week's three:

In Bloom by Pascoite
The Fault in Our Immortality by The Ravenclaw Queen
Winona the Immortal Dog by sunnypack

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

My Little Repeats 60: "Apple Family Reunion"

"Whaddayamean, ya never heard of batway surfin'?"

S3E08: "Apple Family Reunion"

Written by Cindy Morrow
22 Dec 2012

My original rating: 5/10 (=★★)
IMDb score: 7.1

The one with firelighter Spike

Thoughts: Surprise afternoon episode review! Back when I first reviewed this, I didn't think much of "Raise This Barn". My opinion of that song has improved quite a bit since, but what about the episode as a whole? Well, that has too. I still wouldn't put this in the same class as "Sleepless in Ponyville", but these days I find its down-home feel comforting in the way I do much of S1. Applejack also gets a proper letter to Celestia after her amusing get-out last season, and the moral she finds in the Reunion's events is one that I think has a lot of resonance for many of us in 2020 looking forward to seeing our family and friends again. There are some nice little touches – the fruit bats, baby Applejack, and of course the shooting stars representing AJ's absent parents – and Cindy Morrow gives the character interactions a warmth that I didn't quite grasp first time around. It's a real shame Babs never had a proper role again, as she had potential. Oddly, Braeburn doesn't get a speaking line, either. All in all, this goes into the "superior filler" category for me nowadays, and instead of the original two-star rating I gave it, I'm bumping it up to a solid three.

Choice quote: Applesauce: "A lady never reveals the age of her teeth."

New rating: ★★★

Next up is "Spike At Your Service", one of the worst received episodes of the first half of the show's run – but one I didn't actually mind too much at the time. Now? We shall see!