Ponyfic Roundup 373: Return to the RCL

Read it Later story count: 97 (-1) 

Today's fics were all inducted by the Royal Canterlot Library. For newer readers: the RCL was for some years one of the major curated collections of fine ponyfic. A few special exceptions apart, an author could only be featured once. Upon accepting an offer to have their fic inducted, an author also provided an interview which was featured alongside the story's entry. Click the "RCL feature" links in the header of each review to read them, as well as the RCL judges' remarks.

The RCL has not, I believe, ever been officially wound up, but as life intruded more and more on its assessors the regular updates ended in spring 2020 and nothing has been inducted since October 2020. I think it's fair to consider the RCL moribund now, although its archives are happily still available and the collection remains very well worth mining, especially if you're new to the ponyfic game. I was hoping not to only manage three fics this time, and I'm pleased to say I got through four. My stories from the Library were:

Autumnfall Change by MSPiper
The Life and Death of April Fool by Prak
Nothing Left to Lose by Freglz
Do Not Serve These Ponies by Thanqol

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

Autumnfall Change by MSPiper (RCL feature)
OCs and Twilight
Sci-Fi/Slice of Life/Human; 8k words; Dec 2019–Jan 2020; Everyone

Many a barrier stands in the way of pony–human relations, but none is so great that it can't be broken by just the right bad idea.

This was the final story to be inducted, in October 2020. It's fairly hard sci-fi, despite all the magic that generally comes with ponies; don't expect too much woo-style hoof-waving. Serendipity is a pony who has come to our universe – though not Earth itself but a terraformed Moon, apparently – and is chatting to her human companion Azahar. World-building is front and centre, and indeed this is one thing that may hold it back for some: it's really dense in that at times, especially given the clearly deliberate decision not to have characters "stop and explain" much at all. (For example, "Princess Pinkie" is mentioned in passing right at the start, without amplification.) I did guess what was happening in chapter two fairly easily, too. There are some nicely original takes on the "adjusting to a new world" idea, such as the acknowledgement that humans and ponies see colour in different ways. I found it interesting and I liked the way Serendpity and Azahar interacted, but I do share some of the RCL reviewers' feelings that it's frustrating to see so little of such a clearly thought out universe. Despite that and its density, I think the sheer world-building achievement merits a four-star rating. ★★★★

The Life and Death of April Fool by Prak (RCL feature)
CMCs and Other
Comedy/Slice of Life; 2k words; Apr 2014; Everyone

Under a rock in the Everfree Forest, there lived a pony. Once a year, she came out to play.

This is a more light-hearted fic, playing nicely with the whimsy that we saw a lot in the earlier seasons of FiM especially. It reads like a fairy tale in places, but one firmly grounded in the real magical world of Equestria, if you see what I mean. Those who've read one of the very early ponyfic classics are likely to see parallels, but Prak says that wasn't deliberate (spoiler in linked comment!). I liked this one a lot – it may not be doing anything to completely reframe how you see the world of Pony, but it really feels like it fits there. Maybe there isn't quite enough here for a four, especially if like me you guessed because of the aforementioned early ponyfic classic, but it's right at the top of the threes. ★★★

Nothing Left to Lose by Freglz (RCL feature)
Starlight Glimmer and Chysalis
Drama/Sad; 6k words; Jun 2019; Everyone

Some things can't be changed. Starlight believes otherwise.

This fic is pretty much entirely a dialogue between Starlight and Chrysalis, the former still attempting to redeem the latter. Although both the S5 and S6 finales are important to its plot, this story was only really overtaken by canon at the very end of the series. For a two-hoofer fic like this, you absolutely have to nail both characters, and fortunately Freglz manages that. We don't see Chrysalis as simple, unthinking evil but get insights into her morality, in particular her responsibility to her hive-children. Meanwhile, this is a Starlight who's learnt and grown a bit since her own redemption, and you can almost see her drawing on that as the fic goes on. I suspect some may find the conversation goes on a bit too long, and even wonder whether Chrysalis would have had that much patience. Oddly perhaps, although I partly agree there I also think the Queen is the more interestingly drawn character of the two. It helps if you like Glimmy, but I do. With that, its atmosphere and a choice of ending I like, this gets a four. ★★★★

Do Not Serve These Ponies by Thanqol (RCL feature)
Lyra and Bon Bon
Comedy; 21k words; Jul 2012; Everyone

Lyra intends to prove that humans exist no matter how many museums she has to destroy

A much older fic, and it feels it, too. It's a "Lyra and humans" story, though very different from many others – not least because that's used almost as the backdrop, rather than the central plotline. (On which note, this fic is so old it even uses "plot" – once – to mean a pony's rump.) There's a good deal of fun comedy in here, and sometimes it rises above the "quite fun" to produce moments of sheer genius. ("Do you know owning a military-grade oven is a crime?" makes perfect sense in context.) Lyra's fraught relationship with Bon Bon is fun, and modern readers may get a kick out of an unintentional-in-2012 joke about one of them being a spy. Blueblood is here too, and Rainbow Dash features along with a very irritating accessory as a running joke. It all feels a bit Douglas Adams. Where it falls down, though not fatally, is that old-fandom feel. The tone isn't always consistent, there are some irritating minor errors (Luna saying, "Thou has" more than once), and a few of the fandom nods have really faded in recognition value. "Rainbow Miriam Dash", for example, or "Horse Power" as a name for then-uncanonised Bulk Biceps, or Thrackerzod. (Why the Reichenbach Falls, too? That was just odd.) There's even an inline link to a non-working Imageshack picture. There are plenty of good lines here, there are fun running jokes, there's the (non-romantic) LyraBon relationship. The unevenness holds this down to a moderate three, but I can still see plenty of people having a good time with it. Just put your mind into 2012 gear first. ★★★

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There won't be a Ponyfic Roundup next week. However, on 5th January it will be Spotlight time! As usual, that means a single longer fic. Not just any fic, either, as this will be another RCL-inducted story. To be precise, JoeShogun's dark adventure tale Nine Days Down. (Edit: Unfortunately it wasn't, as JoeShogun nuked their account before I got to review.)