Ponyfic Roundup 76: Copper Bottom Tympani in Horse Platoons

First: go and watch the reboot of Danger Mouse. If you're in the UK, it's on the BBC iPlayer, but I expect it can be obtained in other ways. It's great fun. Also, yes, I've seen the leak of the synopsis list for the rest of S5. I won't spoil anything here, but they're only what we'd have seen on Zap2it or something anyway; it's not as if they give away the entire stories. Okay, back to ponyfic. Six short stories for consideration this time round:

Swan Lake by 314
Lost Cities by Cold in Gardez
Echoplex by thewoollymammoth
Insomnia by Pale Horse
The Wrong Fork by PoweredByTea
Sombra's Advisor by Supahsnail

Episode review: S5E16: "Made in Manehattan"

"At last you notice me again... and you let those humans take all the attention?"

I was a bit preoccupied last night watching Equestria Girls: Friendship Games – a review will follow at some point, but it looks as though it's going to get a cinema release in the UK next month. If so, I'd like to follow the pattern for the first two films and write my review only after that. Sneak peek: it was better than the first film but not as good as Rainbow Rocks. Mind you, the 287 ad breaks probably didn't help.

For that reason, this review will be a bit shorter than usual, and much of it will be simply a light reworking of the one I posted over on Fimfiction earlier.

Fluttershy episodes: the best and the worst

Settle back, everyone, for this is a post made simply so that I have an excuse for talking about how brilliant Fluttershy is. Not that I need one, of course, since everyone knows that she's completely... hmm. "Fluttershy" is probably the only acceptable adjective here. The question of "What is a Fluttershy episode?" is one that I have answered with the same simplicity: it's one that I consider to be a Fluttershy episode. Here we go, then:

Three Good Episodes for Fluttershy

3. A Bird in the Hoof
If you think this is a controversial choice, thank your lucky stars that I didn't choose "Bats!" instead. :P But this episode makes the list because Charlotte Fullerton does something that far too many Fluttershy writers don't: she concentrates on facets of 'Shy's character other than her shyness. The whole mess is set up by her impulsiveness in taking Philomena, while we later see her depth of animal caretaking knowledge, her almost limitless patience and – yes! – her calmness under pressure. (Specifically, when the Royal Guards come calling.)

2. Filli Vanilli
My top two are very, very close, and on some days I might even put this episode ahead. Forget Pinkie Pie being irritating for a bit and think about the ending. If you can't feel happy at the sheer joyfulness experienced by Fluttershy, singing on stage in her Ponytones sweater, then you surely have no soul. There wasn't a single time in this ep that I thought, "That's not right for Fluttershy" – and that counts for a great deal.

1. Hurricane Fluttershy
I know, I know, the most predictable choice ever. I haven't really stopped raving about this Cindy Morrow episode since it first went out. It's probably not quite as much of an achievement as "Filli Vanilli", but it's the episode that I enjoy most – and as with my Ponyfic Roundup ratings, that's what counts here. There is no better exploration in the entire series of the fascinating friendship between 'Shy and Rainbow Dash.

And now for the bit you've all been waiting for:

Three Bad Episodes for Fluttershy

3. Putting Your Hoof Down
Who are you, and what have you done with the Charlotte Fullerton who wrote "A Bird in the Hoof"? More to the point, what have you done with Ponyville? Angel is written horribly, going beyond his usual grumpiness and into the realms of actual domestic violence. Fluttershy doesn't seem to know how to cope with anything, and it shows. I would actually like to see another episode with her interacting with Iron Will (yes, I know the comics have done it), just so the damage from this could be repaired. Thank goodness "Hurricane Fluttershy" was on the horizon by this point.

2. MMMystery on the Friendship Express
The recent "Rarity Investigates" shows how a Pony detective story can work. This episode shows how it can fall flat on its face – and its ludicrous characterisation of Fluttershy is among its worst features. With everything we know of her up to this point, it makes no sense whatsoever for her to have: a) taken a bite of the cake and b) used a disguise that requires her to shovel coal and that very clearly shows her mane. Gah.

1. Magic Duel
Larson! Popular writer he may be, but he's made a bit of a mess of Fluttershy on several occasions. Think of "Ponyville Confidential" and the floods of tears over those tail extensions. "Magic Duel" is the one that really annoys me, though, all the more so because so many people love it because OhmigoshTrixie! The scene in the library, Rainbow Dash totally ignoring her, that bunny costume, the general cowardliness... I don't like this ep all that much anyway, but Fluttershy's scenes make it that much the worse.

Fanfic reading: Ever Let the Fancy Roam

( Text link )

It's been quite a long time since I've done a reading of any of my fanfics, and as I had an idle few minutes the other day I thought I might as well. I chose to do Ever Let the Fancy Roam, my Slice of Life story about Fancy Pants and his butler preparing for a small dinner party. This fic has the unusual (for me) distinction of actually having won a writing contest where I wasn't the only entrant – the "Making the Most of the Mundane" competition that the Characters that Need More Stories group ran a while back.

On another writing-related note, The Unbearable Lightness of Bucking has broken the 200-view barrier. Hardly a startling achievement in three and a bit weeks, but it's more than Ever Let the Fancy Roam has managed in seven months... :P

Ponyfic Roundup 75: Three-quarters of a Century!

Yeah, I've seen the EQD mascots. One particular irritation, which I may post about at some point if I can be bothered, but it's been quite a busy week for me (the steam trains were great, by the way) so I'll move on for now. I've managed to get in a reasonable amount of reading, so here we go with another Ponyfic Roundup. PR 75! Sooner or later I'll have to start thinking about what to do for PR 100, which should arrive sometime in the spring, but that's a good way off yet. Instead, here's the usual assortment of stories:

Would It Matter If I Was? by GaPJaxie
Yes, It Matters by RealityCheck
Resolution by xjuggernaughtx
Another Dragon's Quest by draconmannvlvs
Nothing. by Fonypan
Twilight Sparkle Makes a Cup of Tea by GhostOfHeraclitus

Comic mini-review: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic #34

Andy Price's main cover is really very nicely done

After several generally rather disappointing main-series stories in IDW's My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic series, this month we get the start of "Siege of the Crystal Empire", the first four-part outing since the controversial "Reflections" arc. Notably, this one is drawn by Andy Price but not written by long-time collaborator Katie Cook; Jeremy Whitley does the honours. Heather Breckel is the colourist. I think it's a definite improvement, too: although not perfect (one pony says "my hand slipped", a shoddy error) there's a lot of actual intrigue going on by the end.

Price's artwork looks good for the most part, as does Breckel's colour work, while Whitley's writing certainly seems rather stronger than Cook's was, slightly uncertain opening scene aside. The question of why certain characters would team up will need to be addressed, so I can't be more than "cautiously optimistic" right now, but here's hoping. Probably the most enjoyable main-series comic since issue #24 – it's a three-star issue, but a top-end three and at last I can recommend a main-series comic again! ★★★

Episode review: S5E15: "Rarity Investigates!"

"A lot depends on who's in the saddle."

Fresh from last week's Rarity episode, this week we have... a Rarity episode! And its writing credits bothered me a bit when I first saw them, as there are two writers – Joanna Lewis and Kristine Songco – with a story by four people – Lewis, Songco, Meghan McCarthy and M. A. Larson. Can this end well? There's only one way to find out, and that's to follow me past the break for the usual spoiler-filled waffle about "Rarity Investigates!" in all its glory... or otherwise.