It Is Recommendsday, My Dudes #93 · 9:05pm Dec 28th, 2022
So the news is still going around, but for those who don't know: the site lost author Ninjadeadbeard recently. He passed on the 19th - news only started coming out two days ago. In a lot of ways it was expected - his last blog post uses the phrases 'stage four' and 'metastasizing in my lungs' - but it's still a blow.
I won't say he was a friend - that would be disrespectful. We were acquaintances, passing each other occasionally in this community. But every time I interacted with Ninja, he was smart, witty, and kind. He's also a writer who I've always enjoyed, and it's a shame to see him pass both as a person and an author.
So - my little part in this? The chance to push a few of his many excellent works as a small tribute. May he live on in word and memory.
Leading, I'll go with what is most certainly my favorite of Ninja's stories: The Return of Sunset.
Two days ago, Sunset Shimmer was expelled as Princess Celestia's student and fled through the Mirror. In the dead of night, a guard awakens Celestia with news: Sunset Shimmer has returned. Enraged, Celestia confronts her wayward student... only to find Sunset is an old mare, closer to ninety than nineteen. And therein lies the story.
Okay, just... I have always been a sucker for a good Sunset/Celestia forgiveness meeting scene. They're fairly common (even after Forgotten Friendship made a canon one) and it gets me every time. This one stands out not only because it's such a wildly different take (and I just love Sunset being able to be the knowledgeable one who's in control, it's such a wonderful shift) but also because it's so good. Seriously, this is easily in my top five takes on the idea. And that's a category I have a lot of competition in.
The story's just a delightful warming of the heart, as elderly Sunset bridges the gap and brings hope to a Celestia that's at her greatest ebb. The Princess, at this point, has lost just about everything - and has no idea how it's all about to turn around. The power dynamic between them is wonderful, the writing is excellent, the plot is unique... this is easily my #1 completed Ninjadeadbeard story for a reason.
The second story, well, as hard as it is to pick one out of Ninja's excellent library? I can't really choose anything but Anarchy: Pony of Chaos. Just wouldn't be right.
The tale starts right after the end of S9E26, and eases a few days down the line. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy have a conversation about Little Cheese, and Fluttershy admits a quiet secret: she would like a foal of her own. At Pinkie's prompting, she talks to Discord about it. He's overjoyed at the idea. Then, wrapping a strand of her hair around his thumb, he snaps. And he gives birth to Anarchy, Equestria's first ponequus.
This one, as expected, is a laugh riot. But it's also quite full of family drama - Anarchy isn't quite her mother's or her father's, and manages to be her own character quite effectively. She's helped by having a great cast of characters around her: Little Cheese is a wonderful foil/partner-in-crime; Grogar as the doting but ominous evil grandfather is hilarious; and of course Fluttershy and Discord are in prime form, particularly Discord as he juggles being a parent with his divinely chaotic powers-slash-fourth-wall-knowledge.
Oh, and yes. Expect a lot of meta knowledge and fourth wall shenanigans. It's Discord and his spawn, and both are quite genre aware. It doesn't get really silly until the epilogue, but be prepared for it.
Anarchy is an important story for Ninja's works, because it's the basis of the larger 'verse that he used for most of his work. A number of other excellent stories build off of it, and while most stand on their own? This story gives them the baseline to elevate from, and makes them better. It's a great introduction to the rest, too.
And I guess... that's see you around, pal. It's been a trip.
New or catching up? Try Recommendsday: The Index for your story needs!
The Return of Sunset was a story I read before formally making an account on this website — before even seeing much of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic — and one that helped convince me it was worth the effort to try writing ponyfic.
A bitter, bitter loss, even if he wasn’t someone I was regularly interacting with. But at least he got to share so much with us.
He will be dearly missed. One of the great innovative writers on the site, and one with an incredibly cohesive vision of Equestria's past, present, and future. So much left untold...
All the more reason for me to get my own work out there.
Some hell of the year...
I've read very few of his stories, and primarily know him as a face around that I'd hardly ever (if ever, honestly) interacted with. But I'd seen the friendliness he always brought and quite a solid reputation of his works, so he will be dearly missed. I'll certainly have to feature some of his stories on my reviews going forward.
Of these two, The Return of Sunset grabs me by far the most – already I can see why it might be your favourite of his. That is a killer concept, an aged Sunset returning just a few days later and the differing character perspectives it forces on both ends. Won't dawdle on that!
oh damn D: