A Review: The Seventh Star · 7:05pm Nov 12th, 2013
This deviates from my Simple Slice-of-Life reviews because I'm reviewing a story that also has a [Sad] tag, and features some depressing thoughts. However, I wanted to review something this morning, so I clicked on the very first story in the "new" folder (or list, or whatever it's called that places new stories on the front page) that I could find, and that was a story tagged [Sad] and [Slice of Life]. I wasn't planning on doing a blog review on this story, but I think this is so well put together, so clever and emotional, that it deserves to be known more than it is. So, without further ado, this is a review of
The Seventh Star, by Mr Page
Twilight has been crowned princess and Spike dreads what will happen next. Does Twilight need him anymore? Will he soon be replaced? Fearing the unknown future, Spike begins to despair. Will he end up all alone or will somepony be able to reassure him of what he means to her and the crucial part he is to her life?
This is a 15,548-word story about Spike dealing with the uncertainty of the future and of his and Twilight's relationship, all during the celebratory coronation party.
This story is more contemplative than action-oriented, but that doesn't mean the entire story takes place within Spike's mind. One thing I really appreciate about this story is how the setting is balanced and interactive with Spike. The first act has him all alone in the room where Twilight was coronated, where he sits thinking about the coronation ceremony, how pleasant it was, and then how sad the future will be, since, mild spoiler alert, he believes that, since Twilight is now a princess, she'll have many attendants to serve her. After this recollection, he moves out of the room and interacts a bit with the castle and the party. I don't want to give too much away about how he interacts with the setting, so I'll leave it with this: he observes the stained glass windows of the castle, the party as it happens, and a random room within the castle. The setting never takes away from Spike, but it does lend itself to his thoughts, both positive and negative.
On top of that, the setting is described beautifully. The colors are vivid, the scenery is set, the mood comes in, majesty, celebration and misery all being portrayed in its setting. Again, I'd say the setting never encroaches on the focus of Spike, but it does stand alone as its own entity and helps set the stage for what Spike is going through. Mr Page makes particularly good use of the motif of sunlight. I think this is the paragraph in the story that best uses it:
With his heart aching, Spike resumed his walking. Passing under it, the ponies from the stained glass washed over him like a waterfall of color. They were wonderfully warm. Or . . . perhaps it was just the sunlight. -Part I
I believe this uses sunlight to show how bright and warm friends' spirits shine, and the comparison of that warmth and light from a friend to the warmth and light that comes from a window, especially with a stained glass window with his friends' likeness, was excellent.
Although the setting is described very well, and has a presence both on its own and within Spike, it's Spike that the story focuses on. The story has a lot of wondering from him, presented in a third-person limited point of view, and it explores his past with Twilight and their friends, as well as the future that'll come. In "Part II" (the chapters are titled Part I, Part II, and Part III), he looks to each of his friends and muses on their good qualities and why he sees them as dear to him. In Part I, he thinks of how he was a failure as a dragon during the show's big moments, and even how his one big accomplishment—taking the Crystal Heart to Cadence—could be undervalued on his part, without looking like he's moping. This story deals with Spike's depressing thoughts, and if you can handle a good deal of contemplation, I'd say this story handles the contemplation well.
It's not all contemplation, though; on top of interacting with the setting, he also hunts for Twilight, since he sees her as special. Near the end of Part I, he resolves to look for her to, major spoiler, see her one last time before he's replaced by better assistants; in Part II, he finds her and, again, major spoiler, runs away, since he can't bring himself to face the final time. Part III is heavily driven by dialogue between Spike and Twilight, where feelings come out and problems are dealt with.
And in Part III, I must commend the story for not making it just Twilight reassuring Spike that he's special. Spike does have a role to play here, and Twilight needs help from him. Twilight acts differently between the party and the small room where this takes place, to the point where Spike is necessary, and he's not just a person who needs to receive praise. And Spike performs this task, not only very well, but in character, and to the point where his characterization is enhanced from performing the duty. He's seen as closer to Twilight because of it, and it's shown how close they are through Twilight's cutie mark (in a believable manner; the title of the story is accurate and pertinent to the story, but it's not done clumsily where Twilight adds a new star to represent him). The use of the cutie mark in the final chapter is very clever, and it gives the relationship Twilight and Spike has a greater scale.
The story is mood-setting and creative with its setting, thoughtful with its contemplation, smart with its characters, and clever with its symbolism; it's also tight with its technicals—for the most part. The story does switch between past and present tense quite a bit, and Mr. Page does use you're when he means your twice, both times in Part III. The rest of the technicals, though, are sound. It's and its aren't mixed up, to and too aren't mixed up, and I couldn't find any oddities in punctuation (but don't take my word for it; I'll admit my knowledge on grammar isn't all too great). It reads smoothly, with some nice unique sentences and word usage.
Overall, "The Seventh Star" is a great story where there's a lot of contemplation. The relationship between the characters is not only good but both steadfast and evolving, the setting is used well to create a sense of mood, the characters are in character, the technicals are sound for the most part, and the use of particular symbols, particularly sunlight and the cutie mark, is very clever. I think this strikes a chord with me (at least) because it's all handled well, there don't appear to be any scenes that aren't needed, it's not mopey but just contemplative, the pacing is excellent, and the two character dilemmas that are faced are handled with heart. If you like stories about Spike and Twilight, and don't mind a lot of thought without energetic action, then I would definitely recommend this story.
If you see any place where I can improve my critiquing skills, please let me know. I am willing and eager to improve.
This hit a bit closer to home than I'd anticipated. (For the record, Twi's anguished "Oh, Spike, what have I done?" at the end of "Find a Way" is one of maybe three sound bites in the entire series guaranteed to make me lose my composure.) I can vouch for the soul-flattening feeling of Not Being Needed.
Still, it's a marvelous tale, and as always, I thank you for bringing it to my attention.
1504456 I live with the nagging fear or being worthless and unneeded on a constant basis. I probably shouldn't and should begin contributing to others' well-being.
And I'm glad this got featured as well. That made my day.