Rainbow Dash and the Daring Do Double Dare review! · 1:01am Jul 25th, 2014
Chapter One
Everypony is at a midnight release for the new Daring Do book, so it’s nice to know Berrow gets one aspect of nerd culture. Oddly, while Rainbow seems to be there, Twilight, the one who got her into the books, is further in the back. Rainbow Dash notes that the series seems to be popular in Ponyville and wonders if she started a trend. We see Applejack act like a true capitalist, Rainbow and Pinkie switch roles a bit, and Rainbow makes a fool of herself when the shop opened. I have to say, this is the first time it felt like a part of the show... but Berrow is still writing that Rainbow lives in Cloudsdale...
Chapter Two
Rainbow Dash experiences another part of nerd culture: wanting to talk about something that nopony wants spoiled. Twilight accidentally comes up with an idea for a book club.
Chapter Three
A few days later the book club meets, and we get a few pages of jokes. And the comics apparently aren’t canon to the novels, because nopony objects to Fluttershy bringing a bookworm. Let me tell you: Berrow must have become aware of the fandom before writing this book, because there’s a lot of Wild Mass Guessing and fanchat ahead. Twilight calls the meeting to order.
Chapter Four
As the meeting starts, Twilight’s strict organization doesn’t settle with everypony. Rainbow Dash takes over. She starts bragging about a move Daring pulled, making Wild Fire question if it could really be done, with a lot of ponies concurring. Twilight’s logical “It’s meant to be fun,” is interrupted by Rainbow Dash saying she could do it. It ends with Wild Fire double daring Rainbow to do just that.
Chapter Five
By the next day, Rainbow Dash has a board in town square for ponies to write their dares. Pinkie is all for it, but the others are doubtful. The first dare is to cross Ghastly Gorge on a tightrope without her wings.
Chapter Six
Instead of actually showing Rainbow Dash doing this, it cuts to near the end of the day, when she’s completed several dares. She gets her latest dare: eating spicy peppers from... uh, South Amareica. Rainbow Dash quickly realizes it was Applejack who submitted the dare, since she told nopony else of her hatred for peppers. Obviously, Applejack is hoping she’ll quit this.
Rainbow Dash bites into them, and immediately breaths fire. She also has a vision of Daring Do and Ahuizotl. Following this, the others take what should have been the first step and try to talk her out of it, but she blows them off.
Chapter Seven
Rainbow Dash wakes up the next morning and finds that a thunderstorm she missed is taking place. She thinks that everything that happened yesterday was a dream at first, but quickly realizes it really happened. She departs to Ponyville, and when she arrives she finds ponies just waiting to give her more dares.
Then Zecora shows up. She announces that she has come seeking the bravest pony. Rainbow nominates herself, only to worry when Zecora says it’s to save everypony. She announces that an artifact called the Half-Gilded Horseshoe has been stolen. Twilight explains that it’s a key that will open something called the Spirit Circle, which is full of treasure, but at a great cost. Zecora adds that several ghosts will materialize if the room is open. Rainbow Dash takes the job.
Chapter Eight
The next day Rainbow Dash is at Carousel Boutique, getting her Daring Do costume touched up. Her friends try and talk her out of it once more, to no avail. And honestly, this is a problem: everypony is still treating this like a dare, even though Twilight says there’s serious consequences if Rainbow Dash fails. Isn’t this an Elements of Harmony mission? Shouldn’t they all be going? I guess it’s just that Rainbow Dash is fast enough, except that she blatantly turns down help in the next chapter. So Twilight tells her the Spirit Circle is by something called the Dual Stronghold, and it will only show tomorrow.
Chapter Nine
Rainbow Dash sets off to leave. She’s left with tools: a rope from Applejack, a mini teddy bear from Fluttershy, some cupcakes from Pinkie, some horseshoes from Rarity, and a Sapphire Stone bookmark from Twilight. Really? Anyway, Rainbow plans to ditch the stuff as soon as possible.
Chapter Ten
Rainbow Dash flies in circles through the Everfree Forest. She believes she hears a laugh, but dismisses it as her imagination. When she stops to rest, she runs afoul with some Colossa-gators, which are just giant alligators. About the size of Ursa Minors. But apparently a single cupcake is enough to chase them off. It’s also revealed that the others are following her at this point.
Chapter Eleven
Rainbow Dash notices some strange smoke and decides that’s her best lead. She follows it and ends up falling into quicksand. She hears the evil laugh again, and thinks of the rope, which she uses to lasso her way out.
Chapter Twelve
After a while of walking, Rainbow Dash has no leads. She begins to feel homesick, and curls up with the teddy bear. As she begins to fall asleep, she hears a voice telling her not to give up, which renews her resolve. She takes out Twilight’s bookmark and wonders what use it would have. She wishes she was at the stronghold, and suddenly she’s brought to the Castle of the Two Sisters.
She sees the red smoke again and chases it into a strange room, where she meets the villain: a Zebra named Braze... who’s speaking in meter...
...Wait... do they all just arbitrarily do that?
And somehow, he’s captured all her friends, including the powerful alicorn princess. Braze explains that only Rainbow can open the door, and offers to free her friends in exchange for opening the door Dash agrees, but has a plan. Rainbow Dash trades it for one of Rarity’s horseshoes,
Chapter Thirteen
Braze is shocked the room didn’t open. He quickly figures out the ruse, but Rainbow Dash keeps him distracted long enough for the Spirit Circle to disappear. Braze leaves, swearing revenge.
Chapter Fourteen
Rainbow Dash shows up to do a presentation for Cheerilee’s class, where she tells them that, sometimes, the bravest thing a pony can do is accept help from her friends.
Okay, this is better, but it shoots itself in the foot by introducing an adventure story in the last third. In fact, I spent it thinking this was a repeat of Mare Do Well, only more sensible since at least they tried talking to Rainbow first. And shouldn’t a better lesson be that Rainbow Dash shouldn’t be putting herself in danger just to be cool? That could have been told in Ponyville, which is where it should have stuck.
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic #21 is my next review.
This felt like "Applebuck Season" but with Rainbow Dash instead of Applejack. It's still pretty good, but it's not quite as good as its predecessor.
Going off of this review alone, given that I haven't read this book and probably never will...
-The bookworm turned into a good guy at the end, and it turned out they don't even realize that they was summoning characters from other worlds (I don't know how the hell one could miss that though), but yes, some concern should have been raised.
-Even though it does raise some confusing questions on zoning and property rights, Berrow needs to get it through her head that RD's house IS IN PONYVILLE. This season had Pinkie Pride, one of the greatest episodes of this series' entire run, with one of the biggest celebrity roles, and Rainbow Dash living in Ponyville was a driving plot point!
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-That's just what I was thinking. Darth Link's suggestion for a morale would have been better, since it wasn't a repeat, and could actually keep some kids from doing something stupid and dangerous. And by acknoledging how Rainbow's whole solo act was stupid and dangerous, it creates a plot hole.
-Something I find really interesting: Link mentioned voices RD's hearing, but not a resolution to them. Does that mean Berrow wrote in the involvement of ghosts, but was subtle enough not to tell the reader outright?