Comic Review: Friends Forever #10 (Fluttershy and Iron Will) · 2:15am Nov 6th, 2014
Another month passes, and another pair of comics have graced out doorstep. I'll be getting to Discord's and Fluttershy's excellent adventure shortly, but for today, we're looking at another companion of Fluttershy's...a certain burly minotaur named Iron Will. Can Fluttershy help the big guy get in touch with his “inner pony?”
Our issue opens with Ponyville, that wonderful town free of all of reality's vices and bigotry, stampeding away from the bellowing presence of Iron Will, who wants to see Fluttershy. The rest of the Mane 6 stand their ground outside her cottage door, but it turns out to be for nothing when Fluttershy walks out and calmly asks him what's wrong. Turns out Will's wife told him to not come home until he's learned how to be nicer, and he's come to the kindest pony he knows to do just that. Can Fluttershy help tame the savage beast? And why does Iron Will have to do this?
First issue, and by far the biggest one, out of the way: EVERYPONY BESIDES FLUTTERSHY IS A DICK. The issue opens with the entire town running away from that no-good monster, and the minute Twilight (who has never seen Iron Will before and could have nothing more than second-hand experience with) sees who's coming, she mobilizes her friends to save Fluttershy from that greedy fiend. They never give him a chance to explain himself, nor do they even think Fluttershy (who has handled Discord by this point) is capable of teaching him how to be kind. And at the end, after Iron Will's learned his lesson and is throwing everypony a farewell dinner (a gag early in the story reveals that he's a gourmet cook), they immediately criticize everything he lays out because they're picky and selfish.
And then there's Rainbow Dash, who is just a complete ass the entire issue. Every scene she's in, she finds a way to make everything worse. I imagine that's why the preview art for the next Friends Forever has her with a big head and tiny neck; Iron Will choked her until she was stuck that way.
That said, the moments with Fluttershy and Iron Will are well done. The story builds from Iron Will's last scene in “Putting Your Hoof Down;” while he's very aggressive and demanding, he's also honest and has a softer side. He actually seems to enjoy taking care of the animals and the spa trip, until Angel ruins the former and Rainbow Dash the latter. The fact that he has a wife and son also help add more layers than just a big-mouthed salesperson, and the idea that he and his family live in a maze is amusing.
The basic premise of the issue is that Iron Will's son is taking after his father's worst traits, i.e. talking back to his mother and teacher. And while Iron Will tries to become more understanding through animal caretaking, pastry sales, apple bucking, and finally the spa, he really doesn't see the value in it; his son is just trying to be like his old man. The final lesson has similarities to “Putting Your Hoof Down” in that it doesn't state that being assertive and forceful is bad, but rather that it isn't the end-all, be-all reaction you want to encourage.
Beyond that, the issue is very simple and straightforward. The two just go to a task, something inevitably sets Iron Will off, and they try something else. There's a brief running gag about Iron Will asking to be paid for the work he's doing (for stuff like running the counter at Sugar Cube Corner, this makes perfect sense), and some of the ways he fails are pretty funny (again, Sugar Cube Corner and his encounter with Pinkie). The art is just generally okay; Garbowska returns with her more simple, but still cute designs, and while some of the poses and expressions are awkward, the overall look works for such a simple story.
If you're not a big fan of Iron Will or Fluttershy, you could pretty much skip the issue. It's a standard story that features all of the other ponies being colossal flankholes. Still, it's a good story to pick up later at a lower price, or as part of a compilation, and if you're a fan of the two, it's pretty much a must-read.
Next time, Rainbow Dash is summoned to aid Spitfire fend off the most vile creatures ever to crawl out of the primordial muck...children!
So apart from Ponyville acting like a bunch of jackasses, good issue?
Spitting and Rainbow taking care of kids?
That sounds hilarious.
It really annoys me when characters digress in attitude, especially when it's forced to make the plot work. Haven't they learned anything from their encounters with Trixie, Discord, and Zecora?
Anyway, I haven't been as big on the comics as I used to. I'm just not feeling it lately. I'm hoping that a story will come by that will peek my interests again.
2576418
Pretty much.
2576482
Sorry to hear that.
I actually found it to be a good joke. By showing her friends at their worst (and make no mistake, this behavior is within the scope of their characters) the joke becomes Rainbow not asking about Iron Will, but how Shy deals with all of her friends. And the answer is still the same.
Oh Iron Will. You were never in any way, shape, or form a villain, and yet you're constantly lumped in with them...
2576418 .....So a normal day in Ponyville, basically?
Iron will was a Villian?
Your review is quite good and pretty fair indeed. The only issue i had with the comic is that is too much exposition without visual aids.
What do you think?