Past Sins: Cover and Acknowledgement · 4:08pm Aug 20th, 2015
This project ended up being a little more delayed than I had intended- sorry everyone! Hopefully I'll be able to do my one chapter a week plan from now on...
Though this post isn't about the chapter. It's actually about the artwork.
The prelude of Past Sins opens with a full-sized copy of the cover art, pre-reader acknowledgements, clarification on the version I'm reading, and a dedication.
I have to say, all the above really contributes to the 'legend' I've heard surrounding this story. From the opening, it looks less like a pony fanfiction, and more like a serious, published work. Which, apparently, it is. This is the edition -modified for season two- that was published as a book by Equestrian Publications
(Or, at least -according to the Equestrian Publications website- was, since they have no plans of reprinting it again.)
Though, speaking of comparing the printed version and the digital one... I think I prefer the print cover... though admittedly, for terrible reasons.
I really, really like the artwork that's been posted here. It looks amazing. If you haven't seen it, check it out here... and if you have seen it, check it out again, because it's awesome. I particularly like the tagline -'What else can you be when the world can only see a monster'-and the images in Nightmare Moon's mane certainly are interesting and got my attention...
It's just that I am going into this absolutely blind. The only thing I know about it is what the synopsis says, and that this story introduced the filly Nightmare Moon, Nyx.
But... the right-hand images seem to hint at a lot of -presumably- future plot stuff. A showdown between Nightmare Moon and Celestia (yes please!), Nightmare Moon seizing the elements (and Trixie -or at least her hat- is there), the Crusaders in jail, Twilight about to be hanged?
Those are interesting pictures. I want to see the story behind them, and now I want to read Past Sin's more than I did before...
But I feel like some of the surprise has been lost? Maybe by the time those things come up, I'll have forgotten about the art... but it's a surprise to see Nyx -who I assumed was the main focus of the story- relegated to next to no page-space, while things I hadn't suspected were going to happen dominated it.
(As for the crying Nightmare Moon... it's a good image. It works with the tagline... though I might have prefered if she was standing, same pose, same expression, but without the tears. But that's just me).
...But as I say, the art is really good. I want a copy of it. I just sort-of wish it was in Pen Strokes blog or something instead, since I feel like I just got spoiled on some things.
The dedication to Pen Stroke's aunt is sweet, and as I say, the lay-out is very different from what I'm used to reading on this site, and adds a greater air of gravitas to things.
On which note... hopefully next time I'll actually get started on the Prelude itself.
It's hard for me to say anything about the cover without spoilers, even whether or not I think it gives away too much -- but what I will say is that I'm looking forward to following you through this. Although I ended up having mixed feelings about the story (three stars) there's more than enough in it that it'll be fascinating to see what you make of it all...
The cover is, arguably, one of the main reasons why it became so popular back in the day. This level of detail wasn't really common in the fandom back then.
Curiously, it is probably the only aspect of the story that wasn't revised in the 4(!) years since its publication.