Story Reviews » Round Robin Reviews # 8 · 11:23pm Jun 11th, 2016
The Round Robin Reviews are written by different groups and reviewers taking turns each week. If you are a story reviewer or part of a group that reviews stories and would be interested in joining the Round Robin Reviews, feel free to PM me (Wanderer D), Professor Plum, or ElDorado to tell us about it.
The Royal Guard—Prelude to Summer Edition
Every few weeks, we recommend six high-quality stories from a variety of authors and popular genres. From action/adventure to slice of life, from drama to comedy, from stories about ponies kissing to stories involving pink hairless apes, we feature a wide variety of stories so that every post has something for everyone.
We’re always looking for a tip-top tale, so if you’d like to submit your fic, here are some links you’ll probably find useful:
-The Royal Guard Group
-Submit Your Story!
-The Royal Guard's Official Handbook
Finally—and I cannot emphasize this enough—we are always recruiting. If you think you’ve got what it takes to be a prereader, then don’t hesitate to send us an application. If you have any questions about the application process, please direct them to Prak.
AND NOW, WITHOUT FURTHER ADO... STORIES!
This Week:
Action/Adventure
The Jet Powered Pegasus, by billymorph
Drama
Something Like Laughter, by Dubs Rewatcher
Romance
The Mare Who Once Lived on the Moon, by MrNumbers
Comedy
Better Lairs and Landscaping, by TitaniumDragon
Slice of Life
Friendly Correspondence, by Pascoite
ACTION/ADVENTURE
PR Recommendation: The story of Scootaloo as an underdog in a race against the very best pegasi in Equestria, this story does an excellent job of not only communicating the stakes to the audience, but also of justifying Scootaloo's behavior and mentality. Her jet-powered suit is the only way she can fly, so it means much more to her than just winning a race - if she doesn't have the bits, the skies might be lost to her forever.
But what really makes this story memorable is the description of the race. I haven't read many stories about races that really worked well as action scenes, but this story does a great job of sucking the audience into the race next to Scootaloo as she jets her way through. Action sequences can be hard to pull off well in text, but this story does an excellent job of getting us involved in the action and seeing and understanding what is going on. —Titanium Dragon
DRAMA
PR Recommendation: Trixie suffers from PTSD and terrible nightmares. She can’t escape from Tirek – he’s there all the time.
She can’t escape from Twilight. She likes her. She hates her. Twilight is her friend. Twilight is the worst!
And through it all, Trixie’s garbled thoughts run, babbling along in a stream of consciousness as her mind flashes from thought to thought, reminders of the past, reminders of her loneliness, her struggle to reach out for help, and her fears of everypony turning their back on her because the Great and Powerful Trixie is really worthless.
I'm not ordinarily a fan of stream-of-consciousness type stuff, but this story did a good job of using it, keeping focused on the core idea and Trixie's internal conflicts. This leads to a rather clever bit at the end which I almost missed the first time I read it, but which has stuck with me since then as being a very clever use of Trixie's voice.
Her self-loathing and psychological drama, and the question of how much of what she is remembering is real, serves to hook the reader and bring them on for the ride through the conclusion. To this day, I'm not sure if I enjoyed the ride, but I cannot deny being engaged. —Titanium Dragon
ROMANCE
PR Recommendation: This is one of the best fanfictions I have ever read. I'd like to leave this recommendation at that, because I fear that more words will do it less justice, but I suppose I should get into specifics, so here goes:
This story shows the true power of the "Alternate Universe" concept. In this steampunk Equestria, the Mane Six are all obviously different in profession and personality, yet their canon selves shine through brilliantly. Watching Royal Philosopher Twilight Sparkle befriend each of them in turn is a joy of a read.
In fact, though this story is a romance, the platonic aspect almost eclipses (hee hee) the romance with the Mare in the Moon, and perhaps would... except for how the romance is also done astonishingly well. Twilight's faltering, labored attempts to bridge the vacuum of space with whatever communication she can manage are just as much fun to read as the friend-making.
The dialogue is witty, the narration likewise, the story moves along at a perfect pace... I could go on, but I'd end up writing a chapter myself. So let me simply reiterate my first point: that this is one of the best fanfictions I have ever read. —R5h
COMEDY
PR Recommendation: Have you ever wondered how exactly Tirek escaped Tartarus, and thought "his guard dog ran away" wasn't a complete enough explanation? Well, wonder no more, because Better Lairs and Landscaping will tell you... er... probably not how he did it. Disregard the above: you should keep wondering.
In all seriousness, the idea that Tirek's magazine subscription not only helped him bring doom upon Equestria, but gave him an aesthetic addiction, is exactly the right level of absurd. The clash between his stoic nature and the triviality of landscaping (followed by the surprising harmony thereof) is a nice source of humor, one that carries the piece well. Perhaps it's not bust-your-gut funny, but then again that's not the intent: the humor is subtler, quieter. And it manages to make Tirek funny in a surprisingly in-character way, so points for that.
Basically, if you're looking for a humorous way to pass a few minutes of your time, then I heartily recommend this story. —R5h
SLICE OF LIFE
PR Recommendation: Friendly Correspondence is a snapshot within a snapshot of a moment in the show that truly got the ball rolling for Twilight Sparkle. There's so much going on in here that I almost didn't believe it had only taken me five minutes to read; the depth of emotion within surprised me like I'd trodden into an innocuous puddle and sank beneath the surface.
This is season one Celestia at her most human: vulnerable and unexpectedly fragile. I was glad to be able to add this scene to my own headcanon, which I personally can't say very often at all. But there's another great surprise in the form of how well Pascoite manages to portray Philomena as a strong supporting character; this is considerably more impressive again considering she has no real "dialogue" to speak of.
As well as a touching portrayal of a ruler and her companion, the story also includes a plethora of clever show tie-ins with other events (for example, those who really pay attention might just find a clever, subtle connection to that "other world"). Knowing how to add weight to even the smallest of actions in the show is just one of many things Pascoite excels at.
Stories like Friendly Correspondence are shining examples of how to make a mountain out of a molehill in a positive way, while still retaining its molehill size.
HUMAN
PR Recommendation: Crossovers are hard. Requiring the reader have a working knowledge of two often disparate worlds and be willing to find out what happens when they collide is inherently risky. When the author dares to throw romance into mix too, the danger level approaches Phil Coulson’s day job.
In A Puzzle Unsolved, Present Perfect dares to take that risk, and he absolutely makes it work. His portrayal of Octavia, a character with countless fandom-given traits and quirks, is instantly relatable and recognizable, even while on a quiet date with the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
For those of you looking for a good crossover, you’ve found one. For those of you who, like me, run away screaming at the mere mention of the word, stick around and give this one a chance. This isn’t a quick-and-dirty conglomeration of two wildly different worlds, this is a story of two kindred souls that love music, but also have secrets to keep. —BlazzingInferno
Addendums
If you guys have any questions about our sitepost policies, or our approval guidelines, feel free to browse the handy dandy Official Royal Guard Handbook, and if you still find yourself lacking answers, feel free to ask Prak so that he can find the right person to give you what you need.
See you guys next time!
Oh wow, that was... incredibly flattering. Uh, I better say something humble here, right?
"Something humble"
Fucking nailed it.
i love the mare who once lives on the moon. lol too bad its an incomplete story... im anxious for na update
4016219 that's right, i love your story! it adheres to the romantic in me it's also a very nice take on what could be if celestia never buckled down and moved on for her kingdoms better interest when she banished her sister.
Damn, TMWOLotM has a crapton of upvotes for its viewcount. :O I look forward to that one.
Also yay for reviews going up. :D
4016440
See this is why I just call it Moonfic because that acronym is absolutely absurd and I should use it whenever possible
4017197
"Tum-wolla-tum"!