Fic rec Special, April 2nd: All Quiet on the Changeling Front! · 7:44pm Apr 2nd, 2020
Jake the Army Guy recently ran another Horse Words Extravaganza contest, and I apparently agreed to review one of the finalists. This of course means two things: a solo post, and a lengthier one than I might otherwise have done. It needs to be special. :)
Without further ado, I therefore present to you the 2019 Horsewords Extravaganza third place finalist: All Quiet on the Changeling Front, by Rune Soldier Dan! Short version, it's great, go read it, there may be a few spoilers below though I tried to avoid them.
I've not had the opportunity to read All Quiet on the Western Front myself. From what I gather, it is a needfully bleak and depressing look at World War I, and obviously informs this fanfiction's presentation.
The AU tag is foremost here. Our main characters are Thorax, Pharynx and a couple of changeling OCs, but the world they inhabit is nothing like the one we know. Not only do they begin the story preparing for a major push in an all-out war against Equestria, not only do things like machine guns and wheeled vehicles exist, but changeling society is presented as even more civilized than I think fanfic has ever portrayed them. Chrysalis is almost a myth, looming large above her subjects' lives. Propaganda spills from their mouths, all with a single message: don't question the Queen, she's always right. It's a frankly terrifying situation that lets you know from the very start the changelings aren't going to be doing well in the coming conflict.
I'm a fan of a lot of the other surface trappings as well, particularly the uniforms. Pharynx is what's known as a Queensguard, who wear sharp black and gold outfits. They always stand out above the rank and file soldiers, who wear grey. The contrast is striking and lets you know just how important the Queensguard is in this army.
But enough about aesthetics, what about the important stuff? First off, the changeling brothers were a really clever choice for our protagonists. Pharynx is of course all in with the war effort, being a Queensguard and all, but the focus is on Thorax, who spends the first chapter deciding whether or not he wants to enlist as well. Pharynx doesn't even encourage him, though he does get in some gentle ribbing over how weak Thorax is. They're both perfectly in the familiar character we know from the show.
As for the plot… Well, a lot can be assumed by the association of the title. But it's not the same story, for all that this is very much a story about how awful war is. I was surprised at the lack of trench warfare being depicted. There's a big time skip between the two chapters, from the early war to near its end, and wisely the author decided to just let us know that had already happened.
That leaves us with a bulky second act filled with melancholy, ennui and loads of tension. Changelings dying from eating rotten love (a fantastic world-building note), an impending treaty and bands of roving Diamond Dog soldiers culminate in a strong tragedy. The ending is, as I said, not quite as bleak as the original's, but it's still got nothing kind to say about the war, and at least one major character dies by the end.
That tension is the reason to read this. The writing is excellent, as RSD's tends to be, but being there with Thorax, no spoilers, as he stares down the barrel of his rifle, trying to decide if he should take a shot: that's what sells this. This is a really fantastic read, and it's easy to see why it placed so high.
Highly Recommended
Aaaaand, I almost quit reading the review at that point. Honestly, I don't mind AUs at all (duh), but when it "alters" to the point where it's completely and utterly different in tone, structure, and character? I want more of Equestria, I want an expansion of that world and those characters. This might be an excellent bit of writing, but it isn't even MLP-adjacent. Which, remembering your assessment of the show lately, is probably a plus for you.
Honestly, this is what makes you such a good reviewer. Even though you gave it an HR rating, you've made it clear that I'd hate it.
Thank you for the review. It was an honor to place well among many worthy contenders, and it was good to have an excuse to write a fic which had been rattling in my skull for years. I will have to keep eye out for other contests, it seems deadlines are wonderful for my motivation.