Friendship is Card Games: Rainbow Dash and the Daring Do Double Dare · 1:10pm Nov 14th, 2021
This week, we return to the Berrow catalogue and Dash’s turn in the spotlight. She’s been comparatively patient, but she also didn’t have a choice in the matter. Let’s see what this entails.
Apparently the midnight release of the next Daring Do novel is enough for all of Ponyville to stay up. I can believe it’s a popular franchise—Heck, that’s how the world reacted to some of the later Harry Potter novels—but it’s still an odd mental image.
I do have to appreciate Dash’s sense of priorities. Yes, she’s excited enough to burst. But “if she exploded, she’d lose her place in line.”
Also, Pinkie’s speed record for setting up a party is four minutes, seventeen seconds, which makes me wonder what she considers setup. The party cannon should make sub-minute parties a breeze.
It’s interesting to see a building we never saw in canon. Ponyville has a bookstore, apparently. And Dash has been camping out in front of it since this morning… which makes me wonder how the staff felt about the crazy pegasus loitering in front of the entrance all through normal operating hours.
Dash is convinced that the two hundred ponies behind her were drawn to the franchise by her discerning taste. Given the source, I remain open to other possibilities.
Applejack isn’t just feeding everypony in line, she’s trying for brand tie-ins. Her menu ranges from Fritters of Destiny to the Apple Pie of Fate.
The owner of the bookstore is named Plot Twist. No apparent relation to Apple Bloom’s pre-crusade friend, though she is an earth mare. She’s wisely decided to recruit Pinkie to help with the release party, including a replica of Ahuizotl’s temple made entirely of books. Let’s hope Twilight doesn’t co-opt that for important alicorn purposes.
Speaking of whom, Twilight isn’t in line because she preordered her book and will get it delivered in the morning. Plus, she has other things to do tomorrow and doesn’t want to distract herself with a new Daring Do novel until it’s finished.
Dash, naturally, finds everything about this mindset incomprehensible.
Oh boy. The cheering crowd (and the cramps from having to stand still for almost a whole day) triggered Dash’s need to perform. So she dive bombs into the bookstore, which goes exactly as well as you’d think.
Most worrisomely, she explicitly “swooped down like a kamikaze pilot.” This raises many, many unpleasant questions about recent history in this world.
Dash apparently leaves for Cloudsdale to read her book. It’s unclear if she’s skipping town after ruining the book-temple or if Berrow thinks that Dash’s cloud mansion is part of a different city.
And to compound the dick move, Dash proceeds to blab about every plot twist in the book before Twilight’s even had a chance to look at it the next day. (Dash assumed Twilight could just absorb knowledge by looking at books, Princess of Eggheads that she is.)
Hmm. Interesting bit of characterization, actually. Dash has outpaced the whole town in reading the book and doesn’t have anypony who can discuss it with her. This is apparently far from the first time she’s felt like she lives in a world of molasses.
Fluttershy has “daily duckling duties,” apparently. That does track given my headcanon of her job being to oversee Ponyville’s wildlife. For a given definition of “wild.”
“If I had my way, everypony would read all the time!”
This sort of thing makes Twilight’s eventual rule over Equestria equal part hilarious and deeply concerning. In this case, she just proposes a Daring Do book club, much to Dash’s delight. Not that she was eavesdropping on the conversation or anything.
We get another reference to Sweetie Drops rather than Bonbon, so this does appear to be an attempt to enforce the official name rather than Larson’s conflation of the two identities.
Also, Wild Fire’s here. For those unfamiliar with her, she’s the OC of one of the show staff, making her presence here a bit peculiar. I’m all for it, but it’s still unexpected inclusion.
Rarity attempted to dress appropriately for the book club and as a result, “She definitely could have passed for a student at Mythica University.” That raises a few questions about Equestrian postsecondary education.
Fluttershy brought a bookworm, because of course she did. Though I’m impressed that she found or made a pith helmet that small.
Hmm. The mention of a “Stalwart Stallion of Neighples” brings Movie Magic to mind, as does Mount Vehoovius. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were deliberate callbacks; wouldn’t be the only Daring-related details that started with Berrow before finding its way into show canon.
Dash just wants the event to start already. Twilight wants it to be the first of many events celebrating literature. We should probably be thankful this wasn’t the start of a rapid, devastating rework of Equestrian culture.
… Well, not this specific rapid, devastating rework of Equestrian culture.
Heh. I do appreciate Pinkie engaging in her usual gags, even in a textual format. Not exactly novel, given fan fiction, but still fun to see.
Ah. Twilight overprepped and wants to run the whole thing more like a class discussion of assigned reading. Wrong season, Twilight.
Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no. Fan arguments. Moreover, fan arguments that are interrupting Dash before she can unveil her pet theory to amaze them with her cleverness. Mostover, arguments over the realism of Daring Do. And the story’s explicitly set after “Daring Don’t,” so Dash knows she’s real and is on the verge of spilling the beans. At least Quibble Pants doesn’t exist yet, or Spike would have to scrub blood out of the floor.
Plus, now I’m surprised human Rainbow Dash doesn’t have a Daring Do analysis EweTube channel.
Also, the fact that ponies are saying that nopony could be brave enough to do what Daring does to the mares who brought down Nightmare Moon, Discord, and King Sombra is gloriously ridiculous. Especially when one of the doubters is Sweetie Drops.
And so we get the titular double dare to do what Daring did. Future volumes may have to come with a “Do not try this at home” disclaimer. Specifically, the dare is to do every adventure-archeology feat ponies post on the Daring Dash-Board, thoughtfully provided by the Crusaders.
… or, given that the first dare is for Dash to walk a tightrope over the quarray eel nesting grounds without using her wings, to just do literally any and every death-defying stunt Ponyville can think of regardless of whether or not Daring did it. I feel like this project is experiencing some scope creep.
Twillight is concerned that Dash’s ego is writing checks her body won’t be able to cash. Rarity is worried that it won’t look as impressive without a suitable costume.
Have I mentioned that I am thoroughly unimpressed with Berrow’s take on Rarity? Yes? Well, it bears repeating.
Diving to the bottom of Froggy Bottom Bog… That seems less daring and more unsanitary.
Other feats include, in order of risk: babysitting one of Pinkie’s balloons, going in a bat-infested barn, completing a Sweet Apple Acres obstacle course at Rainboom speeds, bathing Opal… and interrupting Cranky Doodle Donkey’s bridge game. 
Hmm. Dash disliking spicy food sounds a lot more reasonable than her hating pie of all things. Also, way to betray your friend’s trust by sharing that secret she shared with only you, Applejack. She’s justifying it as bing for Dash’s own good, but still, low blow.
Also, I’d complain about “South Amareica,” but I’ve used that exact pun.
And AJ is surprised when Dash refuses to back down in front of a crowd. Yes. Absolutely shocking.
Oh. Wow. The peppers are so hot that Dash experiences auditory hallucinations. Specifically of Ahuizotl’s mocking laughter. Also, rainbow flames shoot out of multiple orifices (all on her face,) but I’m more impressed by the sensory effects.
Once again, Berrow is under the impression that Dash lives in Cloudsdale. No idea how she came to that conclusion.
Also, Dash completely missed the day’s weather work in all that daredevilry. And plans on missing another to keep building up the hype as the crowds grow. The earlier comparison to the Mare-Do-Well incident is rather apt.
Today’s proposed dares include hoof-wrestling Bulk Biceps (here called Snowflake,) fighting a manticore… and getting a hooficure. I have to say, the audience definitely knows their star.
Huh. Enter Zecora, complete with a dramatic solar spotlight through the clouds. Unexpected, as is the plea for aid. Though I do appreciate of the return of her illusion dust from “Luna Eclipsed” to provide a visual aide in describing the lost MacGuffin. Sorry, Half-Gilded Horseshoe.
“Did she just say something about gilded shoes? Now you’ve got my attention!”
Ugh. I’ve seen trading cards with greater depth than Berrow’s Rarity.
Oh dear. The Horseshoe is apparently part of a seal locking away vengeful spirits. That’s… not good. Assuming this isn’t a similar gambit to Applejack’s pepper ploy in an effort to get Dash to tone it down.
I do like the description of the Boutique come crunch time. Fashion can be an ugly business at times. Especially when Rarity is making an outfit more utilitarian out of necessity.
Apparently Dash went as Daring Do for Nightmare Night one year. Which raises interesting questions about the chronology of the series. I know that that way lies madness, but part of me still wants some concrete answers.
Ridiculously specific, seemingly random conditions to even access the forgotten sanctum? Yup, sounds like adventure archeology to me.
And Dash is so distracted by thoughts of her victory parade that she’s ignoring the vital warnings about the released spirits in the ancient, time-locked treasure vault. She’s lucky this is a Berrow novel, or Twilight would’ve slapped her.
“Being the bravest means you don’t need any help.” Never mind that Dash helped Daring herself when they met, despite the latter’s insistence otherwise.
Unusual set of helpful tools from home for this adventure, but I have no doubt they’ll prove invaluable.
“No need to have anything extra weighing her down—that went for extra ponies and random gifts.”
Reminder that we’re at Season 4 here. At this point, I want to slap Dash.
Ah, good, her friends are going after her regardless.
I do appreciate how there is one place Dash considers even more wild and unpredictable than the Everfree: Pinkie’s head.
I also like how Dash’s bluster starts to fall flat for her without the crowd to reinforce it.
Huh. “Colossa-gators” are a new addition to the bestiary. They’re not bizarre chimerae or elemental monstrosities, they’re just alligators the size of an Ursa Minor. Simple but effective.
And Dash makes a good show of evading them… until she stops to do a victory dance on the back of one. There’s being too dumb to live, and then there’s writing a speech for your Darwin Award.
Fortunately, the seer of Ponyville made sure that most of her cupcakes were made with the Gummy-approved gator recipe.
It’s nice to see Dash admit that Twilight had probably told her where to go next, but she had completely tuned her out.
Turns out following mysterious red glows in the middle of the Everfree doesn’t end well. In this case, with Dash’s wings paralyzed as she sinks into quicksand.
Ah. So the “piece of rope” from Applejack was actually a pre-tied lasso, and Dash only recognized that while sinking into said quicksand. Despite, you know, being friends with Applejack. Look, I get that Dash isn’t the foremost towering intellect among the Mane Six, but this one is approaching levels of stupidity that I’d expect from the abridged series.
Huh. And we have an eleventh-hour villain; Braze, a zebra stallion who also speaks in rhyme, but with stripes in red, orange, and yellow such that he looks like a living bonfire. Also, a phoenix-feather earring, just to drive home the aesthetic.
Oh, and he captured all of the others offscreen. Somehow. Despite Fluttershy whispering encouragement to Dash like five minutes ago. Also, they’re all in Daring Do cosplay. Pinkie “had painted lines across her cheeks like a warrior,” and I don’t know if that’s meant to imply tribal war paint or the kind of thing that will lead to her saying Charlie’s in the trees.
Also also, Braze has tied them all up with a rope made of flames, which is definitely an interesting datum in the field of zebra magic. You don’t see many zebra pyromancers.
Very interesting to see that this gate to the spirit realm has what looks to be an engraving of Rainbow Dash herself on it.
Ah. The key only works in the hooves of one who can perform the Rainboom. Which raises some questions about just what that particular feat can do. A connection between life, death, and speed has some intriguing implications.
Okay, I do appreciate Dash using Pinkie to distract Braze. Good way to show rather than tell that she’s embraced having her friends help… again.
Really? Really? Twilight of all ponies is the one who blurts out Dash’s deception? I can appreciate an action-packed climax as much as the next guy, but come on.
All things considered, Braze is a graceful loser. Just departing with an industry-standard “I’ll get you next time!” Also, he can teleport with fiery explosions. Now I want to see him face off against Trixie.
At first, I thought the bookmark had been a magic feather that Twilight could use an excuse to teleport Dash to the Castle of the Two Sisters. Instead, Twilight “enchanted it to help [Dash] find [her] place.” Hooray for vaguely defined pony magic!
And the ending feels very fitting for Dash; recognizing the contributions and strength of her friends… right before retelling all the best parts of her own exploits.
In the end, this has some interesting bits, and a few uncomfortably close comments on fandom. But I still can’t get used to Berrow’s characterization of some of the cast, nor her willingness to hand out idiot balls in the name of the plot. Plus, the swerve from “Rainbow Dash shirking duty and common sense to grandstand” to “Evil zebra trying to plunder the afterlife” is sharp enough to give the reader whiplash. Still, far from the worst pony content I’ve worked with.
Now, let’s see what I can do with these daring deeds:
Cloudpost Gossip 1W
Sorcery
Cleave 2WU (You may cast this spell for its cleave cost. If you do, remove the words in square brackets.)
[If an opponent has more cards in hand than you,] you gain 3 life and draw two cards.
“Privacy means you didn’t look up.”
—Rainbow Dash, Bearer of Loyalty
Timely Supplies 2W
Instant
Distribute X +1/+1 counters among any number of creatures you control, where X is the greatest power among creatures your opponents control.
“The right gear turns certain doom into the next best-seller.”
—Daring Do
Instant Party 3WW
Instant
Create three 2/2 white Pony creature tokens.
Pinkie Pie can start a celebration at—and possibly because of—the drop of a hat.
Curse of Distraction 2UU
Enchantment — Aura Curse
Enchant player
Enchanted player skips their postcombat main phase.
Dash felt trapped in a world that couldn’t keep up with her. Everypony else just wished she’d sit still.
Data Collection 3U
Instant
Choose target creature. Whenever that creature deals combat damage to a player or planeswalker this turn, draw that many cards.
“The first step in solving a problem is understanding it.”
—Princess Twilight Sparkle
Soul of Typhoons 4U
Creature — Spirit
Flying
Whenever you cast a Spirit or Arcane spell, return two target creatures with different controllers to their owners’ hands.
Natural disasters were anything but during the Kami War.
3/4
Bog Diver 2B
Creature — Pegasus Rogue
Flying
When Bog Diver enters the battlefield, return target creature card with mana value X or less from your graveyard to your hand, where X is the number of Swamps you control.
Wonders lie in the deep. As does mud.
1/1
Rising Colony 2B
Sorcery
Create a 1/1 black Bat creature token with flying for each card type among cards in your graveyard.
“‘Give them the west orchard,’ you said. ‘It’ll be fine,’ you said.”
—Applejack, to Fluttershy
Midnight Release 2BB
Sorcery
Each player loses 3 life. You draw three cards.
Ponyville is far from the nightlife capital of Equestria. When something important happen late, everypony regrets it the next day.
Outrun Death 3BB
Sorcery
Return target creature card from a graveyard to the battlefield under your control. It gains haste until end of turn.
“Yeah, I’ve got retirement figured out.”
—Rainbow Dash, Bearer of Loyalty
Burning Bonds 1R
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
Whenever enchanted creature attacks or blocks, Burning Bonds deals 2 damage to that creature and its controller.
Braze’s fire-ropes don’t restrict movement. They punish it.
Rumblings of Vehoovius 2R
Enchantment
Whenever an opponent casts a spell during your turn or at the beginning of your upkeep, put a pressure counter on Rumblings of Vehoovius.
At the beginning of your end step, you may sacrifice Rumblings of Vehoovius. When you do, it deals damage equal to the number of pressure counters on it to each creature and player.
Braze, the Hungry Flame 2RR
Legendary Creature — Zebra Shaman
Menace, haste
Whenever Braze, the Hungry Flame deals damage to a player, that player creates that many Treasure tokens.
XR, T: Braze deals X damage to target player.
7: Gain control of Braze, then untap it. Any player may activate this ability but only during their turn.
4/4
Capsaicin Channeler 3R
Creature — Pony Shaman
Domain — When Capsaicin Channeler enters the battlefield, it deals X damage to up to one target creature or planeswalker, where X is the number of basic land types among lands you control.
Every crop has its uses.
3/2
Cheering Throng 3R
Creature — Pony Citizen
Commanders you control have double strike and attack each combat if able.
The more outrageous stunts Rainbow Dash performed, the louder the crowd cheered. And the louder they cheered…
3/3
Double Dare 3RR
Sorcery
Target opponent may have Double Dare deal 4 damage to them. If that player doesn’t, draw two cards.
Rebound (If you cast this spell from your hand, exile it as it resolves. At the beginning of your next upkeep, you may cast this card from exile without paying its mana cost.)
Studious Bookworm 1G
Creature — Worm
Whenever you draw a card, put a +1/+1 counter on Studious Book worm
As long as Studious Bookworm has four or more +1/+1 counters on it, it has reach and vigilance.
As long as Studious Bookworm has eight or more +1/+1 counters on it, it has trample.
1/1
Everfree Colossagator 5GG
Creature — Crocodile
Trample
Ward 3 (Whenever this creature becomes the target of a spell or ability an opponent controls, counter it unless that player pays 3.)
Not all of Gummy’s people are so contemplative.
7/6
Fritter of Destiny 1
Artifact — Food
Whenever Fritter of Destiny or another Food enters the battlefield under your control, scry 1.
2, T, Sacrifice Fritter of Destiny: You gain 3 life.
Advertising and Honesty magic mix strangely.
Dual Citadel 4
Artifact
As Dual Citadel enters the battlefield, choose two colors.
Whenever you cast a spell that’s both chosen colors, put a brick counter on Dual Citadel.
Creatures you control get +1/+1 for each brick counter on Dual Citadel.
Henchpony Guardians 1WB
Creature — Pony Minion
When Henchpony Guardians dies, return target historic card from your graveyard to your hand. (Artifacts, legendaries, and Sagas are historic.)
Wherever Daring turned, Caballeron’s flunkies stood in her way.
2/3
Spirit Compact XWB
Sorcery
Cleave XWWBB
Target player creates X 2/2 white and black Spirit creature tokens with flying. [Another] target player creates X Treasure tokens and X Clue tokens.
Mythica Campus
Land
Mythica Campus enters the battlefield tapped.
T: Add U or B.
4, T: Scry 1.
Mage-students who interest lie outside typical curricula choose Mythica, the college of covert arts.
Stupid Complicated Game Alert: Due to Data Collection's complete lack of "opponent" in its text and being an instant, it is a completely legal move to target something that's already attacking you and presumably turn the whole thing into Explaining Your Power to the Enemy.
When it was mentioned that Dash started tripping from the hot peppers, I got flashback's to The Simpsons and Homer eating the Guatemalan Insanity Peppers.
Incidentally until the S10 comics this was the only time another zebra besides Zecora has appeared.
Have fun looking that word up, elementary school–aged children!
Interestingly, the PDF copy of this story that I found at a particular unauthorized MLP media hosting site calls her Bon Bon. Said PDF has no copyright date on it, so I don't know its origin, but that would seem to imply that at some point, the publishers rereleased the book and changed the name.
That's because creating videos is for nerds.
Rainbow Dash has an online pseudonym under which she posts her analyses to Seddit.
Rainbow Dash could probably learn more from Barry Allen, but he's hundreds of universes away at a minimum.
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You say that, but the chain of crossovers is way shorter: Transformers were both a Marvel Comic and an IDW one, and from there you have the "buried alien" who fooled approximately nobody (except himself due to amnesia).
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Barry "Flash" Allen is DC, not Marvel.
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And Marvel "borrowed" the pre-Crisis Barry Allen for a race under a comically unsubtle alias, which he won because DC has way higher power levels in general. I didn't even bother mentioning the official crossovers because that allusion was funnier (but apparently went right over your head).
It's worth remembering that this book came out a year and a half before Slice of Life aired.
Man, the Berrowverse is even weirder than I thought.