Friendship is Card Games: Lyra and Bonbon and the Mares from S.M.I.L.E. · 12:06pm Apr 2nd, 2023
Well, the Equestrian Department of Plausible Deniability got back to me, and I’ve been cleared to release the following classified information on the condition that it not be disseminated to any ponies of interest. I think we’ll be able to handle that much.
Appropriately enough for a story starring a couple we memed into existence, the dedication is “For all the pony fans—you’re not just in the background.” It’s honestly sweet.
We open with Lyra thanking Bonbon (here spelled as “Bon Bon,” but I’m exercising the same privilege as with Cadence and ignoring that outside of direct quotes) for going to a party with her, despite Bonbon “[despising] social events like that, even when they are thrown by Ponyville’s best party planner—Pinkie Pie.”
This is a direct quote from Lyra, by the way. Including the very organic and not-at-all stilted phrasing to remind/inform the reader of who Pinkie is.
Oh! This was specifically a Hearts and Hooves Day party. One where Bonbon nailed a “guess that filling” contest with anonymized truffles and embarrassed herself by standing out from the crowd. Even as Lyra’s thanking her, she’s securing her house against anypony who might have noticed and is now trying to gather more intel on her.
I honestly quite like the lingering paranoia from her monster hunting days. I was not expecting PTSD in this children’s book about pastel cartoon horses. (Mind you, I didn’t expect two mares going to a Valentine’s party together on page 2 either.) Lyra even mentioning Sweetie Drops’s sordid past makes her worry the room is bugged… which implies a lot about Equestrian recording and transmitting technology, though I suppose Vinyl Scratch does as well.
“All that secret monster stuff is behind you now!”
“Where?”
Yeah, it’s no wonder that mare was decommissioned.
After that, the best friends move on to their personal Hearts and Hooves tradition, “frozen hot cocoa,” which was actually discovered at the agency, due to an accident with cryogenic equipment and a pot of hot chocolate. The original version can only be done by unicorns, but Bonbon’s just needs ice and… a cocktail shaker. Huh. I do like the amount of subtly more mature elements we’re getting in this one.
Apparently Bonbon originally told Lyra she learned the recipe in college, but Lyra just appreciates the chance to get to know her gal pal for real.
Unfortunately, their drinks are interrupted by somepony nearly knocking the door off its hinges. And Bonbon recognizes the knock. What follows is a stealth sequence as she silently approaches her own front door and checking on the knocker with “the tiny hoofheld mirror she kept hidden inside her mane at all times.” That sort of thing might fell more unusual in a town without Pinkie Pie. 
Bonbon’s insistence on disproving the “0.09 percent chance her instincts had failed her” reveals the the knocker is none other than Agent Furlong, her direct superior in the agency, who reminds her that “knocking is merely courtesy.” He can and will get inside by any means necessary. Bonbon knows this. He knows that she knows this. She also knows that he cannot be allowed to see Lyra.
Naturally, Lyra chooses that moment to waltz into the living room, in clear sight of the front windows and slurping the beverage that may technically be classified information. So Bonbon…
Oh. Oh my goodness.
In one swift motion, Bonbon leaped toward the mint-green Unicorn, pulled her towards the closet, and shoved her inside.
You read that right, folks. Bonbon literally put her future wife in the closet. And just in time for her boss to beat the door down.
Bonbon asks about Furlong’s retirement, but he insists he’s got one last fight in him, even amid his ominous coughs. He also says they need her back on the squad, and the mission begins that night. Bonbon’s branch of the agency may have been shuttered, but there are others she wasn’t cleared to know about until now.
Bonbon tries to protest the re-enlistment, but Furlong says she knows what she signed up for. Moreover, she won’t even be able to return to Ponyville; he’s declared this cover identity blown. (Never mind that his failure at surreptition was likely what blew it. Up to and including shouting “Special Agent Drops!” in the middle of the street.)
As Bonbon reels from this pronouncement, Lyra comes out of the closet to protest losing her bosom buddy. Furlong is not impressed. He also pulls the hoof mirror out of his mane, and the Men in Black homage on the cover makes a lot more sense, because those things double as memory erasers. At least when paired with whatever he’d been about to cast.
Bonbon stops him at first, but as Furlong notes, it’s the only option. Lyra knows too much… yet he hesitates after seeing the passionate display. There is one other option: Lyra can join the agency as well. It will be a great sacrifice, as both Furlong and Bonbon know. Lyra accepts anyway, mostly because it’s the only option that lets her stay with her bestie, though she doesn’t ask any questions about what exactly she’ll be sacrificing.
Indeed, after a scene transition to Manehattan, Lyra’s unrelenting enthusiasm is wearing on Agent Furlong. We also get mentions of the Hooflyn Bridge, the Neighcy’s Harvest Balloon Parade, and the Crystaller Building. The bridge apparently accepts pedestrian traffic. I suppose when most of the vehicles are pony-pulled, there’s little point in distinguishing between the two groups.
An unmarked cab awaits them, takes them past the Stockyard Exchange, and to the definitely-not-a-secret-entrance establishment of Hay’s Pizza. The fridge in the back acts as an elevator to the the Manehattan-branch “Hidequarters” of the Secret Monster Intelligence League of Equestria, with the not-at-all ominous motto of “We’re Everywhere And We’re Nowhere.”
Bonbon and Furlong depart for unspecified business, so we get Lyra’s perspective as she meets the branch director, Alpha Hoof… who apparently hasn’t been informed that Lyra is a volunteer who has not received any of the training S.M.I.L.E. agents normally receive. Including where to go to get her supplies. What follows is a bit of “It’s my first day” awkwardness until Lyra decides to find the break room. She doesn’t, but she does stumble upon “an entire room filled with baby tatzlwurms and timberwolves in cages.” Probably best not think about that one too much…
She’s eventually found by an Agent Foxtrot, who guides her to the actual break room.Two gossiping ponies who passed Lyra by earlier are muttering about how she clearly has no experience in the field, and relate that to the disaster that was Bonbon’s own early days in the agency. Foxtrot introduces them as Tango and Bravo, presumably because a pony named Whiskey is about as likely as one named Pinot Noir. (Poor Berry Punch…) Lyra’s attempts to lighten the mood with some jokes goes over like a lead balloon. Especially her suggestion that if S.M.I.L.E. is so humorless, it should be called F.R.O.W.N.
Tango made a funny face. “But then what would the Friendship Ranger Organization of Worldwide Negotiations be called?”
As it turns out, this is S.M.I.L.E.’s codename for the Bearers of Harmony, also known as the Flower Rangers. “Code names Purple Rose, White Lily, Orange Poppy, Pink Petunia, Blue Begonia, and Yellow Daisy,” according to Foxtrot. He also says S.M.I.L.E. alerts them when they’re needed despite them not knowing the organization exists, which raises all kinds of questions. Especially when Foxtrot starts rattling off other, more dubious claims.
”Breezies were a cover-up. Tirek was a cover-up. Don’t even get me started on the escape-from-the-moon thing with Princess Luna. At least that one worked out pretty well. Except for the—” Foxtrot clapped his hoof over his mouth, cracking himself up at his own joke.
Appropriately enough, I don’t know what to believe anymore.
Once Lyra and Foxtrot make it the briefing room, Furlong lights up the projector using his horn, which feels needlessly restrictive for any non-unicorn senior agents. In any case, half a dozen ponies have been assigned to what they’re calling Operation Swiss Cheese: Alpha Hoof, Bravo, Tango, Foxtrot, and our heroines. They’ve been paired up and will be shipped off to different locations to investigate recent reports of changeling infestation. (Never mind the implied existence of Switzerland on this world.)
The various changelings all looked the same—black Unicorn ponies with gauzy teal wings, glowing eyes, and legs riddled with holes.
Huh. Certainly an interesting way of describing changelings.
Lyra is understandably shocked that changelings are back. (No mention of her getting personally mind-controlled by Chrysalis, but I’m willing to give it time.) Reports have come in, but there’s no indication of where the hive is, or if there even is one. Celestia knows about the information and was in fact personally responsible for reopening the Manehattan branch, which raises some questions about what else she doesn’t tell Twilight and friends.
(Some “minor bugbear issues” also prompted reactivating the agency. Furlong even has the perplexing comment of “Tartarus still needs work, kids,” as though S.M.I.L.E. created that prison.)
The mission is one of counterespionage: Identify the disguised changelings without being detected by them or civilians. And if the latter do learn something, that’s what the memory erasing spell Reflection Deflection is for. (In a truly bizarre aside, it turns out the Flimflam brothers are former agents who mindwiped each other for fun until they forgot what their mission even was, then got drummed out of the agency the day after they joined.)
Alpha and Bravo are assigned to the Crystal Empire given both the love density and the royal couple’s history with Chrysalis. Tango and Foxtrot are sent to Applewood and cautioned to be triple-sure they’ve tagged changelings and not just actors. And Lyra and Bonbon are going to Appleoosa, where something strange has been going on “at a famous apple farm.” (How famous a farm can be in a frontier town that’s only been there for a few years is outside the mission parameters.)
They were about to go on the greatest friendship adventure they’d ever had, even if it was a secret.
Needless to say, Lyra is not entirely clear on what she’s going to be doing.
The two get outfitted with all the requisite spy gadgets and disguises one would expect from a pleasantly cheesy Bond movie, though the role of Q is sadly filled by Furlong. The disguises are especially important, Bonbon insists, because “we want to convince everypony we belong. Which is imperative to persuading a changeling to show its true form.” Because that’s definitely something a changeling can be persuaded to do.
Lyra does ask what bonbon and Furlong were doing during her own wandering. Bonbon is vague on the matter, just saying he needed advice. I’m sure we’ll circle back to that. In the meantime, the two eave the hidequarters and presumably travel across a large part of the country during the chapter break.
Sure enough, the next chapter is entitled “Welcome to Appleloosa!” More than eight years after the last time I watched “Over a Barrel,” I still hear that in Braeburn’s voice.
And there’s the stallion now, just as Lyra excitedly observed how well they were blending in and going unnoticed. Braeburn acting as the town’s Pinkie-grade unofficial welcoming committee does make a lot of sense. Asking about the famous farmer, Apple Crispy, gets an evasive answer. There’s also a prominent newcomer in town, Old Delilah, done up in gold (including a dress that, despite the local fashions, leaves her golden, heart-shaped apple cutie mark exposed.)
The two heterosexual life partners end up splitting up to follow different leads. The next morning, Bonbon wakes up to Furlong congratulating her for the report she didn’t file. (Her clandestine investigation has turned up diddly and squat.) Lyra, through the unorthodox method of actually talking to the locals, has confirmed that Apple Crispy’s farm is a mess and the stallion isn’t himself lately.
They go to investigate, finding a farm in disarray after weeks of neglect. Braeburn says the town’s tried to help, but Farmer Apple Crispy—Berrow seems to think “Farmer” is a title like “Lord” or “Senator”—has chased them off his property and proclaimed that he’s done with farming. This despite providing a significant portion of Appleoosa’s food, including the catering for that night’s “Saddle Hawkins” square dance.
Bonbon is taking notes, recognizing typical signs of changeling replacement: “the pony in question was acting completely different than usual, he didn’t seem to care for the well-being of other ponies, and he didn’t mind not having food to eat.” So either Chrysalis’s attempt to copy Cadence was actually typical for changelings, or S.M.I.L.E.’s records are only based on the infiltrators incompetent enough to catch. Hard to tell there.
Braeburn also reports increasing amounts of fatigue among the populace, a symptom of love drain. Bonbon believes they’ve found their ‘ling, and considers going in without F.R.O.W.N. backup to repair her reputation in the agency after the bugbear debacle, “not to mention she’d get her part of the secret bargain she’d made with Furlong back at the hidequarters.” Intriguing.
Lyra, of all ponies, knocks some sense into her, both with a rotten apple and reminding her that their mission is just to confirm the infiltrator’s identity, not to confront or neutralize them. Bonbon tries to pull seniority, but Delilah arrives in the middle of their argument with a basket of fritters and an offer to join her at the square dance. Apple Crispy’s smitten look tells Bonbon everything she needs to know. As do Delilah’s glowing eyes as he nuzzles her.
Calling for backup doesn’t yield any responses, and the prospect of facing a changeling on their own has lost its appeal for Bonbon. Though the code red is still amusing. “THE HOLES ARE IN THE CHEESE. I REPEAT: THE HOLES ARE IN THE CHEESE.”
The two prepare for the dance as best they can; Bonbon keeps trying to raise the other agents while Lyra crams using a book on changelings that was part of her equipment. The feeding frenzy phenomenon when exposed to excess concentrations of love, as seen in Thorax, gets an explicit callout… and this book came out five months before “The Times They Are a Changeling.” Neat.
Agent Bravo arrives… and tells the two to return to hidequarters. The changeling will be dealt with. They’ll have their top mares on it.
Well, not that last part, but his robotic responses and failure to mock Lyra at every opportunity make her suspicious. She tries to convince Bonbon that they’re dealing with another changeling… and in what I can only call a contrived third-act breakup straight out of a bad romance movie, Bonbon is jealous of her completely Platonic companion’s ability to smell a rat after just a few days in the agency and walks out on her.
Lyra, though distraught, can’t leave Appleoosa in good conscience with at least one changeling still at large. And so we get four of the more terrifying words in pony fiction: “Lyra had a plan.”
In this case, the plan involves: Getting Braeburn to invite his cousin Applejack and her friends, having ponies exchange leftover Hearts and Hooves Day cards with those they want to dance with, and of course making sure Delilah will even be there. No point in setting a trap if the target won’t get anywhere near it.
With the dance minutes away, Bonbon races to Lyra, screaming her actual name (as opposed to the cover identity of Heartstrings) to high heaven and apologizing for being too proud and assured to listen to her certain East Asian markets-approved acquaintance’s valid points.
For those keeping track at home, Bonbon leaving Lyra to reuniting with her takes all of seven pages. And that includes two effectively blank ones.
Delilah coos at the love between the two—her words, not my comically overexaggerated ones—before making her way to the dance. She doesn’t appear to suspect anything, which is impressive given that the line immediately before hers is Lyra saying “No amount of secret agenting is going to get in the way of [our being friends].”
As if to provide plausible deniability for the principle couple, two old friends reminiscing on good times together gets just as much of a twitch out of Delilah as a mare giving a stallion a Hearts and Hooves card. The four loves can certainly apply to changeling diets, but this still feels like a fig leaf.
Once the love reaches sufficient intensity, Delilah and two of the other partgoers reveal themselves, uncontrollably hissing, spitting, and gorging themselves. Conveniently, the Bearers arrive moments later, and give a much better showing against three infiltrators than a swarm big enough to blot out the sun. Honestly, the least believable part is that Rarity has to tear the lace trim off her dress to provide Applejack with a lasso. You really expect me to believe Tree Kicker doesn’t always have rope on hoof? (Or that any Appleoosans could provide it.)
Lyra and Bonbon slip out in the ruckus, their mission accomplished, and Braeburn finds himself unable to remember just who suggested inviting Applejack et al. Going by how the band “couldn’t remember why they’d stopped playing in the first place,” I can only assume Lyra really did learn that memory wipe spell.
The last chapter is only three pages long, a domestic denouement wherein Bonbon reveals that her deal with Furlong was that if she agreed to have him call on them as needed, then they could stay in Ponyville. Moreover, the two of them are a package deal; it’s both or none of them. Thus the curtain closes, with the implication that more top-secret adventures await these two.
This was lightweight, but still enjoyable. I can see why more information on Bonbon’s agency seeped into the greater fandom consciousness… and why most things beyond the broad strokes didn’t. Still some fascinating implications, especially the amount of unseen manipulation the Bearers are subject to. I can’t imagine that was a smooth transition during Twilight’s early years of rulership…
In any case, here’s my incident report. Please note that as of this week, I’ll be implementing mechanics from March of the Machine.
Diligent Agent 2W
Creature — Pony Soldier
Vigilance
4(bp): Transform Diligent Agent. Activate only as a sorcery. ((bp) can be paid with either B or 2 life.)
“Return to base. Chief’s orders. We’ll take it from here.”
2/3
Double Agent
(WB) Creature — Shapeshifter Soldier
Vigilance, menace
Double Agent can block an additional creature each combat.
“Trying to fool a changeling. The food’s downright cute when it thinks it’s clever.”
2/6
Flavor Savant 2W
Creature — Pony Citizen
Whenever a player casts a spell, you gain 1 life for each of that spell’s colors.
Living near Sugarcube Corner means unimaginable taste sensations are just a part of your daily life.
1/3
The Bugbear Incident 2WW
Enchantment — Saga
Read ahead (Choose a chapter and start with that many lore counters. Add one after your draw step. Skipped chapters don’t trigger. Sacrifice after III.)
I — Exile target creature an opponent controls with power 3 or greater.
II — Destroy target artifact or enchantment an opponent controls.
III — Return target creature card from your graveyard to the battlefield.
S.M.I.L.E. Redactor 1U
Creature — Pony Rogue
Whenever you cast a spell during an opponent’s turn, target player mills three cards.
League agents dutifully file reports after every mission. League redactors dutifully remove all incriminating details.
1/3
Reflection Deflection 2U
Instant
You may choose new targets for target spell. That spell’s controller mills cards equal to its mana value.
S.M.I.L.E. owes just as much to the ancient Lethemancer as it does the Founders.
Invasion of Applewood 3U
Battle — Siege
(As a Siege enters, choose an opponent to protect it. You and others can attack it. When it’s defeated, exile it, then cast it transformed.)
When Invasion of Applewood enters the battlefield, up to one target creature you control becomes a copy of another target creature until end of turn.
4
Promising Impersonator
(U) Creature — Shapeshifter
You may have Promising Impersonator enter the battlefield as a copy of any nonbattle permanent on the battlefield.
Applewood’s eternal need for acting talent marked one of the first real hopes for pony-changeling cooperation.
0/0
S.M.I.L.E. Cryogenicist 3U
Creature — Unicorn Wizard Rogue
When S.M.I.L.E. Cryogenicist enters the battlefield, tap target non-Pony, non-Pegasus, non-Unicorn creature and put a stun counter on it. (If a permanent with a stun counter on it would become untapped, remove one from it instead.)
2/4
Horrific Hint 2B
Sorcery
Target player sacrifices a creature. That player reveals cards from the top of their library until they reveal a land card, then puts those cards into their graveyard.
One glimpse of S.M.I.L.E.’s deepest secrets was enough to keep Agent Sweetie Drops from asking another question.
Flimflam Thoughtscammer 3B
Creature — Unicorn Warlock
Backup 1 (When this creature enters the battlefield, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature. If that’s another creature, it gains the following abilities until end of turn.)
Menace
Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, that player discards a card.
2/2
Prepare the Creche XB
Sorcery
Exile X target cards from a single graveyard. Incubate X. (Create an Incubator token with X +1/+1 counters on it and “2: Transform this artifact.” It transforms into a 0/0 Phyrexian artifact creature.)
“It laid eggs. It laid eggs!?”
—Bravo, agent of S.M.I.L.E.
Emotional Overload 1R
Instant
Emotional Overload deals 3 damage to target creature or planeswalker. If that permanent is transformed, Emotional Overload deals 5 damage to it instead.
Flooding a changeling’s empathic senses is an unintuitive but reliable way to subdue it.
Invasion of the Crystal Empire 2RR
Battle — Siege
When Invasion of the Crystal Empire enters the battlefield, gain control of target creature until end of turn. Untap that creature. It gains haste until end of turn.
6
Romantic Repulsion
(R) Sorcery
Romantic Repulsion deals damage equal to the number of creatures you control to each creature and planeswalker you don’t control.
“How many times do we have to teach you this lesson, you hag?”
—Cadence, to Chrysalis
Voracious Swarm 2RR
Creature — Shapeshifter Berserker
Haste
Whenever Voracious Swarm attacks a player, planeswalker, or battle, for each other opponent, planeswalker your opponents control, and battle those players protect, create a token that’s a copy of of Voracious Swarm and that’s tapped and attacking that player or permanent. Exile the tokens at end of combat.
3/3
Escaped Tatzlwurmlet G
Creature — Wurm
Whenever an opponent casts a noncreature spell, put a +1/+1 counter on Escaped Tatzlwurmlet.
As long Escaped Tatzlwurmlet has three or more +1/+1 counters on it, it has vigilance and reach.
As long Escaped Tatzlwurmlet has six or more +1/+1 counters on it, it has trample and hexproof.
1/1
Timberpup Test Subject G
Creature — Elemental Wolf
When Timberpup Test Subject dies, you may search your library for a basic land card, reveal it, put it into your hand, then shuffle.
Romeo looked at Delta over the whimpering captive. “Are… Are we the bad guys?”
1/1
Invasion of Appleoosa 1G
Battle — Siege
When Invasion of Appleoosa enters the battlefield, until your next turn, creatures you control gain vigilance and “T: Add one mana of any color.”
5
Combat Grangers
(G) Creature — Pony Druid
Vigilance
T: Add G for each creature you control.
When Chrysalis lost patience with subtle infiltration and went for full assault, each Equestrian settlement replied in its own unique way.
2/2
Delightful Dilettante 3G
Creature — Pony Citizen
When Delightful Dilettante enters the battlefield, draw a card.
5(bp): Transform Delightful Dilettante. Activate only as a sorcery.
“I do declare, it is so wonderful to find such a loving community.”
3/3
Deceptive Devourer
(BG) Creature — Shapeshifter Rogue
Deceptive Devourer can’t be blocked by creatures with power 2 or less.
Whenever Deceptive Devourer deals combat damage to a player, you draw a card and lose 1 life.
“I’ll savor every moment I spend here.”
5/5
Smoke Shoes 2
Artifact — Equipment
Prevent all combat damage that would be dealt to equipped creature by creatures blocking it.
Equip 2
A S.M.I.L.E. agent must balance tracking their suspects with not being tracked themselves.
Fresh-Faced Agent 1(ub)
Creature — Unicorn Rogue
When Fresh-Faced Agent enters the battlefield, surveil 1. (Look at the top card of your library. You may put it into your graveyard.)
“I envy her. Still thinks she’ll save the world single-hoofed.”
—Foxtrot, agent of S.M.I.L.E.
2/1
Plausible Deniability 1WB
Enchantment
You have “Ward — Pay 3 life.” (Whenever you become the target of a spell or ability an opponent controls, counter that spell or ability unless that player pays 3 life.)
Whenever an opponent pays the cost of a ward ability you control, draw a card.
Celestia tells Twilight all she needs to know.
Cocoaflux Weird 2(ur)
Creature — Weird
1(ur), Sacrifice Cocoaflux Weird: If U was spent to activate this ability, tap target permanent. If R was spent to activate this ability, Cocoaflux Weird deals 2 damage divided as you choose among one or two targets.
Hunger is the second cousin of invention.
2/3
Furlong, Chief of S.M.I.L.E. 1WUB
Legendary Creature — Unicorn Soldier
Flash
Ward — 2, Discard a card.
You may cast Rogue and Soldier spells as though they had flash.
Prevent all damage that would be dealt to Rogues and Soldiers you control that entered the battlefield this turn.
3/4
Calculated Assessment 2GU
Sorcery
Scry 3, then reveal the top card of your library. Create a 0/0 green and blue Fractal creature token, then put X +1/+1 counters on it, where X is that card’s mana value.
Bonbon trusts her instincts to within 99 percent certainty, and thus always double-checks them.
S.M.I.L.E. Hidequarters
Land
T: Add C.
T: Add one mana of any color. Activate only during an opponent’s turn.
The Secret Monster Intelligence League of Equestria protects the nation from both untold horrors and ever knowing about those horrors.
Yeah there's some *very* ripe ideas in this book alone. Very unsettling ones as well, Section 31 with ponies? Not to mention what those cover ups were actually hiding.
The original meme couple of the fandom gets an MIB style story? Sounds intriguing.
Personally, that's my favorite flavor text of these cards so far. Nicely done
Been a few years since I read that book to my kiddo, but I remember enjoying it, especially the opening.
Stupid Complicated Game Alert: Prepare the Creche has some unfortunate wrinkles to it: you need to have X legal targets in order to cast it at all, and at least one must remain legal (in this case, still in the graveyard) on resolution in order for the token to be summoned. As a consolation, having only some of them of them rendered illegal won't affect the size of the token; it'll still be X/X.
Stupid Complicated Game Alert: "Diligent Agent" fooling the game rules into thinking he's not a changeling is not how these things usually work (see any Werewolf). Lyra must have read ahead in the script to catch out such an immaculate deception.
By this point in the book series, the likelihood of those past the initial six becoming accessible to read for me is very unlikely, so my exposure is largely reduced to these blogs where it looks interesting enough to experience a FoME speed read. And despite, y'know, this being about the background ponies that I'm often cooler on then not, least relative to most folks, this wasn't half bad. Possibly because the 100% nuts vibe meant I wasn't taking a lick of it seriously, so I could just enjoy the gags and lines that sparked. Probably why such lore-breaking lines like those cover-ups of premiere/finale events and everything about the government/agency's relation/association with the Bearers being a pile of irreconcilable contradictions just elicits shrugs rather then the migraines they normally would.
That said, easy to see why, as is usually the case for the interesting chapter books, the broadstrokes got absorbed and the specifics were largely ignored. And gee, that really is some mood whiplash from Bon Bon's quick turnaround of abandoning Lyra, eh? If anything, it probably feels even faster in reading the book than in this summary. What my gut tells me, anyway. Still, this did elicit some of the muted enjoyment I get from "Slice of Life" itself, which ain't nothing.
At this stage, we're nearly halfway through these chapter books, and while there are two regular entries left for Starlight and Trixie, plus two Princess ones for Cadence and Twilight, most of them are either EqG novellas, the Ponyville Mysteries CMCs series that was the basis for the similarly-named comic mini-series, and some 2017 movie associated books. Okay, one prequel largely incompatible with the prequel comics and three post-film stories pairing some of the Mane 6 with some of the new allies. Pinkie's one is the most Songbird Serenade ever got or will ever get to do, probably even including fanfiction.
The heavy segregation of most of these into these categories, I suspect, may well make them feel even more repetitive and rote than many of these have, but we'll see.
I'm still not sure whether that was supposed to be a Power Rangers reference.
I think that's okay. If it were just the last name -- say, Farmer Jones -- it would look right. It only looks weird because "farmer" got plopped before his entire name.
Good job maintaining your cover as an ordinary produce broker, Drops.
Because we all know that "head" isn't a part of the body you'd find on a pony.
I have two theories. One is simply that G.M. Berrow was struggling to find something in-character for Rarity to do to contribute to a fight. Alternately, did she ever write anything that teased a Rarity/Applejack ship?
Until the ponies realized that a small number of changelings could put a large number of thespian ponies out of jobs.
My opinion on the book? Because the books aren't canon unless they're referenced in the animated series, and because nothing from this book was ever referenced in the animated series, it doesn't much matter. If you like secret agent stories, this provides a jumping-off point; if you don't care for secret agent stories, it's easily ignored.
I've never written a book intended for middle schoolers, so I don't know where the reading difficulty is supposed to land. The prose in this book seemed straightforward throughout... until out of nowhere, the word cerulean was dropped as a description of Bon Bon's eyes. Certainly not an objectionable word for the kids to learn, but one that definitely would send them to a dictionary.
In this book, the phrase "best friends" was used a total of 17 times to describe Lyra and Bon Bon's relationship. And every single time I read it, it was impossible not to process it in the same tone of voice the characters used in "Slice of Life." Really, the most implausible part of their relationship in this story (besides the contrived drama of Bon Bon leaving Appleoosa for what felt like half a minute) was the claim that Lyra was only visiting the cottage where Bon Bon lived. Regardless, she showed no hesitation when helping herself to the contents of Bon Bon's icebox and cupboards!
I still laugh at this book's characterization.
Like, in the fandom it was Lyra who was the weird one. Then Slice of Life came along and made Bonbon the canon weird one. Then this book went and made Lyra the weird(er) one again.
5720972
To be fair, Bonbon being a secret agent with all the paranoia that entails isn't "weird" exactly.
Wow. Just... talk about screwing up the canon!Continuity? Uh Uh! I can't fathom how the writer could possibly think they could get away with such a blatant contradiction to how things have been established to work.
I mean, a changeling replaces a pony, makes absolutely no effort to blend in or act in-keeping with their disguise, causes massive disruption with no justification... and ponies actually notice?! And even worse, they even think it's weird and try to see what's wrong?!
That's not even remotely consistent with how changelings and ponies have been repeatedly shown to work. I mean, is it even the same world if ponies don't always immediately and conveniently become idiots the moment a changeling comes within a mile of them? I think not!
5721035 Bear in mind that, in the cartoon, we've seen what ponies consider "great acting." Given that, it should not be surprising AT ALL that changelings fool them so easily.
My March of the Machine personal cards
First one:
Invasion of Danger City 3UW
Battle - Siege
(As a Siege enters, choose an opponent to protect it. You and others can attack it. When it's defeated, exile it, then cast it transformed.)
Whenever Invasion of Danger City enters the battlefield, until your next turn, you may cast artifacts spells as though they have hexproof.
5
Sunprotector, Guardian of Danger City
Legendary Artifact - Vehicle
Vigilance, lifelink, hexproof
Sunprotector, Guardian of Danger City's power is equal to the number of artifacts you control.
Crew 6 (Tap any number of creatures you control with total power 6 or more: This Vehicle becomes an artifact creature until end of turn.)
*/*
Last one:
Oscura Galaxia, Sheoldred's Chosen 3B[R/2]R
Legendary Planeswalker - Oscura
Compleated ([R/2] can be paid U or 2 life. If life was paid, this planeswalker enters with two fewer loyalty counters.)
+1: Creatures you control have deathtouch and haste
-X: Incubate X (Create an Incubator token with X +1/+1 counters on it and "2: Transform this artifact." It transforms into a 0/0 Phyrexian artifact creature.)
6
Still my favorite of the chapter books, and unquestionably the most daring with canon.