Ghost Mike's Ponyfic Review Monday Musings #63 · 5:00pm May 22nd, 2023
We’re approaching the end of my Author Spotlight catchup, where, as you may recall, to make up for not doing any for October through January, I’ve doubled up for four months starting in March. Meaning only three to go; after that, it won’t be a regular feature anymore, instead only when it best suits. And, this antepenultimate entry is the first of an author who’s a regular reader of Monday Musings: that being Rune Soldier Dan.
I would like to think interacting with Dan a good deal both here and in others’ comments sections – on both Ponyfic and aspects of the show itself – hasn’t influenced my reading of him as an author nor his Ponyfics. Well, beyond him being a key member of Jinglemas and an affable, friendly fellow, because there’s no universe I can think of where those aren’t positives. 
Prior to these stories, I hadn’t read a whole lot of Dan’s work; mostly a handful of recent one-shots, largely comedy, slice of life or Jinglemas. Not enough to paint an active picture. Even after these five, that is still somewhat true; between novels beyond both my length and genre/series interest (namely his Principal Celestia Hunts the Undead novel and its two sequels, which clearly fulfil a niche with great relish; it’s just not my niche). And these five, all being recent enough (none older than three years), may well paint a skewed picture. Though only somewhat, as his output is more prolific later on in the show’s run anyway.
That said, these five do still paint a detailed picture: between an almost-but-not-quite random comedy, two Jinglemas entries of similar but different uplifting tones, a dramatic adaptation of another work of fiction into a pony context, and one of the best uses of EqG as a concept I’ve seen yet, there’s plenty of versatility. And across them all is a finesse of the little details adding up to a greater whole I don’t often see. Something I already knew, not least from when he wrote me a concise Jinglemas story in 2021 that gained a lot from brevity and pacing, but it’s nice to be reassured.
This Week’s Spectral Stories:
Apples in the Mirror by Rune Soldier Dan
Octavia's Last Night by Rune Soldier Dan
Floof Job by Rune Soldier Dan
Santa by Rune Soldier Dan
One More Gift by Rune Soldier Dan
Weekly Word Count: 38,027 Words
Apples in the Mirror by Rune Soldier Dan
Genre: Drama
Applejack, Applejack (EqG), Pear Butter, Bright Mac
6,323 Words
September 2020
On a casual visit to her friends’ counterparts on the other side of the mirror, Twilight makes a shocking find about the human world’s Applejack’s parents: they’re alive. Once informed of this fact, the Applejack that Twilight knows and loves is set on meeting them. She knows they’re not her parents, and this may drudge up some bad memories, and create a lot of confusion for her. But she has to.
You mention the concept of “pony Applejack can’t resist making contact with her deceased parents’ human counterparts” to me, my mind will instantly jump to Skywriter’s classic Roaming, one of my absolute favourite EqG stories (yes, yes, damning with faint praise, being a spinoff I can only muster a fraction of the personal affection I have for FiM; I still mean it wholeheartedly). This, thankfully, is different enough from that, centering on actual face-to-face meetings and Pony AJ being a bundle of different emotions, some of them rather brittle, as opposed to Skywriter’s angle of leaving all the context in the implications as human AJ’s mom gets a call from what she thinks is just her daughter being over-emotional.
Because oh boy, did this story just wallop with its varying range of emotions that are tricky to put a name to, let alone deal with. After the prelude setting things up, and once we’re always from the perspective of one of the AJs, it never lets up. First we have the sunshine and rainbows of a Pony Applejack initially resistant to her younger human counterpart’s youthful exuberance, yet gradually warmed to them and able to get in some good teasing and banter, even as she clutches the reason for her visit a secret. Then the actual meeting with Bright Mac and Pear Butter happens, and it’s like something out of a horror movie, where the differences of human bodies against everything else that’s right just weirds Applejack out so much that eventually she has a break from reality. And the conclusion, about which I won’t say much. Though the fic daring to have Pony AJ experience feelings not just of jealousy, but of anger and resentment, however briefly, and as flashes she knows are wrong and tries to suppress, is remarkable characterisation most authors wouldn’t go for.
More than anything, this story just really gets what it means to be an Apple. The two AJs have different personalities, and other than some mild shiptease with other character(s) that feels ill-suited to what this fic is trying to do, this really works, with how they both get each other and don’t get each other. That extends more for the Apples as a whole: these people are not Pony Applejack’s family, but they still sorta are, and even the direct philosophising at the end on what it means to be an Apple doesn’t come off as preachy as a result.
For merging a deft blend of emotions and tones, having scenes that just hit hard, keeping to the show’s upbeat outlook even when the path there is rather rougher, and making pretty stellar use of the EqG concept in a way most fics don’t (as well as nearly all canon), this a pretty phenomenal piece of atmospheric and emotional writing. Don’t wait on this as long as I did!
Rating: Really Good
Octavia's Last Night by Rune Soldier Dan
Genre: Drama/Sad/Adventure (Alternate Universe, w/Death)
Octavia, Discord, DJ P0N-3, Tirek
24,371 Words
January-March 2023
Octavia Melody is the greatest composer Equestria has ever seen, and all it took was becoming deaf to truly know music. That, and a lifetime of turmoil, suffering and regrets. Now, as she sits alone with her Tenth and final Symphony finished at the tail end of her life, she finds herself confronted by the devil Tirek, gatekeeper to Tartarus, come to collect her soul as punishment for all her sins committed on the path to delivering her music. With a choice given to relinquish her music or her soul, she finds herself accepting the chaos trickster Discord’s help, to travel through her past in a night, and see with fresh ears, as it were, if she can be saved. And if she should be saved.
In many ways, this feels far more like the kind of concept suited for a fan audio drama/musical than anything. And not just because it’s a ponified take on the rock opera “Beethoven’s Last Night”, though that would surely lend the whole album to lyrics rewriting for this new context. Which isn’t to say this result suffers from medium displacement when judged in a vacuum. On the contrary, this vaguely-Christmas Carol tale of a pony revisiting themselves through a magical being’s aid, gradually thawing over the night as things they didn’t know, were blinded to or had long since buried come to the forefront, and confronting both the truth about themselves but also about their work is quite powerful, all the more so for being far less straightforward then my summary makes it sound. Unless you’re already familiar with “Beethoven’s Last Night”, but even if you are, there’s plenty of fun to be had here, not least in how the adaption is wrangled.
Being a tale hopping around a whole pony’s life, it’s important to have a sturdy anchor, and the chemistry between Octavia and Discord is assuredly that. The chaos god in particular really hits a balance of making you believe he’d be interested in and care about all this without ever giving any actual motivation as to why, to the point that when he is largely silent during stretches of Octavia’s life, it doesn’t feel out of place, nor does his slight personality shifts. Meanwhile, her modular shift to being more synced with him while remaining tired and grumpy flows like water. This is pivotal, as the prose style largely makes use of soft transitions between the reader being there in the memory directly and the two watching it, to the point there are barely hard lines between the two. A tricky technique to pull off, yet it works.
As for the actual content of the memories, and what it prompts of Octavia throughout, spoilers hide much of that, especially as it’s the main new element for those familiar with the source material (suffice to say the memories Beethoven experiences are shuffled around and mixed up with new ones here). But the pivoting between tough childhood, golden youth, closing herself off from others, and so on, all as a mixture of “what if” scenarios come to life via Discord’s powers, none of it ever lets up. And in his bookend role, Tirek is as sinister as he’s ever been, the perfect snake for the role of the devil.
There are enough hiccups to give one a little pause. Having Discord and Tirek as gods with hard limits is fine, this is an AU. But the story tries to strike a weird balance of also being canon-compliant, with references both to major show status quo changes and the major events concerning Discord and Tirek too. And there are moments where the story seems undecided what kind of Equestria it’s in, from the fluctuating depiction of Canterlot to a few side slips of ponies driving (car-like vehicles in the context), among other quirks. It all feels like it would have been better off going more full AU. Other then that minor but persistent quibble, the rest comes from the odd memory or scene proposing weird takeaways, slipping in the flow of the prose, or being redundant (there is about a chapter’s more material across the five memory chapters than is best for the story’s pacing, which befitting the Christmas Carol genre and source material, is the kind of story that should be zippy enough to be digestible in one long sitting).
Quibbles are just quibbles, of course. In this, Dan has provided that rare but delightful treat, an MLP take on another great work of media that excels both as a companion/comparison piece and as its own thing. A tale of love lost, what we give to the world after it takes so much from us, and the futility of sacrificing for the greater good, it’s a moving, rousing work. Well worth it for all, but likely to be best appreciated for those keen on smart, layered tales of human equine emotions driving us to all extremes in the pursuit of art.
Rating: Really Good
Floof Job by Rune Soldier Dan
Genre: Comedy/Slice of Life
Luna, Celestia
3,442 Words
August 2020Listened to via StraightToThePointStudio's reading
Luna isn’t just shorter and smaller than Celestia, she’s also smaller-chested, least for her tall-for-an-average-pony size. Of course, anypony would seem that way next to Celestia’s massive, beautiful chest floof that draws all the eyes. No longer – Luna has a way to overtake and outshine her sister at last. Hence why she has slotted herself in for an appointment at a clinic for the procedure that will fix all her problems.
This isn’t a one-joke fic, by any means, but much of it is, indeed, derived from the juxtaposition of the subject matter being treated with near-exactly the same tone and reverence as if the subject matter were breasts and a boob job rather than just fluff, complete with the unjust importance placed on females by the media on having large “accessories”, and then the few moments where the differences must be acknowledged, like how more floof is applied and/or taken away, being childish yet realistic and passing altogether without comment on this left swerve.
Within that, this all being Luna’s head, we are treated to many jokes that are amusing for the overplayed context, and then funnier once the analogy is considered. This strategy could prove to be rather lowbrow, yet the prose and tone is well-handled through, the written equivalent of a narrator who is smirking playfully the whole time yet keeping their voice calm, measured and straight. Even with such lines as “Your floof draws the gaze like gravity” and “Her floof spread across her chest like a majestic pillow, thick enough to suffocate lucky stallions in the most wonderful death one could imagine” abounding. Which should be a good measure of whether this sounds appealing.
Coupled with a perfectly sweet yet warped ending takeaway of Luna learning nothing, and some good chemistry between the royal sisters, this is the right kind of silly fic, that avoids feeling random and is low-key and a pleasure despite how absurd it is in some aspects. That it centres around Luna involving herself in things certainly not present prior to her banishment only makes it all the goofier.
Rating: Pretty Good
Santa by Rune Soldier Dan
Genre: Slice of Life
Pinkie, Twilight, Spike
2,091 Words
January 2021Reread
During her first two years in Ponyville, Twilight couldn’t help but notice that Pinkie is nowhere to be seen on Hearth’s Warming Eve. This year, determined to find out why, Twilight sets out to Sugarcube Corner. What she finds isn’t just not what she expected, it’s not within the boundaries of what she would have expected from Pinkie. Yet strangely fitting, all the same.
This quickie tale of the reveal that Pinkie is Santa, something Twilight previously thought to just be something parents kept up for their kids, and the subsequent roping in of Twilight and Spike to helping out this night, is sort of in two minds. The first half, from Twilight’s perspective, is largely what you’d expect – her rebuffing Spike’s disinterest for this hunt, quizzing Mrs. Cake, then following a path through Sugarcube Corner to where all will be revealed, more in early season more-analytical-then-caring mode than anything. Then once the reveal happens, the story pivots to a looser perspective, dropping Twilight’s scepticism via an uncommented-on narrative vibe that also gives way to delivering all round the world with infinite time to do so. It’s not a jarring shift, but neither does it feel like the two pieces are organically the same.
Given this is a Jinglemas entry, that’s a mild note to have. For that second half finds a very good balance of making the whimsical nature of infinite space and time fit without feeling like typical processed “Santa is real” stuff, with Pinkie and her goal being adorable and sweet without mugging for it. Goods of this are rather slight, but they’re awfully charming goods, never feeling like rote predictable or expected material even when it is very much that.
Rating: Decent
One More Gift by Rune Soldier Dan
Genre: Slice of Life
Sunset, Celestia, Twilight, Raven Inkwell
1,800 Words
December 2020Reread
Though the holidays have already passed both in Equestria and the other world, the celebrations are not yet over. As arranged through Princess Twilight, Sunset now transitions through the mirror, to a scheduled chariot ride to Canterlot, for a booked appointment to see Celestia once again. To give her a gift… one she feels the need to deliver in person.
For the most part, this is exactly what you’d expect; Sunset visits Celestia, still fumbling with her words and apologetic over the pony she once was, giving gifts that are largely symbolic keepsakes of her achievements in Monster High Knockoff-ville the other world. All while Celestia is just so happy to see her, and know that others helped where she had failed. Portrayed with a light, festive touch well-suited for the holidays and as a Jinglemas gift, it does the job.
That other small part is what elevates this: here is a fic very good as using minimal grace notes to heighten its goal. The highlight has to be Raven’s reaction and response to Sunset’s arrival, and Sunset recognising her (with a bookend paying this off even more), but whether it be the light banter between Sunset and Princess Twilight on arrival, or the particular cadence of how Sunset stumbles on her own words, it’s clearly the result of an author who knows their stuff even when writing quick.
There’s a few itchy oddities (a Pokémon reference for the name of Sunset’s pet, despite, y’know, being named Ray, and the portal being back on limited-time opening for no reason beyond forcing the meeting to happen a few days after Hearth’s Warming), but otherwise, this is a very well-brewed festive cup of tea. Not too surprising this was the 2nd-highest rated Jinglemas fic that year, in a pool of 116 stories; even at a mere 1,800 words, it’s got exactly what most readers would want that time of year. Plus more reunion content between Sunset and Celestia than the brushed-through thirty-odd seconds from “Forgotten Friendship”. That’s hugely appealing.
Rating: Pretty Good
Spooky Summary of Scores:
Excellent: 0
Really Good: 2
Pretty Good: 2
Decent: 1
Passable: 0
Weak: 0
Bad: 0
I was really hoping Octavia's Last Night would be good. Now I have no excuse not to read it.
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I've seen enough Octavia fics pop up in your reviews (plus, y'know, the handful you're written yourself) to know you're quite a fan of the character. Even if it's not really Octavia as she usually is, you're bound to really dig this one.
There you go.
Well, this is a mightily well timed Author Spotlight, I must say. Why? Because I was staggered very recently to discover that the last time I'd reviewed a Rune Soldier Dan fic was... wait for it... July 2016. Considering it was To Try for the Sun, and that I gave it four stars and praised its "truly fabulous world-building", I cannot for the life of me understand why I haven't read anything else. Fortunately, you've now given me some reasons to read something else from him! Apples in the Mirror in particular appeals quite a lot.
On a side note, I adored Roaming. I gave it a five, which is even rarer for an EqG fic than it is overall.
Hm, I've read several of Dan's stories, but only one of these: "Octavia's Last Night." And it was indeed good! He's a reliably enjoyable author.
Oh. Wow. Just… yikes.
Yikes! Good thing Ghost Mike came to the rescue then!
I should hope so; it was the one that ignited me possibly reading more of his that led to this. It was quite close to getting an Excellent too, which won’t mean much as that’s firmly in mid-four star teeeitory for you, but either way, it’s a real keeper. And many of his other dramatic works are too. As are the recent comedy ones – I probably should have mentioned it in the blog, but his two-year old An apple a day makes the Changelings all stay in particular is a winner, if you want something lighter but hardly any less god for it.
You rarely spoke a truer word there, buddy.
Nah, but that is a fundamental classic, the kind that could have only come about early in EqG’s lifespan when what we as writers could do with it was more open. It’s an Excellent for me too.
Though five star ratings being ever rarer for EqG fic’s wouldn’t be because there’s only 10k and change of them compared to the nearly 140K of FiM fics, would it?
[^ That is mostly a joke, I knew what you meant.]
I'm so flattered and grateful to you for making these! Alas for coincidence, I am at Yosemite this week and have very bad internet access and less time. I'd love to gossip on a few of these, but will have to hold off til next week. Until then!
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Honestly, even getting a “OMG thank you so much” response is enough to make me giddy, considering I have had a few folks (ones still active on Fimfiction) that didn’t comment at all when I featured them. 
No problem, Cap’n, I can wait.
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I mean, I know you know what I meant, but I don't read as many EqG fics even on a relative basis, since FiM is what appeals to me most as a baseline. That said, EileenSaysHi is putting out EqG fics that have caught my attention, so I'll be back to that sub-franchise before long, I'm sure.
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Very true. I’m little different; when I searched my Reviewed folder, of 348 stories, only 18 had the EqG tag, barely 5%, and that’s with some select Author Spotlights and reviewing all Ancestral Tribute entries making some not my choice (and even then, 3 or 4 of those 18 were duly set in the world of FiM, just with EqG characters having come over, usually Sunset). Still less than the 6.9% it comprises of the site’s active stories. Not as reflex-against it as folks like iisaw, but yes, FiM appeals as the baseline to Casper here (👻) well above and beyond anything else. So an EqG fic has to really grab me to feel worthwhile.
And, you know, some do grab me. That’s not nothing!
We’re in the same boat here. Well, minus that I’ve yet to read any of EileenSaysHi’s EqG fics, though I know that’s what she’s mostly known for.
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Do eeeeeet :3
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Let's see here...
Apples in the Mirror was one of those 'concepts I had in mind for years, then a contest gave me the deadline/motivation needed to actually do it.'
Octavia's etc. is my baby who I spent most of my Fimfic career thinking about, starting, stopping, and so on. The first few paragraphs were written in 2016 or something, then the rest was pounded out within a few months in 2022-23. While I tend to write lighter comedies or war one-shots, this was my first multi-chapter drama in several years and I think it's one of my best works. I personally really, really love:
...as where I nailed it (especially with later context). Maybe that's just ego, but I love these lines in particular, as well as the pair's final exchange near the end.
Floof Job is, of course, just a silly pony joke.
Some days an idea simply makes me laugh and I choose to write it.
Santa... well, not only was it a Jinglemas fic (where one has mere weeks to write on a strange topic), but it was a breezie fic as well (where one has days instead). It could have used more polish, but in such circumstances one really must plough ahead. At any rate I do enjoy coming back to it and I hope the same for the giftee - the pleasant, yet vaguely wistful atmosphere is something I like in my holiday season; the feeling that there should be more to it all, if we just take a little time to think.
One More Gift was, amusingly, a fallback. My Jinglemas entry that year was a Sunset story, then I picked up a second Sunset story as Breezie and didn't have a second unique idea in the tank. A Sunset/Celestia reunion isn't really new territory, but it's not bad territory either and I had fun giving it a holiday dressing. I'm a bit amused that Raven's scene gleaned specific attention, from you and others.
Thank you for the reviews! All authors love seeing their works discussed in positive light, and I am no exception.
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You know that "It's happening" meme?
That.
Watch this space. Well, not this space. That wouldn't be very interesting. But in short: I have a holiday coming up, then a longer fic Spotlight, then some reviews of treefics. When I'm back doing the assorted fics, though? Something of yours will be in there. I'm looking forward to it!
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