It Is Recommendsday, My Dudes #127 · 7:37pm Aug 23rd, 2023
So tomorrow I'm heading up to spend a few days with my in-laws. Between Covid and my wife's injury last year, this is the first time we've seen any of them in two years and it's been almost five since the whole family was together. And while I don't always get along with them, I know they're an important part of my wife's life and they're good, well-meaning people. Even if they drive me absolutely insane sometimes.
So let's do a week dedicated to that: in-laws.
On the lead is To Belong by Freglz. (It's a sequel and you should read the first because it's cute but you don't need to for things to make sense.)
Rainbow Dash and Applejack are engaged. And a big part of that is telling others. Currently up to tell: Rainbow Dash's parents. And they're overjoyed! It's great! They welcome Applejack into their home with open arms and happy smiles. Everything is awesome. And then Windy Whistles stumbles into a landmine and suggests Applejack call her 'Mom'.
Yeah. You can see the drama right there.
It's a beautiful firestorm that makes a ton of sense and highlights the dichotomy of their backgrounds: Applejack's spent a decade without her parents in her life, while Rainbow Dash has to actively keep her parents from interfering. I love stories that hit this note where the members of a couple have to bridge the gaps in who they are - it's a key part of growing from 'you and I' to 'us'. That's one of the aspects for me that differentiate a love story and a romance, and I put a lot of value into stories that can do that. These two come from very different places and they're gonna have friction when those parts collide.
But it's more than that, too. The story doesn't leap into the flashpoint and takes its time to come around to it - building up first just the sheer joy of Rainbow's parents at seeing their daughter fall in love. And there's a solid tail as well that adds depth to Windy and Bow, giving context about why they act like they do and helping them make the connection with Applejack. Bridging that gap and fostering that growth. It's wonderful character work and good drama, but most importantly it feels real. This is the sort of situation that happens in relationships, and it's what draws the line of people from characters. Definite favorite of mine.
On today's B-side, we go to the unstoppable Posh with Be Good to Your Daughters, For They Become Mothers.
(I swear this wasn't originally intended to be Apple-focused, it just worked out that way.)
Bright Mac and Pear Butter are married. Now there's a Pear in Granny Smith's house. That's okay, but saying the words and acting it are very different things. So when Bright Mac leaves for a delivery, it puts Buttercup and Granny alone together for the first time since the impromptu wedding. It gets... rough.
Again, this is a stellar example of worlds running into each other - Buttercup's trying her best, but she was raised a Pear and Granny's lived her whole life hating Pears. While Granny's accepted her into the family home, it's damned hard to overcome that. Anybody who's lived with someone else knows how it's the little things that get under your skin: less the world-shaking and more how they like the temperature just a touch too high or they don't properly clean up after trimming their nails. For Granny, that's everything Buttercup does and it's too much.
Then it becomes too much for poor Pear Butter, because of course it does. She's only human pony and she's got her own stresses. Which is why I love this story. You can get why what's going on is going on, but you can still feel the love there. They're trying (and failing, but still trying) to make this work, but the whole situation was sudden and difficult and painful. Those emotions seep through.
The story as a whole has that softness: Granny's rough, but she's not bad. And it's beautiful to see the two struggle to reach an understanding. As to be expected from Posh, it's top notch emotional depth in a section of life that canon kind of glossed over.
New or catching up? Try Recommendsday: The Index for your story needs!
Hey, one I've read! Be Good to Your Daughters, For They Become Mothers was the first Posh fic I reviewed, so what I most remember now is less the fic itself but their… shall we say, colourful and unique response that had nothing to do with the fic or my review. They are… quite the character!
But yeah, it's got that balance of rough and soft in its character and tone and end result, leading to potent emotional places and realisations. A good showing indeed!
Good to see Freglz getting more attention :D
the best thing mompplejack ever did was become applepilled. May she rest in buttery goodness
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