What Would Be An Awesome MLP:FiM Movie? · 2:20pm Jun 21st, 2013
Blog Number 16: 10,000 Views Edition
Ten weeks without a blog, and then I get a head cold the instant I decide to write one. As anyone who follows me will know by now, timing is not my strong suit.
I'm referring to the unfinished stories of mine that currently make up about half of my FiM output. I haven't updated some of my stories in months, but on the other hand, I refuse to make predictions or to set deadlines on the grounds that the technique has already been tried and failed. As it is, the most I can give you is an assurance that I'm not enjoying the procrastination either and I'm trying to get around it. I also offer an apology for my tardiness, if you have a liking for any one of my unfinished stories, but more on that below.
Also, prediction is a mug's game, at least when done by amateurs.
In related news, I submitted two entries to the World Building Alliance's monthly competition in April, and the judging for that contest was supposed to have concluded by the seventh day of May. The results still aren't up yet. Now, while I understand the reason for its delay in May (one of the judges had to focus on a summer course), by the time the third week of June comes around, you do feel your sympathies erode a little. I sent an email to one of the judges about it last month, and I have sent an email to another of the judges this month, but I've received no reply from the latter yet. I'll wait, naturally, but I at least wanted to express my frustration on this blog in the meantime.
Now, to pony business. There are only a couple of items today, so I won't bother making a mini-contents section. Just go right in.
10,000 views!
Firstly, a bit of a personal pep-me-up before we get to the main course. As of today, I have surpassed the 10,000 views threshold! I'm really pleased to have reached five figures, though also a tad subdued when I consider what the numbers actually mean.
Let me explain: To what extent this counts as an achievement on my part, and to what extent it's simply the FIMF.net equivalent of a "happy birthday", I'm unsure. On the one hand, I at least have the ability to get people to read my stories, and at 10,000 views per 18 stories, that leaves around 556 views a story (rounded up from 555 and five ninths). Also, at a cursory glance, I have hundreds of likes in total which far, far outweigh the dislikes, and I think that's pretty good going. On the other hand, I accomplished this using 18 stories (plus one or two behind the scenes), which pales in comparison to some of the accomplishments of other users, and there's no denying many of the views are simply people dropping in simply because I published the stuff. The result is one half of my brain going "Yeehaw!" and the other half going "Hold your horses, bud. You ain't done nothin' yet."
At the risk of sounding self-absorbed, I am kind of interested in other users' thoughts on this issue, both in general and with regard to my specific performance. Are there any particular unfinished stories of mine you'd like to see tackled? Do you think this is typical of users on FIMF.net, or am I below/above average to some degree? And to what extent do you think viewership reflects quality of story (for instance, is it an unreliable indicator because of lowest-common-denominator stories that get popular)? Is there a better way of gauging the quality of any particular piece?
Equestria Girls
This originally wasn't going to be in the post at all, but since the next season is so far off, and since it's the au courant thing in the fandom, I might as well throw in my two cents.
To be honest, I don't feel particularly enthused by (or interested in) the movie. That's partly because I was hoping they'd tackle some of the established mythology rather than simply invent more, partly because the gimmicky premise comes out of left field even for a fantasy work, partly because I'm doubtful that the story (which also raises serious questions vis-a-vis Equestrian security) would even justify a feature-length outing, and partly because season three suggests the writing staff have fumbled with the ball a bit. I also have to admit that my glasses have become a bit jaded since I started noticing plot holes and problems in the series (go on its less admiring TVTropes pages and you'll see what I mean).
This isn't to say it'll be a flop, but it probably will be one of those things people tactfully call an "acquired taste". I'm more interested in the upcoming fourth season. Heck, I'm more interested in the second Hobbit movie, if only because we'll finally get to see Smaug in all his draconian glory.
So while I don't think the movie's premise automatically marks it down as poor, neither do I sympathize so readily with the "we misjudged FiM, remember?" crowd. From where I'm standing, given how the quality of plotting and writing has changed in the series recently, and given the gimmicky premise and possible merchandise-driven motive behind it, then what I see does not inspire much confidence that it will be worth watching. I might be wrong - it's hard to tell with a one-off - but it's worth remembering why we tend to judge books by their covers in the first place.
I'll tell you what movie I'd go and see, though. One that featured any of the established villains making a second bid on the Mane 6, that filled in some backstory for the Princesses, and that wasn't overly focused on Twilight like most of the two-parters have been so far. Or else it involved visiting one of the less well-explored places in Equestria, like Los Pegasus, or one of the frontier towns, or Manehattan (lots of interesting stuff must happen in the most cosmopolitan city of all of Equestria, surely?).
Anyway, I can't think of anything else right now, so I'll leave it and see if anything pops up later. Impossible Numbers, out.
Statistics
New Stories?: Rarity Ever After and Laurels, though the latter has been accessible from WBA since April
New Updates: A new category, this, and hopefully one that I will use more often. Two new chapters added to The Campaign for Extra Trixie, and other unlikely experiments
Story Count: 18
My Total Story View Count: 10,082
Age: 79 weeks, 4 days
My Follower Count: 58
My Followed Count: 64
I think Professor Plum mentioned that the April/May results would be out next week on the WBA Skype Chat Group but I'm not sure if I remember correctly.
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That's good. I'm happy so long as I know when the results are coming. It's not knowing when they're coming that bothers me more, to be perfectly frank.
Hmm.
Not sure if I'd really want the show to go full Disney like that.
Most movies released based on TV series tend to just be a bigger, more dynamic adventure expanding into new villains and lore. Transformers the Movie, Ben 10's movies, DC's popular cartoons series do that, heck, He-Man did that to create the She-Ra spin off back in the day (I watched that one in theaters ;P ). Simpsons, South Park, Serenity... The only one I can think of that didn't is Sex in the City... *shudder*
Also I do not mind the "big" storylines in the show focusing on Twi. She is the main character despite it being an ensemble show and I tend to enjoy stories focusing on her the most.
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I'm not sure what you mean by that. Returning villains, exotic locations, histories of the ruling sisters... I personally thought it had the makings of a good thriller. Not that I begrudge the Disney style (I grew up on Disney films), but I don't see how my "suggestions" fit that style.
To be clear, I wouldn't be against the establishment of new lore, but A) I didn't have "human alternate universe" in mind, B) I'd be equally happy if they wrapped up some pre-existing lore that still remains unexplored in canon, and C) while most shows have continuity issues and the occasional outright contradiction, I don't see why some sense of overall coherence need be sacrificed. The TV show does tend to throw around tidbits of worldbuilding that never seem to have any kind of connection to other bits of worldbuilding, which is good for fanfic writers looking for gaps, but comes at the cost of the show feeling more episodic than it should be. There are hardly any overarching storylines.
I don't really have much of an explanation beyond my own personal preference, but I don't really prefer the Twilight-heavy episodes like Winter Wrap-Up and Boast Busters to begin with, much less how she dominates the double-parters. Her quest to study the magic of friendship is one of the least interesting parts of the show, and she's among the least interesting of the main characters, at least for me. I'd rather see one of the others get a moment in the spotlight, and not merely as Twilight's assistant(s).
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Hmm. I think I misinterpreted your intent as "same show but with Disney style adventure/danger/drama" when it was actually "same show but more mentally advanced."
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I wouldn't quite put it that way, but more like this: a stronger overarching storyline and less episodic adventure elements would have improved the series by bringing together at least some of its elements into something a little more coherent and a little less suspectible to throwing random curveballs at the audience for plot convenience, and the movie could have been a chance to deliver just that. Instead, it comes across as Magic Duel writ large.
Unless that was a really subtle reference to the Mentally Advanced series? In which case, that's... not what I'm going for at all.
Hmm... the title of this blog post caught my attention, but it didn't pan out the way I thought it would. First things first.
Personally, I feel that Season 3 was okay on the whole, and doesn't deserve quite the hate it gets. It still has the recurring moral of surpassing gimmicks, it still shows characters from new angles and still has good humour. That said, the flaws that do pop up have indeed been in the writing. A couple of convenient plot points that don't get proper explanation, sudden spikes in tell instead of show... but it's still enjoyable and still gets a good message across.
All that except for one episode I shan't name and the writers have outright admitted was a botched job, ie they admitted they didn't really know what the main plot point really was, and they decided on the episode's form in advance, meaning the story had to be twisted to fit it, rather than naturally fit in this shape. I'm hoping they don't make this a trend in Season 4, and the fan backlash has been enough of a wakeup call. If not, Season 4 is supposed to be done now, so Season 5 is when we'll know for sure. But that as an aside.
Honestly, I haven't EqG yet, I might pick it up once they air it on the Hub and it goes back on Youtube. It doesn't speak to me because it clearly tries to be an MLP crossover with another franchise that doesn't fit it. To wit: this generation of My Little Pony focuses on adult characters -- some of which have careers, one of which even has a dream job and a day job -- and who try to accept and push through their learned personalities. It's also about small children whose learned personalities (their 'egos' or 'gimmicks') aren't really developed yet, but they keep trying new things. Equestria Girls is about teenagers, which is the age where the learned personality is not only shaped, but also tends to be the most dominant. Also, it's a feature length, which means the new characters may only have gimmicky personalities and no real dealing with them at all. See, I always figured the reason MLP is so popular with college age guys is because college age is when you realise you don't just want to be stuck being what you thought you were in high school. So to me, the shift in setting was a step down and the concept itself was not quite what I had in mind. But I'm told seeing Twilight adjust to human form is funny, and it's supposed to be at least passable as a film, so I'd still watch it.
The real reason I wanted to reply, though, is because I've given some thought to what MLP movie I'd make if I had the resources. I might put the whole story in a blog sometime, but just have a look and tell me what you think:
-the first main characters introduced would be a school-age background pony and one relative, I'd go with Featherweight and his dad. Why? Because then it doesn't matter if the movie viewer has seen the show, and fans can relax that none of the main characters get any sort of OOC moments just for the movie.
-the setting is the Crystal Empire. Why? Because it's a known location in the show, it has a backstory that's easily explained in an intro narration (the dad telling his son the story of the Empire) and on top of that, it serves the purpose of adding depth to an underdeveloped decor. Shining Armour and Princess Cadence would be in it for the same reasons: people who watch the show will know them, but only very little. People who don't will be on a level field of understanding. It lets this story stand on its own while adding to the story of the show.
-the story itself is that a little changeling foal/larva is caught stealing a seed embedded in one of the castle walls. It needed to use its magic to drain it of energy, opening a hidden compartment like the light/dark difference, only this one is neutral, so it'd stay shut in both forms but open when drained. Featherweight and his Royal Guard dad manage to stop the kid, and upon interrogation it turns out the kid is actually being forced to do it, and is in fact adopted by ponies who are now being held for ransom. It turns out the seed is part of a doomsday device, and it wasn't Chrysalis behind it, but a zebra delegate who is visiting the Empire. Fight breaks out, Shining Armour nearly gets beaten, Cadence proceeds to get scary angry at the guy for harming a child the way he did. Big, epic fight scene, don't think Faust but think Whedon.
The reasoning behind this is that the story benefits from the setting, but doesn't rely exclusively on it. All the major plot points can be explained briefly and simply, the main characters can be introduced easily, and without the main cast involved you're not bogged down having to say 'You mean like that time when [X]?' all the freaking time. For example, people who watch the show will know what that changeling is, people who don't will get to hear it when they interrogate him after he's caught. On top of that, both the setting and choice of characters allows for some more depth to be added to the show canon, without interfering with established canon.
Giving Cadence a fight scene would deepen her character by showing what exactly sets her off in a bad way (harming children), makes for an interesting sight (depending on the nature of the MacGuffin), and justifies a few things that fans of the show have questioned (why is she Crystal Princess, didn't anyone teach her any fighting skills, did she really need to be an alicorn?) but so far remained unanswered on screen (not counting novels, different medium).
Anyway, sorry for the wall of text, but you raised an interesting question and it deserved an answer. Whaddaya think?
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First of all, apologies for the atrocious delay on my part. I admit walls of text are a bit intimidating, but still, it's rude not to reply at all, and I wasn't even sure how to begin. However, if you're still interested, I've formulated a reply below.
In hindsight, I think it's not so much that season three was all that bad - though I still think it was pretty bad - but that it showed signs of moving towards trends I didn't quite like. Plus, it might simply be ratio: a bad episode in a season of thirteen episodes stands out more than another bad episode in a season of twenty six. That said, with just one or two exceptions, I don't remember previous seasons having really bad episodes on par with, say, Magic Duel, Spike At Your Service, or Keep Calm and Flutter On, and by bad I mean episodes where the premise was canon-stretching and/or there were scenes that were just terribly written and rushed.
I'm not sure how to reply to your points about EqG, though I must admit I find a fair chunk of them makes sense. But really, my lack of interest is more straightforward: it doesn't really fit thematically into what sense I've made of the fictional universe it's set in. New rules and realms are made up to suit a pre-conceived story, which itself isn't much of a grabber to begin with. A self-contained universe with plenty of potential feels like it's spreading itself thin by tacking on another universe.
OK.
I appreciate your reasoning here, but I'd argue that, when a series has an established POV (Twilight, her friends, and the CMC), it should either stick close to it or go the whole hog and pick someone new. The latter answers the same problems you wanted to address, with the added bonus of being able to do so from a completely clean slate. On the other hand, I think totally sticking to the main characters would not necessarily alienate newcomers, so long as there's no continuity lockout. I think part of the problem with picking a background character is that audiences familiar with the material will be distracted by previous canon, asking why that particular character was used.
Probably not my first choice, but the Crystal Empire would be a key focus, I think. However, there could be more said about this. The Crystal Empire raises a lot of questions about previously established canon. Why is the Crystal Heart such a keystone for Equestria? Where did it come from? Why are three pony tribes recognized historically, but the fourth not? And why is Cadence the Crystal Princess? I think the Season Three premier set the point at which the show simply couldn't keep piling on new mythology, but had to flesh out pre-existing lore, which is one reason I think Season Three gets a lot of flak from fans.
I think the reasoning here is hampered by the fact that the changelings and the royal couple do have a history, so it seems a stretch to try and throw the two back together and not expect some "Do you remember..." moments. Also, adopted changelings and random zebra villains feel a bit arbitrary to me. If you want an epic plot, I think it would be better to either re-use a pre-existing villain or to build a villain based on their personality comparison with the mane cast than based on species. The series suffers from a lack of overarching plots, so a movie could make a statement by establishing one.
I certainly would not object to having a character like Cadence fleshed out, nor would I object to having questions like those answered.
I think it's on the right lines, give or take the amendments I noted above.
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No worries about the late reply, thanks for replying at all, actually. I'll keep this one brief.
I made those suggestions with the logic behind them because those made sense. I'll admit, it's not perfect, but it addresses some of the criticisms raised against the movie so far. The actual execution of a script would iron out the little kinks in it. Choice of POV, well... that's mainly a personal preference because I used to be a big Pokémon fan, but the anime made me sick and tired of the walking mass of idiocy that is Ash Ketchum. And in the movies, they always have to open with him showing off his Pokémon, because of the nature of the story. Going with someone new lets you get to know this character in the movie, which is what I was aiming for. The overall story, again, I'd like to have stand on its own, and this seemed to make the most sense.
Fleshing out existing mythology before piling on new, I can agree with. As with the notion that it's the new trend that's unsettling. Magical Mystery Cure remains the only episode of MLP I cannot stand to watch nor debate about. It's stupid, I know, but that's something that gets my blood pressure going, it physically hurts to listen to people defending it or just thinking about it. And a lot of that, I think, has to do with me being so attached to the show and MMC just being so far from what I perceive as 'show look and feel'. If they continue doing what they did there, I'd just stop watching, because that's not the show I enjoy, basically.
So, yeah, I agree with your logic. Whether or not the eventual choices for the movie would be the same, I leave unresolved. There's certainly manoeuvering room between the ideas.