Fic recs, November 11th! · 2:29pm Nov 11th, 2014
The day I thought was my mother's birthday because I can't numbers and am a terrible son.
Please watch this video of LostNarrator’s outtakes. It’s hilarious.
Less hilarious is my recording of ”Fallout Equestria: The Abridged Version”. This came from one of my post-FoE journals and was funnier on paper. :B Oh well, I tried.
Getting into another audiobook soon, so expect more long rec posts!
H: 2 R: 5 C: 6 V: 1 N: 0
A Typical Day by Twinkletail
Reading by Scootaloops
Given that he’s drunk, this isn’t a good reading to judge this guy off of, but unfortunately he doesn’t have any other readings, so I’m not sure what to do. I can at least critique his choice of beers. Miller? C’mon dude, at least drink Labatt’s or Yuengling if you’re gonna for the mass-produced shit. :|
Reading by VisualPony
Genre: Black and Red Alicorn OC
Bloddeath Celestio goes about a normal day, playing video games and making out with his six marefriends. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking recently about the status of being a reviewer. I was thinking about it in terms of movie critics, but I realize it applies to anyone who does a lot of something and lets everyone know their opinions: you get tired after a while. New people come into the genre and set out their own takes on what the masters have done, and it all rolls together into a grey mishmash of sameness. That’s why critics of any stripe eventually clamor over anything “original” regardless of whether or not it’s “something other people will enjoy”. I mention this because, despite being a fan of this particular genre, I found myself thinking that I’d seen this before, that the author was just going down the laundry list of alicorn OC tropes, checking them off one by one with a hearty chuckle. But the fact is, this is still funny, and if you’re gonna do this, why not make sure you hit every branch on the way down the mockery tree? I particularly liked the reason behind his name and his casual breaking of the laws of space-time. Little things like that help this stand out from the crowd, but at the end of the day, it’s the kind of thing you read and enjoy because there are far worse, far more earnest things out there that need a little lampooning.
Recommended If You Like Mocking Red and Black Alicorn OCs
A Simple Morning by Godzillawolf
Reading by webshoter and Scribbler
webshoter is another of Scribbler’s cadre of readers, and I dunno why I never went after his channel before now. :B He’s great! My only complaint about this reading is that he’s got commentary at the beginning, but I think I’m less concerned about that these days, especially since everything else is done just spot-on. Another winner!
Genre: Character Piece
Celestia wakes up and prepares for the day. Neat idea in this: Celestia still has her ‘physical’ pink mane, and the aurora version is granted by her raiment. What I like most about this, aside from the nod to the comics, is the copious amounts of Cakelestia, which I have already expounded upon my love for in previous reviews. It adds just the right touch of light comedy to what is otherwise a rather fluffy piece. There’s the hint of sadness around the edges, of a mare still trying to forgive herself and let go of ages-ingrained guilt, but for the most part, it’s just a short string of scenes revolving around Celestia readying herself. As fluff pieces go, this one does it for me by presenting Best Princess the way I like to see her.
Recommended for Celestia Fans
Where the Heart Is by Pascoite
Genre: Alternate Viewpoint
A day in the life of Winona. Pascoite’s really captured the mindset of a dog here. You’ve got tons of olfactory imagery, not to mention her scatterbrained switching from one topic to another. (“‘Who’s a good girl?’ I am!”) I love the bit where she tries to herd Apple Bloom, too. For the most part, this is just a very well-rendered story from an animal POV, but about two-thirds of the way through, I finally remembered it from the writeoff, and… Well, you just need to read this to see what happens. (And even if you remember it, he’s expanded on the end just enough for a really emotional finish.)
Highly Recommended
Exposed! by Syeekoh
Genre: Not What You Think It Is
Twilight needs her coffee, but she’s got a bit of a problem. The description makes it very obvious that you’re supposed to think that Twilight’s got a boner or something, which can’t possibly be the case. I wish there was a bit more buildup, more ponies reacting with shocked gasps and the like, but what’s actually going on is way better than I could have guessed. (I can drop a story idea off my list!) If you don’t keep track of minutiae from the show, the joke might slip past you, but if you do, oh man, this pays off well, and I recommend it in spite of its flaws.
Recommended
Tyrant by PaulAsaran
Reading by Goombasa
Genre: AU
What if Twilight had accepted Tirek’s deal and, after he killed her friends, killed him? “Twyrant” is a Thing that happened a month or two ago and sort of completely passed me by. Oh, I saved a few stories because I like the general idea, but otherwise it didn’t make much of an impression on me, as Things go. This, then, was written as a reaction, and I rather like it, even if I don’t really know what it’s reacting to. That said, I think I wanted this to be more tragic: Twilight says she’s not a tyrant, the would-be Elements say she is, and who’s to say who is right? We certainly don’t have enough information. So if there’s a downside to this, it’s that it’s nakedly a run-down of why Twilight wouldn’t be a tyrant, in her own words. Well, and if you’re not one for quick AUs or future fics, this doesn’t fill in a whole lot of gaps from the end of season four. Still, if you do like said things, this is a nicely tense scene with good use of certain characters. It’s dark, it’s kind of sad, and the ending is powerful.
Recommended for AU Fans
The Truth About Myths and Legends by The Ponytrician
Genre: Slice of Life
Twilight Sparkle tries to catch the Tooth Flutterpony. This story is fuckin’ precious. You’ve got precocious little Twily doing research that is at once both childish and sound. You’ve got Celestia being the good mother. Everything regarding the dynamic between the two is fantastic. Unfortunately, that also highlights what a drag the rest is. Celestia starts out the piece with a lengthy bit of angsty introspection, and I don’t know if I’m just not in the mood for it or what, but I’m not in the mood for it. That said, it doesn’t overwhelm the narrative, even if it creeps into the Twily scenes in the early part, and the ending, while predictable, is absolutely perfect. I think on the whole, the cuteness outweighs the angst, and if you haven’t read this yet, you should.
Recommended
The Talk by Alexstrazsa
Reading by Scribbler and TheLostNarrator
Genre: Fandom Commentary
Vinyl and Octavia discuss an important question: What the fuck is “dubstep”? I love this story for two reasons. First, it showcases Vinyl and Octavia in the relationship I like the best: just friends. Vinyl’s incorrigible and a bit of an idiot, Octavia sighs and puts up with her. So, basically platonic Lyra and Bon-Bon with more music. Second, it deconstructs Vinyl’s fanon. Her first scene in Suited for Success featured house music; her cameo at the end of season 2 was during “Love Is in Bloom”, which is pop. She doesn’t do hard electronica, not even in Rainbow Rocks (the short aside), and the dubstep link is entirely fanon, thanks, if I am not mistaken, to the rise of Skrillex’s popularity at the same time as MLP. So a story where she complains that everyone thinks she likes a genre she’s never even heard of? Brilliant. That said, this is a pretty light comedy, just a scene without any real point beyond the meta-narrative, and as such, the rating is entirely self-serving.
Highly Recommended
The Epic Battle of Good Versus Slightly Less Good but Still Pretty Good in the Long Run by Akumokagetsu
Reading by Astro-Brony
This feller’s pretty solid. His mic quality could use a boost, but his levels are good, there’s no background noise, commentary is kept to the end and he’s got a great reading style. He does come off a little fast, but that could just be because this was a fast-paced comedy, in which case, he was just fine. I approve!
Genre: Princessly Shenanigans
Celestia and Luna have a pillow fight. This is the kind of thing I’m always saying I want to see, and this totally delivers. The opening and ending provide a humorously “epic” frame to the entirely mundane events of the story, and we get to see the two sisters having sisterly fun. I will say that the second part was kind of unnecessary, as it just extends the joke, but that doesn’t really make this bad. The reading only covers part one, and you can do just fine sticking with that.
Recommended for Princess Fans
”Ultimate Power Is Finally… Mine?” by FoughtDragon01
Genre: Comedy
Ahuizotl’s latest artifact acquisition catches the attention of the Princesses. I saw this in the featured box and thought nothing of it. Then someone said it was good. Then someone said it was bad. Then bad. Then good. So I figured I would have to actually, y’know, figure out for myself whether this story was worth reading by, y’know, reading it myself. So what did I find? Well, it’s a passable comedy with a handful of laugh-out-loud moments buried in a lot of stuff. It opens with a weather report, then takes nearly half the story for the Princesses to show up and start interacting with Ahuizotl (i.e., the funny parts). There are a lot of asides, not all of them comical. There are some missteps in the writing, mostly odd phrasings that break immersion. The funny stuff is at least quite funny, though, like when Ahuizotl has to introduce himself as “the villain from the Daring Do books” for Celestia to figure out who he is. That sort of thing makes this story work (considerably better than the handful of references, anyway), but you have to dig for it. This is the one story that could have used less princess bonding; it should have waited until the main plot was over, anyway.
Recommended for a Laugh
The Princess and the Demon’s Corpse by Metal-Quill
Reading by Akash the Reader
Genre: Folk Tale
Twilight is given a test by Princess Celestia upon her ascension to princesshood: answer five riddles posed by the corpse of a demon, or lose her life and soul. This story is missing two things. First, the reason why this test would occur in the first place. The explanation of “those born to the color purple” is completely ridiculous, and no real consequence is stated if Twilight decides to back out of the challenge. Second, it’s not very pony. The riddles, while interesting in their own right, feature ponies with Biblical names, and do not fit the setting in the least. Add to that that there’s really no question that Twilight’s going to get the answers wrong, and you’re left with a quick ride through a story filled with telling and unbalanced dialogue. Seriously, the demon speaks like a thing of old, except when it’s telling Twilight that she’s going to explode. I’m pretty ambivalent about this story overall. Read it if you’re interested in folk stories and don’t mind a lack of pony.
Vaguely Recommended
Burn the Fallow Land by RainbowBob and Denim_Blue
Genre: Action
Scenes of the downfall of Discord and Nightmare Moon, changed somewhat thanks to the interference of a dark entity. This is not a high-minded story. It isn’t about the burden of power or the tragic downfall of a noble figure. It’s not even about the Princesses’ relationship, though what’s there is good. This is an excuse to have a knock-down, drag-out fight between Nightmare Moon and Nightmare Celestia and it is fucking awesome. The writing isn’t always necessarily evocative as it could be, but the action scenes are thrilling and build toward a really epic climax. I’d say these two writers work really well together. A note: Don’t let Celestia’s characterization in chapter 3 deter you from reading further. It’s explained in the chapter following (and not too hard to figure out, besides), and is sort of the entire point of this piece.
Recommended
Sunset Shimmy by shortskirtsandexplosions
Genre: EQG Comedy
Seeing that skirts had written an EQG fic, I of course had to read it. This is basically just a story about Sunset Shimmer acting like a pony and making horse puns. Could you ask for anything more? It's ridiculous comedy at the expense of characterization on par with Cafeteria Control. Aside from Sunset acting ridiculous, there’s a lot of good humor revolving around Pinkie and Fluttershy as well. If you’ve ever wanted to read a story about a humanized pony having a relapse, well, look no further.
Recommended
Twilight Sparkle Steps in a Bear Trap by Protopony350
Genre: Crakfic
Oh noooo more story collections to keep track of! D: In this one, Protopony brings his Argembarger-style trolling to full force, telling a silly tale about Twilight doing what it says and then trying to kill her friends. It’s pretty funny, though the honey joke is a little thin. Still, if you like trollin’, this will please.
Troll Recommended
Mistakes Were Made by Sharp Spark
Reading by Me, et. al.!
Genre: Future Fic/Romance
Rarity meets Applejack in a Manehattan dive bar, and they catch up on old times. When bookplayer strongly recommends Rarijack, you read it. I can see why she likes it: their relationship, as it plays out in flashbacks, is off and on, tumultuous as it is romantic, and it is tumultuous as fuck. This doesn’t try to cover every nuance of their dynamic, but it does well by letting the characters breathe and not focusing on one over the other. (If Applejack feels like the star, I think that’s solely thanks to her getting the later scenes.) This also does a good job of making the passage of time feel natural. This gets a rating of “Highly Recommended for Shippers”, which averages out to
Recommended
Yep, a lack of information was definitely Tyrant's major weakness. However, it should be known that I recently (as in this past weekend) had a eureka moment. Although it may not happen for a while (too many projects), a proper rewrite of Tyrant as a trilogy of 100k+ stories is a definite possibility. Rest assured, the information issue will be addressed.
2588095
oh dear D:
Well. That was a short-lived mystery.
>Burn the Fallow Land
Yeah, that note on chapter 3 is really important; I almost jumped ship at that point. I'm so glad I didn't, though. The story was absolutely fantastic.
I was gonna keep quiet, but damn it, it's bugging the hell out of me. I really enjoyed Burn the Fallow Lands, y'know? I worked on it with Bob and thought it was a generally good story. Not brilliant, but certainly good.
Up until Luna decided to agree to the entity's terms. I hate when characters go all noble, because they always end up sacrificing common sense with stupid, feel good, 'it'll work because it's the right thing to do' bull. Considering I was coming right out of my fury at this very thing from Twilight's Kingdom, I was almost in open rebellion at the thought that Luna could be so stupid as to think the emotionless abomination would actually keep its word. If not for that one moment, I would have loved everything about that story.
And yet it's still in my favorites because – aside from that glaring slap in the face – I really liked it.