Luna Reviews FIM S3: 09. Apple Family Reunion · 1:41am Dec 19th, 2014
Family.
There’s not much I can really say about Family. Sisters, yes, but Family beyond that? Especially the kind of family that has reunions?
But memories...I can tell you about memories. Memories are the most precious things in existence. They don’t replace living, but oftentimes they make life worth living, even through the most extreme tortures. And good living and good memories are two sides of the same coin. Memories aren’t planned in advance—they just happen. And the moments most remembered are sometimes the most trivial at the time. A carefree laugh, a sudden realization...the last time that you would ever see her smiling at you for a long, long time…
Seize those memories, and never let them go.
Notes
00:11: “Gesundhoof”: Huh, I didn’t know Applejack’s family was Germane.
(Hope: I doubt they are, it just sounds like one of those funny puns the writers like to add in.)
00:15: Almost a hundred moons: That’s 8 ⅓ years, for those of you using a heliocentric calendar.
(Hope: I wondered! Thank you.)
00:38: “Feathers on a goat!”: Ah, a new Apple-ism! I’ve been collecting them.
00:46: [RSVPs from] “...Hollow Shades, Galloping Gorge…”: Only an Apple would want to live in either of those miserable places. I mean, Galloping Gorge is infested with Sneezies!
01:51: “I’m going to be busier than a worm in a rotten tomato…”: There’s another one!
02:26: “You are in charge!”: Yeah, she’s not going to regret that…
04:08: “More appul fwittahs?”: Obligatory pause for “awwww” here.
(Hope: And maybe screenshots to send Applejack?)
04:11: Um, who took that picture? That would require that somepony be under the table with filly Applejack, without her staring at the camera, just waiting for somepony to do something cute with her.
05:11: I notice in the family photos that the pony that is presumably Annie Smith’s mother is always looking off to the side. I wonder why that is?
05:12: Except in this one. Oh wait! Annie’s mother is probably the one taking the picture, so that must be an aunt or something. Which would mean that the aunt is looking forward...because Annie’s parents are no longer with them. Aw, that’s too bad. They all look like they’re holding up well, though. I...never could get the hang of mortality. Might be the reason I spent so much of my prior life around dragons instead of ponies.
(Hope: Was the longer lifespan easier to deal with?)
(Luna: Much.)
05:56: Hey, that’s a nice moon shot! Don’t see too many of those in this show.
06:49: Aw, unconscious sisterly bonding...that brings back memories. And a few dreams I probably shouldn’t have poked my muzzle in.
07:49: I was going to comment on how fun this preparation montage is, featuring all of the ponies who probably won’t be in the rest of the episode, when I see Spike being used as a Zippo lighter, as an object instead of as a friend. Not funny, guys.
(Hope: Sadly, I don’t think his portrayal will get much better...)
09:07: Apple Bloom to Babs: “It felt like forever.”: Aww. Nice to see these two still getting along.
09:13: “I can’t wait to tell you about my new school.”: And that is the first glimmer of good news in the Babs Seed story. We can only hope that her introduction in this school was less painful than the last time.
(Hope: Good ending, yay!)
09:35: “There will be plenty of time for family bonding while you’re racing against other ponies.” Yes, that’s right, Applejack. Put the pony who was traumatized by being put into conflict with other ponies...into conflict with other ponies. That’s 0 for 2 on Babs, Missy.
10:44: The race starts, and Applejack turns around. And now’s the moment when the fillies will abandon whatever idiotic plan the adults have cooked up for them. At least, that has been my experience from observations of the young—they tend not to notice me after a few minutes of sitting still and not blinking.
11:06: “You don’t imagine I’ve forgotten what you’ve done with my parasol, six reunions ago?” That’s fifty years ago, for those not fluent in “moons to years”.
12:02: You know, I have wondered sometimes what it would be like to be physically old. Yes, there would be aches and pains and diminished capacity and memory retrieval, but I’m sure there would be an indescribable sensation of accomplishment, that one had had a life worth living. Perhaps I should try it sometimes; Tia and I always use youthful disguises. And besides, these three look like they are having fun—more fun than I usually see Annie having when she’s around those much younger than her.
(Hope: Wait... disguises? What do you actually look like, just a big chunk of moon rock?)
(Luna: Ha! I really ought to do that some Nightmare Night—show up in Canterlot dressed as the moon! I’d have my own miniature reign of terror knocking buildings over left and right—to be magically rebuilt by the dawn of course.)
(Hope: I am growing ever more curious what you actually look like. Is your head on backwards or something? Like, when I’m talking to you, am I staring at your knees?)
(Luna: It’s not like I’m a Greek goddess, child. The tall pony with the flowing mane with the night sky embedded in it is the real me. Tia and I just sometimes disguise ourselves to mingle with our subjects as equals, that’s all. Anyway, I usually use magic for my disguises, but in this case I was thinking papier-mâché. Much cheesier, yes?)
12:33: No! Rebel, rebel against the plotting of your elders!
15:02: “Which is why I decided to change things up a bit.” And this is why Applejack has failed at this reunion, in a single sentence.
18:33: A musical number! Not bad. My compliments to the composer for going outside her usual musical tastes.
19:54: That fiddler looks familiar, somehow…
21:34: A letter to my sister...about how wonderful family is. A good thing this episode’s fictional. I’d have appreciated it, though.
(Hope: Are you sure your sister wouldn’t enjoy it?)
(Luna: Hmm...I suppose it’s possible. I haven’t heard Tia compare Father unfavorably to Tirek in at least eleven hundred years...)
Chat with Hope and Narcie
Luna: Thank you both for finding a little time for me and my questions.
Hope: Of course!
Narcie: Wouldn’t _dream_ of missing it, hehehe.
Luna: I’m interested in knowing what sort of events *you* partake in with your families. Or with whatever group of friends you consider close enough to be family. I’ve just got my sister, and with some significant exceptions, we’ve been living together near constantly through most of our adult lives. So we really didn’t have the idea of a “reunion”.
Narcie: You first, I swapped planets with the gleeful abandon to get away from half my family.
Hope: Ick, yeah. So I have a good relationship with my family, warm and caring, we see each other every few years. Family reunions were much more important before we had cell phones and easy communication, but it still lets us get together and catch up with each other. We exchange stories, new jobs and children, and get to meet (sometimes) people we have never met before. But the greatest part of a reunion is the feeling of belonging. At a family reunion, even if you don’t know someone, you have a connection to them just by being there.
Narcie: Sounds like a cult, heh.
Luna: Well as I understand it, that’s why people join cults—to get the sense of family that they no longer have in their regular lives. But that is a depressing topic.
Narcie: It is, but it’s worth pointing out. So cults are just imitation family reunions?
Luna: That’s what I’ve read...and heard. Having neither attended a family reunion, nor *joined* a cult, I couldn’t really compare. I don’t suppose you have any particular activities, perhaps done long-distance? You see, the only time I see my sister now is via Skype, and we have to find whole new ways to make our little moments together count. There’s the band, but I was looking for something else to do in addition.
Narcie: Hope does this thing, when talking to her family... You can tell her.
Hope: Yeah, it’s...a habit, sort of. Whenever I talk to my family, I like to ask them what they did the previous day, and then tell them about my day. That’s just one thing, another is that, when we meet in person, I like to show off new clothes, items and souvenirs I have gathered. A rock from a beach I liked, a glass statue I got overseas. Those things have no real value, but to show them parts of my life, it matters.
Luna: Oh, that sounds nice! I have a few things...photos, dresses. So many dresses! Why does every human think I would look better in a dress? But some of them are rather pretty. I could show them to Tia. Good idea!
Hope: I would blame the show for that, they tend to show the ponies in dresses for special occasions, so they would think it’s some mark of prestige. Also, in case you haven’t noticed we wear clothes all the time. We look horrible without them.
Narcie: Oh hush.
Luna: I don’t know, I’ve seen a couple of examples...but my aesthetics are completely different from yours. You’d probably call them “long in the face”. Ah, but we’re wandering off topic. (I definitely need to bug McPoodle for more sheet music.) Let me think...does anybody actually play “board games” anymore? The only references I have been able to find for them are ones of scorn.
Hope: Rarely. The few that are played are more complex, for those of us who are passionate about our gaming. There’s strategy games like Risk, there are silly games like Cards Against...on second thought, not something I should mention.
Narcie: HAHA!
Luna: This is going to be that thing with the cats again, isn’t it? Well I know better to ask a second time.
Narcie: Nonono! It’s this card game!
Hope: Please, I don’t want...
Narcie: You get these terribly horribly offensive cards, and you have to make the funniest phrase, like... “The department
Hope: Narcie...
Narcie: Of the biggest blackest
Hope: There, got a hold of her hooves.
Luna: You know, I might actually be interested in something like that. But not with Tia. Not in a thousand million years.
Hope: Well, if you are up for it, then once McPoodle comes back, the four of us could play. So long as we aren’t sacked for it, hehe.
Luna: It’s a poor employer that sacks an employee for activities done outside work!
Narcie: This is going to be great! Cards Against Humanity with the Princess! *squee*
Hope: Anyway, you have to have one heck of a gimmick to pull people away from video games.
Luna: Video games are a fun waste of time. Not very good as a social activity, though. Everyone is playing the game, separately. They might as well be on separate planets. I don’t think I’ve learned anything about anyone I’ve gamed with...other than the fact that they are good or bad at gaming.
Hope: There are cooperative and constructive games, not just competitive ones.
Luna: I might have to look into those. I think that might be a nice change of pace. Well, thank you very much for the ideas, Hope and Narcie. I have to get some drum practice in tonight before my next “Princess Jam”, but I’ll be sure to bring up your ideas.
Narcie: Of course! See you later!
Hope: We are always glad to help. I just have one more question, really. Are you okay? Do you need anything? Because I feel like...I should be doing more to help you enjoy this place, and being here.
Luna: I suppose I could take you along to one of my functions. Pass you off as my secretaries. McPoodle won’t let anybody else pretend to be my translator—says that it’s his job. I’m supposed to spend the night at the National Zoo next Saturday. Would either of you be interested?
Hope: Narcie went off to bed, but I’m sure she would love to, and I would as well!
Luna: Well! It’s a play date, I guess. Or whatever such activities are called, without calling them dates. The English language seems preoccupied with romance, at the expense of friendship and a dozen other forms of non-intimate relationships that don’t even have words to express them. I’ll come by to pick you up at 4.
Hope: Excellent! I really should try to learn Equestrian so that I don’t have to deal with this language.
Luna: I’ll see you then. Oh, and it’s 4 am, not pm. We’re on the wrong side of the country, so it will be a bit of a flight. They don’t let me fly at supersonic speeds anymore.
Hope: I don’t think I can properly express my disappointment, without burning down a government building or something. That sucks! Why can’t you just...file a flight plan or something?
Luna: I’m hard to track, and that makes governmental organizations...nervous.
Hope: Ooooh, did you fly over Nevada? You should always steer clear of Nevada. Has anyone told you about Area 51 yet?
Luna: Oh, that’s a portal. One of the few that opened up since I closed all the old ones. Doesn’t open on Equestria, though. I’d like to go over there, make some new interdimensional friends. But your government is being stubborn.
Hope: Wait...what? Like, really? I...always assumed it was just a research and testing ground! That’s so cool!
Luna: Sounds like another...field trip! That was the term! Field trip!
I can only imagine what interpersonal relationships English fails to encompass. I wonder if we stole appropriate words from any other languages...
Also, I have this wonderful mental image of Luna in her moon suit going full Katamari Damacy on Canterlot, and it is a glorious mental image. Wouldn't recommend actually doing it, but it's fun to imagine.
Princess Luna Goes to Washington.
OOC: some of this conversation doesn't seem to quite gel with Luna writing a story so heavily influence by tabletop role playing games.
Somebody introduce Luna to Settlers Of Catan... and local multiplayer. Online gaming isn't half the social experience sitting on a couch with friends is, no matter what the game.
McPoodle you need to write the story of Luna in Area 51 and dealing with government trouble :p
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Ooc: hmm, it's almost like she hired a human as an expert in a certain part of popular culture, to cover her lack of knowledge. This might explain why Hope is involved in the first place.
2663669
It seems as if her question about people still playing board games was already answered.
So, your highness, how long is a moon exactly, compared to a year? Because I swear I've also heard ponies use "moon" to substitute for "year" before, and this episode purports to be taking place a hundred moons after a previous Apple family reunion seen in episode 1 of series, which was of course adapting the real life circumstances behind your return. I'm left confused by the concept of moons as a unit of time.
(OOC: And also, why are the episodes in a different order in this universe?)
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Luna: A moon is a twelfth of a year, the time it takes for it to go through all six of its phases. It should be noted that the Equestrian moon is lit by its own inner light, and so the phases have more to do with color and magical intensity than with shape and position relative to the Equestrian sun.
Me: I'm using the order of the episodes on the Season 3 DVD, which inexplicably is not the order the episodes were aired. I never even thought to check to see if the order was correct or not, and it's too late to change it now.
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Wait. So then is this episode implying that season three is taking place eight years after Nightmare Moon?
...But then... why hasn't Gummy grown?
stream1.gifsoup.com/view6/3530804/alex-horrified-face-o.gif
I find that a really odd choice on the part of the DVD people. If it's not arranged in the order it aired, what order is it arranged in? What's the significance?
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Me: Apparently. Of course, we are both fools to assume that Friendship Is Magic is internally consistent.
The same madness extends to Shout Factory. "Just for Sidekicks" obviously belongs right next to "Games Ponies Play", not on opposite ends of the same DVD, but what can I say? And "Just for Sidekicks" is the only misplaced episode--the others are in the correct order.
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I wish I could say that this DVD weirdness baffled me, but sadly, I've come to expect arbitrary things like that.
If you ever need someone to talk to look in the mirror I'll be there
Kalibrius