Fic recs, September 21st: Never the Final Word edition! · 2:07pm Sep 21st, 2015
horizon's Never the Final Word is a collection of short and very-short stories, typically composed in the comments of other stories, when continuations, explanations, and just more are desired by someone. horizon decided to gather up his and others' in the compilation, and continues to put out new ones now and again.
I got into this compilation because of one particular review (which was very important and she needs to write more), after which I said to myself, "This is gonna be a lot of work; I should just review the rest now rather than let them sit around like I usually do." That was rather a while ago, but not without good reason: I also read and reviewed all the stories these stories were based off, minus The Demesne of the Reluctant Twilight Sparkle and My Last Letter, which are unfinished. :B
Also note, I label these all as "unofficial sequels", but that's not always the case. More often, the pieces are riffs, continuations, or scenes taking place in the middle of a story. Okay, let's get to the reviews!
H: 2 R: 13 C: 8 V: 4 N: 4
Cumuliform by darf
Genre: Literary
Rainbow Dash doesn’t know what day it is.
This is pretty simple: Rainbow goes through an existential quandary when she wakes up outside of Ponyville, thanks to a drifted cloud. What follows is an exchange with Applejack, and a newfound determination. I rather connected with this, since I’m already kind of going through the same thing, just a week (as I write this) after leaving my job. (Like I said, it took a while.) Definitely worth the read if you’re feeling a little lost in life.
Recommended
The Next Day by horizon
Unofficial sequel to Cumuliform
Genre: Literary
Rainbow Dash seeks an audience with Princess Celestia.
I can most easily sum this up as “The Wrong Fork, but with Rainbow Dash and calendars.” If you’ve read both that story and Cumuliform, that statement should make all the sense. If you haven’t, well, this is an extension of the “Dash doesn’t know what day it is” idea of Cumuliform applied large to Celestia, with some good interaction between the two and a second moral to add to the first. What really strikes me is Celestia: horizon was able to intimate a lot about her by saying almost nothing. Another very good piece, very much worth reading.
Recommended
Pink, Blue and Ivory by Appleloosan Psychiatrist
Genre: Literary
After a terrible accident, Pinkie’s newest friend stands vigil over her, while her other friends fade away.
This is how you open a story. Not only is it strong, attention-grabbing in medias res, it also sets up expectations for the hard-hitting ending. No punches pulled in this piece, that’s for sure. The writing also struck me, as it’s in a very literary style, where dreams and reality both play on the psyche of the main character and eventually drive him to what he does. (This story taught me the word “velleity”, which desperately cries out to be used more.) There’s no tag for it, but I detected the underpinnings of romance, and not just between the OC and Pinkie. This is not a happy story by any means, if you like reading writing and don’t mind ponies coming to bad ends, this is worth the read. (Also, it works as meta-commentary about OCs. :V)
Recommended
White by horizon
Unofficial Sequel to Pink, Blue and Ivory
Genre: Sad
Celestia comforts Twilight after the death of her friends.
This is actually a very helpful followup to the previous story. I was leery of a wish-fulfilling happy end, but instead it just charts Twilight’s possible reaction to the events at the end of that story, and closes up her side of the plot. That said, I caught a distinct sinister undertone to this that I’m not sure actually exists. Can’t be read alone.
Recommended
Frozen Prison Blues by horizon
Unofficial Sequel to The King’s Lament
Genre: Filk
This is just a continuation of Benman’s lyrics, covering the story of Sombra we saw in the show. I’ll admit, it’s amusing, but it’s also really short.
Recommended If You Like Song Lyrics
As If This Wasn’t Meta Enough by horizon
Unofficial Sequel to Hoardsmiths
Genre: Meta
Applejack confronts Rainbow Dash about her fanfiction habits.
I’m not even sure I get this. There’s a good fourth-wall joke (rare beasts though they are), but I’m pretty certain I missed something in the conversation. Give it a look if you liked Hoardsmiths?
Recommended If You Like Fandom Commentary
Stellar Fire by horizon
Unofficial Sequel to The Incandescent Brilliance
Genre: Sad
Twilight struggles with the deaths of Trixie and Russet.
This is great. It’s basically just Twilight trying to figure out how she’ll tell Big Mac and Fluttershy their son is dead, and wrestling with the guilt at having gotten both him and Trixie involved in the situation that ultimately led to their deaths. This one might actually work if you haven’t read the original (each of these entries has a block of spoiler text to get you caught up on what you’ve missed/forgotten), but you should read The Incandescent Brilliance anyway because it was awesome.
Recommended
The Glass Blower by Cold in Gardez
Reading by Luna Farrowe, et. al.
Genre: Literary
I must have read this story (or, actually, listened to it; I wonder who did that one) well before I started reviewing fics. Which is the only reason why I likely haven’t talked about it. I hate it. It’s the kind of story I should really be up there crowing about with everyone else, but I consider it a gross failure in an otherwise pristine gallery of excellent fiction, the exception proving the rule that Cold in Gardez is one of our best authors. What do I hate about it? The mangling of Rarity’s character in the name of creating some sort of dark fairy tale. If this had been about OCs (or, yes, not ponies), I don’t think I’d have nearly so much a problem with it. I mean, the things the glass blower makes are really something, described beautifully, in the ways we expect from Gardez. Sticks is a great character. But the dialogue makes my head hurt. And god, I just can’t get over how shallow and manipulative Rarity is. She’s transparently playing this guy, who can never satisfy her, and why? It ruins what is otherwise a well-written story about the tragic obsession with beauty.
Not Recommended
Upon Reflection by Sozmioi
Unofficial Sequel to The Glass Blower
Genre: Sad Romance
The glass blower realizes he was a fool.
Given my reaction to The Glass Blower, this story had a lot going against it, but even still, I don’t think it really works. It’s an attempt to make the glass blower look like a much more reasonable individual, addressing the romance tropes that he fell under during the main story. But Sozmioi is no Cold in Gardez (few of us are), and the piece overall feels rushed and unfocused. And then it just ends, and I’m not sure what the takeaway is supposed to be. Stick with the original, if you must.
Not Recommended
The Writing on the Wall by Horse Voice
Reading by Voiceguy
Reading by Crafty Arts
Genre: Dark Adventure
The discovery of a millennia-old pyramid exposes Daring Do and her team to a lethal, unknown pathogen.
This is one of those very claustrophobic adventures, set in a far-off place, filled with excitement and wonder, but never moving from that small area or a few central characters. And of course the Dark tag ensures it won’t have a happy ending. Ahuizotl, for all that he doesn’t do a whole lot, has a very unusual role that makes his presence a point of intrigue. And while the writing isn’t Horse Voice’s best, it’s that sense of dread and excitement that should be the draw. (Also, I had to read the spoilers for the next story to realize what, exactly, was going on, but it’s not necessary.)
Recommended
Badass Waterwheels by Duplex Fields
Unofficial Sequel to The Writing on the Wall
Genre: Ponies Writing Ponies
This just recontextualizes The Writing on the Wall as fanfiction written by Twilight. Rainbow Dash upbraids her for what happens, then discovers the magic of fanart. It’s amusing, but ultimately not much of a thing in and of itself.
Vaguely Recommended
All a Dream by PoweredByTea
Unofficial Sequel to Martial Bliss
Genre: Comedy
Yeah, so, the title gives away what’s going on here. And frankly, I don’t see why Martial Bliss of all stories needed to be “just a dream”. It’s not like anything bad happened in it (it was quite funny, as I recall), and the “just a dream” setup is pretty much the worst writing technique anyone could employ. Plus, nothing comes of it.
Not Recommended
Dear Beloved Granddaughter by Georg
Unofficial Sequel to Fluttershy’s Night Out
Genre: Epistolary
So I’ve been less than enthused with the “how it should have ended” tack most of these stories take. But this one? I like this one. It’s funny and #protectfluttershy for all the right reasons. Even if it goes against the tone of Bad Horse’s story, just the things that happen and the way they’re presented are fantastic. Reading Fluttershy’s Night Out first is recommended, but as always, the spoilers help.
Recommended
Aftershock by FanOfMostEverything
Genre: EQG
Twilight takes Rainbow Dash to meet her other self.
For all that this takes a large portion of its word count for setup, it didn’t go anywhere I expected it to. This ends up being a really dramatic look at Rainbow Dash’s character, the sort of thing I haven’t seen applied to her in quite some time. It’s maybe not terribly deep, but it’s certainly worth the read. (And I hope I didn't spoil it with that blog about Hurricane Fluttershy...)
Recommended
Splinter Cell by horizon
Unofficial Sequel to Aftershock
Genre: Comedy
As the intro states, this is based off a throwaway line from Aftershock, and you needn’t have really read that to understand this, so long as you get that Rainbow Dash is aware of EQG-world. So it’s no surprise that this is pretty throwaway itself, just a few hundred words of talking heads centered around a fairly unsurprising joke. There are a couple other jokes in here that are funny, except that I can’t really see Rainbow Dash making them. This is worth it for a chuckle, but I think it just highlights how so many of these entries are simply comment replies to the stories, rather than thought-out mini-sequels.
Vaguely Recommended
Who We Are, the Princesses Would Destroy by GhostOfHeraclitus
Unofficial Sequel to Who We Are
Genre: Slice of Life
The Civil Services confronts Twilight’s changeling friend.
I’m so very glad this exists. Long ago, when Benman was still an active part of this site, he posted a series of journals (1 2 3 4) where he mashed up the titles of famous fics and gave a short explanation of what would result from the combined plot elements. Who We Are, the Princesses Would Destroy was actually in the very first one, and it’s just fantastic that GhostOfHeraclitus is the one who wrote it. What’s even more fantastic is what he did with it, inserting Dotted Line and (actually, I forget who the other one is; shame on me, I was just listening to Scribbler’s reading of Whom the Princesses, too!) into Who We Are, not just in plot but in theme. If you haven’t read Who We Are (WHY NOT?), this doesn’t stand alone at all, but if you have, it’s a short, masterful way to put an even more heartwarming ending on the story. It’s honestly amazing that’s even possible.
Highly Recommended
The Duel by PoweredByTea
Unofficial Sequel to The First Time You See Her
Genre: Dark Comedy
Shining Armor, host to the Nightmare, squares off against Twilight and her friends.
This seems to have been inspired more by comments left on the story than the story itself, but I’m still labelling it a sequel. It’s a short scene based on a single idea, that ends up with a bit of humor. Which is good, because any other direction for Nightmare Shining versus Twilight would just be heartbreaking.
Recommended as Light Reading
Em Dash by Cloud Hop
Genre: Ponies Writing Ponies
Twilight quickly comes to regret her decision to proofread Rainbow Dash’s newest fanfic.
Okay, I just noticed something: this story has actual rainbow-colored dashes in it. That’s diabolical. It’s also a pretty good insight into what’s going on. Lots of grammar jokes, lots of outlandish asides (not all of which work, see especially the court case), and mostly just a cracky look at ponies writing fanfic. Which, y’know is actually the most canon part of this thing. It doesn’t always work, but I never tire of this subject matter, and especially if you’re a grammar Nazi with a hangup on en vs. em dashes, you’ll probably get a kick out of it.
Recommended If You Like Nonserious Writing
An Even Grater Love by horizon
Unofficial Sequel to Em Dash
Genre: Crackshipping
Sombra gets back at his old flame.
If you’ve read Em Dash, you know from the title exactly what this story is going to be. If you haven’t, it’s explained at the start and has nothing to do with that piece. It has everything to do with wacky, wacky shipping. I mean, Sombralis is goofy enough on its own, especially given how it’s portrayed here, and then the title happens and… yeah. That’s a thing. That’s not safe for Apple Bloom, as they say. Good gravy.
Recommended If You Like Weird Shit
Shaggy Dog Story by horizon
Unofficial Sequel to Shipping Sickness
Genre: FeghootThis is bad and you should feel bad. Okay, I have to write a real review of this just to prove horizon wrong now. This is a very convoluted path to a horrible joke that only takes the main idea of Shipping Sickness without otherwise being terribly related to the story itself. Also, it relies on a magical macguffin whose ridiculousness is assuaged only by that selfsame ridiculousness, which is to say it’s very obviously meant to be a poorly thought-out plot device. But ugh, that final pun! It just wasn’t worth the effort, if you ask me.
Recommended Only If You Enjoy Terrible Puns
Ruin Value Meal by horizon
Unofficial sequel to Ruin Value
Genre: Comedy
Twilight returns from the mirror with a new round of anxieties.
You pretty much can’t not see where this piece is going, given the spoilers for Ruin Value at the start. Yet, despite it being both predictable and a well-used trope, it’s pretty darn funny, and the ending is hilarious. That is what keeps this from being truly overdone, and if you’ve read Ruin Value, you should definitely read this.
Recommended
Saving the Records by ROBCakeran53
Unofficial sequel to Save the Records
Genre: Nonfiction
Okay, actually, this has nothing to do with Save the Records at all, save that it’s one man’s explanation of how the story touched him. ROB posted this in the comments, and horizon kindly saved it for all and sundry to read. It’s really a very moving, heartfelt piece, one of my favorite parts of the Records experience. (It was great hearing him talk about it at Trotcon when Save the Records was brought up.) I’m glad it’s got a chance to shine here.
Highly Recommended
Twilight’s Choice by horizon
Genre: Comedy
Celestia and Luna jump off a bridge.
This is not a sequel to a fanfic, but a piece inspired by a blog post. You can get all the context from the A/N. The draw here is the hilarious, cracky reason why the Princesses do what they do. The denouement is consistently, if not equally, funny. This is really short, it won’t waste your time.
Recommended
Since You Asked by horizon
Sequel to Twilight’s Choice
Genre: Feghoot
Titanium Dragon was disappointed by Twilight’s Choice’s ending, so horizon wrote this.
No, seriously, that’s why this exists. Oh god, why must it exist? D:
Recommended If You Like Terrible Puns
Elementary, My Dear Twilight by GhostOfHeraclitus
Unofficial Sequel to The Wrong Fork
Genre: Crime
This is really just a pair of scenes, the sort of which would appear near or at the conclusion of a detective novel. It’s basically an exploration of the idea “would Rarity make a good detective?” with the answer being a resounding “yes”. I wish this was a series. (THANKFULLY WE HAVE RARITY INVESTIGATES NOW.)
Recommended
Hunka Hunka Barning Sludge by horizon
Genre: Comedy
Okay, this isn’t actually a sequel; it’s another “Bad Horse posted a snippet for people to finish” thing. And it’s a really fast, punchy, mostly dialogue flashfic with a great homage at the end. Definitely worth the seconds it will take to read.
Recommended
The Surprisingly Complicated Love Life of Spike the Dragon by King of Beggars
Genre: Shipping
A surprise confession from a friend sends Spike to Canterlot to ponder just what his feelings are.
This is one of those stories I have a lot to say about. I’ll begin by mentioning this is the first story I’ve read by King of Beggars, who seems to enjoy Spike shipping a lot, and a few things threw me. For instance, the author has a knack for taking far longer than is necessary to set up a scene, but in doing so, breathing life and character into his settings. The very first scene, for instance, dragged on to the point where I was going, “Get to the story already!” yet Ponyville Castle is given so much character, and Spike and Twilight’s relationship portrayed so perfectly, that I kind of couldn’t be angry at the diversion. That said, it happens with every chapter but the final one. Also, there was a certain viewpoint taken in this piece that rubbed me the wrong way, something of a “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” battle of the sexes thing that I just couldn’t grok. (That said, a tiny detail in chapter four pins this as being in a more Earthlike Equestria, so take that as you will.)
So, what was good? I definitely got caught up in the drama, for all that this story made me think of Chris’s primary argument against shipfics. (i.e., that the characters become consumed by the romantic aspect of the plot, ignoring all else. Scootaloo is definitely a victim of this, but it’s not universal.) The humor is amazing and made me wonder where the comedy tag was. A scene that had me bemoaning another Zecora Test failure put me in stitches for almost the exact same reason. There are so many funny, quippy conversations that let us know the characters know each other. (“Shut up so hard!”) And I’ve already said Twilight and Spike’s relationship was perfect, but there were other great character scenes, too, like Rarity’s inner conflict over her image, Coco Pommel being drunken, lusty and inappropriate, and a very surprising turn by a very surprising pre-canon character.
That said, they weren’t all equally well written: the Cutie Mark Crusaders in particular, even main character Scootaloo, pretty much feel like smaller versions of their sisters, adoptive or otherwise. Near the end, Scoot starts acting way tsundere for no particular reason (that she herself has no idea why she’s acting that way caused me to accuse the author of inventing Alien Tsundere Syndrome). Said pre-canon character doesn’t actually have a lot of character to begin with, though again, that somehow didn’t diminish the lesson she imparts on Spike. Rainbow Dash at some point gets excited about the possibility of Spike marrying his love interest, which I just had no idea what to think about.
There were also certain liberties taken with canon that never sat right with me. The idea, for instance, that canon Spike is thirteen and the CMCs ten at the start of the show. (The story takes place five years in the future of season four.) I was fine with Spike referring to Twilight as his sister, yet balked when he called Twilight Velvet and Night Light mom and dad; that’s probably just me. Coupled with the underlying sexism (which even gets lampshaded), there’s a certain cynical edge to this version of Equestria that, again, never sat right with me. (Also, I cannot abide Fleur calling her “Rara”.)
Lastly, the plot. I long ago decided I was done with harem anime because they’re nothing but sexist, wish-fulfilling bullshit, not to mention formulaic as hell. But that’s a large part of the vibe I got from this story. Spike’s already got his crush on Rarity. Now he’s getting attention from somepony else. (I don’t know why I’m being coy, it’s Scootaloo, it’s obvious from the second scene.) Then he runs away to think about that and ends up with a third mare who’s interested in him. It was a bit much to take. (And do remember, I really hate pony/dragon relationships, so I’m a tad biased.) I was at least pleased by the outcome, for all that Spike becomes a Pokemon trainer, because they aren’t immediately totes in wuv, but realize that they have to start figuring out how their relationship works, planning dates, and so forth. That’s the kind of thing I want to see in shipfics.
Is this perfect? No. There were a few other quirks in the writing I didn’t mention (the occasional way-out-there dialogue tag, for instance), but overall, I think the character interaction by itself absolves a lot of the issues, none of which were story-killing. Just be warned that if you have two thumbs and hate Sparity like this guy (:V), you’ll be in for a bumpy ride.
Recommended for Spike Shippers
Brave Little Pony by River Road
Unofficial Sequel to The Surprisingly Complicated Love Life of Spike the Dragon
Genre: Bittersweet
Gonna try not to spoil the identity of that “pre-canon cameo pony” I mentioned in the last review. This story attempts to give her some closure, but I have to say, I didn’t appreciate it. I feel like what happened both didn’t matter and was really not the great reward it’s made out to be. Maybe others would have a different opinion, but this rubbed me the wrong way.
Not Recommended
Any Other Business? by GhostOfHeraclitus
Side Story to Whom the Princesses Would Destroy...
Review #2500!
Genre: Comedy
Dotted Line breaks the news of Princess Twilight Sparkle to Equestria’s nobility.
Oh boy, time to add another story collection to my list. :/ You can tell this was a comment-fic, as so many of these are, because it doesn’t quite have Ghost’s usual care (I felt a comedic divergence near the start was more overblown than comedic). There are some funny bits to it, and fans of Dotted’s much-put-upon stoicness will likely enjoy this… If they feel this situation really needed to be seen. Which I, quite honestly, don’t. I didn’t get much out of this, to be honest, and rather don’t see the point to it. It’s for Dotted die-hards and people who haven’t read Whom the Princesses Would Destroy, who aren’t likely to get it, and who should thus immediately remedy their pitiful situation of not having read a fantastic story.
Vaguely Recommended
Another Point of View by Kencolt
Unofficial Sequel to Any Other Business
Genre: Comedy
This is a decent attempt at mimicking Ghost’s writing style. (I have to say, I like the use of Titanium Dragon’s Magic Right Box™ for footnotes quite a lot.) That said, it’s the summation of a single idea, with some amusing Twilight-being-annoyed-and-putting-somepony-in-their-place that… doesn’t really go anywhere.
Vaguely Recommended
Not It by horizon
Genre: Actingverse
This is another one that's a reaction to a blog post, wherein GaPJaxie posited what might happen if the characters from his Actingverse stories (which you all should read) met the characters they portray on TV. It was quite amusing. This piece is also quite amusing, and I’m glad to see Twilight talking to Star, since that didn’t happen in the blog. GaPJaxie should definitely canonize this when he posts that blog as a story, hint, hint. :V Anyway, the final joke was amusing even if it’s probably way off any kind of canon. Otherwise, it’s Twilight briefly discussing alternate universes with an alternate universe version of herself. What’s not to like? (Also, for the record, I am going to use 
as short-hand to point out when people have used the word ‘hand’ where they really shouldn’t have. The implied phrase is “What are hands?” Just for the record. :V)
Recommended
I'm actually quite surprised you don't like The Glass Blower. I actually sort of figured that it was BEACUSE it was Fairy-Taleish in the manner of execution that allowed the reader to separate the characters from their canon counterparts.
3409064
At which point, I question why the decision was made to write it with a canon character in the first place. Like I said, OCs only? Would've been great.
3409082
I'd say that it's a conscious choice to elevate the base standards of Rarity, which is what was the decision to use her. Perhaps it was to create some sort of initial connection? And I do see where that gets a bit confusing in the choice of usage, but as a writer who also often abuses character for very different purposes, I still argue the point that canon consistency is not as important as internal consistency. That Rarity was the Rarity of THAT story, and she was true to that character throughout, so I can't really complain as much.
But of course, I do understand the point of view that 'if you're going to twist a character that much, why use it as a base in the first place?' to which I believe that it's a simple matter of marketing. I don't think that story would have gotten the spread it had if it were all OC.
That's probably the ground reality of it. It's part of the zero-sum game we all play just by being here.
Also, I sure have a lot of Horizon fics to read now, don't I?
=|
I'm pretty shocked you didn't like Glass Blower.
Writing on the Wall is great. It was one of the better early dark fics I read.
shut it
Oh, yeah, Glass Blower. Waaay back when I was starting to get into Fimfic (I think) I downloaded all the fics tagged "Romance" or "Shipping" in the Pony Fiction Vault, because of course I did, and I read them all. I remember starting Glas Blower but never really finishing it, as it felt pretty but really out of character, and just not what I wanted to read I guess.
Years later, I looked at that story again and I had to pause for a second after realizing that, wait, Cold in Gardez wrote this? Wow. What the hell.
'Course, he's still one of the best writers out there. I don't even think Glass Blower is bad, myself -- it's just not for me, that's all. Still, glad to see someone else kinda-sorta shares that feeling with me.
Surprisingly Complicated Love Life is a funny one to think back on. I mostly enjoyed it as it was being posted, but the ending ticked me off. The reasons behind who Spike ended up with just rubbed me the wrong way and I ended up downvoting as a result. Possibly petty, maybe even probably, but if thinking back on a story always pisses you off I'm not sure there's a justification for leaving an upvote.
Also, this was one of the stories that prompted me to be a little less upvote-happy early on in a story, you never know by the end how you are going to feel and leaving your vote uncast gives you more freedom in how you react when all is said and done.
Nope, you're objectively wrong. Glass Blower is teh bestest UNFOLLOW
In all seriousness, I get where you're coming from. I just disagree entirely.
3409082
Whenever people say "why canon characters? why not OCs?" I just want to slap them in the cheek with a wet swimming noodle, stand on their chest, and tell them:
"It's fanfiction."
You are writing about something because you like it and you want to. Asking why you write it about a character you like instead of an OC is about the same as asking, "Why not write original fiction instead?"
3409184
I honestly wouldn't have read it if not for this collection forcing my hand. At one point, I was ready to hang horizon and River Road in effigy for making me read Sparity.
3409345
Nothing like controversy to stir up drama and relevance! :V
No, but I've honestly always hated that story, and I expect no one else to agree with me.
3409374
Which is also something I ask frequently. :B
You should finish the set! The Demesne ones don't require any information that isn't provided in Demesne's story description, and the Letter one follows the very short standalone first chapter.
Well, it does seem kind of fitting that people can't be bothered to use it more often.
> is a scrublord who hasn't read Glass Blower yet
The entire notion of fanfiction is to explore facets of the universe and the characters in new and unusual ways which the canon story hasn't, or won't. We get torrid shipping stories because the show will never explore romance to that degree. We get dark and gritty stories for the same reason. But we also get these light-hearted SoL stories, where you're like "wow, this could totally be made into an episode!" Sure, maybe the tone is a bit too PG-13 or the length isn't right, but we have no doubt that this author just wrote an amazing Sweetie Belle.
So then, you can break fanfiction down into two rough metrics: the extenders and the stretchers. The extenders simply take us further, exploring the same themes with the same characters. The stretchers take us in orthogonal directions, asking us what the show would be like if we suspend our disbelief a bit, and assume for a moment that we're in the post-apocalyptic future, or that Princess Twilight becomes a tyrannical leader. Obviously, these are not mutually exclusive, as we often see dark fics with show-accurate characters, or show-accurate lessons with hilariously OOC characters.
But the reason I bring that up is because stretching the character requires the reader to suspend their disbelief. If you the author are writing Princess Twi murdering puppies for the evulz, most readers will be turned away because a character that they like has been inexplicibly bastardized. If they're going to suspend their disbelief, they want to be wooed. Is there any compelling reason (in the hook, not in Chapter 50) why the story fell from grace? Give me, the SoL/Romance reader, some reason to latch onto and care about your AU Twilight. Fail to do so, and best case I'll just say "well, you wrote this because you felt like it, and I'm not going to read it because I didn't feel like it." Worst case, I'll become suspicious that honestly this is original fiction, and that you just slapped Mane Six names randomly onto characters, in a willful attempt to deceive your readers, because Fimfic readers will read anything as long as there's ponies in it. Red Thrush Private School, anyone?
So when it comes to The Glass Blower... I can't answer that question, because I'm a scrublord who hasn't read it yet.
But I have heard the complaints about Rarity's characterization in every review of it I've seen. So the question I raise rhetorically is: what benefit does the story gain by Rarity's role being played by Rarity? Does it explore some interesting facet of the character, and emphasizes those characteristics with hyperbole? Did the character have a falling from grace? Are her overarching traits—a character of generosity and inspiration—perserved, while some of the finer details are altered? Or is it really just "this will get more views if it features Rarity?"
3409093
Comments like this make me leery.
3409503
I don't read incompletes, and I don't want to spoil myself. >.> It's quite the pickle.
3409558
I really think that having Rarity in particular in that story was about the worst choice that could have been made. I mean -- and I think it was S1, so this may not have been possible -- I could have believed Fleur or one of the other high-society, pretty fashion ponies in her role. All the story does is emphasize Rarity's worst qualities, exaggerating them beyond believability, which is terrible because out of the main characters, she's the one who's done the most to overcome those qualities. That's really why I've never liked it.
3409558
Well, I just call it like I see it.
If there's no other excuse, then I move to the logical.
I LIKED The Glass Blower for the prose.
But I'm not going to defend it to that extent, and you have every right to be leery for it.
It's sort of like popping into your local fish and chip shop and the servers are all wearing nothing but pink aprons.
It might look good, but there's some weird reason behind it that maybe it's better not to approach. But the more you think about it, the more it seems like it's probably just a publicity stunt.
Damn, this is a fun post! I didn't know these things existed.
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See, that's why I do this. :D
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Kind of unfortunate, that. If it helps, I wouldn't personally classify Leaving The Nest or Demesne For Sale as spoilery, since they don't overlap the later parts of the plots of their respective stories. Where Blackmail Might Or Might Not Happen is slightly iffier, but most of the potential spoilers are either of stuff you find out really early or confirmations of stuff you should have guessed really early, and the rest are subtle enough that I doubt you'd remember them by the time Demesne's finished and you start reading it.
As for The Glass Blower, I personally interpreted it as more of an AU take where Rarity let those negative traits consume her rather than sought to overcome them. I don't know if that's better or worse than using all OCs would have been, but it does seem appropriate to the style of story, somehow.
I see we disagree, I think The Glass Blower is one of the best written pieces of work from the past few years across all mediums of literature.
Now, with that out of the way... what the hell was going on with this blog post? Was it just "popular author in-joke unofficial sequel" time?
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Kind of - a lot of the entries started off as comments on their respective stories about extended or alternate endings. (EDIT: to clarify, comments by the readers, not the authors.) Never The Final Word gathers them all in one place so they're easier to find, and to popularize ones that are newly published.
3411374 Ah. Sounds like a bit of a circlejerk. But if it's all in good fun...
Aw fuck. Remember when I told you that I was only going to read stories you gave H's to and not R's, to cut down on time spent? Seeing you give stories by the two authors I hate most in this fandom (dark and Appleloosan Psychiatrist) R's made me regret that I never stuck to that, and consider sticking to it now, more than anything else I've seen this year.
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YEEEEEEEEEES
That was my only problem with this otherwise beautiful story. I think I told myself that it was an AU where Rarity was born in Canterlot with none of her friends from the show.