JK Reviews Round Three · 3:49am Jan 24th, 2016
Are you ready for some feels? Too bad, we’re all aboard the Feels Train and we’re making stops at today’s lineup:
Mother by Foal’s Errand (rated Everyone)
Spike Comes Out by Rated Ponystar (rated Teen)
All Our Yesterdays by Silent Earth (rated Everyone)
As always, for the full list of stories I've reviewed, check out the Reviewed by JKinsley bookshelf.
Some more programming notes! Yes, it’s been nearly a year since I lasted posted a series of reviews. Yes, these particular stories were on my list to review for some time now. But we’re returning to the original format. A couple of stories I read “recently” and one story from my favorites list that ties in with some kind of theme.
I do have some other notes about stories in the bookshelf. One is that I did finish Jumbled Thought’s story. He asked me to keep that feedback private. The other is I have a few fics on deck to review for next time, so they’ve slipped into the bookshelf for now until I can get proper reviews going for them.
Tags: [Alternate Universe][Slice of Life]
Description: We all know the story. One thousand years ago Princess Celestia was forced to banish Nightmare Moon to the moon to save all of Equestria, but what if Luna had been hiding something from her sister, scared of how she would react? When Luna had no other choice, she cried out for Celestia and Celestia came. For one thousand years, Luna wondered what happened when Celestia left; now she's finding out...
But is it already too late, or will Luna be able to take the role she had so long dreamed of? The dream of being a mother?
My ultra beautiful cover art was drawn by my dear friend Blankscape
editor Don't Look At My Name Bro! I am lost without you!
100% Approved by Luna's Fanfiction Library!
Why it’s here: I like Foals Errand’s work, and filly Twilight is impossible to resist.
The rundown: One night, several years after Luna’s return, a flash of light prompts Celestia and Luna to reconcile the events of Luna’s banishment as Nightmare Moon. Celestia relays the tale of Luna giving birth to a foal while on the moon and needing to care for her while Luna was imprisoned. Twilight is Luna’s daughter, and as a result of a mix of magical events, she has reverted to being a two year old filly. Celestia tells Twilight and Spike of Luna’s daughter, and Twilight slowly comes to realize that she is Luna’s daughter. She’s deeply hurt by the revelation that she’s been effectively lied to for her entire life, and needs some time to come to terms with losing a large part of her identity but gaining a more official level of family with Celestia and Luna. Mother is incomplete, and has a prequel of sorts in Celestia’s Twilight, but that story serves as more a side story. Foals Errand has made some comments about finally moving forward and delivering a new chapter of Mother some time soon.
Foals Errand is a good storyteller. I like the way she approaches her ideas. The biggest struggle I have here is that, on a mechanical and grammatical level, Mother needs polish. The argument can be made that the story dips into cliche from time to time while telling itself, but it is still very effective at tugging at heartstrings.
The verdict: Liked it; worth reading.
Tags: [Slice of Life]
Description: Upon arriving home from a trip, Twilight is shocked to find her teenaged little brother Spike kissing Rumble, a male pegasus. Spike has no choice but tell Twilight a secret that she herself never saw coming.
He's gay.
Thanks to Kill Joy for the cover
And Goombasa for the dramatic reading.
Why it’s here: LGBT angst is something I don’t usually indulge in, but heard good things about this one.
The rundown: Twilight’s just returning home from a trip to find Spike making out with Rumble. Whether it was through ignorance or Spike hiding it well, Twilight had no idea and struggles to come to terms with her perceptions versus the reality right in front of her. Rumble, due to negative history from his family, takes an aggressive stance against Twilight wanting to speak with Spike privately. But Spike and Twilight sit down and talk about Spike’s learning of his sexual orientation. They talk about Rumble’s family issues with his parents disowning him, Spike’s own fear about losing Twilight (however unfounded), and what it means to have family to be supportive when coming out.
While I’ve been fortunate enough to not face that kind of discrimination because of my orientation, it does hit home because I know how awful that feels because I have lived in an area where homophobia is the overriding norm. Rated Ponystar did an excellent job of capturing Twilight’s character as the protective older sister to Spike and her somewhat neurotic tendencies when she doesn’t understand something right away. Spike’s retelling of his self discovery is also quite heartfelt and seems to come from a place of pushing back against social pressure to fit into a certain mold and behave a certain way. Aside from a few minor punctuation quibbles, it’s a well constructed fic with a lot to offer.
The verdict: Liked it; worth reading.
Tags: [Slice of Life]
Description: "We are more than the span of our lives on this world, however brief or lingering. It is what we leave behind—the comfort we give, and what little pain we can take away—that is our true legacy."
Why it’s here: It won the Six Bimonthly Twilestia contest
The rundown: Twilight talks with Celestia as they prepare for Celestia to move on and Twilight to take on the duty to bring light and warmth to Equestria. For Twilight, she fears losing Celestia as “just a memory” to be forgotten. Celestia pushes back, and talks of her and Luna: they forgot the bitterness but remembered their love for one another. While Twilight may struggle, her friends will always remain with because she doesn’t want to forget them. And while she may have a long life ahead of her, she’ll have the strength she needs because of that.
For such a short story, this is pretty packed with feels. For all that Twilight loves and is loved by her friends, it’s all brought up here. There is such a good move from low to high through this fic and the imagery evoked suits it so well that what little is said is so much more impactful for it.
The verdict: Loved it, a must read!
Mother by Foal’s Errand - Liked it; worth reading.
Spike Comes Out by Rated Ponystar - Liked it; worth reading.
All of Our Yesterday’s by Silent Earth - Loved it, a must read!
