Recommendation Rating System Overview + upcoming review · 4:08am Jan 29th, 2016
So, after my last Halloween blog (the one where I reviewed a fanfic series), I thought to myself, “Hey, why not do this more often?” So, yeah, every now and again, I’ll be posting a fic review. Well, I say “review,” but I prefer to think of them as “recommendations” (i.e. telling you which fics are probably worth your time, since deciding whether or not a fanwork is good is not an inherently objective system).
But I will need to have some form of shorthand to sum up my overall opinions, so to that end, I present to you my patented Recommendation Rating System.
These “review scores,” for lack of a better term, do not necessarily reflect the fic’s overall quality (though quality will be a factor where applicable), but rather how much, from one reader to another, I can honestly say that this particular fic will be worth reading. The system will be a one-to-five scale, one being the lowest and five being the highest.
: A masterpiece; any brony worthy of the name should check this out. 
I may have said that this system isn’t so much about overall quality, but fives will generally be what I consider to be high-quality fics. Just about everything is spot on: the writing is comprehensible, the story is competently told, and all the little technical stuff from characters to the smaller details works brilliantly.
: An enjoyable fic; an easy recommendation. 
Fours are the kind of fics that are just good overall. What keeps them from being full-on fives is going to boil down to those one or two little nitpicks that some people may not like all that much for one reason or another.
: Some reservations, but still pretty decent. 
Whereas fours only had some problems that merely kept them from being near perfect, threes will have much bigger problems, the kind that can’t be ignored so easily. Don’t mistake this to mean mediocre, however; there’s still something to like about these fics.
: Has potential, but you’re not missing too much. 
This is where those problems from the threes and fours start to eclipse any worth the story may have. Twos aren’t necessarily bad, by any means, but they don’t offer much either.
: Don’t bother; this thing has nothing going for it. 
Much like the fives, ones will be more determined by their quality, but on the opposite side of the spectrum. Things like sloppy writting, poor execution, and any potential being absolutely wasted. Don’t worry; you shouldn’t expect to see too many fics like this unless they truly deserve mentioning.
Expect my next review to come out soon. As for what that will be, let’s just say the answer will be addressed in the near future.
This is CF signing out.
P.S. For the record, the subject of my last review, the Batpony Interview Trilogy, would have scored four hearts.
