Points of Canon: Friends Forever #29

Almost missed this one. And it has Rarity and Maud on the cover…

• Rarity keeps a diary. So does Maud.
• Rarity is sufficiently interested in “geology and gemology” to attend the annual “Equestrian Geological and Gemological society convention” – which is a thing. And that’s where she bumps into Maud, obviously.
• It’s one of the rare cases where a pony (Rarity) is seen with actual earrings, and it’s drop dead gorgeous… I wonder why we don’t see that more often.

• 1. You know, I wish they’d settle on that. Sherlock Holmes is in the public domain anywhere in the world.

  “Sedimentary, my dear Watson” written on one of the convention stands may or may not indicate Watson is named Watson in the Equestria’s version of Sherlock Holmes stories.¹

• Rarity uses the phrase “Rocktorate in rock science,” once again highlighting how dubious this word usage sounds.
• “Crystal Mountain Range” has a large cave system beneath it. This is not marked on the official maps, and you’d think that if anything, it would be the mountain range north of the Crystal Empire. But it isn’t.
• Maud has a rival rock scientist, an “eternal nemesis” named Buried Treasure, who is, for some reason, presented as an archaeologist rather than a geologist, down to imitating Rene Emile Belloq from the first Indiana Jones movie, with direct quotes. Which makes the notion of rock science a lot more muddled than I thought it would be.
• Passenger airship service exists.
• Crystal Mountains are visible from a city called “Cantertine” which looks kinda Arabic, judging by pony outfits. I’m not sure what sort of name was the original for this particular horse pun.

• 2. Yes, I’m ponting out the obvious, but for ponies it is not necessarily so obvious as I mentioned before.
  3. Which actually reveals her as a very particular subtype of introvert I know very well. Somepony needs to teach the girl sarcasm.

  Reading other people’s diaries is considered impolite.² Turns out, Maud’s diary contains everything her facial expressions and speech do not.³

• The final prize of the whole adventure is just a cave with crystals growing in it, its significance unclear.
• Frustrated at being thwarted, i.e. not getting there firsts, Buried Treasure considers going back to law school. Law schools exist, but it’s interesting how did she get a cutie mark with a map and an X on it and still decide to go with law school in the first place.

Overall, it’s a sweet little piece that makes me actually consider using Maud somewhere in Aporia – though, the uncertainities it introduces regarding “rock science” are kinda worrying.

Comments

[Eruantalon]

Maybe it's not Sherlock Holmes at all; remember we've already heard of another popular detective series (Shadow Spade, from Rarity Investigates.)

And I also wish they'd settle on what "Rock Science" means if they're going to keep using it. Maybe "Rock Science" is a more archaic term encompassing geology, archaeology, and several other things related to rock, kept up by the traditional Pies?

[Oliver]

4015263

Maybe it's not Sherlock Holmes at all;

Maybe. We've also seen obvious Sherlock and Watson of the "Sherlock" TV series on screen, twice. Which is precisely why I say they should settle on that. :)

Maybe "Rock Science" is a more archaic term encompassing geology, archaeology, and several other things related to rock, kept up by the traditional Pies?

That's the problem: Rarity uses it, Maud does not. You could wiggle out and say that Rarity uses it because Maud did when describing her field of study to her, but they're at the geology and gemology convention, which Rarity attends independently due to her interest in gems, she would know.

[Eruantalon]

4015272 Wait, Maud uses "geology" to describe her own degree/profession? Okay then, yes, they really need to straighten things out.

[Oliver]

4015293

Maud doesn't refer to her degree/profession in this particular comic at all. I don't currently have the other Maud media cached in memory to say if she uses the word elsewhere.

[Manga Shoggoth]

" Rarity uses the phrase “Rocktorate in rock science,” once again highlighting how dubious this word usage sounds."

My old university (largely an engineering university, with Chem Eng, Civ Eng and Mech Eng schools) had a School of Archeology that used to refer to themselves as "Stone Eng". It is just possible that the "Rocktorate" is a similar joke. The student mindset is capable of such terrible puns.

[Oliver]

4015379

The student mindset is capable of such terrible puns.

Oh, it is. Only, once again, Rarity does this, not Maud... :(

[howard035]

4015414 Well, if Rarity and Pinkie both refer to it as a Rockterate, and Maud does not correct them, then the most likely explanation is that Rockterate is the correct term for a doctorate in the geological sciences. It's kind of dumb, but so are the names of a lot of cities, so what are you gonna do?

Now I'm worried that Maud will someday be referred to as "Rocktor Maud, RhD."

[Oliver]

4015719

The incongruous bit is the joining, which creates a tautology -- "rocktorate in rock science" It's not a tautology only if the word "rocktorate" applies to a lot of fields, of which rock science is one. Which is pretty silly.

[howard035]

4015729 I wouldn't be surprised if an early scientist who founded the field didn't care about the redundancy, he's probably the same type of pony who would name a certain device "an ATM Machine."

[Cursed Quill]

a cutie mark with a map and an X on it and still decide to go with law school in the first place.

"I need to find this precedent in the law archives!"

…none of the libraries have been seen to even have a catalog, card or otherwise, have they?

[Oliver]

4307448

…none of the libraries have been seen to even have a catalog, card or otherwise, have they?

Not one that was shown anywhere visible, no.