Starfleet humans and plot holes IV: A New Hope · 11:33pm Aug 23rd, 2017
(Geeze, what am I going to do when I run out of Star Wars Titles?)
Ok, So to start this blog off, I want to say that, for the most part, when it comes to creating backstories to alternate universe versions of characters, we are free to do whatever we want. We are fic writers and have the potiental to make it so her backstory is anthing we want it to be.
Heck, my favorite EQG fic is Seven Days in Sunny June, and it does some impressive things with it.
However!
It needs to make something of sense. It has to be able to connect with the characters and allow us to see that the characters could potientally come to this point or that this could potentially make it so that the character comes to this point.
For example, Superman Red Son and JLA: Act of God, one works and one doesn’t because of this rule. Act of God fails hard because it makes no sense for any of the characters to act this way just because they lost their powers (Superman especially who has lost his powers twice before), while Red Son works because it shows that Superman becomes a conqurer because of the communist agenda. Act of God forgets who the characters are, and thus makes them unrecognizable, while Red Son creates a narrritative that makes us beleive that Superman could become this if he was raised differently.
Just the same, you need to give the EQG backstories that make something of sense that would match up to who they are in the primeverse while still sticking to the rules that you have set up here in the world. For instance, Rainbow Dash is extremely athletic and loves to play sports, so thus she is the captain of every team in the actual cannon. However, we cannot forget that she is an advid flyer, so sometimes, it is good to add the idea that she wants to be an air force piolt one day. I personally add the idea that her mom dissappeared over the pacific during a conflict and that is one of the reasons she is into flying. This helps with her sesire to be loyal and the desire to be the best.
So thus, it is a big problem when I see that Celestia in the Starfleet Humans world is a horse rancher and raiser. How does one go from having a desire to ride to suddently wanting to teach. It doesn’t even make sense in the context of the story or the characters. Actually, it is also a little insulting, as it says that she gave up her dreams because “She lost a horse that she loved almost as much as Celesto!”
*Rolls eyes*
So, basically, she wasn’t really into that dream all that much. But even then, how does this match up with her being a caretaker in the prime verse or her noble side. Why not make her rich and coming from a nobel family. Then saying that she wanted to become a teacher because she wanted to help give back to others. This would show that she has a kind and caring side to match her Equestrain counterpart and that she values others so much. Again, look at Sunny June. In that fic, it does establish that she and Luna come from noble bloodlines, making it so that they both have royal blood in them.
By saying that she only became a teacher because she lost her horse, removes a lot of goodwill towards her character. Now, it just seems that she will go with whatever job she wants, as long as it involves her lover. It makes it seem like she is selfish, not selfless.
Of course, this makes me think of Grand Ruler’s back story. Both of them actually and how they don’t excatly correlate with one another. Grand Ruler is stated to be someone who has traveled across many star systems, battle many foes, and saved many worlds. Now, I ask you, what does that sound like to you?
- A soldier?
- A mercenary
- A four star general
- A Stable Boy turned Astronaut turned Lex Luthor
If you answered A, congratulations, you and I are on the same wavelength. A soldier does travel around the world, fighting people, and will usually go and stop a dictatorship. If you answered B, the congratulations, you are probably thinking of something akin to the Expendables and wanting to see something cool happen. If you answered C, then you give Celesto way too much credit. And D...Well, see that one really doesn’t match up.
This goes back to what I said before, when you make an alternate version of a character, you need to have to make it somehow both match up while keeping it connected to the true elements of the character. For example, the ponyverse is littered with dozens of alt mane six verses where a new team picks up the elements. For example the Lunaverse and Manehatten verse. The mane thing there is, these universes still have something for the mane six that links them to their cannon selves. Be it that their flaws are a little more pronounced or something has weakened them.
For another example, Seven days in Sunny june (Wich was written before RR, Games, and Legend mind you) has Shining Armor as a poliece captain, matching to his captain of the guard, Cadence is in child services to match her babysitting career, and Trixie is just Trixie. These examples just go to show the dissconnect with Grand Ruler and his prime self. Because, when you tell me a character goes around the world and stopping bad guys, I think of soldiers and cops, not astronauts.
Celestia is a prinicpal because of one reason, and that was to match the story that the writers wanted to tell. A principal might as well be a ruler of the school, and the writers wanted to focus on the learning/teaching aspect of the character, so Celestia is a teacher and not a ruler of a government. Sadly, we must realize that if she was Celestia...we wouldn’t get much in the way of interaction here. (Although, personally...I would’ve made the principal mayor mare and then have Superintentent Celestia show up at the end as a surprise to Twilight.)
This is further compounded by the very idea of how he made his millions, “By making a bunch of smart investments.” Wich means to a guy like me, that he got lucky. Look, when we see a character like Scrooge McDuck tell us how he earned his money, we see that he is a hard worker and has been through some real turmoil and tests in order to become who he is. In this story, however, we are told that he wass a stable boy who got lucky enough to find the right investments and was able to become a billionare. This, somehow, translates into “He went through much worse hardship than any of them.”
Scrooge, went through real hardship.
I also have a problem with how this makes Celestia look increasingly weak. As if she is now froever tied to grand Ruler, not because she wants to be, but because she has to be. He gave her a job, wich means that she didn’t earn the spot, but because her lover was on the high council. She did not get into a good school because she wanted to, but because Grand Ruler somehow owns the school. Wich, since it is public, you cannot do. You cannot own a public school, you can build it, but not own it.
You can own, a private academy. Do you see how much one tiny change can fix a mountains worht of plotholes. Then again, from the description given of Celesto and everything he does, I am almost inclined to agree...it does sound a little supervillany.
As usual, really good analysis. I enjoyed reading about you talking what makes an alternate universe version of a character work and what doesn't.
Are there any parts of "Seven Days in Sunny June" you want to talk about?
4646018
Oh, there is just so much!
Like how it really shows how these girls would look like in a real world setting by skin tone. Or how the villians of the past are all rockers (I love Discord being Fluttershy's father Hell, even the use of Flash Sentry is so well done that I can't believe I enjoy it that much. I also love how the story really gets emotional at parts. Hell, I even love the use of the characters in thier own ways. The use of Twilight is probably second to the sci-twi I know and love.
Yes, I love the fic series that much.
4646023
I only read the first installment and that was years ago, but I agree with your points. I also enjoyed the Equestria Girls having realistic skin tones and I appreciate the diversity of the human characters.
Also concerning 7DiSJ!Flash Sentry, man it was a different time when there was only the first Equestria Girls movie wasn't it?
4646027
Tell me about it
Very good work.
It wouldn't surprise me if Celesto had criminal contacts.
Guys who suddenly strike lucky often do (Though I watch too many detective shows)
Whichever the case, I hope you'll deconstruct him as the pompous, bigoted, megalomaniacal git that he really is.
You're making a good job so far.
4646370
Like.... a mafia boss? Having contacts in the mafi?
Or like lex luthor
4646429
Either/Or.
It only makes sense.
I admire your creativity for trying to make sense of that man-child's garbage, I'm intrigued on how you come up ideas to justify really bad writing ingenuity, so hats off to you. Also I never knew Celesto owned a public school, and became Lex Luther... I'm now curious to read that fic. Be back to you guys when I finish it.
I wanna hurl, it's so awful, does anyone know a riff?
All that aside I can't wait for your new fics
👏👏👏👏 Wow mister legend that analysis was amazing.I agree on how it makes no sense how in one world he is like king that fought countless being and in the other is a farmer who became a billionaire,an astronaut, an a owner of a island and a public school. One is built on blood,years of the unknown, and police rule the other on luck