Friendship is Card Games: Daring Done? · 11:41am Sep 10th, 2017
Ironic that a Daring Do episode got unearthed early. Still, it belongs in… well, not a museum, but certainly its proper spot on the calendar. Which, conveniently enough, is now. Let’s dig in.
Anyone weirded out with the very manly voice on that papercolt?
Hmm. I’m not sure if Pinkie summarizing the news as “happy happenings” is indicative of the nature of Equestria, the Ponyville Chronicle’s usual spin, Pinkie’s own pollyannaish tendencies, or just a bit of alliterative appeal.
Also, Ponyville apparently has multiple newspapers, given Rarity’s mention of the Ponyville Express in “Ponyville Confidential.”
Wait, is that the same Fillydelphian parasprite infestation as in “Swarm of the Century?” My goodness, that place must have been a war zone for the past few years. The sound of polka is going to cause haunting flashbacks in its citizens for generations. (On the bright side, maybe the parasprites ate Dragon Town out of canonicity. 
)
Hmm. That political line makes it sound like Equestria’s climate is at least partially influenced by Cloudsdale politics. Does that strike anyone else as more than a little concerning? And reminiscent of whatever’s going on behind the scenes in Spa and Order?
Given the distances involved, I hope Pinkie and Dash didn’t gallop all the way to Daring Do’s house.
Good to see that Pinkie has some degree of empathy this episode. That’s not always guaranteed.
Odd that Daring Do is described as a “local” rogue in the Somnambulan press. Even more odd that her books aren’t sold in that market. Why not? Especially given how selling books in Equestria apparently consists of walking up to booksellers and asking them to put your work on the shelves. (Or maybe that only applies to reigning princesses.)
At first, I thought Daring’s house was on a different coast than before, but the map transition in “Daring Don’t” definitely goes in a generally northwest manner. Still doesn’t address why the Tenochitlan Basin is somewhere in horse-Canada, but what can you do?
Also, I admit that I’m a bit disappointed that Pinkie wasn’t trailing a paintbrush behind her as the group arrived in Somnambula.
Also also, I do have to wonder how Southern Equestria works in relation to Saddle Arabia. And Anugypt, for that matter.
Hmm. A pair of ancient crowns, one of which can be used to curse a region with eternal night. The diarchs really need to be more careful with where they leave their old accessories.
(Apparently, the two relics are from Daring Do and the Forbidden City of Clouds, one of G. M. Berrow’s Daring Do books. Not the first time the writer of the episode slipped in some sly references to their other pony work, but perhaps one of the more obscure ones.)
I’ve seen a few people complain about Caballeron disguising himself with little more than a cloak. I have a counterpoint:
I’d say they’re even.
I do like the idiom “cramping her saddle.” It shouldn’t work nearly as well as it does.
Daring Do wasn’t even in the area yesterday. As far as anyone knows, she hasn’t been seen in the area for weeks, if not months. How is Caballeron getting this much effective rabble rousing going with a totally absent scapegoat and I think I just answered my own question. He’s making her into a gremlin, an unseen supernatural evil that is as surely present as it is imperceptible. Logic need not enter into the matter given the amount of outrage at work.
Heh. “Weird claw thingy on his tail?” Rainbow Dash still doesn’t know what hands are.
Somnambula herself is a very strange G1 reference, given that the original was a human villain and the pegasus has nothing to do with sleepwalking. Still, the hieroglyphic animation is quite cool.
The story of Somnambula and the sphinx is a bit less epic when you realize that the final challenge is basically a trust exercise.
Oof. Asking people to value what a treasured symbol represents over the symbol itself is never easy. Especially not when you’ve already insulted said symbol.
I do like how Caballeron is using what he’s learned over the previous Daring Do episodes. Targeting Rainbow Dash, attacking the concept of Daring Do, thinking narratively, it shows he’s a wily adversary in his own right. I’m much less impressed with Dash doing absolutely nothing as his henchponies subdue her, but she was still reeling from the revelation that she’d helped him break Daring’s spirit. Granted, one could argue that she should’ve started punching him about halfway through his monologue, but such is life.
Also, Caballeron really needs to get that External Monologue Syndrome checked out. It’s advanced to full-on compulsive villainous gloating.
Yeah, deserts plus Pinkie don’t seem like a good mix. Unlike, say, desserts plus Pinkie.
So… Caballeron and his thugs are all earth ponies. How did he get to the top of the pyramid in time to gloat?
That wing paralyzing spell has an insanely long duration. That or it’s the sort of thing that lasts until the caster dismisses it, which the sphinx likely never did in all her rage and spite. I’d suspect the area was actually a dead zone for pegasus magic if the pegasi could move their wings within it, but the anatomical effects preclude that.
Those steam jets are several kinds of dumb. Not least because they’re still working after centuries of lying around presumably corrosive slime.
Wow, Daring. Not even going to stop Caballeron as he literally runs right past you? Okay, I guess.
This episode does some interesting work with the “heroic collateral damage” issue. Daring was in the wrong in that regard, given how she never made amends for all the havoc she caused in her efforts to save everypony. All said, G. M. Berrow is definitely improving as an episode writer, but there are still some decidedly weak bits of storytelling where the railroad tracks are plainly visible. Also, I wonder if Pinkie and Dash ever told anypony where they were going.
Still, there was definitely a lot to like, especially the legend. Now, let’s see what I can excavate from this site.
Somnambula Supplicant 1W
Creature — Pony Cleric
Eternalize 4WW (4WW, Exile this card from your graveyard: Create a token that’s a copy of it, except it’s a 4/4 black Zombie Pony Cleric with no mana cost. Eternalize only as a sorcery.)
Glowpaz has many uses.
2/2
Southern Innkeeper 2W
Creature — Pony Citizen
When Southern Innkeeper enters the battlefield, you gain life equal to the number of red permanents on the battlefield.
”I don’t mind you making a ruckus so long as you pay for it after.”
1/3
Somnambula, Ever Hopeful 2WW
Legendary Creature — Pegasus Warrior
Flying, vigilance, lifelink
As long as you have 6 or more life, damage that would reduce your life total to less than 5 reduces it to 5 instead.
As long as you have 5 or less life, you can’t lose the game and your opponents can’t win the game.
1/4
Restore Hope 4WW
Sorcery
Return up to one target artifact card, up to one target creature card, up to one target enchantment card, and up to one target planeswalker card from your graveyard to the battlefield.
Daring followed in Somnambula’s footsteps, righting thoughtless wrongs.
At a Loss 1U
Instant
Until end of turn, target creature loses all abilities and has base power and toughness 0/2.
Rainbow Dash was so stunned by her failure that she didn’t even notice the henchponies tying her up.
Persistent Infestation 2U
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant land you don’t control
Whenever enchanted land becomes tapped, create a 0/1 blue Pest creature token with flying.
Accordions still echo in the streets of Fillydelphia.
Cold Front Lobbyist 3U
Creature — Pegasus Advisor
Flying
Snow spells you cast cost 1 less to cast.
”Equestria will be much more prosperous when we move to the snowflake standard.”
2/2
Curse of the Spiteful Sphinx 3U
Enchantment — Aura Curse
Enchant player
Creatures enchanted player controls lose flying and can’t have or gain flying.
Though the sphinx herself is long gone, her desire to soar higher than any other yet lingers.
Pursuit of the Sphinx 4U
Legendary Enchantment
When Pursuit of the Sphinx enters the battlefield, draw three cards.
At the beginning of your end step, if you have seven or more cards in hand, transform Pursuit of the Sphinx.
Somnambula tracked the sphinx across the desert…
Pyramid of the Sphinx
Legendary Land
T: Add U to your mana pool.
T: Draw a card. Activate this ability only if you have exactly seven cards in hand.
… to a stronghold guarded by a thousand inscrutable eyes.
Weight of the World B
Sorcery
Destroy target creature if its power is less than or equal to the number of nonland permanents its controller controls.
Daring looked at her trophies and saw only those she’d hurt to get them.
Defame 1B
Instant
Choose one —
• Target creature gets -2/-2 until end of turn.
• Destroy target legendary creature.
Once Caballeron started thinking narratively, the plan fell into place.
Unseen Pilferers 2B
Creature — Pony Rogue
Skulk (This creature can’t be blocked by creatures with greater power.)
Whenever Unseen Pilferers deals combat damage to a player, create a colorless Treasure artifact token with “T, Sacrifice this artifact: Add one mana of any color to your mana pool.”
1/2
Curse of the Pharaoh’s Tomb 5B
Enchantment — Aura Curse
Enchant opponent
At the beginning of enchanted player’s upkeep, return target creature card from that player’s graveyard of his or her choice to the battlefield under your control.
Reckless Rascal 1RR
Creature — Pegasus Rogue
Flying
Whenever Reckless Rascal attacks or blocks, sacrifice a permanent.
”I’ve been to a lot of places. Most of them collapsed afterwards.”
—Daring Do
4/4
Dissent Sower 3R
Creature — Pony Rogue
At the beginning of each opponent’s upkeep, goad target creature that player controls. (Until your next turn, that creature attacks each combat if able and attacks a player other than you if able.)
His words are the spark that sets tempers alight.
2/1
Wildbunch Gang 4R
Creature — Pony Warrior
Menace, trample
Some of Daring Do’s adversaries are conniving con artists and immortal avatars of fury. Others just like hitting things.
5/2
Bubbling Slime 1G
Creature — Ooze
Whenever a player casts a spell, put a +1/+1 counter on Bubbling Slime.
Remove two +1/+1 counters from Bubbling Slime: Bubbling Slime gains indestructible until end of turn.
The slime isn’t good or evil. The slime simply is.
1/1
Lightning Totem 3
Artifact
T: Add R to your mana pool.
RRR: Lightning Totem becomes a 6/1 red Elemental artifact creature with trample, haste, and “At the beginning of the end step, sacrifice Lightning Totem.”
Shrine of Hope 3
Artifact
2, T: Target creature you control gains indestructible until end of turn. Put a brick counter on Shrine of Hope.
2, T: Creatures you control gain indestructible until end of turn. Activate this ability only if there are three or more brick counters on Shrine of Hope.
The future is always bright in Somnambula.
Glowpaz Pendant 4
Artifact
Green spells you cast cost 1 less to cast.
T: Add G to your mana pool.
Beauty is a magic all its own on Ungula.
The Doomed Diadem of Xilati 5
Legendary Artifact
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a doom counter on The Doomed Diadem of Xilati.
At the beginning of your end step, destroy each nonland permanent with converted mana cost equal to the number of doom counters on The Doomed Diadem.
1B: Put a doom counter on The Doomed Diadem or remove one from it.
Frightful Fiasco RW
Instant
Prevent all combat damage target creature would deal this turn. That creature’s controller sacrifices an artifact.
”In my defense, why does that town even have a china shop?”
—Daring Do
Scheduled Retirement 1WB
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
At the beginning of the end step of enchanted creature’s controller, exile that creature.
As Daring read the reports of the destruction she left in her wake, she knew what she had to do.
Sphinx Tyrant 4UR
Creature — Sphinx
Flying
Sphinx Tyrant has tribute X, where X is the number of creatures your opponents control.
When Sphinx Tyrant enters the battlefield, if tribute wasn’t paid, create X colorless Treasure artifact tokens, where X is the number of creatures your opponents control. Those tokens have “T, Sacrifice this artifact: Add one mana of any color to your mana pool.”
3/3
Mirage Dunes
Land — Desert
When Mirage Dunes enters the battlefield, scry 1. (Look at the top card of your library. You may put that card on the bottom of your library.)
T: Add C to your mana pool.
The sands around the sphinx’s old lair are still imbued with cryptic power.
I suspect the "steam" vents are actually the waste air from a pneumatic mechanism that is lowering the pillar... though I can't say how the seals on it are still holding good pressure after all this time.
From a Doylist perspective, I wondered if the bubbling green slime was originally meant to be hot lava, but got a note from Hasbro about being too perilous.
I still can't help but be confused about the fact that apparently there's one area in Equestria where everybody thinks that A. K. Yearling is just a talented writer and Daring Do is a completely fictional character, and another area in the same country (and presumably more) where everybody knows Daring Do is a real person and has apparently never heard of A. K. Yearling. One really has to wonder how long Daring Do is going to be able to keep up the ruse, especially since it seems to rely on people from different spots of the same country never interacting.
And what's with Ahuizotl's fixation with screwing around with the day-night cycle anyway?
In regards to the steam vents, my biggest gripe is not even so much that they had no foreshadowing as much as that previous shots of the slime pool clearly showed them not being there.
I did like the flashback, though. Especially the part with the animated hieroglyphics. That was a delight to watch.
Ahahahaha ^^
4664048
It's less that there's two distinct areas, and more that there's one distinct part of Equestria that Daring Do consistently has adventures in, and the rest of it just consumes her literature. And really, the only reason they don't know who A.K. Yearling is is because the publishers took one look at a region that was consistently getting tomb-raided, and decided it might be insensitive to try and glorify tomb-raiding to the one demographic that knew how horrible it really was.
It's been awhile since I've watched Daring Don't, but I think the difference is that in Daring Don't, we were supposed to know everything the protagonists did. In Daring Done, it's obvious to the viewers who Caballeron is, but I'm not sure if it was meant to be that obvious in the original script. Maybe his disguise was supposed to be better and the animators goofed. It was just a little frustrating waiting for the heroes to catch up to what even the youngest viewers knew right away.
Also, I can't figure out if there's supposed to be a question mark at the end of this episode's title. I've seen written it both ways.
I'd buy it if he had an earth pony with Pie family abilities, but that seems like a stretch. However, it might explain how they keep capturing Dash so easily in quick edits. That or lazy writing.
This was an enjoyable episode, but it's hard to ignore its many flaws. It's one of those episodes that I liked a bit less on the second watch because I found more things to nitpick.
Sphinx Tyrant feels like it doesn't really have a place. On one hand, it's best against a token deck. On the other hand, I would assume that any good token deck will have some form of flying, and ideally be a flying token deck, so they'll have plenty of chump-blockers for your 27/27 and don't need to risk you getting insane ramp.
4664039
They were allowed to use lava back in "Read it and Weep," so I doubt Hasbro expressed hesitance here. Besides, unless the pyramid was carved from a volcano, it may be easier to maintain slime.
4664048 4664052
The matter of news traveling slowly, if at all, between Adventureland and the reading public is more than a little odd.
4664053
"Fun but Flawed" is certainly an apt description of this episode. Also, yes, the question mark is definitely in the title.
4664056
Like most tribute monsters, Sphinx Tyrant shines brightest in games with more than two players. Sure, the token player with chump blockers for days will gladly pay tribute. That means you just direct your one-hit beater into the other guy.
Or you give it trample, or make it unblockable, or use a damage-based board wipe. You are playing blue and red, after all.
4664052
Eh. That's not really how most companies think, in my experience. I had personally chalked up the discrepancy to isolation more than anything -- the village seemed to be fairly off the beaten track. It's probably not the sort of place that gets anything like a steady inflow of mainstream pop culture, put it this way.
Regardless, it still seems to me that someone taking an exotic vacation and bringing along a book from a popular series is all it would take to blow this particular secret identity. Considering how many places Daring Do's adventures seem to take her, I still find it a bit surprising that she's managed to keep things up this long.
4664109
Why is there any suspicion that selling Daring Do books in this area would reveal a secret identity? If anything, Daring Do's local reputation as a tomb-raiding thug makes her less likely to be suspected of being A.K. Yearling, because they'll assume she's too illiterate. They'll do the thing people always do, which is assume Clark Kent and Superman are just really good friends.
And also, 'not how most companies think'? So, most companies would still try to market colonialist literature to Native Americans without a trace of irony? Seems like the choice between 'sell fiction that could be construed as either glorifying or having inspired a notorious bandit' and 'settle for only selling to the entire rest of the country' is an obvious one, especially in a world that doesn't give nearly as much of a tuppenny roll-in-the-hay about capitalism as America does.
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Nice allusion to the Fateful Hour mechanic with Somnambula.
Sphinx Tyrant is an interesting use of Tribute. Flavorful, too.
* Somnambula's a bit too Worship for my liking. At least its on a creature. I hated the original because if you weren't playing white (or maybe blue for Capsize/Boomerang/countering it), you essentially lost the game the second it hit the board.
* Last time I saw At A Loss, it was white and named Humble
* Reminder text on who controls the new tokens on Persistent Infestation might be called for.
* Part of me wants to complain about Pursuit of the Sphinx is wrong because Ixilan's flips are all artifact-to-land, but it's good and flavorful, so it gets a pass.
* Weight of the World has an interesting stipulation that I haven't seen before. Neat.
* Bubbling Slime would be awesome in EDH and Two-Headed Giant games.
A lot of good stuff this time. I approve!
Never made amends? I thought I saw her fix all the stuff she left behind at the end. She got the old guy a new apple cart, helped rebuild the statue, pay off her debt to the Inn Keeper, etc.
4664386
Persistent Infestation: It's pretty clear. Infestation's controller also controls the ability, and thus creates and controls the tokens.
Pursuit of the Sphinx: I take it you haven't seen Arguel's Blood Fast or Growing Rites of Itlimoc. (They're in the Double-Faced section.)
I like to think they just rebranded.
Also, I had the strange experience of seeing this one early through what's supposed to be an official channel. I get mine from Google Play, and whoever was handling the distribution seems to have had some… problems with ordering. I was confused last week when what I saw didn't seem to match the synopsis.
(The second half of Season 7 was also labeled “Season 7, Volume 13” for a while before it was fixed.)
4664460
No, i had not. It's neat to see Gaea's Cradle again, even in a roundabout way.
Left off a "next" on Lightning Totem: “At the beginning of the next end step, sacrifice Lightning Totem.”
Another set of interesting cards, especially The Doomed Diadem of Xilati.
I really like a lot of the various fan-art we've gotten of this episode but the emphasis on the word "hope" (and it's derivatives, especially "hoping") are a bit annoying.
4664386
On Worship: Green has always been really good at removing Enchantments, Naturalize has been around for a long time after all. Also, Black used to cause a lot of direct life loss that bypassed damage entirely, so that's how you deal with it there. (It looks like they are moving away from Black doing direct life loss as a main thing, since I've seen seeing a lot of Black direct damage instead. But it's not gone totally away yet, so that's good.)
Really, the only color that would have trouble with Worship would be Red.
Somnambula is more Platinum Angel than Worship really and even so you just win slash make them lose while they are above 5 life. Not even bringing up all the ways you can remove a creature from the board.
4666087
Not to be a dick, but you're wrong. Worship was first printed in Urza's Saga (late 1998) Naturalize wouldn't be printed until 8th Edition in 2003. The only Standard-legal targeted enchantment removal green had was Desert Twister, a rarely used 6-drop or Druid Lyricist a 1 drop that had required tapping and sacrificing him to destroy an enchantment, but so it had a huge "kick me" sign on it.. Sure, green had global enchantment destruction a la Tranquility, but there were plenty of really useful green enchantments in the meta; Aluren, Awakening, Fecundity, Greater Good, Oath of Druids, and that's just in green), so unless you want to not include them and/or hold them back in case he draws Worship, you were out of luck. Creeping Mold would come out that April in 6th Edition, but it was still 4 mana. We wouldn't get another mono-green targeted enchantment destruction until Seal of Cleansing in Planar Chaos.
Though looking at your suggestions, green had the to aforementioned cards, black had two possible answers (Brush with Death/Yawgmoth's Edict) and red had none; there was no way to destroy the enchantment and protecting the creatures was trivially easy.thanks to Absolute Law.
4666069
The missing next on Lightning Totem is intentional. As with its inspiration, if you somehow avoid the trigger, you'll still have to sacrifice it during the end step after that. Or the one after that. Or...
Well, you get the idea.
Somnabula of Equestria, you inspire great hope. Welcome to Sakura's Angels
Sorry, I'm reading a Power Ring centred fanfic right now, and this just popped into my head.