Fic recs, June 17th! · 6:26pm Jun 17th, 2019
You know it's been a while when I've got two Scribbler readings to talk about. <.< Her newest is shortskirtsandexplosions's The Tail End of It, with MamiDulugo, Cloud9, Keyframe, Jxnny, Caitbug and Sugar Cloud! She also did RTStephens's Finding Inner Shine, with GutiuSerenade, Goombasa and meeee! :D
And I did a reading of Trick Question's hilarious Candy Mane's Almost-Epic Slice-of-Life Adventure! Just in time, too...
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This week, it's just a bunch of stories I wanted to get read.
H: 2 R: 1 C: 2 V: 0 N: 1
Spike Gives Twilight "The Talk" by Inky Scrolls
Genre: Sexual Comedy
Spike discovers a gap in Twilight's knowledge base.
I love stories about ponies not knowing where babies come from, but this one has some issues. For starters, quite a few characters don't sound like themselves, including Spike, Rainbow Dash and the Princesses. This is a real issue when three of them are around for most of the story. Second, there isn't much to the story beyond what's in the title. The first chapter is literally just Spike giving Twilight the Talk, with no further punchline. It's funny to find out Twilight doesn't know what sex, but to hear someone describe the plain facts to her, with only moderate embarrassment, well, it's not exactly interesting. If the description is to be believed, all four chapters were originally posted on their own, and I say bringing them together in one story was the right decision, as that first entry really is not a story on its own. Worse, the second chapter is the exact same thing, just with Celestia and Luna. The third chapter is arguably the funniest, as Twilight and Spike get caught up in a game of Telephone (though, of course, it's worth mentioning this is a story where Spike knows about sex, so YMMV), but it still isn't great. The fourth chapter relies too much on the narrator talking to the audience for its comedy. So what we're left with is honestly fairly lackluster as comedies go, with a funny premise that is not explored one whit beyond its inception and potentially gross proximity of sex to Spike.
Not Recommended
The Place I Feel Safest by Lucky Seven
Genre: Sad
There's a reason Roseluck tends her garden.
There was something about the writing in this piece that didn't quite sit 100% with me, but that I also couldn't put my finger on. Then Roseluck called Fluttershy on her phone. <.< That's about the only thing really wrong with this, though. It maybe skirts up against melodrama toward the end, but it certainly doesn't wallow in it. A hard sell, being about a background pony and an OC, but not bad.
Recommended for Roseluck Fans
Home Is for the Weak by Pickleless
Genre: Random Comedy
A princess in disguise and a homeless orphan share a box in an alleyway.
Hey, it's time once again for Them's Writin' Words, and here's our turkey. (Spoilers: They actually liked this one!) Or should I say chicken? Because this story feels like nothing but chicken jokes sometimes. <.< For what it's worth, this comes by its random tag honestly; it's not so much "lol tacos" as it is one can never expect what to find from chapter to chapter. It's not written linearly, and it pops from ridiculous comedy to occasionally heartwarming and sometimes uncomfortable at the drop of a hat. But mostly, it's ridiculous comedy. Scootaloo and "Nopony" talk about drugs, sex, politics, you name it, it's always ridiculous. There is some plot, and it keeps being revisited when you least expect it. I don't honestly know who's going to want to read this — for the most part, you want to turn your brain off and just roll with the ridiculous punches — but the best part is a tossup between the chapter about Sunset Shimmer and Diamond Tiara living in Muffinland, and the one where Scootaloo cons a changeling into being her dad for a day.
"She tells you you're bloomin' for a doomin'."
"Well, I tell her she's scootin' for a bootin'!"
Also, it contains the greatest exchange ever written in ponyfiction.
Recommended If You Like Random Comedy
So You've Just Seduced Your Best Friend by Nyronus
Companion Piece to So You've Just Slept With Your Best Friend
Genre: EQG Shipping
Twilight and Sunset wake up in bed together.
Man, what do I even want anymore? I read a really solid drama where Twilight and Sunset end up together in the end, and I'm disappointed? Has the emotional distress of others become my catharsis? What the fuck, me? Well, apologies for the spoilers; the point is, this is really good. There's a blog the author links in the description, talking about the changes that took place between the first story and this one, and they really do show. This is a strong look into Princess Twilight screwing up big time while meddling in Sunset's life, and an equally strong look into why she might have done it in the first place. I suppose I did want things to not blow over so easily, so I suspect this will satisfy shippers most of all. I cannot deny it's a very good story, though.
Recommended
Candy Mane's Nearly-Romantic Hearts and Hooves Day Dramedy by Trick Question
Sequel to Candy Mane's Almost-Epic Slice-of-Life Adventure
Genre: Comedy
Even an unclever pony like Candy Mane attracts attention on Hearts and Hooves Day. Woe betide her attractee…
Trick Question did it again. It should not have been humanly possible to recreate the success of the first Candy Mane story, but she is back and uncleverer than ever! :D Some jokes come back, some are expanded upon, many are made up whole cloth, and they're all great. (The squirrel conspiracy is fantastic.) That she kept it up for more words only makes this better. :) Be sure to read the first story, because it's excellent in its own right, then come back and check this one out too!
Highly Recommended
The Mare Behind the Mare by Eakin
Genre: Political Intrigue
Being a princess is a hard job. It's a good thing Twilight has a friend like Rarity.
The thing that gets me about this story: no Romance tag. Maybe Eakin isn't a shipper, I don't know, but setups like this always end in romance, and I'm very pleased to see one that's being sensible and sticking to the important stuff for once. :) Actually, what it's really missing is a comedy tag, because I found myself laughing a whole lot. There's really nothing more enjoyable than watching a well-laid but obtuse plan come to fruition. The decision to write the second half first-person in Rarity's POV is just the icing on the cake. This was a real treat.
Highly Recommended
Wait, hold on
Wait
This sounds like my jam.
Neat~
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I have returned from reading the fic in question. It was definitely my jam!