Murky Number Seven- Project Horizons Done Right (Do I even need to say that there are spoilers here?)

Here we are. Fallout: Equestria- Murky Number Seven, the story that, in my opinion, takes the Fo:E crown.

And I am being completely serious with that statement.

MN7 really is Project Horizons done right. It has the length in words and the grand scale, it has the extremely bleak atmosphere, it has direct ties to the original Fo:E, and it also has tremendous tragedy as well.

However, this has some differences that make it work: it's confined to Fillydelphia alone, the tie-ins to the original are used to progress the story rather than to intrude on the original, and, most importantly, this story made me want to see the characters all the way through to the end.

While it is true that Fillydelphia seems to fall into the same trap as Hoofington from PH of being too large, we also have to take into account that real-life Philadelphia is the largest city in Pennsylvania. If you look at a map of Philadelphia, you could rationalize that, yes, Fillydelphia could possibly be as large as it is here. As such, the size of the city doesn't bother me here as much as it did in PH.

The tie-ins are used to help inspire others, provide hope, cause despair, and otherwise drive the plot along. And they are brought in well enough that the tie-ins don't feel distracting.

Finally, the characters, the ones who make this story work. Murky especially is a character you can't help but feel sorry for, especially with his background and when we first see him, as well as several other factors including his illness. Top it all off with him being a pegasus with broken wings, and the sympathy just keeps rolling in.

I won't talk about the other protagonists here, as Murky provides an excellent base example. They each have their own histories, their own strengths and weaknesses, their own villains and challenges to overcome, they make a wonderful family of sorts, and when the final act came, well...

Let's just say that when I finished this story, I was internally screaming for joy, and I think I physically had trouble breathing for about half an hour afterwards. It seriously hit me that hard. Not even the original Fo:E was able to get that reaction out of me.

So if you have not read this story yet I highly encourage you to read it. I'm fairly certain you will not be disappointed.

But for those of you who have read it, what were your thoughts? Is it better than the first story? Worse? What were your favorite moments from this story? Favorite characters? And what emotional impact did this story have on you? Did it inspire you? Did you find it preachy? Did it make you laugh? Cry? Give you hope?

Let me know in the comments. And, once again, thank you for reading.