Fic recs, July 30th: Fimfiction Feghoot Festival edition! · 1:12pm Jul 30th, 2019
Less than 24 hours after the last review post, here's another!
And in a little more than 24 hours from, I'll be going to Bronycon! c.c Some people have already left, I think, so hopefully this isn't ill-timed. Point is, I haven't really come to terms with it yet, so have a few dozen completely ridiculous entries to one of this site's silliest writing contests of all time. Usual caveats apply: judging is still ongoing (round 2 just started today, as a matter of fact), these ratings do not necessarily reflect my scores, the final outcomes, etc.
God, this is gonna take a while to format.
Breaking news: Aragon did a thing. What.
H: 6 R: 25 C: 26 V: 5 N: 2
Man and Magistrate by TheMessenger
Genre: Doctor Who/Historical Crossover
It all began with a misdelivered package...
Oh boy. Ohhhhh boy, here we go. Starting off with a hum-dinger. This is, admittedly, a pretty okay story. I found it a tad hard to follow in places, mostly because of the obfuscation necessary to make a feghoot work, and there were a few typos that were easily gotten around. The pun was very much not worth making, but I expect I'll be saying that about a lot of these. What did I get myself into?
Recommended If You Like Feghoots
The Cynical Stallion by PewDashiePie
Genre: Fable
There once was a stallion who tried to make his fortune in truffling pigs…
This actually isn't a feghoot. It leads up to a visual pun, not a written one, how great for me. :D The writing is okay, though this is written very plainly, like a fairy tale. It wasn't particularly funny, either, and I'm not sure about a pony named Wilbur. Like, I was expecting that to be part of the joke, but it wasn't, so why? It's all right.
Vaguely Recommended
Cataclysm (Of the Pun Variety) by The Bricklayer
Genre: Comedy
In an effort to catch up on Equestrian norms, Luna has discovered the 'art' of the pun. Woe betide.
Huh. o.O This one's not a feghoot, either. Interestingly, though, it's about puns, and why we both love and hate them. That is something I 100% appreciate someone having written a story about.
Recommended
Sugarless Gumption by FanOfMostEverything
Genre: EQG Comedy
Stuck in a baking-related wager, Pinkie Pie seeks help from the best baker she knows: herself.
It's funny, I just saw Backstage Pass and was marveling at how well Sunset and Pinkie work together, and here's FOME just days ahead of the release, showing us how it's done. I'll never get tired of stories about the EQG kids going to Equestria, and this really delivers. Hell, it even ends with a pun I found funny! This was a lot of fun, perfectly well written, and the kind of story I personally want to read. :) inb4 FOME wins another contest
Highly Recommended
What About Mistmane? by bahatumay
Genre: Episode Followup
The ever humble Mistmane never took credit for any of her feats. Good thing Rockhoof was there to remember them.
Y'know, this was a really good followup to A Rockhoof and a Hard Place. I really like that guy, and that episode, and just a short fic of him telling stories about cool stuff from the past is a great thing to have. Of course, it's all done in the service of feghootery. All I'll say is I've seen it before, but I did not see it coming. Good lord.
Recommended
Rarity Dreams of Non-Electric Sheep by Kris Overstreet
Review #5800!
Genre: Comedy
It's awful.
To answer the description's question, yes, and also can we just exclude filk from everything ever? :P Personal issues aside, the song chosen to adapt was not exactly an easy one, so this is impressive on a technical level. It also has one really solid laugh-out-loud moment. So yeah, not bad for a short comedy.
Recommended If You Like Filk
Egghead on the Go by bahatumay
Genre: EQG Comedy
Sunset and Rainbow Dash check out Twilight's newest invention.
Oh boy, it's good when the description makes you laugh. It'll let you know what you're in for here, too: naughty acronyms. That's basically all the story has to it, though I was endlessly amused that both Rainbow and Sunset continually picked up on what was going on while Twilight remained oblivious. Writing's good, too.
Recommended If You Laugh at Bad Words
Make New Friends by Fallowsthorn
Genre: Comedy
Discord tells Twilight a story.
The problem with puns, wordplay and feghoots is you need to reference something the reader is likely to have heard of. In this case, the joke essentially needs to be explained, and is via Youtube link in the A/N, so the feghoot falls flat. But if you're okay with that, this is a really funny story on its own merits. The banter is top-notch and I adored the epilogue. So it's weird, in that it kind of fails to be a good entry but still succeeds at being a fun story.
Recommended
Lawsuits, Suitcases and Punishment by TheMessenger
Genre: Courtroom Comedy
Mayor Mare asks Princess Twilight to preside over a courtroom trial.
Boy, this was a lot of work for very little payoff. Throughout the whole thing, Mayor Mare keeps summarizing the facts as we know them, adding more and more details onto it. And I kept paying attention to it, waiting for that to blow up into a song or a pun or something, but it never did. Instead, we got a fairly weak pun at the end that honestly didn't justify going through all that came before it. This wasn't awful, but it's kind of a chore to read.
Recommended If You Enjoy Reading Small-Town Politics
Trial for a Rest by Marwile
Genre: EQG Comedy
Twilight's been acting strange ever since she made a typo on her test.
Whoof, this is three feghoots and each one's a worse pun than the last. I feel like the buildup to the first one was actually all over the place. I mean, it would have been better to establish the whole "fake courtroom" plan than focus on Sci-Twi freaking out. But the writing's all right, I guess, this just wasn't to my taste.
Recommended If You Like Feghoots
At the Swimmin' Hole by SockPuppet
Genre: Slice of Life
The Apples explain just what landed Apple Bloom in the hospital.
The pun at the end of this is atrocious, oh my god. I don't even know why I'm so up in arms over it, but yeesh. The rest of it is thus comparatively tame, though there is a neat idea in the middle that I would like to see more of. Just, no puns. Oh god, why am I here?
Recommended If You Like Feghoots
Si Vis Bellum, Para Scilis by TheDriderPony
Genre: World-Building
In the early days of diplomacy, a conference was called of all speaking races.
Call me greedy, but the only thing that could improve this is word count. This is some top-notch world-building, but it's just told to us in summary form. Granted, it's the kind of summary that is perfectly suited to the subject, like a history book or similar. In particular, I was impressed by the creation of a magical creature that fits… well, when magical creatures were a lot more fanciful in the show. c.c Sigh. This was great, though.
Recommended
Peace of Cake by Flutterpriest
Genre: AiE
Rainbow Dash has a problem with the beer.
I don't know this joke was worth making, but oh boy, that buildup. You can just tell, because Rainbow Dash is using some strange words, that something's about to happen. Anon never actually appears in the story and mostly just exists to make the bad joke at the end, which is fine. Short butt fun.
Recommended for AiE Fans
Rarity Borrows a Knife by AlexTFish
Genre: EQG Rom-Com
She wants to redecorate a chest of drawers.
And AlexTFish shows us how it's done! There's so much going on in here that even though I saw some of the signs, I had no idea what I was getting into. This is far more elaborate a wordplay than anything I have ever read, not just in this contest. Plus, EQG Rarijack on top of it! How could I resist?
Highly Recommended
Change by CapNTilfy
Genre: Random Comedy
Rarity is not happy about the changes coming to the Ponyville spa.
This was a little too random for my tastes, from the copious referential jokes to the meta jokes pointing out how lazy the writing is. The section in the middle with the OC who hates his life was actually really good comedy; I wish more of this had been written that way. And it's not even a feghoot!
Not Recommended
Ghost Butters by DragonGeek
Genre: Adventure
Daring Do encounters a peculiar ghost while searching a ruin for artifacts.
I haven't been trolled this hard since Nothing Gold Can Stay, and the worst part was, I knew it was coming the entire time. This is a fantastic story, with Daring Do encountering a very unique situation as she searches for a fabled Cornucopia. It's packed full of emotion and creativity, and then it ends on a terrible, dumb, stupid, really bad joke that isn't even bad in the way puns are bad, but is bad because very little of the story actually exists to set it up. I'm so mad, you guys, but the first half of this story, at the very least, is worth reading.
Recommended
Project Feghootenberg by cucharrador
Genre: EQG Comedy
Pinkie Pie helps Rainbow Dash print out her paper.
Ah yes, anthology entries. I'll have to deal with the stories one by one, but since we've got two entries whose word count doesn't equal the third, I'll just do one review. Dash's Report I like because of the copious use of Pinkie logic in constructing a really terrible, really funny pun. The single, short action scene is a little dry, but it's otherwise workable. Ribbons kind of didn't need to be written. <.< The pun's clever in hindsight, but the way it's set up… Basically, if someone was going to tell you a joke face-to-face, this would be how they tell it. Avian Assistance is a much better story, though, very in-character for both Pinkie and Fluttershy. I saw the pun coming a mile away, but that's your lot. :V
Recommended for Laughs
Ree Sai Koh Lin Wod by Doug Graves
Genre: Random Comedy
That title, though. <.< It certainly sets expectations for this bizarre comedy. I have two issues with this, other than the pun being dumb. First, I think this is going for absurdity, but there's no comedic timing. Things just happen, there's little rhyme nor reason to anything going on. Second, it's Rainbow Dash telling a story in real-time, and she's telling it like a writer writers, not like how she speaks. Coming away from everything, I just feel like I missed something.
Vaguely Recommended
Kirin Clippings by Flutterpriest
Genre: Random Comedy
Sweetie Belle is minding the store for Rarity when who should walk in but a Kirin.
I have to say, this stands out above the rest of the pack by virtue of not being afraid to be dumb. >.> And boy, is it dumb! But I laughed. Writing was obviously not as intensely scrutinised beforehand as Flutterpriest's other entry.
Recommended for Laughs
Spike's Eye Exam by StarkyShy
Genre: Slice of Life
Twilight takes Spike to the optometrist.
Once again, they got me. Really should have seen that coming, and I have to applaud the author for a bad pun well done. Fans of Spike and Twilight interaction will get a lot out of this.
Recommended
The Miss Equestrian Champion Beauty Pageant by MicahDebrink
Genre: Comedy
The Miss Teen Equestria beauty pageant is undergoing some changes thanks to Twilight Sparkle.
I'm not sure this story knows what it wants to be. It notes the problems with its subject matter while still embracing other things that are just as problematic. I had a really hard time figuring out if it was supposed to be set present-day (which makes the sexual remarks really not great) or in the future. POV was an issue. And worst of all, the pun just doesn't work. If there hadn't been a spoiler in the A/N, I'd have just been left wondering what it was supposed to be; at least now I can say it was simply completely missed.
Not Recommended
Smashed. by KorenCZ11
Genre: The Hangover
After waking up with a hangover next to a strange stallion, Applejack tries to figure out what happened to her table.
Wow. It's been a while since I saw Applejack's accent overwritten, but I'm pretty sure I've never seen it done so in first-person narration. And while I'm on the subject of the writing, the author has a nasty habit of starting a paragraph with a line of dialogue, then mentioning in the following line the character who speaks in the next paragraph, which makes for hella confusing reading. That aside, the writing was decent, the dialogue especially so. The plot is fairly convoluted, as one might expect, the final scene is a lengthy Phoenix Wright joke, and the pun, I'm sorry to say, was not worth the seven thousand words it took to get to. That said, that's a lot of hangover shenanigans, so if you enjoy that kind of thing, the journey might well be worth it.
Recommended Only If You Enjoy Drunk Ponies
A Simple Explanation by Raugos
Genre: EQG Dark Comedy
I want to start by saying that this story has the best description ever written on this site. This should be in fucking textbooks on how to write eye-catching, compelling descriptions for fanfiction on the internet. (They are very niche books. <.<) It's a shame there's no Best Description award for this contest, because you're looking at the winner right here. That's why I didn't write my own: I cannot conceivably do better. Unfortunately, description aside, it's just a well-written dark comedy that ends on a really dumb pun. I guess I got my hopes up? c.c It's still good, don't get me wrong. Just… that description is a thing of beauty, okay?
Recommended
Springtime on the Farm by BoredAuthor817
Genre: EQG
Applejack's attempt to show her friends the new farm animals leads to endless naming.
Once again, we are in "not a feghoot" territory. I have to say, this is a pretty cute slice of life, it just ends on a dumb joke that wasn't built up to at all. YMMV
Recommended for EQG Fans
Pest Control in a Marediterranean Climate by Kris Overstreet
Genre: Comedy
Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash are called on a friendship quest. What they needed to call were exterminators.
It is so dumb that this manages to make four different puns based on the same thing and at least one of them was hilarious. I'm talking best pun of the entire contest, here. And the story itself is more than just buildup, with lots of ridiculous wordplay that I thought was going to be the real joke. Imagine my surprise. This was delightful.
Recommended
The Art Class by bahatumay
Genre: EQG Comedy
Rainbow Dash attends a community art class for some inspiration.
In this story, Rainbow Dash is:
- Late to an art class
- Hornswaggled by Tree Hugger's nudity
- Completely befuddled by art supplies
And yet somehow, it's not as funny as you'd think. Well, the last bit is. But honestly, I liked the first scene, where it's just Sunset and Fluttershy talking while waiting for Dash to show up. Just, the dialogue was really good and I wouldn't have minded if it was the whole story. Odd.
Recommended for EQG Fans
Peak Crusading by FanOfMostEverything
Genre: Future Fic
The Cutie Mark Crusaders adapt to a changing world.
Oh boy, that pun didn't need to be made. 
Well, it's certainly an interesting if not necessarily laugh-out-loud look at what the CMCs might be doing in 20 years. Like, no joke, despite being a setup for a terrible pun, this is good world-building.
Recommended as Light Reading
Gone in a Blaze of Glory by GaraTheAuthor
Genre: Drug Comedy
Now a Wonderbolt, Rainbow Dash learns her lifelong heroes' darkest secrets.
Oh boy, this was really funny. Granted, if you didn't grow up during the war on drugs, with all the "winners don't do drugs" signs on video games and after-school special PSAs, you might not appreciate this for what it is. But it's so great. And I really like seeing the Wonderbolts use lingo like "eat shit".
Recommended
Here I Am at Camp Sonata by TheDriderPony
400th Review of 2019!
Genre: EQG Comedy
The discount camp turned out to be nothing like the brochure said.
Trivia: I am a huge Alan Sherman fan (these days, you probably have to be one as well to know who he was), so I appreciate the hell out of that title. I also appreciate the hell out of this story! It's one of the funniest entries in this contest, and the pun is… Well, admittedly, it's a little out there and you'll likely have to check the comments if you don't get it, but damn, it's pretty impressive! This is now one of my favorite entries.
Highly Recommended
Welcome to Japan by PapierSam
Genre: EQG
Sunset and her friends try to figure out how to deal with windigos showing up in the human world.
This is a really good story ending on what I have to admit is a very weak pun. Thankfully, there's plenty of story to enjoy here, most of it very tense but otherwise slice of life school stuff as they try to figure out why the windigos are there. There's even some good Sunset angst, which I always appreciate. :)
Recommended
In the Park by Level Dasher
Genre: Slice of Life
Sandbar and Ocellus watch their siblings play in the park.
Oh boy. Been a while since I hit a real groaner, and boy is this one. A pretty short and sweet story, though, especially if you like the students.
Recommended as Light Reading
Ruined Breakfast by Level Dasher
Genre: Comedy
Pancake presses are magical.
Whoof, awful pun alert. I thought the last one was bad! This is considerably lighter on story, so there's really not much to it.
Recommended as Light Reading
Customer Service by Level Dasher
Genre: Comedy
Gallus and Smolder decided to get a job over the summer for some extra bits.
The puns are still execrable, but this is the best out of these three entries. There's more story, and some good comedy along the way. Plus, I mean, we've all been there, right?
Recommended for Laughs
Device Naming by Anonomis
Genre: EQG Comedy
Sunset just wants to listen to her MP3 player in peace.
This story is… not particularly good. There are tons of punctuation issues, the plot meanders from one idea to the next with no seeming connection or pacing, the dialogue is not great, there's word misuse… And it has one of the best puns in the entire contest. I really hate how this is making me feel.
Vaguely Recommended
Two Cracked Eggs by FanficReader920
Genre: EQG Comedy
Sunset's breakfast is interrupted by Pinkie Pie.
This is pretty darn good. Pinkie tells Sunset the entire story of why she thinks the cops are after her, and Sunset keeps breaking in with jumped-to conclusions. It goes to some crazy places. I was just admiring Pinkie's adorable naivete when the pun hit. Whoof. This is precisely the kind of story that this contest was looking for.
Recommended
Twilight Sparkle Sues the Bronycon Bookstore by Flutterpriest
Genre: Meta Comedy
And not for the reasons you'd think.
I don't think there's an entry I've been more excited to read. I mean, the bookstore hasn't even happened yet! XD Man, this is a laugh a minute, up until the point it decides to be a surprisingly heartwarming paean to the fandom. It does suffer from a severe case of talking heads, which also makes it read really fast, but it was fun. I can't even with the author inserts for Aquaman and RBDash47 though.
Recommended
Introduction to Applied Pinkieology by FanOfMostEverything
Sequel to Sugarless Gumption
Genre: EQG Comedy
Twilight Sparkle approaches herself with a proposal.
In-contest sequels? Madness. So, this was a laugh riot. Whereas FOME's previous entry was along the lines of a laser-etched masterpiece, this is more taking a bunch of fun ideas and making a salad out of them. There's cross-dimensional shenanigans, ship-teasing, just everything I want from a good EQG comedy. :D Goddamn, that fucking pun though…
Recommended
Overcast by KorenCZ11
Genre: Light Comedy
Derpy gets stuck in the sky.
The comedy in this is really low-key, and a lot of it comes from the copious references to song titles. In fact, I'd say that's the prime wordplay here; the pun at the end almost isn't, since it can be taken literally. Mostly, though, this is worth reading just for the excellent characterization of Derpy. The whole thing is told first-person, and her head is a good place to be in.
Recommended
Septuagennial Support Meeting by Lofty Withers
Genre: Comedy
A new face(?) comes to Celestia's immortals support group meeting.
It's a shame this story had to stop and deliver a pun, because I like the cast of assembled characters and could have stood to listen to them banter and squabble for a few thousand words more. That's always the draw with stories like this.
Recommended for Laughs
It's a Brick Party. It's Going to Get Weird. by Lofty Withers
Genre: What?
Rainbow Dash is throwing a brick party. Bring a friend!
Boy, I don't even. For once, I saw a pun coming before it landed — it's actually funny this time, too — but the rest of this, I don't even know. There's rapid-fire dialogue, a running shipping gag, and Ahuizotl trying not-so-covertly to build something in Ponyville. It could be considered a sequel to the previous story, though not really one you have to read second. It's definitely nuts.
Recommended If You Like Random Stuff
The (Second) Rise and Fall of the Storm King by TheDriderPony
Genre: Adventure
The Storm King has returned, smarter than ever before, and conquered Equestria.
Y'know what this contest has been missing? Story. Because, I mean, you sit down to write a feghoot, you're gonna come up with some goofy wordplay or a pun, and then hang a plot on that to justify someone saying the final line, and that's it. The story exists for no further purpose than to lead up to the punchline. But this? Not only is it four feghoots in one, it's a really great, original adventure. The world-building is, in a word, 'cockamamie', but what is here not only justifies each line of wordplay, but also holds internal logic beyond a single thousand-word chapter. And the pun in chapter 3 is superb. This was really lots of fun, I hope everyone reads it.
Highly Recommended
This Story Sucks by JackRipper
Genre: EQG Supernatural Romance/Comedy
Sunset's in the hospital and Fluttershy's in a coffin. How could this get any worse?
This is another one of those stories where I can't come up with a good, original description for it because the author has already given us one that's perfect. So I stole it and made it worse. :V This was really great. I particularly like how the 'incident' which turned Fluttershy into a vampire is only ever mentioned as such, and never gone into detail. This was quick and snappy, and for all that I want to find out more about the situation, this was a really solid, fun story.
Highly Recommended
The Shoreline Shape Up by Loganberry
Genre: Comedy
Applejack travels to the Dream Coast for a working vacation.
Easy way to get me to like your fic: sprinkle it with copious G1 references. :V So, this was fun, a solid little piece of world-building and silliness of the sort only Loganberry can make. That said, the pun references something horribly obscure, at least to my American mind, so YMMV on the final line. I still liked this.
Recommended
Rock On by Loganberry
Genre: Rom-Com?
Maud is ready to take her relationship to the next level.
For once, it's a total coincidence I'm reading two of an author's entries back to back. This was… well, it was something. Short, to the point, kind of a goofy one-upping of that episode with Mudbriar that didn't suck. The pun is pretty egregious though, not gonna lie.
Recommended for Laughs
Getting Your Hopes Up by Sollace the Bearded
Genre: Comedy
I never used to have a dream, not until I met her…
It's not a feghoot, but this one's all about the punchline. Well, okay, and it does a good job depicting a pony turning obsession into motivation. I dunno, I liked it!
Recommended
Glimmery Glam by _Moonshot
Genre: Adventure
Twilight and Maud seek help from Maud's old roommate for a sand-related conundrum.
Sometimes, with feghoots, you can see all the parts that are going to come together, but you have no idea how they'll form into a single thing. This pun was so bad, oh my god, it's hilarious. And for an author's first fic, this is really good. The first scene in particular was excellent, though the rest was maybe a little subpar by comparison. It's still a good read, with a lot of fun bits here and there, especially if you want to see Maud interacting with other characters.
Recommended for Laughs
Cooking Lessons by BoredAuthor817
Genre: EQG
Apple Bloom is finally big enough to help Granny Smith in the kitchen.
Dang. Not only will this story actually teach you how to cook eggs (mostly) the right way (Apple Bloom doesn't quite do it right her first time), it was just a super-cute slice of life piece with AB and her granny. Admittedly, I missed the EQG tag and was a little surprised by the mention of hands, but all in all, this is a fun little story. :)
Recommended
Boot Hoot's by Doug Graves
Genre: Poem
Celestia goes to find a companion for her
Well, I appreciate the attempt to imitate Fox in Socks, as some of that whimsy comes through, but this is some tortured poetry. Not just meter is off; this rhymes words with themselves constantly, and I grew quickly tired of dealing with the internal rhymes, which tended to be in those sections. If nothing else, I wish the author had just picked ABAB or AABB and stuck with it. It does get crazy toward the end, in a good way, and I appreciate the attempt to give Owlowiscious an origin, but I was not a fan.
Vaguely Recommended
Circular Reasoning by Samey90
Genre: EQG Dark Comedy
Wild Fire has an accident at work.
It has been a long time since I saw anyone write about Wild Fire. :) The dialogue in this story could use a little work, but I was amused by who Wild Fire's coworkers turned out to be, and their conversation about what to do with 'the body' was hilarious. Pun at the end was great, too. Not bad!
Recommended for Laughs
A Big MAS-take by SilverStar7
Genre: Mentally Advanced Series Crossover
Have Twilight and Spike finally found an Equestria that's a paradise?
This one's really hard to swallow, mostly because I'm not really familiar with the Mentally Advanced Series beyond what appears in Rainbow Dash Presents. So the opening was a strange combination of "I already know this" and "I have no idea what's going on". That said, I guess it makes sense even without an in-depth knowledge of what they've been through? The pun at the end is pretty bad, though, and takes a while to figure out. It was also kind of unnecessary (contest aside), given that there's a better punchline before it happens.
Vaguely Recommended
Rarity Investigates: Shots at Star Swirl by BoredAuthor817
Genre: EQG Mystery
Rarity tries to find a lost portfolio at the Star Swirl Music Festival.
I'm always in awe of a good mystery, and one that both works and ends on a carefully set-up pun deserves some credit. That said, this has some serious proofreading issues, from problems with dialogue punctuation to missing and even misused words. The writing is a bit of a letdown, in other words, but I did enjoy watching this come together. Oof, that pun though.
Recommended If You Don't Mind Editing Mistakes
Twilight Sparkle and the Rock Monster by jakkid166
Genre: Trollfic
Twilight decides to make Spike a friend.
Oh my god. We were all excited when we heard jakkid was going to be in the feghoot contest, and he definitely delivered to my expectations. :D This is a beautiful garbage fire of a story, fraught less with writing errors than continual errors in logic. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll try and talk ROBCakeran out of drinking himself to death. Tenouddaten, Highly Troll Recommended.
Recommended
A Diamond Dog Applies for a Loan by Twinkletail
Genre: Comedy
Applejack is filling in at the School of Friendship when a strange customer appears.
Okay, so the one question, the single, very pointed question, that lingers in my mind after reading this is why — why on Celestia's green Equestria — is anyone coming to the School of goddamn Friendship for a loan? What am I missing here? <.< Anyway, this is fine, but the pun is painful, possible because it's so predictable.
Recommended for Laughs?
Roc Banned by AlexTFish
Genre: Comedy
Ponyville is having problems with a roc. The Mayor calls on Rarity to help.
Okay, this is how it's done. That pun hurt, and it hurt a lot, but it also was really clever. Besides, this whole story is nothing but puns, it seems, and especially ponies getting cut off from making them. Plus, you rarely see Mayor Mare in a leading role on an adventure of this sort. This was really what all these authors should have been shooting for.
Recommended
Raising the Baa by Loganberry
Genre: Slice of Life
Fluttershy brings a new friend back from the Crystal Empire.
Oof, ouch, that was a high quality pun. Actually, I'm rather impressed with this story, Logan's put a lot of effort into it and it pays off. Nothing world-shattering, but a very good turn for an understanding Fluttershy and a very bewildered Twilight.
Recommended
Into the Twily-verse by Raugos
Genre: Comedy
Another day, another Twilight being sucked through an interdimensional portal into this world.
I hate to say it, but the only downside to this story is the pun. It's pretty bad. But what makes the rest of it work is that each scenario, each Twilight, isn't lingered on too long. It would have been too easy to simply go "here's dragon Twilight and what she looks like and how her world is different!" Over and over and over again. You know what I mean. Instead, each gets their scene, their personality, their character, and it's all given to us extremely well. This was a lot of fun and I hope everyone reads it.
Highly Recommended
Whoya Gonna Call? by Lexicon_Spark
Genre: Slice of Dark
Minuette goes to a bar looking for a pony who can help with nightmares.
I dunno what to classify this one as. <.< Quite the pun, though. Best part of that is it helps offset the feeling that this could have been better as not-a-feghoot. I mean, it's a classic setup: word of mouth leads protagonist with mysterious affliction to seek help from an even more mysterious person. (Not to mention that, before she was called Minuette, people used to ship 'Colgate' with Berry Punch…) Still a good, short read though.
Recommended
Pantsed by Lofty Withers
Genre: Not What It Seems
Why isn't Wallflower wearing pants? And should Rainbow give it a try?
Boy, this was confusing. XD I mean, I knew the "getting high" bit had to be an entendre, and the fact that it was revealed halfway through just really threw me off. I sort of staggered, dazed, through the rest of the story and its unmarked RariDash shipping. (Not that I'm complaining.) This was weird!
Recommended If You Enjoy Weird Stuff
Smuggling Deadlines by River Road
Genre: Comedy
It wasn't so much a question of whether any of Twilight's friends would commit an interdimensional crime, but who and when.
What a weird comedy. It all revolves around the illegal importation of plants across the mirror, all for the big pun at the end that… Honestly wasn't quite as funny as I wanted it to be? I mean, it makes sense, it works as a big reveal, but some of the gravity was lost, I think, sacrificed to the dark pun god Feg'hoot. Still, it's the journey, as they say, and this journey was a lot of fun. Go see if you can figure it out for yourself!
Recommended
Apples of Inspiration, and Their Effects on Time and Relative Dimensions in Space by JMac
Genre: Comedy
Pinkie Pie just really doesn't want Time Turner to find out about the fourth wall.
I have to give this story credit for doing a "timey-wimey" joke but actually putting a new spin on it. Kudos. Of course, what this really deserves credit for is the double pun at the end, the second being one of the best of this contest. :D It's a bonkers story, with Time Turner chasing the Apple Family, asking them about where they inspiration from, but it's totally worth it for that ending.
Recommended
Applejack Is Upside Down (Amongst Other Things) by TheAncientPolitzanian
Genre: Comedy
Also, she's gray now.
Not to give anything away, but this is a story in a vein of comedies I've not seen in quite some time. It's a real blast from the past that way, for all that it's relevant to current events. I felt really dumb for not figuring things out sooner. XD
Recommended
Autumn "Blaze It" by ROBCakeran53
Genre: Comedy
Autumn Blaze comes to participate in the Iron Pony Competition.
So now we're into unofficial entries. Just these last three, and because I can. :B You can tell Rob wrote this at midnight in the morning and probably he was drunk didn't bother editing it. But if you ignore that, this was… Well, dammit, I don't even know, because the pun wrecked me. What the hell, man, I thought we were friends.
Recommended for Kirin Fans
Just Leave Well Enough Alone by Pascoite
Genre: Slice of Life
Twilight is inspecting wells for a water survey.
Boy, that was weird. I have to say, I was expecting one pun at the end, but I got something unexpected, which was far more preferable. Otherwise, well, it's nice to watch Twilight being bureaucratic and enjoying it this much. I mean, am I the only one who likes that kind of thing? This was fun.
Recommended
Sunset Shimmer Doesn't Like Stairs by BoredAuthor817
Genre: EQG Comedy
Rainbow Dash walks a bit in Sunset's shoes.
And this one's ineligible because it's entry #4 from this author! Four stories in one contest period, how crazy is that? This was… adequate, though given it's all about Sunset's difficulties in leaving her pony self behind, I couldn't not like it. Also, the detailed awkwardness with which the final scene is related honestly helps with the portrayal of the action. I think it was a good narrative approach for this story, is what I'm saying. Not a bad way to end the contest.
Recommended for EQG Fans
Sounds like somebody's a fan of "American Pie" if that was your favorite pun in the contest. I personally enjoyed it as well. Made the pun stand out.
As for your review of my story, thank you SO much! This is the first time a story of mine has ever been reviewed and I was so glad you liked it! I know you've had to deal with me in the RCL Recommendation Forum for a while, so it feels amazing you finally got to see something I wrote myself. That last line really gave me hope. Aug. 3 can't come soon enough!
"Laser-etched masterpiece." Wow. I started working on that one when Trampoline announced the contest, so it's certainly more refined than my other entries, but that's a much better reaction than I expected. Thanks.
Wow, you've been busy (and, somehow, still managed to keep your sanity?)
Honestly, I wanted to set this in Equestria, and would have, if not for the very end.
Also, EQG didn't give us enough Granny Smith. So, there is that.
Believe me, I'm aware of them -_- Classes end this week and then I get a few weeks break. So, editing this is high on my list.
BTW, I haven't forgotten about editing "The Road to Us". That, and most my other stories, is on hold until the series wraps up.
Not crazy at all
Blast! I shall strive harder for the next contest, I suppose.
I figured mine was sketchy at best. It was one of those idea that I just had to write down; despite the multitude of errors. Maybe next time; I'd make to edit the story better
I like contests because it's so much easier to write short stories if I have something to take an initial inspiration from (also because nothing churns out new stories for me like a good 2-AM pre-deadline writing rush). So I think my entry was always going to be a mediocre pun trying to whip a story into good enough shape to make up for it. I'm glad to see I succeeded in that.
Thanks for writing all these reviews, you mad lad!
They were pun to read!
I thought I ended it with a pun. Oh, well. Thanks for reading it anyway!
5096598
Okay, that last one may have come off as passive-agressive, and I'm sorry if it did. That wasn't my intention.
That being said, what makes you think it wasn't a feghoot?
Genre: Drug Comedy
i think i found my niche.
Also thanks for the review, hope to catch you at BC and say hi.
Woo! Triple recommended! Take that voice-in-my-head-that-tells-me-my-work-is-mediocre!
Dramatics aside, thanks for the praise and I'm glad you enjoyed my entries.
Thank you for the kind words, and for writing the very first blog review one of my stories has ever received! I'm very glad that my sudden bout of "oh-crap-none-of-my-other-ideas-are-working-just-quickly-hobble-something-together-based-on-that-blog-post-you-saw-yesterday" managed to amuse you.
And hopefully, this won't be the last you see of me...
;)
5096604
I mean, it's a pun on 'spa', but that's it? There's no word play beyond that, no real justification for having that combination of words said in-story. You get some points for "Does this look like the Element of Mercy to you?" though.
5096651
I need to read more of your stories.
5096668
It's a pun based on a meme. "Somebody touch-a my spaghet!" Sadly, I cannot link you to it because I'm on vacation and on my phone. Google it when you have the time.
Huh.
Likes Alan Sherman...
... doesn't like filk.
The sound you hear is my brain squeaking.
Also, in "Pest Control" Raugos is responsible for two out of the four feghoot lines (one I used straight, another altered but inspired by his comments). Of the four, my favorite is still the first.
Two Rs and a C? I'll very happily take that -- thank you! I definitely think Raising the Baa is the best of my three, so I'm pleased it went down well. And I suppose I should have considered how well the pun in The Shoreline Shape Up would travel -- too late now, though!
Not gonna lie, that little phrase really made my day.
And wow, I'm looking forward to reading some of these for myself down the line. The (Second) Rise and Fall of the Storm King is probably the one I have the highest expectations of right now. We shall see!
That is a looooot of reading you had to do. I just feel tired scrolling past them.
And wew! Thanks for the rec, it means a lot to me.
5096716
The difference between filk and parody is humor. >:B
5096739
I'm very grateful to this contest, because I've burnt myself out on them before. But feghoots are like, 1-3k tops for the most part, so this was actually fun. :D
For all that I hate puns. D:
5096757
Thank you for your sacrifice
Hell yeah. My first “Highly Recommended” from the review master himself.
You heard it here first, folks. I wrecked PP.
5096806
Joke's on you, jakkid wrecked you first. :V
5096814
Fuq
I need a separate RiL bookshelf for these kinds of stories… But I do have to take exception to your declaration of "best description on the site," because in my book that title still belongs to this gem:
5096948
There was another story in just this contest alone that had a really short, snappy description.
5097010
It’s almost like great short descriptions should be a contest or somethi—
I’ll show myself out.
Whoa! Thanks very much for the kind words! Also for the crazy service you did to us all reading through all of those. You definitely took one for the team there! Despite having read a fair chunk of the submissions already, I have several more fics I definitely need to check out as a result of this roundup.
And if you like EqG Rarijack then I have a feeling you'll like the next story I'm working on too
Which is thankfully not a feghoot! It is however inspired by one of tcn1205's images.
Woah, thanks for taking the time to review all these. This is more or less the review I hoped my story would get, so I'm very happy to take it! :)
And now my phone is full of tabs. I hope you're happy.
Seriously though, kudos on reviewing this many stories fairly. I helped edit a few of them, and some of the authors were worried about getting lost amid such a big pool of entries.
5099947
I know that feel :V