Fic recs, October 4th! · 6:22pm Oct 4th, 2020
We've got an appropriately spooky Flash Fiction this month, featuring stories about what Larry does, a dark version of Beauty and the Beast, caring for werewolves and buying ghosts on Craigslist. Quite a good selection!
Kind of a weird time to be posting this I guess, I don't normally end up with them on Sundays, but whatever. :B This is the usual buildup of regular fic readers.
H: 1 R: 2 C: 2 V: 1 N: 0
Caged by DemonBrightSpirit
Reading by Drac Keagan, Ribon chan and Sweet Song
I can't believe it's 2020 and I'm just now finding out Drac Keagan has her own channel with fic readings. ._.; She's a longtime collaborator with Scribbler, which should be all the vetting she really needs. This was great!
Genre: Sad AppleDash
Applejack didn't show up for Rainbow Dash's welcome home party. She's been preoccupied…
Normally, this is the kind of story I'd recommend for shippers and move on, but… AppleDashers aren't exactly gonna be happy with it. (Nor are Applejack fans, I expect.) It's a solid exploration of why Applejack and Rainbow Dash don't work as a couple, at least when they were young. Also why Applejack sucks. It's apparently based on the author's real-life experiences, so that explains a few things. I mean, I liked it, but I'm mean-spirited that way. :B
Recommended If You Like Breakup Fics
A Simple Raid? by WhispersInTheDark
Reading by VisualPony
Genre: Star Trek Crossover/Comedy
Hours of Rarity's work are destroyed in a night by… aliens?
There's not a whole lot more to this story than what's in its description, if I'm being honest, so I am here to confirm that it is, indeed, funny. Is it good Star Trek fic? Well, the crew act kind of dumb, all things considered, but I was quite charmed by them. I hadn't expected such strong characters, the Ensign especially. Most Star Trek crossovers I'm aware of are long-form, so I'm glad there's at least one short, funny one out there. :)
Recommended
The Musings of a Winning Guardpony by Cloudhammer
Reading by Scribbler, et. al.
Mature: Gore
Genre: Military/Sad
A search for a military officer ends poorly.
I have to admit, I was dumb to think this might have nothing to do with the Winningverse. I mean, there was a chance? But it was a tiny one. So unfortunately, the bulk of the story had zero impact on me. I don't know this version of Cloud Kicker, and while it's obvious the ending is a bad one for her, I don't care about her enough to, y'know, care. The actual issue with this story is pacing, though. The first few paragraphs rapid-fire introduce us to a half dozen OCs, and by the end of the story, I could tell you nothing about any of them. There's almost no point to giving them names, their roles could just as easily be filled by Pegasus Guard #3. So yeah, definitely not for me, and I also wouldn't have rated it Mature.
Recommended for Winningverse Fans, I Guess
Starlight's Lesson by James Pwyll
Reading by Midnight29
Genre: Slice of Life
Starlight's first day as headmare of the School of Friendship comes with a heaping of nerves.
I don't have a lot to say about this. It was pretty light on everything but Having A Message, though I can't deny the message was good. It just didn't keep my attention, and every time I checked back in, nothing had really happened. It's about as slice of life as you can get.
Vaguely Recommended
Guardian Halo by The Wandering Bard
Reading by the Author
Swing and a hit! She's quite good, and it's a shame she's only got one other (complete) recording. I'll be getting to that rather soon! Go check her out!
Genre: OC Fic
Lyric comes upon a village in mourning.
I want to say people don't write OC fics like this anymore, but it's probably more that there are just a lot of them out there that really suck. This, though? Quite nice! I mean, if Lyric is a self-insert (she is, after all, a wandering bard, though the name could easily have come from the character), then she's the kind I can't begrudge. She comes to a village in an Equestria that could be set during any time period just about, being very standard fantasy in aspect, finds out they're mourning one of their number, and helps a little filly cope with what's going on by telling her a story. Said story surprised me entirely because I figure Halo was going to be a pre-ascension Celestia, and not only was I wrong, her real identity is so much more interesting. So yes, a very good piece, shame the author seems to have retired from the site.
Recommended
What You Sat On… by Owlor
Reading by Scribbler
Genre: Epistolary
Octavia writes a letter to Pinkie Pie.
I was going to complain that this was one of those fics that sucks the fun out of a cartoon by treating it too realistically… And then the comments reminded me that Pinkie did not, in fact, destroy Octavia's cello at the Gala. :O It's a what-if! And even if that had not been the case, this still would have sailed by on its excellent writing. If the details of instrument making (at least the real-world applicable ones) are true, this is both fascinating and informative. The original parts are a little on the dark side, but at the same time, the stories Octavia tells about her instrument and others feel extremely real, especially the one about her own rise in Canterlot. This was just really good writing, no matter why it was written!
Highly Recommended
Well, What You Sat On definitely goes on my list! Even gets bumped into the top ten.
As for the others... I'm making a cardboard sign and putting it on a card table in the park:
Any fic about/titled/described as
"musings," "meditations," or "observations"
is sophomoric brain-vomit.
Change my mind.
I truly appreciate the review, and am glad you found my tale funny! I wasn't sure if the humor would work, but I guess it did!