Poisoned Barb Chapter Tier List (Plus Show-style Synopses!) · 5:50pm Nov 28th, 2020
Howdy howdy~
Derply here, wanting to at least post SOMETHING on this site one more time before this blasted year comes to an end 
(skip to the word Synopses if you don't want to be bored by my status update. I won't judge 
)
At this point saying "2020 has been a rough year" is a full on cliché, but damn it all if it isn't still 100% true. I lost a lot of my mojo in the past many months, and all my attempts to get it back have resulted in one heartache after another. I lost someone very dear to my heart not even a full month ago, and now even my job is under threat of collapsing in on itself. Combine that with the stress that comes from buying your first home and trying to maintain it... well let's just say that ponies have been the last thing on my mind as of late.
Yet they're still there despite it all.
I love writing, but writing only seems to come naturally to me when I'm Zen; when I'm not worried about tomorrow, and when I'm not nitpicking meaningless things like Likes and Readership numbers. "Stage fright" tends to take over when I get into that kind of state, which results in zero productivity being achieved overall (or, in laymen's terms, depression).
So, for the sake of kickstarting my desire to write again, let's do one of those fancy tier lists things that all the kids were into before the literal apocalypse hit us like a truck!
How would ya'll rank The Poisoned Barb's Tale's currently completed story arcs? Which one is the best of the best, and which one could be easily skipped? I REALLY want to finish the last three chapters of Dragonapped before this year is done, but without a burst of inspiration it ain't gonna happen.
To help refresh your memory of what happened when, I did a little writing practice and created show-style synopses for each completed part! Obviously these will include SOME minor spoilers for those who haven't read every part yet, but please don't let that stop you from ranking the chapters you've already read ^_^
Without further ado: The Synopses!
Entry 1 (Prologue Part One): It’s showtime! After seven long years Barbara, our titular reborn human, finally gets to meet the rest of the male mane six! At last her future knowledge can be of some use! But, wait; Applejack has a goatee?! Pinkie Pie is an alcoholic?! Fluttershy is a giant, Rainbow Dash is fabulous, and Rarity is… W-what the heck is going on?!
Entry 2 (Prologue Part Two): Nightterror Nebula has flipped the script! What should have been a simple victory for the freshly minted mane six has turned into a literal nightmare! Now alone, it’s up to Barbara to save the day! But how can a baby dragoness hope to stand against the literal god of the night...? Why, with the Magic of Friendship of course!
Entry 3 (Friendship Is Magic): With the day finally saved and the story back on track, Barb makes the difficult call to let Prince Solaris in on some of her show knowledge. Traveling to Canterlot, our heroine bumps into many faces old and new as she unknowingly sets into motion machinations beyond her wildest comprehension...
Entry 4 (Ticket Master): Prince Solaris has gifted Dusk with not one but TWO spare tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala! With dreams and expectations high, the boys’ worst traits come to light as they fight tooth and nail for Dusk’s attention. Will Barb be able to keep up with their ticket coveting madness, or will this be the straw that breaks the dragon’s back?
Entry 5 (Applebuck Season): While Dusk and the boys deal with Applejack’s overworked insanity, Barb spends some quality girl time with Red Gala… But what starts as a lovely tea party soon turns dark as Red asks the young dragoness a question that rocks her to her very core. What do titles really mean to one whose had so many stripped away from her?
Entry 6 (Griffon the Brush Off): Rainbow Dash’s foalhood friend Guilder pays Ponyville a visit, much to Berry’s displeasure. The griffon is rude, crude, and a prude, but he’s also the one who helped Rainbow discover his inner beauty. Not wanting to lose his best friend, Rainbow Dash seeks Barbara’s help to become a true lady and show Guilder that it’s okay for guys to like girly things.
Entry 7 (Boast Busted): It’s time for The Poisoned World’s Great and Powerful Trixie to make his grand entrance! While initially nervous about her role in the episode’s story, Barb’s apprehension soon turns to fear as a new pony enters the scene and begins tearing the plot to shreds! Who is this mysterious stallion, what does he want with Dusk Shine?! And, most importantly... is Barbara no longer the cosmic fluke she thought she was…?
Thank you all in advance for your time! Even if you don't vote, I hope you enjoyed this silly little writing practice of mine 
Hopeful to see you again real soon,
-Derply
hihi Derp, don't stress not writing, this site isn't going down anytime soon and the world hasn't ended... yet, so, you've got all the time until then! I do value quality, and, if quality is suffering due to circumstance, then take as long as you need fellow gamer.
Onto the story arcs. Admittedly it has been a hot second since I've brushed up on the arcs, but, I really liked Arc 5. Of course Arc 1 was the one that hooked me and will always be special, but, Arc 5 got a bit dark and I loved all the not-so-subtle implications. I just can't wait until we get to know more about the elusive Elusive. That, and, Arc 7 has got us on such a cliff hanger!
So, I'd probably rate them as such
Arc 5
Arc 1/2
Arc 7
Arc 3
Arc 4
Arc 6
This isn't to say any of them are bad or detract from the story, naturally. Just my shallow opinion of them. 🐈
Anyways, good to hear from ya!
5406661
HOW DARE YOU PLACE THEM IN THAT ORDER AFTER I SPECIFICALLY ASKED FOR YOU TO PLACE THEM IN WHATEVER ORDER YOU WANTED...
... Am I doing this right? Most Tier lists are supposed to end in flame wars, right
Hehe, thanks for playing along
Writing tends to be my mental "all clear" single that convinces my body that things are either okay, or are going to be okay. Job hunting, home purchasing, and other major milestones of my life have sprung up around periods where I'm heavily reading and/or writing, so you can't really blame me for wanting to pull that metaphorical lawnmower cord and jump back to it 
Also... the person I lost recently was the very woman who taught me how to read and write in the first place, so I think the best thing I can do to honor her is to jump back on that horse/pony in her honor... right
I know it's silly to say this over and over again, but thank you deeply for sticking with me as I continue to be the silly filly that I am
With love always,
-Derply
Arc 5
Arc 4
Arc 6
Arc 7
Arc 1
Arc 3
Arc 2
Arc 5 had a sweet moments with barb and red, as well as go into her mistreatment, arc 4 showed her learning to be herself which was fun, and the sad parallel to spike, arc 6 fun in general and foreshadowing to everyone learning that barb was abused and hopeful helping her, 7 is just derailing all of this and adding some subplots and showing dusk and barbs relationship, the prologue shows more of celestia and creates mystery and some uncomfortable setup for the 2 of them, then seeing barb meet the cmc is nice and cute then the parallel to the show is nice, question, did spike mmet the cmc in that dream realm?
5406958
Ohhh I like this arrangement too! Very nice <3
To answer your question; Sweetie Belle's thoughts and actions were meant to paint the picture that no, she did not meet Spike in a dream realm the same way Sweepy and Scooter had. In dimension A, Sweetie has never met a dragon before this point, meaning she's unaware that he's a kid like she is, which results in her ignoring Spike under her parent's advice of "Don't talk to strangers."
In dimension B, however (AKA The Poisoned World), thanks to the butterfly effect enacted by Barb's desire to stay awake to fight Nightterror Nebula, Sweepy Belle HAS met dragons before and knows that Barb is kid like he is. Wanting to invite another player for his game, yet unable to ask directly due to a "fillies have cooties" mindset, Sweepy did the next best thing and "accidentally" beamed the poor girl in the side of the head with the rubber ball to start the conversation...
... Foals are complicated creatures
So, yeah; Barb has a tighter relationship with Sweepy Belle and Scooteroll at this than Spike ever had with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Her relationship with Gleaming Shield and Red Gala, however, are about on par with Spike's own with Shining Armor and Big Macintosh. Barb also has more enemies than Spike ever had in the form of... well I think you know who I'm talking about
Everything in balance, equivalent exchange, etc etc. Barb's life has some interesting ups versus Spike's own, but the same's also true for the little guy in different areas ^_^
Thanks for your time!
-Derply
Thinking about barb and solaris conversation, I have a theory that he only gave the option for barb to choose a different family was because he saw a vision of her and dusk together, and that was why he laughed, he already knew.
5407027
Hmmmm...
... Seems very much in-character for the big lug, doesn't it?
I RATE IN ORDER OF NOT QUALITY OR SET-UP POTENTIAL. THOSE ARE FACTORS BUT NOT FOKUS OF THIS RANKING. I FIRMLY BELIEVE EVERYONE OF THESE ARCS HAVE RIGHTS TO BE AS THEY ARE. >:C .
I think my least favorite is Ticket Master. It was a bit predictable and it doesn't have the same moments that other arcs have. I liked the theme of Barbaras independence, or, lack thereof, thanks to her body and knowledge( = power, power = responsibility).
Boast Busters is my second least favorite. I like the mystery and the interactions, but I feel as if its greatest strengths are also its greatest weaknesses, because when the cats out of the bag for the reader it just loses a lot of the reread value. It doesn't help that the ending gives me a bit of "bad ending" vibes (and I have issue with the power of Butters and the psychological implications of having that much power over others so early in his life)! Btw im looking so forward to all the drama concerning those ships, both on the side of good and chaotic selfish!
Mmhm. I think the 2 isn't that... compelling? Its needed and its good, but not something I look forward too. I am a bit scared about the Prince B. Idk about you, but I hate the idea of someone pulling strings in peoples head for some shitty arbitrary reason. Thats just how I see it.
Alright. Here I shall place AppleBuckSeason. I like everything in this chapter. It has highs but doesn't have a lot of lows or action (EDIT: STAKES, it doesn't have that many steaks). The interactions are nice and, on top of that, Barbs mental stability gets made into a stressball for her own Internal Conflict, witch is pretty noice, all things considered. Solid *clap* Chapts, *clap* chap!
Number Three is hee, where in my opinion, it should beee~! Like, its a ABS, but with some larger degrees of stakes. The conversation with Sol is totally the highlight. I can't wait for Barb to get wise and beat Solaris at his own game!
1. ... Yeah, thats a sentence. It just blew me away, beeing so weird and compelling and I had the feeling of getting my heart squeest everytime we rounded a figuritve corner. There were a lot of good moments and humour. Very compelling.
Six. Its personally a joy to read, has reread potential and just often gives me a feeling of "I don't know if everything is going to be fine. What I do know is that it will hurt, and I might like it.". And, well, what can I say, except its a joy to watch cracks form in the wall of lies. RD is bf material, even tho I like my teddys a bit on the hurt/comfort side.
AND SO, MY DEGENERACY CONTINIUES TO SPREAD IN THE HEARTS OF MANY. GOODBYE, GRIFFON-LOVER!
5407082
OOOOOhhhhh I love love love this take too! And I love how different everyone's takes have been so far! Someone's favorite is another's least, and vice versa! That's so freakin' cool to me
Thank you ssssooooo much for your input! This exercise has really helped my pick away at the mental block that's been eating away at me this past half year; I've written more today than I have in MONTHS!
I've got one complete chapter at last done, and now I'm just debating either releasing it on the usual December 1st date (that's my Birthday by the way, hence why a lot of chapters usually get released on that date
) OR if I want to wait until I can have the whole Dragonapped arc completed so I can release them all in a week long burst.
Decisions decisions...
Thank you again for your input Ken! Really made my day
-Derply
Jeez, I seriously can't decide. The whole story is filled with stuff I enjoy. I will say that I enjoy Barb's and Solaris's interactions and mind games, I like when Barb is in control of a situation thanks to her show knowledge, but I also like when the characters act in new unpredicted ways that makes things fresh and exciting. It's good to have a balance of both which I think you've managed very well. Sorry I couldn't give the answer to the question asked, but I still wanted to let you know how I still really like this new world you're crafting.
5407407
No worries at all Rust; your contribution was more than enough
Really, all I was looking for with this silly "list" idea of mine was inspiration, of which I've now received more than enough of ^_^ I knew I needed a jumpstart of sorts to get past the mental wall I had built up between my love of writing, and my desire to write. It's really hard to get back into the swing of things when your inspiration is tapped out, and your mind is plagued with thoughts of "not being good enough", like it's all some flippin' competition!
In the end, I'm overjoyed to see that people are still willing to read the ramblings I've been masquerading as a story. Someday I hope I won't be such a silly filly when it comes to doubting myself, and that I'll be able to keep up a much healthier balance between writing for fun and writing for challenge
Please bear with me as I continue to stumble my way towards completing this odyssey!
With love,
-Derply
Rather than any chapter I very much like the focus on the main six and Celestia genderbent. The reflective mature nature of them all are super fun.
I once told a friend that the flooded burnt basement stage in Silent Hill 2 was awesome to me because that’s a real life situation firefighters had to deal with and I would never want to be in that situation myself.
I would like my Silent Hill game to come to end now please.
This year has been rough, take care of yourself.