Fic recs, May 14th! · 1:02am May 15th, 2021
shallow15 needs some help again!
Scribbler's newest reading is The 24th Pegasus's Why?!
It's been rather a bit, and I feel like I have little to show for it. :B I got caught up in Youtubing hardcore. I've got like 15 videos left on Jenny Nicholson's channel, and then I swear, I'll knock it off for a while. But really, no promises, this be how I do. <.< This one's about prequels to stories I'm reading for the current other edition, plus a few that just so happened to finish up nowish.
H: 1 R: 2 C: 3 V: 0 N: 0
Time and Times by archonix
Genre: Sad EQG
From the other end of the garden comes a familiar voice.
You ever read just a beautiful piece about an older person contemplating their life? Take that and add to it "having a duplicate from another dimension who is a princess of horses", along with some stellar writing, and you get this marvel. The whole thing is solid, flowing and elegant and with some really interesting things to think about vis-a-vis differences and similarities across dimensional boundaries. How dare this be so good.
Highly Recommended
Turn by archonix
Sequel to Time and Times
Genre: Sad EQG
Luna did not remember sleeping, but she woke regardless.
As a companion to the previous piece, this rather pales in comparison. I could say that it takes an author as skilled as archonix to pull off such a comparison, but I would also decry such as mean-spirited. It's just a little off-kilter, if nothing else. Where the two Celestias seem to have some awareness of the other, I couldn't determine whether or not that was the case here. Plus, given what we know happens to former Vice-Principal Luna in the previous story, this acts as something of a punchline, playing on a classic fandom trope. It's still good, just uneven.
Recommended
This Time for Good by iisaw
Genre: Adventure/Time Travel
A message from the future sends Twilight into a trap.
When last I read this, I reviewed the first eight chapters because iisaw was talking about DFE'ing. I'm glad he didn't, because now this is finished! :D And crazily, the point at which the story left off originally is right around the point where it goes completely nuts. Up to that point, it's an adventure where Twilight is trapped in an ever-shifting maze by unknown forces, alongside a gruff pegasus mercenary named Windfall. Their interactions are excellent, and the story itself seems to want to show what happens when you approach a problem logically. Like, you've doubtlessly seen or said yourself in regards to a character trapped in a situation, "Well, if it were me, I would have…" And in this story, Twilight does. It's not so detailed or methodical that it becomes boring — quite the opposite — but it is still both of those things, which I say was a worthwhile thought experiment. Then Twilight pulls out some magical gobbledegook, gets them out of the maze, meets the insane mastermind behind the maze, and the story goes off the fucking rails. Everything from that point on is time shenanigans, paradoxes, magibabble and what SS&E would call kaizo plotting. And the worst thing I can say about this story is that it's really awesome in the moment. Like, I'm not sure in hindsight how much of it makes sense, or whether the ending is satisfying in any way. It's certainly a little under-written; while it could have stretched on ad infinitum, I also found myself wanting just a bit more exploration of concepts like the future princess who's resentful of Twilight. But I can't say I'm dissatisfied with what's here. It is, if nothing else, a really excellent example of putting two characters in a bottle and making them dig their way out.
Recommended
The Implicit Neighs by FanOfMostEverything
Genre: Magic: The Gathering Crossover
In the sprawling city of Ravnica, something dire is coming.
So you all know the first thing I evaluate when it comes to crossovers is how accessible they are to readers unfamiliar with the alternate setting. In this story, accessibility is the major failing, though not for trying. FOME did a very clever thing where major concepts are explained in-story, typically in very reasonable ways, while other bits of jargon are left unexplained in a way that it becomes clear the reader understanding them is not important. That turns into world-building, and it's neat. That being said, a solid third of this story's plot, culminating in its climax, is left as implied, and no one who wasn't deep into MtG lore at the time the story was written will get anything out of it. I also have a bone to pick with the plotting. This is written in a very interesting relay race style, where a chapter will be narrated from one character's POV, introduce a second character, and then that second character becomes the POV character for the next chapter. It's neat, and no character is used twice, I think. However, the 'main' plot is actually built out of short connecting scenes at the end of most chapters, starring Ditzy Doo… until they just stop happening for a few chapters, ahead of Ditzy bringing about that climax whose significance is never explained. (At least her portrayal will be familiar to those who've read the bulk of FOME's body of work.) But despite those connective threads, it's never clear what, exactly, the plot is about. Her sections are so vague, it's clear that things will be explained later, except that they're not. Meanwhile, an edict that Twilight Sparkle spend more time with her friends never goes anywhere. What we get is basic box-checking, making sure all the mane six and a few other characters (Screw Loose? Why Screw Loose?) put in an appearance in the story, to absolutely no end beyond "what guild would X be part of?" and some general world-building. Which is a shame, since the world is clearly vibrant, written with the love of a true fan, and the story itself is actually quite well written, especially considering its age. (Five-digit story number!) Is this bad? No. But due to its inception, it is extremely niche.
Recommended for Magic Fans
Sharktavia i: Sharktavia Evolved by FanOfMostEverything
Sequel to The Implicit Neighs
Genre: Random Magic: The Gathering Crossover
Octavia has just won the Genetic Lottery! Which is really not something she wanted.
So as a crossover, this is of the "don't worry about understanding everything" sort, so it's perfectly acceptable. Also, the previous story explains concepts like what the various guilds are and why Lyra is the way she is, plus this continues the story progression made at the end of the previous piece by showing us some of its impact on the lives of the everyday pony. Other than that, it's goofy-tits. And I have to wonder how I missed it when I reviewed a whole bunch of Sharktavia fics years ago. Maybe because it was a sequel to a 40k-word crossover? The world may never know.
Recommended for Sharktavia Fans
Silence and Motion: Four Thirty-Three by LysanderasD
Genre: Slice of Life
When Vinyl needs help, Octavia is there for her.
Nothing quite like seeing an author add another chapter to a story — a complete one, no less! — nine years after the first! :O And while this is quite a good piece on its own merits, I have to say it doesn't really add a whole lot to the original. I mean, seeing the scenario from Octavia's POV… sure, she sees things in Vinyl that Vinyl would not see or admit, but there's a symmetry between the two 'chapters' that does this one a disservice. Even the author said this entry might be a little boring. That said, the writing is solid, and I noticed a very clever bit of theming toward the end, so it's not bad. If you liked the first story, check this out.
Recommended for Octavia (and Vinyl Scratch) Fans
With the benefit of hindsight, Implicit Neighs is one of those stories where I didn't go in with enough of a plan. General shape of the idea, yes, but the interconnecting plot threads were made up as I went along, and it shows. I'm happier with it than some of my other early work, but there's definitely still room for improvement.
There has been another Ravnica block since. I may need to revisit the concept...
5518894
Considering its age, it does show that you've always been a good writer, at least in terms of prose and such. :) So it's not all bad!
5518906
How does one get stories on these lists?
Thanks for the nice review!
I think you pretty much nailed it. I plead guilty about the rushed ending, but with as little energy/time/inclination I have for writing currently, it was either that or leave it unfinished.
5518958
What lists? :O
I have many questions
I could lie and pretend the off-kilter feeling was a deliberate affectation. In fact yes, I think I'll do that. Totally artistic intent and not just the result of slamming it out in the middle of the night and forgetting to spell check.
If I'd given it another couple of paragraphs to breathe, it might have been more even. Still, glad you enjoyed it, as well as the previous story. You should probably give the follow-up a miss though. It just... ends.
5519187
Well, you know how I said this was mostly prequels for the next edition? Yeah...