What’s this? Another review from me within a month’s time? Could I actually be productive? Truth be told, not really, but more like me getting off my butt and trying to get more involved in the fandom again. Even if it’s slowly declined over the years, pony is still one of my favorites and I still love seeing everyone put effort into their stories.

So, yay! Productivity!

Today, I bring to you Cutie Mark Crusader Magicians! Yay! by DrakeyC. Seeing how the Great and Powerful Trixie is best pony my favorite of the series, I was eager to pick this one up. Couple her with the Cutie Mark Crusaders and I think we have a recipe for fun, shenanigans, and likely tree sap.

As always I will be focusing on four key aspects of a good story. That being: Plot, Atmosphere, Characters, and Grammar. Without further ado, let’s get into it.

Story tags include Comedy and Slice of Life. While the SoL tag is spot on, I felt that the comedy tag was stretching it. There were more than a few funny or entertaining sections, but not a rapid fire of jokes, puns, silliness, and other assorted comedy routines one would expect of a comedy. If anything, the tag could be removed and it wouldn’t really lose a thing. Though, I often wonder if that is a good enough reason to remove the tag or not, as I’ve seen arguments on both sides. Either way, that’s what we got.

Next, the character tags. Trixie and Cutie Mark Crusaders. Openly stated in the title, it says it all.

The description is as follows:

After another failed attempt to get their cutie marks, the Cutie Mark Crusaders stumble upon a wagon in the woods with a familiar unicorn showmare inside. In awe of Trixie’s presence and her tales of traveling across Equestria, they decide she may just be the unicorn to help them get their cutie marks - in stage magic! And it may just be the most difficult trick Trixie’s ever attempted.

Short and sweet, sets up the story, gives the reader a quick premise, captures the interest of the reader; one can’t go wrong with this description. Goes to show that descriptions don’t have to be long, detailed, or even over-the-top to snag a reader's attention.

Key Point - Plot: The plot to this story is pretty straightforward and enjoyable. Trixie (despite her better judgment) ends up tutoring the CMC—pre-Crusaders of the Lost Mark—in attempt to get their aforementioned cutie marks. What follows is a pleasant little story that captures the characters and their interactions nicely. There is one issue, but I’ll get to that later in another Key Point. As far as plot goes, this story sticks to it nicely.

Key Point - Atmosphere: When I talk about atmosphere in a story, I usually base it upon two things: depth and immersion. The depth that the author has with this story and the characters is there. Watching Trixie train the CMC in their various tasks and such was heartwarming. I loved watching them unfold. I also enjoyed many of the interactions Trixie had with the Mane Six, especially Twilight and Rarity. They seemed organic and true, and a joy to read.

However, this is where I had an issue with this story, and that was with immersion. It wasn’t anything the characters did that pulled me out of the story frequently, it was many areas of dialogue standing by itself. Some whole conversations were really just dialogue between two or three characters. There was little else to go along with them that put the characters in the setting they were in, they—at times—felt like they were in a white room and simply talking. It didn’t really paint a picture for me to imagine in my head other than the characters talking. For me, when the characters just talk and don’t really act with their surroundings or even a bit of body language to go with it, it just… well, pulled me out of it. That’s not to say the whole story is like this, but enough for me to notice it and thus pull me out of my immersion.

It might be a stylistic choice, which is fine, but I like to think of scenes as paintings of not just the characters, but the world they’re in as well.

Key Point - Characters: As I’ve stated before, all of the characters seemed organic and true to their show counterparts. The author had Trixie’s personality down pat, the CMC were enjoyable, and Twilight and company were their usual quirky selves. The only one I scratched my head at was a few lines from Pinkie Pie, but not enough for me really consider it anything more than just a thing.

Key Point - Grammar: I found no grammar errors to speak of, very few misspelled words, and nothing that really I could point out other than the immersion issue I had above. I believe it’s called “talking head” syndrome. Dialogue by itself works wonders when one needs to pick up the pace of the story and get things moving along. However, with this being a cute Slice of Life story, I feel the author could’ve added more showing to these bits of dialogue. It would only add to an already enjoyable story.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts: Other than the immersion issue, this was a fun and enjoyable Trixie/CMC story. I’d recommend it those who like Trixie stories. To those that can overlook the immersion thing, I’d give it a Recommended rating, those that can’t, Enjoyable.

6583040
Someone else on another fic commented how my fics tend to be heavy on dialogue and light in descriptions, as I posted my entry in Orobro's contest that I was very aware had this problem. I take it as encouragement to try harder in the future now that I'm aware of it.

Tyvm for the review, glad you enjoyed it.

6583040
I remember this one! I also remember enjoying it quite a bit. Good review.