Well, it isn’t as though the title isn’t self-explanatory or anything… buuuut, well, this is a survival tale. No, not as in surviving in the wild like Bear Grylls, ew. No, this is darker and grittier, because the world has fallen and now groups of teenage girls are banding together to camp, scavenge food, and try not to die.

It could be going better.

This story opens up with “Dear Book” which really sets the mood for the character of Sugarcoat. It also gives a rather blunt insight into her personality, but blunt seems appropriate for Sugarcoat, no?

This girl is your primary focus

And so begins our first look into the ongoing struggle for survival, it seems. First off, important note… or I guess this isn’t first off at this point, but ANYWAY! So, the tags are for this story are as follows: 

• Equestria Girls
• Gore
• Non-con
• Violence
• Death
• Dark
• Adventure
• Thriller
• Human
• Alt. Universe
• Other
• King Sombra
• Lemon Zest
• Sour Sweet
• Sugarcoat

And we have us a good story, so far.

But don’t expect any fluff.

This is not a story for the faint of heart, the squeamish, or the easily upset. If you have an aversion to stories about any sort of imprisonment, torture, or cruelty, it’s not a good idea to read this one. However, if you enjoy creative forays into dark, grim, apocalyptic scenarios featuring colorfully skinned school girls? This is to your tastes.

I enjoyed it, for what that’s worth. But I got to a point where a footnote told me I was in for something that would feel incomplete. I wasn’t disappointed, in any sense of the word, when I reached what would pass for a conclusion to this story.

It was a good story, I enjoyed reading it so much that I finished it faster than I have any story in quite awhile. I had no trouble staying focused on it, it drew my attention very easily, and that’s a good sign. Particularly for me, I’ve been having a hard time of that recently. I was dragged back in kicking and screaming by this piece.

I’m glad I was asked to review this work, it was well worth reading and I do recommend it to anyone with a strong constitution. I’m actually amazed it managed a T rating.

Oh, and don’t worry about the lack of conclusion, because this story does have a new life in the Redux that is in production.

Main Cast

Sugarcoat

- I didn’t have any problem connecting with Sugarcoat, who is described as being stoic. For the purposes of this story, that particularly characterization was actually challenged, and rightly so being she’s in the middle of an apocalypse that is mostly unexplained. She’s a tough cookie, I have to say that. She’s not averse to violence, and it’s unclear whether she ever really was, but for how she behaves and what she deals with? She’s a solid character that is relatable and sympathetic. Mr. gIBZ does a fantastic job of writing her, especially.

Lemon Zest

- In one word: Tragic. Lemon Zest is more a foil than anything for Sugarcoat, but I don’t think that’s intentional. It works, though. But she’s definitely a burden on Sugarcoat, she’s that character you always scream at for disrupting the progress of your hero, she’s that one character you wouldn’t mind seeing offed, but in this case? It’s not because of her personality, that’s actually winning. It’s not even her fault that things keep happening, and you steadily grow to understand that as you read. Then you hurt.

Other

Sci-Twi

- Probably the only other character in this story who is not irredeemable. She plays a minimal role, serving as the last hope that there is any conscience left in the world. For what little screen time she gets, she is played true and well. Mr. gIBZ is well suited to his craft.

Applejack

- Head of the settlement of Appleoosa, jaded beyond recognition, and still somehow Applejack. But I grew to hate her as a character, and this means that Mr. gIBZ sold her perfectly, because she’s not typically a hateable character. And yet she is also relatable, you can’t completely fault her decision, even if you can’t fault how she treats Sci-Twi.

It’s all about Sugarcoat here, she’s the main focus, with only a very few scenes dedicated to any other character. But the Sugarcoat we get introduced to has already been through Tartarus and back, and is geared up for another trip there. So we start with “Dear Book” which beautifully illustrates her mannerisms, she isn’t attached to this book, it isn’t a diary or a journal, just a place she’s jotting down notes. It serves as an introduction to the character, the first words in the story, and then an entry into the notes. It’s brief, and then we experience Sugarcoat handling the Equestrian Wastelands. It’s a stumbling journey, filled with hunger and fear in generous doses, and yet she finds she isn’t alone.

As time goes on, and she finds more supplies and meets more characters she becomes more jaded, less trusting, and more troubled. Particularly with certain discoveries that her mind locks into the back of her mind. It’s an amazing journey to see her growth, to understand her. To grow to like her. To want her to win. It’s all there, every bit of it.

So I have to give this story pops, because it won me over very quickly.

We have here a dark, gritty, apocalypse and this story does not pull punches. As stated earlier, this is not a story for the squeamish or the faint of heart, and I mean that. I’ve grown considerably as a reader and writer both, and I can handle more today than I could have many months ago, and so this story didn’t have the effect on me I would have expected then. Keep that in mind if you choose to read this, because it contains some seriously dark and troubling elements. However, they are there to illustrate how depraved and dark the world itself has become, neighbors are no longer allies, food is extremely scarce, as is clean water, so everyone is desperate to survive. And it shows, it all shows, in this gritty story.

This includes enslavement, torture, murder, and plenty of drama. It’s well written, none of these things is handled indelicately or without some tact, but being what they are it isn’t really possible to illustrate those things lightly.

So, what I have seen here has been handled very well, the tags line up well with what the story has in store and I do recommend paying them close attention to prevent seeing something that might disturb you.

As stated earlier, this is a story about survival. Desperate survival, and that is shown through the characters more than the environment, though strong use is made of it just the same. But it’s the characters, the way that they have trouble connecting to each other, the things they’ve become willing to do, these are watch sells this story as desperate survival. It helps that many know and love these characters already, but seeing how they have changed (or haven’t changed) is what sells the story. As well as this was handled, I have high hopes for anything else mr. gIBZ writes in future.

And everything about it made sense, from the understanding that this world was destroyed, and 83% dead or maddened beyond recognition, that leaves a world with just 17% of its original population and a great emphasis on desperation. Particularly as food and potable water has become quite scarce.

And again, this is all best shown through the characters. The environment is more about showing the level of decay, and destruction, wrought both by time and the inhabitants of this world.

Story Idea: 9 - I’m a fan of these sorts of stories, personally, but the 9 comes from the quality of its execution. It was dead well, didn’t rely too heavily on any one element, and was, despite having so few of them, actually character driven.

Writing Style: 10 - mr. gIBZ is nothing if not eloquent in his writing style, and it certainly shows in how he handles this journey through desperation and loss.

Entertainment Factor: 8 - Goodness, but this really is an entertaining story. It contains healthy doses of drama, action, suspense, and some mystery. It’s unfortunate the mystery is abandoned and the story itself was too. But I can’t fault it for either of those two things when it still brings such a great read to the table in spite of them.

Inner Logic: 10 - Faced with desperation, hunger, and loneliness, the inhabitants of this world make sense in how they behave and the choices that they make, while some stay truer to themselves than others. Understanding any of them is not difficult, even for the characters who are typically not sympathetic.

Final: 9.25

It’s a pity this story fizzled out part way through, because it could have done so much more. But what there was of it was brilliant and well worth reading. Of course, I always felt like “Hasn’t this girl earned a freaking break?!” as I read it, but just the same, she was so suited to handling the various problems that came up that you just wanted to see her get through another and cheer her on like Chuck Norris.

Well, more like Bruce Willis in this case.

Anyway, I’m just so glad to have read this piece and thankful for having been asked to review it. It was a good read, handled itself well, and delivered what it promised.