EMoonbug

• MLP: FiM
• Romance
• Slice of Life

Pharynx doesn't really like potted plants, but Princess Luna does. So what better way of getting him to stop ruining her lavender pots, if not with a good lesson or two?

• Luna
• Pharynx

Sledge115 · 9.9k words  ·  211  7 · 3.6k views

I love odd ships and seeing how they can work, I'm also a big romance fan, so this story had a lot going for it. But did I love it? Honestly, the answer is complicated. I certainly enjoyed this story, but I have a lot on my mind, so without further ado, let's begin.

7/10

The entire story focuses on Luna and her love of gardening. There is a lot of care in how the writing shows us this care. Luna feels more relaxed and at home in this setting. She ends up teaching not only Thorax about the beauty of flowers, but also Pharynx too. It was clear from the tags this was a ship fic but the way it's done is very organic.

Now what does organic mean?
Wiki says: 1. Relatively to or deprived from living manner.

2. How does that apply to this story?
I'm glad you asked. Being organic, means that this story wants to FEEL real with genuine emotions of life, growth, and love can feel. However, there is a downside to it as well. Often, organic fics can feel a bit boring at times or dull. The constant feeling of Luna being at ease where Pharynx is always on edge is a good parallel. I enjoyed reading how the more and more they interacted the more they felt drawn to the other.

I feel a lot of people will love the organic feel, so I give Sledge115 credit, but for me personally I wanted a bit more emotional weight. It's a good story, but to me it's not a favorite.

7/10

Solid, I found no flaws whatsoever. Good work.
10/10

Luna: Feels very real, very much a fresh take on her personality. I also appreciated a relaxed Luna, over a sad Luna. It is a refreshing take.

Pharynx: Feels very feal and very much how I have always pictured him, the way he is written is just perfect, and I throughly enjoyed both of these two.

9/10

Luna x Pharynx isn't a common ship, some might even call it a "crack ship" but they are believable, and the pacing for the most part pays off. I feel the last time skips wasn't really effective in helping move the story, felt more like an info dump, and we could've spent that time with more LunaxPharynx romance.

Execution: Solid, well written, easy to follow plot progression in the lives of those two unlikely lovers. It was a little dull at certain points. (Mainly the time skip, especially the ending one.) But it is a rather good story to dig yourself into.

8/10

I enjoyed the story for what it is, but I also felt there was still things left to be desired. The organic writing is solid and refreshing but I did wish for a more emotional impact. However Moonbug is more than worthy of headpats.

7+7+10+9+8=40/50
8/10

To the author: I hope you enjoyed what I had to say, I'm not sure how much I've helped you, because honestly your writing from what I can tell is very solid. Just less timeskips next time, k?

To the reader: Recommended for shippers, and well anyone that enjoys oneshot's.

If you somehow made it this far, congratulations! It's the end of the year, so I wanted to take the chance to thank all my team for being amazing and wonderful throughout the year. We had our up's and down, some reviewers stepped down, but we are always looking to grow and expand, so if you would like to become a reviewer, please message me in private, and we'll see about getting you a test review, and if you pass, you will join our wonderful team. Once again, thank you to EVERYONE, whether you are a reviewer, or just a member, I appreciate you.

7622853

Hey, thanks for the review . Can't argue with a lot of what you said here, you got it all right, heh. I did seek to write Luna at her prime, not Luna still angsting over Nightmare Moon. Glad it landed!

And, if the organic writing landed solidly, then mission accomplished

The timeskips were, unfortunately, what I felt were necessary to show the passage of time, heh.

Anyways, I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for the review!