"Do they ever learn one another's identity?"
"Not yet. We think they might in season two, but that's still a ways off."
A blue-skinned woman with long, wavy midnight-blue hair, wearing a flowing black gown and shining silver high heels, sat on a sofa between a teenage girl with bubblegum-pink skin and poofy pink hair like cotton candy and another girl with a curvy figure, amber skin, flashing pale green eyes, and long, shiny copper and gold hair. Each had a bowl of popcorn and a bottle of soda in front of them. Across the room, a large HDTV mounted on the wall displayed a CG-animated cartoon in which two teenage superheroes were locked in battle with a garish mime-themed villain. One of the teens was a dark-haired, blue-eyed girl in a skintight red costume covered in black spots; the other was a blond boy in a shiny black leather costume with a faux leather cat tail and ears, acid green slit-pupiled cat eyes, and a bell around his neck.
The woman leaned forward with interest as the costumed girl, Ladybug, concocted a strategy for defeating the Mime that involved projecting an image on the side of the massive Eiffel Tower. Popcorn flew across the room as she erupted in boisterous cheers once the heroes proved victorious. "HUZZAH!" she exclaimed. "Such excitement! Such brilliance! This entertainment is truly grand!"
The redhead next to her smirked and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, it's a fun show," she said. "A lot of kids at CHS are addicted to it. We've got a huge Miraculous Ladybug fanclub. Some of us even dress up!"
"You should see Sunset's Cat Noir costume," the pink girl added slyly. "She caused a lot of nosebleeds with that one."
"PINKIE!" the redhead cried, blushing. Shaking her head, she glanced at the elegant woman next to her. "Still...I seriously doubt your 'cultural study' of our world is supposed to involve binge-watching Miraculous Ladybug, Princess Luna. Shouldn't you be visiting our libraries and museums and landmarks?"
Princess Luna snorted. "That 'cultural study' excuse I fed Twilight Sparkle was a load of old horseapples. I am bored, Sunset Shimmer! I have heard such interesting things about this world, I wished to see it for myself! And now I have! And your television entertainment is by far the most interesting and wonderous thing I have seen in many moons!" She tossed a handful of popcorn in her mouth. "Besides, this show is most engaging! I wish to see all of it! Every episode!"
Sunset Shimmer laughed. "Well, okay. It's not like we have anything better to do."
"I'm always up for a Ladybug binge!" Pinkie Pie said, pulling a box of licorice pellets out of her hair and offering it to Princess Luna.
"Still, it vexes me, watching these two foolish children pine away after one another unawares," Princess Luna said as she accepted a handful of licorice.
"Ugh, you and me both," Sunset groaned. "I mean, it's so obvious, you'd think they'd have figured it out by now!"
"Yeah, especially after Horrificator," Pinkie said. "I mean, duh! The school was sealed off! How did neither of them realize they had to have already been there in the first place and figure it out then?"
"Truly, it is a mystery," Princess Luna said as the next episode began. "If only I could get my hooves on them and knock some sense into them..."
The doorbell rang. Sunset sighed and got up to answer it. She found Twilight Sparkle standing on the other side—the pony princess from Equestria, not the bespectacled nerd from this world. Starlight Glimmer stood beside her in all her ripped jeans and beanie glory. "Hey guys," Sunset said. "Didn't expect you here. What's up?"
"Well, we decided we needed a break from things," Twilight said. "Starlight wanted to see more of this world, I thought maybe we could join Luna in her museum to—" She cut off mid-word as she heard a boisterous laugh from inside. She blinked. "Is...is Princess Luna here?"
Sunset scratched the back of her head. "Aheh...yeah," she said. "About that—"
"Oh, hey Twilight! Hey Starlight!" Pinkie called from the couch, waving. "Come on in, it's a party!"
"Indeed, join us, Twilight Sparkle!" Luna called cheerfully. "Come enjoy this most wonderous and amusing entertainment with us!"
Twilight groaned. "She found out about television, didn't she."
"Yep," Sunset said. "She's...gotten a little addicted to Miraculous Ladybug."
Starlight blinked. "Miraculous what now?"
Sunset motioned for the other girls to follow, then turned back to the couch. They entered; Twilight closed the door behind them, and they found seats in plush easy chairs on opposite ends of the couch. "What happened to your 'cultural tour' of this world, Luna?" Twilight asked.
Luna snorted. "Please, Twilight. Equestria has museums and libraries. I want to see fun things!"
Twilight started to protest, stopped, and shrugged. "Fair enough," she said. "I mean, I think museums and libraries are plenty of fun, but..." She shook her head and smiled.
"So what are we watching?" Starlight asked as she studied the TV screen in confusion. On it, a pale-skinned, blue-haired girl was acting like a goofy dork while a dark-skinned redhead with glasses looked on in exasperation.
"Miraculous Ladybug," Sunset repeated. "It's a superhero cartoon." She tilted her head in thought for a moment. "It's about these two teenagers who get these magical jewels from a mysterious old man, and they use them to transform into costumed superheroes. They use their superpowers to save the city from a bad guy who also has a magical jewel and has the power to turn regular people into supervillains that go berserk."
"Yeah, every episode, Hawk Moth—that's the bad guy—finds some poor schmuck who's been screwed over, bullied, or is just a real jerky-pants, sends out an Akuma, and turns them into a villain who goes on a rampage. Then Ladybug and Cat Noir show up to stop the villain and turn them back to a normal person and undo all the damage they cause." She paused. "Oh, and there's also the love square, which is one of the biggest reasons people love this show so much."
"The love square?" Starlight asked.
Sunset took a deep breath. "Okay, so Ladybug's secret identity is Marinette, and Cat Noir's secret identity is Adrien. They don't know each other's secret identities because they were given the impression they're not supposed to share that information."
"Which seems counterproductive," Luna put in. "I mean, they are meant to be partners, are they not? Would it not be easier for them to work together if they could communicate and train and plan when not actively engaged in battle?"
"It sure would!" Pinkie said. "They're lucky they work together so naturally or they'd be in real trouble!"
"Anyway," Sunset continued, "Marinette and Adrien are in the same class at school. Marinette has a huge crush on Adrien."
"More like she's stalking him," Pinkie put in with a giggle-snort.
"Well, yeah," Sunset said even as a particularly cringe-inducing example of exactly that played out on the screen before them. "It's so bad she completely spazzes out around him and can't even talk straight sometimes."
"But Adrien never catches on," Pinkie picked up. "And he's madly in love with Ladybug..."
"Wait, let me guess," Starlight said in a dry tone. "As Cat Noir, but Ladybug keeps shooting him down because she's in love with Adrien and has no idea they're the same person?"
"Exactly," Sunset said.
Twilight blinked. "Wow. That's...a mess?"
"It is a GLORIOUS mess!" Luna declared. "But vexing to watch. If they but knew one another's identities, they could couple and court and be happy! But nay! They continue to pine for one another anon, never suspecting!"
"Wow, that must get frustrating after a while," Starlight said. "So...how long is this show?"
"We've got 27 episodes on Streamthis," Sunset said. "The whole first season plus the Christmas special. The second season is coming pretty soon."
"And we shall watch ALL OF THEM!" Luna stated loudly, throwing a fist in the air.
"Uhh...sure, why not," Twilight said, settling in. "I mean, I've never just sat and watched television in this world. It could be fun!"
An hour later...
"So...that 'Lucky Charm' thing just gives her some random piece of junk and she has to figure out how to use it to win?"
"That's the most random, bizarre superpower ever."
"Yeah, it's pretty weird, but somehow or another she always makes it work."
"Wow, Cat Noir really loves puns."
"Yes. Yes he does..."
Another hour later...
"So what does Hawk Moth even want with the Miraculouses?" Starlight wondered. "I mean, what's he gain from all this?"
"Well," Pinkie said, "nobody's really sure yet, but there's a lot of speculation." She glanced at Sunset. "Umm...should we say anything right now? I mean, they haven't seen Origins, Simonsayz, or Volpina yet. I mean...y'know...spoilers?"
Sunset nodded. "Yeah, they need to see those episodes before we get into the spoilers and speculation."
Twilight, who had the remote, went over the episode guide. Her heart sank. "But...but those episodes are all the way at the end," she moaned.
Pinkie shrugged. "Eh, we could watch 'em out of sequence. I mean, the rest of the season is pretty much just one Akuma after another with love square stuff and silly bits in between."
"Yeah, those are the major episodes that really do anything to address the bigger picture," Sunset agreed. "I'm up for skipping ahead if you girls are."
"Works for me," Starlight said.
"Let's do Simonsayz first," Pinkie suggested. "It's kinda the one that starts the big tangle of spoilers."
Twenty-two minutes later...
Twilight gasped as the episode ended. "Adrien's dad is Hawk Moth," she said quietly. "Isn't he?"
Starlight blinked. "Wait, what?"
"Aye, it does seem that way, from certain things he said," Luna agreed, arms folded and brow furrowed in thought. "His mention of risk, the absence of Hawk Moth's rant after the defeat of the Akuma..."
"That's the prevailing theory," Sunset said, nodding. "Although some of the teasers for season two are kind of...ambiguous."
Starlight frowned. "Now that you mention it, Hawk Moth does look a little like him." She shook her head. "And he was interested in Ladybug's earrings and Cat Noir's ring..."
"And freaked out when he saw Adrien's ring at the end," Twilight pointed out.
"But to what end does he seek their Miraculous?" Luna wondered. "What could a man of such substantial wealth, fame, and power gain by turning to base villainy and wreaking havoc upon the city?"
"Well, Origins and Volpina have some more clues," Sunset said. "Before we watch, though, I'll just say that the main theory floating around? Is he wants the power to bring back Adrien's mom."
"Yeah, nobody knows what actually happened to her except she 'disappeared'," Pinkie said sadly. "Everyone thinks if Hawk Moth is Gabriel, he's doing all this because he's obsessed with getting his wife back."
"That's...that's so sad," Starlight said.
"Misguided villainy," Luna offered soberly. "I can relate."
"But...but if that's his goal...doesn't he realize if Adrien finds out the truth, he'll never forgive him?" Twilight asked sadly.
"Oh, girl, there are thousands of pages of fanfiction about that," Pinkie said.
Several hours later...
"Okay you know what? I really, really hate Chloe," Starlight said. "They seriously should've let Kung Food kill her. Paris would be a hell of a lot better off without her."
"No kidding," Sunset muttered. "I mean, there's being the mean girl for a reason, and then there's being a shrieking, entitled, self-absorbed twat-waffle."
"And Chloe's supposed to get a Miraculous in season two," Pinkie said, blowing on her curl in irritation.
"PINKIE! SPOILERS!" Sunset cried.
"Oh, like you didn't know!"
"Yeah, but THEY didn't!"
"WHAT?" Starlight cried. "THAT spoiled brat, a superhero?"
"Or a new supervillain," Twilight pointed out. "I mean, just having a Miraculous doesn't make you a hero."
"I can't see the biggest cause of Akumas in Paris being any kind of hero," Starlight muttered. "I mean, at least half the Akumas are her fault!"
"Well, to be fair," Pinkie pointed out, "Marinette causes a lot of them too." She paused, then dug a finger in one ear. "Umm...actually, in season two, she's even worse than Chloe."
The room went silent.
"Wait...what?" Sunset asked. She stared incredulously at Pinkie. "You've been watching leaked episodes?"
"I can't help it!" Pinkie cried. "I'm surprised you haven't!"
"I've been waiting to watch them in English!"
"They've been leaking in English!"
"Seriously?" Sunset blinked, then shook her head. "Don't say any more. It...it isn't that long. I can wait. Just...no spoilers!"
"Aww, you're no fun..."
Well that was entertaining. And since I know nothing about that show, I didn't care for any spoilers
Well...at least they’re not marathoning Steven Universe? Or Gravity Falls? Or some of the more heartbreaking Disney movies?
God help us should they start Game of Thrones.
Huh, that's funny. I was gonna suggest they watch Ladybug, but you beat me to the punch. Now it'd be funny if they watch something violent or edgy or stupid.
Maybe make them watch Fairy Tail, it's basically the same thing, but without any logic at all.
I'm surprised they're not marathoning Doctor Who.
"Shh! Spoilers~" -A rather frustrating but awesome woman.
8566598
Hell, at least they're not watching Gravity Falls when it originally aired. The delays between episodes were agonizingly long.
For instance, there was one day less than a year between the last episode of season 1 and the first of season 2. Season 1 on its own took 15 months to air, and season 2 took 18, with only 20 episodes in each. (There were a handful of random shorts between the seasons, but those were so short and spread out they didn't fill the gap much.)
Steven Universe ain't much better, but at least SU episodes tend to get released in "bombs", where they air daily for a week (or all get dumped on the app at once and promptly ripped and uploaded well before that week actually starts.)
Oh yeah, the love square. I've heard of that. A friend of mine has also vented about how apparently the fandom treats them all as separate characters and get into shipping wars over it
Reading this chapter after the first few episodes of season two have been leaked and Gabriel Agreste is confirmed to be Hawk Moth is entertaining to say the least.
Plus i'm just a huge slut for anything Miraculous-related.
8566699
Ugh, the Ladrien/Marichat thing. It's the MLB version of that Solar Empire/New Lunar Republic shit from early bronydom...
8566709
I know right? I abstained from watching leaked MLP eps at the end of season 7 but I've already watched the six released eps of Miraculous season 2...
8566713
Will you please fucking let it go? I'm sick of seeing you bitch about this.
Miraculous Ladybug.
Luna?
I can believe it.
Yep.
Dead on.
Probably.
I don't doubt that.
Not unlike MLP.
I haven't watch Miraculous Ladybug so far yet, but lots of the trope I'm reading here reminds me of Sailor Moon.
8566629
While I can't agree with the descriptors used, I do think it would be interesting to see them watching Fairy Tail.
8566714
Two questions. One, I take it the 'prequel' bit is the "If I could get my hooves on them" line? Two, any chance of Luna and the rest watching Fairy Tail?
I don't watch Mysterious Ladybug, Don't have the time. Just like I don't have the time to watch Doctor Who, Or any of the various Anime that I Like or are on my watch list. Still, this chapter makes it sound interesting.
Also very Meta, which I feel has to have been on purpose.
This was mildly entertaining, but I can't help but feel that not being familiar with Miraculous Ladybug is preventing me from getting the most out of this chapter.
I watched about 10 episodes on Netflix and couldn't really get into it. I would definitely say it's a good show but it's not really something that makes me want to binge watch the entire thing. Suppose I should try skipping ahead to those last few episodes.
Having seen the six episodes that have leaked so far (that I know of), I'm sitting here wishing they'd hurry up and make it to Netflix already. One at a time is killing me.
Also, gonna say that I wish they hadn't gone with the obvious regarding Gabriel Agreste being Hawk Moth, but all the alternatives I can think of would've been much worse.
Interesting chapter. And hey! Now I finally know what the hell 'Miraculous Ladybug' is about!
8566773
It's more like "Sailor Moon crossed with Spider-Man", but yeah.
8566793
Yes to the first, no to the second seeing as I myself have not watched Fairy Tail.
8566827
Miraculous Ladybug. And I suggest you find 22 minutes a day for an episode, you could do the whole first season inside of a month.
8566838
So go watch it then.
8566927
Did you ever think maybe it's obvious BECAUSE it was meant to be obvious? And I think we're due for the Netflix release within the next two weeks...
8566945
It's something you should definitely go watch.
8567056
Aye, true...
Still, we've had the parent of a hero be a villain how many times over the years? Norman Osborn, Darth Vader, the Runaways...it feels a little overused to me.
I still think Starlight’s outfit is the best of the EQG outfits. Beanie and ripped jeans and all.
Never seen Miraculous Ladybug, but I don’t watch a lot of TV in general (aside from NFL every Sunday). Maybe I’ll watch it, but college is taking up a lot of my time.
8566848
Well, Netflix does have something of an unusual episode order for the first season...
MythrilMoth actually posted a recommended watching order in one of his blogs way back when it first came to Netflix. I can't be sure if it'll help you get into it any more, but I know it helped both me and one of my Fimfic friends (his first impression after watching a few episodes was basically just passable, but then he said he became a big fan after I linked him to the blog post.)
Could you do a chapter with the girls watching South Park please?
Reminds me of Yandere Sim!
Cool review! ... I really should get back to watching... Maybe.
It's a nice way to frame it too!
I know nothing about this show. I kind of want to now, though I’m not sure sticking my head into the black hole that is yet another fandom is wise. Still.... any chance of Star VS The Forces Of Evil? It’s always good for a laugh.
The show needs to have more characters visit the other side of the portal. Sadly, it will never be enough, which is half the reason why I write Cultural Differences.
8567396
Because it creates an emotional challenge for the hero to overcome. It's a solid and effective trope for a reason. It delivers an added emotional investment in the conflict.
8567424
It's not on TV anymore, it's on Netflix, so that should work nicely for you.
8567463
No. Unless it's one sentence: "This is garbage, change the channel."
8567510
Ladybug has a torturously slow production and release schedule, so ease into it. It's worth every second, there have only been two bad episodes out of 33 released so far. And yeah, I might do a Star chapter.
8567604
Eh, true. Though I do hope that particular internal reveal (as well as several others) are in the plans for the program. The less things are dragged out, the better for everyone.
Hmm... a nice chapter, hehe, nice, nice.
Very entertaining, haven't seen this show tho... hmm...
8567424
Well now I’m royally fucked since I don’t have Netflix. I am a poor excuse for an American, I know.
I may have to look and see if it is on Amazon Prime Video. I don’t have a lot of hope, since you still have to buy most of the newer stuff on there.
Love Square? not the Love Hypercube?
I have never understood Super Hero Anime. Don't get me wrong, I'm a HUGE fan of Sailor Moon (Both OG and Crystal). But....watching them now that I'm considerably older, the things that go on in them make me want to put my head through a wall from all the stupidity in them. There were points in them where I was ready to scream, "Would you just kiss/jump each other's bones already?!?!?!?!"
Of course, I watch MLP and see the same kinda moments in it as well, so maybe I don't have any room to talk on that front.
8567604
why though? south park's social commentary is usually pretty genius, especially in the latest seasons. season 19's commentary on sjw culture was brilliant and the current one, which mostly deals with trump and his support/ers, is shaping up to be pretty awesome as well.
sure, if you're particularly thin skinned, i guess you can be turned off by the adult humor and profanity of it all a bit, but that was satire is after all:
and southpark has that art down to a t.
8566634 They'd be there for days, no weeks. And that's only if you include the seasons from 2005 onward.
While I've seen Miraculous it didn't really connect with me, I did find it odd they waited till almost the end of the season for the "set up" episode. I can't think of too many shows where the hero's origin isn't one of the first 2 episodes. Only Spiderman cartoons seem to do it consistently.
8568056
But the Equestrians will have no context for the satire, they won't get why it's funny and to Quote Mark Hammil's Joker "It's not funny if you have to explain the joke!" No satire and South Park is just potty humor.
8568218
but the humor could come from them trying to understand satire. after all, we have hundreds of fics with the premise of: "ponies don't understand human thing x". why not do the same with satire? wouldn't be any more ridicolous than a lot of other stuff...
8568249
Seeing their reactions would be funny, but the ponies wouldn't find it funny.
Do you watch Stranger Things? Maybe you could do a chapter about that.
8567785
The whole season will be out on DVD soonish, but you'll have to wait a while for the season 2 DVD set since we're just getting the first half of season 2 on Netflix in December.
8567803
It doesn't become a hypercube until season 2 when Kagami and Lukas get tangled up in things.
8568056
South Park is garbage. It's always BEEN garbage, it'll always BE garbage. It has its moments ("Uncle Fucker") but once the shock value wears off, all that's left is two guys jerking each other off with construction paper cutouts.
8568206
It's a French thing. Code Lyoko and Totally Spies were the same way--the "origins" episodes came VERY late in the series. (Code Lyoko waited until season three and did the origin as the S3 finale, and Totally Spies waited until almost the end of the series).
8568249
I think you're missing the point here because you're so preoccupied with dying upon this hill: there won't be a South Park chapter because I don't watch South Park. If I don't watch it, I'm not about to write a chapter about it, now am I?
8568264
I haven't gotten around to it yet. Also, it's not a cartoon. Not that I wouldn't do a "Just Girls Watching TV" thing at some point, mind. But it has to be something I've personally watched, and Stranger Things, while I want to watch it, is...really really far down on my list of priorities.
8568305
Hummm actually it's a odd confidence, with the exception of Martin Mystery, French shows don't connect with me. As for shows they could watch. What about Adventure Time or Steven Universe?
8568373
I really wasn't planning on opening this thing up to suggestions or requests... ^^;;
The would make a great side series, imagine the characters reacting as they casually watch shows like Steven Universe, Rick and Morty, Gravity Falls, or Phineas and Ferb.
MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!
8568305
first off; well to each there own i guess (although i find it somewhat funny that in a movie full of social commentary about racism, domestic abuse and blaming others for your own short-comings, you name the arguable worst part of it as the best part of the show). however, as far as i (and many, many others) am concerned, south park is really clever and insightful for the most part, if you are willing to give it the chance that is. i'm not saying you have to like it, just that i'm sad that people aren't giving it a chance because of the way it's presented.
and second; i'm sorry, but if anyone is missing the point, than that's you. i mean, how the hay did you even come to that conclusion from what i said? i never said you have to do a chapter, nor was i trying to force you to do one. i was merely explaining to xanderfox how such a chapter might be able to be integrated in a fic. not yours specifically, just a fic. i'm sorry, dude, but i think you're a bit blinded by your own hatred for the show there and are jumping to the wrong conclusions.
.....I'd gladly read more of Princess Luna watching animated entertainment. ....or gaming. ....or learning about wrestling. .....or all the above. ......she is best Princess. n////n
This makes me want to see how they would react to some of the nonsense that Jojo gets into.
Yeah, that's ridiculous isn't it Glimmy?
This is a real show? Huh, that's unexpected, it was enough of a far fetched cliche storm to be a good parody, didn't expect it to be real.