Comic Review: Return of Nightmare Moon Arc (Issues #5-8) · 7:46pm Jun 12th, 2013
Well, the new comic arc is done, and as promised I'll be looking at the story as a whole. Of course, I already reviewed Issue #5 before this, but whatever, let's get it done. Will our heroes defeat the new Nightmare Moon?
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The story shifts its focus rather quickly in Issue #6, with the main characters getting over their nightmares...except for Rarity, who gives in and becomes Nightmare Moon. I would say it's a spoiler, but pretty much everyone guessed the twist long, long before the comics came out, so too bad. After that, our heroes struggle to escape from Nightmare Rarity's minions, Spike trying to get her back to normal, and Luna desperate to defeat the Nightmare to redeem herself. It's a bit of a switch up, but it works wonderfully.
The real stars of the last two issues are Spike and Luna. Issue #7 is almost entirely devoted to the little dragon trying to save Rarity on his own, befriending slugs along the way. And much like "The Crystal Empire," it's a rare instance of Spike being allowed to be the hero and save the day. His love for Rarity is very much not played for laughs, but instead leads to some surprisingly good legitimate drama. Luna, meanwhile, is the one who learns the most from the adventure; in particular, her arc is about how everypony deserves a second chance and you shouldn't let your fear and guilt stop you from reaching out to others. And honestly, it's much better in a lot of ways than "Luna Eclipsed," showing just how Luna transitioned between her two designs and no Season Two Pinkie Pie in sight. (Not that the story's canon; it's kind of hard to justify with "Luna Eclipsed.")
As for Nightmare Rarity herself, I adore her as a villain. What helps is that this Nightmare Moon isn't the same as the first, but is instead a reflection of Rarity's most negative attributes magnified a thousand times. She's greedy, condescending, sarcastic, vain, and egotistical in the extreme, but at the same time has small hints of Rarity's more positive nature buried within. My only real issue is that the impetus for Rarity turning into Nightmare Moon is...dumb. She thinks they're replacing her with a pony she's never seen before outside of her nightmares, and is convinced that her friends will dump her if she ever stops being generous. Thinking your friends will leave you over the smallest thing is the domain of Pinkie Pie and social cripples like myself, not a pony like Rarity.
The only other issue from the writing side of things is in the last issue, where things get extremely saccharine and preachy during the "Rouse the Hero" phase of the journey. Where it really goes off the rails, though, is when Trixie shows up for the fight at the end. Okay, so you have everypony in Ponyville showing up for the final battle; that's fine. But why is Trixie there, when both times in the show she was very clearly shown leaving Ponyville at the end? And when are the comics supposed to be set? Between Seasons 2 and 3, correct? Then Trixie being there makes no sense since she was supposed to be working on the rock farm and/or plotting her revenge by that point. I know it's a minor thing to nitpick, but it just bugs me, and the fact that it only happens so they can force the moral along irks me terribly.
Art-wise, the comics aren't as expressive or cartoony as the first four issues, but the art is pretty strong for the most part. There are a few moments, especially in the last issue, where the proportions are a bit wonky, but otherwise I have no complaints.
All in all, these four issues were even better than the last arc, with a much more satisfying climax. If you haven't picked them up yet, do so now. Now. I command you to stop reading this and do so immediately. Not next week, not tomorrow, but now. Sell a kidney if you have to, but do it now. Oh, and pick up the Micro Series while you're at it; it's looking pretty close to cancellation at this point.
Must learn to stop reading reviews before I actually pick up the issue in questions, dammed differences in release dates between the UK and US.
Doesn't make sense with canon? HEADCANON'D ANYWAY!
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I gotta wait 1 1/2 weeks until I get paid to get issue 8, so I figured, eh, why not? Honestly this didn't give too much away, so I'm good anyway.
I'll be getting the Volume 2 book when it's available. I'm not much of a comic collector (I relegate all my obsessive collection issues to Pokemon), so I'd rather not have all four issues laying around if I can get them all in a compilation.
But your review really has me wishing it will be available soon! Trixie (no matter how much it doesn't make sense) for the win!
This is probably something that happens in the middle of season 3.
Pretty sure that the writers said that this takes place in an alternate timeline to Season 3... a timeline that broke off after the end of Season 2.
So Trixie can be there if Trixie wishes to be!
Problem with the micro-series is that their quality is all over the place. The only out-and-out good one is Rarity's, and Fluttershy's was just blah.
I bought the complete pack for Changeling arc, but I don't think I'll grab this one. It didn't make me laugh and the art wasn't anywhere near as expressive; good, but not fun or interesting to look at.
I guess no-one saw Time Turner holding the sonic screwdriver, because I did
I enjoyed it, but yeah, Trixie showing up completely out of nowhere made me give it a bit of a "what the hell?". That said, Babs, Photo Finish, Hoity Toity, and Joe were there as well, so it was a little bit of a nonsensical ensemble cast for the big fight.
Fairly sure that Trixie was intended as a post Magic Duel appearance given her comment about third chances, so I'm thinking mid season three for where this is set. It's really only Luna Eclipsed that doesn't fit the time frame, and that you could maybe handwave away by headcanoning that Luna was underpowered in this arc because of her self doubts about the Nightmare issue or something similar.
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Anachronistic Order: the events of the show don't necessarily need to happen in the exact sequence the episodes originally aired, save for those which directly reference each other. It's entirely feasible to construct a time line where Baby Cakes, May the Best Pet Win, and Magic Duel all happen before Lune Eclipsed.
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You're not completely off, since the comics are officially non-canon unless brought up in the show itself. There is some discussion between the two groups (if I remember correctly, they had to change some stuff in the Rarity micro because it would have been too close to a Season Four episode), but for the most part they just do their own thing and everyone's happy.
I guess a better way to have put it was that it would be hard to reconcile headcanon-wise without some rearranging and wiggling about with both the comics and the show's timeline.
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Except that raises the issue of why the ponies were afraid of Luna in "Luna Eclipsed" when they seem perfectly willing to help her this issue, give her a huge pep talk on how she shouldn't beat herself up, and ultimately inspire her to upgrade to Badass Luna. You could certainly fill the hole, but it'll take a lot of cement.
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Admittedly I don't really read the comics so I don't know the full details, but from what I have gathered a Broad Strokes approach to canonicity should smooth most of it over.
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You should. They're good.
I loved this arc. I want more.
Rarity is a celebrity follower. She knows how easy it is to go from the next big thing to yesterday's news.
I think it's possible Luna's mane is just an indicator of her own personal feelings. She was remorseful after being NMM, but after some time passed regained her confidence in time for LE. When the nightmares came back, she reverted to her season 1 look out of shame, and then got her season 2 appearance back again.
And it definitely takes place after Magic Duel since Trixie mentions every pony deserves even a third chance, referring to how being let off about lying about the Ursa was her second chance, and being forgiven after actually learning her lesson with the alicorn amulet incident was her third chance.
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That's certainly possible. It was everypony cheering her on that caused the transformation between the two forms. Still doesn't explain why Trixie was back in Ponyville, but it's not a huge issue; it just bugs me because it feels like it's forcing the moral along, even when it's doing a perfectly good job presenting the message on its own.
...
Wait, are you the Marimo? As in, Ponychan's Marimo? Forgive me if I'm wrong (people could have similar usernames), but if you are...
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Yeah, it's me. Didn't think I was that big of a deal.
And Trixie was just one of the many out-of-town cameos. Hoity Toity, Photo Finish, Babs Seed, Spitfire, Lightning Dust, Pony Joe, and all of the Canterlot guards. I think Celestia essentially sent out a call to arms to all of Equestria while beefing up Ponyville's defenses.
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Sorry, sorry. It's just...you were one of the most awesome people on that site, and...I just feel honored you took time to comment on this post.
Also, good point about the other cameos. Trixie is just easier to see because she's pushed to the forefront and plays a role in delivering the moral. If she had just stayed as a background gag (like in the Rarity micro and the other cameos), I probably wouldn't have raised any issue with it.
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Thanks. I'm flattered.
This arc was great. Not quite as great as the first one with Chrysalis, but still pretty damn awesome.
As for when it takes place, at this point I'd have to say that this takes place in an alternate timeline where Luna never had her ethereal mane until this last season, and this takes place sometime near the end, before Twi's coronation.
Because there's no way it fits in with the show canon timeline at this point.
I feel that the comics feel rushed, but I get that feeling for non-pony comics too, so I guess that's just apart of the genre.