Fic recs, May 10th: Lightning Runner edition? · 6:56pm May 10th, 2020
I have been busy today. And I'm not done. D: News piled up, there'd be even more stories in this!
Illya Leonov's newest reading is Chris's Wyrmlysan, with Luna Farrowe, ShadowOfCygnus, Scribbler and Neighrator Pony! 'Bout time someone did that one. :)
And Scarlett Blade has done a reading of Holy's Sunshine and Whiskey, with Wubcake! (Channel link because NSFW fic.)
This month's Flash Fiction Online includes becoming someone else, fighting dementia, the other side of the mirror, and doing magic with the ocean. But that first story in particular is really great.
And I don't usually recommend people read my off-site season reviews, but y'all might want to go read the one I just posted for season 5. I caught a lot of interesting stuff in those episodes on the whatever-th time through, and I also had to admit at the end that it is not the best season of the show's run, despite having some of its greatest episodes. :B Spoilers.
The next reader is former fandom musician Lightning Runner, who I actually reviewed twice because he used to spell his name with numbers. o.O He stopped doing readings a while back, switching to deep furry takes on various things, but at least he left the videos up. The list is short, and there's literally only one other reading of his I haven't reviewed, so I'm rolling the 'edition' into a regular review blog:
MythrilMoth's Trixie and Spike Go Down the Hooooole!
ocalhoun's Arachnophillia
Skywriter's Mare of Many Hats
I think I'll do a second one after this instead of a regular blog.
H: 1 R: 3 C: 3 V: 1 N: 0
How to Train Your Cat-Bird by P-Berry
Reading by Lightning Runner
Genre: GoE Comedy
Gilda's been acting odd lately.
That's "Griffin on Earth", btw. So this is a fun little fic that explores its single joke fully without overstaying its welcome. Part of me thinks it might have been funnier with a pegasus instead, but that might also have veered into "MLD but funny" territory. So, for what it is, it was amusing.
Recommended for Laughs
Cape and Cowl by Artimae and Post Script
Reading (part 1) by Forest Rain
Genre: Dark Action
A young mare, wanting to find her brother's murderer, finds inspiration in Ponyville. Justice will belong to the Mare-Do-Well.
There's a lot going on in this story, so let's start with the big negative: POV. Whenever focus in a scene shifts to a character, whenever they enter or they're named, we suddenly go directly into their perspective, often with a good deal of backstory. This even happens with minor and even unnamed characters, and it drove me up the wall every single time. There are a few spots where the writing could be tuned up as well, but that's the big downside. And if you can get past it? This is a pretty cool Mare-Do-Well story with a very satisfying ending and a really intriguing sequel hook. Yes, if you want the full story, there's two more parts to read after this, but if you just want to read about a young mare becoming a superhero on a quest for personal revenge, you will get that. Along with her comes a surprisingly large cast of characters, many of them archetypal but none of them simple. The Oranges were an odd pick for supporting characters, but I really love how Mrs. Orange is written. There's a whole crap-ton of batpony world-building, with a really original and flavorful word for them. The tone varies somewhat between comic book action and gritty action, but the action scenes do tend to be good. And though we get our main character's backstory in a dump right up front, skipping past it that way was honestly the right thing to do. In all, this had just enough to it to do what it set out to, and I found it compelling.
Recommended
Necro-Semantics by Wise Cracker
Reading by Illya Leonov, et. al.
Genre: Headcanon Exploration
Twilight noticed some discrepancies in Celestia's power after returning the alicorns' magic.
I say 'exploration' rather than 'dump' because while this is distinctly focused on headcanon, it's also got some story to it. Also, some decently funny bits, namely a scene in the middle wherein Twilight's lack of knowledge of necromancy doesn't stop her from having an encyclopedic knowledge of the undead, and a bad pun at the end. That being said, the pacing in this is also pretty slow, with a couple of scenes that drag on and on, notably the end and another scene wherein Twilight takes far too long to realize she's not supposed to be looking for a book. Still, this was amusing and moreover really interesting. Not bad at all for a season four explanation fic.
Recommended If You Like Reading About Magical Headcanon
Black and White by Bluesparkks
Reading by Scribbler, et. al.
Genre: Emotional/Shipping/Drama
An unexpected package outside Lyra's door brings with it a name from her past.
The framing story was an interesting way to approach this, allowing for more closure than we might have perhaps gotten had this simply been a straightforward telling of Octavia's story. Lyra's reaction is almost the most important part, after all. But foremost is Octavia, here written in a way I've never quite seen her before. She's friends with Vinyl, but they don't have any attraction. She characterizes herself as basically the lowly nerd following around the popular girl for reasons no one can say. She's got a real complex about the color of her coat. She's fresh and nuanced, and by the end of everything, I just wanted her to get over herself already… And then I read the author's notes and found out this is based on real events, with Octavia as the author's self-insert, and now I just don't know what to think at all. c.c As for the writing, there's a lot of LUS and some long sequences of repetition that belabored their points, but overall it wasn't bad. If nothing else, this is far more refreshing than your average ScratchTavia.
Recommended for Fans of Drama
Mommy! by thegamerator10
Reading by VisualPony
Genre: Light Comedy
On her way to market one morning, Spitfire is harassed by a little blue filly who says just one thing.
Well, this is a one-joke fic that doesn't really seem to know how funny it wants to be. I'm not quite sure what the point was, though as a long-time Spitdash shipper, I was a little weirded out. It's cute, don't get me wrong, it's exceedingly cute. But the writing is also not great; c.f. the many sentences beginning with "She + verb" right at the start. It's okay.
Vaguely Recommended
Painted Jack by adcoon
Reading by Scribbler
Genre: Friendshipping
Laid up after an accident, Applejack contemplates Equestria's newest fashion fad.
"Applejack gets a tattoo" is a deceptively simple concept for a story. And the way this is written, it almost feels like something you'd show your parents to convince them that getting a tattoo is okay. I mean, AJ looks at lot of sociohistorical facets of tattooing, since it's new to Equestria and all, and there's a lot of discussion of the pros and cons, with Rarity standing in for the overbearing parent or head-shaking religious leader. At the same time, it's also a treatise on how getting a tattoo, a first tattoo at least, should be something undertaken only after careful consideration. The real clever bit is how Rarity and AJ work together in this. I've never seen Applejack manipulate her like that before, and it was way funny. Reaching a kind of mutual understanding over Rarity's objections felt like something worth writing about it, and by golly, it is.
Recommended
The Time Killer by Silent Whisper
Reading by Midnight29
Genre: Rom-Com
There's been a murder! Detective Pinkie Pie is on the case!
So this was hysterical. :D I do kind of wish the mystery had been more mysterious, but I can't really complain when we're so tightly in Pinkie's head and she's written so well. Especially when that good writing includes a well-written infatuation with Rarity. Non-shippers might want to steer clear, but everyone else should come have a great time.
Highly Recommended
Winona by jmj
Reading by Scribbler
Genre: Horror
Oh, Winona? Well, she's Winona the Second, actually. Why don't I tell ya how I got her?
Huh. The reading is pretty recent; I wonder when this was deleted. c.c It's a shame, too, because this is one of jmj's better stories. Applejack's voiced so well, and her affability just naturally carries you from the second-person, very slice of life opening into the spawning horror. The setup for said horror is done quite well, and the monster is one whose appearance only increases the tension. I will say the ending is maybe a little cheesy. Like, it doesn't fit with the strong characterization in the earlier parts of the story, but I nevertheless really appreciated it. I haven't seen horror, slice of life and sad blended together this well before.
Recommended
'Deep furry' sounds like a political conspiracy waiting to happen
I thought "Painted Jack" was pretty good, but it's a very "point A to point B" story. AJ wants a tattoo, says she's going to, and proceeds to get it. There's no tension and only a little character exploration. I can see it appealing to someone particularly interested in the subject matter, as it seems almost more like an educational piece than a narrative.
5260132
Very much educational, yes.
Ayyy, looking out for little ol' me
May 10th. You're a couple months off-kilter, and I don't blame you. Time's moving in Jeremy-Bearimies these days.
5260866
Who decided it was a good idea to have months that started with the same letters? :|
5260880
Don't ask the Dazzlings. For them, it's Gemuary, Fireuary, Marsh ....