My Little Pony |OT| An adventure that never will end

[Sylvee]

Click to shrink...

Sunset looks like she was cropped from a completely different image and then copy-pasted into there, and they didn't bother to adjust the size of her. Her labcoat (and Derpy's as well) doesn't have the colored buttons that the other 3 have which sort of hints at this.

It warms my heart to finally see other people digging into why Rainbow Rocks is a messy piece of filmmaking.

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I still think that there's a lot going for the movie, and if you just sort of go along with the movie it's very enjoyable. There's a reason why it's widely regarded as the best EQG movie.

However it's really weird to me that so many people out there complain about how Starlight when I feel like a lot of the most frequently listed complaints that Starlight has had (bad reformation, supplants the main cast in terms of importance, much more powerful/useful then the rest of the cast, rest of the cast frequently made to look bad so she can look good) are shared by Sunset, except in many cases I feel like those problems are far worse when it comes to Sunset.

I think that there's a couple reasons why Sunset's problems in these areas are so frequently overlooked, perhaps the biggest one just being that Sunset's reformation happened before people had started to become fatigued with villains being reformed. It also didn't help that Starlight was actually a pretty popular villain and her reformation was seen as us losing that, whereas no one liked villain Sunset, besides maybe people that are trying to retroactively convince themselves that villain Sunset was not terrible because of how much they like Sunset now. And lastly Starlight's reformation started off on an extremely rocky start because of numerous problems people had with its portrayal in the episode it happened in. On top of that Starlight is in the main series that people are more emotionally attached to, whereas with EQG people didn't really go into it expecting much I feel. All of those things I think combine together and as a result the general community seems to be substantially more critical of Starlight then they are of Sunset.


As for Rainbow Rocks I think that the movie does a pretty good job at getting you on Sunset's side, to a point where I would say that they did it a bit too well. The biggest example of this is the massive amounts of dialogue where people keep bringing up all the horrible things that Sunset has done in the past. All of them feel extremely unnatural, like no one would actually talk like this especially in the presence of the person that caused it. This isn't small talk, it's the movie intentionally bringing up those things so people can feel sorry for Sunset having to deal with it. When you start looking for it it's hard to miss just how emotionally manipulative the movie is in terms of trying to get you to root for Sunset.

The most glaring example is when the band plays "Awesome as I Want to Be." For some reason the Mane 6 decide that they can't "pony up" when playing music because it'll give away to the Dazzlings what their plan is. But given what we as the audience know not only is it pretty apparent that the Dazzlings are aware of their plan and have already made contingencies for it, but we have no reason to really side with the Mane 6's assumption that somehow they don't know and that hiding it from the Dazzlings is a good idea. Like the Dazzlings knew everything about Sunset, surely there's some footage on the internet of the Rainbooms ponying up that they would have seen too? The only reason why it exists in the narrative is so Sunset can see that Rainbow's about to transform so she has to stop the act, the result of which is that everyone hates Sunset and yells at her despite her doing what is presented in the narrative as being the right thing.

Honestly though if you're not really looking for this stuff it's still pretty enjoyable. I think that the vast majority of people are so caught up in the redemption of Sunset, (which the big payoff in Welcome To The Show is fantastic) the fantastic soundtrack, and the interesting villains that people don't really notice just how compromised the Mane 6 are through the movie.




Have some Jack:

 

[SigmasonicX]

If only they have gone with original Friendship Games ending whereby SciTwi does accept being with her peers in Crystal Prep. I mean, not like SciTwi wouldn't just pay a visit to the Humane 6, but the ending we ended getting more or less didn't leave much point for Princess Twi to return.

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I think I posted the tweet showing this in the season 8 thread at some point. Apparently the idea was that even with the original ending, they were still going to have SciTwi in Dance Magic (which was planned to be released before Legend of Everfree) and Legend of Everfree, with the vague idea that she'd just happen to be in the area for stories after that. So it doesn't seem like we would have gotten more PonyTwi in Dougworld either way. Possibly more Shadowbolts, though.

Still probably the best gen 4 film for me, even slightly above the the theatrical MLP film but just barely.

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Make no mistake, I do still think Rainbow Rocks is the best EQG movie, and it certainly has a stronger climax than the Movie. It's hard for me to say which of the two is better, since they are pretty different. Probably the Movie just for the lack of Bradlight.

 

[Captain Fish]

That "bring up the evil thing you did, apropos of nothing" writing trope is pretty awkward in the show too, imo.

 

[Nali]

that people don't really notice just how compromised the Mane 6 are through the movie.

Click to shrink...

This is my broadest issue with it. The closest thing the film has to a functional, working relationship is Sunset and Twilight, who haven't seen each other or talked since the latter pulled the former out of a crater months ago, and they've both got serious self-confidence issues that keep them from having any agency anyway. The antagonists can't stand each other, the protagonists can't stand each other, and the supporting cast is mind-controlled into being hostile to everyone anyway. If the Rainbooms at least managed to work their problems with each other out that'd be one thing, but the script straight up runs out of time to do it before it has to rush into the finale and handwaves it away with Sunset and Twilight telling everyone that they're actually friends after all over the course of a couple lines.

There's a good idea for a story about friends slowly falling apart under pressure in there somewhere, but this one's too angry and downbeat to sell it.

 

[SigmasonicX]

That "bring up the evil thing you did, apropos of nothing" writing trope is pretty awkward in the show too, imo.

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With Starlight, this at least happens over multiple episodes, where they have to assume a viewer may not have seen previous episodes. Come to think of it, they actually don't do this with Discord much. I suppose because him being a jerk stands on its own.

There's a good idea for a story about friends slowly falling apart under pressure in there somewhere, but this one's too angry and downbeat to sell it.

Click to shrink...

Weird to describe Rainbow Rocks as angry and downbeat, but it kind of fits, haha. The story of the girls falling apart as a band but then coming back together doesn't work because we don't really see them as friends much, and like you said, they didn't actually work through their problems. The former is a case of the show crew hoping our knowledge of the pony versions will fill in the gaps, but it's especially egregious here because a very similar thing happened in the first movie. Actually, they really should have tied the band breakdown more to that. Have Applejack tell Dash, "You know why I fell for Sunset's lies about you so easily? Because that's exactly the sort of person you are! No offense, Sunset." And that would have been a more elegant way to have Sunset be the solution.

Art dump. Some of this is fairly old art that I have only now seen. Favorite one from this set:
[cm] Sunrise and Sunset by bakki on DeviantArt

1.Anthro Fluttershy by regenda
2.Starlight eating pineapple pizza by aemantaslim
3.Twilight going "Oof" by bloodatius
4. Ocellus and Chrysalis - Mommie Dearest by InuHoshi-to-DarkPen on DeviantArt
5.Luna and Celestia booping blep by magnaluna

Spoiler: Art 1

1.RariJack with strawberry by magnaluna
2.Fluttershy Collab by ShadowReindeer on DeviantArt
3. Rainbow and Starlight - skittle horse and glim glam by WanderingPegasus on DeviantArt
4.Winterchilla and Dashie by Darksly-z on DeviantArt
5. Twilight - Rain by MrScroup on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 2

1. With tiny Dash - Twilight's Experimental Birdy by Taurson on DeviantArt
2.Pinkie Pie wishes you Happy Thanksgiving by Taurson on DeviantArt
3. Rarity and Fluttershy - Weird by Pony-Berserker on DeviantArt
4.Starlight Glimmer by Rutkotka on DeviantArt
5. And Sunburst - Art Print Sale_Glimmer by Tsitra360 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 3

1.EQG Rainbow with ugly Christmas sweater by dusty-munji
2.SciTwi X Sunset by ku_rimo
3.EQG Sunset with pony Sunset by ku_rimo
4.Pony Lemon Zest by kaijojomlpmasa
5.Blushing Spitfire by kaijojomlpmasa

Spoiler: Art 4

1.Princess Twilight X Sunset by lockers by idolize_341
2.Princess Twilight X Sunset looking at screen by idolize_341
3. Applejack and Silverstream - Plumbing by poecillia-gracilis19 on DeviantArt
4. Fluttershy X Marble - So glad I found you by Saphi-Boo on DeviantArt
5. Alicorn Starlight - Princess of Justice by Lisianthus-Tenebris on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 5

1.DiscoShy dancing by sadistjolt
2. Twilight reading - Twologht sparks by Mequiloano on DeviantArt
3.Art Print Sale_Tempest by Tsitra360 on DeviantArt
4. Pinkie, Luna, and Derpy - Cirque du Cupcake by Katakiuchi4U on DeviantArt
5.StarTrix with scarf by katakiuchi4u

Spoiler: Art 6

1.Fluttershy in sweater by tre
2. Fluttershy - Peaceful by CCKittyCreative on DeviantArt
3. Discord and Anthro Celestia - Old friends by LadyChimaeraD on DeviantArt
4. Anthro Fluttershy and tiny Discord - My little chaos by LadyChimaeraD on DeviantArt
5. Twilight - book horse by Scarletskitty12 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 7

1.K/DA Fluttershy / Kai'Sa [MLP x LoL] by Shad0w-Galaxy on DeviantArt
2.K/DA Rarity / Ahri [MLP x LoL] by Shad0w-Galaxy on DeviantArt
3.K/DA Twilight / Evelynn [MLP x LoL] by Shad0w-Galaxy on DeviantArt
4.Twilight in winter clothes by by hiccupsdoesart
5. Celestia - Failing Sun by Rossignolet on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 8

1.Mane Six Headcanons by WanderingPegasus on DeviantArt
2.Chrysalis and Starlight by mamechi
3.Rainbow Dash - My Little Pony by unousaya on DeviantArt
4. Pony Twilight and EQG Sunset - You're so cute ! by Marenlicious on DeviantArt
5.Fluttershy G5 by DianaMur on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 9

1.Princess Twilight Sparkle by Theroyalprincesses on DeviantArt
2.Celestia, Luna, and Cadance by theroyalprincesses
3. Pony and EQG - My little Pony Fluttershy by Theroyalprincesses on DeviantArt
4.My little Pony Starlight Glimmer by Theroyalprincesses on DeviantArt
5.Holly The Hearths Warmer Doll (Fluttershy) by Darksly-z on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 10

Neat animatic


And one of surprisingly few remixes of a song from "Best Gift Ever"


I still have a fair number of images to post later.

 

[Nali]

Starlight tends to bring up her sordid past all on her own, to my recollection.

Weird to describe Rainbow Rocks as angry and downbeat, but it kind of fits, haha. The story of the girls falling apart as a band but then coming back together doesn't work because we don't really see them as friends much, and like you said, they didn't actually work through their problems.

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FiM lives and dies by the strength of its relationships. When it puts the time in and really sells how people care about each other and the unique personal dynamics that go into it, it's wonderful, but it's almost never managed to pull that off in these large ensemble cast stories where everyone is in every scene. There's not enough time for nuance.

but it's especially egregious here because a very similar thing happened in the first movie. Actually, they really should have tied the band breakdown more to that. Have Applejack tell Dash, "You know why I fell for Sunset's lies about you so easily? Because that's exactly the sort of person you are! No offense, Sunset." And that would have been a more elegant way to have Sunset be the solution.

Click to shrink...

Something like this would've been lovely. Does it ever even draw a parallel between how the sirens and Sunset both set out to create divisions among people?

 

[Cheerilee]

Regarding Rainbow Rocks, Sunset Shimmer may have been a late addition to the script, but she absolutely steals the show, while Human-form Ponyworld Twilight drags the story down, and they had to break the rules of the universe just to get Twi over there so she could drag the story down (the portal was supposed to be closed). There should've been one more rewrite to remove Twilight from the story. She could still make a guest appearance in the movie via spellbook-telephone, but that's it. And a lack of Human Twi in the movie would've made the Human Twi reveal at the end all that much better.

Ponyworld Twilight left Sunset in the care of the Human counterparts of the Mane Five, and Sunset was wonderfully reinvented as a good person being constantly jabbed in her raw nerves and open wounds as penance for her former monsterism, but while the Mane Five are good people in any world, they're not perfect and they're not a proper team when they're missing their leader.

Regarding the Mane Five being jerks, I feel that the mechanism of the Dazzling's magic is that their song is an ear worm (the lyrics don't matter, the song itself is magic), and it gets in your head and finds negativity. It can't create what isn't there, it finds the flaws that exist in everyone and gives them a little nudge. As the affected brain flirts with negativity, it produces negative energy, which the magic feeds on and uses to exert more influnce over the brain, gaining traction and pushing it harder into evil. At some point the magic infection reaches critical mass and starts delivering returns to the Dazzlings in the form of magical green mist.

The Mane Five were infected when they first met the Dazzlings, in the cafeteria song. They seemed unfazed because of their innate goodness and touch of magic, but the magic infection eventually started to take hold over them, even if it took a while longer. They aren't perfect beings and the magic took advantage of their natural character flaws.

Sunset was genuinely unaffected because the Rainbow Space Cannon just recently burned all of the evil out of her. There was no negativity for the ear worm to find. Potentially also, the "evil" magic being used against Sunset was utterly small fry compared to the actual Demon she grew inside of her soul and carried for three years.

Which sets Sunset up as the one to grow from zero to hero, as she moves from being the one sheltered in the care of the Mane Five to the one that slaps some sense into them after their eventual fall, and takes Twilight's place as group leader as the combined group takes down the Dazzlings. One does not need Twilight here inexplicably unable to activate the Rainbow Space Cannon for a story like this to work.

Although in spite of it's flaws, Rainbow Rocks remains the best Equestria Girls movie, IMO. Sunset carries the movie, and she alone puts this movie above all the others. And Sunset is usually the best part of other EQG movies, so Rainbow Rocks scores some bonus points for setting that wheel in motion. And then, Rainbow Rocks also has the best songs. It's the clear winner, IMO, in spite of it's obvious (to me) flaws.

Spoiler

The pinnacle of EQG, and maybe MLP, came right after Rainbow Rocks though, with Sunset Shimmer's "My Past is Not Today" music video. It is perfection.

 

[Strider_Blaze]

First two season 8 episodes done.

School Daze Parts 1 and 2: Pretty good start for that season IMO. Lots of callbacks to the MLP Movie. So this Chancellor Neighsay is not only strict on wanting to have things by the book, but he's also a fantastic racist due to Twilight's school allowing other creatures to attend. The guy nearly caused war and I'm just barely starting this season lol!

The gags were pretty great, such as Pinkie using her mane to write on a chalkboard and Ember telling everyone to stop singing.

Not to mention Silverstream being fascinated by stairs.

And Starlight has gone pretty far as well, actually being the one to get Twilight back into her senses.

 

[Sylvee]

First two season 8 episodes done.

School Daze Parts 1 and 2: Pretty good start for that season IMO. Lots of callbacks to the MLP Movie. So this Chancellor Neighsay is not only strict on wanting to have things by the book, but he's also a fantastic racist due to Twilight's school allowing other creatures to attend. The guy nearly caused war and I'm just barely starting this season lol!

The gags were pretty great, such as Pinkie using her mane to write on a chalkboard and Ember telling everyone to stop singing.

Not to mention Silverstream being fascinated by stairs.

And Starlight has gone pretty far as well, actually being the one to get Twilight back into her senses.

Click to shrink...

I found the 2-parter to be a bit middling, the students were fun (and are by far the best part of the season) but the actual plot is kinda mediocre. I won't talk too much about the school because I'm sure that someone who felt more about it will cover it but as a whole the school was a not well thought out idea that seemed to be thrown in there because of marketing and the writers couldn't find a way to integrate it well. Naysay is a pretty boring character to me, won't get into why in much detail because of spoilers though.


Silverstream is awesome though. Easily my 2nd favorite student behind Gallus the Griffon. (He gets more interesting as the season goes on) Here's some old art of her:

Spoiler

 

[SigmasonicX]

Something like this would've been lovely. Does it ever even draw a parallel between how the sirens and Sunset both set out to create divisions among people?

Click to shrink...

I don't remember anything that's spelled out. The part where Sunset confronts them in a dark hallway is clearly supposed to evoke the similarities, but no one really says anything about it.

Regarding Rainbow Rocks, Sunset Shimmer may have been a late addition to the script, but she absolutely steals the show, while Human-form Ponyworld Twilight drags the story down, and they had to break the rules of the universe just to get Twi over there so she could drag the story down (the portal was supposed to be closed). There should've been one more rewrite to remove Twilight from the story. She could still make a guest appearance in the movie via spellbook-telephone, but that's it. And a lack of Human Twi in the movie would've made the Human Twi reveal at the end all that much better.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, in retrospect, it really should have left out PonyTwi and focused on Sunset. I can understand that wasn't the starting point of development.

Likely the story of the movie was originally Sirens appear, Sunset provides the contrivance to bring Twilight back and then peaces out of the movie, Twilight tries to come up with a counter-song and fails so they delay during the Battle of the Bands, they get trapped under the stage, Twilight gets them to stop fighting, and then they win. Not very interesting. Clearly Meghan McCarthy was trying to find some way to shore up the story, and she mentions the breakthrough came when she wrote the midnight snack scene.

However, from all the supplemental videos released before the movie completely excluding Sunset, it was too late to change course from a marketing perspective, especially to exclude Human PonyTwi.

Regarding the Mane Five being jerks, I feel that the mechanism of the Dazzling's magic is that their song is an ear worm (the lyrics don't matter, the song itself is magic), and it gets in your head and finds negativity. It can't create what isn't there, it finds the flaws that exist in everyone and gives them a little nudge.

Click to shrink...

I think the story works fine with the band falling apart from normal non-magic manipulation. It shows how dangerous the Dazzlings can be even if their magic can't affect you. The issue is more that the Humane Five don't get a good showing and Twilight especially comes off badly for not noticing the conflicts. Excluding Twilight from the movie would have helped a lot, including providing more time for Sunset and the Humane Five.

~~~

I suppose I should mention what's going on with Tumblr, if only for people coming back to this thread later.

So Tumblr is removing all NSFW content, using terrible bots that hit SFW stuff too, and people are leaving in droves. I'm subscribed to some pony artists and they're all listing alternative sites, mainly Twitter. Compared to other fandoms, though, I'm seeing them mention that their stuff is all on Derpibooru anyway, so it will be easy to keep track of where they'll go. It's nice that the pony fandom at least should come out of this without losing track of anyone.

 

[Strider_Blaze]

Yeah, Tumblr news is a complete shitshow. Didn't really use it often, and it pretty much cemented my decision to just delete my account altogether.

Not really certain if Twitter is that safe considering it's pretty public IMO. Thankfully I already follow notable pony artists like JJ and Butch-X over on Twitter.

 

[Sylvee]

So Tumblr is removing all NSFW content, using terrible bots that hit SFW stuff too, and people are leaving in droves. I'm subscribed to some pony artists and they're all listing alternative sites, mainly Twitter. Compared to other fandoms, though, I'm seeing them mention that their stuff is all on Derpibooru anyway, so it will be easy to keep track of where they'll go. It's nice that the pony fandom at least should come out of this without losing track of anyone.

Click to shrink...

Twitter seems like a suboptimal place to post NSFW stuff though given how public it is. Almost no one is ever going to want to interact with that kind of stuff on their main accounts so either everyone will have to make a burner account or they'll just not give it any interactions at all. I feel like there's a lot of subreddits out there that would be a good place for the artist to migrate to though. Generally speaking it's detached enough from real life that people won't feel scared interacting with it and a lot of the NSFW subreddits already have thousands of users that browse them. Then again I'm not really someone that ever went to Tumblr in the first place and don't browse Twitter at all, nor am I someone actually posting art so idk.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Not really certain if Twitter is that safe considering it's pretty public IMO. Thankfully I already follow notable pony artists like JJ and Butch-X over on Twitter.

Click to shrink...

I think it's pretty likely Twitter will take a similar route at some point, targeting NSFW images for moderation over all the Nazi stuff, so hopefully some more valid Tumblr replacement comes soon. Pony artists at least should be pretty safe, unless Derpibooru shuts down when G4 ends or something.

~~~

In a blast from the past, there's a phone line you can call to get a pre-recorded message from the Mane Six (not from the show VAs).

Here are all the recordings.


Despite not using the show VAs, these are pretty fun. Fluttershy's is the worst imitation.

Monochromatic released a new short fic, On Chasing (Pipe) Dreams, about Rarity talking to Twilight before the former moves to Saddle Arabia. Here's the review I wrote, addressing other reviews that complained that Twilight and Rarity could just visit each other.

Spoiler: Review

This was a well written bittersweet story. The set up of Rarity going to Saddle Arabia and leaving Twilight behind reminded me of that Parent Trap blog post.

People are getting too hung up on the idea that they could just visit each other. Someone living even hours away is a huge difference from living nearby. Heck, Twilight barely visits the Equestria Girls world and she has a portal in her house.

Not much else to add, really.

We had a chat about "Shadow Play" and story arcs in FiM. The first part has some Utena ending spoilers, which I split off from the rest.

Spoiler: Shadow Play chat (Utena spoilers part)

CappyYesterday at 8:04 AM


The RR and Utens stuff made me think about Shadow Play more


SigmasonicXYesterday at 8:09 AM


What are your thoughts?


CappyYesterday at 8:25 AM


I'm almost home I'll type them


CappyYesterday at 8:41 AM


okie dokie


CappyYesterday at 9:10 AM


So, yeah I had issues with the twilight arc in it I think it's not really an arc, because the ending bit like a lot of Utena's moments is a reaction And I think in that case, trying to save the pony when they begin to separate from the symbiote shadow juice is something that anyone should/would do. So it ends up not feeling like a heroic or special moment to me And while I think they did write it in a way where it makes sense for Twilight to follow Starswirl, I think there's just as much evidence of her choosing to go her own way and find answers on her own and I think that's a much more satisfying area for the character. It's not a logic issue it's more a character growth issue for me. And even in the situation where she chooses to follow, because she wasn't faced with what I perceive as a hard decision in deciding to save Stygian. It's easy to try and save someone you can see who seems to be in pain, it's way harder to decide to save someone who you only have information about. And something simple like her altering the spell to increase the chance of separation so she could talk to him, or even just giving her more trepidation (there's some, but also wide shots of only Starlight looking concerned while Twilight is still determined) would've helped. But ideally I think she should've had a choice that wasn't "push tiny pony into portal" or "try to help."

Spoiler: Shadow Play chat (without Utena spoilers)

SigmasonicXYesterday at 9:20 AM


I see what you mean. Saving Stygian after seeing him in trouble is the obvious thing for a hero to do, and it would have been more effective if she chose to dive in without that.



Reminds me of Discord's reformation, actually, with Fluttershy persisting despite Discord showing little sign of really changing until the end.


CappyYesterday at 9:23 AM


yeah that was a hard decision, that could've easily backfired



and that has the issue of annoying people who are frustrated by suboptimal choices like that


CappyYesterday at 9:32 AM


The other thing with Shadow Play is the ending is heavily telegraphed >_> (seems sort of unfair to say since a lot of pony stuff is, but it does make building things up like that sometimes not work as well) They could've also went for mixed endings, Twilight tries to save Stygian and there's some negative backlash that will have a future impact on them. She doesn't try to save him, but he gets free and becomes a villain. Starlight pulls something that creates a rift between her and some of the others.


ScizYesterday at 9:33 AM


moral ambiguity feels off-brand for MLP


SigmasonicXYesterday at 9:34 AM


Still a show for little girls in the end



Though Tangled the Series did have some of that, I suppose


CappyYesterday at 9:34 AM


yeah that middle one is just cribbed from Tangled


SigmasonicXYesterday at 9:36 AM


Thinking about it, the issue is more that FiM just isn't suited for that sort of long term storytelling. Tangled gave the appearance of being episodic, but it was planned to shift away from that from the start.


ScizYesterday at 9:36 AM


there's interesting possibilities around the idea, that said, but when the show's title is "Friendship is Magic", every story is ultimately going to reinforce the mission statement



it can get a little hackneyed in the process, but I appreciate the lack of cynicism


SigmasonicXYesterday at 9:39 AM


They dabbled with an antagonist that took a long time to be reformed with Starlight, but she ultimately only got two stories as a villain. If G5 is more story arc focused, I definitely expect a "character turns evil but is eventually reformed" story.


CappyYesterday at 9:45 AM


Yeah, that'll give them more room to do more interesting stuff


TrigonometrizeYesterday at 9:46 AM


Henceforth you shall be known as Darth...
weird acid reflux
Glimmer

1


CappyYesterday at 9:46 AM


I often don't that excited about the more long-form seeming reveals because I don't really expect to see that much of it come up


TrigonometrizeYesterday at 9:51 AM


I remember when the writers were all hyping up the "season-long arc" of the box at S4 opener



At least it gave us Pinkie Pride


SigmasonicXYesterday at 9:59 AM


The "possible to watch in any order" part screwed over the effectiveness of a story arc like that from the start.


CappyYesterday at 10:05 AM


Just give me solid one offs



Like aj and dash competitive eating



But then there's the pie round

and then it ends with Applejack doing the competitive-pie-eating equivalent of helping an exhausted runner past the finish line



I tried to riff something dumb but I actually want to see that now >_>


point n clickhoyYesterday at 10:20 AM


"ima eat this here pie of your across that ther finish line!"

1



Sure why notn


SigmasonicXYesterday at 10:32 AM


Applejack and the exhausted eater eat the pie together, their lips meeting for the last bite



Plot twist, the other eater is Flash Sentry


FranlingYesterday at 10:36 AM

CappyYesterday at 10:36 AM


sigma found "why not" >_>


FranlingYesterday at 10:36 AM

"Nah."


CappyYesterday at 5:14 PM


was Meghan the one who wrote all the 2 parters and seemed fairly Twilight obsessed? >_>(edited)


CappyYesterday at 5:21 PM


well, "all" i think it was like... s3 to s5 or so?


ScizYesterday at 5:22 PM


she was the story editor and lead writer around that time, yeah

[...]

SigmasonicXYesterday at 6:16 PM


Meghan McCarthy wrote some of the best season one and two SOL episodes, then A Canterlot Wedding, then the season 3 and 4 two parters. I don't think she wrote the two parters for season 5 and on. She wrote the first two EQG movies and was one of the writers of The Movie.



She's been promoted out of writing MLP episodes



From emails, she's in charge of setting up G5, though I don't expect her to be the show runner in the end.


CappyYesterday at 6:37 PM


did she see a clip show of things she did in a pocket dimension before she got promoted


SigmasonicXYesterday at 7:06 PM


She must have


CappyYesterday at 7:11 PM


i wonder if it was her idea to have Twilight try and steal that pearl



cause i kinda like that >_>


SylveeYesterday at 7:37 PM


You reckon that McCarthy is hiding some giant wings underneath her clothing?

1


CappyYesterday at 7:39 PM


:O

Since Era no longer allows you to directly copy/paste images, posting chats has become a lot more awkward. I can still put in the emotes, but I'll have to manually put in the links. I suppose for the emote-heavy chats, I'll use screenshots or Google Drive links.

EDIT:

I feel like there's a lot of subreddits out there that would be a good place for the artist to migrate to though.

Click to shrink...

People in the thread for Tumblr's actions have mentioned that Tumblr was a safe space for LGBT+ friendly communities and related NSFW, which Reddit generally isn't considered to be. Reddit has a pretty bad reputation for allowing Nazis to flourish and harass other people, and on Tumblr, you didn't have to become a moderator that had to spend a ton of time banning people and deleting posts.

 

[Sylvee]

People in the thread for Tumblr's actions have mentioned that Tumblr was a safe space for LGBT+ friendly communities and related NSFW, which Reddit generally isn't considered to be. Reddit has a pretty bad reputation for allowing Nazis to flourish and harass other people, and on Tumblr, you didn't have to become a moderator that had to spend a ton of time banning people and deleting posts.

Click to shrink...

Reddit is not one giant community, it's a collection of thousands of smaller communities that often never actually interact with each other in any significant way. If people are looking for LGBT+ friendly communities there are already tons of them that exist on the site, and if none of them are satisfactory for what they're looking for you can just create your own. It's not like 4chan where legit every board has Alt-Right undertones. If you want to avoid that kind of stuff you can easily avoid it. Most of the art-based subs don't have much discussion to begin with anyway.

If the problem is due to the principle that Reddit platforms these people at all then why are they moving to Twitter? From my experience Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube all have the exact same problems with platforming the Alt-Right, so why would you single out Reddit in this regard? The only reason I can think of is because Reddit is more disposable as a platform to some people whereas the other ones are basically a part of life now and aren't ones they can avoid if they want to. If anything Reddit does a much better job at containing this kind of crap then YouTube does. (I can't speak for Facebook or Twitter because I don't use them much) I don't have to worry about a barrage of alt-lite talking points by clicking on one remotely political video on Reddit. Sure you might have to curate and moderate the community to keep the undesirables out on your subreddit, but it's better then having basically no tools at all like YouTube.


That being said, browsing around a discussion I realized another thing that basically kills Reddit as a migration target anyway. Reddit as a platform is simply not fit for someone to try to host their art portfolio on. It's a great place for sharing art, but not for artists to keep a collection of their work for people to see. The only way to upload anything is to make a thread on a subreddit for it and it would be a massive hastle to search through a user's created threads to see all of the art they made. But to bring things full circle this is also a problem Twitter suffers from too (although not to quite as large of an extent) so that still brings up the point that Twitter is a terrible place for people to be posting all their art to.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Alright, I've planned out the schedules for the streams this month.

Friday 12-7
1. The Small One (Disney short about a donkey by Don Bluth)
2. The Nightmare Before Christmas

Sunday 12-9
1. Animaniacs - A Christmas Plotz/Little Drummer Warners
2. The Loud House - 11 Louds a Leapin'
3. Hey Arnold - Arnold's Christmas
4. Futurama - Xmas Story (first Christmas episode)
5. Bump in the Night Christmas

Friday 12-14
1. A Pinky and the Brain Christmas
2. Penn Zero Part Time Hero - North Pole Down
3. The Real Ghostbusters - X-Mas Marks the Spot
4. DuckTales - Last Christmas!

Sunday 12-16
1. Simpsons episodes

Friday 12-21
1. The Snowman EDIT: Olive the Other Reindeer
2. The Christmas Tree (mandatory bad special)
3. Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation

Sunday 12-23
1. MLP Hearth's Warming episodes

Friday 12-28
?
Sunday 12-30
?

The 12-23 stream will also include the stream premiere of "Best Gift Ever".

I don't have anything for the last two days, and I'm not too keen about showing Christmas stuff after Christmas anyway, so those will probably be normal streams. We'll see as we get closer.

A lot more art coming, but here's just some.
1. Fluttershy - LIGHT by haidiannotes on DeviantArt
2.Chilled Sunset by VanillaGhosties on DeviantArt
3. SciTwi and Sunset - Sweater by JumbleHorse on DeviantArt
4. Rainbow - Meido by JumbleHorse on DeviantArt
5.Luna responds to Tumblr's actions by MagnaLuna

Spoiler: Art 1

And two comics.

Forgotten Friendship based - Time Thief by uotapo on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Comic 1

Gloriosa Daisy and Twilight - Sandwich by iojknmiojknm on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Comic 2

Oh shit, Gloriosa Daisy, Juniper, Wallflower. None of them have appeared again. Could it be?

(burp)

And a neat PMV, which I don't think is connected to Higurashi the franchise but I don't know.

 

[Chained Prometheus]

This is something I hadn't really thought about until Forgotten Friendship showed that Sunset has waaaaaaaaaaaay better chemistry with PonyTwi than everyone else, including SciTwi.

Click to shrink...

Been saying this for ages now. Heck the best scene in Friendship Games was PonyTwi's deleted cameo with Sunset at the start of the film!

 

[SigmasonicX]

Three new shorts appeared on a Chinese video site. And they're PONY themed, not Equestria Girls!

The shorts are dubbed in Chinese, and you need a Chinese IP to watch the videos. I imagine we'll get these shorts in English later this month.

This title card looks really familiar. I think it was part of the leaks last year.

EDIT: The "replace" button on the image interface overlapped with the "post" button, so this got posted early.

Art dump I meant to include.
1. Coloratura - Rara's new outfit by LordValtasar on DeviantArt
2. Pinkie - Much candy by Mequiloano on DeviantArt
3. Starlight and dad - Gingerbread by bobthedalek on DeviantArt
4.[MLP] Trix by MrWh0ever on DeviantArt
5.Mane Six alternate designs by eqq_scremble

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Mean Twilight listening to music by ideltavelocity
2.EQG Rarity in dress by bibi
3.EQG Twilight in dress by bibi
4.EQG Applejack in dress by bibi
5.EQG Pinkie with arms up by bibi

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Kirin Queen by SagaStuff94 on DeviantArt
2.Rarity humanization by rigaft on DeviantArt
3.Humanized Mane Six sketches by lin-麟乜
4.Fluttershy by yanamosuda
5.Technically not Human Fluttershy but it's Human Fluttershy by yanamosuda

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Lyra spinning her tail like Tails by plunger
2.RD x FS by momori68 on DeviantArt - This and all of momori68's art below is years old, but I haven't seen it until now.
3.pinkie pie by momori68 on DeviantArt
4.Fluttershy Alice Ver. by momori68 on DeviantArt
5.Princess Celestia Princess Luna by momori68 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 4

1.Angel and Human Fluttershy by momori68
2.Rarity by momori68 on DeviantArt
3.Pony Rarity in same outfit as above by momori68
4.EQG Rainbow by dusty-munji
5.Trixie X Twilight still exists by 灯灯最近不接熟人外的头像

Spoiler: Art 5

1.Rarity by KookieChanXwX on DeviantArt - This artist has redesigns for the other Mane Six too.
2.Seapony Twilight with an OC by whitediamonds - I usually don't post OC stuff like this, but Twilight is cute here.
3. Luna and Nightmare Moon variants - NIghtmare by Conchita-orge on DeviantArt
4.Lyra Heartstrings by AlexBlueBird on DeviantArt
5. Human - Winter Starlight Glimmer + speedpaint by DrAltruist on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 6

1. Anthro - Cozy Glow by Vautaryt on DeviantArt
2.Yona by sa-eku
3.Sonata Dusk by sa-eku
4.Twilight by moozua
5. EQG - Pinkiest Pony by mandy1412 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 7

1.Hello - Drama Letter by the-butch-x
2.Hello - Ginger Owlseye by the-butch-x
3.Hello - Zephyr (the human girl) by the-butch-x
4.Anthro Fluttershy by nemovonsilver
5.Pony Fluttershy by nemovonsilver

Spoiler: Art 8

1.PinkieDash Christmas by dippin-dott
2. Based on the pony switchboard I posted earlier - Switchboard by bobthedalek on DeviantArt
3.Human Fluttershy sketch by dagmell
4. "A Canterlot Wedding" poster - sadasd A by YunlongChen on DeviantArt - Not intended to look lewd, but it does.
5. Mane Six costumes - Aadsa123132213123 by YunlongChen on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 10

More in a later post.

 

[SigmasonicX]

So there's a fake screenshot going around.

I'm amazed people are being fooled by this.

Just a bit of art dumping.
.:THE MAGIC TOUCH:. (Commission) by The-Butcher-X on DeviantArt

1.Silverstream not just for hooves by sintakhra
2. Trixie and her mom - HOW TO RAISE TADPOLES 1/2 by uotapo on DeviantArt
3. Trixie and her mom - HOW TO RAISE TADPOLES 2/2 by uotapo on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 1

And hey, I haven't seen this guy in forever! Here's another clockwork pony figure from him, this time with a smartphone to play music!

 

[SigmasonicX]

Stream followup. On Friday, we watched the following Halloween things.
1. The Small One (Disney special by Don Bluth about an old donkey)
2. The Nightmare Before Christmas

I decided it was important we started out with a normal, straightforward, and Jesusy special, because basically everything else we're watching is subversive or comedic. The Small One was just that, with a lot of cute donkey moments, perilous moments, and the donkey of course being sent off with Joseph to carry a pregnant Mary. This was Don Bluth's last work at Disney before he went off on his own, and of course, there's a part where a group of characters makes a big show and then proceeds to disappear. People enjoyed it for the donkey.

I thought I had seen The Nightmare Before Christmas recently, but then I realized this was in college about eight years ago. Jack randomly having to fight Oogie at the end and him getting with Sally don't get nearly enough set up, but otherwise, this is an interesting if straightforward story with fantastic visuals.

We didn't have an RP today.

Big art dump.
1.Twilight, Rariy, Rainbow, and Pinkie dressed as girl band K/DA by bartolomeus_
2.EQG Pirate Applejack and Rarity by haibaratomoe
3.Ocellus in a changeling outfit by flutterthrash
4.Nightmare Moon and Night Maid Rarity by kkmrarar
5.Party of One Rainbow pushing Pinkie by kkmrarar

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Sonata and Aria with tiny Adaggio pony by kkmrarar
2.Adaggio with dog Sonata and Aria by kkmrarar
3.EQG Rarity with Pony Rarity by kkmrarar
4.Gallus and Silverstream making faces by luciferamon
5.Rarity - My Little Pony by unousaya on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Tea-lestia by Donnie-Moon on DeviantArt
2.Twilight Sparkle Anthro by Rariedash on DeviantArt
3.Fluttershy by tohupo
4.Sombra, Nightmare Moon, and Chrysalis by kawaiipony2
5.Twilight and Celestia romantically booping by magnaluna

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Trixie by yuyutsuka_0130
2.Fluttershy by yuyutsuka_0130
3.Marble and Pinkie by yuyutsuka_0130
4.Discord and Bill Cipher (Gravity Falls) by yuyutsuka_0130
5.Autumn Blaze by zakro

Spoiler: Art 4

1.Discord by zakro
2.Mane Six by lispp
3.Sunset with Sunset Sarsaparilla by mylittlekkotnim
4. Fluttershy - Color Sketch by Yakovlev-vad on DeviantArt
5.Pinkie by tohupo

Spoiler: Art 5

1. Starlight / Snowfall Frost - MLP - Say Goodbye to the Holidays by Fire-Star-Animations on DeviantArt
2. EQG Fluttershy - Request 2 by ASteveNamedWolf on DeviantArt
3. EQG Fluttershy dressed as Hinata (Naruto) - Untitled 3 by ASteveNamedWolf on DeviantArt
4. Twilight and Sakura (Cardcaptor Sakura) - Double Maigc by Jeremywithlove on DeviantArt
5. Twilight - Twitwitwitwi by Jeremywithlove on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 6

1.AppleJack by tyuubatu on DeviantArt
2.Sleeping Spike and Smolder by cutepencilcase
3.The Legend of Captain Celaeno by ZidaneMina on DeviantArt
4.K/DA Rainbow Dash / Akali [MLP x LoL] by Shad0w-Galaxy on DeviantArt
5.fluttershy 2018 by spacekitsch on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 7

1.Twilight Sparkle 2018 by spacekitsch on DeviantArt
2.Luna Claus by NCMares on DeviantArt
3.SunsetShimmer Chibi - Dec 4th by TokoKami on DeviantArt
4. Applejack - MLP FIM - Spirit Of Hearth's Warming Past by Joakaha on DeviantArt
5.Mistmane by Marbola on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 8

1. Celestia, Luna, Cadance, Twilight, and an OC - Commission: Special by SilFoe on DeviantArt
2. Starlight X Trixie - magical snuggles by WanderingPegasus on DeviantArt
3.Pinkie's Present by Darksly-z on DeviantArt
4.Applejack's Gift by Darksly-z on DeviantArt
5.Ocellus Portrait by Tsitra360 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 9

1. Trixie - Daily Doodle 960 by Amarynceus on DeviantArt
2. Starlight X Trixie - Daily Doodle 959 by Amarynceus on DeviantArt
3. Twilight - Daily Doodle 956 by Amarynceus on DeviantArt
4.Mane Six and Sunset sleepover by typhwosion
5. Filly Twilight and Spike - Books! Books! Books! by Chapaevv on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 10

1.Big Mac X Cheerilee by hoverrover - So this ship still exists
2. Flurry Heart - MLP:YL - Not Fitting Quite Yet by InuHoshi-to-DarkPen on DeviantArt
3.SciTwi and Demon Sunset by thecaptainacobskicorncob
4. Sunset - A present for you by Xan-gelX on DeviantArt
5. Luna - Follow me on Twitter :D by MagnaLuna on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 11

1.Maid Twilight by larrykitty
2.Multiple Fluttershys by heir-of-rick
3. Sunset in Daydream Shimmer form channeling He Man - daydreamertest by twilite-sparkleplz on DeviantArt
4.Rarity X Trixie by urbanqhoul
5.Sandbar by Tsitra360 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 12

1.Fluttershy eating a pretzel by heir-of-rick
2. Rainbow - Looks Like Rain... by EmbersLament on DeviantArt
3.Somnambula by Marbola on DeviantArt
4.Cheerilee annoyed as CMC rush out of class by vaetan
5.Luna by Fluttersheeeee on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 13

And comics
The Cakes - My Little Pony: Not Gonna Leave by zouyugi on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Comic 1

Sunburst, Flurry Heart, and Starlight - Telling Traits by bobthedalek on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Comic 2

 

[UberTag]

Sunday 12-16
1. Simpsons episodes

Click to shrink...

FYI, for those of you checking in for next Sunday's festive Simpsons-themed stream... here's what's on tap (although I'll be including some additional surprises along the way)...

1. Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire (1989)
2. 'Tis the Fifteenth Season (2003)
3. Miracle on Evergreen Terrace (1997)
4. Skinner's Sense of Snow (2000)
5. Marge Be Not Proud (1995)
6. Holidays of Future Passed (2011)

 

[Sylvee]

Thoughts on the stream:

I've never really watched any of the shows that were on display so all of them were not only episodes I haven't seen, but shows I haven't seen either. Starting off was the Animaniacs, which had an abridged retelling of A Christmas Carol. It was kind of weird overall, and the 11 minute run time really didn't help things either. As an actual story it was pretty weak, the arc of the main character (don't remember his name sorry) is extremely compressed and basically goes from "bah humbug" to being over-enthusiastically into Christmas over the span of one short and not that emotional scene. It sort of just goes along with the general story beats of A Christmas Carol and uses the framework to tell a silly story. And stuff like all of the showgirls in the Christmas Yet To Come just felt like them flaunting that they could get them through the censors rather then something that added to the story in any way. There's some fun silly bits but the story feels like it takes a backseat to them and it wasn't fantastic.

The 2nd part of the episode though was something that felt very dated as it was basically just a bunch of animations of various heavily religious Christmas songs, with a ton of biblical animation to go along with them. These days people make Christmas specials sure, but usually they play up the Santa and season of giving aspects of it and ignore the religious part of it entirely. So it was very unusual seeing a network TV cartoon talking about Jesus Christ and the pilgrimage of the 3 kings. There isn't much else to say as the whole thing is literally just a bunch of Carols sung and acted out by the cast of the show.

Next up was The Loud House, which was alright but nothing particularly exciting. Despite being a fairly important episode for the show (Holiday episodes of a show are often when cartoons go all-out with their budget) the animation felt very pedestrian. The most striking example was when all of the family was singing a Christmas song to cheer up their grump neighbor which was easily the climax of the episode, and most of it was just the whole group standing still while moving their head back and forth. I'd only seen a bit of the show before then and it struck me as being not the worst thing ever but not particularly great, and that didn't really change after seeing this.

Then there was the Hey Arnold episode, which from what I heard is one of the most famous holiday cartoon episodes, and I can see why. I've never seen the show before, so it was surprising that the show itself talked about a real world conflict like Vietnam. It was a very mature episode overall all things considered, which is why it was kind of jarring how unsubtle everything about Helga was. I knew already about how she pretended to hate Arnold but secretly was madly in love, but it felt a bit much here. It was kind of silly how much she gushed about how he was amazing and deserved the perfect gift out in public given that she's trying to keep it a secret. It's also kinda weird that Mr Hyunh devoted his life to finding his daughter in the city he lived, but seemingly never looked at the government records given that Helga and the guy at the archives located her in one evening. There's actually a lot of stuff that sort of conveniently worked out so the story could go the way it did. But I feel like that's overshadowed by the stuff that does work. Most of the interactions that don't involve Helga are very well-written, and the big emotional payoff for the episode is extremely emotional and well done. It does have me interested in checking out the rest of the show, although I probably don't have the time for that.

After that there was the Futurama episode which was not that impressive considering how much I've heard people talk up Futurama as an amazing show. The first 5 or so minutes are a bunch of largely irrelevant skits of them going to a skiing slope. After that there is some potential set up as Fry has to deal with the fact that the holiday has massively changed and is different from what he remembers, but this is abandoned pretty quickly. Then it sets up that Leela has it even worse then Fry and that he was selfish for being sad about his predicament and ignoring hers, but this is eventually abandoned as well. There's no real emotional payoff for any of the stuff set up and instead it ends with CGI evil Santa trying to kill them but getting defeated. Also there's a very unfunny subplot about Bender pretending to be a homeless robot so he can steal booze that doesn't really have much connection to the rest of the story. There were a handful of decent jokes but most missed for me.

Finally we watched a Justice League special which was serviceable but nothing particularly special. Probably my favorite parts were Clark and his adopted parents just hanging out and enjoying Christmas together, it was pretty well-done. Green Lantern and Hawkgirl have a storyline where they have a snowball fight and then go to some space bar to have a real fight. The Snowball fight was kind of fun but the bar fight felt like a waste of time. And Flash had to find some sold out toy all the kids want (I just noticed just how frequently this plot device is used, it was in the Hey Arnold episode too) but it breaks due to some fight he had with a villain, but then the Villain realizes that the Flash was doing a thing he approved of and has a truce with The Flash to repair the toy so the kids can be happy. That last storyline probably could have worked out better then it did, it felt weird just seeing the two just casually talking to each other when like 10 seconds before they were trying to kill each other and the only thing changing is the toy getting destroyed. Not the worst special by any means though.


There was also another special I was interested in showing off but I (and seemingly everyone else) didn't have the time to actually watch it, and that's the Mickey Mouse retelling of A Christmas Carol. Surprisingly it's the most faithful retelling of the original story that I've ever watched. And contrary to what you might imagine with characters like Mickey Mouse and Goofy in it the special doesn't pull any punches either. It's a very strait-faced retelling of the story that features every major story element from the original book. It's actually surprising how dark it gets during the future segment. In a way it's nice seeing a kid-focused retelling of the story that doesn't try to dress it up or diminish its message by cutting out the darker parts of the story.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Dumb new animation. The style is interesting.


For today's stream, we ended up watching the following.
1. Animaniacs - A Christmas Plotz/Little Drummer Warners
2. The Loud House - 11 Louds a Leapin'
3. Hey Arnold - Arnold's Christmas
4. Futurama - Xmas Story
5. Justice League - Comfort and Joy
6.The Forest [ANIMATION] - YouTube

The person who requested Bump in the Night Christmas wasn't on, so I started the Justice League episode instead. While I got Mickey's Christmas Carol, I played the above YouTube video, and by then everyone had left for various things, so we ended there.

The first Animaniacs skit was fairly unremarkable in terms of humor, but it was still enjoyable enough. Everyone was pretty shocked by how straight the second skit played the Christmas carols and the Warners meeting Baby Jesus. I don't think they ever went that religious again, but Animaniacs is famous for mixing in serious skits.


Note that the video made a mistake with the lyrics, it's "Germany is now in one piece."

I've never seen The Loud House, but I was meaning to at some point. It seemed pretty fun. I know there was controversy with the creator being a creep, but I remember hearing that he was pretty hands off on the show and they've moved on well without him.

I haven't seen Hey Arnold in forever. Actually, back when I was young, I didn't like the show because I thought it was boring. I enjoyed this episode. It was interesting seeing a kids show like this take on the Vietnam War, and it was nice seeing Helga's moral conflict at the end.

I hadn't seen this Futurama episode in a while, so I had forgotten about the beginning at the ski resort. There are some nice gags throughout, but the episode really picks up when Robo Santa appears; he's hilarious. The Bender subplot is indeed the weak point. For the record, the stuff with Leela does get addressed soon after this episode.

The Justice League episode was fun. J'onn and Clark's subplot is the best one, giving the former some much needed focus. For some added context, this is right before the season 2 finale where Hawkgirl betrays them and helps lead an invasion of Earth (basically shit getting real), and this is the only single-part story until the change to Justice League Unlimited.

 

[Sylvee]

Those Chinese shorts are starting to get uploaded in English. I think they're all on the Discovery Go app but one of them has been uploaded to Hasbro's YouTube channel, Triple Pony Dare Ya. It's like Non-Compete Clause in short form:

 

[SigmasonicX]

Those Chinese shorts are starting to get uploaded in English. I think they're all on the Discovery Go app but one of them has been uploaded to Hasbro's YouTube channel, Triple Pony Dare Ya. It's like Non-Compete Clause in short form:

Click to shrink...

In fact, it's even written by the same writer, Kim Beyer-Johnson.

Given that it's a short, and didn't involve child endangerment, it was much more tolerable than the episode. There were some cute gags, but I'm pretty sure I've had enough Applejack and Rainbow rivalry for a lifetime.

Hasbro apparently also briefly put up the next one and then took it down. It's also by the "Non-Compete Clause" writer, so it's safe to assume she wrote the third too. Maybe she's better at writing characters besides AJ and Rainbow?

Art dump.
1.Autumn Blaze by bigmoon206
2.Fluttershy by bigmoon206
3.pull my devil trigger by YunlongChen on DeviantArt - Twilight, Pinkie, Rainbow
4.1dsadsad12 312 by YunlongChen on DeviantArt - Pirate Dash
5.Tree Hugger by treekickerdraws

Spoiler: Art 1

Mothers by treekickerdraws
1.Mrs. Shy
2.Pear Butter
3.Windy Whistles
4.Cloudy Quartz
5.Twilight Velvet
6.Cadance
7.Cookie Crumbles (Rarity's mom)

Spoiler: Art 2

1.マイリトルポニー | Illustration: "Fabulous Pirate!!" by 棘有棘無棘棘 [pixiv] - Pirate Rarity
2.Marble Pie Chibi - Dec 9th by TokoKami on DeviantArt
3.Limestone Pie Chibi - Dec 10th by TokoKami on DeviantArt
4.Maud Pie Chibi - Dec 11th by TokoKami on DeviantArt
5.Candy Princess by Schokocream on DeviantArt - Twilight

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Fluttershy's Great Tits by AssasinMonkey on DeviantArt - Exactly what it says
2.Ponk by FreeFraQ on DeviantArt - Pinkie
3.Marshmallow by LooknamTCN on DeviantArt - Rarity
4.What are your wishes? by LooknamTCN on DeviantArt - Aladdin Applejack X Genie Rarity
5.Basketball time by LooknamTCN on DeviantArt - EQG Applejack X EQG Rarity, with SciTwi and Rainbow in the background

Spoiler: Art 4

1.Ribbon - Sunny X-Mas 1 by Katakiuchi4U on DeviantArt - Sunset
2.Night Princess by FluffyMaiden on DeviantArt - Luna
3.Celestia acquires third degree burns by Mequiloano on DeviantArt
4.Skipping Through a Silent Night by InuHoshi-to-DarkPen on DeviantArt - Reindeer
5.A Nice Cup of Cocoa by FoughtDragon01 on DeviantArt - Twilight

Spoiler: Art 5

Comics
Filly Surprise by Awalex on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Comic 1

Lets Fighting Love (remake) by saturdaymorningproj on DeviantArt - Remake of an older comic, if this seems familiar.

Spoiler: Comic 2

And animation based on Steins;Gate.


Hmm, nothing's really spoken to me as December avatar material.

 

[Strider_Blaze]

The Maud Couple - Felt it was pretty decent; got to see more Maud at least. It's funny how Pinkie is oblivious that Midbriar is exactly like Maud down to the monotone. And the fact some of her misfortunes seem to be her own doing.

Fake It 'Til You Make It - Asssetive Fluttershy again. With an interesting case of becoming the mask. Not to mention the gag when Rarity fired the 3 Fluttershy personalities. Though didn't exactly feel this one.

Grannies Gold Wild - Liked it enough. Just the thought of RD trying to attend to the elderly screams comedy gold and RD imagining AJ every time. Not to mention the gags of the elder ponies doing some flirting. AJ definitely felt like a worry wart, considering what the elders wanted to do, but is it odd to understand that AJ had the best intentions to make sure the elders are safe? At least RD got to ride the roller coaster at the end.

 

[Sylvee]

Hasbro apparently also briefly put up the next one and then took it down. It's also by the "Non-Compete Clause" writer, so it's safe to assume she wrote the third too. Maybe she's better at writing characters besides AJ and Rainbow?

Click to shrink...

The third one is by Kate Leth, who apparently did some of the CYOA stuff from last year. They're both also very awful.

 

[SigmasonicX]

AJ definitely felt like a worry wart, considering what the elders wanted to do, but is it odd to understand that AJ had the best intentions to make sure the elders are safe? At least RD got to ride the roller coaster at the end.

Click to shrink...

It was kind of weird that we got this at the end of the episode, implying Applejack was in the right somehow.

I enjoyed the grannies enjoying the resort in that episode, but Rainbow's entire role was to stop them from doing that, which only brought the episode down, IMO.

The third one is by Kate Leth, who apparently did some of the CYOA stuff from last year. They're both also very awful.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, they were pretty bad. The first one was just Pinkie making everyone miserable. With the second, I thought the entire point was to have a voice actor joke with Ashleigh Ball showing off a bunch of voices, but then the credits show the voices were played by different VAs, so I'm confused about what they were even going for.

Nightmare Knights #3
I was surprised to see Tempest get captured already, but this is only five issues long, after all. Her creating a distraction seemed to be way too early for their plan, but she did assume people wouldn't recognize her as the one who blew up the wheel.

Eris torturing Tempest with a nightmare was meant to establish her as a villain more, but she didn't feel menacing at all, especially with her relying on Luna's magic for this. I thought at first she was going to do something more mindtrippy to Tempest, with her seeing her allies as children, but it was just to scare her. Unfortunately, I think she'll end up being a pretty weak antagonist. Daybreaker also doesn't feel too threatening.

The guard dogs getting angry at Capper was cute, but the highlight of the issue was undoubtedly Trixie getting upset about The Great and Powerful Twily.

Luna has good moments in this issue, reining in Trixie and providing leadership.

In terms of cameos, we get a better look at Gloriosa, and we also have Wallflower Blush now.

Overall, this was a fun issue, but it's mainly transition.

From Silver Quill's review, I hadn't realized The Great and Powerful Twily is from the Reflections dimension.

~~~

Hasbro put up this nice story of a girl with Jacobsen's syndrome opening up through MLP.



It's been a while since this happened. Pony questions appeared on an Australian quiz show. Both FiM and G1 questions appear. From the article comments, here are the questions.

Q: Bonnie Zacherle, co-inventor of MLP toys for Hasbro in the 1980s, says she didn't play with dolls as a child, all she ever wanted was a what?
A: Pony

Q: Part of the original toy line and '80s TV series, Applejack is a core character in the 2010 reboot FiM, with a grandma named after which Aussie apple?
A: Granny Smith

Q: In the 1986 animated series, the characters Posey, Gusty and Honeysuckle are all voiced by which main Simpsons voice artist?
A: Nancy Cartwright

Q: FiM protagonist Twilight Sparkle arrives in Ponyville as a unicorn, but gains wings to become which hybrid creature?
A: Alicorn

Q: An Earth pony from the 80's toy line and series Lickety-Split is best identified by what sweet symbol on here hindquarters?
A: Ice-cream cones

Click to shrink...

Note that there's audience snickering whenever pony names are mentioned and such. I chose not to watch it myself for that reason.

 

[Strider_Blaze]

It was kind of weird that we got this at the end of the episode, implying Applejack was in the right somehow.

I enjoyed the grannies enjoying the resort in that episode, but Rainbow's entire role was to stop them from doing that, which only brought the episode down, IMO.

Click to shrink...

Yeah kind of weird the way it ended. I mean I honestly (no pun intended) don't feel AJ is justified to be in the right. Even the grannies felt pretty pissed at AJ underestimating them. I mean I feel Granny Smith has lived who knows how long with Celestia having not aged a day from there.

As for more episodes:

Surf and/or Turf: Okay I'm pretty certain the CMC could have found a compromise pretty easily for Silverstream's brother. It was nice to see Seaquestria again though, Twilight enjoying the time of her life and Scootaloo swimming around as if she felt like flying. Otherwise I felt eh.

Horse Play: This I enjoyed of course because Celestia gets another day and the limelight episode. Thought it was adorable to see her prancing about the play about her. And lol when she does the Royal Canterlot Voice and how she takes things in a literal sense! But jeez Twilight, I know she didn't want to upset her about her acting skills, but it certainly wasn't wise to hold the truth from the alicorn that educated you on the magic of Friendship in the first place. As with any time Celestia (pony or human) getting upset, the "OH SHIT!" feeling of mine came back to me! But glad Celestia was able to do something for the play in spite of not being a great actress, and slipping out another troll to Mane 7.

The Parent Map: A pretty interesting take on resolving your friendship issues with you parents. Pretty adorable as well to see Starlight and Suburst acting like a bunch of teenagers! But the feeling of yelling at your parents really struck a nerve (I mean some cousins of mine have recently been getting up and all defensive against their parents and things just getting ugly from there. Overall a pretty good episode for me.

 

[SigmasonicX]

^ Fun thing to note is Luna's reactions during the play.

As a reminder, tomorrow's stream has the following episodes.
Friday 12-14
1. A Pinky and the Brain Christmas
2. Penn Zero Part Time Hero - North Pole Down
3. The Real Ghostbusters - X-Mas Marks the Spot
4. DuckTales - Last Christmas!

And UberTag will be playing these Simpsons episodes on Sunday.
Sunday 12-16
1. Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire (1989)
2. 'Tis the Fifteenth Season (2003)
3. Miracle on Evergreen Terrace (1997)
4. Skinner's Sense of Snow (2000)
5. Marge Be Not Proud (1995)
6. Holidays of Future Passed (2011)

~~

Earlier this year, the official MLP RPG hit a snag when its company was bought by a company that uses Diamond Distribution, which made it impossible to buy directly from the US. The US releases became much later than the international releases. The Haunting of Equestria is out internationally, but the US release isn't until August. However, that has just changed, as you can now directly order that book and the previous ones from River Horse.

Art dump
1.Have yourself A Merry Little christmas by Yanamosuda on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
2.Comfy Cadence by Donnie-Moon on DeviantArt
3.Tempest Shadow doodles by fromamida on DeviantArt - Also Twilight X Tempest
4.MLP Holiday Special - New Pals by luminaura on DeviantArt - Pinkie and Alice the Reindeer
5.MLP Holiday Special - Make the Holiday Bright by luminaura on DeviantArt - Big Mac X Sugar Belle and also Marble

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Christmas Rarity by MinamiKoboyasy on DeviantArt - Anthro
2.Collab 2 by Hunternif on DeviantArt - Landscape
3.[Commission] Cloak and Dagger by tikrs007 on DeviantArt - Fancy Pants and Fleur de Lis
4.Raripunk by danli69 - Colored version of sketch I posted before
5.Comic Sins - Rainbow Nap by LupiArts on DeviantArt - Rainbow Dash

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Sonata Dusk by ierf on DeviantArt
2.Commission: Showerlestia by SilFoe on DeviantArt - Celestia
3.My Twitter accounts by ChaosAngelDesu on DeviantArt - Rainbow Dash
4.Ooops 6_9 by ChaosAngelDesu on DeviantArt - Derpy
5.Ember by CanisRettMajoris on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Just Like Heaven by mirroredsea on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
2.Holiday Treat by LennonBlack on DeviantArt - Rarity shilling
3.T29 by Hierozaki on DeviantArt - Twilight
4.T30 by Hierozaki on DeviantArt - Twilight
5.Fluttershy, Rainbow, and Twilight acting like cats (last in a box) by forgalorga

Spoiler: Art 4

1.Twilight having to lift Sunset by xp_r6
2."Friendship Through the Ages" Fluttershy by xp_r6
3.Autumn Blaze by xp_r6
4.Winter clothes Twilight by xp_r6
5.Humane Seven react to SciTwi getting a lewd message (I guess) by xp_r6

Spoiler: Art 5

1.Pinkie gives Sunset a romantic message by xp_r6
2.Daily Doodle 980 by Amarynceus on DeviantArt - G1 Firefly
3.Rarity asleep on her couch by noupu1115
4.The Spectacles by LiaAqila on DeviantArt - EQG Rainbow
5.Comm: Is that... by LiaAqila on DeviantArt - EQG Trixie X Twilight

Spoiler: Art 6

1.Twilight by tohupo
2.Autumn Casual Aria Blaze by DragonEmperror2810 on DeviantArt
3.Twilight Sparkle Anime Version by ArthurWolf on DeviantArt
4.Sonata Dusk human skin tone by mlp-hearts
5.RariDash on Hearth's Warming by raridashdoodles

Spoiler: Art 7

1.Starlight and Trixie on rocket by dankpegasista
2.Autumnyan Blaze (anim) by JuneII on DeviantArt - Nyan Cat Autumn Blaze
3.Trixie and Starlight magic trick by colorfulcolor233
4.Commission - Thorax by SwitchSugar on DeviantArt - Also Pharynx and generic changelings
5.Hello - Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara by the-butch-x

Spoiler: Art 8

1.Hello - Trixie by the-butch-x
2.Card game by SwitchSugar on DeviantArt - Twilight, Chrysalis, Fluttershy, and Discord
3.Derpy by Ferwildir on DeviantArt
4.Pinkie by manacha____
5.Pinkamena by manacha____

Spoiler: Art 9

1.Sunset X Pinkie nuzzling by katakiuchi4u
2.-Winter- by Heddopen on DeviantArt - Rainbow
3.MoonDancer Chibi - Dec 12th by TokoKami on DeviantArt
4.Rainbow X Twilight in "The Cutie Map" by tylerdashart
5.Pinkie by namachuki

Spoiler: Art 10

1.Luna by dragonataxia
2.Derpy With Moogle by K1emm on DeviantArt
3.Holiday Songbird Serenade by erufi
4.Windy Whistles giving you a birthday cake by talimingi
5.Twilight reading a book on friendship by talimingi

Spoiler: Art 11

1.Flying High by crystalcorgi on DeviantArt - Fluttershy X Pinkie
2.Autumn Life by crystalcorgi on DeviantArt - Fluttershy X Autumn Blaze, with baby
3.Fluttrtshy by Jun1313 on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
4.Flowery date night! by CartoonBoyfriends on DeviantArt - Flower Trio in polyamorous relationship
5.Skypieblaze by CartoonBoyfriends on DeviantArt - Skystar, Pinkie, and Autumn Blaze polyamorous relationship

Spoiler: Art 12

1.Rainbow reading a book by omi - Rainbow is also wearing panties here, but you can barely see it, so I thought it was fine.
2.Snow Queen Trixie by SpindleSpice on DeviantArt
3.SMONCH by WanderingPegasus on DeviantArt - Twilight X Pinkie
4.Windowsill by Plainoasis on DeviantArt - Celestia and Philomena
5.Autumn Blaze in winter clothing by magnaluna

Spoiler: Art 13

1.Mane Six (minus Rainbow for now) anthro by holivi
2.Celestia anthro by fernybee
3.Flutter Rain by FidzFox on DeviantArt - Flutershy
4.2018 Twilight Swim Suit by love2eategg on DeviantArt
5.fluttershy KH3 by mauroz on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 14

 

[Strider_Blaze]

^ Fun thing to note is Luna's reactions during the play.

Click to shrink...

Hahahaha! Didn't even notice!

 

[SigmasonicX]

On Friday, we watched the following.

1. A Pinky and the Brain Christmas
2. Penn Zero Part Time Hero - North Pole Down
3. The Real Ghostbusters - X-Mas Marks the Spot
4. DuckTales - Last Christmas!

As a focused half-hour special, the Pinky and the Brain episode was better received than the Animaniacs episode. It was a fun episode, and had a unique ending where Brain comes close to taking over the world but chooses not to.

This was the first time any of us have seen Penn Zero, but it's the first episode, so I thought it was fine. Still, the episode throws a lot at you. I wonder if, like Teen Titans, there's a proper origin episode later. People thought the episode was fun, but no one was particularly interested in watching more. It's kind of weird that the part time heroes work right next to the part time villains. I get it's like those Wolf and Sheepdog Looney Tunes shorts, but the stakes are higher here.

The Real Ghostbusters is still good. More people had seen it than I expected. This was a pretty well animated episode.

The DuckTales episode was good too. I think only one person hadn't seen it before.

~~~

We had an RP this Saturday, probably the last of the year.
RP 304 - The Shattered Realm 4 - Glam Battle

Spoiler: RP summary

Cappy - Trixie

Trixie finds herself in the same time period as Applejack, Fluttershy, and Maud. Applestonia in the year 3121. The story starts a bit before the others get to town.

Trixie on a whim has a magician's duel with a teen stallion who gives a Tartarus themed performance, named Angel, after the horrific bunny of old. Trixie wins the duel, but Angel earns her respect. He reveals his real name is Lulu Glimglam, both parts based on old family names.

After that, Trixie is approached by Flurry Heart, who finds her familiar. They go to the salt bar, where they catch up to where the previous part ended. Bears enter the bar and Trixie fights one. She talks with Applejack and Fluttershy, who catch her up on the time displacement and on Maud being kidnapped. Realizing these are past versions of her aunties, Flurry makes a discreet escape to not screw up the spacetime continuum.

The three mares prepare to rescue Maud.

New ForgaLorga cat video.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Sunday stream followup.
1. Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire (1989)
2. 'Tis the Fifteenth Season (2003)
3. Miracle on Evergreen Terrace (1997)
4. Skinner's Sense of Snow (2000)
5. Marge Be Not Proud (1995)
6. Holidays of Future Passed (2011)

Plus bits of various other episodes in between.

These episodes were all pretty fun.

... Yeah.

Random Pony Merch
Cute crochet ponies. I find it funny how much smaller the "everything you need to make" font is.

Sad knockoff Glimglam

Rarity, Pinkie, and Owlowiscious at the top. It's a shame you can only get a horse OR accessory.

Art dump. Leaving these two out of spoilers.
Fantasy by mirroredsea on DeviantArt

Christmas Rarity and Pinkie by dstears - Notable in that dstears usually sticks to purple monochrome art.

1.Limestone Pie by tractareSolidum on DeviantArt
2.Celestia dancing by smartcoockie
3.Fluttershy by zakro
4.Rainbow by zakro
5.Sunset x Shimmer (standard) (Ver.1/4) by Slackerburst on DeviantArt - Two Sunsets

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Crown of Denial by Taiga-Blackfield on DeviantArt - Luna
2.SR: Not a Kirin the World by EmbersLament on DeviantArt - Autumn Blaze
3.A whale by gor1ck on DeviantArt - Seapony Rainbow and Fluttershy
4.Krampus by LadyChimaeraD on DeviantArt - Discord
5.Spike exchange by Darksly-z on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Learning to Levitate by LifesHarbinger on DeviantArt - Alicorn Apple Bloom
2.Chrysalis Gamer by Viejillox64Art on DeviantArt
3.Snowball game by ierf on DeviantArt - Rainbow
4.Ruins by iLickSunshine on DeviantArt - Twilight
5.Apple Bloom by 91o42

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Velvet X Oleander (Them's Fightin' Herds) by ogaraorcynder
2.Fluttershy with cat by talimingi
3.Anthro Fluttershy by coffee-on-campus
4.Human Twilight by coffee-on-campus
5.Mane Six by lavender_1227

Spoiler: Art 4

https://derpicdn.net/img/2018/12/16/1909682/medium.jpeg[/IMG
[IMG]https://derpicdn.net/img/2018/12/16/1909672/medium.jpeg

I haven't had a chance to go through this yet, but here's a new expansive fan-made CYOA, similar to the Rainbow Dash one that came out early this year.


A look at the non-English versions of season 7 songs. The description that the beginning says to look at just says this isn't a ranked list or a competition. This was a pretty good format for this; I should check out their previous videos like this later.


Animation of a Deltarune battle with Derpy.


Spoiler song from Wreck-It Ralph 2. This works really well.

 

[SigmasonicX]

(source)

 

[Sylvee]

(source)

Click to shrink...

Twilight's quest to learn more about the human world has taken an unexpected turn.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Friendship is Magic #73
Pencils returns for his third(!) comic and he knocks it out of the park with adorable art of not just Fluttershy but a huge variety of animals. I really have to say he's impressed me. I never would have thought a brony artist would do this well in an official comic setting.

The story is mainly just an excuse for Fluttershy to do animal things. There's an amulet that makes her act like animals nearby. It apparently also makes animals act like her, but we only see this with a timberwolf and it's really just there so the ponies can figure out what happened to her, but it takes some leaps of logic.

It was nice to see Zephyr appear in this story, and it was cool to see Rarity's gem finding spell pop up again. The far more confusing presence here is Trixie at the School of Friendship, not acting particularly Trixie-like but more like Starlight, with Starlight herself nowhere to be seen. It's weird.

There are some nice gags. On Fluttershy's side, particularly, the part where she acts like a cat by lazing on the couch, being picky about food, and then just leaving was good. Twilight asking which is more likely, Fluttershy being tired from her work or her being under a magic spell and then realizing it's definitely the latter was great. And the resolution is fun.

Silver Quill's review is surprisingly somewhat negative on the artwork. I can see his point that the character expressions could have used more exaggeration, and indeed, this can be seen with the panels he used in the article. And I hadn't considered that Zephyr's dialogue might be foreshadowing for his issue next month.

Overall, while there's little to the story, you really should just check this out for the art and cute gags.

~~~

March comic solicitations. With Nightmare Knights having ended by then, we only have one proper issue, but we have a Hasbro themed special comic too, so perhaps the next MLP side series will start in April.

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic #76
Katie Cook & Andy Price (w) • Andy Price (a & CVR A) • Sara Richard (CVR B) • Diego Jourdan Pereira (1:10 RI CVR)

The search for the missing stars of the Andalusian constellation continues! With Pinkie Pie, Big Mac, Zecora, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders on the case, this expedition's in the bag! ...Right?! Things aren't always what they seem in this thrilling new adventure featuring your favorite ponies and Equestria's biggest villain yet—Cosmos!

FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Bullet points:

• Follow your favorite fillies and their friends a they seek to unravel the mystery of the missing constellation!
• Twists and turns abound in this new story by Pony-favorites Katie Cook and Andy Price!

Synergy: A Hasbro Creators Showcase
Various (w) • Various (a & c)

(large)

In recognition of Women's History month, IDW and Hasbro are teaming up to create SYNERGY: A HASBRO CREATORS SHOWCASE, a celebration of fan-favorites and new talent working with some of the most beloved Hasbro characters. With 13 fabulous covers drawn from the IDW archives and 27 pages of new material—including autobiographical works by Mairghread Scott (drawn by Sara Pitre-Durocher, reuniting the creative team behind the beloved Transformers: Till All Are One series) and Katie Cook (writer on the hit My Little Pony comic), as well as three original stories inspired by G.I. Joe, Transformers, and Jem and the Holograms—this anthology celebrates the women who have made, or will make, an impact on the world of Hasbro for many years to come.

FC • 48 pages • $7.99

Bullet points:

• Celebrate Women's History Month with women creators who made history!
• Includes a collection of some of the most gorgeous and dynamic covers IDW and Hasbro have to offer—plus exciting new stories!

Here's an article announcing Synergy, and here's a tweet from Katie Cook about it.

I was asked to write a story about what Hasbro meant to me growing up so I wrote an opus to the My Little Pony Baby Bonnet School of Dance play set from 1985. I am not making this up. It will be in this very real book:

Click to shrink...

So we aren't getting a FiM story, but rather an autobiographical one related to G1, which should still be interesting. Besides, the book will be filled with other non-Pony goodies... I still need to read the Jem comic. I got volumes from a Humble Bundle, I just have to read them.

As for the main series issue, that line up of protagonists is... not what I would have expected at all. Are they the only ones involved in the story, or is it just this issue? Cosmos looks to be a chaos spirit like Discord. Eris from Nightmare Knights is supposed to be one too, but she's been underwhelming. Hopefully he turns out to be interesting.

~~~

Art dump
1.Raridash rock by nailinhome on DeviantArt - Punk Rarity X Punk Rainbow
2.3 by DreamSugar on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
3.Twilight doing safe magic with a book by bra1neater
4.Believe (Speedpaint + Merch available!) by Katakiuchi4U on DeviantArt - EQG Sunset
5.@~@ by Katakiuchi4U on DeviantArt - Pony Sunset

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Bon Bon by AlexBlueBird on DeviantArt
2.Starlight and Trixie marriage by raikoh
3.Daily Doodle 988 by Amarynceus on DeviantArt - Luna
4.Rarity - Best Gift Ever Outfit by Darksly-z on DeviantArt
5.Her Help - 2018 version by WolfieDrawie on DeviantArt - Fluttershy

Spoiler: Art 2

1.[+VIDEO] Cute Fluttershy by MellonCollie-chan on DeviantArt
2.Rariry by MellonCollie-chan on DeviantArt - Rarity
3.Trixie for RuBronyCon's merchandise by MellonCollie-chan on DeviantArt
4.Remember me by MellonCollie-chan on DeviantArt - Luna
5.Marble's Minerals and More! by Sethisto on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Introductions by Pink-Pone on DeviantArt - Rarity, Applejack, and pets
2.Broken chains by Plainoasis on DeviantArt - Cozy Glow and Tirek
3.Mane Six by biskyfresh
4.Rarity bubble bath by vill._.julie
5.Filly Fluttershy and butterfly by SwitchSugar on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 4

1.My Little Pony Christmas Rarity by SK-REE on DeviantArt
2.fluttershy 12 15 2018 by tohupo on DeviantArt
3.Rainbow by tohupo
4.Tempest Shadow 12 16 2018 by tohupo on DeviantArt
5.Cadance by tohupo

Spoiler: Art 5

1.20180416 by yukandasama on DeviantArt - Seapony Luna
2.20180314 by yukandasama on DeviantArt - Seapony Celestia
3.The Memories They Share by faitheverlasting on DeviantArt - Apple Family
4.マイリトルポニー | Illustration: "S07E10" by Kon [pixiv] - Human Twilight and Starlight
5.マイリトルポニー | Illustration: "S05E25" by Kon [pixiv] - Human Starlight

Spoiler: Art 6

1.マイリトルポニー | Illustration: "S08E05" by Kon [pixiv] - Trixie and her dad
2.Untitled by DreamSugar on DeviantArt - Fluttershy with long hair
3.Untitled by DreamSugar on DeviantArt - Fluttershy in clouds
4.EQG Applejack and Rainbow in "Triple Pony Dare Ya" by dcon
5.EQG Rainbow with backpack by dcon

Spoiler: Art 7

1.Fs1 by yukandasama on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
2.Ts1 by yukandasama on DeviantArt - Twilight
3.Rr1 by yukandasama on DeviantArt - Rarity
4.Rd1 by yukandasama on DeviantArt - Rainbow
5.Pp1 by yukandasama on DeviantArt - Pinkie
6.Luna1 by yukandasama on DeviantArt - Luna
Yes, Applejack appears to have been skipped.

Spoiler: Art 8

 

[SigmasonicX]

Stream announcements.

Tomorrow, we're watching the following.
1. Olive, the Other Reindeer
2. The Christmas Tree (mandatory bad special)
3. Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation

And then on Sunday, 12-23, we're having a Hearth's Warming marathon, featuring the stream premiere of Best Gift Ever.
1. Hearth's Warming Eve
2. Hearthbreakers
3. A Hearth's Warming Tail
4. The Hearth's Warming Club
5. Best Gift Ever

I didn't even realize everything fit in perfectly with our normal schedule until I typed this up. fony , I think you asked me to tell you when we're showing Best Gift Ever.

Next week's streams are still in planning, but it doesn't seem like we'll continue the Christmas theme.

Art dump.
1.Aj's Many Voices by thegreatrouge on DeviantArt - EQG version of "Mystery Voice"
2.Special Scarf by InuHoshi-to-DarkPen on DeviantArt - Fluttershy and Discord
3.Big Grey Shy by Taurson on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
4.Eg swimsuits Sunset by RacoonKun on DeviantArt
5.Sunset sketch by katakiuchi4u

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Seapony Pinkie jutting out her... knees? by yuyutsuka_0130
2.New Year Twilight by FlySoulDragon on DeviantArt
3.Winter's Warmth by LolliponyBrony on DeviantArt - Twilight
4.Twilight Sparkle - Best Gift Ever Outfit by Darksly-z on DeviantArt
5.:Pop-Star: by SoundwavePie on DeviantArt - Coloratura (Countess)

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Far Future Twilight by dragbax
2.Winter Rainbow by nitani
3.Starlight and Trixie kiss by esmeia
4.fs by DreamSugar on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
5.ts by DreamSugar on DeviantArt - Twilight

Spoiler: Art 3

1.ts2 by DreamSugar on DeviantArt - Twilight
2.Luna by DreamSugar on DeviantArt
3.Pinkie and Maud by nanima
4.SciTwi as alicorn by nanima
5.Sunset, by Auroriia on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 4

1.T31c by Hierozaki on DeviantArt - Twilight
2.Kirin Celestia by DJspark3 on DeviantArt
3.Kirin Princess Luna by DJspark3 on DeviantArt
4.Twi morning by ShadowReindeer on DeviantArt - Twilight
5.Starlight listen to songs (Animated) by Szafir87 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 5

1.Punk Rarity by TheBowtieOne on DeviantArt
2.Twilight going :3 by neira
3.[Commission] Rarity and Sunset by iojknmiojknm on DeviantArt - Human
4.Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle by raika0306 on DeviantArt - With plushies made by Rarity
5.My G5 Fluttershy by HiccupsDoesArt on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 6

1.And you can count on me to be there by your side by Lucy-tan on DeviantArt - EQG Pinkie and Sunset
2.Home for Hearth's Warming by bobthedalek on DeviantArt - Starlight, Sunburst, and Sunburst's mom
3.Wallflower Blush by thegreatrouge on DeviantArt
4.G5 Fluttershy as an elf by scorpdk
5.[SpeedPaint] Twilight (Redraw) by HuiRou on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 7

1.Mystery Lighthouse by DiscordTheGE on DeviantArt - Twilight
2.Pony Twilight wearing SciTwi's swimsuit by iloota
3.Rarijack Christmas by LooknamTCN on DeviantArt - Also Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom
4.Petit Papillon d'Amour by ManeInGreen on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
5.[マイリトルポニー] "MAGIC" Illustration/KUROGE [pixiv] - Starlight

Spoiler: Art 8

 

[SigmasonicX]

On Friday, we watched, in this order.
1. The Christmas Tree
2. Olive, the Other Reindeer
3. Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation

The order got changed due to a stream issue.

The Christmas Tree is an infamous bad special, and we had fun riffing and reacting to it.

Olive, the Other Reindeer was a fun straightforward Christmas special. Some of the designs were pretty weird, but Olive the dog and Martini the penguin were good lead characters.

After that, it appears everyone else left, but people were still listed as online in the stream, so I let it keep going. People have mentioned before letting the stream play in the background while doing other things. Anyway, the Phineas and Ferb was good. I had forgotten that there were multiple Christmas specials, so I was surprised that Isabella's rendition of "Let It Snow" never showed up. It's pretty adorable.

1.PinkieDash with reindeer antlers by pinkablue
2.PinkieDash kissing by pinkablue
3.Rainbow Dash as a dragon by celebi-yoshi and graphene
4.Anthro Twilight by latecustomer
5.Human Sunset in scarf by hobilo

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Twilight in scarf by bigshot232
2.[マイリトルポニー] "家族" Illustration/ドロクマ [pixiv] - Applejack, Pinkie, Apple Bloom
3.Fluttershy X Pinkie by 770nanao15
4.Sky by Miokomata on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
5.fs by DreamSugar on DeviantArt - Fluttershy

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Luna's Night by WolfieDrawie on DeviantArt
2.NY gift by Xjenn9 on DeviantArt - Fluttershy, Twilight, Sunset
3.Futuristic Tempest Shadow by hardbrony on DeviantArt
4.Capper 12 17 2018 by tohupo on DeviantArt
5.Pinkie Good Morning by tohupo

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Fluttershy 12 20 2018 by tohupo on DeviantArt
2.Comm: Choose Your Ship! by LiaAqila on DeviantArt - EQG Autumn Blaze, Rarity, Coloratura, and Strawberry Sunrise surrounding Applejack
3.Anthro Twilight by holivi
4.Anthro Rarity by holivi
5.Anthro Rarity with ponytail by holivi

Spoiler: Art 4

1.V and O by Holivi on DeviantArt - Anthro Vinyl and Octavia
2.The Great and Powerful by Holivi on DeviantArt - Anthro Trixie
3.Trixie in beanie and hoodie by higgly-chan
4.Trixie by morose-muffin
5.Discord and Fluttershy by sansdy

Spoiler: Art 5

1.Discord wanting Fluttershy-senpai to notice him by sansdy
2.Fluttershy noticing Discord by sansdy
3.Winter Solstice by LennonBlack on DeviantArt - Luna
4.RuBronyCon'18 by Ramiras on DeviantArt - Tempest and Chrysalis
5.Derpy Hooves by Ramiras on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 6

1.Cadance by lavender_1227
2.Rainbow bakes a pie for Pinkie by tastyrainbow
3.「不思議の国のフラタ！」/「かぼす」のイラスト [pixiv] - Mane Six Alice in Wonderland
4.Dashing of the Bells by TheDoctorDisco on DeviantArt - Fluttershy and Rainbow (wings accidentally missing)
5.Anthro Ballerina Twiligth by luciferamon

Spoiler: Art 7

1.PinkieDash socks by pinkablue
2.Sunset postcard by Xjenn9 on DeviantArt
3.Daily Doodle 996 by Amarynceus on DeviantArt - Twilight
4.Starlight by SkyeyPony on DeviantArt
5.Conflicted Feelings by HazuraSinner on DeviantArt - Trixie, Starlight, and their child
6.Commission 22 : Luna's Christmas style by Marenlicious on DeviantArt
7.Let The Sunshine In by Ramiras on DeviantArt - Rainbow, Twilight, and Daring Do

Spoiler: Art 8

Fun PMV


And a recap of 2018 (and 2017 after the Bronies 2017 video was made) in the pony fandom, including the G5 leaks.

 

[fony]

Thanks, SigmasonicX! I'll probably join in somewhere in the middle.

On an unrelated note, this new ResetEra site is nearly unusable. I hope they change it back.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Stream followup. We watched all of the MLP Hearth's Warming episodes.
*.My Little Pony G3 - That's What I Love about Christmas - Sing Along - YouTube
*.[SFM Ponies] Deck the halls (60fps) - YouTube
1. Hearth's Warming Eve
*.MLP: A Very Minty Christmas - Nothing Says Christmas Like a Pair of Socks - YouTube
*.MLP: PMV - Days Gone By Animatic w/ Animation - YouTube
2. Hearthbreakers
*.[SFM Ponies] Jolly ol' St. Nick - Spike (FIXED) - YouTube
3. A Hearth's Warming Tail
*.It's a Pony Kind of Christmas: Jingle Bells - YouTube
4. The Hearth's Warming Club
*.[MLP Comic Dub] The Get Out Claus (comedy) SCRIBBLER'S CHRISTMAS CRACKERS #5 - YouTube
*.All I Want For Christmas MLP MEP - YouTube
5. Best Gift Ever
*.[MLP Comic Dub] Sparkles! The Wonder Horse! Holiday Special! (comedy) CHRISTMAS CRACKERS #4 - YouTube
*.[Animation] Merry Christmas 2016 - YouTube

It was nice to watch all these episodes again. There were details in the first episode particularly that I hadn't noticed before, like the fire in the play during Spike's opening narration being moved by sticks. I don't have much more to say, really.

~~~

Thailand is running a Christmas pony event, and it's... interesting.

~~~

Well, I've done it. I've made an art commission for my ship, Rarity X Twilight, thus losing the moral high ground here. It ended up being a bit more suggestive than I initially wanted it (and this is toned down from an earlier sketch), so putting it behind spoiler tags.
[Commission] Pop Quiz by iojknmiojknm on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Uncensored

And here's a censored version to address the lewdest part.

Spoiler: Censored

(You only need to censor the tip)

 

[SigmasonicX]

Changed my avatar!
Old

New

Huge improvement, I think.
Yeah, I'll probably swap this out once the new year starts.

Monochromatic started a new story! The Weary Travelers of Caelum takes place in the "Bodyguard AU", where Twilight is bodyguard to Princess Rarity, and aims to be the grand finale. Here's the review I posted.

Spoiler: Review

Finally got around to reading this. Great start to this story, with interesting themes regarding Rarity's generosity and how Twilight and Rarity view each other being explored.

If you hadn't said before that you're avoiding Tangled: the Series until after you're done writing MLP fanfics, I would have thought you were referencing the "Queen for a Day" special here, with the massive blizzard and the princess having to take charge.

Also, after letting it build chapters for several months, It Turns Out They're Windmills by J Carp has concluded, and here's the review I posted for the entire story.

Spoiler: Review 2

Like the previous story, I adored the character interactions here. Both the comedic asides, and the intense drama that felt very real, and pretty close to feelings I've had in the past, particularly with Pony Twilight. You did a great job showing multiple facets to the characters, making all of them charming and flawed in their own rights. With Rarity, I was a bit concerned about bi-erasure when you revealed she is into mares, but the dialogue in this last chapter seems to show you aren't doing that.

However, I do think all the focus on Weeping Willow was a mistake, particularly making him a big threat. While it did help when you went into his backstory, he was an annoying character to read about. Similarly, in I Am Awkward (Yellow), Rainbow was pretty annoying when she acted as an antagonist. I think these stories just don't need villains like this.

In any case, I only checked out your first story because of how unusual the ship was, and I was pleasantly surprised by your writing. Keep up the good work!

One artist I've posted in the past, pastel-pony-pictures, has had a medical emergency in the family and has opened up simple commissions to help with her money. I myself have commissioned a Belle Eve image from her (since she really needs some more art), only remembering she draws RariTwi afterwards.

The holidays brought a lot of new art.
1.sunsetsparkle by RSazu on DeviantArt - EQG with snowman
2.sunsetshimmer by RSazu on DeviantArt
3.twilightsparkle by RSazu on DeviantArt - Halloween
4.sunsetsparkle by RSazu on DeviantArt - Pony
5.Cozy by Jowybean on DeviantArt - Rainbow and Scootaloo

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Cinder Glow the brown kirin by mirroredsea
2.queen by Holivi on DeviantArt - Anthro "The Other Side" Rarity
3.Twily On Ice by VanillaGhosties on DeviantArt
4.Twilight by aosion on DeviantArt
5.Alpha and Prime by Ramiras on DeviantArt - Bunch of Twilights

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Christmas Sunset by Haden-2375 on DeviantArt
2.Pinkie and Gummy by JumbleHorse on DeviantArt
3.Don't cry my Love by Yami-Sempai on DeviantArt - Fluttershy and crying Discord
4.Hello Baby by Yami-Sempai on DeviantArt - Fluttershy and tiny Discord
5.All that's left to say (MLP Best Gift Ever) by JonFawkes on DeviantArt - Human Rarity and Spike

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Human Pirate Fluttershy with Angel by king-kakapo
2.Sonata with taco by tastyrainbow
3.Fluttershy winking by tastyrainbow
4.funfam by sandwichbuns on DeviantArt - Pinkie X Skystar with child, all in sunglasses
5.Pinkie by tohupo

Spoiler: Art 4

1.Pinkamena Santa by tohupo
2.Twilight eating a cookie by kittyrosie
3.Best Gift Givers Ever (MLP Best Gift Ever) by JonFawkes on DeviantArt - Human Aurora, Bori, and Alice. Not sure the English subs are correct, though. I'll wait for the dub to be sure.
4.Christmas Morning by WanderingPegasus on DeviantArt - Rainbow and Pinkie
5.Merry Holidays by kazunekomori on DeviantArt - Fluttershy in sweater

Spoiler: Art 5

1.Rainbow gift by pesty_skillengton
2.Anthro Fluttershy about to take a bath by tron-zix
3.Warm Embrace by Darksly-z on DeviantArt - Trixie X Starlight
4.Shades of Purple by PedroHander on DeviantArt - Rarity
5.Pinkie by ChileBender on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 6

1.Christmas illustration 2018 by Light262 by Light262 on DeviantArt
2.#Human Rarity and Fluttershy by emberfan11
3.MLP Rara III by MashiroMiku on DeviantArt - Coloratura
4.Capper....the cat? by LunaWoonaNight on DeviantArt - Also Goldie Delicious
5.Merry Christmas Darling by LennonBlack on DeviantArt - Rarity kissing Spike on the cheek

Spoiler: Art 7

1.On the beach by LooknamTCN on DeviantArt - EQG Rainbow and SciTwi
2.Silent Night (Christmas Eve 2018) by InvisibleInkDoodles on DeviantArt - EQG Rainbow and Tank
3.Panetone by Trojan-Pony on DeviantArt - Pinkie
4.Princess Celestia by 1AN1 on DeviantArt
5.MLP FIM - Princess Luna Love Coco For Christmas by Joakaha on DeviantArt - Doesn't have Coco Pommel

Spoiler: Art 8

1.Rainbow Powers Version Fluttershy by Schokocream on DeviantArt
2.Luna by Aelwyng on DeviantArt
3.Duchess Mi Amore Cadenza by its-gloomy on DeviantArt
4.Christmas Dashie by Agletka on DeviantArt
5.Christmas gift by Taneysha on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 9

1.Twilight Sparkle by iLickSunshine on DeviantArt
2.Hoo'far by iLickSunshine on DeviantArt
3.Apple Sibs by Tsitra360 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 10

Twilight Simulator part 4 by doubleWbrothers on DeviantArt
All you need to know is that Twilight is frustrated she can't figure out why fingers are so good for scratching.

Spoiler: Comic

 

[Captain Fish]

They should sell toy versions of those Thailand models.

The Hearthswarming Eve eps were more fun than I remembered. I said I'm not a huge fan of them, but that's more as holiday specials. I think they're pretty good at building the lore and providing fun situations. And Best Gift Ever really delivered on the latter and was maybe my favourite piece of content from this year of pony stuff.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Late Merry Christmas! Here's Christmas / Hearth's Warming art.
1.Merry Christmas - 2018 by InuHoshi-to-DarkPen on DeviantArt
2.Hearth's Warming by RacoonKun on DeviantArt

1.The Midnight Snack by bobthedalek on DeviantArt - Starlight and her dad
2.Happy Hearth's Warming My Love by CartoonBoyfriends on DeviantArt - Rarity (Merry) X Fluttershy (Flutterholly)
3.Human Fluttershy with rabbit by dagmell
4..:MERRY CHRISTMAS 2018:. by The-Butcher-X on DeviantArt - EQG Pinkie, and other Humane Six heads
5.T33 by Hierozaki on DeviantArt - Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Fluttercozy Seven by goattrain on DeviantArt - With Angel
2.Rarity in cloak by celebi-yoshi
3.Winter by Plainoasis on DeviantArt - Landscape
4.Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! by 1AN1 on DeviantArt - Pinkie
5.Present by The-Wizard-of-Art on DeviantArt - Starlight (Snowfall Frost) and Pinkie (Spirit of Hearth's Warming Presents)

Spoiler: Art 2

And here's a comic from three years ago that I only saw today. Note that the fourth (final) panel is a cursed ship.
All I want for Christmas is you by Lucy-tan on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Comic

Simple PMV

 

[SigmasonicX]

Stream announcements!

On Friday, December 28, we're watching Wreck-It Ralph 1 and something else. We were originally going with Frozen, but the guy who hasn't seen it won't be there on that day or Sunday.
ONWARDS, AOSHIMA! Commission by AugustRaes on DeviantArt

And on Sunday, we're going back to watching MLP two-parters and movies with Starlight's introduction.

1. The Cutie Map parts 1-2
2. Winter's Tale

Winter's Tale is a rather silly epic romance movie released 2014. I recommend not looking it up if you're going to watch this stream. The first paragraph on Wikipedia reveals a really out of place guest star appearance that I'd like to keep a surprise.

Got some updates on the FiM ending front. First of all, to establish this person does work on the show.


And the relevant tweet.


And Big Jim Miller has been pretty open on Twitter about DHX not being approached for another season after the one they're currently working on.

We knew this was happening, but it's still weird to see.

~~~

Art dump.
1.Rainbow and Pinkie cheerleaders by tn_6_30
2.Fluttershy and Pinkie by poneko-chan and tn_6_30
3.The Big Bang by bobthedalek on DeviantArt - Starlight, Sunburst, and Trixie
4.Wallflower Blush rapping (Zombieland Saga reference) by hazepeach
5.「日常摸鱼」/「Eric.T.Alex」のイラスト [pixiv] - Twilight

Spoiler: Art 1

1.「Happy Halloween」/「Eric.T.Alex」のイラスト [pixiv] - Starlight and Trixie
2.Cadance by watawata_pony
3.Trixie X Fluttershy by nemovonsilver
4.Best Mane! :3 by MagnaLuna on DeviantArt - Luna and Twilight
5.Luna by magnaluna

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Background Pony by Ramiras on DeviantArt - Lyra; cover for a new print version of the fanfic Background Pony (underline because it's in print now)
2.Suri Polomare by Koviry on DeviantArt
3.Swimsuit Shimmer by iojknmiojknm on DeviantArt - Sunset
4.Christmas girls by Marbola on DeviantArt - Twilight and Sunset
5.Strong and Steady, Soft and Sweet by TheSoleil on DeviantArt - Tempest X Pinkie

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Xmas Requests - Adult!Smolder by TheSoleil on DeviantArt
2.MerryChristmas by iloota on DeviantArt - Twilight
3.Scoot2 by Hierozaki on DeviantArt - Scootaloo
4.L9 by Hierozaki on DeviantArt - Anthro Luna
5.T34 by Hierozaki on DeviantArt - Anthro Twilight

Spoiler: Art 4

1.L8 by Hierozaki on DeviantArt - Luna
2.I wish you joy. by Rutkotka on DeviantArt - Young Celestia and Luna
3.Hearts Warmer helpers by Rutkotka on DeviantArt - Sunburst and Starlight
4.Fluttershy in the Forest ~ Gen 5 Design by SeafoamKitten on DeviantArt
5.[MLP] Winter Cuddles by SeafoamKitten on DeviantArt - Fluttershy X Discord
6.Mane Six, Starlight, Discord, and Angel by ladychimaera and ldalice1

Spoiler: Art 5

And Raridashdoodles has started a contest where you write a short RariDash fanfic based on one of six image prompts, all below
1.Prompt image with Twilight writing
2.Nightmare Moon universe
3.School with Twilight catching them
4.Maid
5.Bed
6.Play, with a bunch of other characters too
7.Scared camping

Spoiler: Art 6

Ah My Goddess reference comic with Celestia by uotapo - The last panel is a joke about Belldandy's Japanese VA making a running joke out of lying about her age.

Spoiler: Comic

Cover of Spike's version of "Jolly Ol' Saint Nick"


Cover of "One More Day"
"One More Day" Cover (AshleyH) - YouTube

Cover of "The True Gift of Gifting"
"The True Gift of Gifting" Cosplay Cover MV (70K and Christmas Special) - YouTube

MLP joke in this John Cena skit, at 4:16, and not a bad one.

 

[Sylvee]

So I was in charge of the stream, and to start things off I played stream-regular YouTuber Jenny Nicholson's video on Justice League. It was mostly just filler but she mentioned that MLP did a better Justice League then Justice League, and although I don't really know which episode she's referring to (I'm guessing it's To Where and Back Again) I'm sure she's right.

Next up was a video by Star_, who I had previously shown his Basically: Sweet Genius video. It's about a plotline in the CW show The 100, which is sort of geared to be Game of Thrones but for Teenagers. I've watched the show through it's most recent season, and although there's a lot I could point out as problems with the show (And honestly the storyline shown in the video is just one of many that don't make sense if you really think about them) I will say that the show is always engaging and interesting. It's not the best show ever but it always does a good job at making you feel like things are on the brink and that everything is life or death. The video covers a storyline where the main lead's boyfriend decides to murder over half a village of people for no reason and is instantly forgiven for it, but has to die anyway because the village belonged to a much bigger faction that's extremely pissed that he just killed over half a village for no reason. It's about as stupid as you might think it is and Star does a good job at riffing on it.


Wreck It Ralph I had never seen before, and it was alright. Summarizing my thoughts on it, I thought the movie started out pretty slow. It takes it a very long time to really establish Ralph's unhappiness with his situation, how the arcade world setting works, Ralph getting his coin and then losing it, introducing the 2nd main character Venellope, and explaining both why she wants to win the big race as well as why people don't want her to. The scene where the other racers bully Venellope and Ralph comes to her defense happens over 40 minutes into the movie, and given that the movie is only 100 minutes long that's a massive chunk of the movie. I feel like once they're finally on the same side and working together the movie gets a lot better, and the scenes with the two working together are easily the best in the film. It's pretty great from then on up until I feel the climax of the movie where things unfortunately kind of go south again. I mentioned it in the Discord, but conceptually I really liked Turbo. I think that the concept of a character that's used to being the top dog and getting extremely jealous when he loses relevance is fitting. Him destroying 2 games and then hacking another one so he becomes the central character, that's fine too. But his demeanor when it's revealed that he's the bad guy is a bit much, and it gets even worse when they decide that he needs to become an evil bug monster to fight Ralph at the end. His presence really detracts from the climax of the movie. Overall there were some really good spots but I'm not really in a hurry to watch it again, I feel like it just starts out far too slow and the extremely weak villain ruins the climax for me.

 

[SigmasonicX]

Stream followups.

On Friday, it was interesting to watch Wreck-It Ralph again and seeing how the second movie repeats some plot points. I agree that the beginning is a bit slow and the scale of the climax feels unnecessary, and that the story improves once Ralph and Vannelope work together. I had forgotten how much Vannelope's glitches were presented as a mental condition, with her even referring to it as "glitchlexia". It's a decent enough movie, but not among the top of the "New Disney Renaissance" in my opinion.

On Sunday, we watched the following.
*. PMV Starlight Glimmer- It's My Life - YouTube
1. Winter's Tale
*.PMV: The Logical Song - YouTube (video now deleted)
2. The Cutie Map parts 1-2
*.PMV- (Starlight Glimmer) Daniel Ingram - In Our Town (Sim Gr☆tina Remix) - YouTube (after first part)
*.Every utterance of "Starlight" in My Little Pony version 2 - YouTube

We moved Winter's Tale first because Sylvee was going to leave early. I have to say, we got way more people in this stream than I would have thought, and thus many people experienced the wonder and miracle of Winter's Tale. Everyone was pretty flummoxed by it, with the high budget and major stars only adding to the confusion. This is actually the second time I watched it this week, since Cappy wanted to see it on Friday due to being busy at other times, and it was still a fun group watch the second time.

Anyway, with MLP, "The Cutie Map" is still good. I had forgotten more about it than I expected, particularly with the "Unequal Four" saving the day. We had ahoy, who hadn't seen this story before, and he was surprised by how many of our stream emotes came from this.

~~~

Following up on my earlier mention, the Belle Eve commission by pastel-pony-pictures is complete! (Derpibooru)

Based on my real life.

New Equestria Girls Mini toys

Also

Art dump.
1.Pinkie sketches by colorfulcolor233
2.Oleander by linaprime
3.Comm: Sorry Scoots by LiaAqila on DeviantArt - Apple Bloom and Chicken Scootaloo
4.Comm: Cutie Hug by LiaAqila on DeviantArt - CMC
5.Gabby with present by esmeia

Spoiler: Art 1

1.Lyra by Atlas-66 on DeviantArt
2.Reassurance by WanderingPegasus on DeviantArt - Twilight and Starlight
3.Winter Fun by Fensu-San on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
4.Zecora Hierophant tarot card by sourcherry - This artist has tarot cards for a ton of other characters.
5.Thorax Judgement tarot card by sourcherry

Spoiler: Art 2

1.Rainbow imitating Gilda by tsitra360
2.Chrysalis by phoenixrk49
3.Cozy Glow by riukime on DeviantArt
4.Another Lil' Marble Pie by Fakskis on DeviantArt
5.Twideer by PucksterV on DeviantArt - Twilight

Spoiler: Art 3

1.Sparkler by PucksterV on DeviantArt - Twilight
2.Prance by OrchidPony on DeviantArt - Pinkie
3.Queen Rain Shine by Marbola on DeviantArt
4.Totally Not Evil by its-gloomy on DeviantArt - Nightmare Moon
5.Lyra Heartstrings by MellonCollie-chan on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 4

1.Silverdab by Paw-of-Darkness on DeviantArt - Silverstream
2.Fluffy Fluttershy by kebchach
3.Rainbow dash 12 28 2018 by tohupo on DeviantArt
4.Celestia by tohupo
5.Background Pony Volume 2 by Ramiras on DeviantArt - Lyra, cover for published version of fanfic Background Pony.

Spoiler: Art 5

1.Lyra Heartstrings by Ramiras on DeviantArt
2.shimmy blue and gold edition by fannytastical on DeviantArt - Sunset in sweater
3.HMPH!... by MagnaLuna on DeviantArt - Tempest
4.Pinkie launching her head by dsiak
5.Twilight with bird by tohupo

Spoiler: Art 6

1.EQG Rainbow and Scootaloo by ryuu
2.The Power Ponies - Radiance by AmarthGul on DeviantArt - Human Rarity
3.The Power Ponies - Zapp by AmarthGul on DeviantArt - Human Rainbow
4.My Little Twilight by Jeremywithlove on DeviantArt - Anthro
5.Human Fluttershy by tohupo

Spoiler: Art 7

1.Celestia by mirroredsea
2.G5 Fluttershy by whalepornoz
3.Pinkie X Rainbow with long hair by pinkablue
4.Flutter by Imaplatypus on DeviantArt - Fluttershy
5.Windy Whistles by Brok-Enwings on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 8

1.AppleDash by LiaAqila on DeviantArt
2.Rarity and Twilight snuggling with a scarf by casara
3..:CYBERNETIC EMOTIONS:. (Commission) by The-Butcher-X on DeviantArt - Humanoid Sweetie Bot (Sweetie Belle robot)
4.Sunset asking SciTwi if she would ever kiss a horse by tjpones
5.TheCaptain by dustyMunji on DeviantArt - EQG Rainbow

Spoiler: Art 9

1.EQG Rarity X Rainbow by kkmrarar
2.HNY by Holivi on DeviantArt - Sunset Happy New Year
3.Commission by Holivi on DeviantArt - Anthro Apple Bloom, Applejack, and Rarity

Spoiler: Art 10

Videos

Good cover
Open Up Your Eyes (2018 Redux) - Rockin'Brony - YouTube

Third Phantom of the Opera animation


Alright if one-sided fight animation. The closed eyes are weird.


So many Starlights. I did think this video overused the use of full scenes besides the "Starlight"s.
Every utterance of "Starlight" in My Little Pony version 2 - YouTube

Silver Quill looks back on Friendship Games, making some interesting points. He comes out sounding positive, despite pointing out the problems.
After the Fact: Friendship Games - YouTube

Applejack uses her ability to look at two different realities and choose one to fight Flim and Flam.


New Pony Sims video


And thanks to Pinkablue's image (set 8), I learned about this account with Chinese MLP animations. NOTE: On this Chinese site, you can disable the comments over the video by toggling the blue switch below the player.

I especially recommend watching this Pinkie X Rainbow video.
【小马手书/像素风】恶作剧组的A Thousand Miles_哔哩哔哩 (゜-゜)つロ 干杯~-bilibili

It looks like this site allows you to collect videos into a playlist and list that as a single video. This starts with a ponified version of the beginning of the One Punch Man opening, and if you let that finish, you get an incomplete ponified (well, human ponified) version of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure's second opening (for Part 2).
【弃坑手书大合集】那些做了一半就不做的小马同人（2018.12.16更新P3）_哔哩哔哩 (゜-゜)つロ 干杯~-bilibili

Bizarrely, a Chinese ponified version of that MALK comedy sketch.
【MLP/手书】给我一杯MALK_哔哩哔哩 (゜-゜)つロ 干杯~-bilibili

And I'm not quite sure what's going on with this video. I suspect it's just an art collection. However, I haven't seen any of this art before, so it's still worth looking at for that.
【MLP】恶作剧组的达拉崩吧_哔哩哔哩 (゜-゜)つロ 干杯~-bilibili

 

[SigmasonicX]

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year 2019!! by RenoKim on DeviantArt

1.Happy New Years!! by JackieBloom on DeviantArt
2.Twilight New Year by prr_hmhm
3.Happy new year2019 by SATV12 on DeviantArt
4.Pinkie New Year by tohupo
5.Apple Family New Year by erufi
6.2019 by Haden-2375 on DeviantArt

Spoiler: Art 1

 

[SigmasonicX]

With the end of the year, discarding my horrified Rarity avatar.

Swapping to some cool Fluttershy
Pegaswag by thegreatrouge on DeviantArt

More New Years art.
1.New Years party by tjpones
2.Happy New Year 2019 by OinkTweetStudios on DeviantArt
3.Slumber by bobthedalek on DeviantArt - Starlight, Sunburst, and Trixie
4.Happy new year!!! by mauroz on DeviantArt - Human
5.New Year 2019 by Traupa on DeviantArt - Twilight's non-parent family
6.Happy New Year 2019 by RacoonKun on DeviantArt - Human Pinkie in Year of the Pig outfit
7.Countdown Party by LooknamTCN on DeviantArt - EQG style

Spoiler: Art 1

Only vaguely pony related, but I read all of the IDW Jem and the Holograms comics.

I think my overall conclusion is that I would have preferred this Jem set up with a TV series, because as a comic, there just wasn't enough time to explore everything. There just wasn't enough time spent with the status quo before we started getting big high concept stories, leading to odd things like the Misfits and Holograms acting like forever rivals when the Misfits only performed one act of sabotage by that point. One particular odd part was that the Misfits' manager was introduced and the panels made a big deal about this, but he just didn't have time to do anything. On another note, the Misfits were way more interesting as protagonists than the Holograms. While the Holograms had conflicts like one of them considering leaving the band but then not and otherwise got along, the Misfits had more personal problems and more interesting conflicts.

Here's a collection of my Discord posts about it. And here's a text only version, just in case, since I can't be bothered to recreate all the emotes and images.

Spoiler: Jem posts text only

SigmasonicX12/24/2018
Started reading the Jem and the Holograms comic




[...]



SigmasonicXLast Tuesday (12/25/18) at 10:24 AM




1

Oh, it's upside down





CappyLast Tuesday at 10:32 AM
cute page

My Huge Pony





SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 10:37 AM
Right side up https://derpibooru.org/947240?q=jem+and+the+holograms

Derpibooru

sophie campbell

#947240 - aja leith, artist:sophie campbell, cameo, comic, crossov...






SylveeLast Tuesday at 11:45 AM
The toy seems out of place, it's really colorful whereas two of the characters and the entire background are almost entirely white.

Also I don't even think you can buy that large of a Sunset toy





CappyLast Tuesday at 12:14 PM
that's why she had to win it!







FranlingLast Tuesday at 12:41 PM
You can buy those. You just have to do it in packs of 10.





CappyLast Tuesday at 12:49 PM
Oh, you can't buy them cause Fran has all of them.





SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 12:52 PM
There was a super pedant in the Derpibooru comments complaining that technically Sunset is a "unicorn pony" and not a "unicorn", and thus counts as a horse.

This being an AU where Sunset is a unicorn explains why you can't get it.





CappyLast Tuesday at 12:53 PM


My Huge Horse!

I used to wonder what trampling could be

Until you a-AAAAAAAAAAGH


SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 12:55 PM






SylveeLast Tuesday at 1:10 PM
I think it actually a life-size replica of Sunset. They used inter-dimensional travel to get accurate measurements





SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 1:11 PM






CappyLast Tuesday at 1:11 PM
she might be alive and just biding her time


SylveeLast Tuesday at 1:13 PM
That girl must be super buff then, a live pony would be pretty heavy



1





SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 1:16 PM
Here's a Twi Fact! Ponies seem like they're tiny, but if they were to come to the human world without transforming, they'd be the size of skyscrapers!





SylveeLast Tuesday at 1:19 PM
How would you know that? You've never travelled through the portal and didn't transform

[...]


SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 4:21 PM






SylveeLast Tuesday at 4:25 PM
Does that comic make references to other Hasbro stuff or is it mostly just MLP?





CappyLast Tuesday at 4:27 PM
are they gonna share it





SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 4:32 PM
Just MLP, as far as I can tell





CappyLast Tuesday at 4:33 PM
are those gifts...

murderous

i remember how the misfits would get down

it was usually murder so they could perform instead of the holograms

with very few repercussions for it





SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 4:34 PM
Kimber is dating Stormer (on the Misfits) and she got them to behave for these gifts at least.





CappyLast Tuesday at 4:35 PM
:O

scandalous





SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 4:39 PM
From a series of montage panels of singers



Third one seems like Fluttershy. One element could make it a coincidence, but she has long pink hair, a yellow outfit, and what's presented as a more quiet and pretty style of singing.(edited)





CappyLast Tuesday at 4:41 PM
and performing is making her do evil things





SylveeLast Tuesday at 4:41 PM
It sounds like the people just wanted to make an MLP comic but had to make Gem instead





SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 4:42 PM
That's a stretch

Speaking of performing to make her do evil things







CappyLast Tuesday at 4:44 PM
:o

dark Jem

[...]


UberTagLast Tuesday at 5:14 PM
I was shipping Kimber/Stormer back in the 1980s. Glad to hear that's still a thing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTkoa98KI14

YouTube

Hasbro

Jem and the Holograms - "I'm Okay" by Kimber and Stormer






SigmasonicXLast Tuesday at 5:21 PM
Well, I just finished reading a story arc where the Holograms and the Misfits have to sing together to override a mind control song from an evil AI.


[...]



SigmasonicXLast Saturday (12/29/18) at 11:33 AM
(reading Jem and the Holograms volume 4) Wow, the art suddenly became way worse.





CappyLast Saturday at 11:37 AM
oh that always sucks

different pencils?





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 11:39 AM
Yeah, this storyline has a different artist. They stick to one artist for every storyline but change it up for the next, and this one isn't great. Well, there are some good moments.

Here's a bad one followed by some good art right after





Well, the skull is good

And these are all pretty large panels, mind.

Oh wow, this doesn't look great at all









CappyLast Saturday at 11:50 AM
o_o






SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 11:51 AM
It's especially weird because the issue cover arts still look perfectly normal, and it's like, "Oh, so that's what this new character is supposed to look like."





CappyLast Saturday at 11:52 AM
how many ponies has this artist put in

we might be able to establish a pattern





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 11:59 AM
We actually did see a return of Kimber's Rainbow Dash pajamas





CappyLast Saturday at 11:59 AM
how did they look





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 12:01 PM






CappyLast Saturday at 12:10 PM
that's pretty cute in the 2nd panel there





FranlingLast Saturday at 1:18 PM
Lots of Pony references.

Oh right, parent company.





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 1:37 PM
Volume 5, art's back to normal. But the story's in "oh shit, we're canceled, time to wrap things up" mode.





CappyLast Saturday at 1:41 PM
:(





FranlingLast Saturday at 1:56 PM
Whatever happened with those concept sketches for the comic? I can't seem to find the article now.

Oh, apparently it was just some artist's concept drawings.





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 1:58 PM
Volume 1 notes did mention that they hired the initial artist based on updated designs they posted as fan art before the comic was in production.

And yeah, the comic just ended at a somewhat weird place.

At least there are still miniseries after this. One focused on the Misfits, and one where they travel to another dimension.





FranlingLast Saturday at 2:00 PM
I guess you just can't recreate the 80's.





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 2:00 PM
And in January, for the IDW 20/20 thing (that MLP is having a 20 years ago special for), there's a "where are they now" 20 years later special.





FranlingLast Saturday at 2:01 PM
Hiding the wrinkles with Synergy.





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 2:04 PM
Based on the main series, I'd say the biggest issue is that they took too long setting up the status quo, and proceeded to have storylines that only worked assuming the status quo was around for a while, even though it had only been a few weeks in-universe.





FranlingLast Saturday at 2:04 PM
Oh, here it is. http://comicsalliance.com/jem-fashion/





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 2:04 PM
Well, and the Dark Jem storyline was a mess other than some neat designs.

Though that ties into my first point. You can't have a high concept "Synergy turns evil" story when they're still early in their career and the sci-fi stuff hadn't been explored much.





FranlingLast Saturday at 2:06 PM
Maybe they were afraid, or had word on high, that it would get canceled too early to pull all the cool stuff out.





SigmasonicXLast Saturday at 2:08 PM
I think it's more that they had this sort of story in mind for years and years, and rushed into it without the proper set up.

There was an afterword in volume 1 (other volumes didn't have that) where they mentioned there was a story coming up soon they had in mind since they were children that they were excited about.





FranlingLast Saturday at 2:09 PM
Wups


[...]


SigmasonicXToday (12/31/18) at 11:50 AM
Read the Misfits (from Jem and the Holograms) miniseries, and it was good. Each issue went into their backstories and personal problems.

Still weird that the chronological next event is the Holograms and Misfits getting sucked into an alternate reality. I had to double check to make sure there wasn't something I was missing in between.






[...]


SigmasonicXToday at 5:14 PM
Anyway, finished Jem and the Holograms: Infinite, where the Holograms and Misfits travel to an alternate universe where the hologram technology was uncovered and led to a dystopia. It was weird, because major events you'd expect to get focus, like the Holograms reuniting with their father who is alive in this universe, get covered up by "20 minutes later". Also, they introduce a major twist in the second to last issue but don't address it in the last issue. Still, at least the plot point of the Misfits learning about how Jem and Jerrica are the same version got a decent amount of time.

And just one miniseries left before I'm all caught up.






[...]

SigmasonicXToday at 5:17 PM






CappyToday at 5:25 PM
come to the ha tub





SigmasonicXToday at 5:26 PM
Oh no, the Rainbow Pajamas look scary now!







CappyToday at 5:27 PM
uh

that's weird(edited)

I like how they look like Calvin's parents in the background of the first panel

but yeah that person probably hasn't seen a rainbow or a dash





TrigonometrizeToday at 5:35 PM
I've lost the plot on these comics





CappyToday at 5:39 PM
I'm glad you're getting use out of that :3


[...]


SigmasonicXToday at 6:23 PM
And... done with the Jem comics





CappyToday at 6:25 PM
:o

That's

believable.





UberTagToday at 7:02 PM
SigmasonicX Were they truly, truly, truly outrageous?


[...]






SigmasonicXToday at 8:39 PM
I think my overall conclusion is that I would have preferred this Jem set up with a TV series, because as a comic, there just wasn't enough time to explore everything. Like I mentioned before, there just wasn't enough time spent with the status quo before we started getting big high concept stories. One particular odd part was that the Misfits' manager was introduced and the panels made a big deal about this, but he just didn't have time to do anything. On another note, the Misfits were way more interesting as protagonists than the Holograms. While the Holograms had conflicts like one of them considering leaving the band but then not and otherwise got along, the Misfits had more personal problems and more interesting conflicts.

 

[Strider_Blaze]

Happy new year my fellow MLP fans!

Still need to finish season 8, but will try to remember the episodes I recently watched since it was a few days ago lol!

Non-Compete Clause: Really AJ and RD? You guys couldn't put aside your competitive natures for the sake of your students? And the ending looks like they don't learn anything in the end lol! And by god! Fluttershy must be a great teacher with all those teacher of the month photos. Reminds me of SpongeBob.

The Break Up Breakdown: Talk about poor communication skills and you were no help Discord! At least until the very end. I guess Mac and Sugar Belle has pretty much grown on me. Though I do miss CheeriMac. I gotta wonder if the crew didn't go forward with it, because Cheerilee is probably older than Mac?

Molt Down: Ah the coming of age story. Of course Spike feels fearful of turning into a monster like when he turned greedy and feeling like Twilight will ditch him. It legitimately felt epic when Spike sprouted his wings and took down that giant bird. Did people also complain about this one because Spike got wings like Twilight?

Marks for Effort: I gotta wonder if that other little girl is secretly a bratty half point (don't let me know yet, since I haven't got passed the point of the next episode). I can't seem to excuse faking her failure of the CMC graduating from Twilight's Friendship School as genuine. I mean they blatantly tried tutoring her and she leads them to be scolded by Twilight first hand. But again, will just see where this leads as I continue to watch the next episodes, because it feels very suspect. I also find it awkward that she took photographs of random Ponyville residents.

The Mean 6: Oh welcome back Chrysalis. When she created those replicas of the Mane 6, I gotta question just how the Mane 6 (plus Starlight) couldn't tell themselves apart from the clones given the obvious green cutie marks of the latter. And oh Chrysalis is also taking photographs. Hmmm....

 

[Sylvee]

The Break Up Breakdown: Talk about poor communication skills and you were no help Discord! At least until the very end. I guess Mac and Sugar Belle has pretty much grown on me. Though I do miss CheeriMac. I gotta wonder if the crew didn't go forward with it, because Cheerilee is probably older than Mac?

Click to shrink...

Idk I'm guessing maybe they wanted something to cause Starlight's village to have some amount of relevance again? Him falling in love with Sugar Belle was super random though especially since they had already shown other potential options with both Cheerilee and Marble, so I guess there's some behind-the-scenes reason why they chose Sugar Belle instead.

Molt Down: Ah the coming of age story. Of course Spike feels fearful of turning into a monster like when he turned greedy and feeling like Twilight will ditch him. It legitimately felt epic when Spike sprouted his wings and took down that giant bird. Did people also complain about this one because Spike got wings like Twilight?

Click to shrink...

I haven't heard any real complaints, but I haven't dug very deep for them. Twilight's wings were symbolic of a bunch of other stuff which is why I feel like people hated them. Spike getting wings is just him getting older, and it's been 8 seasons with him not visibly getting older so I guess people figured it's about time.

The Mean 6: Oh welcome back Chrysalis. When she created those replicas of the Mane 6, I gotta question just how the Mane 6 (plus Starlight) couldn't tell themselves apart from the clones given the obvious green cutie marks of the latter. And oh Chrysalis is also taking photographs. Hmmm....

Click to shrink...

The marks were more for the audience's sake then the actual characters in the show, IIRC no one in-show made any remarks that indicated they could see any visual differences between the originals and clones despite there being quite a few. The episode would be a lot harder to follow if the clones looked identical to the originals so I just chalk up the obvious visual differences to be there for the audience to distinguish them and that in the context of the actual story it would be very difficult/impossible to tell the difference. Besides the characters realizing that the characters were clones would completely undermine the big "lesson" of the episode. If I can suspend my disbelief for talking magic friendship horses I can extend it a bit further that they can't tell visual differences between stuff.

 

[Strider_Blaze]

Makes sense regarding the Mean 6 then. Still felt pretty obvious.

And I forgot it almost seemed like Mac and Marble would be a thing!

And overlooked another episode:

The Best Gift Ever: Watched this during Christmas, since this is our true X-Mas special, versus when Hearth Warming's Eve seemed to be just the characters acting in a play.

I did like the fact the AJ and Fluttershy's moments against Flim and Flam seems to be a take on cash grabbing for the holidays. Or maybe that Simpsons episode with those Furby parodies! 'Twas awesome when they both directly exposed Flim and Flam; they deservedly didn't get a happy ending lol!

I personally felt understanding about the stress of getting a gift especially being in a secret Santa situation; I know last year's Christmas (as in 2018) is when I began to truly purchase gifts and that felt exhausting!

At first I felt that it was cliched to deem friendship being the best gift, then again it's not too far off with giving a gift because you love someone or you enjoy being best friends this person.

And of course we can't forgot that Twilight face that's another edition to MLP memes!

And speaking of Marble and Sugar Belle, OMG I didn't notice this!