Rejected with Love

Posted by BlackWidower on

Allow me to tell you a story. After my recent hand injury, and subsequent surgery, which I still haven’t fully recovered from, I decided to try to submit my latest work of fiction, With Rainbow Hair, which only had two chapters at the time, to the world-famous brony blog, Equestria Daily.

Why? Well, because it’s the first story I’ve written with no romantic plot or sub-plot. And they have some rule against what they call ‘foalshipping.’ I’m pretty sure that means romance involving the younger members of the cast. Yes, all my other stories do contain romance involving at least one the famous Cutie Mark Crusaders. Why? Because it seems more interesting that way. In A Waking Dragon it’s a minor sub-plot, but it’s there.

I did submit My Little Destiny back in the day. But I never got a response, and since I learned of that rule, I never bothered submitting again, given future plot points.

Now, some may think this restriction on Equestria Daily, the banning of ‘foalshipping’ material on their site, constitutes censorship. I’ve seen quite a few people make this accusation. But I call bullshit!

It is a bit unfair that the most popular site, and pseudo central hub for all things brony, would make random and pointless restrictions on their content. After all, whether the romance involves Rarity or Sweetie Belle, what difference does it make from a moral perspective? But at the end of the day, it’s their site, and they can do what they want. They’re a private business, not a publicly owned institution.

That’s not to say we can’t criticize such action, we can. But calling it ‘censorship’ is just insane. After all, they don’t publish the material. They don’t host anything. In fact all they do is promote fan fiction. It has to be hosted on other sites, like FiMFiction, or the Pony Fiction Archive. If someone really wants to read ‘foalshipping’ material, they can go to those sites, or any other.

It’s the free market at work people!

But anyway, With Rainbow Hair doesn’t feature any shipping. Not even a little. So, that fact, combined with my incredible writing skills, made me think I was a shoe-in to get promoted on Equestria Daily. I’d get so much traffic, I’d be able to bathe in it. Maybe even some critical responses that would get me to think about certain plot-points. And more fans, motivating me to keep on writing!

How great would that have been!? Well It would have been fantastic. If only I actually got accepted.

No, they actually turned me down, and it made me angry. Not at Equestria Daily. They have a standard they want to keep and I salute them for it. No, the people I’m angry at are all the people who lied to me. Continue reading →

A Character-Development Walk: “Bakers and Fakers” review

Posted by BlackWidower on

The reason I love Littlest Pet Shop is the same reason I love My Little Pony. The episodes are well-written, the plotlines are interesting, the animation is superb, and the characters are not simply caricatures.

Unfortunately, this is less true with Littlest Pet Shop. Zoe is basically your archetypal diva, with very little deviation; Pepper generally fades into the background, which is ridiculously ironic; and Russel is just the generic smart guy of the group, Twilight Sparkle with a stick up her ass.

Then there’s Blythe, whose position as a fashion designer doesn’t really sit well with me. I mean fashion design isn’t any worse than any other career path. But it feels so shockingly generic and cliché. Especially for a female character.

That being said, I do like the characters, and the overall show. But the lack of character development cripples things somewhat.

Which leads me eloquently to this week’s episode, where the potential existed to give two major supporting characters significant development, But that potential was perplexingly and literally beheaded. Allow me to explain. Continue reading →

Littlest Plotlines: “What Did You Say?” review

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It can be hard to maintain focus in a story. Especially if you have a creative mind. You can try to focus solely on one simple plot thread. But then, sometimes, a supporting character shows up; and suddenly, you get an idea for that character which you then branch out on.

Other times your simple thread might require a certain event for plot convenience. However that event, you realize, would have far-reaching repercussions outside your simple thread.

Then there are times your simple plot thread is just too short. You can’t come up with enough material within that thread to pad it out without looking stupid. So you tack on another plot thread that is only tangentially connected.

Which brings us to this week’s episode of Littlest Pet Shop, where Vinnie finds himself at the city dump, and Blythe loses her superpowers. And no, these two plot threads are not connected in any significant way. Continue reading →

A Land Without Power

Posted by BlackWidower on

All modern technology is dependant on electricity. Without power, we’d have nothing.

Computers, cell phones, television, radio, all other forms of communication; lights, heating systems, stoves, water heaters, refrigerators, the municipal water service, local sanitation systems, cars, busses, traffic lights, and many more things I forgot to mention.

So much is dependant on the simple concept of electricity. What would happen if it all went away?

I know, it’s a silly question to ask. How could all electrical devices just stop working?

Well, the power could always go out. Ten years ago, that’s exactly what happened to me and millions of others living on the east coast of North America. Due to something as simple as a computer bug in the control room of a Ohioan power company. For many, it took days for the power to come back on. I didn’t mind too much. For starters, I had my laptop. But even after the battery died, I still wasn’t that bothered. I went outside and was able to experience a true rarity: Being able to see the stars late at night.

Often, when an area does lose power, likely because it was hit by a major disaster, restoring it tends to be the top priority for responders. Seems to me that food and water would be slightly higher than electricity. But what do I know? They bring guys in to fix fallen wires; repair substations and transformers; and sometimes, bring in localized generators that can power a neighbourhood, assuming they’re just cut off from the rest of the grid.

But is it really necessarily? Are we dependant on electricity? Yes. If we lost it, would people start panicking, and looting? Well, no. They didn’t during the last blackout, and I doubt they would if it happened again. Even New York was looter-free!

But let’s up the stakes. What if we didn’t just lose power from the grid? What if all electronic devices stopped working? What if even battery-powered devices failed? Cell Phones, laptops, cars, even flashlights! And what if they would never, ever, turn back on? Would our society collapse into barbarism? Hell no! Such a suggestion is ridiculous. But that’s not the suggestion made by the creators of the relatively new NBC series, Revolution. Continue reading →

Party in the LPS: “What’s in the Batter?” review

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Some people are bothered by how materialistic our society is.

I can kinda understand. Being obsessed as some people are with acquiring more items and objects, it seem frivolous. But the way I see it, the things people buy are not simply objects, they’re something more.

Depending on the specific item, they represent joy, safety, security, self-reliance, or intellectualism. For instance, owning tools means you have the ability to fix something at a moment’s notice, on your own. It can help you become independent and reliable.

Toys can have the same impact. For me, my toy collection brings me happiness. Just looking at it, for some reason, can wipe my blues away… sometimes.

Then there are gifts. Which can represent the love one has for another. The more effort the individual puts into acquiring the gift, only to give it to someone else. It shows how much they care. The price tag is just a representation of the amount of labour one must put in to acquire it. It’s not shallow to want someone to spend a lot of money on you (okay, maybe it is a little). It’s representative of the effort they put in.

Then there are the custom-made gifts, which takes more thought and effort than anything one can pull off a shelf. And something nice, and personal, from someone who cares, can mean more to you than anything else in the world.

So what if you lost it. What if you lost something that meant a lot to you? A custom-made gift from someone you loved. How far would you go to get it back?

Well, this week on Littlest Pet Shop, we see just how far Blythe is willing to go for the same thing, when she loses a valuable necklace in some cake batter. Yes, she does work in a pet shop, and I will get to that. Continue reading →

Anti-Socialization: “Helicopter Dad” review

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Sometimes, people just want to be alone. Is that so hard to understand?

I know some people are under the impression that a preference for solitude must mean there’s something wrong with you. Bullshit I say! I typically like being alone because it allows me to focus on the task at hand, whether it be writing, or reading, or watching a television program.

You gotta focus, it’s the only way to get things done.

But there are other reasons to crave solitude. For instance, you may find most people irritating. That’s a very good reason. I wish I could relate, but most of the people I know I don’t find irritating. Well, some people I do find irritating, my family for instance. Which is why the latest episode of Littlest Pet Shop hit especially close to home. Continue reading →

Smallest Animal Supply Boutique: “Littlest Pet Shop” (first 16 episodes) review

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So, just last week, we saw the season finale of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. A show that has had more ups and downs than a possessed elevator.

The show shocked me to no end when I first saw it. It’s a program about magical technicolour horses, and is directed and marketed toward eight year old girls. Yet, even a grown man as cynical as myself can enjoy it. The well-developed characters and compelling plot lines had me coming back every week.

Of course people can argue why the show has such a following. But in the end it’s very difficult to come up with a singular reason. I just love the show, I can’t really explain why. There are times I love it because of the visual gags that remind me of the classic Looney Tunes I used to watch as a kid. There are times I love it because a character manages to prove exactly how awesome she is, sometimes at the eleventh hour, when it matters the most. There are the intense and dramatic plot lines. There are the compelling characters. There is the clean visual style. To pick just one reason would be next to impossible, and in the end it doesn’t matter. The show’s entertaining, and that’s all there is to it.

I got into the series in spite of my preconceived notions, and I’m glad I did. But of course the question remains: Can I bypass my preconceived notions again? Can I allow myself the opportunity to enjoy another show that I otherwise would not have given the time of day? Can I enjoy another thinly veiled toy-marketing program directed at eight-year-old girls? Or is this something that I’ll only allow from My Little Pony?

Well, the answer to that is, ‘yes,’ ‘yes,’ ‘yes,’ and ‘no.’ I can bypass my preconceived notions, and earlier this week, I did. For you see there’s another Hasbro property that’s been recently rebooted in cartoon form. Not about magical ponies, but a random assortment of animals. Allow me to tell you about the new series of Littlest Pet Shop.

Littlest Pet Shop

Oh, and just a quick preview: It’s good. Continue reading →

Unicorn’s End: “Magical Mystery Cure” review

Posted by BlackWidower on

…I am not happy.

I am not thrilled, or amused in the slightest.

I think the only word I could use to describe my current outlook is: disappointment.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Today was the day the bronies have been waiting for. For something I already commented on a few weeks ago. Today was the third season finale of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, where Twilight Sparkle evolves into Princess Twilight Sparkle, after her friends use the Harmony Stone on her.

Honestly, I was kinda looking forward to this, because given the summary we were treated to, it seemed interesting. The whole ‘switching cutie mark’ thing felt like it would go in an interesting direction. And… well… It did, but in a way that made me very angry.

This is gonna take a while to explain. Continue reading →