The Legendary Strangething

Ponyblogging: How 'bout that season finale?

strangething — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 20:16:26 GMT

Wow, what a way to end the second season with a bang! As you can tell, I loved the wedding episodes. Three songs, an awesome new villain, and an actual fight scene! What's not to love?

Some fans honestly didn't love it. I think the biggest factor in that was exposure to the Hub's promos. Most fans had weeks to get used to the idea of a third alicorn, and to Twilight having a brother. Everyone was wondering how, exactly, the crew was going to pull this off. The promos alone spawned fanart even before the episodes aired.

From Egophiliac's Tumblr.

But if you didn't see the promos, all this stuff seemed to come out of left field.

(From peppersupreme)

If a viewer is having problems with the surprises in the first part, it really undercuts the impact of the big surprises in the second part. And what shockers there are...

It all has a very Disney feel. It's an adventure with musical numbers, and ends with a prince and princess getting married. Except instead of a damsel in distress, we get...

A guy. Shining Armor is more like Sleeping Beauty than Prince Charming. He spends most of the
episode helplessly in the thrall of an evil queen, and it's up to his sister and bride-to-be to save his ass.

Like the cliche princess, SA isn't part of this battle, he's just the prize for the winner.

Blog of old, arise from your grave

strangething — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 22:56:55 GMT

I'm going to start posting here again, at least until school starts again. I still have lots of nerdy things to say about ponies, role-playing, politics, and Team Fortress 2.

GM School

strangething — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 01:56:00 GMT

Remember when I used to post things here unrelated to cartoon ponies?

A while ago, a couple of my friends asked me to teach them how to run a table top RPG. So I started compiling a document of all the useful GMing advice I've absorbed over the years. It's something I worked on in fits and starts, between homework, games, and internet surfing.

Here's my work so far. It's not quite halfway done, but it's a solid foundation. A solid study on how to torment and lie to your players, and have them love you for it.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Zy5n1WkFGU8RQmqJ_L0il5XnzxiyoxtNr5cqJWijP0s/edit

MLP: Cutie Pox (featuring Pony Lebowski)

strangething — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 06:19:42 GMT

Apple Bloom finally gets her cutie mark! Except not.

As usual, I come bearing images. All under the cut.

A nice treat for those who love The Big Lebowski and background ponies. Makes sense in a bowling ally. Apparently there were references to the movie in Foster's Home and Power Puff Girls.

I don't think these mares are a reference to anything in particular. Lauren Faust commented that she wanted more diversity of body types. It looks the animators are stepping up to that challenge. That is one lanky unicorn.

Boy this looks funny out of context. So yeah, AB goes to the local Magical Zebra and brews up a plot potion. Her special talent is using a loopity-hoop. They can't call it a Hula Hoop, since Whammo has a copyright on that name.

Twist weighs in. Shut up, Twist, no one likes you! The other crusaders don't seem to in this shot. Not even the animators like her. She is without her cutie mark in several scenes of every episode she's been in so far.

The apple family doesn't seem to notice that she can't stop. Gotta say, I loved Granny in this episode. She had a cool bit in Sisterhooves Social, too. Whoever is doing her voice is having fun with the role. It's probably Tabitha St. Germain, the voice of Rarity and Princess Luna.

Hey, it's our first look at the inside of Applejack's house. We even see her bedroom in this episode. Check out the Equestrian Gothic painting in the background. Some forumites have suggested that these are the missing and presumed dead Appleparents.

Is she lifting a thousand pounds with her tail? More importantly, there are thousand-pound weights laying around Ponyville. This bolsters the idea that ponies are super-strong.

Look it's the flower ponies: Rose, Daisy, and Lilly. They do their trademark "the horror!" freakout again. They did it twice in the first season. Gave me a smile to see the tradition continue.

Here it's Spike setting off the panic. Good job breaking it, hero.

Love the pony biohazard suits. I wonder if we'll see them again?

I'll round up this entry with a link to my new favorite screen saver: http://fav.me/d4gwpwl

Sisterhooves Social

strangething — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 05:15:05 GMT

Apparently Sweetie Belle's (lack of) cooking skill defies belief. She can go beyond the impossible and burn juice.

You know, a lot of fans imagined that Rarity's parents were embarrassingly middle class. I guess it's canon now. In the wider shots, you can see that her mom is wearing white stretch pants.

Her dad might be based on Mike Ditka. His cutie mark is three footballs (hoofballs?) and with the mustache and Chicago accent there is some resemblance.

That cab is awesome. It's a cute piece of world building.

Rarity doesn't know what to do with her little sister. Boredom ensues.

Boredom leads to unwanted help.

Unwanted help leads to suffering. And barely-controlled pony rage.

Off goes Sweetie Belle to get a new big sister. That's not awkward for Applejack at all.

No ma'am, not awkward at all.

If only there were some sort of event that could bring these two siblings back together. Too bad Rarity has this thing about getting dirty.

So did you spot it? I sure didn't. If you were watching the time, you'd realize there needed to be a plot twist coming soon. The only other clue to the mud-covered pony's identity is her eye color. She doesn't have Rarity's normal, distinctive, eye shape until the mud is wiped off.

But enough plot, what about the background ponies? I think the episode did more to mangle fanon than Luna Eclipsed. So Berry Punch has a little sister, and it's not Ruby Pinch. She's called Paradise or Piña Colada. She's the filly that was dressed as a ladybug for nightmare night. And Dinky Doo's big sister is Sparkler. (Dinky is missing the eyelashes I pointed out last time. I guess it was an animation glitch after all.)

Oh, and Carrot Top's little sister is Noi. Or at least a Noi. There are a dozen clones of her with various cutie marks.

Here's the starting line. I didn't want to re-size it for my blog. Click through for the glorious, wall-paper-grade image. (Actually, Photobucket shrank it a little.) That's Pluto, the pegasus that was accidentally given a horn in one scene of Lesson Zero. She's wearing a hat here, and was wearing a space helmet in Luna Eclipsed. Hmm. Her big sister is Cloud Kicker, the pony most often mistaken for Derpy.

I didn't find a good picture of Granny Smith kicking things off. I really liked her scene with Big Mac.

I suppose I should say something about the sheep. Nah. Shut up, sheep.

Luna Eclipsed, part 2

strangething — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 06:28:15 GMT

Finally we come to the guest of honor, Princess Luna. She sure knows how to make an entrance.

(That must be Lyra in the mummy wrappings. Hi Lyra!)

Did you notice the bat-ponies pulling her chariot? Not just bat wings, but fuzzy bat ears, too. Looks like slit pupils, too, but that might be a trick of perspective.

My cloak is made of bats, your argument is invalid.

Seriously, how cool is that. And not at all ominous, I'm sure.

Luna definitely looks different than her first appearance. Her mane is longer, and she's using Celestia's shampoo now. Her coat might be darker, but that might just be the night lighting. I don't think she's actually bigger. Back in season one, we only saw her next to Big C, who towers over everyone.

Her archaic speech is a bit of a plot hole. Nightmare Moon didn't speak with thee and thou. Eh, I'll cope. A wizard did it.

Pinkie Pie was pretty annoying this episode. Twilight tries to help Luna, then Pinkie appears and freaks out, making all the kids freak out too. After a few go-rounds of this, it started to get old.

OK, maybe she had good reason to be scared.

Not that it takes much to scare these ponies. Even the adults cower at the sight of Luna.

Oooh, more background ponies in costume. That's Berry Punch in the pith helmet. On the far right, you can see Candy Mane in a brown cloak. Maybe she's Pony-wan Kenobi. Just in front of her is Green Grapes/Colton Vines III as Shark-ass the viking. No he's actually Hooper, Richard Dreyfuss's character from Jaws.

Now that's an obscure inside joke. Never mind going over the kid's heads, that one goes over most of the adults.

Woah, who the heck is that? I've never seen a background pony with glasses before. Is she going to be a supporting character? She was cowering next to the mayor, so maybe she's the mayor's assistant? Or maybe they just wanted more diversity in the background ponies.

At one point the mayor climbs a flagpole to escape the chaos. It doesn't go well for her.

Silly Raindrops, why are you wearing a winter wrap-up vest? Where's your viking costume? Did that pegasus steal your helmet? Who is that pegasus, anyway? I think he's new for season two.

Look at poor, sad Luna. The symbolism is pretty thick in this scene at the statue. She is literally in the shadow of her former self. It was hard to see in the original, (stupid Hub logo!) but she's pushing a piece of candy towards the statue. As Zecora said, you make an offering of candy to Night Mare Moon to keep her from gobbling you up.

I finally found a good group shot of the kids. The poor, innocent children. Hey, look, Dinky has lower eyelashes. There are only about five ponies on the show who are drawn with them. I thought all background ponies only had three upper lashes, like Rainbow Dash. That's so odd.

Where was I? Right, the kids. Shame on Pinkie for scaring them. Someone ought to do something.

Something like this. Twi's got mad judo skills. Or maybe luchador skills. Seriously, she does a complete flip and a half-twist to land the way she does.

Scream and I cut you!

So Twilight beat some sense into Pinkie, and all was well with the world.

Except not really. Luna decides to embrace her role as the boogieman (boogiemare?) of Equestria, and puts on her Night Mare Moon look.

For some reason, the town likes her now. I dunno, it's a kid's show. Another Scoobie Doo ending: everyone shares a laugh, and roll credits.

So where was Rarity during all this? This fan-comic has the answer.

Long awaited discussion of Luna Eclipsed, part 1

strangething — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 06:40:24 GMT

So much to see and talk about! LiveJournal may try to squeeze these images, so if they look wonky, just click though to my Photobucket.

Big Mac is looking very goth in that top hat. He's giving some other ponies a hay ride. In the background, that's Lemon Hearts as a mouse. How did she get her tail to do that? Also Colgate/Romana as a doctor.

Note the writer: M. A. Larson has written six episodes of MLP, and they've all been good. Including Sonic Rainboom and both parts of Return of Harmony.

Two more examples of tail-modification. The knight is a unicorn named Seafoam, (I wonder what her special talent is?) and that's Carrot Top in the devil getup. I love her little cloven-hoof booties. Dig that pony Cleopatra walking like an Egyptian by the stage. Some fans say that the ninja stallion up front is based on a Mortal Kombat character, but I don't see the resemblance. No idea who the sheet ghost is. I think Studio B missed an obvious gag by not having a unicorn in a sheet with the horn poking through. Some fans think the band on stage is a recolor of the band playing at the gala, but I have my doubts.

That lion costume is pretty cool. That's Cherry in the bee costume. In the background, we can see Big Mac's passengers. That's Raindrops in the viking helmet, a Cherry clone, and Cloud Kicker in the witch's hat. You can't see it here, but she has a giant wart stuck on her snout.

Look at buildings in the background. There's the salon from Show Stoppers, and the joke shop from Griffon the Brush-off.

Yes, that's Mr. and Mrs. Cake, Pinkie Pie's employers/landlords/parent surrogates, dressed at Raggedy Ann and Andy.

This is in front of the joke shop. You can see the sign right above the sheet ghost's head.

Here's Rainbow Dash being a jerk and shocking people. Spike faints away with shock.

I wonder why they used this group of nameless background fillies for Pinkie Pie & Pipsqueek to pall around with? Maybe they are saving Pip's first meeting with the CMCs for a later episode. The CMCs do show up for Zecora's story, but they get no lines and little screen time.

If you look above and to the right of the astro-pony, you'll see...another joke shop. How many does Ponyville need, anyway?

Ah, there they are. I love Count Sweetie Belle's hair, even if her fangs look like buck teeth. I guess herbivores don't have canine teeth.

It's Dinky! She's a cute little firepony. (Also, Pipsqueek looks kinda like a dog here.) I dunno where Apple Bloom was during this. She's in the previous scene, but I couldn't find a good still of her Bride of Frankenstein costume. This fan art will have to do.

Art by ShadowSquirrel

Sweet Celestia, the post is huge, and I haven't even gotten to the plot yet. I'll pick up tomorrow, with even more pictures. Here's something to keep you amused until then.

http://tavisharts.deviantart.com/

Pony Day

strangething — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 02:05:09 GMT

I was all geared up to do my long-awaited Nightmare Night post, only to discover that two whole weeks have past, and there's a new episode ready to go. (I usually wait long enough for quality screen shots to show up, and to read about all the sneaky jokes so I can appear clever.)

So what did I think of Luna Eclipsed?

There was so much fan-created material about Luna that everyone was braced for loud wailing and gnashing of teeth from fan-artists, once canon Luna shattered their elaborate fictions. Instead, pretty much everyone fell in love with the haughty, bombastic Luna we got. She's awesome.

So many little details in this episode. The CMCs were all dressed as classic Universal Studios monsters: Sweetie Belle as Dracula, Scootaloo as the Wolfman, (Wolfpony?) and Apple Bloom as the Bride of Frankenstein.

The regulars of Ponygoon's freeze frame theater have found quite a few costume gags that I didn't spot on first viewing. Like Mr. & Mrs. Cake as Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy. Little details like Carrot Top's devil costume having little cloven-hoof booties.

I may need to watch it again, and do an in-depth, spoiler-filled review at a later date. Right now, the new episode is calling me. So stay tuned next time, when THE FUN WILL BE DOUBLED!

New pony toys on the way

strangething — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 05:37:41 GMT

Taobao is an auction company based in China. A lot of prototype toys show up there, since that's where the factories are. So far, they've always been the first with pictures of the new MLP toys. Some pics showed up recently for us all to scrutinize like blurry pictures of bigfoot.

These are part of a new wave of the tiny molded-plastic toys that the collectors call "Ponyville" figures. That is absolutely a Big Macintosh mini. Been a long time since Hasbro made a male MLP figure.

As usual, Equestria Daily has the scoop.

It's surprising enough that Hasbro finally made another mold. They used the same five molds for the first two waves. I assumed that if they ever made another, they'd finally make one for poor Fluttershy. She just looks weird as a Rainbow Dash recolor. That's right, Fluttershy, Hasbro loves Big Mac more than you!

There's more than just Big Mac, too. Looks like we're getting official toys of some more background ponies. As with Daisy and Rose, they're going to get official names, and the fandom gets to fight about them. Equestria Daily has a few names here.

Noteworthy is actually cooler than Blues. Heartstrings is a cool name, but the name Lyra is too entrenched in the fandom to change. "Golden Harvest" is a non-starter. She will be Carrot Top forever in the eyes of the fans.

My Little Pony sets a new standard in violence and insanity

strangething — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 04:35:03 GMT

So have you seen Lesson Zero yet?

Wow. It rivals Feeling Pinkie Keen for slapstick violence and Party of One for main-character-goes-crazy. The show is TV-Y7 this season instead of TV-Y, and it lost the stupid e/i tag, so this may be a sample of what's to come.

Spoilers ahoy!

The barn being demolished is pretty intense, but it's just a warm up for what's to come.

The real shocker is Fluttershy and the bear. Holy jeeze.

Then we get crazy Twilight. Those teeth!

I'd take my chances with Pinkie and her imaginary friends any day. At least with her you don't need to worry about mind control spells.

I dig this picture of Big Mac roughing up a mob of mares. No chivalry here! Note the tiny figures flying over the horizon.

A couple of Pony-related links, a plug for a web game, and a question.

strangething — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 05:34:11 GMT

How Octavia got her name. Usually background pony fan-names emerge by consensus, but Octavia is the result of one fan's subtle lobbying.
http://nerdnoise.blogspot.com/2011/05/how-i-named-pony.html

Would MLP take off in Japan? Well, the fan-made subs have just been released over there. Here's a random chat room's response.
http://maxiburger.tumblr.com/post/11283534618/what-japan-thinks-of-mlp01

I've gone and gotten into another online game. Echo Bazaar is a huge step forward from the interchangeable Zinga-style hamster-wheels. It just oozes gothic Victorian style. I'd bet the creators know pen and paper RPG well. You can see the focus on story and uniqueness.

This link is to my profile.
http://echobazaar.failbettergames.com/Profile/Strangething

Anyone else still using LJ? I think I might pull up stakes and move to Blogger or Wordpress.

More Pony Pictures

strangething — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 03:16:32 GMT

By request. More under the cut.

That's not very lady-like, Rarity.

Twilight sucks at DDR.

Spoiler alert!

strangething — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 03:03:26 GMT

I should have used this one for my last MLP post. Better late than never.

More Pony news

strangething — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 22:06:43 GMT

Big time spoilers incoming! Somebody who works at behind the scenes slipped some details about episodes 3 and 4. And some blurry cellphone pics to prove it. There's now an official plot synopsis out for episode three, and it matches the leaks.

Spoilers under the cut.

Doesn't this look a lot like the current opening credits sequence? Twilight and Spike have just gotten out of the balloon, and there's Granny Smith and Big Mac in the background. Only now there's a train.

Daniel Ingram, the music director, mentioned remixing the opening tune on his Facebook page. Maybe they are redoing more than just the music?

The Discord two-part episode was created as part of season one, and bumped (for whatever reason) to season two. So the new opening credits will start with episode three.

It's episode four where the spoilers are most exciting. It's a Halloween episode, and and the return of Princess Luna.

She looks rather sinister in this pic, but according to the source, she's trying to reform her image. I can't wait.

Full story here: http://www.derpyhoovescentral.com/2011/09/iendship-express-confirmed-for-season-2.html

No New Ponies Until October 15

strangething — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 03:42:08 GMT

Two whole weeks without ponies! Why must you tease me, Hasbro! Equestria Daily has the confirmation.

Maybe this Pinkie Pie gif can keep me entertained until then.

So far, so good.

Return of Harmony, part 1

strangething — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 18:48:34 GMT

So, have you seen the season 2 premier? I hope you have, because there are spoilers under the cut!

Good job breaking it, heroes!

Did you recognize the voice of Discord?

Yes, that was John DeLancie, best known as Q on Star Trek: The Next Generation. The crossover fan art is multiplying quickly.

This episode was written by M. A. Larson, who is worth a blog post him/herself. He/she also is the writer of Swarm of the Century, Sonic Rainboom, and The Cutie Mark Chronicles. Literally nothing is known about this person. No IMDB entry, no other credits for any other writing.

There is some speculation that "M. A. Larson" is a pen name for Craig McCracken, Lauren Faust's husband and a big name in animation. I can see him adopting a pen name to not overshadow his wife in her new project.

I get things done

strangething — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 04:45:02 GMT

On my way to school and back, I kept seeing a few warning lights on my dashboard. Oil and coolant. No problem, just pop the hood and top off the tanks.

While doing this, I noticed something odd. It looked a lot like a the fluid reservoirs I had just filled up, only with no cap on top. I got out my car's user manual, and found out that it was for power steering fluid, and yes, there should be a cap on it. Looking closely, I see that it's nearly empty.

How did this happen? I had a brief vision of hoodlums siphoning my precious steering fluid with a straw.

Hunting for a clue, I found the missing cap, resting lightly in a crevice of the engine. I guess I dodged a bullet there. Who knows how many weeks it was sitting there. It could have bounced into the street and I never would have noticed.

Time to get a lift to Autozone and get a bottle of power steering fluid. Also another pint of oil, and a funnel, since there wasn't one in the garage.

About then I start to wonder why the guys at Firestone didn't see this when I had to get my ignition replaced. They're supposed to do a courtesy check, to see if there's anything else you need done. (And need to pay for.) That cap being missing seems to qualify. On further reflection, the cap was probably only missing due to their goof. Some dimbulb mechanic checked the fluid level, and forgot to put the damn cap back.

Oh well. I solved all my car problems today, even the one I didn't know about this morning. Today counts as a win.

New ponies at last! Today's the day!

strangething — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 17:41:31 GMT

Ponies are back! The first episode of season two aired this morning.

Check out Derpy Hooves for places to download. They've got a link to a good quality version with the Hub's ads still intact, for the full kid's tv experience. I have it buffering as I type this.

It's been a long time since I posted here, about ponies or anything else. I haven't even bragged about my poster. You know, the Comic Con exclusive MLP poster? I gots me one! A pair of gaming friends of mine went to Comic Con this year, and they happened to see me post about the poster on Facebook. So they picked one up for me. Friendship really is magic.

Worst defense ever

strangething — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 20:56:14 GMT

Shorter Tim Stanley, Telegraph blogs:
The Slandering of the American Conservative Movement Has Begun

The Republican party has been unfairly branded the party of ignorance. Maybe they are, but who cares?

‘Shorter’ concept created by Daniel Davies and perfected by Elton Beard. We are aware of all Internet traditions.™

I found a thing

strangething — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 03:44:13 GMT

There are a lot (seriously, a lot) of pony music videos on YouTube. The best ones either use a very silly song and run with it, or a very serious one and take the piss.

The above is one of the former, Spike Jones's "Hawaiian War Chant".

If you just can't get enough, I've got a list going.

Dungeons and Dragons and Ponies

strangething — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 18:23:30 GMT

It's not surprising that there are D&D / MLP mashups out there. Geeks love to combine things. Today I discovered a couple that were worth passing on.

This series of blog posts interprets the show through a D&D lens with impeccable nerdy logic.

http://lurkingrhythmically.blogspot.com/2011/06/my-little-pony-friendship-is-magic-vis.html

This web comic takes the same perspective as Darths & Droids. The ponies are player characters in a D&D game.

http://friendshipisdragons.thecomicseries.com/comics/first/

The two of them came to some amusingly similar conclusions. Pinkie Pie is a natural bard. Twilight is so obviously a wizard.

If we're talking about ponies as players, then Twilight would be the GM, of course.

New Pony in September

strangething — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 23:47:01 GMT

It's official. The season two premier is September 17. Equestria Daily has the confirmation.

I live

strangething — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 04:32:14 GMT

Sorry I haven't been posting, but I've been distracted by various types of Real Life drama. First there was end of semester drama, then there was stolen car drama. Also a side order of ear ache drama. Currently, I'm only dealing with poison ivy drama, which feels like a relief, in comparison.

I'll soon be back to blogging about ponies or D&D or whatever crazy obsession I develop next.

Russians steal my stuff

strangething — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 03:21:07 GMT

How odd, my LJ is being scraped by some Russian web site. I wouldn't bother me if it weren't for the banner add.

http://lj.pakaln.ru/host~strangething.livejournal.com/

Hmm, pakaln.ru is apparently the home page of pakaln. I wonder if he's mirroring all of Livejournal? Maybe it's a way around censorship, or just the firewall at his work.

Background Pony Theater: Colgate/Romana

strangething — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 04:02:41 GMT

This is Colgate. Or maybe Romana, depending on who you ask. She has the same cutie mark as Doctor Whooves, so the Doctor Who fans called her Romana, after the time lord. Another group of fans started calling her Colgate, since her mane looks like toothpaste. (Apparently, some called her Aquafresh for the same reason, but that name never took off.)

The animators seem to like her. She's in a lot of background shots, and sometimes there are more than one of her. She might be one of the most frequently cloned ponies. There's a scene where there are nine Colgates on screen.

Fortunatly, the fans have a solution to both these problems.

Colgate seems to be most popular name for her now. It seems to have solidified when the brushie brushie brushie meme swept though the fandom.

Other than the name debate there's not much interesting about her. She may have been the pony saying "Muffins!" in Applebuck season, though that line is usually attributed to Derpy.

Oh, and she makes a face at Fluttershy in Green Isn't Your Color: