Fandom Classics Part 240: Letters From a Secret Admirer

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As I've settled into the start of a new season of Ink Master and, as is standard practice when watching a competition reality show, picked my favorite, I was struck by the realization that my favorites are disproportionately male.  Like, at least 80% of the time, I pick a guy to root for in these situations.  Which makes me wonder: how concerned should I be that this represents a subtle, ingrained bit of sexism on my part?  To be fair, I frequently end up picking whoever has the best beard, which is going to skew my numbers, but on the other hand, maybe that's an ingrained bit of sexism coming through in and of itself.  And even if it was sexist, what would be the appropriate response?  Making a conscious effort to chose half guys and half girls to root for isn't not-sexist, any more than picking all-guys or all-girls is.

I take some solace in knowing that I apparently have nothing better to do than fret over whether I'm biased against rooting for women who go on reality shows.  Anyway, check out my review of Subsolar Drift's Letters From a Secret Admirer, below.

Fandom Classics Part 239: Dead/Light

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Thank goodness for the snow day yesterday; it gave me a chance to get this review out.  One Man's Pony Ramblings: adored by brony literary snobs and, apparently, weather gods.

So with all praise to Ullr, head below the break to read my review of Lord Destrustor's Dead/Light.

Fandom Classics Part 238: The White Mare

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I got a pleasant surprise yesterday morning: a group called The Writer Awards selected OMPR as one of their top fanfiction blog/websites!  If you're interested in seeing their list, you can get an early peak at it here; it's got some delightfully esoteric stuff on it (did you know there was a Bon Jovi fanfic directory?  I didn't!).  In any event, thank you to whoever nominated me; a little positive attention goes a long way when it comes to lightening one's mood.

Will I now pay those warm fuzzies forward, or will I deem Warren Hutch's The White Mare unworthy of laud?  Head down below the break to find out!

Fandom Classics Part 237: Just an Assistant

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Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!  I got to catch up with some friends in from New York, which was nice; I don't get to see the farther-scattered folks as much as I'd like to.  Woo!

But now the holiday's over, and it's time to get back to the grind.  Head down below the break for my review of RadicalDishonesty's Just an Assistant.

Fandom Classics Part 236: The Trouble With Genealogy

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Good news: I wrote about 2500 words of fiction over the weekend!  Bad (?) news: none of it was pony words.  If/when I get it into a finished form and post it where it belongs, I'll probably mention it here, though, so if you're absolutely starving for Chrisfic, you'll probably get some... eventually.

But if you're in the market for Chrisnonfic, then today's your lucky day!  Head down below for my review of Arroz's The Trouble with Genealogy.

Fandom Classics Part 235: The Three Whooves

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I keep getting recommendations to watch Stranger Things.  And it sounds pretty good... except I don't have Netflix!  And unlike Hasbro, they seem to take a rather dim view of leaving their episodes up for free on Youtube or the like.  I'll have to see if any of my friends have a subscription I can leech off of, I guess.  That, or get into the shady underworld of actually seeking out and downloading the stuff I want to watch illegally, but if I remember right from skimming those piracy warnings at the start of feature films, that carries a sentence of twenty years in a siberian gulag.

And on the subject of popular sci-fi shows, here's a Doctor Who crossover!  My review of Paleo Prints' The Three Whooves, below the break.

Fandom Classics Part 234: Shipping Sickness

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It's #234!  That's exciting, right?  I mean, I think it's exciting, and you wouldn't presume to contradict me, right?  Right?  Right!  So, excitement had!  And having been had, let us continue on to our 234th installment of the Fandom Classics series; check out my thoughts on Skywriter's Shipping Sickness, below.

Fandom Classics Part 233: What is a Name?

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As you read this, I'm AWOL!  Enjoying a few days hanging out with my sister at her place, before I come home on Sunday.  Presumably I'm having fun; I'm good at that (distinct from being fun, which I'm more hit-or-miss at).  And I hope you're all having fun doing whatever it is you're up to, too!  But if not, I know of no better way to turn that frown upside-down than a fanfic review.  Get my thoughts on Key Tapper's What is a Name?, below.

Fandom Classics Part 232: Dr. Rainbow Dash, MD, PhD, etc.

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When I first heard that some show and movie assets/episodes had leaked, I didn't pay it much mind--those are all things I plan on watching anyway, but I'm not in any particular hurry.  But what I just found out is that the leak included the original series bible, and that I am excited for.  Seeing what the blueprint given to the show writers is, and what Faust's original vision for FiM was?  Sign me up!

But that doesn't mean I don't have time for some fanfic reading, too!  Head down below the break for my thoughts on Frontsevens' Dr. Rainbow Dash, MD, PhD, etc.

Fandom Classics Part 231: Ditzy Doo's Dismally Derpy Day

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So, that thing I was writing?  It's here!  Well, almost: behold... Breaking Away: The Alicorn Amulet Collaboration!

Only the first chapter has been published as I type this, but the plan is for one to be posted every day.  The basic premise is that Twilight has figured out that the Alicorn Amulet can be destroyed by getting a bunch of ponies to successfully resist its temptations, and each chapter is a different author's take on one pony's attempts to do just that.  When my chapter comes out I'll talk about it in a little more detail, but in the meantime this is something that I think will be worth following; it's got a good mix of authors you've heard of and respect (Titanium Dragon, FanOfMostEverything, and of course the organizer cleverpun himself, just to name a few), plus some names you might not know... yet.  I haven't read all the chapters, but the ones I have do some pretty neat things with the premise.  Plus, you know, I'm in it.  So if any of that is selling you, consider checking it out!

But if new ponyfic isn't your thing, how about old ponyfic?  Head below the break for my review of CLAVDIVS CAESAR's Ditzy Doo's Dismally Derpy Day.

Fandom Classics Part 230: Twilight Sparkle of the Royal Guard

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Hey, just so you all know: an anthology that I wrote a chapter for is getting its last ducks in a row, and will likely drop on FiMFiction in the near-ish future.  Dollars to doughnuts, it'll literally be the day of the FiM movie premier and nobody will care... but you'll care, won't you?  So keep your eyes on this blog, and I'll let you know when you can finally sate your unending lust for more Chrisfic (plus, some other guys' horsewords, I guess).

Until then, you'll just have to tide yourself over with Chrisnonfic.  Head down below the break for my review of Twilight Sparkle of the Royal Guard, by King of Beggars.

Fandom Classics Part 229: ...But the Kitchen Sink

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I do try to arrange my Fandom Classics posts so that there aren't any major runs or ruts in them; I don't want to do five changeling fics in a row, say, or have several novel-length stories back-to-back.  But when I was adding to my short list of fics to review, I happened to see this fic and "Princest is Wincest" sitting next to each other in my folder, and--despite them both being short, silly-sounding stories--I found I didn't have it in my heart to break them up.  Ah well, something long and serious next for sure.  But now, head down below the break to read my review of Dubs Rewatcher's ...But the Kitchen Sink.

Fandom Classics Part 228: "Princest is Wincest," It Said

The author didn't use any cover art, so here's a visual representation of my feelings about authors not using cover art.  Also: to read the story, click the image or follow this link.

Work is too much work; I feel like I've got no time for the important things in life, i.e. reading MLP fanfics and writing those suckers up.  Somehow, I forgot what the start of the school year actually entails.  You'd think after all these years, the fact of the impending time sink wouldn't sneak up on me like that... and yet, it does.

But now, on to my review of the OMPR-award winning (in the category "Most Improbable Title for a Fic that Chris Actually Dedicated a Fandom Classic Review To," narrowly edging out Brony Hero of Equestria) "Princest is Wincest," It Said, by cleverpun.

Fandom Classics Part 227: The Mane Makes The Pony

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It's fantasy football time again!  It's actually also real football time; the first game of the season will have just finished by the time this post goes up.  I'm feeling pretty good about my team; I'll be starting three Cardinals (David Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald, plus I'm spot-starting Carson Palmer while I wait for Andrew Luck to get healthy), so I don't even have to worry much about conflicts of interest between my real team and my fantasy one!

Okay, that's enough fantasy sports; I'll talk about it some more sometime, no doubt, but I harbor no illusions than anyone cares.  Instead, let's move on to my review of Merlos the Mad's The Mane Makes the Pony, below the break.

Fandom Classics Part 226: Through the Well of Pirene

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And so, here we have my review of the fourth-longest story I've read to date, narrowly edging out The Life and Times of a Winning Pony, and slotting in behind Background Pony, Fallout:Equestria, and Project Horizons.  Interestingly (well, interestingly to me, anyway), those five stories represent nearly 15% of the wordcount that I've reviewed on this blog, despite my having reviewed over 1000 fics to date.

It really drives home how long some of the fandom's epics are, compared to "fanfiction" as a whole.  But let's zero in on today's fic!  Head down below the break to check out my review of Ether Echoes' Through the Well of Pirene.

Fandom Classics Part 225: The Magic Never Fades Away

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I am certain there was something I was going to say up here... but for the life of me, I can't remember what it was.  Oh well, it'll probably come to me in the morning; if you all behave, maybe I'll even share it when (/if) I remember it.  Until then, enjoy a classic-style OMPR review, courtesy of yours truly.  Get it below!

Fandom Classics Part 224: The Last Pony on Earth

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One week until I leave on vacation!  If you're working on/planning to do a guest post, this weekend is the time to finish them up.  I'll plan to put together the posts and e-mail everyone with the days theirs will go up on Wednesday, and then guest postage will commence on the 14th.  From the columns I've already read, I can promise you all that there's some good stuff coming up!

But until the 14th, this is still One Man's pony ramblings!  So head on down below the break to see what that one man had to say about starscribe's The Last Pony on Earth.

Fandom Classics Part 223: Vanilla Twilight

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My little sister is visiting this week!  Should be fun times; her only precondition for coming by for a few days was that I had to buy her cheese curds at the county fair.  That seems eminently reasonable to me, insofar as cheese curds are delicious and I was going to be buying them for myself anyway; why not get a bunch, and pretend that she's going to eat all the extra?

Also, review below.

Fandom Classics Part 222: Savage

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You know what kills me every time I try to get back into online poker?  People who go all-in on the first hand of a tournament.  And if nobody calls them, they just do it again next round, until eventually somebody's doubled (tripled, quadrupled...) up, and the rest of us finally get to play--with a massive chip disadvantage.  It's no fun, dangit!

What will hopefully be more fun?  My review of Ese Way's Savage.  Get it below!

Fandom Classics Part 221: Two Peas in a Pod

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If you like reading in-detail, stream-of-consciousness reviews, be ye advised that PresentPerfect has finally finished his six-part review of Project: Horizons.  According to the google doc I just pasted it into out of morbid curiosity, his review runs a whopping 44,193 words.  Normally this would be a case where I'd say something like "frankly, you're better off just reading the story and deciding for yourself," but given that the fic in question is 1.7 million words, a short novel about it is still a significant potential timesaver.  Plus, PP's irreverent summarizing is really funny in its own right (plus plus, he curses like a wounded pirate and/or 14 year-old Call of Duty player).

Or you could just read my review of it.  It's only 3311 words, which I believe means that it's over 13 times better :B  And if even that's too many words for you, try my significantly shorter review of Blueshift's Two Peas in a Pod, below the break.