Tumgik
#OH my god also its really funny you mention him and cadence going on a ''cannibal date'' because that is literally something ive been
doom-dreaming · 1 year
Text
Ash Reads: The Fall of Reach
Chapters 9-10: Teenage Blue Team Completes Their First Mission
Tumblr media
Points. There They Are. (Spoiler Alert: only four of them will live to see their 15th birthday.)
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Just some nice description and characterization stuff. If you ignore the slew of sentences that are the exact same length and cadence one right after another. Do you ever read something and then think, "huh, my own writing isn't that bad and I shouldn't be so hard on myself"? Because I do.
Anyway, I like how Kelly intimidates John just by being fast. And poor Linda, always stuck with three sentences of description.
Tumblr media
As previously mentioned, I like the banter. Man, they really went out of their way to endear us to Sam before killing him off, huh.
Also. Can we talk about that typo for a second. "Kelly gave him John a thumbs-up." It's so funny to me. And the best part is that I didn't even catch it until I looked at this picture. When I was reading, my brain must have just glossed over one of the extra words so it made sense. Thanks, brain.
Tumblr media
Oh funny, that's exactly what my shopping list looks like, right down to the superconducting magnets for a fusion reactor. And fast-chilled New York steaks. Yum. I do like the display of personality here: Kelly's identifying a target, John's commending her for figuring out what he didn't, Fred's...worrying.
Tumblr media
Sam, don't be a bully. Oh right, they're STILL FOURTEEN. God. And John.... Baby boy. Sweetheart. The augmentations were not a mission.
Tumblr media
Not a ton of commentary here, I just like these little glimpses into his dreams.
Tumblr media
Kelly's really jazzed to fuck some dudes up. Terrifying. If Kelly's smiling, do not assume it is a human gesture of friendliness. She Is Threatening You In The Same Way An Animal Bares Its Teeth. These kids are ruthless. Just out here snapping necks. Who raised you? Oh, yeah. Nevermind.
Tumblr media
Linda's out here pulling some monkey shenanigans. Go girl, we love it.
Tumblr media
A classic example of the trademark John-117 "it's fine." Always a hit. And there's something chilling about those last few sentences - about the whole passage, really. Ah, repression. A Spartan's strongest skill. :)
3 notes · View notes
unsanctitude · 3 years
Note
Ougugh its like 3 am here but I cannot rest easy until I share this shit but like
1. I fuckin love your art man and your headcanons and ocs are so fuckin cool??? Keep being awesome w/ ur interests you funky lil man ♡
2. I FUCKIN LOVE ZOMBIE CADENCE???? Deadass I have this whole lil hc stashed away about how Octavo is a vampire and doesn't like drinking from the "source"/body because he gets kind of squeamish with bodies and getting his clothes stained with blood like the whiny lil bitch boy he is JAJSJAJA,, he just resorts to trying to drink from wine glasses whenever he does manage to co n s u m e and seeing your Zombie Cadence has made me go into brainROT holy shit, they just go on a dinner date (platonic or romantic) just to beat someone to death /j
Though jokes aside, if you ever had any vamp/monster tavo hcs or more stuff of zombie cadence to share I'll cry happy tears,, ty sir have a good day
Im going to bed now aakfkadkakdk
!!!!!! hello fellow Vampire Octavo headcanon haver, i see youre an anon of REFINED taste:))👌 and thank you SO much im happy you like all the stuff thats here it never ceases to make my heart swell when people enjoy hhhuuuuuuuuuuu
i love love love Cadence being a zombie, its the bread and butter of my infatuation with her and so fun to think about what the curse entails and how she deals with it. if you havent seen it already heres a post where i talk more about her undeath! i dont have that much to add to it rn but i will definitely, definitely provide new zombie cadence content soon enough. its actually inevitable
and of course, of course I think Octavo is a vampire because how couldnt i??? a long time ago I think I talked about what LoZ vampires are like but it needs an updated rewrite-- essentially i like to believe that vampirism is a curse created by Vaati, and they're more often than not insanely powerful, greedy mages that need a steady source of magic to function and carnivorous tendencies that become more uncontrollable the less they feed
Octavo was lucky enough at a young age for a Great Fairy to give a portion of herself to provide enough magic to last him til adulthood, but its only relatively recently he's begun feeling truly hungry again, and it terrifies him. He finds himself suppressing the urge to use his fangs, especially if he's becoming impatient with someone or losing his temper; this irascible mood definitely didnt help prevent CoH from happening
i also agree that he would normally find the thought of getting messy with his feeding and staining his good clothes both undesirable and extremely disgusting, but if he's really In The Zone it wont matter to him anyway ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ he would absolutely prefer to drink it out of a wine glass by a longshot if only there was the market for blood-wine LOL
15 notes · View notes
sharkbait77 · 3 years
Text
The Singer (Marcus Pike x f!reader)
Chapter Three
Warnings: Mention of food/alcohol, language, pure fluffy fluffiness (I'm such a softie I'm sorry 😭)
W/C: 4.2k
A/N: Notes at the bottom! And I'm running out of gifs to use of scruffy faced Marcus. I'm gonna have to shave him soon 👀 I hope you enjoy our soft boi in this chapter! 🥰
Just as a reference if you need help understanding the different formats:
«Phone conversation on their end»
Thoughts
Text messages
Song mentioned:
Chapter Two | Chapter Four
The Singer Masterlist
Tumblr media
Gif by me! Yes it's Teresa but it still fits & I only care that it's his hand lol
«Oh my god, I'm melting!» Celina yells in her phone enthusiastically. You giggle as you wait for her eagerness to calm down.
You had barely taken your shoes and jacket off after getting inside your apartment when you immediately dialed up Celina's number to tell her about the night. You feel like you're having an out of body experience. Sure, your heart is still guarded and unfortunately, you'll most likely have your doubts throughout the relationship, but you truly feel like this could go somewhere. You want to give yourself that chance and allow Marcus to help heal your heart, maybe doing the same for him in return.
"So he's picking me up on Saturday and I'm freaking out a little," you say and chew on the skin around your nail beds.
«Why? Don't be! Just treat it like how you did tonight!» She encourages.
"But it's a legitimate date this time, I have to do my hair and makeup perfectly and find the perfect outfit and-"
«Girl, have you seen your closet? You have nothing but perfect outfits!» She teases and you chuckle, lowering your fingers from your mouth.
«You don't need to try to be perfect hun, just be yourself! Be the girl he has already seen in front of him.» You smile at her heartfelt words. «I bet he's already in love with you!»
"Okay, you're not helping!" You laugh, placing your hand on your forehead. "I'll talk to you later, I'm going to try and get some sleep. I'll probably be calling you on Saturday so I can freak out some more."
You say your goodbyes and hang up, sinking yourself into your couch and smiling widely. Your head is buzzing from a sugar rush, but you can't tell if it's because of the pancakes or because of Marcus. You walk to the kitchen to make some sleepytime tea, hoping it'll relax your nerves enough for you to get some shut eye.
* * * *
You take a shower and climb into your comfy pajamas and the tea works its magic as you relax on your plush bed, surrounding yourself with pillows and your soft blanket enveloping you in warmth. Your eyes get heavy and you feel yourself on the brink of sleep when you hear your phone vibrate on the nightstand. You try to ignore it, but it vibrates again and you figure it's Celina probably sending you a funny video. Your curiosity gets the better of you and you reach over to grab your phone, the brightness from the screen stinging your eyes from the time they had adjusted to the darkness. You blink a few times until you can see the screen clearly.
555-9057: Hi Dulce :)
555-9057: Made it home. I had a great time :)
You bite your lip and smile at the messages on your lock screen, heat flashing through your head seeing him call you the nickname you gave yourself in his phone. And just like that, you're wide awake again. You unlock your phone and before you can type a reply, he sends another message.
555-9057: It's Marcus btw
Marcus groans to himself as he sends that last message. What the hell was that? Of course she knows it's you. Dumbass. He watches the screen and holds his breath when he sees the text bubbles pop up and he waits nervously for your reply.
Dulce💋: I'm glad you specified! Right after you dropped me off another guy took me out for dulce de leche pancakes and I also penned myself as Dulce in his phone 🤭
He chuckles out loud in the quiet atmosphere of his apartment, the sound bouncing against the walls and reverberating around the living room. Damn, she's good.
555-9057: Okay okay you got me, don't have to be so mean :P
So he's a classic emoji kind of guy, you smile as you make a note and file it in the little 'Marcus Pike' folder in your brain. You hit his phone number and tap the plus symbol to make a new contact in your phone. For some reason, you find yourself struggling as you try to figure out what to put his contact name as.
Agent Cutie
Nope, delete.
Agent Pike
What are you, his secretary? Delete delete.
Marcus
Should I put an emoji? Which one? Can't be a heart. You are seriously overthinking this.
Marcus Pike
Yeah, okay. I guess.
Me: Why did it take so long to get home? Do you live far?
Marcus Pike: It was about 30 min from your place :) not too bad
Thirty minutes?! Great, now I feel bad.
Dulce💋: Wth if I had known I wouldn't have let you drop me off! 🙄
Me: Don't worry about it! I was more than happy to ;)
Shit shit shit I didn't mean the wink! Why are they right next to each other?! Do I say something? Oh god, way to go, you ruined it.
Dulce💋: Then I'll give you gas money!
Marcus takes a breath of relief when he sees that you sidestepped his accidental wink emoji. After he catches his breath, his phone chimes again.
Dulce💋: And I won't take no for an answer 😉
Okay, there's no way she sent that by accident. Is she flirting with me? Do I flirt back? Why are my hands so sweaty?
Dulce💋: It's time for bed, those pancakes made me sleepy 😴 good night Marcus ☺️ See you Saturday!
Marcus smiles to himself and he anticipates seeing you on Saturday. He sends you another text and walks to his restroom to take a quick shower before climbing in bed.
Marcus Pike: Can't wait :) good night!
There's no way you can sleep now, but you said good night for his sake; he had a long day at work, plus he took you out and then had a long drive home. You know he must be tired. Your heart races as you scroll through your short text conversation, rereading the messages and giggling softly.
Did he mean to wink? It was probably an accident, considering he types out emojis instead of using the newer, more convenient ones. You just couldn't help but send one back, though; hiding behind the screen helped you to flirt openly with him. You roll onto your side to face the TV on your dresser, turning on a true crime documentary and letting it eventually lull you to sleep.
* * * *
Saturday comes around quickly, much to your delight, but as you wander around your room looking at the many outfits you laid out on your bed, your dresser, even on your couch, the nerves set in fast. You pray to whoever’s listening that you don’t seize up when Marcus picks you up. Which is in fifteen minutes. You already have your hair and makeup done, all you need is to pick an outfit. Simple in theory. Just pick one! You chew your lip nervously out of habit before stopping as soon as you realize you probably just messed up the red lipstick you had applied earlier.
You rush to the bathroom mirror and sure enough, there's a bare spot on your bottom lip and the lipstick has transferred to your front teeth. You groan in frustration and grab a makeup wipe to carefully remove the ruined lipstick and you brush your teeth again until it's all gone. You reapply the same shade of red, pleasantly surprised with yourself that it came out better than the first time. You take a deep breath and try to calm down, telling yourself that the first outfit you land your eyes on will be the one you wear. You count down from three in your head and enter your bedroom.
Okay, maybe not that one. You decide to close your eyes and try again. When you open your eyes, they land on a different outfit. Not that one either. You sigh harshly through your nose. Why is this so hard? You walk over to your nearly empty closet for the umpteenth time and your eyes catch on to a dress hidden in the corner that you had surprisingly missed before. This one.
It's a spaghetti strapped, black, bodycon dress with a lace overlay, flowers printed on the fabric throughout. It hugs your body in all the right places, reaching down to your knees, and you take a look in the floor length mirror next to your dresser as you put on your black, open-toed heels, smiling brightly as you feel confidence shooting through your veins.
Adrenaline gets mixed in as soon as you hear a knock on your door. Five on the dot. You grab your black cardigan and purse off the couch and open the door, your breath taken away by the handsome man in front of you. He's carrying a box of chocolates and it fumbles in his hands, nearly falling once his wide eyes see you. He looks at you from head to toe, making your heart race as you feel heat rushing over your body in line with his gaze and you shift your weight from side to side anxiously.
"Wow," he says breathlessly, unable to say anything afterwards.
"Wow yourself," you smile, looking over his own outfit: a navy blue suit and a black, button up shirt underneath, paired with black dress shoes. He slicked his hair back and cleaned up his beard slightly. He really is a gorgeous man.
"Uh," he stutters and glances to the box in his unknowingly tight grasp. "These are for you," he smiles shyly as he hands you the chocolates.
"Thank you," you say, giggling at the indents his fingers made on the sides of the box and you turn around to leave them on your entryway table.
You turn back to face him and see his eyes look up quickly and you wonder if you just caught him staring at your bottom. Your suspicion is confirmed when his cheeks flush pink. You laugh softly and he holds his arm out to you.
"Ready?" He asks and you can hear the nervousness in his voice.
You nod and link your arm in his, letting him help you down the stairs. You're starting to love the way his arm hugs yours as you walk and the warmth of his body mixing with yours. Your footsteps even sync up together in a slow cadence. He walks you to his car, letting you hold your weight with his arm as you slowly lower in the seat, your movement restricted by your tight dress and high heels.
You thank him once you're seated, buckling your seatbelt, and he walks to his side, sitting down and starting the car. You notice the radio is on this time, playing at a low volume, and you think to yourself that he probably only forgot to turn it on last time.
The aura is tense in the car, both of your nervous energies dancing in the air together to the music. You try to think of something to say, resorting to looking through your mental file of basic conversation starters. The weather? No, too basic. Say something about the music. No-
"You look really beautiful," Marcus finally breaks the silence. Your head snaps up to look in his direction and you share a smile, thanking him and returning the compliment.
He takes his eyes off the road for a couple of seconds to look at you with a soft smile and turns his attention back to driving straight. He would keep his eyes on you if he could, but he'd rather not get into a car accident and ruin the night. So he just waits patiently until the next moment he can steal a glance. He takes a peek at you while you're stuck at a red light and he sees you picking at your cuticles nervously. He rubs his clammy palm on his pant leg, hoping to dry up any sweat present as much as possible. Before he can think twice about it, he reaches his hand over to grab yours.
Your heart jumps in your throat from the action and you look down in shock at his large hand covering yours completely. The blood rushes to your cheeks; his hand is rough from work, but soft and gentle enough that it's not uncomfortable. And warm. So warm. You stop picking your cuticles immediately, now memorizing the fine wrinkles in his hand and the ridges on his knuckles.
"Are you okay?" He asks, not moving his hand from your lap as he starts driving again.
"Yeah," your voice makes an embarrassing harmony, splitting in two different octaves from disuse. You swallow some saliva to lubricate your vocal cords and try speaking again.
"I'm just a little nervous," you admit.
His hand is still resting on top of yours; you're not sure if you should open your hand up to face your palms together and hold his hand as well. Alas, you take too long to make a decision and he pulls his hand away to grasp the steering wheel, bracing for a left turn.
"Please don't be nervous," he smiles with his pearly white teeth and it only makes you more nervous. How is he this handsome?
"It's just me," he adds as he pulls up to the restaurant, putting the car in park and removing the key from the ignition.
"'Just you'?" You quote him inquisitively. He nods and you shake your head with a small chuckle.
"What?" He chuckles with you.
"It's not 'just you' though, is it?" You reply softly.
You wonder if he's uncertain of himself and his ability to make women — i.e. you — weak in the knees. He seems oblivious to it and it makes him all the more charming to you. You see his eyebrows furrow and before he can ask what you mean, you turn to open the car door.
"Wait," he tells you, rushing out of his seat and over to you to help you out.
You wanted to manage it yourself, but you know you must look ridiculous with how bad you're struggling to get out of the car. He chuckles at the sight once he's on your side and he holds his arm out. You hold onto his forearm tightly and pull yourself upward as he lifts you as well until you're firmly planted on your feet.
"Maybe this dress wasn't a good idea after all," you giggle.
"I think it was," he flirts and you look away as you smile shyly.
You walk together up the steps to the front of the restaurant and Marcus apologizes for not warning you about the stairs. You tell him not to worry and though you can feel the ache in the arches and heels of your feet, you don't complain. He holds the door open for you and you walk in, your eyes instantly catching on the glimmering, crystal chandelier hanging in the waiting area. The lights are dimmed in an amber glow and there are pillars with intricate carvings and vines wrapped around the stone throughout the entirety of the establishment.
You gasp to yourself; this place must be expensive. How did you go from pancakes at grandma's house to a fancy, Italian restaurant like this? Your ears catch the sounds of a violin, but it's too close to just be playing from a speaker. Sure enough, you look further into the restaurant and see a man in a suit playing a violin. A live violinist?! Marcus joins your side again and notices the look of astonishment on your face.
"What's wrong?" He asks and you jerk your head to look at him, not even realizing he was standing next to you.
"Marcus, this looks like it's going to be really expensive."
You whisper in his ear so you don't offend any of the staff members and the height from your heels allows you to reach his head a little better now. The hot breath from your mouth tickles his ear and a bolt of arousal shoots down his spine. He laughs it off and leans his mouth to your ear in return.
"I like to make a fuss," he says, the deep tone of his voice giving you goosebumps. "Don't worry about it," he says in his normal tone as he stands up straight again.
The maître d' greets you two as you walk up to the host stand and Marcus gives the man his name for the reservation. The maître d' informs Marcus the table is not quite ready yet, adding that you're welcome to wait at the bar. Marcus looks at you to get your opinion; you say yes and Marcus lightly places his hand on the middle of your back, guiding you as you walk over to the bar top together. You take a seat in the soft barstool; it's easier to sit on since it's basically at standing height. Marcus removes his hand from your back to take a seat, his fingers gliding against the delicate lace of your dress across your spine and you shudder. Thankfully, it goes unnoticed.
The back of the bar is riddled with an assortment of different liquors, both American and Italian, and they're resting on lit up shelves. You look at the drink menu and your mouth opens in horror at the prices listed. This is definitely too much money. The bartender comes your way and Marcus orders a campari and grapefruit juice, immersing himself fully in the Italian culture. You say you'll stick with water and excuse it as you not feeling like drinking tonight. Marcus doesn't question it further.
The two of you comment on the decor of the restaurant, mainly the paintings hanging on the walls, and you mention that you love the lilies resting in the painted, ceramic vases and Marcus takes note of that fact. A waitress walks up to you and Marcus to let you know your table is ready and he finishes the last of his drink and stands, offering you his hand this time instead of his arm. You smile as you take it, your heart thumping in your chest as you let him guide you while you both follow the waitress.
The restaurant is bustling; heavy sounds of conversation and cutlery clinking on plates as you walk through what seems the entirety of the restaurant until the waitress leads you to a small, private patio. A round table is seated there, covered by a red tablecloth and adorned with a single, tall candlestick, burning a light glow. There's a cylindrical basket full of bread sticks and two water glasses, condensation running along the sides and onto the cloth. Marcus pulls your chair out for you, helping you to sit and scooting you in and sits down across from you. You hang your cardigan and purse on the back of your chair and take the menu the waitress is holding out to you.
You both thank her and she leaves, stating she'll be back soon to take your order. You marvel at the privacy Marcus planned for you two and you take a sip of your ice cold water, reveling in the relief washing through your dry throat. You flip open your menu; the options are minimal and are all expensive. You immediately scan for the cheapest dish: a $30 plate of chicken cacciatore. You feel guilty; you never want Marcus to break his bank trying to take you on a date. You glance at him and wonder why he would do all of this just for you. Did he really think you were that special?
You find yourself missing that little pancake diner and the time you shared there. There, you only felt the budding emotions consistent with a high school crush, but in this moment now, it's real life and mature adult feelings and you feel it much stronger in this environment. Marcus senses your mood change and leans forward to ask if you're okay, but he's interrupted by the waitress. You order the 'cheap' chicken cacciatore and he orders the tajarin al tartufo. Whatever that is.
"Why did you order the cheapest dish?" Marcus asks once the waitress leaves.
"Because I wanted to," you give him a sly smile to convince him otherwise, but he sees right through you, giving you a look of disbelief. You sigh.
"Because Marcus, it's too much money," you say sadly. "I mean, how much was it to get this private patio set up?"
"That's not important to me," he shakes his head. "This is our first proper date and I wanted to make it special."
Damn it. Why is he so thoughtful? And so damn cute?
"It's not that I don't appreciate it, I'm blown away by this, but I'm just... I'm not used to it," you pull your lips into your mouth slightly, mindful of your lipstick.
"Is that why you didn't order a drink?" He asks. You give him a lopsided frown and shrug your shoulders, your expression answering him instead of your words. He sighs and tilts his head to the side.
"I don't want you to worry about how much everything costs when you're with me; let me spoil you. You deserve it."
Let me spoil you. You deserve it. His words float around in your head, your eyes filling with fondness at the thought. You didn't think you deserved to be spoiled; your ex made sure of that much. It's exhilarating to say the least; this man you barely know ready to do anything for you at any time. But you like it, and you think in time, you could learn to love it. Learn to love him. You blink wildly and you inconspicuously shake your head at that last thought.
It was definitely way too soon to be thinking like that and it scared you that it entered your mind at all. It must be the ambiance of the restaurant. You think about how you should protect yourself in case this takes a wrong turn and you debate on placing that in the priority spot in your mind. Marcus can see you fighting your own thoughts and he tries to lighten the mood.
"I also might be trying to impress you for real now," he smiles.
You chuckle and shake your head. Marcus thinks to himself how beautiful you look under the moonlight that's shining through the glass awning above your heads, face lit up by the glowing candle. He can't stop his mouth from saying what he wants to say, not in this romantic atmosphere.
"I think you're a wonderful, beautiful woman and... I really like you," he adds, reaching across the table for your hand and you let him hold it, tangling your fingers with his.
You're positive he can feel your pulse through your fingers or hear your heart pounding, the blood whooshing in your ears muffling any other sounds from coming in. As much as you want to protect yourself, the look in his eyes only draws you in and you can't hide the truth from him or yourself, your confession spoken out loud for the first time for you both.
"I like you, too, Marcus." He smiles happily at you.
There must be something in the water here.
"Do you think it would be okay to keep this up?" He asks, meaning the dates, and you can't stop your head from nodding yes and you give him a sweet smile.
Marcus lets go of your hand, letting his rest in front of him and you take a deep breath, trying to shake your nerves from the exchange that just took place between you. You grab a bread stick and attempt to take a small bite; you and Marcus laugh together as your small bite accidentally turns into a big one, the stick breaking in the wrong place and leaving a large chunk of bread hanging from your mouth. Of course, leave it to something awkward happening to you to break the tension. But anything to see his face come together in joyous laughter.
* * * *
"Thank you again Marcus, that was actually very delicious," you say while Marcus begins the drive back to your apartment. "I see why it was so expensive." He hums in agreement; his smile hasn't left his face since the restaurant.
You listen closely to the new song that comes on the radio, trying to make out the tune until it gets louder and you realize it's "At Last" by Etta James.
"I love this song," you say under your breath. Marcus hears you and turns up the volume slightly, earning a bright smile from you. You look back out the window and sing the lyrics softly.
At last, my love has come along,
My lonely days are over
And life is like a song.
Marcus's heart races as he listens to the lyrics being sung by you and they hit a little too close to his heart. You don't realize at first the meaning behind them, only enjoying singing along.
At last, the skies above are blue
My heart was wrapped up in clover,
The night I looked at you.
You now realize the words are identical to how you feel. You wonder if you're falling too fast for Marcus. This was only your second date and there is still so much to learn about each other. You have a whole past to open up about, which will be a defining moment for your relationship. But as you look over at Marcus and you feel the tender organ in your chest beating fast, you think to yourself that it can't get much better than this. What's the harm in trying?
Chapter Two | Chapter Four
The Singer Masterlist
A/N: Okay just wanted to explain what Marcus ordered if you're interested! *DESCRIPTION OF FOOD/ALCOHOL COMING UP* I'm not an expert so correct me if I'm wrong! According to Google:
Campari is an Italian bitters made of fruit & herbs & you usually mix it with juice or club soda (hardcore Italians drink it straight up) & it's a pre-meal drink
Tajarin al tartufo is an egg pasta, made with more egg whites than traditional egg pastas, & topped with white truffle. Idk it sounded fancy & expensive 😂
Also, here's their outfit inspos! Just a couple of things I described differently like his shirt being black & her dress having lace instead of mesh.
Ofc Marcus in this suit 🥵 I copied the description lol
Tumblr media Tumblr media
TAG LIST:
@hnt-escape @winter-fox-queen @giselatropicana
60 notes · View notes
rantsaboutponies · 7 years
Text
My Little Pony: The Movie
Yes, this is the 2017 one I’m talking about. I’m not going to pull a switcheroo and review the 1986 one. Like I said, bad title.
If you want to read along while watching the movie, you may do so as long as you’re not in a theater. DO NOT LOOK AT YOUR PHONE IN THE THEATER. I don’t care if you turned the brightness down or if you hold it in your lap; EVERYONE CAN STILL SEE IT. YOU’RE BEING AN ASSHOLE.
Anyway, on with the review! Spoilers abound, so fair warning!
Oh, and this movie is rated PG for “mild action”. What the hell is wrong with you, MPAA?
Good lord, the absolute grandiosity of the title logo... All right, all right, I’m not going to nitpick something as minor as the logo. Calm down.
My thought process: “Hey, this synth bit sounds kinda like the intro to ‘We Got the Beat’ by The Go-Go’s. I wonder if they realize that.”
Two seconds later: “OH, FUCK, IT IS. IT IS THAT SONG. NO. STOP. STOP RIGHT NOW. RRRRRGGGGGHHHH.”
Well, THAT threw me for a loop! Holy shit, am I glad the show’s budget isn’t large enough to include covers of popular songs.
Ah, we’re showcasing the new animation with a flyover/through of Canterlot. I’m not going to be mentioning the animation quality every other paragraph (even though I could), so instead I’ll just say everything up front. I mentioned in an earlier post that it looked like the animators were suddenly unaware of how to use the program, as though they had all traded jobs or something. It turns out that wasn’t far off! According to sources, the animation software being used on this movie is Toon Boom Harmony, not Flash, so the animators working on this movie are either 1. the same animators using an unfamiliar program, or 2. different animators who are used to working with Harmony but are not used to animating this show. And if you look at the stuff they’ve worked on, they’re all either just 2D (The Simpsons, The Congress) or just 3D (The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water), not anything that has attempted to integrate both. The opening shot of the ponies flying through the clouds and through Canterlot looks like 2D assets trying to move through a 3D environment! It doesn’t help that the 3D assets (like the buildings and the landscape) are all really, really cheap-looking, like they were resources saved from a movie from 10-20 years ago and never updated. Also, the 3D assets tend to move fluidly (like 3D assets do), whereas the 2D assets attached to the same figure move with a lower framerate (like 2D assets do), which is a little jarring.
And holy crap, look at those two characters walk towards the screen! That’s some first-year animation student work right there!
Okay, okay, I said I wasn’t going to harp on the animation the whole time. Fine. Instead, here’s a complaint I’m sure will sound familiar to regular readers: Wow, you really like your exposition dumps right out of the gate, don’t you, writers? Except this time, you don’t have the excuse of “Well, we only had 22 minutes, so we had to get all the information out there quickly!” This movie is 99 minutes long! That’s four-and-a-half times the length! At this point, it’s just sloppy!
Random pony: Princess Twilight is great under pressure!
Twilight: Oh, my goodness, I can’t handle this!
Trombone: Wah-wah!
Oh, goddamnit, are we bringing back the wah-wah jokes? Son of a...
GAH! That closeup shot of Twilight is just creepy! Adding more details just because you’re closer to a subject isn’t always the best idea!
“What’chu talkin’ ‘bout?” FUCK STOP FUCK STOP FUCK STOP FUCK
Still creepy! Why do her eyes look like that? This is unsettling! Please stop focusing on her face!
Ha, Pinkie Pie was blowing a balloon into the camera, and then she turned and revealed it’s actually a really long balloon, but we couldn’t see that because of the angle we were watching from! Ha ha ha! ...Was...was that meant to be a joke? Because I really can’t figure out what other reason you would have to show it that way. These new animators are bizarre.
Oh, hey, she was making Discord! He’s not actually in the movie, but, you know, fanservice!
All right, Angel dressed as a parrot made me chuckle, but why the hell would Fluttershy force him to do that?
“Faster if I do my Sonic Rainboom!” How? How would that help you complete this task any faster? What sense does that make? Oh, wait, don’t tell me...fanservice.
“Raised in a barn!” Yes, thank you. You have beaten that joke thoroughly into the ground by now. Please move on.
Ah, good, Pinkie Pie is continuing her trend of being loud, irritating, and making things worse by opening her stupid face. Some things haven’t changed.
Okay, this is two songs in the first eight minutes. Just how many are there?
“Eeyup!” HE SAID IT.
Yeah, you can show me Cheese Sandwich all you want. I know “Weird Al” isn’t in this movie.
Security guard #1: “Do you have visual on the buttercream?”
Security guard #2: “Visual confirmed, go for cleanup.”
...
Audience: *cough*
I mean, they left in a pause for laughter and everything. They were expecting that to get a laugh.
Balloon: *gets squished*
Random background pony: Bryan! Noooooo!
Me: 
I don’t...I’m not...are these...jokes? I’m...I...
You’d think they’d have heard of this villain. He seems like he has a wide sphere of influence.
“There’s one of you! And hundreds of us!” Yes, Luna, I’m sure they brought that giant airship because there’s only one of them. This is why you’re not in charge.
Wow, the, uh...the crystals forming over Cadence are, um...am I allowed to say anything more about the animation?
DURR HURR IT’S FUNNY BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THEY GOT TWILIGHT BUT IT WAS ACTUALLY DERPY AND ANYTHING INVOLVING DERPY IS FUNNY. FAAAAAAANSERRRRRRVIIIIIIIIIICE.
Every word out of this minion’s mouth makes me want to punch him. It’s Michael Peña’s best role since CHiPs! Apparently he ad-libbed most of his dialogue. It shows.
“Yay.” SHE SAID IT.
“Boingy boingy boingy boingy!” UGH.
Pinkie Pie: “Anypony up for a game of I Spy?”
Everypony else: “UGH.”
See? SEE?! I’m not the only one! She’s even starting to annoy the other main characters by this point! What are you even doing?
So Tempest got...a phone call...except it’s not a phone call, it’s a potion that you pour into a brazier...but it still has a ringtone...and it sounds like a dial-up connection... How do they use it more than once? Also, FUCK YOU WITH YOUR STUPID FUCKING
Why does the Storm King’s emblem look like the Starcraft II logo?
“Sorry, bad spell service.” FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
Meanwhile, in the town from Assassin’s Creed...
“Hmm. Interesting.” Well, I know someone who’s getting a lot of furry fetish fanart made of him!
“I’ll take the picture of your sister!” Heh. Okay, movie. That’s two.
Wow, Taye Diggs’s voice does not fit that character design.
“...parts will fall off.” Did the guy immediately grab for his crotch when he said that? Wow, movie! Where’s your PG for “mild rude humor”?
Someone should tell the animators that Spike isn’t pursuing Rarity anymore. Since, like, Season 2.
Oh, god, don’t sing! I was kind of starting to like you, Capper! This doesn’t really seem in-character!
Why does it seem like this character would have been Discord if they hadn’t “redeemed” him like three times by this point?
Yes, Fluttershy is afraid of bats. Great knowledge of the character there, movie.
“Ooh! So many fun breakables!” Fuck you, Pinkie.
Good lord, Emily Blunt really could be intimidating if she weren’t undercut by Michael Peña at every fucking TURN! It’s the slugs from Epic all over again!
Yes, “The Girl from Ipanema”. A common song all throughout Equestria or the Badlands or whatever. The random popular songs interspersed throughout a movie (based on a show that does not HAVE them) that also has its own original songs really do not fit! They really don’t! Just because you can afford it now doesn’t mean you have to do it.
“WAIT!” *random cat noise* That...might have made sense if you didn’t play those two sounds at the same time. I’m not sure how he could talk and yowl simultaneously. Come on, sound editors.
Boy, how convenient that Tempest found them at that exact point, huh?
Y’know, showing Pinkie Pie grinning like an idiot as they’re all running for their lives doesn’t exactly endear me to her, animators.
Oh, no! Pinkie fell! What a tragedy! Maybe if you let her die, she wouldn’t keep fucking up your shit!
GOD, I HATE THIS FUCKING MINION.
Bird Guy: “We scar ‘em...”
Rarity: *gasp*
Bird Guy: “...emotionally!”
Fluttershy: *cries*
Pff... All right, you got me! That one was actually worth an audible laugh! That makes you three for...I don’t know, fifty?
I have a serious question. Was this supposed to be released in 3D, but then they dropped that for some reason? There seems to be a lot of “stuff coming straight toward the camera” action.
Are we seriously still doing the “people trying to kill each other stop when the shift whistle blows” joke? That was old 50 years ago!
I’m not sure I’ve seen a musical with songs this...out of nowhere. I mean, I’m sure worse examples exist, but none that I’m familiar with.
Are these pirates supposed to be...giant parrots (because, y’know, pirates and parrots)? Why does this world have giant parrots? Everything in the entire series is the size it is in the real world. Including the parrots we saw earlier in the movie! Why giant parrots?
Ah, good, Rainbow Dash is still a FUCKING IDIOT. Glad you’re keeping that change from the show, too!
So let me get this straight. Storm King is concerned about projecting an image of fearsomeness and strength...but he sells bobbleheads of himself as merchandise? You know, you don’t have to be this stupid, movie! You don’t! You really don’t!
GOD, they need to stop showing closeups of their faces. THEY’RE. SO. CREEPY.
“Oh, this is inteeeeeense!” WELL, IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN IF YOU HADN’T SAID THAT. LET A MOMENT LAND, MOVIE. LET. A MOMENT. FUCKING. LAND.
Oh, good, here’s where that terrifying shot from the trailer comes in.
And Rarity stopped to look at herself in the mirror while falling to her death. HURR HURR HURR.
Oh, look! Pinkie is about to get them killed again! GET RID OF HER.
“That’s it! I simply cannot even!” Oh, fuck off. Whoever wrote that line, fuck off.
“I hate epic adventures!” I’m sure starting to.
Wow, Twilight, you held your breath for, like, 10 seconds. Good job.
Well, here it is. We knew it was coming. Seaponies. Honestly, even though I should be annoyed (because FANSERVICE), they actually fit this world pretty well (way better than giant anthropomorphic cats or whatever the hell the inhabitants of that Badlands city were).
But then they turn the Mane Six into seaponies.
And I’m reminded of “The Crystal Empire (Part 2)”.
And you only introduced these characters to sell new toys of the Mane Six, didn’t you?
And fuck you.
“Yay.” SHE SAID IT. AGAIN.
Don’t sing. Please don’t sing. I think what makes these songs even more out-of-nowhere is the fact that all the other non-pony characters are immediately in on the song, no matter how they were feeling or what they were doing right before it started.
Um...Twilight’s not wrong, you guys! Everyone you’ve come across so far has tried to fuck you over! Including the seaponies! Why wouldn’t she just try to steal the thing?
But, of course, she wouldn’t get captured if everyone else didn’t leave her all alone to mark the act break. The rest of them are even seen sitting on a gray and dismal seashore afterwards! Jesus Christ, it’s like all the tropes from Scriptwriting for Children’s Movies 101 are in this thing! You are allowed to try harder than this, you know!
Twilight: Why are you doing this? You’re a pony, like me!
Me: I’m nothing like you!
Tempest: I’m nothing like you!
Me: Come on!
Oh, god, don’t sing. I can hear the lead-in. I can see you want to express your emotions and fill in your backstory so badly! Please don’t! Please don’t please don’t please don’t AGGGGGHHHHH
Man, I bet when the Ursa Major scratched her face, Tempest bled so! Ha! ...I’m sorry.
Are you kidding me? She has the same character motivation as Starlight Glimmer? Her friends (all two of them) left her in one particular incident, so now she’s sworn off friendship forever (instead of just, I don’t know, finding new friends? You had to have had more than two.)
Hold on, did Tempest...beam that flashback into Twilight’s head? Because otherwise, I don’t know how she would have gathered that information.
“Well, look what the cat dragged in! Himself!” Um...burn?
NO. BULLSHIT. HOW DID THEY ESCAPE? HOW? IT DOESN’T COUNT IF YOU DON’T SHOW IT. WHY WOULD YOU CUT OUT A POTENTIALLY AWESOME ACTION SCENE FOR THIS SHIT? NO. FUCK YOU.
Then again, there are only five pirates left. I guess the rest were slaughtered.
Honestly, the Storm King just looks like Tirek. They might as well have reused him.
Boy, I haven’t seen Liev Schreiber play such an nonthreatening villain since X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Blast from the past! I’m glad he’s been in the movie so much up to this point so that I actually give a shit about him being the main bad guy for the last 20 minutes!
Uh-huh. And where were the other two pirates hiding? Only three jumped out of that cake.
The guard was taken down by...cupcakes. Do you even care anymore?
HOLY FUCK PINKIE’S FACE IS TERRIFYING. NEVER SHOW ANYTHING LIKE THAT AGAIN. YOU ARE SERIOUSLY GOING TO GIVE CHILDREN NIGHTMARES.
And he’s using Spike like a flamethrower. He can’t...oh, whatever.
Why does she even need her horn restored? She seems pretty powerful as she is.
“Why are you saving me?” “Because this is what friends do.” No, this is what decent fucking people do! if you’re about to watch someone die and you can do something to prevent it, you don’t have to be their friend to do so! You just have to be not a sociopath!
Oh, no! Twilight flew off with the main villain! She’s dead for sure! Oh, what? She’s not? What a shock. Nice heavy-handed angelic imagery, by the way.
Couldn’t she have blasted the XBOX rock out of the way or grabbed it or something instead of letting it hit her?
“So...now what?” “Now we rebuild.” No, wait, that’s the ending from San Andreas. A much better movie, I might add.
OH, THE FIRST ONE THEY DECALCIFIED WAS DERPY. EVERYTHING IS DERPY. DERPY DERPY DERPY.
Okay, who the hell was the “Way to go, guys!” pony? That was very obviously supposed to be someone specific, but I am unaware of this behind-the-scenes tidbit.
So they unfroze everypony, but they still didn’t fix Tempest’s horn? What a bunch of dicks!
“You know, your horn is pretty powerful, just like the pony it belongs to.” Didn’t I say that? What the hell was the conflict here?
That’s what you end the movie on, eh? Pinkie Pie’s squealing? Okey dokey then.
AND DERPY’S IN THE CREDITS TOO HERF DERF WERF LERF
And, of course, no kids’ movie would be complete without LUKAS GRAAAAAAAHAM.
Wait, Rachel Platten sang that cover of “We Got the Beat”? The singer who gave us “Fight Song”? Well, no wonder it sucked!
Rating: 1/4 stars.
This movie had a review embargo on it on Rotten Tomatoes until the release date. That’s never a good sign.
I think maybe they thought that, by making the movie darker, it would make it more suitable for theatrical viewing. It doesn’t. It’s just...odd. Especially when they add really stupid jokes to lighten the tone.
I can say that you can probably see the movie without having seen the show, which is a positive. There aren’t any plot details that require outside information to understand, but WOW is there enough fanservice if that’s what you’re looking for. In fact, it might be better if you haven’t seen the show because boy, oh, boy, do they introduce a lot of characters that the ponies on the show would definitely be aware of if this made any sense. On that note, if this is set in the canon Equestria from the show, then holy shit are the ponies the most callous and/or oblivious sociopaths I’ve ever seen in a children’s program. Not only are they all apparently completely unaware of the fact that everything outside of Equestria is complete shit (aside from the fact that everywhere seems to be impoverished, they’re all totally oblivious to the fact that the Storm King has taken over THE REST OF THE WORLD), but they don’t actually fix that by the end! I guess the hippogriffs can come out of hiding now, and the Storm King’s faceless henchmen all seem to be good guys at the end since they’re all at the party, but for all we know, the badlands are still inhabited entirely by goblin monster things and their shady black market shit! We never saw what happened to them! And if the parrots are now all pirates instead of merchants, does that mean they’re going to start robbing everyone? Congratulations, Rainbow Dash! You’ve significantly increased the amount of crime across the entire world! Good job, you fucking idiot!
Twilight is ridiculously selfish, which is really odd considering we know she knows better by this point. Her moral in this movie is that she has to learn to rely on her friends and not just try to do everything based on her own effort and ideas. Y’know, AGAIN. How many fucking times has Twilight had to learn this lesson over and over and over again? And people say that Fluttershy’s episodes are repetitive.
I was hoping that at some point I would become used to the animation. For comparison, Fantastic Mr. Fox has a really ugly animation style, but you don’t really think anything of it after the first 20-30 minutes. That never happened with this movie. Every time I thought I was getting used to the animation style, someone would turn or move or make a face, and it would just look creepy or just plain awful again.
You know what’s kind of sad, though? Emily Blunt is really good in this. She’s really putting in a lot of effort for this character, and the design is pretty good, too! She’s actually kind of awesome, especially compared to Liev Schreiber (who so could not have given less of a shit about his role) and Michael Fucking Peña, who are just terrible. Even if I didn’t entirely understand her nonsensical motivation, Tempest was honestly the best part of the movie.
Boy, between this and Leap!, if an animated movie advertises that it “features an original song by Sia”, run!
4 notes · View notes