#which member of Sev’ral Times is it?

[high-sixing]

One of the reasons I wanted to start drawing Stancest many years ago. This adorable Jealous!Ford crack fic. He’s not very happy that the members of Sev’ral Times has been flirting with his bro, even if they are on no-speaking terms with each other.

An old but good one, please give “There is Nothing About This I Understand” a go. You can never go wrong with Jealous!Ford!

[quartings]

The original Gravity Falls pitches and pilot just dropped!!

(Link for those who want it)

For those who don't wanna look through all of it, here are some highlights I found!

Interesting changes from the pitch (What Alex Hirsch showed Disney to make them greenlight the show):

Stan’s secret was that he’s secretly protecting the townsfolk from weirdness, nothing to do with Ford. No mention of Ford in the pitch at all. Stan also wanted Dipper and Mabel to be his successors in this version.

Mabel used to be the unhygienic one instead of Dipper.

Wendy was brunette and didn’t work as the Mystery Shack cashier, instead selling veggie juice out of her van.

As such, Soos (Jesús in this version) worked the register in addition to his handyman job in this version. He was a bit less of a hard worker here, watching telenovelas on the job sometimes, but still loves his job and is extremely loyal to Stan.

Robbie was almost exactly the same, parents’ backstory and all, but there’s an interesting note that he occasionally clashed with Gideon in this version (which we never got in the final show)

Speaking of which, Gideon’s last name in this version was Garrymore instead of Gleeful.

Gideon used to personally harass and prank Stan, going out of his way to vandalize Stan’s stuff himself.

Manly Dan was always planned to be Wendy’s dad. In this version, he hates the idea that his hipster daughter prefers conserving the environment instead of chopping down forests

(For those who wanted more Wendy episodes, I’m surprised Hirsch didn’t use this as a conflict for one of them- it makes her interesting without costing any of her “coolness”)

Sheriff Blubs was originally Sheriff “Blumps”. Durland has the same name likely because Hirsch said he’s named after a real guy.

With no Ford and no Journal mentioned, episodes were originally very different-

“The President’s Cabinet/Irrational Treasure.” Instead of via the journal, Dipper and Mabel find a record of Quentin Trembley in a box buried in the yard. No Pacifica mentioned here.

“Secret Dungeon” Dipper becomes obsessed with a recalled arcade cabinet. Mabel must try and save him by finding the original high scorer.

“Thtupid Thursday” One of the many ‘Shining Twins’ episode concepts Hirsch wanted to do. Dipper and Mabel learn ‘twin telepathy’ from some creepy twins, and soon regret it.

“Periodic Mabel” Mabel invents her own element for the science fair and Dipper is jealous.

“Only the Clonely/Boyz Crazy” The exact same episode just without Candy and Grenda. Sev’ral Timez is called “ReelBoyzzz” in this version.

“Big Dipper” With surprisingly no tie to Little Dipper, Dipper asks a fortune teller to make him older so he can win Wendy over. But she makes him 22, so he and Mabel have to undo the spell.

“Sweater off Dead” Mabel buys an antique sweater and is possessed by the soul of the granny who last wore it. Stan is terrified by the spirit because she reminds him of his ex-wife Marilyn (Deep Edalyn Clawthorne lore???) so Dipper must “Swexorcize” his sister and save her.

“Teed Off/The Golf War” With no Pacifica, this was originally a Dipper vs Gideon episode- No Lilliputtians, either. Instead, the 13th hole is cursed and traps the cast in a time loop.

Now, changes from the Production Pitch (I’m guessing for when the show was already greenlit and this was a way to brief crew members on what the show would 100% be about)

Stan’s secret (likely the portal) and the journal are now set in stone.

Emphasis on continuity and character development. Nothing gets “reset” by next episode. All plot developments are permanent.

All character names and designs are locked in. Pacifica has now been added, as well as Waddles, Gompers, Lazy Susan, Candy and Grenda, and McGucket (No mention or hint at his past here)

Interesting to note is that there is still zero outright mention of Ford and Bill in this version, even though multiple episodes were seemingly in production at this point.

Manly Dan’s conflict with Wendy from the original pitch is still here. Making it even more mindblowing that we never got it in the show

Blubs and Durland are described as a little more playful instead of mean like in the original pitch.

All episode examples made it into the show with no changes this time. They are Tourist Trapped, Legend of the Gobblewonker, Fight Fighters, Boyz Crazy, and The Land Before Swine.

[portalford]

Welcome to Mystery

AO3

“Do you think they're still alive?”

Silence.

“Grunkle Stan?”

“What, kid.”  The words are gruff, but Stan lowers his newspaper, so Dipper knows he has his great-uncle’s attention.

“The author.”  He holds up the journal to illustrate.  “Do you think they’re still alive somewhere?”

Stan’s face goes completely blank for a moment, then it gets hard.  “I’ve told you a dozen times that I don’t care about any of your spooky stuff.  Go bother your sister.”  The newspaper goes back up.  A dismissal.

Dipper isn't in the mood to be dismissed.  “But you know the supernatural is real; you said so with the zombies!  Why do you get so upset with me when I try to find answers?”

“Because it's dangerous!”  Stan flings the newspaper to the floor and glares at Dipper.  “People who mess with this stuff wind up hurt, or worse.”

Dipper reflexively clutches at the journal.  He opens his mouth to argue, but Stan cuts him off.

“What about your sister, huh?  What would she do if you got hurt on one of your monster hunts?  If you got killed?”

Dipper shuts his mouth with an audible click.  What?  “Mabel comes along on a lot of my trips,” he offers weakly.

“Yeah, to keep you out of trouble.  I know your type, kid.”  Stan looks incredibly tired all of a sudden.  “You never know when to quit.”  He shakes his head, back to anger again.  “I can’t make you stop digging, but I can tell you to be careful what you wish for, because you might just get it.”  With that, Stan gets to his feet, picks up his newspaper, and stumps out of the room.

Dipper looks after him, then down at the journal.  Stan’s probably going to make him clean that weird rock face for this.

“Way to go, Dipper,” he mutters.  He scrambles up and runs off to find Mabel.

*****

Stan sits in his room and stares at the glasses he keeps in the drawer by his bed.

They aren't his glasses.

“You would find a way to make trouble for me when you’re not even here, Poindexter,” he mutters.  He wants to be angry; he thought he was when Dipper started asking about his ‘Author,’ capital A (and way to go, Stan; bite the kid’s head off for an innocent question), but really he's just afraid.  Afraid Dipper will follow in Ford’s footsteps and get hurt, afraid he and Mabel will lose another family member, afraid Ford's already paid for his curiosity with his life.

“He’s fine,”  Stan mutters, hand closing around the glasses (Ford would yell at him if he were here, Ford always hated smudges on his glasses, not that he noticed when he was deep in a problem–)  “He’s fine, you got all three journals, you’re gonna get him back any day now.”

Ford is okay.  He has to be.  

He's going to come back.

The kids are going to meet him.

Stan rubs the bridge of his nose.  He should have told Dipper and Mabel about Ford months ago, but every time he tried he chickened out.  He doesn't want to lose what he has with them.

“You’re gonna have to tell them eventually.”

If the words sound shaky, there's no one around to hear.

*****

“Why does Stan have to yell at me for everything?  I just asked a question!”

Mabel watches her brother pace the room for the bazillionth time.  He’s upside down.  Well, she's the one upside down, but it still looks like he is.  “C’mon, Dip dop, you know he didn’t mean it.”

Dipper’s frustrated expression slides down, down, into unhappiness.  Yikes.  “That’s the thing, Mabel.  I think… I think he did mean it.  When he said that people get hurt, he just looked – sad.”

Mabel frowns and sits up on her bed.  This is a right side up kind of conversation. “Grunkle Stan’s lived here a long time, Dipper.  I’m sure he’s gotten chewed on by a gnome or two.”

“It was worse than that.”  Yeah, she figured, but she'd hoped she was wrong.  “I think maybe he knew someone that was interested in this stuff and got hurt.”  Dipper frowns.  “If I ask him about it I think it’ll just make him mad again."  He mutters something about rock faces, which Mabel expertly ignores.

“Aw, Dipper.  Old people love talking about stuff that happened a long time ago.”

“Not Stan; he just likes complaining about stuff that happened a long time ago.  And a not-so-long time ago.”  Dipper flops on the floor.  He's being dramatic about this, but that's normal for Dipper and his nerd stuff.

Time to cheer him up.

“Come on, Dipper!”  Mabel jumps off her bed and grabs her brother’s arm, pulling at it.  “Let’s go see if Soos has any leftover pizza we can use to lure those magic singing fish at the lake.  Maybe one of them knows something other than Billy Joel.”

Dipper sits up, already looking happier.  Way to go, Mabel.  “Really?”

“Totally!  We’ve got to find one that knows Sev’ral Timez songs eventually.”

“Bet I can find one that knows Disco Girl before you get anything at all.”

“Bet you can’t.”

Dipper chases her down the stairs, laughing.

They don’t look back at the journal where it lies on the floor, gold hand glinting dully in the light from the stain-glass window.

[marvelandponder]

In the Shipping Biz, We’d Call This a Crack Ship

Well now, isn’t this adorable? Two characters who, before now, haven’t had screen time together get to share an adorable nose-boop (which in kids show terms is third base). And yet my mane 9 ships sit on the shelf. There really is no justice. 

So, I’m a bit behind on episode reviews thanks to midterms and finals, but with a few days before the season comes back on air, I at least have a chance to catch my breath.

Which would be a good time for a breath of fresh air.

And I wouldn’t quite go that far with this episode, but I still find it fascinating in its own way. 

For me, the episode itself isn’t as memorable as I think it could be, and with both Big Mac and the CMC participating in a romance plot it’s hard not to draw comparisons to Hearts and Hooves Day, but there are a number of entertaining elements in there that make it a decently good episode.

That said, as someone whose held discussions about shipping and canonizing ships before, the subject of romance in Friendship is Magic is one I find myself coming back to a lot (like I did for Pride month). 

Because friendship is and rightly should be the main focus of the show, romance is relegated to either married couples, or weirdly enough, the boy characters.

... Yeah, no, not kidding.

Apart from Rarity’s two fleeting crushes (and not counting the EQG movies), Spike and Big Mac are the two characters most frequently and profoundly affected by romance plots. I think there’s a bit of role reversal, in a way: The two most prominent boy characters are the ones who either have an ongoing crush that lasts multiple seasons, or get involved with different romantic interests at different times.

But, anyway, no matter the character, in episodes dealing with romance, the plot is structured in such a way that a friendship lesson can be learned. I think that’s why this and Hearts and Hooves Day ended up having so much in common: Big Mac is both minor enough to not require multiple episodes per season, but major enough for a romantic development to have some significance. 

And of the characters who are close to him, the CMC do seem like a good choice to learn the lesson about fairytale romances being vastly different from reality. 

I’d actually argue Spike might’ve been an even better choice than those three (what with his ongoing crush and all), but since Sweetie Belle is the best choice of all and you couldn’t have her going by herself, boom, the crusaders as a whole unit.

There’s just enough to differentiate this from Hearts and Hooves Day, but I definitely wouldn’t want a pattern of episodes that are this similar to past episodes emerging. Tread lightly, writers.

So, yeah, apart from Equestria Girls, this is the first ongoing relationship to be started with a Mane Cast member, and I’ll be interested to see where they take it from here! 

Will we see their relationship take center stage in an episode going forward? Or, maybe just a few moments sprinkled throughout episodes showing us that their relationship is developing in the background?

Either way, definitely neat to incorporate a romance that isn’t pre-determined to end with marriage. 

But, anyway, let’s talk more about the episode itself!

One aspect in particular that seems to be a lot more divisive than I expected was this little shit:

Hellooo, Vincent “Waifu Stealer” Tong (for real, though, he’s honestly such a great voice actor, I’m glad to have him back any time)

Now on the the one hand, I can understand the sheer loathing this bugger produces. I survived the days when Justin Beiber was a popular young tween on the road to super-stardom despite many eardrums screaming no.

But then again, I survived the days of Justin Beiber. I’ve earned this parody. Plus, being born in the late 90s, I grew up in the early 2000s, which is a time I lovingly refer to as 90s backwash.

Oh sure, the 2000s had their own emerging... “Style” (she said, as if she doesn’t still enjoy it unironically on occasion), but the days of manufactured boyband pop groups with frosted tips and a deep love for their gurls was still clinging on, to the point that there was a lot of parodies, loving or otherwise. Those parodies are what I lived off of.

For those of you who grew up with Fairly Odd Parents, Chip Skylark. Any of you Simpsons fans might remember an episode with the Party Posse, a boyband composed solely of 4th graders with the dubbed voices of dreamy teenage boys.

Even just recently Gravity Falls featured a boyband called Sev’ral Times, and Star Vs. The Forces of Evil has Love Sentence.

So I guess what I’m saying is, there’s a special place in my heart for boyband or girl group parodies, and Feather Bangs (god, what a name) is no different.

I can get the malice, but I enjoyed him way too much.

And they even made him a likable character in the end. Who knew cloned boyband pop sensations could be socially anxious? Good twist on an already funny character.

As to the moral, I really enjoyed it. It’s the perfect thing for the target demographic to learn because they’re the ones currently being surrounded by all those fairytales Sweetie Belle was reading.

Plus, no matter what you’re age, I think you can appreciate the sentiment that the constant onslaught of perfect, storybook romances in media doesn’t translate to reality---and not even in a pessimistic way. I’ve seen shows that take that moral to sad, but real places, as in, even if you try it can be near impossible to get it right with someone.

While a dose of realism has it’s place, I also like what FIM has to say about it. That fairy tale romances are unrealistic, but real romances are about caring for another person in the way they want and need to be cared for, and in the end that’s something just as magical.

 It’s just... real nice.

Also, D’AAAAAAWW.

Sorry, had to get that out of my system. 

Details, Thoughts, and Whatnot

It’s the little things that make me smile.

The line delivery on “A spy pirate. A spyrate” sums up my sense of humour 

I love that you can go back and see Sweetie Belle reading the book of fairy tales on the trip

I think this is a rather nice way to give us more ways to develop the ponies of Our Town/Starlight’s Village, if we so choose to revisit this place; nice that these characters can have connections to the outside world now

The CMCs continue to be adorable children. Just, like, the urgency in Applebloom’s voice when she says “Ya gotta tell her!” as she’s, like, shaking her big bro and being all supportive... these three are precious

When Big Mac goes for the kiss while Sugar Belle’s sleeping, I’m just sitting here like

The duet is a lot of fun! I wouldn’t say it’s one of the classic MLP songs, but it’s a delightful sequence, and gives the animators a chance to throw in some more inventive and colourful imagery in an episode that’s largely set in a drab desert town

Oh! And it looks like Sugar Belle isn’t the only one hooking up with someone. Night Glider and Party Favour, huh? As someone who can ship pretty much anything it comes as no surprise, but like, I can ship it

I like the shelf thing. Sure, you could see it coming, but it illustrates the moral really well, so what the hell: when it’s cute, it’s cute.

And I think that’s a good phrase to sum up this episode. It’s not a true standout, but it’s got a few charms here and there to make it a worthwhile episode. another good entry in the season.

It’s good to be back. But hey, I’ve done other stuff before! Here’s the link to my reviews, my editorials, and hell, here’s the last three things I’ve done, to make it even easier for you:

LGBT+ Editorial, Trailer Analysis, and Comic Con Coverage

Year of the Pony

Special Thanks to Millennial Dan on Deviantart, who made the Microphone vector for the logo!

Huh. Big Mac Really Does Get All the Mares