Second Geekhood

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John De Lancie at Equestria LA

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JDL at EQLA

Sweet Celestia! Can this pony con get any better? Why, yes.  Yes it can! John de Lancie, the voice of the chaos based magic using draconequus, Discord, and Q from Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager Will be attending the Equestria LA  convention taking place September 4-6 at the Hilton Anaheim. He joins an ever increasing list of guests that will make any Brony or Pegasister stomp their hooves in delight:

G. M Barrow:  Author of the “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic” chapter books, the recently released Discord and the Ponyvile Players Dramarama, the Daring Do Adventure Collection, and an upcoming season 5 episode.

Jenn Blake: “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic” comic book illustrator.

Tabitha St. Germain:  The voice of Rarity, Princess Luna, and Granny Smith.

Gabriel Brown (aka Black Gryph0n): Singer, actor, voice actor, songwriter and animator known for such songs as Proud To Be A Brony and Paper Sky, and his “licious” series (TwilightLicious, Rainbowlicious, etc).

Michelle Creber: Speaking/singing voice of Apple Bloom and the singing voice for most of Sweetie Belle’s songs on My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.

Amy Keating Rogers:  Writer for My Little Pony.  Her credits include “Apple Buck Season,” “Bridle Gossip,” “A Dog and Pony Show,” “The Best Night Ever,” “The Cutie Pox,” and “MMMystery on the Friendship Express,”

Bonnie Zacherle:  Creator of the original My Little Pony and My Pretty Pony (the precursor to the My Little Pony line).

For more information on the guests, go to Equestria LA’s website.  Most of these guests have way too many other fannish credits to list here. You can also visit their Facebook page for all the latest news and updates.

Remember, both Time Siren and I will be there. Find us and say hello, we’d love to hear from you! Maybe we’ll all go out to Hayburgers for lunch.

-AFOL Husband

 

MLP: Friendship Games – I’m so Nervousited!

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Hasbro Studios has just released the first trailer for My Little Pony:  Friendship Games.

The appearance of the human Twilight has long been anticipated. She was hinted at in the first movie when our Twilight met the human Pinkie Pie, then she was shown after the end credits in the second. In addition to this, dolls of the Human Twilight were shown off earlier this year at the New York Toy Fair.

I can see that half of my Christmas list this year will be Equestria Girls dolls! I want the Nerdy Twilight/Flash Sentry set, and I need a Sunset Shimmer. The other half will, of course, be Lego…I am the AFOL (Adult Fan Of Lego) Husband, after all.

From here on, there are no spoilers: I don’t know any more than you do.  These are just my thoughts, comments, and hopes for the third Equestria Girl movie.

If you visit sites like Deviant Art and Derpyburu you will see that there is a lot of speculation that human Twilight is evil, a sort of mad scientist, but I don’t necessarily think that’s true.  From what we saw in the second movie, Human Twilight is a student of science, much like our Twilight is a student of magic. Human Twilight figured out that there was something strange going on at Canterlot High, so in this movie I think she’s going to take advantage of visiting Canterlot High for the Friendship Games in order to investigate what’s going on.  There is a shot in the trailer of her sneaking around the statue that is the portal between the two worlds that would seem to confirm this.

There is also a shot that would appear to be Sunset Shimmer facing off against Twilight.  Magic is popping up around Canterlot High, and I think Twilight, in her investigations, is going to tap into magic she can’t control, which another shot would seem to confirm. I think in the end Sunset Shimmer, being the only girl from Equestria, is going to have to save Twilight, and possibly Equestria, from disaster.  At least that’s the direction I hope the movie will go.

In “My Little Pony:  Friendship is Magic,” Twilight is my favorite pony. As Xander from “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” once put it, “smart chicks are hot!” In the movies, however, Sunset Shimmer is my favorite character…not so much in the first movie, but definitely in the second.  If you think about it, her path is similar to “Xena:  Warrior Princess”.  She was once evil, turned away from her ways, and now struggles to redeem herself and be accepted.

It would make sense if the third movie goes the way I hope.  Then this movie would complete a trilogy revolving around Sunset.

In the first movie, Twilight is the protagonist.  She starts with the fear that, “Just because I have this crown and these wings, it doesn’t mean I’ll be a good leader.”  In the end, she proves she is a leader by taking what she has learned about friendship into a strange world, making new friends, and leading those friend in defeating Sunset Shimmer. In the process, we learn that Sunset rebelled against Princess Celestia and went to the human world to plot her revenge. In the end, she is defeated, repents, and is left to learn about friendship.

In the second movie, Sunset is the protagonist.  Though she has repented, she still does not fit in because the students at Canterlot High still remember what she did. The five friends that do accept her have formed a band, but she isn’t in it.  So, even with friends  of her own, there is still the feeling of being an outsider. Then there are the Sirens, bent on causing division among the students, who remind her of her dark past.  In the end, the six girls need her voice to defeat the sirens, she has her magical transformation moment and becomes one of this world’s Mane Six – or should I say, Human Six.

An interesting side note: at the end of the second movie, Sunset writes to Twilight in the book that connects both worlds. It’s not a big deal in the movie, but it is in the Ponyverse.  Newly crowned Princess Twilight Sparkle now has someone writing to her about friendship in the same way she had been writing to Princess Celestia. It’s an underplayed moment, but it’s the moment where we see that the student, Twilight, has become the master.

I don’t know yet who will be the protagonist in the third movie. It could be Sunset, having to step up from just being accepted and helping save the world as part of a group to having to save two worlds on her own because she’s the only one who knows how to deal with magic. Or it could be human Twilight, wanting to investigate the strange occurrences at Canterlot High, where she gets in over her head with Equestrian magic and realizes there are things her scientific background has not prepared her to deal with.

Either way, there is one thing I feel needs to happen. After saving one or both worlds, Sunset needs to go back to Equestria and reconcile with Princess Celestia.  This would bring her character arc full circle: she rebelled against Celestia, went to another world to plot her revenge, repented, redeemed herself, became a hero in her new world, then in her home world, and returns to reconcile with the one she originally rebelled against. And from the first movie, we know that Celestia would welcome her back.

Now a few things I would like to see happen: Celestia welcomes Sunset back to Equestria, but after everything that’s happened with her friends who are about to graduate, Sunset decides to stay with her human friends as they begin the biggest adventure of their lives – adulthood.  And I think Celestia would grant her permission to come back and visit now and then.

The movies have always acknowledged the TV show, but the show has never acknowledged the movies.  I would love to see an episode of the show where Sunset is visiting Twilight in Ponyville.  You wouldn’t even have to explain where she came from, just that she’s a friend of Twilight’s that’s visiting.  Or at least a scene where Spike walks in on Twilight reading the book, “Hi, Twi, what you doing?” To which Twilight would reply, “Just reading a letter from Sunset.  She says hi!”

In the new movie I’d also like to see a moment between Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo. Maybe Rainbow Dash coaching Scootaloo’s soccer team. In the end of the first movie, Rainbow Dash gets her wings during her transformation. Then what does she do? During the dance, she grabs Scootaloo, throws her on her back and shares with her this incredible new ability to fly. Those five seconds of screen time confirmed that the human Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo have the same kind of relationship that the pony pair do.

The only disappointment I see is that it appears Friendship Games is going straight to cable and DVD, as it has a premier date of September 26 on Discovery Family. The second movie was out in the theaters for only one weekend with limited distribution, so I missed it. When I saw the opening credits on the DVD, I thought to myself, “Man, I wish I’d seen this in the theater.” In any case, I am looking forward to another great Danny Ingram score.

So, in the end, Human Twilight is hinted at in the first movie, revealed in the second, and becomes a major character in the third. Doesn’t this all beg the question… isn’t there a second Sunset Shimmer?

-AFOL Husband

Equestria L.A. – Chomping at the Bit

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Equestria LA 2015 at Second Geekhood

Equestria L.A. (September 4-6, 2015) is one of the cons Time Siren and I are saving up our bits for.  It will be our first My Little Pony con.  Even if you aren’t into MLP, you have to admit it’s quite a phenomena.  When looking up a pony con near us, I found that there were twenty seven in the U.S. last year alone, and that doesn’t count all the ones from Germany to Japan.  Not bad for a half-hour show, aimed at kids, with only four full seasons under it’s belt, and it’s 100th episode coming up.

If you live in the L.A. area, or can make it to Anaheim, you might want to check out our local pony con.  Here is some of the latest news they’ve been posting:

June 4:  Amy Keating Rogers Rogers returns to EQLA.  Ms. Rogers is a writer that has been with the show since it’s first season.  Her credits include, “Applebuck Season,” “Bridle Gossip,” “A Dog and Pony Show,” “The Best Night Ever,” “The Last Roundup,” and “Filli Vanilli.”

June 3:  Book a room at Equestria L.A.s venue, the Anaheim Hilton and get a hotel key adorned with Andy Price’s art.  This is something I have never seen in almost three decades of con going: an electronic hotel room key with exclusive convention art on it!  Now, that’s a souvenier!

May 21:  FinalDraft to host VA panel.  FinalDraft is the premier software program for screen writing.  I’ve never seen them host a panel at any other convention.  I’m impressed.

May 20:  EQLA is offering discount #TwilightTickets for evening entry into Disneyland.  If you’re not familiar with area, The Hilton and Anaheim convention center are literally across the street from the Disneyland Resort.

May 19:  The original creator of My Little Pony, Bonnie Zacherle, will be at the convention.

You can check out all the news and details at the Equestria L.A. FaceBook page, or on their website. Admission is $60.00 for the weekend, which is pretty standard for a con.  While at the website, check out the pictures of their two previous cons.  TimeSiren and I are going to go so broke in the dealers’ room…

– The AFOL Husband

 

Total Drama: The Ridonculous Race

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TD-TRR

 

Can’t wait for the next Total Drama Island?  Well, maybe this will hold you over:  Total Drama The Ridonculous Race.  This is not TDI season 6, but a spin off from the same creators.  With a new cast and host, it is a spoof of “The Incredible Race” type reality shows.  It follows eighteen teams of two as they race around the world for a cash prize of one million dollars.  Apparently it’s already being aired on Teletoons in Canada and will eventually be on Cartoon Network in the states.

Canadian Geekateers:  If you’ve seen it, please leave a review.  Otherwise, here is pretty much what we know so far on Wikipedia.

The AFOL Husband

MLP Episode 100 teaser – Well, That Ship Just Set Sail

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Shipping characters, or supporting the real or imagined romantic relationship of certain characters in a fandom, has been around since Classic Trek. However, the term “shipping” has only been commonly used in more recent years, and nowhere have I seen it more prevalent than in the My Little Pony universe. Fluttershy and Big Mac (my favorite), Fluttershy and Discord (Time Siren’s favorite), Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich, Lyra Heartstrings and Bon Bon, Dr. Whooves and Derpy…the list goes on.

You see it in art work, fanfic, and fan videos.  One of the most popular ships of background ponies has been Octavia and Vinyl Scratch/DJ Pon-3.  They are constantly put together as roommates or something more.  This clip from the upcoming 100th episode finally make this fan-created ship canon (well, the roommate part).

There is a lot of speculation if Vinyl will finally speak in this episode, and if you’ve think you’ve heard her speak, check again: we’ve only seen her speak in fan videos.  If I’m not mistaken, we’ve never heard Octavia speak either.  Despite that, Vinyl has been pulled up from the background several times during the show, has her own music video, and played an important part in the Equestia Girls Rainbow Rocks movie.

Check out the comments on the Equestria Daily page…my favorite is “There aren’t enough FedEx Trucks in the world to ship this.”

And finally, a big #secondgeekhood shout out to composer Danny Ingram for combining classic cello and Techno so awesomely!

GEEK RANT – Discovery Family, I love and hate you!

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Discovery Family Rant on My Little Pony at Second GeekhoodIt’s Saturday, May the 30th, and Discovery Family played both Equestria Girl movies AND the prequel shorts to Equestria Girl:  Rainbow Rocks.  For those of you who don’t have the Rainbow Rocks DVD, these shorts are the extras.  They can also be seen on the Hasbro YouTube Channel.  Six of the shorts show how each of the six girls playing their chosen instruments, or how they came to play them.  It also shows how they “pony out” when they play, which is sort of like a magical girl transformation sequence in anime.  One of these is an original music video of the song, “Shake Your Tail” from the movie.  The last two are original songs and videos not in the movie, so these shorts are well worth watching if you are an Equestria Girl fan. It’s like a bonus twenty two minutes…and that’s why I love you, Discovery Family!

And now, why I hate you.

Do you not view what you are airing?  I know you’re not directly owned by Hasbro anymore, but do you not understand dramatic story structure?  You aired Rainbow Rocks, but cut off the last song and replaced it with minimized, generic credits in the background of a programming promo piece.  I know this is commonly done to save airtime, and that most people don’t care about the credits.  However, most movies replay songs from earlier in the movie over a plain background, and this is not how the pony movies work.  The closing song, “Shine Like Rainbows,” is an original piece with original animation, and the last bit after the credits is VERY important.  I won’t spoil anything, but not showing it is like walking out of an AVENGERS movie and not staying to the very end. Serious Marvel fans know what I mean.

This may seem trivial to some…allow me to explain to you why this hack and slash job is a sin deserving of you having your life energy sucked out of you by three sirens from another world.

Most people assume that, because it’s a pony movie, Twilight Sparkle is the star, that it’s her movie…only it’s not!  Yes, she has problems to deal with.  She has to learn that she doesn’t always have to have all the answers. In the end, however, it’s really Sunset Shimmer’s movie.  She’s the protagonist.

starlight glimmer and the rainbooms on Second Geekhood

In writing terms, the protagonist is the one who goes through change.  More than one character in a story can go through changes, but the protagonist is the one who goes through the biggest, life-altering change.  You will recall that in the first movie, Sunset Shimmer is the antagonist who raises an army of hypnotized students to try to take over Equestria.  In the end, she is defeated and repents, intent on changing her ways.  In this movie, Rainbow Rocks, she is still struggling with the repercussions of her past, and the student body has not forgotten what she did, dividing friendships and setting them against each other.  The five friends who accept her: Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Apple Jack, Rarity, and Fluttershy, have formed a band, but she’s not in it.  So, even among her friends, there is still that feeling of being an outsider.   She watches her friends being torn apart by petty arguments, but doesn’t feel she has a right to say anything. In addition, she has the sirens tearing her down by reminding her of her past in much the same way she once did to Twilight when she told her, “You don’t know the first thing about fitting in.”

In the final musical battle, it’s only when she adds her voice that they are able to defeat the sirens.  When she sings, “You’re never gonna tear me down,” she finally has her magical transformation and it’s the Equestrian magic of the seven that finally defeats the sirens.

So why is the last song such a big deal?  Because it’s not an epilogue, it’s the end of her story arc.  In the end song, she is part of the band.  There is no more sense of being an outsider.  It is the defining moment that tells the audience that she, Sunset Shimmer, is part of this world’s Mane Six.  Through the end credits we see that those who once rejected her now accept her.  The Cutie Mark Crusaders pick up the book she drops and walk down the hall with her.  Bulk Biceps picks her up to retrieve Fluttershy’s bunny.  Twilight has gone home to Equestria.  This world’s magical protectors are Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Apple Jack, Rarity, Fluttershy, AND Sunset Shimmer.  They all shine like rainbows, just as the song says.

But, of course, we missed that today.  I know it’s there because I have the DVD, but others don’t.  There is a philosophy in the theater world that says an actor may preform the same part a thousand times, but for someone in the audience, it’s their first time.  It was someone first time seeing Rainbow Rocks today, and they missed the ending.

For those of you who did, here it is.  It’s a beautiful piece all by itself.  Enjoy.

– The AFOL Husband