Fanfiction Review: The Sweet Meet and Greet

(Requested By: djthomp)

Welcome to our second fanfiction review. Today, we look at MrNumbers' story of Pinkie's arrival in Ponyville, The Sweet Meet and Greet.

SYNOPSIS:

Some time between “The Cutie Mark Chronicles” and the Pilot, Pinkie Pie has come to Ponyville to put her talents to use and find a new home. But along the way, there are plenty of ponies who need cheering up or just a little help, and Pinkie Pie is going to make them all smile...

REVIEW:

The Sweet Meet and Greet fills a particular niche in my fanfiction-loving heart: Just how did the cast get to where they are? (Heck, I wrote one story in the same genre already with Keeping Your Hooves on the Ground.) The story is told mostly from Pinkie's perspective, showing her first encounters with the rest of her friends from the show. (Sans Twilight, as she's still in Canterlot at the moment.) I do have a few questions about just when this is supposed to be happening, but that's largely irrelevant.

One thing this story does incredibly well is capture the essences of the characters. Pinkie is her usual excitable self, gleefully bouncing from one place to the next and not even caring that she has nary a bit to her name or a roof to sleep under. The rest of the ponies are similarly well-written and interesting, and the way the characters play off each other is a lot of fun. Besides our core cast and the Cakes (who have a funny turn as pseudo-antagonists for a while over a hilarious misunderstanding), there's also a chapter devoted to background ponies, and especially to Octavia and Vinyl. What could have been a repeat of an unwelcome ship is actually executed very well, and is probably my second-favorite part of the story overall.

Grammar and spelling are pretty good throughout, and the word choice for each pony is excellent. If there is one complaint I could raise, it's that the last actual chapter (the final chapter is a dedication) has a somewhat lengthy segment where Pinkie mistakes Rainbow Dash for a lesbian...and just keeps going from there. The joke really isn't that funny and it wears its welcome out quickly.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

This is a fantastic character piece, showing us Pinkie's humble origins and how she came to live in Ponyville. It's one of those rare stories that can work perfectly as an episode on its own merits. That's why I give this story a hearty recommendation.