Ranking the MLP IDW comics (11-1)

Read the First Part Here!: Ranking the MLP IDW comics (23-12)

#11: Election: (Issues 46 and 47)  [link] You are not reading that wrong... this story is about what the title says... In a year that was regarded as the most politically charged year... period, everyone was talking about the ridiculous shitshow surrounding... those two candidates who I will not name in this entry. Apparently, even MLP had to throw their hat in the ring and make an election story as well...

In Election, the story is about Mayor Mare, in the beginning of the story, a new playground built on Apple Family land is demolished by a mysterious earthquake... and like most nutjobs and maniacs, Filthy Rich blames the administration for no good reason and decides to run for mayor of Ponyville, which of course, leads to an election...

While I initially hated this idea because the very reason I watch MLP and cartoons like it is to escape from real-life scenarios exactly like this one, I warmed up to it pretty fast... Because this story has some pretty damn good morals... Like the real world, the Mane 6 are split between Filthy and Mayor Mare, with Rarity and Rainbow taking Filthy’s side. I love how Twilight’s naivete that her friends would pick Mayor Mare alongside her is challenged and how she learns that friends can disagree and still be friends. I never thought that the Mane 6’s political views would be put into question but there it is...

Also, in Filthy Rich’s quest to boost Equestria into becoming adequate once more, he makes a bunch of exorbitant, extravagant and ludicrous promises, promises that convinced other ponies into voting for him, and it’s really sad to see Mayor Mare lose her role in the town so suddenly...

But the second half of the story is where the story gets juicy, with Filthy’s multiple promises pulling the rug out from under him and leading to unfulfilling deliveries on his vows. It’s fun to see how negligence and overconfidence can lead to a bad political situation getting worse, and how it affects all the ponies who supported him, and especially the ones that didn’t, with Filthy Rich shirking some of his promises in order to fulfill other promises. The story’s moral is really flexible and has a variety of lessons... Lessons like “Don’t make promises that you can’t deliver on,” “Be discerning and wise when choosing a leader,” “If someone sounds like he’s too good to be true, he probably is,” and “A real leader doesn’t give people everything they want, he gives people what they need, and makes compromises that try to satisfy everyone.” It really does feel like a cautionary tale at times, and I’m glad that it exists... in terms of teaching morals, this is definitely one of the strongest entries on the list, being both informative and fun, and finding a nice balance between the two.

Also, the jokes are pretty nice too, Starlight, Pinkie and Fluttershy having some great jokes on their ends.

And Mayor Mare is exceptional in this story! The IDW comics are great at developing characters that the show refuses to dig deeper into and their portrayal of Mayor Mare is definitely one of my favourites, from being a fair and courteous competitor, to accepting her defeat humbly, to stepping up and showing Ponyville why they voted for her in the first place, she shines through the whole story, and you grow to love her more and more all the way through!

Election is a fantastic MLP story that tackles the issue of politics with surprisingly strong maturity! I would definitely check it out if you’re an MLP fan! If only to see that one joke where Starlight questions Mayor Mare’s name.

#10: Night of the Apples: (Issues 32 and 33) www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlkiVC… Yeah, believe it or not, this one was a shock to me too... I remember most of these from heart but I had to reread the stories from Volume 8 from scratch because I haven't read them in a while. So imagine my own surprise when I cracked this one open and had as much balls-to-the-wall fun as I did!

Night of the Apples is a story about The Apples from Sweet Apple Acres coming to life via a magic meteor and wreaking havoc on the city of Ponyville.

Out of all of the stories on this list, this one has the most ludicrous concept by far, but somehow I think that works in this story's favor. Anyone who's read my opinion on Zephyr Breeze knows that I fucking adore weird, bizarre and over the top things... (Mentally Insert Star vs. picture here)

When they are done correctly...

Let's face facts, having Anthropomorphic apples as an antagonist sounds like a stupid fucking idea, and the funny thing is that in the first act, they win... Yes, the Mane 6 are beaten by apples... that by itself is hilarious to me. The story is bizarre, and it knows it's bizarre, so it just makes the most random, ridiculous and silly story ever. From Pinkie turning into an apple, to the Apples making the ponies sign a non-aggression pact, to the ridiculous climax where the Apples turn into a literal Kaiju made of Apples that looks like Spike for some reason...

And Rainbow Dash defeats it by SHOOTING THROUGH ITS CHEST AND REPLACING ITS HEART!

Like, how can you not laugh when you think about stuff like that?

The story is worth reading just to see what ridiculous stuff is going to happen next... But even if you take it seriously, there's a lot to love in this story, The aesthetics are awesome! The story is a loving throwback to the so-bad-they're-beautiful horror flicks of the 1950's, silly monsters and sillier origin story included... The story has a bunch of hilarious and memorable moments, and Pinkie Pie is on top of her game here, with all kinds of awesome jokes and silly scenarios, like being turned into the aforementioned apple.

And Flutterbat makes her (Third) Triumphant Return! In this awesome scene where she overcomes her bat instincts and sends a swarm of bloodthirsty bats to take the apples down! It's really satisfying to see her in control of her bat form for a change, and the schizophrenic "conversation" she has with her bat self is hilarious! The Mane 6 also turn into bat ponies themselves, and they literally assassinate the Apples under the fell of night like actual fucking boogeymen! Complete with ridiculous dried apple corpses! That's a really daring and amazingly off the wall plot. And they all have amazing pun-tastic Vampire names, I thought that Rainbow's was lazy but it's actually a Rainbow Brite reference... that's spectacular punsmanship there, I must admit.

The leader of the Apples is an Apple with a stache, called Bad Apple, and yes, he's an apple with a mustache... he's nothing but a mad, overconfident, power-hungry dictator, but it's just so entertaining to get this whole "I'm going to conquer the world!" spiel from a literal eyeless fruit with a mustache... Good Apple, his spectacled antithesis is a glum character with a kind heart, he becomes friends with Spike and he had one particular joke that I really loved. And yes, the story does make fun of the fact that they're Apples a million times. It never truly takes itself seriously, and that's why I can recommend it to high heaven. It's also has a lovingly crafted, 50's inspired eye-catching cover that perfectly captures how fricking silly this story really is.

Just to recap... Let's just back up and walk through this plot just to really sell the absurdity, this is a comic where a meteor turns Apples into anthro fruits, the Apples take over the city, led by an Apple with a mustache, Pinkie becomes an Apple, Spike befriends an Apple with Glasses, the Mane 6 then have the idea to tie up Fluttershy and turn her into a bat, they become bats, complete with silly punny names... then they suck the juice out of the terrified apples, killing them... Fluttershy as a bat, kills a ton of them en masse with an army of bats, and then they fight a Kaiju made out of Apples that looks like a dragon... and then Rainbow penetrates it with her entire body...

In a franchise called My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. 10/10 best story ever. This story is so full of ridiculous nonsense that it's among the most charming and bombastic stories on this list, I will definitely recommend it to you! Who knows? Maybe you'll find it a wonderful dark horse the same way that I do!

#9: Neigh Anything: (Issues 11 and 12) www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QdFD-… Yes, yes, yes, yes, YES! I always, always wanted this story! And I finally have it!

Oh, I’m sorry, I got ahead of myself... Neigh Anything is a flashback story, in the middle of a fancy lunch with Twilight and company, Rarity and Fluttershy ask Shining Armor and Mi Amore Cadenza (I never get the chance to use Cadance’s full name, let me have this...) how they fell in love... which results in a flashback to their high school days.

I haven’t actually given my full opinion on Shining or Cadance, (and I won’t disclose all of my feelings until my MLP Season 2 Character Roundup) but let it be known that I find both of them to be very underrated characters in the series, so seeing them have a story to themselves is a satisfying feeling to me... Because Shining Armor’s delightfully goofy personality is on full blast the entire ride, his earnest love for Cadance coupled with his powerful determination to make her his special somepony makes for a very endearing and likeable protagonist.

And the ride is very fun and varied, throughout the story we see different events from the perspectives of both Shining and Cadance, and how they affect each other, they don’t actually converse together in this, which is kind of a missed opportunity, but they are endearing together nonetheless, with their love coming from the fact that they see the best elements of each other, without the exchanging of words... it’s actually pretty unique in its execution.

And the comedy here is fucking fantastic every step of the way, Shining Armor has a fuckton of enjoyable and ridiculous jokes, like his outrageous attempts to stop the school’s “generic asshole jock” Buck Withers from scoring in the hoofball game, his ridiculous parade float and his repeated failed attempts to say “Hello...” to Cadance, it’s pretty funny stuff.

Likewise, Cadance’s sass is also shining beautifully here too, because she’s saddled with this exceptional asshole who cannot for the life of him take a hint, she has a lot of hilarious interactions with him, we even get to see her interact with Filly Twilight, and seeing their friendship bloom on top of the one she has with Shining is a fantastic cherry on top.

I also can’t talk about this story without mentioning the friend characters as well, that’s right, Cadance and Shining have actual friends in high school, and it gives their highschool selves a really realistic edge. Gaffer, Poindexter and 8-bit are all really fun characters and they each play the straight man to Shining Armor’s wackiness exceptionally. Conversely, Lemony Gems and Diamond Rose are very off the wall and conniving bitches with good hearts and they make great funny men for Cadance to play off of, this story is really damn great at playing off of the strengths of both of its leads. Even Celly makes an appearance and she has a funny scene as well, we even get to see her fulfill her role as a caring aunt figure to Cadance! Something I never thought I would ever see in this franchise!

While this story has a few niggling nitpicks here and there (like the misunderstanding after the game being a little forced, the aforementioned “no talking” thing and a couple other small details), I still undoubtedly LOVE this story, it’s fucking amazing! And it fulfilled  the potential of its backstory much more than Issue 40 did, if you’re a Shining Armor fan or a Cadance fan, then you’d be a fool to walk away from this one.

#8: Chaos Theory: (Issues 48-50) www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TX4sO… Hmm... I was actually up and down on this one a lot to be honest, out of all the stories on this list, I had a hard time finding a spot for this one... this is the most recent of the stories that I’ve read, so it had the least amount of nostalgia and reverence for me.

But I think I found a good place for it, it's definitely a Top Ten contender at least... but that's as far as it can go. Why? Well, let me tell you!

Chaos Theory begins during an event known as the Cosmic Convergence, due to unknown circumstances, Discord becomes Accord, a being of pure order and harmony who wants to unify Equestria into one. While he starts out as being affable and gentlemanly, he quickly turns to the dark side, using his powers to strip ponies of their individuality in a horrifying fashion.

The idea of Discord becoming his natural antithesis is a very inspired one, and Accord’s gentlemanly persona creates a striking dissonance between himself and the chaos god he used to be. I also love how turning into his natural antithesis brings back Discord’s former evil tendencies, with Discord reverting back from an anti-hero into a straight up anti-villain. And Accord himself is not like a traditional MLP villain at all, there’s no true evil at work, his nefarious machinations are about uniting ponies together and creating his own version of what he thinks is harmony... this gives him a good parallel to Starlight, who has to take on a physical representation of her old life and her old way of thinking. Accord’s aforementioned gentlemanly persona creates a disarming villain who’s really composed, ruthless, disciplined and effective

There is one major problem with this story however, and it’s a pretty damn glaring one in comparison to every other nitpick I mentioned in this list...

This story is not very funny... Not to say that there aren’t jokes, they have them here and there... but it’s not very funny. Once Discord is removed from the story and becomes Accord, the comedy takes a sharp downward spike... it has a few jokes in between that made me laugh (like seeing Accord’s face on Octavia’s body) but it’s nowhere near as funny as the rest of the stories on the list... in fact, when Discord came back, so did the comedy... but it only came like three pages before the story ended... if I was ranking these based on how funny they were, this one would definitely be near the bottom of the pack.

And while I’m criticizing, I’ll say that Discord became Accord a little too easily, I won’t spoil the twist, but for those in the know, it would’ve worked better if more time and anger was directed at Discord before the comet hit, it felt a little rushed for me... this story would also benefit a lot from a fourth chapter, if they used an entire chapter before Discord became Accord and had Accord himself be the twist at the end of the first chapter, then it would have flowed a lot better... it’s still a good twist, it just needed a little more time.

But even though this story isn’t very funny, it does compensate it by trading it for terror and stakes... because this story is TENSE! If I judged these by how intense and thrilling they are, then this would definitely be among the top, because the tension and suspense are ridiculously awesome in this story! Accord isn’t just frighteningly composed, but also one of the most effective villains in the show, his personality and mannerisms forcibly inserts and takes over other ponies with devastating virulence, as he systematically mind controls all of Canterlot and forces Celly and the elements to flee. The trip into Accord’s super sterilized mind by Luna and Twilight was packed with disturbingly clean imagery, and their subsequent fall to Accord’s mind control is a devastating cliffhanger to issue 49.

Also, I’ll give Accord bonus points for being the first villain in the series to not be stopped by the Elements of Harmony... that’s right! The Mane 6 (With Celly filling in for Twilight) use the Elements, and for the first time ever, they DON’T WORK! With Accord’s orderly persona cancelling out the Elements and spreading his consciousness to every pony in Equestria... That’s right! Accord actually beats the Mane 6! The only reason this story has a happy ending at all is because Starlight was able to talk Accord out of it, with an awesomely satisfying and somewhat tragic ending on Accord’s part... that I won’t spoil... but trust me, it’s pretty sad when you find out what he was fighting for all this time.

I do like the part in the story when they reflect on the issues of the comics prior... that was a fun thing for the 50th issue, but this story is pretty short in comparison to its peers, and it’s the most uneventful of the bigger IDW stories, but Chaos Theory is still a fun, frenetic and chilling addition to the MLP universe, which is just as good as a Discord story and a Starlight story.

*Creeeeeeeeeeak...* There it is again! What is that noise? Where is that coming from?"

Um... moving on...

#7: Issues 15 and 16: (The Bookworm Story) www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYGIHn… This is the very last one without a title, I assure you.

Issues 15 and 16 capture the tale of how The Golden Oak Library is infested with a Bookworm, a ravenous tome-eating insect that is ravaging Twilight’s Library and leaving the librarian more distraught than I have ever seen her before... The sad thing is that I’m fucking serious. Determined to get the bug out of her books, Twilight, Rainbow, Rarity and Pinkie venture inside of the books using the spell from Power Ponies to get rid of the bookworm and to restore Twilight’s Library.

The real meat and potatoes of this story are the scenes inside of the books, taking the plot device from Power Ponies and twisting it to the extreme was a really solid move on the writing staff’s part, because this story is filled with imaginative worlds! From an awesome Daring Do adventure, to a romance story, to an unbelievably funny Lord of the Rings parody to a chilling white void! There’s just so many awesome genres and homages packed into this story to make it stand tall and stand fresh among its competitors! And the comedy in each world is squeezed to its purest concentration, with the four ponies on the expedition each having ridiculously funny and memorable jokes.

The Bookworm is also a really interesting antagonist himself, a creature who reads and devours stories because he can’t relate to any of the protagonists of the story, (There are no worms, it reminds me of Shrek 2 to be honest) The Bookworm has a monstrous and imposing design and Twilight’s confrontations with it are pretty fucking spectacular, with the worm self-inserting itself into every story it eats just like that PPG 2016 scandal. (I can’t stop trashing that show lately, I’m such a jerk...)

Meanwhile, the story characters that the Bookworm has consumed are being manifested in real life and are terrorizing the town of Ponyville, with Applejack, Spike and Fluttershy scrambling to pick up the pieces as the characters wreak their own brand of havoc in the real world. I love the rich “Hell on one side, Hell on the other” scenario that is presented to us here, with AJ, Fluttershy and even Daring Do (as a book counterpart, not the real thing) are held captive by an Evil Queen and her army of generic fairy tale villains. I’ll give special props to a certain Disney Princess gag that had me rolling on the floor.

The art is just as imaginative as the rest of the story, with a particularly inventive panel I can think of where Pinkie loses her hoof, (That’s right, Pinkie loses a hoof, and she makes getting maimed to be really funny) and the sheer level of imagination, homage and parody in this story is enough to bring a tear to one’s eyes. I happily recommend this story! Read it just to see Applejack getting pinned down by Daring Do.

#6: Nightmare Rarity: (Issues 5-8) www.youtube.com/watch?v=rA4TTI… Ah, yes... another classic in the MLP franchise! And once again, a massively impactful MLP story has missed the Top 5! Not because of flaws, but because of competition, this one was just outclassed.

Nightmare Rarity is the story of the revenge of Nightmare Moon. Since Luna has been cured of her evil magic in the pilot, The dark energy that makes up Nightmare Moon returns for a new host, she harasses the Mane 6’s dreams for a while, she takes Rarity's body for a ride and sets her sights on the complete annihilation of Ponyville.

The sheer variety of this story is a fantastic impetus to put this story in the Top 10, in the first half of the story alone, we get a variety of dystopic nightmares, the kidnapping of Rarity, a frantic chase by Dash to get to her in time, the re-emergence of Princess Luna, a visually breathtaking journey to the moon, a confrontation with possessed moon animals, and the triumphant defeat of the Mane 6’s personal nightmares... and this is before we meet Nightmare Rarity, and considering that this is the very first time that a member of the Mane 6 herself is the villain, it’s a devastating reveal, and it expertly tears the other Mane 6’s to their cores... and it even removes the Elements as their method of victory... until they realize that they can just do it without Rarity... A bit of an oversight but I’ll allow it. It’s still pretty awesome nonetheless.

And then after, that moment, the Mane 6 lose, get trapped in a dungeon, and then a grand battle for Ponyville begins, the battle itself filled with an awesomely dark color pallet, hilarious fight scenes and some great Luna moments, like the moment where the citizens come together to forgive her and the moment where she personally takes on her old self horn to horn.

And Spike kills it in this story, whether it be freeing the Mane 6, protecting his gift to Rarity, experiencing the absence and subsequent turn to the dark side of his love, and even beating his undying devotion to Rarity and rejecting Nightmare Rarity’s siren song, which to this day, is a landmark step for Spike’s character... of all the comics here, this one does the best job at making Spike awesome and Spike fans will get a lot to enjoy here.

It’s not just Spike that triumphs here, the Mane 6 also each have a fantastic moment where they take down their nightmares and step up to the Nightmare magic is fantastic, with their individual scenes invoking different emotions ranging from heartwarming (Applejack and Rainbow), to triumphant, (Twilight) to tragic, (Spike) to fucking hysterical. (Pinkie and Shy) Bonus points goes to the visuals for having the panels crack and shatter as the illusion starts to come undone, fantastic work, artists! Even Sweetie Belle comes to the forefront at the final chapter and personally stands up for Princess Luna as well as standing against her nightmare sister.

And there’s also these two bumbling servants named Larry and Jerome, I love those guys, they have such a good dynamic together, the mythology of the moon itself is really cool as well... Unfortunately, the story doesn’t really expand upon the Nightmare’s character, Nightmare Rarity isn’t that good a villain, she’s just an overconfident mocking tyrant, nothing special... but she does have a fantastic design, and she does inspire a lot of good moments such as the aforementioned scenes with Sweetie, Luna and Spike.

So yes, I would gleefully recommend Nightmare Rarity.

#5: A Pinkie Pie Story that Pinkie Pie Kinda Sorta Remembers: (Issue 42) www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuU-qZ… This one has the best title, nothing else can compete with this... This title is Pure Pinkie, rambling and all...

A Pinkie Pie Story that Pinkie Pie Kinda...

“Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, OH! Me! Pick me!” screams a bubbly voice as an outstretched hoof literally touches the ceiling.

Oh! Hey, Pinkie! I didn’t notice you there!

“Can I tell this one?! This story is about me! And no one can talk about me better than me! Except maybe Maud... but Maud doesn’t know about my secret basement, my secret attic, my secret bungalow, my secret crawlspace, my secret bunker, my secret tennis court, my scandalous love affair with  and certainly not the secret ingredients of my B.A.C.O.N. sundaes!”

Bacon Sundaes?

“Not bacon sundaes! B.A.C.O.N sundaes! A blackberry, apple, caramel, orange and... Aw... Hee hee! You almost had me there!” she chuckles coyly. “Like I would reveal the “N” to the entire Internet! Whew... that was close!”

So you want to do this one for me, Pinkie!

“Abso-tutely-lutely! A-Money! Let’s get this party started!”

Okay, how can I say no to that sweet face? Take the floor, Pinkie!

“Woo-hoo! Here we go!” (Takes a titanic breath of air until her chest is as large as half the room)

“This story is awesome because I’m gonna give a gift to Rarity but she doesn’t know that I’m giving her a gift, I tell her that I’m giving someone else a gift but I’m actually giving it to Rarity, because come on, it’s this kind of story, the twist is pretty obvious... and along the way we make this story about her favorite filly’s book, the Princess’s New Dress... it’s basically Emperor’s New Clothes but with Ponies but it’s funny because most ponies don’t really wear anything. And we have this super cool adventure where a bunch of funny things happen and I make all of you pony fans laugh because that’s what it says on my business cards!”

“It’s really funny and touching and Rarity loves the time we spent together and it’s a really really reeeeeeeaaaaallly sweet scene and we totally break for milkshakes at the end, and those milkshakes were really good, I’ve gotta let you know! Rarity had a double chocolate, but I like mine with cupcakes inside! Because you’re getting two desserts instead of one! BUT WAIT! Why stop there?! You can put some layer cakes in there and really kick it up a notch! I was thinking about putting them on the menu... but Mr. Cake said that the cupcakes will just get ruined... which is RIDICULOUS! I mean, how can you ruin cupcakes? Cupcakes can never get ruined! It’s just not possible! They will always be good! Mmmm... Cupcake Milkshakes... My mouth is watering just thinking about it... Oh, yeah! I was making a review for AstonLevy! We also tell the story during the time we make the book and Aston thought that it was a really inventive way of telling a story!”

How did you know that?

“I read your notes! I could get into your locked room because I can crawl into any space I can fit my eyelashes through!” she says as she take many adorable blinks.

Uh...

“And we also argue and fight a little bit but it’s all good, we have great chemistry, even though I never took any of those classes in my life. Aston also enjoyed the numerous clever references, sight gags and how well Rarity plays the straight man to my character... Ha ha ha! Aston, you’re so silly, Rarity’s not a man! She’s a pony! Also, he liked that scene where I showed him how loving and devoted I am as a friend, and I appreciate how much you like me too, Aston! And that’s not just him, I love all you Deviants who love me, and all the people that love you, because their love made it possible for you to be around so that you can love me so that I can love you! Oh, who am I kidding, I love everything... except... Sugar-free candy... IT’S A PRODUCT OF EVIL!”

“My story is a really really good one, and the only reason that Aston let me review this story is because he didn’t want to spoil anything for you guys!”

You read my notes, again didn’t you?

“Nah... I just know you that well!”

You’re the best, Pinkie! Truth be told I didn’t want to spoil it, this one is so funny that if I say anything about the jokes, it’ll hurt the story, this simplistic gem has a bunch of amazing moments that you have to see to believe! And it’s the funniest story on the list by a thick margin!

“Definitely read it if you love me! And OH MY GOSH, I just realized something! If nopony really wears clothes, then what the heck is Rarity making dresses for when everypony else just bucks it? Maybe she just needs something to do... and oh my gosh! What if THAT’S why she was so happy to receive my book? What if she’s so bored senseless that she has nothing fun or worthwhile to do with herself?! SORRY, ASTON! RARITY NEEDS ME! I NEED TO THROW A PARTY RIGHT NOW! RARITY NEEDS 200ccs OF CUPCAKES AND CHEESE SPRAY, STAT!” she says as she slips on a nurse’s outfit.

“HANG ON, RARITY! I’M COMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!” She says as she barrels through my back door at Mach 6, leaving glass, dust, and smoldering carpeting in her wake.

"Pinkie! You broke my door! I can't afford to fix this!"

"I'll send a Cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeck!”

“Jesus... She took off like lightning! My fucking floor is on fire...” I say as I gingerly snuff the small flame upon my floor.

I think all you really need to know about this one is that it’s just as crazy, funny and unpredictable as the real Pinkie... And that’s why it’s so awesome!

#4: The Return of Queen Chrysalis: (Issues 1-4) www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7o9od… It’s often been said that a franchise is only as strong as its very first entry... And luckily for us, the first entry (ever) in the MLP IDW stories is still one of the strongest stories in the comics to this very day! So let’s talk about The Return of Queen Chrysalis!

The Return of Queen Chrysalis is like an interquel that never happened in the show, taking place between Chrissy’s Defeat in Canterlot Wedding, and her canonical return in Season 6. Chrysalis making a new kingdom by stealing territory from a race of overtly friendly rodent things... in the most hilarious fashion.

The first chapter consists of the Mane 6 realizing that the ponies of Ponyville have been replaced by Changelings, while saving Ponyville happens rather quickly, Chrysalis reveals that she is in possession of the Cutie Mark Crusaders! With Chrissy holding them hostage at her castle, the Mane 6 set out to rescue the CMC before three days have elapsed.

The story is jam-packed with fantastic moments, set pieces, character interactions and spectacular comedy! The initial moments in the Changeling infested Ponyville were fantastic and funny, with some shockingly intense moments, we actually get to see poor Derpy getting replaced by a Changeling and encased in a pod right before our eyes, and it’s a spectacular and tense moment in the franchise. And after the hilarious battle between the Mane 6 and the Changelings, they’re thrust into a fun adventure to get the Crusaders back.

And it’s filled with funny and awesome moments, like the scene with the giant spiders, the killer bunny rabbits, the moment where Twi and Fluttershy are mistaken for goats, and the fucking hysterical interpretation that IDW chose to represent their fanbase.

And throrugh it all, the Mane 6 shine the entire way through! With each and every one of them represented fantastically and all of them having really strong and memorable moments, Pinkie and Rainbow especially are on top of their game here, and their scenes together offer the story’s best comedic moments... including a very iconic mascot suit!

And let’s not forget about Chrissy herself, she is the true start of the show here! She has a bunch of cool moments too! This is the first story that delves into her hatred and jealousy of Twilight and her plan (unlike the flawed one from Canterlot Wedding) is fantastic! And unlike the one from Season 2, it’s actually kinda scary, and it reflects her heartless nature from Season 6 exceptionally! She also has a lot of funny moments as well, the best ones coming from her interactions with the Cutie Mark Crusaders, as they follow the “Dan Backslide” routine of torturing their heartless captor by annoying the shit out of them. And every moment of Chrissy’s utter dismay is hysterical!

The only flaw with the story is the scenes where the Changelings turn the Mane 6 against each other, I get that the Changelings were impersonating them, so their splitting up is believable, I get that, that’s not the problem. I just don’t like how they realize it shortly after they split into three groups, although Shy’s convincing to Twi was pretty great and did well for her character... I dunno, I just don’t really see the point, they could’ve split them up normally and nothing would’ve changed. But even so, the scenes when they split up were still pretty fucking funny! The second and third chapters have a couple little flaws but they are both solid and funny chapters regardless, even if the “Changelings turn against them scene” didn’t really affect anything.

But the fourth chapter more than makes up for it! As Twi engages in a beautifully drawn and amazingly intense battle with Chrysalis, with stunning tension and one of the best victories that Twilight ever had to this day! The art is vibrant and effective and conveying emotion and the story does have quite a few heartwarming moments, like the apology scene and the scene where the Crusaders get rescued! I really do love The Return of Queen Chrysalis and I would recommend it to everybody!

Only the best are left, let’s move on to the Top 3!

#3: Zen and the Art of Gazebo Repair: (Issues 9 and 10) www.youtube.com/watch?v=4foK5i… Finally, at long last... It may seem like minutes since you've started this list... but for me, I had to take days upon days to get this far. I finally get to talk about the comic that's good enough to be it's own episode of the show! Let's talk about Zen and the Art of Gazebo Repair!

Zen and the Art of Gazebo Repair is a simple tale about Big Macintosh, when the Gazebo at Sweet Apple Acres has a squeaky board, Big Macintosh runs out of nails and has to go out into town and get some more, but along the way, he gets caught up in the Summer Festival and goes on an epic quest to get his nails... to fix a board...

I love how this story makes the most tedious sounding quest amazing... because this story is chock-full of first-class comedy! Big Macintosh has always been a very stoic and eccentric character, and it's very exciting to see him as the star in this story, as Big Mac wanders through the sea of wackiness that is Ponyville, we get a fascinating delve into his mind in ways that no other Big Mac story has ever accomplished to do! While Mac has very little in the way of dialogue, he has an abundance of inner dialogue, and we get to hear exactly what he's thinking and feeling at all times. This works well with his character too! Especially if you take the flashback in Where the Apple Lies into account! Most silent characters think instead of talk, and it's nice to see that Mac has a lot of funny and charming things worth thinking about, as we see him get flustered, impatient, angry, sad... all kinds of emotions! And his facial expressions are also excellent as well!

What gives this story leverage over it's brethren is that the Mane 6 has almost zero involvement in the story, the bulk of their appearances are spent just wandering about in the background and talking about magic bees to nameless extras! The majority of the interactions takes place with the multitude of reliable and likable side characters, it's really nice to see characters like DT, Silver Spoon, Lyra, Octavia and The Cakes get some screentime... and Big Mac plays the straight man to all of the bizarre quirks that all the side characters have. And the thoughts that he has about some of the characters like Trixie are pretty damn funny!

Also the Crusaders get a sideplot about fireworks! And that sideplot is funny too! It was a bit of a dick move for them to steal Octavia's wagon but I'll let it slide, I especially love it when they do that running joke of Sweetie Belle mishearing their all-too-similar-to-other-things-that-they-say-all-the-time codewords and prematurely setting off their loads all over the sky. And the story really scrapes the bottom of the obscure MLP characters barrel, in a good way! Even characters like Photo Finish, Sapphire Shores, Snips, Snails, Luna and even Fleetfoot! For the record, this is the only fucking MLP story besides Newbie Dash where I like Fleetfoot, she gets a crush on Mac and it's a goldmine of misunderstanding and confusion, it ends in a catfight... nuff said! But the best part of the story is its moral of taking the good with the bad, and even though the story has the formula of "Protagonist has a shit day", there are good moments where Big Mac really does enjoy himself, and that's a stunning subversion of that tired formula, giving the story a very human and realistic edge, it's breathtaking in its execution!

Zen and the Art of Gazebo Repair is a funny, wonderful and solid story with great comedy, stellar characterization and impeccable artwork! The fireworks scene is astounding to look at and has the most amazing colors and lighting that I have ever seen! If you just want a laugh, this would be the very first one I'd recommend! Check it out and be amazed!

#2: Siege of The Crystal Empire: (Issues 34-37) www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VxfYu… And now, the runner-up... choosing the runner up of this list was harder than the winner for me, there was no doubt in my mind who the winner of the race was going to be, but picking the next best thing was difficult, this story had to fight against Zen and the Art of Gazebo Repair, Nightmare Rarity and Return of Queen Chrysalis... but in the end, I had to pick Siege of the Crystal Empire... it was a long, hard fought battle... but Sombra claimed the spoils.

Siege of the Crystal Empire is a story about The return of the tyrannical King Sombra. In the beginning of the story, his childhood friend Radiant Hope assembled The FlimFlam Brothers, Iron Will, Lightning Dust and Queen Chrysalis herself in a daring mission to steal the Crystal Heart from the Crystal Empire so that she could restore Sombra's physical form. From there, Sombra makes a plan to restore the Umbrum, a race of ponies made of smoke and shadow to conquer all of Equestria in one fatal swoop.

The fun starts from the very first chapter! As the villains discussed prior launch a hilarious and expertly crafted plan to take the Heart, and seeing the Mane 6 stop them was pretty damn fun, with great jokes, rising tension and utter chaos enveloping the Crystal Faire, with AJ dogpiling the FlimFlam Brothers, Rainbow's showdown with Lightning and Twi's battle with Chrissy, each hitting high notes! And when Sombra joins the fray and the bad guys get their second wind, it ends in a devastating (And also hilarious) defeat for the Mane 6, with the second chapter ending with Sombra turning Celly and Luna to stone, which is an extremely tense ending to the story's first half.

And when the story isn't tense, it has an exceptional atmosphere! The journey to the Umbrum prison is expertly drawn and even Cadance gets to come to the focus of the story and even serving as a catalyst for Radiant Hope's development... which is a plus by me! Because I welcome any development for Cadance! At the climax, when the Umbrum get unleashed upon the world, it leads to a war for the Empire, with the Mane 6 and their allies fighting a desperate battle for Equestria's future, and instead of dominating like they did in Nightmare Rarity, here the good guys start to lose ground and they get backed into a corner, which ends in a really tragic and heartwarming finale!

But the real meat of the story lies in the two true leads of the tale, Radiant Hope and Sombra himself, and here we get to see Sombra have some DEVELOPMENT! At long last! I hate Sombra in the show because he has absolutely zero character development, but in the comics they excel at making him fleshed out, showing Sombra as a frightened, confused and angry monster who questions his existence. Due to the cruel fate of a self-fulfilling prophecy, he has become the monster we know today, and when we see his past and how much he loved and treasured Hope, it leads to a tragic and sympathetic character with real depth and texture, painting Sombra as a wayward, lost being that feels chained to his fate, and has resigned himself to it. But through his interactions with Hope, we really start to see the heart of his character, showing Sombra with a devoted and more loving side, with the scene where Hope falls and the scene where she convinces him that Destiny isn't set are both fantastic, emotional and stunning.

Hope herself is a treat to watch in this story, a devoted, naive and loving character who believed in Sombra, even when he froze the Princesses in stone, even when the facts were staring her in the face, her love and devotion for Sombra never wavered, and giving Sombra a moral compass in this story gently steered him towards the good side, although it takes a while for present Sombra to be even remotely respectful to her... his friendship with her does shine through! But with the lack of respect in mind, the reasons for his initial disdain for her are very well explained, even if you don't take its prequel into account. (This story is also the sequel to FIENDship is Magic #1, which is why I'm not talking about it, I didn't even know about it until after I finished Siege, that's how well this story informs me) And the ending is not only immensely satisfying, but it ends in one of the most heartwrenching and awesome redemption scenes in the entire series! With Sombra choosing to craft his own destiny and banishing the Umbrum by his own hoof! Hell, the only reason I have the Sombra Fan Button on my page is because I love Sombra's portrayal in this story.

But there's even more! Through it all, the Mane 6 are really funny and the jokes hit amazingly well! I'll give special props to the four villains that Hope assembled in the opening, they each have really funny moments as well, and they kill it in this story, especially Chrissy! Everything she does in this story is a goddamn laugh riot! And while I'm praising bad guys, Rabia and the Umbrum were very imposing monsters, with hideous designs, hideous powers and even more hideous machinations, they're an entire race of disgusting liars and schemers and when Hope realizes that there was no hope for Sombra, it takes a devastating toil on her.

Siege of the Crystal Empire is a fantastic ride from start to finish, if anyone was left unsatisfied with Sombra's characterization in The Crystal Empire, then you should give this story a shot, you'll like Sombra a lot more by the end.

#1: Reflections: (Issues 17-20) www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEJ8QR… You all guessed it, it had to be Reflections... I couldn't pick any other story for this coveted top spot, because no other IDW story is as amazing as this one! (Except Deviations, but I'll talk about that one another time) Even though I have a reputation for being a wild card, (if my Star vs. reviews are any indication) I'm not always going to go off the beaten path... but at the same time, I would not call myself someone who follows the masses either, I just do what I think is right and judge the best simply because of what moves me, that being said, let's talk about Reflections!

Reflections is the story of a mirror that leads to another dimension, a mirror similar to the one that Sunset Shimmer went through in Equestria Girls, (It's not the same mirror) this mirror leads to a parallel universe where all the characters are complete opposites from their canonical counterparts... And when Celestia returns from the opposite world, a battered and beaten mess, she sends Twilight and the gang through the portal to save the opposite world's King Sombra from evil versions of Celestia and Luna themselves.

I really enjoy concepts like parallel universes, it's one of the main reasons that The Cutie Re-mark is my favourite MLP season finale... and this parallel world is a really fleshed out and wonderful place, it has its own mythology and has its own funny and colorful interpretations of the characters we love from MLP. The Mane 6's doppelgangers don't show up in this story (Which is fine by me, it's a great subversion of the trope), the bulk of the duplicates come from Celly, Luna and Sombra... but a few other faces make cameos here and there, and let me tell you that the identities of a certain superhero, a particular Alicorn Princess, and a specific pair of court judges will each make you bust a gut. The doppelgangers we do interact with are each really great and fantastic characters in their own right.

The nice King Sombra is a valiant, dedicated and selfless king who cares for the people of his ruined land, and during a chance meeting, he falls in love with our version of Celestia, the two of them have an amazing chemistry together and the scenes we get when we see their relationship grow are incredible, you really believe that the two of them love each other, and it makes the existence of a certain scene even more devastating... but I'll get to that later.

Evil Luna and Evil Celestia are both awesome villains, with Evil Luna being just as expressive and bombastic as the real thing, the Evil Celestia is a cunning, manipulative, mocking and despicable creature that will exploit any nasty trick possible to take both Equestrias for herself, even sucker punching her own sister (The duplicates feel the same pain as their counterparts) to make the real Celestia suffer.

And on the side we have this neat little subplot where Twilight wonders if she should be a pony like Celestia, or a pony like Starswirl the Bearded, with Twilight caught in the middle and wondering which pony she should be like, I like how as a fresh princess, Twilight tries to find her own identity in her new role, and it leaves to two wonderful scenes where she confides with Sombra and the Mane 6.

Speaking of Starswirl... For the first time ever in the franchise, we get a detailed and comprehensive look at the real Starswirl the Bearded in the flesh! And it's awesome! He mostly exists in flashbacks but we get to see a lot of his character, he's a bouncy, energetic and fun-loving pony who provides exceptional comedy! But when he gets serious, he gives vibes of being powerful, wise, empathetic and even badass, serving as both a friend to Celestia as well as a moral compass to her. His personality is a delightful mix of Gandalf, Master Roshi and oddly enough, Pinkie Pie, those who love the lore of the series will get a kick out of seeing him!

But the main draw of the story is Celestia herself. This story gives her character and development than almost seven seasons worth of episodes. (Take of that what you will.) With the story showing off the shattering drawbacks of living an immortal and endless life, as her loss of Luna and emptiness inside the real world leads her to run away from her reality and pursue her romantic relationship with Nice Sombra behind Starswirl's back, Depicting Celestia as having flaws, being vulnerable, feeling lonely and showing off her passion, devotion and melancholy.

But the best part by far is the story's tension. Because the main dimension is linked in life to the other dimension, every blow the Evil Celly feels will be felt by the Real Celly, and as such, it creates massive tension, as the Mane 6 are thrust into a perilous and precarious situation. As the story goes on, and as the mirror shatters, the climax of the story involves the battle rapidly reaching a no-win situation that will end in loss no matter what the Mane 6 do, and it's kinda liberating to see an MLP story where the Mane 6 have no hope of a conventional victory. And then the story ends with a gut-wrenching sacrifice and tragedy, with a shocking and bittersweet finale.

And that's why this story is the winner of the pack, it has a shocking and tragic ending, which gives the story a distinct feeling of melancholy as it approaches the inevitably sorrowful conclusion. The relationship between Celly and Sombra was a loving one, but it was never meant to happen to begin with, and they can't be together without endangering both universes. And the relationship that was doomed from the start finally comes to its natural conclusion and ends in tears, which leads to the most shattering finale in MLP history.

Finally, the Mane 6 themselves are fantastic, each of them making solid jokes and all of them having great moments all the way through, the art is gloriously detailed and the murky and dreary color pallet of the dark Equestria gives off a very sullen and baleful atmosphere, they make this running joke of counting six when Spike is there, and it's pretty funny when he shouts "Seven!" in response of being left out.

Reflections is sad, touching, powerful and has one of the most monumental endings in the franchise! I love this story, it's actually good enough to be a two-part season finale if it really wanted to, and if it was animated, I would watch it multiple times. If you love MLP in any capacity, even the smallest inkling... then you owe it to yourself to track down Reflections and read it, you'll never forgive yourself if you don't!

And that was the MLP rankings list! Tune in next time where I...

*Clomp* *Clomp* "Wha?!"

My heart starts to jump... those sounds are close... Extremely close.

I turn with a start, sweat pouring down my brow as I see a large man before me, his arms, legs and stomach flowing with greasy fat, thick stubble covering his grotesque fleshy jaw... But what really makes me sweat is the shotgun firmly held in his thick meaty hands, the fingers of his rubber gloves squeaking as he grips his gun tight.

"Uh... Sir?" I ask, trying not to set this man off...

"Is there something I can help you wi..." *THWAM!*

And that's as far as I got before the shaft of his shotgun struck me in the center of my forehead... I feel myself falling out of my chair as my consciousness gently fades... The very last thing I see is the man pulling out some sort of walkie-talkie... Then everything went black...

"This is Lawton..." says the man as he surveys my unconscious form... "The sonuvabitch is out..."

"Now the fun begins..."

To be continued...