My Little Pony: Friends Forever #9 Review

Friends Forever is back with a strange but entertaining team-up. Does Granny Smith and the Flim Flam Brothers deliver a solid tale? Let’s find out!

Here’s the official description from IDW:

Granny visits an apple convention and is dismayed to see the Flim Flam brothers are up to their old tricks. Only the two are no longer working together… something has divided the brothers! It will be up to Granny to mend hurt feelings. But will she want to?

Granny Smith is usually a funny character to have around. This is one of the few stories however where she’s actually a primary focus, so that could be an either clever thing, or a very annoying one. The Flim Flam Brothers in just 2 episodes of the show (both which are referenced in the comic) have proven to be extremely entertaining antagonists. It’s always either touching or jarring when a writer gives villainous characters emotion, so how does that fare here? It definitely works!

Christina Rice is a brand new writer to the MLP comics, but she has easily proven she can write a story that’s up there with the best of them. First off the setting “Apple-con” is a very cool parody of Comic-Con and related conventions. (There’s a great splash page of the attendants line where you’ll spend at least 5 minutes picking out various ponies.) The Flim Flam Brothers are given a bit of humility, which is an interesting change of pace. The dialogue is quite good. At any point I was expecting it to devolve into cheesy villain-redemption, but it never went there. Granny Smith is also written nicely, showing great compassion and reminding the reader how important family is. Even the other characters who aren’t the primary focus, (Applejack, Big Mac, Apple Bloom) are all written like their TV counterparts. I hope Christina will be offered another chance to write a Pony comic.

Tony Fleecs does the art, and it’s very nice to look at. From the bright opening page you know you’re in for a treat. The main cover by Amy Mebberson is definitely solid, portraying what’s within in humorous fashion. The subscription variant by Fleecs is good, Granny Smith fans will like her serious look.

Overall, one of the best Friends Forever issues yet. There’s virtually nothing negative to say about it; it’s paced nicely and has a great ending. The Flim Flam Brothers may be devious, but somehow the writer managed to give them some humility without comprising their character. We have another MLP winner!