Written by: Ted Anderson
Art by: Agnes Garbowska
Publisher: IDW
When it comes to the comic side of the franchise, I think My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is hitting an oversaturation point. Pony comics are almost weekly now, and as such, they no longer feel special. This wouldn’t be a problem if all of them were good, but as we’ve seen over the last few months, there are just as many misses as there are hits.
My Little Pony: FIENDship is Magic #3 is one such miss, telling the story of the three Sirens that played the roles of antagonist in Equestria Girls: Rainbow Rocks. As someone who watched Rainbow Rocks, delving into the backstory of Aria, Adagio, and Sonata isn’t exactly high on my to-do list. The movie was bad, and the three villains were wholly forgettable.
But Ponies are paying the bills right now, so here we are.
After draining Trottingham of energy, the three Sirens are ready to strike their biggest fix yet, and they’ve set their eyes on Canterlot. Despite the dangers of being caught and banished, their egos demand bigger audiences to drain of energy from; because at the end of the day, it’s always the ego that plays the downfall to poorly-developed villains.
That isn’t to say that what we get is standard though. The three Sirens are quickly booed off the stage and have to figure out a new way to sway the crowds in their vampirish favor. It’s amusing, and the payoff involves the three Sirens having a musical war with Starswirl the Bearded.
While funny, the premise isn’t a sound one. Starswirl goes, “I can’t beat them with magic” right off the bat, though given how magic works in Equestria, I can’t see that as being true. If Twilight can toss out some Dragonball Z spells, then why can’t Starswirl? Moreover, it’s unclear as to how negatively the Sirens are actually affecting Canterlot. The comic says they are, but it’s hardly shown, so from my eyes, the Sirens are just putting on concerts that Starswirl is rudely interrupting.
On the art front, the comic looks alright, though there’s nothing here that’ll blow you away. For being strange-looking creatures, the Sirens all look good, and as per Ponies, there are always some fun facial expressions to be found. But on the whole, I found the backgrounds to be fairly lifeless, and I certainly didn’t feel the need to reread the comic to appreciate the art like I normally do.
MLP:FiM #3 really comes down to how easily you can suspend your disbelief. In my case, I couldn’t. I laughed at most of the jokes, but the plot-framework for them just doesn’t work. It’s stupid, and it’s not like the Sirens are worthwhile characters to start with.
