Covers
Issue # 7
I love the A cover for Issue # 7 as we see The Nightmare Forces encroaching on our heroes and you see the different expressions. Rainbow Dash is ready for action, AJ looks inquisitive, Twilight is ready for action, Pinkie is just being Pinkie and poor Flutters is afraid. This cover does a great job of showing all the different emotions of the Mane Six.
Cover B
The B cover is okay as it shows off Nightmare Rarity in armor and her full glory but it's nothing too special.
Issue # 8
Cover A
Yeah, that cover is beyond awesome as we see Luna leading dozens of ponies from Big Mac to the Wonderbolts to Derpy, Doctor Whooves, Vinyl and many more in action to protect Equestira. This cover does a great job of getting you excited for the final entry in this arc as you go into it.
Cover B
The B cover is alright but I feel that's too similar to the B cover if Issue # 7 with Nightmare Rarity standing in front of the moon ready for an attack.
The Plot
We open in Ponyville with Princess Celestia prepping the town for whatever nightmare may be coming their way. And the Crusaders are ready to offer their help and Sweetie wants to know how they can save her big sister. And Scootoo has this line.
Scootaloo: A "Saves Ponyville From Certain Doom" Cutie Mark would be so cool!
Apple Bloom: Not Now Scootaloo... but it would be awesome!
And the Princess tells the littlest of the ponies and just then Nightmare Moon makes her return but it's not Luna. And back on the moon, Nightmare Rarity makes her presence known to the friends of the fashionista.
It's true, your powers defeated me before, little ponies, but what will you do now that I've taken one of you? Without ALL of you, your Elements of Harmony are powerless. Bit of a pickle, isn't it?
And you were doing so good with your evil villain speech and Rainbow Dash is having none of it.
You think your'e so cool and spooky? Well, a storm is comin' for you! A Rainbow storm!
But the Nightmare will not back down.
"A Storm's Coming? Ha! What do you think this is? A Sigh Stallion Film?.... You ponies are dense, aren't you? Remember those Nightmare Forces you all "destroyed" with your little Elements of Harmony when Luna was around? Well, guess what? You didn't do such a super job after all-- they now control your friend...me, I suppose, Rarity is gone! Do I need to make a diagram or something with pictures so you can understand?
Now, that's a wee bit better but not by very much. But the big villain moment is brought down a bit by Pinkie sharing a story about the time Rarity farted in a hot tub at the spa. But there is one little guy that is almost able to get through to Rarity.
Spike: Rarity? It's Spike. You know, your little Spikey-Wikey? We...I... your'e the best. Please come back.
Rarity: Spike...
This almost does the trick but it's not enough and we then see the Nightmare confront Luna and how much of a fool that she was for giving up power but Luna isn't having any of it. Nightmare tries to play a mind game on the Princess of the Night but our main heroines are having none of it and stand by her side. Though Nightmare Rarity seems to brush it off as though, it's nothing and says that it doesn't matter as she'll be taking Ponyville and that no one can stop her. And this is when we get an awesome fight between the heroes and the Nightmare Forces. But it isn't enough as our heroes are defeated and taken prisoner. Twilight Sparkle tells Luna to go back to help the citizens of Ponyville but Luna doesn't want to leave the heroes alone. But Rainbow and AJ tell her to go as Ponyville will not stand a chance without her. And it is after this that Nightmare Rarity tells her forces to take the heroes to the dungeon. The ponies try to find a way to evade escape but it's not of any use. And this is when we get the ponies feeling defeated as they have no idea on how to get out. Meanwhile, our little dragon has to try and prove himself and wants to save his friends. He tries to hold up the bravery for a while but he starts to get worn down. And this is when we go over why Nightmare Moon explains why she chose Rarity.
Shadowfright (Larry): Supreme One, may I ask why you chose this pony in particular? That yellow one seemed like an, um, easier option.
Nightmare Moon/Nightmare Rarity: Oh my dear Larry. Dear simple, unamusing Larry. I picked this pony vessel for a reason– to render the Elements of Harmony powerless!
Jerome: It was her mane, right? That pony Rarity had great hair.
Nightmare Moon/Nightmare Rarity: I chose Rarity specifically. She had, shall we say, self-esteem issues?
Jerome: Don’t we all?
Nightmare Moon/Nightmare Rarity: I needed a being that was… pliable. Rarity was so eager to help. So generous with her gifts, but she had a deep dark secret. I was sure she would cave.
Shadowfright (Larry): She was a bit stronger than we had hoped.
Nightmare Moon/Nightmare Rarity: Well, sometimes a little force is necessary
And this is when Spike overhears that his friends are in the dungeon. And now Spike realizes that he has to find a way to save his friends. And this is when Nightmare Rarity tricks Spike by tricking him into thinking that he can be Rarity's king but Spike isn't having any of it, when the not Rarity tells him to forget the past. But Spike doesn't want to forget the past. But he really snaps outta of it, when he asks the not Rarity, what he thinks of his ruby and she just calls it cute. Spike realizes that he isn't dealing with his Rarity. And that's when we learn that Nightmare can create dreams just as well as dreams. And the Nightmare has just begun. Now, onto the final issue of this arc.
Luna returns to Ponyville downtrodden and feeling defeated. Luna informs the ponies of the capture of others and wallows in self-pity that she will not allow any other ponies to get hurt. Luna lets her older sister know that the Nightmare Forces are on their way and Tia tells Luna that they'll be ready for them. Meanwhile, back in the dungeon where our heroines are being held, they start to lose hope until Twilight realizes that the happiness of their friendship is lighting them up. The Nightmare Forces try to get Spike to work for Nightmare Rarity but he won't back down. And apparently, they need his help because there is a still bit of Rarity left in their queen. This is when Nightmare Rarity reveals that it's time for the nightmare to rule! Spike realizes that he's not the only one because he isn't the only one that loves Rarity. And that his friends will save her. Spike sneaks down into the dungeon to save his friends. And after Pinkie does some wiggling, a key for the prisons falls out and this is when the girls realize that they have to fly back to Ponyville to save Rarity and the towns. But they have to deal with the Nightmare Forces and leave it to Pinkie to save the day by making a friend with the Nightmare Force. Back in Ponyville, we see everyone prepping for the arrival of The Nightmare Forces and when they arrive, we get an epic fight featuring everyone from The Cakes to The Apples to Spitfire to Zecora and much much more. And even the pets get in on the action and take down one of The Nightmare Forces and we see Nightmare Rarity and Luna fight and it seems like Luna is about to lose but everyone shows that they'll still stand by her side even after that they've been through. We get a great moment where Luna is ready to give up but her friends won't let her.
Luna: My bitterness and anger transformed me into Nightmare Moon before. I fear it could happen again. I'ts my burden.
Celestia: It isn't your burden to bear alone. Believe me.
Scootaloo: Like we'd let that happen? Your'e one of us now!
Luna: One of you?
Apple Bloom: Well, sure! You are as much part of Ponyville as Mr. & Mrs. Cake, or Joe or Twist-
Well, you guys get the gist of it from here. And this gives Luna the encouragement to continue on and fight back. But Nightmare Rarity will not back down because she tells Ponyville that they have nothing left but it's right at that moment, where Jerome hits it and our heroes show up and Pinkie has one of the best lines.
Pinkie Pie: Silly scary lady, friendship is stronger than fear will ever be!
And this is when we see Rarity's friends fight back against Nightmare Rarity of their friend. And at first, it doesn't seem to work as Rarity isn't able to fight against it but she doesn't want to go back and with the memories of Rarity, they are able to fight back and free their friend. And the comic ends with Luna flying off and delivering a line that I like and sums up why I like Halloween/Nightmare Night.
Nightmares are nothing but fear that lives inside of you. You've shown me that we ALL have the power to defeat them if you just shine a little light of love on them!
To expand on what on I said up top, I'm someone that gets scared easily but I look at this time of year as a way to face your fears and prove that your stronger than them. And to me that's why I love this holiday so much.
Characters
Main Characters
Rarity/Nightmare Rarity
I do have my issues with how this arc handled Nightmare Moon but the last issue really seemed to get more into the internal struggle that Rarity felt. The arc could've done more with this but for what it's worth, it wasn't bad.
Luna
While I didn't care too much fro how the first half handled Luna, she was handled a bit better as I felt more weight put into her situation here than in issues # 5 - 6. It felt more genuine and real.
Supporting Characters
Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, & Applejack
The girls had a bit more action in this second half. And it felt better here than in the first two issues. While the rest of the arc focused more on Nightmare Rarity and Luna, the second half of the arc didn't slack off with them either.
Spike
Spike really stepped up his game and we really see how much he cares for Miss Rarity and how far that he's willing to go to save his crush.
Villains
Shadowfright (Larry) & Jerome
The Nightmare Forces took a backseat in these issues but that was in large part because of the arrival of Nightmare Rarity. They really seemed to be pushed to the wayside here and while that is a bit disappointing, these issues had a lot going on.
My Thought On These Issues
I think that these two issues are the stronger half of this arc. They still have some glaring problems but everything seems to be better put together here.
My Overall Thoughts
When I first read this arc, I considered it my favorite of the IDW MLP arcs and I don't know if I'd go that far nowadays but I still do enjoy it on some level, I'm more aware of it's problems such as how it seems to contradicts the lore of Nightmare Moon from the show but I still love this arc a lot and it was a pleasure to go back and read it again. Well, this brings our Nightmare Moon celebration to a close.
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