Re: [Official!] Project Horizons Comment Crew Chat thread.

[Sindri]

Hrm. I read the first few chapters of Heroes (you forgot the random meaningless sex btw) and then got bored and diverted by other things. I'd planned to get back around to it eventually since I'd heard it picked up later, but now I'm unsure...

I can haz counterpoint? It has enough readers that there must be something drawing them in.

[Frost]

I wasn't comparing to two directly (though now that you mention it, I see the similarities) I was simply bringing up another story/universe that seems to be quite overrated.

[Sindri]

then got bored and diverted by other things.

^ The story of Silver's life.

I can't help it, the first 3-4 chapters (all I read) are just... boring. Massive piles death, cybernetic augmentation, losing everything she's ever known, changing identities, what was probably supposed to be a romantic encounter, and all I could think was 'meh' with a little bit of 'huh?' on the side. So I stopped reading, and then I was told that yeah the first couple chapters suck but it really picks up after ch5, or ch7, so I put it back on my long list of things to read eventually. And there it has sat for about a year (it's a long list).

So now I suppose I'm looking for a fan of the series to tell me why I shouldn't drop it entirely. And since the people here have the wonderful taste to not only read all of Project Horizons but then meet to discuss it further, I generally trust this forum's taste in literature.

It would also be nice if there was a recommendation of chapter to start on, and maybe summary of what came before that, but I'm generally okay with a slow start as long as the later chapters are good enough to make the whole worth my time. PH is generally considered to really come into its own somewhere between ch 6 and 14, the original FoE was an amusing curiousity instead of a magnificent epic for the first dozen or so chapters, Homestuck Act 1 is widely understood to be shit, the premier couple episodes of season 1 of FiM were slow introductions followed by a cheesy finish... almost every good writer takes time to learn what they're doing with a series, and it's generally not a good idea to skip to the second book of every trilogy you read or whatever.
But if things don't get dramatically better than they were in the beginning, Heroes is definitely not worth my time. And it sounds like nothing's changed by the end of chapter 7.

[Moodyman90]

My enjoyment of Heroes has wane a lot since I started reading it. I can't say I hate it or that I'm not going to read it anymore, but at this point I just want it to be done and over with.

Still, I feel like since I've invested enough time to read up the currently 25 chapters I might as well stick it out with it. And I guess because Mister Mech himself directed me towards it when I asked him for fic suggestions.

[Ketchup]

I almost feel a burden when a new PH chapter is released, to be perfectly honest. I feel relieved and happy after reading them, so it feels worth it afterwards, but not being able to remember and understand all the stuff that went on in the background eats at the experience.

March break will be a good time to re-read and assimilate what I've forgotten, as long as I can get the motivation to read for a few hours every day. Then maybe I'll feel like reading Murky... daunting, that is.

[Sindri]

If you ever find the time to devote to reading FoE: Heroes, read FoE: Murky Number Seven, instead. Seriously just the first chapter or so. I love that fic and it's just really, really different than so many of these other FoE stories, because it's NOT really that epic. It's contained and personal about a hero that's weak and for all the chapters put out so far, he's only killed once.

I've already ranted on all the reasons I love it before, but in addition to all that... it's just refreshing. It's nice to read alongside something like PH.

Yep, MN7's definitely higher on my list even before the latest rant on Heroes. I admit to skepticism as to how long a very weak hero can hold a story without it being a short shoot the shaggy dog story, it grinding into a wangst-fest, or him at least growing into a guile hero, but like I said I usually trust the recommendations of this forum and I've heard a lot of fors and almost no againsts.

(warning: all links are schmuck bait.)

[Sindri]

I almost feel a burden when a new PH chapter is released, to be perfectly honest. I feel relieved and happy after reading them, so it feels worth it afterwards, but not being able to remember and understand all the stuff that went on in the background eats at the experience.

March break will be a good time to re-read and assimilate what I've forgotten, as long as I can get the motivation to read for a few hours every day. Then maybe I'll feel like reading Murky... daunting, that is.

I remember things fairly well (other than little details like the names and placements of the six gem ponies in Goldenblood's inner circle). But I refuse to give a chapter of Project Horizons less than my full attention, or skim any part of it, or just read passively instead of thinking and trying to predict things and figure things out as I read. So that means that to go through every new chapter (and complete the requisite pages of notes/reactions/review?) I need about four hours without interruptions or distractions. And until I get those four hours all together, my brain refuses to stop reminding me that there's a new PH chapter.

I'm busy and read slow... which isn't helped by the fact that I'm actually trying out making an LSP review of it, too, to try it out prior to attempting a PH one XP

...Okay, I'm blanking on LSP.

[Moodyman90]

I thought something was missing in the Murky thread lately.

[Ketchup]

It's been a year since I began reading PH, it's more due to the time between when I read chapters 20-30 and now that I don't remember. I've gotten up to about 15 in re-reads before getting distracted.
I'm usually not bad at this sort of thinking, but I'm absolutely terrible at puzzles. What goes where...

My memory has become rather fragmented in the last few months, with my memory becoming nearly infallible in school but deteriorating when it comes to remembering what I read or anything specific from before last year. Frustrating.

[Frost]

So Swicked, I've been kind of avoiding MN7 since I heard about the whole "weak protagonist" thing, as we've discussed our mutual distaste for Fluttershy. You think I'd enjoy it?

[Moodyman90]

What about the villains swicked?

I think Barb is worth giving the story a try, even if he doesn't show up in the first few chapters.

[Frost]

That might have been someone else, I don't remember reading much of Murky before the squirrels came once more.

Also, I finally got around to watching E12. I'm busy at the moment, but suffice to say, Caesar has given his verdict:

[Ironmonger]

I've read the first two chapters of Murky, but I keep my distance from it. I'm all for a story that makes one feel, but I prefer characters that can kick ass. I'm militaristic and rowdy in nature, weak characters don't really appeal to me.

[CamoBadger]

What about the villains swicked?

I think Barb is worth giving the story a try, even if he doesn't show up in the first few chapters.

Barb is best villain.

[CannonFodder]

That might have been someone else, I don't remember reading much of Murky before the squirrels came once more.

Also, I finally got around to watching E12. I'm busy at the moment, but suffice to say, Caesar has given his verdict:

Just so you know in ancient rome a thumbs down was actually a sign of approval, whereas a thumbs up was a sign of disapproval.

[Sindri]

Just so you know in ancient rome a thumbs down was actually a sign of approval, whereas a thumbs up was a sign of disapproval.

I don't think either was either. There are a lot of sources for the thumb signal determining if a defeated gladiator would live or die, but they don't agree on whether up or down was life and I remember hearing that it was probably made up entirely by later storytellers/historians instead of a thing that really happened. And there's no reference I know of to the signals meaning anything outside of gladiatorial combat back then.

[Frost]

That might have been someone else, I don't remember reading much of Murky before the squirrels came once more.

Also, I finally got around to watching E12. I'm busy at the moment, but suffice to say, Caesar has given his verdict:

Just so you know in ancient rome a thumbs down was actually a sign of approval, whereas a thumbs up was a sign of disapproval.

There's debate

[tylertoon2]

SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION!

[Stringtheory]

Ah, yeah, that one is still on my "to read" list.

...truth be told, I couldn't stand FoE: Heroes.
*rant*

I'm pretty sure the appeal is that Silver/Hired is a dumb as rocks (which by coincidence is her cutie mark...) and it's interesting to read a FO:E story where the protagonist is completely stupid, pretty sure her INT score is 2 (3 with an intelligence chip)
meanwhile Pink Eyes is the wasteland viewed through the innocent naïve eyes of a young filly

[Ironmonger]

The villains are pretty cool, yes, even though they occassionally disappoint me.

Iron: I guess you'd be the type to like Heroes, then. Silver can't really be stopped.

Heroes got on my nerves. Her seemingly "meh" attitude towards everything pisses me off. Plus it was getting boring.

[WovenTales]

Heroes does eventually get better, but honestly, it's fanfic-good. If you just find it dull or somewhat poorly written, I'd say give it another try, but if you dislike it on a more integral level, there's not too much reason to return. It doesn't get that good. The way I see it, since FoE is on par with many published lit and PH is even better, we've been spoiled. Pleasantly so, but there's a reason it's so hard to find enjoyable FoE fics. Most of them are back with the rest of fanfiction.

Regarding MN7, I'd argue that that fic might possibly be better than PH at times. Murky's whining can get annoying in the first chapters, but he does stop that rather quickly. If it's the only thing keeping you from liking the story, stick in there and try to not let it bother you too much. The later (and actually all) chapters are worth it. Just know that it might not be best for squeamish readers. Sixty Minutes in Hell might have done the impossible and be worse than 33.

Anyone else here read Wings? How's his Sights, Sounds, Souls? Worth checking out?

[RoboRed]

Back on the topic of the music game, see if you guys can find a scene for this:
Orbital - Nothing Left pt.1

The opening, I thought "another 'desolation' theme ? How many different ones can we find ?..."

Then, the rest of the music happened.

I'd say "something something battle against robots"

Hmmm... [PH] => The Ultra-Sentinel chase after the Hippocratic Research sequence, the final two minutes being the climax & victory, and the final breakdown being when they finally escape the Metro & return to the surface ?

Ah...I managed to find part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r4jQ6I34cg

@Heroes: Eh, it does get better for a while one she gets to Dise, but then after several chapters it lulls off again. It's starting to pick up again, though. Crazy shit is going down right now.

Still, it's starting to try my patience. I hope he manages to keep things up this time, or I might just drop it.

@MN7: MN7 may be one of THE most soul crushing things I've ever read, and I love it. Granted, Murky's whining does get agitating at times.

Oh yeah, and Barb. A villain you absolutely LOVE to hate. So much justified rage...

[Stringtheory]

Anyone else here read Wings? How's his Sights, Sounds, Souls? Worth checking out?

Don't recall those names of the top of my head, care to provide links?

[O. Hinds]

And I am back, now with a freshly installed hard drive cable (not, as my college's IT department once again incorrectly thought, a new motherboard; I'm wondering if I ought to be glad that they can't make extensive repairs)!

I'm a bit late to this, but Quantum has been being problematic. Since the subject of sexual orientation came up, I'm curious: does anyone else here identify as undefined? (To explain, I basically just decided that the whole subject was so complex and unimportant that applying categories wasn't worth it. I like to think that I'm following the example of Captain Jack Harkness, minus actually being sexually or romantically active. :))

It ties into gender as well as sex

Heterosexual: A person that identifies their gender as their sex and sexually attracted to the opposite gender.
Bisexual: A person that identifies their gender as their sex and sexually attracted to both the male and female genders.
Homosexual: A person that identifies their gender as their sex and sexually attracted to the same gender.
Pansexual: A person that identifies their gender as their sex and sexually attracted to people not based on gender.
Asexual: A person not attracted to people sexually. They can have romantic relationships though. A relationship isn't necessarily sexual.

Gender=/=sex

Gender is what sex you identify as, whereas sex is what you have between your pants. For someone that is transgender and identifies as female, but hasn't gone through the operation completely, their gender is female and their sex is male. For someone that is transgender and identifies as male, but hasn't gone through the operation completely, their gender is male and their sex is female. A individual who's gender is neither male or female or their sex is neither is intersex, or between sexes.

Also it really really sucks to be transgender. Without going to much into it, not all transgender are crazies by the way the moral crusaders are frigging annoying to death, I just call myself straight even though I identify as female am biologically male(well eventually go through all that after I graduate) and I call myself straight even though I like women to avoid the weirdos even though that's not technically accurate. Seriously. . . The amount of filth I get in inboxes from horny dudes on the internet equates to bathroom graffiti. There's more transgender people out there than you think, it's just sometimes the internet can be disturbing.

I can go into this for a long time, but it's better to go through this instead-
1)Are not sexually attracted to anyone?
Yes)Asexual
No)continue to number 2
2)Are you sexually attracted to someone regardless of their gender and sexually attracted to those that fall outside gender norms such as transgender or intersex?
Yes)Pansexual
No)continue to number 3
3)Are you sexually attracted to both defined genders?
Yes)Bisexual
No)Continue to number 4
4)Are you sexually attracted to the individuals of the same gender?
Yes)Homosexual
No)Heterosexual

also re all the other posts here, because my laptop insisting that gnomes had stolen the hard drive has left me behind:
I guess that I'd come closest to pansexual, by those definitions? I think that I still prefer being undefined, though; it seems much less (in my point of view needlessly) complicated.

Also, I'm sorry about the anti-transgender stuff. I don't know any personally (well, until now), but I'm familiar with and baffled by the problem, as I am by many cases of group X hating group Y.

GODDAMN IT I have wanted people to do this since forever. And this is, incidentally, part of how I'd go about starting to make an AI, by the way. So that's cool. Sorry for derail of conversation, I'm just excited. =P

Neat!

This made me think of Project Horizons near the end. Around here I feel obliged to warn that it's not a silly video.

It's a TED talk:

Hey, thanks.

then got bored and diverted by other things.

^ The story of Silver's life.

I can't help it, the first 3-4 chapters (all I read) are just... boring. Massive piles death, cybernetic augmentation, losing everything she's ever known, changing identities, what was probably supposed to be a romantic encounter, and all I could think was 'meh' with a little bit of 'huh?' on the side. So I stopped reading, and then I was told that yeah the first couple chapters suck but it really picks up after ch5, or ch7, so I put it back on my long list of things to read eventually. And there it has sat for about a year (it's a long list).

So now I suppose I'm looking for a fan of the series to tell me why I shouldn't drop it entirely. And since the people here have the wonderful taste to not only read all of Project Horizons but then meet to discuss it further, I generally trust this forum's taste in literature.

It would also be nice if there was a recommendation of chapter to start on, and maybe summary of what came before that, but I'm generally okay with a slow start as long as the later chapters are good enough to make the whole worth my time. PH is generally considered to really come into its own somewhere between ch 6 and 14, the original FoE was an amusing curiousity instead of a magnificent epic for the first dozen or so chapters, Homestuck Act 1 is widely understood to be shit, the premier couple episodes of season 1 of FiM were slow introductions followed by a cheesy finish... almost every good writer takes time to learn what they're doing with a series, and it's generally not a good idea to skip to the second book of every trilogy you read or whatever.
But if things don't get dramatically better than they were in the beginning, Heroes is definitely not worth my time. And it sounds like nothing's changed by the end of chapter 7.

I didn't even get that far into Heroes.

Regarding other possibly-enjoyable FoE stories, these three are all in my FIMFiction favorites, if anyone's interested:
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/35229
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/14747
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/6001
They're not up to the quality of PH or Murky, I'd say, but they seemed to me at least about on par with the original.

[Guest]

@Heroes:

Still need to read MN7; just need to find a time when I'm in the mood to settle in and read something soul-crushing that happens to be at the same time as when I lack a physical book to read. =P

[WovenTales]

Anyone else here read Wings? How's his Sights, Sounds, Souls? Worth checking out?

Don't recall those names of the top of my head, care to provide links?

Neither's a standard fic. Wings is a journal-format that actually looks like a journal (don't be expecting PH or MN7, but I enjoyed it and the novelty is worth at least something), and Sights, Sounds, Souls is somewhere between mixed media and braided stories—as far as I know—with a continuation of the image/journal format of Wings, MP3 logs, and traditional prose each following a separate, but interwoven, plotline. Haven't actually gotten around to reading the latter, though.

[Stringtheory]

Anyone else here read Wings? How's his Sights, Sounds, Souls? Worth checking out?

Don't recall those names of the top of my head, care to provide links?

Neither's a standard fic. Wings is a journal-format that actually looks like a journal (don't be expecting PH or MN7, but I enjoyed it and the novelty is worth at least something), and Sights, Sounds, Souls is somewhere between mixed media and braided stories—as far as I know—with a continuation of the image/journal format of Wings, MP3 logs, and traditional prose each following a separate, but interwoven, plotline. Haven't actually gotten around to reading the latter, though.

right, I remember Wings, average story, but the format was cool, have not heard of Sights, Sounds, and Souls however...

[Valikdu]

*a ton of TVTropes links*

You're insane!

[OneMoreDaySK]

Re: Heroes
I tend to think of her as Blackjack with less int and more end. Though it was really annoying me with the "I'm not your mom" dialogue. And that whole strange flashback-dream backstory.

Re: Wings
That was a fun read, especially since it was using the journal format.

Re: Murky
Yah, its one of the ones I really like. If any of you are willing, please add more trope ideas over on that thread, so eventually we can put a page up for Murk. Right now it exists, but is blank.

[Valikdu]

Meanwhile in Russia...

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