Love Is Magic
Yup. That's right everyone. I bought it. I've seen maybe one or two episodes of the show, and I have to say that it's far better than it has any right being. But it's really good. But mainly I bought this as a late birthday present for a friend of mine that I have a huge crush on. I have to say, the most amazing thing about this issue was that, despite having been romantically rejected only two days prior to this actually coming in, it wasn't depressing in the least for me. This girl I like is basically Pinkie Pie personified, and yet none of Pinkie's antics put me in a sour longing mood.
The artwork is really nice. There was something to the coloring in the covers that seemed a little off, but the interiors are rich and vibrant, abound with eye-popping colors and lots of background details. I will say this artist is likely not used to doing sequential artwork, because there's definitely a bit of an overuse of similar views and closeups. Plus the panel layouts make things feel a tad extra claustrophobic; but overall the action is fun and the facial expressions are absolutely excellent.
The plot jumps in a little fast, it doesn't quite take enough time to let you get used to the characters or the setting, though it spotlights each main character's personalities in a great balance to let you get a feel for everypony by the end. There's also an interesting sense of mystery and a surprisingly epic sense of scale to the source of antagonism in the story. The only flaw is the way it refers to past events of the show, it left me feeling a little excluded from the party.
Above all else, this is extremely entertaining. The comedy frequently nails it, with humor that is accessible to a wide range of demographics, this is neither a 'kiddie' comic, nor a 'girly' comic. This is one of the few comics I've ever seen that properly pulls off being an 'everyone' comic. Pinkie Pie, especially, to me at least was an utter delight, completely random and definitely bordering on an almost sociopathic detachment from normal sanity and rational thought. I mean that in the nicest and most hilarious way possible, she's so unexpected and loopy and surprisingly effective that it's just adorable.
In Conclusion: 4/5
The main flaws of this comic are essentially ones relating to the medium. MLP:FIM isn't used to being a comic, but what it is, is damn good alone. Fans of the show could probably give this an even higher score, because the other problems I encountered were simply nitpicks coming from someone pretty new to the characters. Don't let..... everything about what this appears to be throw you off; this is something anyone can enjoy, from the girliest girl to the manliest man; and everypony in between.
