>>42517568
>they just all got back home quickly aside from ajshy
This was surprising to me, yeah (in an amusing way). We cut to Twilight being back in the library, and I think "oh, it's a flashback or something", but no, they're all actually back home within a day.
>And I really liked the interesting lore on the locations they got sent to.
Absolutely, the deeper look into the tribes/tribal history is really nice. The subtle racism/tribalism here and there is a bit jarring ("no-earth-pony Sunday" at the spa!?) but it adds to the impression of a world where tribes are more culturally significant than usual.
Oh, and something else that's interesting is how Pinkie was "considered" by the Elements to be a pegasus, and Fluttershy and earth pony, which actually aligns with Lauren Faust's original concepts.
>it made me feel intentionally unsettled and anxious and it built a lot of tension
Is this not the point? We're still only 1/3 into the fic, and it's not like Rainbow has a lot to do other than fly around worrying (as she says herself). I think the influence of the Malices was on AJ and Flutters specifically as they got closer and closer to the valley, and Rainbow is just upset and lashing out because she has unresolved feelings towards Flutters, and losing her upset the status quo of her life. AJ *does* note that Rainbow doesn't really bother thinking too hard about stuff until it becomes a pressing issue, after all. We can't say too much about Rarity or Pinkie, and Twilight's bitterness is shown to be mainly due to the Princesses' inaction, which I don't think conflicts with canon.
>I think political blockages is a good way of doing that but unfortunately a lot of it comes off as weak
To me, it seemed more like they (i.e. Celestia) were making excuses to get Twilight to go away. Afterwards, Luna states that Twilight won't be satisfied and will eventually come back, and Celestia is all to happy to continue pushing things off. I don't think this Celestia is OOC (or at least the author doesn't intend it), so she probably has some plan to protect whatever hidden past exists, or at least to reveal it in a way that better suits her.
>The polarized opinions are interesting as well
Yeah, it was nice how they disagreed without fully veering into Luna Cypher-level angst or risking NMM round 2.
>Also I was really hoping for AJxShy
Same here; the author is convincing me in real time that it may be the best AJ M6 ship. Their relationship seems to be developing along the lines of OTEM, with AJ being the "protector" and "leader" for the most part. Ideally, we get a Fluttershy who develops conflicting feelings for both AJ and Rainbow while on the road, and a Rainbow who realises her own feelings for Fluttershy in her absence (maybe even encouraged by Flutters' parents), and then the happy return to Ponyville is complicated when Fluttershy suddenly can't reciprocate Rainbow's newfound feelings. Agh, I'm starting to feel like a fujoshi!