@soundtea  
I disagree with the FF#8. Perhaps a better example is the Rarity Micro and Big Mac’s arc. Hell, even if I hate the Characterization of Shining in Neigh Anything (and the fact they totally went full Looney Tunes in the humor to the point of dropping ACME products), I admit it had a solid and consistant story.  
FF#8… Was bad attempts at humor, a Story carried only by stupidity, Rarity acting WAY OOC, and an ending that was just a slap to the face of the readers.

@soundtea  
I think that for the most part, it should be the latter.
 
Seeing her reputation just falling apart from the fanbase since the Reflections arc makes me wonder if she is really suffering though a writer’s block from executive pressure.
 
Back then, many of us were praising her for her “superior writing” for the comics back when it was first released.
 
Flash-forward to… now, it’s no longer always true.
 
Personally, even though that I stopped collecting the comics months ago, the only way to bounce back into their former glory is both quality control and true competence from either Katie or some of its writers.
 
I’m not surprised that this arc is somewhat underwhelming from a long string of comic disappointments.

Sales figures can’t accurately communicate its quality, but I’d imagine it could say… Something; I don’t care. XD

I agree-more comedy, less doomed romance and environmental awareness. Simple is better; Cook’s best story revolved around Big Mac looking for a box of nails, after all.

@kircher  
I still like Price’s art, although its really his art he’s fully drawn himself like from cons.
 
Cook’s main problem is she’s doing her humor writing style for these semi-serious arcs. While it may work for a FF (the Rarity/AJ one) or a light hearted thing. It just falls flat on its face when you apply it to a serious story. She seriously needs to go back to comedy stories, or just take a break.

@soundtea  
I still enjoy the comics, mainly because I like Andy Price’s art, but it has really shifted away from thinking of the franchise into both him and Cook doing what they want without caring about the fanbase. This latest arc with the jerky deer and the continuing portrayal of Luna as an Marie Antoinette-type clueless royal snot have turned me off a lot. On the latter point, it would help if Luna had any personality or character development in the cartoon. With stuff like the deer and the flawed Mirror Universe arc, it does seem like they are thumbing their nose at the fans. “Whatever, whatever, we do what we want!”
 
I still have hope, but not as excited for them as I was in 2013.

@cheezedoodle  
Generally is a stretch. At the very least, there’s a very noticeable schism within the fanbase between those who haven’t given up on the comics and those already have.

@cheezedoodle  
That’s highly debatable.
 
And love them or hate them, there’s been a clear drop in quality overall. Quite a lot of us want the comics to go back to the 2013 days when we all looked forward to each release. Now it’s meh at best.

@soundtea  
They’re still generally well-liked by the fandom.

@kircher  
Except this was way back in the Big Mac arc, when the comics were still generally well liked by the fandom. Hell this arc was one of the best.

Ha, Andy knows the fandom so well.

Fleetfoot decides to become a writer for the show.