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EnigmaticThief

Doing a lot with a little.
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What's up, my watchers? This is your resident EnigmaticThief, coming to you after having watched the newly-released Equestria Girls feature, "Friendship Games." Overall, my thoughts were positive. I'm glad that what started as corporate-mandated BS is finally showing some competence rather than being a chore to sit through. If you haven't seen the film yourself just yet, please be aware that there will be some spoilers below.

Positives
* I'm glad that they had parallel conflicts for both Twilight and Sunset throughout the film. Like they had done with Rainbow Rocks previously, Sunset Shimmer's regrets about her past mistakes provide her motivation and a direction to put the other protagonists on. Meanwhile, Twilight has to deal with a complex dilemma in that will she either do the morally right thing, or use the opportunity Cinch is giving her to secure her future prospects. Much better than the previous films' plots.
* Speaking of which, I'm glad that the instigator of conflict in this film wasn't some extradimensional whoopdie-doo they conveniently forgot to mention earlier, but rather a normal person with unsympathetic but understandable motivations who is having a negative influence on Twilight.
* While it didn't pop up in any of the previews, I'm glad that there was an academic component to the Friendship Games. Not only did it bring in other background characters and have some funny moments, but more importantly it deviated from what I had expected. From the outset it seemed like there may have been a "shame the nerd" or "fix the nerd" subtext to Twilight's story here, what with all the attention previously focused on the athletic component. Thankfully that did not come to pass.
* Principal Cinch's song tempting Twilight to use her locket device's stored magic was nicely done, with an ample dose of "Be Prepared" for tone.
* Twilight's reaction after doing so was very appropriate and quite emotional.
* I'm glad Cadence and Shining Armor were incorporated into the film well.
* The characters designs have gotten better compared to previous installments, especially in that they're moving away from the uniform "hooker boots" footwear for the main characters.
* The visual call-backs to Ghostbusters were fun.
* Sour Sweet and Sugarcoat had some funny one-liners.
* The climactic stand-off between Sunset Shimmer and Twilight was very nice.
* Minimal Brad, without the reintroduction of a contrived romance subplot.

Negatives
* They really had to try at every opportunity to shove the "Pony Up!" catchprase into the dialogue.
* The writers completely threw out any vestige of continuity for how the portal from Equestria to the EQG-verse works. It can't have been 2-and-a-half years since the original Equestria Girls, and it wouldn't make sense for Pony!Twilight to keep the portal open indefinitely with her MacGyvered solution from Rainbow Rocks.
* The EQG writers still do not understand how to make Pinkie Pie's dialogue funny.
* The rest of the Mane 6, especially Rainbow Dash and Rarity, still feel flanderized compared to their FiM counterparts.
* The "Everybody Wins" conclusion to the Games feels like a cop-out. They could have had a legitimate tie, or ended the movie on on the two teams getting back to the final competition. 80's freeze-frame that shit!
* Even though they built them up in previews and the opening credits, the Shadow Six members like Lemon Zest and Sunny Flare didn't have any time to become developed characters in the film.
* Human!Twilight should actually have parents and such here, so I don't think she can reasonably decide on her own to transfer schools in an afternoon.

So, what did you all think? I'll catch you all later.
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What's up, my watchers? This is your resident EnigmaticThief, coming to you after a week-or-so's post-convention convalescing.

I'm glad to say that things went very well on-the-whole for this year's BronyCon. While :iconoriwhitedeer: and I were initially waitlisted for the Vendor Hall, it turned out to be something of a blessing in disguise as our eventual positioning in the hall was quite advantageous. Lined up against the south wall near the hall's restroom and exit, traffic was heavy and we were able to draw the eyes a variety of customers. Having brought a large amount of merchandise, we were able to fill the table to capacity for an impressive display. The table was a little less deep compared to last year, so we had to skew the vertical gridwalls a bit, but it gave me a small corner to set a drink or protein bar. We were also very luck to have the help of another couple who we are good friends with and were rooming along with us at our now quite familiar hotel. The end result was an engaging display supported by an efficient system of payment and sales documentation, so we made sure our math added up at the end of the day.

As my own product was not as prolific as Ori's, I inevitably had less opportunity to sell my own work, but when it did go to someone it inspired a great feeling in me. In fact, my first sale was of a print of my latest work, "Afternoon Gardening," and it brightened my day to someone recognize the improvements I had tried to make with that piece. The postcard-size prints didn't sell as well as I expected, but next time around I think I'll start them at a lower price point. I also got a couple sketch commissions, and I was glad to see they turned out well in their requesters' eyes. We also had some very fun neighbors in the hall, notably the well-known :iconabbystarling:. We wound up doing a print trade with her, and are currently in the process of framing and hanging those prints and the rest of our swag. Our panel, "Vending for Little Ponies," also went very well, and it was encouraging to see that we had a concrete impact on a number of young artists looking to get their proverbial foot in the door for convention vending. When we had the opportunity to get away, it was a blast visiting with our friends from the DC Bronies and getting to hang out after that stressful period of preparation before the con.

The experience was not all sunshine and rainbows, though. The first issue to crop up was the fact that, while vendors could pick up their badges and info packets relatively early, they did not have the hall open to set up at the same time, as we had assumed. In trying to find a way inside to set up our stuff, we and a small group of other vendors went on an epic quest, guided by a helpful gentleman in Con Ops, that took us up and down escalators, turned around at dead end, and then finally down a service elevator to the Convention Center's loading area. As we lugged our stuff through the hall's loading entrance, we were informed by security that we weren't allowed inside just yet, and eventually wound up back where we started. As I was handling the metal gridwalls, it was a bit of a workout and my arms were rather sore the next day. It seems like it would have made more sense for the start of vendors' badge pickup to coincide with the opening of the hall, as it doesn't make sense to make two trips to and from your hotel Thursday if you can consolidate and bring your merch with you.

The second problem was not something that affected us directly, but was still relevant. Friends known to us had also applied to vend this year in the "Artists' Alley" section of the hall, a section set up with smaller individual table space at a discounted price compared to the standard tables/booths. The trouble, we found, was that the section was too far separated from the rest of the hall that it created a mental gulf between it and the main area. Also not helping the situation was the fact that the lighting was more subdued in the Artists' Alley, making it more difficult for those vendors to effectively display their merch and further separating it from the main area. While we tried to help the likes of :iconcatscratchpaper: and :iconprism-s: via spreading the word about their work via Twitter, we couldn't say for sure if we made much of an impact. Even if they decide to go with a similar model at future BronyCons, they really need to make sure that even if the space of individual AA tables is smaller, other conditions need to be more consistent with the other sections.

All things considered, Ori and I had a good experience at this year's BronyCon. If you attended, or vended, or ran a panel, how was your own experience? What were your favorite moments? I'd love to hear all about them. In any case, time to clean house and get back on the art bandwagon soon.
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Hey there, my watchers. This is your resident EnigmaticThief, coming to you with a reminder that this year's summer BronyCon in Baltimore is only a couple days away! :iconoriwhitedeer: and I have been racing to get our stuff packed up and ready to head up Thursday. Business cards, envelopes, paper for sketch commissions, and of course our prints, buttons, and handicrafts are coming along with us, and it's been a challenge to manage how to get everything organized this time around since we have more product on hand than ever before. I, myself, have devised a new system that consolidates both my prints and originals into my portfolio to make it easier for customers to pick out what they'd like. And outside the portfolio I'll now have postcard-size prints available as a quick reference. Check them out below to see for yourself.

016 by EnigmaticThief

As an added bonus, anyone who donates to the Brony Thank You Fund at their table this year is eligible to get a free refrigerator magnet with their purchase from us! Check out their page for more details. We're gonna have a blast this year, and we look forward to seeing you all there!
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What's up, my watchers? This is your resident EnigmaticThief, coming to you after a long weekend of much fun and, thankfully, much profit for myself and my partner in crime, :iconoriwhitedeer:. We got back from BronyCon earlier this evening, and while we are both tired we feel the experience this year was definitely worth it.

Heading out with prints, plushies, as well as Ori's mother in tow to offer her assistance like last year, we drove up to Baltimore, thankfully evading the heavy traffic that seemed to take place just after we arrived. Checking in to the hotel we had stayed at the year prior, we gathered up our products and displays and headed for the convention center. Thankfully, the registration and badge pick-up process seemed to have been overhauled and streamlined to a great extent, as it was only a short wait for us to get our packet of badges and general con info, and the general admittance line moved at a similarly speedy clip. This was a far cry from the roundabout method used last year, and I must give thanks to the staff for that. The rest of the day way full of set-up and welcoming our room-mates, Chris and Andrew, who arrived much later thanks to said traffic. We were also pleasantly surprised to see many familiar faces on staff and in the halls, like :iconsweetapplehonesty: and :iconryouga1100:, a theme that would run throughout all three con days. We even had :iconcatscratchpaper: directly behind us, which made for some very good company.

Opening day of BronyCon was by far our busiest day in terms of moving merchandise, and I like to think a number of factors contributed. Our prior advertising certainly helped, but our table was at a convenient location, as well, right nearby the tables set up by the vendor hall's concessions stand. Because of this we could be seen by and engage more con-goers at a time compared to being in the middle of a narrow hall. Even so, with the new arrangement of the convention center's spaces this time around we wound up much farther away from the main entrance of the hall, meaning many other vendors had a chance to catch people's eye with their merch before they ever got to us. As part of something we had planned in advance, I stepped away to bring one of mine and one of Ori's originals for one of the convention's guests, Tabitha St. Germain, to autograph. I'm glad I left when I did, though, as I wound up being part of the last group of people to get her signature that day. Unfortunately, it seems all the effort and organization that went into the registration system was pulled from the autograph voucher and signing system of last year. Partly due to a set-up that allowed little room for people to be organized into groups leading up to signings after purchasing their vouchers, and partly due to an understandably high demand for Tabitha in particular, I waited for three hours before finally being able to stand before the voice of Rarity, Luna, Granny Smith, and a number of other colorful characters in MLP:FiM. I was dressed as Photo Finish as part of a collaborative cross-play with Ori, who was Hoity Toity that day, and I was glad to see that she seemed to like both my costume and our artwork. In order to keep things short and sweet I declined to take her picture, but now both Ori and I have originals signed by her, and for me now both "Sun Attack!" and "Moon Attack!" are a truly complete set. While the wait was unreasonable, meeting her and the others who stuck it out that evening in line was certainly interesting. I told her we would love it if she found the time to visit the vendors' hall, but it seems like that wasn't in the cards. After that most of our room and another close friend went out to dinner at the out-of-the-way bar and restaurant we had eaten at on the final evening of last year's convention. To top off the evening, Ori, Chris, Andrew, John, and myself conducted our panel, an informative session on just what it takes to vend at a convention such as BronyCon. There were some technical difficulties, but besides that I'm glad that what we had to say seemed to reach those who attended, as many were eager to question us further about subjects we had covered.

Our second day of vending saw us doing a wider variety of business than the first, but at a slower pace. We started to get in sketch commissions and more transactions through credit cards, but we could tell that people's purse strings were pulled much tighter after the splurging on Day One. This time around Ori and I were Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich, respectively, and although we had planned on it we never did find the right moment to perform the Goof Off at a Rainbow Dash cosplayer. During the day we thankfully had the support of our close friend Sapphire in obtaining foodstuffs in the afternoon that helped to keep us going despite not having much time away from the table. Speaking of friends, there was quite the convergence of them that evening for another panel, organized by :iconriftwingdesigns: and modeled off of Iron Will's assertiveness seminar. While she used it as a guide, I'm glad she built a practical and genuinely helpful seminar off of it, complete with rhyming catchphrases and "goat" assistants. The massive group picture of DC Bronies we took immediately following the panel was a great way to end the evening, and it was great to get in touch with a lot of the people I hadn't seen in the time leading up to the convention due to work and con prep. The final day was relatively mellow, with occasional sketch requests and some sales due to last day price-slashing, and Ori used some time in the morning to get Peter New's autograph on a recent piece featuring Big Macintosh. In the final half hour of the con I picked up a few prints and buttons for myself, including pieces from :iconprincrim:, :iconearthnashes:, :icondarkflame75:, and :iconmythrava:.

In terms of money earned, Ori and I did very well, beating out our profit from last year by a good margin. Once again I'm glad that people were eager enough to commission pieces from me, including a few that I'll be working on in the coming weeks to complete in full color, but sadly I did not move many prints except for intermittent purchases of "Moon Attack!" and "All-Terrain Applejack." I'm still struggling to find a balance between artistic merit and marketability, but hopefully that will have improved by next year's con. I was certainly glad to have seen new and old friends, and hopefully you all made it to and from the con safely. Now is the time to thoroughly rest and reflect on...

Oh wait, I have work tomorrow.
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Good evening, my watchers. This is your resident EnigmaticThief, coming to you with a general announcement in case you hadn't heard just yet. BronyCon is only a few days away, and I'm rather nervoucited at this year's prospects. I'll be vending with :iconoriwhitedeer: at Table #1021 in the Vendor's Hall, as well as collaborating with her on a panel Friday evening, titled "Small Fish, Big Pond: So You Want to Vend at BronyCon." I hope all you creative types have a chance to visit our table, and I hope to do the same for others who are vending in my down-time. I hope this year will be as big a blast as last year, and everyone attending remember to be safe there in the convention itself and in the city!
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