• Story: The Turning of the Screwball - The Strange Case of Button Stitch

    by

    [Normal]

    Author: Warren Hutch
    Description: A few short weeks after Discord has been defeated, strange things begin happening around Ponyville again. What is the connection between this new agent of chaos, and a buttoned down shopkeeper who's so orderly she makes Twilight Sparkle look like Pinkie Pie? Rarity takes it upon herself to find out.

    The Turning of the Screwball - The Strange Case of Button Stitch
    Part I  |  Part II  |  Part III  |  Part IV

    Additional Tags: Suspense, Paranormal, Bizarre, Cartoon Physics, OCD
    Saturday, October 22, 2011 op
    Labels: , , , , , , , , , ,
    Open in app
    Share This! Facebook Share Twitter Share

    43 comments:

    1. BigluluOctober 22, 2011 at 4:02 PM

      I've been waiting for a Screwball story.

      ReplyDelete
    2. CesarOctober 22, 2011 at 4:04 PM

      is this a pony version of dr. jekyll and mr. hyde? i might have to read this...

      ReplyDelete
    3. Aquarian PoetOctober 22, 2011 at 4:04 PM

      I think I'll read this one... the picture convinced me.

      ReplyDelete
    4. smokeydopsOctober 22, 2011 at 4:10 PM

      The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde... I've been waiting for this ever since someone hinted it in the comments here. Will definitely read later...

      but i'm kinda jelly Rarity is a main character. I hope she's done well... i sure do dislike rarity...

      ReplyDelete
    5. AJOctober 22, 2011 at 4:10 PM

      I'll have to read this when I get the chance... Love the picture to death, and it seems to feature one of my favorite fan theories on Screwball (that she's an altered version of a more normal pony.)

      ReplyDelete
    6. Cobalt CometOctober 22, 2011 at 4:14 PM

      Huh, nice picture. Speciifically made for the story too it seems. That's one way to draw in readers. :)

      ReplyDelete
    7. TyranomanOctober 22, 2011 at 4:25 PM

      Lol OCD in the tag's, maybe I can relate to this story...
      Art looks awesome and I do like mysteries, think this ones going to bookmarks for later.

      ReplyDelete
    8. Aquarian PoetOctober 22, 2011 at 4:27 PM

      Wow, this story... was oddly inspiring. Well written and tastefully original. Five stars! I thoroughly enjoyed it!

      ReplyDelete
    9. Crimson_WingOctober 22, 2011 at 4:37 PM

      Maybe want....

      ReplyDelete
    10. MikeOctober 22, 2011 at 4:49 PM

      @Cesar

      ^This was my first thought as well.

      ReplyDelete
    11. AnonymousOctober 22, 2011 at 4:50 PM

      I read it.

      ReplyDelete
    12. UnknownOctober 22, 2011 at 4:57 PM

      Is the title a stretched reference to The Taming of the Shrew? That's what came to mind when I saw it, at least.

      (Also "The Worm Turns", a Mickey Mouse short.)

      ReplyDelete
    13. NyergudsOctober 22, 2011 at 5:11 PM

      @Unknown
      That, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, I'm guessing.

      Anyway, seeing as this is the author who wrote the amazingly beautiful story Windfall, I'm definitely giving this a chance :3

      ReplyDelete
    14. AnonymousOctober 22, 2011 at 5:29 PM

      I'm not usually impressed by fanfic, but this one was quite well-written. The description and, most of all, the dialogue, something that is usually done poorly and OOC in fanfiction, was superb.

      ReplyDelete
    15. Spikely WhiplashOctober 22, 2011 at 5:35 PM

      6-Star! 6-Star! 6-Star!

      ReplyDelete
    16. yet2bedefinedOctober 22, 2011 at 5:37 PM

      Ooh, looks like fun. I'll just convert it to a mobi and save it for later...

      ReplyDelete
    17. Conner CogworkOctober 22, 2011 at 5:47 PM

      You've outdone yourself yet again Mister Hutch. This was a superb read, and the characterization was just amazing. And that's not even getting into the Jitterbug showdown scene. If any of you need music to read that bit to, search Youtube for 'Caravan Palace, Clash'. It won't disappoint.

      Looking forward to any other masterpieces you make in the future!

      ReplyDelete
    18. HexplosionOctober 22, 2011 at 5:48 PM

      This comment has been removed by the author.

      ReplyDelete
    19. HexplosionOctober 22, 2011 at 5:54 PM

      The title is a reference to the story The Turn of the Screw, with is about a woman charged with taking care of two kids while being haunted by a ghost. What makes it interesting is that the ghost may be all in the woman's head. It's never made clear.

      ReplyDelete
    20. Jacky2734October 22, 2011 at 5:59 PM

      How do you get more Hyper organized that Twilight, For Pete sake, she makes a check list to make sure she has what she needs to make a check list, plus she was so obsessed with sending a friendship report that she cracked and caused a town wide riot over an old sock doll.

      ReplyDelete
    21. swickedOctober 22, 2011 at 6:24 PM

      @Jacky2734
      She makes checklists for making checklists, then pulls down half the library's books in her search for a single one, leaving Spike to clean and reorganized everything.
      She's definitely not OCD about everything.

      ReplyDelete
    22. TrippnOctober 22, 2011 at 6:24 PM

      I enjoyed it. To bad we probably won't be seeing screwball in future episodes.

      ReplyDelete
    23. Retired FC1October 22, 2011 at 7:07 PM

      Great story! Characterization is spot-on, and the nonsensical pranks were just a joy to read about. Discord would have been proud of his purple protoge... :)

      ReplyDelete
    24. Joey the JoeyOctober 22, 2011 at 7:16 PM

      Likin' the sound of this. I can't stay home tonight to read ya, but consider yourself bookmarked, mister!

      ReplyDelete
    25. Star PonyOctober 22, 2011 at 7:41 PM

      This looks good and original. Been waiting for a good Screwball story so I'll definitely check this out.

      ReplyDelete
    26. FoxOfWarOctober 22, 2011 at 7:52 PM

      This was a very refreshing, episode-like story. Those are the hardest to pull off, and yet this did.

      5-start from me, definitely.

      ReplyDelete
    27. JoshOctober 23, 2011 at 2:17 AM

      Unexpected, demented, utterly insane and thoroughly enjoyable.

      ReplyDelete
    28. AnonymousOctober 23, 2011 at 4:27 AM

      This was a pretty good fanfic, a nice mix of suspence, humor, seriousness, and even a li'l heart-warming. :)

      Nice li'l "orgin" for Screwball to, and it ties in well with the "Return of Harmony" episodes. The characters also seemed very in-character to. (I especially like how you handled Rarity's character. Some fans get the ideas about her.) I like how you made Button Stitch (AKA Screwball) a sympatheic, and likable character to.

      Very nicely done, I enjoyed it very much, and it's nice to see a unique take on this "Screwball" character.

      ReplyDelete
    29. Dev_NullOctober 23, 2011 at 7:11 AM

      Woot! First Screwball fic. Gonna read right now.

      ReplyDelete
    30. FacelessguruOctober 23, 2011 at 2:27 PM

      good story over all, impressive characterization, well executed 'under-the-radar' humor, nothing too over the top for a pony episode and awesome creep factor on screw ball. 5 star for sure but not quite 6 star material imho

      My only real critique here is the lack of subtlety in part 3 where button pretty much accuses herself of all the wrong doings by explaining all the ways she woke up. I understand that it doesn't really matter to the audience since we knew from the start and she reveals it moments later but it still feels a bit jarring to have the last 2 chapters so quickly reiterated in such an obvious way.

      FIRST: this was intended as an honest critique not a flame
      SECOND: as far as episodic style stories goes, this problem could just be me not coming down to childrens cartoon level very easily
      Finally the only reason i say it's not 6 star is simply comparing it to other 6 stars out there not the quality on its own

      ReplyDelete
    31. PrincessColumbia_oldOctober 24, 2011 at 2:11 AM

      This was REALLY good! I'm on the fence of 5 vs. 6 star, is there 5.5 star ratings?

      Point of advice: DON'T read pars 2 or 3 late at night, ESPECIALLY the scene at Flutteshy's place! Gave me the creeps!

      Loved the sneaky humor and the CONSTANT flow of references throughout to other classic stories, even in the title. Some obscure, some obvious, loved each one.

      Oh, and Pinkie Pie is the BAWS!!!

      ReplyDelete
    32. RanOctober 24, 2011 at 4:31 AM

      I really, really enjoyed this. The author is a fantastic writer and is brilliant at making the story easy to visualise. Also, Screwball ♥

      My only critique would be that nearing the end of the story, the dialogue got a little confusing to read; there seemed to be a lot of new paragraphs for dialogue when to me it seemed like they weren't necessary. That could just be me though, I always get confused with that sort of thing.

      Really enjoyable. I hope the author writes more fics!

      ReplyDelete
    33. Cedric BaleOctober 24, 2011 at 2:09 PM

      This was fantastic. This Screwball is now my headcanon.

      ReplyDelete
    34. Cold in GardezOctober 24, 2011 at 8:55 PM

      Wonderful story. I have to say I think Sweetie Belle was my favorite part of it.

      Love the artwork you got for it, too.

      ReplyDelete
    35. Batty GloomOctober 24, 2011 at 9:17 PM

      This was a fantastic read. I really liked the writing style and I can only hope I can come close to being able to write with such wonderful flourish. I'm going to recommend this story to anyone I can, because it needs more attention.

      ReplyDelete
    36. metapsionicOctober 25, 2011 at 9:07 PM

      Really cool story. And I didn't expect Pinkie Pie to pwn that hard!

      ReplyDelete
    37. MelodiaOctober 27, 2011 at 11:42 AM

      Hehe, Klingon.

      Can't believe I skipped this when it was posted. Happy to have read it.

      ReplyDelete
    38. jayessellOctober 30, 2011 at 12:44 PM

      I could see this as an actual episode.

      Except Twilight would have to be restrained by
      Spike and AppleJack
      during the ScrewBall/Pinkie Pie duel.
      (Where's the music coming from? How can they dance as bipeds? They didn't rehearse!
      Ect.. Ect..)

      ReplyDelete
    39. WierdplatformerNovember 24, 2011 at 3:44 AM

      Wow, this is a perfect fanfic. I mean, it had me cracking up evry three sentences or less. I'm so glad I stayed up to read this.

      ReplyDelete
    40. karimDecember 4, 2011 at 1:32 PM

      Hmmm... I saw the name Screwball in Ancient Blunders (A fanfic about Discord).
      I wonder if this has any connection...

      ReplyDelete
    41. fenrilDecember 11, 2011 at 6:36 PM

      the last page made me think of "The Mask"

      ReplyDelete
    42. Derpy for DerpyDecember 17, 2011 at 6:41 PM

      I simply love this story! Button Stitch turning into our second Beloved crazy-cute pony was awesome... and creepy. XD So worth the read!

      ReplyDelete
    43. AnonymousJanuary 3, 2012 at 1:37 AM

      Great Story, I really enjoyed it :)

      ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)