My Little Pony: Ponyville Mysteries #2 Review

The Equestria Bowling Tournament: it’s kind of a big deal


Writer: Christina Rice
Artist: Agnes Garbowska
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Release Date: June 20, 2018

Cover Price: $3.99
Review by: Pauly P

The Equestria Bowling Tournament is in a few days, and the Ponyville team’s ace Walter- complete with goatee, ripped vest, orange sunglasses and PTSD flashbacks is on track to beat the long-standing record held by local legend The Kingpin. When pins start going missing from the alley, the Crusaders must separate and track down what’s happening to the pins. Is it sabotage? Is it Nihilists? Or could it be something more mundane? Let’s see if our sleuths can track it down before the tournament is ruined.


We open up where the last issue left off. Mr. Letrotsky and Walter need help from the Cutie Mark Crusaders to find out why the pins st the alley keep going missing. Walter is on track to beat the strike record by local legend The Kingpin, and the Ponyville team is the favorites to win the whole thing. Walter howls it must be sabotage! Sabotage! Letrotsky suggests Nihilists, but Walter reminds him, there aren’t any in Ponyville. Finding no leads in the Alley, the Crusaders split up get intel on the other local teams. 

All the other teams come out clean and definitely NOT using unicorn magic. When another theft happens in the alley, we meet The Kingpin. He’s a nice old pony, and in fact is happy to see his record get broken. Someone who isn’t happy to see it broken, however, are his grandkids Snips and Snails! 

We get a nice hug and a lesson in unconditional Pony Love before the tournament begins, and as a measure of gratitude of everything K.P (the  Kingpin) has done, they name the alley after him. White Russians all around!

Bits and Pieces:

It’s a clever homage to the Big Lebowski for the older readers, (SABOTAGE! These pins really tie alley together! Nihilists!) plus the visual mashups of Ponies & Lebowski characters. There are more stakes to this issues caper, but the reverse Deus Ex Machina of a character we haven’t met being the culprit comes off a bit forced. Still, the cartoony, colorful art make it an easy read for adults and kids alike.

7.5/10