Prodigious Peddler: Sales Record 365
Prodigious Peddler is a Trader out in the Equestrian Wasteland, as he travels he meets various troubles and tribulations, until he's propositioned by a strange mare in a cloak by the name of Sun Beam while trading in town. The two of them travel from place to place, both finding that neither is quite what they seem and they have pasts coming to quickly catch up with them.
A spin-off of the popular Fallout: Equestria fanfiction Tales of a Junk Town Pony Peddler is an Audio Play similar to Doctor Whooves Adventures, and made by the same fan studio, Pony In A Box Productions. The series started in April of 2013 with a one-shot story, Once in a Blue Moon, in which we met the titular character, Prodigious Peddler. Due to a high fan response it was expanded and continued, managing about an episode every two to three weeks. Each episode is named and themed around a Fallout-Era song, though occasionally it stretches those limitations and uses songs from the 70's. The series seems to take place sometime towards the end of the original story. It takes pages from the book of Cowboy Bebop with musical themes and styles changing per episode, with a heavy focus on sugary sweet 60's era jams and a healthy mix of rock.
The series has so far had twelve episodes and is currently ongoing. All episodes can be found on youtube
This series provides examples of:
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Adorkable: Sun Beam is adorably oblivious at times, and seems to show a genuine interest in the workings of the wasteland. It makes it even more horrifying When you find out how she ended up in the wasteland in the first place. - Alternate Universe: While the
Word of God says that all Ponyinabox Audio Plays take place in the same universe, it has also been stated that this particular play takes place in the Fallout: Equestria universe, which is not in the same canon as the "Boxverse" - Alliterative Name: Prodigious Peddler (You have to say the whole thing).
- Apocalyptic Log: They found one in the same stable they find Dreamer. It's by an increasingly Mad Scientist and gives a lot of exposition about Dreamer and the stable.
- Badass Boast: Peddler is prone to these, but a prominent example would be during Light My Fire when he protects Sun Beam:Prodigious Peddler: If you want her you're going to have to go through me, meaning you're going to have to do your worst, and do it at your best.
- Badass Normal: Peddler is an earth pony. In the wasteland this can be a hindrance, but he manages to be badass nonetheless through sheer tropeyness (seriously, he wouldn't be out of place in a Spaghetti Western).
- Blithe Spirit: Sun Beam, bordering on The Pollyanna. Peddler comments on her innocence several times, but she does have a way of maneuvering him into doing what she wants him to.
- Breaking Speech: When Peddler and Sunbeam find a walkie-talkie on a recently deceased mercenary, Rainfall tries one of these on Sunbeam, threatening to: cut off Peddler's legs, split him down the middle examine his heart and keep him alive during the whole process.
- Cliffhanger: In Ponyinabox Tradition the episodes Mr.Sandman and Rhapsody in Blue feature these.
- Combat Pragmatist: Peddler. Full stop.
- Continuity Nod: While Word of God says that this series is not canon with Doctor Whooves Adventures Peddler gets a box of records from a strange lemon-loving pony (in the middle of the desert) who lives in a box.
- Dark and Troubled Past: It is continually hinted at that Peddler has one of these. He traveled with someone before and it's never quite touched on who it was or how they came to (one could assume) die.
- Double-Meaning Title: In Horse with No Name it is assumed that The episode is named after the pony Sun Beam shoots at the end, who's name is never revealed what a lot of people miss in the secondary meaning which is that at the beginning of the episode Peddler runs into a pony who is heavily implied to be the Doctor, a literal horse with no name. The episode opens and closes with Peddler meeting a pony with no name, then watching one die.
- Dream Sequence: We Three is almost entirely this, Peddler falls asleep and dreams about his past, before finding himself in a bar with... himself?
- Dream Walker: Dreamer appears to be one - he pops up in Peddler's nightmares offering cryptic advice.
- Exact Words: Sun Beam's grandfather tells Rainfall he would rather fall from the clouds with his wings tied than join the Enclave research team. Turns out Rainfall can be very literal minded.
- Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: Sunbeam....the floor is black...
- Faux Affably Evil: Rainfall is awfully cheerful when torturing and threatening ponies.
- Foreshadowing: In Mr.Sandman Peddler comments on how dusty it is in the stable they find, he also notes that the floor is black.
- Most of what Dreamer says. Such a pretty bird...
- The strange pony in a box tells Peddler to 'Watch out for the Sun'. He meets Sunbeam in the same episode.
- Fantastic Racism: Taken from the original, but the Enclave is just as superior as ever. The villain Rainfall is somewhat impressed at Peddler for being "one of the smart dirt-ponies".
- I Gave My Word: Peddler's an honest stallion, through and through. A deal with him is a deal.
- Insistent Terminology: It's Prodigious Peddler. Not Peddler, and definitely not Peddles.
- Ironic Echo: At the start of Horse with No Name Sunbeam comments on the strangeness of the song title within the context of their world. About a day later she's forced to shoot a ratter who tries to rob Peddler while they sleep, only to come to the realization that she never found out his name.
- Mood Whiplash: In Light My Fire things go from an awesome victory for Peddler to Peddler confronting Sun Beam about her secrets, ripping her cloak off and finding the burned nubby remains of where her wings used to be as she weeps.
- Obligatory Swearing: It's not post-apocalyptic enough without some verbal colour.
- Only in It for the Money: Peddler, at first.
- Pony Popsicle: The plan for Dreamer's Stable which only worked in his case.
- Public Domain Soundtrack: A lot of the music in the show is 60's era music.
- Road Trip Plot
- Running Gag: "It's Prodigious Peddler!"
- This later turns into a Crowning Moment of Awesome when Rainfall makes that mistake.
- Scavenger World: You pick up stuff After the End.
- Shut Up, Hannibal!: Peddler shuts Rainfall up by shooting the walkie talkie he's speaking out of.
- Shout-Out: There are several references to other FoE stories for those who listen closely. The 'Stable Dweller' is mentioned several times by Peddler and others, and in the most recent episode Peddler offhandedly mentions 'A mare in flank with a bounty on her head'. Readers of FoE sidestories might think of a certain mare with playing cards on her rump.
- Sliding Scale of Robot Intelligence: In Rhapsody in Blue Peddler and Sun Beam run into a tourbot who's still actively tending to the Coltforge Museum. He is smart enough to assist them through the museum, but does not realize the world has ended and that Peddler isn't a filly.
- Soundtrack Dissonance: The series's bread and butter. Listen to Frank Sinatra as Peddler shoots his previous traveling companion turned ghoul in the head or The Chordettes as Sun Beam learns about a Stable where everyone was killed when a mad scientist put ethanol in the vents and lit a match or if that's not your speed, why not Ella Fitzgerald while we hear Peddler's wife screaming horribly during a flashback? Are you having fun yet?
- Talking in Your Sleep: Dreamer's cutie mark is a "zzz" inscription. He's been asleep for over two hundred years now, so of course all his lines are mumbled, not-so-coherent sleep talk.
- Talking Your Way Out: Peddler manages to convince a slaver he's obviously a Very Badass Person in disguise (well, can you tell how badass he is? Of course not, since he's traveling incognito. Logical?) He was speaking very, very calmly, at a gunpoint.
- The Teetotaler: Peddler "doesn't touch the stuff", which is commented upon.
- Titled After the Song: Every episode is titled after the real world song included therein.
- Torture Technician: Rainfall gets... technical in his threats, suggesting this trope.
- Traveling Salesman: Peddler fits the traveling part of this trope. Whether he'll fit it or subvert it is yet to be seen.
- Walking the Earth: Peddler has no fixed abode.
- Wham Episode: In Light my Fire, Peddler and Sun Beam are almost killed numerous times, they discover the corpse of a small family and have to remove them from a kiddie ride in order to use it as a tool of murder, Peddler loses his patience with Sun Beam, finds out she's being hunted by the enclave, blows up a museum and finds out that Sun Beam is a pegasus whose wings were apparently Burned. Off.
