The Rec Center #155
Hello and happy holidays! IDK about you guys but I’m exhausted and ready to just, like, lie face-down on the floor for a while maybe. But even if you’re rushed off your feet, we’re here for you with another batch of cosy holiday-themed recs, along with some of our fave ~content of the year. Plus, a lot of Spidey stuff because Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is astonishingly good despite the rather unwieldy title. — Gav
new stuff
“Obsessive Fans Are Saving Dead Games From Oblivion” by Mark Hill at Love/Hate
“Inside the fight to keep abandoned digital worlds alive.” When companies discontinue games, fans rebuild them from scratch.
“Why we can’t stop loving stormtroopers” by Gav at The Daily Dot
Gav’s last big article of 2018 is an in-depth look into stormtrooper uniforms (seriously!), interviewing one of the Rogue One costume designers and speaking to a variety of experts about a) what makes stormtrooper armor such an iconic design, and b) the conflict between the Empire’s grim political subtext and the stormtroopers’ IRL role as a harmless fandom brand.
older stuff
In the self-promoting spirit of “journalists on Twitter are sharing what they wrote in 2018 and plugging without shame,” some of our favorite pieces we published in the last year:
Gav:
“The Horny History of Marvel’s Venom” at The Daily Dot
Honestly I’ve forgotten like 90% of the stuff I wrote this year, but I keep looking back to this article and remembering how fun it is? It’s both informative AND entertaining, in my not-so-humble opinion. And still highly relevant because Venom was one of the surprise box office success stories of 2018.
“Millennials Can’t Stop Writing Fanfiction About Coffee Shops” at The Daily Dot
With help from a bunch of coffeeshop AU fans and writers, I looked into the overwhelming popularity of this fanfic subgenre, and what it tells us about fandom and the pop culture landscape in general.
Elizabeth:
“The Online Free Speech Debate Is Raging in Fan Fiction, Too” at The Verge
I’m really grateful that I got to report on ~the AO3 discourse~, because it really helped me understand the position of the OTW within the broader social media and speech conversation. And this entire conversation gave me a sturdy framework to tackle the Tumblr debacle these past few weeks...
“You’re Gonna Love This Franchise” at Fansplaining
Dispatches from the always-ridiculous San Diego Comic-Con. If I had to offer up one thing that summarized my thoughts on the broader relationship between corporate media and fans at this exact moment in history, this is it.
tumblr & beyond
Miles Morales fanart by Meruz
If you love the “found family” trope, check out this beautiful-looking zine! With fanart from nearly 50 artists.
What would Asgardian memes be like?
Cute Thor: Ragnarok/Men in Black crossover fanart.
Luv these fanmade Overwatch magazine covers.
You can now listen to the Spidey Christmas album from Into the Spider-Verse!
More Spidey fanart by Meruz
fanfiction
Winter holiday fic part two! For more recs, check out last week’s list, or the pair of lists we published in December 2016. Thank you to all of our guest reccers! — Elizabeth
“Brothers In Arms” by Poshcat. 6.4K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Ship: Spike/Xander
Recced by: baudown
Backstory: Post-“Chosen,” Xander and Spike run into each other on Christmas Eve. Humor and hotness ensue.
Rec: They’re my OTP, the voices are spot-on, the humor is in character, and...also, hot.
Content warnings: N/A
“Step into Christmas (the admission’s free)” by merle_p. 4.2K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Pride (2014); Ships: Geithin/Jonathan, Steph & Joe, Stepth & Geithin
Recced by: ahbuggrit
Backstory: Not romance-focused, the story is about the found family feels/platonic relationship between Steph and Geithin and Jonathan.
Rec: I’m weak for found family, and it‘s lovely to read about queer solidarity, especially in an era we know to be a bit trying.
Content warnings: N/A
“Mistletoe Ninja” by ohcuetheviolins. 1.2K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Supernatural; Ship: Sam/Dean
Recced by: plainwater
Backstory: Dean has to be pretty sharp to intercept a kiss bandit heading for Sam under the mistletoe.
Rec: This is story is absolutely saturated in fake snow and cheesy Christmas music. Dean’s POV is both amusing and endearing in his fondness and jealousy over Sam. His race to save Sam against all odds is heartbreakingly in-character, even when applied to the cracky premise of saving Sam from a kiss.
Content warnings: Incest
“All Roads Lead Home” by dracogotgame. 15K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Harry Potter; Ship: Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy
Recced by: Nicole
Backstory: After the fallout of Voldemort’s demise, the world is patching itself back together. A lonely Draco is unexpectedly invited home for Christmas by Molly Weasley, who—though still grieving the loss of Fred—can’t bear to see anyone alone for the holiday.
Rec: The Weasley family is so full of joy and pain and anger. It makes for a great dynamic beside Draco’s awkwardness.
Content warnings: N/A
“A Very Hannibal Black Christmas” by HermaiaMoira. 6K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Hannibal; Ships: Everyone/Everyone, Hannibal Lecter/Will Graham
Recced by: Amy of Head Full of Hannibal (who did a radio play version)
Backstory: A season one AU that combines a holiday work party, heavy flirtation, a snow storm, and a “the call is coming from inside the house” murder mystery.
Rec: This fic deftly pokes loving fun at the pretentiousness of the Hannibal TV show, while giving a big nod to the original Black Christmas film.
Content warnings: Violence
FINAL THOUGHT
If you celebrate Christmas, have a wonderful holiday next week! And if you’re lucky enough to have some time off, enjoy it—I, too, am very excited to lie face-down on the floor. <3 — Elizabeth
Have a favorite one-off rec? Please send it our way! We’ll use it in a future list. Other fanworks—comics, vids, zines, etc—are strongly encouraged as well. And if you have any interest in doing an entire rec list, explainer, or ship manifesto, please get in touch! elizabethandgav at gmail dot com.
If you liked this, please share it with your friends! https://thereccenter.substack.com/. And find us on social media: Gav (twitter/tumblr) & Elizabeth (twitter/tumblr)