The Rec Center #173
Hi folks! This week we have fanfic recs from small fandoms (as a kind of palate-cleanser during Avengers Weekend), *two* fandom-related articles from Vox (so sue us, they had a good week!), some gorgeous Star Wars eyeshadow, a hilarious Game of Thrones supercut, and more. — Gav
new stuff
“Where can a teen get a poster in 2019?” by Kaitlyn Tiffany at Vox
“Posters are harder to come by in a time with hardly any record stores or malls or print magazines, but teenagers—and teenagers-at-heart—still need a way to turn their rooms into shrines.”
“A code of conduct for spoilers” by Todd VanDerWerff at Vox
An explanation of how franchises like Avengers: Endgame and Game of Thrones went totally overboard with their spoiler-avoidance strategies.
“Undercover: female football fans in Iran” by Forough Alaei at The Guardian
“For nearly 40 years, Iranian women have been banned from watching stadium football matches.” This gorgeous photo essay follows Zeinab, who disguises herself as a man to see matches.
older stuff
“Where the stars of Harry Potter’s fan-generated golden age are today” by Petrana Radulovic at Polygon
Revisiting fanworks like “A Very Potter Musical,” Potter Puppet Pals, and “The Shoebox Project” more than a decade on.
tumblr & beyond
Everyone in Game of Thrones, a show about zombies, is sure to be safe in... THE CRYPT.
“Imagine if people wrote all their Les Mis modern aus in the style of Victor Hugo”
Ship dynamics.
“i feel like tumblr would expose super heroes secret identities real fast with all its crazy ass jokes”
Bringing back an MCU fanvid classic: Doctor Strange at the water park.
fanfiction
If you love giant franchises, THIS IS YOUR MOMENT. (To be fair, much of pop culture is perpetually your moment, but still.) We put out a call for fic about “smaller” source material and you all delivered. Thank you so much to our guest reccers. — Elizabeth
“when the trees bow down their heads” by resistate. 5.5K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Dragaera - Steven Brust; Ship: Cawti/Kiera the Thief
Recced by: Frecklebombfic
Backstory: A retired assassin and thief, both connected to the same criminal organisation, with differing ideas about what courtship means, are spending more time together.
Rec: The soft, awkward courtship and gulf in communication styles are just delightful. The main character’s self-conscious way of addressing the reader directly is endearing.
Content warning: Allusions to organised crime setting
“Haunted Doll Watch: Magic Earring Ken Doll Edition” by bendingsignpost. 2K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: My Brother My Brother and Me (Podcast); Ship: Gen
Recced by: Gav
Backstory: MBMBaM is a comedy advice show hosted by three brothers.
Rec: Perfectly capturing the goofy tone of the podcast, this fic shows the McElroy brothers giving advice to someone who owns a haunted gay doll.
Content warnings: N/A
“When The Reckoning Arrives” by AetherAria. 23K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Second Citadel (The Penumbra Podcast); Ship: Lord Arum/Sir Damien/Rilla
Recced by: anon
Backstory: A small human kingdom faces off against a powerful society of monsters. But a human knight and an herbalist, engaged to each other, both catch feelings for an enigmatic monster—without the other knowing.
Rec: Really has the goofy/dramatic tone of the podcast down, with great characterization. If you’re good with an OT3 pairing where one of the love interests is a magical lizard monster, this fic is for you!
Content warnings: N/A
“The Account Book” by Ankaret. 18K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith; Ship: Simon Cotton/Cassandra Mortmain
Recced by: Eccentric Hat
Backstory: A post-canon, World-War-II-era sequel to the novel.
Rec: This story does deliberate, beautiful work to explore how much growing up and learning would be necessary for the main characters to end up together. And the narrative voice is flawless.
Content warnings: N/A
“The Rock and the River” by Pi (Rhea). 17K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Spirited Away; Ship: Chihiro/Haku
Recced by: Gav
Backstory: Chihiro is the little girl protagonist of Spiritied Away; Haku is the water spirit she meets in the movie. This is a futurefic taking place when Chihiro is an adult in college.
Rec: A thoughtful and imaginative depiction of how Chihiro might grow up after her experiences in Spirited Away, learning to live with one foot in the spirit world.
Content warnings: N/A
FINAL THOUGHT
I know it’s been a difficult few weeks for The Magicians fandom—I haven’t seen the show (Gav hasn’t either) but I just wanted to express my sympathies as I watch all the responses come in. I also wanted to highlight the “Thank Q” fanworks auction—all proceeds are going to the Trevor Project. Looks like signups run through next weekend, so if you’re looking for a way to channel fandom energy, definitely check it out soon. — 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)