The Rec Center #18
So last night *I* saw Civil War and sent the following email to Gav:
GAV
GAV I LOVE BLACK PANTHER SO MUCH
I LOVE HIM
WHY WASN'T IT 2.5 HOURS OF ONLY HIM
And Gav DIDN’T EVEN RESPOND, despite literally writing, “I hope u like black panther!!!” to me twenty minutes before my screening began. To be fair, she was almost definitely asleep, resting up in preparation for the epic battle that will be Overinvested Podcast: Civil War (see the final note about their pending ~disagreement). Since I am friends with both Morgan and Gav, I am praying for their souls. (I would tell you if I was #TeamGav or #TeamMorgan, but just like in the film, can anyone ever really win here?)
So yes, unsurprisingly, we’ve got Captain America stuff this week! But we have plenty of other stuff, too. Including our guest reccer, Allyson, who brings us One Direction fic (LARRY STYLINSON!). I am just going to go and patiently wait for everyone to see CA:CW and then draw me some beautiful Black Panther fanart to reblog. — Elizabeth
new stuff
“I completely understand why the Beyhive went after Rachel Roy. I've been there.” by Flourish Klink at Vox
Yes, this is Elizabeth’s podcast partner, and no, it’s not actually about Beyoncé. On internalizing fandom: “I feel about the objects of fandom very much like I feel about myself. I love and value myself. I also find myself endlessly frustrating.”
“App Fan Art” by Rich Ziade at Track Changes
In perhaps an even larger conflict of interest, this is one of Elizabeth’s employers, but the amazing thing about it is she had literally nothing to do with it. On web designers as fans, and redesigning apps and web pages as fanart.
If you haven’t spent much time on Twitter this week, go check out the #whitewashedOUT hashtag ASAP. Organized to protest recent high-profile Hollywood whitewashing of Asian roles (Doctor Strange, Ghost in the Shell, and others), the hashtag generated an incredible conversation about racism and representation.
“How to emotionally prepare yourself for Bucky’s role in Captain America: Civil War” by Gav at The Daily Dot
Bucky doesn’t have a huge amount of screentime in Civil War, so I wrote this article to help everyone ~prepare by delving deep into the intense misery of his backstory. Including but not limited to his childhood with Steve, his time as the Winter Soldier, and his mental state circa Civil War. No spoilers; only emotions. Just LOOK at this Instagram comment from Sebastian Stan, you guys!
old(er) stuff
“My SDCC Diary: Our Fandom Anthropologist Reports Back” by Morgan Leigh Davies at The Toast
Elizabeth recently thought about this piece after someone informed her that Sebastian Stan signed a NINE-FILM DEAL with Marvel. NINE. I can’t.
“The Abridged History of Disney, 2015-2040 AD” by Chris Plante at The Verge
I spend a lot of time writing and talking about ~franchise entertainment~, which is why I find this satire so darkly funny and worryingly plausible. It’s an alternate history of how Disney and Marvel’s stranglehold over pop culture unfolds over the next few decades, and sometimes it already feels like it’s coming true. — Gav
comics!
James Harvey has recolored Frank Miller’s recent work
A lot of comics fans have been very criticial of Frank Miller’s work on comics like The Dark Knight III: The Master Race (yes, that’s the REAL TITLE) because, well... WTF is this. However, artist James Harvey posits that the problem may not be Frank Miller’s original line drawings, but the way they were colored.
Harvey recolored some of the “bad” Miller art to illustrate his point, creating a far more abstract version of things like this DKIII/Wonder Woman cover that was widely derided on Twitter. On the left is Harvey’s recolored version. On the right, a version of the “real” cover.
This has already provoked some dissenting opinions, both due to Frank Miller’s controversial place as an icon in the comics industry, and the fact that Harvey is pretty heavily criticizing the colorist(s) whose work was presumably signed off by Miller himself. Either way, I found this post to be an interesting look at how coloring can drastically change the style and tone of a comic. — Gav
tumblr and beyond
J.J. Abrams joined Lin Manuel Miranda to sing their Star Wars: TFA song during Ham4Ham! IN HUTTESE!!
Are you aware of Channing Tatum’s live Magic Mike show in Vegas? And its ONLINE QUIZ? Well.
Harry Potter and the Quest for the Tackiest Shit in Diagon Alley
fanfiction
Allyson Gross is a soon-to-be-graduate of a tiny liberal arts college in Maine, where she somehow tricked her school into give her academic credit for studying One Direction. You can find her on Twitter at @AllysonGross.
If you’re receiving The Rec Center newsletters and haven’t heard about Larry Stylinson, I'm unsure what Internet you’ve been living on/I’m so, so impressed. But welcome! This pairing, featuring the truly starcrossed love of One Direction boybanders Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson, is iconic (and also probably very real). Whether online or IRL, Larry is truly always in our hearts. — Allyson
“six feet beneath the moon” by starseas. 25K words, Not Rated.
Harry and Louis meet at a going away party on New Year’s Eve, and I cry every time. This is super wistful, super fluffy, and is forever imprinted onto my brain after a dozen monthly rereads #noregrets
“Love is a Rebellious Bird” by 100percentsassy and gloria_andrews. 135K words, rated Explicit.
Louis is the concertmaster at the London Symphony Orchestra, and Harry is the new conductor that Louis has old beef with. ~Drama ensues in this super lovely, classic enemies to friends to lovers, plot-driven fic.
“as he that sleeps here swims” by Acavall. 23K words, rated Mature.
AU in which Louis is the new conductor at the Globe Theater, and Harry is the ghost that’s haunting it. Think “Ghost” with Patrick Swayze, except less sensual pottery and more gay ghost sex.
“things have gotten closer to the sun” by starseas. 49K words, rated Mature.
I have this bookmarked as “TEARS,” if that’s any indication of what you’re in for. Colloquially referred to in 1D fandom as “the solar flare fic,” this is an apocalypse AU in which One Direction reunites at the end of the world. Sometimes I tear up by just thinking about this fic’s last line. It's fine, I'm fine, nothing to see here.
“another hazy may” by deLILAh. 41K words, rated Mature.
Harry’s in the army, Louis works at a bookshop, and they fall in love in 6 weeks. So lovingly written and beautifully narrated, I want to put this fic on a blanket and wrap my body in it forever.
“Always Come Back To You” by whoknows. 29K words, rated Explicit.
I couldn’t end a fic rec without my favorite trope, the fake relationship AU! A ~canonverse fic in which they’re both in One Direction, Louis needs a boyfriend, and Harry takes one for the team. Featuring totally platonic bed sharing, mutual pining, and allllll the sexual tension.
BONUS RANDOM REC FROM GAV
“A Hawk In My Heart” by napricot. 23k words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Elementary; pairing: Joan/Sherlock
Sherlock goes missing, and Joan raises hell to get him back. A wonderful slow-burn romance from Joan’s POV, following the tone of the show very accurately.
FINAL THOUGHT
I expect a lot of you are planning to see Civil War this weekend, so: GODSPEED. I hope you enjoy it!! I imagine we’ll include a lot of Civil War stuff next week. (Personally, I’m excited/trepidacious about recording a podcast ep about it this weekend, because I have A Lot of thoughts but my co-host... hated the movie. HELP!!)
As for everyone who isn’t a huge MCU fan, don’t worry. We’ll try to restrict the Civil War post-mortem to its own separate section, and carry on as normal everywhere else. We’ve got some excellent Supernatural recs in store from artist & fanzine editor Aimee Fleck! — Gav
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