The Rec Center #209
2020, eh? It might be worth starting the new year with a message that we’ve included periodically over the years, but perhaps not one that our most recent subscribers have seen: we put this out every week, even when the news is pretty bad and/or very bad, because we know that a lot of people use fic when they need a bit of mental space to step back.
So if you’re looking for that, we’ve got it (and if not, well, we’ll still be here in your inbox when you are). This week, alongside articles and some really stunning fanart for Portrait of a Lady on Fire, we’ve got a long list of multi-fandom Yuletide recs—the first of two!—that includes, gloriously, a fic about John Cage’s wholly silent composition 4'33". — Elizabeth
new stuff
“How Canada’s military reacted to seeing Pokemon Go players trespassing on its bases” by Brett Ruskin at CBC News
“Documents obtained by CBC News show the curiosity and confusion shared by Canadian military officials after the 2016 launch of Pokemon Go, which was sending civilians onto Department of Defence property searching for ‘mythical digital creatures.’”
“Are We Really Going to Pretend That Gay Kiss in The Rise of Skywalker Matters?” by K. Austin Collins in Vanity Fair
Look, we’ve all read a million posts about queer representation in Hollywood, but this one skewers the problem very succinctly in the aftermath of the new Star Wars movie. “When Disney does the bare minimum, it isn’t acknowledging you: it’s buying you. It’s buying everyone, everything.”
older stuff
“The Keepers” by The Kitchen Sisters
On New Year’s Day I listened to this compilation of a series the Kitchen Sisters have been working on over the past few years, on various “rogue archivists” and preserving culture as a political act. Definitely a lot of fandomy appeal here, from the content of some of these collections to fandom’s general interest in archiving culture. — Elizabeth
tumblr & beyond
Portrait of a Lady on Fire fanart by CheckPointSSS
Check, Please! creator Ngozi Ukazu did some Knives Out fanart!!
A useful thread about the already-exhausting “release the JJ cut” Star Wars conspiracy, which is basically the fandom version of Q-anon.
Another absolute gem from the dark history of Star Wars canon.
Scenes from the Star Wars holiday special, 2019 edition.
“A Star Trek idea: A comedy sitcom where instead of a Vulcan on a mostly human ship it is a human on a mostly Vulcan ship”
This thread on Arthur Conan Doyle’s brother-in-law’s Holmes/Watson fanfic!!!
fanfiction
Yuletide 2019 recs, part 1! We’ll have another large-ish batch next week. Thank you very much to our guest reccers. <3 — Elizabeth
“The Magicians of Starecross Hall” by thatbroadcast. 34K words, rated Mature
Fandom: Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell; Ship: John Childermass/John Segundus
Recced by: Morgan
Backstory: Set in the aftermath of the novel, this fic is told from the point of view of John Segundus, a secondary character in the book, as he and the ever-mysterious John Childermass set up a school for students of magic.
Rec: This story does a remarkable job of recreating Clarke’s pseudo-Regency prose style and imagining plausible developments in English magic in the wake of the events of the book. The romance between Segundus and Childermass is also handled with great warmth and delicacy, which feels in keeping with the tone of the novel.
Content warnings: N/A
“North of Everywhere” by Dorinda. 8K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Shetland; Ship: Jimmy Perez/Duncan Hunter
Recced by: lookslikeaquentinblakedrawing
Backstory: Shetland is a crime drama set in the Shetland Isles. Jimmy Perez is a DI, a widower, and has a daughter. He also has a complicated relationship with Duncan Hunter, who is actually the biological father of his daughter and eventually comes to live with him.
Rec: This story has absolutely perfect characterisations, especially of Jimmy. I loved his slow realisation of how much he has come to like having Duncan living with him, and how both of their respective natures compliments and mitigates the other. It left me with such a beautiful, warm feeling throughout, like a glass of good whisky.
Content warnings: N/A
“De Plus en Plus” by Plenty_of_Paper. 4.2K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: A Simple Favor (2018); Ship: Emily Nelson/Stephanie Smothers
Recced by: Phoebe
Backstory: A Simple Favor (can watch on Hulu atm) is a bisexual murder-mystery rom-com featuring moms. Stephanie is the mommy vlogger turned sleuth who is drawn in by Emily’s sexy-mean-danger-glam vibes. You will need to watch the movie to enjoy this fic, I think. (btw no LGBT characters die!)
Rec: We get a fun, plausibly canon, mean/murdery view of Emily’s perspective of the relationship. Somehow this fic makes the disappointing canon ending less disappointing without changing it. Also this is a Yuletide gift from this year!
Content warnings: Canon includes moderate violence, consensual adult sibling incest, infidelity, implied alcoholism, and child neglect
“Commence!” by woodironbone. 6K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Russian Doll; Ship: gen
Recced by: Allegra
Backstory: Russian Doll is a Netflix show, currently with 1 season, that starred Natasha Lyonne as Nadia, who dies over and over again on her time-looped 36th birthday as she comes to terms with her past. Alan is the only other character looping with her, and their connection is what eventually breaks them free of the loop together.
Rec: I loved this creative look at what might happen after the fairly ambiguous ending of Russian Doll’s first season. It includes some wonderful worldbuilding, expanding on the themes of the show, plus pitch-perfect Nadia dialogue and great Nadia & Alan friendship bonding as they try to puzzle out just exactly what they went through.
Content warnings: N/A
“Try, Die Again” by Croik. 17K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Ready or Not (2019 movie); Ship: Daniel Le Domas/Grace Le Domas
Recced by: Gav
Backstory: Ready or Not is a horror/comedy movie about a woman who marries into a wealthy family, only to learn that they’re murderous cultists who force her to play a deadly game of hide & seek on her wedding night. Grace is the protagonist; Daniel is her new brother-in-law.
Rec: An INSPIRED choice of fandom for a time-loop fic. This story sees Grace live her wedding night over and over again, trying to break the curse with help from Daniel... who she winds up realizing is a much better match than her new husband. Very fun and written in the style of the movie!
Content warnings: N/A
“History (Professor), Huh?” by Florahart. 8.2K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Red, White and Royal Blue; Ship: Alex/Henry
Recced by: Roz
Backstory: What if Alex and Henry were professors at Hogwarts? Oh, and Henry is still a Prince?
Rec: It’s a wonderful look at the dynamic between Alex and Henry with only a few differences.
Content warnings: N/A
“Let’s Do the Same as They” by halotolerant. 6.5K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Singin’ in the Rain/Captain America (movies); Ships: Cosmo Brown/Don Lockwood/Kathy Selden, James “Bucky” Barnes/Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers
Recced by: Gav
Backstory: Cosmo, Don and Kathy are the protagonists of Singin’ in the Rain, a satirical musical comedy about Old Hollywood. If you don’t know Captain America, I can’t help ya.
Rec: SUCH a clever and appropriate crossover idea here. Cosmo, Don and Kathy visit the troops as USO performers during WWII, and give Steve Rogers a glimpse of what life could be like in a three-way relationship. Delightfully fun dialogue in this one.
Content warnings: N/A
“John Cage Collaborates with the Archive’s Terms of Service” by republic. 0 words, rated Gen.
Fandom: 4'33" - John Cage; Ship: gen
Recced by: Rachel
Backstory: 4'33" is a piece of music that is entirely silent, taking minimalism to its extreme conclusion.
Rec: This work takes a similar approach to transformative fiction and is a delightful piece of meta-commentary.
Content warnings: N/A
FINAL THOUGHT
Happy New Year! Don’t watch the new Dracula adaptation on Netflix! Okay bye! — Gav
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.
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