The Rec Center #356
Hi folks! This week we’ve got articles about conservative moral panics, ~immersive entertainment experiences and LiveJournal, along with some cool OFMD fanart, multifandom Halloween fic recs, and more! — Gav
new stuff
“Same Moral Panic, Different Movie” by Samantha Grasso at Discourse Blog
In the wake of a much-derided conservative scare story about the perils of watching Hocus Pocus 2, Samantha Grasso examines the phenomenon of Christian moral panics over children’s witchcraft media.
“Dance like you’re in Bridgerton, play Squid Game: why are immersive experiences booming?” by Amelia Tait at The Guardian
A look at one of the very commercialized corners of the fandom experience.
“Anatomy of the Mask: A Reading List on Superhero Comics” by Joshua Miller at Longreads
A great collection of pieces on comic characters and creators: “The adventures of superheroes reveal a lot about the people who created them—and the marginalized communities they represent.”
Man, star trek is so good. They will find some goop and spend a whole episode deciding whether or not it can feel
— Vinny Thomas (@vinn_ayy) October 23, 2022
older stuff
“Elizabeth Minkel On Fanfiction, Culture, And Platforms” at The Browser
Around this time last year, Elizabeth did a longish interview about, as the title states, fic, culture, and platforms—and in light of some big ~platform news~ this week, the latter section feels relevant for fans who might be looking to leave Twitter.
tumblr & beyond
Our Flag Means Death fanart by haflacky
Pouring one out for this viral Tumblr vampire post, finally coming to fruition.
Slightly terrified by this breakdown of weird and wonderful Vampire Chronicles lore.
House/Wilson... perhaps THE most problematic ship?
fanfiction
We ran the first half of our spooky and/or autumnal list last week, and here’s the second half! Thanks so much to everyone who sent in a rec. — Elizabeth
“let us pray that hell may not separate us” by postcardmystery. 3.7K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Hannibal; Ship: Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter
Recced by: Sofia
Backstory: Hannibal is technically a procedural, but mostly a gothic slightly surreal show about the titular cannibal serial killer and the overly-empathic investigator hunting him, and their obsessive relationship.
Rec: This fic takes Will’s extreme empathy (in canon, allegedly the reason why he’s so good/bad at dealing with murderers) and explores it through an even more gothic lens, with an ambiguous ghost story setup. Postcardmystery’s writing is gorgeous, and showcases Will’s emotional state in beautiful, eerie prose.
Content warnings: From the fic notes: murder, cannibalism, emotional manipulation, violence, blood, self-harm, mental health issues, suicidal ideation, and sexualised violence.
“Iron, Fire, Mirror-Glass” by PurpleSoot. 140K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Batman—All Media Types; Ship: Gen
Recced by: ChimaeraKitten
Backstory: Everyone knows Bruce Wayne, Batman, the Dark Knight of Gotham. Most people know Dick Grayson as Robin. This is not the one you know. An alternate universe where Bruce Wayne makes a deal with a fey creature he calls Robin to heal him after Bane breaks his back.
Rec: This fic is one of those AUs that comes along once in a blue moon and is just...brilliant. It’s spooky and atmospheric while also being a great meditation on Batman, Robin, and what the dynamic duo are together.
Content warnings: Canon-typical violence, medical trauma
“A Tear in the Vein” by theherocomplex. 67K words (WIP, 4/5 chapters), rated Mature.(
Fandom: 2ha (The Husky and His White Cat Shizun); Ships: Chu Wanning/Taxian-jun, Chu Wanning/Mo Ran
Recced by: Kolleh
Backstory: In an AU in which Chu Wanning believes Mo Ran to be dead, he receives a summons by a powerful cultivator who demands his captivity in exchange for leaving the upper cultivation sects he’s been hounding alone. Filled with self-loathing for his part in Mo Ran’s death, Chu Wanning agrees, and arrives at the strange, labyrinthine palace that houses the mysterious Taxian-jun...
Rec: This is hauntingly atmospheric, surreal horror that uses its unreliable narration to keep you trying to piece together what’s real and solve the many mysteries it deftly weaves together. The strained, warped yearning between the two leads also makes for terrific sexual tension that it delivers on in spades.
Content warnings: Non-con, emotional abuse, body horror, mild non-consensual body modification, implied/referenced self-harm, disordered eating, unreality
“If There’s One Fool For You, Then I Am It” by evol_love. 6.5K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: IT Movies; Ships: Richie Tozier/Eddie Kaspbrak, Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh, Mike Hanlon/Stanley Uris
Recced by: phonecallfromgod
Backstory: From evol_love’s author’s note: RHPS Shadowcast is a long-standing tradition where actors play out the scenes from the movie in front of the projector screen while it plays. People yell things at the movie. It’s an extremely good and vulgar time.
Rec: RHPS is a Halloween favourite tradition of mine and this fic captures so well what it’s like to be on both sides of that experience. evol_love’s ‘casting’ of the loser’s club is spot on (Richie as the audience callout guy is an especially inspired choice) and while Reddie is the ‘lead’ pairing this fic is truly an ensemble piece and there’s a perfect mix of different dynamics to enjoy.
Content warnings: N/A
And we’ve combined the double rec we got for this fic:
“To Call the Darkness Home” by scioscribe. 36K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Justified; Ship: Boyd Crowder/Raylan Givens
Recced by: blossomculp and Sofia
Backstory: sofia writes: Justified is a procedural television show about a US Marshal, Raylan Givens, who goes back to his hometown of Harlan, Kentucky, and is faced with (metaphorical) ghosts of his past—including Boyd Crowder, who was once his friend in the coal mines, and is now a big player in Harlan’s organized crime. Their antagonistic relationship is prime for fanfic, and so is the tradition of southern gothic, classic noir, and hardboiled detective stories the show draws from.
Rec: blossomculp writes: A great creeping horror story that very loosely follows the events of the first season, tense and atmospheric that kept me up after reading.
sofia writes: In this horror AU, Raylan’s metaphorical ghosts are a bit more literal—both him and Boyd are, in their own ways, running from the (real) monsters beneath Harlan. In literalizing the metaphor, scioscribe weaves a dark, compelling story that reimagines the characters’ relationships in a more typical horror context.
Content warnings: Violence, crime, murder, body horror
Buffy and Van Helsing was really out here hunting vampires for NO REASON when they’ve done NOTHING WRONG. Since when is being hot and sexy a crime!
— Meechees of Inisherin ☘️ (@MediumSizeMeech) October 26, 2022
FINAL THOUGHT
Marvel folks: the Marvel Trumps Hate fanworks auction is currently nearing the end of the bidding period—bids close tomorrow (Saturday) evening! This post has all relevant links for creators, featured charities, and more. — Elizabeth