The Rec Center #386
Hello! Happy Succession finale weekend! (Or more importantly in my opinion, happy (“happy” lol) Barry finale weekend!!!!!!!!!) This week we have articles on Zelda fashion and, yes, Succession, some (fittingly) fashionable Zelda fanart, and a multifandom list of fluffy fic. — Elizabeth
new stuff
“Drip of the kingdom: meet the Legend of Zelda players turning Link into a genderless style icon” by Lewis Gordon at GQ
“For a game whose open-ended freedom extends to players constructing death-dealing machines shaped like gigantic genitalia, why shouldn’t the joie de vivre extend to their champion’s wardrobe?”
“Do You Know Who Illustrated This Classic Wrinkle in Time Cover?” by Molly Templeton at Tor
A cool and unexpected mystery!
“Succession Will Live Forever in Memes” by Amos Barshad at WIRED
With one final Sunday for a group-viewing experience, a look back at Succession’s meme culture. (And give yourself a treat: watch Demi Adejuyigbe’s rejected theme song lyrics one more time this weekend.)
the funniest thing happening on tumblr rn is people supporting the wga strike and then going yeah we’ll wait for new shows thats fine we’re rereading dracula for the 16th time
— klaudia amenábar (@kaludiasays) May 21, 2023
older stuff
“In Fandom, the Ends Justify the Means” by Gita Jackson at Vice
“There is a toxic culture that exists in many fandoms, where any perceived slight is a war to be fought, and the object of your affection has no flaws.”
tumblr & beyond
Tears of the Kingdom fanart by cadhla182
“headcanons exist in a quantum state”
completely normal way to bring up LOTR in casual conversation.
“tumblr users will try to make any ship problematic”
Zelda: a war crime simulator, apparently?
fanfiction
This week’s theme is fluff! Thank you very much to everyone who sent in a rec. — Elizabeth
“half a mile and we’ll see the shore” by likeshipsonthesea. 2.8K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Check, Please!; Ship: Derek “Nursey” Nurse/William “Dex” Poindexter
Recced by: Cricket
Backstory: Nursey and Dex are a defense pairing on Samwell’s hockey team with a contentious canon backstory. This fic takes place in their junior year, after they’ve both calmed down.
Rec: Bully is a freshman and his semi-outside POV of how much these two young men love each other is just everything to me. His comparison of his parents’ love to Nursey and Dex’s gets me every time.
Content warnings: N/A
“The Courtship of Colin Bridgerton’s Brother” by avocadomoon. 89K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Bridgerton (TV); Ship: Benedict Bridgerton/Penelope Featherington
Recced by: Alana
Backstory: Bridgerton is a fluffy take on Regency romance. In the show, Penelope has long had an unrequited (?) crush on Colin, the third Bridgerton brother. In this fic, Colin has eloped with Marina and second brother Benedict overhears some interesting information about longtime family friend Pen that piques his interest.
Rec: This is such a fix-it fic for how the show treats Penelope! She’s an interesting, sharp, smart, proud person who is worthy of her own story. And I love how the author weaves their mutual interest in art/literature into the story.
Content warnings: N/A
“The Softest Nest” by Takara_Phoenix. 2K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Shadowhunters; Ship: Magnus Bane/Jace Wayland
Recced by: Daray
Backstory: Author’s summary: “From the day Magnus took Jace in, he knew the omega had never gotten to enjoy the gentle, soft sides of being an omega, so Magnus subtly helps out by providing soft, fluffy items.”
Rec: A fluffy, comfy side of omegaverse that is focused on a big pile of cozy! I love cozy things and wings!
Content warnings: N/A
“How to Win a Merthur: a case study in 9 parts” by anamuan. 3K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Merlin (BBC); Ship: Gwen/Morgana
Recced by: charlie
Backstory: Gwen and Morgana being cute as hell, a companion piece to “Coffeeshop Muffins” by skellerbvvt.
Rec: It’s cute, sweet, simple, just them being happy and it’s a wonderful read.
Content warnings: N/A
“Box Your Errors” by Mellowflicker. 42K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: MDZS/The Untamed; Ship: Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian
Recced by: Petirrojo57
Backstory: Contemporary AU that grew out of a Twitter threadfic in which single father Lan Wangji learns the joys of parenting and opening his heart not only to his new son, but to the brother of his college friend, Wei Wuxian.
Rec: This story charms with its insights into the delights and anxieties of both parenting and having an adult relationship. This writer excels in witty phrasing and authentic characterizations.
Content warnings: Prior issues with alcohol abuse
“John Watson and the Curse of the Were-Kitten” by ChrisCalledMeSweetie. 2K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Sherlock (TV); Ship: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson
Recced by: Sasha
Backstory: John investigates the mystery that is his new roommate while trying to understand why the kitten he periodically feeds keeps disappearing.
Rec: Short and sweet. There is a podfic by BrickGrass, perfect for a quick fluff refill when you can’t sleep.
Content warnings: N/A
crazy that the succession finale ended with kendall confessing his love to stewy and immediately being blasted to super hell
— teen vampire, aged 40 (@starswheeled) May 25, 2023
FINAL THOUGHT
Just as a reminder, the End Racism in the OTW protest is still ongoing, and there’s definitely time to join in! We featured it in the newsletter a couple of weeks ago, but for those who missed it, this campaign is putting pressure on the OTW to tackle racism and abuse on AO3, as the OTW promised they would.
You can learn more at the Fandom Against Racism Tumblr account, including suggestions on how to participate and raise awareness. (If you’re not a Tumblr user, they also have a Dreamwidth mirror site.) One of the most popular tactics is to post or edit fanfic titles to include the “End OTW Racism” slogan, linking back to the campaign’s list of demands. — Gav