October 20, 2023

The Rec Center #407

Hello everyone! This week we have articles on Doctor Who and the history of superheroes and spandex, Our Flag Means Death fanart, and a multifandom grab-bag of fic recs. — Elizabeth

new stuff

“Doctor Who’s Very First Story Won’t Be Part of the BBC’s Streaming Archive” by James Whitbrook at Gizmodo
The BBC is releasing a massive archive of Doctor Who episodes for the show’s 60th anniversary, but the first four-episode serial won’t be among them. That’s because the screenwriter’s son has a longstanding intellectual property dispute with the BBC—along with some rather distasteful complaints about the modern show’s progressive politics.

“Why do superheroes wear spandex?” by Becca Caddy at Inverse
“The story of this miracle material and its surprising intersection with the world of comics reveals how a seemingly innocuous invention changed the course of pop culture history.”

“Why thousands of young Chinese people use a pink dinosaur as their alias” by Caiwei Chen at Rest of World
An interesting piece about the use of “momo”—a pink dinosaur that’s the default character when you sign up for some Chinese social platforms—as a way to post anonymously in fan spaces (and to speak freely about political topics more broadly).

older stuff

“The Legend of the Octopus” by Sam Riches at Pacific Standard
“Ever since Baddeley first saw an octopus splatter onto the ice, he’s wanted to hurl one himself. Sports fandom can make otherwise normal people do strange things, and Baddeley is no exception to that rule”

tumblr & beyond

Our Flag Means Death fanart by geherino

A comic about one fan’s relationship with whump fic.

“Our Frasier remake,” a collaborative art project animating a single full-length ep of Frasier.

“if snoopy was alive today he would be posting wwii rpf on ao3”

hanahaki disease is no match for the unceasing pressures of capitalism.

Bear McCreary breaks down the hurdy gurdy while playing the Black Sails theme. :-))

“give an audience a canon gay ship and they will be entertained for one season…”

perfect tiktok illustrating the stede/blackbeard dynamic.

fanfiction

Just a grab-bag this week! Thanks so much to everyone who sent in a rec. — Elizabeth

“so afraid that time will take it all from me” by LikeAMovieIOnceSaw. 10K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Ted Lasso; Ship: Roy Kent/Jamie Tartt
Recced by: leenik-geelo
Backstory: This fic frames Roy’s canonical anger issues as resulting from him being closeted his whole life, which really slots in with the queer storylines and Roy & Jamie subplot this last season.
Rec: It does such a good job of reframing canon moments through this new perspective, and at the climax you can just *feel* all the hurt and relief Roy’s going through. The kind of fic you have to sit with quietly for a few minutes after, imo.
Content warnings: Internalized homophobia, homophobia in pro sports, depression

“Applied Heresy” by Kaesa. 19K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: His Dark Materials; Ship: Marisa Coulter/Lord Asriel
Recced by: Orangistae
Backstory: Pre-canon fic about the young Marisa Coulter, her studies in experimental theology, and the events leading to Lyra’s birth.
Rec: Marisa’s characterisation is terrific, and her flirty, argumentative relationship with Asriel is very convincing and lots of fun.
Content warnings: Violence, canonical character death

“Risky, Risky” by ninamonday. 7.1K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Twice (Kpop); Ships: Dahyun/Sana, Dahyun/everyone
Recced by: Jess
Backstory: This fic is an AU, set in space, so no prior knowledge of Twice, a kpop girl group, is required to read and enjoy. However, watching the I Can’t Stop Me MV will give you an idea of the ensemble and some spacey vibes.
Rec: Ninamonday is an expert at worldbuilding in a surprisingly small number of words. The way this fic is sexy and tender and highlights relationships within the group made it an immediate reread for me.
Content warnings: Dubious consent related to sex pollen

“and on your head a crown” by madameladuchesse. 112K words, Not Rated.
Fandom: Reign; Ship: Kenna/Sebastian
Recced by: buddieboos
Backstory: Reign is a very CW retelling of Mary Queen of Scots’ marriage to the French King. Kenna was one her lady’s maids and Bash was Mary’s half-Brother in Law. The two were forced to marry at swordspoint, and this AU keeps that marriage alive and starts some years after the show ends when Mary and her court are returning to Scotland. Would recommend reading part 1 (short) before skipping to this part 3.
Rec: The whole story is told from Kenna’s pov, which allows her to grow from the fairly inconsistent character she was in the show. The author picks the most interesting personality traits to work with, especially her mind for political scheming. Plus the chemistry and tension between her and Bash is absolutely sizzling.
Content warnings: Murder, murder attempts, canon typical violence

“ya filthy animals” by vowelinthug. 12K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Black Sails; Ship: Captain Flint/John Silver
Recced by: anon
Backstory: While the show is an intense examination of power and colonialism, this story takes the deeply emotional (albeit flirty) connection between the two mains and asks: what if they were petty criminals that lived on a houseboat? Truly the best of Be Gay, Do Crime.
Rec: The writing is why I enjoy fic and the humor and romance are spot on. But I esp. love how the themes persist, that even in a trashy rom-com, Silver and Flint want nothing to do with society at large and fight the system where they can.
Content warnings: Some waving around of weapons, allusions to past traumas

Plus a podfic:

“Soliloquy,” written by somehowunbroken and read by reena_jenkins. 30 minutes, rated Gen.
Fandom: Batman; Ship: Gen
Recced by: Nicole
Backstory: Jason Todd was born in the Gotham slums, but always loved literature. As the tragically murdered then resurrected second Robin, he has a very complicated relationship with Batman and the rest of the Batfamily.
Rec: Jason Todd stars in the local theater’s production of Hamlet, and all of his estranged family comes over the course of the run to see him perform. It’s a great study of the characters, and also the joy of community theater.
Content warnings: N/A

And a vid:

“Glitter & Gold” by MoErusai, Nemi, Sirvaria. 3:03, Not Rated.
Fandom: KinnPorsche (TV); Ship: Kinn/Porsche
Recced by: AirgiodSLV
Backstory: KinnPorsche is a Thai drama in a mafia family setting, with a focus on the mafia heir/bodyguard romance, power struggles within the family, and a lot of buried secrets. This video is listed as a ‘tribute’ to KinnPorsche, and contains spoilers for the full series.
Rec: I think of this as KinnPorsche’s unofficial trailer. It introduces the entire cast, and sets a frenetic pace that matches the tone of the show. I’m blown away both by the number of scenes it shows in 3 minutes (200+ cuts!) and how audio from the show is incorporated along with the music.
Content warnings: Graphic violence

FINAL THOUGHT

Have a great weekend, everyone! We’ll be back next week with some spooky Halloween fic recs. — Gav