May 17, 2024

The Rec Center #437

Hi all! This week we have articles about Final Fantasy shipping, Colleen Hoover, and X-Men ’97, along with some cool Dracula fanart, a grab-bag of multifandom fic recs, and more! — Gav

 

new stuff

“X-Men ’97 understood the power of perfect timing” by Charles Pulliam-Moore at The Verge
An argument that X-Men ’97’s success has been as much about the weekly release schedule as the content of the show—a schedule that allowed for time to revisit the comics, make memes and predictions, and really foster fandom.

“Colleen Hoover Is a Wildly Successful Author. Why Did She Stop Writing?” by Lauren Larson at Texas Monthly
This profile of BookTok’s most-loved—or in some corners, most-hated—author is an interesting snapshot of book fandom(s) right now.

“Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth set the fandom back 20 years” by Ana Diaz at Polygon
“Every time I think the fandom’s interest in one of the greatest ship wars in video game history has finally died out, something prods the slumbering beast awake once again.” On the eternal feud between Cloti and Clerith shippers.

 

 

older stuff

“When We Mourn Paul Walker, We’re Really Mourning The Death Of Male Friendships” by Matt Thomas at Decider
“Furious 7 is the only time I have been in a movie theater full of young men fighting back tears, and in some cases losing. It was as if the film had tapped into feelings they didn’t even know they had and couldn’t control.”

 

tumblr & beyond

Dracula fanart by almondcroissantsandink

a classic “good luck telling these guys apart” subgenre

this fandom’s stranglehold on tumblr will simply never die

THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE?

“that one middle-management orc”

“people just... meet up with their mutuals?” yes what else are we gonna do?

 

fanfiction

We’ve got an unthemed grab-bag this week—thanks so much to everyone who sent in a rec! — Elizabeth

“Get A Whiff of This” by bendingsignpost. 27K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Supernatural; Ship: Dean Winchester/Castiel
Recced by: Amy
Backstory: In canon, Castiel and Dean are an angel and monster hunter, respectively. In this human, omegaverse AU, Cas is the vet at an animal shelter, and Dean is doing court-mandated community service there.
Rec: The misunderstandings in it (caused by Dean’s cat allergy, making him unable to smell while at the animal shelter) are entertaining without being infuriating, and it's the only fic I’ve seen that touches on the effect of not being able to smell in such a scent-based society. It’s the (sort of) anosmic representation I didn’t know I wanted—but that more people may relate to in the Covid world.
Content warnings: Sexual harassment

“nothing to repair” by corduroyserpent. 2.5K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System; Ship: Gen, Minor Sū Xīyán/Tiānláng-jūn
Recced by: LivingMeatloaf
Backstory: Zhuzhi-Lang struggles with his feelings not matching up to the ones he reads about in romance novels. Takes place in a fantasy China connected to a demon realm; main character is a snake demon.
Rec: Zhuzhi-Lang’s emotional struggles resound with me, especially the confusion of figuring yourself out vs what you expect from popular media. His relationship with his uncle is so sweet, we love a supportive family!
Content warnings: Internalized acephobia, some implied sexual content, a character’s arm falls off but he’s fine

“playing with my fingertips” by lotts. 1K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Schitt's Creek; Ship: Stevie Budd/Alexis Rose
Recced by: Ang
Backstory: Stevie interacts with Alexis the least out of the Rose family, and their conversations are always a little awkward because of how different they are as people.
Rec: I love this story because the dialogue is so perfectly in character for these very hard-to-nail sitcom characters.
Content warnings: N/A

“A Beautiful Lifetime Event” by shalott. 30K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis; Ship: John/Rodney
Recced by: mizzmarvel
Backstory: John and Rodney accidentally encounter some alien technology that causes them to conceive a child together, who they decide to raise. Over the years, their lives become more and more intimately entwined, effectively becoming partners before it dawns on them that sex can be part of it too.
Rec: This was a wonderful way to ease into SGA—the fic follows years of the Atlantis mission, effortlessly introducing you to the whole cast and setting. I also love that John and Rodney sort of drift into love without realizing it, and how their daughter Hyp is adorable, brilliant, and bratty, like a real little kid.
Content warnings: Brief homophobia

“Imposter Syndrome” by renaissance. 61K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Yuri!!! on Ice; Ship: Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov
Recced by: stackingturtles
Backstory: In canon, Yuuri and Victor are both world-class figure skaters, but Victor has been the number-one male skater in the world for years, and Yuuri is more of a late up-and-comer, and also has severe anxiety. Victor ends up coaching Yuuri to great success, and they fall in love and it’s very beautiful. This fic’s summary is: “At some point, most people with a childhood crush will imagine meeting their idol, and might even pretend that they’re dating. This is the story of how Yuuri Katsuki meets his childhood crush, and how they pretend that they’re dating.”
Rec: This story features a Yuuri who didn’t get Victor to coach him, and is only just clawing his way back. He and Victor are both more beaten down by the world and their chosen careers than in canon, and they end up fake-dating after meeting on a night out for ~PR reasons~. I love that Yuuri gets to meet Victor in a more equal way, and that they’re both able to help each other become strong and better.
Content warnings: N/A

And a vid!

“lament | star wars” by iprobablyneurotic. 1:57, rated Gen.
Fandom: Star Wars original trilogy; song is “The Lament of Eustace Scrubb” by the Oh Hellos; Ship: Gen
Recced by: mischiefseven
Backstory: An exploration of all three movies.
Rec: In addition to being beautifully colored and paced, it really captures the joy and the heart of the movies.
Content warnings: N/A

 

 

FINAL THOUGHT

Your semi-regular call for recs! Looking at our current submissions, there are a few things we’d love more of to make full lists in the future:

1. Character studies
2. Sports AUs
3. Reality TV AUs
4. Anything involving secret identities (aka “identity porn”)
5. Gen fic of all sorts

You can use our handy form—and of course, all recs are welcome, not just this stuff. We always want more! If you do submit for any of these particular items, please mention that in the themes/tropes field. — Elizabeth