The Rec Center #443
OUR LONG-AWAITED IWTV S3 RENEWAL!!!! THE PRESUMABLY DEVASTATING S2 FINALE THIS WEEKEND!!!! (Sorry to everyone who doesn’t care about this show lol but it is a Big Fandom Week here at Rec Center HQ.) Fittingly, we’ve got some stunning IWTV fanart, alongside articles on the media industry, immersive fan experiences, and fandom grief. Plus! Guest reccer and fanvidder Rosemarycat5 has put together a multifandom list of vids for us! — Elizabeth
new stuff
“Winter of Content” by Kevin Nguyen at The Verge
A fantastic piece about the past 15 years of digital media as illustrated by the Game of Thrones ~content cycle~, an ouroboros that helps explain the bleak state of cultural coverage today.
“Hide the marmalade! Paddington Bear is back—and this time he’s gone immersive” by Kate Wyver at The Guardian
A visit to London’s Paddington Bear Experience, where its creators discuss how to design an interactive fan exhibition that works for many different types of visitors.
“Feel grief when a favorite TV show ends? You’re not alone” by Aria Bendix at NBC News
On a study of fans of the long-running Australian soap Neighbours, and the real feelings of loss when your show goes off the air.
My Bridgerton theory is that they actually aren’t in the past at all. They just like acting like that.
— . (@NoEmmeG) June 20, 2024
older stuff
“‘There Aren’t Enough Hours in the Day to Get Anything Done!’ Says Woman Who Just Spent Three of Them Reading ‘Trolls’ Fanfiction on Her Phone” at Reductress
“Every single day I wake up, blink, and then it’s somehow already 5 p.m.!” Ali told reporters, conveniently leaving out the block of time after “blink” and before “5 p.m.” when she reads Trolls fanfiction until her eyes bleed.
tumblr & beyond
Interview with the Vampire fanart by rrr-mmmm
For further context: the original version of this Egon Schiele (“Young Man Kneeling before God the Father”) painting appears in the show itself (in their bedroom!).
the hunter-gatherers of fandom tumblr.
“i love how Gandalf invested in Hobbits in year one and has been pushing them ever since.”
a gorgeous fanmade Vampire Chronicles book cover.
they updated their wip, but at what cost.
fanvids
Rosemarycat5 is a vidder, writer, and artist currently active in podcast fandoms, Stargate SG-1, and The Mechanisms among any others that catch her eye. He also runs fanwork exchanges including Let Me Introduce You To My Fandom, Jews In Space, Aromantic Characters Exchange, Kill Your Double, and the upcoming Minor Leagues Exchange. Her current vidding project is a supercut of whump of the poor Daniel Jackson, which he’s hoping to finish soon. Find her work on AO3 and YouTube.
Fanvids are such a wonderful form of fanwork. They take such skill and technique and time, really exploring the source media and making it the creator’s own. My personal experience of vidding has always been one of utter and complete enjoyment, a hard feat to achieve. I’ll be bursting with ideas—there’s a list of vid concepts as long as my arm in my notes app!—and end up completely devoted to the editing in fannish bliss and frustration with Premiere Pro (a program which hates all editors personally). It is also a woefully under-appreciated art! I hope this rec list leads to some people getting into vidding as viewers and commenters or as creators taking the leap into starting! Be sure to comment on these and appreciate the vidders! — Rosemarycat5
“Sibling Rivalry - Stargate SG1 (Humor - Oh No! Veggie Tales)” by brihana25. 2:01, rated Gen.
Fandom: Stargate SG-1 (TV); Ship: Gen, Sam Carter & Teal’c, Daniel Jackson & Jack O’Neill
Backstory: SG-1 is a military scifi show about a team exploring other planets. The team’s leader, Jack O’Neill has a very special bond with Daniel Jackson (the Daniel in this vid), and the pair are often focused on.
Rec: This was the first fanvid I ever saw back when it was first made, and I continue to love it. For a long time after starting to watch the show, I called sarcophagi “scrabble tables” after the vid. It’s very funny and never fails to put a smile on my face.
Content warnings: Whump/PG violence
“She Bangs [a Ralph Macchio vid]” by findmeinthealps. 4:18 words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Ralph Macchio ; Ship: Single character focus
Backstory: Mix of sources including the Karate Kid universe and various dance shows.
Rec: This vid is one of the most spectacular I have ever seen. The sense of movement is massive and continuous and sprawling, always leaving me in awe of the editing and with an urge to get up and dance. Great comparison shots between fight and dance choreography as well.
Content warnings: N/A
“Buffy & Spike - I Touch Myself” by JS and AAR with Big Fluffy Puppy Productions. 3:45 words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV); Ship: Buffy/Spike
Backstory: Buffy is an action dramedy about fighting vampires (and sometimes dating them).
Rec: The Pop Up Video is an absolute classic that I would be remiss to leave off this list. Many fun facts! Some might even be true! Have you ever wondered how much everything cost in that house that got wrecked when Buffy and Spike slept together? Now you can finally learn.
Content warnings: Sex (no nudity)
“Buffy and Faith (BTVS) - We Must Be Killers - HD Version” by Jess9191. 3:02 words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV); Ship: Gen, Buffy & Faith
Backstory: Buffy is an action dramedy following the chosen one (Buffy) who has the power to fight vampires and demons, which becomes the chosen two (Faith).
Rec: A brilliant character study of Buffy and Faith individually and relationship study of them together. Two slayers when there only should have been one, morality, and parallels are all on display with beautiful, clean editing.
Content warnings: Violence
“Black Cat (The Sentinel)” by Seah and Margie. 4:13, rated Teen.
Fandom: The Sentinel (TV); Ship: Gen(?), Jim & Blair (I watch with Gen Goggles but can see this also being read as slash)
Backstory: The Sentinel is a—and I say this with the utmost affection—mid-level cop show from the ’90s about a detective named Jim Ellison who gains super-senses (aka Sentinel abilities) and gets help from anthropology grad student Blair Sandburg.
Rec: A very fun and funny vid of Jim and all the things that can go wrong.
Content warnings: Light TV violence
“Titanium - Wonder Woman fanvid” by GiandujaKiss Smithee. 3:59 words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Wonder Woman (TV 1975); Ship: Gen, Diana | Wonder Woman & Drusilla | Wonder Girl
Backstory: The original Wonder Woman show, starring Lynda Carter, follows the superhero as she fights Nazis in the 1940s and later returns in the 1970s.
Rec: A delightful vid full of action, spinning, fits of strength, and Diana’s personality brought back how much I loved the original Wonder Woman show.
Content warnings: Light TV violence, Wonder Woman-typical Nazi villains
“When I Ruled The World” by astolat. 3:16, rated Teen.
Fandom: Person of Interest (TV); Ship: John Reese/Harold Finch (though viewable with Gen Goggles)
Backstory: Person of Interest is a show about a machine that sees everything, shades of grey morality, and saving people because everybody is relevant to somebody. Harold Finch built a machine to detect large-scale violence, but ignoring the small scale led to personal loss, and he enlists the help of ex-CIA John Reese to save people on the small scale.
Rec: A wonderful vid that really tells the story of Finch and Reese, especially Finch, across the first 2 seasons perfectly in line with the style of the show. The framing of building the machine as “ruling the world” is an interesting one and a great piece of analysis! The machine itself is framed as a god by some, and the world is no large stretch.
Content warnings: TV violence
“Angel Credits: Buffy Style - Season 1” by MrMorda. 0:52, rated Gen.
Fandom: Angel the Series (TV); Ship: Gen
Backstory: Angel the Series is the spin off of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which takes on a darker overall tone.
Rec: MrMorda perfectly recreates the Buffy theme style for the Angel intro down to every last clip. The details are perfect, and it fits so well, a real feat of editing!
Content warnings: N/A
“Fresh Blood: Vamp Willow & Tara” by brunerouse. 3:00, rated Teen.
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Ship: Willow/Tara
Backstory: Buffy is an action dramedy about fighting vampires. One of the main characters, Willow, becomes a vampire in an alternate reality (the “Wishverse”).
Rec: Here is a fanvid that showed me what a constructed reality could be. brunerouse takes footage from three shows featuring Amber Bensen and Allyson Hannigan to create an alternate reality in which Vampire Willow turns Tara into a vampire as well.
Content warnings: N/A
do you think lestat uses ticketmaster’s dynamic pricing?
— g (@cineromantic) June 26, 2024
FINAL THOUGHT
Over the past few weeks I’ve been trying furiously to write more coverage of Interview with the Vampire, aiming to offer the kind of in-depth analysis that fans want to read. This is my last-ditch (openly thirsty!) attempt to get someone to publish me.
I know a fair few media people subscribe to The Rec Center, so if any editors are open to IWTV pitches, please hit me up at g.baker.whitelaw at gmail.com. I have several juicy ideas ready to go, including breakdowns of the show’s use of theater and visual art, and spoilery pitches pegged to the finale.
And for the 99% of our readers who aren’t editors... I apologize for this shameless glimpse into the world of freelance journalism. Have a great weekend everyone! — Gavia
P.S. If you missed our IWTV explainer a couple of weeks ago, here it is!!