The Rec Center #463
Hello all! This week we’ve got articles about Doctor Odyssey fan theories, the streaming wars, and potential censorship issues for fanwork platforms like AO3. Also: some cute autumnal fanart, multifandom fic recs, and some thoughts on Bluesky! — Gav
new stuff
“What’s ‘Doctor Odyssey’ really about? Some viewers see dead people.” by Emily Yahr at the Washington Post
The surreal tone of ABC medical drama Doctor Odyssey is inspiring Lost-style fan theories, speculating that (among other things) the whole show secretly takes place in the afterlife. But is season 1 really building up to a wild twist, or is it just another zany Ryan Murphy soap?
“The Streaming Wars Didn’t Kill the Little Guys. In Fact, They’re Thriving.” by John Koblin at The New York Times
Interesting new reporting about the struggles of big streamers in their quest to be everything platforms—and the success that more niche ones with far smaller margins are currently seeing (shoutout to AMC+!!!).
“To the people in the OTW Tumblr Inbox asking about how the OTW is responding to the American Election.” by AO3/OTW
In case you aren’t on Tumblr/haven’t seen this linked elsewhere, the AO3 put out a pretty clear statement about potential threats to the platform in the coming months. (TL;DR there are a whole host of reasons why this isn’t worth worrying about right now.) We also strongly second their suggestion to follow and support orgs who are well-prepared to fight for free expression online in the years ahead, especially the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
“Waaah the movie is challenging” all you have to do is look at it. There’s not a single movie in the world as challenging as Castlevania for the Nintendo Entertainment System
— ogremode.bsky.social (@ogremode.bsky.social) November 12, 2024 at 9:18 PM
older stuff
“The Scream Fandom’s Enduring Divide” by Michael Boyle at Fansplaining
“Many Scream 7 defenders seem unwilling to acknowledge that this is not just a regular fandom dispute: that some people’s love for their favorite shows and movies does indeed halt when major social and political issues are involved.”
tumblr & beyond
Over the Garden Wall fanart by artaudmatic
an all-time tumblr culture cosplay over here.
“Hear me out. What if there was an X-Files PC-98 game?”
love this fan theory about WHEN, exactly, han solo realized the force was a real thing.
someone please tell this mom about ao3.
“Yeah Better Call Saul is just like Madoka Magica”
fanfiction
We’ve got a grab-bag of fic this week! Thanks so much to everyone who sent in a rec. — Elizabeth
“Past, Present, Futura” by Fragged. 7.1K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Stargate: Universe; Ship: Dale Volker/Adam Brody
Recced by: mysterytour7
Backstory: In the deep past, alternate timeline versions of the Destiny crew are marooned on a planet. After Volker dies of a kidney infection, Brody lives in regret that he never told him how he really felt. In the present, a message in a bottle gives Brody a second chance.
Rec: I find it cathartic to be emotionally hammered one in a while.This fic is one of only a handful of stories centering these underrated characters and their relationship.
Content warnings: Death/grief
“acknowledged (GP-53214680-J)” by torpidgilliver. 9.9K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: The Murderbot Diaries; Ship: Gen
Recced by: Rosemarycat5
Backstory: The tragedy at Ganaka Pit—the hacking of the security system and SecUnits to kill all the human workers—is discovered in greater detail by Murderbot in book 2. This fic explores the POV of one of the four ComfortUnits who attempted and failed to stop the tragedy.
Rec: The perspective is wonderfully done. The way the ComfortUnits are similar and different to SecUnits in protocol and ability and their dynamics with each other are fascinating with the knowledge of the tragedy always hanging over the reader’s head.
Content warnings: Graphic violence, major character death
“Gimme shelter” by 74243. 12K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: 魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù; Ship: Female Lán Zhàn/Female Wèi Yīng
Recced by: anon
Backstory: Cisswapped roommates fic.
Rec: 74243 writes excellent The Untamed femslash. I love the ladykiller Lan Zhan and oblivious but jealous Wei Ying tropes that still feel fresh when she writes them. She wrote other amazing omegaverse fic as well but I liked this one best.
Content warnings: Dubious consent
“explain everything to the geeks” by misandrywitch. 9.7K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Roswell, New Mexico; Ship: Michael Guerin/Alex Manes
Recced by: Ang
Backstory: R,NM is a show on the CW about aliens living amongst humans; Michael is an alien and Alex is a human. They hooked up in high school and then spent 10 years apart, while Alex was overseas with the USAF and Michael was working odd jobs around Roswell; the show picks up around 10 years after high school.
Rec: I love that this story shows Alex making amends with multiple people; it’s super in-line with his canonical ability to see the good in people who might not always deserve it.
Content warnings: PTSD, implied/referenced child abuse as Alex’s father was openly and sometimes violently homophobic
“When It Happens” by nnozomi. 6.5K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Fire and Hemlock - Diana Wynne Jones; Ships: Thomas Lynn/Polly Whittacker, Fiona Perks/Polly Whittacker
Recced by: Jenny Hamilton
Backstory: Fire and Hemlock, a retelling of Tam Lin, is the greatest retelling of any story in the history of the world ever. The protagonist, Polly, ends up with the Tam Lin guy, but she also has this fantastic best friend, Fiona.
Rec: Fiona and Tom and Polly all navigate their relationships to each other after the close of the book. Fiona becomes afraid that she has done harm to Polly.
Content warnings: N/A
“I’ll Keep You Safe Here With Me” by sara_holmes. 111K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Marvel; Ship: Bucky Barnes/Clint Barton
Recced by: Susan
Backstory: Clint’s avoiding the Avengers post-1st movie head whammy, and Bucky’s trying to remember who he is post CA:TWS. They embark on a road trip to figure it out.
Rec: It’s not one of my main ships, but I couldn’t stop reading it!! It was such a lovely exploration of these two characters and the relationship they might build together.
Content warnings: PTSD, mild kidnapping
hey sry i didn’t text back, my parents got turned into pigs and i got blackmailed into indentured servitude for the bathhouse of the spirits :/
— Pastrami Mommy (@ewelannawhite.bsky.social) November 10, 2024 at 2:46 PM
FINAL THOUGHT
In a week of big Bluesky migration/adoption, we should remind everyone that we’re active there: Elizabeth and Gav.
I’ve complained periodically over the past year and a half that Bluesky hasn’t been particularly good for fandom stuff, but with so many fans joining or turning to the platform in earnest right now, I do think that’s changing as we speak! And one big feature that helps is the “starter pack,” where you can make a list of people in a certain category that folks can follow from (individual accounts or en masse). Starter packs for various fandoms and ships are cropping up quickly, so it’s worth searching for your own fandom(s) (or making one yourself!).
And speaking of starter packs, I made one via Fansplaining’s account for people who study and analyze fandom in some capacity—journalists, Hollywood folks, academics, fans who write meta about fandom, etc etc. You can find it here, and if you fall under this umbrella, @ Fansplaining to let me know you’d like to be added! — Elizabeth