The Rec Center #464
Hi all! This week we have articles about Pokémon Go surveillance, the rescue of Sexypedia, and bringing fanfiction into the classroom. Also: some lovely Heaven Official’s Blessing fanart and a rec list of humorous Batfam fic from guest reccer nolanfa. — Gav
new stuff
“Pokémon Go Players Have Unwittingly Trained AI to Navigate the World” by Emanuel Maiberg at 404 Media
Niantic, the company behind Pokémon Go and other popular augmented reality games, has announced they’ve turned player data into a “Large Geospatial Model,” prompting concerns about the eventual use cases (including military ones).
“How Fans Saved Sexypedia From Being Erased From the Internet” by Adam Bumas at WIRED
Fear not: the wiki devoted to the “Tumblr sexyman” has been preserved.
“Bringing Fanfiction Into the Classroom” by Abby Kirby at Fansplaining
Fansplaining’s latest is by Abby Kirby, who teaches fic writing to middle schoolers! “Fic does something that my traditional English classes cannot: it places the power in the hands of the student.”
@jpbrammer.bsky.social on Bluesky
starter pack of men I’d like to put in a Battle Royale / Hunger Games type situation
older stuff
“One Sci-Fi Movie Series Invented Star Wars, Captain America, and Everything Else” by Ryan Britt at Inverse
On the influence of 1939’s Buck Rogers, a movie serial that had a profound impact on 20th-century pop culture.
tumblr & beyond
Heaven Official’s Blessing fanart by illustrative-robot
“lets hear out tumblr user isuggestpolyamory”
a unique authorial quandary.
“discourse over shipping the two guys in the mariner’s revenge song by the decemberists”
the perils of using Tinder in the Transformers universe.
“Gotham has a really bad content creator problem”
some sage advice on fic commenting!
fanfiction
Nolanfa discovered fandom relatively recently, and mostly creates fanart and reads (and tries to comment on) fic. They read and enjoy pretty varied stuff but particularly love fics where interesting relationship development for friendships are the primary emotional arc, and they wish there were more of it, especially for longfics. They post fic recs (very occasionally) and fanart (every so often) on their tumblr, and fanart gets posted on their AO3, too. They took part in a bunch of Marvel fandom events for a while, and are now more into DC.
The batfam (Bat family) fandom is a subset of DC fandom focused on the relationships between the masked vigilante Batman, his (former for some) kid sidekicks the Robins and the Batgirls, and the other characters that gravitate around them. Since it features a lot of siblings and parental relationships/drama, it contains a much bigger proportion of gen fic than fandoms centered on the average non-related team.
Humour in fic is pretty widespread and varied (sometimes with a side of heartbreak): in the narrator’s voice, crack, unhinged characters, etc. The batfam, with the secret identities, the badly-socialized and/or over-dramatic kids, some honestly bonkers canon storylines, and the general chaotic family vibes, has some choice opportunities for being hilarious. — nolanfa
Funny batfam gen recs, sorted by word count:
“Bang, bang” by Ididloveyou_once. 5K words, rated Teen.
Backstory: One night at the manor Tim asks Jason to teach him to use a gun and accidentally shoots him. Given they’d both be in trouble for that, they try to cover it up till they can leave at the end of Movie Night.
Rec: This is great. Peak sibling relationships. The threat of Getting In Trouble forcing an emergency alliance between two mutually annoyed siblings who scramble to hide something? Comedic gold.
Content warnings: Gunshot wound (accidental, played for comedic effect)
“IRIS Log #1548” by deadchannelradio. 8K words, rated Teen.
Backstory: Transcripts of comms between the batfamily members on patrol (features the larger batfam working together, and getting along in a bickery siblingsy way).
Rec: The format is fun. Also it’s just. Really funny? The way they talk? Red Hood ranting about being the only one with adequate head protection, while concussed? Just enough of people being genuinely worried for the funny to hit hard—and the other way around. Bat Paperwork and Protocols hinting at even more Bat Paperwork and Protocols.
Content warnings: N/A
“Beef Consommé” by Vamillepudding. 14K words, rated Teen.
Backstory: Jason and Dick adopt Tim during Tim’s Robin run since Bruce left him to live with his asshole of a father.
Rec: I have a weakness for the “Dick and Jason team up and adopt Tim” trope. Also, I love Jason’s voice in it, perpetually extra and chaotic and offended.
Content warnings: Underage drinking in one scene, child neglect
“Birds on Jaybird Street” by cynassa. 14K words, rated Teen.
Backstory: In which Dick and Jason decide to adopt Tim and Damian (Jason’s kind of an asshole, but a caring one).
Rec: Very good “brothers taking care of each other” fic; the gap between Jason’s very caustic internal monologue, how he’s purposefully annoying, and how he does go out of his way to help his brothers is very funny. And under the funny there’s all the fluff and the heartbreak for a balanced diet.
Content warnings: Child neglect
“The Lone Ranger Never Had to Deal with Bruce Wayne” by theskeptileptic. 25K words, rated Gen.
Backstory: Tim, at 11 years old, decides to fake his death because it seems like it’d be most convenient for his parents. He has everything planned for except catching the attention of his dumb and well-meaning neighbour Bruce Wayne.
Rec: This is. Hilarious. The perfect mix of very competent Tim and him still very much being an 11 year old. Himbo Bruce Wayne who just so happens to totally accidentally run into Tim several times to innocently inquire about his parents’ whereabouts. The horrifying fact of what Tim is actually doing and how he thinks, in his very logical way (and the horrifying fact that his parents agree with him).
Content warnings: Child neglect
“Ain’t No Compass, Ain’t No Map” by ebjameston. 51K words, rated Teen.
Backstory: A Child Protective Services agent (POV character) unknowingly meets the whole batfam both in and out of uniform and befriends them—but being a CPS agent, he has strong opinions about letting pre-pubescent kids fight crime and that, let's say, strains their relationships.
Rec: He likes them! And they like him! But they have differing opinions on, you know, the basis on which they built their whole identities (contains the best discussion about the ethics of robining I’ve ever read). It’s 80% jokes (so much identity porn and banter) and 70% feels and 50% social commentary about the canon and 20% plot and 40% fluff and 30% angst and some parts are all of that at once: prepare to be emotionally devastated.
Content warnings: N/A
“Into the Brighter Night” by shoalsea. 162K words, rated Gen.
Backstory: Tim Drake does what looks like a sacrifice play to the batfam and asks for help from his Young Justice team, who completely have his back. Once they come back from their incredibly dangerous stunt, the Young Justice resents the batfam for their unequal relationship with Tim, who’s YJ’s leader, but a kid to the batfam. And the batfam, who are very worried, fails—hard—at communication.
Rec: The writing is hilarious and rips your heart out. This has super interesting interconnected character dynamics (with the batfam and Tim’s team that’s so many more different relationships than usual) and numerous references to/analyses of canon events, all of it wrapped in hilarious dialogue and hyperactive Young Justice energy.
Content warnings: N/A
@merrittk.com on Bluesky
Look, do I regret betraying my siblings? Sure. Would I do it again for the great taste of Turkish delight? Of course I would
FINAL THOUGHT
As we approach the final weeks of 2024, we’ve got a few calls for recs that we’ve done in years past, and we’d love your submissions! Here’s our handy form.
For next Friday—part of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in the U.S.—we are once again soliciting super-long fic. Like, at least 100K; ideally, way more.
For December, we’re once again hoping to do a few lists of seasonal recs, including:
- Holidays (Christmas is fine, but others are strongly encouraged)
- Wintry vibes (snow, trapped in a blizzard, sports involving ice, etc.)
- Especially hoping for any Southern Hemisphere fics set around this time of year! (In that case, summery vibes.)
While I will be able to spot the super-long fic without being flagged, please make sure to indicate whatever component of the seasonal recs you’re submitting for in the themes/tropes field—it’s possible that I won’t be able to tell from the rec alone (and it’ll help me make balanced lists so it’s not, like, nine Christmas stories one week). — Elizabeth