The Rec Center #503
Hello everyone! This week we have coverage of Harry Potter boycotts, a Moby Dick marathon, and the widespread child predator problem on Roblox. Plus some lovely Andor fanart and a multifandom list of summertime fic recs! — Elizabeth
new stuff
“Harry Potter and the Oversaturated Offensive Franchise” by Kat Tenbarge at Spitfire News
As the HBO show goes into production and the licensing deals keep steamrolling onwards, creators across a variety of industries have been taking a moral stand against JKR and the HP franchise.
“With A Boat And Some Help, You Can Read Moby Dick In A Day” by Riley MacLeod at Aftermath
On spending the day aboard the Moby Dick marathon reading at the Mystic Seaport Museum on the Connecticut coast, which in its 40th year is now the longest-running event of its kind.
“Everything’s Coming Up ‘Roblox’ As Chris Hansen And Schlep Dig Into Its Predator Problem” by Paul Tassi at Forbes
“While the problem of adults preying on vulnerable children is not new to Roblox, things ramped up dramatically this week with the banning of Schlep, a long-time Roblox community member who made a name for himself catching online predators within the game.”
It's hard not living up to your potential. I'm about to turn 40 this year and feels like I should have been a grunt Zaku II pilot who screams "it's a GUUUUNDAM!" mere seconds before being evaporated by a 15 year old child soldier's beam saber and I just don't know when that's going to happen for me
— Brandon "Tunnel Ignus" Kirkman (@kirkmanbrandon.bsky.social) August 18, 2025 at 11:29 AM
older stuff
“In 1849, A Feud Between Two Shakespearean Actors Led to a Massive Riot in New York City” by Olivia Rutigliano at Crime Reads
From the annals of historical fan culture: an account of the rivalry between two actors and their supporters, and the resulting riot that left nearly two dozen people dead.
tumblr & beyond
Andor fanart by onceuponavoid
an intriguing thought experiment regarding European history and omegaverse worldbuilding.
papercraft fanart of Rumi from KPop Demon Hunters!
“taylor is at her weakest right before an album release. Lestat it’s time to finish her”
a majestic piece of Twilight imagery
fandom OSHA etiquette is written in blood.
fanfiction
As summer winds down here in the Northern Hemisphere, we’ve got a batch of summery fics as tagged by our reccers. Thanks so much to everyone who sent in a rec! — Elizabeth
“in the heat of the summer (you’re so different from the rest)” by kaboomslang. 110K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: IT - Stephen King, IT (Movies - Muschietti); Ship: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Recced by: Fiachra
Backstory: Based on Stephen King’s book It and the film adaptations, the fandom post 2019 focused a lot on the sub-textual relationship between two of the Losers Gang, Eddie and Richie, often with no clowns involved or exploring happier endings than the characters got.
Rec: An excellent story about falling in love, overcoming trauma, and taking a chance on happiness past your twenties, this story’s summer setting is as red hot as their relationship. If you want character studies soaked in a heatwave this is for you!
Content warnings: Internalised homophobia, mild angst, and panic attacks
“Picture Me Without You” by dontstophernow. 7.9K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Persuasion - Jane Austen; Ship: Anne Elliot/Frederick Wentworth
Recced by: anon
Backstory: Anne and Frederick were nearly engaged 7 years ago, and now that he’s back in the neighborhood and a distinguished naval Captain, Anne is trying very hard to forget him while he courts other women.
Rec: This story is an AU about a summer lake community in post-WWII Pennsylvania and the translation of Persuasion into this setting works so well! I especially like seeing Fred’s POV when he doesn’t know what to do with still being in love with Anne.
Content warnings: N/A
“Waiting for Spring” by thievinghippo. 131K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Mo Dao Zu Shi/The Untamed/CQL; Ship: Wei Wuxian/Lan Wangji
Recced by: Petirrojo57
Backstory: Don’t let the title fool you; baseball IS summer, and pining major leaguers are so much fun. I mean, come on: “It is a well-known fact across the major leagues that one does not smack Lan Wangji’s ass.”
Rec: The world of CQL transitions perfectly to a facsimile Chicago Cubs-like team and the author captures both the setting & the vibes of the original perfectly.
Content warnings: N/A
“love is a word, you gave it a name” by CuckooTrooke. 159K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: One Direction; Ship: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson
Recced by: Bee
Backstory: AU: Louis is a very famous, closeted actor nearing 40, trying to escape his inner demons in a holiday resort. Harry is young, beautiful, and at first glance without a care in the world—and spends his summers working at a holiday resort. ;)
Rec: This is one of the fics that make you fall in love with the characters, and the slow-burn of these two unraveling their tapestries of trauma, of them falling in love with each other, themselves, and life, is utterly captivating. A definite escapist delight, from the beginning to the end.
Content warnings: Age difference (40 and 25), substantial discussions of gender dysphoria, descriptions of mild panic attacks
“Something Like Summertime” by thenyxie. 2.6K words, rated NC-17.
Fandoms: Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series; Ship: Buffy Summers/Angel
Recced by: stars-inthe-sky
Backstory: Buffy is a vampire slayer, Angel is a (usually good) vampire, they are in love but can’t be together for canonical Reasons—but always stay in each other’s lives, more or less, even when Angel gets spun off into his own series. Fortunately, canon also hints at several different routes by which Angel might one day become human again, which would pretty much render all those Reasons moot.
Rec: I stumbled onto this (lyrical, warm, hot) story before I even watched a minute of the show, and the OTP of it hit me so hard I went and binged the entirety of both series in about eight weeks (in 2007, no less). At present, it still flows so beautifully—the languid late summer, the gratitude and love, the characterization, all of it.
Content warnings: N/A
“These American Dreams (ain’t no white picket fences left for me)” by kariye. 50K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain America; Ship: James “Bucky” Barnes/Steve Rogers
Recced by: tori
Backstory: Bucky Barnes is a vet from The War (in... Afghanistan?) with almost no memory of his life before waking up in a sterile hospital room next to the only person he could recognize. Spring turns to summer turns to fall in Havensport, Indiana, and Bucky lives how he can.
Rec: This story is peak uncanny-valley-Americana; it unspools slowly with both its longing and eeriness. Without giving too much away, I really appreciate how this author handles notions of reconciliation.
Content warnings: Unreality, dissociative episodes
I think the highest mark of success in character design is when the character in question develops a fandom who are obsessed with making their penis weird.
— David J Prokopetz (@prokopetz.bsky.social) August 21, 2025 at 11:05 AM
FINAL THOUGHT
This week on Overinvested, we reviewed KPop Demon Hunters, discussing the film’s incredibly catchy original songs, its depiction of KPop culture and fandom... and also its somewhat contradictory fantasy worldbuilding. Seems like this ep might be of interested to Rec Center readers!
Have a great weekend, everyone!— Gav