The Rec Center #53
Happy new year, Rec Center readers! We’re back with some traditional post-holiday fare: multifandom Yuletide recs.
For those who haven’t heard of Yuletide before (except in the literal sense of the word), it’s an annual fanfic challenge where people anonymously exchange stories from obscure fandoms. As in, “there’s literally no other fanfiction on the internet” levels of obscure.
Otherwise, we’ve got some essential reading on gynaecology in the Star Wars universe, the strange backstory of a virally popular Winnie the Pooh video game, and more. — Gav
new stuff
“Cosplay, Drag, and the Transformative Nature of Living Out Your Fandom” by Emily R. Roach at the Mary Sue
Exploring the intersections of cosplay, drag, gender performance, and gender identity.
“Did Inadequate Women’s Healthcare Destroy Star Wars’ Old Republic?” by Sarah Jeong at Motherboard
A semi-facetious, semi-serious look at the subtext of Padme Amidala’s death in childbirth, and how it influenced the course of the Star Wars narrative. Like, do OB/GYNs even exist in Star Wars? Signs point to no.
“Star Trek fan film isn’t protected by fair use, rules US judge” by Andrew Liptak at The Verge
The lawsuit over this Star Trek fan film has been going on for over a year, and the latest development does not look like good news for fan creators.
older stuff
“Fangirl” by Elizabeth at The Millions
So Sherlock’s back, and we’re ~not going to talk about it here~ BUT it’s invariably got me thinking about the last time Sherlock was back, a two-week period in which I lost my grip on reality. This essay was basically my official Fandom Journalism Debut. — Elizabeth
tumblr & beyond
Jubilee and Wolverine, by badokami and wynton-red!
If you’ve read the anecdote about a Mexican dad being thrilled to see (and hear!) Diego Luna in Rogue One, make sure you watch his reaction to hearing DL was moved by the story. <3 <3 <3
The mysterious history of the video game “Pooh Baseball.” (Honestly, we got nothing. Just click through.)
The Enterprise v. The Millennium Falcon
A ~heartwarming tale about Final Fantasy erotica.
A thread about C. S. Lewis and his readers. Start here:
fanfiction
Check out the full list of Yuletide fandoms and stories here!
“A Divinely Attractive Arrangement” by Fahye. 5.9K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Love and Friendship (movie); Ship: Sir James Martin/Lady Susan Vernon/Lord Manwaring
Recced by: Gav
Rec: An absolutely hysterical sequel to the Jane Austen comedy Love and Friendship, one of my fav new releases of 2016. Told in the form of a very stupid diary from the buffoonish Sir James Martin, sets out a fun epilogue to how the various relationships resolved themselves at the end of the movie.
Content warnings: N/A
“We Arrive in the Dark” by jibrailis. 5.8k words, rated Mature.
Fandom: The Devil Wears Prada (movie); Ship: Andy Sachs/Miranda Priestley
Recced by: Gav
Rec: A prickly post-movie romance from Miranda’s perspective, with both characters struggling to move from a friends-with-benefits relationship to something deeper.
Content warnings: N/A
“Or, What You Will” by ryfkah. 3.5K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Singin’ In The Rain; Ship: Cosmo Brown/Don Lockwood/Kathy Selden
Recced by: Gav
Rec: There were several good Singin’ In The Rain fics this year, and I recommend you go check out the AO3 tag! This one is about the three leads making a movie adaptation of Twelfth Night, and it really captures the playful tone of the movie.
Content warnings: N/A
“Some Places We Went Before We Died” by zvi. 1.6K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Carol; Ship: Carol Aird/Therese Belivet
Recced by: Elizabeth
Rec: A series of vignettes—in the words of the author, “There's not a beginning, a middle, and an end, but there are several slices”—from the lives of Carol and Therese post-canon. Totally gorgeous, with the same delicate precision of the film itself.
Content warnings: N/A
“Revisions To A ‘Dear Writer’ Letter, Yuletide 2035” by Lanna Michaels. 1.3K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: The Martian - Andy Weir; Ship: None
Recced by: Gav
Rec: A meta-fic, written as a Dear Yuletide letter from a fan of NASA RPF during the Ares III mission.
Content warnings: N/A
“You Grew On Me” by katayla. 4.5K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: You’ve Got Mail; Ship: Joe Fox/Kathleen Kelly
Recced by: Elizabeth
Rec: So my tolerance for romcoms is low, and the list of romcoms I like is incredibly short. BUT I LOVE YOU’VE GOT MAIL. So you’d better believe I jumped on this modern AU, where The Shop Around the Corner is a thriving indie bookshop, and Fox Books is on its last legs, much like certain big-box stores that haven’t yet gone out of business. It’s a delightful role reversal, the modern updates are subtly good, and obviously I love the commentary about the state of bookselling over the past few decades.
Content warnings: N/A
“It’s a Neighborly Day in this Beautywood” by Masu_Trout. 3K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: This tumblr post about a weird monster statue; Ship: None
Recced by: Gav
Rec: Inspired by a Tumblr post about a creepy statue someone spotted in a nearby garden, this fic draws from creepypasta storytelling and dark, gothic myth imagery. It’s both funny and lowkey disturbing—appropriately enough, given its source material.
Content warnings: N/A
FINAL THOUGHT
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, GAV!!! (AND REC CENTER READERS!!!)
I spent like four minutes doing a google image search for “happy anniversary” and like
No champagne, no hearts, and we won’t be using pebbles to write paeans to The Rec Center on a beach at sunset, but I do want to take a second to talk about what an amazing year this has been. This newsletter was one of my favorite things of 2016 (not...a crowded field...but honestly it would have been in a non-terrible year, too). I can’t believe that so many people have been generous with their time and recs. And every time one of you writes to talk about how much you enjoy and/or value The Rec Center, it’s literally The Greatest Thing. (Um, apologies for the past six weeks’ of correspondence or so, I’ll write you all back, I promise.)
If you weren’t there for day one, check it out! Thanks to everyone again, and onwards to another year. There will always be more fic to rec. :-) — Elizabeth
If you liked this, please share it with your friends! https://thereccenter.substack.com/. And find us on social media: Gav (twitter/tumblr) & Elizabeth (twitter/tumblr)