Hello all! This week we have articles about K-Pop idol deepfakes and Knicks fandom (extremely topical!!), along with an introduction to a new publication aimed at horror genre fans. Plus some new links from Fansplaining (my Vampire Lestat recaps began this week!), some awesome Baldur’s Gate fanart, a grab bag of multifandom fic recs, and more! — Gav

new stuff

“K-pop Fans Are Calling Out Creepy Deepfakes of Idols” by Janus Rose at 404 Media
On the rise of AI-generated self-insert images and videos in K-pop fandom, aka depicting yourself being romantic/sexual with your favorite idol. Self-inserts are a hallmark of fan culture, but does the ability to create “convincing” versions fundamentally change where lines should be drawn?

“Lessons in Fanhood from the Knicks” by Vinson Cunningham at The New Yorker
We don’t often include sports fandom here, but Vinson Cunningham is such a beautiful writer, and this piece will probably resonate with sports and non-sports fans alike. “One moment, I’m a devotee at a shrine of art, stopping in solitude before the pictures and soaking them in. The next, I’m a member of a chaotic horde, subject to the kinds of phenomena that most acutely affect humans in groups: strict loyalty, inherited grief, vicarious glory.”

“Introducing Darker Times”
Horror fans! If you haven’t checked them out yet, Dark Times is a new worker-owned publication (in the model of Defector, Aftermath, and yes, Fansplaining 😉) devoted to the horror genre. They’ve already put out a bunch of great pieces, and we’ll definitely be sharing more from them in the future.

“In the beginning, Doctor Who was created. This has made a lot of Doctor Who fans very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move”

— Gary Brannan (@garybrannan.bsky.social) June 10, 2026 at 4:27 PM

new stuff: fansplaining

For the two months while The Vampire Lestat is airing, we’re going to have two Fansplaining pieces per week, one of which will be written by Gav, of course. We’ve decided to separate these out into their own section, something we might continue/revive if Fansplaining can increase subscriber revenue and afford to do two a week regularly. The vast majority of Rec Center readers are not Fansplaining subscribers, but are basically Fansplaining’s target audience, so hopefully a separate section lets existing subscribers skip over this stuff while showing everyone else what we’re up to.

BTW, we’d love for more Rec Center folks to join us over on Fansplaining: we’re going to be locking a lot more stuff to free members, and Gav’s recaps will be locked to paying subscribers going forward. Please consider signing up for free, and if you want to read all of Gav’s TVL coverage, we’re running a special sale: $5 a month for the next two months with the code BITEME. Just $10 for all of Gav’s super-sharp analysis! — Elizabeth

“Drake and His Fans vs the World” by Earl Hopkins
Despite generally being seen as the loser of his very public feud with Kendrick Lamar, Drake’s triple-album release last month was a massive global hit. His fans stand by the music, but they continue to struggle with questions about Drake himself. This deep dive weaves cultural and music criticism with the voices of Drake fans about their complicated relationship with the artist.

“The Vampire Lestat: Sex, Drugs, and Unstable Narrators” by Gav
Gav’s first recap digs into the show’s drastic tonal shift, Lestat’s celebrity persona as an old-school rock star, and the ominous implications of this episode’s intro and outro scenes. She also interviewed the show’s composer Daniel Hart at the A.V. Club, sharing some further insight into Lestat’s discography!

rosencrantz and guildenstern are dead to their conservative families but running a lovely antique shop in vermont

— Frances Meh (@francesmeh.reviews) June 7, 2026 at 4:09 PM

older stuff

“I Think I’m Going to Be Sick” by Emily Latimer at Longreads
“The ride technology at amusement parks has become more sophisticated. For ride-goers prone to motion sickness, the outcome can be messy.”

tumblr & beyond

Baldur’s Gate 3 fanart by kororobus

“tally ho you teaboo shits”

very excited for this person watching Black Sails for the first time.

a varied media diet is so important!!

RIP Superwholock

an impressive mashup of A Little Bit Alexis from Schitt’s Creek, and The Vampire Lestat’s song All Fall Down.

fanfiction

We’ve got a grab-bag this week. Thanks so much to everyone who sent in a rec! — Elizabeth

“this is what you wanted” by dollsome. 5.6K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Killing Eve; Ship: Villanelle/Eve
Recced by: Dame Lazarus
Backstory: Assassin Villanelle retires to Alaska, misses Eve, and thinks about who she has been.
Rec: Villanelle is one of my all-time favorite characters, and Dollsome, who writes brilliantly for literally every fandom, is one of my all-time favorite fic writers. This character study is sad, funny, and gorgeously written.
Content warnings: N/A

“Punishment Protocol: Choose” by speckled_dragon. 3.5K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù; Ship: Luo Binghe/Shen Yuan | Shen Qingqiu
Recced by: BlackSkyFan15
Backstory: “Shen Yuan was never allowed to tell anyone but Airplane that he was a transmigrator, because Luo Binghe would never accept him. He learns this the hard way.”
Rec: I really like how Shen Yuan’s actions are thrown into stark relief. He groomed Binghe, treated real people like props, and generally made multiple bad decisions. In most reveal stories, Binghe accepts Shen Yuan anyway. Not in this story.
Content warnings: Grooming

“Always treats me tenderly” by Filthyfealty (lunk). 8K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Supernatural; Ship: F/F Castiel/Dean Winchester
Recced by: autisticandroids
Backstory: This is an AU story which maintains a lot of basic shape of Dean(na)’s canon life, but removes the supernatural (ha) elements, so she still grew up as a drifter with her father and brother, and is still estranged from that brother because he went to college, but they didn’t hunt monsters, they were just normal quasi-homeless. Deanna Winchester, stealth trans woman and certified Normal Girl, comes to a small town and meets the local social outcast, Castiel.
Rec: The characterization of Deanna, this like deeply neurotic little matryoshka doll of closets (sure, she’s trans, but she could never be a lesbian, having sex with men is supposed to suck for every woman) and loneliness is chefkiss. And the fic is blisteringly erotic—the sex scene is of course fabulous with panty stealing and undernegotiated D/s, but other stuff like the dream Deanna has where she is a sheep and Cas is shearing her is also crazy hot.
Content warnings: References to animal cruelty and harm to animals, fandom-typical references to child abuse, justified fear of transphobia and homophobia

“The World That You Need” by Dira Sudis (dsudis). 89K words across 14 works, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Vorkosigan Saga - Lois McMaster Bujold; Ships: Aral Vorkosigan/Lt. Jole, Aral Vorkosigan/Cordelia Naismith Vorkosigan
Recced by: Orangistae
Backstory: Series about then-Prime Minister Aral Vorkosigan starting a long-term secret relationship with his military secretary Jole, with encouragement and assistance from his wife Cordelia. Notably, the bulk of these fics were written years before Aral/Jole was confirmed in canon.
Rec: This is a perfect companion piece to the book series, digging into all the delicate negotiations and complexities that must have been involved in Aral and Jole’s getting together, with the delightful bonus of Cordelia acting as go-between. The characterisation and writing is wonderful, and there’s also some interesting world-building around queer society on Barrayar and the Vorkosigans’ places in it.
Content warnings: References to past sexual trauma, societal homophobia

“working on my backcheck” by novembersmith. 5.4K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: Heated Rivalry; Ship: Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov
Recced by: Serie11
Backstory: Heated Rivalry is a show about gay hockey boys having hot sex. Set throughout and post season 1, this fic digs into what Shane and Ilya want from each other, not just what they need from each other.
Rec: The character voices here are perfect, and I love the set up of them being able to ask what each other want, and then have the pay off of them being able to give it!
Content warnings: Mentions of homophobia

“Whiff-Whaff” by not_the_idle. 2.5K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Computers & Software (Anthropomorphic); Ship: Gen
Recced by: cantoridiamond
Backstory: This was written for the Fandom Diversity Fest with the theme “Reflection,” and this author somehow brilliantly decided that this meant a battle to the death with Clippy.
Rec: This is such an unexpected wildcard. Never in my life did I think, “You know what I need? A battle royale fever dream starring Clippy and an overworked office peon.” And yet here it is, and I love it.
Content warnings: N/A

Mechanic [sliding out from under Optimus Prime]: I think I see what the issue is. This truck is also a big guy somehow

— the hype (@thehyyyype.bsky.social) November 18, 2025 at 10:48 AM

FINAL THOUGHT

Have a great weekend, everyone! And as a New Yorker I am legally obligated to say: Knicks in 5. :-)) — Elizabeth