Fandom: INVISIBLE MAN
Pairing: Fawkes/Hobbes
Author Website: Through Slash-Corrupted Eyes
Why this must be read:

Chalie is one of the gifted I-Man writers who manages to do funny and sexy at the same time, which is a damned hard and very important part of the whole Bobby/Darien dynamic. Mile High is a perfect example of that, as the boys torture each other in public:

'Stop' in Darien's frame of mind actually translated here into 'fuck yeah, I'm ready when you are'.

Bobby usually had the subtitles down pat.

But then, "Cool, kid. Sure." And Bobby...Bobby stopped.

Darien was a cramped, bunched-up jumble of frustration made worse by the exquisite ache his newfound sadist of a partner had seen fit to inspire. "I'll kill you," he said, around the teeth which were well on their way to biting through his lower lip.

Bobby leaned back, smirk turned up way past eleven. "Huh. Like to see you try."

Mile High

Fandom: INVISIBLE MAN
Pairing: None
Author Website: Story found at I-Maniacs Fan Club
Why this must be read:

This is probably one of the darkest stories in I-Man fandom, pushing all the doubts and ambiguities in the relationships between Claire, Bobby and Darien to the limit. It's a deliciously creepy look inside the Keeper's head.

As part of his conditioning, I always give him his shot while he sits in the chair. I make him wait just long enough to reinforce the concept that he is dependent on my actions. I use a large, old-style, glass hypodermic as part of the psychological aspect of the process. He must associate this object with his submission/reward and he must associate me as the source of it.

Points of View

Fandom: FIREFLY
Pairing: N/A
Author on LJ: N/K
Author Website: N/K

Why this must be read:

SERENITY the movie has prompted a huge outpouring of fanfic, some written before the film's "official" premiere, thanks to all the pre-screenings held by Universal. You've got your coping fics, the moving-on stories, 'shipping...and little gems like this one, which brings the funny. No great surprise, really, when one of Joss's dictums is "...'make it dark, make it grim, make it tough,' but then, for the love of God, tell a joke."

(Chockful of spoilers for the Big Damn Movie.)

The crew moves on, all right, much to Mal's dismay.

Poke (or A Short Spoilerific Serenity Fic)

Fandom: DCU
Pairing: none
Author on LJ: picking_apples
Author Website: unknown
Why this must be read:

There's a tradition of friendship between Bats (those who work in Gotham under the supervision of Batman) and Supers. In fact, DC publishes a book called Batman/Superman: "pre-slashed," as liviapenn says, "for your convenience." This story examines the reasons why, although they come from different worlds and are fundamentally foreign to each other, each is so attracted to the other. It has a lovely Kon voice, and conveys the atmosphere of Gotham and how it shapes its inhabitants.

Lullaby

Good morning, I'll be your Blake's 7 Crack-Van driver for November. Now, I think we'll go with sort of a theme this month. One of the disappointing things for fans of Blake's 7 is how the female characters began with such flair and anti-stereotypical backgrounds, as guerrilla fighters or smugglers or professional gunhands, and all too often ended up sitting around manning the phones and chatting while the men ran off to play with explosives and dodge bullets, when, in truth, the women were almost across the board more experienced and better-qualified for that job. That, fortunately, is something fanfic writers occasionally take it into their heads to correct. So because the best things in life are aliens, which are all exoticism and the metaphorical exploration of modern alienation, and explosions, which are fun, we're going to have a month of Cally fiction.

Fandom: BLAKES 7
Pairing: none (Avon-Cally gen)
Author on LJ: unknown
Author Website: unknown
Why this must be read:

We're gonna start out old school this month, and turn back time 25 years. Blake's 7 fandom is zine-heavy, and much of its fic remains in hardcopy, although a few of the zines from those heady, lawless, pre-internet days are now turning up online. The Quibell Abduction is one of those; a story from 1980, only recently added to the online archives. It remains one of the most recommended Cally-centric stories.

At the heart of the story is an undercover operation that goes badly wrong - not for the usual reasons, but because there is a far more menacing and horrific operation going on underground. On a mission to obtain needed supplies, Avon and Cally start out masquerading their way under the noses of Federation security on a sleepy backwater planet and are rapidly involved in a sitatuion that forces them to work with the local Federation officers to avert a planet-wide catastrophe.

( The xeno-gardens spilled their exotic scents into the warm breeze blowing from the dark, rippling lake... )

What's it got going for it? This is good sci-fi, set a well-drawn world, with social tensions, complex characters, a rich enviroment, and detailed alien species. It's a fast-paced action story in a fandom frankly prone to a bit of navel-gazing, and it gives the alien guerrilla fighter a chance to shine, and use both her fighting skills and her alienness to her - and the plot's - advantage.

( Less than twenty metres from collision, Cally pushed the power to full... )

It's that classic formula for good Blake's 7: good and evil alike drawn in shades of gray, explosive sci-fi action, a hint of horror - and of humor.

( Read more... )

Oh, that dry, off-beat alien sense of humor, which somehow functions best when in the thick of major soldier-of-fortune action involving imminent explosions. So go on, wipe the cobwebs off the bottle, and pour yourself a nice big glass of some vintage Blake's 7. You're going to need that stiff drink later in the month.

The Quibell Abduction

Fandom: BATTLESTAR GALACTICA 2003
Pairing: None
Author on LJ: vegetariansushi
Author Website: None
Why this must be read: "Better With You Here," gives us a glimpse into Cally's mind, during early-S2, that's chilling and poignant and so, so good. Vege's writing style just slays me: it's so elegant and spare and beautiful, and even when I haven't seen the canon--and this is the kind of story you really *need* to have seen the canon to get the most out of--I still read her work with this feeling of breathless joy.

Better With You Here (Warnings: Potentially disturbing imagery. Spoilers through 2x04)

Fandom: SMALLVILLE
Pairing: Clark/Lex
Author on LJ: rivkat
Author Website: Rivkat's Bare-bones Site
Why this must be read: "Golden Rule" is a story which combines many of my favourite aspects of Smallville fanfic: it's a futurefic; it runs with the cliched amnesia idea, but takes it in new and wonderful directions; and it has kinda-evil Lex which, let's face it, is smoking hot and presses all sorts of buttons for me. And, it turns out, also for Clark.

Golden Rule

Fandom: X-Men Movieverse
Pairing: Scott/Jean, Logan, Warren
Author on LJ: Don’t know
Author Website: Ridesandruns
Why this must be read:

Ridesandruns writes wonderfully funny fic. She has a gift for Scott-Logan snark. I’d recommend anything on her website, but “A Teaching Moment” is hilarious. Jean finally gets a code name: Lucrezia Borgia. Let’s just say it’s a good thing she has a medical career to fall back on, because she has no future as a hausfrau. Oh, wait – maybe she won’t have that medical career for long, either….

A Teaching Moment

Fandom: THE MAN FROM UNCLE
Pairing: Napoleon/Illya (Gen)
Author on LJ: Unknown
Author Website: Unknown
Why this must be read:

For my second post this month I'll recommend a story in stark opposition to the first: This one is Gen, as Gen as it is possible to be: there is no love affair, not the least hint of sex of any sort (only two charming young ladies on a boat, who dont even seem to have noticed our lads' good looks, at least not within the limit of the narrative); the general tone is gentle, light hearted, humorous, very reminding of the best third season, witty with a fast action, easy banters and a lot of interplay between the two heroes, good characterizations nonetheless and all you can wish, all you may expect when two brash young agents who have almost nothing in common find themselves partnered, more or less against their will, by an unscrutable (and unwise?) Waverley.

I know, I know, it's not original, but it's wonderfully well done! And there are not so many "first time" stories in Gen; I mean of course the first time Napoleon and Illya meet, before "getting to know" each other. This version is one of the best I ever read and I deeply regret that the author didn't keep writing in MFU. So take the dish as it's served and enjoy!

The Getting To Know You Affair

Fandom: THE PROFESSIONALS
Pairing: Bodie/Doyle
Author on LJ: unknown
Author Website: None
Why this must be read: I don't think you can go wrong with anything Ellis Ward wrote but this is one of my favorites. The story begins eighteen months into their relationship as Bodie wakes and knows what he's hearing is Doyle. And something is wrong. From there, the progression of their relationship is presented in flashbacks, giving you the background on what has been built and what will be needed in order for them to survive a final confrontation.

There's a sequel, also in the circuit archive, but that's another tale.



And Memories Die

Fandom: ANGEL
Pairing: Angel/Wesley
Author on LJ: lonelybrit
Author Website: none
Why this must be read: In my reading, I've rarely come across a post-"Not Fade Away" fic that isn't either extremely happy or extremely depressing and "Things Imperfect" captures a balance of the two. These stories have the real and raw emotional quality that drew me to watching Angel in the first place. The story starts off with a Shanshu'd Angel telling Roger Wyndam-Pryce that Wesley is dead and progresses from there. ( Slight story spoiler cut ) This story explores Wesley's family and their perceptions and assumptions of Wesley and of Angel. The additions to the 'verse further explore the themes of family.

Things Imperfect, Time Will Tell, and Acceptance.

Fandom: LOTRIPS
Pairings: Billy/Dom, Andy/Sean Bean
Author on LJ: lord_alexander
Author Website: serpentisfix
Why this must be read: This is an hilarious stream of consciousness story from the filthy mouth of Andy Serkis. There's no Gollum-speak (thank god!), just a charmingly crass flow of seeming randomness from would-be matchmaker Andy as he attempts to smoosh two hobbits together on a teeny tiny boat whilst tiptoeing around the Sean Factor. There are too many funny one-liners to choose from and the smut's as hot as monkeys.

( excerpt )

Three Four Men in a Boat