Fandom: INCEPTION
Title: Kiss With A Fist - R
Pairing: Arthur/Ariadne
Length: 1,923
Author on LJ: poptartmuse
Author Website: masterlist of fic on author's journal
Why this must be read: This is an AU where Ariadne is a dream assassin, and really, what more reason do you need? It's snarky, sexy, arguably sociopathic, and just a tad sinister--I love it.

( She always blows his brains out so tenderly. )

Kiss With A Fist

Fandom:  The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Pairing: Solo & Kuryakin (Gen)
Length: 2,000 words
Author on LJ: jazline
Author Website:  Jazline

Why this must be read:
In this humorous story, we learn that Napoleon's gotten himself in trouble. Again. He's broken a date with one lovely lady to take out another. Naturally it goes awry, so Napoleon ends up at Illya's door telling him the pitiful story.

( A sample of the text )

Rejection

Vidder Website: (Ionia Films), The Hunt for Gollum
Length: 39:07
Why you must watch this vid:
This rec is me bragging on my fandom. The Lord of the Rings OWNZ all other fandoms in terms of sheer creativity. I'm sorry guys, but it's true. The amount of filks, fics, scholarly geekiness, fan movies, tributes, etc, produced by fans of this franchise is... staggering.

And then there is something like THIS. Which is WOW.

From the YouTube description: Award winning unofficial prequel to The Lord Of The Rings dramatising Aragorn & Gandalf's long search for Gollum directed by British filmmaker Chris Bouchard. Based faithfully on the appendices of the books this is a non-profit, serious homage to the writing of J.R.R Tolkien and the films of Peter Jackson.

It was shot on locations in England and Snowdonia with a team of over a hundred people working over the Internet. It took two years to make and was released as a non-profit Internet-only video by agreement with Tolkien Enterprizes.

SERIOUSLY. This should tide you over until The Hobbit comes out later this year. It is THAT good.

The Hunt for Gollum by Ionia Films

(Also, check out another prequel (this one is actually a prequel to The Hunt for Gollum), Born of Hope, which is a 70-minute movie about Aragorn's parents and the Rangers of the North. This one is also fantastic.)

Fandom: THE SENTINEL
Pairing: slash J/B
Length: 3,822 words
Author on LJ: alyburns
Author Website: The Kennel, also Alyjude's Basement (this particular fic hasn't yet been uploaded to that site, though)
Warnings: none

Why this must be read:

I can't even begin to imagine TS without Alyjude. She's one of the short-list of authors whose fic I go back to over and over again. I always come back happy from reading (rereading) one of her stories. (Well, actually, reading one of her fics again always makes me go back and read more of her fics again, so there's no "one of" involved here; I always find myself in the Lay's Potato Chip position. Betcha can't read -- or reread just one... :-))

Aly can pack a hell of a punch with angst (for which I am deeply grateful :-)) but she has no problem at all in making me have fun, either. (And I mean "fun" in the light-hearted sense, not in the sense of "finding angst fun" -- even though I do find angst fun even while it's ripping my heart out of my body and throwing it on the floor and stomping on it. *ahem*)

Bluffing with the Big Guys is FUN. Blair hasn't been hanging out with Jim for very long and is still sort of a mystery to Jim's co-workers. When Jim's about to host poker night at the loft with Blair invited for the first time, Blair realizes that Jim's co-workers (not to mention Jim and Simon) could stand to broaden their horizons a little, at least as far as the "Junior Hippie-Cop Wannabe" is concerned.

Does Blair get upset when he learns this? Does he get ticked off?

Not exactly. He gets creative.

If you haven't yet read this, go and have fun! (And then read more of Aly's fic. :-)) If you have read it -- I promise, it's still as much fun the second -- or twentieth -- time around. :-)

Links:
  ~  "Bluffing with the Big Guys" at The Kennel
  ~  "Bluffing with the Big Guys" at ASR3

 
 

Fandom: INCEPTION
Title: All the Stars - R
Pairing: Arthur/Eames
Length: 8,022
Author on LJ: scarlet_starlet
Author Website: fic tag on author's journal
Why this must be read: I've said before that I find it hard to buy Arthur/Eames' military backstory, but I just love this one, where Arthur grows up as a military brat, hanging around the barracks and ogling the sexy older British sergeant, who shows up only to treat Arthur like a kid, ignore him, and--oh, yeah, steal a little something called the PASIV. This story is told years down the line, when Arthur and Eames meet again in a new context. It gives you the double pleasure of watching them fall in love and watching Arthur fall in love twice--with some gun-fucking thrown in for good measure. :D Sweet, funny, and warm.

( Eames’ version goes like this. )

All the Stars

Vidder: Lunna the Burg
Musical Artist: Regina Spektor
Length: 3:28
Vidder Website: on YouTube
Why you must watch this vid:
So, I'm trying to showcase the multifaceted nature of the LotR/Tolkien fandom, right? So I'm not going to link you all to the (many and wonderful!) vids using the movies. I'm trying for something a bit different here. This video is certainly that!

This video is a fan-creation filmed entirely in the video game world of The Lord of the Rings Online, an MMORPG. The video is the story of another hobbit that follows the path that Bilbo first took, from the Shire to Rivendell, with multiple allusions to the book. It's lovely, and the music really fits.

Be sure to check out Lunna's other vids filmed in the game, especially her Path of the Fellowship series, featuring the music of The Lonely Mountain Band, a Tolkien-themed filk group (The Path of the Fellowship: Part 3, Into Khazad-Dum (Song of Durin) is my especial favorite!).

The Call: A Hobbit Journey by Lunna the Burg

Vidder: fierysolveig
Musical artist: The XX
Pairing: Harvey Specter/Mike Ross
Vidder on LJ: unknown
Vidder's website: Their YouTube page
Why this vid kicks ass: I love videos that use a lot of choice audio as well as video edits. I have a weakness for them. One of the things I love about this video is that it serves as an introduction to the series and for the marvelous relationship between Harvey and Mike. The vidder also uses a great piece of instrumental music that is reminiscent of some of the background music used throughout season one. Oh, and it's got an unexpected zinger at the end that makes me laugh every single time I watch it. Take two minutes out of your day for this nicely crafted fan video. You won't regret it.

Mistake?

Musical Artist: Original London Production (full cast and crew list available on the website linked below), Music by A.R. Rahman, Värttinä, and Christopher Nightingale, Lyrics by Shaun McKenna and Matthew Warchus
Length: 9:57
Website: The Lord of the Rings - On Stage
Why you must watch this vid:
I was fortunate enough to see one of the final performances of this at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane (thanks to my boyfriend who got tickets and drove us from Cheltenham, risking congestion charges and braving London traffic to take me for my birthday as a surprise) and it was AMAZING TO THE MAX. Just watching this video someone put together of some of the press reels of this musical have me tearing up with nostalgia.

This was the most expensive musical production ever staged, and It. Is. GLORIOUS. I wish it were still playing so I could go back and see it again, but at least I have YouTube (and my memorabilia)! I highly recommend surfing around YouTube to see other clips of this musical (look for the London production rather than the Toronto production). It's the familiar story reinterpreted for the stage, and it fills my Drama-teacher soul with glee.

Lord of the Rings Musical Press Reels

Fandom: COMMUNITY
Pairing: Ensemble
Length: ~1900 words
Author on LJ: austen
Why this must be read: This is a short and funny superhero AU, where the gang ends up with Misfits-style superpowers and awesomeness ensues. Basically, if you've ever wanted Jeff to have the ability to seduce people by touching them, this story is for you.

analysis of the modern hero

I have so many vids I want to recommend for Sherlock this month! Even more than for the other fandom I'm recommending! But... full-time fandom, so only one vid rec allowed. My choice came down to a really, really popular one that everyone knows and I love, or one that I don't think has gotten the attention it deserves. I decided to recommend the latter, on the principle that this community is about uncovering great fan creations that fans might not otherwise know about. So, enjoy!

Vidder: purplefringe
Musical artist: Vienna Teng
Pairing: John/(221B as a stand-in for Sherlock)
Vidder on LJ: purplefringe
Vidder's website: on LJ
Why this vid rocks:
There is something about this vid that really speaks to me. It's set post-Series 2 and it makes me have FEELINGS. John... in Baker Street. After. The song is not quite upbeat, not quite sad, but paired with the choices the vidder makes of scenes and cuts to use, it tells a story of numbness. Ever been in a home that is only a home when filled by a person who isn't there and will never be there again? Yeah, that feeling.

(22)1BR/1BA by purplefringe

VID REC: Do It Again
Vidder: LightNeverFades
Musical Artist: The Chemical Brothers
Length: 0:29
Vidder Website: on YouTube
Why you must watch this vid: It's only 30 seconds! Even if you think you have no interest in Inception fandom, this vid is worth watching because it's fabulous and flash and completely encapsulates the appeal of Arthur and Eames and why they have taken over all our hearts. The editing is mesmerizing, the clips are fantastic, the music is great, look, this vid is basically 30 seconds of digitized sex. I AM OFFERING YOU SEX. TAKE THE SEX.


Do It Again

Vidder: Jenny aka Wakingworld
Musical Artist: Phantogram
Pairing: Merlin/Morgana
Vidder on LJ: wakingworld
Vidder's Website: Youtube
Why this vid kicks ass:

This vid is one of the reasons I'm starting to give Merlin/Morgana a chance and being willing to break my pretty dang strong slash streak in Merlin fandom. The editing blends in masterfully with the clip choices to showcase an expressive mix of regret, missed opportunities', and a painful destiny to be on opposite sides of an epic struggle. I adored how the author brought to light Merlin's and Morgana's similarities so well and in such a way as to cast vivid light on how their very different choices caused those same similarities to become polar opposites. The sheer emotion and connection I could feel for these characters from this vid has inspired me to go find more fics for this pairing, and I look forward to the angst-y love and the painful "what-if"s.

When I'm Small

Vidder: Hayabusa449
Pairing: None.
Vidder on LJ: Unknown.
Vidder's Website: Hayabusa449's YouTube Channel.
Why this vid kicks ass:

This is fan parody at its finest. Though I have to admit I'm not sure why the vidder chose to use the character names from G-Force rather than Gatchaman or even Battle Of The Planets.

Anyway, thrill as G-Force faces the deadliest threat to Galactic peace yet: The Rickroll Mecha!

(Warning: Naughty language, NSFW!)

Vidder: Mélanie
Musical Artist: The Barenaked Ladies
Pairing: none/gen
Characters: Tony & Kate
Vidder on LJ: unknown
Vidder Website: you can find her stuff under "fanart" right here
Why you must watch this vid: I think that Mélanie is, hands down, the best vidder in this fandom. Her vids span all genres from hilariously funny to tear-jerkingly sad, from shippy to gen. I cannot rec her enough! Which is also why I had a hard time picking just one video to rec, to be honest. I finally decided to rec this one because, even though I've always had a bit of a love-hate relationship with Kate, Mélanie shows us the wonderful sibling rivalry between Tony and Kate that I adored so much. It's funny and sweet and will make you nostalgic for the first two seasons of NCIS.

(Kate vs. Tony)