ext_14271 (![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
anglopollyanna.livejournal.com) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
crack_van2004-02-02 07:24 pm
anglopollyanna.livejournal.com) wrote in crack_van2004-02-02 07:24 pm
Entry tags:
On Being Given Eyes To See by MacNair (Not rated, PG at most)
Fandom: HIGHLANDER
Pairing: N/A
Author on LJ: Not that I know of
Author Website: Stories hosted at Daire's Fanfic Refuge
Why this must be read:
(Since this is my first stint on crack_van, here's a brief intro about me. My penname is Pollyanna and I'm English - hence the lj name anglopollyanna. I've been reading Highlander fan fiction since 1999, and have dabbled in writing a little, mostly through the auspices of the Lyric Wheel. I have an all-round liking for the Highlander universe so my recs will include gen and slash stories. I'll probably be choosing older stories since I'm trying to rec stories which have stayed in my memory through the years.)
Let's start at the very beginning. Before Duncan there was another Highlander - "Same clan, different vintage." Although the series did make the effort to connect with the film mythology in the first episode, they didn't have the budget for Connor to appear more often. Luckily fan fiction authors have very deep purses, and the author MacNair has written many excellent stories that place Connor in the TV canon.
It was difficult to pick just one of her stories - should it be the first one chronologically, or the retelling of the first episode from Connor's point of view, or the one where Connor meets Adam Pierson? In the end I chose one that takes events from the film and the concept of Watchers from the TV series and weaves them together.
It starts with a nightmare, then switches to a Watcher reunion party, and eventually the reader discovers how they are connected. Joe Dawson is the only Watcher we know, but the others are introduced with brief penstrokes of description so they quickly become individuals that we empathise with as the story progresses. Connor reminisces about Heather and Kastagir. He and Duncan get to the root of an estrangement that has grown between them, and the Watchers watch, and listen, and eventually speak.
"Connor MacLeod, this is Joseph Dawson," commented Duncan sidelong to his
kinsman. He could feel the tension and strength radiating out of the Scot
beside him and cursed inwardly. He had been hoping a stiff drink or two
would loosen up his friend so they could talk. "Joe, Connor knows all
about the Watchers. I told him as soon as I found out, years ago."
It was pointless to argue about what Mac had told his first teacher. Joseph
looked at Connor, taking in the signs of strain in his body and the steel
in his eyes.
This was not a man like Duncan: friendly, gregarious, easy to deal with.
All the descriptors from this man's Chronicles came to the forefront in a
rush. This was a powerful and dangerous immortal, capable of holding a
corner of New York so strongly that other immortals made peace with him
upon entering his territory or stayed away.
Not Duncan. Not Duncan. Not Duncan. The repeating words hammered in his
head. The Highlander. The original one. He had prepared for this moment all
day, but Dawson found himself momentarily at a loss for words.
There is humour in this story, and grief, and love of many kinds.
On Being Given Eyes To See
Pairing: N/A
Author on LJ: Not that I know of
Author Website: Stories hosted at Daire's Fanfic Refuge
Why this must be read:
(Since this is my first stint on crack_van, here's a brief intro about me. My penname is Pollyanna and I'm English - hence the lj name anglopollyanna. I've been reading Highlander fan fiction since 1999, and have dabbled in writing a little, mostly through the auspices of the Lyric Wheel. I have an all-round liking for the Highlander universe so my recs will include gen and slash stories. I'll probably be choosing older stories since I'm trying to rec stories which have stayed in my memory through the years.)
Let's start at the very beginning. Before Duncan there was another Highlander - "Same clan, different vintage." Although the series did make the effort to connect with the film mythology in the first episode, they didn't have the budget for Connor to appear more often. Luckily fan fiction authors have very deep purses, and the author MacNair has written many excellent stories that place Connor in the TV canon.
It was difficult to pick just one of her stories - should it be the first one chronologically, or the retelling of the first episode from Connor's point of view, or the one where Connor meets Adam Pierson? In the end I chose one that takes events from the film and the concept of Watchers from the TV series and weaves them together.
It starts with a nightmare, then switches to a Watcher reunion party, and eventually the reader discovers how they are connected. Joe Dawson is the only Watcher we know, but the others are introduced with brief penstrokes of description so they quickly become individuals that we empathise with as the story progresses. Connor reminisces about Heather and Kastagir. He and Duncan get to the root of an estrangement that has grown between them, and the Watchers watch, and listen, and eventually speak.
"Connor MacLeod, this is Joseph Dawson," commented Duncan sidelong to his
kinsman. He could feel the tension and strength radiating out of the Scot
beside him and cursed inwardly. He had been hoping a stiff drink or two
would loosen up his friend so they could talk. "Joe, Connor knows all
about the Watchers. I told him as soon as I found out, years ago."
It was pointless to argue about what Mac had told his first teacher. Joseph
looked at Connor, taking in the signs of strain in his body and the steel
in his eyes.
This was not a man like Duncan: friendly, gregarious, easy to deal with.
All the descriptors from this man's Chronicles came to the forefront in a
rush. This was a powerful and dangerous immortal, capable of holding a
corner of New York so strongly that other immortals made peace with him
upon entering his territory or stayed away.
Not Duncan. Not Duncan. Not Duncan. The repeating words hammered in his
head. The Highlander. The original one. He had prepared for this moment all
day, but Dawson found himself momentarily at a loss for words.
There is humour in this story, and grief, and love of many kinds.
On Being Given Eyes To See
no subject