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crack_van2009-04-20 10:27 pm
serenaar.livejournal.com) wrote in crack_van2009-04-20 10:27 pm
Entry tags:
The Magic Kingdom Affair by GM (G)
Fandom: MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.
Pairing: None
Length: 11,913 words
Author on LJ: Unknown
Author Website: Solo Sojourn
Why this must be read:
I know some of my other recs have been quite explicit which may have put off the people who only read gen. I do like gen stories aswell and here's the proof of the pudding as they say. This story mixes two of my favourite things to perfection - Man from UNCLE and Disney. Before you run off screaming that I've lost my marbles please hear me out!
Most Man from UNCLE stories centre on action, angst or our boys being in peril (as you usually see them in the show). This story doesn't have any of that. What it does have however is buckets and buckets of character. It takes place in Disneyland where the boys are following a suspect. Naturally, they can't go in all guns blazing, so they have to just work their way through the park in search of their mark.
Even to himself, Kuryakin vaguely admitted it was nice to have an easy assignment now and again. He'd even tolerated the flashy sports car without his usual caustic comments, knowing Solo could no sooner pass up a red convertible than he could restrain from flirting with a pretty woman. He could be tedious at times, but Napoleon Solo was never a dull companion. Kuryakin peered over his reading glasses to survey the freeway. Despite the congested thoroughfare they had made rapid inroads.
"Knott's Berry Farm?" he wondered and glanced at his partner.
Solo shook his head. "We passed that too."
Kuryakin again consulted the map, his face puzzled. Suddenly he jerked his head up, a determined expression on his face. "Of course. Disneyland!"
"Not Disneyland!" Solo countered sourly.
Illya pushed the glasses down again and quizzically appraised the senior agent. "Why not?"
Solo opened his mouth, but the words were blocked by his own perplexity. Instinctive repulsion had caused him to blurt out his denial, while logic told him his reaction was absurd. An amusement park was not off limits to criminals, gunrunners, or international spies. Yet, as sentimental as it seemed, he was uncomfortable with the thought of a meet at Disneyland. His mind balked at the idea of a deal for a large shipment of lethal arms to a terrorist group going down at a children's park. It was an instinctively chivalrous, inbred aversion to bringing their sometimes seamy, deadly business into the innocent world of women and children.
Though he considered himself progressive and enlightened, Solo still held deeply rooted codes of chivalry. Yet, how could he explain it all to Illya when he didn't even understand it himself? His instincts called out to protect Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Disneyland -- protect the childhood fantasies in them all -- even hardened UNCLE agents.
Every now and again you need a bit of fluff to make you smile. Not all the time, but just occasionally :-) I wouldn't say this story is proper fluff, however the story fills the need for something a little light perfectly. Just imagine a moody, communist spy from Russia, working for an international organisation seeing Disneyland for the first time! The banter is just perfect - Illya's reaction to what he sees is (in my opinion) exactly how he should react. The Napoleon/Illya relationship in a story is always a critical thing for me and this one hits it right on the head despite the odd situation. I can certainly believe that Illya should react with confusion and that Napoleon would have to explain some things to him.
So for me, it works. Spies in Disneyland. In the 60's.... Surprising and yet fluffily satisfying *g*
The Magic Kingdom Affair
Pairing: None
Length: 11,913 words
Author on LJ: Unknown
Author Website: Solo Sojourn
Why this must be read:
I know some of my other recs have been quite explicit which may have put off the people who only read gen. I do like gen stories aswell and here's the proof of the pudding as they say. This story mixes two of my favourite things to perfection - Man from UNCLE and Disney. Before you run off screaming that I've lost my marbles please hear me out!
Most Man from UNCLE stories centre on action, angst or our boys being in peril (as you usually see them in the show). This story doesn't have any of that. What it does have however is buckets and buckets of character. It takes place in Disneyland where the boys are following a suspect. Naturally, they can't go in all guns blazing, so they have to just work their way through the park in search of their mark.
Even to himself, Kuryakin vaguely admitted it was nice to have an easy assignment now and again. He'd even tolerated the flashy sports car without his usual caustic comments, knowing Solo could no sooner pass up a red convertible than he could restrain from flirting with a pretty woman. He could be tedious at times, but Napoleon Solo was never a dull companion. Kuryakin peered over his reading glasses to survey the freeway. Despite the congested thoroughfare they had made rapid inroads.
"Knott's Berry Farm?" he wondered and glanced at his partner.
Solo shook his head. "We passed that too."
Kuryakin again consulted the map, his face puzzled. Suddenly he jerked his head up, a determined expression on his face. "Of course. Disneyland!"
"Not Disneyland!" Solo countered sourly.
Illya pushed the glasses down again and quizzically appraised the senior agent. "Why not?"
Solo opened his mouth, but the words were blocked by his own perplexity. Instinctive repulsion had caused him to blurt out his denial, while logic told him his reaction was absurd. An amusement park was not off limits to criminals, gunrunners, or international spies. Yet, as sentimental as it seemed, he was uncomfortable with the thought of a meet at Disneyland. His mind balked at the idea of a deal for a large shipment of lethal arms to a terrorist group going down at a children's park. It was an instinctively chivalrous, inbred aversion to bringing their sometimes seamy, deadly business into the innocent world of women and children.
Though he considered himself progressive and enlightened, Solo still held deeply rooted codes of chivalry. Yet, how could he explain it all to Illya when he didn't even understand it himself? His instincts called out to protect Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Disneyland -- protect the childhood fantasies in them all -- even hardened UNCLE agents.
Every now and again you need a bit of fluff to make you smile. Not all the time, but just occasionally :-) I wouldn't say this story is proper fluff, however the story fills the need for something a little light perfectly. Just imagine a moody, communist spy from Russia, working for an international organisation seeing Disneyland for the first time! The banter is just perfect - Illya's reaction to what he sees is (in my opinion) exactly how he should react. The Napoleon/Illya relationship in a story is always a critical thing for me and this one hits it right on the head despite the odd situation. I can certainly believe that Illya should react with confusion and that Napoleon would have to explain some things to him.
So for me, it works. Spies in Disneyland. In the 60's.... Surprising and yet fluffily satisfying *g*
The Magic Kingdom Affair