THE MOTHER OF ALL FLAIL POSTS
I'm getting a late start today after a frantic night of typing and beta'ing, but that's not the only reason my day has been spent wandering around in a daze :D
Yuletide:
First, I have a confession. This is my third Yuletide, and every year, I have a fairly solid idea of what fandom I'm going to get. And between story and author reveal, I've always sleuthed out who wrote my gift. This year it was even easier. I only bring it up because in a fandom of a scant handful of fans, anonymity sort of goes out the window anyway. So: (((Huggles))) my writers, and I will now forget this information so I can squee anew on the 1st. XP
A couple weeks ago I was wondering if the Being Erica trend would continue, because I've always been into that fandom in a big way. Not that I wouldn't be ecstatic to get any of my requests, or I wouldn't have asked for them, but there was only one thing that could trump all else. Yes, I got Power Play fic!
And not one, but two, effectively doubling, then 1.5x'ing the total fic count. Ya'll, we're talking THREE TIMES the fic that exists! (And my fangirl head was already two sizes too large >_>) *Flails about in Crazy, Unbridled Joy!"
The Beat and the Pulse : The second, and final, season left of on a down note, Colleen and Brent on the outs in the biggest way yet. This fic follows Colleen in the aftermath, as she runs across the majority of the main cast during her internal (and then external) journey to deal. With the rest of the minor cast a strong presence in the background, it's like falling back into the Power Play universe. When Colleen and Brent finally collide (one of the trickiest things in the world to write), the fic ends perfectly on the only last note they could ever have.
The characterizations, dialogue and details are perfect, down to the smallest ticks, nodding to secondary arcs and pushing everyone forwards. Humour, angst, truth and pain blend and flow, episodes worth of development condensed into a power punch of a story.
Tension Grows, the Whistle Blows : I will now point out that the title is from the theme song (single handedly made me like hockey, don't tell the Flames) and the summary involves a matchmaking Duff sliding into a ramble about disfunctional relationships in hockey. *grins* ETA: Okay. The thing here is that this fic took little teensy twists all the way through that kept throwing me (and throw me still) for a bit of a loop, and while this may be just me, I can't tell you what any of them are without spoiling them.
But it's gorgeous and evocative and can be interpreted in a couple different ways, subtly playing with the underside of the show, where everyone is the same, but off screen they are... different...
Sanctuary Santa:
I flit around in this fandom, because I love the world more than I love the actual show. Or rather, I love aspects of the show, and various relationships, and tend to find speculation and fan musings deeply satisfying. I always get wonderful gifts in this exchange, with characters and pairings I love to death. This year most definitely does not buck the trend :D
(not much else) as sweet as this : Intriguingly, one of the things that hit me hardest about this fic had to be completely unaccounted for. It starts with Helen still reeling from the aftermath of Tempus, where she was trapped in a dream-world. I haven't watched that ep. (Will bugs me.) And it works anyway. There's just enough detail that I didn't feel the lack at all, and settled in next to Tesla, hearing the story for the first time, and then letting my imagination fill out the rest of that dream-world with colour and nuance I wouldn't have been able to otherwise. It's a painful place, but also a soothing one, reality in comparison a jagged run of loss and... abnormality.
I love the Tesla/Helen dynamic because Tesla is a wild card, they are both intense and widely experience people, and even when they hate each other (or when Magnus is annoyed with him) there is still deep caring and affection. We see more of that side of their relationship in this piece, the entire span of their relationship, as well as their personal growth, resounding as Tesla prods and Helen lets him. Fittingly, they are the only two characters present in the story, but they're never lost in each other - which would be a romantic, but out of character, note. The friction never stops, and moments of submission are deliberate and with consideration for how the other will react. There could never be a solid ending for this two, especially not when they'll theoretically live forever, but they live in intense clips and bursts, and this is just one beat.
Yuletide:
First, I have a confession. This is my third Yuletide, and every year, I have a fairly solid idea of what fandom I'm going to get. And between story and author reveal, I've always sleuthed out who wrote my gift. This year it was even easier. I only bring it up because in a fandom of a scant handful of fans, anonymity sort of goes out the window anyway. So: (((Huggles))) my writers, and I will now forget this information so I can squee anew on the 1st. XP
A couple weeks ago I was wondering if the Being Erica trend would continue, because I've always been into that fandom in a big way. Not that I wouldn't be ecstatic to get any of my requests, or I wouldn't have asked for them, but there was only one thing that could trump all else. Yes, I got Power Play fic!
And not one, but two, effectively doubling, then 1.5x'ing the total fic count. Ya'll, we're talking THREE TIMES the fic that exists! (And my fangirl head was already two sizes too large >_>) *Flails about in Crazy, Unbridled Joy!"
The Beat and the Pulse : The second, and final, season left of on a down note, Colleen and Brent on the outs in the biggest way yet. This fic follows Colleen in the aftermath, as she runs across the majority of the main cast during her internal (and then external) journey to deal. With the rest of the minor cast a strong presence in the background, it's like falling back into the Power Play universe. When Colleen and Brent finally collide (one of the trickiest things in the world to write), the fic ends perfectly on the only last note they could ever have.
The characterizations, dialogue and details are perfect, down to the smallest ticks, nodding to secondary arcs and pushing everyone forwards. Humour, angst, truth and pain blend and flow, episodes worth of development condensed into a power punch of a story.
Tension Grows, the Whistle Blows : I will now point out that the title is from the theme song (single handedly made me like hockey, don't tell the Flames) and the summary involves a matchmaking Duff sliding into a ramble about disfunctional relationships in hockey. *grins* ETA: Okay. The thing here is that this fic took little teensy twists all the way through that kept throwing me (and throw me still) for a bit of a loop, and while this may be just me, I can't tell you what any of them are without spoiling them.
But it's gorgeous and evocative and can be interpreted in a couple different ways, subtly playing with the underside of the show, where everyone is the same, but off screen they are... different...
Sanctuary Santa:
I flit around in this fandom, because I love the world more than I love the actual show. Or rather, I love aspects of the show, and various relationships, and tend to find speculation and fan musings deeply satisfying. I always get wonderful gifts in this exchange, with characters and pairings I love to death. This year most definitely does not buck the trend :D
(not much else) as sweet as this : Intriguingly, one of the things that hit me hardest about this fic had to be completely unaccounted for. It starts with Helen still reeling from the aftermath of Tempus, where she was trapped in a dream-world. I haven't watched that ep. (Will bugs me.) And it works anyway. There's just enough detail that I didn't feel the lack at all, and settled in next to Tesla, hearing the story for the first time, and then letting my imagination fill out the rest of that dream-world with colour and nuance I wouldn't have been able to otherwise. It's a painful place, but also a soothing one, reality in comparison a jagged run of loss and... abnormality.
I love the Tesla/Helen dynamic because Tesla is a wild card, they are both intense and widely experience people, and even when they hate each other (or when Magnus is annoyed with him) there is still deep caring and affection. We see more of that side of their relationship in this piece, the entire span of their relationship, as well as their personal growth, resounding as Tesla prods and Helen lets him. Fittingly, they are the only two characters present in the story, but they're never lost in each other - which would be a romantic, but out of character, note. The friction never stops, and moments of submission are deliberate and with consideration for how the other will react. There could never be a solid ending for this two, especially not when they'll theoretically live forever, but they live in intense clips and bursts, and this is just one beat.