What I read Monday (5/19) -- ER, XF, HL, OAT, Crossovers; definitions; mini-essay/"short-comings"
NOTES ... As noted over in my main journal, djinanna, I've had a busy couple of weeks. I still managed to read fanfic during the cracks in my schedule. (Addicts can always find a way. *grin*) The only day I missed was Sunday, and I didn't even turn my computer *on* that day, I was so wrecked. Though I did manage to stay awake for D'Onofrio's L&O:CI finale. Yeah, me!
I also managed to keep up with my fanfic reading log. Except for the bit that crashed before I'd managed to save it to disc. *grrr* I've reconstructed part of it, but I still think I read some stuff that isn't listed. Possibly some story bits that were posted on LJ. I'm feeling very frustrated. *grrr* *arrrgh*
But I've also got a minor dilemma going. See , here's the thing. I actually started using this format for this journal so that I could keep track of what I was reading, find the things I wanted to reread easily and warn myself about the stuff that I really didn't want to reread. Because I have a memory like a rusty sieve. But there's this story I read that's in a Friends Locked post here on LiveJournal. So, I have to ask myself -- do I include the link for myself, or do I go by LJ etiquette and leave the link off, thus frustrating myself in future if/when I want to find the story again. And I decided -- I'm gonna list the story without a link (because I am a completist; that's why I'm so frustrated about not being about to reconstruct my fanfic reading log per above paragraph) and then put the link in a screened comment to this post. Which I think is a reasonable compromise. I hope. *sigh*
In case you haven't noticed, I do read a lot of fanfic. There's no particular pattern to it, though. Sometimes I get a taste for this character or that pairing, sometimes for a particular type of story (MPREG, non-con, fluffy romance, curtain-fic -- what can I say, I have some perverse tastes in reading). I follow recs and links from others, I dig into my own list o' links, I troll archives.... The commentary about individual stories is high subjective, too. YMMV big-time. Which is okay.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
ER: Carter/Kovac
"Carter becomes a man"
by Jayne Leitch (serrico)
A brief mostly character study piece, Carter's internal life during his African adventure. Swelling unacknowledged UST in his thoughts about Luka. And a moment, in the dark, just the two of them.... This is a mood piece, rather than explicit descriptions of actions, things are more implied. It's atmosphere, intense and just ... yummy. *recommended*
ER: John Carter/Luka Kovac
Into The Wild
by Destina
This is the Friends Locked post mentioned above. Like the above-mentioned story, it's moody, atmospheric and intense. (Must be something about ER fic ... or maybe dark brooding damaged Luka ... or maybe the heat of the jungle....) Unlike the above-mentioned story, it's also explicit. Luka. Carter. Wow. Please, ma'am, I want some more!
Reconstructed from memory...
X-Files: Mulder/Krycek
One - 1st person POV, Krycek's thoughts after Mulder's "death", though I'm kinda uncertain about which "death" it references. Painful, sometimes ugly, sometimes poignant. Verges on self-pity a few times, but then veers off.
Djinn - 1st person POV, Krycek's thoughts while in the Tunisian prison. Again, painful, sometimes ugly, sometimes poignant. Very harsh. No self-pity. My beautiful green-eyed Rat is the anti-woobie, but I still want to feed him pie....
by Garnet
I was really in the mood for a *story* when I stumbled across this author's page over at RatB (aka Terma). I was really *not* in the mood for a couple of soliloquies, even from Krycek. And they're so densely written, there's so much *there*. They pay for rereading, as things missed the first time pop up. A bit inaccessible if you're unfamiliar with the series, especially the Conspiracy arc. On second reading, they're both better than my first impression. And the Krycek voice -- both are believably Krycek, but they're not quite the same person. This seems more a case of changes wrought by time and events, not two different interpretations of the character.
The Nick Zone
The site's tag: A celebration of the work of Nicholas Lea. There's fanfic (19 stories added just this month) and some really lovely graphics and lots more. And in case you don't know, Nick Lea is the actor who brought the devious and delicious Alex Krycek to life for not-quite-two-dozen episodes of The X-Files. This site has Krycek fanfic. It also has fanfic featuring other characters he's played, like Cory Raines (Highlander/"Money for Nothing") and Vic Mansfield (Once A Thief). And pretty much any other character he's played in a movie or tv show. Most of what's here are PWPs, and actor-wanks at that*, which are generally soooo *not* my cuppa. I like long plotty character examinations, with some relationship building and a little sex on the side to spice things up. There are some stories here that *aren't* PWPs, but you gotta look for them. The following stories are what I read at The Nick Zone during this particular visit. It's a matter of personal taste that I don't recommend most of them, because of my not being much of a PWP fan, but I really think it's a YMMV situation. In other words, if you're so inclined, please read and decide for yourself. Come back and tell me I'm an unappreciative undersexed fool (like that's news *grin*)....
* Just to clarify my (*non-judgmental*) usage of terms, some definitions. If your definitions of these terms are different, I'd really appreciate your using the "comments" option to let me know. Thanks!
> Character-wank - a story, usually a PWP, that uses a cross-over for the sole purpose of two -- or more -- characters having sex together.
> Actor-wank - a story, usually a PWP, that uses a cross-over for the sole purpose of two -- or more -- characters played by the same actor having sex with one another.
> Real person fic/slash (RPF, RPS) - a fanfic story featuring real people, most commonly actors or musicians, rather than fictional characters. Does not have to be a PWP.
X-Files: Alex Krycek
What We Did to Alex
by Katherine F
This piece serves as the introduction to the "Alex Annex" at The Nick Zone. My anti-woobie is a real popular guy. Anyway. This piece isn't a story, it's a lovely little fannish tribute and a wonderful summary of that most contradictory of canon characters, the enigmatic and many-faced Alex Kryeck. For fans and newbies alike, and keeping in mind that I absolutely adore Alex, *recommended*
Have a quote: He was just a bad guy in a bad suit when we first met him, with no story of his own. We thought we could take advantage of that. We thought that if we gave him a story, he'd do what we wanted. We were wrong.
X-Files: Mulder/Krycek
The Y Files
by Dr. Ruthless
I *heart* some of Ruthless's stories, while others are just *not* to my taste. Her characterizations are often the prose equivalent of a caricature, sometimes campy fun, sometimes just a bit over-the-top. On the one hand, I find the set-up for this story intriguing -- back during the Duane Barry case, Scully's the rat-bastard, while Krycek is the loyal acolyte, and *Mulder* is the one who gets abducted. On the other hand, the execution doesn't thrill me. Sex happens at wildly inappropriate times (and kinda bored me), and character/plot development felt choppy rather than organic. But then I realized this was an extended PWP and my perspective changed, because PWPs operate by different rules. Oh, the sex still wasn't my cuppa, but the inappropriate timing was no longer a problem of the storytelling, as inappropriate sex is kinda to be expected in a PWP.
Crossover: Highlander + X-Files + Once a Thief (Cory + Alex + Vic)
A Three-Krycek Problem
by Jose Cheung
Kind of a shaggy-Krycek story. And an actor-wank. Not generally my cuppa, but it *was* funny. I'm still snickering. Poor Mulder.
Highlander: Duncan/Cory
Foolish Things
by Tarlan
PWP mixed with an April Fool's Day Challenge. Ack! It breaks my OTP! Yikes! But ... Cory Raines ... mmmmm. (If you know Krycek but don't know Cory -- he's as light-hearted an Immortal rascal as Krycek is an assassin and scoundrel.
Crossover: Maloney + Highlander (Anson Green + Cory)
Bruised Boys and Redemption
by Ursula
I'm not familiar with Maloney, which was a short-lived series about a police psychiatrist. Nick Lea did a guest shot on it as psycho-of-the-week Anson Green. There's a bit of subtext, so I'll call it pre-slash, a potential actor-wank, plus an implied potential character-wank (Anson and Amanda). It's too short, dammit! I want *more* of this story, it really drew me in and I wanted to find out what happened next.
Mini-Essay: "Short-Comings"
(Not sure if I want to admit that the pun in the essay title was kinda intentional...) The above-mentioned story also exemplifies one of my biggest problems with the short-short story and the PWP -- the set-up and situation is intriguing, I want to know what happens next. I want to read more about these characters, follow their lives for a while, see how they interact with one another, see how Amanda reacts to Anson and how Anson reacts to Amanda. I just want more. It's like reading an interesting blurb on the back of a novel but not being able to read the book. And I don't want to "write my own answer", per the call of fanfic writing; I want to see more of *this* author's interpretation and vision. *sigh* I am doomed to much frustration.
ETA ... fixed HTML tags *sigh* having trouble remembering to close tags today
I also managed to keep up with my fanfic reading log. Except for the bit that crashed before I'd managed to save it to disc. *grrr* I've reconstructed part of it, but I still think I read some stuff that isn't listed. Possibly some story bits that were posted on LJ. I'm feeling very frustrated. *grrr* *arrrgh*
But I've also got a minor dilemma going. See , here's the thing. I actually started using this format for this journal so that I could keep track of what I was reading, find the things I wanted to reread easily and warn myself about the stuff that I really didn't want to reread. Because I have a memory like a rusty sieve. But there's this story I read that's in a Friends Locked post here on LiveJournal. So, I have to ask myself -- do I include the link for myself, or do I go by LJ etiquette and leave the link off, thus frustrating myself in future if/when I want to find the story again. And I decided -- I'm gonna list the story without a link (because I am a completist; that's why I'm so frustrated about not being about to reconstruct my fanfic reading log per above paragraph) and then put the link in a screened comment to this post. Which I think is a reasonable compromise. I hope. *sigh*
In case you haven't noticed, I do read a lot of fanfic. There's no particular pattern to it, though. Sometimes I get a taste for this character or that pairing, sometimes for a particular type of story (MPREG, non-con, fluffy romance, curtain-fic -- what can I say, I have some perverse tastes in reading). I follow recs and links from others, I dig into my own list o' links, I troll archives.... The commentary about individual stories is high subjective, too. YMMV big-time. Which is okay.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
ER: Carter/Kovac
"Carter becomes a man"
by Jayne Leitch (serrico)
A brief mostly character study piece, Carter's internal life during his African adventure. Swelling unacknowledged UST in his thoughts about Luka. And a moment, in the dark, just the two of them.... This is a mood piece, rather than explicit descriptions of actions, things are more implied. It's atmosphere, intense and just ... yummy. *recommended*
ER: John Carter/Luka Kovac
Into The Wild
by Destina
This is the Friends Locked post mentioned above. Like the above-mentioned story, it's moody, atmospheric and intense. (Must be something about ER fic ... or maybe dark brooding damaged Luka ... or maybe the heat of the jungle....) Unlike the above-mentioned story, it's also explicit. Luka. Carter. Wow. Please, ma'am, I want some more!
Reconstructed from memory...
X-Files: Mulder/Krycek
One - 1st person POV, Krycek's thoughts after Mulder's "death", though I'm kinda uncertain about which "death" it references. Painful, sometimes ugly, sometimes poignant. Verges on self-pity a few times, but then veers off.
Djinn - 1st person POV, Krycek's thoughts while in the Tunisian prison. Again, painful, sometimes ugly, sometimes poignant. Very harsh. No self-pity. My beautiful green-eyed Rat is the anti-woobie, but I still want to feed him pie....
by Garnet
I was really in the mood for a *story* when I stumbled across this author's page over at RatB (aka Terma). I was really *not* in the mood for a couple of soliloquies, even from Krycek. And they're so densely written, there's so much *there*. They pay for rereading, as things missed the first time pop up. A bit inaccessible if you're unfamiliar with the series, especially the Conspiracy arc. On second reading, they're both better than my first impression. And the Krycek voice -- both are believably Krycek, but they're not quite the same person. This seems more a case of changes wrought by time and events, not two different interpretations of the character.
The Nick Zone
The site's tag: A celebration of the work of Nicholas Lea. There's fanfic (19 stories added just this month) and some really lovely graphics and lots more. And in case you don't know, Nick Lea is the actor who brought the devious and delicious Alex Krycek to life for not-quite-two-dozen episodes of The X-Files. This site has Krycek fanfic. It also has fanfic featuring other characters he's played, like Cory Raines (Highlander/"Money for Nothing") and Vic Mansfield (Once A Thief). And pretty much any other character he's played in a movie or tv show. Most of what's here are PWPs, and actor-wanks at that*, which are generally soooo *not* my cuppa. I like long plotty character examinations, with some relationship building and a little sex on the side to spice things up. There are some stories here that *aren't* PWPs, but you gotta look for them. The following stories are what I read at The Nick Zone during this particular visit. It's a matter of personal taste that I don't recommend most of them, because of my not being much of a PWP fan, but I really think it's a YMMV situation. In other words, if you're so inclined, please read and decide for yourself. Come back and tell me I'm an unappreciative undersexed fool (like that's news *grin*)....
* Just to clarify my (*non-judgmental*) usage of terms, some definitions. If your definitions of these terms are different, I'd really appreciate your using the "comments" option to let me know. Thanks!
> Character-wank - a story, usually a PWP, that uses a cross-over for the sole purpose of two -- or more -- characters having sex together.
> Actor-wank - a story, usually a PWP, that uses a cross-over for the sole purpose of two -- or more -- characters played by the same actor having sex with one another.
> Real person fic/slash (RPF, RPS) - a fanfic story featuring real people, most commonly actors or musicians, rather than fictional characters. Does not have to be a PWP.
X-Files: Alex Krycek
What We Did to Alex
by Katherine F
This piece serves as the introduction to the "Alex Annex" at The Nick Zone. My anti-woobie is a real popular guy. Anyway. This piece isn't a story, it's a lovely little fannish tribute and a wonderful summary of that most contradictory of canon characters, the enigmatic and many-faced Alex Kryeck. For fans and newbies alike, and keeping in mind that I absolutely adore Alex, *recommended*
Have a quote: He was just a bad guy in a bad suit when we first met him, with no story of his own. We thought we could take advantage of that. We thought that if we gave him a story, he'd do what we wanted. We were wrong.
X-Files: Mulder/Krycek
The Y Files
by Dr. Ruthless
I *heart* some of Ruthless's stories, while others are just *not* to my taste. Her characterizations are often the prose equivalent of a caricature, sometimes campy fun, sometimes just a bit over-the-top. On the one hand, I find the set-up for this story intriguing -- back during the Duane Barry case, Scully's the rat-bastard, while Krycek is the loyal acolyte, and *Mulder* is the one who gets abducted. On the other hand, the execution doesn't thrill me. Sex happens at wildly inappropriate times (and kinda bored me), and character/plot development felt choppy rather than organic. But then I realized this was an extended PWP and my perspective changed, because PWPs operate by different rules. Oh, the sex still wasn't my cuppa, but the inappropriate timing was no longer a problem of the storytelling, as inappropriate sex is kinda to be expected in a PWP.
Crossover: Highlander + X-Files + Once a Thief (Cory + Alex + Vic)
A Three-Krycek Problem
by Jose Cheung
Kind of a shaggy-Krycek story. And an actor-wank. Not generally my cuppa, but it *was* funny. I'm still snickering. Poor Mulder.
Highlander: Duncan/Cory
Foolish Things
by Tarlan
PWP mixed with an April Fool's Day Challenge. Ack! It breaks my OTP! Yikes! But ... Cory Raines ... mmmmm. (If you know Krycek but don't know Cory -- he's as light-hearted an Immortal rascal as Krycek is an assassin and scoundrel.
Crossover: Maloney + Highlander (Anson Green + Cory)
Bruised Boys and Redemption
by Ursula
I'm not familiar with Maloney, which was a short-lived series about a police psychiatrist. Nick Lea did a guest shot on it as psycho-of-the-week Anson Green. There's a bit of subtext, so I'll call it pre-slash, a potential actor-wank, plus an implied potential character-wank (Anson and Amanda). It's too short, dammit! I want *more* of this story, it really drew me in and I wanted to find out what happened next.
Mini-Essay: "Short-Comings"
(Not sure if I want to admit that the pun in the essay title was kinda intentional...) The above-mentioned story also exemplifies one of my biggest problems with the short-short story and the PWP -- the set-up and situation is intriguing, I want to know what happens next. I want to read more about these characters, follow their lives for a while, see how they interact with one another, see how Amanda reacts to Anson and how Anson reacts to Amanda. I just want more. It's like reading an interesting blurb on the back of a novel but not being able to read the book. And I don't want to "write my own answer", per the call of fanfic writing; I want to see more of *this* author's interpretation and vision. *sigh* I am doomed to much frustration.
ETA ... fixed HTML tags *sigh* having trouble remembering to close tags today