Dr. Who links and a Heroes plot bunny of the historical kind
Firstly, Dr. Who links, as certain song contests robbed as of an episode this Saturday:
Songs to the Tune of the Tardis: now that's more like it. Using song excerpts in fanfic (or for that matter on the show - nods to a certain beloved space show of mine - is a tricky, tricky thing, but here it works, and the characterisations of the various Doctor/Companion relationships and juxtapositions to the songs work perfectly.
I always have a soft spot for stories in which one of the later incarnations of the Doctor - i.e. Nine or Ten - encounters an Old Who companion. This week, there was a wonderful reply to the prompt at theatrical_muse, which was "Mommy/Mummy". As New Who watchers know, that word has a particular significance in two s1/27 episodes. The story that ensused from the prompt managed to use that particular adventure of the Ninth Doctor as background, but even more importantly managed to use one of the companions of the very First Doctor, Ian Chesterton, and let him a last meeting with the latest, Tenth Doctor. The result is infinitely moving and here.
(New Who only watchers: Ian and Barbara were, err, sort of kidnapped by the First Doctor in the pilot of the show. They were teachers investigating his granddaughter Susan. Also, the Doctor being an old man at the time, Ian was the young guy doing all the action stuff early on, and as with Mickey, the Doctor deliberately got his name wrong for a good while.)
The Noblest Romana is an excellent essay about the Time Lady Romana, companion to the Fourth Doctor. Comments by resolute and kangeiko have reminded me that New Who only watchers often aren't aware that the Doctor's "last of the Time Lords" status is a very new thing, a crucial change from the old show, and that there used to be not only a planet of them but several distinct on screen individuals running around. Aside from a certain arch nemesis, Romana was the most memorable of them, and if you want to find out more about her (or if you already know here and want to reminesce), check out the essay!
Also up: a great new vid covering all the incarnations of the Doctor, and his journey: Welcome to the Black Parade, by calapine.
***
Due to an unholy combination of different time zones and having to travel to Berlin tomorrow morning, there'll be a delay in my watching of tonight's Heroes episode. I can't decide whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, i.e. whether watching or having to wait to watch and try to avoid lj until then will make me more into a nervous wreck. Finale-approaching shows are not conductive to fannish health.
On the other hand, fellow fans are. Responding to Cadesama's post about the different kinds of dysfunctionality the Petrellis and the Winchesters display (mind you, not watching SPN I could only say something about the Petrelli part), I said that as the screwed-upness of the Petrellis is independent from super powers, they're characters who would actually work in a historical AU. Cadesama suggested rome. Kathyh, otoh, with whom I also talked about the subject, had the inspired idea of Renaissance Italy, with Nathan as a cardinal aiming for the Papacy, and getting Peter appointed as a Cardinal too even though Peter isn't a even priest (which wasn't unusual behaviour for power-playing cardinals aiming for the Papacy and trying to get their house advanced; nepotism ruled the day) and then, of course, Peter tries to reform everybody. Hanging out with every Giordano Bruno, Savonarola and Luther-in-training. Angela Petrelli is such a Renaissance type of pullstringer, too; no problem there. Some of the other characters and their problems aren't as easily transferable from their era. . For one thing, Renaissance nobility was very blasé about illegitimate children, up and including the clergy; the Borgias are just the most prominent example but by no means the only one. Before Rodrigo Borgia became Pope Alexander, there were several Popes who had their illegimate children around as well; it was the fact the Borgias were not Italians but Spanish that made it so galling everyone fumed about it. So the Renaissance Petrellis would have had no problem with Nathan openly acknowledging Claire from the start. It definitely wouldn't have had an impact on Nathan's election chances; on the contrary, he'd have tried to marry her to another Cardinal's offspring in order to get votes.. But most would work, and Renaissance!Isaac's paintings would of course illustrate it all.
You could even include superpowers, with Peter thinking they're a gift of god and Nathan thinking they're a sign of the devil, though then you'd run in danger of copying Neil Gaiman's 1602 universe too closely. Still. Wouldn't it be brilliant? Someone really should write that Renaissance AU.
Songs to the Tune of the Tardis: now that's more like it. Using song excerpts in fanfic (or for that matter on the show - nods to a certain beloved space show of mine - is a tricky, tricky thing, but here it works, and the characterisations of the various Doctor/Companion relationships and juxtapositions to the songs work perfectly.
I always have a soft spot for stories in which one of the later incarnations of the Doctor - i.e. Nine or Ten - encounters an Old Who companion. This week, there was a wonderful reply to the prompt at theatrical_muse, which was "Mommy/Mummy". As New Who watchers know, that word has a particular significance in two s1/27 episodes. The story that ensused from the prompt managed to use that particular adventure of the Ninth Doctor as background, but even more importantly managed to use one of the companions of the very First Doctor, Ian Chesterton, and let him a last meeting with the latest, Tenth Doctor. The result is infinitely moving and here.
(New Who only watchers: Ian and Barbara were, err, sort of kidnapped by the First Doctor in the pilot of the show. They were teachers investigating his granddaughter Susan. Also, the Doctor being an old man at the time, Ian was the young guy doing all the action stuff early on, and as with Mickey, the Doctor deliberately got his name wrong for a good while.)
The Noblest Romana is an excellent essay about the Time Lady Romana, companion to the Fourth Doctor. Comments by resolute and kangeiko have reminded me that New Who only watchers often aren't aware that the Doctor's "last of the Time Lords" status is a very new thing, a crucial change from the old show, and that there used to be not only a planet of them but several distinct on screen individuals running around. Aside from a certain arch nemesis, Romana was the most memorable of them, and if you want to find out more about her (or if you already know here and want to reminesce), check out the essay!
Also up: a great new vid covering all the incarnations of the Doctor, and his journey: Welcome to the Black Parade, by calapine.
***
Due to an unholy combination of different time zones and having to travel to Berlin tomorrow morning, there'll be a delay in my watching of tonight's Heroes episode. I can't decide whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, i.e. whether watching or having to wait to watch and try to avoid lj until then will make me more into a nervous wreck. Finale-approaching shows are not conductive to fannish health.
On the other hand, fellow fans are. Responding to Cadesama's post about the different kinds of dysfunctionality the Petrellis and the Winchesters display (mind you, not watching SPN I could only say something about the Petrelli part), I said that as the screwed-upness of the Petrellis is independent from super powers, they're characters who would actually work in a historical AU. Cadesama suggested rome. Kathyh, otoh, with whom I also talked about the subject, had the inspired idea of Renaissance Italy, with Nathan as a cardinal aiming for the Papacy, and getting Peter appointed as a Cardinal too even though Peter isn't a even priest (which wasn't unusual behaviour for power-playing cardinals aiming for the Papacy and trying to get their house advanced; nepotism ruled the day) and then, of course, Peter tries to reform everybody. Hanging out with every Giordano Bruno, Savonarola and Luther-in-training. Angela Petrelli is such a Renaissance type of pullstringer, too; no problem there. Some of the other characters and their problems aren't as easily transferable from their era. . For one thing, Renaissance nobility was very blasé about illegitimate children, up and including the clergy; the Borgias are just the most prominent example but by no means the only one. Before Rodrigo Borgia became Pope Alexander, there were several Popes who had their illegimate children around as well; it was the fact the Borgias were not Italians but Spanish that made it so galling everyone fumed about it. So the Renaissance Petrellis would have had no problem with Nathan openly acknowledging Claire from the start. It definitely wouldn't have had an impact on Nathan's election chances; on the contrary, he'd have tried to marry her to another Cardinal's offspring in order to get votes.. But most would work, and Renaissance!Isaac's paintings would of course illustrate it all.
You could even include superpowers, with Peter thinking they're a gift of god and Nathan thinking they're a sign of the devil, though then you'd run in danger of copying Neil Gaiman's 1602 universe too closely. Still. Wouldn't it be brilliant? Someone really should write that Renaissance AU.