2008 Yuletide recs, fandoms A-K
It took me a while, because apparently my reading skills are declining in my frail dotage, and also I was tempted to stop reading Yuletide so I could finish reading Generation Kill so I could read the Yuletide stories--but I'm saving them for later. So! Just in under the wire, here are something like 15 more recs from the first half of the alphabet. There are a lot of fandoms in the first half of the alphabet!
The Talk of Southern Gentlemen (1776)
"Dear John, the roads to Boston are open to all -- you shouldn't let Adams think that living in Boston is a great privilege God did not bestow on the rest of us."
I've always been a sucker for "characters hanging out in a bar"--mix that with the peculiarly hilarious and yet semi-historically accurate wonder of 1776 and you have genius.
Linger Luminous (Aeon Flux (cartoon))
In his office, staring at the mirror, Æon's image superimposed in violet light on the glass, holding his voice recorder, Trevor Goodchild shudders.
Trevor solves Bregna's energy crisis. Aeon investigates. I'm not sure I understand all of it, but this may be the only fandom where that would be okay with me, because it so exactly captures the cryptic, sparse beauty of the show.
Whole New World (Aladdin)
Don't be self-delusional. Nobody cares what happens to the Fairy Godmother after the story ends.
You know, in the actual cartoon, the Genie is riiiight on that fine line between funny and annoying, and I didn't expect to have my gob smacked by a really great and poignant Genie story, and then it happened. Yay!
Duck Soup (Brick)
It was the numbness that spooked him, that instead of grief he was annoyed at the drizzle on his glasses, and that his dress shoes were too tight. The candlelight vigil lasted three hours, and the singing. And this should not have happened.
A kickass sequel to the movie, with a disturbingly rich plot, skillful film-noir narrative and dialogue, and perfect insight into Brain (and Brain/Brendan, just a little). I forgave a few typos because I'm rarely sucked in this hard by a story. Love it so much I'd like to film it.
Being Roger Maris (Bull Durham)
The October that Annie turned 15 (of course you were born in October, her Daddy would say, my girl is a fall classic.) Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth's record and Annie Savoy cheered when the rest of the world not so quietly booed.
Beautiful coda to the movie. Because baseball is love and baseball is poetry and baseball is life.
Feast! (Commercials - Snickers)
"I'm kind of homesick," admitted the Viking. The others looked at him as though his words had no context, and he shrugged. "Home is a boat full of men wearing fur."
So I've never been sure why I like these commercials, with the various incongruous historical figures on their epic roadtrip--but I like this story for the same reason. It's illogically delicious!
Her Rightful Place (The Devil Wears Prada)
The fire of battle-readiness burning fiercely in her belly, Emily strides - well, as close to striding as is possible in a skin-tight miniskirt and four-inch heels - back to the office to join the fray.
Witty and meticulous and--well, pun intended, but--stylish, and I liked Emily better than Andrea, myself, anyway.
A Motherfucking Roly-Poly Chubby-Cheeked Shit Machine (Dexter)
Deb nearly choked on her beer, which after four years of being kegger queen in college wasn't an easy thing to make her do.
Deb is one awesomely foulmouthed, decidedly awe-free childbirth coach. Could anything be more appropriate for Dexter's spawn?
Verity (Fairy Tales)
"You're under a spell?" Verity asked, instantly fascinated. "Is it a wicked spell? Would you like me to break it for you? I'm going to be a hero in a few years time, so it would be good practice for me."
"A witch put it on me after she killed my father," Zel said, his voice very calm. "And in a few years time, when I'm big enough, I'm going to kill her. So I don't need your help, but thank you for offering."
Rapunzel with the genders reversed and a whole lot of extra twistiness and polish and humor and grace. Not one wasted word.
The Moment Before The Snap (Friday Night Lights)
The players were gods: big and strong, powerful, winners. They were everything. Buddy was six, and scrawny, and his daddy told him he'd never grow up to be a man if he didn't eat his steak rare.
Buddy Garrity backstory. It's like this thing that I didn't know I wanted until I had it, and this is exactly what it needs to be: voicey and warm until it all falls apart. The arrogance of teenage greatness, and the price.
Five Times the Spacemonauts Saved the World (Gunnerkrigg Court)
"Don't worry, Annie," Kat said, and sat down on one of the large boulders scattered around the planet's surface. "We're all going to stay here and help until you can quip with the best of them."
If you don't know this fandom, go and learn about it, because it's basically my favorite non-Achewood webcomic in all the world, right now, and it's short, so you can catch up in a few hours! And it's worth it! And after you do, come back and read this story and you'll see how wonderfully it meshes with the canon, with just the right twisted mix of surreality and sarcasm and emotion.
(I want to put a plug in for two more Gunnerkrigg Court stories: Roly-Poly Boxbot (in which Boxbot is terrible) and The Robot and Mr. Smith (in which terrible Boxbot finds...a soulmate?). Both are examples of how well Yuletide can treat a very minor character. Even a terrible one.)
Turn and Turn Again (Homer - Odyssey)
She can't remember if he used to smile like that before. Perhaps it's something he learned during all those long years, a guarded kind of happiness for a precarious life. She is slowly learning his face again, a face that, to her surprise and shame, she had barely recognized at first.
This story does an excellent job of conjuring up Penelope and Odysseus as warm, real, present characters, and their newly reforged relationship is intertwined nicely with a suspenseful ghost story.
Everything else is Homicide (Homicide: Life on the Street)
"Don't call me that. My moms named me Mel-drick." He scowls at Falsone. "Mel sounds like a piece of fruit or something.
It's been recced everywhere, I think, but I'm reccing it again, because the character voices are flawless, the plot and atmosphere are rich, and the villain is as sleazy as they come.
Pool Party (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang)
In the corner there's a transvestite pulling coloured handkerchiefs out of her underwear and tying up a mime artist, but this is not the strangest party happening in Los Angeles right now.
As per usual, lots of good Kiss Kiss Bang Bang stories this year, but I'm biased in favor of this one, maybe because it's gen and that stands out among all the pairing or threesome-centric stories, maybe because it's freaking hilarious.
The Talk of Southern Gentlemen (1776)
"Dear John, the roads to Boston are open to all -- you shouldn't let Adams think that living in Boston is a great privilege God did not bestow on the rest of us."
I've always been a sucker for "characters hanging out in a bar"--mix that with the peculiarly hilarious and yet semi-historically accurate wonder of 1776 and you have genius.
Linger Luminous (Aeon Flux (cartoon))
In his office, staring at the mirror, Æon's image superimposed in violet light on the glass, holding his voice recorder, Trevor Goodchild shudders.
Trevor solves Bregna's energy crisis. Aeon investigates. I'm not sure I understand all of it, but this may be the only fandom where that would be okay with me, because it so exactly captures the cryptic, sparse beauty of the show.
Whole New World (Aladdin)
Don't be self-delusional. Nobody cares what happens to the Fairy Godmother after the story ends.
You know, in the actual cartoon, the Genie is riiiight on that fine line between funny and annoying, and I didn't expect to have my gob smacked by a really great and poignant Genie story, and then it happened. Yay!
Duck Soup (Brick)
It was the numbness that spooked him, that instead of grief he was annoyed at the drizzle on his glasses, and that his dress shoes were too tight. The candlelight vigil lasted three hours, and the singing. And this should not have happened.
A kickass sequel to the movie, with a disturbingly rich plot, skillful film-noir narrative and dialogue, and perfect insight into Brain (and Brain/Brendan, just a little). I forgave a few typos because I'm rarely sucked in this hard by a story. Love it so much I'd like to film it.
Being Roger Maris (Bull Durham)
The October that Annie turned 15 (of course you were born in October, her Daddy would say, my girl is a fall classic.) Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth's record and Annie Savoy cheered when the rest of the world not so quietly booed.
Beautiful coda to the movie. Because baseball is love and baseball is poetry and baseball is life.
Feast! (Commercials - Snickers)
"I'm kind of homesick," admitted the Viking. The others looked at him as though his words had no context, and he shrugged. "Home is a boat full of men wearing fur."
So I've never been sure why I like these commercials, with the various incongruous historical figures on their epic roadtrip--but I like this story for the same reason. It's illogically delicious!
Her Rightful Place (The Devil Wears Prada)
The fire of battle-readiness burning fiercely in her belly, Emily strides - well, as close to striding as is possible in a skin-tight miniskirt and four-inch heels - back to the office to join the fray.
Witty and meticulous and--well, pun intended, but--stylish, and I liked Emily better than Andrea, myself, anyway.
A Motherfucking Roly-Poly Chubby-Cheeked Shit Machine (Dexter)
Deb nearly choked on her beer, which after four years of being kegger queen in college wasn't an easy thing to make her do.
Deb is one awesomely foulmouthed, decidedly awe-free childbirth coach. Could anything be more appropriate for Dexter's spawn?
Verity (Fairy Tales)
"You're under a spell?" Verity asked, instantly fascinated. "Is it a wicked spell? Would you like me to break it for you? I'm going to be a hero in a few years time, so it would be good practice for me."
"A witch put it on me after she killed my father," Zel said, his voice very calm. "And in a few years time, when I'm big enough, I'm going to kill her. So I don't need your help, but thank you for offering."
Rapunzel with the genders reversed and a whole lot of extra twistiness and polish and humor and grace. Not one wasted word.
The Moment Before The Snap (Friday Night Lights)
The players were gods: big and strong, powerful, winners. They were everything. Buddy was six, and scrawny, and his daddy told him he'd never grow up to be a man if he didn't eat his steak rare.
Buddy Garrity backstory. It's like this thing that I didn't know I wanted until I had it, and this is exactly what it needs to be: voicey and warm until it all falls apart. The arrogance of teenage greatness, and the price.
Five Times the Spacemonauts Saved the World (Gunnerkrigg Court)
"Don't worry, Annie," Kat said, and sat down on one of the large boulders scattered around the planet's surface. "We're all going to stay here and help until you can quip with the best of them."
If you don't know this fandom, go and learn about it, because it's basically my favorite non-Achewood webcomic in all the world, right now, and it's short, so you can catch up in a few hours! And it's worth it! And after you do, come back and read this story and you'll see how wonderfully it meshes with the canon, with just the right twisted mix of surreality and sarcasm and emotion.
(I want to put a plug in for two more Gunnerkrigg Court stories: Roly-Poly Boxbot (in which Boxbot is terrible) and The Robot and Mr. Smith (in which terrible Boxbot finds...a soulmate?). Both are examples of how well Yuletide can treat a very minor character. Even a terrible one.)
Turn and Turn Again (Homer - Odyssey)
She can't remember if he used to smile like that before. Perhaps it's something he learned during all those long years, a guarded kind of happiness for a precarious life. She is slowly learning his face again, a face that, to her surprise and shame, she had barely recognized at first.
This story does an excellent job of conjuring up Penelope and Odysseus as warm, real, present characters, and their newly reforged relationship is intertwined nicely with a suspenseful ghost story.
Everything else is Homicide (Homicide: Life on the Street)
"Don't call me that. My moms named me Mel-drick." He scowls at Falsone. "Mel sounds like a piece of fruit or something.
It's been recced everywhere, I think, but I'm reccing it again, because the character voices are flawless, the plot and atmosphere are rich, and the villain is as sleazy as they come.
Pool Party (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang)
In the corner there's a transvestite pulling coloured handkerchiefs out of her underwear and tying up a mime artist, but this is not the strangest party happening in Los Angeles right now.
As per usual, lots of good Kiss Kiss Bang Bang stories this year, but I'm biased in favor of this one, maybe because it's gen and that stands out among all the pairing or threesome-centric stories, maybe because it's freaking hilarious.