Misc Recs (for Fandoms with fewer than 10 Recced Stories)

[bethbethbeth]

ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS

Doyle: Just Between Us. (Absolutely fabulous Patsy p.o.v.)

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ACTION

Valeria: Fire and Ice (Peter Dragon/Cole Ricardi)

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ADDAMS FAMILY

Fuschia (fuschia on LJ): "Cleopatra's Needle" (A creepily wonderful story. Richly detailed and passionate. I had no idea how anybody could make a story work in this fandom, but this is apparently how it's done.)

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THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT

Irmelin (irmelin on LJ): "A Fine Romance" (Tick/Adam. "The drive back to Sydney is rather different." Lovely. If the movie had been fifteen minutes longer, this story would have been canon.)

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ALICE IN WONDERLAND

Meltha (bookishwench on LJ): Ravens and Writing Desks. (Alice, back in Wonderland one last time.)

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AMADEUS

Meltha (bookishwench on LJ): "Con Fuoco" "Salieri has died, and at last he can have peace from his constant disappointment over his own imperfections. Can't he?"

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ARTHURIAN LEGEND


Ankaret (ankaret on LJ): "The May-Born King" "A glimpse into Mordred's motives."

Beth Winter (bwinter on LJ): "Natural Son" "The night after Mordred's arrival in Camelot."

lanyon: "Knight's Move" (Arthur, Lancelot, Galahad, Mordred, Others. Future-Fic. "Arthur Pendragon, Once and Future King, is replenished and renewed following his 'sojourn' on Avalon. Thousands of years have passed and his knights are re-gathering, reincarnated and re-learning their roles. As the last member of the British Royal Family lies dying and Arthur prepares for his takeover, it is all observed by another whose fate was entangled with these men." A perfect blend of the modern world and the long ago.)

La Reine Noire (lareinenoire on LJ): "The Laws of Love" "There was nothing simple about a divided heart." (Guenevere. Arthur. Lancelot. In love. Very insightful.)

Martha (saffronhouse on LJ): "Concerning the Wine which was Spilt at the Feast of St. Ignatius, and How Arthur Came to Spend a Night in the Wood, and of the Gift of the Richest Mantle That Ever was Seen in That Court" ("Considerable liberties taken in retelling Ch. 14 & 15 , Book 4, Vol. 1 of Sir Thomas Malory's Book of King Arthur and of his Noble Knights of the Round Table -- specifically, there's more kissing. Plus owls, lions, secret passages, and broiled mackerel for breakfast. That particularly sadistic murder, though? That's all Malory." Beautiful language, wonderfully observed relationships, and a perfectly drawn Arthur, who's powerful and passionate and tender and vulnerable all at once.)

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BEDAZZLED

Ellen Fremedon: "Cardinal virtues.". (Fandom: Bedazzled. "Stanley does things his way. George tries his best to be a bad influence." Funny and arch and pitch perfect voices.)

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BEOWULF

Ellen Fremedon: Freawaru's Lament. (Epic, as seen through the eyes of a woman. A wonderful 'newly-discovered' Old English poem)

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BILLY ELLIOT

rilla (rilla_ on LJ): "Dancing Boys" ("'I'm not aware of how I could possibly love you without aching.' - Tegan and Sara. Billy and Michael meet, first when they're eighteen and then twenty-five." The story you didn't know you wanted. Lovely.)

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BLACKADDER

Ariana Deralte: No Man's Land. (Blackadder/Darling. Under Fire.)

Castiron (castiron on LJ): "Pimp and Pomposity" (The Prince of Wales and Lord Flashheart are both in need of some...companionship, and guess who's put in charge of seeing to that task? Very, very funny.)

Doyle (doyle_sb4 on LJ) :"Just Impediment" (Crossover of Doctor Who [10th Doctor] and Blackadder. Gen. "Queen Elizabeth I is marrying a Mr William Shakespeare (no relation) and there's a mysterious blue box in the alley outside Mrs Miggins' pie shop; Edmund Blackadder is on the case." Perfectly voiced in both fandoms and very clever.)

Hathaldir: Rabbitholes and Foxholes. (Blackadder/Darling. Two men and a desk.)

jenna_thorn (formerly cawti on LJ): Papers, please. (Gen. Crossover with Harry Potter. Blackadder, Baldric, and many folks from the HP-verse. Very funny and oddly believable.)

Keswindhover (keswindhover on LJ): "Radished" "This is an imaginary epilogue to the events of "Amy and Amiability', in which, if you recall, Edmund Blackadder succeeded in collecting a £10,000 reward for the capture of Miss Amy Hardwood, also known as The Shadow. Of course he then immediately lost it to his idiotic employer Prince George." (Very funny...and very naughty, in that 'naughty limerick' way *g*)

Misha: General Staff. (Melchett/St. Banleigh. Humor. Bottoms up!)

Patrick Phelan: "Trousers". (Exactly like an episode...except with the added bonus of a cucumber! Gen.)

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BLACK BOOKS

Basingstoke (basingstoke on LJ/DW): Rough Edges - a series, so far composed of three stories - complete in themselves - with a promise of more to come (Stories one and two are crossovers between Sherlock BBC and Black Books. Sherlock/John...vaguely. "Sherlock Holmes and Bernard Black: cousins. The rest of the family: terrifying." A cracky-yet-believable look at the extended Holmes family, as seen through the eyes of John. Clever, funny, and sometimes bordering on horrifying...as you'd expect.)

Claire (tornyourdress on LJ): "The Cable Guys" ("Bernard gets digital television." Aliens made them do it! So funny...and Bernard, in particular, is perfectly voiced.)

Malograntum Vitiorum (very_improbable on LJ): "Barcelona" "If you hate customers, there are worse things than a little economic downturn. (And some of those things are happening to Bernard right now.)" (Funny and funny and perfectly voiced and funny-because-it's-true)

Smaychel: "A Matter of Perspective" (Manny/Bernard. "Bernard, Manny and Fran get drunk. Then they get drunker." Perfect voices, and everybody's perfectly in character (Bernard, in particular, is wonderfully unconvincing about not caring even a little whether something's going on between Fran and Manny)

Tris B (hobviously on LJ): "and all your girlfriends are unfulfilled and alienated" ("What really happened between Fran and Bernard on the night that he's not allowed to remember?" Funny, excellently voiced, and even a little mortifyingly sweet in places.)

voltairescribbles (voltaireontoast on LJ): "Welsh Dictionaries and Tourists" (A perfect little vignette, with flawless voices and Manny as Little Bo-Peep)

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BLOOD TIES

Lys (falzalot on LJ): "Blood in the Water" ("In the aftermath of rescuing Henry from Javier Mendoza, Celluci and Henry start to come to terms with each other." The best kind of (non-schmoopy) hurt/comfort.)

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BODIES EXHIBITION

MissJess: "Hang Man" (One of the more unexpected kinds of stories, told from the pov of a display figure from the Bodies Exhibition, which I only recently attended. If you've seen it - or if you've ever wanted to attend - you should definitely check this story out)

the_alchemist (the_alchemist on LJ): "In the bleak midwinter" (Both eerie and heartwarming. Note: a large part of the story focuses on a fetus, in case anybody needs that information.)

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BOURNE LEGACY

bigboobedcanuck (bigboobedcanuck on LJ): "Warriors" (Aaron/Marta. "She’s witnessed Aaron shoot people, beat people and snap their necks like they were nothing more than a wishbone at Thanksgiving dinner. Yet as he wakes her from another nightmare, he is only gentle and patient, caressing her hair as he murmurs that everything is all right." Perfectly voiced and just what I wish the ending had been for the two of them.)

kangeiko (kangeiko on LJ): "life through a window" (Aaron & Marta. "The world hasn't changed. He just has a better toolbox now." Post-movie, and a great look at just how much might have changed for Aaron due to the chems...and how much might not have)

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THE BREAKFAST CLUB

Kaneko: The Supper Club. (Andy p.o.v. - and Bender, twenty years later. Entirely believable.)

Shrift: A Lobotomy and Some Tights. (Brian/Bender. Post-movie. Brian needs a little . . . tutoring.)


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BRIMSTONE

mikeneko (dunwich on LJ): "26 Views of Mount Meggido" "Others can fight the monsters and wrestle the metaphysics. All Ezekiel Stone wants out of his afterlife is his marriage." (Crossover with Supernatural. Smart and perfectly voiced - for both fandoms)

Milkshake Butterfly: Nativity. (Cross-recced in Dogma and Brimstone. Bethany, Ezekiel, Lucifer, the Metatron . . . and Wal-Mart)

Sarah T (harriet_spy on LJ): Not by Bread Alone. (Post-Brimstone Brimstone: now, with added messages! Very clever. Gen.)

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BULL DURHAM

fairy_tale_echo (fairy_tale_echo on LJ): "Being Roger Maris" "The hard way always made it so much sweeter for Annie Savoy." (The perfect coda to the movie. Really. Perfect.)

Flora (florahart on LJ): "The Joy as it Flies" (A charming what-came-after story for Crash and Annie, with perfect voices.)

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BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID

Lyrastar (watergal on LJ): "Print the Legend" "This is the West, sir. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.-Maxwell Scott, 1887 " (Perfectly drawn relationships between Butch, Sundance [and Etta].)

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CASABLANCA

David Hines (hradzka on LJ):"Sam in Casablanca" (Sam-centric, as you might exepct from the title. "No matter how far he travels, Sam finds the pull of Casablanca hard to escape. Maybe it's because Rick left him there." The line most associated with this film - and also the line that's never really spoken *g* - is about Sam; in other words, in some ways, he's even more the core of the movie than Rick is, which makes this story especially welcome.)

Dorinda: Nom de Coeur. (Rick/Louis. Post-movie, and a truly incredible piece of writing.)

Frostfire (frostfire_17 on LJ): "Sentimental Reasons" (Sam/Rick. ""France and I have never had any major arguments that I can remember."" Not only does this story fit seamlesssly into canon, but it also has a perfect backstory *and* future. Sam's pov, but everybody's wonderful. And this story is long enough to lose yourself in)

Lyrastar: The Beautiful Dawn. (Louis/Rick. During and after the film, with a wonderful Louis p.o.v.)

myystic (myystic on LJ): "As Time Goes By" ("Louis and Rick, 10 years later." An insightful look at love unspoken - but lived.)

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CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY

Lyric (lyricality on LJ): "Abracadabra" (Charlie/Wonka. "Eight years after that fateful day in February, Charlie has finally learned how to want." Elements of both the Wilder and the Depp films. Charlie, here, is of age. An insightful first time story.

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CLASSICAL MYTHOLOGY

baffledking: "A Spring With No Winter" (Persephone/Hades. "A maiden is born, in time becomes a mother- to bear her own maiden daughter- and, in her age, is the crone, withered, but wise. The spring comes, in time bears fruit and seeds, before, as the year ends, the earth becomes withered and bare." Persephone is allowed to choose...)

bookesque (bookesque on LJ): "this is not a chick flick" "In which Hades awkwardly tries to woo Persephone to his side, while the Olympian gods offer unhelpful advice and prove they know nothing about love." (A perfect satire of the soap opera that is Olympian daily existence. Very funny . . . and ultimately very romantic)

Eilonwy (insptr-penguin on LJ): "Anabasis" (An insightful look at what happens after Psyche is made immortal, because...even though the gods look human, it doesn't mean they are.)

Mercurie (mercuriewords on LJ): "Turn and Turn Again" "A threat from Odysseus' past follows him home to Ithaca and he and his family must overcome it together." (Very true to canon, and a wonderfully strong Penelope)

strongplacebo (strongplacebo on LJ): "Invicta" (Helen is exceedingly pretty. A wonderful look Aphrodite's interest in the mortal world)

Thermidor: Unexpected. (Hephaestus/Dionysus.)

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CLOSE MY EYES

KazVL: Close My Eyes (Sinclair, Natalie)

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COMMERCIALS

Fern Davant (animagiblender on DW and LJ): "The Fic Your Fic Could Be Like" (Old Spice. "This is that fic you love. You know the one. The one that has everything in it you could possible want. It's the fic your fic could be like, about the man your man could smell like. I'm on a horse." One of my favorites from the 'crack' side of yuletide2010. Very funny, and it just gets better as it goes on.)

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CROSSOVERS (Paul Gross and Callum Keith Rennie roles)

AuKestrel and Kellie Matthews: Shadows Fade (Tales of the City/Hard Core Logo. Sequel to Kellie's stories Northern Comfort and No Secrets) REC LINK

LaT: Reaffirmation (Buried on Sunday/Last Night)

Kellie Matthews: Crossroads (Buried on Sunday/Masterminds)

Shay (shayheyred on LJ): Scenes from the Tragical, Comical, Historical, Pastoral, Implausible Life of Geoffrey Tennant, Actor". (More gen than not, but m/m and implied m/f included, centering on Geoffrey Tennant. And Hamlet, not coincidentally. from the Midsummer Sekrit Santa challenge, for which stories based on obscure Canadian films featuring Paul Gross and Callum Keith Rennie were written.

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DEAD LIKE ME

Cara (feather-down on LJ ): "Lay Me Down" (George-centric, mostly gen, with a f/f undercurrent. Excellent voices.)

graygirl: "Into Seas Without a Shore" (They say that nothing's certain but death and taxes; nobody said anything about reaping.)

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DEVIL WEARS PRADA

Luthien (luthien on LJ): "Her Rightful Place" "Emily discovers that it's best to be careful what you wish for because you might just get it." (Emily's point of view, but just whose lives is she viewing? Excellent characterizations.)

Telanu (somniesperus on LJ): "Truth and Measure" (Andy/Miranda. No, this isn't my fandom and if I didn't know what a wonderful writer Telanu was, I probably wouldn't have given this a try. However, "Truth and Measure" is one of those 'if you only read one story in this fandom, let it be this one' stories. Long - extremely long - satisfying, and perfectly voiced. Plus...exceedingly hot.

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DISTRICT 9

novembersmith (novembersmith on LJ): "No Man's Land" (Wikus-centric gen. "Christopher returns early." A wonderful look at what it means to be an alien...to yourself.)

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DOGMA

Anonymous: Muse. ("Azrael talking shit")

Daegaer: Home is Where the Heart Is (Dogma/GO crossover. Aziraphale goes to America, Crowley joins him . . . and who should they meet but Loki and Bartleby?).

Elke Tanzer: "Questioning". (Fandom: Dogma. Bethany raises her child and discovers what's important in life. A perfect coda to the film.)

KA Rose: One Big Happy Pantheon. (cross-recced in Dogma and Good Omens. Gen/Slash. The son of Satan meets the daughter of God. Crowley, Aziraphale, Loki, Bartleby . . . others)

Mary: Christmas mixer. (Cross-recced in Dogma and Good Omens. Gen - although with some Crowley/Aziraphale subtext - and a perfect Metatron voice.)

Milkshake Butterfly: Nativity. (Cross-recced in Dogma and Brimstone. Bethany, Ezekiel, Lucifer, the Metatron . . . and Wal-Mart)

Proserpina: "The Priest That Tastes The Word". (Metatron/God....and perfectly voiced)

Saturnalia: "Vacation" (Metatron/That-Would-Be-Telling. God sends the Metatron on holiday.)

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EARTHSEA

Cinaed (cinaed on LJ): "As Long Ago As Forever, There Lived a Prince" "This is a tale of the Archmage and the prince of Enland, of the mountain of Gont and of the kingdom of forests, and of the difference between doing and being." (Arren/Ged, of a sort. Spoilers for The Farthest Shore. Beautiful.)

Edo no Hana (rachelmanija on LJ): "Thistledown" (Ged, Vetch, Yarrow. "After Ged's meeting with the shadow, Ged, Vetch, and Yarrow have one more task to perform." Smart and with a believable original young female character.)

Firerose: Of Thistles and Fir Cones. (Birth, life, and death. Three linked vignettes.)

Isabeau (isabeau on lJ): "Chasing Shadows" (Vetch/Ged. "Wizards are by their very nature in love with their craft more than anything else, and nothing can surpass that, but Vetch thinks that he is perhaps a bit in love with Sparrowhawk." Mostly gen, but with...feelings. Surrounding the events of the shadow hunt.)

Minerva McTabby: Sparkweed. (Jasper/Ged. After the Festival of Sunreturn.)

serenissima: Seasons in the Archipelago. (Ged/Tenar. Brief, but beautiful and utterly true to the books.)

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FAIRY TALES

Lyrstzha (lyrstzha on LJ): "Rough Diamond" ("Beauty and the Beast" - strikingly original and imbued with magic)

Lyss (hydrangea, withertime on LJ): "Fiddler in the Mountain" ("Linn the Fiddler has known her fate since she was a child: to enter the Mountain King's domain and never come back. Now, her days of freedom spent, she returns to her home village to face that fate." A reimagining of "Beauty and the Beast," which includes not only the most essential aspects of the primary tale, but also elements from other bits and pieces of folk and fairy lore. Descriptively fantastic too.)

Penny (on AO3): "Only the Marvelous is Beautiful" ("Every curse can be broken." a re-telling of "Beauty and the Beast," from the Beast's pov and containing a smart, self-assured Beauty.)

sheldrake: "In a Dark Wood" (A wonderful retelling of the story of "Beauty and the Beast." Richly detailed.)

Strawberry Suite: "Shades of Bittersweet" (Beauty and the Beast - Disney. "What if Belle married Gaston? A series of vignettes set ten years after Gaston's ultimatum." Very much not a 'happily ever after' tale, but one that makes everybody, even Gaston, seem at least a little sympathetic.)

Truth (file_five on LJ): "Bittersweet" (A child's heaven, preserved forever in memory, sweet. and bittersweet. The summary didn't quite mesh with my sense of the story, which felt altogether more modern and knowing than that summary would suggest. But sweet and bittersweet, certainly. I'm not telling you which fairy tale this story is based on though. You'll figure it out soon enough, and getting there is half the pleasure.)

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THE FIONOVAR TAPESTRY (G.G. KAY)

karennia (karennia_rune on LJ): "And Back Again" (Dave and Kim, after the return, a day in the life story. Short, but sweet and touching and altogether in character)

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Frankenstein

Gehayi (gehayi on LJ/DW): "Sweeping Ashes Into the Sea" (Robert Walton, the Creature. "Sometimes the most powerful weapon is a glimmer of hope." A yuletide gift for me, and exactly what I've been hoping to see - for years now - to solve the problem of an ending to the novel that I'd always found less than satisfactory. Well voiced and often touching.)

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GALAXY QUEST

Cousin Shelley (cousinshelley on LJ): "Thespians, Aliens and a Damn, Stupid Hammer": "Alexander thinks of Quellek, the Thermian who died in his arms, more often than Jason manages to get his shirt off on the show. Alexander wishes he'd gotten to know Quellek and, thanks to Thermian ingenuity, he might get the chance."

Fox (darthfox on LJ): "Secret Lives of the Cast of Galaxy Quest" (Ensemble character studies. Spot on characterizations. Funny and touching.)

janicechess (janicechess on LJ): "The Rebirth of Brandon Wheeger" "Everything that Brandon has ever wanted is right in front of him. And then it's gone. But he never stops trying to find it again." (A coming of age story, SF style)

joandarck (joandarck on LJ): "The Show Must Go On": "When Mathasar returns to beg the intrepid cast of Galaxy Quest for help against an ancient enemy, will a twist of fate, time, and space mean another chance at love for Alexander Dane? UP NEXT."

peet4paint: "The Alien Lover" (Laliari. "The first time Laliari sees the humans she falls in love." I adore Laliari in this story; she's given a wonderful backstory and she's both very alien and at the same time, very...human.)

tornyourdress (tornyourdress on LJ): "Never give up, never surrender - to the power of love?" "A journalist investigates a particular fannish phenomenon." (Funny, funny, funny. A meta-wonderful look at the "first slash pairing": Taggart/Lazarus!)

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GILGAMESH

KindKit (kindkit on LJ): "In the House of Dust" (A beautifully wrought and evocative piece in which Gilgamesh - after Enkidu's death - considers life, love, immortality...and clay.)

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GRAVEYARD BOOK (Gaiman)

Jain: "Home Is the Hunter". (Silas/Bod. ""This be the verse you grave for me."" Excellent sense of the passage of time and a Bod who lives in the world of the living, but who's never become quite "normal.)

misslucyjane (lucyjanesparlor on LJ): "And They're There For Your". (Silas, Miss Lupescu, Bod. ""Bod's family isn't like other families."" A lovely moment in time.)

novembersmith: "You Comes and You Goes". (Silas, Miss Lupescu...and hints of a future Silas/Bod. ""I can leave the graveyard and return. I can bring him food," said Silas. / "That's all very well you saying that," said Mother Slaughter. "But you comes and you goes and nobody keeps track of you."" Perfect voices, ten years post-canon)

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HARD CORE LOGO

Kat Allison: Xeriscape (Gen. John, Billy.)

Omphale (omphale23 on LJ): "Hard Candy" (Billy-centric gen. In which Billy comes awfully close to being a grown-up, at least where Billie's concerned. Low key and believable.)

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Here Come the Brides

Diana Williams (dkwilliams on LJ): "A New Beginning" (Jason Bolt/Aaron Stempel. "A sudden illness and advice from a friend makes Jason Bolt rethink his friendship with sawmill owner, Aaron Stempel." After only a hundred years of requesting this pairing for yuletide...success! Pre-slash, and excellently voiced.)

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HEROES

kangeiko: "Real Life" (After the world finds out about Them...from Clare's p.o.v. The matter-of-fact tone hides the scariness.)

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HIGHLANDER

Amand-r: Heat Goes to Cold (Methos-centric gen)

hafital: "three days of rain," composed of jazz, thunder, and bridge. (Duncan/Methos)

Jay Tryfanstone (tryfanstone on LJ): "The Street of the Booksellers" (Duncan/Methos. "Small town, somewhere on the edge of the desert. After the Gathering." Beautifully conceived and written, with a perfect post-Gathering tone.)

kai: Degrees of Separation (Methos/Kronos)

Kat Allison: Last Set Before Closing (Gen. Duncan, Joe.)

Sandra McDonald: When Immortals Gather (Humor. Total Meta, and best for anyone who's been to an actor con)

Sylvia Volk (sylviavolk2000 on LJ): "The Good Student" (Duncan, Methos, OCs. Gen. "They say [...] that for every teacher, there is one perfect student." A dozen years old, as of this recommendation, but not dated in any way. The voices ring true, and the flashbacks work as well as they did in the very best episodes of the series. More stories by this author can be found here)

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HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY

Blackbird Song (blackbird_song on LJ): "Holiday" (Arthur really wants a holiday. So do several other entities on the Heart of Gold. Arthur, Ford, and Trillian go on holiday, while Zaphod and Marvin...well, that would be telling. A very sweet tale.)

Darwin's Ape: Attachments. (Marvin/Trillian. Yes, I said Marvin/Trillian)

jmtorres: Last Man Standing. (Ford comes up with the answer to a quiz in a magazine, and the answer is Arthur.)

MMWD (makesmewannadie on LJ): "In This Galaxy, Nothing Can Be Said To Be Certain" ( A perfect little Hitchhiker's moment - Guide digressions and all - with just a whisper of Arthur/Ford.)

MMWD (makesmewannadie on LJ): That Tongue Thing. (Ford/Arthur. Or is that Ford/Not Arthur?)

Rheanna: The Galactic Miscellany. (Arthur and Ford . . . and footnotes!)

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INVISIBLE MAN

Lydia: Control. (Fawkes/Hobbes. Bittersweet.)

Tiriel: Fish and Game. (Fawkes/Hobbes. Ah, if only this had been in one of the episodes!)

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JEEVES & WOOSTER (Wodehouse)

Sky Blue Reverie (skyblue-reverie on LJ): "Yes, Sir, Jeeves" (Jeeves/Wooster, of course...but in an utterly believable way. Perfect Wodehouse voice.)

Zulu (queenzulu on LJ): "Jeeves and the Female of the Species" ("Old acquaintances arrive in London, and Bertie is once again in the soup." Great fun, in this tale for which Sappho apparently served as a Muse. Excellent voices.)

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Kingdom

The Hoyden (thehoyden on LJ): "To Put It Right" (Peter/Becket (OC) "Peter changes a will, and everything else changes along with it." Perfectly voiced and perfectly observed - and how very lovely for Peter.)

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King's Speech (The)

cruisedirector (cruisedirector on LJ): "The Beauty of Their Dreams" (Lionel/Bertie, Elizabeth, Myrtle. "On the advice of his speech therapist, the King tries to work out what he needs to clear his head." Smart and perfectly voiced. Strangely believable...and quite touching at times.)

cruisedirector (cruisedirector on LJ): "Connection" (Lionel, Bertie, Elizabeth, Myrtle. "The telephone taunts Bertie." Very, very real.)

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KYOU KARA MAOU

Inglorious DMK (kameko_fic on LJ): "And Everything In Between" (Gwendal/Yuuri...mostly. "It's the closest Gwendal's ever been to falling in love, and it's ruining the careful order of his life. It all used to be so easy." Un-schmoopy, with a strong Gwendal voice.)

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LABYRINTH

Scattered Logic: The Enticement. (Sarah/Jareth. "In exchange for returning to the Labyrinth, Sarah is offered what she desires most...")

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LIFE ON MARS

Loz (lozenger8 on LJ): "As Humans, We Crave Disappointment" (Sam/Gene. "For the longest time, all Sam has wanted is to go home. When he takes the opportunity to return to 2007, he discovers that home wasn't where he thought it was." What isn't said between the two men is as important as what is said.)

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LIITTLE WOMEN SERIES (Alcott)


Essie: "Comfort and Joy" "Beth and Laurie share a private moment on Christmas." (Sentimental and very sad, but beautiful, too)

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LORD OF THE RINGS

Adina: Kaleidoscope. (Legolas/Gimli)

Fabula Rasa: Lords of Misrule (Legolas/Gimli)

Vulgarweed: Black Is The Colour (Snape/Nazgul. Crossover with HP) REC LINK

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LOVE, ACTUALLY

mcee (mcee on LJ): "Both Sides Now" (Harry/Karen. "Harry is not by nature sceptical, but he's having trouble believing his luck." Given the nature of the Harry/Karen plot-line in the film, I didn't want to feel any sympathy for Harry, but this story made me. Understated and believable.)

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M*A*S*H

Amilyn (amilyn on LJ): "Five Kindnesses Charles Emerson Winchester III Performed (But Would Never Acknowledge)" "It's not truly generous and charitable unless no one knows what you did...or sometimes why." (Charles-centric. Post-war)

anotherjuxtaposition (furies on LJ): "the hours between dawn and nothing." (Post-war, from BJ's pov. Bittersweet and touching...and extremely well written.)

Lyrastar (watergal on LJ): "Strange Bedfellows" (Hawkeye/Trapper. Absolutely perfect. It could have been a lost episode...if Hawkeye/Trapper had been able to make it past the censors.)

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MASTER AND COMMANDER

shalott: Five Things that Never Happened to Aubrey & Maturin (part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, and most especially part 5)

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Merlin

Anonymous: "Pairing Pendragon/Merlin" (AU, posted on the Merlin kinkmeme. "Arthur is a BNF and Merlin is his prized beta" Posted anonymously on the Merlin kinkmeme, this story is so charming and so meta-fandomish that its garnered recs - deservedly - from many folks who are no part of the Merlin fandom. If you're reading this the week I'm updating my recs, you've probably already read this, but if you're a fan from the future: go read!)

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MONK

Julie Fortune: Wearing Trudy. (Monk/Sharona . . . as seen by candlelight. Almost.)

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MOONLIGHTING

Yahtzee (yahtzee63 on LJ): "What Happens on Vega$, Stays on Vega$.". (David Addison wakes up in the Honeymoon Suite and discovers that he's married....to Miss DiPesto! As cleverly self-referential and meta as the canon source, and the further it goes, the better it gets. Seriously. Read this.)

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Nobuta Wo Produce

gleefilled: "Lost and Found" (Akira & Nobuta, Nobuta/Shittaki, Shuuji. "Everyone else has changed except for Akira." Post-canon and perfectly voiced!)

***

OZ

Ardent: Outsmarting Them (Gen. Shirley Bellinger)

Basingstoke: And the Evening and the Morning Were the Third Day (Gen. Beecher.)

Rustler: Jailbait (Vern Schillinger/Chris Keller. Pre-Oz)

***

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN

Aris (aris_writing on LJ): "Bent Rule" (Norrington/Will/Elizabeth. Post-AWE. "Will and Elizabeth both want to get closer together... even if it's only metaphorically." Original and sexy, and Will's characterization is particularly well done.)

Artaxastra (artaxastra on LJ): "To Trouble the Ocean" (Jack/Elizabeth. Post-Dead Man's Chest, Will has a heart to chase, while Elizabeth has a debt to pay. Perfectly in voice, smart about gender and race and sexuality, and touching without being the least bit sentimental. NC-17)

Penknife (penknife on LJ): "Liar's Dice" (Jack/Elizabeth {Elizabeth/Will}. Post-DMC. "It's easy to descend to the underworld; it's getting out again that's the trick.")

Penknife (penknife on LJ): "Proper Pirates" (Jack/James/Elizabeth, Jack/Elizabeth. After Dead Man's Chest. "Shared enemies make strange bedfellows. Sometimes literally." NC-17)

Your Cruise Director (cruisedirector on LJ and IJ): "Winter Treasure" (Elizabeth Swann Turner, Hector Barbossa. "Bored and lonely in England, Elizabeth receives an unexpected visitor." Especially good portrayal of Barbossa, who's usually given far too little attention in PotC fic)

***

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (AUSTEN)

Catharsis (catie56 on LJ): "The Fourth Estate" (Darcy/Elizabeth. "There are people who believe that romantic connections are the province of fate and destiny, the result of an alignment of constellations and conditions that bring two people together. Others tend to discuss falling in love as the product of rational decisions that acknowledge attraction and compatibility. Some people, however, seem to think these two seemingly-opposite perspectives are really just two sides of the same coin. Sometimes, after all, destiny just requires that two people make a single choice." This is an AU, but...there are basically two kinds of AU's. The first is a story set in a recognizable environment where an event - or a series of events - are different enough to alter the trajectory of a given arc for one or more canon characters. The second kind of AU moves the setting in time or place or both, but leaves us with characters whose personalities and interpersonal dynamics are instantly recognizable as coming from the source work. The Fourth Estate is...neither of those kinds of AUs. *g* This shouldn't be construed as a 'diss'; I really enjoyed this story, with its contemporary Hollywood setting. It's engaging, well written, and sometimes quite touching. However, if the character names hadn't been the ones that Austen had given to her characters, I suspect I wouldn't have known this was supposed to be a riff on Pride and Prejudice. And yet...I'm reccing it!)

Elizabeth B (elizabethfanfic on LJ): "Season of Courtship" (Elizabeth/Darcy. Covering the canonical period between Elizabeth and Darcy's engagement and their marriage, this story is perfectly voiced, true to canon, and yet still creative and original.)

Esther: "The Life and Opinions of Gilroy Hurst, Gentleman" (Mr Hurst/Mrs Hurst, other canonical pairings. Let's be honest: who really pays attention to the Hursts in P&P? If they're noticed at all, it tends to be in a wholly negative way, yet this story - which adheres fairly closely to canon - is both engaging and makes both Hurst and his wife into quite sympathetic characters).

Ralkana (ralkana on LJ): "Learning to Hope" (Darcy, Lady Catherine. "She soon learnt that they were indebted for their present good understanding to the efforts of his aunt, who did call on him in her return through London..." (Jane Austen, Pride & Prejudice, Ch 58)" The missing conversation I've always wanted to read.)

***

PRINCESS BRIDE

Ayla Pascal (curia_regis on LJ): "Paradise" "Fezzik's idea of paradise involves counting words. Inigo's idea of paradise involves alcohol. Lots of it." (Perhaps it's time for Inigo to put down the sword? Absolutely charming)

debchan: Fearing Greenland (Inigo/Fezzik)

***

Ratatouille

Resonant (resonant on LJ/DW): "Appetite" (Crossover with Harry Potter. Snape [sort of]/Horst. "Snape's happy ending requires him to start again in another story." The perfect story for anyone who took one look at Anton Ego in Ratatouille and said "It's Snape!")

***

Robot Series (Asimov)

Dorinda: "C/Fe". (Fandom: Asimov's Robot series. Elijah Baley/Daneel. There are many different kinds of programming. A perfect capturing of Asimov's world...but with more heart.)

***

SESAME STREET

greenspine (greenspine on LJ): "Why Sex Ed Should Stay in Schools" (Ernie/Bert. "Bert tries several times to gain the upper hand and fails." Cracktastic. It's a good thing Muppets don't have teeth.)

***

SEX AND THE CITY

cheapmetaphor: The Good That Won't Come Out. (Samantha-centric. Post-series. Very moving.)

***

SINGIN' IN THE RAIN

mardia (mardia on LJ): "Sunbeams Will Soon Shine Through" "With one thing or another, it didn't occur to Kathy until one night that it had been a long time since Cosmo had come over to the house." (Kathy and Don are married...and Cosmo makes three. Perfect voices.)

***

SMALLVILLE

astolat (astolat on LJ): "Looking Glass Country" (Lex/Clark, Luthor/Clark. A wonderfully creative look at what would happen if the Smallville Lex and the comics Luthor switched universes for a time. I actually ended up with sympathy for both Lexes, which I hadn't quite thought was possible)

Julad: Boys! Raise Giant Mushrooms in Your Cellar! (Mostly gen.)

the Spike (spike21 on LJ): The Butterfly Effect (Clark/Lex)

***

SPORTS NIGHT

Amy (fox1013 on LJ): "Five Muppets Isaac's Pretty Sure He Never Hired". (Gen. Okay...this is really a crossover. A Sports Night/Muppet Show crossover. No! Get back here right now and read this because it's hysterical and pitch perfect!)

***

SUNSHINE (McKinley)

Brown Betty (brown_betty on LJ): "Demerara" (Rae-centric. "I decided anyone who baked cookies couldn't be all bad." A perfectly voiced young!Rae remembers being introduced to Charlie's kitchen.)

Demeter: "The Definition of a Path" (Sunshine, Constantine. "Even Vampires can have quiet evenings." A simple conversation, but one which determines Sunshine's future. Post-canon. Note: could maybe have benefited from one more round of editing, but still works extremely well.)

innocentsmith (innocentsmith on LJ): "Brought to Light" ("" A perfect combination of learning more about Sunshine's life - and especially her relationship with Con - and that sense you get when you read McKinley's work that you've only just begun to scrape the surface of the story.)

Katharos (katharos_8 on LJ): "That Which Binds" ("Four people, four stories, one world, and one thread that binds." Four excellent, nuanced glimpses into parts of the world of the novel to which we hadn't yet been introduced.)

twistedchick: "A Precious Seeing" (Rae Seddon/Constantine. "In the aftermath of the events in No Town, Sunshine goes up against the Goddess of Pain." Perfect voices and an excellent coda to the novel.)

***

SUPERNATURAL

ae (aesc on LJ): "Incipit" (Gen. Castiel, Judith [ofc]. Set shortly after the season four finale, and based, in part, "...on Zachariah's remark about how telling the other angels about senior management's plan to fast-track the apocalypse would have meant rebellion.: Completely believable Castiel voice.)

Fay Jay (pandarus on LJ): "The Consequences of Falling" (Dean/Castiel, with Sam/Ruby in the background. "A story in fifteen parts, in which the angel Castiel finds himself put in an untenable position, and consequentially loses his grace. In which he goes on a roadtrip with a demon, discovers the delights of tequila and french fries and pie, plays a starring role in a virgin sacrifice, is deflowered by his favourite Winchester, and then gets some very unpleasant news indeed." Funny and touching and dramatic in turns, with a particularly good angel voice and some extreme hotness. Canonical through most of season four.)

liadan (liadan14 on LJ): "Veteran" (Dean/Castiel, Sam, Bobby, various angels. "Dean's been thinking about changing things much more often recently, what with Cas being around the way he is now, and with what Ellen left him in her will. " Post-apocalypse. Castiel is human, at least for a while - and the time has come for everybody to adjust to a new world. Quiet and sweet and just the sort of ending I'd like to see)

Rusalka (marinarusalka on LJ): "Once Upon a Time in the West" (Crossover with Terminator. John/Sarah O'Connor. "The Winchesters and the Connors happen to do their shopping in the same place." Perfect blending of the two universes, perfect Young!Sam and Young!Dean...and smoking hot.)

vanillafluffy (vanillafluffy on LJ): "Lucifer Unleash'd" (Sam, Dean, Castiel, Bobby, etc. Post season 4 finale. "Lucifer does Vegas, Bobby gives Zachariah a piece of his mind, Castiel learns how to fix a transmission, Anna makes pot roast and the boys stumble on information that explains everything, because the prophet Chuck does not have writer's block...." Very cleverly conceived and executed!)

***

THE SENTINEL (all Jim/Blair unless otherwise noted)

Bone: "Territorial Imperative" series (one, two, three, four, five, six, "Interruptus", and seven)

Brighid: The Faery Tale Series ("Fearnot"; "Stones"; "Skin"; "East of the Sun, West of the Moon"; "Ashes"; "The Kiss of Sea and Sky"; and "Thorns")

Em Brunson and Francesca: Pretty Boy

Francesca and Miriam Heddy: Dork

Kit Mason: Identity (Gennish)

Kit Mason: As If

Mallory Klohn: Life Lived Like a Mentos Commercial. (Humor. Jim/Blair)

Mallory Klohn: Kids Under Twelve Drink Free. (Humor. Jim/Blair)

Sihaya Black: Those Who Can, part 1 and Those Who Can, part 2 (Jim/Blair. "Jim and Blair learn something about Jim's past, and run headlong into danger." One of the classics of the fandom)

***

THE 10TH KINGDOM

Shayheyred: After. (King Wendell, and what happens after 'happily ever after.')

***

THE UNUSUALS

k8andrewz: "Lies to Buy Myself some Time" (Unusuals. Jason/Allison, Jason/Casey "Crime happens. The perps are strange. He's got a thing for his partner. He keeps it a secret." With this show, I'm pretty firmly in the Jason/Allison camp, but in this story, Jason's relationshp with Casey grows organically and at just the right pace. Just what we could have seen in a future season, if we'd made it past episode 10.)

***

TEMERAIRE SERIES (NOVIK)

grit kitty (gritkitty on LJ): "When the Wing is a Sail" ("Catherine, Lily, and Tom Riley come to an understanding." A wonderful look at the intricacies of negotiating, over time, the paths between love and marriage and friendship and duty. Spot on voices.)

Mardia (mardia on LJ): "All True-Hearted Souls" (Laurence/Granby. "For God's sake, if someone doesn't talk Laurence out of these constant heroics, I wouldn't bet a farthing on his chances; no, and not ours either.” Four times that John Granby helped save William Laurence's life. Spoilers up to Empire of Ivory. An excellent look at Granby's perspective on his interactions with his commanding officer and eventual friend. Wonderfully voiced. )

meretricula (meretricula on LJ): "wisdom to the mighty, honor to the brave" (Laurence, Tharkay, Granby, Riley...and of course Temeraire and Iskierka. Post-Victory of Eatles, so ware spoilers if you haven't reached that point in the series. A really lovely story, with some wondefully believably childish behaviors, and Tharkay is only mostly in the nursemaid's role. Friendship and...pre-slash, I suppose)

Penknife (penknife on LJ): "Afternoon Liberty" (Jane Roland takes Emily out for the day. Simple, yet charming. There are far too few mother and daughter stories in fandom - fathers get all the attention - and this is a fine addition to the ranks)

Penknife (penknife on LJ): "Fortune" (A perfectly-voiced interlude from early in Black Powder War. Extremely well written: this could be a missing scene from the book)

sahiya (sahiya on LJ): "The Dawning of a New Day" ("Catherine is caught unawares in more ways than one by Lily's hatching." Gentle and powerful all at once. An insightful look at Catherine.)

sarren (sarren on LJ): "Coming Home" (Set immediately after Empire of Ivory. Thoroughly wonderful and tear-inducing, even though nothing is truly resolved in the end. Jane Roland and Temeraire - separately - are both love.)

wildestranger (wildestranger on LJ): "And Spite of This Cold Time" (Tharkay, Laurence, Granby - and the layers of relationships)

***

THE THICK OF IT

Aramley (aramley on LJ): "Grace Under Pressure (Or Lack Thereof)" (BBC Sherlock crossed with The Thick of It. Mycroft, Malcolm, Anthea. "Malcolm Tucker works for the government. Mycroft Holmes just happens to be it." A perfectly voiced x-over of these two shows, set during the events of Sherlock's "The Great Game." Note: if you are unfamiliar with "The Thick of It" as I was, you can get acquainted with the series quite quickly on youtube.)

TRUE BLOOD

Queen_HAQ (queen_haq on LJ): "and the dead keep on living" and its almost-sequel "The more things change" (Eric/Sookie, with spoilers through 2.10. Post-Godric, with excellent voices and mood for the TV!verse. Good emotion from Eric especially, without turning him...human)

Speranza (cesperanza on LJ/DW): "You Get Your Life Back" (Eric/Sookie. "Some days it's hard to feel good about the vampire rights movement, but one thing's for sure: the vampires sure saved radio." A very good feel for the wary attraction between the t.v. versions of Sookie and Eric - and particularly good Tara and Bill voices!)

***

VORKOSIGAN BOOKS (BUJOLD)

cest_what: "A Fine and Public Place" (Ivan Vorpatril/Byerly Vorrutyer. "High Vor gossip is both a volatile threat and a tool to be used." Reading this story just made me into a fan of this pairing.)

Dira Sudis: "Frequently Suggested Sexual Practices: An Aid to Communication" (Aral/Cordelia. As the author notes say: "...this is a story about all the sex Aral and Cordelia didn't have with each other before they got married" Really wonderful, and it reads very much like Bujold. Aral and Cordelia are so great together canonically that it's sometimes difficult to remember just how alien they are initially to each other; this story serves as a good reminder of that fact, while still showing just how right the connection between the two of them is.)

E.E. Beck (eolianbeck lightgetsin on LJ) and Stacy (sahiya on LJ): "A Deeper Season" (Miles/Gregor. AU. Post-Memory. "Take one Miles, a hapless cousin, Cetagandan social politics, a galactic conspiracy, a scientific discovery, a lot of firepower, and an unexpected declaration. Mix well and step back quickly." Wonderful balance between plot and relationships!)

E.E. Beck (eolianbeck lightgetsin on LJ): "Trust Games" ("Cordelia's son comes home from his year on Beta Colony, and Sergeant Bothari has something to tell her." I love Bothari - as a character - and I love him most when he's seen from Cordelia's pov, particularly when it's done as well as it is here.)

glishara (glishara on LJ): "Firelight" "A Cordelia/Aral moment, shared by firelight." (Very real)

Ione (ionescribens on LJ): "Ingenium et Fides" ("Alys worries about Cordelia; Aral and Cordelia confront at last the issue of children, as Miles, Ivan, and Elena have an adventure that Ivan never forgets." An excellent portrait of Cordelia and Aral as parents of an only child who just happens to be Miles. Fits perfectly with canon. Very smart.)

Merry (merryish on LJ): "A Maze of Twisty Passages, All Alike" (Ivan, Gregor, Miles...although it could be read as pre-Ivan/Gregor, if you were that way inclined. A wonderful action story and a character piece, all at once, and the voices are spot on.)

Millefiori: Unexpected Gifts. (Three ficlets: Bel/Nicol [Bel/Miles]; Oliva/[Donna]Dono; Roic/Byerly)

Parhelion: The Councils of Despair. (Aral Vorkosigan/Simon Illyan. Wonderfully written and conceived, and takes nothing away from Cordelia, for those who - like me - care about such things.)

***

WEBCOMICS - MISC (Dinosaur Comics, XKCD)

Grace (kyuuketsukirui on LJ): "Insecurity Comics" (T-Rex feels insecure about his tiny arms after someone makes fun of him. Small, but perfectly formed...and oh so funny. One of the stealth hits of Yuletide 2007)

Raven (loneraven on LJ): "The Amazing Adventures of Hat Guy and the Girl Who Stole His Hat" "It's not all fun and games, being an evil dude in an evil hat. Except, it kind of is." (A 2008 yuletide webcomic sensation.)

***

WEST WING

Tallulah Rasa: Uneasy Being Green (St. Patrick's Day. Mostly gen, but with a whisper of Sam/Ainsley)

the Spike: He Shall, From Time to Time (Leo McGarry/Lord John Marbury)

***

WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT

Merlin Missy (mtgat on LJ): "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down" ("CGI-animated toons are dropping like flies, and it's up to Roger and Jessica to find the killer." Along with Dinosaur Comics, one of the winners of the Yuletide 2007 award. Very, very funny story. A well-constructed mystery set in a flawlessly updated canon universe, complete with modern 'toons and real life cameos. Plus, more meta than you could shake an Acme Stick Company stick at.)

***

WISEGUY

Neery (neery on LJ): "A Heaven in Hell's Despair" (Vinnie/Sonny. The Sonny Steelgrave arc, as it could have been.)

***

X-MEN

isabeau (isabeau on LJ/ysobel on DW): "Mosaic" (XMFC, Charles/Erik. "Charles has always considered himself to be broken -- not human in more respects than just his telepathy. But he puts up with sex for Erik's sake, until a stray thought makes him realize that maybe he's not alone -- and maybe he isn't broken." An asexual Charles, and a story that's a little sad, and a lot hopeful - although it's always bittersweet with these two, given what we know of their future. Nicely done.)

thehoyden: Took Me By Surprise and Then" (Avengers/X-Men. Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier, Avengers Team. "After the second surgery in New York, Charles doesn’t anticipate anyone keeping vigil by his bedside — and certainly not Tony Stark." An excellent blending of the two 'verses: the connections feel very organic. And the relationship between Erik and Charles feels sweet and feels canonical.)

Comments

[ride_4ever]

Letting you know how much I appreciate your recs pages.

[bethbethbeth]

Thank you! I haven't updated forever, but I have 300 fics waiting to be added. :)

[ride_4ever]

Creation just keeps happening! Oh fandom!