Yuletide recs, part the first (pre-reveal)

[buggery]

Just in under the wire: My Yuletide Rareslash recs, before the authors are revealed. There will be more later.



"A Better Bed"
Birds of Prey [TV, not comic] (Barbara/Helena) written for: fyca

I had a lot of issues with the short-lived WB series this is based on, but one of the things I liked was the way the subtext-rich mentor/student relationship dynamic was transferred from Bruce/Dick to Barbara/Helena. Here we have all of that, with the age and in-loco-parentis issues included, in a femslash (YAY!) package -- and it's hot, too.


"Come Into My Closet"
Futurama (Fry/Bender) written for: UserFriendly

I was a "Life in Hell" fan long before I was a "Simpsons" fan, and I always loved that "Futurama" played more to the old-school of Groening humour. This story evokes all those themes of desire, desperation, despair and desensitisation, and like Groening's best work manages to be blackly funny instead of just bleak.


"Left of Me"
Cowboy Bebop (Spike/Faye, Vincent/Faye) written for: Pandora

I haven't seen any "Cowboy Bebop" in at least two years, and even then I'd never caught enough eps to be able to follow much of anything. (The animation is very pretty and the tone is interesting and that's often enough for me when it comes to anime.) My point is, I read the story more like someone who didn't know the fandom at all, and unlike much of fanfiction that's dependent on the reader's knowledge of the relevant canon, I was able to follow the story as well as if it had been original-characters fiction. I was drawn in and interested and involved with the characters right from the beginning of the story.


"Moments After Moonrise"
The Bible (Jonathan/David) written for: Shati

I wound up not having time to write up a spiffy rec for this story yet. Read it anyway. It'll probably get that spiffy write-up in my post-reveal recs set, so it'll get recced twice. Seems like a good deal.


"Pineapple Farming Through the Ages"
My Own Private Idaho (Mike/Scott) written for: Aimee Lou

"My Own Private Idaho" has to be one of the hardest-to-write fandoms requested for Yuletide, at least of the ones I know. I haven't seen the film in entirely too long (and my copy is missing, grr) but this seems to capture the feel of it: Scott's distance punctuated with almost surprising intimacies; Mike's yearning; the creepiness of Richard; and of course the obligatory reference to Bob. ::sigh:: Poor woobie Mike. A must-read for anyone who knows and loves the original.


"Playing for Position"
Andromeda (Tyr/Dylan) written for: Lovely Evil One

If there were more fic this good written for this pairing, I might have actually gotten into Andromeda fandom instead of just dipping in occasionally. And they play go! (Go player from way back, me.) Fantastic, fantastic story, with wonderful dialogue and pacing and steamy hot flirting that flows right into even steamier sex.


"A Question of Trust"
Farscape (John/Harvey) written for: AstroGirl

I didn't think this pairing would work, when I first saw the description. I was wrong. A must-read for any Farscape fans, with an eerily accurate Harvey, and convincingly-written John, Scorpius and Sikozu as well. (I do recommend having a copy of the episiode on hand for reference.) Secret Santa author, your story works better than you give yourself credit for. The characters' actions flow naturally from their past histories to an ending that's exactly right.


"Abbott and Costello Meet the Rainbow Coalition"
Farscape (John/D'Argo) written for: ME!

Oh, Secret Santa. This pushed all my John/D'Argo buttons. Mmm, mmm, good. Plus, you explained the stockings! And you have a wonderful grasp of John's voice and personality. Brilliant work, and thank you very much. I hope you enjoyed the story written for you just as much.


"His Own Soul"
The Bible (Jonathan [Yehonatan]/David) written for: Bonibaru

I wound up not having time to write up a spiffy rec for this story yet, either. Read it anyway, too.


"In Case of Emergency"
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series (Ford/Zaphod) written for: Wildcard

Until the identities of the Secret Santas are revealed, I will maintain that Douglas Adams came back from the dead and wrote this. Afterwards, I will put forward my alternate theory that the credited author channeled his spirit, because I can't quite believe anyone could get the tone and humour of the Hitchhiker's Guide books down so perfectly by skill alone. This story is so damn good it makes me want to cry tears of joy.


"Not a Heart, Beating"
Batman (Bruce/*) written for: Mary

Yes. Yes yes Yes Yes YES YES YES. Guh. Two of my most favourite Bat-pairings, a Dick-voice as good as Devin's best work, everyone perfectly, lovably in character. And "Master Dick"! HEEEE! Secret author, whoever you are, I will be stalking you for more like this come 1 January. *I've left the pairing details off because I enjoyed the surprise and didn't want to ruin it for anyone else.


"The Art of Distraction"
Sherlock Holmes (Holmes/Watson) written for: Kormantic

This is the story Holmes/Watson fans have been waiting for: the one where our two gentlemen finally manage to go to bed together onscreen. Watson's wish to "save" Holmes from himself is as sweet as his success.


"Batter My Heart, Three-Personed God, For You"
Stargate SG-1 (Teal'c/Apophis) written for: Adina

Wow. I love me some Teal'c slash, but this... this was deliciously unexpected. A pairing I hadn't thought of, though in hindsight I have a hard time believing that myself, and the author handled the characters and SG-1-verse brilliantly. The offerings along the path were an eerie but perfect touch.


"Goblin Dreams"
Labyrinth (Toby/Jareth) written for: Vanya i'karne (Arabella)

Don't run off to wash your eyes out with bleach just yet; Toby's been aged up to an adult. Stunningly unexpected yet oh, so right. Toby grown up into the young man he had to turn into, and Jareth delicious (Bowielicious) as ever.


"The Galactic Miscellany"
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series (Ford, Arthur) written for: Daegaer

Until the identities of the Secret Santas are revealed, I will maintain that Douglas Adams came back from the dead and wrote this. Afterwards, I will put forward my alternate theory that the credited author channeled his spirit, because I can't quite believe anyone could get the tone and humour of the Hitchhiker's Guide books down so perfectly by skill alone. Careful readers may note that this is the same comment I already made about "In Case of Emergency" (the Yuletide story written for Wildcard). It's no less true for either author, and I maintain that there must in fact be two separate authors, because no one person could possibly have done so well TWICE. Including Douglas Adams.


"The Screaming of Coneys"
Peter Pan (*) written for: Thyme

I confess, I clicked on this story mostly out of a combination of idle and prurient curiosity. I got quite a pleasant surprise -- a story exactly as creepy as it ought to be without going over the top, damned difficult with Barrie's boys. I never would have thought Captain Hook could be a sympathetic character, but there he is, 'James' in all his woobiful existential angst. Beautiful. And I adore the chantey included. *I've left off the pairing for good reason. I'll just say it won't be quite what you expect.


"The Tell-Tale Heart"
Sherlock Holmes (Holmes/Watson) written for: Naath

Easily the most satisfying of the Holmesfics written for Yuletide: a dead-on Watson voice; droll Holmes deduction; their mutual love brought up from subtext to text; and a dollop of Christmas cheer like the hard sauce on the plum pudding. And the Poe title fits perfectly.


"A Greater Compliment"
DC Comics [Justice League] (Batman/Superman) written for: Te

Guh. Okay, Batmanslash is always a good way to go with me, but this? Is fanfuckingtastic. I love the way it takes off on that wonderful Alex Ross comic Goss so generously scanned and hosted for fandom-at-large. And the hotness... though... call me a freak, but I found the first aid almost hotter than the sex itself.


"Out of This Room"
Sherlock Holmes (Holmes/Watson) written for: aerye

In an instant he had whisked out a revolver from his breast and had fired two shots. I felt a sudden hot sear as if a red-hot iron had been pressed to my thigh. There was a crash as Holmes's pistol came down on the man's head. I had a vision of him sprawling upon the floor with blood running down his face while Holmes rummaged him for weapons. Then my friend's wiry arms were round me, and he was leading me to a chair.

"You're not hurt, Watson? For God's sake, say that you are not hurt!"

It was worth a wound -- it was worth many wounds -- to know the depth of loyalty and love which lay behind that cold mask. The clear, hard eyes were dimmed for a moment, and the firm lips were shaking. For the one and only time I caught a glimpse of a great heart as well as of a great brain. All my years of humble but single-minded service culminated in that moment of revelation.

"It's nothing, Holmes. It's a mere scratch."

He had ripped up my trousers with his pocket-knife.

That's from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Adventure of the Three Garridebs." The three alternate endings to Conan Doyle's version in this story are each slashier than the last, and distinguishable from an actual Holmes story chiefly by not being narrated in the first person by Watson. I really enjoyed reading this; the second one made me want to cry (even more than the first), but the sweetness of the third makes up for it all.

---

::sigh:: This is... not a rec. I wish I didn't have to say it, but I feel I really do have to. I've thought long and hard about this, and discussed it with others (mainly thete1), and decided that I can't let this go uncommented-on.

"The Shocking Affair of the Dutch Steamship Friesland"
(Sherlock Holmes) written for: Beth H

Unlike the other Holmes stories submitted, unfortunately, this one is not only less slashy than many of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's own Sherlock Holmes tales, it centres around the slandering of an entire non-white culture which might have been forgivable from an author of Conan Doyle's time and background but is simply inexcusable today. This is a shame, because the author skillfully recreated the flavour of Conan Doyle's writing.

It would have been one thing for the characters themselves to perceive the Balinese character through the lens of nineteenth-century British-imperialist racist attitudes; it's quite another for the author's portrayal of the character to be the equivalent of portraying Gandhi as a car-bomber. These were people whose mode of protest was to march to their deaths, knowing they had no hope of even wounding the opposing forces -- the equivalent of setting oneself on fire, not of terrorism in any form. As much as misperceiving the Balinese would be period-accurate for Watson and Mrs Van Orden (though I have doubts about whether Holmes would propound attitudes based in such factual inaccuracies), the fact that their prejudices were borne out by Wayan's actions ruined the story for me.

It's not as though I think of the author as being a racist; even if I knew who the author was yet, I can't get inside someone else's head. The problem is, when you're dealing with subject matter as sensitive as race relations, there's a certain degree of care that is absolutely necessary. This necessity comes not out of any idea of the artist as arbiter of societal mores (that's a debate I'm not touching with a ten-foot pole); it's about the artist getting their point across.

Let me say again: the story was quite good, good enough that I would have commented on it just on its merits, if it hadn't been for the racism issue. However, the fact that I'm now wondering whether the author is ignorant of history, uncaring, or in fact racist, is proof, in my opinion, of a serious flaw inherent in it.


And now, I have fic to get back to writing.

Comments

[buggery.livejournal.com]

If it had been just a matter of the white characters' prejudices, I wouldn't have taken issue with the story as much, if at all. And I'm not Balinese or even Indonesian myself, though I suppose my indigenous-peoples buttons were pushed (I'm Metis on my father's side). I'd like to think I would have taken just as much issue with a story that read to me as anti-Semitic.

Thank you for sharing your own feelings of ambivalence; my two biggest worries in posting about 'The Shocking Affair' were that I would ruin the Yuletide experience for Franzi (though I didn't know at the time who she was), and that I would ruin it for you as the recipient.