Fic recs for meeeee?
Sep. 2nd, 2012 08:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
raspberryhunterSo this post started because I'm informed there are SGA fics out there that are better than the actual show, but I'm casting around for things to read and am open to recommendations from any fandom I actually know (including but not limited to SGU, OUAT, Vorkosigan Saga, and ST:DS9) -- or even anything I can read without needing to know canon. I tend to gravitate towards fics that are about more than a particular pairing (I mean, don't get me wrong, it's fine if they're pairing-centric, but I tend to like at least some character backstory/analysis/development and/or rudimentary plot) but I will try anything :) Bechdel Test passing is always a plus :)
off the top of my head
Date: 2012-09-03 02:45 pm (UTC)Re: DS9, have you read Raven's Malice Aforethought? One of my favorites.
TNG, but still delightful: Valkyries is a plotty adventure in which Lwaxana Troi and a young Alynna Nechayev save the day.
And here is a tiny gem in which the Countesses Grantham and Vorkosigan encounter one another.
Shall try to drum up more.
Re: off the top of my head
Date: 2012-09-03 05:35 pm (UTC)Re: off the top of my head
Date: 2012-09-03 10:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-03 07:29 pm (UTC)SGA fandom took the S1 premise and joyously expanded on my favorite tropes: comedy, the end of the world and postapocalyptic, adapting to new environments, team and community, wacky technology, deadly technology... so this is what I pulled on a first pass, there's more out there.
The "so you've seen part of S1!" recs are either bubbly or apocalyptic. Bubbly: A Beautiful Lifetime Event, John/Rodney, kidfic, sex all at the end where you can skim or skip it. The sga_flashfic community produced a slew of solid to above average fic. Their Documentation challenge was awesome, producing such joys as SarahT's entry, which may be relevant to your interests. She also wrote The Intergalactic Adventures of Lt. John Sheppard in the 21st Century, short and funny and about 70% gen. Lost in the Post Secret challenge was a snapshot of a kid in a silly gold crown doctored with the caption: "I could've dialed us home any time" (ouch!) that seems relevant to SGU's S1 themes. I wish I could find it, but it's long gone. The Secret Lives of Scientists is McKay/Zelenka, but plotty and funny except when it's horribly not-funny.
Apocalyptic:
LTLJ's Refraction was one of my gateway fics into this fandom ("It's a Quantum Mirror, and it probably wants to kill them." 16k); to this day, I prioritize reading anything tagged "quantum mirror". Auburn's A Taste of Apples is planetary exploration gone wrong. There's more in the series, but it wasn't nearly as good, prioritizing wooby John angst. Legion the Things I Would Give to Oblivion is a S1 hiatus fic and should be read after watching Siege Part 2, but before part 3. Auburn is not always to my taste, especially the way female characters are handled when there's angsty John/Rodney to be written, but these two fics hit my plot and speculative fiction buttons.
Once you're in S2, you may or may not want to start skipping eps. The "must watch" list includes Siege part 3, The Runner, Duet, Trinity (when I talk about Rodney's inability to figure out when to cut his losses? This is that ep). "The Intruder" and "Condemned" weren't very memorable. The Instinct/Conversion 2-parter is optional, but merits a compare-and-contrast to Chloe's SGU S2 arc. "Critical Mass" was poorly received by fandom. Briefly, bomb threat on Atlantis, senior staff decides torturing people is going to be the best way to find out who the bomber is. Hint: their primary suspect is innocent. The actual saboteur is a deus ex machina. "Michael", and "Allies" kicked off several post-S2 fics and later season arcs, which makes them required watching. On a lighter note, "The Long Goodbye" isn't necessary, but it's an episode where Elizabeth gets to do something other than the Angel in the
HouseCity thing.If you've gotten that far, you can read 90% of Atlantis fanfic. Synecdochic's Freedom's Just Another Word For Nothing Left to Lose and M.'s Your Cowboy Days Are Over both were written in response to the S2 Wraith arc, and are two of the best stories to come out of SGA. Freedom is about Rodney post-Atlantis, and for a time beguiled me into thinking grad school was a good idea. Cowboys is about John. It's technically kidfic. But it's also wrenching, and you may need to hug E. at several points, if she'll let you. M. also wrote Intimacy of Man, which is, hmm, explicit without being porny, but if you only read one section, read Forty, Forest moon of Endor. It's a hilarious shoutout to fandom's love for making characters have sex.
Ideally, someone would have written an epic Teyla post-S2 fic for a loose trilogy with Freedom and Cowboys, but no one's done it yet.
Jeannie shows up in S3, "McKay and Mrs. Miller". Once you're through S2, one can skip to the good episodes, or sometimes the good parts of the good episodes, without missing much.
More recs: Cofax did more with SG-1 than SGA, but here is an excellent SGA/Farscape crossover and cute slice-of-life.
Oh, I forgot about that time Sam Starbuck lovingly mocked four seasons of SGA. No one is saying this is good TV.
Rave and rant feedback encouraged, so I know where to point you next.
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Date: 2012-09-03 10:31 pm (UTC)Rodney's having to explain that he values his subordinates had me laughing out loud. Oh, Rodney. Also, science-catalog porn! Also, the protein bar and the fountain pen kind of broke my heart. Among other things.
And they are American, and teenagers, ugh, how they hate their weird, foreign father!
And this.
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Date: 2012-09-05 04:45 am (UTC)I didn't, so I'm super glad I threw that in. It's funny and sweet and Radek gave Rodney time, which is adorkable.
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Date: 2012-09-05 05:06 am (UTC)I have gone through the bubblies and have loved them. Kidfic is awesome. (and even better that Hyp reminds me a whole lot of E. Which is probably unfortunate for her.) I think either we like the exact kind of bubbly or you know exactly what I like, because, yes.
(I have not tried any of the apocalyptic yet; watch this space.)
However, I am seeing a flaw in my plan, that being that now I'm so busy reading fic that I have not managed to watch any more SGA. Which means I cannot read any more of sam's hilarious recaps.
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Date: 2012-09-10 05:20 am (UTC)Kidfic! If you like kidfic I can rec Small Primes and Square Roots! AU, no one goes to Atlantis but Rodney's involved with the Stargate program. Um, written around S1 pre-Jeannie, so her characterization isn't entirely in line with later canon. And the Jonas Quinn who shows up peripherally is an SG-1 character, more on that later. More kidfic: the sprawling Children of Lantean Design, breaks off sometime late S2 / S3, apocalyptic and time travel and AU with a bunch of OCs. Have fun.
However, I am seeing a flaw in my plan, that being that now I'm so busy reading fic that I have not managed to watch any more SGA. Which means I cannot read any more of sam's hilarious recaps.
SGA benefited some some sort of fannish perfect storm, it's got a little of everything, and a hefty blessing of funny and affectionate fanwork. Try to get the end of S1 and some S2 in, so the parts with Ronon make more sense. :-)
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Date: 2012-09-05 03:59 am (UTC)I tend to think that anyone who's on AO3 has comprehensively read the fic list over there, so I'm not sure I'll be a help there. But I do want to direct you to a fabulous little Calvin and Hobbes fic that I've enjoyed of late. It's not much, but there it is.
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Date: 2012-09-05 05:25 am (UTC)I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT! The things I have read from your bookmarks list are all fabulous -- I didn't even know Councils of Despair was on AO3, that's one of my favorite Vorfics -- and Burn the Topless Towers was one of my favorites from Yuletide. (Perhaps I was unclear -- it's not that I won't read explicit stuff! It's just that it has to have something else going for it besides the porn -- I rarely do PWP's, although I can occasionally be convinced.)
More when I get through your other bookmarks :) Thanks for the suggestion to check them out!
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Date: 2012-09-05 06:10 am (UTC)My fic is being ethically difficult. (pout)
On the Harry Potter theme, Ombra mai fu is FABULOUS Minerva backstory and I'm sure is on Sophia's recc'd list above. I'm not much on Harry Potter anymore, but this stands well away from the teen-angst part of that universe. Go read!
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Date: 2012-09-08 01:37 am (UTC)You can always look through my delicious account.
http://www.delicious.com/beatrice_otter/vorkosiverse
http://www.delicious.com/beatrice_otter/stargate.sg1
http://www.delicious.com/Beatrice_Otter/stargate.atlantis
http://www.delicious.com/beatrice_otter/deep.space.nine
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Date: 2012-09-09 09:46 pm (UTC)*goes to look at your delicious account, will probably have more comments later*