Marvel FanFiction Review

Link: AO3

Ship: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark

Rating:  teen and up

Major Tags: Major Character Death, Hunger Games AU, Underage, Rape/Non-con, Graphic Depictions of Violence

Summary: What has Pepper's life been like since winning the games? The best case scenario, by and large. Iron Man set in the universe of the Hunger Games.

Review:

This short fic captures everything that's dynamic and complicated in both the Iron Man movies and The Hunger Games Series. This is an alternate universe fic where Pepper catches the attention of Tony Stark after winning the Hunger Games.

The violence is different from reading the Hunger Games, because it's written with a deceptively passive sheen over the brutality. Despite the complicated nature of the story, it feels very natural, like I'm reading a canon text.

Author: Ironlawyer

Link: (AO3)

Ship: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, Tony Stark/Others

Rating: Explicit

Major Tags: Comicverse, 616, Alcoholism, Prostitution, Tragedy, Self-Destruction, Dark, Identity Porn, Homelessness

Summary: Between his alcoholism and the manipulations of Obadiah, Tony finds himself homeless. He sells sex to men who remind him of Steve. There's a nugget of hope, somewhere.

Review: From start to finish, this fic is akin to being hit by a shovelful of angst. And it's so good. It's self destruction, brutal and simple. The writing is clear but descriptive, carefully mapping Tony's descent in standards. The self hatred and multiple brutalities are difficult to read, but it's very worth it.

The twists in the fic all revolve around Tony's not-so unrequited love for Steve, but with the absence of a proper happy ending.

For MCU only fans, you should be able to follow along with ease. Just remember that comic characters are a little different; 616 Tony is younger, views the Avengers as family, explicitly struggles with his alcoholism, never starts a relationship with Pepper, and may be even sadder than MCU Tony.

Author: destronomics

Link: (AO3, LJ)

Ship: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark (Pepperony)

Rating: General

Major Tags: Iron Man 2008, pre-canon, minor character death, modelling, Pepper Potts centric

Summary: "8 personal fanon/canon bits about Pepper Potts."

Review: This is an absolute delight of a fic. It's a collection of small vignettes, focusing on Pepper's life and perspective. She is startlingly human, struggling with her self perception and her growing feelings for Tony. Pepper is largely alone in the world, exceptionally competent, and full of faults. It's fantastic fiction.

My only quibble is that Rhodey is portrayed as having a somewhat exploitative streak towards Tony, which I think is canonically dubious, but it plays well in the story.

I have not seen any, nor found any with a search result, but 1) wow, that sounds cool, someone should write one!

Author: thingswithwings

Link: Ao3 

Ships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, James "Rhodey" Rhodes/Steve Rogers, Steve Rogers/Sam Wilson, Steve Rogers/various OCs, background Pepper Potts/Tony Stark

Rating: Explicit

Major Tags: Major Character Death, Explicit Sexual Content, Historical Accuracy, Period-Typical Homophobia, Period-Typical Racism, Body Dysphoria, Slurs, Politics (1940s-Present), Child Experimentation (vague), Polyamory, Pre- and Post-Serum Steve, Found Family (twice)

Summary: 

Steve Rogers isn't a self-made man.

Or, how a tough little Brooklyn fairy got turned into Captain America, and then turned back.

Reviewer’s name: Sybli

Review:

Without trying to give too many spoilers:

Despite the laundry list of negative tags above, this is a shockingly emotional and identity-positive story about Steve Rogers' life as an LGBT+ person, starting in the 1940s before the war and continuing until long after he's out of the ice. The author was incredibly thorough about researching the underground queer community of the period and has a knack for illustrative writing; the reader can easily see this hidden world laid under the stereotypical 1940s image. 

There's a lot of dysphoric episodes described within the fic, so if that bothers you, please don't read this. That said, Steve's struggle with himself and his body, both pre- and post-serum, is one of the best and most emotional parts of this fic. I found it to be really well described, especially as a function of how other people's view affected him.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/14861264/chapters/34406759

Can any fans or readers give recs? 

If you haven’t read Deep in the Heart of Me this is my personal favorite SuperFamily fic... dealing with a no-powers AU, this fic covers war-time recovery, PTSD, alcoholism, adopted family, with a side order of WinterHawk.

Author: sparklinglovingheart

Link: AO3

Ship: Clint Barton & Wanda Maximoff (platonic)

Rating: Teen and Up

Tags: Gen, Funerals, Mourning, Jewish Wanda Maximoff, Hurt/Comfort, Canon Compliant, Post Age of Ultron, Canon Character Death

Summary: "At Pietro's funeral, Clint and Wanda share a quiet moment."

Review: At ~1000 words, this one is short and sweet. But there's a lot packed in there. This is one of the few stories that I think does well by Clint Barton's characterization. He's charming, roguish, dad-like, and there's some small nods to his traditional comic backstory. Likewise, Wanda manages to show off difficult emotions (specifically, grief and confusion) without ever becoming a caricature. The writing itself is crisp and clean; the sort of writing that is so good it goes unnoticed as you read.

After the weird, wandering plot of Age of Ultron, this fic is very grounding. The pace isn't interrupted by studio and genre demands; we get to steep in to who Wanda is and who Pietro was.

Link: (LiveJournal)

Ship: Tony Stark & Pepper Potts (platonic), Tony Stark & Bruce Banner (platonic), Tony Stark and James "Rhodey" Rhodes (platonic)

Rating: Teen and Up 

Tags: Major Character Death, Nick Fury, non-consensual medical procedures, dark canon divergence, Thunderbolt Ross, suicidal ideation, non-linear narrative, Betty Ross, MCU, Tony Stark-centric, Iron Man 1

Summary: “I don’t wanna be a superhero/I don’t care so don’t call me.”

Review: 

The entire concept of this fic is essentially an alternate universe where SHIELD was morally corrupt and most definitely not on Tony's side. This is a horror story. Even the phrasing is chilling. A lot of psychological tension derives from Tony, and how terribly unaware he is of the stakes, first from overconfidence, then from an inability to comprehend his situation. 

This story is also incredibly tricky to review because the writer wields language efficiently and delicately. It's a minimalist, non-linear narrative packed with suspense. Cliché or not, not a word is wasted. 

I would definitely recommend you read this fic if you like poetic writing, references to The Incredible Hulk (2008), conspiracy thrillers, characters making uncomfortable decisions when backed into corners, unexpected consequences, or fics focused on the early MCU. 

Author: Sororising 

Link: AO3

Ship: Sharon Carter/Natasha Romanov, NatSharon

Rating: Teen and Up

Tags: Canon Compliant, femslash, pre-slash, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Origin Stories, post CA:TWS.

Summary: Natasha and Sharon, through the years. 

Review: 

This fic is worth reading for the narrative strength alone. Here, try a snippet and tell me you don't want to see a little bit more: 

"Sharon waits at the gate of the graveyard. The air feels haunted, even at the entrance, weighted down by a heavy stillness that she knows isn’t supernatural but which makes her shiver with something more than cold anyway.

Each grave casts a shadow. They fall across the winter snow in rows of soft grey. Like the tombs of ghosts.

Natasha is dressed all in black. In mourning. The only colour to be seen is the vivid red of her hair. Like fire, Sharon thinks. A single flame, surrounded by ice.

She moves forward."

Not convinced? This is a story of two women growing into their identities. It's told from Sharon's POV, as she struggles with the weight of legacy. Sharon has ample time to reflect on Natasha's difficulty with claiming any identity as hers and only hers. But it's not an angst story. Sharon is determined, wary and clever. Natasha is all of those things, except she also makes bad jokes. Coulson and Maria Hill make notable appearances. This is also a slow burn fic, but the tension is derived less from the standard issues of communication, and more from the difficulty of trust for two women who regard it as the highest luxury. 

Oh, and it contains an impromptu trip to Russia and a subversion of everyone's favourite 2012 Clint Barton fanfic trope. 

WinterFalcon - Sam/Bucky

Chain Reaction (But You’re Holding the Fuse) @notcaycepollard – sex pollen, aliens made them do it, etc**

Stony - Steve/Tony

Bulletproof - Foxxcub – Steve had a crush on Tony when he was 15. Now he’s 20, he’s over it, he’s fine, he’s… Tony’s fuckbuddy. How even is his life??

IronFalcon - Tony/Clint

Visiting Hours are Nine to Forever -  Tahlruil – Clint is the BEST fake boyfriend, ever

WinterIron - Tony/Bucky

Murderers and Thieves – @27dragons –  For a man who supposedly wanted to be found, the Winter Soldier fought like a wildcat when Steve and Sam finally cornered him.

Stucky - Steve/Bucky

The New Year’s Eve Pact by @relenafanel – if we’re still single by 2018… guess we’ll date each other. (pro-tip… they date each other.)**

*so, I’m going through the tags. if I missed anyone who contributed to the bi-weekly listing (I’ll put one of these out twice a week, on Thursdays and Mondays!) let me know and I’ll add you.