#multifandom recs

Savoring the very last bits of summer… by @phoebe4rt - Desperately missing summer.

Sleeping Bucky and Alpine by @gerz-s - This was everything that I needed!!

Winter Soldier theme playing in the background by @alkastra - Forever obsessed with The Winter Soldier

Senior citizen activities by @dastryz - I adore this old man and this art style.

Stucky

Buckyyyy (with stucky crumbs and tiny alpine) by @buck3t-barnes - Alpine and Stucky!!

Alpine!!! by @discosfish - MORE Stucky and Alpine.

Pre-serum Stucky by @bee-does-art - Name twin and this art style is gorgeous.🐝

The Pitt inspired Stucky by @srdonix - This artist comes up more than once in this category because I love their Stucky art.

Stucky cuddles by @/srdonix - The angst in this made my heart ache, but I love it.

Playful Stucky doodles by @/srdonix - This was so sweet!!

Daryl Dixon

Daryl donating blood by @vampirevelvet - I love this artist’s style, so they make up most of this cateogory.

Kid Daryl by @/vampirevelvet - He would’ve been a feral backwoods kid, and I’m obsessed with it!!

Daryl being tied up by @svicklidoodle - I made an inhuman sound when I first saw this lmao.

Daryl licking his fingers by @/svicklidoodle - This scene was so slutty.

More kid Daryl being unhinged by @/vampirevelvet - I loved this!!

Daryl and Carol by @drizzledrawings - This art style is stunning.

Rickyl

Rick being a nuisance by @/vampirevelvet - The hickeys in this omg!!

Holding hands and pissing by @deadmanrisenn - This made me giggle and I loved it.

Rick calling Daryl “sweet thing” by @/vampirevelvet - Can you tell who my favorite TWD artist is??

Which could mean nothing by @dixonricks - Loved the way the artist drew their hair!!

Rick calling Daryl “angel” by @/deadmanrisenn - Daryl not knowing how to respond to pet names is my favorite thing.

An almost kiss by @pipinya - The color palette of this is stunning!!

The Pitt (General)

Break by @kirsssche - Adored this art style.

Stretchy Whitaker by @lukasaurusart - Loved the thirsty old men in this!!

Trans Abbot by @effervescent-fool - Obsessed with the concept of trans Abbot.

Jack wip! by @lin4lool - The freckles in this are so attractive!!

Trinity is a punches you when they laugh person to me by @kitchen-soup - Trinity being a physical laugher is my new favorite headcanon.

Tortured farmboy by @heyitskoye - Garsantos totally drive Dennis crazy lmao.

Michael ‘Robby’ Robinavitch

Robby 🥺💕 by @natendo-art - This artist makes up this whole category.

Cosy hoodie by @/natendo-art - I need to borrow that hoodie!!

I survived a mass casualty incident and all I got was a juice box and a Kit Kat… by @/natendo-art - Love a worn out Robby who’s actually meeting his needs.

just one more sketch before I go to sleep 🥺👉👈 by @/natetendo-art - His face is endearing!!

Robby’s tummyyyyyyyyyy 👀👀👀👀👀 by @/natetendo-art - Seeing my thirsty comment on this was humbling lmao.

Robby angst by @/natetendo-art - Robby angst always makes my stomach ache, but I can’t get enough!!

Hucklerobby

Two of a Kind — Hucklerobby by @reesemh - In love with this art style!!

Hucklerobby first sleepover by @dad-dumpster - Robby terrorizing his partners in his sleep is canon to me.

Two sleepy boys 💤 by @koifee - This art style is visually pleasing omg!!

Tumby by @rusticfurnace - Can you tell that I’m in love with Robby’s dadbod?

Greedy boy by @huevinadechoco - Adore this!! 🐝

Beach episode by @kanakori - More dadbod!Robby.

Rabbot

Jack can kiss away those tears 🥺💕 by @/natetendo-art - Love me some Rabbot hurt/comfort.

Jack is the big spoon 🥺💕 by @/natetendo-art - Is anyone seeing a theme in this list?

I’ve got you… by @/natetendo-art - Most hurt/comfort!!

Making out mid mid-shift 👀 by @/natetendo-art - Obsessed with needy!Robby.

Husbands listening to Danas speech at their wedding by @/lin4lool - This piece is so sweet!!

Mwah! by @richter-kale - So much kissing in this category lmao.

Detailed Finale Rec!

TL;DR - Perfect characterizations + pacing + a really good plot that captures the Targaryen house and their tragedy. Soon the light is the recurring promise in the series. We finally get to see the light in the finale.

Content Warnings - Didn't really see any major warnings outside the canon warnings themselves. YMMV.

Length - 70000 words.

Why a rec - Because this is a really unusual story about love without being a story about OTPs. Intergenerational cycles of ambition/betrayal/loss/love/grief. The humanity in the characters is just insanely deep.

What stands out? I feel like fics in this fandom can get really nihilistic because of the canon itself being that way. But Ossuarium follows the formula of a lot of myths/epics/sagas with love as the biggest motivator. Zero nihilism here. Zero shortcuts. Zero simplification. No single character gets bashed/torn down/mischaracterized to level up some other character. It's just a human tragedy with lots and lots of hope and a genuine bittersweet ending.

Themes

Masculinity - You know it's a fic by eldritcher when it goes that extra mile about showing the characters and their headcanons/relationships with masculinity and how the performativeness/projections can have some pretty serious consequences. It's pretty intense and raw. If you have read Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides it feels like that.

Scale - This fic is ambitious. Like whoa! levels of ambitious. It covers the Targaryen story from Valyria creation myths to Dany's canon in GOT.

Depth of characterization - Usually characterizations suffer when fics have scale. But here the scale and the characterization actually complement each other. It feels really organic.

Gender - Pretty hard to explain. But this is a fic that deconstructs gender. Starting/ending with the epicene POVs. The running theme of the gender role switching/subversions/complexities in the creation myth which is one of the core concepts of the fic.

Prose - Dreamy, emotionally connected and intense in a really weird, lasting sense.

Beauty - I don't know how to explain it. This fic is beautiful. Like art that's going to make you think about it forever for the rest of your life. A lot of that is definitely because of the technique/craftsmanship in the writing. It is really precise sometimes and really impressionistic in other parts.

6. Recommend a fic that does something cool with format or structure (epistolary, social media, 5 things, non-linear, etc.):

I will start off with two fics from the vintage year of 2005 (happy 20th anniversary!):

Stimmed by anr (Battlestar Galactica): A oneshot set in the very early days of the show when the fleet is still desperately on the run from the Cylons and all the pilots are so sleep-deprived they can barely function. I like how the fic's short, disjointed sections evoke Kara's punchiness (in more senses than one), and its non-linear structure pays off beautifully in the closing lines. Plus it captures the combination of profound mutual irritation and vulnerable closeness that, for me, defines the Kara/Lee dynamic. An odd, sweet little story.

Sub Rosa by prof_pangaea (ACD Holmes): A telegram exchange between Sherlock and Mycroft over the Reichenbach hiatus, made special by the way the author designed each telegram like a piece of art. The story is told wholly through these images of telegrams from around the world, and the voice of both characters (but particularly Mycroft) is pitch perfect. You know me, I am a big Mycroft fan, and this story was probably the very first fic I ever came across in which the voice he had matched the voice I would have imagined for him -- gentle, caring, confused, exasperated, wry, and concerned. There's a joke about time travel in the author's note: she accidentally used a telegram form from the Soviet era rather than the 19th century, a fact immediately apparent to Russian speakers although it was not apparent to her until readers told her -- so now a little accidental time travel is folded into the middle of the story, which we all agree only adds to its charms :)

Subliminal by Speranza (BBC Sherlock): Thee Footnote Fic! A fun experiment into how one can use formatting to creatively showcase the speed of Sherlock's observations and the way he has multiple focal points of awareness at all times, and how one of those focal points is always, always John.

The Scientist by wand3rlust (fanvid, Battlestar Galactica): This is a Kara/Lee vid set to a song about going "back to the start." Not only is it structured in reverse chronological order, but it's the only vid I've ever seen that literally plays its footage backwards, each clip running in reverse like a rewinding tape. One wouldn't think that something that looks so unnatural could work to convey romance, regret, or joy, but in my opinion it works extraordinarily well. The vidder privated their channel, so this vid is no longer viewable on the internet. I had downloaded a copy prior to its disappearance (the link above goes to the mp4 in my google drive). I don't have any video player apps connected to my drive, so I can't test if it still works. But perhaps it will work for you on whatever video player you have on your computer. If you're interested to see it, I wish you luck! It has a special place in my heart.

Cinderwings by bendingsignpost (Supernatural): This fic is a delight in many ways, but as for the structure, it doesn't seem so unusual at first: it just switches POV between the two main characters, with Dean's POV always taking over with each new day and Cas's POV starting up every night. But there is a climactic moment in the fic where you find out what this structure has been designed to do: in the midst of a desperate battle, the clock strikes midnight, and suddenly the POV shifts from Cas to Dean as the next day has begun. It's a powerful twist of the narrative knife that plays into the tension of the scene as we lose touch with Cas just at the moment when he's in maximum peril. Well played!

11. Recommend a fic you think is a hidden gem/deserves more reads:

Oh, there are so many. Scanning through my bookmarks, here are some that I'm catching:

Watershed by finangler (Sherlock Holmes, original sci-fi AU): In the year 2207, John Watson went to war. I love the character voices and world-building in this! And it's rare to see a Holmes story that's not based on any extant adaptation. I've always really liked the creativity and sharpness of this fic.

Life by Elisabeth Writes/Elisabeth_H (Little Women, Beth-centric). Beth isn’t going to die, but what does that mean? An insightful fic about the quiet crush of self-denigration, and how hard it can be to grow into yourself when your anxiety is taken for piety and therefore encouraged by those who love you best. A striking look at a Beth who outlives her own expectations and learns the courage to walk toward a future rather than a farewell.

Calliope by Rheanna (Battlestar Galactica): "We're all family now." A look at the civilians in the fleet in the first days of flight as everyone tries to escape the Cylons. The show itself never took much time to reflect on the ordinary people whom the military and politicians were serving. This fic places them front and center.

Hero Worship by WWitch1997 (Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Hercules/Iolaus): Hercules and Iolaus are forced to consider their future when one of them falls ill. An examination of the difficulties of aging and the mixture of confusion, resentment, love, loyalty, temper and persistence that comes when two people face a turning point in a long relationship and realize they can't quite go on as before. There is frustration and dread in the prospect of retirement, in moments of sexual incompatibility and dysfunction, in the fear that immortality might divide them, and in the opposite but equal fear that perhaps it won't after all. This is a fic that dwells in the ache of mudane sorrows and difficulties, but also shows how tenderly love can outshine them.

i trust the sanity of my vessel by karanguni (Batman comics, Dick Grayson-centric): Dick looks back, but mostly what he does is leap forwards. Short and lyrical, a light-hearted and sentimental slice of life. Some little turns of phrase have stuck with me a long time.

Escape Velocity by Vehemently (Firefly, Simon-centric): "I never saw much rain. Then I seen some, and it don't hold no fascination for me." Simon is unwaveringly protective of his sister, but sometimes his need to be in control -- combined with his memories of the younger, quite different person she used to be -- gets in the way of his ability to see and accept her for who she is now. This story handles all of that with admirable delicacy, sympathy toward all, and a vivid way of painting images across my mind.

Number 94 by tweedisgood (ACD Holmes): Appearances deceive. That is, one might say, their chief function. A funny yet yearning Victorian Holmes voice and an interesting look at Kitty Winter and Violet de Merville making their own way in the world as a team. Tweedisgood always includes fascinating Victorian details, too, in this case a glimpse at the booming women's wig industry.

Autumn in Wimpole by sans_patronymic (ACD Holmes): Watson struggles to uncover a mystery in a seaside village. Holmes is less than helpful. Oh, how I love an aging couple, one of whom is trying to trundle through a minor mystery while the other cheerfully obstructs! There's banter and grousing and deeply familiar affection on a dreary day in some small seafront town in the off-season. The details of the setting absolutely make this fic -- you feel like you're there.

No Little Charity by perspi (House MD, magical realism): It was an old ritual, old magic from before the world had rational explanations and cold science. Cold science had failed House; Wilson had nothing left to try but this. A bittersweet and deeply empathetic story in which Wilson finds a way to take House's pain and injury upon himself. He thought that would be that, but the complications of bearing this pain bring out new sides to both of them.

The Camford Dares by writerfan2013 (BBC Sherlock): Sherlock is being mysterious and secretive and John is being particularly stubborn and their annoying case in a well-known university town is not helping anything. Case!fic! Mystery and infuriation but ultimately Johnlock. To be honest, it's been a long time since I've read this one, but I remember it as a clever, admirably well-written fic that combined casework, character study, and romance in what seemed to me an excellent balance.

Green Improbable Fields by evadne: (BBC Sherlock) Sherlock works out what he needs to be happy. But he knows he doesn't deserve it, and he certainly never expects to get it. My first encounter with a fic about queerplatonic friendship. It struck me then, as it does now, as lovely and wistful and real. Oddly enough, what I remembered most were its words about forgiveness.

12. Recommend a fic that formed or changed your opinion on something (characterization, backstory, relationship, etc.):

Hmm, the stories that spring to mind first for this question are stories focused on characters I either didn't take much notice of, or kind of disliked in the original source material, but came to appreciate through seeing them more fully realized.

Amateur by fahye (Battlestar Galactica, Kara/Lee endgame, Sam Anders-centric). I didn't like the unhappy marriages and infidelities and miseries and contrivances of the four-way love triangle between Kara, Lee, Sam, and Dee on the show. I think it was handled badly. So I was very pleasantly surprised to find a fic that unravelled that particular knot in canon with kindness, affection, and respect toward Sam and Dee, and a keen observational eye on Kara and her emotional tripwires. This is a story that introduces us to Sam as a more complete person, a person finding his way toward his own sense of purpose.

Jason and Me by David Hines/hradzka (Batman comics, Stephanie Brown-centric). I had no opinion on the less popular Robins before reading this fic. But this humanizes and deepens them, makes you care, and makes you sad about the way fandoms can sometimes give the impression that there is Only One Best and everyone else should just go home. This fic instead embodies the true 'Two Cakes!' spirit, which is indeed the Batfamily spirit. It's also engaging gently with the weird and kind of uncomfortable bit of fandom history where comic book readers were asked to vote on whether the 15-year-old Jason character would live or die, and they voted to kill him. I believe this fic was written only shortly before Stephanie, too, was killed off in the comics due to lack of immediate popularity, which makes it all the more poignant. (Both deaths were later reversed, because that's what comic books do, and this fic is the reason I care enough to be glad about that).

As for creating backstory, there are a couple of Inception fics that did a lot of heavy-lifting for me. That is a movie in which almost nothing is established about the characters outside of their jobs, and it's a fandom that I got into because I wanted the backstory of Arthur's friendship with Mal and Dom.

Elevator Down by vikki (Inception). Arthur dreams up paradoxes. Cobb dreams up his late wife. One of these things is not like the other. One of these things is not safe. I just really like the way this story seizes on the idea that the violent, frightening version of Mal who appears in Dom's dream-world is not actually a shade of her, but instead a shade of *him*; it's the facet of Dom's subconscious that is suicidally guilty. On some level, Dom knows that Arthur is the person doing the most to keep him alive, and because a part of him doesn't want to stay alive, Arthur becomes the target of increasing violence in their shared dreams. It's a premise that adds a missing layer of emotion to the situation we encounter at the start of the film.