March 2004

Pop "I'm Beatboxing As Fast As I Can!" Exclusive Excerpts from Justin Timberlake's Upcoming Memoir by Ant & Sharifa. Read all about it: from the Mouse House to the Wardrobe Malfunction. Mr J.T in the flesh, yo. Except it's you know, like fan fiction. Hysterically funny. Especially if Justin is not your favourite person.

February 2004

Lotrips Proposal by Brenda. Orlando and Viggo get married. But not for real. A story which is only the funnier because it almost feels like something they would do.

Lotrips Deconstructing Legolas by Lemur. A rather lovely friendship story featuring Elijah and Orlando. Elijah's finding it hard to be the centre of the films, and Orlando's finding it hard to find Legolas. Perhaps Elijah and Legolas can help each other? This story made me look entirely differently at Orlando's performance. Sweet, and touching.

Lotrips The Meteorological Service by Gloria Mundi. A wind-blown and funny Karl and Orlando story featuring lots and lots of weather metaphors and Orlando whinging.

January 2004

ER Incarnate by Destina. I kept breaking off from this story, because I didn't want to reach the end. Set in a non-canon place after the episode 'Lost', this is Carter and Kovac and to say anymore would spoil things.

December 2003

Multi-Fandom Queer Eye For the Fandom Guy by Yahtzee. The Queer Eye guys see to Fox, Blair, Sparrow, Lex, Legolas, Angel and Magneto. It's funny. Go read.

The Professionals The Smallest Room by Sebastian. Bodie and Doyle wait for an op, and Bodie gives Doyle a merc lesson in calming the nerves. Cheesy and clichéd? Not this one. Wonderful characterisation and wracking up of tension and feeling.

November 2003

M*A*S*H The Shadow by Iolanthe. Radar O'Reilly and Charles Emerson Winchester the Third share a moment. Great Charles voice, and loveable O'Reilly.

Ultraviolet Glass Houses by Andraste. It's been so long since I watched the series that I can't remember the characters' names, but in this story I don't think it matters. A vampire is in a cage, being watched and tested, this is his POV on the differences between vampire and human. Wonderful observations about vampire physiology which made me, apart from anything else, think very differently about the Buffyverse.

October 2003

Sports Night Nutrition and Other Needs by Pearl-o. Danny and Dana are working in LA, Casey's in New York, Jeremy's about to get married. A sweet and slightly sad story without oodles of angst and with lots of banter.

Jake 2.0 Geek of Steel by Tara O'Shea. Jake has a, um, problem and Diane is really the only one who can help. There is snark, and embarrassment and doctor-patient stuff, and exploitation of mice. Cute and witty.

Colditz The First Duty by The Android. A novel-length story, based on a '70s BBC drama, covering four years in the lives of a group of British, American and French P.O.Ws, and their German guards. It's about duty, and the power of hope, and entwined with that, a love story between two of the prisoners, and two of their captors. I love this story. It kept me up very late three nights in a row. No familiarity with the original series is needed, either, the story stands brilliantly on its own.

September 2003

Star Trek Voyager Refugee Camp Voyager by Ventura 33. A loooong story that measures Federation society against the Borg's. Stunning insight into the Borg and also a reminder that B'Elanna is half Klingon and Janeway is incredibly arrogant. Clever and thought-provoking.

August 2003

Due South In Your Corner by Pares. Fraser needs help, can Ray give it? A Fraser/Ray V story that does wonderful, wonderful things with an Inuit story and Benny's emotional fragility.

Due South The End of the Road by Kat Allison. A novel-length Fraser/Ray K story that acts as an epilogue for the series. Inuvik. The end of the road. Benton POV, full of wonderful character detail and beautiful observations. Elegaic.

July 2003

Lotrips The Phoenician Sailor by Elaine Kemp. Viggo/Orlando and the best use of fungi in slash ever. Viggo POV of a mid-life crisis. Realistic, but poetic.

Dead Like Me Of Frogs and Carrots by Princess Twilite. A funny and slightly mad encounter between George and Mason in which they discuss George's frog dream.

Starsky & Hutch The Corsicans by Jat Sapphire. Starsky, Hutch and John Colby in their academy days. A story about complicated relationships, things unsaid and things barely understood and the problems of three when it's really all about two.

The West Wing Explaining Goldilocks by Perri Smith. A gentle West Wing story covering the reaction to Josh's unilateral hiring of Donna during the presidential campaign. I really liked Leo in this one.

Anthropomor_fic Between The Lines: A Hurt/Comfort Fic by Foreverdirt. A meta fic in which Hurt complains to Fluff about Comfort's treatment. Funny and very, very true.

Original Fiction Jemilsil by Ruthless. A fantasy story set on an imaginary world that evokes a violent and misogynistic world and also the problems of ignorance. Warnings for underage sex.

Popslash Grand Theft Auto by Cesare. A noir AU inspired by the playstation game which pits mobster Joey against detective Lance. This story is all kinds of perfect, and that's all I can say. A must even for the RPF phobic.

Popslash San Salvador by Schizanthus. I read this late at night and it was fucking hilarious. I'm sure it would be hilarious in the cold light of day as well. Chris POV of an aquarium based video-shoot. Unexpectedly lucid JC, calculating Lance, and brilliant observation from Chris. Very mild and very sweet Chris/JC.

May 2003

Fastlane True Player by Te. A Deaq/Van PWP that squeezes in some choice Van POV. Interesting stream of consciousness character stuff. And blowjobbery. I'm all for the Fastlane slash. Why is there not more?

M*A*S*H Snapshots from the 4077th by august & sabine. A collection of slice-of-life vignettes that perfectly capture the voices of Hawkeye, BJ, Potter, Hotlips, and Sidney. No 'ships, just character. Heartbreaking. I wish there was more M*A*S*H fic, and I really wish there were more stories like this.

April 2003

Due South Head Case by Pares. Fraser/Ray K by an always reliable writer. Ray thinks he's going nuts and Fraser feels his head up. Slick and suitably odd.

Due South Prolix by Dira Sudis. A cute and characterful little Fraser/Ray K story about vocab. And other things. And I had to look up the title in the dictionary.

Due South Secrets by Cara Chapel. Slash. Kind of. I swing Ray K but this is a hot n sweet Benny/Ray V story featuring gypsy curses, a sympathetic portrayal of Frannie and a damn ugly woman.

Fastlane Unbuckle by Zvi. Set some time after 'Strap On', Billie gets Deaq and Van to demonstrate that they're capable of playing all possible roles. About as clichéd as the show, and hey, this story doesn't femme Van.

Fastlane Buckle (Down) by Livia Penn. Mmmm, a sequel type remix of Zvi's Unbuckle (above) which is darker and not at all the way I would have judged Unbuckle2 would go. Basically answers the question: what if Deaq had said no? And, yay! this story is another that doesn't femme Van. We need more.

March 2003

Tour Of Duty Close To Me by witchbaby. A slow, slick and sweet Myron/Zeke story with a tang of angst.

A Knight's Tale Listen by Moonwhip. Short and sharp Chaucer voice as Will is taken out of the stocks. A pointed vignette.

Andromeda Dialectic by Maayan. A perfect AndroidRommie fic which explores her relationship with her other selves and also with Harper. An education.

February 2003

Hercules Home Is Where The Heart Is by Kimberly Rector & Martha Wilson. Hercules goes on a journey to bring Iolaus back from the dead. Again. Egyptian sorcery as done by Terry Pratchett. There's even a monkey. Good, nourishing supernatural soup.

Hercules Bound By His Brother's Heart by Pythia. More supernatural soup. A long, long Iolaus-centric story full of inventive detail and creative mythologising. Gaia needs something done, and Iolaus is the one for the job. Iolaus/Hercules smarm galore.

C.S.I. Dance, Have a Good Time by Jess. A tale of lettuce becomes an intimate character study of Grissom and Catherine. Insightful.

West Wing Coming Back From The War by Sabine. A Bartlet-MS story from the much ignored secretaries' point of view. A study of Bonnie that made me wonder why anybody would work in the White House. I particularly liked the characterisation of Josh and Donna.

West Wing/Angel/Smallville/X-Files Them Mean Ol', Low-Down, Lando Calrissian Blues by Yahtzee. It's Crackpots Day in the White House. Not only does this spoof each show, it parodies the treatment of black characters. Funny and quotable.

Magnificent Seven All Too Familiar by Delphi. An unusual Nathan/Ezra story that provides a sad and absorbing version of their pasts and what might just lie between them.

January 2003

Hercules Zeus Doesn't Approve Of Our Relationship by Randi DuMois. Essay about crappy fanon characterisation of Hercules and Iolaus. Funny and true across oh so many fandoms, particularly the femming of the smaller guy. In the show, Hercules is the one who knits Iolaus an Afghan. Hee.

Hercules/Angel Follow The Yellow Brick Road by Martha Wilson. Set during 'There's No Place Like Plrtz Glr', Angel etc. take a wrong interdimensional turn and violent wackiness ensues. A good Cordelia story with enough Hercules and Iolaus for afficionados.

Magnificent Seven Don't Get Much by Gwyneth Rhys. An Old West Vin/Chris story. The very opposite of melodrama, this story is slow, measured and true with a spot-on ear for language and character.

The Sentinel The Charm by Miriam Heddy. Jim, Blair, third time's the charm. A PWP with a point... sex as it would be. Warm, affectionate, anxious, sensual.

Invisible Man Seven Minutes In Heaven by Charlotte Ruocco. Hobbes, Fawkes, some unsappy sap and a whole lot of sex. I like Hobbes a lot in this.

December 2002

West Wing Incurable by LC. A West Wing vignette featuring Leo and Jed, a car, sleep, and some reflection and dreaming. A powerful story about friendship.

West Wing The Language That Gets The Job Done by Sary. A lovely, reflective little Charlie piece about family and memory. A moving story about an under-used character.

Real Person Fiction Life's a Story, Not a Show by Jintian. Essay and apologia for real person fic. 'So, is real person fic harmless? I say that it is, but only if the writer's intent and the reader's interpretation both come down on the side of fiction'.

The Sentinel Resurrection by Dolimir. Jim/Blair set five years on. I've always liked the idea of a harder, stronger, capable Blair.

November 2002

Action Fire and Ice by Valeria. A Peter Dragon/Cole Riccardi story that weaves around the machiavellian scheming of canon. Manages a note-perfect treatment of all the characters, especially Peter, a man only barely holding onto his soul, and yet is still very, very sweet. One of my all time favourites.

Popslash Perpetual Motion by Nemoinis. A cleverly structured little story (with handy visual aids) that surprised me, even though it shouldn't have. A faintly sad character piece that touches all the right spots [nudge nudge].

September 2002

Popslash Talliswood by Tarowen. An epic fantasy AU displaying huge imagination and a real love of language, Talliswood sucked me in and wouldn't let go. For the RPS-phobic this is about as un-RPS as you can get.

C.S.I. Riddles by Emily Brunson. Gil and Nick are inspired to 'a series of naughty scenes' by anger and the wonderful power of sublimation. Strong stuff.

West Wing That Only I Remember by Marguerite. Josh has to deal with a loss and Sam and Donna help. A strong character piece set during the events of the third season that takes the characters, both in and out of the White House, and examines their essence. Moving.

August 2002

The West Wing What 100 People, Real and Fake... by Violet. A character study of Josiah Bartlet by proxy. Clever, witty and true to each and every one of those 100 people.