January 2002
No music recommendations this month (unless I think of one later), but go see the Lord of the Rings movie. Several times. And then come home and join my Merry/Pippin slash list. Hobbit sex! Anyone else feel like they need a shower? < g >
Fanfic
I've been going through a bit of a Due South renaissance lately, so all the story recs this month are DS slash. And because I have a well-documented obsession with spiky blond boys, Kowalski is my Ray of Choice.First up are two stories by Speranza, each one with a very different feel to it. Chicago's Most Wanted is high comedy, a story fueled by amnesia, mistaken identity, bank robbery, Fraser's propensity towards frightening competence, and vandalist nuns. It's slash, of course- Fraser/Kowalski- and very good slash at that. But even more than the plot and the slash, what struck me most about this story was how incredibly Speranza distills the very essences of the characters into words. Their gestures, their perceptions of each other- even Scary!Fraser- are yanked right from the screen; this could be an episode played out by the actors. Except for, you know, the sex.
Speranza's other story, Enduring Distance, is an abrupt change of pace. It's a haunting, almost lyrical, story tying off the loose ends from "Call of the Wild". All I can say about this fic is that it's beautiful, aching, heart-rending, and one of the most realistic portrayals of Hurting!Fraser that I've ever seen. And the image of a broken-nosed Kowalski cradling a breaking-down Fraser is one I'm not going to forget for a long, long time.
Moving on from beautiful to utterly absurd, Chance Met by xoverau is my dream come true- two spiky blonds for the price of one! For reasons that don't need exploring at this juncture, Andromeda's Beka and Harper are on the loose in 20th-century Chicago, and Fraser and Kowalski are in the next booth. Surreal hilarity ensues- bring on spiky blond snarking! The Harper/Kowalski action never moves past flirting, but at this point I don't care; I'm willing to worship anyone who gets my two fictional character obsessions into the same room with each other. Read this and giggle, then ask for more.
Old Recs
November 2001
Email: panthea@populli.net