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tinturtleFandoms in this post: The Professionals, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Sentinel, Horatio Hornblower
It's been a long time since my last project post, but you see that I have not been idle. Also, I kept notes, thank goodness.
The fics I had collected were:
Cards on the Table by Mab (mab_browne) (The Sentinel; 26,762 words; slash)
This fic features Jim and Blair in Regency England. I have persistently failed to enjoy the historical AUs I've tried, but this is an exception. I believe it's the only historical AU in my collection. I'm not sure why it works for me when so many other popular fics don't. Maybe Jim and Blair seem to me to fit better into the past than Bodie and Doyle. (I think all the other historicals I've read have been in Pros fandom.) Or maybe the fact that The Sentinel is not one of my main fandoms plays a role. At any rate, I like this fic a lot. Mab clearly has some knowledge of the time period, and the story contains a satisfying amount of historical detail. Jim's sentinel abilities are also well integrated into the historical setting. I appreciate that Blair is still Jewish in this AU, as well. It adds a further dimension to the story, though it is not a major part of the plot.
(This fic has three sequels, but somehow I couldn't motivate myself to read them. Perhaps, much as I like Cards on the Table, it satisfied rather than whetted my limited appetite for historical AUs. I will keep the sequels in mind, though, and may get around to them in the future.)
Jim's Secret by RandomFlyer (The Sentinel; 63,629 words; gen)
This fic is an are-known Sentinel AU. AU dystopias in which guides are oppressed are their own substantial genre within Sentinel fanfic. This fic is in dialog with those, but here we see a society that is only beginning to tilt toward dystopia, and it is sentinels rather than guides who are being controlled. All this is very well done, especially the way the society seems to be in flux. I think that aspect would be difficult to write. (This is also a gen story, which most oppressed-guide dystopias are not.)
Scars byjantojones) (The Man from U.N.C.L.E.; 1,276 words; het)
I have very little het in my collection. For one thing, het sex tends to make me uncomfortable. (As opposed to slash sex, which usually—but not always—makes me bored.) I like this not-very-explicit het story, though. It's a fairly short account of a woman Illya has gone out with investigating his scars prior to going to bed with him. It's a nice snapshot of something that would be part of life for our heroes (especially Illya).
(For some reason JantoJones has never posted this story on AO3. I've always found that curious.)
Desparate Measures by JantoJones (The Man from U.N.C.L.E.; 1,534 words; gen)
This fic is referenced in Scars, so I read it next. It tells the story of a mission on which Illya is partnered with a junior agent. I like this one a lot. It centers on a good character moment for Illya, and I enjoy the depictions of Napoleon and Mr. Waverly at the end, as well.
The new fics I read and enjoyed were:
I read six new fics by MabBrowne even though I had only read one from my collection. When I went hunting for new ones to accompany that, I found a lot to interest me.
*Duty First by Mab (The Professionals; 375 words; slash)
This is a delightful little slice-of-life fic that pictures Bodie and Doyle on an uncomfortable stakeout.
*Lights of London City by Mab (The Professional; 1,392 words; slash)
This is a coda for the episode Stake Out. It's terrific. The writing is beautiful and the emotion is pitched just right.
Hell of a Town by Mab (The Sentinel; 26,142 words; slash)
This fic takes place in an AU where magic has broken through into the mundane world. I enjoyed the fic overall. The setting had enough detail to come alive; it felt as if there were other stories taking place there in parallel to the one I was reading. I found the ways Jim and Blair fit into the setting appropriate, too, and there were some well crafted action scenes in the second half. I was dissatisfied with the ending, however.
Comments with spoilers:
The Children of Cascade by Mab (The Sentinel; 50,020 words; slash)
This is an elaborate are-known sci-fi AU in which Jim and Blair are thrown together despite being from different planets. The story was engrossing, and I admired the worldbuilding very much. The two leads felt in-character, as well. If I have a complaint, it's that I wish it had been longer. I would have liked more information about what happened between the end of the main story and the epilogue. The short sequels gave some information, but I was still left wanting more. Still, there are worse things to feel about a story.
Home Truths by Mab (The Sentinel; 6,231 words; slash)
This is a short sequel to The Children of Cascade in which Blair has a visit with his mother. It was well done and interesting, giving another perspective on some of the events of the main story.
The Story of Jimi the Smith by Mab (The Sentinel; 4,043 words; slash)
This is another short sequel. This one was also interesting, giving a bit more detail about Cascade society and the characters' feelings about the events of The Children of Cascade.
A Good Man by RandomFlyer (Horatio Hornblower; 586 words; gen)
Jim's Secret is RandomFlyer's only Sentinel fic, and all of their other works are in fandoms I'm unfamiliar with, save one fairly long BBC Sherlock story. Not being a fan of BBC Sherlock, I opted to read a short Horatio Hornblower fic instead. It seemed fine, but it was very character-focused, and as I said, I am unfamiar with the fandom. (Age of Sail, British navy, Napoleonic Wars...um..)
*One Way to Make a Date by JantoJones (The Man from U.N.C.L.E; 1,097 words; het)
This is a charming sequel to Scars that tells the story of how Penny and Illya came to go out. I thought the dialog was notably good, and the story is fun.
(JantoJones hasn't put this one on AO3, either.)
Old Friends & Old Enemies by JantoJones (The Man from U.N.C.L.E; 2,598 words; gen)
This is a nice little mission fic focused on Illya and Mr. Waverly. I thought it did a good job capturing the feel of a canon adventure.
Befuddled and Bewildered by JantoJones (The Man from U.N.C.L.E; 1,486 words; gen)
This fic takes place after Napoleon has rescued a drugged Illya from Thrush. It has some nice moments between them.
And that's all. Phew.
Also reads: 1
It's been a long time since my last project post, but you see that I have not been idle. Also, I kept notes, thank goodness.
The fics I had collected were:
Cards on the Table by Mab (
mab_browne) (The Sentinel; 26,762 words; slash)This fic features Jim and Blair in Regency England. I have persistently failed to enjoy the historical AUs I've tried, but this is an exception. I believe it's the only historical AU in my collection. I'm not sure why it works for me when so many other popular fics don't. Maybe Jim and Blair seem to me to fit better into the past than Bodie and Doyle. (I think all the other historicals I've read have been in Pros fandom.) Or maybe the fact that The Sentinel is not one of my main fandoms plays a role. At any rate, I like this fic a lot. Mab clearly has some knowledge of the time period, and the story contains a satisfying amount of historical detail. Jim's sentinel abilities are also well integrated into the historical setting. I appreciate that Blair is still Jewish in this AU, as well. It adds a further dimension to the story, though it is not a major part of the plot.
(This fic has three sequels, but somehow I couldn't motivate myself to read them. Perhaps, much as I like Cards on the Table, it satisfied rather than whetted my limited appetite for historical AUs. I will keep the sequels in mind, though, and may get around to them in the future.)
Jim's Secret by RandomFlyer (The Sentinel; 63,629 words; gen)
This fic is an are-known Sentinel AU. AU dystopias in which guides are oppressed are their own substantial genre within Sentinel fanfic. This fic is in dialog with those, but here we see a society that is only beginning to tilt toward dystopia, and it is sentinels rather than guides who are being controlled. All this is very well done, especially the way the society seems to be in flux. I think that aspect would be difficult to write. (This is also a gen story, which most oppressed-guide dystopias are not.)
Scars by
jantojones) (The Man from U.N.C.L.E.; 1,276 words; het)I have very little het in my collection. For one thing, het sex tends to make me uncomfortable. (As opposed to slash sex, which usually—but not always—makes me bored.) I like this not-very-explicit het story, though. It's a fairly short account of a woman Illya has gone out with investigating his scars prior to going to bed with him. It's a nice snapshot of something that would be part of life for our heroes (especially Illya).
(For some reason JantoJones has never posted this story on AO3. I've always found that curious.)
Desparate Measures by JantoJones (The Man from U.N.C.L.E.; 1,534 words; gen)
This fic is referenced in Scars, so I read it next. It tells the story of a mission on which Illya is partnered with a junior agent. I like this one a lot. It centers on a good character moment for Illya, and I enjoy the depictions of Napoleon and Mr. Waverly at the end, as well.
The new fics I read and enjoyed were:
I read six new fics by MabBrowne even though I had only read one from my collection. When I went hunting for new ones to accompany that, I found a lot to interest me.
*Duty First by Mab (The Professionals; 375 words; slash)
This is a delightful little slice-of-life fic that pictures Bodie and Doyle on an uncomfortable stakeout.
*Lights of London City by Mab (The Professional; 1,392 words; slash)
This is a coda for the episode Stake Out. It's terrific. The writing is beautiful and the emotion is pitched just right.
Hell of a Town by Mab (The Sentinel; 26,142 words; slash)
This fic takes place in an AU where magic has broken through into the mundane world. I enjoyed the fic overall. The setting had enough detail to come alive; it felt as if there were other stories taking place there in parallel to the one I was reading. I found the ways Jim and Blair fit into the setting appropriate, too, and there were some well crafted action scenes in the second half. I was dissatisfied with the ending, however.
Comments with spoilers:
To begin with, the ending was a bit dubcon-y. I don't mean Blair's unconsciousness, which I think the author addressed adequately. The whole idea that Jim and Blair have to become lovers or one of them is going die rubbed me the wrong way. Furthermore, I had been interested to know how they would work through the complications the story had set up for their relationship, and this resolution didn't really let them do that.
The Children of Cascade by Mab (The Sentinel; 50,020 words; slash)
This is an elaborate are-known sci-fi AU in which Jim and Blair are thrown together despite being from different planets. The story was engrossing, and I admired the worldbuilding very much. The two leads felt in-character, as well. If I have a complaint, it's that I wish it had been longer. I would have liked more information about what happened between the end of the main story and the epilogue. The short sequels gave some information, but I was still left wanting more. Still, there are worse things to feel about a story.
Home Truths by Mab (The Sentinel; 6,231 words; slash)
This is a short sequel to The Children of Cascade in which Blair has a visit with his mother. It was well done and interesting, giving another perspective on some of the events of the main story.
The Story of Jimi the Smith by Mab (The Sentinel; 4,043 words; slash)
This is another short sequel. This one was also interesting, giving a bit more detail about Cascade society and the characters' feelings about the events of The Children of Cascade.
A Good Man by RandomFlyer (Horatio Hornblower; 586 words; gen)
Jim's Secret is RandomFlyer's only Sentinel fic, and all of their other works are in fandoms I'm unfamiliar with, save one fairly long BBC Sherlock story. Not being a fan of BBC Sherlock, I opted to read a short Horatio Hornblower fic instead. It seemed fine, but it was very character-focused, and as I said, I am unfamiar with the fandom. (Age of Sail, British navy, Napoleonic Wars...um..)
*One Way to Make a Date by JantoJones (The Man from U.N.C.L.E; 1,097 words; het)
This is a charming sequel to Scars that tells the story of how Penny and Illya came to go out. I thought the dialog was notably good, and the story is fun.
(JantoJones hasn't put this one on AO3, either.)
Old Friends & Old Enemies by JantoJones (The Man from U.N.C.L.E; 2,598 words; gen)
This is a nice little mission fic focused on Illya and Mr. Waverly. I thought it did a good job capturing the feel of a canon adventure.
Befuddled and Bewildered by JantoJones (The Man from U.N.C.L.E; 1,486 words; gen)
This fic takes place after Napoleon has rescued a drugged Illya from Thrush. It has some nice moments between them.
And that's all. Phew.
Also reads: 1
