delga: ([Random] Mrs Dalloway)

RECS POST. AT LONG LAST. !!!

» BIG LOVE.

Psalm 119:27-29 by [livejournal.com profile] viciouswishes
multiple pairings.

They call him the good prophet. He makes sure that his flock is cared for, provided for. No one goes hungry or without shelter. Sure, once in a while, he has to turn a blind eye; but it's for the good of the people, for the good of the compound. He might drive around in his Hummers, but he's no Roman Grant.

[livejournal.com profile] viciouswishes takes a step into the (probable) future, and places Bill Henrickson in the role of the Juniper Creek prophet. The family falls apart and falls together in all the ways you expect, and then some. By turns heartbreaking and endearing, this fic follows the various threads to their conclusions. What I liked most about this fic was how natural the turns felt, and the closing section which is poignant and disarming, the way the show itself can be.



» BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER.

Five Things Jack Never Expected by [livejournal.com profile] odestructogirlo [apocalyptothon]
Jack O'Toole (episode: The Zeppo).
The thing is, of course, that you don’t have to intentionally start the apocalypse. You do a few little things, the other guy ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time, and apocalypse, always the mistress of opportunity, steps in.

This fic is hilarious whilst maintaining the pathos the show so often displayed. Written from the perspective of one of the minor characters from The Zeppo, this outsider's perspective is wry, witty and sometimes even touching. A fun read.



» DOCTOR WHO.

The TARDIS and the Slow Path by Roz McClure [twicetoldfandom]
gen. Martha. au.
That was when Martha realized the TARDIS had a sense of humor: later. When she was going over the timeline in her head for the memoir she would write someday, and figured out who else was taking the slow path in 1869. Ha. Until then, she'd just thought the TARDIS was jealous.

I'm always glad to find Martha fanfiction, even more so when it deals with the TARDIS. I love how this fic is both linear and non-linear, just like the series, and I like the slightly disaffected tone. Martha's comments of the sigh - what now? variety are a treat to read, and the whole fic is light and thoroughly enjoyable.



» FIREFLY.

And Walked the Night Alone by [livejournal.com profile] elohvee [apocalyptothon]
gen. Jayne. River. post-Serenity.
Things were supposed to be better. They fought a war for this, right? Not Jayne, 'cause he ain't the sort, but Mal. Mal and Zoe and all those other people, and it don't make sense, because they were always right before, in the end.

Confession: I've read a fair few Jayne-and-River-survive fics, and I love nearly all of them. The irony of Jayne being left to care for River is almost too much, but it also brings the best out in him. This haunting apoca-fic leaves Jayne lonely; I was drawn to how quiet and eerie it is.



» GREY'S ANATOMY.

Ring The Bells That Still Can Ring by [livejournal.com profile] cherryice [apocalyptothon]
ensemble. Izzie/Denny.
It begins on a Wednesday. The morning dawns like any other: grey clouds low overhead, cool air heavy with the threat of rain. Light slanting through the plate glass window of Seattle Grace is muted, soft. The sound of quick footsteps, the beep of monitors, the hiss of lowered voices fills the halls.

Zombies in Seattle Grace, and whilst it sounds like it should be funny, it's not. Izzie - typically, Izzie - decides to hide Denny to stop him from being killed. Re-killed. Whatever. But it's really more of an ensemble piece, the main cast trying to hold on, make sense of things in the context they have. The writing loosens a bit towards the end, but I still thought it was a good piece for what it was, and the majority of the characterisations are spot on.



Clinging in the Wreckage (& part 2) by [livejournal.com profile] toestastegood [apocalyptothon]
gen. Bailey. Derek.
Just stomach pains, but by the time the surgical team got inside, half of her internal organs had been black and rotten. A rancid smell had invaded the theatre, a scent that not even the masks covering their mouths could defend them from. Despite their best efforts, the girl had died as little more than a medical mystery.

OH MAN. I love this, the first part especially. A horrible, horrible virus comes to Seattle Grace and Miranda eventually has to say enough is enough, and leave the interns to themselves. A wonderful character piece detailing Bailey's position, and whilst the second part (same fic, Derek's perspective) is weaker, it's still a good fic. The situation is horrific and somewhat hopeless in the truest sense, but Bailey does what she has to do - sticks to what she knows.



» HAIKUATHON RECS.

Missing by [livejournal.com profile] oxoniensis [haikuathon]
gen. Ziva. running.

Sounds Like by [livejournal.com profile] stateofsoul [haikuathon]
Tami/Eric. baby.

Both of these are beautiful. The first is one stanza, and is so Ziva that even on multiple re-reads it lives up to its flash-promise. The second is from a fandom I don't even know, but the rhythm and repetition is infectious, and the obvious affection in the voices is warming.



» LAW & ORDER/LAW & ORDER: SVU.

A Balmy Morning in Hell by [livejournal.com profile] caitn [apocalyptothon]
gen. Briscoe. Munch.
Detective Lennie Briscoe winced as another explosion reverberated from outside. "It sounds like all hell is breaking loose out there."
"This country's been going to hell for years, my friend," John Munch announced. He wound up for a lengthy rant. "It's been going on long before the conservative right-wing power mongrels--"

This was written for me! I would have been pleased for any of my prompts to have been chosen, but [livejournal.com profile] caitn took the one I thought no-one would touch with a pole and produced a brilliant dialogue-fuelled ficlet. They're being attacked, sure, but the old-timers are babysitting. I'm filled with glee over it.



» STARGATE: ATLANTIS.

Single Step by [livejournal.com profile] blufamingo [femgenficathon]
gen. Teyla.
Teyla believes, for the first two months, that every day is the day they will return. It is not the first time they have gone back to Earth, and every time they have come back to Atlantis, to Pegasus. She is sure this time will be no different.

Hands down one of the best Teyla fics I've ever read, discussing her attachment to the Atlantis crew and her estrangement from her people. It's what I call a "silent" fic, where the dialogue doesn't impinge on your interaction with Teyla's story. There's hope in the long run, but also sadness and Teyla's strength. The long haul is the harder battle, and re-aquaintance is harder than first contact. This fic epitomises all those things that I love about Teyla, her quiet, her good sense and her patience which is often taken for granted. A lovely, lovely fic, and one that I strongly encourage you to read.



Watched by [livejournal.com profile] inlovewithnight [twicetoldfandom]
gen. Ronon. Sheppard.
When he was on the run, Ronon had known he was being tracked all the time, but that isn't the same as being watched. Feeling eyes on the back of your neck. Knowing every step you take, every turn of your head, every motion of your hands is being broken down to be used against you by whatever bastards are holding you prisoner.

Ronon and Sheppard have been imprisoned, and they're both unspooling, though in different directions. But really, this is a fic about Ronon and his history, the skills that make him an asset to the Atlantis team. It probes notions of confinement and, like the previous rec, estrangement. Things he cannot say. There are moments when you think he's being taken for a ride, and moments when you feel for him intensely. But you cannot connect to Ronon Dex. And that's entirely the point.



A Method for Introducing Heuristics by [livejournal.com profile] general_jinjur [apocalyptothon]
Mckay, McKay/Sheppard; slight crossover with Heroes.
Rodney doesn't realize he's seeing her for the first time when he sees her for the first time. He takes her for Esposito, for all that she's taller, and her hair is pulled into a smooth twist where Esposito is all curls. She has a different look to her, too - a readiness, like she's assessing potential threats, constructing strategy at the unlikeliest times. Steel in her shoulders and spine. It's an oddly military look. That's not quite the way to put it - not oddly military, but military in an odd way. Like Sheppard, never acting like a soldier until it suits him, but always a soldier nonetheless. In any case, the first time he sees her, she's up to her elbows in one of the access panels in corridor 27. Rodney's mind leaps from puzzlement to dark-haired mechanical engineer to full-blown tirade against unauthorized tinkering in well under a second. He figures it's to his credit that he doesn't so much as flinch when she turns to face him and isn't who he expected.

OKAY, I KNOW. (TRUST ME, [livejournal.com profile] wliberation, I KNOW.) But, seriously, this is genfic! It's like... okay, it's like taking for granted that McKay and Sheppard are a couple and just assuming you know that, so get past the shippy and onto the plot(-y). Really, this is a Rodney fic, and the way his brain works as the city begins to collapse from the inside. It's about Trojan Horses and the end of the world. The rhythm here is so strong, and the ideas so potent, you get carried away. What I love about this is the hum of activity, of things going wrong too quickly to be remedied, until the end where there's a sudden halt, a deceleration. Also, [livejournal.com profile] general_jinjur has the most acute turn of phrase. I'm content to read just about anything she's written because the writing is completely worth it.

edit: Authorial intention versus reader response! Which is to say that I read the fic counter to what the author intended (see comments!) BUT. It's still a great fic, so however you read it, you should at least, you know. Read it.



» STARGATE: SG-1.

Like a Slinky Down a Stairwell (She'll Be in Her Bunk) by [livejournal.com profile] viciouswishes [sg_femslash, Carter round]
Sam/Vala.

Vala's discovered the Spice Girls, and Sam blames Daniel. She doesn't know why she blames Daniel, who likes Vivaldi and Mozart, but she does. He's supposed to be the one keeping Vala under control.

Hilarious ficlet. Pop-culture references, Vala, sexual repression, femslash and just an overall tone of lightness and gaiety that was lovely to read. So much fun.



» THE WEST WING.

The Great Zombie Invasion of 2001 by [livejournal.com profile] netgirl_y2k [apocalyptothon]
ensemble. Josh/Donna.
"There are zombies in Ireland."

I think what I love the most about all the West Wing fics to come out of the [livejournal.com profile] apocalyptothon is that they all start with Donna because she, naturally, is the most likely receptacle for the tidbits of information to trickle through. [livejournal.com profile] netgirl_y2k's fic is short, but very funny, with lots of one-liners, all of which made me giggle. Zombies, and the Bartlet administration at its most ridiculous.

--

I am not a fan of the blockquote style I've got going on, but I can't make the code do what I want it to do. Basically, I want to gmail-i-fy it so that the text indents with a bar to the left. Any help? Dear [livejournal.com profile] twincy, I have stolen from your code. Please forgive the impromptu theft? love, M x

delga: ([csi:ny] call me risa.)

So, was browsing the flist and came across [livejournal.com profile] melliyna's famous-crush post. I refuse to do a boy-crush equivalent of this post because not only is it wont to change quite quickly, suddenly and often, but whilst I was looking through my pictures, the variety of names on that list came across as vaguely terrifying. So. My girl-crush list! This was much longer, but I cut it down to my most stable crushes, the long hauls and what have you. (People that used to be on this list include: Torri Higginson, Allison Janney, Melina Kanakaredes, Scarlett Johanson, Natalie Portman, Meryl Streep, Navi Rawat, Diane Farr, Lisa Edelstein and many others. They weren't taken off because I don't girl-crush them, but because they're temp-crushes for now.)

The List. )

delga: ([Numb3rs] Family.time)
This episode was fabulous. I typed this as I watched so it’s taken me double the time to watch it and now I’m going to go and re-watch. But for the Numb3rs fans on my flist who have seen the episode, please don’t just skip this. I really, really want to talk to people about this episode and I really want a full response. What did you think? Like the plot? The characterisation? The filming? Anything upset you? Surprise you? Delight you? I must warn you, though; this post is crazy long and has gratuitous amounts of fangirling in it. I’m seriously hormonal right now so my usual levels of “OMG DON” squee are up about 50% and even worse because this episode had a lot of him in it. On top of that, I loved the episode and the issues it brought up, and even though I don’t normally meta about my shows, this post has a lot of meta in it because I had that much fun with it.

So go: read. Tell me what you think.

Spoilers. Obviously. Some of this is confused at the beginning because I wasn’t expecting to jump into a diatribe but the later stuff makes more sense. )


Oh, I wrote four pages on that episode. The fuck? BUT I LOVE MY SHOW SO MUCH. Ok, I’m going to go watch it again. Please, if you saw the episode talk to me about it!

delga: ([SVU] Benson)

OMG I NEED AN ABBIE ICON SHE'S LEEEAAAVING!

Admittedly, I actually grieved at Jamie's departure but I think this pretty much sums up the end of my participation in the Mothership's fandom. It is a sad day when I have to abandon my favourite fandom but if you think I'm going to stick around and watch Elisabeth Rohm kill my fandom? Well, you just don't know me, do you? Farewell Abbie!

Um, expect at least one more post from me tonight. It may involve tears. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

delga: (grief)

Crash, The Island, L&O and Lost. Spoilers for the two movies.

Crash )


Crash is moving and quite tense but it's layered with light and delicate humour. There are times when you're laughing but you really shouldn't. There are other times when the full impact of the film hits you, breathless; I got quite emotional as the separate threads pulled together. It's a very sad story, even if there are moments of joy in the conclusion. I do recommend going to see it; it's truly beautiful just to look at. The colours and the filming alone are worth the ticket price.

The Island )


Again, a good movie to see; not too heavy on the brain and definitely entertaining. One to check out if you have the time.

Last night's L&O was so good and, somethign I find quite amusing, prepared me for Crash today. An ex-Black Panther kills a white cop and racial tensions fire in the city; Jesse L. Martin rocked every single one of his scenes in the episode. The writing was fluent and controlled; the issues brought up were, as ever, so pertinent. Jack McCoy's disappointment at losing the case was poignant, I felt and I loved how Greene had to balance being a black man with being a cop. A really beautiful small screen performance that I wish I'd paid more attention to.

Lost is intriguing, to say the least. Everyone on that island is damn pretty. There were a few scenes that I liked in particular - Hurley collapsing at the sight of the marshall's blood and Walt talking to Locke. Yunjin Kim's character is wonderful; there's something loevly to the actress and it's not just the innocence she portrays or the quiet melancholy of her face. There's a little something extra there that I hope we see more of. Emilie de Ravin is a surprise - I hated her in Roswell (then again, I hated Roswell at times so, oh well) but Claire is fun. I love the Lord of the Flies quality to the interation between Jack and Sawyer; Sayid is also an interesting character. Shannon and Boone are...well, they're annoying. Kate is very, very pretty (cheekbones!) Daniel Dae Kim was boring, as was Mercutio (Luhrmann's R&J). I want to see what happens so I'm going to stick with it. Next episode tonight!

Tomorrow is results. Um, yay? Also, I love this song so much.

delga: (grief)

To me, there is something wondeful about being able to go back and watch early episodes of a series. I'm not, for the moment, speaking as a rabid fangirl; rather, as someone who enjoys watching television and loves the construct of a story.

Five showed the Miami/New York cross-over and Blink (the first NY episode) tonight (as opposed to Lost Son which be will a whole other disaster) and I remember watching these episodes the first time around - MIA/NY a year ago and Blink just this past February. I remember getting a feel for these new faces and the new setting, falling in love with the composition of characters and their little nuances. I remember the excitment at seeing the shiny new credits, the amusement at the throw-away dialogue and the intrigue in the new gadgets and gizmos, not to mention the case itself. Having watched the repeat today (and I am a complete sucker for repeats; they show the CSI and Miami pilots over and over and I watch them every damn time), I notice other elements that become trends, for example, Mac's hardline attitude towards Danny. I didn;t really pick up on the way Mac treated Danny until midseason but it's awesome to watch the cross-over and see that same attitude present from the very beginning. It indicates to me that unlike the Miami crew, they got the characterisations spot on for this lot, first time around.

With the second viewing, two things happen. Firstly, you remember the experience of the first viewing and how much you miss certain styles the show seemed to be piloting. Like the 'dreaed' blue filter. I know a lot of people found NY too dark but I loved it; I miss the blue filter. It's not that weird turns-people-orange farce that they used on the House pilot; it was subtle, it made the set colder, more serious. In contrast to Vegas and Miami, there was something historical to it. I miss the blue filter and the dark, foreboding lighting. I don't miss the HoCaine pose. Ugh, I remember The Sister and I watching for the first time and seeing that pre-credit shot - hands on hips, looking out across the water. We both screamed with disgust. I also remember hating Flack for being such an asshat in the first episode. And most of all, I miss the intensity of that first plot line; I miss that experience. All that suspense is derived from the show being new - the producers, actors, writers are all trying to find a comfortable position, they're still experimenting a little, with the feel of the show. The show's identity is still fluid. Even if you go back and rewatch those first few episodes, that brand-new quality lingers. Of course, it disappears. It has to. But there is a lovely feeling to watching a new television show and knowing that one way or another, you will come to love it.

--

That being said, I love seeing episodes that I've never seen before. The best thing about L&O is that I don't care if I get spoiled for what's coming up.

Tonight's episode reminded me a lot of the WaT episode (S2) when the violinist disappeared. That gave me happy fangirl moments. But the story itself was different to usual; the script, for one, was far more comic than what I've become used to in the past two years. Also, Ed and Lennie have really become a set, now that they're in their second year. I can't help but feel sad every time I see Briscoe on screen; the character fit Orbach so well.

The law case was interesting, too, espeically with the judge's bias. But as soon as the conductor's wife got on the stand, I knew something was up. A brilliantly ambiguous ending. It's good to wath a show and just watch it, you know? As opposed to seeing it and picking holes in the quality, or looking too much at the fandom and not the canon. The canon of L&O is fantastically solid and I love it for that.

Fantastic Four tomorrow, House on Thursday. SVU on Saturday and then work Sunday night. Oh, might be going to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on Saturday so that should be good. I should really go to sleep some time soon. Oh well.

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