I wanna know what love is; I want you to show me.

[thefourthvine]

Older fandoms, you confuse me so. The story I'm reading right now has piercing gazes, searing gazes, cuddling, comforting, lengthy descriptions of eyes that change color (Green! Hazel! Gold! No, I'm not kidding - really, gold, and this isn't the right fandom for him to have been implanted with a Goa'uld.), marriage proposals, men of action sharing their feelings in astonishing detail and with great (sometimes searing) honesty, a guy telling another guy how beautiful he is, holding hands, kissing, and two adult men (of action!) with extensive disposable incomes living together and sharing a bed.

And it's gen.*

I am patiently waiting for the mutual declarations of eternal love while hugging (or crying; I'd totally take crying) in the rain. Then, and only then, will I be able to stop reading.

So, does anyone have a story from an older fandom to recommend to me? You people have mostly been at this longer than me - surely you've got some nice gen or slash story favorite from a pre-LJ fandom that you could link me to. Gen or slash welcome - especially gen that I can read as gen. Seriously. Save me from myself. And this story. I am just bewildered, here.

-Footnote-

* Another gen story in the same fandom (but by a different person) features a noted canonical horndog turning down NSA sex with a beautiful woman because he's in love with someone else - that someone being, of course, the guy who is his Entirely Not Slashy Totally Hetero Life Partner. (It also had a paragraph about their great and abiding love, and the Totally Hetero Life Partner isn't even in the story. Nor is there any explanation of why the THLP would want his "friend" to turn down the sex - I mean, seriously, it was just presented as "this is what you do when you're in love with your THLP, forswear sex and cleave only unto him, but in a straight and manly way." I guess I am just not straight enough to understand that.) And the author's note contained a diatribe against slash. Oh, my people.

Comments

[stillane.livejournal.com]

Hm. I'm gonna have to assume this is either in the Professionals or Starsky and Hutch zone. I'm leaning more toward S&H, though, because of the cuddle factor. (And you're totally not going to tell us, are you? *puppy eyes*)

As for pre-LJ fandoms: I'll let you know. I'm going through a Man from U.N.C.L.E. kick just now, and spent a sad few days last week unsuccessfully looking for the huge trove of The Wild Wild West slash that just had to be out here somewhere. If M.U.N.C.L.E. trips your fancy, I can keep track of what I liked.

[joandarck.livejournal.com]

Oh, have you got any Wild Wild West recs? I read a bunch of that last year, but, yeah, it's hard to find.

[stillane.livejournal.com]

*sigh* Best I can really do is this (http://przed.com/fic/www/index.html), which you're almost guaranteed to have already seen. I get the impression there's a lot out there zine-wise, but... when you have this kind of material (http://stillane.livejournal.com/46802.html#cutid1), how can there not be oodles online, too?

Grr.

[joandarck.livejournal.com]

Oh, thank you! Yes, I've read the przed ones. And some others, too -- there was a whole page of them by somebody who had a bent towards West being kind of cruel towards Artie, including dub-con. I haven't seen the show in so long that I couldn't swear they were OOC, but they were certainly, you know, interesting.

[stillane.livejournal.com]

You know, I think I stumbled onto those at one point, too. And then kind of stumbled away again, because... well, I just couldn't see it. While Artemus may be extremely smitten with Jim, he's also the only guy around who will consitantly tell him he's being an asshole (politely, of course). Also, there's the whole fact that Artie getting hurt in canon tends to lead to Jim stoically flipping out. (The guy wiggs out on Ricardo Montalban. A freaky, magic Ricardo Montalban.)

And then there's Loveless, who at one point sets Jim up to go after Artemus with the line, "To make a man kill that which he loves, that is the challenge." Or something very similar. The word love is definitely in there, and there's no question he specifically means Artie.

Plus, they seem to have this geeky kind of affection between them. Artie makes things that go boom to impress Jim. Jim is... kind of a dork around Artie.

*does not at all think of SG:A parallels*

So, yeah. While I adore misunderstanding fic, I've got a hard time picturing them in a truly hurtful dynamic. They have too much faith in one another for that, I think. *shrugs*

[joandarck.livejournal.com]

The guy wiggs out on Ricardo Montalban. A freaky, magic Ricardo Montalban.

Well that, indeed, shows commitment. Not a man to be wigged out on lightly!

Plus, they seem to have this geeky kind of affection between them. Artie makes things that go boom to impress Jim. Jim is... kind of a dork around Artie.

AWWWWWWWW.

While I adore misunderstanding fic, I've got a hard time picturing them in a truly hurtful dynamic. They have too much faith in one another for that, I think.

Well, heck, I doubt there are many buddy shows where the main friendship is that dysfunctional! Now I'm trying to think of one. Uh... Pinky and the Brain?

[stillane.livejournal.com]

And I just realized I'd been reading that wrong. NSA = No Strings Attached, doesn't it? Yeah. Need to stop hanging around in spy fandoms.

[melannen.livejournal.com]

I have to admit that my first reaction was "Dude, there's a fandom where sex with NSA people is its own genre??? Where??" But then, I went to NSA summer camp for five years and grew up in walking distance from the headquarters. :D

(Is there a fandom with lots of National Security Agency sex? Because that would be hot. Like, I dunno, Cryptonomicon slash or something? Surely there's an SGA AU where John got his math doctorate and became a cryptanalyst in the tradition of Alan Turing? Or *something* in XF or MfU or something somewhere?)

[thefourthvine.livejournal.com]

Surely there's an SGA AU where John got his math doctorate and became a cryptanalyst in the tradition of Alan Turing?

OH MY GOD I WANT THAT STORY SO MUCH NOW.

And Cryptonomicon is definitely going onto my Yuletide consideration list this year, because FF for that would be AWESOME.

[anatsuno.livejournal.com]

I HAD THE SAME ALLCAPS REACTION READING THAT COMMENT. TURING!JOHN! WANTS! *HANDS*

[melannen.livejournal.com]

I am off to go re-read the entire Thoughtcrimes fandom now (see comment below :D) but don't let that stop *anyone* from writing the John-as-cryptanalyst story! Cryptanalysts are sexy. Also, he should totally think he's James Bond (the books, not the movies!!!) because Ian Fleming was a codebreaker. :D

[stillane.livejournal.com]

Surely there's an SGA AU where John got his math doctorate and became a cryptanalyst in the tradition of Alan Turing?

There really, really should be. Oooo.

Is there a fandom with lots of National Security Agency sex?

You know, sadly, I don't think there is. I can think of a few set in the NSA - Seven Days... was Jake 2.0? - but I can't recall any fics making use of the whole superspy angle in the sex department. (Which makes me wonder: do spy agencies have a Sex Department? Because that would be... huh.) The only fic I can think of with an NSA bent is this Numb3rs one (http://raucousraven.livejournal.com/26679.html), which happens to be gen (and amazing).

[melannen.livejournal.com]

Oh, wait! There *is* a fandom with NSA Sex! *And* Joe Flanigan! Thoughtcrimes! *YES*. Time to go re-read, starting with this (http://thefourthvine.livejournal.com/tag/thoughtcrimes).

[stillane.livejournal.com]

*blinks* You can't beat that combo. *wanders off to the pretty*

[stillane.livejournal.com]

And holy crap, your icon registered just as I hit 'post'.

So much of me is explained by my obsession with that show in my formative years. Heh. That and Carmen Sandiego.

[thefourthvine.livejournal.com]

Whoops, sorry. (The thing is, I tend to read NSA as the National Security Administration, too, and I used the damn acronym anyway.) It's No Strings Attached, yup.

[flambeau.livejournal.com]

*blinkblink* And suddenly, for me, it all turned into popslash. Oh, the confusion.

[thefourthvine.livejournal.com]

Why popslash?

(Oh, the confusion of acronyms. I have learned the error of my ways, I tell you.)

[thefourthvine.livejournal.com]

I would absolutely love some MUNCLE recs. (No, I don't know much about the fandom, but I'm totally easy.) Do keep track of what you liked!

And you're totally not going to tell us, are you? *puppy eyes*

Totally not. *is evil*

[stillane.livejournal.com]

No, I don't know much about the fandom, but I'm totally easy.

Yeah, considering my association with it is about 2 days old, I'm no expert. Also, it is apparently impossible to get your hands on the source. But, well, there are spies. Ones who get whapped around a lot and are rather attached to each other and tend to show affection via banter. Um. Yeah.

So far, I've gotten a kick out of evan_nicholas's stuff. I'll let you know what else jumps out.

Totally not. *is evil*

*pouts* Meany.

*drive by linkage*

[polaris-starz.livejournal.com]

I don't have many specific MFU recs, but here's (http://www.chezshay.net/stories/Manifesto.html) a manifesto with some great links at the bottom and author recommendations, and here (http://partnermine.luminousbeings.net/faves.html) is a great page of recs. Most of the links are still active.

Re: *drive by linkage*

[stillane.livejournal.com]

Sneaking back in - late, as usual - to say thanks. I'm perusing gleefully. *g*

[adannu.livejournal.com]

Wait, evan_nicholas? I recognize that name from when I was a semi-wee slasher paddling around in some old school fandoms but... huh. Same person?

[gules]

Okay, I would tell you how I ended up here but I don't even remember. That said, if you type man from uncle into Google Video, there are at least three of the episodes listed on the first page alone.

One thing that struck me, at least from what I've watched, is that Napoleon seems to be far more competent in fanfic than he was on the show. In the episode I saw ("The Concrete Overcoat Affair"), he's not much more than a gigolo; it's Illya who saves the day.

Anyway, happy viewing!

[beck-liz.livejournal.com]

The only MUNCLE I know of is here: http://www.angelfire.com/nb/annehiggins/uncle/uncle.html

Three stories, and it's pretty mushy, as I recall.

Totally not. *is evil*

Hmph. :-P