Five Fics That Prove The Buffy Fandom Is Alive and Well

[velvetwhip.livejournal.com]

These are five stories that made me realize that the Buffy fandom is still a strong and wonderful one and that fics every bit as good as ever are being turned out:

1) Unfinished Business (Spike/Xander) by kitty_poker1 FRAO

This is a delicious, delightful, and awesome bit of Spander from a terrific writer who's never been better than she is here. The action begins after the destruction of Sunnydale with Xander getting the amulet, not Angel. The story that ensues is both sexy and fun. Her Xander voice is absolutely pitch perfect and her Spike is awesome too. You can't go wrong reading this one. It's just plain super.



2) Deconstruction in A Minor (Spike/Oz) by snowpuppies FRAO

What words can you use to encapsulate this? It's a terrible, tragic, moving fever dream of a story and it defies description. It starts with Oz surviving Los Angeles's descent into hell, but then... This is not a story for the faint-hearted and if you're looking for a happy ending, look elsewhere. But for those of you who can handle exquisitely-wrought anguish, this is the story for you.


3) A Very Good Girl (Spike/Willow) by purplefeen FRAO

If you need to be cheered up after reading the previous story, I can think of no better way to do it than by reading this delightful tale. Feen has concocted a fun and sexy story where Spike tricks Willow into being very bad...all in order to prove she's really a very good girl. She doesn't sacrifice characterization for fluff, and even angst-queens like me can appreciate her talent. This story is a joy in every way.


4) A Walk in the Park in 10 Movements (Buffy/Gunn) by viciouswishes FRE

This is a story I never expected to like, but wound up adoring. It's a short, extremely well-imagined AU of Buffy and Gunn meeting at an outing for juvenile delinquents when he's 17 and she's 15. The characterization is solid and believable and the whole scenario plays out so perfectly that you can see it all happening as if it's a flashback sequence on the show. viciouswishes has done a splendid job of bringing these two characters together in a way that's plausible and engaging. This one's a keeper.

5) One Last Taste (Giles, Willow) by lilbreck FRT-13

I am concluding my list with an outstanding drabble - a take on Giles's thoughts as he does battle with Willow at the end of Season Six. It's powerful and real and beautifully crafted. If ever there was proof that good things come in small packages, that proof is right here in these 217 words. lilbreck does a marvelous job of taking us inside the head of a man who has been there before and of showing us what that means to him.

Comments

[snowpuppies]

Yup. The bitch.

I've put the second up.

[velvetwhip.livejournal.com]

I love that poem. Great choice.


Gabrielle

[snowpuppies]

Thanks, hon. I've always adored it, too, and I really thought it fit the Oz/Willow relationship, here and in the show.