X-Tricks (xtricks) wrote in hidden_treasure, @ 2008-04-05 15:12:00 |
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Entry tags: | torchwood |
Torchwood April
*waves* I’m X-Tricks and I’ll be reccing Torchwood for the month of April.
So … Torchwood is a relatively young fandom, the show is just finishing up it’s second season (season finale is Friday!) but it’s a fast growing one. A spin-off of Doctor Who, it’s another of Russell T Davis’ signature productions and a show where ‘the slash is canon’. Unsurprisingly, therefore, it’s very much a slash heavy fandom. I, however, will be providing a variety of fics from slash to gen to het.
It’s intended for an adult audience and the episodes range from rather campy humor to pretty dark; sex, violence, shady morals and dodgy science abound. In the coming month, I’m going to introduce you all to what I feel to be some of the best writing in the fandom, as well as a few choice vids and meta. But first, let’s briefly visit our
Captian Jack Harkness
A 51st Century guy stuck in 21st Century Cardiff, where – according to him – everything changes and we’ve got to be ready. Jack was introduced to the world in Dr. Who, during the 9th Doctor’s era and he was so popular that Torchwood was developed with him as the primary protagonist. He’s good with a gun, one-liners and a quickie in the hothouse but … perhaps not the best leader ever seen on the small screen. His crew love him anyway and so do millions of fans.
Constable Gwen Cooper
The most recent addition to the Torchwood team, she’s got a blend of courage and humanity that shakes up the secretive and rather callous habits of Jack and his team. Willing to stand up to Jack and determined to retain a life beyond Torchwood, Gwen both creates and solves, many problems in the show. Jack loves her, respects her and – so far – has managed to keep his hands off her (mostly). Gwen is the primary het pairing for Jack Harkness. Gwen is either loved or hated by fans, due to her intimate relationship with Jack Harkness.
Ianto Jones
The Tea-Boy. The secretary. He looks very, very good in a suit. Originally intended to be a minor, temporary character, Ianto has become prominent in the show, given some of the best pity lines and a role as Jack’s lover. He’s the sole support staff for Torchwood-3 and handles everything from coffee making to disposing of inconvenient corpses. He and Jack ‘dabble’ – and the depth of their dabbling is a subject of much discussion (and fic) in the Torchwood fandom. There are, arguably, more stories written about Ianto Jones than anyone else in the Torchwood fandom. He is my favorite character.
Owen Harper
The irascible doctor with a heart of … well, a lead slug, actually, at this point. Through most of the series, Owen seems mainly motivated by impulse and anger. He doesn't like the country, doesn't like being told what to do and until recently, didn't like Ianto Jones. Several episodes in the second season deal with him in depth, and much fic has followed.
Toshiko Sato (Tosh)
Alas, she’s the classic Asian, geek, stereotype – now with boobies. Brilliant, loyal, soft-hearted and fairly easily manipulated, she’s been carrying an unrequited torch for Owen since the show began. Beyond that, and one episode in season 1, little is know about Tosh and there’s not much fic that focuses on her either. Quite recently, however, we learn that she has the brains and courage to arrange a complicated theft and betrayal.
Rhys, Suzie and Andy
Significant minor characters, these three show up in multiple episodes. Suzie was a Torchood employee who died in the pilot – and again in a later episode. Rhys is Gwen’s boyfriend, fiance and finally husband and her steadying anchor in an increasingly crazy, terrible world. PC Andy is one of Gwen’s police buddies, a former partner, and is becoming interested in Torchwood and what they do.
Enough of the dry stuff – here’s the fics for this week.
Note: my recs are not dependent on either canon or spoilers, so you will find stories that no longer follow canon, or that may spoil you for the show.
Fandom: Torchwood
Type: Gen, action adventure, pre-series
Title: Sic Transit Tempus
Author: Jadesfire
Pairing: none to various
Warnings/Rating: Adult in tone, there is no explicit sex but some violence
Where to find more by this author: http://www.whofic.com/viewuser.php?u
Link: http://www.whofic.com/series.php?series
Why should people click? Jack Harkness has been a part of Torchwood for … quite a long time. What were some of the previous decades like for him? This story becomes jossed (non-canon) by the recent episode ‘Fragments’ but I don’t think that takes away from it at all. It's a wonderfully written, long series of stories set from the 1950's to the 1990's, with promises of more to come.
Fandom: Torchwood
Type: Gen, mostly
Title: Paramagnetic
Author: Fahye
Pairing: various
Warnings/Rating: Like Torchwood, the story is adult in tone and has moments of grimness
Where to find more by this author: http://mercurial-wit.livejournal.co
Link: http://mercurial-wit.livejournal.com/36
Why should people click? Beautiful and dark look at Torchwood and Jack's recruitment of the various members of his crew. Suzie is woven through the story and the author gives all the characters the respect they deserve.
Optional:
"A warning for those straying within the magnetic field of Captain Jack Harkness: extended proximity may cause dysfunction of one’s moral compass. Perhaps the disappearance of his touch me aura has less to do with self-punishment, as he was beginning to suspect, and is rather something along the lines of an unconscious warning beacon. Nevertheless, they’re changing; Jack has never needed to touch someone to win them. He watches them draw ever closer, gone to spinning needles and shades of grey, and wonders if he should be doing more to prevent this."
Fandom: Torchwood
Type: gen, funny
Title: They Grip the Ground
Author: Giddy
Pairing: Jack/Ianto-ish
Warnings/Rating: none
Where to find more by this author: http://giddygeek.livejournal.com/profil
Link: http://community.livejournal.com/tw_fla
Why should people click? Because I've given two stories with some darker/sadder elements, this one is just plain funny. And fun! Watch Torchwood as they defend the earth against aliens whose names they can't pronounce!
And here's the team introduced with a nice mabo!