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mellodragneel · 1 year ago

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DPxDC Fic Recs - Starter Pack

So, you're interested in DPxDC stories but you don't know where to start? Don't worry! I didn't know either lol But I'm here to recommend a few stories made for DPxDC (Danny Phantom & DC Comics). These recs are mostly for people who come from the phandom and don't know much about DC or those who just want a place to start.

If you want additional background before diving into more stories, I'll leave some notes about DPxDC fanon lore you might find and other reference links at the end too.

I'll focus on what I've already read here but there are tons more to read 💚 I probably forgot to include some, too... So feel free to add your own recommendations or links to your recs lists in replies or reblogs!

❇️ Before we start... ❇️

Remember to check out the tags and author's notes. Some stories feature widely accepted fanon, but others don't.

This list features only AO3 links. There are around 2.5K crossovers with a DC property. For reference, there's around 1K on FFN.

Things I'll mention in this list if they appear: how Fenton parents are depicted (good, bad), identity reveals, parings, character focus.

If a link doesn't work or if you want me to remove the tag to your blog, let me know please.

❇️ Fic Recs ❇️

"I'm looking for fics with either fewer characters, or featuring well-known characters, or shorter stories."

Stories in this classification are recommended for those who know about main DC characters or popular names in passing but not much of anyone else.

��"The Soul Trade(ing Card Game" by @five-rivers || Two-shot. Mostly focused on Constantine (aka Hellblazer, a British warlock & occult detective) as Danny tries to collect all the pieces of the man's soul as they had been sold to various demons and entities for favors. Rivers has other amazing one-shots for this crossover as well.

📗"Two For One Special" by @halfagone || One-shot. Danny & Clark Kent (Superman) are kidnapped after being mistaken by Tim Drake (Robin #3) and Bruce Wayne (Batman) respectively. Halfagone has tons of other wonderful stories with varied topics and genres.

📗"Beach Day Demons" by @eyesofcrows || One-shot. Focus on Constantine as he takes a break and finds a teen (Danny) apparently possessed by a ghost. The teen is Danny. Additional tags: Identity Reveal.

📗"Only Human" by @library-of-cronos || One-shot. Features Justice League and Young Justice characters as they're terrified of what Danny can do (and one time they see he was just a kid).

📗"I'm King Boo" by @tourettesdog || One-shot. Features the Batman Family, all in Dick Grayson's (Robin #1/Nightwing) POV as he and his siblings learn how competitive (and terrible) in Mario Kart the new kid (Danny) can be. Additional tags: Identity Reveal.

📗"Contingencies" by @nerdofspades || One-shot. After seeing his future and world in ruin, Danny decides to do what it takes to make sure it won't ever happen in this timeline. Mostly focused on Batman and Superman as they try to help the mysterious teen hero they just learned about.

📗"Cold Snap" by @torscrawls || One-shot. Phantom and Batman face Poison Ivy. Batman realizes he didn't know that much about Phantom's powers.

📗"Inquisitive" by @oliveofvanders || One-shot. Danny is a reporter for the Gotham Gazette, goes to interview the Waynes. Damian tries to scare him off with his animals but Danny has seen weirder things. A fun crack one-shot. Oli also has tons of other amazing DPxDC one-shots and an impressive amount of knowledge of DC lore that leaves me awestruck.

📗"Undead Lockpicking Inc" by @little-dreams-of-life || Series of 3 oneshots. Danny has a Youtube channel where he shows himself picking on locks. Until he picks the Watchtower's airlock (the Justice League base... in space), and chastises the team of heroes for using a Master Lock. A fun crack short series that also has a Danny/Jason Todd (Red Hood) pairing by the end.

📗"Bones Exposed" by @disillusioneddanny || Ongoing multi-chap. Danny, now in his late 20s, is suffering from chronic illness after his human half starts dying. Living practically as a hermit until he meets Tim Drake (Red Robin) who tries to get him to enjoy life. A Danny/Tim pairing featuring few DC characters to follow, centered mostly on how Tim tries to get to know more about Danny. Mentions also bad Fenton parents. Dis is the Hamilton of DPxDC, with so many varied and amazing stories (a lot of them multi-chaptered) and around 800k words published this year alone (if I recall correctly.

📗"Like Betta Fish Do" by @clockwayswrites || Ongoing multi-chap. A Danny/Jason Todd (Robin #2/Red Hood) pairing story, exploring the headcanon of ghosts being territorial and how Danny tries to teach Jason more about being a half-ghost. Each chapter has beautiful art and focuses mostly on how their relationship evolves.

📗"Build-A-Boyfriend" by @nightshiftshenanigans || Two-shot. A Danny/Jason pairing story where he goes with two of his brothers (Dick and Damian) to a Build-a-Bear. Super fluffy and cute. You can also check out Ciara's heartbreaking take on this pair on Burning the Candle at Both Ends.

"I can handle more characters/lesser-known characters as long as the story is easy to follow as they learn about each other"

I found these stories easy to follow even if I didn't know all the DC characters in them. They also might explore more DP lore and some even include explanations within the author notes that help understand additional tidbits in them.

📗"Recognized" by @agentianlegend || Complete multi-chap. Crossover with Young Justice (animated series), where Danny accidentally enters the team's base using Robin's (a teen Dick Grayson) credentials. Mysteries unfold, theories arise, chaos and identity porn at its finest ensues. I read this without even watching the show and had a blast. Make sure to check out Ian's sequels in this universe as well!

📗"If You Give a Bat a Burger" by @noir-renard || Ongoing multi-chap. Mostly focused around the Batman family with inclusions of other characters such as Constantine. This story follows Danny, living on his own in Gotham after the Reality Trip events, as he manages to find himself at the center of different cases between the city's vigilantes that might be interconnected by ghosts (which Danny happens to know too much about). A really fun case fic that allows readers to meet each character in the Batman group as it progresses.

📗"We're Longing for Daylight" by @akela-nakamura || Complete multi-chap, part of an ongoing series. Crossover with Batman family mostly and featuring Nocturn as the main villain. Jason (Red Hood) summons Ghost King Danny as a last resort after Tim (Red Robin) is affected like the rest of Gotham by something that mysteriously sends them to sleep. A chilling and intriguing story that showcases Danny explaining the world of ghosts as they try to save Tim and Gotham.

📗"Vacation Crashers" by @impyssadobsessions || Complete multi-chap. Mostly focusing on Batman and later on his kids. During a family camping vacation in the wilderness, Danny and Jazz encounter an injured Batman and try to help him as they face ghost threats and their parents going missing. Features Danny trying to keep his identity/powers hidden and B- parenting by the Fentons.

📗"Knight of the Boyking" by @little-dreams-of-life || Ongoing multi-chap. Ghost King Danny asks Batman for protection from the GIW. This story is amazing in how it explores interdimensional politics. Important to note that it includes mentions of bad Fenton parents after a reveal gone wrong. This story also features the Justice League trying to understand and help Danny.

📗"Danny The Intern" by @nikki-pondtheauthor || Ongoing multi-chap. Danny is a delightful new intern at Wayne Enterprise (Batman's civilian company), but all the other employees have a mission in mind: keep the kid away from the Waynes so he doesn't end up being adopted, making them lose a valuable intern. Most employees are OCs in this story, so no prior knowledge on them is necessary, and most of the focus is on Danny and the Wayne family (Batman and co.). While it started as crack, there are so many wonderful layers to this story.

📗"And So it Ghost" by @evandarya || Complete multi-chap. Danny goes to a technology fair at Gotham in the hopes to get into Gotham University but then Technus attacks, chaos ensues, and he gets to meet the Bats. This is one of the first stories I read and it helps dive into both Amity Park and Gotham from the other's perspective. Includes identity reveal, Vlad being in charge of Danny (his parents gone), and an ongoing sequel.

📗"Wayne's Haunted Mansion" by @tathartiel || Ongoing Multi-chap. A ghost is haunting the Bruce (Batman) and slowly begins to leave more evident signs of his presence until he and the family realize it's a kid (a deaged Danny). A hurt/comfort story that has many fluffy and sweet moments. Danny's parents haven't appeared but Danny was hurt in the past (mind the M rating). Tathy also has a one-shot collection with many varied stories in Phantom's Fables.

"I want stories that mostly take place in Amity Park or lean more heavily in the Phandom elements"

In this list you'll find stories where DC characters are trying to make sense of the Amity Park experience.

📗"To Join the Whispers" by @ayamari-no-goshi || Complete multi-chap. The quintessential Jason Todd crossover fic for several DPxDC fans. The Bat family follows rumors of the League of Assassins being in Amity Park, where they learn ghosts are real and Jason experiences strange things while he's there.

📗"Halves" by @tourettesdog || Ongoing multi-chap. Jason, Dick, and Tim go to look into Amity Park and notice the town's weirdness. Especially when Jason begins being affected by their visit. I'm very biased because I'm beta-reading this story and absolutely love the direction Susi is taking it.

📗"Lock The Last Open Door" by @akela-nakamura || Ongoing multi-chap. Tucker asks Batman for help to save his friends from the GIW back in Amity Park, where the organization has basically taken over. Mind the tags in this one. Wonderful worldbuilding, angst, mystery... The works.

📗"What's a Spleen Between Friends" by @noir-renard || Ongoing multi-chap. Tim Drake (as Red Robin) gets sent through a portal after a run-in with cultists, making him fall several times into Amity Park, a city that exists in a different dimension and has its own hero: Phantom. Lots of fabulous shenanigans and a lovely Tim/Danny setup as well.

📗"The Rebirth of Tim Drake" by @bewitched-forest || Ongoing multi-chap. Tim has an unfortunate encounter with a Lazarus pit that sends him to the Ghost Zone as a half-ghost. As he tries to make sense of his new abilities, he trains with Danny and his friends back in Amity Park, all while his family thinks he's gone.

📗"I Am A Retired Hero And My Love Interest Is a Former Crime Lord!?" by @shycorvid || Ongoing multi-chap. While trying to adjust to college life as a retired hero in Gotham, Danny accidentally kills the Joker and captures the heart and attention of Red Hood. Since it's in Danny's POV, it features lots of ghostly shenanigans that follow him from Amity Park. Featuring a Danny/Jason pairing, identity porn, and good Fenton parents.

"I want stories where DP characters learn more about the DC universe and its lore"

These may depict DP characters moving to a different city or universe from DC, but it helps to explore and learn more about that universe.

📗"Lex Luthor's ascent from supervillany to fatherhood" by @halfagone || Ongoing multi-chap. Danny ends up in a different dimension where Lex Luthor becomes his first contact and adoptive father. This story is tons of fun and has lots of worldbuilding as Danny gets to meet this new world and his role in it. It includes (repenting) bad Fenton parents, identity shenanigans, and a Danny/Cass (Cassandra Cain aka Black Bat, adopted by Batman) pairing.

📗"Bus to Nowhere" by @precarious-hermit || Ongoing multi-chap. Danny goes to live in the streets of Gotham to lay low. As he builds a new life with homeless kids, sex workers, and underground rogues, he sees Gotham from an entirely different angle. Includes bad Fenton parents but it's not an adoption fic. It also has lots of exploration into different DC characters from an outsider perspective.

📗"GLXY:PSSNGR" by socraticat || Complete multi-chap. A Danny/Tim Drake (Robin #3/Red Robin) pairing story where Danny is sent to a dimension where everything is different, including the life he led and how he's now adopted by Vlad, and how he tries to get back to his world. Full of mystery, great ghostly worldbuilding, and mostly focused on Danny and Tim's POV.

📗"A Second Life" by @die-erlkonigin6083 || Ongoing multi-chap. Danny wakes up with no memories and deaged, learning more about the lives of the superheroes who saved him and the new family that took him in as he recovers glimpses of his past life. This beautiful story explores Dick Grayson as a father for Danny and their relationship to each of his family members. Ash also has other amazing stories such as "Press Heart to Subscribe" (a Danny/Damian story where Danny is a Twitch streamer).

📗"A Little Overshadowing Never Hurt Anyone" by @playedcrowd5610 || Ongoing multi-chap. After being captured by Batman in Gotham, Phantom tries to escape the Batcave and the only option at the moment was overshadowing Red Robin (Tim). And then he's stuck. Danny explores part of Gotham's vigilante's lives through Tim's eyes. Mentions of the Fentons' questionable parenting.

"Any other stories/authors you love?"

Boy, do I have more stories to recommend! Among these I'm also including some from my favorite tropes. One of them being Demon Twin AU, in which Danny and Damian Wayne (Robin #5, Bruce's bio kid with an assassin named Talia Al Ghul) are twins, often raised together in the League of Assassins/League of Shadows, until Danny manages to escape somehow and gets adopted by the Fentons.

📗"Robin's Egg" by @arzuera || Ongoing multi-chap. Damian (Robin #5) takes care of an injured Phantom who was forced back into his core (which looks like an egg). Arzu's writing is a delight. Also, don't miss out on all the egg puns in each title.

📗"Holding Me Now In Hand" by @disillusioneddanny || Complete multi-chap. Danny moves into a new dimension where he becomes Tim's crazy science teacher at Gotham Academy. When Dick goes to a parent-teacher meeting in Bruce's place, he didn't expect to fall in love. This is a slow burn identity reveal story because Danny and Dick are too clueless. Includes bad Fenton parents as well.

📗"Family Introductions" by @half-dead-ham || Two-shot. When Tim's too sick to go out as Red Robin, Danny takes his place, trying to pass as him while patrolling with the rest of the Bats. Identity shenanigans and reveal, plus a breakfast full of explanations (or not) with the family. A Danny/Tim pairing.

📗Pretty much any of @nikki-pondtheauthor's stories, found here: NikkiPond's DPxDC crossovers on AO3

📗"The Bat Trap" by Threee || Complete multi-chap. A take on the Parent Trap premise with Danny and Damian as twins, switching places after they meet at summer camp. Features bad Fenton parents, identity porn, and a tired Bruce Wayne.

📗"Leap Before You Think" by @tourettesdog || Ongoing multi-chap. Danny struggles with loneliness while he's away from his friends and sister. Sam, in the meantime, sees someone who looks like Danny at a gala. This is an amazing Demon Twin story, meaning Danny and Damian are twins. This story features Bad Parents Jack & Maddie as well.

📗"But I Want to Be Let In, Not Out" by @thewritingowl || Ongoing series, 18 one-shots so far featuring Danny & the Batman family mostly, with inclusions of other DC characters later on. Danny is summoned a few times to Gotham and sees Damian, who is his twin. The series includes a reveal gone horribly wrong, dissec, really bad Fenton Parents, and a loving road to recovery for Danny as he adapts to his new family and prepares to face his demons from Amity Park.

"Anything you wrote?"

Why, yes, thanks for asking.

📗"Beneath a Different Light" (co-written with @akela-nakamura and @tourettesdog || Ongoing Multi-chap. Demon Twin AU collaborative story, in which Danny and Damian get body-swapped with the twin they thought was dead. Features Bad Fenton Parents.

📗"A Ghost in the Family" || Complete Series (1 short story and 4 one-shots). TUE Alternate ending, in which Danny doesn't want to continue being a hero nor repeat the future he saw by staying as far away from Vlad as possible, which is why he accepts going to "temporarily" live with the Wayne family. Includes identity reveal, a troll Danny, and 52+ bird puns.

📗"Shovel Talk" || Complete multi-chap. A Danny & Tim Drake pairing, where the couple goes to Amity Park so Tim can meet Danny's friends and family. Except Tim doesn't know Danny's many secrets. Includes good Fenton parents and identity reveal. While mostly focused on the couple, it includes Justice League and Young Justice members by the end.

📗"Pitch-Dark Shades" || Ongoing multi-chap. A mystery story featuring a Detective Tim Drake (going under the alias of Alvin Draper) and Medium Danny, as they try to solve cases by coming in contact with ghosts. One that Danny might even be familiar with. It includes identity shenanigans and mostly focuses on the two partners.

❇️ Additional Notes About Headcanons & Lore ❇️

Canon in DC is so tricky: there are so many depictions of DC characters in media that some characterizations, traits, or even events are inconsistent. You can see this even in the different versions of Batman between different live action movies. That's why, for example, you'll see most Batman crossovers listed under "Batman - All Media Types": because it doesn't follow a specific depiction or continuity of its characters and gives authors room to build a more cohesive universe.

Some details you might find in DPxDC stories don't mean there's a specific "fanon" to follow, but you might find in some stories shared headcanons such as:

Lazarus Pits or Lazarus waters (a green substance that can heal or revive someone) being related or similar to ectoplasm, often corrupted or rank. Since Jason (Robin #2/Red Hood) was revived/healed (depending on comic vs animated movie depiction) by Lazarus water, there's sometimes a reaction depicted in fanfics when he meets Danny (up to each author's interpretation). In some cases this also leads to treating Jason as liminal or even a somewhat dormant half-ghost.

Kryptonite (Superman's weakness in the shape of a green rock) being associated to ectoplasm/ghosts (some use it as "candy" for ghosts, others as "ectoranium")

Summoning circles/Cults (in a Tim Drake: Robin comic, for example, cults are mentioned to be common in Gotham; Constantine and Zatanna are magic users who call upon demons/ghosts and a part of Justice League Dark - an extension of the Justice League focused on supernatural/magic aspects; they can also see ghosts such as Deadman in canon)

Bruce Wayne having an adoption problem (this is true in comics as well; he even adopted an alien starfish, Jarro). It's also important to note that the first 3 Robins (Dick, Jason, Tim) are all blue-eyed and black-haired... like Danny.

Red duck-shaped candles: these are cameos based on a similar candle (affectionately named Yorick by Jason Todd) created in the fanfic "If You Give a Bat a Burger" (listed above) by Cielle_Noire. There's even a slideshow about it (somewhere...). Some authors have decided to include it to show their love for this story.

Danny being called a meta (meta-human, someone with a meta-gene that grants him powers) but not really being one (since his molecules got all rearranged, he half-died, etc... and is not related to a gene he was born with or inherited).

Lady Gotham represented as a ghost of the city of Gotham (where Batman and co. live/work): this is a fanon creation inspired by the fanon idea that some ghosts are formed around ideas or concepts and not just dead people, such as time (Clockwork) or the weather (Vortex). Edit: I've been corrected - city spirits are canon in DC :D

Specific ship names: these were mostly created in similar fashion to old DP Phandom ship names (i.e. Danny/Sam were Amethyst Ocean; Danny/Val were Gray Ghost). In DC crossovers, Danny/Damian is Dead Serious, Danny/Tim is Dead Tired, etc. This also extends to other platonic or family relationships, like Danny & Damian Wayne being twins is often called Demon Twins.

Danny being called Danyal: when Danny is called this in a DPxDC crossover, it's most likely for being related to Ra's Al Ghul (leader of the League of Assassins), Talia Al Ghul (his daughter and Batman's love interest at one point), and/or Damian Wayne Al Ghul. The family has Arab ancestry, making the name Danyal closer to those roots than Daniel.

Other aspects more related to Danny Phantom (i.e. ghost king Danny, ghost cores, ghost speak, DP characters/Amity Park being weird, bad parents Jack & Maddie, etc.) are based in other DP fanon tropes we've seen before the DPxDC crossover boom.

❇️ Source materials ❇️

The canon some authors use to base their stories will vary. Some things can come from accepted headcanons too. Some source materials used are:

Animated movies (i.e. Son of Batman, Justice League Dark)

Live action properties (DC Movie Universe, CW TV shows, Netflix/HBO series, etc., i.e. Titans, Constantine, Smallville, Flash)

Web comics (i.e. Wayne Family Adventures, Red Hood: Outlaws)

Cartoons (i.e. Young Justice, Teen Titans, Batman: The Animated Series).

Comics (which can sometimes be hard to find, unless...)- sometimes specific runs (i.e. Under the Red Hood, The Killing Joke, etc.). There are also some available summaries from other fans, like The Incomplete Bat Lore.

❇️ Other Recommended Lists ❇️

This is not a complete list, but a place to start for additional writing/headcanons/masterlists.

📗Other Users' Curated lists - where you can find something specific: (I can add yours here if you have any)

Lists by @die-erlkonigin6083: Deaged Danny | Dead Serious Part 1 (Danny/Damian) and Part 2 | Fantasy AU

📗Events - where you can also see themed masterposts or reblogs: @dpxdc-familyweek @dpxdcshipweek @dpxdcdisneyau @patrol-partners-batphandom-2023

📗Other Masterlisters - where you can find a collection of some prompt fills listed in a single masterpost: @haunting-heroes-creative-games (currently has 4)

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