#len: epic

[fine-nephrit]

🥏 TXF Fic Rec #52: "This Is How The World Ends" by Solia

Today’s rec is an epic mystery thriller that reimagines the post-IWTB Mytharc with peak slow-burn MSR angst and an intricately constructed plot that unravels the central conspiracy in a case that could end all cases.

After a slow start, the story hooked me and kept me on the edge of my seat. It’s a masterclass in building tension and suspense, with a labyrinth of threads. The mystery thriller elements in this fic are among the best I’ve read.

On top of that, it features a version of William that I can actually stand behind, plus great use of Maggie Scully, Skinner, and two significant original characters you will care about.

Despite being a 53-chapter WIP that may never be finished, it absolutely deserves a read, and you will lose sleep over it. This is the story that the revival series should have told.

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🥏 on AO3 🥏 on FFnet

author: @solia-dreams length: epic, 444,000+ words (WIP) season: revival pairing(s): M/S UST tags: action adventure, AU, casefile, colonization, angst, Mytharc, rift, separated/reunited, hurt/comfort, baby fic, canon supporting cast, good OCs, alternating POV rating: mature/R

Tagging @today-in-fic

[carbootsoul]

me: does anthy himemiya have razor cuts on her shins? does she have sores on the insides of her cheeks from braces? how does she smile when her glasses fog up, and she can't see anything but colors? was the moon shining, when she was born? does she know what innocence is? who taught her? she walks me to the dueling arena and says she knows everything I wake up wishing I had. She is a young women's jesus, with a thorny crown and bloody wounds, crucified on a man's sword, and the pain is so intense she can't remember she loves humanity. She's been in pain for so long she's scared to know what life is like without it. I ask her, do you wish I loved you? and she says, can we drive to Circle K to buy a Gobstopper? Or perhaps an onion? she has a B- in ninth grade home ec from a single failed assignment. who sewed her red dress when she was young? when she was older? who hurt her brother and how did she find him? did he bleed, when they forced him to work, when he was a little prince, a mahāyāna bodhisattva? what is the scariest nightmare she's ever had? has she ever wanted to be in love?

anthy: ...

utena: anthy you look cute without your glasses on haha

[graiison]

len ☆ !

[animerunner]

Hot Take: Epic is (slightly) improved if the themes weren't about learning to be ruthless, but about learning to be merciless. With the answer being whether or not you were justified in your actions and if you feel regret about them.

Odysseus learning he could never be FULLY ruthless because he does regret having to do most the things he did. For many of his actions, there's no true justification (actions during the war, throwing the baby off the tower, putting his crew in danger by doxxing himself to Polyphemus, sacrificing his crew to Scylla, etc.) and he regrets that he did them and that the choices he made on this journey and the desperation to see his family pushed him to do things he might not normally do. He can be merciless (as with the suitors), but he can never truly be ruthless. And the biggest proof being the final song "Would You Fall in Love With Me Again", where he admits his guilt and regrets and asks if Penelope can still love him.

Honestly, I think THAT would have been a more interesting Odyssey retelling than canon Epic.

TLDR: Jorge should have just full on wholesaled Odysseus being a monster. Rather then occasionally trying to prop him up. And I know one of the songs is popular but really in the terms of story beats we've covered all of that songs story before.

That's actually a fair take. Ruthlessness is one of the songs I still like after all this shit is said and done. I think part of my issue is especially with the later parts it feels like Jorge was still trying to play him up as a hero. Especially by adding Hold Them Down which has threats that the original didn't.

Like I think if we leaned full tilt into it I think I would have liked it more in the latter sagas. Because I was a fan originally. But it still felt like we were trying to justify the monsterous stuff at times (particularly adding the Penelope thing in). And in some cases it makes sense. Especially against the crew.

(Though I could have a whole discussion about issues with the crews writing and in general Jorges choices when it comes to other characters. To try and prop Odysseus at the expense of them.)

Like I think I would still have issues with it overall. (ie: The more I think about it the more I feel God Games needed to be its own saga. Because that would have sold Athenas actions better. Rather then it coming at the end of Wisdom with her sharing screen with Telemachus.) But I know some of my issues with it go back to choices with Ithaca.

Like I know Hold Them Down has a purpose but really Little Wolf and the end of Legendary did an effective job of selling how bad the suitors were. So it feels a bit over the top and trying to sell Odysseus still being the hero in some ways without saying it.

And like I said you've got the point with the suitors across already. So the song feels more like clutter. Not bad sounding clutter to be clear. Just that we've already communicated this before. And you could have Odysseus finding this out within his song.

[retribution-in-silk]

₊ 𖦹﹕𝓘 𝓯𝓲𝓷𝓭 𝓶𝔂𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓯 𝓶𝓸𝓻𝓮 𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓯𝓸𝓻𝓽𝓪𝓫𝓵𝓮 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝓶𝓪𝓴𝓲𝓷𝓰 “𝓫𝓪𝓭 𝓪𝓻𝓽” 𝓷𝓸𝔀𝓪𝓭𝓪𝔂𝓼！(🦢)

[good-alxolotl]

full epic ranked just for you pookies

(can u tell who's my favorite character lol)

[undrsk0re]

[fine-nephrit]

🥏 TXF Fic Rec #17: "When the Ink Dries" by somekindofseizure

Today’s fic is something on a different level: gorgeous, sexy, and decadent. It was a wild ride and it blew me away.

It’s a crossover fic with the 2010s crime series The Fall in which Gillian Anderson starred as Detective Stella Gibson (you don’t need to watch that show to appreciate this fic).

I love post–“Never Again” stories. No fic explores the tension and hurt boiling under the lid, and the themes raised in that episode more thoroughly and better than this one. It’s a novel-length post-ep in which Ed Jerse’s case is never far from the emotional center.

@somekindofseizure’s exquisite prose and characterization are among the finest in the fandom. I found myself rereading every three sentences as I couldn’t believe how awesome the writing was.

On top of that, mix in Stella, a force of her own, forming an intriguing three-way relationship with our duo. Tons of UST, angst, and one of the hottest sex scenes ever. The first three chapters are a work of art, giving you the magical buzz that only top-quality narrative can deliver.

The first nine chapters are a self-contained story that starts after “Never Again” and concludes with M/S RST. The rest is set years later with a depressed Mulder and William-induced angst. I prefer the first part. It’s among my favorites and one of the masterpieces you cannot miss.

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🥏 on AO3 🥏 audio version on @audiofanficpod read by @scullymakesmefeelautopsyturvy and @/CallMeScully

author: @somekindofseizure length: epic, 140,000+ words season: season 4, 4x13 Never Again pairing(s): M/S UST to RST, Scully/Stella, Mulder/Stella tags: crossover, episode-related, angst, smut, jealousy rating: explicit/NC-17

[lorillee]

one thing that continually astounds me i feel like many many people who arent engineers or engineering majors or whatever genuinely do not get that engineering Well has a lot of math. Like a pretty notable amount of mathematics. which sounds pretty intuitive when you think about it for like a second but many out there do not

[marsfingershurt]

drawing her is therapy actually

[koruga]

If I could make animatics, I think the clearest thoughts I have are for Just A Man and Odysseus, in part because they both centre more extracanonical stuff that didn't make it into the musical.

Just A Man would have Neoptolemus hopping around helping Odysseus, mainly in the act of holding Andromache back from trying to get her son, and Andromache breaking free right before Odysseus drops her son, and then...fails to stop him anyway. The whole 'when does a comet become a meteor' would contrast Hector/Astyanax with Achilles/Neoptolemus, with some Odysseus/Telemachus as well -- while in the greater context of the story I realise the latter is what we're meant to think, I do listen to that song and focus more on Andromache than I do Odysseus's own pain.

Odysseus is a lot less focused right now, but the very end, when Odysseus is completing his slaughter, I would want to include his rounding up and murder of the slaves who were 'guilty' of sleeping with/aiding the suitors, because that to me is a much more monstrous act to end his boss battle with than the slaughter of the suitors themselves.

...I guess a lot of my internal animatic thoughts include Odysseus being like, way more shitty than he's portrayed in the musical, and that's not not on purpose. I do love him, though, I just feel like the musical ignored some of the most plainly monstrous things he did in favour of its own narrative arc.

[tsukikoayanosuke]

I'm excited for the Vengeance Saga guys

Idon't know who will be Odysseus in this AU but I know this will be genderbend-ish (The candidate are An, Kohane, or Mafuyu; Honami, Ena and Mizuki can be a consideration)

Once it is decided, it'll be easier to pick who will be Telemacus, Penelope, and the rest.

I have an idea for a funny thing, but I need the cast to be set first.

[lobstermind]

Personally I really like how Odysseus sounds like a vocaloid sometimes . Makes it sound better

[brb-on-a-quest]

Growing up hearing parts of stories like The Iliad as a child, I idolized the Achaean Greeks because they were so cool and like the horse thing was *an absolutely brilliant battle tactic.* Actually reading The Iliad is like "Oh gods, why are the Achaean Greeks committing so many war crimes?????? Why are the Trojans the only people who actually have honor and decency??" and immediately siding with Troy because the majority of them Do Not Deserve This and have been majorly unfortunate.

[oflgtfol]

look at the sun boy

[jcmarchi]

South Park: Snow Day Trailer Reveals March Release Date

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/south-park-snow-day-trailer-reveals-march-release-date/

South Park: Snow Day Trailer Reveals March Release Date

South Park: Snow Day, the upcoming four-player cooperative adventure first announced in August, is coming on March 26. A new trailer shows off more of the game’s frosty action and, of course, the series’ signature foul-mouth humor.

As the New Kid, players join Cartman, Stan, Kyle, and Kenny on an epic quest after a blizzard blankets the Colorado town, and school is canceled. Like the most recent South Park titles, The Stick of Truth and The Fractured But Whole, the adventure is told through the lens of a make-believe high-fantasy adventure, but Snow Day ditches turn-based combat in favor of a more action-oriented experience. 

[embedded content]

Players can use different melee and ranged weapons, wield magic and other abilities, and customize their character with various clothing. Snow Day can be played with up to four friends, alongside strangers in online matchmaking, or as a solo experience with A.I. allies. 

South Park: Snow Day is coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, and PC.