Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Site Update 12/20/07
There's a brand-new story in the Ventura Highway SGA AU.
And I Say (it's all right) -- John/Rodney -- rated PG -- Rodney won't admit to missing snow in the winter.
And I Say (it's all right) -- John/Rodney -- rated PG -- Rodney won't admit to missing snow in the winter.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Site Update 12/17/07
Just one piece posted today:
Preexisting Conditions -- Rodney/Ronon -- PG-13 -- Sequel to "Reasonable and Customary" -- Ronon and Rodney's Big Gay Atlantis Courtship continues with their second date.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Thoughts on SGA ep 4x09 -- "Miller's Crossing"
This really is meta for "Miller's Crossing", specifically on the whole, "is John a psycho" thing, but it takes a while to get there. Enjoy the scenery.
In Dorothy L. Sayers' mystery novel Murder Must Advertise, the murderer--a man named Tallboy--is a rather hapless type. He's a family man with a wife and new baby who got caught up in a tangled web of drug dealing and blackmail and on top of it all, has a rather cheap and unsavory mistress. His victim was the blackmailer, an unpleasant man who was also tangentially involved in the drug smuggling. Lord Peter Wimsey steps in and figures everything out with his usual panache and brilliance.
In the final chapter--perfectly titled "Appropriate Exit of an Unskilled Murderer "--it's the night of the pivotal drug bust which will supply the last link in the chain of evidence against Mr. Tallboy. Tallboy shows up at Wimsey's flat intent on confessing his crime, only to find, of course, that Wimsey's way ahead of him. Tallboy asks if he can run, if Wimsey will give him 24 hours, something he says he wouldn't ask or if it weren't for his wife and kid, but Wimsey says that it's too late for that. And then Wimsey reminds him that there's another way out, which Tallboy refers to as "the public school way out of it." He's rather bitter about the idea, making a mocking reference to what the headlines will say if he commits suicide, but he agrees that it's the only thing for him to do.
Wimsey points out that there is an alternative, something that will keep his crime out of the papers. "Go home now," he says. "Go on foot, and not too fast. And don't look behind you."
Tallboy does so, and the bad guy who'd been following him kills him because he's become a liability to the drug runners. Wimsey and his brother-in-law, Chief Inspector Parker, manage to bring the drug ring to trial without any evidence involving Tallboy, and neither Tallboy's family nor the people he worked learn the truth. The original murder had always been thought to be an accident and it's left that way.
This wasn't the first time Sayers let her murderer get out of a trial. It happens in Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club where the emphasis is less on the public school aspect than on the fact that falling on one's sword after doing something dishonorable is part of the military culture of the day. And again, there are innocent people whose reputations and honor would be damaged if the thing came to trial.
In "Miller's Crossing" the thing can't come to trial. Anyone who thinks that Wallace could have been publicly tried in the US or Canada is hopelessly naive. He was going to disappear into some oubliette of a military prison, left to live out his days in silence while a story was made up about his death in some tragic accident.
While John is more concerned with saving Jeannie--and tangentially Rodney, because it's probable that Rodney's guilt would eventually shatter him--than with seeing justice done, he's still telling Wallace to walk home slowly or letting him know that there's a loaded pistol in a drawer in the club's library. "These are the people whose lives you're ruining," he's essentially saying. "You have nothing left, nothing to live for, but I'm offering you a chance to not only make things right for the Millers, but for you to regain your honor." He doesn't need to say it, of course; for all his other faults, Wallace isn't a stupid man and can hear the offer John's making. And in the end, he takes the public school or Roman way out and falls on his sword.
This isn't saying that it's easy on the person who has to make the offer. In an aside in another novel, we learn that Wimsey--who already has PTSD/shell shock after WWI--was sick and was utterly unable to be social and spend time with the woman he loved after the events in Murder Must Advertise. And it's obvious that all isn't well in Johnland, something that's made worse by the fact that he actually had to spell the whole thing out to Rodney.
Sayers was writing in the 1930s to an audience who understood the concept of the public school way out. No one reading Murder Must Advertise would think Wimsey was a psychopath for talking Tallboy into walking out into the night so someone could murder him and thus spare his family the humiliation of a public trial. Wimsey--as is pointed out more than once in the series--is a man of a certain class and era, his is an older authority than that of the mere police, and so he can make offers that they can't. And the readers knew this and probably found the concept of the public school way out either quaint and out-dated or just and honorable. Tallboy had confessed to a murder Wimsey knew he'd done and in a society that condoned capital punishment, he had to pay with his life.
A modern audience isn't as likely to see that, hence John and Rodney's awkward conversation once they're back on Atlantis. John's talking to us as much as he is to Rodney, although the concept of the honorable suicide is probably more a part of John's military culture than Rodney's academic culture.
But in the end, it comes down to the same thing. No, Wallace wasn't facing death by hanging as a result of his actions, but he wasn't facing a trial and a certain amount of time in prison with the hope of parole and time off for good behavior either. He was going to spend the rest of his life locked up with nothing to do but brood. Although we didn't get all that much information about his personality, I think they made a good case for the idea that any real kind of life without his wife and daughter wasn't an option as far as he was concerned.
In Dorothy L. Sayers' mystery novel Murder Must Advertise, the murderer--a man named Tallboy--is a rather hapless type. He's a family man with a wife and new baby who got caught up in a tangled web of drug dealing and blackmail and on top of it all, has a rather cheap and unsavory mistress. His victim was the blackmailer, an unpleasant man who was also tangentially involved in the drug smuggling. Lord Peter Wimsey steps in and figures everything out with his usual panache and brilliance.
In the final chapter--perfectly titled "Appropriate Exit of an Unskilled Murderer "--it's the night of the pivotal drug bust which will supply the last link in the chain of evidence against Mr. Tallboy. Tallboy shows up at Wimsey's flat intent on confessing his crime, only to find, of course, that Wimsey's way ahead of him. Tallboy asks if he can run, if Wimsey will give him 24 hours, something he says he wouldn't ask or if it weren't for his wife and kid, but Wimsey says that it's too late for that. And then Wimsey reminds him that there's another way out, which Tallboy refers to as "the public school way out of it." He's rather bitter about the idea, making a mocking reference to what the headlines will say if he commits suicide, but he agrees that it's the only thing for him to do.
Wimsey points out that there is an alternative, something that will keep his crime out of the papers. "Go home now," he says. "Go on foot, and not too fast. And don't look behind you."
Tallboy does so, and the bad guy who'd been following him kills him because he's become a liability to the drug runners. Wimsey and his brother-in-law, Chief Inspector Parker, manage to bring the drug ring to trial without any evidence involving Tallboy, and neither Tallboy's family nor the people he worked learn the truth. The original murder had always been thought to be an accident and it's left that way.
This wasn't the first time Sayers let her murderer get out of a trial. It happens in Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club where the emphasis is less on the public school aspect than on the fact that falling on one's sword after doing something dishonorable is part of the military culture of the day. And again, there are innocent people whose reputations and honor would be damaged if the thing came to trial.
In "Miller's Crossing" the thing can't come to trial. Anyone who thinks that Wallace could have been publicly tried in the US or Canada is hopelessly naive. He was going to disappear into some oubliette of a military prison, left to live out his days in silence while a story was made up about his death in some tragic accident.
While John is more concerned with saving Jeannie--and tangentially Rodney, because it's probable that Rodney's guilt would eventually shatter him--than with seeing justice done, he's still telling Wallace to walk home slowly or letting him know that there's a loaded pistol in a drawer in the club's library. "These are the people whose lives you're ruining," he's essentially saying. "You have nothing left, nothing to live for, but I'm offering you a chance to not only make things right for the Millers, but for you to regain your honor." He doesn't need to say it, of course; for all his other faults, Wallace isn't a stupid man and can hear the offer John's making. And in the end, he takes the public school or Roman way out and falls on his sword.
This isn't saying that it's easy on the person who has to make the offer. In an aside in another novel, we learn that Wimsey--who already has PTSD/shell shock after WWI--was sick and was utterly unable to be social and spend time with the woman he loved after the events in Murder Must Advertise. And it's obvious that all isn't well in Johnland, something that's made worse by the fact that he actually had to spell the whole thing out to Rodney.
Sayers was writing in the 1930s to an audience who understood the concept of the public school way out. No one reading Murder Must Advertise would think Wimsey was a psychopath for talking Tallboy into walking out into the night so someone could murder him and thus spare his family the humiliation of a public trial. Wimsey--as is pointed out more than once in the series--is a man of a certain class and era, his is an older authority than that of the mere police, and so he can make offers that they can't. And the readers knew this and probably found the concept of the public school way out either quaint and out-dated or just and honorable. Tallboy had confessed to a murder Wimsey knew he'd done and in a society that condoned capital punishment, he had to pay with his life.
A modern audience isn't as likely to see that, hence John and Rodney's awkward conversation once they're back on Atlantis. John's talking to us as much as he is to Rodney, although the concept of the honorable suicide is probably more a part of John's military culture than Rodney's academic culture.
But in the end, it comes down to the same thing. No, Wallace wasn't facing death by hanging as a result of his actions, but he wasn't facing a trial and a certain amount of time in prison with the hope of parole and time off for good behavior either. He was going to spend the rest of his life locked up with nothing to do but brood. Although we didn't get all that much information about his personality, I think they made a good case for the idea that any real kind of life without his wife and daughter wasn't an option as far as he was concerned.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Site Update 11/26/07
Today's update is a real mixed bag; aside from "You're Shining Down For Me," everything else is older fic that's just now making it on to the site.
You're Shining Down For Me by Telesilla -- McKay/Sheppard -- rated NC-17 -- John knows what he wants; it's asking for it that's hard.
Anticipation by Telesilla -- Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan -- rated R -- Obi-Wan does something quite mundane and Qui-Gon anticipates.
You're Gonna Do That? by Telesilla -- Liam Neeson/Ewan McGregor -- Liam knows just how to relax someone.
Noises -- Liam Neeson/Ewan McGregor (implied) -- Liam thinks about someone he knows.
Happy Accident by Darkrose and Telesilla -- Liam Neeson/Jason Isaacs -- a multi-part BDSM series in which Liam and Jason meet almost by accident at a premier and go on to discover how much they suit each other.
The Not Invisible Kiss by Telesilla -- Captain Hook/George Darling -- George Darling also has a kiss on the corner of his mouth.
Quite Mad by Telesilla -- Clive Owen/Ioan Gruffudd/Kiera Knightly -- Ioan and Keira really enjoying driving Clive mad.
Red Abstract #1 by Telesilla -- Christian Bale/Cillian Murphy -- Christian's too serious; Cillian does something about it.
Red Abstract #2 by Telesilla -- Christian Bale/Cillian Murphy -- Christian's too angry; Cillian does something about it.
The More Series by Telesilla and Helens78-- Jason Isaacs/Eric Bana, Bill Fichtner/Nikolaj Coster-Waldau -- Four kinky hot guys in a war movie, really that's all you need to know. This is an abandoned WIP, but each piece stands alone for the most part.
You're Shining Down For Me by Telesilla -- McKay/Sheppard -- rated NC-17 -- John knows what he wants; it's asking for it that's hard.
Anticipation by Telesilla -- Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan -- rated R -- Obi-Wan does something quite mundane and Qui-Gon anticipates.
You're Gonna Do That? by Telesilla -- Liam Neeson/Ewan McGregor -- Liam knows just how to relax someone.
Noises -- Liam Neeson/Ewan McGregor (implied) -- Liam thinks about someone he knows.
Happy Accident by Darkrose and Telesilla -- Liam Neeson/Jason Isaacs -- a multi-part BDSM series in which Liam and Jason meet almost by accident at a premier and go on to discover how much they suit each other.
The Not Invisible Kiss by Telesilla -- Captain Hook/George Darling -- George Darling also has a kiss on the corner of his mouth.
Quite Mad by Telesilla -- Clive Owen/Ioan Gruffudd/Kiera Knightly -- Ioan and Keira really enjoying driving Clive mad.
Red Abstract #1 by Telesilla -- Christian Bale/Cillian Murphy -- Christian's too serious; Cillian does something about it.
Red Abstract #2 by Telesilla -- Christian Bale/Cillian Murphy -- Christian's too angry; Cillian does something about it.
The More Series by Telesilla and Helens78-- Jason Isaacs/Eric Bana, Bill Fichtner/Nikolaj Coster-Waldau -- Four kinky hot guys in a war movie, really that's all you need to know. This is an abandoned WIP, but each piece stands alone for the most part.
So what, exactly, is the deal here?
Basically this blog is a companion to our fan fiction web site Chez Rozilla. As well as posting updates here when we post something new to the site, we'll also occasionally post our thoughts on and experiences with fandom.
And this is different from your Live/Insane Journals, how?
The content here is strictly fannish. You won't find memes, quizzes, posts about politics, or information about our daily lives here.
You write fan fiction based on other writers' works? Porn? Real Person Fiction? Has it occurred to you that...?
Stop right there. Between the two of us, we've spent roughly 40 years in fandom and roughly 20 of those years writing fan fiction. We've had all the discussions and yes, we've both worked through the moral and ethical implications of what we write.
How did you two hook up?
In 2003, we met in a online fannish community and were also involved in a text fan fiction RPG called The Establishment. One thing led to another and we became close friends and started writing together outside the game. We fell for each other, met in real life and then, in 2005, having decided to never again face a New England winter, Darkrose came to California and moved in with Telesilla. We've been together since then. Awwwww.
Why fan fiction? Why aren't you focusing all your energy and talent on writing something that could be published professionally?
While neither of us has absolutely ruled out the idea of publishing something professionally, our main focus is and will continue to be, fan fiction. Asking why we don't turn pro is like asking a friend who knits why she doesn't sell her work. For us, writing is a hobby and a stress-release and an enjoyable activity; it's not work and we'd like to keep it that way.
Basically this blog is a companion to our fan fiction web site Chez Rozilla. As well as posting updates here when we post something new to the site, we'll also occasionally post our thoughts on and experiences with fandom.
And this is different from your Live/Insane Journals, how?
The content here is strictly fannish. You won't find memes, quizzes, posts about politics, or information about our daily lives here.
You write fan fiction based on other writers' works? Porn? Real Person Fiction? Has it occurred to you that...?
Stop right there. Between the two of us, we've spent roughly 40 years in fandom and roughly 20 of those years writing fan fiction. We've had all the discussions and yes, we've both worked through the moral and ethical implications of what we write.
How did you two hook up?
In 2003, we met in a online fannish community and were also involved in a text fan fiction RPG called The Establishment. One thing led to another and we became close friends and started writing together outside the game. We fell for each other, met in real life and then, in 2005, having decided to never again face a New England winter, Darkrose came to California and moved in with Telesilla. We've been together since then. Awwwww.
Why fan fiction? Why aren't you focusing all your energy and talent on writing something that could be published professionally?
While neither of us has absolutely ruled out the idea of publishing something professionally, our main focus is and will continue to be, fan fiction. Asking why we don't turn pro is like asking a friend who knits why she doesn't sell her work. For us, writing is a hobby and a stress-release and an enjoyable activity; it's not work and we'd like to keep it that way.
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