![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Back to the future
Jan. 6th, 2013 03:17 pmEver since X-Men: First Class was released, there have been several stories in which either Charles or Erik, by virtue of time travel, were replaced or warned by their older, Stewart and McKellen selves and thus were motivated to change the past. For some reason or the other, I've never been really content with these until yesterday coming across this fine story:
Sponge Away the Writing (40771 words) by Tam_Cranver
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: X-Men: First Class (2011), X-Men (Movies)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warning: Major Character Death
Relationships: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier
Characters: Charles Xavier, Alex Summers, Hank McCoy, Sean Cassidy, Moira MacTaggert, Erik Lehnsherr, Raven Darkholme, Armando Muñoz
Summary:
A few reasons why I liked this one so much: it was what I always look for in a post XMFC written fanfic, Charles and Raven sibling interaction - indeed, learning from his older self that both Erik and Raven will be his enemies impacts him, as it should, equally on both counts. (Hooray for fanfic acknowledging the importance non-romantic relationships as well as romantic ones!) Speaking of non-romantic relationships, Moira plays an important role in the story, and the mindwipe is squarely addressed. Instead of older Charles mentally replacing younger Charles, or the older version giving point blank guide lines, the interaction between the two versions of Charles Xavier is more along the snarky lines that remind me of two regenerations of the Doctor meeting in Doctor Who, and while older Charles does provide younger Charles with some important information, he is by no means certain it can make any difference. It's younger Charles who has to make the crucial decisions and has to figure things out. Another tried and true fannish button for me to press in the good sense is when fanfic remembers what drives the character other than romance, and this story is also very much about Charles Xavier starting his school , why that is so important, and trying to figure out how to start a civil rights movement and a revolution. Lastly, nothing is simply resolved by a hug or a kiss, least of all Charles' relationships with Raven and Erik. It's just a great story all around which does everyone justice, and I admire it a lot.
Sponge Away the Writing (40771 words) by Tam_Cranver
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: X-Men: First Class (2011), X-Men (Movies)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warning: Major Character Death
Relationships: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier
Characters: Charles Xavier, Alex Summers, Hank McCoy, Sean Cassidy, Moira MacTaggert, Erik Lehnsherr, Raven Darkholme, Armando Muñoz
Summary:
In which Charles finds himself haunted by a dead future version of himself, together they experiment with changing the course of history, and there is much hand-holding.
A few reasons why I liked this one so much: it was what I always look for in a post XMFC written fanfic, Charles and Raven sibling interaction - indeed, learning from his older self that both Erik and Raven will be his enemies impacts him, as it should, equally on both counts. (Hooray for fanfic acknowledging the importance non-romantic relationships as well as romantic ones!) Speaking of non-romantic relationships, Moira plays an important role in the story, and the mindwipe is squarely addressed. Instead of older Charles mentally replacing younger Charles, or the older version giving point blank guide lines, the interaction between the two versions of Charles Xavier is more along the snarky lines that remind me of two regenerations of the Doctor meeting in Doctor Who, and while older Charles does provide younger Charles with some important information, he is by no means certain it can make any difference. It's younger Charles who has to make the crucial decisions and has to figure things out. Another tried and true fannish button for me to press in the good sense is when fanfic remembers what drives the character other than romance, and this story is also very much about Charles Xavier starting his school , why that is so important, and trying to figure out how to start a civil rights movement and a revolution. Lastly, nothing is simply resolved by a hug or a kiss, least of all Charles' relationships with Raven and Erik. It's just a great story all around which does everyone justice, and I admire it a lot.
