Five favorite ships - sailing ships, spaceships, etc., not relationships.



1.) The Liberator (Blake's 7). While the B7 budget was tiny to nonexistant, the Liberator was a splendid ship anyway (and for a glimpse of how it would have looked like with GCI, see the Excalibur from Crusade, with the ship not being the only thing in the B5 spin off - or B5 itself - used in homage to B7). It was the first but not the last "living ship" I fell in fannish love with (see below) and Terminal is as sad an episode as Orbit or Blake for me for that reason.

2.) Moya (Farscape). Moya the leviathan, a living ship in which the majority of the show's action takes place never says a single word on the show, but the series manages to convey her personality distinctly nonetheless, and she's as much a cast member as the ones played by human actors. ( Spoilers for Farscape and Doctor Who's sixth season ensue. ) Visually, the brown and golden organic colouring and all the curves instead of sharp angles really sell you on Moya as grown instead of built, and it's part of the unique Farscape world.

3.) The TARDIS (Doctor Who). One of many reasons why shipping wars in this fandom are so very superfluos is that the true OTP was always and without question Doctor (any regeneration)/TARDIS over forty years, and thank you, Neil Gaiman, for devoting an entire episode to this fact. :) (Well, there was that fling he had with Bessie the car , but other than that...) Seriously now, the idea of a blue police box being really the closet to Narnia a ship to traval through time and space with encapsulates the "wonderful nonsense" (lovely quote from The Next Doctor in one of the best verbal reactions to the TARDIS ever, uttered by David Morrissey) that is Doctor Who, and they who do not care for the TARDIS probably can't care for the show, either. Also?



4.) The Enterprise D (Star Trek: The Next Generation). Yes, I'm thoroughly fond of the original Enterprise, and get misty eyed when it explodes in ST III. But I still love the D best, with its bar Ten-Forward, its holodeck, its beige colours, Data's cat Spot and the ready room with Picard's goldfish Livingstone. It had a cosiness and home-iness the other versions lacked, which is of course why it later was disdained by certain fannish quarters. Maybe it's a sign of me getting old, but I like cosy. Space is cold enough anyway.

5.) Serenity (Firefly). Also a ship that feels like a home, despite coming from the other franchise tradition (aka it was obviously and acknowledgedly inspired by the Millennium Falcon). The show in its short life not only gave us one episode which showcased how Mal came to find her (Out of Gas) and why he's as in love as any other captain, but also a River-centric one where Serenity is both an invaded home and one that fights successfully back against the invasion (Objects on Space), and where she's paralleled to River, while the Big Damn Movie in its opening sequence manages to reintroduce the entire cast via a long uncut trip through the ship, thus reintroducing it as well, and ends with a direct Serenity/Zoe equation, and this last one is the one that struck me as most apt. If Moya, the Liberator and the Enterprise are more the motherly types of spaceships and the TARDIS is the Doctor's fellow traveller (or rather he is hers), Serenity is the war veteran of ships, battered, but still flying, and splendidly so.

This week's fannish5 wants to know about five characters who are too good for their canon, who are the only thing to make an otherwise dreadful canon (book, film, tv) palpable. And that is one of my anti-concepts, anti-kinks, whatever you want to call it. It's not that I don't have canons where I love one character more than any other. Or shows, or book series, where I fell out of love and stopped watching/reading - but one of the steps towards realising "I don't like/love this anymore" was the realisation that I only liked one character, or one aspect, and disliked everything else. To me, watching or reading for one character alone while actively resenting everything else - the other characters, the fictional universe itself - is a guaranteed recipe for misery, and not the inspiring kind (being disturbed or grieved by fiction can be a powerful experience if the fiction is good). It's the kind of thing that causes people to go on and on and on how much they loathe canon x, everything in canon x, except character y, how unworthy canon x of character y. Considering there are usually people around who are fond of canon y, and not just because it contains x, this means they're making other people miserable in addition to themselves, and come off as condescending to boot.

If I like only one character in a fictional universe, I stop watching/reading. For me to really experience fiction, I need to be able to love more than one character. So, instead I decided to list five canons where I don't have a clear favourite but love too many characters/stories/whatevers about it it to single out just one. I find this far more fun.

1.) Farscape. I sometimes joke Rygel is my favourite and not entirely joke about being the only John/Rygel 'shipper and prefering this to John/Aeryn, but all jokes aside: I like the entire ensemble. And the recurring characters (hello, Braca!). And the ships (Moya! Talyn! Poor half eaten Leviathan in season 3!!!!!). There might be some characters who work less for me than others (and there are definitely disliked episodes and storylines), but that doesn't change the overall fondness. Farscape was wild. And I really couldn't tell you whom I love best.

2.) Merlin. Aw, newest fannish love, let me hug you. I adore three of the six main characters and like the other three (well, some of them in a "wouldn't want to meet" fashion but that's true for many a fictional character I'm fond of), there are some great guest stars, and with all the flaws and cheesiness and whatnot, I'm just ridiculously fond of the show and its charming mixture of fun and melodrama. I even hum the theme tune when the credits roll.

3.) Firefly. I was never a Browncoat in the sense that I campaigned or burst into tears when it was cancelled, though I certainly quoted Wash on the subject ("curse your sudden and inevitable betrayal, Fox"), but again, flaws and all, I really liked the show, and its characters. As opposed to other Whedonian ouevres where I definitely have characters I love far more than others, I never had a Firefly favourite. (Though I can hum the theme tune there as well.)

4.) Doctor Who, overall canon (i.e. Old and New Who together). Sure, I have some companions and regenerations I like better than others. But in the vast, vast DW canon, there are so many of them that I really can't say about a single companion "THIS ONE CHARACTER IS MY FAVOURITE". Ditto about one single regeneration. Or even one single guest character. Thankfully, in 31 seasons and counting, there were too many of those. The universe is. just. that. rich.

5.) The Sarah Connor Chronicles. See above, re: Wash quote, re: Fox. But for the two splendid seasons it lasted, I never had a favourite character. Even the one I felt least warmly towards (Derek), I wouldn't have wanted to miss for anything. I liked the ensemble, I liked the way the show never downtalked to its audience but went for complicated narration and character exploration, I loved the stunning use of imagery and music. I loved that universe.

1.) The Liberator. (Blake's 7). "I - have - failed - you" is all I'm saying, and B7 fans know whereof I speak and sob with me in our virtual hankerchiefs. If you want to know what the Liberator would look like with decent GCI, Crusade's Excalibur is basically a more modern version. I like the Excalibur as well, but not Top 4-ish.

2.) The TARDIS. (Doctor Who) Duh. Maybe the Doctor and I cheat on her with Bessie once in a while, but really, the TARDIS is the most wonderful ship through time and space ever. To quote Jackson Lake, "what marvellous nonsense". When I was in Edinburgh two or three years ago and spotted my first real life blue police box, I squeed in an unbecoming manner, and my Aged Parent whom I had dragged through Britain with me was much bewildered at the sight.

3.) Serenity (Firefly). "She's still flying." Out of Gas is one of my favourite Tim Minear episodes in any Jossverse show, because of the way crew and ship come together in the flashbacks. And am I ever glad the ship wasn't one of the casualities in the Big Damm Movie...

4.) Moya (Farscape). Moya, the leviathan, and her offspring Talyn were as real characters as any of the actor-performed ones in that show, and could break your heart and make you love them in just the same way. Awww, Moya.

5.) The Enterprise-D. (Star Trek: The Next Generation). Yes, yes, I know, it should be the first Enterprise, but you can't control your emotions, and I just love that Galaxy Class cruiser that decisive Top Five bit more, with its Ten Forward bar and its Holodeck and its comfy command chairs. And Picard's gold fish Livingstone in the Ready Room. Never mind Kirk, the D crashing in Generations was the big loss. (Nothing against the E, but it just wasn't the same.)

Doctor Who:

Don't slow down: a fun, fast paced vid celebrating my favourite New Who TARDIS team, Donna Noble and the Tenth Doctor. The slaps, the hugs, the wit, it has it all. To misquote Donna, I bloody love it.

Sarah Jane Adventures/ Firefly:

Winter where you are: another great Multiverse crossover story, in which Luke talks to the universe, which sounds just like River Tam. Co-stars Clyde being so very Clyde-ish, and Maria. It started my Sunday on a happy, happy note.

The Sarah Connor Chronicles:

DLZ: fantastic new ensemble vid. One of the things I aquired in Paris was the SCC soundtrack, and listening to it made me ache for my fantastic, wonderful and cancelled show again. This vid, which captures the layers and complexity so well, does not help. Therefore, you, too, must watch it!

Name 5 characters who you think are great parents, or who would be great parents.

You know, that begs for the definition of "great parent". I mean, I'm in awe of Jack Bristow's protectiveness of his daughter as much as the next Alias watcher, but unlike the majority of Alias watchers, I also think Jack's utter lack of fatherly communication skills between Syd's early childhood and her twentysixth year, while being understandable enough in the light of his personal history, disqualify him from father of the year awards. As for SpyMommy, Irina Derevko is incredibly intriguing, but I don't think even the most passionate Irina fan would praise her motherhood skills. And as a banner carrier of "Noah got it coming" in s2, even before quitting Heroes, fandom's and HRG's tendency to consider "I did it all for Claire" makes him right about just about everything irritated me. While the dysfunctional relationship between Angel and Connor is, after Angel and Darla, the one I'm most invested in on AtS, I wouldn't put "great father" and "Angel" in the same sentence. (He's awesome with the protectiveness and compared to many another father in the Jossverse, he's stellar, but...)

So, going by "who would I want to raise my kids, were I to die young" rather than "whom do I think of as a fascinating character":

1) Haresh and Gita of The Sarah Jane Adventures. Both likeable, at the same time, with a proven record of having a great relationship with their daughter. Very encouraging of her talents. Both working parents. Go them!

2) The Burkles, of Angel: the Series. Fred's parents were the opportunity for the show to do something self-mocking, as everyone automatically assumes they're evil (since they're parents), and they turn out to be perfectly nice, loving and concerned. If you want to stretch it, it could be held against them they can't tell a god impersonating their daughter apart from the real thing, but hey, that's better than what Buffy's friends did when they couldn't tell her apart from a robot. Anyway, the Burkles - go them as well.

3) Martha and Jonathan Kent, of Lois and Clark. Note I'm specific about the show here. They're a great couple in many a comic as well, but it gets tricky when we come to other tv shows. On Lois and Clark, though, Martha and Jonathan score by being nice, both with a great sense of humour, more on the cell phone than anyone before the X-Files, and good at raising alien babies into enterprising reporters with a great taste in Chinese food. I think I could trust them with my hypothetical offspring.

4) Wash and Zoe, of Firefly: my hypothetical example. They would have been great parents. You'd know that Zoe would have had to be the one to tell them not to stay up too late because Wash would have caved and told them one more dinosaur adventure. And the family trips would have been something to behold. Oh, Zoe and Wash.

5) Abbey and Jed Bartlet, of The West Wing. My great and just a tad flawed example. Jed and his middle daughter have the occasional communication difficulties (Abbey, by contrast, seems to be regarded as impartial by all three), and he's a scary father-in-law, but all in all, the Bartlets come across as having done a great job with their three daughters. They also have a tendency to sort of adopt people. I wouldn't hand over a baby while they're in the White House for obvious reasons, but before or after, no problem. Abbey being a doctor is just an additional bonus. (In a country which still doesn't have a reasonable healthcare system.) (I want my hypothetical offspring not to wait three days in an emergency room.)


Considered, but left out because either of their partners or their working situations or their mental state: Sandra Bennet (Heroes), Emily Sloane (Alias), Sydney (The Pretender).

****

On another topic: Battlestar Galactica offers webisodes again - and this time they seem to center around Gaeta. Here's the first chapter, which, among other things, makes a certain fanon canon:

Am a) travelling again, b) trying to make a theatrical_muse decision and still deeply torn, so, clearly, it's time to give in to the power of the meme.

Name a character from one of my fandoms, and I'll give you either (a) three facts about them from my personal canon/fanon, (b) a reason he/she sucks, (c) a reason he/she is awesomecakes, (d) five things that never happened to that character or (e) five people that character never fell in love with and why. You pick the character. I pick the letter.

Fandoms available are the Jossverse ones, new Battlestar Galactica, Dr. Who (Old and New, but don't ask me about Two, Five and Six stuff if you can avoid it, because those are the Doctors I've seen the fewest adventures of), Heroes, Dexter, Alias, Babylon 5 and Star Trek (every incarnation except Enterprise).

Insomnia makes for early rec lists!

God Save The King - a Battlestar Galactica / Star Trek: The Next Generation crossover in which the Cylons infiltrate the Federation and a Six model meets Jean-Luc Picard. Dark and excellent. No spoilers beyond the basic BSG set-up (which means, honorh, that you can read it.)

An End Has A Start - Martha and the Doctor encounter Mal and Zoe. And keep encountering them in this highly readable Dr. Who/Firefly tale. Spoilers for all things Firefly and Serenity, no spoilers for DW aside from Martha's existence.

Waltz - this one is marked as a Torchwood/Firefly crossover, but you could just as well call it a DW/Firefly one, as the only TW/DW character in it is Jack. It's a story that uses time travel and timelines for a very elegant and personal tale about Inara Serra and Jack through the ages, hers and his. And of course Jack has Companion training!

The Neon City - what is it about Mal Reynolds and Aeryn Sun that makes them so suited for shared adventure? As an earlier favourite of mine from 2004, this Firefly/Farscape crossover has Mal encountering and travelling with Aeryn (post-Peacekeeper Wars).

Ripples in the Dust - Dune/Farscape, on the other hand, is a new combination. The twins from Children of Dune, Leto and Ghanima, and John Crichton. Eerie, poetic and somewhat insane, as something featuring these characters should be.

Travelling Through A Land Of Woe - early on in Farscape (early s2, to be precise), Moya picks up another human, one Ellen Ripley. Yes, its Farscape/Alien; Alien gets several outings this year, and so far, this one is my favourite.

In the end, we are one tree pulls off a truly tricky premise - Firefly/Roswell - with style. Without ever being in love with the show, I did like Roswell until the s2 finale, and this crossover reminds me why. Excellent characterisation of Maria, Michael, Isabel and Liz, and the same is true for the Firefly crew who unexpectedly find themselves finding Earth-that-was...

Lastly, the story written for me this year was The Hero without Fear, which has Anakin Skywalker in the BSG universe. Spoilers for BSG until early s3.

linaerys asked about these. Let's see, and start by excluding specimens. For example, morally ambigous trickster types who spend most of their time helping the protagonist (Methos on Highlander would be a good example) do not count as villains, even if they turn out to have a villainous past. Similarly, monsters are a category of their own (and I already did that meme) - for example, the Gentlemen in Hush (BTVS) or the Angels in Blink (DW). One episode scary creatures out of fairy tales, not interacting on a longer basis with the regular lot of characters; different category. Also, no characters whose fate and hero-or-villanhood is still undecided (looking at you, Snape, and you, Abigail Brand).

Another thing in advance: Villain love usually does not mean for me that I want these characters to win, though I most often want them to survive (that would be where the "favourite" part comes in) . Also, it it doesn't mean I dislike the heroes of whatever book/movie/tv show they happen to come from, because if I find a primary text where I can like only the villains, I give up on the text. (This happened to me with Earth: Final Conflict.)

There are two categories for me: villains I love, villains I love to hate (different thing), and villains I neither love or hate but find so interesting that they are listed here anyway.

So, most loved villains:

Servalan (Blake's 7). Best Evil Overlady ever. Had one of the best "why am I surrounded by idiots?" looks, managed to play mind games even when chained against a wall, and was the origin of that line recently stolen by G. Martin, originally written for her by Tanith Lee: "Come on, a woman like you?" "There are no women like me." No one said it with her panache.

Darla (BTVS/AtS). My favourite of the Fanged Four, my favourite AtS character, and my favourite vampire, full stop, though I love her no less when she's human. See also: lots of fanfic and roleplay.

Scorpius (Farscape). Is that rarity, a villain who gets a happy end in his primary text without this feeling wrong. Which caught me by surprise, and a very pleasant one it was, given I had other issues about The Peacekeeper Wars. As opposed to the two ladies mentioned above, Scorpius is a great example of the "villain as hero in his own story" type, given that he's absolutely convinced he's working for the greater good (in addition to personal revenge) here. Which brings me to:

Alfred Bester (Babylon 5). Who has the same idea, sans personal revenge. It's significant that one of the worst things Bester does from the pov of the shows heroes' is actually not about said heroes at all (he couldn't care less what happens to Sheridan, good or bad, in Face of the Enemy; it's all about saving "my telepaths"; whether the emphasis is on "my" or on "telepaths" is the dilemma of Bester's life).

Arvin Sloane (Alias). One of my all time favourite characters, villains or heroes or ambiguous types all included. I'll be lazy and just link my essay about him when it comes to the reasons.

Livia Drusilla (I, Claudius). Here's a woman who manipulates, schemes, kills, outlives most of her family and victims (frequently the same thing) and is absolutely convincing when she says she did it for Rome. (Incidentally, whether or not she did is another question, but you believe she believes it.) She's ruthless, she's relentlessly witty and she gets the hero to make her a goddess after death. Who can beat that?

Winn Adami (Star Trek: DS9). Not Kai Winn, alas, but she's great with the manipulation and the scheming as well, and you know, she's also convinced she does it for Bajor (with her as the best thing for Bajor, naturally). Winn is the female version of a Renaissance Cardinal, and her fall-out with her gods, the Prophets had me rooting for her all the way (but then I always loathed the Prophets). I think it was deborah_judge who once said that Laura Roslin is Winn witten as the hero, and the reverse is somewhat true as well: Winn is Roslin written as the villain of the story.

Erik Lehnsherr, aka Magneto (X-Men movieverse and 616 verse, but not Ultimate): And another "I'm doing this for the greater good" villain with a tragic background. Though alas, he's subjected to the whims of various writers in several of his incarnations, which makes him at times too monomanic. In fine form, however, Magneto is for the win.

Lucas Buck (American Gothic): Now here's a man (? actually, for all we know he's a different entity altogether) who's intriguingly limited in his ambitions for a Luciferian villain. Lucas isn't interested in what goes on beyond Trinity (small fictional town in South Carolina), and he definitely doesn't want to rule the world or lead any group to victory, but within Trinity, you tend to end up mad, bad, or dead if you don't do exactly what he wants you to. He has a number of supernatural tricks at his disposal, but mostly succeeds via sheer manipulativeness.


Most love to hate villains:

Mr. Morden (Babylon 5): Because even Wolfram and Hart lawyers have nothing on him when it comes to evil smarminess. Enjoyed every one of his appearances, did not feel sorry a bit for him when he finally was dispatched with (by My Darling Londo, in style).

Emperor Cartagia (Babylon 5) and Caligula (I, Claudius): Basically the same character, only one has sci-fi tech at his disposal. When it comes to crazy cruel lunatics in power who are at the same time far from stupid, these two can't be bettered. Also, they're along just long enough - if either was around any longer, the genuine horror they inspired would have faded.

Palpatine (Star Wars prequels): Was necessary but somewhat dull in the OT as the Emperor, but creepily good in the prequels. No one says "I love democray, I love the Republic" the way Ian McDiarmid does. (Definitely not certain current politicians...)


Most interesting but not loved or hated villains:

Warren Mears (BTVS): as with many other aspects of season 6, the decision to make the Trio the seasonal villains until Willow takes over in the finale is controversial. Some people thought three geeks Buffy went to school with weren't threatening enough, some people felt betrayed by the fact they were geeks and portrayed in a negative manner. To me, Warren was the most interesting villain since the Mayor, and actually more interesting than Angelus (Angelus solely in his function as villain, not as a part of Angel). Precisely because he wasn't a monster, and was a fanboy gone bad. If you think that can't happen, you're lucky in the types you've met. My Warren interest led me to lengthy fanfic, which basically sums up why he fascinated me on the show.

(Sidenote: it also occured to me that if Winn and Roslin are versions of each other written as hero and villain respectively, then Owen Harper on Torchwood is Warren written as one of the heroes, which is probably why Owen is the most interesting character on that show to me.)

Daniel Holtz (AtS): arguably the most complex of the AtS villains. I admire the way the show on the one hand never made it look as if Holtz' hatred towards Angel wasn't entirely justified but on the other made it equally clear that the actions this hatred caused were beyond the pale.

The Operative (Serenity): another entry in the "villains convinced of working for the greater good" club; if he had been on the show (Firefly, that is) instead of only appearing in the movie, he might have made it into the loved category. As it is, I found him fascinating, and he was the element of the film I thought most worthy of exploration.

The Female Founder (Star Trek: DS9): actually, as with all the Founders, we don't know whether she's female, but the form she chooses to appear in was. In many ways the embodiment of the Great Link, and a great mixture of serene, creepy and alien. I very much enjoyed each of her appearances on the show.

This week's Fannish Five. This one is easy and tricky at the same time - there are a lot of candidates for me to pick from, but some of them don't really fit the definition of "sidekick" in their particular narrative, or it's impossible to pick just one of them. Hence, for example, no Scoobies. So:

1) Matthew the Raven, from Sandman. Matthew actually started out as a human man named Matt Cable in another comic, Swamp Thing, and his background sometimes gets obscurely alluded to, but all Sandman readers need to know about his former life is mentioned in Sandman itself. When we meet Matthew early on in Sandman, he has, after his death as a human, just started his existence as a raven in the Dreaming, the realm of Morpheus, aka Dream. Matthew is still trying to figure things out there and getting adjusted to Dream, which makes him an obvious stand-in for the reader, and his wry comments and 20th century lingo are a great contrast to Dream's mythical grandeur. Matthew comes to care passionately about his boss, even if he at times questions his sanity, and their dialogues can be both funny and, in the end, very touching. One of my favourites comes when Dream asks Matthew whether Matthew is well versed in the art of car driving. Quoth the Raven: "Are you kidding? I died in a car crash. Well, the first time." Dream: "I am not sure that is a recommendation." On the other end of the scale, the scene where Morpheus sends Matthew away because he doesn't want Matthew to die (again) or witness Morpheus' end is the thing that regularily gets me crying during The Kindly Ones. And Matthew remains our guide till the end, during The Wake, at first absolutely refusing to deal and to accept the new Dream, Daniel, and slowly coming around until he takes Daniel under his literal wing. Ah, Matthew.

2) Vir Cotto, from Babylon 5. Vir is brave, loyal, loving, and in the terrible situation of actually spending two of the five years in the show absolutely hating what the object of his devotion does and the rest fretting over the consequences. He also loses his own innocence in the process. His above and beyond loyalty to Londo is never blind - and very similar to Vir's relationship with his people, the Centauri, because being a patriot to Vir means neither accepting when your people go wrong nor turning your back on them - and, both during the dark times and the climb back, probably the crucial element of what keeps Londo from losing himself completely. What Vir comes to mean to Londo and vice versa is best summed up in The Very Long Night of Londo Mollari in season 5, an episode which mostly takes place in Londo's mind, confronting him with his deeds. Londo, who is aware of what his ultimate fate will be, not utterly surprisingly asks himself the question whether it wouldn't be better if he died now. No, says his inner Vir. It wouldn't. "I would miss you." "And I suppose," says Londo, "I would miss you" and finds the strength to face the past and to live.


3) Zoe, from Firefly. Nobody uses the term "Sir" so effectively as she does; as an ironic put-down or as a sign of support, Zoe has Mal's measure. She's his best friend, pillar of strength, and sometimes direly necessary provider of common sense. Her marriage to Wash in its relaxed adult happiness (which doesn't mean it's argument-free, of course) is a counterpoint to the angsty UST between Mal and Inara and the frustrated pinings of Kaylee for Simon, and she has raised warrior woman stoicism to an art form. Two of my favourite Zoe scenes: when Niska the sadist, anticipating the fun of tormenting her by making her choose between Mal and Wash, shows their tortured selves to her and opens his mouth for his gleeful speech, and Zoe just cuts him off before he even started by picking Wash, getting the hell out of there and starting the rescue-Mal-operation. The expression in her eyes says it all (Gina Torres is a goddess). The other scene is from the BDM. ( Serenity Spoiler. )

4) Ace, from Dr. Who. Listing a Companion as a sidekick is a bit tricky, especially one as strong as Ace, but let's face it, the show is about the Doctor, and Companions come and go. Ace has issues, including the fact she loathes her mother, she loves to blow things up, and she has great chemistry with her Professor. (Don't ask why she calls him Professor; it's one of those Ace things.) What makes Ace's courage feel so real is that she can get scared - in her first adventure on Who, for example, when the villain has the proverbial gun at her head - and her acts of heroism can spring from panic (case in point: Rememberance of the Daleks, when she goes from dodging the Dalek's shots to attacking it with a baseball bat, and you can see the transition very well). Her relationship with the Doctor is somewhat complex, close but with the occasional dark undertone because he can get quite manipulative. Also? When she thinks he's dead, she puts on his hat and takes on the bad guys. *loves Ace*

5) Marshall Flinkman, from Alias. Marshall is essential, not just because he's the Q of the show (from Bond, not Star Trek, as Buffy would say), or because he's often used as the comic relief, but because despite being tech guy, not a field agent and not trained in their ways, he comes through every time he needs to save the day (while quoting Star Wars, and you've got to love that Marshall, despite having a crush on Sydney early on, automatically casts himself as her Luke, not her Han Solo). He presents his Evil Overlord of a boss with cravats, makes up technical data songs for his baby - because Marshall manages to get married and become a father without all the angst, as opposed to certain types who shall remain Vaughn -, and when he's asked to play a badass, he introduces himself as Bristow, Jack Bristow. Marshall, says Sydney to him in season 3, I love you. Well, naturally! So do I.

...and here are a first bunch of fanfic recs, one dazed night later.

Pieces of the Dead (Farscape/Babylon 5): Second season Stark meets post-show Lyta and G'Kar. I always wanted to read (more, beyond that one story JMS wrote) about Lyta's and G'Kar's adventures, and this take on both of them is fantastic. Stark is rendered very well, too.

Intersection (Crusade/Firefly): ask for Max Eilerson long enough, and you'll get him. This was the story I received, and fun it is, too, with Max being the dubious best hope Serenity has of getting home.

Lopped-off Asparagus Spears (Babylon 5/Futurama): every now and then, a crossover works perfectly despite one not knowing the crossed over character in question. This is the case with me here. I never saw a single episode of Futurama. But this tale of Londo Mollari getting a robot for a gift still was lovely to read.

Going Home (Farscape/Dr. Who): John Crichton meets another human in space, to wit, Rose Tyler. Great take on John and Rose, with one personal irritant - I dislike accents written in fanfic, and the author has Rose dropping her hs. But the characterisation makes up for it.

They also serve, who only stand and wait (Star Wars/ Farscape/ Battlestar Galactica): a triple crossover pulled off terrifically. Set in the prequel era, which in itself makes the prequel fangirl in me happy, this one has Padmè, post-TPM, hiring two new bodyguards, one Aeryn Sun and one Sharon Valerii, both for their own reasons looking for a new life.

The Magical Sum We Were (BSG/ Dr. Who): Laura Roslin and the Doctor. There is a poetry in the rendition which makes me suspect the author, but no matter whether or not I'm right with my guess, I love the take on Laura through her life, from young woman to the s2 finale, and the Doctor weaving in and out of it.

Outside In (Dr. Who/Alien): very different in tone, no less intense: the post-Time War Ninth Doctor, trying to be free of ambiguities, teams up with Ripley. Ripley8, as it were, the one from Alien: Resurrection, which as I thought she was a fascinating character (both decidedly not identical and yet still a part of the Ellen Ripley we know from the other Alien movies, and probably Sigourney Weaver's best performance in that role) makes me happy and slap my head, because the similarities between the Doctor's various regenerations and Ripley had not occured to me before.

Off to read more stories...