brightknightie | Entries tagged with recently:enthusiasms

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share!

Spotlight: With strict scrutiny and nervous caution, wary that perhaps it was only nostalgia and rose-tinted goggles after all, Overly Sarcastic Productions brilliantly examined "The Lost Art of Marvel's Phase 1." ( Spoiler: Phase 1 really is as good as we thought it was! Yes, even that one! )

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- fkficfest, the Forever Knight challenge, is in progress revealing its stories (one per day).
- justmarriedexchange is an exchange for marriage tropes. Nominations through June 10; sign-ups through June 22; due August 17.
- epidemfic is an exchange for illness themes and depictions. Sign-ups through June 8; due July 6.
- beauty-beast-week is a week-long open celebration of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. Posting is August 18-24.
- trope_of_the_month's June theme is "time loops."
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in exchanges. For example, whumpex is seeking pinch hitters.
- whenisitdue tracks many more events than I note here!
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); June theme: "female relationships"
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)

Sidelight: This spring, I posted one recommendation in recthething (for "the gears of time turn on" by LadyHoneydee (TLOZ:BOTW)). I used to have a recommendation-of-the-month project for FK fanfiction, long, long ago. I've been thinking of getting back into recommendations, via such communities, perhaps with mirroring in my AO3 account, definitely no longer limited by fandom. I'm wondering whether and how people really use recs these days. Would it be a good use of my time for others?

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share!

Spotlight: No, I didn't manage to snag a Switch 2 pre-order
( I did try... )

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- fkficfest, the Forever Knight challenge, comes due May 24. (I'm the mod!)
- saturdaymorningex, the cartoon/anime exchange, has sign-ups through May 9, with works due June 20. (I'm signed up!)
- earlybirdgetstheword, an exchange for small, inactive fandoms, has sign-ups through May 14, with works due June 22. (If it didn't overlap with others, I'd like to do it!)
- allbutromance, focused on platonic relationships, has nominations through May 5 and sign-ups through May 24.
- sholio is running a May Multifandom Commentfic Promptfest. Check it out!
- genprompt_bingo's 28th round has sign-ups through June 30, with indefinite posting.
- rewrite_a_fic, a challenge to rewrite one of your own works, comes due November 30.
- lyricaltitles's "album challenge" asks participants to write a story for each song on an album of their choice.
- summerofhorrorexchange, multifandom and multimedia, has nominations through May 5 and sign-ups through May 14.
- monstersmashexchange, focused on relationships with monsters, has nominations through May 5 and sign-ups through May 17.
- justunrequitedex, focused on unrequited feelings, has sign-ups through May 9.
- domaystic, a promptfest for domestic themes, runs through May 31.
- fic_promptly is an ongoing promptfest community.
- trope_of_the_month's May theme is "gender or sex swap."
- allbingo's May theme is "colors."
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in exchanges. For example, sakuraexchange is seeking pinch hitters.
- whenisitdue tracks many more events than I note here!
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); May theme: "angst (with a happy ending)"
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)

Sidelight: The MCU is on an upswing (no spoilers)

I'm happy to say that Thunderbolts*, seen in a theater last night, was much better and more appealing to me, personally, than I'd expected, with strong theming, a coherent plot, no visible executive notes, and the best post-credits scene in years.
Daredevil: Born Again is still much too violent for me, personally, so I hide my eyes a lot, but it is also still well-written and getting better and better as it leans away from its [mis]conception under the previous Disney leadership and back into being a direct continuation of the original series. I love/hate its current relevance.
The trailer for Fantastic Four: First Steps makes me feel all the feelings that the best of the MCU ever brought me, including tearing up a little at the end. Edge of my seat. Fingers crossed.

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share!

Spotlight: TVA: Time Variance Authority #1-4
I had no intention of picking up this comic. Then I learned that the Sylvie character from the Loki TV show would be in issue #2, and I thought, well, I'll try that one issue... and here I am now with all 4 issues to date, having enjoyed Katharyn Blair's writing enough that I'm recommending it. ( Read more... )

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- fkficfest elected 5 prompts for this year's stories, which come due May 24.
- all_worlds_of_mccaffrey is a new community celebrating Anne McCaffrey in the lead-up to her 100th birthday in 2026.
- saturdaymorningex is an exchange for cartoon/animated fandoms, with nominations through April 18, signups through May 9, and works due June 20.
- caseficexchange is an exchange for investigations of all kinds, with nominations through April 13 and works due July 11.
- spring_renewal is a spring-themed prompt fest, with prompting through April 6 and fills through April 30.
- idproquo is an exchange for self-indulgent (well, recipient-indulgent!) works, with signups through April 7 and works due June 1.
- bitesizedfandomsex is an exchange for canons consumable in ≤8 hours, with signups through April 8 and works due May 25.
- whumpex is an exchange for "whump"-themed works, with nominations through April 12, sign-ups through April 27, and works due May 27.
- unconventionalcourtship is a challenge for stories based on a Harlequin (Mills & Boon) novel summary.
- sweetandshort is a challenge community for weekly small creations with 4 prompts/month.
- fic_promptly is an ongoing promptfest community.
- trope_of_the_month's April theme is "crossovers."
- allbingo's April theme is "aesthetics."
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in exchanges. For example, the_mane_event is seeking pinch hitters.
- whenisitdue tracks many more events than I note here!
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); April theme: "outsider POV"
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)

Sidelight: TLOZ on Nintendo Switch 2
Price and release issues aside -- neither of which are Nintendo's fault -- I am still hoping to be able to buy the Switch 2 I saved for. Even if I can't, someone will, and there will be transcripts, YouTube videos, and wiki updates sharing the new stories, which is the important thing! ( Read more... )

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share!

Spotlight: Captain America: Brave New World
I saw Captain America: Brave New World in a theater on opening night, and... ( Non-spoiler personal opinion with vague allusions to real events )

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- fkficfest, the annual FK ficathon, has prompt nominations 3/08-3/14, with voting 3/15-3/21.
- marchmetamatterschallenge is an annual March-long project to preserve fannish non-fiction of all kinds (not just essays).
- womansplace is a March-long call for fanwork meta and recommendations celebrating characters who identify as or align with women.
- bethefirst, the annual challenge to write the first fanfiction on the AO3 for a fandom, has no sign-up deadline this year. Stories come due 4/20.
- hurtcomfortex, the annual exchange for hurt/comfort stories, has sign-ups 3/01-3/16.
- unsent_letters_exchange, the epistolary fanfic exchange, has sign-ups through 3/08.
- trope_of_the_month's March theme is [not yet posted].
- allbingo's March theme is "Tolkien."
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in fannish exchanges. For example, fffx is still seeking a pinch hitter.
- whenisitdue lists many more events than I note here!
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); March theme: "non-sexual intimacy"
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)

Sidelight: Pokémon GO's rumored sale
I still play rather a lot of Pokémon GO. PvP has been my niche; I ran local meet-ups for Silph Road tournaments before Niantic started Go Battle League and the pandemic came. That said, I don't know whether or not I will stop playing if Niantic succeeds in selling its games division, as is currently rumored, to a subsidiary of a company known for aggressive micro-transactions and funded by Saudi Arabia's government. I am thinking about it. If this potential sale is news to you and you play, check out this concise, pointed article from The Verge.

(FYI, we can move our GO Pokémon into Pokémon Home, owned by The Pokémon Company, not Niantic, if we want to "take them with us" for future use in other Pokémon games while leaving GO.)

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share!

Spotlight: PBS Masterpiece
All Creatures Great and Small and Vienna Blood both rolled pleasantly through new seasons on Sunday nights on broadcast PBS (or streaming anytime on PBS Passport). ( Read more... )

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- trope_of_the_month is asking whether folks still want monthly themes there. If you do, let the mod know!
- halfamoon, the annual two-week fanwork fest celebrating female characters, is underway.
- kindreadspirits is a community for fans of m/m subtext in Victorian and Edwardian horror fiction, with an emphasis on identifying/recommending eligible vintage works.
- valentines_day is a holiday-themed gifting comm a la Fandom Trees, etc. Sign up through 2/12; gift through 3/02.
- femgiftboxes is a female-characters gifting comm a la Fandom Trees, etc. Sign up through 2/08; gift through 4/29.
- tv_talk recently completed a recommendations-by-genre fest. Post-fest additions are welcome.
- marvel_drabbles is running an exchange for traditional 100-words drabbles for MCU Phases 1-3. Nominate through 2/10; sign up through 2/21; due 3/31.
- fic_promptly is a comment-fic (prompt meme) community, re-launching after a hiatus.
- babylon5_100 and babylon5events are both active for Babylon 5 fans.
- pinchhitbingo is an annual year-long challenge for filling pinch hints for other events.
- genprompt_bingo is in Round 27 of its long-running challenges, where all the prompts are gen, while fills may be anything.
- trope_of_the_month's February theme is [not yet posted].
- allbingo's February theme is "Valentines Fest."
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in fannish exchanges. For example, fffx is currently seeking pinch hitters.
- whenisitdue lists every event that I note here -- and many, many more -- in handy table format, with reminders.
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); February theme: "ambiguous relationships"
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)

Sidelight: Ranking TLOZ
Ranking and re-ranking the games seems to be a fundamental custom of The Legend of Zelda players. Importantly, while everyone seems to have a "Best" ranking, most also have subsidiary rankings for every characteristic: story, music, visuals, items, puzzles, combat, dungeons, companions, etc., and folks seems encouraged to re-rank often, not only with each new game released.

So: Of the 21 mainline games, ranking solely for each story's literary merit -- and nothing else -- at this particular moment in time, in my opinion, the Top 5 are:

Majora's Mask
Link's Awakening
Tears of the Kingdom
Breath of the Wild
The Wind Waker

(The story I personally enjoy most at this time is Twilight Princess. Wholly different criteria!)

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share:

Spotlight: OSP's JttW
December brought Overly Sarcastic Productions's annual new "Journey to the West Kai" installment! To explain my joy: ( Read more... )

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- fanart_recs no longer requires sign-ups to post recommendations! (It does still require using its template and following its rules.)
- hlh_shortcuts has released all its '24 stories and is now in its annual author-guessing game phase.
- snowflake_challenge '25 has begun! They post a modest challenge every second day to help build fannish community. Challenge #1 is to update your fannish info and post to say you did so.
- whenisitdue is a running list of deadlines for assorted writing communities, challenges, and fests.
- inkingitout is a challenge community for writing >75K words in 2025, though they also welcome lower wordcount goals.
- sweetandshort is a weekly challenge community for fics up to 500 words, tiny poems, userpic icons, and small banners.
- goals_on_dw is running Fannish 50 in 2025, a challenge to make 50 fandom-related posts by the end of the year, among other assorted challenges.
- lyricaltitles is an event community that uses song lyrics as fic titles.
- candyheartsex is an exchange with emphases on relationships, both gen and otherwise.
- trope_of_the_month's January theme is an amnesty (that is, fill any previous theme).
- allbingo's January theme is "Public Domain Day."
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in fannish exchanges. For example, heroexchange is currently seeking pinch hitters.
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); January theme: "(not really) unrequited love"
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)

Sidelight: MCU's What If? season three
All episodes in order of how much I personally, subjectively enjoyed them on first viewing:

0304: "What If... Howard the Duck Got Hitched?"
0303: "What If... the Red Guardian Stopped the Winter Soldier?"
0307-08: "What If... the Watcher Disappeared?" + "What If... What If?"
0302: "What If... Agatha Went to Hollywood?"
0306: "What If... 1872?"
0305: "What If... the Emergence Destroyed the Earth?"
0301: "What If... the Hulk Fought the Mech Avengers?"

(I appreciate the insight -- credit YouTuber TheNandoCut -- that this series, all three seasons, has actually been trying to simultaneously embody both What If? and The Exiles comics; that really explains its series structure for me.)

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share:

Spotlight: Toys
My Super7 "Ultimates" D&DC cartoon action figures came! I've now cleared a shelf of books (a big deal unto itself) the better to pose and display my assorted D&DC toys. This is the first Super7 set (Sheila, Hank, Dekkion, Shadow Demon); I'm keeping fingers crossed that they will complete the entire run, probably at the rate of one set per year, and that they will not postpone Diana until last. I'm not an action figure collector. I had never heard of Super7 before they dipped into D&DC. But now I know that they definitely have the right kind of nerdtastic awareness of '80s and '90s cartoons, as well as various other fandoms, and they seem to be generally well-regarded for quality. Their two main lines are "ReAction" figures that are strongly reminiscent of the classic Kenner toys, and "Ultimates" figures with all the contemporary articulation and alternate faces. They also do some figures in the mold of the original He-Man toys. Check out their official website.

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- fandomtrees is a gifting fest successor to Fandom Stocking. Sign-ups through 12/05; fills through 01/09; reveals 01/11.
- holiday_wishes is a gifting fest along the lines of Fandom Stocking and Fandom Trees, but more relaxed. Wishlists must post by 12/31; fills have no deadline.
- wish_upon_a_meme is a prompt-meme-style gifting event along the lines of In Small Packages. Fills through 1/14.
- hanukkahbingo is a bingo fest in which works star "a Jewish or Jew-ish character celebrating Hanukkah (or the scifi/fantasy equivalent of Hanukkah)."
- lul_soulmatesex is a fanfic exchange for soul connections. Nominations through 12/08; sign-ups through 12/15; assignments due 2/01.
- gdgdbaby is hosting a holiday love meme thread.
- trope_of_the_month's December theme is "food and cooking."
- allbingo's December theme is an amnesty (finish and post any WIP).
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in fannish exchanges. For example, heroexchange is currently seeking pinch hitters.
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); December theme: an amnesty (recs for any past theme)
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)

Sidelight: Streaming services
These are all the streaming services that I subscribe to, in order of how frequently I watch them:

YouTube Premium (at least daily)
PBS Passport (about weekly)
Disney+ (monthly, unless Marvel has something new)
Paramount+ (monthly, unless Strange New Worlds has new episodes)
Amazon Prime (rarely)

Note: "Recently:FK" is now "Recently:Enthusiasms."

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share:

Spotlight: "Sacred Realms: A Zelda Retrospective Podcast" is my new and by far favorite Zelda podcast. Some of the Zelda podcasts I'd tried earlier flunked quickly by knowing the story canon conspicuously less well than I do (which really shouldn't be possible). This weekly podcast explores the series "one little slice at a time" as the two hosts play slowly through one game in discrete story units and analyze them, frequently with guests who run Zelda fansites or otherwise have credibility in the space.

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- fanart_recs is changing its recommendations approach from a sign-up system to an any-time system.
- ushobwri offers a November "social" for community encouragement and commiseration around writing.
- trope_of_the_month's November theme is "epistolary."
- allbingo's November theme is "Sleepytime Bear."
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in fannish exchanges. For example, seasonsofdrabbles and multifandomtropefest are currently seeking pinch hitters.
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); November theme: "magic"
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)

Two slightly under-the-radar constructions that I particularly enjoy for The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess:

Ordon Province is not part of Hyrule. It's beyond the borders, perhaps an imperial possession. Check not only what Rusl says to Link about going to Hyrule and Link never having been to Hyrule, but also the existence of the fourth light spirit, the one who doesn't match up with one of the three golden goddesses and their sacred realm; Ordona is an ally, not an integral part of Hyrule. Also, note who has round ears and who has pointed ears. The Hero of Twilight is descended from Hylians (specifically, from the Hero of Time) but is not himself a resident of Hyrule.
Zelda's family and retainers were killed in Zant's invasion. And she wasn't the reigning monarch at the time of the invasion. Check what Rusl said to Link about presenting the gift to the royal family of Hyrule, not to a lone individual (granted, that could be pro forma from tradition). The mayor and Rusl (and Link), way over in Ordona, clearly haven't yet heard of the invasion and its fallout. And Zelda being princess rather than queen helps support this contention, I think. Imprisoned in that tower, clutching that dark Sheikah cloak around her, she's not only worried about her people, and perhaps her own life, she's mourning.

Note: "Recently:FK" is now "Recently:Enthusiasms."

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share:

Spotlight: Four episodes in, I'm enjoying Agatha All Along very much, and confidently placing my trust in Jac Schaeffer -- the creator and head writer of WandaVision & creator and showrunner of Agatha All Along -- to serve the story, the characters, and the audience well. I've been a comics fan since c.1984, so my MCU opinions are non-standard, but this show seems to me to hit all the stops. Fingers crossed. And if you want to start this one cold, with no MCU background, you actually can! (Though it would be ideal to come in with WandaVision under your belt.)

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- hlh_shortcuts, the annual Highlander story exchange, is switching from hand-matching to AO3-automated matching, and will use a pre-populated character tagset instead of a nominating period. Learn more and contribute.
- yuletide exchange preparations are in full swing. (My dear Dungeons & Dragons cartoon (1983) did get nominated this year, after missing last year. Yay!)
- latetreatbonanza is an event to help motivate finishing miscellaneous unfinished gifts. Due December 24; reveals December 25.
- spook_me stories are due on October 20.
- trickortreatex gift reveals come on October 31.
- uk_fandom_weekend is a small event in Manchester the weekend of October 25-27.
- trope_of_the_month's October theme is "supernatural beings."
- whatif_au's October-November challenge is "supernatural."
- allbingo's October theme is "Fall Fest."
- pinchhits is a forum for pinch-hits in fannish exchanges. For example, multifandomtropefest and fandomgiftbasket are currently seeking pinch hitters.
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); October theme: "happy endings"
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)

All the "in production" TV shows that I presently watch and wait for:

Agatha All Along (Disney+, new episodes weekly through October '24)
Strange New Worlds (Paramount+, Season 3 expected in 2025)
My Adventures with Superman (Cartoon Network, renewed for Season 3)
Call the Midwife (PBS + BBC, Season 14 expected to reach PBS with the Christmas special in December '24 and the rest of the season in March '25)
Vienna Blood (PBS + BBC; Season 4 expected in early '25)
All Creatures Great and Small (PBS + BBC, Season 5 reaches PBS in January '25)

Note: "Recently:FK" is now "Recently:Enthusiasms."

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share:

Spotlight: Comics author Jed MacKay concluded his magnificent 3.5-year run on Doctor Strange. His storytelling there was so deft, warm, and human -- and so rich in genuine comics heritage -- that, when I bumped into it by accident, it pulled me back to monthly comics after decades away. I so regret losing him from this book. But I don't want him to burn out! He's currently writing 4 others, including Avengers and X-Men (not Uncanny X-Men; Gail Simone has that).

Ficathons, fests & communities

Create & engage
- trickortreatex is an exchange themed on stories that are "tricks" or "treats." Nominations close 9/08 and sign-ups 9/18. Due 10/24.
- flashbackfest is a challenge celebrating early fandoms that are special to folks, however each participant wishes to define "early" and "special." Due 11/30.
- smashthechampagnebottle is a challenge to write the first fic for a 'ship in a fandom. (It's stepping in as a temporary stopgap for launchtheship, which seems to be MIA this year.) Due 11/15.
- communal_creators is a low-key challenge to create works of all kinds and support creators, inspired by NaNoWriMo. Sign-ups close 9/14. Due 10/15.
- drabbleonficathon is a prompt-fill challenge. Prompting closes 10/01.
- mdzsexchangehub is an exchange for AUs inspired by global fairy tales, folktales, legends, and mythology. Nominations close 9/16 and sign-ups 9/30. Due 11/16.
- au_challenge is an AU challenge community with bingo cards and prompt tables.
- trope_of_the_month's September theme is "role reversal."
- allbingo's September theme is "pirates."
- story_works's September challenge is "secret."
- pinchhits is a forum for back-up fills in fannish exchanges. For example, wipbigbang and enemiestoloversex are currently seeking pinch hitters.
Enjoy & share
- fancake (themed fanfic recs); September theme: "missing scenes"
- het_reccers (m/f fanfic recs)
- gensplosion (gen fanfic recs)
- recthething (fanwork recs)
- fanart_recs (fanart recs)

Some new things coming this fall that I'm looking forward to:

Games
09/26: The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom for Nintendo Switch
TV
09/15: Moonflower Murders, S1, PBS, 6 episodes
09/18: Agatha All Along, S1, Disney+, 9 episodes
Movies
09/18: Transformers One (Paramount/Hasbro/New Republic)
09/27: The Wild Robot (Dreamworks/Universal)
Books
10/22: The Wood at Midwinter (set in the world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell) by Susanna Clark
10/29: The Grey Wolf (Chief Inspector Gamache #19) by Louise Penny

Note: "Recently:FK" is now "Recently:Enthusiasms."

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Entries tagged with recently:enthusiasms

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