I'm on the Sentinel train... fandom rec!
Jun. 8th, 2014 09:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mekareI've been relishing not having to do anything for the past days (well except for working my part time job). What I have been doing is watching Star Trek (original series) and The Sentinel (see my last post). And today I give you one of the main reasons for watching this show
This is one of the original slash fandoms (I think), of course not as old as Trek fandom (The Sentinel ran in the 90s). From the perspective of newer fans: if you like(d) the new Hawaii 5-0 (and ship Danny/Steve) this is definitely for you (there are several excellent crossovers between the two fandoms as well!). The TV-show was essentially your run of the mill cop show but with the supernatural aspect of heightened sense thrown in (and this is oversimplifying it quite a bit).
Anyway, the fandom has excellent fics which have by now mostly been transferred from their old archive 852 Prospect (Jim's address in the series) to AO3. YAY! I have been reading and re-reading them there and commenting. One of the authors replied that they were really touched that people were still reading after all this time (see? commenting brings joy as well!) and I'd be over the moon if I got some people to join the fandom and let authors know that their work is still appreciated.
The original fandom overviews (at crackvan and at newbieguide, ship manifesto) have had their pictures removed (?) so I decided to include at least two of the main characters here.
Okay so this is Blair:
described in the excellent ship manifesto like this:
[...] Blair Sandburg (Garett Maggart), an anthropology student working on his doctorate in the Sentinel phenomenon. When he gets a line on a real live Sentinel, he convinces Jim to agree to a limited partnership of sorts: in exchange for Blair's help in controlling his senses, Jim will allow Blair to write his dissertation about him. As time progresses, this limited partnership will grow and change.
Blair, too, goes through some fascinating changes, but there are certain constants: he is the product of a hippie mother and an unknown father; when the going gets tough he's feisty, courageous and level-headed; he drinks algae shakes, meditates frequently, wears entirely too much plaid, and is a firm believer in free love--with just about every woman he can get his hands on. Blair undergoes a maturing process through his work with Jim, eventually taking on nearly all the responsibilities of being Jim's partner. He's an intellectual thrown into the world of heroes and bad guys, and over time that world becomes his home.
Okay what else really got me to love this character is his enthusiasm for research, life, everything really. On to his partner, Jim Ellison:
Jim is on the surface his complete opposite, but he's more complex than he might appear at first glance as well. The child of a wealthy, distant father who considered him a "freak" and a mother who left Dad with the custody of the kids, it's clear that Jim has serious abandonment issues. He's always on the lookout for betrayal, especially where Blair is concerned, and whenever there's a test to their relationship, his tendency is to bail prematurely. On the other hand, his own issues lead him to an understanding of the personal problems of others, as is seen in his relationship with Simon and other guest characters on the show. He's much more than simply a macho cop stereotype, and his curious vulnerability makes the show--and the Jim/Blair relationship--much more interesting.
You see the potential? And you will not be disappointed, I promise, by the show or the fic! (watching the show you do have to remember its historical context though)
ETA: Just found a really interesting post bymab_browne on the fannish history of the fandom and how the sentinel concept spread to a LOT of other fandoms.
This is one of the original slash fandoms (I think), of course not as old as Trek fandom (The Sentinel ran in the 90s). From the perspective of newer fans: if you like(d) the new Hawaii 5-0 (and ship Danny/Steve) this is definitely for you (there are several excellent crossovers between the two fandoms as well!). The TV-show was essentially your run of the mill cop show but with the supernatural aspect of heightened sense thrown in (and this is oversimplifying it quite a bit).
Anyway, the fandom has excellent fics which have by now mostly been transferred from their old archive 852 Prospect (Jim's address in the series) to AO3. YAY! I have been reading and re-reading them there and commenting. One of the authors replied that they were really touched that people were still reading after all this time (see? commenting brings joy as well!) and I'd be over the moon if I got some people to join the fandom and let authors know that their work is still appreciated.
The original fandom overviews (at crackvan and at newbieguide, ship manifesto) have had their pictures removed (?) so I decided to include at least two of the main characters here.
Okay so this is Blair:
described in the excellent ship manifesto like this:
[...] Blair Sandburg (Garett Maggart), an anthropology student working on his doctorate in the Sentinel phenomenon. When he gets a line on a real live Sentinel, he convinces Jim to agree to a limited partnership of sorts: in exchange for Blair's help in controlling his senses, Jim will allow Blair to write his dissertation about him. As time progresses, this limited partnership will grow and change.
Blair, too, goes through some fascinating changes, but there are certain constants: he is the product of a hippie mother and an unknown father; when the going gets tough he's feisty, courageous and level-headed; he drinks algae shakes, meditates frequently, wears entirely too much plaid, and is a firm believer in free love--with just about every woman he can get his hands on. Blair undergoes a maturing process through his work with Jim, eventually taking on nearly all the responsibilities of being Jim's partner. He's an intellectual thrown into the world of heroes and bad guys, and over time that world becomes his home.
Okay what else really got me to love this character is his enthusiasm for research, life, everything really. On to his partner, Jim Ellison:
Jim is on the surface his complete opposite, but he's more complex than he might appear at first glance as well. The child of a wealthy, distant father who considered him a "freak" and a mother who left Dad with the custody of the kids, it's clear that Jim has serious abandonment issues. He's always on the lookout for betrayal, especially where Blair is concerned, and whenever there's a test to their relationship, his tendency is to bail prematurely. On the other hand, his own issues lead him to an understanding of the personal problems of others, as is seen in his relationship with Simon and other guest characters on the show. He's much more than simply a macho cop stereotype, and his curious vulnerability makes the show--and the Jim/Blair relationship--much more interesting.
You see the potential? And you will not be disappointed, I promise, by the show or the fic! (watching the show you do have to remember its historical context though)
ETA: Just found a really interesting post by
mab_browne on the fannish history of the fandom and how the sentinel concept spread to a LOT of other fandoms.