1/3/12-1/8/12
pale as ghosts (the bad ideas and kindness remix) (Signless, Karkat (Condesce, Jack))
Ah, pre-Kankri fic. I love everyone in this (well, maybe not Bec Noir after exploding poor Karkat), and particularly the Condesce, going from denying and hiding her violence to being completely trapped by it. And how close the Signless came… I wonder what Signless<>Condesce could have been like.
Plus, Jack/Karkat! Always nice to see more of them being screwed up together.
It is one of the greatest tragedies that there is so little stuff about Jack and Karkat.
We’ve got all the time in the world. (Rose (Aradia, Terezi, Vriska, Sollux, Doc Scratch)) (Ladystuck)
Interesting. I really like the feel of the undercity. It lends such a nice background to everything, particularly the hints that this is just one version of something that stretches back so much father, and gives the sense of a rich world and history beyond the characters – and makes Aradia’s loss of any interest all the more tragic.
And it’s nice to see a happy ending for them.
It’s hard being a Vriska fan. It’s hard and everyone always uses her as their villain. At least this time it fits with the canon echoing thing the fic has going on.
PM: Advance (PM (WQ, Jack, WV))
that he would resent having scared her more as a bureaucrat than a prototyped.
It needs to be a prototyped something – king, usurper, monster, etc.
I like how this is laid out. I was expecting more expansion in how she looks at things at the start, but as it develops it really made sense how she’s always looking just ahead and dealing with what’s right in front of her. And I love how you describe her second meeting with WQ.
Two Reasons (DD (PI))
Hm. I like your explanation for Droog’s interest. This seems to be a bit too much tell and not enough show, though. I’d particularly like to see PI demonstrating his intellect rather than just going on Droog saying it’s a big deal, but it’d also be nice to have his internal violence monologue be tied a bit more to the actions he does take – maybe focus on how easily breakable the teacup in his hands is?
Trouble With a Capital T (Snowman (HD, Eggs, Biscuit, Itchy, Fin, Trace))
These really just don’t seem like the characters. It’s an intriguing plot – there’s a criminal no one else really is paying attention to, another cop who seems to be working with her – but the cast seems to have been assembled without much care as to who they are. HD isn’t really much about feminine wiles, but Doxy somehow is? Snowman here completely baffles me – she seems incapable of actually doing anything about Doxy, having anyone take her seriously or even dealing with one of the other police lying to get her in trouble, culminating in her totally losing control in the face of Doxy’s – the hysterical dame’s – cool?
Fandom sure likes the idea no one around Snowman takes her seriously, don’t they?
Fuck No, This Was YOUR Idea (SS, PI (DD))
Eh, this seems like belaboring the point, and it’s a lot more forced this time around. Either it’s repeating a joke from the previous fic or it’s far too exaggerated, like the drunk scene. Plus Slick and PI just have less reason to be having this conversation.
It’d probably have worked better to have Slick either making stuff up in retaliation for what Droog said to Sleuth, or for Slick’s honest opinion to be at odds with what the scenes actually show.
All Edges of a Koch Snowflake (DD (PI, Quarters, PS))
Nonfatal, of course, Inspector could never handle some one’s life on his hands
How does he handle hearing about the next batch of people Droog killed, then? Also, “some one” should be one word.
“A-ah, I do so hate to i-interrupt, but I w-would be delighted if you didn’t move.” His voice is calm, breathing even.
Then why is he still stammering?
You don’t even flinch when Quarter’s chest blooms crimson and the sound of a bullet casing being ejected over the line rings in your ear.
This seems to completely contradict the earlier bit about not wanting to kill anyone. And even if Quarters did survive the initial shot, Droog’s next move should be to finish him off, so it’s still functionally killing one mobster to help out another mobster who’s at least as bad if not worse.
…so, the Sleuth gang go after a minor group that’s tied to a single murder, with guns blazing. After the gang has been shot up, one poor guy manages to shoot back and hit PS, which then makes it okay for PI to go on a killing spree. But it’s okay because he feels sort of upset afterward, so he comforts himself by screwing the guy who murders lots of people for personal gain. The morality of this baffles me.
It’s times like this I realize that however much their treatment of Snowman bugs me, it’s probably better than if my favorites were the original PS cast, since seeing them making exceptions for mass murderers just because they were fucking would probably be way more upsetting if I cared about them.
Dangerous Fantasies (PI (DD))
Eh, this is pretty much the standard way it plays out with any character in any fandom. There’s little that seems informed by either character’s particular quirks.
That said, it pleases me that in the realm of fanfic, one can describe turning into a cat as a standard plot.
Signless, Karkat (Condesce, Jack)
Rose (Aradia, Terezi, Vriska, Sollux, Doc Scratch) L
PM (WQ, Jack, WV)
DD (PI)
Snowman (HD, Eggs, Biscuit, Itchy, Fin, Trace)
SS, PI (DD)
DD (PI, Quarters, PS)
PI (DD)
Three of eight, one because of Ladystuck.
Page 370
Wordcount:57363