Amplirecathon: five gen podfic recs, plus one

[reflectedeve]

I've always been a pretty pairing-centric consumer of fanworks, as many of us seem to be; largely, I think, because this is the area where I'm most dissatisfied with most of the "professional" media I consume. That said, I have a special place in my heart for good gen, especially when it comes to podfic. Podfic is an artform I often use to help me get through things: my latest, tricky art project, or a night when I'm having trouble relaxing into sleep, or cleaning and organizing in preparation for a move. (There's such incredible comfort in being read to, in the direct sense of connection provided by another human voice!) As such, there's often nothing better than a quiet story exploring chosen family or a plot-heavy tale of adventure.

These are five of my very favorites (two recent, three older) ... and because that didn't seem like quite enough, one extra that isn't too heavy on the romantic tension, but instead focuses on the personalities and different communication styles of the characters in question. (And um ... one of those characters is named Gen?)

In Practice (Elementary; Sherlock & Joan non-sexual kink)
Reader: klb
Writer: inlovewithnight (text here!)
Okay, so, full disclosure first: I'm pretty biased towards this podfic, seeing as it was recorded for my birthday. That said, well. klb's voice, okay. All drawn out and soothing, paced a little slow ... advancing calmly and steadily through the sharp, complex dialogue. The characterizations are spot-on, especially her Joan. She gets her wryness just right.

I love the fic itself; I love stories about people figuring things out, finding the sweet spot in a relationship that fits them both, in this case platonically. This story takes the friendship between Sherlock and Joan on the show and expands it into deliberate kink practice as easily and naturally as drawing a breath. The story starts with a certain amount of tension and winds its way, quietly, into comfort ... and the reading draws me through that effortlessly. It's a perfect listen on a restless night. Beyond marvelous.


Is This A Raid? (Teen Wolf; pack feels)
Reader: knight_tracer
Writer: entanglednow (text here!)
For something completely different ... a gen podfic that just plain cracks me up. I can't even handle this reading, honestly. It's a cute little story where Derek takes the whole pack on a shopping trip to the supermarket, with some rather comic exaggerations on various personalities and relationships, and knight_tracer's rhythm, her choice of emphasis and the sense of wide-eyed exaggeration and exclamation she puts into various lines ... it's just so dynamic, so full of its own hilarity. It's a bubbly podfic sugar rush; absolutely delightful.


Nerds of the Earth, take note! (Leverage/Iron Man; Hardison-centric)
Reader: susan_voight
Writers: Betty and emeraldwoman (text here!)
There has never been enough Leverage podfic; it's a show, and a fandom, that appreciates its banter ... and that's just such a pleasure to listen to. Meanwhile, I'm finding that my favorite stories in Avengers fandom tend to be the ones that go in for the hardcore geekery, so ... this crossover is, naturally, a match made in heaven. susan_voight does a great job throughout, catching the various tones and moods of the characters (several flavors of professional flatness for the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, jitters and bravado for Hardison), but she especially shines when Tony Stark steps into the picture, making the dialogue between him and Hardison fly back and forth, increasing with appropriate intensity as they reach the climax of their problem. It's an engrossing listen.


All The King's Horses (Ten & Donna, BFFs)
Reader: such_heights
Writer: Lindenharp (text here!)
Donna Noble is, hands down, my favorite companion, for the very reason that she is the Doctor's best friend, not a love interest, and not frozen in awe with him. I absolutely love the way she doesn't take his shit, while at the same time struggling with thoroughly relateable insecurities and slowly, delightfully increasing in confidence. This story, which takes her perspective, captures all of that ... and such_heights brings her personality to life, nailing the wry tones and comic asides that make her such a rich character. She moves through this satisfying, plotty yarn at a steady, animated pace, keeping me engaged to the end every time, all the while nailing the occasional alien words and brief switches of perspective with confidence and fluidity.


Graduate Vulcan for Fun and Profit (Star Trek: AOS; Jim Kirk-centric)
Reader: templemarker
Writer: lazulisong (text here!)
This ... was not the first podfic I listened to by a fair bit, but it's the one that made me fall in love with the artform, that made me a regular listener. I think I read it in text form first, but templemarker's reading adds a whole new dimension to the story. She has a fantastic sense of humorous timing and inflection, manages Sakel's (a Vulcan original character) wry tones beautifully, and generally gives each of the characters a life of their own, thoroughly differentiated from each other. (She does a particularly fantastic, growly McCoy.) The story mixes sharp humor with more intense themes of survival and legacy, loss and chosen family, and the reading carries this beautifully, ranging from snarky and hilarious right into understated and thoughtful. It gets me in the heart every time.


The King's Guard (The Queen's Thief, Gen/Costis, Gen/Irene)
Reader: eosrose
Writer: osprey_archer (text here!)
I was discussing Megan Whalen Turner's series with some friends the other day, and commented that much as I like to read fic for it (not to fix things or fill in the gaps, as I often do with other fandoms, but just because I never want it to be OVER) ... I'm intensely picky about characterization for it. This is the only podfic I've found for the fandom, but fortunately, it's thoroughly delightful. The reading nails Costis's air of earnest, eternal confusion so perfectly, especially during the mismatched interactions between him and Eugenides, conveying sudden tone shifts and the general muddle of misunderstanding without losing the thread for the listener.

Comments

[ailis_fictive]

The King's Guard and Graduate Vulcan for Fun and Profit were two that made the long list for the rec post I just made, so I'm tickled to see them here.

Is This A Raid? sounds like a story where my complete lack of canon knowledge will be an insurmountable barrier, but I've grabbed the other three based on our clearly overlapping taste, even though I know Elementary very little and Leverage not at all.

[susan_voight]

(Podficcer jumping in--)

For Leverage you may like to know this is Hardison and his team. From L to R: Elliot (hitter), Parker (thief), Nate (planner), Sophie (grifter), Hardison (hacker). Otherwise I think you get what you need to know in the course of things (and there is one tiny beat that I think might be a fun reveal for someone not familiar with the show).

I hope you enjoy! I love the story lots, and I think it even holds up reasonably well in light of subsequent MCU canon.

[reflectedeve]

Hee, awesome! I hope you enjoy those others. I think the Elementary story will read very well even without canon familiarity, in particular! Not sure about the Teen Wolf one; it might still be funny? I'm generally not able to read/listen to stories where I don't know the fandom, so YMMV. :)

[susan_voight]

Thanks so much for the rec! I had unreasonable amounts of fun with this story and I am delighted to hear it worked for you.

PS: the podfic link is actually to the text; the podfic is linked as a related work, but here's the direct link.

[reflectedeve]

My pleasure! It's one of the ones on this list that I downloaded more recently, but I've listened to it several times already. It's just delightful.

Ack, sorry about that. Fixed!

[mothlights]

Thanks! I've listened to Is This a Raid so far, and it was great fun. :)

[sevilemar]

Thank you for this. I've listened to Nerds of the Earth, and I loved it. Am downloading the other stories as I write, though I only know Star Trek through fandom osmosis, and The Queen's Thief not at all. But I love good gen podfic, too. So yeah, thank you for reccing it.