justira

@ff_press: [Recs] justira: 3 fic recs, 2 art recs (FFVI, FFVIII, FFIX, FFX, FFT)

Okay guys! There has been a LOT of woe in my journal lately! Sorry about that. I try not to leak all over the place. To offset all of the woe-ing, here are happy things!

DOINK! Final Fantasy Exchange is finally gearing up, and signups are open! WOOOO! Read all about the goings-on at one of our news comms, ff_exchange or ff_exchange. FFEX has been lucky enough to have some amazing people producing incredible gifts under its aegis. SO. Time for a long-overdue mini rec-post!


[Art] FFVI - Gotta make a good impression! (Gau, Sabin, Terra) by safety_caesars
Rating | Warnings: G, spoilers for an optional mini-scene in the game
Notes: FFEX 2009 Phoenix Down — Gau and Sabin brotherly love, Terra should be there too!
Squee: The expressions. THE EXPRESSIONS. Are perfect. I just. I have no other words for them. This artist also has a knack for making Amano's costumes actually look like people could live in them; in this particular case, Sabin's rather blingy and delicate tank top actually looks manly. Also amazing: Sabin actually looks like his brother here; I flailed about that so hard in my comment. Terra looks so sweet and young in just the right way, and Gau, beyond having an absolutely priceless expression, somehow looks hot. WHAT.


[Fic] FFVIII - Small Things (Squall/Rinoa) by invocations
Rating | Warnings: G, no spoilers
Notes: FFEX 2007 Moogle Fluff — ...Squall/Rinoa romance. >.> 670 words
Summary: Just a small moment in which Squall takes itty-bitty steps forward.
Squee: The characterization here is just so spot on! It's short and sweet and the narration so fittingly, amazingly Squall. This strikes just the right note of Squall/Rinoa for me: sweet in a rounabout kind of way, Squall taking small steps outside himself, imperfect and grumpy and just right.


[Art] FFIX - Pub Night (Zidane, Freya, Blank, Steiner, Beatrix) by sonopants
Rating | Warnings: G, possibly super minor spoilers but not really?
Notes: FFEX 2009 Gift for roughhandss — Anything from IX. Zidane, mm. Freya, mm. Blank!!!mm. Steiner/Beatrix is hot too.
Squee: This is in watercolours. Amazing, vibrant watercolours! Everyone's expressions are so awesome here, and this artist's style together with the watercolours feels so right for FFIX. Everyone looks lively and full of (fun) emotion. The interactions between all the characters is just great, too, and I will never, ever stop laughing at how badly Zidane is losing here. Hearts forever and a half.


[Fic] FFX - Shades of Red (Braska, Auron) by marmaladecat
Rating | Warnings: PG, some spoilers for the game's backstory
Notes: FFEX 2007 Gift for owlmoose — Auron with Braska and/or Kinoc, pre-pilgrimage. Gen preferred, subtext okay. 1,029 words
Summary: It's the strangest things that stand out.
Squee: Oh, oh gosh, this fic is just so beautifully sad. I love the relationships here, Auron's protectiveness. The red theme is wonderfully worked in, and just, everything about this story is so effective and lovely. So few words, so much feeling and affect; scenes and moments chosen so well. It's short, but it's heartbreaking, and it hits my FFX backstory buttons so, so hard.


[Fic] FFT - Antipyretic (Agrias, Ramza, Mustadio, Beowulf, Alma, Reis, Lavian. Beowulf/Reis) by ovo_lexa
Rating | Warnings: PG13, party spoilers plus vague general spoilers
Notes: FFEX 2009 Gift for mithrigil — "Fear and loathing with job classes." Take that as you will. 2,266 words
Summary: There are two ways of getting ahead: the slow, safe way that takes a lifetime to master and the fast, dangerous way that takes others’ lives.
Squee: My meta-loving heart just about died when I read this. Job class/crystal meta! In FFT! I AM NOT SURE I COULD BE MORE THRILLED. This also hits my "voices in your head" kink so hard (one of the reasons I love summons and summoning meta so much). Basically I could roll in the meta here all day. The punchline is heartbreaking and amazing, the disoriented and desperate air so good. Deliciously, deliciously creepy.



BASICALLY everyone should come play so amazing work like this keeps happening! SO MUCH LOVE TO ALL OF YOU! <3

So maybe it's time to panic like a lot. Maybe y'all already know this, but I write SUPER SLOW. Unfortunately (or perhaps the opposite), I also write SUPER LONG. As it happens, I also have a DEADLINE. SLOW + LONG + DEADLINE = PANIC, yes? SOUNDS ABOUT RIGHT.

I am feeling somewhat insecure about this one (when do I not? FATHOMLESS WELL OF INSECURITY, RIGHT, GUYS???), in large part because it's such a heavily thematic piece, and theme is HARD to work this deep without being tremendously ham-handedly obvious. Also, har har, I haven't published any thematic pieces yet! I have plenty in progress (apparently theme is the new black) but none have been put up for public scrutiny. And because I'm an idiot and don't have enough to worry about, I have for some reason worked in a strange new style, too. HAR HAR, IRA. HAR HAR.

In other news I also feel guilty because I want to do multiple gifts but I DON'T HAVE TIME, especially since I owe a lot of art, some of it ALSO for an exchange. I can't DO anything about that right now cause I don't have a scanner available to me, but still. GUILT GUILT GUILT.

So, where am I sitting? On about 1,500 words -- not bad, for me, considering I spat them out in one afternoon. Of course, the prospects grow rather dim when I realize that this story, told the way I want to tell it, will be at least 10,000. AT LEAST. This is what I get for picking a topic about which I can meta all day long.

MEANWHILE, bottle_of_shine and lassarina have the GALL to leave me out of the mass suicide party! They think I will be the mod to come and beat them with a stick for defaulting! How dare they imply such fortitude! How dare they imply that I am not a MERE MORTAL?! What kind of modly example do they think I'm setting? I'M GONNA E-DIVORCE YOU GUYS.