WEDNESDAY FAN FICTION REPORT - 7/30/97
[Previous report was for 7/29/97]

Hi all,

I'm beginning tonight's report with an introduction to the concept of "Uber-Xena" fan fiction. Already there are several XWP stories that fall in this genre and many more will be appearing in the months ahead. One of the stories I'm reporting on tonight is an Uber-Xena story so this is a perfect opportunity to try to define the genre for you. "Uber" is a German term that literally means "over" but which is used in academia to refer to the fundamental essence of a concept or an idea or a character. An Uber-Xena story is one which takes the ESSENCE of the characters in XWP and places these in another time, another place, another reality. The TV series itself provided us with its own Uber-Xena episode in the XENA SCROLLS. A story involving the characters of Mel and Janice *is* an Uber-Xena story because these characters retain essential qualities of the original Xena and Gabrielle while existing in another time (1940's). In an Uber-Xena story, the characters do not have to be mirror images of the originals they are based on - both physically and spiritually there could be differences but again, the ESSENCE of the originals must be there. Taking Mel and Janice as examples once again - Mel is very different from Xena as is Janice from Gabrielle but three things define them as Uber representations - Mel and Janice look exactly like their ancestors, they are identified as being descendants of the warrior and bard, and they share the same type of bond.

The Xena and Gab representations in an Uber-Xena generally resemble the originals although they don't have to look exactly like them. In most Uber-Xena stories they are presented as either descendants of the warrior and bard or reincarnations but again these aren't prerequisites. Suffice it to say that if you're a fan of the TV series, the characters in an Uber-Xena story will be familiar to you even if they aren't exactly Xena and/or Gabrielle.

Here is the tonight's report including an Uber-Xena story :) Note that all the stories tonight are alt. ones.

ALTERNATIVE FICTION:

XENA BY GASLIGHT by Nene Adams
This is an Uber-Xena story based in the London of 1888 and featuring the first encounter between Lady Evangeline St. Claire ("Lina"), a tall, wealth beauty who lives by her own rules and the lovely Rhiannon Moore, streetwalker with a gentle heart who has faced much misfortune. Rhiannon's latest bad luck comes when she agrees to service a strange gentleman on a dark night - a fellow who will soon reveal his true deadly intentions but which in so doing, will ironically bring Lady Evangeline and Rhiannon into one another's lives, awakening feelings of familiarity and more within both women. Soon they are working together to try to stop a madman who walks at night - a killer the world will come to know as...Jack the Ripper. Nene brings a sense of realism to this story that is really stunning. She describes Victorian London - the clothing, the people, the nuances of the period with exacting detail. Even her dialogue is written to sound like the vernacular of the time. In "Lina" and Rhiannon she has created two characters that stand on their own while maintaining a strong connection to the warrior and bard from whom they are apparently descendants. This is a very well-written, suspenseful and different XWP story. Note: PLEASE make sure to read the author's disclaimer as the story does contain graphic violence.
http://www.eve.net/~timwellman/fiction.html

THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR - BOOK I: PRECURSORS by Baermer
Parts 12-13 of this story are now available. Note - the story is also available in subtext-lite and subtext-explicit version. Baermer's latest continues the tale begun in her excellent THE ELEUSINIAN MYSTERIES (review at https://lunacyreviews.ausxip.com/alt.htm). Set in an epic period of Ancient Greek history amidst the saga of the Peloponnesian War, this is developing into a HECK of a story! These latest chapters offer on-the-edge-of-your-seat reading as the troubles between Athens and Potidaea escalate putting a certain bard in mortal danger. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! First reviewed 7/16/97.
http://www.telepath.com/baermer/

JOINING? by Jane
This is a sequel to Jane's MORNING AFTER which begins where the first story left off. Xena and Gabrielle are still staying with the Amazons as they try to sort out their feelings for one another and to decide what to do now that their relationship has progressed beyond mere friendship.
http://www.eve.net/~timwellman/fiction.html

For those of you reading this post who are not familiar with the term alternative (alt.), it refers to ADULT stories that add a romantic element to the relationship between Xena and Gabby, depicting them as more than just friends.

Happy reading!

Lunacy 8-)

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