Day 231 - Going off the Reservation

[farad]

Dail is still off having Adventures in Real Life, and I'm going to do something different from my usual links to writing stuff.  I'm going to pose a question, a question about - crossovers.

In our AUs, we crossover into other universes a lot, if not with the characters themselves (Sentinel, NCIS, Stargates, Star Treks, et cetera) then with the universes (Firefly, Startgates, Treks, et cetera).  What qualities in another show do we find attractive enough to want to put our boys into it or mix them up in it?

For me, it's either the characters themselves or some quality to the universe - usually a threat (the Wraith, the Alliance) - that I'd like to see our boys have to deal with.  I was reading a Lone Ranger comic this morning (the joys of being the comic buyer for a local bookstore) and I was pleasantly surprised at how very well done it was, both in setting, history, and characterization.  I'm having very serious thoughts about how TLR and Tonto - a Kiowa - would interact with the seven, especially in a situation that put them on 'the same side' if not working together. 

I've also had thoughts and discussions with others about a crossover with The Wild Wild West (Artemus Gorden, meet Ezra Standish.  Jim West, give Chris Larabee your tailer's name. Or maybe just your pants.  Ella Gaines and Dr. Lovelace?).  That's both character and universe (um, Steampunk Seven????)

What draws you to a crossover, either as a writer or a reader?  What do you want to see in our seven?

Comments

[farad]

Every reader will have their own likes, dislikes, and meh responses to other fandoms, which makes writing crossovers also a gamble. When I write a crossover, I know I'll probably lose x-amount of readers who simply won't care to read about either characters and/or a world they don't know or outright dislike.

I like the way you phrase this, and I know for myself that crossovers tend to be things I write for myself; I don't tend to read many crossovers myself, for precisely the reasons you state: I have to know the other universe enough to care about it. I will say that I have read a few crossovers written by authors I love which have compelled me to check out new series, but that is a rarity.

How about Rafael returning with his own Magnificos, and one of them is Manolito from High Chapparal? Mano in Four Corners! Mano and Rafael and Chris all being relaxed and bad ass and amused with each other! I would like that, I'm just saying. :)

UUMMMMMMMMM - is it hot in here or just me . . . ? What a GREAT idea!! But to get back to the point, that's part of where my thinking started - the OW crossovers. It's not like we don't have a lot of westerns to choose from. *g*

. . . and there's my half-written Carny fusion, . . .

Why yes, yes there is. Yes there is. YES THERE IS. HALF WRITTEN. AHEM. What does the muse need to be motivated to work on this??????

It simply boils down to characters I like whom I want to see interacting. ETA: Or a world I like in general, such as post-apocalyptic ones like FS and Jeremiah, that I'd like to slot characters I love into, either interacting with the other characters or not.

Dail has actually mentioned the Jeremiah universe also. And this is exactly what I mean by 'universe' - that place where I want to put my favorite characters to challenge them, to bring out other nuances of their personalities and relationships. You know, it occurs to me that in many ways, the SGA universe is post-apo as well. The Wraith are part of that 'apo' and the SGA guys are part of the rebuilding of the society. It's got a lot of similarities to FS and Jeremiah, all of which are similar to the OW (and the world of Firefly as Joss Whedon conceived it).

Great thoughts!

[0ftgx]

The OW crossovers are naturals, and it's too bad there's not more of them. I know there were a number written years ago in the gen fandom, but at least some of those I recall were de-aged Little Ezra, which is as select a slice of fandom as writing a specific pairing. I'd love to see more doodling with the vast number of Westerns out there!

Poor JD would be so antsy if Rafael, Mano, and Chris were all hanging out together in the saloon. *g* But seriously hot, yeah? It makes me wish I were a fan artist and could draw those three together. Barring that, I'd love a fic that went there!

My Carny story! I really want to finish that one, but I don't think I have a muse. It's just me, and I'm hard to motivate sometimes, even for me. I must put this fic on my To Do list: add to Scrivener, which might help provide the impetus to get back to it.

Jeremiah is a great universe for post-apocalyptic fans, which I am a card-carrying member of. It'd require juggling the Mag7 guys' ages to slide them into Jeremiah, but I have actually put some thought into that; basically, they'd have to be all closer in age than in canon (because in Jeremiah, everyone "over the age of puberty" died, so the guys would have to be within ~13 years of each other).

Excellent points about the Pegasus dystopia resembling the worlds of FS, Jeremiah, and Firefly. I can see from there how the Wraith would spark ideas that could be translated to the Mag7 world. If you ever wrote it, it goes without saying I'd read it. :)

[farad]

I love the fact that you've considered already how to make the guys ages work in a Jeremiah universe. I really really want to see that.

And I do actively encourage you to think on the Carny story (I've got to get Scrivener, don't I; Van likes it too). let me know if I can help in the motivation department . . . *g*