![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Bandom Themed Fic Rec Post #2 - Killjoys
Hi! I'm back posting in this journal, this time to recommend fic set in the universe of My Chemical Romance's 2010 album Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys. See below...
For now, I'm going to plow ahead and assume that you already know at least a little about the album and its universe. I will likely come back to edit this and add some background information.
Title: Katabasis
Author:![[archiveofourown.org profile]](https://p.dreamwidth.org/b164c54b26e4/-/archiveofourown.org/favicon.ico)
tei
Rating: T
Word Count: 1,017 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, technically, but it's the Danger Days characters and not the band
Pairing(s): Gen
Warning(s): N/A
Author's Summary: The toaster is broken again.
Why I recommend it: Katabasis means "descent," as in the movement of cooled air down a glacier (katabatic winds!) or the descent of a person into the underworld. This rad little fable neatly fills in canon gaps while exploring why "the girl" might have joined the Killjoys. It has a children's-science-fiction feeling that I really like.
Title: Hugs Gimme Hugs
Author:jedusaur
Rating: T
Word Count: 1,700 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, Grace Jeanette, Ricky Rebel, Mindless Self Indulgence
Pairing(s): Gen
Warning(s): Major character death
Author's Summary: Grace learns the lyrics to Queen's entire oeuvre when she's two, how to kill a drac when she's four and a half, and what a flush toilet is for when she's nine.
Why I recommend it: It upsets me. No, but this fic is a good short piece about Grace growing up, learning from the Killjoys and growing into her own. (And, to be clear, it does upset me. In a good way.)
Title: B/L/I/N/D
Author:jedusaur
Rating: T
Word Count: 3,001
Band(s): My Chemical Romance,
Pairing(s): Gen
Warning(s): Major character death
Author's Summary: We're pretty sure Gerard was only ever depressed in the first place because the world hadn't ended yet.
Why I recommend it: This fic functions both as a kinda-dark retelling of Danger Days and as a critique of the album concept and storyline.
Title: sing it for the n00bs
Author:jedusaur
Rating: Explicit
Word Count: 17,048 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, Mindless Self Indulgence
Pairing(s): Frank/Gerard
Warning(s): None
Author's Summary: Gerard would be killing twice as many dracs right now if his fucking spacebar would quit sticking. (Gamer AU, wherein the Danger Days universe is an MMORPG.)
Why I recommend it: Entertaining, True to Life, great on its own or as a palate-cleanser after too much Killjoys angst.
Title: Hold Your Heart Into This Darkness series
Author:tuesdaysgone
Rating: Explicit
Word Count: 90,306 words total
Band(s): My Chemical Romance
Pairing(s): Gerard/Korse, Frank/Gerard, Mikey/Ray, Dr. Death Defying/Show Pony
Warning(s): Graphic violence, major character death
Author's Summary: This is how it started: an origin story from Battery City.
Why I recommend it: This series is a classic and comprehensive album re-telling/universe-expanding/plot-gap-filling-in, and has a fantastic creepy backstory for Korse.
Title: Pedestrian Killjoys series
Author:Teigh
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 17,148 words total
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, The Used
Pairing(s): Bob/Mikey, Frank/Gerard
Warning(s): Graphic violence (imprisonment, non-graphic torture, horror imagery)
Author's Summary: Bob knew from experience how dangerous it was to be behind the kit. Drummers are fixed targets on stage - they tend to get killed or taken. In Battery City, the second option is worse, especially for guys like him. Guys who aren't exactly human. / In the aftermath of the Desolation Row Riot, Bob has to play a dangerous game, deciding between secrets and sacrifice. But while Bob's fighting his solitary battle, the world's changing. A journey from Desolation Row to Danger Days, via Route Guano.
Why I recommend it: An Interesting Take on the Killjoys, this series contains a number of my favorite things: dreams, ghosts, magical realism, a sympathetic depiction of Bert McCracken, and original werewolf mythology.
Title: The Sharpest Lives series
Author:akamine_chan
Rating: Explicit
Word Count: 38,995 words total at this point
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, deadmau5
Pairing(s): mostly Gerard/Party Poison, other pairings
Warning(s): Violence, addiction/drug use, sex that is had while characters are angry, selfcest (do I warn for that?)
Why I recommend it: This still-ongoing (?) series is breathless and pulpy and satisfying. The world takes shape jaggedly, building on itself like a collage of magazine clippings. Read from the beginning, or choose the installment that first stands out to you.
Title: It's Raining on Prom Night
Author:Nokomis
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 4,915 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance
Pairing(s): Frank/Mikey
Warning(s): Blood, suspense
Author's Summary: After performing at a stunt show, Frank and Mikey get a distress call from the other Killjoys.
Why I recommend it: Short, vivid look into a larger universe, plus comfort sex. Also: Blood rain. Blood rain! That's so cool. I don't know why I think that's so cool, but I do.
Title: The Edges of This Map Have Been Burned
Author:snarkydame
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 9,855 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance
Pairing(s): Frank/Gerard, implied Gerard/Korse
Warning(s): Implied rape/non-con, aftermath of rape, involuntary drug use
Author's Summary: The Killjoys took to the oceans, instead of the desert, and raid the BL/ind supply lines with only tenuous contact with the Zone Runners on land. When Gerard is lost, and taken by S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W's top captain, Korse, the crew of the Neon Angel have to get him back. Whether or not they'll get him back whole. . .
Why I recommend it: THE KILLJOYS. ARE SEA PIRATES!!! (Sorry, can't get over that.) This is another Interesting Take, with fog-shrouded renegade vessels, sea monsters, and a dramatic rescue.
Title: The Wasteland
Author:Greekhoop
Rating: Explicit
Word Count: 62,680 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, technically, but (again) the Danger Days characters and not the band
Pairing(s): Fun Ghoul/Party Poison, Kobra Kid/Party Poison
Warning(s): Graphic violence
Author's Summary: "I had not thought death had undone so many." An officer in a rebel army, a living weapon, an orphan, and a sole survivor. The desert is both a trial and a refuge. The city is both a fortress and a prison. Only Poison understands the full extent of what it means to exchange one for the other. Pre-Danger Days and ongoing. WIP.
Why I recommend it: There's a lot going on here, and some of it is pretty darn interesting.
Title: Nothing to Confess
Author:jjtaylor
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 7,421
Band(s): Fall Out Boy
Pairing(s): Pete/Patrick
Warning(s): Implied brainwashing
Author's Summary: The truth is, he’s imagined a hundred futures playing out in front of him, and all of them have had Patrick, here with him, in his motorcycle gang, in the desert, a whispered name away.
Why I recommend it: :(
Why I recommend it: Title: Keep the Car Running
Author:inlovewithnight
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 27,491 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, Cobra Starship, ensemble
Pairing(s): Gabe/Mikey, other relationships
Warning(s): None
Author's Summary: Disaster Boy and the Kobra Kid: a love story.
Why I recommend it: Romance! Adventure! A full cast of characters! Attention paid to the logistics of going down on someone when you're out in the desert and neither of you have showered in a long time! Also worldbuilding.
Title: Better Now Than How It Used to Be
Author:Sena
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 9,444 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance
Pairing(s): Fun Ghoul/Kobra Kid, Party Poison/OC
Warning(s): Underage, canonical character death, drug use
Author's Summary: Kobra's life is mostly stimulants and science projects -- radios and water filtration systems being the two most important. He's got his projects and his pills, has his brother and the woman whose bed his brother warms, and that's more than enough for him. He doesn't even notice the way he makes room for Fun Ghoul until it's done, until there's a spot just for him that would be cold and empty if Ghoul ever walked away.
Why I recommend it: IT UPSETS ME. No, but this fic is really sweet and sad, in that consistently excellent Sena fashion. It's about opening up to love and building a family, even though you live in a post-apocalyptic desert universe of betrayal and doom.
For now, I'm going to plow ahead and assume that you already know at least a little about the album and its universe. I will likely come back to edit this and add some background information.
Title: Katabasis
Author:
Rating: T
Word Count: 1,017 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, technically, but it's the Danger Days characters and not the band
Pairing(s): Gen
Warning(s): N/A
Author's Summary: The toaster is broken again.
Why I recommend it: Katabasis means "descent," as in the movement of cooled air down a glacier (katabatic winds!) or the descent of a person into the underworld. This rad little fable neatly fills in canon gaps while exploring why "the girl" might have joined the Killjoys. It has a children's-science-fiction feeling that I really like.
Title: Hugs Gimme Hugs
Author:
Rating: T
Word Count: 1,700 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, Grace Jeanette, Ricky Rebel, Mindless Self Indulgence
Pairing(s): Gen
Warning(s): Major character death
Author's Summary: Grace learns the lyrics to Queen's entire oeuvre when she's two, how to kill a drac when she's four and a half, and what a flush toilet is for when she's nine.
Why I recommend it: It upsets me. No, but this fic is a good short piece about Grace growing up, learning from the Killjoys and growing into her own. (And, to be clear, it does upset me. In a good way.)
Title: B/L/I/N/D
Author:
Rating: T
Word Count: 3,001
Band(s): My Chemical Romance,
Pairing(s): Gen
Warning(s): Major character death
Author's Summary: We're pretty sure Gerard was only ever depressed in the first place because the world hadn't ended yet.
Why I recommend it: This fic functions both as a kinda-dark retelling of Danger Days and as a critique of the album concept and storyline.
Title: sing it for the n00bs
Author:
Rating: Explicit
Word Count: 17,048 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, Mindless Self Indulgence
Pairing(s): Frank/Gerard
Warning(s): None
Author's Summary: Gerard would be killing twice as many dracs right now if his fucking spacebar would quit sticking. (Gamer AU, wherein the Danger Days universe is an MMORPG.)
Why I recommend it: Entertaining, True to Life, great on its own or as a palate-cleanser after too much Killjoys angst.
Title: Hold Your Heart Into This Darkness series
Author:
Rating: Explicit
Word Count: 90,306 words total
Band(s): My Chemical Romance
Pairing(s): Gerard/Korse, Frank/Gerard, Mikey/Ray, Dr. Death Defying/Show Pony
Warning(s): Graphic violence, major character death
Author's Summary: This is how it started: an origin story from Battery City.
Why I recommend it: This series is a classic and comprehensive album re-telling/universe-expanding/plot-gap-filling-in, and has a fantastic creepy backstory for Korse.
Title: Pedestrian Killjoys series
Author:
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 17,148 words total
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, The Used
Pairing(s): Bob/Mikey, Frank/Gerard
Warning(s): Graphic violence (imprisonment, non-graphic torture, horror imagery)
Author's Summary: Bob knew from experience how dangerous it was to be behind the kit. Drummers are fixed targets on stage - they tend to get killed or taken. In Battery City, the second option is worse, especially for guys like him. Guys who aren't exactly human. / In the aftermath of the Desolation Row Riot, Bob has to play a dangerous game, deciding between secrets and sacrifice. But while Bob's fighting his solitary battle, the world's changing. A journey from Desolation Row to Danger Days, via Route Guano.
Why I recommend it: An Interesting Take on the Killjoys, this series contains a number of my favorite things: dreams, ghosts, magical realism, a sympathetic depiction of Bert McCracken, and original werewolf mythology.
Title: The Sharpest Lives series
Author:
Rating: Explicit
Word Count: 38,995 words total at this point
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, deadmau5
Pairing(s): mostly Gerard/Party Poison, other pairings
Warning(s): Violence, addiction/drug use, sex that is had while characters are angry, selfcest (do I warn for that?)
Why I recommend it: This still-ongoing (?) series is breathless and pulpy and satisfying. The world takes shape jaggedly, building on itself like a collage of magazine clippings. Read from the beginning, or choose the installment that first stands out to you.
Title: It's Raining on Prom Night
Author:
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 4,915 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance
Pairing(s): Frank/Mikey
Warning(s): Blood, suspense
Author's Summary: After performing at a stunt show, Frank and Mikey get a distress call from the other Killjoys.
Why I recommend it: Short, vivid look into a larger universe, plus comfort sex. Also: Blood rain. Blood rain! That's so cool. I don't know why I think that's so cool, but I do.
Title: The Edges of This Map Have Been Burned
Author:
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 9,855 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance
Pairing(s): Frank/Gerard, implied Gerard/Korse
Warning(s): Implied rape/non-con, aftermath of rape, involuntary drug use
Author's Summary: The Killjoys took to the oceans, instead of the desert, and raid the BL/ind supply lines with only tenuous contact with the Zone Runners on land. When Gerard is lost, and taken by S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W's top captain, Korse, the crew of the Neon Angel have to get him back. Whether or not they'll get him back whole. . .
Why I recommend it: THE KILLJOYS. ARE SEA PIRATES!!! (Sorry, can't get over that.) This is another Interesting Take, with fog-shrouded renegade vessels, sea monsters, and a dramatic rescue.
Title: The Wasteland
Author:
Rating: Explicit
Word Count: 62,680 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, technically, but (again) the Danger Days characters and not the band
Pairing(s): Fun Ghoul/Party Poison, Kobra Kid/Party Poison
Warning(s): Graphic violence
Author's Summary: "I had not thought death had undone so many." An officer in a rebel army, a living weapon, an orphan, and a sole survivor. The desert is both a trial and a refuge. The city is both a fortress and a prison. Only Poison understands the full extent of what it means to exchange one for the other. Pre-Danger Days and ongoing. WIP.
Why I recommend it: There's a lot going on here, and some of it is pretty darn interesting.
Title: Nothing to Confess
Author:
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 7,421
Band(s): Fall Out Boy
Pairing(s): Pete/Patrick
Warning(s): Implied brainwashing
Author's Summary: The truth is, he’s imagined a hundred futures playing out in front of him, and all of them have had Patrick, here with him, in his motorcycle gang, in the desert, a whispered name away.
Why I recommend it: :(
Why I recommend it: Title: Keep the Car Running
Author:
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 27,491 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance, Cobra Starship, ensemble
Pairing(s): Gabe/Mikey, other relationships
Warning(s): None
Author's Summary: Disaster Boy and the Kobra Kid: a love story.
Why I recommend it: Romance! Adventure! A full cast of characters! Attention paid to the logistics of going down on someone when you're out in the desert and neither of you have showered in a long time! Also worldbuilding.
Title: Better Now Than How It Used to Be
Author:
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 9,444 words
Band(s): My Chemical Romance
Pairing(s): Fun Ghoul/Kobra Kid, Party Poison/OC
Warning(s): Underage, canonical character death, drug use
Author's Summary: Kobra's life is mostly stimulants and science projects -- radios and water filtration systems being the two most important. He's got his projects and his pills, has his brother and the woman whose bed his brother warms, and that's more than enough for him. He doesn't even notice the way he makes room for Fun Ghoul until it's done, until there's a spot just for him that would be cold and empty if Ghoul ever walked away.
Why I recommend it: IT UPSETS ME. No, but this fic is really sweet and sad, in that consistently excellent Sena fashion. It's about opening up to love and building a family, even though you live in a post-apocalyptic desert universe of betrayal and doom.