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graycardinalFor the puzzled: @crossworks is a successor to the previous @crossovering - both being fic exchanges devoted to the art and science of the crossover. What follows is the "Dear Santa" letter...
First of all, thank you. I'm really pleased to see this exchange arise phoenix-like from its predecessor; crossovers are a big part of my fanfictional universe as both a reader and writer, and I'm delighted to have an excuse to jump into this briar patch again.
This will be in four, count them four, parts this year, because it seemed to work well last time. So what you'll get first is the “why I’m here” spiel, followed by likes and dislikes, followed by canon-specific notes, followed by notes on my actual request-clusters.
Why I'm Here
Three words: flexibility, challenge, and surprise.
As a writer, I come for the challenge. While I’m careful to offer for fandoms I know I can write, I tend to offer them in combinations that I also know will stretch my internal idea generator and my storytelling muscles. And I’ve offered – and will continue to offer – fandoms in clusters of four or five so that I absolutely won’t know ahead of time what my matches will look like; much of the fun for me is in the range of what I might be asked to do. I want to be surprised by my recipient’s requests, and by the nature of the specific challenge facing me in any given year. Up to now, specific matching protocols notwithstanding, there’ve usually been several options open to me from among my recipients’ requests, and I hope that remains true this time around.
As a requester, I come bearing flexibility. As with offers, I tend to cluster my requests in groups of four or five, because – again, notwithstanding the specific match AO3’s Sorting Hat may generate – I want you to have choices too. In a way, I think of this as the thematic opposite of Yuletide, where we often do request specific heart-fandoms and hope for particular elements in the stories arising from them. Here, I am looking not for the story I’d write, or even the story I’d most like to read – rather, I’m looking for the story a given pair of crossed fandoms makes you write, because that’s most likely to be one I would never have thought of.
Thus, as both a writer and reader, I come to Crossworks for the surprise. I enjoy being surprised by the stories my muse draws from the match(es) I’m handed, and I very much enjoy being surprised by the stories your muse draws from the one(s) I’ve supplied for you. This is why I tend to give broad, general prompts rather than specific ones for this exchange. Having said that: if you would like more specific prompts than what I’ve supplied, please contact the mods, and I will cheerfully amplify on any of my individual request-clusters – which won’t spoil any surprises on either end, since only you will know the specific combo on which the original match was made.
Likes & Dislikes:
My tastes in fic are wide and eclectic -- I read and enjoy gen, het, and slash (both flavors) at all ratings and have very few outright squicks aside from noncon, incest, and adult-child kink, but I am not typically attracted to stories for erotic content or angst quotient. Rather, I like good characterization, authentic-sounding dialogue, effectively sneaky plotting, and well-developed wit. I am equally intrigued by clever use of canon and thoughtfully developed AUs, and I am disturbingly fond of crossovers [obvious much?] and well-woven meta threads.
As to romance: where crossovers are concerned, I'm hardly ever drawn to write one for pairing-related purposes, and within individual fandoms I normally gravitate to canon-consistent pairings -- but in the crossovers I read, I've been wowed by a startling range of intriguing cross-fannish relationships (up to and including Buffy Summers and a Ninja Turtle. That said, I add the observation that in my book, well-sustained UST (heavy on the T) is often as good as or better than actual sex, in crossovers as well as canonical relationships.
Broadly speaking, my interests run more toward crossovers than to fusions - although technically, quite a lot of my own work occupies the fuzzy middle of that diagram (that is, where both source canons exist "side by side" in the same background world, often with one source timeline shifted to some degree to allow the characters to encounter each other at a particular point in the merged timeline). That said, I’m absolutely not opposed to fusions, especially in some cases; there will be more about that in the request-cluster notes. And it's definitely true that my own writing also reflects the kinds of things I like to read; my AO3 archive is here, and you're welcome to prowl.
Fandom-Specific Notes
Unless the notes specify otherwise, assume I’ve seen or read all of a given series’ primary screened or published canon, but not any bonus/extra/sequel content (particularly including post-series comics).
Agent Carter
If you can, the closer in time you can keep to the aired two-season canon, the happier I am likely to be. I am in the camp of Endgame watchers who were puzzled and unhappy with the Cap/Peggy tie-off (I don't know what timeline that happens in, but it doesn't feel like the right one), and yet I am more a Peggy/Cap fan than anything else where romance is concerned. I'm not fond of Peggy/Sousa, and I think both Jarvis and Angie work best with Peggy as friends. I do think Peggy/Wilkes is way under-explored, though, I see why Peggy/Angie is popular, and season 2 does open a door through which Peggy/Ana/Jarvis is conceivable.
Ant-Man (Movies)
I'll be happy with a crossover anywhere in the timeline. If you go post-Endgame, feel free either to attempt canon-compliance or go wildly AU with fixits as your muse demands (mine, if & when, will definitely go AU, but you're in charge on this mission). Scott bonding with Cassie and/or Hope very much encouraged, and the more improbable and cartoonish the science gets, the more fun this is likely to be.
Carmen Sandiego (2019)
I've seen all that Netflix has given us - and any initial reservations on my part have proven utterly unfounded. This is *wonderful*; the update/respin is brilliant, the Easter Egg video in the interactive episode is a joy, and oh, the character work. I want to see way more of Shadow-san, more back story (and front story) for all the Acme characters (Julia especially), and possibly a bit more action for Player. The VILE crew? Deserves all the grief they can be handed, possibly from that *other* Acme where Wile E. orders his traps.
Castle
Great series so long as one stays clear of all the long-term "arc" plotlines (Johanna Beckett's murder, Bracken, Loksat, the missed wedding/amnesia wackiness, Castle's PI agency). I'm not a fan of Pi or Hayley, and convinced that "Jackson Hunt" is NOT Castle's father regardless of what canon thinks it says. The late-series writing for both Alexis and Martha gets increasingly weird; especially for Alexis, I'm open to post-canon material that better grounds her future in what we actually saw onscreen in the first half of the series. Crossover romance for either or both of Alexis & Martha is absolutely OK if you have ideas in that direction.
Dracula - Saberhagen Of the Saberhagen books, I tend to like the Sherlock Holmes adventures better than the modern episodes ("I congratulate you on thinking of wooden bullets" is one of the great all-time comeback lines in adventure fiction), but I also very much like the potential for Saberhagen's Dracula to turn up in the modern world when a sufficiently nasty threat gives him a reason. And I was delighted last year to have someone write me a crossover explaining why Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes are still alive in the 21st century, by way of this series.
Doctor Who (2005)
Thanks to the recent no-frills releases, I now actually own the complete run of Doctors Nine through Thirteen on disc (thank you, BBC Video!); there are gaps in what I've *watched*, but I'm reasonably conversant with the overall arcs. Sadly, I am *not* well-versed in the Big Finish audio canon, so you'll be best not drawing closely on that material. Of the modern Doctors, I am fondest of Ten, least fond of Nine, and fascinated by Thirteen. Missy is the first modern Master I've warmed to. I'd love to see more of new!UNIT with Kate & Osgood (any of her); also, I will always enjoy the Doctor rambling in Earth history. Companion-wise, I'm least partial to Rose and Donna, and delighted with any and all pre-Nine companion drop-ins (esp. Sarah Jane & K-9).
Gargoyles
I have not managed to keep up with the post-series comics. OTOH, I have prowled extensively in the online reference wikis while researching my own fics and so have broad general knowledge of what has come before and since the events of the show as aired.
Indiana Jones (Movies)
I mostly liked Crystal Skull, but I'm OK with overlooking it if your muse prefers.
Jumanji
I have actually *not* seen the original movie with Robin Williams (yet; clearly This Must Be Remedied). I came in with the first of the modern sequels, and was delighted with both that film and the more recent The Next Level. I'm fascinated by the combination of game-savviness and wide-eyed wonder that these movies have shown; the characters know how game plots work, but are often not as familiar as they should be with actual old-school swashbucklers and genre conventions. Fic set either inside the Jumanji-verse or in the external world is welcome (and fic that digs into the underlying mystery of just how the worlds are connected, very much likewise).
Leverage
I am a latecomer here in the formal sense, but have been hovering around the show's edges for years, and have now assimilated most of canon plus some of the tie-in novels and a good deal of fanfic. Caper yarns have always been my jam - "Let's go steal a [whatever]" - is never a bad pickup line - and I am on board for most of the popular fannish pairings/OT3s, etc. The best thing about this team? No matter how weird things get, they don't (visibly) lose their game faces, so it's fun to test the limits of the weirdness quotient.
Miraculous Ladybug
Have seen all episodes to date via Netflix, but not all the extra content via YouTube and such, and waded into some of the great swath of fic. I like the crossover potential here a lot, but am enough of a worldbuilding nerd to worry about making one work on a logistic/character level. Four notes: (1) I agree with the school of fanon that thinks Our Heroes are at least 16 by the end of season 3 (or 5, by 'Flix-count); (2) my pairing-of-choice is Adrienette, though I'm not opposed to adding Kagami as OT3; (3) as needed for crossovers, I'm on board for historical/AU OCs as alternate Miraculous wielders in other times/places; (4) I'm very curious as to how Miraculous Cure might work (or not work) where no akuma is in play (i.e. a crossover villain).
Mrs. Pollifax - Gilman
Have read all the books plus most of the rest of the Gilman canon; sadly, have never seen the TV movie where Angela Lansbury played Emily (the local station bumped it for *golf*, damnit!). Like the Leverage team, I see Emily's great virtue as her unflappability - no matter what you throw at her, she will apply common sense, home-made baked goods, and/or karate to as needed.
Pirates of the Caribbean
I have seen all five films (that last one was *weird*, folks!); I'm in this one for both the swashbuckling and the mythic elements. Preference for the Will-and-Elizabeth character cluster and/or Jack over the rest of the pirates (well, except Captain Barbossa) and the Navy crowd - I never did warm to Norrington, I'm afraid.
Robin Hood
I grew up on the Howard Pyle version and similar collections, with side trips into the animated Disney take and various of the screen incarnations (though not, oddly enough, any of the British TV series). I actually liked Prince of Thieves...but also Men In Tights, although I think the earlier When Things Were Rotten may in fact have been funnier. And the very first story I wrote for Yuletide was a Robin Hood yarn. While I am intrigued by the various takes on Robin that associate him with Herne and other mythic powers, I think Robin Hood works best when magical elements are handled with a relatively light hand - though that rule is bendable where crossovers are concerned. And I am very much a fan of Robin's whole ensemble of Merry Men plus Marian.
Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010)
Note that we're talking Nicholas Cage here, not Mickey Mouse; I liked this movie quite a bit and would have been on board for a sequel. I'm particularly open here to fic set prior to the movie, with Balthazar active in whatever historical setting is needed for a crossover to happen.
Stargate SG-1
I'm conversant with the full series plus the two post-series movies, though my viewing of the last couple of seasons was rather scattershot (loved Vala, didn't care for the Ori at all). I have no strong pairing 'ships here, save perhaps for Jack/Sam if a situation allows for it. Bonus points for thoughtful reappearances of notable guest characters (esp. Cassandra, the alien girl adopted by Dr. Fraiser).
Tomorrowland
The whole "secret history" theme of this movie just oozes crossover potential. And for once I really do have a 'ship; Frank and Athena absolutely deserve a happier ending than they got onscreen. (I've had gift-fics that give them one, but there's always room for more.)
Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego (1994)
One of my all-time favorite animated series. The slow development of Carmen from pure mischief-maker to principled anti-hero is just fascinating, as is the texture of the relationship between Carmen and the Zack-&-Ivy partnership...and of course the open acknowledgment that they're all part of a game construct, even if it looks mostly like the actual world in animated form.
Young Wizards - Duane
I have and enjoy both the original and New Millennium texts right up through Games Wizards Play, plus the "extra" short pieces; feel free to use whichever continuity you need to make a crossover/fusion work.
Specific Requests
#1: Carmen Sandiego (2019) • Castle • Gargoyles • Stargate SG-1 • Young Wizards
We'll call this the "modern mischief" cluster. Three of the five are firmly grounded in modern New York, and the other two are geographically mobile, so no two should be difficult to shove into each other's orbits - what's entertaining is what happens when they intersect.
Key questions to ask: who in any of the other canons may already be a practicing wizard who's sworn the Oath and packs a manual? What if Castle had fixated on Elisa Maza rather than Kate Beckett? Could David Xanatos successfully pull one of his gambits on the Goa'uld (and/or how scary would it be for him to partner with Vala on some project or other)? Suppose Carmen and Vala find themselves going after the same McGuffin? Might Carmen lure Alexis Castle into a life of not-exactly-crime?
Other characters to look at for crossover potential: Martha from Castle, Macbeth and/or Owen from Gargoyles, Daniel Jackson from SG-1, Carmela from Young Wizards. (With specific regard to Martha and Macbeth, I would be mightily amused with the notion that Macbeth is actually Castle's father in that AU.)
#2: Agent Carter • Miraculous Ladybug • Mrs. Pollifax • Sorcerer's Apprentice • Where On Earth... (Carmen 1994)
Herewith the "Peabody's Improbable History" cluster; most of these canons have either a back story that allows for time travel or an established "secret history" in which elements of canon have existed unseen for long stretches of historical time. Note that the following suggestions run more toward fusions than crossovers, but straight crossovers are totally welcome.
So. Who would have wielded the Miraculous in Peggy Carter's New York (or Los Angeles)...or what might have happened if Master Fu had crossed paths with Balthazar Blake somewhere in their respective travels? Come to that, suppose Balthazar was the Guardian instead of Master Fu - how would that rearrange the Miraculous Ladybug universe? What if Emily Pollifax had applied to work for SHIELD rather than the CIA? What happens if Zack and Ivy, rather than Dave, pull the cork on Balthazar's prison - or if '90s-Carmen goes after something Balthazar is guarding? Alternately, what happens if the detectives going after '90s-Carmen are Adrien and Marinette rather than Zack and Ivy (with or without associated Miraculi)?
#3: Doctor Who (2005) • Dracula (Saberhagen) • Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle • Pirates of the Caribbean • Robin Hood T
his one is nominally the "classic swashbuckling" cluster - I'm assuming, for the purposes of the adventure, that it's a relatively easy handwave to connect the inner Jumanji-verse up to the nominally "real" historical eras of Robin Hood and Jack Sparrow, or to drop your chosen Doctor or honor-driven Count into any of the swash-settings. Perhaps an artifact out of the Doctor's (or Jack Sparrow's, or even Dracula's) history is the original reason the Jumanji game-verse gets spun off into its own dimension. And there's certainly a story in Robin Hood unknowingly setting his peasant-enriching sights any of (a) a notorious pirate, (b) an eccentric traveller, or (c) a wealthy aristocrat (vampire? who's a vampire?) who just wants to be left alone.
#4: Ant-Man (movies) • Carmen Sandiego (2019) • Castle • Indiana Jones • Tomorrowland
And this is the "odds and ends" cluster - a bit more secret history, a lot of flashy but improbable tech, and lots of adventurers who don't hesitate to snark at one another.
Here I am looking for Carmen and the Ant-crew on competing sides of a suitably complicated heist; for Indy (or maybe Hank Pym) to get recruited into the Tomorrowland project long before the events of the movie as we saw it; for Castle to latch onto one of Indy's old McGuffins as a launch point for a modern case (bonus points for Indy and Senior showing up courtesy of Grail-drinking benefits); for Athena, post-movie, to hand Alexis Castle one of *those* coins; for Carmen and her crew to stop VILE from invading Tomorrowland, possibly with help from as many of these canons as you care to connect; for Castle to accidentally learn Scott's secret identity, leading to a situation where Rick briefly lands in the Ant-suit.
////
If, after all that, you need more prompts or direction on what to do with a particular set of source canons, don't hesitate to ping the moderator(s) with questions for me. But trust me; for this exchange, I really do want to be surprised, and I don't doubt that nearly all the surprises will be good ones.
[complete! edition]
First of all, thank you. I'm really pleased to see this exchange arise phoenix-like from its predecessor; crossovers are a big part of my fanfictional universe as both a reader and writer, and I'm delighted to have an excuse to jump into this briar patch again.
This will be in four, count them four, parts this year, because it seemed to work well last time. So what you'll get first is the “why I’m here” spiel, followed by likes and dislikes, followed by canon-specific notes, followed by notes on my actual request-clusters.
Why I'm Here
Three words: flexibility, challenge, and surprise.
As a writer, I come for the challenge. While I’m careful to offer for fandoms I know I can write, I tend to offer them in combinations that I also know will stretch my internal idea generator and my storytelling muscles. And I’ve offered – and will continue to offer – fandoms in clusters of four or five so that I absolutely won’t know ahead of time what my matches will look like; much of the fun for me is in the range of what I might be asked to do. I want to be surprised by my recipient’s requests, and by the nature of the specific challenge facing me in any given year. Up to now, specific matching protocols notwithstanding, there’ve usually been several options open to me from among my recipients’ requests, and I hope that remains true this time around.
As a requester, I come bearing flexibility. As with offers, I tend to cluster my requests in groups of four or five, because – again, notwithstanding the specific match AO3’s Sorting Hat may generate – I want you to have choices too. In a way, I think of this as the thematic opposite of Yuletide, where we often do request specific heart-fandoms and hope for particular elements in the stories arising from them. Here, I am looking not for the story I’d write, or even the story I’d most like to read – rather, I’m looking for the story a given pair of crossed fandoms makes you write, because that’s most likely to be one I would never have thought of.
Thus, as both a writer and reader, I come to Crossworks for the surprise. I enjoy being surprised by the stories my muse draws from the match(es) I’m handed, and I very much enjoy being surprised by the stories your muse draws from the one(s) I’ve supplied for you. This is why I tend to give broad, general prompts rather than specific ones for this exchange. Having said that: if you would like more specific prompts than what I’ve supplied, please contact the mods, and I will cheerfully amplify on any of my individual request-clusters – which won’t spoil any surprises on either end, since only you will know the specific combo on which the original match was made.
Likes & Dislikes:
My tastes in fic are wide and eclectic -- I read and enjoy gen, het, and slash (both flavors) at all ratings and have very few outright squicks aside from noncon, incest, and adult-child kink, but I am not typically attracted to stories for erotic content or angst quotient. Rather, I like good characterization, authentic-sounding dialogue, effectively sneaky plotting, and well-developed wit. I am equally intrigued by clever use of canon and thoughtfully developed AUs, and I am disturbingly fond of crossovers [obvious much?] and well-woven meta threads.
As to romance: where crossovers are concerned, I'm hardly ever drawn to write one for pairing-related purposes, and within individual fandoms I normally gravitate to canon-consistent pairings -- but in the crossovers I read, I've been wowed by a startling range of intriguing cross-fannish relationships (up to and including Buffy Summers and a Ninja Turtle. That said, I add the observation that in my book, well-sustained UST (heavy on the T) is often as good as or better than actual sex, in crossovers as well as canonical relationships.
Broadly speaking, my interests run more toward crossovers than to fusions - although technically, quite a lot of my own work occupies the fuzzy middle of that diagram (that is, where both source canons exist "side by side" in the same background world, often with one source timeline shifted to some degree to allow the characters to encounter each other at a particular point in the merged timeline). That said, I’m absolutely not opposed to fusions, especially in some cases; there will be more about that in the request-cluster notes. And it's definitely true that my own writing also reflects the kinds of things I like to read; my AO3 archive is here, and you're welcome to prowl.
Fandom-Specific Notes
Unless the notes specify otherwise, assume I’ve seen or read all of a given series’ primary screened or published canon, but not any bonus/extra/sequel content (particularly including post-series comics).
Agent Carter
If you can, the closer in time you can keep to the aired two-season canon, the happier I am likely to be. I am in the camp of Endgame watchers who were puzzled and unhappy with the Cap/Peggy tie-off (I don't know what timeline that happens in, but it doesn't feel like the right one), and yet I am more a Peggy/Cap fan than anything else where romance is concerned. I'm not fond of Peggy/Sousa, and I think both Jarvis and Angie work best with Peggy as friends. I do think Peggy/Wilkes is way under-explored, though, I see why Peggy/Angie is popular, and season 2 does open a door through which Peggy/Ana/Jarvis is conceivable.
Ant-Man (Movies)
I'll be happy with a crossover anywhere in the timeline. If you go post-Endgame, feel free either to attempt canon-compliance or go wildly AU with fixits as your muse demands (mine, if & when, will definitely go AU, but you're in charge on this mission). Scott bonding with Cassie and/or Hope very much encouraged, and the more improbable and cartoonish the science gets, the more fun this is likely to be.
Carmen Sandiego (2019)
I've seen all that Netflix has given us - and any initial reservations on my part have proven utterly unfounded. This is *wonderful*; the update/respin is brilliant, the Easter Egg video in the interactive episode is a joy, and oh, the character work. I want to see way more of Shadow-san, more back story (and front story) for all the Acme characters (Julia especially), and possibly a bit more action for Player. The VILE crew? Deserves all the grief they can be handed, possibly from that *other* Acme where Wile E. orders his traps.
Castle
Great series so long as one stays clear of all the long-term "arc" plotlines (Johanna Beckett's murder, Bracken, Loksat, the missed wedding/amnesia wackiness, Castle's PI agency). I'm not a fan of Pi or Hayley, and convinced that "Jackson Hunt" is NOT Castle's father regardless of what canon thinks it says. The late-series writing for both Alexis and Martha gets increasingly weird; especially for Alexis, I'm open to post-canon material that better grounds her future in what we actually saw onscreen in the first half of the series. Crossover romance for either or both of Alexis & Martha is absolutely OK if you have ideas in that direction.
Dracula - Saberhagen Of the Saberhagen books, I tend to like the Sherlock Holmes adventures better than the modern episodes ("I congratulate you on thinking of wooden bullets" is one of the great all-time comeback lines in adventure fiction), but I also very much like the potential for Saberhagen's Dracula to turn up in the modern world when a sufficiently nasty threat gives him a reason. And I was delighted last year to have someone write me a crossover explaining why Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes are still alive in the 21st century, by way of this series.
Doctor Who (2005)
Thanks to the recent no-frills releases, I now actually own the complete run of Doctors Nine through Thirteen on disc (thank you, BBC Video!); there are gaps in what I've *watched*, but I'm reasonably conversant with the overall arcs. Sadly, I am *not* well-versed in the Big Finish audio canon, so you'll be best not drawing closely on that material. Of the modern Doctors, I am fondest of Ten, least fond of Nine, and fascinated by Thirteen. Missy is the first modern Master I've warmed to. I'd love to see more of new!UNIT with Kate & Osgood (any of her); also, I will always enjoy the Doctor rambling in Earth history. Companion-wise, I'm least partial to Rose and Donna, and delighted with any and all pre-Nine companion drop-ins (esp. Sarah Jane & K-9).
Gargoyles
I have not managed to keep up with the post-series comics. OTOH, I have prowled extensively in the online reference wikis while researching my own fics and so have broad general knowledge of what has come before and since the events of the show as aired.
Indiana Jones (Movies)
I mostly liked Crystal Skull, but I'm OK with overlooking it if your muse prefers.
Jumanji
I have actually *not* seen the original movie with Robin Williams (yet; clearly This Must Be Remedied). I came in with the first of the modern sequels, and was delighted with both that film and the more recent The Next Level. I'm fascinated by the combination of game-savviness and wide-eyed wonder that these movies have shown; the characters know how game plots work, but are often not as familiar as they should be with actual old-school swashbucklers and genre conventions. Fic set either inside the Jumanji-verse or in the external world is welcome (and fic that digs into the underlying mystery of just how the worlds are connected, very much likewise).
Leverage
I am a latecomer here in the formal sense, but have been hovering around the show's edges for years, and have now assimilated most of canon plus some of the tie-in novels and a good deal of fanfic. Caper yarns have always been my jam - "Let's go steal a [whatever]" - is never a bad pickup line - and I am on board for most of the popular fannish pairings/OT3s, etc. The best thing about this team? No matter how weird things get, they don't (visibly) lose their game faces, so it's fun to test the limits of the weirdness quotient.
Miraculous Ladybug
Have seen all episodes to date via Netflix, but not all the extra content via YouTube and such, and waded into some of the great swath of fic. I like the crossover potential here a lot, but am enough of a worldbuilding nerd to worry about making one work on a logistic/character level. Four notes: (1) I agree with the school of fanon that thinks Our Heroes are at least 16 by the end of season 3 (or 5, by 'Flix-count); (2) my pairing-of-choice is Adrienette, though I'm not opposed to adding Kagami as OT3; (3) as needed for crossovers, I'm on board for historical/AU OCs as alternate Miraculous wielders in other times/places; (4) I'm very curious as to how Miraculous Cure might work (or not work) where no akuma is in play (i.e. a crossover villain).
Mrs. Pollifax - Gilman
Have read all the books plus most of the rest of the Gilman canon; sadly, have never seen the TV movie where Angela Lansbury played Emily (the local station bumped it for *golf*, damnit!). Like the Leverage team, I see Emily's great virtue as her unflappability - no matter what you throw at her, she will apply common sense, home-made baked goods, and/or karate to as needed.
Pirates of the Caribbean
I have seen all five films (that last one was *weird*, folks!); I'm in this one for both the swashbuckling and the mythic elements. Preference for the Will-and-Elizabeth character cluster and/or Jack over the rest of the pirates (well, except Captain Barbossa) and the Navy crowd - I never did warm to Norrington, I'm afraid.
Robin Hood
I grew up on the Howard Pyle version and similar collections, with side trips into the animated Disney take and various of the screen incarnations (though not, oddly enough, any of the British TV series). I actually liked Prince of Thieves...but also Men In Tights, although I think the earlier When Things Were Rotten may in fact have been funnier. And the very first story I wrote for Yuletide was a Robin Hood yarn. While I am intrigued by the various takes on Robin that associate him with Herne and other mythic powers, I think Robin Hood works best when magical elements are handled with a relatively light hand - though that rule is bendable where crossovers are concerned. And I am very much a fan of Robin's whole ensemble of Merry Men plus Marian.
Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010)
Note that we're talking Nicholas Cage here, not Mickey Mouse; I liked this movie quite a bit and would have been on board for a sequel. I'm particularly open here to fic set prior to the movie, with Balthazar active in whatever historical setting is needed for a crossover to happen.
Stargate SG-1
I'm conversant with the full series plus the two post-series movies, though my viewing of the last couple of seasons was rather scattershot (loved Vala, didn't care for the Ori at all). I have no strong pairing 'ships here, save perhaps for Jack/Sam if a situation allows for it. Bonus points for thoughtful reappearances of notable guest characters (esp. Cassandra, the alien girl adopted by Dr. Fraiser).
Tomorrowland
The whole "secret history" theme of this movie just oozes crossover potential. And for once I really do have a 'ship; Frank and Athena absolutely deserve a happier ending than they got onscreen. (I've had gift-fics that give them one, but there's always room for more.)
Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego (1994)
One of my all-time favorite animated series. The slow development of Carmen from pure mischief-maker to principled anti-hero is just fascinating, as is the texture of the relationship between Carmen and the Zack-&-Ivy partnership...and of course the open acknowledgment that they're all part of a game construct, even if it looks mostly like the actual world in animated form.
Young Wizards - Duane
I have and enjoy both the original and New Millennium texts right up through Games Wizards Play, plus the "extra" short pieces; feel free to use whichever continuity you need to make a crossover/fusion work.
Specific Requests
#1: Carmen Sandiego (2019) • Castle • Gargoyles • Stargate SG-1 • Young Wizards
We'll call this the "modern mischief" cluster. Three of the five are firmly grounded in modern New York, and the other two are geographically mobile, so no two should be difficult to shove into each other's orbits - what's entertaining is what happens when they intersect.
Key questions to ask: who in any of the other canons may already be a practicing wizard who's sworn the Oath and packs a manual? What if Castle had fixated on Elisa Maza rather than Kate Beckett? Could David Xanatos successfully pull one of his gambits on the Goa'uld (and/or how scary would it be for him to partner with Vala on some project or other)? Suppose Carmen and Vala find themselves going after the same McGuffin? Might Carmen lure Alexis Castle into a life of not-exactly-crime?
Other characters to look at for crossover potential: Martha from Castle, Macbeth and/or Owen from Gargoyles, Daniel Jackson from SG-1, Carmela from Young Wizards. (With specific regard to Martha and Macbeth, I would be mightily amused with the notion that Macbeth is actually Castle's father in that AU.)
#2: Agent Carter • Miraculous Ladybug • Mrs. Pollifax • Sorcerer's Apprentice • Where On Earth... (Carmen 1994)
Herewith the "Peabody's Improbable History" cluster; most of these canons have either a back story that allows for time travel or an established "secret history" in which elements of canon have existed unseen for long stretches of historical time. Note that the following suggestions run more toward fusions than crossovers, but straight crossovers are totally welcome.
So. Who would have wielded the Miraculous in Peggy Carter's New York (or Los Angeles)...or what might have happened if Master Fu had crossed paths with Balthazar Blake somewhere in their respective travels? Come to that, suppose Balthazar was the Guardian instead of Master Fu - how would that rearrange the Miraculous Ladybug universe? What if Emily Pollifax had applied to work for SHIELD rather than the CIA? What happens if Zack and Ivy, rather than Dave, pull the cork on Balthazar's prison - or if '90s-Carmen goes after something Balthazar is guarding? Alternately, what happens if the detectives going after '90s-Carmen are Adrien and Marinette rather than Zack and Ivy (with or without associated Miraculi)?
#3: Doctor Who (2005) • Dracula (Saberhagen) • Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle • Pirates of the Caribbean • Robin Hood T
his one is nominally the "classic swashbuckling" cluster - I'm assuming, for the purposes of the adventure, that it's a relatively easy handwave to connect the inner Jumanji-verse up to the nominally "real" historical eras of Robin Hood and Jack Sparrow, or to drop your chosen Doctor or honor-driven Count into any of the swash-settings. Perhaps an artifact out of the Doctor's (or Jack Sparrow's, or even Dracula's) history is the original reason the Jumanji game-verse gets spun off into its own dimension. And there's certainly a story in Robin Hood unknowingly setting his peasant-enriching sights any of (a) a notorious pirate, (b) an eccentric traveller, or (c) a wealthy aristocrat (vampire? who's a vampire?) who just wants to be left alone.
#4: Ant-Man (movies) • Carmen Sandiego (2019) • Castle • Indiana Jones • Tomorrowland
And this is the "odds and ends" cluster - a bit more secret history, a lot of flashy but improbable tech, and lots of adventurers who don't hesitate to snark at one another.
Here I am looking for Carmen and the Ant-crew on competing sides of a suitably complicated heist; for Indy (or maybe Hank Pym) to get recruited into the Tomorrowland project long before the events of the movie as we saw it; for Castle to latch onto one of Indy's old McGuffins as a launch point for a modern case (bonus points for Indy and Senior showing up courtesy of Grail-drinking benefits); for Athena, post-movie, to hand Alexis Castle one of *those* coins; for Carmen and her crew to stop VILE from invading Tomorrowland, possibly with help from as many of these canons as you care to connect; for Castle to accidentally learn Scott's secret identity, leading to a situation where Rick briefly lands in the Ant-suit.
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If, after all that, you need more prompts or direction on what to do with a particular set of source canons, don't hesitate to ping the moderator(s) with questions for me. But trust me; for this exchange, I really do want to be surprised, and I don't doubt that nearly all the surprises will be good ones.
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