Rec: For Each Ecstatic Instant

[brainofck]

For Each Ecstatic Instant.

Jack and Daniel in an angst fest to beat nearly every angst fest ever. That SB/OB thing is the only one I can think of to top it.

I blame green_grrl for pointing a moody pregnant woman in the direction of such a flagrant heartbreaker. At least the SB/OB thing had a more or less happy ending.

*snuffles off*

UPDATE: Also, this inspires me to leave my first drabble series exactly as it is, with no fluffing the ending after all. Probably the closest thing I'll ever get to this kind of perfect angst. I'm such a wimp.

Comments

[mresundance.livejournal.com]

'and marvel at such perfect death'

/random Deborah Randall.

Angst is hard and kinda evil, especially when you generally want to believe in the best for humanity as a writer, and therefore, have a hard time writing the worst for pups or characters.

But bah!

[brainofck.livejournal.com]

And yet, as you in particular probably know, sometimes it's what two characters are all about.

[mresundance.livejournal.com]

True enough. But you still hates it nonetheless.

*eyeballs my in-denial nihilists shambling drunkenly to their own uncertain dooms*

[green-grrl.livejournal.com]

Hah! And I am reccing Angst on stargateficrec this month, so I just reread FEEI last night. And cried. Again.

So far I notice that J/D angst comes in flavors of 1) death, 2) physical separation (stranding, etc.), 3) "we can't do this" (because of regs, because of being married), or 4) unrequited love. Other angsts (UST, H/C, fight and break up) are "fixable." Angst that kills me is the no-hopers.

The drabble series is obviously falling under #3 right now, but it's also not completely a no-hoper. Mainly because Teal'c and Sam are right. Maybe Daniel doesn't think they can take that step forward, but things can't stay status quo, either. So there. :-P

(Dare I ask which SB/OB thing you are referring to?)

[brainofck.livejournal.com]

No Sweet Refrain (http://www.secret-panel.net/refrain1.html).

It has two big problems that make it as a piece slightly less perfect than For Each Ecstatic Instant. First, I cannot imagine any two people being this unable to communicate. Maybe that's a "not you, it's me" type problem, but it really makes it difficult to suspend disbelief. Second, there is a section during which Orli is actively contemplating killing himself. Man. I CANNOT STAND when writers do that. I bet Orlando Bloom has never in his life EVER considered killing himself. (I will make an exception for right after his accident, when any normal person might be scared to death of never walking again.)

[green-grrl.livejournal.com]

Oh, thanks for that link -- I'd forgotten about that story!

On the one hand, I don't find it as much as a gut-ripper, probably because it's not a no-hoper. (Though another one with a happy ending, mirabile_dictu's The Amateur Naturalist, still gets me sobbing every time.)

On the other hand, the flaws don't seem quite as strong to me because the writing is so good. Yeah, I hate the 13-year-old plotting where you just want to smack the writer and say no one is that screwed up at communication. This story was borderline, but it was in the classic bloke!Sean trope, so... Their miscommunication does drag out for a horrendously long time though.

Also, I didn't read Orlando as actively considering suicide. I think that subconsciously he was trying to figure out how to escape his pain, but that if he had realized what he was doing, he would have been horrified and straightened himself up quickly. Again with the 13-year-old plotting, suicide, cutting, bulimia stories -- oy, please!

p.s.

[green-grrl.livejournal.com]

So, pregnant lady, be sure not to read Willamakee off my recs page. That is the angstiest J/D fic ever. Unmade is a killer, too. There are actually a couple more I can't stand to put on my recs page even though they haunt me, because they hurt too much.

[demilo19.livejournal.com]

For Each Ecstatic Instant


I have that bookmarked and saved even though I know that I can never read it again. Seriously, I was DESTROYED after reading it. I remember finishing it, going "Huh, that sucks" getting up from my computer to get some tea and then falling down crying. Delayed reaction of the sucker punch variety. The more I thought over the story, the more it crippled me. Excellent rec but only if you feel the need to be utterly ripped apart...and hey, sometimes that is needed.