My QaF story
I’m not sure, but I don’t think I ever posted about how I found Queer as Folk. It’s not really exciting, but if you’re interested,
I was well and truly into the Buffy fandom for many years. I found ‘fanfic.net’ (I think that was the name of it) and went crazy reading Spuffy fanfiction. That’s Spike/Buffy for those of you not familiar with the show. And yes, I was reading het sex. But Buffy was always beating up on him because he was a vampire, and then jumping on his dick, and then hating him again, and it got old pretty quickly. But that’s all that was out there, wasn’t it?
-As a side note, this is where I learned to be very cautious about starting WIPs, but that’s a story for a different day. Do I still sound a tad bitter all these years later? You bet your sweet ass I am!
So anyway, I read all there was to read Spuffy-wise, and clicked on a story ‘staring’ Spike and Angel. That would be Spangel, just so you’re up on the lingo. Isn’t fandom adorable? So Spike and Angel are two hot vampires that have a real intense love/hate relationship (and I’m definitely not going that into here). This volatile relationship leads to much vigorous and energetic sex between (shock! gasp!) two men. Not only was the sex phenomenal, vampires apparently have no refractory period. So, see? Educational, too! So it was Spangel that introduced me to M/M sex, and most of the terminology that goes with it. (Yes, I’m thinking it too. Now I knew what rimming was!)
Then a strange thing happened. I read a story that made me… to say it made me upset is an understatement. It was painful, and intense, and they killed my Spike, and do you realize how much torture an evil undead creature can withstand before finally succumbing? I was shaken to my foundation. So much so that I actually stopped reading fanfiction for a while.
-Another side note, this was obviously my first encounter with Major Character Death, but I don’t remember if it was labeled as such. I’ve never had a MCD effect me the same way since.
Of course I started missing my daily Spike fix. I was hesitant to go back to fanfic.net, so I tried out this Live Journal place I had seen mentioned. I had bookmarked a few places, names I had seen mentioned frequently. Almost immediately I knew, this was where I belonged. But this lady I had bookmarked didn’t write much Spangel. No, she wrote Spander. Spike and Xander. Hmmm, ok, not canon, but I’ll give it a shot. I had found nirvana! Spike didn’t belong with Buffy or Angel! That’s why he was always lashing out and having nasty, violent sex. He was waiting for his Xander to come along. The weak, bumbling, but oh-so-loveable human and the sexy bleached-blond vampire with the killer cheekbones were meant to be.
-Don’t you just love side notes? It was during my Spander period that I realized that these fanfiction authors frequently wrote better that the writers of the TV shows themselves. They definitely wrote with more care and attention to detail. All we ask for (besides hot sex) is a little continuity!
I’m a good two or three years or so into my adoration of Spander and I’ve become a well known lurker at all my favorite journals. But I keep seeing these new names popping up here and there. Brian and Justin. Who the fuck are they? They had no connection to Spander, so I just tuned them out. But more and more the names showed up until the inevitable happened. The Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Queer as Folk crossover fic. Of course I read it. A Hellmouth opening under Babylon was a perfectly acceptable plot line and it was Spike and Xander to the rescue of Liberty Avenue.
And to my amazement, I wondered who this Brian guy was. He seemed like my kind of guy! Also, Emmett was a hoot. But I didn’t have Showtime so I went back to my Spander and I was really quite content.
Until Showtime broadcast a “free preview weekend”.
-Is anyone still with me here?
I was bored on Saturday night and, what the hell, I flipped on Queer as Folk. It was episode 509. My first impression was, of course, that Brian was the most beautiful man I’d ever seen in my life. I remember Justin and Jennifer in Justin’s studio and Brian and Michael fighting, but they’re just kind of snapshots now. It’s never been one of my favorite episodes. It was the previews for the following week that got me. A bomb was going to go off! Oooh! But no, I refused to be sucked in to another show.
The next day, Sunday, I went out with my bro (R) and his partner (S). I innocently asked if they had ever watched this show, Queer as Folk. I’ll never forget it, my brother rolled his eyes and S’s entire face lit up like a Christmas tree! Turns out, S was completely and totally in love with Brian and Justin. My brother was in love with S and tolerant of the show. Next came the bartering and begging. See, I explained my interest and fascination to S. He explained that he had watched since day one, it was his favorite show and he owned all the DVD’s. “No shit. All of them?” Around this point my bro started laughing, because he knew what was coming. S wouldn’t let the DVD’s out of his hot little hands. No way, no how. I pleaded and begged and offered my Buffy DVDs as ransom. He started caving when I explained how nice it would be to have someone to talk to about it, someone that shared his passion and didn’t just tolerate it. He would let me borrow them, one set at a time. That night, ep 510 was to air. I decided not to watch it so I wasn’t spoiled.
The next night, Monday, the bro dropped off the first box of DVD’s. I started watching immediately and wondered what the hell I had gotten myself into. I can honestly say that on first viewing, I wasn’t completely sold. Brian was an asshole, Justin was an annoying brat, Michael was whining, Ted was mean, and Debbie was so over the top I couldn’t take her seriously. I loved Emmett immediately.
But I didn’t give up. I had promised S and I intended to keep that promise even if I had to lie about it. I kept watching and by episode 3 or 4 I was starting to fall in love with the characters and not just in lust with Brian. I think my turning point was Brian storming into Gus’ bris and putting a stop to it.
My goal was to catch up to “real time” and be able to discuss the series finale with S. I lived Qaf for that 3 week period. I worked two jobs, kept up my own shit, and put all my regular TV viewing on hold. Did I mention that I called the cable company at this time and ordered Showtime and OnDemand. See, the only way to see the earlier eps of season 5 was to watch it on OnDemand. So before I left for work, I would set up my VCR to tape an episode of S5 for when I got to that point. Obsessed? Naaah! I finished 512 with 20 minutes to spare before the finale, I shit you not.
My first reaction to the end of 513 was pure WTF, but, really, I was in QaF overload at that time. I kept thinking, I hurried for this? So Brian can go right back to being season one Brian? Angry and alone? Where was his Sunshine? I called S to discuss, and my bro said he couldn’t come to the phone, he was still crying. So I sat with no one to talk to about it and moped. Until the next day when I remembered Live Journal!
I later went back and rewatched everything at a relaxing pace. Oh, did I not mention that I ordered all four seasons at one shot? The checkbook wasn’t very happy that month. I enjoyed it much more with out the clock ticking.
I lurked for quite a while here, before finally taking the plunge. I told The Ex that I even had a user name picked out, and one of these days I’m going to do it. It was him that started filling out my userpage. He wanted to make it "brians_walk", but I was fairly adamant about being too lazy to put in the little doo-hicky. brianswalk was born.
I can watch season 5 now, with no problem, but it is my least favorite season. The only character that wasn’t an annoying, preaching, wishy-washy dickwad was Emmett. Oh, there are bits and pieces that I love, and parts that make me cringe (golden gardenias? really?), but overall I don’t think it’s as bad as some say. But when episode 513 comes on, I stop the DVD when Brian is sitting on the edge of the bed smoking a cigarette and contemplating going to see Justin that weekend or the next. *nods* Yup, that’s how it ended.
It’s almost midnight here and my “weekend” will be over. I’m completely overwhelmed by the response I got to this comm. With less that two weeks notice, you guys pulled out your little bags ’o tricks and lit up Live Journal with the fun, the memories, the love of a silly little show called Queer as Folk. I thank you all.
It’s going to take me days (this time of year, maybe weeks!) to catch up on all the wonderful posts you’ve submitted. I haven’t even looked at the comments to my offerings yet! I apologize, I’ll get to you soon!
People keep thanking me for doing this, but really, I didn’t do much. It was all of you and your love that made this weekend an amazing smash hit. This is yours! I hope you’ve had as much fun as I have!
I was well and truly into the Buffy fandom for many years. I found ‘fanfic.net’ (I think that was the name of it) and went crazy reading Spuffy fanfiction. That’s Spike/Buffy for those of you not familiar with the show. And yes, I was reading het sex. But Buffy was always beating up on him because he was a vampire, and then jumping on his dick, and then hating him again, and it got old pretty quickly. But that’s all that was out there, wasn’t it?
-As a side note, this is where I learned to be very cautious about starting WIPs, but that’s a story for a different day. Do I still sound a tad bitter all these years later? You bet your sweet ass I am!
So anyway, I read all there was to read Spuffy-wise, and clicked on a story ‘staring’ Spike and Angel. That would be Spangel, just so you’re up on the lingo. Isn’t fandom adorable? So Spike and Angel are two hot vampires that have a real intense love/hate relationship (and I’m definitely not going that into here). This volatile relationship leads to much vigorous and energetic sex between (shock! gasp!) two men. Not only was the sex phenomenal, vampires apparently have no refractory period. So, see? Educational, too! So it was Spangel that introduced me to M/M sex, and most of the terminology that goes with it. (Yes, I’m thinking it too. Now I knew what rimming was!)
Then a strange thing happened. I read a story that made me… to say it made me upset is an understatement. It was painful, and intense, and they killed my Spike, and do you realize how much torture an evil undead creature can withstand before finally succumbing? I was shaken to my foundation. So much so that I actually stopped reading fanfiction for a while.
-Another side note, this was obviously my first encounter with Major Character Death, but I don’t remember if it was labeled as such. I’ve never had a MCD effect me the same way since.
Of course I started missing my daily Spike fix. I was hesitant to go back to fanfic.net, so I tried out this Live Journal place I had seen mentioned. I had bookmarked a few places, names I had seen mentioned frequently. Almost immediately I knew, this was where I belonged. But this lady I had bookmarked didn’t write much Spangel. No, she wrote Spander. Spike and Xander. Hmmm, ok, not canon, but I’ll give it a shot. I had found nirvana! Spike didn’t belong with Buffy or Angel! That’s why he was always lashing out and having nasty, violent sex. He was waiting for his Xander to come along. The weak, bumbling, but oh-so-loveable human and the sexy bleached-blond vampire with the killer cheekbones were meant to be.
-Don’t you just love side notes? It was during my Spander period that I realized that these fanfiction authors frequently wrote better that the writers of the TV shows themselves. They definitely wrote with more care and attention to detail. All we ask for (besides hot sex) is a little continuity!
I’m a good two or three years or so into my adoration of Spander and I’ve become a well known lurker at all my favorite journals. But I keep seeing these new names popping up here and there. Brian and Justin. Who the fuck are they? They had no connection to Spander, so I just tuned them out. But more and more the names showed up until the inevitable happened. The Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Queer as Folk crossover fic. Of course I read it. A Hellmouth opening under Babylon was a perfectly acceptable plot line and it was Spike and Xander to the rescue of Liberty Avenue.
And to my amazement, I wondered who this Brian guy was. He seemed like my kind of guy! Also, Emmett was a hoot. But I didn’t have Showtime so I went back to my Spander and I was really quite content.
Until Showtime broadcast a “free preview weekend”.
-Is anyone still with me here?
I was bored on Saturday night and, what the hell, I flipped on Queer as Folk. It was episode 509. My first impression was, of course, that Brian was the most beautiful man I’d ever seen in my life. I remember Justin and Jennifer in Justin’s studio and Brian and Michael fighting, but they’re just kind of snapshots now. It’s never been one of my favorite episodes. It was the previews for the following week that got me. A bomb was going to go off! Oooh! But no, I refused to be sucked in to another show.
The next day, Sunday, I went out with my bro (R) and his partner (S). I innocently asked if they had ever watched this show, Queer as Folk. I’ll never forget it, my brother rolled his eyes and S’s entire face lit up like a Christmas tree! Turns out, S was completely and totally in love with Brian and Justin. My brother was in love with S and tolerant of the show. Next came the bartering and begging. See, I explained my interest and fascination to S. He explained that he had watched since day one, it was his favorite show and he owned all the DVD’s. “No shit. All of them?” Around this point my bro started laughing, because he knew what was coming. S wouldn’t let the DVD’s out of his hot little hands. No way, no how. I pleaded and begged and offered my Buffy DVDs as ransom. He started caving when I explained how nice it would be to have someone to talk to about it, someone that shared his passion and didn’t just tolerate it. He would let me borrow them, one set at a time. That night, ep 510 was to air. I decided not to watch it so I wasn’t spoiled.
The next night, Monday, the bro dropped off the first box of DVD’s. I started watching immediately and wondered what the hell I had gotten myself into. I can honestly say that on first viewing, I wasn’t completely sold. Brian was an asshole, Justin was an annoying brat, Michael was whining, Ted was mean, and Debbie was so over the top I couldn’t take her seriously. I loved Emmett immediately.
But I didn’t give up. I had promised S and I intended to keep that promise even if I had to lie about it. I kept watching and by episode 3 or 4 I was starting to fall in love with the characters and not just in lust with Brian. I think my turning point was Brian storming into Gus’ bris and putting a stop to it.
My goal was to catch up to “real time” and be able to discuss the series finale with S. I lived Qaf for that 3 week period. I worked two jobs, kept up my own shit, and put all my regular TV viewing on hold. Did I mention that I called the cable company at this time and ordered Showtime and OnDemand. See, the only way to see the earlier eps of season 5 was to watch it on OnDemand. So before I left for work, I would set up my VCR to tape an episode of S5 for when I got to that point. Obsessed? Naaah! I finished 512 with 20 minutes to spare before the finale, I shit you not.
My first reaction to the end of 513 was pure WTF, but, really, I was in QaF overload at that time. I kept thinking, I hurried for this? So Brian can go right back to being season one Brian? Angry and alone? Where was his Sunshine? I called S to discuss, and my bro said he couldn’t come to the phone, he was still crying. So I sat with no one to talk to about it and moped. Until the next day when I remembered Live Journal!
I later went back and rewatched everything at a relaxing pace. Oh, did I not mention that I ordered all four seasons at one shot? The checkbook wasn’t very happy that month. I enjoyed it much more with out the clock ticking.
I lurked for quite a while here, before finally taking the plunge. I told The Ex that I even had a user name picked out, and one of these days I’m going to do it. It was him that started filling out my userpage. He wanted to make it "brians_walk", but I was fairly adamant about being too lazy to put in the little doo-hicky. brianswalk was born.
I can watch season 5 now, with no problem, but it is my least favorite season. The only character that wasn’t an annoying, preaching, wishy-washy dickwad was Emmett. Oh, there are bits and pieces that I love, and parts that make me cringe (golden gardenias? really?), but overall I don’t think it’s as bad as some say. But when episode 513 comes on, I stop the DVD when Brian is sitting on the edge of the bed smoking a cigarette and contemplating going to see Justin that weekend or the next. *nods* Yup, that’s how it ended.
It’s almost midnight here and my “weekend” will be over. I’m completely overwhelmed by the response I got to this comm. With less that two weeks notice, you guys pulled out your little bags ’o tricks and lit up Live Journal with the fun, the memories, the love of a silly little show called Queer as Folk. I thank you all.
It’s going to take me days (this time of year, maybe weeks!) to catch up on all the wonderful posts you’ve submitted. I haven’t even looked at the comments to my offerings yet! I apologize, I’ll get to you soon!
People keep thanking me for doing this, but really, I didn’t do much. It was all of you and your love that made this weekend an amazing smash hit. This is yours! I hope you’ve had as much fun as I have!