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I decided to write this fic up partly in response to a discussion of it on TWoP and partly in response to the ‘Criticism/Fic Mocking’ discussion v.80000.1. I’d read the story a while back, and when someone on TWoP asked about post-Asylum amnesia fics, ‘Pyrrhic’ came up (TWoP discussion). Now, I had some quibbles with the story, which I’ll get into. What’s interesting, in the TWoP discussion someone else guessed what my main quibble was before I’d finished typing it up. When I asked how they guessed, turns out two other folks (independently) had problems with the same scene. [READ MORE]
Well, W00T! Where was all of this interesting discussion of SV fic going on, I wondered? Um- private email. Cause God forbid anyone actually discuss fanfic in a way that might hurt someone’s feelings. At least- God forbid they do it in public. Cripes- that just pisses me off. Anyway, this very brief, non-wanky, mostly positive critical discussion of a specific fic was unique enough that we congratulated ourselves for having it! Apparently critical discussion, in even the most benign sense, is rare enough to be worthy of comment simply for existing. Hell- in truth, we were lucky. The last time I made a critical comment about a fic on TWoP, the author showed up and violated the board rules by starting her own post to rant about my three line comment where- in response to a direct question- I admitted I’d found her story ‘cheesy’. If you’re wondering, the rant did nothing to make me think the fic was less cheesy.
I can count on one hand the number of webmasters who discuss the negatives when it comes to stories they’ve read, and I can count on the other hand the sites that encourage honest discussion (pros and cons) of specific fanfic. No, I’m not counting the numerous Mary Sue bashing sites. They don’t generally discuss fic, they make fun of it. There’s a difference. I don’t count fanfic_hate, either. Those types of sites really aren’t any more insightful or interesting than the typical ‘fangirl squee’ that you see in response to BNF’s latest PWP- though the suggestion that such sites arise in part as a reaction to the lack of comfort when it comes to critical discussion is one that makes a lot of sense to me. Well, it would if I personally felt any such discomfort- which obviously I don’t. What I do feel is irritation that this fear of hurt feelings curtails public discussion or warps it into anonymous one-liners on ‘hate’ communities. I wish I could have had a public discussion with the four people who were obviously interested in talking about ‘Pyrrhic’. The fact that three out of the four had issues with the same scene is one that interests me and it’s something I think is worthy of discussion. This is not a case of ‘fic bashing’ or ‘author bashing’- it’s about writing and characterizations and ... well, I don’t know what it’s about because the conversation never occurred. That’s a damn shame.
OK- off the soapbox and on to the fic- very spoilery discussion ahead! This is long and angsty and fairly dark future fic. It begins with Lionel’s funeral, which reporters Clark and Lois are attending. Lionel was killed in a car accident- while on his knees giving head to his son! Understandably, Lex is feeling particularly vulnerable, and Clark has to virtually pull Lois off of him when she starts asking whether Lex had anything to do with his father’s death. Well, as the story spins out, we discover that during the ‘Shattered’ arc, Lex shoved Martha and nearly left her paralyzed. Clark said some harsh words to Lex, and Lex ended up in Lionel’s tender care- where he was brainwashed and used as his father’s bed partner and general corporate whore. With Lionel gone, the brainwashing starts to unravel, and Clark is there to help Lex get through it. Turns out the one thing the brainwashing didn’t erase was Lex’s knowledge of Clark’s abilities. When Clark finds out, he offers to take Lex to the Fortress of Solitude and have his injuries from the accident heeled in order to head off any publicity concerning the nature of Lex and Lionel’s rather unusual father/son relationship. Unfortunately for Lex, the press isn’t his only worry. Seems Morgan Edge and a number of Metropolis’ business community are unwilling to lose their fuck toy. When Lex tries to assert himself as the CEO of LuthorCorp, the businessmen throw themselves a gang bang. Luckily, Lex had the place wired and he uses his own rape as a means of bringing both the press and the law down on his father’s former associates.
Now, the whole ‘gang bang’ scene was the one I (and two other folks) had issues with. Actually, the more I thought about it, the more I realized my issues were in part a matter of characterization- but I’ll talk about that in a moment. Anyway, it just seemed too far beyond the bounds of reality for me. I like violence, I love Lex getting his ass whipped, and I don’t mind rape used as a means to break a man down- but it just seemed unlikely. It took me out of the fictional world. I’d have bought it in an AU like ‘Freak’ and I’d have ignored it in a PWP, but this is a story set pretty firmly in ‘Smallville’ reality and I have trouble imagining a room full of mostly reputable businessmen gang banging a competitor. Eh- it was jarring and felt gratuitous.
The second half of the story involves some hurt-comfort and focuses on Lex building himself back up. There’s some nice action as Morgan Edge attempts to take Lex out once and for all, and there are sweet scenes at the Kent farm as Lex is once more accepted into the fold. Lex truly starts to come into his own, moving LexCorp into the future, getting rid of his father’s shady dealings, working as an equal with Bruce Wayne and co., and even test piloting a jet. The story comes full circle when it’s up to Lex to take the Justice League to task for their tendency to take Superman for granted.
All in all, the story had a lot of elements I like. I really am a fan of Lex abuse, and I love to see him come back with a vengeance. I also like seeing the Kents revise their opinion of him and really bring him into the family. There’s also plenty of action and plot to the story, and the writing itself is solid. However, as mentioned, I have quibbles. Looking back on ‘Pyrrhic’, and Kat Reitz’s stories in general, I think it really boils down to a matter of characterization. I like my Lex as a (potentially) scary monster. I DO want Clark to save him, but the main person Lex needs saving from is himself. The Lex I like best is the one who could potentially stand there with a smile on his face as the sky rains blood and the earth burns. In a lot of Kat Reitz’s stories Lex is pretty horrifically abused. Now, these stories generally work for me in that Lex IS strong. He isn’t a passive victim. He makes his own life. However, he never really goes psychotic on Lionel’s ass and it’s generally up to Clark to make him whole. This is fundamentally different than the way I prefer to see Lex. Honestly, it’s probably healthier, but I don’t want healthy. I want psycho Lex who will beat his head against the wall until either the wall breaks or we see brains.
It’s interesting that it took me 4-5 fics before I realized that the reason this author doesn’t perfectly ‘ping my buttons’ is due to a difference in preferred characterizations. Actually, I think it was the comments on TWoP that sort of led me to the conclusion- which leads me back to my soapbox! I wish fandom was more open to frank discussions of fanfic. Sometimes it’s really not about the individual story or even the canon. Sometimes our preferences boil down to the archetypes that color our perceptions. I had an interesting (and rare) discussion of mistressace’s story ‘The Prometheus Project’ where I touch a bit on the issue of Lex’s characterization. In the discussion, I bring up RivkaT’s approach to Lex. I think she consistently writes my favorite Lex. Hm- I need to write a review on why that’s so. Anyway, point being it’s really a matter of my personal taste- it’s not a slight against the writer or even a cry of ‘OoC’! Hell, I view canon Lex and my preferred version of Lex as being slightly different. I think with canon Lex, he would NOT end up a scary monster without Clark’s intervention. I think he’d be a mildly unscrupulous businessman, sort of like Lionel but without the trail of bodies. I like to think that according to canon, BOTH Lex and Clark’s destinies are a result of their interactions with each other. However, when it comes to fic, I prefer a madder and badder Lex- someone who is tempered by Clark, though in some ways made all the more dangerous by the depths of his love. [HIDE]
Well, I suppose that ramble is the subject of another post. This post was supposed to be about Pyrrhic- a story I found interesting, but one which did not quite ping my buttons. Still- worth the read for those who enjoy angst and plot and a Clark/Lex that is meant to be!
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