Einoë

I'm here to laugh and chase my guilty pleasures

[incorrectstargatesg1]

actually editing the two of them is addictive

[fanmademagazine]

The sample issue of FANMADE is out now!

The wait is over.

Fifty pages of fan culture rambling, lovingly curated into a magazine. You might want to grab a drink and get comfortable – it's not a quick flip.

[READ IT HERE]

Inside, we talk about: – the hurt/comfort trope (thanks to @haich-slash-cee for their amazing research on h/c and whump that helped us put the article together) – whump (thanks to @whumptober for chatting with us!) – writing realistic injuries – fanbinding and community ethics (with words from @renegadeguild and @starblightbindery – thank you so much for your time and advice) – an interview with the founders of BookTower, the app that helps you track your fic reading (and everything else).

And lots more!

Like most things in fandom, this issue is a labour of love. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed making it.

Our forms are open if you want to:

pitch an idea

join the team

or just yell about your favourite ship

Find all the links in our linktree.

Stay tuned – the next issue theme is found family, and we’ve got fic recs coming soon.

[destinationfinal]

Edi Gathegi as Mr. Terrific SUPERMAN (2025)

[thestuffedalligator]

"There's no way in hell there was a supervillain who called themselves-"

"No, no, not officially - we came up with the name when we were assigned to find them, and we were kind of taking the piss, but it's still a good name. It was before your time - they had the power to-"

"I don't want to know what their power was."

"No, listen - their power was that they could summon a pie and throw it at someone."

"Oh. Oh, well, okay - that's the greatest supervillain you've ever fought? Doesn't sound like much."

"But that was the thing. They could throw a pie at someone and it would never miss. So long as they could see their target they'd hit them. We eventually found out they could throw a pie at someone who was on live broadcast, miles away."

"Jesus. Okay, I think I see the issue. But it was still, like. Pies, right?"

"Oh, for sure, it was never poison pies, and they could only summon a pie every 15 seconds so they couldn't drown someone in meringue. But - do you remember Murgatroyd Bentley?"

"Sort of, he was president when I was a little kid - something, something superhuman rights, and he was the guy who nuked Saskatchewan, right?"

"That's the guy. We found out about this guy after the Humboldt Crisis, because after that, whenever there was a live broadcast with the president - the state of the union, addressing congress, the Christmas tree lighting - a pie would splatter across his face every fifteen seconds."

"…Is that it?"

"Hon, it was everything. You haven't lived until you've seen the president try to talk about dignity while being smacked in the face with a banana cream. By the end of term, he refused to show his face in public, and he resigned in quiet disgrace. There were a few other pieings for a few years, but nowhere near the amount that took place when Bentley was president, and eventually they stopped. We never found out who or even where this person was.

"And that - more than anything - makes them the greatest supervillain I've ever had to deal with. Because they didn't do much, but they did it loudly, they did it consistently, and we never caught them."

"...How hard were you trying to catch them?"

"Not very."

"...And you decided to call them Dr. Creampie?"

"We were young. The president had just bombed Saskatchewan. It was a weird time. Honestly we took what we could get for laughs."

[eino-e]

Damn, I'm so invensted in this world now

[dubioushonour]

Spin this wheel of ~300 AO3 tags three times.

Congratulations! The 4th dimension exists and you are their FAVORITE blorbo. The tags you got are from the most popular, most influential fanfic starring you. How are you feeling?

this is the best possible outcome for me

this is pretty good

this is fine. i guess.

this is terrible actually

they're assassinating my character

i'm suing the fourth dimension

Voting ended onFeb 13, 2025

[douglasbradburyverne]

STARGATE SG-1 and STARGATE ATLANTIS - Behind the Scenes

[eino-e]

Can't believe I've never seen these before!!

[loverboybrightsideghost]

i'm a big fan of tv shows where they do an episode from the POV of a side character and they're living in a completely different genre than the main character

[happycabbage]

Yup... still married...

02x02 The Intruder

[sga-mcshep-4ever]

Rodney McKay out of context

[gaffsie]

Sometimes the RPF writes itself.

[toruandmidori]

[sga-mcshep-4ever]

[uuuhshiny]

Dat FACE

[ao3topshipsbracket]

AO3 Top Relationships Bracket- Round 2 Side 2

Rodney McKay/John Sheppard (Stargate Atlantis) vs Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski (Teen Wolf)

Rodney/John

Derek/Stiles

Voting ended onOct 3, 2023

This poll is a celebration of fandom history; we're aware that there are certain issues with many of the listed pairings and sources, but they are a part of that history. Please do not take this as an endorsement, and refrain from harassment.

[halestrom]

John Sheppard trying not to cry during The Shrine.

[eino-e]

Just looking at this makes me bawl with him 😭

[stinalotte]

Season 5, Episode 6: The Shrine

I said I had to gather my thoughts before I would be able to write something coherent. I still don't know if I can do it justice. It's weird, but I hesitate to call The Shrine my favorite episode because it's so devastating. It's very shippy, it has phenomenal acting from everyone, the story is heartbreaking, it should be perfect - but it just hurts so much. If this is my favorite episode, what kind of masochist am I? (Don't answer that, that was rethorical.)

I'm placing this under a cut because this is gonna be long.

The cold open on this one is just brutal. Rodney is already pretty far gone, and he calls himself "Mr Rodney McKay" instead of Dr, because "doctors are smart, and he's not smart anymore". To know what's happening to you, to slowly lose your mental capabilities and to be able to still process what's happening, that's cruel. And then he's calling for John, and that's when I had to pause the video for the first time because the tears were already coming. The title sequence hadn't even started.

Fuck.

I lost my grandmother to Alzheimer's a couple years ago. She had a slow and steady decline and thankfully, it was one of those cases where she just forgot more and more, but without the mental anguish. She wasn't panicking, or aggressive, or even agitated. Just a smiling, sweet old lady, who in the end didn't remember how to sit or eat or breathe. When she died, I couldn't cry. I was too busy consoling my mother and aunt at the funeral. The first time I cried was when I rewatched The Shrine, years later. It just shook something loose in me. It's also the point where I decided that if I ever got diagnosed, and was still in a state to do something about it, I would end my life on my terms. I'm not putting anyone through that.

I remember Kate Hewlett saying in an interview that a lot of people on set where crying during those scenes because they had family members with dementia, and that she had to leave the room at one point because it hit close to home for her too.

At first I thought it was mean that everyone was like, "Yeah I realized something was wrong when Rodney was being nice to everyone", but then I thought, no, that's actually a good point. Because his friends were uncomfortable with alternate universe Rod (who was too suave and cool) and they're uncomfortable with a Rodney who is uncharacteristically nice. They love him as he is, not a polished version.

I know everyone is giving Dr Keller shit for not wanting to try the Shrine, but I really think it's because she's a doctor. I work with doctors, and almost weekly I have discussions about respecting a patient's advanced directive. I've had a doctor wanting to install a gastric tube in a patient who was at the end of their life. We had the advanced directive that CLEARLY stated they didn't want that. When I confronted the doctor, she was almost angry. "But they will starve! I can't let them starve!" Yes, you can, and you will, and you have to. The hardest thing for a medical doctor is to have to sit back and not be allowed to do something that might help the patient. I think that where she's coming from. There are treatments to be tried, and if Rodney is taken to the Shrine, all those other options stop. I still think she was wrong and I don't like her approach, but I think it's an explanation why she was acting the way she was.

And then we have Rodney running to John's room in the middle of the night because of course that is the first and only place he'd go. It hurt to watch him be so frantic and desperate. And John is right there for him, grounding him, telling him, I'm not going anywhere.

Beer On The Pier. Yes, you have to write it like that because this scene is a fixed point in time and a goddamn cornerstone of this ship.

Rodney, knowing this is probably the last night he'll be this lucid, wants to say goodbye. And John doesn't let him. Because Rodney's stuck with him until the end. He's not going to turn away, no matter how ugly it's going to get. The very thought of saying goodbye is so foreign to John that he doesn't even want to discuss it. "That's final."

(Also, just for aesthetics alone, the night shots of the city are beautiful.)

I'm trying to be a bit less rambly, but what can you do when you have this masterpiece of an episode?

In the cave, when Rodney is intense pain, John has his arm around him the whole time and doesn't let go until he is himself again.

I love how everyone is so caring and surrounds him with love.

And ugh, the surgery - with fucking power tools. Barbaric. But necessary. But man, to hold your friend's head in your hands, holding him still, while a literal drill is going into his skull? I'd have passed out.

The only tiny little thing that was a bit jarring was Rodney's confession to Jennifer at the end, and just because for me, it came a bit out of left field. But I am nothing if not good at ignoring things that I don't like, so I'll just refer to fanfics that fix this. No harm done.

And finally.

David Ian Hewlett.

Holy fuck, dude.

HOW are you not buried under a shitload of Emmys? How is there not a whole wing of your house dedicated to housing the tons of awards you should have gotten for this? (I know he did get quite a few, but I'm talking custom built shelves in at least four rooms. Minimum.)

Everyone brought their A game acting wise, but this guy knocked it out of the park. It was heartbreaking, moving, extremely believable, and just jaw-dropping. David is, in my opinion, one of the best, if not the best actor of the franchise, and I don't say that lightly. I have a massive crush on Joe Flanigan and he's great, same with Amanda Tapping, but David is just fantastic.

So yeah. There you have it. My very concise, totally normal opinion of this episode. I doubt anyone reads all of this, but hey, this is my tumblr and I do what I want.

If you did indeed sit through all of this, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to tag or reply or add stuff.

[eino-e]

Just rewatched The Shrine and I needed to see and read all the posts about that episode again, GOD DAMN. How often will this show hurt me again?? I wish I could watch it gif for gif, because I want to see every little detail, every expression and emotion. The love this team has for each other. Ronon being so emotional while yelling at Woolsey. John barely keeping it together in the cave. I only wish we could have seen more interactions between Rodney and Teyla (and Radek!). And more scenes with just the team. Actually, the more I think about it, the more I need. This episode could have been twice as long and it wouldn't be enough. It helps a lot to see how we all feel the same love for this show.

[giidas]

✨ mcshep fic recs 💙💖💜

because there were a couple of people who did say YES when i did the interest check 👀

in no particular order! well no that's a lie cause i ended up sorting by word count ksksksk HAVE FUN READING, DONT FORGET TO LEAVE SOME LOVE/COMMENT ON THE FICS

💙💖💜

under 5k

Pride by respoftw, 2k, PG, au, love the characterization

Sweet dreams are made of this (Everybody's looking for something) by SquaresAreNotCircles, 2.5k, PG13, 😭

Redacted by LogicGunn, 3.5k, PG13, technically pre-slash but wonderfully done

It Ain't Hard To Tell by noyeahtotally, 4k, NC17, i LIVE for this characterization and the voices!!!!!!!!!!

Helter Skelter by mific, 4.5k, PG13, !!!! JOHN SPACE BABE SHEPPARD!!!!!!!!!!!

✨

5 to 10k

The Husband Files by halestrom, 6k, PG13, ahhhh YES yes yes!!!!

Best Laid Plans by noyeahtotally, 6k, PG13, !!!!

Sentinel Voodoo by melagan, 6k, Mature, sentinel au!

Dangerous Thing by RosiePaw, 9k, PG13, ohhhHHHH oh yes

Touch and the Inner Hominid by RosiePaw, 9k, Mature, forced proximity OR IS IT

✨

10 to 20k

Proximity by respoftw, 10.5k, PG13, forced proximity!!! one of my faves hat i haven't found quite enough of in this fandom

John Discovers Fire by RosiePaw, 10.5k, Mature, an off world accident strips Rodney of his smarts OR DOES IT

Trust Issues by halestrom, 11k, NC17, OH HO HOOOO morally grey John, loved it

The Captive by mific, 11k, NC17, OH MAN this is-- SO GOOD

The New Math by Corinna, 12k, NC17, Atlantis the matchmaker

MVP by Speranza, 12k, NC17, a classic!!!!

Ride Into The Sun by Cesare, 14k, NC17, !!!!this is everythingggg

In the Shadow of the Hawk by WonkyElk, 15k, PG13, a really interesting au!

Happiness is a Warm Gun by Luna (lunasky), 16k, NC17, SO SURREAL so well done!!

Failsafes by Luna (lunasky), 16k, PG13, !!!!!!!!!!!!! so very well crafted

And All The Rest by LogicGunn, 17k, Mature, McKay is turned into a woman, chaos does not ensue but EYES are opened

Where the Brave Dare Not Go by Telesilla, 18k, NC17, werecreatures AU

Heart of glass by torch, 19.5k, NC17, love the character voices and love the story idea

Grow Old Without You by respoftw, 20k, PG13, John doesn't get returned to the proper age by the Wraith..... lovely!!

✨

20 to 30k

Sheppard's Pie by auburn, 20.5k, PG13, EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS

No Light and Transient Cause by sheafrotherdon, 20.5k, Mature, my bookmark comment: "Excellent story and characterizations, LOVE LOVE LOVE this"

About a lamp by torch, 22k, NC17, !!! AND A LAMP!!!!

Theory of Everything by Rheanna, 22k, NC17, AHHHHHHHH

The Difference Engine by copperbadge, 22k, Mature, YESSSSSS wonderful

Chosen One by Mira, 27k, PG, oooHHHH ohhh very interesting sory idea!

✨

30 to 50k

Good Guys Don't Always Wear White by pertifity (nel_ani), 30k, NC17, XMEN AU!!!!!!!! extremely well done one at that. sort of an open ending but done in a satisfying way if that makes sense??

The Hard Prayer by Rheanna, 30k, mature, apocalypse au!!!!

Doc Mack by mific, 31k, NC17, no stargate au, great character voices!

O I Think We Should Be Brethren by spurious, 32k, NC17, my comment on page 2, really well done John voice!!

OK Computer by Speranza, 35k, NC17, a classic!

The machinery of heaven by torch, 42k, NC17, this felt like a double episode of the show itself, absolutly wonderfully done, loved it to bits

Nice Place to Visit by sabinelagrande, 43k, NC17, sort of a BDSM au OR IS IT!!!! lovely lovely writing and character voices

✨

50k or more

Mother Country by Chandri, 59k, PG13, my bookmark comment: "Masterfully done multiple POVs, joy to read"

Catalysis by Chandri, 59k, Mature, ohhhh yes, very well done!

Save Me by Brumeier, 63k, PG13, AU, who's interested in my UNHINGED comment go to page 5 of comments lmao, loved the character voices, loved the mysteries, loved it all!

Inukshuk by murron, 81k, Mature, my bookmark comment: "The worldbuilding! The character voices!!!!"

Indelible by shaenie, 128k, NC17, incredible and deserves all the hits it has and more, feels like at least 300 of them are mine lmao. Warning: will suck you in and not let go. The John POV is CHEFS KISS

✨

re-reads (or, the 'old' classics):

Freeze by Bead, 2.5k, PG13, !!!!

Caught by Punk, 3.5k, PG13, IM NOT CRYING YOU ARE

Catch-19 by chellefic, 9k, Mature

With Intent by shaenie, 13k, NC17

Funny Little Secret by crysothemis, 16.5k, nc17, UNHINGED RODNEY

Gravel Road by candle_beck, 20k, nc17

Rules of Engagement by velocitygrass, 22k, NC17, AHHH

Rewind, Reboot, Restore by Rheanna, 23k, PG

Instantaneous by cimorene, 27k, Mature, AHHHH yas

And Glory Has No End; or, Clementine by kariye, 27k, NC17, my personal classic i would die for you

The Suite Life by CartWrite, 28k, NC17, !!!the fluffiest

You & Me & The Pegasus Galaxy by CartWrite, 29k, NC17, !!!!!Unhinged John

A Beautiful Lifetime Event by astolat, 29k, NC17, !!!

Happy by crysothemis, 35k, NC17, amnesia!

Should've Been My Girlfriend by crysothemis, 36k, NC17, UNHINGED JOHN (all of those unhinged comments are compliments fyi)

Zen and the Art of Jumper Maintenance by Indybaggins, 40k, Mature, AHHH

In the Silent Water by tigerpen (shetiger), 40k, NC17, YES

Transcendental by astolat, 45k, NC17, !!!!! John and Rodney, unhinged

(due to tumblr llimitations i had to remove some of the direct to author links but you can always acess their profiles via the fic)

ALL my other recs can be found on my blog here or in the pinned post