It's Throwback Thursday, when I go fishing in the earlier years of (mostly) Good Omens fandom and reel in post-season-1 goodies that might not have gotten the views they deserve, or that I just found extra delicious.
Today, one very special fic that some folk might have seen dart by on Tumblr last week, linking a podfic treatment by @skyasimaru.
The Voice Of The Lion Was Heard In The Land by A_N_D (@madenthusiasms on Tumblr) reached me at just the right moment, and I was halfway through, commenting furiously, before I realized it was posted in August of 2020. If you're homesick for the softness and sureness of post-season 1 fic, it's far from the only reason to read this fic, but it's a good one.
Though the story arc spans decades, the grace and economy of the writing tells the tale in seven chapters and about 22K words, and I could not stop reading -- at least until the final chapter, because I didn't want it to end, and saved the conclusion for the next day. It's a human AU with Aziraphale and Crowley as voice actors in a talking-animal cartoon (no prize for guessing which is Leo the Lion and which is Simon the Snake). There's everything here to capture you -- a full season-1 cast, including the Them grown up; a meet-cute; an idyllic romance/professional teamup; archangel characters you love to hate, an episode of cruel separation, and a hallelujah of a reunion, with a sweet envoi -- set during lockdown -- that's an ode to the enduring power of kindness, friendship and love. I think we know how much we all need to be reminded of that sometimes. At the end, the part of me that still sniffles over my old, worn plushies rose up and cheered through tears.
Sounds were Brian's job; he mixed what he could out of free online sound libraries or bought whatever he could get past Wensleydale's parsimonious approval. Anything else was created in-house by Az and Tony, who gamely roared, hissed, barked, growled, hooted, snarled, grunted, whistled, clinked cutlery, noisily drank, loudly chewed, and anything else necessary.
These measures worked right up until the need for "impact sound of a surprised snake falling out of a tree but not getting too hurt because this is a children's show."
Tony was trying his best. He made all the different "oof" and "whoops" and "uh-oh" noises he could wring out of his throat while Brian threw a weight against pillows, but none of it was working.
"It needs something and I don't know what. What does it need?" Adam asked the universe, as frustrated as the rest of them.
"I think I know." Az had been quiet up until now, and Tony gave him a sideways glance of suspicion. Az didn't often offer advice, preferring to passively (if meticulously) carry out any orders he was given. This was not a problem that could be fixed by pretending he was a pineapple, or highlighting his lines in blue, or whatever basic acting school advice Tony was sure was going to come.
Az stood up. "May I get a little physical with you, dear boy?"
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I write mainly Good Omens, along with occasional ventures into Sherlock Holmes (BBC and ACD), Doctor Who, Sandman and other DC Vertigo titles, and my first love, Star Trek. Find my fic here on AO3.
