I read a TRULY horrifying amounts of MCR fic in 2025, because I discovered both bandom AND Smallville in the year of our lord 2025, so quite a few of these are oldies if you were in either of those fandoms in the early 2000s. As always, these fics are specifically in order of when I read them rather than in terms of favorites because they are ALL my favorites. So numero uno starts us in January. You'll be able to tell when we hit August because that's when the MCR recs just keep coming.
1. Leave the Light On (I'll Be Coming Home) by HMSLusitania | 9-1-1 | Buck/Eddie | 44k
“We’re here for our grandson,” Helena says.
Heather Says: I got LOCKED IN to 9-1-1 right off the bat last January. @wildehacked who is one of my absolute favorites started writing for it, so I decided that obviously I HAD to watch the show to experience her fics. So I did! This was one of the first that I ended up reading and would not be the last. I am STILL not truly caught up because I refuse to watch the most recent season for REASONS but this is the fandom that got me through January and February, which were the absolute darkest months of my year.
2. bad thing twice by @wildehacked | 9-1-1 | Buck/Eddie | 16k
If he saw this profile, he’d think: closeted. Probably cheating. Kind of an asshole.
He never has trouble finding someone.
Heather Says: SPEAKING OF @wildehacked! It was truly difficult to pick only one of her 39 spectacular 9-1-1 fics that she has written since getting into the fandom, 95% of which I consumed last winter. I am PARTICULARLY partial to her Alive!Shannon verse, so maybe check that out (or y'know, all of her work) if you get the chance, but in the end, I had to go with this one. It was one of the first of her fics that I read after I got mostly caught up and I think for that reason it's still my favorite. It's a pretty great introductary fic to the fandom (in my opinion) and a really heartbreakingly gorgeous exploration of Eddie Diaz's character.
3. Cup Rune Over by surveycorpsjean | Arcane | Jayce/Viktor | 52k
After a gruesome war finally comes to treaty, it is decided that the King of Piltover will take a bride from Zaun. Viktor isn't expecting to be a candidate.
Heather Says: One of the other fandoms that got me through the winter was Arcane. I had a couple fics that bit me for the fandom in December of last year after the end of season two, but I definitely went down that rabbit hole in January/February. This one was vaguely on my radar when it was initially posting, but I was stubborn about it and waited until everything was up before I finally caved. I'm not typically one for regency AUs, but I really loved this one!
4. 86 Days, 87 Nights by Orphan Account | The Pitt | Jack/Samira/Robby | 24k
“Maybe this really is like Lost,” Samira muses, later that night. “Maybe we all died and this is some sort of weird purgatory.”
Heather Says: I never actually finished Lost, because I was uh, very ADHD and also a freshmen in high school in 2004 when it came out, so I will have to take Samira's word about the purgatory thing, BUT, this fic DID really take me back to Lost days. The Pitt, if you didn't already know, is AMAZING and as someone in healthcare, I can attest that it is the most accurate medical show that I have ever seen. It scratches the same itch that The Bear did for my experience in the food industry - mostly delighted horror because holy shit that IS accurate and it DOES make me squirm with traumatized nostalgia. So you should watch The Pitt! And when you're done, you should read these fics! Surprising no one, Samira and Mel are my favorites.
5. Kingfisher by Anonymous | The Untamed | Wei Wuxian/Lan Wangji | 165k | WIP
With an almost trance-like detachment, Wei Wuxian touched his own neck, his fingers skimming over the fresh mark. The bite wound had stopped bleeding, although he had no doubts it would open again if agitated.
Bonded. He was bonded for life.
"Shit," he whispered. He looked over at the sleeping form of Lan Wangji—the Second Prince of Gusu and, until his brother was found, the sole heir to the throne. "Oh, shit. Lan Qiren is going to kill me."
Heather Says: I do NOT usually read unfinished fics, specifically FAMOUSLY unfinished, incredibly lengthy fics. I don't love this quality about myself because I know I'm missing out on some bangers, but too many cliffhangers have crushed my heart to dust. This one though, I reluctantly made an exception for. And you know what? I'm glad I did. Harem fic also isn't usually my thing, but it's different and you'll have to trust me here. It's really, REALLY good and I do hope that one day they finish it.
6. By Any Other Name by @shanastoryteller | The Untamed | Wei Wuxian | 31k
Wei Wuxian wakes up in Mo Xuanyu's body and heads straight for Lotus Pier. Wu Yingtai is the newest member of the Jiang Clan and rumored to be the future wife of Jiang Wanyin.
Lan Wangji is not in love with her.
Heather Says: I've been reading Shana's stuff for... years? Now? I think? I want to say I first read her Teen Wolf fic back in 2019 or so, but it may have been Fullmetal. ANYWAY, when she first posted this in 2020, I apparently missed it, which is crazy because I sucked up everything I could find for that fandom then. And then earlier this year I read wing bones touching, which is also absolutely aces and should be read immediately. That lead to me finding this one (and also consuming the rest of her MDZS fic), which is 32k of longing! And gender! And secret identities! And angst! And just. Guys, it's so fucking fun and absolutely delightful.
I may have not commented when I binged everything, for which I apologize, but in my defense, it was a DARK year and I was too click happy because guys, the serotonin was so needed. Anyway, Shana, all of your fics are fucking bangers and I love them.
7. divine pity, and a boat by orphan account | The Pitt | Mel/Frank | 19k
“We’re friends,” Mel says, “and we’re carpooling,” which seems simpler than explaining that they’re also bedpooling.
Heather Says: Genuinely a little sad that this author orphaned all of their work, though I suppose I am happy enough that it's still around. This fic (and quite a few other Mel/Frank fics I read this year) are by the same person who wrote 86 Days above and is really what got me into The Pitt fandom. I REALLY love all of their work. Just the way they write this fandom is so immersive and fun and lovely.
8. the line is covered in jellyfish by @yunuen | Arcane | Jayce/Viktor | 129k | WIP
When Viktor finally asks why Jayce stayed behind inside the Anomaly with him, Jayce stares at him as though he’s supremely disappointed by the question— as if Viktor has betrayed his own brilliance by asking something so irredeemably stupid. “How could I not? We’re partners.”
Partners, Jayce calls them. Not for the first time, Viktor wonders: Partners in what?
Heather Says: Okay, okay, okay. Remember how I said I don't read WIPs? I KEPT seeing art for this around tumblr and am normally very patient about waiting until a fic is done before I read because, y'know, of the ADHD.
BUT! I had to make an exception here and am so glad I did because guys, guys. This may be my favorite Arcane fic that I've EVER read, which is saying a lot because I've read so many good fics for this fandom. It's so gorgeous, angsty, and is singlehandedly my headcanon for a post-canon fix-it. THIS is what happened after the end of season two, I don't care what you say, I will fight you in the back of a Denny's over this. Read this! Put all of the art in your eyeballs! And go give the author some love!
9. You're a Good Man, Frank Langdon by avocadomoon | The Pitt | Mel/Frank | 71k
Dr. Frank Langdon: steals drugs, gets divorced, cheats on his wife, goes to rehab, falls in love. Not necessarily in that order, though if you ask him it's not really any of your fuckin' business.
Heather Says: I think this MIGHT be the last Pitt fic on this list because we're getting close to the Smallville discovery, BUT it's certainly not the least. I've been reading avocadomoon's stuff for god, close to a decade, I think? Some Teen Wolf, some Stargate, and I could have sworn there was some Avatar: TLA in there back in LJ days, but my brain could be making that part up since I also can't find them on tumblr and I could have sworn I followed them on here. They wrote some of the BEST Mel/Frank in the fandom though and are continually delighting me by putting more and more content out there. This one is my favorite though. It doesn't shy away from the grit and is so much better for it.
10. and it all comes down to you by @pantstomatch | Stranger Things | Steve/Eddie | 17k
Munson is and has always been scathing in his disdain for Steve. Dustin resolutely plays it off like he’s just awkward, but Munson’s the least awkward scientist Steve’s ever known. And he’s been in the Stargate program for over four years now, so he’s known a lot.
In some ways, it’s a general hatred for the Man, the military. He scowls at grunts even as he takes his orders from them. In most ways, it’s just Steve.
Heather Says: Something that you may or may not know about me depending on how long you've been here: I LOVE Stargate Atlantis. Up until last year, I was still participating in the Stargate Secret Santa despite not being active because I LOVE it and there is not enough of it in the world. So imagine my surprise and delight when I got an email in early June saying that one of my favorite ST writers had written an SGA/ST fusion. I was STUPIDLY delighted and may have lost my mind a little because there were not, in fact, any more of that very particular fusion. So I reread this one. Twice.
11. negotiation tactics by teeterss | Superman | Clark/Lex | 77k (full series)
Lex doesn't know what he finds more irritating; that his nemesis who he sometimes has casual sex with assumes he has every right to thoroughly interfere with a routine targeted assassination attempt against him, or that he would probably be just as invested if it happened to almost anyone else.
Heather Says: Oh, here it is! The introduction to Superman 2025 and then the slow subsequent descent into the LJ archives of Smallville fic. I've linked to the first part of this series, but please, read all three installments. I still haven't read the third part myself because the MCR fixation got me, but parts one and two are some of my favorite Clex fics that I read this year. I love the dynamic! They have a great grasp on the characters and it's, y'know, really hot.
12. Somewhere I Have Never Travelled by @seperis | Smallville | Clark/Lex | 132k
Clark decides on a change of lifestyle. Lex decides on a change in the status quo. And the world's doomed.
Heather Says: This is my favorite of the ones that I ended up finding in the depths of the Smallville archives, this one helpfully crossposted to Ao3. One of the most fantastic things about this whole spelunking into the archives has been finding authors that I once knew and loved in the LJ days for different fandoms. separis wrote some REALLY good Supernatural fic (cough cough Down to Agincourt) and ALSO some spectacular Stargate Atlantis, so going through their 105 Smallville fics was SO fun and this was my favorite.
13. Ahoy, Big Boy by @chronicrabbit | Stranger Things | Steve/Eddie | 83k
Scoops Ahoy.
America’s favorite place to cool down, and quite possibly the lamest summer job under the blazing Indiana sun. Especially if you were former High School royalty, brutally rejected by each and every university you’d applied to and promptly cut off by your shitty parents in an effort to teach: “some goddamned responsibility.”
Between accidentally intercepted secret Russian communications, a meddling preteen matchmaker with no collarbones, and increased proximity with Eddie ‘The Freak’ Munson, a measly $3 an hour plus tips is nowhere near enough to deal.
Heather Says: This and USS Butterscotch singlehandedly made my July. I am a SUCKER for Scoops era Steddie and this one has Eddie working with Steve and Robin! Guys! GUYS! It's so good.
14. Black Market Blood by autoschediastic | MCR | Frerard | 16k
Frank's so fucking freaky he's potentially wigging out a fucking vampire.
Heather Says: This is fucking it, guys. The one that started my four month long crashout over the MCR fandom. Surprising absolutely no one, it was a vampire fic that did it. I literally remembered that bandom was a thing when we were making the trek from Ohio to Philly for the MCR concert there in August and just opened a link. That's just. That's what I did. And I lost my fucking mind. I've reread this five times. I forgot how much I fucking LOVE vampire fics. This has ALL OF THE TROPES. It's fantastic. It's hot. I want to rewind time so I can read it for the first time again.
15. A Natural Reaction to Rough-housing by Bexless | MCR | Frerard | 28k
He made it to the bathroom and stood there leaning heavily on the sink, staring at himself in the mirror. He didn’t look like a creepy sadist. But neither did Christian Bale, and that hadn’t ended well for anybody.
Heather Says: Don't worry guys, Unholyverse is on this list too. But it's actually the LAST of Bexless' fics that I read because, y'know, Catholic trauma kept making me avoid it. THIS one though was one of the first of theirs that I read and is still probably my favorite? I know that's sacrilege since Unholyverse is one of the big three, but I also can't bring myself to read A Splitting of the Mind either (because of a different trauma, of course).
Anyway, this one is genuinely just really hot and really well-written. I actually struggled a lot because I was at 26 fics for this list and was stuck between this one and this PWP from autoschediastic and I read them both around the same time, but ultimately, I had to go with this one. It was one of my first, and still one of my favorites.
16. Let The Darkness Lead You Home by rivers_bend | MCR | Frank/Gerard | 49k
Vampires are in charge and most of the humans on earth are prey, so Frank Iero's parents have him train as a cyber tech to protect him. Leaving the family he's born into may have saved his life, but his parents never could have expected the lengths he'd go to in order to find a new family to call home.
Heather Says: Oh look, another vampire AU. This one was a little bit darker, but I still really loved the vampire cyberpunk future that was created here. The dynamic was really hot and I'm a huge sucker for vampire Gerard being protective and weird about human Frank.
17. Skin of the Canvas by sinsense | MCR | Frerard | 42k
The typical nude model is someone like Phil. Phil is forty-nine and paunchy. He's starting to go gray at his temples and in his pubic hair; he likes to pose on a stool, curving his back and curling his fingers together between his knees. Phil is secretly awesome -- he likes the Misfits and builds model trains -- but he's not what Gerard would call prime ogling material. Neither are any of the other models who have posed for the life modeling or anatomy classes Gerard has taken. This semester, Anna was kind of cute, but she whined about the conditions the entire time she was there. In his four years of art school, anyway, Gerard has never once dealt with being attracted to the model.
But this guy is hot.
Heather Says: 1 - this is really hot. 2 - It is absolutely fraught with tension. 3 - it has a line in it referencing Fried Green Tomatoes about Kathy Bates looking at her vagina in a hand mirror and comparing that to the artist/model relationship. It's great. Also, fell in love with the way the author described lighting in this.
18. The Anatomy of a Fall by @novembersmith | MCR | Frerard | 107k
The unholy union of a high school AU and a ghost story. Gerard's life takes a strange turn when his family moves to a small town in Vermont and he discovers the locals aren't all what they seem to be. Also includes: unexpected nature walks, murder, pining, improper treatment of crime scenes, a number of bone-related puns, high school bullies, and a short-range shrub named Ferdinand.
Heather Says: Okay, okay, okay! First and favorite of the Big Three! Possibly my favorite that I've read this year PERIOD. Much like Unholyverse, I put this one off for a good while. Not because of *TRAUMA* like Unholyverse, but because I was scared that it was going to hurt too much, what with, y'know, the ghost story aspect of it. I was pleasantly surprised both by the happy ending and the spectacular atmosphere saturating this whole story. I already want to reread it. This is the only fic this year that I stayed awake until the sun came up because I could not stop myself. There is a specific scene in this fic (AND PLEASE LOOK AWAY BECAUSE SPOILERS) where Frank shows Gerard his bones. And that scene is so stuck in my head, because the intimacy of a ghost showing a living person their body, what was left of it, was just so agonizing and sweet. I want to paint that scene. I can see it in a way that I can't usually.
Point being - if you are going to read an MCR fic in the year of our lord 2025, make it this one.
19. Gerard Way's (Vampire) Detective Agency by jjtaylor | MCR | Frerard | 179k
Wanted: Replacement Valet for high profile Midnighter household. Must have excellent references, believable reason for leaving former place of employment, all Clan paperwork in order. Experience in filing, housekeeping, carriage driving, men's grooming, bookkeeping, scheduling. Highly desirable skills include: basic gardening, Daylighter legal practices, first-aid, hand-to-hand combat. Please contact Frank Iero for more information.
Heather Says: I've linked to this whole series. The first part is 43k and is perfectly lovely on it's own. But the second part, coming in at 84k, is what scored this a spot on my top 25. I really love the world building in this whole fic. Frank is the vampire this time and Gerard is (so it seems) the "normal" one, if being the normal one is basically being the supernatural world's version of Sherlock Holmes. But I REALLY loved the dynamic in part two. I genuinely don't want to spoil anything here, but the fae aspect, the cycles of rebirth, the plants - I loved every single thing about this fic.
20. Unholyverse by Bexless | MCR | Frerard | 55k
“He thinks I have stigmata,” Frank said, because what the fucking hell, it couldn’t get any worse. He might as well just lay it out.
“Oh, well,” said Brian into his hands. “Of course.”
Heather Says: So, thing number one. I am still apparently REALLY angry at organized religion, but specifically Catholicism. I spent most of this read seething over things that I thought I'd come to terms with when I was the young catholic gay listening to camp counselors and priests telling me that I was wrong. And the part where Gerard is talking about being upset and not knowing why God put Frank in front of him fucking broke me. Like. I am still SO ANGRY. How is it still there? After decades? So. At the risk of oversharing even more, suffice it to say that this fic was literally what gave me the final push to actually go to therapy.
It is a very good fic. I think I liked the first of the three main parts the most, but I also really loved where the second and third parts brought possession into it, because I'm a real sucker for sad pining gays having a demon crawl into their chest and taunting the person they love with that knowledge. See just about my entire bookmark history for the nogitsune era of Teen Wolf. Also, the movie is NOT as good as the fic and please do yourself a favor and only watch it if you've got two hours to kill and want to remember how bad some late 90s/early 2000s movies were. Watch Constantine instead if you want those vibes. (If you love this movie, I'm sorry.)
Though side note here - the fact that I heard Heaven Help Us live BEFORE I came to appreciate it REALLY gets me heated.
21. Gerard Way's Kink Service by @liberxi | MCR | Frerard | 68k
Being a struggling comic book artist doesn’t exactly pay the bills, even while living in the family basement. Luckily, Gerard has found a second source of income as New Jersey’s resident kinkster. Whatever fantasy you want to fulfil, Gerard is your guy, or your girl; your Dom or your sub. Hell, he’ll even be your aunt Marie if the price is right. He may not be very professional, but what he lacks in experience and personal hygiene, he makes up for in enthusiasm and creativity.
Frank knows it’s objectively a bad idea to pay his crush to treat him like a puppy on a regular basis. Especially since Gerard has one rule he seemingly doesn’t intend to break – he won’t sleep with his customers.
Heather Says: Okay! So, I originally had steered clear of this one because puppy play isn't really my thing. I wasn't knocking it, but it just never has been and probably never will be. HOWEVER, I DO like Frank Iero, who basically embodied a golden retriever on speed for most of his musical career, and eventually, I saw enough thirst traps on Tiktok recommending this that I said fuck it, I'll give it a shot. Guys, guys. Puppy play may not be a thing for me PERSONALLY, but holy hell, is it a thing for me when it's Frank Iero. Like. Wow. Wow?
Gerard himself is a delight in this fic and over all, it lead to the inevitable binge of all 29 of Liber Xi's works, most recently of which being You Belong to Me I Believe (WIP - Pro Rev era Frank as the subbiest little bitch for current era Ray and Gerard - just WOW) which I finished a few days ago. And just? Ahhh? Liber Xi, you are the reigning queen of kink, because EVERYTHING I read of yours this year was amazing.
22. Public Enemy by tabulaxrasa | MCR | Frerard | 21k
In 1932, Gerard Way has been making a name for himself robbing banks up and down New Jersey. Frank Iero, analyst for J. Edgar Hoover's Division of Investigation, is determined to catch him.
Heather Says: Have mentioned this before, but historical AUs in general don't usually do it for me. Especially in eras where the homophobia hurts my heart, which is, you know. Most of them. I also don't usually love heist fic. But you know what I do love? Enemies to lovers. Cat and mouse relationships. And this bank robber vs FBI analyst AU was delicious. Gerard was really, really hot in this. The dynamic was peak perfection. And (spoilers) but I'm a sucker for HEAs where they run away together.
23. Bite To Break Skin by bigbuttwhatevs | MCR | Frerard | 40k
Frank wasn't afraid of Mikey's weird older brother — he was afraid of vampires.
There was a difference. It wasn't personal, but it probably felt that way when the sun would start sinking in the sky and Frank would suddenly have to get home right away.
Heather Says: Third and final vampire rec of the year, bigbuttwhatevs came onto the scene in October. I somehow got a notification in my email for their work despite the fact that according to Ao3, this was the first fic they'd posted, but I quickly got over the mystery of HOW I got the email and instead fell head over heels into this fic, which was the best vampire fic I'd read since Black Market Blood. It is 40k of GOOD vampire content. Bullets era! Messy Frank! Vampire Gerard with a side dose of trauma! Frank who wants to be a snack and Gerard who is very much trying to NOT HAVE THAT HAPPEN because, y'know, trauma. Anyway, this is aces. I've read it thrice. Will probably read again.
24. Kiss and Tell by bigbuttwhatevs | MCR / I'm Not Okay (Music Video) | Frank/Illi | 8k
“Maybe you’ve only fucked losers who don’t know how to make a girl cum.”
“Okay, Frankie,” she drawled, and he stifled a choking sound as one of her pale, ring-laden hands grazed down her side. “Tell me how you make a girl cum.”
Heather Says: This was a struggle because I usually try to only stick to one fic per author, but bigbuttwhatevs ALSO wrote really awesome werewolf/omegaverse fic (40k) and just yesterday blessed the fandom with sex tape blowjobs (6k). And then, then there was Kiss and Tell, which as you can see is AFAB Illi McMillin/Frank Iero from the INO music video and it's just. Really, really scorching. It's 8k, but damn if it doesn't do a fantastic job of introducing you to the characters. I read it twice in the same day because I literally read it when I woke up to pee at 5am, went back to bad, and then had to read it again when I woke back up to make sure it was real.
25. you took my heart (i was sleeping) by lameparties | Stranger Things | Will/Mike | 52k
It’s winter in Hawkins, and Mike and Will aren’t speaking anymore. Living in Mike’s house, Will tries to be invisible, spending most of his time in the basement.
Then the power goes out — and if there’s one thing he dreads more than facing Mike, it’s the cold.
Heather Says: I have never really sought out Byler, mostly because (and I'm not harshing anyone here) it's previously been an ick of mine to ship the kids since I remember what they look like as ten year olds. But uh, this fic hit Tiktok like a nuclear bomb. It was my entire For You page for like a solid two weeks. I have literally never seen the kudos count get that large. The comments? The bookmarks? It's over one MILLION hits. So I said fuck it and read it anyway and just. Wow. That is some lovely writing. The yearning is on point. It perfectly encapsulates the high school experience of being a baby gay afraid to come out to your crush because well, it's not like you can say that you'll "never like them." Anyway, loved this.
