Rheanna

Also has a journal at http://rheanna27.livejournal.com/.

"The Midas Syndrome" (Stargate)

Reviewed by Kathryn A on 7th May 2000
(91K)

Another really good one. This one was told completely from O'Neill's point of view, and, yeah, O'Neill is the one on the hard end of the stick, again. This, again, could have been an episode; it built up, step by step from an intriguing idea, there was hazard, angst, humour, and bonding. The character stuff was spot on. It was also nice to see something that was set early on in the series. Some writers (particularly in an ongoing series) don't seem to be able to cast their minds back to earlier parts of a series, only remembering how the characters are now. This author had no such problem. There were some great bits:
    "Everyone okay?" I called out. The replies rang out in the darkness.
    "Yes sir."
    "I am uninjured."
    "I think I broke my glasses. Wait, no, I didn't."
    That last was from Daniel, the best argument in favour of contact lenses you'll ever see.

I liked the SF idea in this; I think it held together nicely, actually supplying a reason for all the... mess, that made sense. It was good seeing Jack's reaction from inside his head, however stoic he may have tried to be on the outside. And the others - not just Carter, Daniel and Tea'lc, but also Janet Fraiser and General Hammond - were painted well. This was good.

"Roses in December" (Stargate)

Reviewed by Kathryn A on 3rd May 2000
(147K)

O'Neill suffering from creeping amnesia. What an opportunity for drama and angst. And it worked, too. I could really see this as an episode; I could hear the characters' voices, there was some dramatic/action bits (if you call fighting with ice-cave-ins dramatic), there were good character bits, and some quotable lines (like the exchange between Tea'lc and Sam about... singing). Very good.

"Totality" (Stargate)

Reviewed by Kathryn A on 10th May 2000
(369K)

And yet another good one. This one is nice and long, being in three sizable parts. There's a lot of action and some good backstory stuff, I like the idea of the origins of the Keltoi, and the explanation of the Horus-child (good use of Egyptian mythology there!) This author is particularly good at Jack, capturing his wry PoV in a delightful way:
    Jack had never really understood the appeal of ancient monuments, even before his life had twisted in a direction which frequently involved being chased or shot at while running around some particularly fine examples of them.

And:
    "I know it's not a Gate. You know it's not a Gate. Anybody want to tell the rocks?"

Mind you, Jack doesn't get all the best lines:
    Rhys shook his head in bafflement. When he did get home, he was in for the debriefing of his life. So you were inside the alien craft, Major? What was it like?
    Well, sir, it was a little like the Egyptian Rooms at the British Museum.

This story touches a bit on Jack-the-amateur-astronomer (as we saw from his stargazing in "Children of the Gods"). The author also does a good job with the British military characters, introducing them, and making them sympathetic. On the downside, some of the plot developments were predictable, given the nature of fanfic when it isn't AU. Certain things just Aren't To Be.