Cadfael fanfiction - where is it?

[wiseheart]

Let me tell you - it's rare as the proverbial white raven (or so we say it in Hungary). Considering the fact that it has been turned into a TV show, it's actually surprising. But again, perhaps not so much.

Firstly, although I haven't seen the TV show, I saw still of it, and as far as I can tell from mere pictures, none of the TV characters offer that peculiar sort of "hottness" rabid slashers seem to fall for. It doesn't mean that the actor has to be pretty (although that doesn't hurt, usually) - the guidelines for a character being "slashable" are so strange that I really can't put my finger on the core of the whole idea.

Good for us, I'd say - otherwise we'd be overrun with poorly written, disgusting cloister pr0n, most likely including chanslash. I thank God and all the saints that the TV characters apparently aren't "slashable". I've seen one piece of Cadfael/Hugh slash and it made me gag. I didn't even manage to read it to the end. It was sceamingly OOC, gratuitous and showed an overall misundestanding of what the books were about. Perhaps it was a TV-story. I don't know.

But why don't serious authors write Cadfael fanfiction? Books and show alike have devoted fans, so where are the loving, in-canon stories?

I think I've discovered at least part of the reasons why there are practically no serious stories, either. The books are so interconnected and so deeply rooted in real medieval history that it's very hard to write a story that doesn't violate canon and is true to the historic events as well. Plus, Ellis Peters has an almost intimidating knowledge about medieval life, herbs and the likes, and frankly, who's supposed to grow up to that challenge?


Nah, don't look at me like that! I'm not suicidal. *steps at Cadfael plotcritter viciously*

Comments

[altariel.livejournal.com]

The TV show isn't that great, and, as you say, I don't think there's an obvious pairing to write about. I suspect the pairing people would write would be Cadfael and Beringer, and it seems three different actors play Beringar across the show's run, so there's no continuity either. (Not to mention that IMHO Derek Jacobi is woefully miscast.)

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Well, according the pics I've seen, TV!Beringar doesn't look a bit like the description in the books, in either incarnation. Book!Beringar is short, slender, dark and sardonic, and what I've seen so far, the TV incarnations are all big, fat Vikings. *g*

Derek Jacobi doesn't look like my idea of Cadfael, either. Have you seen the pic I posted a few entried earlier? Now that's how I imagine the good brother. Of course, the fact that Br. Servatius is really a Benedictine and that he shares a few character traits with Cadfael doesn't help. ;)

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Shit, I'm an idiot. I meant that it does help, of course. Too bad you can't edit your own comments on LJ.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

the TV incarnations are all big, fat Vikings.

Yes, they are a bit BFV-ish! :-)

I loved the pic of Br. Servatius, he was much more how I imagined Cadfael. Jacobi's performance isn't quite right - I don't believe from his performance that this man was once a soldier.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Well, he does look like a bit of a softie indeed. But I won't dare to mention that in any of the Cadfael groups I'm in - they'd virtually lynch me. *g*

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

I've not seen any really good Cadfael fanfiction, but I've not read any screamingly awful either. I'm only about a third of the way through canon, so I've still got the real stuff to enjoy. I saw the television series long before I read the books, so the uncanonicity of Beringar didn't bother me as much as it should. In that context, I thought one of the television Beringars was ok: at least he could act!

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

There are two really good pieces linked to telekis_vendiak, my story rec page. You can get to them from the Memories. And, of course, it's a matter of taste what anyone finds screamingly awful. I found the Hugh/Cadfael slash one screamingly awful. I've posted a long rant not so long ago why, so I won't repeat it - the tag will take you there eventually, if you're interested.

As I said, I never saw the series, so I can't comment on the acting abilities of the actors - I just find the looks not matching my own image of the characters. But that was one of my main problems with the LOTR movies as well. Aside from the canon rape in various parts, that is. *g*