Read the fine print! This week, Emily dug deep into why exactly we need an Archive Of Our Own and tells V all about FanLib, a short-lived for-profit, idea-mining fanfiction site partnered with TPTB of several semi-fannish TV shows. The idea? Get fans to write episodes for you for no pay, then profit because the episodes are "what fans wanted to see happen." Needless to say, fandom had a lot of feelings about FanLib and then the FanLib founders had a lot of feelings about those feelings. Did you ever enter a sanctioned fanfiction contest? Where did you read fic in the pre-AO3 world?

Alalaes! This week, V and Emily head back to the brand-new days of the internet and Xena: Warrior Princess fandom, where fandom wank has always been fandom wank. Although Xena/Gabrielle is a femslash fandom juggernaut, we're venturing into the world of Xena/Ares shipping and the close-knit community of people who a) hated Gabrielle and b) eventually all kind of hated each other. This was a masterclass in early-internet rarepair shipping and a nostalgic reminder of the era of single-author fic websites, messageboards, and e-mail groups. Don't do a Gab Drag, come along for the ride! Were you a Xenite? (Or, are you still?)

Outlander, no! This week, Emily has another Big Topic as she and V try to understand the fundamentally twisted mind of Outlander author Diana Gabaldon and her spurious-yet-vicious hatred of fanfiction (and her own fans). Despite what Gabaldon -- and a weird number of writers -- believe, fictional characters do not actually have their own lives and writing fic, even badfic, about them cannot harm them. Discussion turns to the nature of fanfiction as art -- even bad fanfiction as art -- and the line where a creator's control over their art ends. Do you feel like characters "act without your permission" when you write? Do you think only "good" art has the right to exist?

P.S. Apologies for the late upload this week. Outside commitments reared their ugly heads.

Avengers... Assemble! This week, a COVID-ravaged V and hardier Emily discuss a fannish, and mainstream, event they know all too well: the release of "the most ambitious crossover event in history," Avengers: Endgame. While living in a fandom bubble can make it feel like "the audience" wants one thing, big blockbusters like Endgame remind us all too harshly that fandom is still just a bunch of weirdo outliers, and as far as studios are concerned, "the audience" wants something that is -- often -- the opposite of what fandom wants. Does the thought of Steve's ending also fill you with unbridled rage? What blockbuster movie left you with a hole in your soul?

There was only one bed! Everyone knows it, everyone loves it, and this week, Emily and V go back to the '70s to discuss the story that birthed it: "Bunkies," starring Han/Luke. Star Wars fandom was already Star Wars fandom by 1979, and the gals delve deep into all of that mess. Were you ever deeply insulted by being called a "Luke Lover"? Have you read the best open letter of all time (to George Lucas, of course)?

Bop bop doowop! This week, V and Emily travel back to a seminal moment in popslash and bubblegum history with the release of one of the most iconic songs of the '90s, "MMMBop" by Hanson -- and the subsequent world takeover by three blond boys from Tulsa and their legion of loyal fans. Despite, or perhaps because of, being a worldwide phenomenon, Hanson's fans suffered a fate similar to so many teen girl-heavy fandoms: being pathologized and maligned, not celebrated for their ingenuity and passion. So, which Hanson was your dreamy fave? And when you get old and start losing your hair, can you tell me who will still care? (No, you can't, 'cause you don't know. Oh-oh. Yeah, yeah.)

It's a big one this week! Emotions abound as Emily and V take a dark look into the mind of former vampire queen Anne Rice and her irrational, misinformed hatred of fanfiction.... and its very real-world consequences for thousands of her fans. This is why disclaimers exist, people. This is why fanfiction will always walk in the darkness and crumble in direct sunlight (just like a vampire). And this is a dangerous precedent set that affects us all to this day. What was Anne Rice thinking? Seriously, WHAT WAS SHE THINKING?

SuperWhoLock fans, get your salt/sonics/nicotine patches! This week, V and Emily travel back ten years to the end of the world, AKA the #mishapocalypse. Started as a joke and only sort of done as a joke, fans of Misha Collins (Castiel on Supernatural) completely fucking took over Tumblr for a day. But it wasn't just Supernatural fans who participated, because this was 2013: the heyday of SuperWhoLock. What made SuperWhoLock so delicious and also so deeply embarrassing? Where did that creativity go?

Good mornin'! (Good mornin'!) This week, Emily and V dive deep into Multiamory March with a look at the 2014 invention of the TriadVerse, which is like A/B/O minus the A and O. With deep and evolving lore, a fest week, and an evolution into Multiamory March itself, the TriadVerse used ships like the eternal Don/Cosmo/Kathy from Singin' in the Rain to enchant both of our intrepid cohosts. Have you ever heard of the TriadVerse? What's your fave OT3?

Are you ready for some... fandom voting and bracket statistics? This week, V and Emily head back to 2009 for a cherished fandom free-for-all throwdown, Fandom March Madness. This event revealed a lot of ugly fandom traits of misogyny, White Feminism, racism, and just plain bad taste, even as it brought people from across the fandomsphere together for a week of cheering on their faves and having fun. We can still learn from the lessons taught in ye olde Fandom March Madness, but we -- perhaps optimistically -- think that it would shake out quite differently in 2023. Who did you vote for in FMM? And who would win a cage match, Leslie Knope or Peggy Carter?