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[Chaoswizkid]

My problem with GSH isn't that it's a bad fic, I just think that the author is really weak on the plot and world-building, and to me seems very obvious in the use of certain mechanisms of writing to accomplish something, rather than delivering organic thoughts. The characterization is great, Shadowman as a character type is spot-on and hilariously enjoyable to read, and the character interactions are also excellent. If this were a Slice-of-Life fanfiction, or something along the likes of Bakemonogatari where the whole point is interaction and wordplay, it would be outstanding, but I just feel that the author isn't capable (yet) of delivering what he's(?) trying to do.
Of course, there's no harm in practicing.

[Gamerlord]

My problem with GSH isn't that it's a bad fic, I just think that the author is really weak on the plot and world-building, and to me seems very obvious in the use of certain mechanisms of writing to accomplish something, rather than delivering organic thoughts. The characterization is great, Shadowman as a character type is spot-on and hilariously enjoyable to read, and the character interactions are also excellent. If this were a Slice-of-Life fanfiction, or something along the likes of Bakemonogatari where the whole point is interaction and wordplay, it would be outstanding, but I just feel that the author isn't capable (yet) of delivering what he's(?) trying to do.
Of course, there's no harm in practicing.

I'm actually enjoying the bit-by-bit reveal of the world he's made - actually the first time I've ever enjoyed it. Most of the time I prefer an info dump for familiarisation. Just for that alone I think it's worth reading. I'm finding myself trawling wikis to figure out just what the different exaltations are doing to the abilities of each ninja shown. Also, his Kakashi is hilarious.

[Neonivek]

It could have been a Neverborn...

Which would actually make quite a bit of sense given that it required Naruto to be dead... As well his allergy to the sun is more typical to their taint then of the Yozi.

it's not actually confirmed in story that it's the Ebon Dragon or part of the bugger

Well, it can never be the "actual" Ebon Dragon... so to speak.

You know... I know WAAAAY too much about Exalted

[Flying Dice]

Just assume that in this case saying "Ebon Dragon" = "One of ED's subsoul-thingies". 

My problem with GSH isn't that it's a bad fic, I just think that the author is really weak on the plot and world-building, and to me seems very obvious in the use of certain mechanisms of writing to accomplish something, rather than delivering organic thoughts. The characterization is great, Shadowman as a character type is spot-on and hilariously enjoyable to read, and the character interactions are also excellent. If this were a Slice-of-Life fanfiction, or something along the likes of Bakemonogatari where the whole point is interaction and wordplay, it would be outstanding, but I just feel that the author isn't capable (yet) of delivering what he's(?) trying to do.
Of course, there's no harm in practicing.

I'm actually enjoying the bit-by-bit reveal of the world he's made - actually the first time I've ever enjoyed it. Most of the time I prefer an info dump for familiarisation. Just for that alone I think it's worth reading. I'm finding myself trawling wikis to figure out just what the different exaltations are doing to the abilities of each ninja shown. Also, his Kakashi is hilarious.

This fits quite well with my own thoughts. It's sort of like Weaver 9 in that -- the worldbuilding is interesting in its own right, rather than something to just get out of the way.

[Flying Dice]

Bumping this for the sake of a new thing I happened across:

The Witch Queen and the Hegemon: Enderverse/Game of Thrones. ROB transposes Peter Wiggin's unborn soul into the place of the child who would have been Joffrey. The writing is high quality and the characterization is spot-on thus far. Only one 4k word chapter out at the moment, but if it keeps going it's going to be a hell of a ride.

[Xantalos]

I'm not sure if that makes Joffrey a better or worse person. Peter may have been evil, but he took over the world by blogging.
The fuck.

[Ddynamo]

I don't know if there are any fans of the Total Drama series on the forums, but for those of you who don't know, it's a parody of reality TV shows like Survivor, with stereotypes of teenagers replacing the contestants. It plays like Survivor, in which a contestant is eliminated (almost) every episode. It's had six season, and three different generations.

Spoiler: Generation 1 (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Generation 2 (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Generation 3 (click to show/hide)

Shut up, I'm getting to the point.

Anyway, I found a very good fic that randomly redistributes the cast throughout the different seasons. Everyone is in character from what I can tell, and the writing is very good. The only problem is that it takes quotes from canon and gives them to other characters, but that clears up quickly.

Total Shuffled Island

[Boatsniper]

I know of a few fics, though I'm not sure who or what would find interest in them.

Evolution - Final Fantasy XIII - Yes, yes, I've heard about all of the controversy surrounding this game, but bear with me for a moment. This fic is unique, powerful, and downright chilling. The plot doesn't strictly follow canon, but instead uses it as a guide, changing some elements in the Fabula Nova Crystallis mythos, among general event changes to tie in with the tone. It cuts and gouges into Lightning's psyche, detailing a slow and agonizing descent into a monstrous madness. This fic is dark, but not without reason. For an idea of how dark it gets, the italicized part of Chapter 14 can give you an idea without story context. It's one hell of a read, but unfortunately unfinished. Still, there's more than enough to keep you busy, scaling in at 269,000 words.

Whispers of the Gods - Final Fantasy XIII - Yeah, it's another one of these. This fic is quality high-fantasy AU material. Gods, Goddesses, betrayal, feels, and chaos. There's a lot more backstory to the characters than what may initially be seen. Lots of ups and downs, and a rather fun read. Once again, unfinished, but enough to keep you entertained and busy.

The Red Queen - RWBY - A rather dark fic based around the attempted assassination of Ruby Rose by her peers. She wants revenge, and that vengeance allows her to make some very unlikely allies. Even though her intentions are fit for a psychopath, she still manages to squeeze in her happy-go-lucky personality into everything she does. Worth taking a look at.

*All fics in this post contain minimal shipping, even canonical ones. They're also not mine.

[Adragis]

Those Lacking Spines, a KH fic that  essentially just makes fun of common fanfic tropes. Hilarious.

[Andres]

Hello.

[Flying Dice]

Okay, righto. It's been a while. New shit's out, I've happened across new stories that I'm willing to rec. Let's do this thing.

Legacy :: Worm

It's the third part in notes' AU, following on from Cenotaph and Wake. If you've already read those, you know why this is important. If you haven't, I'll just say that they're all required reading. It doesn't matter if you're familiar with the setting, notes is a damn good writer. Oh yeah, and I'll give ratings too this time around. 10/10.

Kant-O-Celle Quest :: KanColle

It's Planefag doing a quest about shipgirls. The writing has better direction and is generally higher quality than his previous notable works. I didn't care about sheepsloots before I started reading it, but now I do. It's hilarious, it's HNNG, and it's heartbreaking. What really makes it, though, are the American shipgirls, even more so than the player character or his pet Marine, when you remember that they're basing out of the same place as the canon Japanese shipgirls: BB-39 USS Arizona, CV-8 USS Hornet, DE-413 USS Samuel B. Roberts ("Sammy"), DD-579 USS William D. Porter, and SS-257 USS "Hit 'em Again," Harder. Oh, and an ever-growing swarm of PT Boats that came back as corgis. In order: trauma, trauma, blood knight, eternal fuckup, social incompetent, corgis. That's the real genius. 8/10.

Dreaming of Sunshine :: Naruto SI

Wait, wait, stop running!

No, seriously, come back. There's a mountain of terrible SI fics out there, but this is one of the good ones. Really good. 454k words of good storytelling. It takes a chapter or two to get up to speed, and that's it -- those aren't much, either, as they're fairly short. Give it a shot. 9/10.

Walk on the Moon :: Naruto SI

This is the other one I'm reccing. It's also mechanically solid and generally good, but there are a few moments that stretch SoD. That, and the viewpoint character is a self-centered bitch, if you'll pardon the crudeness, who is taking her sweet time (more than a decade!) giving up on applying 21st century Western social and ethical norms to mercenary pseudo-Japan. But it's not bad by any means, certainly worth a shot if you can get past that. 7/10.

[Furtuka]

Thought some people might like to know that the old classic Shinji and Warhammer40k is being rewritten.

[BlitzDungeoneer]

That's pretty neat, actually.
Never did get around to finishing that fic, but eh. What I did read seemed pretty good.

[Flying Dice]

It did sort of go off the rails eventually, from what I remember. His writing's always been solid, though, so it was still readable.

Other recs:

The Howling Wind: Damn. I mean, hot damn. I thought I'd found all the good Naruto fics a long time ago, but I was wrong. This makes my top ten list easy, right next to Reload, Time Braid, Dreaming of Sunshine, and Great Clan Days. which y'all ought to also go read. I think I heard someone put it very well: GCD is where Kenchi learned how to stop writing good stories and start writing great stories. Not that Better Left Unsaid is bad, it's just more of an action movie than anything else. A just-shy-of-one-million-words action movie that has no end in sight. 10/10, unquestioned.

Speaking of good Naruto fics that managed to fly under my radar, there's Loyalty, which I'm pretty sure has gone in a direction that no fanfic for this setting has ever done before. 8/10: Good all around, but a tad edgy at times.

And hey, if you haven't happened across it yet, Fairy Dance of Death. Or: If SAO had happened in ALO and the writer wasn't a hack.

Shinobi: Team 7: Just started this Naruto AU. Fucking fantastic thus far, the most comprehensive rebuild of the setting and definitely one of the most atmospheric. Gal/guy gets it.

[Flying Dice]

Hey folks, it's that time again: Dice's Fanfiction Roundup: Sifting Through the Drek So You Don't Have To!

--

Gate - Thus First Recon Fought There!: Gate/Generation Kill. This is one of precisely two things I've found which do something interesting with Gate. This, by dropping the portal into San Diego during Comic-con 2003. If you're somehow unaware of what Generation Kill is, here ya go. Fucking. Beautiful.

Dread Rising: Pathfinder. It's the story of a Dread Lich who wakes up after being trapped for five thousand years. More accurately, it's a piss-take aimed at harem shows with a solid helping of villain protagonist and D&D.

Lulu's Bizarre Adventure: Code Geass/JJBA. Fucking excellent, the author has a very strong grasp on the core elements of both series and has created an exceptionally appealing fusion-world which does both of them justice. Spoiler: Dio is not a vampire and doesn't have Za Warudo, thanks to plot shenanigans. He's still fucking terrifying.. Titled as "Lulu's Bizarre Rebellion" on FF.N because the original title was already taken by an exceptionally shitty story.

Of the River and the Sea: Naruto. One of the scant few good SIs, and one of the two longest of those. Unlike goddamn everything else, starts out and spends a long time solely in Mist, and canon is pretty heavily derailed by the current point in time. It's sorta weird at times, but very engrossing.

When the Sun Comes Up, You Better Be Moving: Bleach. Possibly the only good Bleach fic I've ever read. Was originally a early total divergence from canon, but it was born and died in 2007, leaving us with 27,000 words of the best character piece I've seen for the series.

There yas go.