By Slanted Light

Fav Pros ep: Don't have one - it's mood dependant. But the one that fascinates me most consistently is Fall Girl. Mainly because all the dynamics are off. And if the fit up had worked, Bodie might still be in prison. It's all the 'might have's' really - including 'what if Marikka had accepted Bodie' either time around? And why is this the second time she's betrayed him? I have 57 favourite eps - and always have (see my defence of The Gun!) :0)

(I have a dream though - the tech they used in Rogue One has been around for decades, but it's getting better and better - one day we might be able to make fic the way we make manips - with CGI B&D - can you imagine? I can.)

Last watched: Can't remember, so am thinking of a re-watch fairly soon. I don't like to re-watch them too often. I can recognise ST:TOS eps from three secs of incidental music - I'm trying to avoid over familiarity. I'm thinking No Stone or Wild Justice at the mo, but that might change depending on my mood when I have the time. I've been pondering doing it as a Pros Watch. (I've not included 'flicked through for research purposes'.)

Bonus Q - Last watched a vid: Every day :0)

Fav Pros fic: Can't choose, won't choose. I like imaginative ones, so Waiting to Fall, the way the plots from the eps are woven into a completely different story, A Mercenary's Tale for all the solid background - I love believable background, Easy Prey for being so close to what I fell in love with. But that's just a representative sample of what I think of as satisfying fic - there are so many others - it's like being asked to choose between your pets. Can't choose, won't choose! :0)

PS just reloaded one of me ladsy icons. After your prompting, I try and remember to use them more often now.

Edited Date: Tuesday, 14 March 2017 09:00 am (UTC)

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CGI B&D - yes, absolutely! *bg* We had a chat about roughly that at The Safehouse (I think it was) once; my vote for the magical tech workover is Of Tethered Goats and Tigers; I think it would make an absolutely brilliant film - action, intrigue, passion, the works. If the tech existed to the extent I dream of, and I won a few lotteries, I would assemble a team of Pros fans to make that! *bg*

I don't know Easy Prey, I think - is it online?

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Yeah, Easy Prey by Jaicen5

I normally put all the links and authors in, but I was pushed for time. It's not a slash fic, so that might be why you've not run across?

Waiting to Fall by Rob
A Mercenary's Tale by Fictionwriter

Edited Date: Tuesday, 14 March 2017 08:45 pm (UTC)

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Ah, yes, that's it. Thank you!
Yeah, I don't stick exclusively to slash everywhere, but I pretty much do in Pros. A Mercenary's Tale is a great one, isn't it!

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Can't choose, won't choose,
Lol - it was really just to see people chatting about Pros, and yeay it worked! Most people say they can't really choose a favourite ep or fic or vid etc., and I'm one of them too. I've defended The Gun myself on numerous occasions (although it's certainly not an ep I go back to again and again either, but it has it's lovely moments - from what you've said here and elsewhere, we'd probably disagree on what they are, but I love it as a slashy ep!)

Hmmn, not sure I want to imagine CGI fic... I love the eps, and I love the fic that has been written as a result of filling in the gaps that they left us, and I love the physical act of reading it... I dream more that they discover a whole new series that was filmed but never admitted to... *g*

Interesting that you describe Waiting to Fall as "imaginative" - its actually the inclusion of the specific parts of the eps that grates on me in that story (and some of the characterisation, iirc - I've not re-read it for a while). I think the things that I've seen in the eps are embedded in my own version of the show, and when I read someone else's translation of the show it throws me more than extending it in directions that are completely new... Don't think I've read Easy Prey, and again perhaps I should, but the emphasis on how gen it is has put me off... I like alot of gen fic - but I want to see the same relationship between the lads in the stories as I do on screen, even if it's not taken further, so I'm wary of reading the stories that loudly proclaim themselves "gen".

And excellent - always nice to see ladsy icons in my flist!

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'we'd probably disagree on what they are'...Who us? Disagree? :0)

'whole new series' - so ambitious, I've only ever hoped for a dusty ep....:0) (But I could live with a series!)

Easy Prey is more proclaimed about than proclaiming, there's a lot of the lads being together much as they are in the eps. It is Gen, but not sort of 'out and proud' Gen, more sort of 'matter of fact' Gen.

Thing is, slash has a lot of stories the ilk of Easy Prey to pick from, but they're thinner on the ground for Gen, so I guess folk get a bit proprietorial. But a lot of folk who like slash like Easy Prey.

I think, if anything, you might find it a bit frustrating, because the story could just as easily be taken in a slash direction. One of the things I like about it is that it isn't.

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murphybabe

Ack! Eps: I don't have an out-and-out favourite because it depends what mood I'm in. I love Purging, and I like First Night, and I like Hunter/Hunted. But there are loads more I like as well! I last watched Purging last week. We should do another Pros-watch, with a theme, perhaps :)

Favourite fic? Not going to go there. Can't, because my mood changes so much. Sometimes I'm looking for a comfort read and at other times I'll open the same fic and think 'Why have you kept this?' I went to re-read Redemption the other day and it was too bleak, yet at other times I will wallow in it.

Sorry - no more time to answer properly now. I'll try and pop back again later!

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I'm like that myself about out-and-out favourites, to be honest - but I like to hear other people talking about it, or how impossible it is to choose! *g* Another Pros Watch could be fun - I'm intrigued by your idea of a theme though! What kind of theme? Like... eps-where-the-lads-touch-each-other-continually kind of theme? *g*

It's funny how our tastes in fic change so much too, isn't it. I thought I'd always love the same fics, but I positively wince now at some that I adored when I was first reading Pros fic...

And do pop back later, if you're around! Tell me more about these themes!

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murphybabe

Ha, yes - I cringe now when I come across some of the stuff I liked to read at the start! And some of them now irritate me too *g* I read quite a lot of soppy stuff when I first came across Pros and I don't tend to read that as much now, or not unless I'm really in need of some easy, comfort fic - and even then I have go-to stories for certain moods.

Themes... I guess I was thinking of that sort of thing, yes or being on the look out for times-when-Bodie-calms-Doyle-down, or times-when-Doyle-flirts-with-Bodie, or - horror - times-when-Bodie-touches-other-people! Or we could get a bit more scientific about categorising other agents or girlfriends or... I dunno! Oh, here's a good one - we could provide the missing bits of plot, all with B/D in mind, of course, in order for the ep to make sense *g* So we would write the off-scene bits between us. Wherever someone has a question, someone else provides the answer, but it has to make sense given what we know comes next in the ep.

Or... ?

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Such beautiful pictures, such impossible questions!!!!!!!!!! *g* I don't have an outright favourite ep, though there's so much about Mixed Doubles that keeps it at the forefront for me. And I have so many favourite fics! I have to ration myself sometimes, as I don't want to wear them out; other times I can't quite work out which is the right fic to read right now in a specific moment. But when I get the perfect combination of the fic that feels right, and time to enjoy it ... best ever!
Like Fiorenza, I've often imagined what could be done with as-yet-not-quite-there technology; in fact one time about a million years ago I asked (at The Safehouse, iirc) which fic would be people's first choice for making into a film, if one could, and we had quite a chat about it :-) (my vote in that case would be for Of Tethered Goats and Tigers; it's just right for filming, with the right combination of action, intrigue and of course a consummation devoutly to be wished ;-) )

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They are impossible questions (I can't answer them... *g*) - but it's nice to see people talking about our lads again for a while! *g*

I like the idea of making specific fic into a film of our lads - but not so much having CGI replace fic in general (I like reading it too much *g*) Of Tethered Goats and Tigers is an excellent choice, too! It's definitely got the "ep" feel, where some other fics that I adore veer away from that (for cool reasons), and I can always hear the lads properly in it too. Not read it for a while actually, might have to hunt it out again... *g*

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snailbones.livejournal.com

Oh, lush piccies, thank you so much! I needed a quick Lad-fix.

Um, I haven't a favourite ep, just bits of all of them - though I've a soft spot for ~~that patch~~ Blind Run. I haven't watched any eps in so long it's embarrassing. I just don't have time to sit and watch anything these days - the most I get is occasional fan vid. I swear I'm getting withdrawal shakes.

And reading... I haven't a favourite, but I'm totally loving reading Larton for the first time - talk about a comfort read!

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I'm watching Larton going up on AO3 and thinking maybe I should delve...(assuming it's the same one!)

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It is indeed the same one - there's only one Larton. *g* Okay, there's technically two, cos they stripped the serial numbers and published it as an "original" story too, but... no, there's really only one Larton. *g*

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I shall make that a definite delve then :0) Gonna try Angelfish's Painted Angels first though - although, I have to admit, the first few sentences would have had me swiping left, if left to my own devices.

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snailbones.livejournal.com

I'd say give it a go!

I'm not a great AU lover, but Larton has charmed my socks off. It's not in-your-face slash either, just a lovely comforting romp of a story.

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I'm thinking I will. I've just read the first couple of pages of Painted Angels and it's not looking very promising, I have a horrible feeling it's not going to be my cup of tea at all...I shall definitely want something comfy if it ends the way it's started :0)

Have to say the artwork's fab though.

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Quick lads fixes should be much more common, I reckon - shall have to do something about that! *g*

Eep for withdrawal shakes too - I definitely recommend that patch in whatever form is most convenient to take... *g*

And you're reading Larton for the first time - squeee! I'm so jealous, even though I love re-reading it every bit as much as I adored it the first time. In fact I take that back, I love it more with every re-read, come to think of it, so... happy re-reading, too!

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snailbones.livejournal.com

I really wasn't expecting to enjoy Larton quite as much as I am - I'm not hugely into AU as a rule, but I started reading it just when I most needed a sweet comfort read. It's perfect! And so well written too. I almost can't wait to finish so I can start reading it again... I may be ever so slightly addicted!

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gilda-elise.livejournal.com

Like everyone else, I really don't have a favorite episode, though if you twisted my arm I'd probably go with Mixed Doubles. I love the scene in the hall where Bodie and Doyle are all set to sleep so close to each other. *g*

Favorite fan fic? No way could I pick a favorite. There are just so many that I really adore and reread often. But, again, arm twisting time? Probably The Return.

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Oh, the sleepy Mixed Doubles scene is lush, isn't it! *g*

I must admit that I couldn't pick favourites for eps or fic either - but it's so nice to see people talking about them again! *g* I have a huge re-read set myself, and worry sometimes about wearing them out... It's been a while since I re-read The Return, mind you - I should add that to my soon-list!

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murphybabe

I just re-read The Return last week and I'd forgotten how much I liked it!

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gilda-elise.livejournal.com

It's one I reread a lot!

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solosundance.livejournal.com

Blind Run, a few weeks ago, don't have one :D

Loving the pics though - especially that top one. And the pine-clad interior (that lamp! that phone!) is gorgeous too. Thanks!

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Ooh, you're concise! *g*

The top left pic is fab, isn't it - their expressions, and body language, and... *g* And yeah, the pine, always the pine. *g*

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I don't have a single favourite ep either, but bits & pieces from various ones I really like. It would also depend on what I'm in the mood for on a particular day.
And that also applies to choosing a favourite fanfic. Though I've only read few Pros fics compared to most of you in the fandom (and strictly those available online, as I don't have any zines), and not systematically. I have no objections to gen, as opposed to slash, as long as the fic is well written and I recognise the characters. I never thought of myself has having a short attention span, but somehow I tend to stay away from fics that are longer than 10k words, and where it seems to take forever for the plot or characterization to develop. Reading comments or reviews here and there by other Pros fans, it seems a lot of the fics that are nearly universally liked do not do much for me (I abandoned a few of those).

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Oh, I have some of those I guess - some favourites that many people love, but also fics many other people adore but which just aren't my cuppa! *g*
I'm eternally glad that there's room for different tastes, and that we all mostly share the overall enthusiasm even when we don't share the same preferences *g*

Edited Date: Tuesday, 14 March 2017 04:04 pm (UTC)

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Oh yeah. Completely agree with you :) Fiction is not an exact science and there's always room for different things, catering for different moods and tastes. All in all, however, I tend to prefer fics that are told from one lad's POV, either in the whole fic, or alternating POVs one chapter or story section to the next. And I love both first person or third person narration. But I'm not much into omniscient narrator stories, unless there's a good stylistic reason for it (humour etc.)

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Ooo - that's really interesting - I struggle with first person narration. I much prefer third or omniscient. Most of the fic I write is omniscient or a variant of third.

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With

heliophile_oxon, I've haven't read as many fics as others - and some of the 'classics' don't float might my boat as much as they do for others.

When I started reading fic, I wasn't very well. So I used to filter AO3 by word count and just read the 1,500 to 3000 word ones.

There's plenty out there - not everything has to be a saga (although, do try some of the BB fic, if you can). Also, I only have three Pros zines to my name. I intend to pick up more if I can, but a lot of the fic is online now - and of the stuff that isn't, some's on the *PosLib mailing list.
(*NB - There's a link in the box on the right.)

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Thank you. I am a member of ProsLib Yahoo group, so I receive email alerts, but I don't have the DVD yet. Will get it at some point :)

As I was saying to

heliophile_oxon, fiction not being an exact science, there's always room for different things, catering for different moods and tastes. All in all, however, I tend to prefer fics that are told from one lad's POV, either in the whole fic, or alternating POVs one chapter or story section to the next. And I love both first person or third person narration. But I'm not much into omniscient narrator stories, unless there's a good stylistic reason for it (humour etc.)

I prefer to use AO3 as a reading archive too, for its flexibility and possibility to filter by various criteria (genre, story length etc).
I tend to get frustrated, though, by those very long stories that are posted to AO3 into one single entry (that is, not split into chapters). Apart from practical reasons (less chance the page crashes when it contains fewer words), I prefer to have a long, complex story to be divided into chapters, given my low tolerance for long stories anyway, especially at major scene/POV changes.

I find reviews/discussions of Pros fics very useful, but more after reading them, than as a guidance before attempting to read. Exactly because I'm aware what excites rave reviews in some readers may not be my cup of tea. I tend to prefer using AO3 filtering criteria to select stories to read, in general, but not always.

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Glad you found Yahoo :0)

AO3 in their 'top tips' recommend against posting long fic without chapters. I started out on FanFiction.net and not posting in chapters there is just a recipe for pain, so I guess I got into good habits early.

And, if you do post in chapters, AO3 enables the reader to read/download them as one fic anyway. So by not posting in chapters all you're doing is restricting the choice of those who prefer not to read or download that way.

There are only three things that would improve AO3 for me, a) being able to post artwork (and maybe vids) directly to the site; b) a PM facility and c) being able to memorialise the accounts of writers and artists who are no longer with us. Other than that, it's just about perfect :0)

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Thank you. I am a member of ProsLib Yahoo group, so I receive email alerts, but I don't have the DVD yet. Will get it at some point :)

As I was saying to

heliophile_oxon, fiction not being an exact science, there's always room for different things, catering for different moods and tastes. All in all, however, I tend to prefer fics that are told from one lad's POV, either in the whole fic, or alternating POVs one chapter or story section to the next. And I love both first person or third person narration. But I'm not much into omniscient narrator stories, unless there's a good stylistic reason for it (humour etc.)

I prefer to use AO3 as a reading archive too, for its flexibility and possibility to filter by various criteria (genre, story length etc).
I tend to get frustrated, though, by those very long stories that are posted to AO3 into one single entry (that is, not split into chapters). Apart from practical reasons (less chance the page crashes when it contains fewer words), I prefer to have a long, complex story to be divided into chapters, given my low tolerance for long stories anyway, especially at major scene/POV changes.

I find reviews/discussions of Pros fics very useful, but more after reading them, than as a guidance before attempting to read. Exactly because I'm aware what excites rave reviews in some readers may not be my cup of tea. I tend to prefer using AO3 filtering criteria to select stories to read, in general, but not always.

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Yeah, I must admit I don't have a favourite ep or fic myself really - not a single one, though if pushed I say Voice-Over by Elizabeth O'Shea, because that really is just about a perfect fic in so many ways... There are so many fics online these days, including many from the zines, that you're probably missing out on fewer than you think! I don't mind gen either, as long as the lads have the same relationship that I see in the eps. If it's more about the guns and cars and politics then I'm less interested, because I always watched it for Bodie and Doyle rather than the background.

People have been saying for donkey's years (i.e. as long as I've been in Pros fandom, and for years before that according to the various archives *g*) that they don't like the "popular" fics, or the ones that "everyone" likes. It just reminds me that we all have different tastes, and there is no real "everyone" as far as Pros fic goes! One woman's excellent writing is another woman's poor characterisation is another woman's slow plot is another woman's exquisite slash! *g* And it depends on so much - mother tongue, and background culture, and familiarity with geography, just to name a few! So I really wouldn't worry about that - I suspect there are still lots of people out there who'd agree with you about enjoyable fic! (I'd still like to hear which ones you like, though, cos I'm eternally nosy - and which ones you didn't, come to that! *g*)

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Well, for example I didn't enjoy Sebastian's stories. I don't remember if I've read them all that are online, but the ones I read didn't do much for me.
I've also given Larton a try these past two weeks but didn't like it at all. Despite getting bored straight away, I persisted and read on; but no, not my type of story at all. Not because it's AU (I've read plenty of AUs that I enjoyed). I think the main reasons, in Larton's case, are that it depicts a setting that I don't find interesting or compelling; the OCs are not interesting to me; the narrating style and pace are too 'vanilla' and sedate to me. Perhaps if I had lived in a setting like that myself I could have found the story more interesting. I don't know.

I tend to prefer stories narrated with a certain pace, with lots of banter, with very few or any OCs at all (unless it's AU). If one or two sex scenes are there too, I wouldn't complain LOL: but only if they advance the plot or deepen the characterisation, therefore are not gratuitous 'fillers'.

Some time ago I read Exile, by PR Zed, in an attempt to go against my nature (!) and try long fic, and I did like it very much, despite the excruciating cruelty of certain things Bodie does. But it didn't detract from the high quality of the writing. And because the story is neatly divided into chapters and nicely paced, I felt very invested in it and the characters' progress, so it became a page turner for me.

Among my favourite writers so far that I have found consistently good, besides PR Zed, also Melanie Athene, Angelfish, Josey ("empty mirrors"), Merentha13, moth2fic, O Yardley, Alexandra and various others by whom I have, though, not yet read a decently sized sample of stories yet. I also like your fics, too, and it amazes me how quickly you find inspiration based on a prompt and just start writing...! I know that the lads are very, ahem, inspirational, but sometimes even the best writers suffer from writer's block or agonise over a short passage for a long time... LOL

As for favourite episodes, as I said originally, it's difficult for me to identify one or more eps that are virtually 'perfect', or that at least seem to tick most of the boxes!... I know I shouldn't demand too much of 1970's television, where producers and screenwriters didn't have the luxury of being able to have multiple script reads or rewrites, nor the narrative constraints of having to have an overarching storyline running parallel to the "caper-of-the-week" one. I so wish Pros eps had an overarching storyline! But, having said that, I tend to favour episodes where the case of the week is not overly complicated that you need multiple viewings to make sense of it (I prefer that repeated viewings highlight nuances in characterisation, than being necessary to make sense of the plot because the scriptwriter didn't bother make things clear the first time LOL or because poor script editing meant cutting scenes that would have helped understand the plot) and where the lads and Cowley are speaking the same language (and not working against each other, or away from one another) and therefore work mostly seamlessly like a well-oiled operation. Or if they hit a stumbling block, their relationship comes out at the end as strengthened and closer. I also tend to stay away from eps that lack humour and banter. Sometimes humour is what IMO saves an ep from being too bleak, and makes me almost forget the bleakness of certain scenarios, including set decoration and hideous wallpaper! A well placed humorous line (especially if unscripted!) or light-hearted scene can actually lift an episode that might have seemed mediocre otherwise. Same goes for a guest character that nearly upstages the lads (see Marge in Backtrack).
So among my favourites, I tend to include Hunter/Hunted, First Night, Slush Fund, A Stirring of Dust, Acorn Syndrome, Ojuka...
Mixed Doubles seems to be nearly universally liked, but though I recognise its merits (good, solid story, interesting and thought-provoking questions it poses), it doesn't 'excite' me or entertain me too much except maybe for the lads' pillow talk scene, so I'd certainly give it high marks but would not be on my frequent-rewatch list :)

Edited Date: Monday, 20 March 2017 04:06 pm (UTC)

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Sebastian's fics and Larton are all stories that most people seem to either love or not like at all. I think Larton definitely relies on a kind of familiarity and affection for the setting the lads are in, and I suspect there are lots of almost in-jokes there too (not all of which I think I've 'got', either! *g*). I adore it though - I love the cosy "vanilla-ness" of it. Sometimes vanilla is just what I want. *g*

Your example of Exile is interesting too - it's been a while since I read it, and PRZed is a solid writer (though she can slip in Americanisms that throw me), but I was completely thrown that she used Noel and Liam Gallagher from the hugely famous and popular band Oasis for her Irish villains. The artwork in the zine where I first saw the story was just absolutely them, with no doubt - Lorraine Brevig must have used them as the models for her pictures - and it just meant that I couldn't quite take the story seriously any more. I seem to remember feeling as if it was very much a Bodie story too, with some Doyle, and the two of them almost entirely separate, which doesn't usually work for me either...

I tend to prefer stories narrated with a certain pace, with lots of banter
Pace is definitely important (though if the writing's good, I can like a slower pace too!) "Banter" I'm a bit more wary of - it's got a certain modern meaning that doesn't really fit our lads. They do joke around together, obviously, but they don't really "do banter" in the same way that Life on Mars "did banter", and I think there are some Pros fics that go a bit too far in that direction... but then I don't want them to be deadly serious in stories either, because they're not in the eps!

Nice list of favourite eps too - it's always interesting to hear what other people like, thanks! *g*

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loxleyprince.livejournal.com

Favourite Pros ep would have to be either Mixed Doubles or Female Factor.
Favourite Pros fanfic would be Painted Angels by Angelfish.

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Have to check that one out.

Just now, I have tea to eat, sarnies to make and I want to check out The Rapport over at MFUWSS at some point too :0)

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A woman who knows her mind! *g* I can't remember which one Painted Angels is just now, which means I may need to re-read it... *g* Good ep choices, too!

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merentha13.livejournal.com

Favorite episode - a tie with "Mixed Doubles" and "Hunter/Hunted". Favorite fic - way too many to chose from.

I admit that "Larton" actually did nothing for me. I don't really see "my" lads in it. It is wonderfully written and I like the story - B&D just aren't there for me. I read it a long time ago, and since everyone seems to love it, maybe I'll give it another go to try and figure out what I'm missing!

I love the pics you posted! Thanks.

Edited Date: Tuesday, 14 March 2017 10:48 pm (UTC)

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murphybabe

I agree about not seeing the lads in Larton, but I do still love it and it's one of my comfort re-reads :)

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milomaus.livejournal.com

All of them, none recently and Larton.
*ggg*

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Belated reply - but heee! The most concise answer yet. And oh - Larton! *g*

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macklingirl.livejournal.com

Well, I think you could guess which my favourite Pros ep is. My first favourite is "Mixed Doubles", closely followed by "The Ojuka Situation" and "Hunter/Hunted" and "Backtrack" (because of Marge and the lads in black).

And I don't have a favourite Pros fic. There are some I've read more than once, but I really can't say, which is my favourite.

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