Story 95: "Iolokus" by Mustang Sally and RivkaT

[wendelah1]

A few days ago, someone was talking about fic and the phrase "most famous fic in our fandom" came up. I'm not sure what story she had in mind but surely "Iolokus" has to be a contender for that title. I have seen it nominated by many people for the best fan fiction novel, not just in our own, but in any fandom. I have also seen people say they couldn't finish it because Mulder and Scully were too "out of character."

The misspelled monster that started it all. Although I'm told it promotes heteronormativity in the end, we were more going for polymorphic perversity; you'll have to judge for yourself.

Summary: Painted across the barren and desolate reaches of Texas, the shadows of the Project put additional pressure on Scully and Mulder's already fragile relationship. After a hostage crisis raises more questions about the Project's breeding program, Scully begins her own investigation, leaving Mulder to choose between saving her and saving himself. Finally, the investigation leads to tragedy and Mulder and Scully find that more questions have been asked than answered.

The title reference was to an island mentioned in Medea, to which we turned for fairly obvious reasons.

Warnings: extreme violence, including the death of children.

There are four long sections to this behemoth. My first time through this fic I hadn't much knowledge of canon, so I am curious to see what I think of it now. Thank you to sangria_lila for this excellent nomination. If there is enthusiasm to continue, I suppose we can forge through to the end or just quit with book one. It's your call.

Please leave feedback for the authors and then come back and let us know what you think. Nominations for next time are made here. Since rivkat's site is down at the moment, the link is to the wonderful Fugues Fiction Archive. Of course, the story is also available at Gossamer.

Iolokus

Edit: Since Rivkat's site is back up, here is another link to the story: Iolokus.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Well I'm relieved, I thought I had stumbled across the Presidents of the Iolokus fan club here, lol.

I finally got through the whole thing, and like you, I can't see what others applaud. The story just really doesn't work for me on any level. Some of my biggest issues:

1. Obviously, the characterizations. I've posted about that already, so I won't repeat myself. But I've realized part of the reason I had such an adverse reaction to the characters is that they both sound the same to me. Their voices were nearly identical, in that they both sounded like the authors, not like individuals. The snideness of their voices, the bitterness, the language laced with metaphor - I concede it's difficult to write first person, but I think the attempt here wholly missed the mark.

2. The whole thing is so cruel and mean-spirited and just plain ridiculous, both in the external factors the characters are reacting to, and to the internal reactions of the characters themselves. It seemed like the plot became more convoluted and ludicrous just for the sake of being convoluted and ludicrous. I mean mass murder at a day care, casual and destructive sex, a fetus lab set on fire by the woman whose genetic material was stolen and manipulated, multiple Mulders, rape, near incest, sociopaths, serial-killers, a full-on custody battle, an exploding courtroom, pregnancy and cap it off with domestic bliss? This thing runs hot and cold and manic to the extreme.

Maybe it's ironic that I love this show and these characters yet I'm a realist. Even if I don't buy the plot (and I don't, in many many cases, even in tv canon) what I value in these stories is the honesty of the character's reactions and their relationship to one another. In this story they were manipulated, pulled and pushed around, knocked down and put through hell and back, just because the author's could do it. Their relationship was so warped and destructive and dysfunctional, and they were both entirely miserable the entire time. The premise of the characters was so skewed from the beginning, that I saw nothing approaching honesty in their thoughts, actions, feelings or reactions.

Well, not entirely true: the only thing I found honest in this story was the relationship between Mulder and his daughter. It brought out the characteristics in him I could actually recognize - his kindness, humor, patience, affection, tenacity.

3. Enough with the sex scenes. I'm not going to lie, I enjoy a good sex scene as much as the next person, but not when it's destructive or emotionally vacant, and certainly not when there's about 30 of them that are more or less the same thing repeated and do nothing to further the plot or the emotional maturity of the story. It becomes a chore to read.

So, to put it bluntly, I didn't enjoy reading it. CC and co put them through enough misery, that I like to see them find a little peace and happiness, to heal -- not in a sentimental, schlooppy, overly poetic way, but in an honest way, that's true to the characters, to their spirit and intelligence.

And I get that that's not what this story was about. SO.. (long rambling post about to come to an end, I promise ;) ) I'm glad I gave it shot, but now it's time to move on with my life. I'm glad others got so much enjoyment from it, and I'm just going to have to resign myself to the fact that I'm not one of them.

-Katie

[estella-c.livejournal.com]

Obviously, rereading Iolokus was a joy for me rather than a chore. Tastes vary wildly in this particular case.

I've read many highly thought-of and well-crafted fics in which Mulder and Scully cope bravely and respect each other and behave pretty much as heroes are meant to behave. The writers took the show, the characters and their readers seriously. Glad to have read them.

Probably won't again.

Part of the attraction of Iolokus, for those who dig it, is the transgressive thrill of kicking over the traces. Its writers treat Mulder and Scully very roughly, loading calamity upon calamity almost to the point, as Scarlet said, of parody. They are imagining the absurd situation of the characters as a cosmic joke, which really it it. (Have you ever tried to describe the X-File storyline to a non-fan? Including Mulder's three(?)deaths? And gotten the "c'mon!"?) It's loony, unbelievable stuff, and it will break your heart if you let it. But fans are not always forced to take it seriously. Sometimes the best response to a cosmic joke is to cap it.

Sally and Rivka may have manhandled their heroes, but at least they gave them good dialogue.

I think it's important to remember that Mulder and Scully do manage to love each other. Even in the real world, love is something that psychically injured people have to work hard to achieve. Their relationship is a long battle. It is triumphant. That much is serious.

There's an element of light-hearted fantasy along with the angst that charms me personally. The multiple Mulders idea gives me a chance to see Mulder (and DD) in so many roles, and Scully complimentary adversorial ones. It's role-playing to the max, and very sexy. (Destructive, emotionally vacant sex scenes are fine with me, though I'd point out that anger is an emotion. For many reasons, actually, I think an Iolokus reader should pace herself. It's a frantic ride.)