Where Oh Where is Canon!Spike?

[botias]

A few folks have asked this because of my Fic!Spike vs. Canon!Spike comparison. I'm the wrong person to ask, probably, as I don't care for dark!fic and I'm guessing fics that would feature such a Spike in a prominent way are going to get dark fast. However, I have a few suggestions:

beanbeans has some great evol Spike stuff, mostly very adult. Check out her Smut 69 prompts, her fic "The Consort" and if you look in her memories you can still find her WIP "Solace", a Spike/OC fic which is worth the read even for being on indefinite hold.

Another I can recommend that way is rahirah. She is an unabashed fan of 'soulless Spike' and a good writer as well. Her Spike is an impulsive, unapologetic, homicidal asshat to the very end. I love the way she keeps his badass rep that was allowed to fall by the wayside in canon.

herself_nyc_fic has quite the body of work featuring soulless Spike, and is also a good writer, with the caveat that Herself's Spike is about 125 years more mature than canon!Spike and not quite as 'deliciously violent', or at least not when he's on-stage.

rikki_oko is working on a Season 2 Spuffy fic right now in which evol Spike is quite, well, delightfully evol, as are the rest of the fanged, well-characterized, crew.

My widely-read flisties, can you help? Where have you spied Canon!Spike?

ETA: I fixed my many errors; that's what I get for posting right before I had to run out the door.

Comments

[botias.livejournal.com]

All better. Ooops!

[herself_nyc]

Thanks!

[botias.livejournal.com]

Pretty much as soon as:

a) the Scoobies had no fear of him whatsoever, (Dawn: "I feel safe with you")
b) everybody kicked him around at will (Off the top of my head, I'm remembering Buffy, Riley, Xander and Giles all manhandling him. I can't blame them, but this does nothing for his 'rep')
c) he regularly got knocked out in the first 2.5 seconds of fight scenes so Buffy could engage the baddie without interference
d) all he did was mope and drink and watch soaps instead of trying to kill the Slayer. Surely he could pay a coyote to drop anvils on her from cliff tops or something?

[morgantree.livejournal.com]

A fic I really love and re-read periodically is gwyn_r's Perfume of Kismet. Spike and "Anne" collide in LA during Buffy's runaway summer. Really hot, really well written, and the end doesn't pull any punches.

http://www.drizzle.com/~gwyneth/stories/kismet.html

[zanthinegirl.livejournal.com]

I have to check some of those out! I'm not a huge fan of the really dark, but I do like my Spike gritty. St Spike isn't why I read fic! I suspect that part of the problem is that over the course of the series Spike changes and grows so much that it's difficult to pin down a "canon" Spike. Season 2 Spike isn't canon season 4 Spike, who is different yet again from Season 7 Spike.

I couple of suggestions offhand (though you've probably already read them!):

Pillow Talk (http://home.mchsi.com/%7Emissmurchison/Pillow_Talk.htm) and Chiaroscuro (http://home.mchsi.com/~missmurchison/Chiaroscuro_Chapters.htm) , by missmurchison Spike is souless, and definitely a work in progress!

Possession (http://www.angelfire.com/cantina/shadowlass/possession.html), by Shadowlass is actually a post Chosen AU story, and really more of an ensemble piece than a Spike story. I think she really captures my vision of Spike though; and it's a really fun story.

Affinity (http://www.allaboutspike.com/fic.html?id=18), by Ginmar. Season 6 and souless; what might have happened. Her Spike is such a Guy; which is something that a lot of fic-writers seem to forget!

[botias.livejournal.com]

Yup, I've heard that too, many times. If I were to pick a spot I would have to say it was the chip. I wouldn't change anything about the show, but I did miss the Spike that was feared by demon and Slayer alike. I like to think Season 2-3 Spike would have popped the Scoobies in the nose for trying to rough him up, no matter how much it hurt his wittle noggin.

[botias.livejournal.com]

Spike really does change so much over his arc. I think folks are just looking for a Spike in fic that's not been turned into a romantic hero, regardless of his vintage. Personally, I can enjoy either.

Interesting you say that about Spike being a guy, you're absolutely right. Canon Spike is a total guy. I think I could, and probably would, force myself write him that way, just to be true to his character. But, then I would have to hold my nose, and that makes it really hard to type so I don't know... ;) I don't like guys, much prefer men.

[botias.livejournal.com]

P.S. Thanks for the recs. I think I may have read the stuff by missmurchison but I plan to check all these out. :)

[botias.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the rec, sounds yummy.

[botias.livejournal.com]

I thought it was hard to watch too, but possibly for a different reason. His 'kicked puppy' look just rips my heart out, serial killer or no. And of course, he was pretty pathetic, it's hard for me to imagine season 2 Spike taking the stalker approach. He was a much more... actiony kind of guy.

[zanthinegirl.livejournal.com]

I don't like guys, much prefer men

Hee, so, so with you there!

[zanthinegirl.livejournal.com]

You know, it's belated occured to me that one of my favorite Spikes is written by weyrwolfen. Her stories are long and plotty, and not overly shippy but very much from Spike's POV. In League With Serpents (http://dark-solace.org/elysian/viewstory.php?sid=303) is particularly nice; When Spike wins something unexpected over a game of cards, he ends up with a most unlikely crypt-mate and a mission to help a newly resurrected Buffy. With an empathic serpent setting up shop in his head, a scheming warlock on his tail, and a bothersome change in his relationship with the Scoobies, Spike finds himself in the position to save the slayer he loves, the world, and maybe himself in the offing.

I'm also thoroughly enjoying her new WIP Going Forth By Day (http://www.livejournal.com/tools/memories.bml?user=weyrwolfenfic&keyword=Going+Forth+By+Day&filter=all) After Buffy’s death, Spike wants nothing more than to fall to dust. There’s only one problem, he and every other member of the undead seem to have become even more indestructible than usual. Forced to remain in a world he would happily trade for Hell, Spike must deal with his grief, the suspension of previously inviolable mystical laws, and a broken promise to a lady.

I'm just a sucker for late season Spike...

[botias.livejournal.com]

I a huge sucker for late-season Spike too. Season 7 Spike would have to be my all-time fav.

[selinde2.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for the recommendations. You've mentioned a few of my favourites (Herself, MsMurchison, rahirah) so I don't need to do anything but agree with you *earnestly nods head*. Still, in the spirit of sharing good and possibly obscure fic, can I recommend BuffySeasonNoir? Spike is closer to the Canon!Spike you described (which I loved) and is Into Buffy, but his motives are far from clear. Huge plotty goodness too, although still a WIP and, I think, likely to remain unfinished - no activity since 2004. There's enough there to enjoy. http://www.drizzle.com/~eliade/demon_noir.html

[botias.livejournal.com]

Cool! Thanks for the rec. I don't think this is the first time I've heard good things about it. The evidence is growing that I MUST read. :)

Hello!

[uri6.livejournal.com]

Hello, I've just found you on lj (from a rec on "seeking_spike").
I was about to go see your fics, when I found this tread and wanted to add my two cents.
There's a fic, set in S2, that I found really refreshing, meaning it's not Spike that starts EVIL then ##!!BANG!!## falls for Buffy, but stays his own selfish "Big Bad" self while it's Buffy who sort of makes the first step. Unfortunately it's not finished, so theree's not even much spuffyness, but I think the characterization is very !VERY! good!!! and somehow realistic (because S2 Spike was really still much in love with Dru!)
Here's the link: "To help thine enemy" by Gerbnednav:

http://thehookupzone.net/SpuffyRealm/viewstory.php?sid=17164&i=1

BTW I think all her work is really good!