oh, oh. Ianto and his girls, and his ghosts. I loved seeing what is an adult sarcasm and isolation in its teenage form, as rage and angst and black nailpolish; I thought you captured the essence of being a teenager, (particularly an intelligent, bisexual teenager) quite well. obviously the setting was pretty spot-on, but it stands outside of that, you've caught the universal-ness of floundering your way through life.
I love the sense of the first part, which is richly detailed yet so brief, as though you were focussing on handfuls of detailed minutae which gave the impression of what the bigger picture was like.
Uni, when it started, disappointed him -- just another place to be treated like a child and learn things he didn't care about, about things he did care about, which made everything in his head feel even more confused.
what an utterly perfect description of university! and Europe, Europe, you make it captivating and real — I want to go! it was like reading a John Irving novel, you never feel like it's fictional because it's not afraid to show you the dark places.
speaking of, I love the fact that you give Ianto his own wickedness, too, and his own sense of self outside Jack, and flesh and faces to all the people who wandered through his life. especially Lisa, who is much more than the caricature she's usually painted as. all the Torchwood references are marvellous, and I caught my breath when he brought up Captain Jack. there were quite a few times where I felt like Ianto was on the verge of a secret.
I've said it before; you take the little facts Torchwood drops to build background and help suspension of disbelief and turn them into a compelling story, one which sews up the dark gaps between a television show and what the real world is like. never before was Ianto's shoplifting and uni-experience more than casual facts, but you've managed to make them life experiences, things which shaped him, and their detail in turn helps me understand your Ianto that little bit more.
I confess, I'm falling almost more in love with your side stories and backstory than the main body of the Jack/Ianto. very well done, ladies.
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Date: 2008-11-20 10:20 am (UTC)I love the sense of the first part, which is richly detailed yet so brief, as though you were focussing on handfuls of detailed minutae which gave the impression of what the bigger picture was like.
Uni, when it started, disappointed him -- just another place to be treated like a child and learn things he didn't care about, about things he did care about, which made everything in his head feel even more confused.
what an utterly perfect description of university! and Europe, Europe, you make it captivating and real — I want to go! it was like reading a John Irving novel, you never feel like it's fictional because it's not afraid to show you the dark places.
speaking of, I love the fact that you give Ianto his own wickedness, too, and his own sense of self outside Jack, and flesh and faces to all the people who wandered through his life. especially Lisa, who is much more than the caricature she's usually painted as. all the Torchwood references are marvellous, and I caught my breath when he brought up Captain Jack. there were quite a few times where I felt like Ianto was on the verge of a secret.
I've said it before; you take the little facts Torchwood drops to build background and help suspension of disbelief and turn them into a compelling story, one which sews up the dark gaps between a television show and what the real world is like. never before was Ianto's shoplifting and uni-experience more than casual facts, but you've managed to make them life experiences, things which shaped him, and their detail in turn helps me understand your Ianto that little bit more.
I confess, I'm falling almost more in love with your side stories and backstory than the main body of the Jack/Ianto. very well done, ladies.
edited for grammar, somewhat.