Cohorts

Zine
Title:	Cohorts
Publisher:	IIBNF Press
Editor(s):	Bernice
Date(s):	1993-2003
Series?:
Medium:	print
Size:
Genre:	slash and het
Fandom:	multimedia
Language:	English
External Links:
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Cohorts is a slash and het multifandom anthology that was published in Australia.

From issue #2: "All contributors receive a contributors copy, and anyone who contributes more than 5 pages (after IIBNF formatting) also receives another IIBNF zine of their choice."

Issue 1

cover of issue #1

flyer issue #1 with story summaries, click to read

Cohorts 1 was published 1993 and contains 158 pages.

The Professionals (22.5%, 36 pages), Blake's 7 (7.5%, 12 pages), UFO (54 pages, 33.7%), Tomorrow People (5 pages, 3.13%), The Hard Way (14 pages, 8.7%), Best Seller (2 pages, 1.25%), Zorro(31 pages, 19.3%).

160 pages, 123,088 words. Zine is formatted to 11pts, double column, minimum white space. Lots of artwork. Although jam packed, every care has been taken to ensure readability of type. Cohorts One provides a wide mixture of stories covering every possible theme you could imagine, plus heaps of poetry, cartoons, and snippets. Loads of angst, love, laughter and, of course, plenty of sex. Art by Bernice, Cat, Kay: in colour and B/W pencil printed, and B/W ink. Brightly coloured but public transport acceptable covers.

• Nut Cutlet by Edwina Harvey (Pros)
• Something Worth Having - Stand Down - The Man in Black (three-part story) by K ("Even though the feelings between them have been acknowledged, it takes a long time to reach acceptance, and love.") (Pros)
• Memorial by Kei ("Meeting up again at Cowley's funeral after many years apart, Bodie and Doyle work out some long unresolved feelings.") (Pros)
• God Bless Us, Everyone by Airelle (Bodie/Cowley) ("Bodie and Cowley celebrate Christmas their own way.v) (first published in 1994 in Faute Professionnelle #5) (Pros)
• Limerick by Ceri (Pros)
• Desperate Measures by Tara ("Imprisoned on an alien world, Blake & Avon must come to terms with the animosity between them.") (Blake's 7)
• Yellow Bodie: Competition Entries:
  • Midas Touch by Felicity Granger (Pros)
  • Yellow River by Wolfie (Pros)
  • Nut Nutlet by Edwina Harvey (Pros)
• Snow Country by Kei ("Straker and Foster find more than just aliens when on a mission to Japan.") (UFO)
• Games by Kei (sequel to Snow Country) (UFO)
• Where the Heart Is by Katy Deery (UFO)
• Lost Light by Kei (UFO)
• Celebration by Tara ("Foster has a gift for Straker that he'll never forget.") (UFO)
• Merciful Control by K ("Too much love can be a bad thing, when it's caused by alien brainwashing.") (UFO)
• Resolution by Tara (UFO)
• Into the Unknown" by K ("Telepathy is a curse when you have something to hide.") (Tomorrow People)
• The Easy Way by Sarah Bellum ("Nick Lang is back and he's not looking to make a sequel - he's back for John Moss. Can the super cop cope with the high gloss, artificial world of a film star?") (The Hard Way)
• Reciprocity by Sarah Bellum ("What if Cleve had not really been killed?") (Best Seller)
• Best Kept Secrets by Felicity Granger ("Diego's own father believes him to have no interest in the senoritas, and Zorro is having doubts about the constant fight against injustice. Philipe, rapidly becoming a man, provides solace for a weary hero.") (Zorro)

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 1

I haven't seen "The Hard Way" but I think I recognised James Woods. I don't fancy him much but Fox is one of those nice, feel good people who makes me smile and thinking of him made the story enjoyable. The sex was good too, even if I'd never thought of Fox and sex in the same sentence before! Considering I hadn't seen the movie a lot more than I expected, it was fan!

I enjoyed the B7 story too, I'm glad it wasn't a happy ending, though I don't like to be told what people are thinking all the time, I'd prefer to wonder. I think readers like to decide the emotions for themselves, that's half the fan with characters like Avon and I guess Straker too. The art's very good in the zine, a nice Straker by K. Teel and I loved the colour pic of Bodie.

I really enjoyed K's B/D stories, I've always had trouble accepting that they would just fall into bed without any thought and act like it was perfectly natural. It was nice to see them hold off and worry about how it would effect their job and whether it was such a good idea. It was missing a big sex scene though. Perhaps K and Sarah Bellum could get together on a story. K and Sarah have discussed working on a Due South story, but no joy so far.

I loved the picture of the A/U Straker, with that haircut and the horse all he really needed was pointy ears, he looked rather elfin.

I thought I'd better get my act together and send you an LOC re Cohorts 1. I suppose I should start at the beginning by thanking Felicity Granger for introducing me to the joys of Zorro slash. I thought her 'Best Kept Secrets' was well written, and found I'm hooked on 'Zorro' slash. I hope she intends to write more in the future! Me Too Oddly enough, I don't consider myself to be a great 'Zorro fan', though I know of the show through the original series I watched as a child, and I went to see the 'Zorro' movie with George Hamilton when it was on. I cringed through the most recent series - the horse is a better actor than a lot of the humans.... That still doesn't stop me watching it when the chance arises.

'UFO' I never really got into. It was the purple wigs and the string singlets I best remember, rather than the characters, so I don't think I'm in any position to comment on the 'UFO' stories, apart from to say that I read them. Ditto 'Best Seller' and 'The Hard Way'. Help, I'm lost!

'The Tomorrow People' I vaguely remember from my childhood, so I went scrambling for 'K's story. I think I remember who she was writing about. (Old age and a faulty memory are awful things!) but I'd never imagined them in a same sex relationship. Mind you, when I was watching 'The Tomorrow People' I was a little too young to be contemplating any sort of relationship, despite the two guys in question being considered hunks in my pre-pubescent fantasies.

I feel on safer ground with 'The Professionals'. I enjoyed 'God Bless Us Everyone' by Airelle, but was left wanting more. How would a 3-4 page story on Cowley and Bodie go? One that explains the relationship in a little more depth?

I enjoyed the rest of the 'Pros' stories too (not surprisingly). I'm surprised that your 'Yellow Bodie' competition didn't bring more entries, but I'm also surprised what a stark contrast the stories were.... Sorry mine was so dowdy, but you didn't way you were going to be producing that kind of fanzine! (Then again, you didn't way you weren't either, did you?)...

I also enjoyed Tara's B7 stories, by the way, and had a good giggle out of those odd little bits and pieces sprinkled throughout the zine - the four line limericks and the 'abandon story' page et al.

Technically, the different coloured pages you were so worried about didn't phase me. I rather like the green parchment on the cover (cor!).

There were a few spelling bloopers, the most memorable being 'John awoke in a cold seat' on page 87. Just goes to show you, the pen is mightier than the spell-check program. Next time, try luring one of your many friends into a sneak preview of your zine and let them try to pick up slips if you haven't got time to do so yourself.

Although I'm a fairly good proof reader of other people's work, I often don't pick up my own mistakes. Unfortunately, no one in Australia will help me produce the zines. The only person who did any proof reading for my stuff (and not with Cohorts) is in America and it gets a bit expensive to send zines back and forth after every edit, and I feel a tad guilty imposing on her all the time. Are you volunteering? I could sure use a second proofer!

This may help counter Murphy's law of zine typos which states, a typo doesn't become obvious until after it's been printed,collated, and bound into a zine.

I enjoyed the zine, especially the Hard Way story, I could picture it all in my head. I especially liked the idea of John Mossill because he kept getting angry. It was nicely written too, just the right flippant touch that the original film, which I love, has. It was my favourite story in the zine. My next favourite was the Zorro story, I think because it was nice long read, I seem to prefer longer stories, not that the shorter ones were without merit. It was lovely to see all those Tara stories too.

Got to read your zine, and loved every minute of it. Especially the Due South, B5, and UFO. The former was very moving... sniff! And I liked the way you had the death scene in that without there actually being a death. Benny reacted in just the way I imagine he would, not only to the vision of Ray's demise, but all the way through. Wonderful bit of writing!

As for the B5, I've always seen possibilities of a relationship between Michael and Jeff, so it was nice to actually see that relationship in print. Characterisations were excellent too. UFO I've been a long standing fan of, although I've not read all that much.

Issue 2

cover of issue #2

flyer issue #2 with story summaries, click to read

Cohorts 2 was published in August 1995 and contains 120 pages.

There is no interior art.

Blake's 7 (7 pages, 6%), UFO (44 pages, 37%), Babylon 5 (13 pages, 11%), Due South (22 pages, 19%), James Bond (8 pages, 7%), Deep Space Nine (4 pages, 4%), Inspector Morse (14 pages, 12%).

Flyer: "Cohorts Two provides a wide mixture of stories covering every possible theme you could imagine, plus two short Professionals stories (3 pages) and lots of small snippets and funny bits. Loads of angst, love, laughter and, of course, plenty of sex. 120 pages. 115,640 words. Zine is formatted to 11pts. double column, minimum white space. Although jam packed, every care has been taken to ensure readability of type."

From the editor:

After the horrendous mess of Cohorts One (now there's good advertising!), I think you'll agree that Cohorts Two is a vast improvement. At least it has all its pages (anyone missing any Cohorts One pages contact me for replacements).

I'll be taking a break from multi-media zines for a little while, to concentrate on a couple of special projects. Namely, I've been bitten by the Due South bug and am hoping to get one or two Due South zines under way. The first is partially written (about 80%) and is being illustrated now. No deadlines, but early 1996 would be a good bet for the release date of this zine.

• Reasons Why Diefenbaker Keeps Changing by the coffee shop crew (unnumbered page)
• Dreams and Visions by The Vorlon/Pat Jenkins ("One drink too many spells the end of Garibaldi's secret. Now he waits in terror for Sinclair's reaction.") (Babylon 5) (1)
• a Ren and Stimpy tidbit from an interview with John Kricfalusi (13)
• Babylon 5 Slash Pairings by Sarah Bellum (likely reprinted from an issue of Late for Breakfast) (Babylon 5) (14)

• Day Trip by McCartney Ferry ("The Commander's inability to express his love for Paul Foster drives Foster into the arms of another man.") (UFO) (15)
• Bond Strikes Camp by Not Sure ("Written by friends of Ian Flemming many many years ago. Patriotism is taken one step too far as far as Bond is concerned.") (James Bond) (21)
• On The Edge by Tara ("Stolen moments of passion and risky sex lead to redefinition of their relationship for Morse and Lewis.") (Inspector Morse) (29)
• Battleground by Tara ("On a rare shore leave, Blake questions whether the Federation have committed the greatest crime — erasing his ability to feel...") (Blake's 7) (43)
• Despite and Still by Tara ("A long story that follows the trials faced by two men trapped by their positions and their passions, and the continuous attempts of the aliens to destroy them.") (UFO) (50)
• Friendly Advice by Mary E ("Instructions in human sexuality become a reciprocal learning experiment for Odo and Bashir.") (Deep Space 9) (87)
• Revolver's Prayer by Pogue Mahon ("An alternative postscript to "Victoria's Secret") (Due South) (91)
• Love Story of a Different Kind by Airelle (republished in French in Faute Professionnelle #7) (Pros) (insert)
• It's A Dog's Life by VJ ("Manage a doggie style. - I'm gonna gel lynched for printing this one!") (Due South) (insert)
• Painless by Sarah Bellum ("When Fraser finds out that Ray is being blackmailed, he cannot come to terms with Ray's solution.") (Due South) (95)
• Raymondo's Secret by Velcro Head (Due South) (insert)
• Due South - The Interactive Version by Velcro Head (Create your own script — humorous.) (Due South) (insert)
• Beaver Season by VJ ("Ray Vccchio has to go undercover in a gay club, and drags his Mountie along. Is it a setup, is he setting Benny up. or has he bitten off more than he can chew!") (Due South) (106)
• Letters of Comment (112)
• My Lover's Body by India (translated into English by Airelle) (Pros) (last page)

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 2

[Love Story of a Different Kind]: Starts off very worryingly (to me) het and... well there's a surprise twist, but not quite twist-y enough for me, unfortunately! Because (and this isn't a spoiler as it's right there in the first sentence or so) Ray Doyle is actually Rae Doyle, who is... female.

[Revolver's Prayer]: I read the Due South story, in C2 and categorically enjoyed/loved it. I'm not familiar enough with the show yet to really know the personalities of the characters, but from what I can tell, you seemed to have captured them perfectly. I was kind of surprised that the story dealt with Ray being suicidal. I wouldn't have thought that of him. But I put on the tapes of the eps I have and watched parts of them and realised that he is rather sensitive and worn down by life and could easily fall into this kind of depression if things seemed hopeless. And having someone around like the Mountie could be a plus and a minus. The really nice touch was the book. Especially Fraser's sweet confession about, 'what kind of man am I'. I love this passage. I also like Ray's thoughts about 'maybe that's why we are so good together: a couple of emotional cripples playing at being each other's crutch.' That's beautiful. And Fraser's nervous unsure attempt to explain himself to Ray, with his back to him while slicing up an animal. That's so sweet.

[Painless]: I've just had a quick look at Cohorts two, I'll comment properly when I've had a good look but the one story I had to finish was "Painless" by Sarah Bellum. It made me cry! I hate crying yet there I was lying in bed with tears trickling down my face and into the pillow.

[zine]: It had some delightfully quirky stories in it with twisted (not unexpected) plots/endings. In other words I really enjoyed it. Absolutely loved "Dreams and Visions",the pairing was one I personally like, and I could see it happening just as written. All the characters were as I see them on the show, which I often watch. With stories such as this I could well be a B5 slash fan. "Day Trip" was interesting but not really one of my favourites even though I would probably read just about anything UFO. I am not into the death stories, even with it just being a little box at the end, that ruins the lift you feel at the end of the story. I'm someone who wants the trauma and whatever of a couple making it and then the happy ending. Don't know the Inspector Morse characters but the story was good, straight slash. I did enjoy the story, but enjoy it more when I can picture the characters. "Battle Ground" was fun in the who, when, where mode of story. I liked the fact that Avon cared even against his own wishes to care and showed it. Good overall story. "Despite and Still" a UFO story. My personal favourite in the zine. I Do watch U and love the pairing of Ed and Paul. This story was essentially a first-time, love, lots of problems from outside, betrayal in thoughts, and then the closeness and love finally winning out. "Friendly Advice" do you think Odo planned the whole thing to go the way it did? Would have loved to read Dax's reaction. Airelle should be ashamed of herself, I like Ray just as he is. But it was an interesting AU story and I enjoyed it anyway. N eat way to solve a problem with else's perceptions of the way things should be. "It's a Dog's Life", tsk, tsk. But very funny.

[zine]: I loved "Beaver Season", that whole concept was great. And "Painless" by Sarah Bellum was... if I saw wonderful would that make me seem heartless in view of the story? But to tell the truth I wish I'd thoughtof the idea first! By the way, I liked "It's a Dog's Life", that VJ has a sense of humour...

[zine]: Just thought I would pen a few lines about Cohorts 2. As you know, this was the first zine I came across that Due South stories in it, and these were the first stories that I turned to and I really enjoyed them. However, once the first hot flushes had died down a little I took stock and decided to look at the rest of the zine. I thought "Dreams and Visions" was excellent. Babylon 5 is a series I adore but have never really seen any slash possibilities. Possibly something to do with the fact that I don't find any of the men attractive (although Sheridan is warming up nicely after his torture scene in the penultimate episode of season 2). But this story could make me change my mind. I think I am going to have to go back to the first season episodes and have another look at Sinclair (I know Garibaldi doesn't do anything for me, sorry). My only quibble with the story is that I got a little lost in the machinations of the Nam and the Windswords - however, this just means I will have to read the story again - what a bummer. The Bond story was amusing. The one story that was a real eye-opened for me was On The Edge. I have never come across Morse and Lewis slash (although I was aware it was out there) and I didn't watch the TV series, but I loved the story and I could hear the characters saying the words the writer had put in their mouths (this from just watching a few trailers on TV). For me this is writing of the highest order. The sex was erotic and the story compelling - all in all a very good read. And as these are characters I don't particularly know or care about it came as quite a surprise to me how much I enjoyed the story. I normally find it very difficult to read multi media stories about characters I don't' know. As ever the UFO stories were very good. I do like this series and Commander Straker will now for ever be known in my mind as the Ice Prince. I know the series very well and can tell that the author does too. It is very nice to have so many allusions to different episodes and have them fit in so nicely with a good sexy story. The Bashir/Odo story was a bit of a strange one for me - very funny and het very erotic. One of my favourite slash combinations is Bashir/Garak and this is the first DS9 slash I have read with different characters. It worked very well and I would be very interested to read more of these stories. Leaves me back to the Due South - stories which I have read again and enjoyed, but possibly not as much as some of the others in the zine. I wondered whether it was because it is very difficult for a writer to get into Fraser's head. People don't seem to know whether to make him a complete innocent or someone with hidden depths (or a hidden past). I did enjoy the stories and indeed some of them were extremely funny (even on second reading) but I felt something was missing. One of the things missing for me was the sex. I noticed that in the Due South stories (and not any of the other stories) sex seemed to have a discrete veil drawn over it. I find Fraser incredibly attractive and want to read about him in bed with Ray! I want also to read good stories but I prefer the stories to end up in bed or on the floor or on the kitchen table and preferably with them having SEX. All in all a very good zine and one which I have recommended highly to my friends - especially at the cut down price of 10 pounds.

"Dreams and Visions" - I had real mixed feelings about this one. I liked the overall story, the wallow, does he really mean it, the I'm out mastered bit. Great stuff. But... it just didn't come off right t (semi-intentional pun). It did however start me writing a B5 story along the same lines. So it made me think. Some would say that's what a story is supposed to do (but that person probably doesn't read slash).

B5 Possible slash: What about Keffer? Doesn't anyone like dark Italian types? Delenn/Winters - loving the alien time. Franklin/Ivanova - she tear strips off people, he sews them back on - perfect partnership.

"Day Trip" - who would want to retire to NSW anyway.

"Bond Strikes Camp" - very N. Coward-ish. I always thought M had a thing for Bond, so did Blofeld.

"Battleground" - nicely descriptive. images. I liked this.

"Friendly Advice" - want more.

"Love Story of a Different Kind" - unusual. I like it. "It's a Dog's life" - lynching would be too good. How about neutering.

"Painless" - This is Good! Graphic, well written pathos everywhere. Loved it! Even my non slash friends liked this one.

"Raymond's Secret" - could also be called Sleepless in Chicago.

Deer Burnaise, Eye wish to apply for the jab off poof weeder for the next issue of Cohorts. Ass you can see from my applicaiton I would be prefect for the position. I can even awake in a cold seat when rewired to. Edinaw.

(SHE'S PERFECT!! Thank you to Edwina for taking the time and trouble to poofrood this issue! Much appreciated.)

Issue 3

Cohorts 3 was published in January 1997 and contains 160 pages, including art. Approx. 144,000 words. Mauve public transport safe covers. Spiral bound, laser printed, p/copied.

cover of issue #3

Flyer: Cohorts 3, ^{Archived version}

From the editorial:

Well, here we are, only five months late. That's got to be a new record for the Cohorts title.

It's a real mixed bag this time, with some really crazy ideas from some authors. The crazier the better! There are some quite sexy pieces as well, so hopefully you'll all find something to tickle your fancy like a hairy toilet seat. At this time, I am considering ceasing the Cohorts title, as it seems that interest in multi media zines is falling. I would then concentrate on single show zines, such as due SOUTH, X Files, or whatever I am working on. I am interested in getting the opinions of readers and contributors - so include your opinion with your LOC.

You will notice the preponderance of due SOUTH fiction in this issue. That's an off shoot of the big Due South zines that IIBNF Produces. When authors submit more than one story in any particular fandom, I like to hold the excess over for other issues. As due SOUTH is so very popular right now, I doubt there will be many complaints.

• A Slash Zine is Better Than a Man Because... by Sarah Bellum and Maxine Headcase
• Sprung, poem by Blue (Archie)
• Biting the Bullet by Arch Ant (This is Arch Ant's version of "Dreams & Visions" from issue #1) ("Garibaldi blushed. Jeff really knew where all his buttons were, and in what order to push them. He partially rolled over, causing Jeff to fall sideways. "You’ve got a dirty mind. I like that in a man," he said, before walking into the shower.") (Babylon 5) (2)
• Encounter by Meridian/Kaycie ("He had come too far to back out now. He wanted to feel strong arms hold him tight. He wanted this man to hold him and for a little while he would pretend that this was 5 years in the past and Alan was Ray. Bodie celebrates an anniversary, coming to terms with loss.") (Professionals/The Chief) (9)
• Fear by Catherine (""Beautiful eyes." Benny whispered. Ray swallowed thickly as Benny leaned forward for a hard, fast kiss. Ray never closed his eyes, keeping them open, absorbing everything about his lover, the blue of his eyes, the scar at the corner of his mouth. He licked at it, jumping when he felt Fraser’s hand on his bare backside.") (due South) (13)
• It Could Happen by Gloria Lancaster ("Benny went right ahead being adorable all over the place, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it, short of shooting him in the back of the neck. Only trouble is, even the back of his neck is cute.") (due South) (22)
• Incident With Walt Whitman by Mirna Cicioni ("Favor swallowed hard. Fool kid. For wantin’ me. The man who rode with him, argued with him, fought beside him, knew him as no woman ever had. As no woman probably could. And who wanted him as he was. Favor falls into a trap designed to waylay the herd, and it takes Rowdy’s loyalty to save them all.") (Rawhide) (24)
• Living Life by Quill ("Ray’s face was hard as he lifted the fourth drink and he gulped it down, the scene of his sister and Benny making love repeating over and over in his imagination.") (due South) (32)
• Personal Magnetism and ‘Magnetic Personality’ by Elizabeth Holden ("A Pair of concentric stories dealing with the relationship between Magneto and Gambit.") (X-Men) (38)
• Scraping the Bottom of the Barrel by Sarah Bellum and Maxine Headcase (Professionals/Muppets) (56)
• Russian Roulette by Quill ("Illya opened his eyes and saw the white ceiling. For a long moment all he did was stare up at that ceiling, not a thought in his head, then slowly memory returned and with that memory came the pain. Napoleon, his Napoleon, was dead, and he’d pulled the trigger.") (Man from UNCLE) (57)
• Pros-O-Rama by Katherine Korge (Professionals) (87)
• Two of Us by A. Worthyfriend ("'Probably a pair of ‘horses hoofs’ as we used to call ‘em.' John had looked down his nose at me in that superior way of his. 'Don’t knock what you haven’t tried, Paulie.'") (The Beatles RPF, note: the table of contents says "Not telling :-)) (88)
• Untitled by Arch Ant (Highlander, sort of) (90)
• Heart of Stone by A. Worthyfriend (""Don’t wish for anything. I won’t give you what you want." "But just to be treated like equals..." Goliath stated. He almost crushed Xanatos’ hand in his before kissing the tips with the gentleness of sunshine kissing flowers.") (Gargoyles) (91)
• Bondage Baby by Arch Ant and Devi Ant (multifandom) (95)
• On Account of Love by Violet Nightingale ("In that singular moment of unsurpassed intimacy the sense of sharing something unique and remarkable was overwhelming and I knew then that I would never forget the power, the rapture and the sheer erotic joy of it as he adored me with his mouth.") (Sherlock Holmes) (96)
• Oh, CI5 by Arch Ant and Devi Ant (Professionals) (109)
• Truth by Gillian Middleton (""Because there is no love between guys, Fraser. It’s hard hands and hard cocks and somebody getting hurt and humiliated, okay? Don’t dignify it with words like love. It takes gentleness and care for Fraser to reach Ray.") (due South) (110)
• Ray and Benny, art by Anja Gruber (due South) (118a)
• A Sure Sign of Spring by Jane ("Fraser gave him a look, half shy, half ravenous, and then without preamble tugged the white sweater off over his head, leaving him bare to the waist, honey coloured and smooth as silk, while Ray felt the brains leaking out of his ears. Dief’s summer shedding allows Ray to perform another good deed for his Mountie.") (due South) (119)
• various things by Arch Ant and Devi Ant (137)
• Contribution to Science by Trish Darbyfield (due South) (138)
• Another Thingy by Arch Ant (Garfield) (139)
• Ray and Benny, art by Anja Gruber (due South) (139a)
• Storm in a Teacup by Quill (due South) (140)
• Until My Dying Day by Quill (due South) (144)
• Ray and Benny, art by Anja Gruber (due South) (144a)
• Hard Truths and Strategic Lies by Keiko Kirin (""This is extremely unpleasant for me, Foster," Straker began at last, the words coming slowly, "so I'll come straight to the point. You and Waterman – is it true?"") (UFO) (146)
• Sailor’s Choice by Arch Ant (""You calling me a cheap lay?" Brody teased, his voice edged with lust and humour. "I’ll have you know I’m expensive... and worth it."") (Seaquest)

• 

  from issue #3

• 

  from issue #3, Anja Gruber

• 

  from issue #3, Anja Gruber

• 

  from issue #3

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 3

...most of it hasn't stayed in my memory, hated the Jane DS story, enjoyed some of the other DS.

Giving you the bottom line first: I enjoyed this zine. Perhaps I should admit up front that I like multi-media zines (some of which are more equal than others). Some parts were better than others -- oddly, my favourite story was from a fandom I am totally unfamiliar with.

The best stories here were: (1) "Hard Truths and Strategic Lies" by Keiko Kirin. (2) "Incident with Walt Whitman" by Mirna Cicioni (3) "Until My Dying Day" by Quill.

In more detail:

"A Slash Zine is Better Than a Man Because" by Sarah Bellum and Maxine Headcase. Twelve reasons, and they had me laughing, and it was a good lighthearted introduction to the zine.

Letters of comment - I haven't seen many zines lately which had letters of comment, and I liked seeing this. I hope it isn't a dying tradition. Even if I haven't read them, I like reading about people's reactions to the zines they've read, and it pleases me to feel that zine writers and readers are connected by two-way communication. It enhances my sense of genre and my appreciation of fandom, and puts personality to the anonymity of readers, who sometimes seem so unreal because they are so unknown.

"Sprung!" by Blue. A bit of Archie/Jughead slash. Erk. Not my favourite concept. Cute, but... erk.

"Biting the Bullet" by Arch Ant. [Babylon 5] Jeff Sinclair and Michael Garibaldi are a favourite slash pair of mine and I'm a fan of Arch Ant's writing, but this didn't impress me. Garibaldi was too down, too dispirited, making his own troubles. And Sinclair... just didn't ring true. I couldn't even put Sinclair's face to this character, though I don't usually have this problem. The result was a story that was neither entertaining nor sexy.

"Encounter" by Kaycie. [The Chief] Alan Cade.... the incomparable Alan Cade. I loved this, largely because of my passion for the character, not to mention his partner here. Despite the oddity of the situation, it seemed in character to me, in all the ways that counted. I'd like a sequel.

"Fear" by Catherine. [Due South] Fear is a subject I've encountered in many fanfic stories, often not handled well. This was good; psychologically convincing, and true to the characters.

"It Could Happen" by Gloria Lancaster. [Due South] A lovely, funny story. The only thing I didn't like about it was the subtitle, "Marx Brothers Style" -- I didn't see Marx Brothers style in it, and it hurt my head to try. But as a delightful, touching, amusing and laughworthy look at Ray Vecchio it was worth its weight in gold.

"Incident with Walt Whitman" by Mirna Cicioni. [Rawhide] There were some great twists in this, such as having Rowdy rescue Favor. Mind you, I adore Walt Whitman and I'm a sucker for any story that uses poetry effectively. On the other hand, I hate stories that use poetry and do it badly -- and this one used Whitman in the most exquisite way. Quite a delight, and so refreshingly original, free from all the standard slash cliches.

"Living" by Quill. [Due South] An interesting take on the question of whether Fraser did or did not have sex with Francesca, and why (or why not).

"Personal Magnetism" and "Magnetic Personality" by Elizabeth Holden. [X-Men] I will refrain from comment on my own stories; I cringed, I always do, but not too badly.

"Scraping the Bottom of the Barrel" by Sarah Bellum and Maxine Headcase. [Pros... sort of.] The best part of this story is 'sex with a capon' but I won't spoil the punch line. Sick? Twisted? Silly? Of course. Of course, the most absurd thing in it is that Doyle starts out wearing a necktie.

"Russian Roulette" by Quill. [UNCLE] This was about guilt. I like Napoleon/Illya stories at any time, but I thought there was something of a teeter-totter motion here as they alternately are overcome by guilt at shooting each other under Thrush control. I became impatient. In the end I enjoyed it more than not, but thought it would have been better with some structural editing to make the story tighter and smoother. I raised my eyebrows when Illya goes to friends, a male/female couple named 'Slim' and Jean, who mention a Professor. How could I not think of Scott Summers and his wife Jean Grey and Professor X -- ? I was expecting telepathy and eye-beams.

"Sailor's Choice" by Arch Ant. [SeaQuest DSV] Arch Ant is right back on track here with a lovely sex story. Nice punch line too.

"Pros-o-Rama" by Katherine Korge. [Pros] I thought this was funnier in concept than in execution. I didn't laugh, except maybe at "The Untouchables".

"Two of Us" by A. Worthyfriend. [The subject is delightfully unspecified, but not open to question or confusion either.] I loved this. Cute, funny, clever, with just a touch of verisimilitude.

"Untitled" by Arch Ant. [Highlander] LOL. Loved it.

"Heart of Stone" by A. Worthyfriend. [Gargoyles] I'm not familiar with the characters or the background, but I enjoyed the climax and resolution. A good story; I had a strong sense of the personalities even if I had some trouble with identities.

"Bondage Baby", "CI5 Lullaby" and "Oh, CI5" by Arch and Devi Ant. Did I say silly, before? Hah.

"On Account of Love" by Violet Nightingale. [Holmes/Watson] I read all the Sherlock Holmes stories once upon a time and came to the eventual conclusion that I didn't like either Holmes or Watson and they are/were the unsexiest pair I'd ever encountered. So... a tip of the hat to Violet Nightingale for making me like these men when Sir Arthur Conan Doyle could not. A tip of the hat for making them downright sexy, without being untrue to the sources. Very, very well done.

"Truth" by Gillian Middleton. [Due South] Another 'Ray and Fraser are trapped in the wilderness' story, not my favourite kind. (Yes, I know the show set it up. I know what a great slash set up it is. But for that reason, I find it... tacky. Too easy. And I like Ray and Fraser much better in the Chicago urban setting.) But the sexy bits were very nice and I liked the way the characters were shown so don't let me complain about the setting.

"A Sure Sign of Spring" by Jane. [Due South] A few pages into this story, I had forgotten who wrote it, and I was enjoying it so much I turned back to check. Jane. Writing at her best, some of the strongest, funniest, cleverest, most interesting, most evocative prose I've seen from her -- even if it's just describing a visit to a department store to buy a vacuum cleaner.

So you might well ask: why did I get fed up with this story, if it was so good? I don't want to give any spoilers, but basically Ray and Fraser decide they love each other -- this is good. And they're going to have sex -- even better. And then they talk and talk and talk and talk about it and by the time they did anything I was too bored to care and had lost all belief that they really wanted each other, let alone felt any intensity about it. And though the story's beginning made me expect a strong theme, it didn't go anywhere -- the relationship was the only point, and if it lost impact (as it did) there was nothing to rescue the story.

Put more simply: the story started very well, and disappointed me.

"Contribution to Science" by Trish Darbyfield. [Due South] The charm here was Fraser's characterization, his bland manner in talking about semen. With just a bit of a tease. Nicely done.

"Storm in a Teacup" by Quill. [Due South] Delightful.

"Until My Dying Day" by Quill. [Due South] Good use of a death theme, or perhaps a non-death theme. Very strongly written.

"Hard Truths and Strategic Lies" by Keiko Kirin. [UFO] I've never seen this show, have no idea what it was about, and this story is my only exposure to fanfic based on it. It's a sign of the author's skill that I had no confusion as to what was happening or what the characters were like; I loved this. I have a fondness for dark, repressed, and emotionally dangerous men, and she evoked the type perfectly; a sort of militaristic mix of Spock and Major Klaus von dem Eberbach. Around this man, she wove a gripping, convincing and touching story that had me thinking about it long after I'd finished.

A last comment: much as I enjoyed the zine, it was overbalanced towards Due South material, when it was not a Due South zine. There was otherwise a good representation of fandoms, but eleven items in the index are Due South; the only other fandom with more than two entries is Pros, at three - and all of them are jokes rather than stories. I have nothing against Due South, but Due South zines are available to fill that need, while I am desperately searching for good stories from other fandoms. Highlander and X-Files, for example were totally unrepresented.

That being said, I enjoyed the zine and would recommend it to anyone who likes multimedia zines -- especially if you like Due South!

Issue 4

Cohorts 4 was published in 2002 and contains 120 pages. Art by Anja Gruber and Bernice.

cover of issue #4

Flyer: Cohorts 4, ^{Archived version}

• The Tick Vs His Urges by Katrina Bowen ("I’m looking at… The City. Home to goodness and wholesomeness in all its myriad forms. The last bastion of righteousness - a place where moms and dads are tucking their apple-cheeked youngsters into the soft, clean beds of virtue and pulling up crisp, white sheets scented with the fabric softener of family values. But underneath the City, there are… urges afoot.") (The Tick) (5)
• You Give Me Two Molsons… by Trish Darbyfeld ("I woke up naked on a bearskin rug with two equally naked young women either side of me." "Oh yeah, what were they doing there?" "Each other, Ray.") (due South) (10)
• Tom’s Hope by Khylara (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) (12)
• The Time For Talking Is Over by Jane Mailander (He hated lying to his wife. He hated having to cover up for his outdoor wanderings that eventually led to him that small room. Above all he hated living in the moral terror of discovery. But his hate was as nothing compared to his love…) (Mr. Ed) (13)
• Snooping by Bronwyn ("I met an immortal today. He’s young, but they all seem so young to me these days. I didn’t take his head, though I could have if I’d wanted. Something about him reached out to me and it’s more than simple lust." Mac stopped reading the small bound book that was Metho’s journal. "Lust?" he gasped.) (Highlander) (14)
• Incident at Halfway by Mirna Cicioni (By instinctive reflex, Favor’s shoulders moved along with the backrub, rising and falling in small circles as Rowdy’s fingers steadily kept pushing, kneading, and releasing. He grunted softly in satisfaction and leaned back a little. "You’re right. This is somethin’ you’re good at.") (Rawhide) (15)
• From the First Moment by Khylara (Star Trek: Voyager) (23)
• To Die With Thee Again by Ruth Collerson ("Tears, Lewis? For me?" he wondered. His gentleness finished me, "Reaction, sir. You could have been killed," I tried to say as I rubbed my sleeve across my face like any scruffy schoolboy. "Oh, Robbie, what am I going to do with you?." "Whatever you like, sir.") (Inspector Morse) (24)
• Suddenly Sexual by Fern Clarke (Toddy was singing lustily in the vicinity of his ear, and when he tried to turn, firm hands held his hips in place, as the young man bounced, his groin rubbing against Luis’ backside. Luis knew he should put a stop this immediately, but they were in a public place, what could happen?) (Suddenly Susan) (45)
• If Only by Gwendolen (Star Trek: Voyager) (51)
• Patience by A. Worthyfriend (Fraser had that far away look in his eyes that gave Ray such a feeling of achievement. I’ve done it again, Ray thought, I’ve blown him back to Canada.) (due South) (52)
• The Art of Dying by Elizabeth Holden ("How do you feel?" "With my nerve endings," Methos answered. "Other people feel with their heart." "I had one once," he conceded. "It was defective. I gave it away, and didn’t need it again afterwards.") (Death/Sandman) 56
• Roses by Khylara (The simple white card was unsigned. All it said was: Because I love you." Unfolding the tissue paper, both Ray and Elaine gasped when they saw the contents. Inside were a dozen long-stemmed red and white roses.) (due South) (59)
• Dreams: Vila by Khylara (Blake's 7) (66)
• Ray’s Lament by Khylara (Due South) (66)
• Die Hard with an Erection by Fern Clarke (Finally he felt the wary man beside him begin to relax, and was conscious of the arms that hesitantly circled his body. An unfamiliar feeling settled around his heart, and it took him a moment to recognize the sensation as contentment.) (Die Hard with a Vengeance) (67)
• The Lion’s Den by Violet Nightingale ("Dear innocent Watson! He thinks that I am chaste in the ways of the flesh. Hah! If he but knew the things that I have done - the experiences that I have had, he would no doubt be horrified. He does not know the darker desires of the soul that plague me always. I would be ashamed if he knew how attractive I find him.") (Sherlock Holmes) (69)
• The Mountie, the Cop, and the Wardrobe by Jane Symons (Ray felt marvellously light and malleable in his arms. Increasing the pressure of his hand on Ray’s back, Fraser drew him closer until they were dancing cheek to cheek and Ray’s stubble was raking against his skin.) (New Ray) (due South) (91)
• The X-Over Files’ by OTC (You’d better find out what you’re called before you critics my name." "Mulder," Krycek said wearily, "I’m a foot shorter than I should be and you can throw me around with one hand. It wouldn’t get any worse if I found out my name was Buttercup!") (X-Files/Hercules/Due South X-over) (99)
• A Single Soul’ by Gillian Middleton (The Sentinel) (106)
• Catch Me If You Can by Rrain (Vic’s body was right there, hot and heaving and already half-bare. At that moment, it was impossible to resist. He leaned into those exploring lips, nudging them upwards until they met in a kiss to hungry he thought he might explode right then and there.) (Once a Thief) (115)

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 4

[The Lion's Den]: A first person Holmes account set after the Sign of Four. Holmes thoughts are reported at length, in fact he is internally verbose to a rather implausible extent. Nevertheless is is well written angst in which Holmes pines for Watson and Watson initiates a first encounter and an ongoing relationship is established.")

Issue 5

Cohorts 5 was published in March 2000 and contains 107 pages (124,000 words).

cover of issue #5

Flyer: Cohorts 5, ^{Archived version}

From the editorial:

With thanks to Vicious Linda for Binding her little heart out, and A. Worthyfriend for giving up her weekends to poohfrood.

This is a slightly unusual format for the Cohorts series; instead of the usual harem of short stories, it's just four main stories, but three of them are very long. One of them is very long indeed! This cuts down on the number of fandoms for you to enjoy, but for those in these particular fandoms it does mean a big meaty read.

If you'd like to be involved in future issues of Cohorts: any fandom welcome, no style of story is rejected, please drop me a line at any of the addresses below.

No homosexuals were harmed in the making of this zine.

[snipped]

This zine is not to be given to journalists (in particular Cynthia Brouse or Veronica Cusack), actors, producers, or anyone else involved in the entertainment/media industries. Please do not refer to this zine in any public forum without the express permission of the editor.

• The Incident of the Leaking Barn by (Jane Symons) (Rawhide, Rowdy/Favor) ("Favor grunted It didn't seem right somehow, languishing helplessly in another man's arms. He struggled to sit up, thought better of it and allowed Rowdy to pull him close again. Maybe it was right, once in a while. Just to relinquish control, let someone else take over. Someone known and trusted and . . . Favor pulled himself back, hesitant about going where that train of thought might lead. It wasn't easy for a man like himself to let go but he had to admit that the idea was wonderfully liberating. "You don't think I've got time," he said as severely as he could, "to lie around here all day, do you?") (3)
• Haiku by Owlet (Various) (16)
• Separated for Birth by Demi X (X-Files/Once a Thief, Krycek/Mac) ("Alex stepped closer to Mac so that they were chest to chest; he slowly bumped Mac backwards until Mac's ass rested on the hood of the car. He grasped Mac behind the neck with his hand, and looking directly into Mac's eyes, pledged solemnly, "I promise you won't end up the bad guy in all of this. Th e last thing I want to do is hurt either one of you." Then, as if to seal the promise, Alex pulled Mac's head down and met his lips. He gently rubbed his lips across Mac's and then delicately pried the other man's large sensuous lips open and seductively probed Mac with the tip of his tongue.") (17)
• Untitled poem by Owlet (The New Professionals) (38)
• Last Call at the Great Northern by Rrain Prior (Twin Peaks) ("Well, I can't say I regret getting off," he replied, "but that's a shame, Denise. A damn shame." The bartender set the drink on the counter and Dale pushed it gently in Denise's direction. "Well, at least we'll have tonight to catch up." "Hmm," she said with a wry twist of a smile. "Maybe I have plans for later with that delectable young deputy, Andy.") (39)
• Paris Luck by KMS (Star Trek: Voyager, Paris/Chakotay) ("Tom watched in horror as the viewscreen whited out, feeling the explosion rock the ship. He held his breath, awaiting the outcome. Harry's voice finally filled the quiet bridge with disbelief. "They're gone, Commander. The Captain and Tuvok didn't make it out They were still on the Caretaker's Array when it went" "Dead?" Chakotay's voice reflected Harry's disbelief. "Janeway's dead?... As if by instinct, Tom crawled his way to the Shuttle Bay. His months of cleaning the ship were paying unexpected dividends. Somewhere in his pain-fogged mind, only one thought persisted. He had to get to Chakotay. If there was any way for him to survive this disaster, the answer lay with his Captain and lover. This single thought guided him, the details of the briefing shining in his mind like a beacon.") (43)

• Reflections by Moonlight, poem by Khylara (X-Files, Mulder/Krycek) (107)
• various poems and a drabble by Owlet (X-Files, Mulder/Krycek, due South, Highlander)

Issue 6

Cohorts 6 was published in 2003 and contains 112 pages (87,808 words).

cover of issue #6

Flyer: Cohorts 6, ^{Archived version}

• Back Looks by A Worthyfriend (Black Books) (1)
• Consequences, by Tiggy Malvern (Due South) RayV/Benny (7)
• Alas, The Red Dragon by E V (Arthurian Legend), Arthur/Merlin. This story also appeared in novella form as Alas, the Red Dragon from AngelWings Press. (19)
• Not a Good Day for the Good Guys by Starkiller (Babylon 5) (59)
• Up and Down by Bernice (In & Out) (65)
• Intramuscular by Yanez (Rawhide) (78)
• Interesting Position by Clare (Once a Thief) (80)
• A Lack of Time by Gwendolen (The Professionals) (81)
• The Road Less Travelled by Serious Moonlight (Stargate SG-1) The Stargate team meet their alternates. (84)
• Out of Heaven by James Walkswithwind (The Real Ghostbusters) (101)
• Where Wisdom Meets Desire by Elizabeth Holden (X-Men) (106)