Secret Agent Men

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Zine
Title: Secret Agent Men
Publisher: AngelWings Press
Requiem Publications
Editor(s): some: Bast
Date(s): 2002-
Series?:
Medium: print
Size:
Genre:
Fandom: Professionals
Language: English
External Links: online reviews of a few issues
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Secret Agent Men is a slash Professionals digest-sized anthology.

The summaries and excerpts below are from the publisher.

Issue 1

cover of issue #1, Shar

Secret Agent Men 1 was published in April 2002, contains 203 pages and has art by Shar.

  • Maximum Provocation by Tavaran ("It's 1985 and Bodie and Doyie are living together, but have to work apart during an investigation into the miners' strike. Will they be able to solve the case before their frustration boils over?") (2)
  • Stay by Shorts ("'Once we have Doyle, then the major players will be taken out.' What does Cowley mean?") (43)
  • You Only Had to Ask by Darby Brennan (This very long story is about half the zine. " "Doyle is in love with, and wants, Bodie. However, as far as male/male sex goes Doyle is a virgin. Bodie hates virgins. To get what he wants most, Doyle decides he needs to get experience.") (96)

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 1

I found the zine an unchallenging read, pleasant enough, but nothing to write home about. [See this fan's comments on Stay, You Only Had to Ask, and Maximum Provocation at their separate Fanlore pages.][1]

Issue 2

front cover of issue #2, Hindman
back cover of issue #2, Hindman

Secret Agent Men 2 contains 206 pages and was published in October 2003.

It has cover art by Hindman and a single interior illo by Bluespirit.

  • A Very Personal Relationship by Darby Brennan ("But I can do those things just as easily with you as on me own. You know," Ray paused and Bodie picked up on the hesitancy, he mumbled what he hoped was a noise of encouragement and heard his partner swallow hard before he spoke. "I was just going to say that it feels strange being here without you. First time in at least a fortnight that we've been apart.'") (3)
  • Branded by Cassidy Collins ("'Just been fucked by Raymond Doyle'. That's what the sign around Bodie's neck read.") (77)
  • Internal Jungle by Shorts ("Bodie rested his head against the back of the couch and stared up at the ceiling, his thoughts centred on his partner. During their years as partners, he had always kept a tight rein on his feelings for Doyle. The need to lay claim to his desires had flared over the last two weeks as memories of strength melding with strength were awaken.") (89)
  • Trip Through Your Wire by Garnet ("Not that it wasn't hard work. Not that we didn't about tear each other's heads off sometimes. But when it worked, it worked. And, after awhile, we settled into each other and it was better than that even. It was magic, or as near enough as makes no difference.") (108)
  • Use the Slave's Entrance… by Tauna ("'Stop wiggling like you've got ants in your pants, just us here.'") (171)
  • The Temple of Venus by Lizzie by Tauna ("The Temple of Venus: every good home should have one and Bodie's stately home has a fine example. The man and the location provide a pleasant diversion for Doyle during a tedious night-time duty but why doesn't Bodie seem to know him the next day? Doyle finds there are many questions to answer about this enigmatic man, many barriers to break down -and a mystery to solve.") (185)

  • from issue #2, Bluespirit

  • from issue #2, sample text

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 2

See reactions and reviews for Trip Through Your Wire.

[Temple of Venus]: Families do funny things to you, don't they..? Bodie is not who he appears to be. (Apart from the fact that this is an AU where Bodie is not in CI5). Mystery, angst and love. Lizzie writes beautifully, and, just as in her other fics, this is both hot and imbued with the absolute rightness of our lads together. Perfect. [2]

[Temple of Venus]: This is one of my favourite stories by Lizzie - it's slightly AU in that whilst Doyle works for CI5, Bodie is the manager of the large estate which Cowley's men are set to guard. Doyle first meets Bodie at night, in the depths of an old folly, and passion quickly overtakes them both. The strange thing is - when Doyle sees him again the next day, Bodie acts almost as if they'd never met before... What can I say about Lizzie's stories that I haven't already said? They're warm, they're very hot, and they're our lads, through and through... [3]

Issue 3

cover of issue #3, Bluespirit

Secret Agent Men 3 contains 244 pages, was published in April 2004 and has art by Bluespirit.

  • Three Degrees of Separation by Tavaran ("How long had it been now? Eight, no, more like nine years since Bodie had convinced himself he was in love with his partner.")
  • Love is Blind by Shorts ("The unexpected explosion had Doyle ducking to the relative safety of the car as debris rained down.")
  • A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts Part 2 by Lizzie (later collected and published in A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts) ("The haunting in Bodie's home was happening all over again. Things went from bad to worse.)
  • The Dream by Darby Brennan ("He hated it when the Cow separated them, and he knew that the Scot realised that although they worked well apart - very well, better even than some lone agents - together, they were invincible. Or at least that's what he used to think. Before the dream.")

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 3

See reactions and reviews for A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts.

Issue 4

cover of issue #4, Bluespirit

Secret Agent Men 4 contains 412 pages, was published in October 2004 and has art by Bluespirit.

  • Chances Are by Dillya Kay ("Bodie's caring washes away the pain of losing Ann, but Ray must still face his confusion about what he really wanted.")
  • Awareness by Shorts ("Murphy takes Ray's place on a mission, and no one is happy about it.")
  • A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts Part 3 by Lizzie
  • No Matter What by Lyn Townsend ("Bodie nearly loses Doyle.")
  • Vaporized by Dillya Kay ("At least we'll go together. The words ticked through his brain. I won't be left behind if it all goes wrong."")
  • He Wouldn't Catch a Unicorn by Darby Brennan ("An AU tale of Ray as artist by day, and something else entirely by night.")
  • The Secrets Beneath by Sally Fell (""My name's Bodie," he said, his face like thunder. "One of you is Mr. Doyle, I take it?" An AU story.")

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 4

See reactions and reviews for The Secrets Beneath.

See reactions and reviews for A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts.

Issue 5

cover of issue #5, Bluespirit

Secret Agent Men 5 contains 220 pages, was published in March 2005 and has art by Bluespirit.

  • Hard Men by Dillya Kay ("A hostage crisis in London involves CI5.")
  • Coming Home by Darby Brennan ("Bodie and Doyle are separated, will they ever get together again?")
  • Heat of the Night by Zoe ("A bit of jealous Bodie.")
  • Crossed Wires by Tavaran (""...'Sides, you've got to admit it's funny, the thought of you as a telephone sex-line operator."")
  • Better Late Than Never by Darby Brennan (""He wanted to see his partner, but he didn't necessarily want Ray to know he was there."")


Issue 6

cover of issue #6, Cat's Meow Creative Arts

Secret Agent Men 6 was published in September 2005 and contains 212 pages. The cover is by Cat's Meow Creative Arts.

  • The More Loving One by Willow Phillips (Excerpt: "Their painstakingly nurtured trust - the trust that had taken years to build; years for them to be comfortable with - would be destroyed, leaving a distraught Bodie and one shattered partnership, not to mention what would happen to their jobs. Cowley would kick him straight out of the only job he enjoyed, and there would be no more Ray Doyle to work with; to touch; to joke around with. No more nights out, drinking heavily, consoling each other as they suffered the morning after. No more caring for each other when they fell ill. When it came down to it, there was a hell of a lot at stake.")
  • After Ann by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "Bodie's heart went out to his partner and he ached for him. For a brief moment he was filled with an overwhelming hatred so deep for Ann Holly, that if she had been in the room at that precise second, he would have cheerfully killed her. How dare the stuck up bitch hurt his partner? His sensitive, vulnerable, insecure Ray?")
  • After Esther by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "It was on the tip of Doyle's tongue to ask, 'And you? Are you okay? Will you get over me? Do you hate me? Are you disappointed in me?' But he held his words in.")
  • After Keller by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "Ray looked up and glared at him, his look telling Bodie that he believed Bodie had heard, but was intent on forcing his partner to repeat his words. He gritted his teeth and then said slowly, stressing his words one by one. "I told him that you were mine. And that if he ever came near you again I'd kill him with my bare hands." He glowered at Bodie, daring him to argue.")
  • After Bodie by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "He'd waited patiently, had told himself that he could and would go on waiting for Bodie. Had assured himself that he knew that one day Bodie would see that Ray meant what he'd said that birds didn't matter, and that it was Bodie who Ray wanted. But he realised now that it had been a hopeless dream, a fantasy - just one of his illusions.")
  • A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts (part four) by Lizzie (Excerpt: "Doyle never really knew how he'd got them to the top of the cliff that June afternoon. For months afterwards he experienced nightmares about the episode, waking sweating and crying out in the middle of the night.")
  • Even the Walls Have Ears by Fabienne (Excerpt: "Doyle slammed the mug down on the coffee table. He definitely needed to shower and forget this whole sordid business with this Andrew Philips or Bodie guy. But then... he couldn't, could he? It had been wonderful and exciting and... His shoulders slumped; for Bodie it had been just sex.")

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 7

See reactions and reviews for A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts.

Issue 7

covers of issue #7, Cat's Meow Creative Arts
front cover of issue #7

Secret Agent Men 7 was published in March 2006 and contains 152 pages. The cover is by Cat's Meow Creative Arts.

It won a FanQ award for Best Professionals Zine (slash).

  • The Letter by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "His skin began to crawl as if a thousand ants had burst through the surface, and he knew in a flash of insight that could only come from seven years as closer-than-close partner and best friend, that Ray being here tonight was not something good.")
  • The Return by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "The silence stretched between them and the tension pressed down more heavily, until Ray could taste it. He searched his mind for something, anything, to say. The quiet, within the room at least, got heavier.")
  • Whispers by Fabienne (Excerpt: "Ray Doyle woke up and turned on his back, frowning. What a weird dream. He shivered and sat up; having a full bladder could be a good reason for weird dreams. He padded to the bathroom, took care of the problem, washed his hands and returned to bed. He tried to remember what the dream had been about, but it was just a voice, a soft voice.")
  • Repercussions by Aussiejoan (Excerpt: "To say Doyle was furious at what he considered to be a thoughtless, hare-brained, foolish, idiotic, suicidal course of action on Bodie's part, was an understatement and the supernova that had erupted between them in the car driving back to his apartment was spectacular in its ferocity.")


Issue 8

front cover of issue #8, Cats Meow Creative Arts
front and back covers of issue #8, Cats Mewo Creative Arts

Secret Agent Men 8 was published in October 2007 and contains 232 pages. The wrap-around cover is by Cat's Meow Creative Arts.

  • How It Ends and Begins By MajorBrat (Excerpt: "Africa, Jordan, Ireland...it was always rivers of blood. It was the smell of gunpowder and rot, the sounds of voices in pain and in anger. It didn't matter the location, it was always the same smells and sounds. He didn't remember pouring the scotch but he certainly made sure to drink it down, hoping that somehow it would force the dreams and memories to leave off for a bit.")
  • Touched by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "Since then, he'd shagged countless women. Some he'd even cared for, or believed he'd cared for, but they were the ones that had gone wrong. They were the ones who'd ended up screwing him, and not in the literal sense. Caring was for sissies; caring was for the weak, the immature, the idiotic.")
  • Hammer was Right By Tauna (Excerpt: "Bodie rubbed his hands together and blew on them. "It's a bleeding naughty party, innit? Looks to be some randy old Ministry goats and some extremely nubile young wenches going at it hammer and tongs... Should ask Father what he wants us to do."")
  • The Breakroom by Aussiejoan (Excerpt: "Looking at Ray, hovering over his partner who was retaining his grip on Ray's wrist, I was conscious of a silent conversation going on between them. I felt somehow... a voyeur, an intruder, a bystander privy to an intimate moment between two people who shared a deep and personal bond.")
  • ushing Out the Boundaries by Izzie (Excerpt: "Those hours staring blindly out at a darkened street had been bitter. He could no longer pretend ignorance of the depth and nature of his feelings for Bodie.")
  • Change is Inevitable by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: ""I don't give a damn what you call me in public; except for 'sir'. Did you see the looks people gave you? The snide, sideways glances? They already think I fuck you and own you, that you're my slave, my dogsbody, my bottom man."")
  • A Birdwatcher's Guide To Cornish Ghosts (part five) by Lizzie (Excerpt: "Mixed emotions cluttered Bodie's mind as he made his way back to their table. It looked like The Dolphin had a ghost. He wasn't thrilled that it had chosen him to make its appearance to but at least Doyle seemed more cheerful and that had to count for something.")

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 8

See reactions and reviews for A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts.

Issue 9

front cover of issue #10, Lorraine Brevig
front and back covers of issue #9, Lorraine Brevig

Secret Agent Men 9 was published in October 2007 and contains 342 pages. Color front and back covers by Lorraine Brevig and interior art by Enednoviel.

  • Reason To Believe by Sally Fell (Excerpt: "The bullet that thudded into a tree not two feet from Bodie's left ear was the first indication that things weren't going to go according to plan.")
  • Falling for You by Lyn (Excerpt: ""I don't mind. If you want to walk around headquarters with your arse showing, Raymond, that's entirely up to you. I certainly don't mind. Don't know what Cowley will think of it, though."")
  • Five Years and You by lbc (Excerpt: "Five years ago, after almost a year as lovers, Bodie and he had moved in together. Six months ago, Bodie had moved out and started a new life. Tomorrow, Bodie was getting married.")
  • Heaven is a Place on Earth by LilyK (Excerpt: "Top CI5 Man Arrested for Partner's Murder. There was a picture accompanying the article. Doyle, held between two uniformed coppers, his hands cuffed behind him, snarling into the camera.")
  • Revelations by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "Cowley had a dilemma. He didn't like his agents getting 'involved' with each other, but he accepted that it did happen. And sex or not, Bodie and Doyle were, and had been, 'involved' with each other for years.")
  • Epiphany by Lyn (Excerpt: "No one from CI-5 who'd celebrated with them the night before could recall seeing Bodie after Doyle had left.")
  • Compton's Bar by Willow Phillips (Excerpt: "He shut his eyes and moaned softly as the images ran, movie-like, through his brain, and he could feel his arousal, his cock thickening and making his already tight trousers even tighter.")
  • Predator or Prey, Heaven or Hell by April Hackett (Excerpt: "He took a deep breath and tried to leash his anger. What did Fate have against them having a spot of vacation?")

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 9

See reactions and reviews for Reason to Believe.

[zine]: I found the zine enjoyable as usual. Bast has done another fine job of putting together the zine, with several of the stories particularly good. I did have a couple of favorites besides my own, which I feel came out remarkably well. Revelations left me wishing there had been more. Epiphany and Compton's Bar were interesting and engaging reads. LilyK and Sally gave solid stories the reader could enjoy. LBC offered another long angsty story with much suffering for both men to deal with before a resolution could finally be met. [4]

Issue 10

front cover of issue #10, Cat's Meow Creative Arts
front and back covers of issue #10, Cat's Meow Creative Arts

Secret Agent Men 10 was published in April 2008, contains 150 pages and has a cover by Cat's Meow Creative Arts. Edited by Bast.

  • Rock and a Hard Place by Lyn (Excerpt: "Ray Doyle couldn't hold back the pained gasp that forced its way past his clenched jaws as the rigid rubber hose slammed against his already aching ribs.")
  • A Watch is Just a Watch by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "So, in what Bodie later told me was a very proprietorial manner, I declared that I was taking Bodie home.")
  • Bite Me by Annie (Excerpt: "So, that makes it okay, does it? You getting killed instead of me?")
  • Take a Chance by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "Bodie knew that some people wondered about Ray's level of commitment to Bodie, wondered whether his feelings for Bodie, his caring, his concern were as deep as Bodie's for Ray.")
  • Learning Curve by LilyK (Excerpt: "How dare his supposed best friend have the audacity to even try to comfort him!")
  • Destiny by Darby Brennan (Excerpt: "Things changed totally, inexplicably and forever after Doyle dying and coming back to life.")
  • Love Slow and Easy by April Hackett (Excerpt: "The thought of resuming my conjugals makes manoeuvring worth it, Sunshine.)
  • Our Life by Bast (Excerpt: He smiled, just a little, when Bodie moved back into his line of sight and he sighed again, another sigh of happy contentment.")
  • Undercover Revelations by LilyK (Excerpt:" He waited until the chauffeur opened the door to the Rolls, then paused to give anybody watching a chance to hone in on him.")


Issue 11

cover of issue #11, Lorraine Brevig

Secret Agent Men 11 was published in October 2008 and contains 177 pages. The art is by Lorraine Brevig. Edited by Bast.

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 11

See reactions and reviews for A Birdwatcher's Guide to Cornish Ghosts.

[Doubt Truth to be a Liar]: This one is also now online and on the CD, but was originally published in Secret Agent Men 11. Almost ten years after Doyle's death in an explosion, Bodie is hiking in Spain and is astonished to see a Doyle-ish gypsy... or is it a gypsy-ish Doyle? "Another quick look at the new arrival as the man started across the room, and Bodie's words died in his throat. The woman suddenly forgotten, Bodie slowly rose, barely able to breathe as the man got closer, and their eyes met. Oh, God..." Only, it can't be, because he's dead. Isn't he? Bodie has to know. This story is clever. It made sense to me even before seeing the film, and after seeing it, I had to go back and read this again, and yes, everything fits in. And then things go on from there. And there is even a bear! Well, okay. Sort of a bear. [5]

Issue 12

front cover of issue #12, Cat's Meow Creative Arts
front and back covers of issue #12, Cat's Meow Creative Arts

Secret Agent Men 12 was published in April 2009 and contains 146. Edited by Bast and has a cover by Cat's Meow Creative Arts.


Issue 13

cover of issue #13, Cat's Meow Creative Arts

Secret Agent Men 13 was published in April 2010 and contains 146 pages. Edited by Bast and has a cover by Cat's Meow Creative Arts. There are two versions of the cover, a "Bodie" cover and a "Doyle" cover.

  • Time Passages by LilyK (Summary: "After suffering from an injury, Bodie never thought he'd see Doyle again.")
  • Where Does Love Go by lbc (Summary: "After Doyle is badly hurt, Bodie has to come to some truths.")
  • Solitary Wolf by April Hackett (Summary: "An unknown assassin causes problems and brings surprises to Bodie.") (Pros/X Files xover)

References

  1. ^ review by Ali at The Hatstand
  2. ^ from rec50, June 2006
  3. ^ from Crack Van (September 29, 2012)
  4. ^ April Hackett, February 2008
  5. ^ from moonlightmead on December 5, 2012 at Day five: hello again!, Archived version
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