Unicorn
- You may be looking for the Spock/McCoy story Unicorn.
| Tropes and genres | |
|---|---|
| Related tropes/genres | Centaurification |
| See also | Animals in Fanworks, Animal Transformation
 Spock and a unicorn on the cover of First Time #19. Unicorns in fanworks can indicate the virginity of a character. |
| Related articles on Fanlore. | |
Unicorns are a popular element in fanworks.
Because of their association with purity, unicorns sometimes are used as plot device in virgin!fic (for example of the humorous crack kind) to reveal the virginity of a character, especially an unexpected one, i.e. a Secret Virgin.[1][2] This can also be used for misunderstandings, i.e. the other characters think unicorns reveal virginity but are wrong about that, and wrongly assume a character was a virgin. Using the unicorn plot device to reveal the virginity of a character is popular for first time stories in fandoms with canon unicorns.[3]
Unicorns may also be used to point out that a character is "good," whether or not they are a virgin.[4]
Sometimes fanfic plays with the expectation of unicorns as "good" creatures and makes them scary, for example Ineffable, a SPN story by Cofax.[5]
There is also fic that turns characters into unicorns:
Examples of Unicorn Transformation or Characters as Unicorns Fic
- Merlin - The Unicorn Prince and the Virtuous (Even if She Wears Short Skirt) Maiden by pianeko. In which a curse turns Arthur into a unicorn. He has to find Excalibur to break the curse and for that he needs the help of virgin girl!Merlin.
- The Professionals - Abode of Delight by DVS, with Unicorn!Bodie[6]
- Stargate Atlantis - With Six You Get Unicorns by cupidsbow, crackfic/parody in which John worries that Rodney won't love him because he turns into a unicorn sometimes.
- Stargate Atlantis - But Where Would They Live? and The Dreams That You Dare to Dream (Or, But What Would the Children Look Like?) by Thingswithwings. Rodney is a unicorn who falls in love with John, a rainbow.
- Supernatural - Of Unconventional Dealbreaking by rionaleonhart. Gen fic in which to avoid his "going to Hell" deal coming due, Dean is (very reluctantly) turned into a unicorn. "When he tries to wrinkle his forehead, a rainbow suddenly leaps from his horn and streaks off across the darkening sky. He doesn't know how it's possible, but being a unicorn just got even stupider."
- Supernatural - Mister Sparkles by ignipes. Sam/Dean fic in which Sam is transformed into a unicorn (and Dean kind of gets off on it).
Fanart and Fanvids
Unicorns are also common in fanart (along with all kinds of other horses and horse derivatives, such as Pegasuses, also combinations such as winged unicorns). The use of unicorns without Ironic Distance is seen as kitschy by some fans, especially in fandoms that don't have them canonically. Others don't see much difference between fanart using unicorns and the equally popular white horses in other fandoms.
In 2010, the release of the popular flash game Robot Unicorn Attack led to an influx of fanart featuring mechanical unicorns with rainbow manes.
Unicorns also feature in vids when unicorns are canon in a fandom:
Fanvid Examples
- newkidfan's Merlin vid Blade Runner, a fusion where unicorns appear in both sources.
- sisabet's Merlin vid Alone uses a unicorn as one of its many metaphors.
- dualbunny, greensilver, pipsqueak, and sweetestdrain's Smallville vid I Swear features unicorns.
Fanart Gallery
cover of Sol III 1 (gen TOS zine, 1974)
a rare sighting of a sort of mer-corn, art for Sol III #2, by Signe Landon, 1974
picture from the Interphase Calendar showing a Last Unicorn xover (K/S calendar, 1976)
cover of In a Different Reality #3 (gen TOS zine, 1977)
back cover of Obsc'zine #1 (Star Trek: TOS zine) (1977)
inside art in Phoenician Star Gallery #3 (1977)
full cover of Stellar Gas #2 (gen TOS zine, 1980)
cover of Echo #1 (gen multimedia zine, ca. 1980)
cover of Timeframe #3 (gen multimedia zine, 1980)
inside art from Nocturne (1981), artist is Michael Verina
cover of Of Dreams and Schemes #2 (multifandom zine, 1982)
cover of Daring Attempt #2 (K/S zine, 1985)
cover of Highly Animated #2 (Anime zine, 1985)
front cover of Abode of Strife #5 (Star Trek: TOS zine) (1985)
cover of One Among You (gen TOS zine, 1985), Lee Sullivan is the artist
cover of First Time #13 (K/S zine, 1987)
cover of The Other Side of Paradise #7 (het TOS zine, 1987)
back cover of Raising Hell #1 (Blake's 7 gen zine, 1987)
Art from The Clipper Trade Ship #55 featuring the Fourth Doctor by Susan Landerman (1987)
cover of Abode of Strife #10 (adult ST and SW zine, 1988)
back cover of First Time #19 (K/S zine, 1988)
front cover of First Time #19 (K/S zine, 1988)
interior art from Who's Blake (1989)
artist is Jane Curtis, the zine is Once Upon a Time (Beauty and the Beast (TV)) (1992)
cover of Songs of Innocence, (Blake's 7 slash zine) (1993)
cover of Other Times and Places #4 (The Professionals slash zine, 1994)
interior art from Soulmates - A Neverending Dream #2 (1994)
cover of To Catch a Unicorn (K/S zine, 1998)
Arthur and unicorn, from The Neverending Legend (Merlin ficart, 2009)
screencap of podbook cover for The Trouble With Unicorns, 2010
Resources
- Fanworks tagged with "Unicorns" at Archive of Our Own
- 5 all-time favorite SGA unicorn stories (slash, McShep) recs post
References
- ^ ST:XI kink meme fill: Untitled by tallycola (Accessed 3 Aug 2010)
- ^ SGA fic Mythical by Zoe Rayne, and its remix In The Spotlight (the Unicorn Remix) by Icarus (accessed 3 Aug 2010)
- ^ In the Merlin episode tag The Trouble With Unicorns Arthur is revealed to be a virgin (but not for long) and in The Care & Feeding Of Unicorns a unicorn reveals both Merlin and Arthur as virgins.
- ^ In Old Country by astolat, a unicorn clearly signals its approval of Sam Winchester, even though Sam is most definitely not a virgin by that point and has been doing some potentially questionable things.
- ^ Another Supernatural example featuring unpleasant unicorns -- with an odd squick: Sam and Dean Winchester: Unicorn Hunters by aggybird. (Accessed 9 Feb 2012).
- ^ Originally in Other Times and Places 5, 1994 (Accessed 3 Aug 2010)