At First Sight: Chris Larabee/Vin Tanner

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Title:	At First Sight: Chris Larabee/Vin Tanner
Creator:	TrueEnough (true_enough)
Date(s):	November 11, 2004
Medium:	online
Fandom:	Magnificent Seven
Topic:	Chris/Vin
External Links:	essay at LiveJournal; Dreamwidth mirror, Archived version
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At First Sight: Chris Larabee/Vin Tanner is a 2004 essay by TrueEnough.

The topic is Chris/Vin fanworks.

It was posted at Shipper's Manifesto.

Excerpts

The show itself is a flawed gem. The actors often work in each others shadows, too many story lines are shoehorned into a single episode and the historical accuracy is sometimes a little iffy. The characters, on the other hand, are a sweet revelation. There is Nathan who learned his healing skills as a stretcher bearer for the Union Army. He is the first one to join Chris and Vin when a Seminole village asks for their help. Josiah is a defrocked priest who nonetheless spends the entire series rebuilding a church that no one seems inclined to go to. Ezra is a gambler and a confidence man from the South. He tends to view himself outside of the Seven but when push comes to shove he is always a part of them. JD is a spitfire from the East who has come out West shortly after his mother has died in order to live out the adventures he has read about in dime novels. Buck is Chris’s oldest friend and his polar opposite. Affable and physically affectionate he treats JD like a kid brother and tends to worry over Chris. He was with Chris in Mexico selling horses when Chris’s wife and son were killed which might explain why their friendship sometimes teeters between devotion and recrimination.

And then there is Chris and Vin. They are also flawed gems.

The way they meet and accept each other has the feel of myth to it and yet what follows is all about men who have become disenfranchised for their sanity or their safety and are making their way back to the one person who finally makes sense to them. Despite Chris’s reluctance to step too far inside of a church in Love and Honor it’s apparent he is seeking some kind of redemption. And while Vin is innocent of the murder he’s accused of that does not make him completely innocent. At times they both look like men who have discovered that it’s the small sins that can weigh a body down. Although they might not understand the how and why of it, when they walk side by side they look like their burden has been halved. The simple feat of proximity makes the other a better man.

Magnificent Seven is somewhat unique in that it thrives in two very distinct universes. The first one follows the series and is set in the Old West sometime in the 1870’s. The other is a modern day AU created by MOG and set in Denver where the Seven work as ATF agents. I don’t know of another fandom where a single AU has captivated so many of it’s best writers - and it’s readers. I’ll set the watermark high and mention a few of my favorites from both times.

In closing…

As with most slash pairings there are all the looks and touches that speak of deeper meanings. With Chris and Vin there are also the harder things to come by like understanding, acceptance and quiet good company. I’m perfectly aware that slash implies sex and yet when I finally got around to writing for M7 and got to the sex scene it felt almost incidental. They are devoted to each other as few characters are and I believe that when their friendship becomes sexual – skipping over gender and societal rules – it’s because of a multitude of reasons that begin with trust, take root in solace and endure with something as simple as pure affection.

Comments at the Post

[gwen r:] I think you're right about the sex being incidental -- I always feel the need to include it because of the nature of the stories, but in a way, it's the intimate nature of what they bring to each other, the way they just are with each other, that is at the core of the relationship, not sex. No one who watches the sunset scene in Ghosts of the Confederacy would be able to argue.

[shayheyred:] What a beautifully written, thoughtful essay you have here, that I think perfectly captures this pairing and why I find them so right. Thanks for this; it should be helpful to everyone with even the slightest interest in Mag 7 and Chris/Vin, and will no dount be responsible for creating a whole new group of fans.

[Maygra:] Bwah...made me very happy. (And thank you very kindly for the nod. *Much* appreciated). Love the points, the illustrations...just a really excellent job...here's hoping it lure 'em in... Here little writers...come on, come on...it's good...Lots of fodder for your imaginations...

[SueN:] Wow, True, talk about hitting the nail on the head! You summed up perfectly so many of my own feelings about Vin and Chris. As many times as I've watched them, the "glance across the dusty street," the cliff scene and the saloon scene in ODOW still give me the willies. Every little moment between these two is just charged with chemistry and subtext.

Another great scene I recommend to anyone who wants to know more about the relationship between these two is the jail scene in Sins of the Past, when Chris is sitting with Vin. Talk about loaded! I've damn near worn it through in my own tapes. ;-)

And I agree whole-heartedly about the sex being almost incidental in slash stories (or the good ones). Their relationship isn't about sex; that's just the most intimate way of expressing it. I've written a couple of slash stories that have no sex in them, and, from the responses I get, they work just as well without it. For me, writing the relationship takes precedence, and the sex has to flow naturally from that.

Thanks so much for taking the time to put this into words. It's a must-read for any C/Ver!

[saraocallaghan:] Wow! This is an amazing essay that really gets to the heart of the pairing. I've only recently gotten into this fandom not just Chris and Vin. I must say that I've only stumbled into it because of the presence of Eric Close who I adore in Without A Trace but now that I'm here.............?? well let's just say those seven big tough boys have stolen my heart forever. I think that you've gotten the personalities of Vin and Chris perfectly and their relationship is one of both best friends who will be there for each other through thick and thin but also of potential lovers, they understand the others need for silence and space at certain times but also know when to get into the others face and to face up to what's bothering them. I don't know the names of the episodes but the one where Chris is forced to kill Eli Joe to save Vin has to be one of the sadest scenes that the two of them are in. The look of devestation on both Chris's face that Vin will never be able to clear his name and that he's the reason and on Vin's face that he'll die a wanted man(pardon the pun!!!) I think it really shows the compassion of the relationship and no matter what - they'll have each others back.

ok from that ramble I'm sure you guessed that I like your essay I've been waiting for anything Mag 7 related so you've made me a very happy girl.

Well done.

[aukestrel:] I was looking for this page again today to send it to a friend who asked for M7 recs. Since you've got almost everything in one place, plus the pretty pictures, well, it seemed only natural... and I realised I hadn't thanked you for this. I enjoyed your essay very much, and loved the "illustrations." A friend tells me I am easily amused because I can crack myself up just by remembering how Chris says "TasCOSa" or "You've been a bad boy. You broke the law." You can therefore imagine that I read much of your essay giggling to myself or with a stupid grin on my face. It never fails to cheer me up. So - thanks. *g*