Bishonen Op

Fanfiction
Title:	Bishonen Op
Author(s):	DVS
Date(s):	1980s
Length:
Genre(s):	slash
Fandom(s):	The Professionals
Relationship(s):	Bodie/Doyle
External Links:	online here
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Bishonen Op is a 35-page Professionals circuit story by DVS. It was her first in this fandom.

This story has a sequel: Bishonen Too.

Summaries

"Crossover with the manga Patalliro. B has been kidnapped and D goes to get him. In doing so, he meets an MI6 man, Van Colan, who needs also to free an hostage. Van Colan's partner, Maraich, is undercover with the kidnappers and helps them. Maraich looks and behaves like a woman but he is a boy, and Van Colan's lover: in her undercover role she had to taunt tease and torture B, who only reluctantly forgives - he doesnt think s/he was just doing her job. The four of them end up on a ship on a forced holiday (sprayed with transmittent powder) and seeing the MI6 lovers D realizes he is in love with B. B is hesitant, afraid of becoming flamboyantly effeminate like the other couple, but eventually all is well -- except C cuts their holiday short."

Reactions and Reviews: The Hatstand Express

The author of "Bishonen Op" had a shakey start (fascinating idea, but awkward characterization of B&D, due, I expect, to her lack of familiarity with the characters), but is really becoming a first-rate writer of B/D.

The Author Comments on The Hatstand Express Remarks

In 1988, the author said:

I am in a terrible snit about what you said about "Bishonen Op"...nan! Only kidding! I didn't mind — as you point out,this sort of thing is valuable, encouraging and educational. Your words were not only appreciated but they were essential correct. That was indeed my first B/D story, and it was done after seeing only a few hours of The Professionals. For that matter, it was done after only a few hours of watching Patalliro,too! Folks who speak Japanese say I was I was slightly "off" on Van Colan and Maraich as well. I don't know if I support the rest of your evaluation, however, as having produced a grand total of four (maybe five by the time this comes out!) B/D stories (at a cost of great personal agony—attempting to cope with British settings and terms drives me bug-fuck) I fear the sample is too small for analysis. I appreciate the thought, though!

Other Reactions and Reviews

Behind this peculiar title I discovered a gem which I think is worth mentioning here.

It's a Patalliro crossover but you don't have to have watched this long-running (1979 - ongoing) Japanese manga to follow the story. Patalliro is the first anime series to present homoerotic themes on television and Bishonen is a Japanese term meaning "beautiful youth (boy)."

The plot is not so important, it just gives Doyle the opportunity to rescue a hurt Bodie, and both of them the time to explore their feelings for each other and to heave their until then mostly matey relationship on to the next level. And while they are dealing with this they remain our very recognisable, very macho and independent lads.

You know, this is probably the only DVS fic that I just can't read, and I think it is because it's a crossover with a series that I don't know. I always feel as if I'm missing subtle nuances in the writing when I don't know the other crossover series, cos there's so much characterisation and background that fanfic assumes you know (which is why it's fanfic... *g*)

I have read two crossovers with series I don't know (Contretemps by Josey and this one), and they were not my first choice, but as the writers are among my favourites I tried them and was glad I did in the end. And as I said, the Patalliro plot provides only the frame for the first fic and is rarely noticeable in the second. But I can understand that you can't read this. I have the same thing with Sentinel crossovers. I even watched one episode to get into it, but watching repelled me even more. So this is a no-go for me.

I know people often say "Oh, you don't need to know the series" to read a crossover, but there's something about them that means I want to know the full story behind the story, if you know what I mean... *g*

HG, Sebastian and Kitty Fisher are three of my favourite writers, but I couldn't even read some of their stories until I'd watched the (pretty dreadful!) film the cross-overs were based on ("Facelift" with MS). Of course then I loved them... *g*

There are some series that I do know, and don't particularly like (Starsky and Hutch for example - sorry fans!) that are in Pros crossovers, and I can't read those either, but in a different way!

A Patalliro crossover? What comes next? A Dangermouse? ;-)

That was fun to read! Especially the first story. Different and surprising!