Fire and Ice (Blake's 7 zine)

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Zine
Title: Fire and Ice
Publisher:
Editor(s): Kathy Resch
Date(s): 1990-2005
Series?:
Medium: print zine
Size:
Genre:
Fandom: Blake's 7
Language: English
External Links:
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Fire and Ice is a slash Blake's 7 anthology in the Blake/Avon pairing.

Artwork has been uploaded to Fanlore with the publisher's permission.

Issue 1

Fire and Ice 1 was published in 1990 and contains 148 pages. It was the winner of a 1991 Fan Q. The zine was co-edited by Kathy Resch and Melody C.. The art is by by Gayle F and Phoenix.

issue #1, front cover by Gayle F
issue #1, back cover by Gayle F
  • from #1, Gayle F

    from #1, Gayle F

  • from #1, Phoenix titled "Promises, Promises"

    from #1, Phoenix titled "Promises, Promises"

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 1

See reactions and reviews for Second Sight.

See reactions and reviews for Uncertain Changes.

See reactions and reviews for Whole of an Ancient Evil.

See reactions and reviews for Firefall.

See reactions and reviews for Points of Light.

See reactions and reviews for Noli Me Tangere.

See reactions and reviews for Alternatives.

See reactions and reviews for A Distant Land.

See reactions and reviews for Remember the Dream.

[zine]: want to start your day with some thoughts on some slightly disappointing slash? well, here you go-

Fire & Ice 1 - starts well, although with some stuff that is available online, and then quickly becomes a zine that isn't for me at all

No reviews up on Fanlore, so I thought I'd bite that bullet.

Actually, that's not true. I thought - 'Fanlore says it got a FanQ award! and various things from this zine appear in the Space City rec list! I must get it now!'

I forgot that the SC rec list and I disagree quite a bit...

First thing to say about this zine (if you're me), is that I really like the way it's presented. Hardly any inner art, but each fic has a B/W frontispiece, which is a really nice idea and works really well in making the zine seem like a unified whole/a finished piece (which is particularly necessary since we jump between different fonts and formatting decisions). My copy doesn't have the explicit art up on Fanlore or the PreRaph!Blake on the back cover... I am a little disappointed. This may be because it is a reprint - a very very recent reprint, I assume, because when I ordered it from Agent With Style (for more money that I like to think about) they couldn't send it to me initially because they were out of copies. I'd be interested to know how many are selling generally...

Well, obviously, I would.

Anyway, it's a nicely presented zine - mostly in two-columns, though sometimes not, and I like the cover (although I preferred the back cover, which I do not have! Woe is me).

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore] [1]

Issue 2

Fire and Ice 2 was published in January 1993 and contains 107 pages. The front cover is by Phoenix, the frontispiece by Gayle F, and additional art is by Cat.

front cover of issue #2, Phoenix: "Nice cover by Phoenix - armwrestling. Avon is looking Wearily Affectionate and Blake is looking Obstinately Gentle. I like this better than the other Phoenix stuff I've seen - it looks more low-key and intimate."[2]

Link to the flyer.

  • art from issue 2 by Gayle F: "One of those "Avon is cold, dignified and stunningly beautiful" types of pictures. Not bad, actually."[2]

    art from issue 2 by Gayle F: "One of those "Avon is cold, dignified and stunningly beautiful" types of pictures. Not bad, actually."[2]

  • interior art by Cat

    interior art by Cat

  • interior art by Cat

    interior art by Cat

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 2

See reactions and reviews for Pedestal.

See reactions and reviews for Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know.

See reactions and reviews for Some Guys Have All the Luck.

See reactions and reviews for Planetfall.

See reactions and reviews for Melancholy.

See reactions and reviews for The Point.

See reactions and reviews for Rescue.

See reactions and reviews for Do Not Go Gentle.

See reactions and reviews for Splendid Isolation.

See reactions and reviews for A Trip Down Memory Lane.

See reactions and reviews for To Hell Among the Rogues.

See reactions and reviews for It Was Real for the Children.

[zine]: This is as ever all A/B (not a minus point as far as I'm concerned), and more romantic than otherwise (which may be - there are a couple of writers I like for romantic A/B slash but the Floods of Tears school doesn't do much for me). Most of the shortest stories (4 pages or less) strike me as sketches that should have been filled out, but YM May As Always V.

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore] [3]

[zine]: My third Fire & Ice and the first one that I don't really love anything in - that's a bit of a blow since the other two F&I were 90% perfect. Anyway, I do like some of the fics here. But not most.

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore] [4]

[zine]: General comments: The first _Fire and Ice_ was one of the first zines of any kind that I read and I loved it. (All B/A. Yum. B/A is vastly superior to A/V and any other variants IMO. So there). I was not quite so keen on this issue, though. Maybe I'm jaded. So I'm just going to summarize the stories in order of appearance instead of naming my favorites as I did with Forgotten Seven. It does occur to me that plot summarizes are probably unnecessary -- the plot in any slash is the relationship; how do these men get along, or not get along.

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore] [5]

Issue 3

Fire and Ice 3 was published in May 1995 and contains 143 pages. The front cover is by Phoenix. The zine and the art for the front cover won a 1995 STIFfie Award. This zine contains no interior art.

front cover of issue #3, Phoenix, won a 1995 STIFfie Award
inside page from issue #3

From a flyer:

I What if Blake can't forgive Gaudo Prime?... Ensor's son provokes a decisive confrontation between Blake and Avon... Blake defeats the Federation - and loses Avon... Bloke is still on Terminal, on full life support - and Avon is his keeper... Con Avon love Blake's clone?... Avon picks up a very special slave on Domo - Bloke, who he hasn't seen since Star One... A planetary ruler expects to sleep with ail his guests...

Link to a flyer: Blake's 7 Fire and Ice III, Archived version

From the editorial:

I would like to thank all the contributors very much for their long patience in waiting for their work to see print. I had decided against doing FIRE AND ICE III last year, after I'd only received a small handful of submissions. But as soon as I announced cancellation of the zine, stories poured in!

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 3

See reactions and reviews for Deliver Us from Evil.

See reactions and reviews for Gorgeous.

See reactions and reviews for The Gift.

See reactions and reviews for Wild, Beautiful and Damned.

See reactions and reviews for Set the Night on Fire.

See reactions and reviews for Though Memories Die, Love Remains.

See reactions and reviews for Trusting to Fate.

See reactions and reviews for Legacy.

See reactions and reviews for Sentence.

See reactions and reviews for Avon, My Avon.

See reactions and reviews for Finally Come Home.

See reactions and reviews for New Day Dawning.

See reactions and reviews for What Price Victory?.

See reactions and reviews for The Ghosts of Gauda Prime.

[zine]: Fire and Ice is a B7 slash zine edited by Kathy Resch that prints only Avon/Blake stories. It's one of my favourite zines, but then Avon/Blake is my favourite pairing.

The issue #3 cover is by Phoenix and is the best drawing I've seen her do. Avon and Blake are wrestling and you quite literally can't tell if they are going to kiss one another or throw the other to the floor, which to my way of thinking sums up the relationship perfectly. The zine is comb-bound with 143 pages...

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore]

...There is poetry in this zine. I didn't enjoy any of it, but then I'm biased towards verse that actually rhymes and scans.

Overall I heartily recommend this zine, there are no real turkeys and the good ones are extremely good.[6]

[zine]: yay! fire&ice! the zine of my people - and actually not only is this zine appreciated because it only has fics that are about my ship in it, it is appreciated because almost all of them are really good. having come from 'southern comfort' where one and a half blake/avon fics were really good (and the one was arguably gen that used blake/avon as a metaphor), i really do appreciate it. also... there are lots of silly tropes, and i love a silly trope.

blake/avon trope counter (out of a possible 14 fics in this zine): fake relationship: 4 crying due to too much love: 4+ (i expect i missed some) slave fic: 3 negotiations to help the cause: 3 confession of love in the face of death: 3 forced to share a bed: 3 avon's incredible beauty: 2 showers: 2 hurt/comfort: 2+ shore leave/staying on the ship while everyone else is on shore leave: 1 virtual reality: 1 clone!blake: 1 amnesia: 1 bondage: 1 (not enough) unnecessary rape: 1 (more than enough)

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore] [7]

Issue 4

Fire and Ice 4 was published in May 1998 and contains 194 pages. All of the art is by Whitby27.

cover of issue #4

You can read the flyer here, Archived version.

The editorial:

Welcome to the fourth, and final. Issue of FIRE AND ICE. Three years in the making! I have thoroughly enjoyed doing this zine, and still love BLAKE'S 7. I plan to continue publishing Bloke/Avon stories In "No Holds Barred" (which is also open to other B7 combinations - Avon/Vila, etc.) Each Issue of FIRE AND ICE has taken at least two years to complete, owing to the scarcity of good B/A stories. So, rather than commit to a 5th issue, which would doubtless not see print until the year 2000, I would rather accept stories for multimedia issues of "No Holds Barred". (Of course. If I am suddenly inundated with quality B/A stories, this policy is subject to change...!) And, of course. If I receive a wide variety of B7 stories featuring different pairings, I will devote on issue of NHB to B7.

Enjoy!

  • Triptych by Predatrix (1)
  • Echoes of Betrayal by Susan Riaz ("Kerr Avon, busy with work on the Aquitar Project, has no interest in the activities of the Freedom Party - until the day the leader of the Freedom Party makes an unexpected visit...") (2)
  • Behind Your Eyes by Khylara (16)
  • As Time Goes By by Judith Proctor & Vanessa Mullen (17)
  • Clonemaster by Pat Terra ("Avon feels the mission to rescue the clone Blake and his companion Rachel is yet one more trap. What he doesn't calculate is the profound effect the Blake clone will have on him personally...") (26)
  • In Way of Farewell by Pat Jacquerie ("In an elegant hotel, in an idyll away from the Liberator, Blake and Avon deal with the subtleties and complexities of their feelings towards each other.") (39)
  • Salvation by Khylara (51)
  • Debts by Susan Cutter ("Blake agrees to any sort of scene Avon desires. But guilt and pain sometimes demand unexpected types of expiation...") (52)
  • Caste Games by Leah S. (60)
  • Hostage Heart by Leah S. (61)
  • Too Much Love Will Kill You by Catherine S. (63)
  • Without Mercy by Aurora (71)
  • Slave to the Whip by Vanessa Mullen (72)
  • White Knight by Willa Shakespeare (73)
  • The Honest Man by Bryn Lantry ("Post the Andromedan War, Blake suddenly encounters a much-changed Avon in a POW camp...") (100)
  • Aftermath: Terminal by Khylara (104)
  • Divide and Conquer (or Plan 9 from Andromeda) by Willa Shakespeare ("In the wild escape from Star One, the Liberator crew is rescued - by an Andromedan ship, heading home - a trip which will take approximately 1,485 years. Naturally, the Andromedans are interested in their "specimens" - particularly their reproductive habits...") (105)
  • Memories by Gene S. Delapenia (164)
  • Challenge by Vanessa Mullen (166)
  • Outwitted by Willa Shakespeare (Post Gauda Prime. "Servalan is determined to force Avon to recreate the technology of the Liberator and Scorpio, and uses Blake as hostage against any rebellion by Avon. An excellent plan - except that Avon is indifferent to the fate of the hostage...") (167)
  • Truth by Khylara (194)
  • from issue #4,

    from issue #4,

  • from issue #4

    from issue #4

  • from issue #4

    from issue #4

  • from issue #4

    from issue #4

  • from issue #4

    from issue #4

  • from issue #4

    from issue #4

  • from issue #4

    from issue #4

  • from issue #4

    from issue #4

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 4

See reactions and reviews for Outwitted.

See reactions and reviews for Echoes of Betrayal.

See reactions and reviews for As Time Goes By.

See reactions and reviews for Clonemaster.

See reactions and reviews for In Way of Farewell.

See reactions and reviews for Debts.

See reactions and reviews for Caste Games.

See reactions and reviews for Hostage Heart.

See reactions and reviews for Too Much Love Will Kill You.

See reactions and reviews for White Knight.

See reactions and reviews for The Honest Man.

See reactions and reviews for Divide and Conquer (or, "Plan 9 from Andromeda").

See reactions and reviews for Memories.

See reactions and reviews for Without Mercy.

[zine]: FIRE & ICE IV Part of a series featuring good-quality all A/B slash stories. Taking the stories in order...

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments at the individual fiction pages on Fanlore]

.... All the art is by Whitby27, and very good too, including a couple of lovely nude studies of Avon.[8]

[zine]: Like all Fire & Ice, this focuses exclusively on Blake/Avon slash. The physical relationship is depicted though most of the stories are primarily focused on the emotional aspects. There is remarkable consistency throughout the fanzine; though I preferred some stories to others, it was generally due to personal preference rather than the quality of writing. Many slash stories use plot as an excuse, but I found enough action and intrigue within Fire & Ice 4 to satisfy my craving for a good story where the outcome involves something more than whether or not Blake and Avon resolve their differences. I'd recommend it slash fans and to gen fans who do not dislike slash.[9]

[zine]: Fire and Ice 4-6. Which I liked a lot more than F&I 1 or 2, although possibly not as much as 3 or 7, though to be fair 4 and 6 have some cracking stuff.

To my slight shame, I legit like the cover of F&I 4. The others do nothing for me. While we're talking of covers, it's maybe worth noting that I took F&I6 (far right) on holiday to Amsterdam in my hand luggage and as we went through security I thought 'holy shit, what if they open that bag?? How will I explain this romance-novel cover and all the porn contained within????' Fortunately, they did not open that bag. They opened the bag I'd been thinking of moving the zine into in order to protect it from innocent aiport security eyes. So, I'm glad I didn't do that.

Even though I regret the loss of the frontispieces that appeared in F&I 1, the zine series continues to be one of the best, presentation wise. Partly, I assume, because it's relatively late in terms of zines. All of these come from at least the late 1990s, with F&I6 hailing from the year 2000. Good presentation is nothing to knock, though. That's a very attractive font and layout choice. Very easy to read.

These three issues of F&I have far more art than any others I've seen (and I'm getting to the point where I've almost seen them all). It's as if that suddenly became a thing.

As I mentioned in my Avon Calling 3 review, a lot of this art is of Avon naked, no Blakes in sight (there are none of Blake in a similar state, and apart from the satyr one I can't think of any other naked Blake ones in any zines) and a lot of the art depicts sex. I think I've said before that that I find it something of a shame that (from my experience as a reader, and obviously correct me if I'm wrong) it seems like there used to be a much wider barrier between slash and gen than there is today. As in - you either get one (gen - has plot) or the other (slash - has hardcore sex), and I'd like more fics that were heavily plotty but also had lots of sex and kissing and bits of angst etc, and I'd like more art that was obviously shippy but didn't involve them being naked. There's some slash fic with plot, but there could be more. I'm greedy.

Actually having said that, it is worth noting that by this point 1998-2000, there is a lot more extraneous plot in the slash, and I generally like it a lot. But the art is still all penises, all the time, and I don't like Paul Darrow for what he looks like naked.

Anyway, to bring that detour to a close:

All the art is by one person, and I either sort of like it or mostly don't like it. The art-reproduction is much better in four than it is in either five (really bad) or six (not as bad, but still not great). This does massively affect how I feel about the pictures. They're drawn in soft pencil (I assume) and it looks nice and soft in four, and stark and scary in the later issues. Something to bear in mind, even in this age of easily accessible photocopiers and scanners. And no zines.

Anyway - onto the fics. Starting with 4, because it comes first - and also because a lot of the fics in 5 and 6 have the same issues (as in, for me, problems) as each other, so I really want to group them. But mostly, because 4 comes first (though I read them in reverse order)...

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments about the stories on their individual pages on Fanlore] [10]

Issue 5

cover of issue #5, Whitby27

Fire and Ice 5 was published in 1999 and won a 2000 FanQ.

You can read the flyer here.

  • Stripping the Scales by Julia Stamford (Avon and Blake discover a shared fondness for a certain kind of fun and games.) (1)
  • Tool Kit by Julia Stamford (Avon and Blake discover a shared fondness for a certain kind of fun and games.) (34)
  • Blood Ties by Willa Shakespeare (a Post-Gauda Prime vampire story) (55)
  • The Forgotten One by "Serious Moonlight" (Blake's nightmares force Avon to confront his own feelings...) (87)
  • An Infallible Cure by Calico (Blake. Avon. A spy mission and close confinement in a closet...) (122)
  • Unspoken Conversation by Vanessa Mullen (131)
  • The Quick and the Dead by Linda Norman (On a doomed planet, Blake and Avon share a brief and haunting encounter.) (133)
  • Secrets by Linda Norman (Blake discovers that Avon has had a sexual encounter with another rebel leader) (140)

Artwork:

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 5

See reactions and reviews for Blood Ties.

See reactions and reviews for Stripping the Scales.

See reactions and reviews for Tool Kit.

See reactions and reviews for The Forgotten One.

See reactions and reviews for An Infallible Cure.

See reactions and reviews for Unspoken Conversation.

See reactions and reviews for The Quick and the Dead.

See reactions and reviews for Secrets.

[zine]: I just got the n/l with my B7 review, and is my face red or what! I completely forgot one of the best zines I read in 1999--FIRE & ICE 5. Of course, you have to like B/A to like this series, but B/A is my favorite--right up there with h/c with Blake and Avon.[11]

[zine]: I've had several inquiries about the new Fire and Ice. In fact I haven't finished reading it yet, because although I love A/B, I find it too intense to enjoy reading a whole zineful at one sitting. I have to pause every story or two and space it out with something else; whereas a mixed zine like Southern Comfort or Forbidden Star I can read straight through, because the zine itself will have enough variety to keep me from burning out.

This zine was brought back by popular demand, as explained in the Editorial, which also mentions that #6 is in the works (deadline September 15, 1999, if you're considering a submission).

There are three novella-length stories in this one, and one has an accompanying sequel that makes it even longer...

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the individual stories on their pages on Fanlore]

The art in this issue is especially nice; Val's style is improving all the time. My very favorite is the lovely Avon in the tropical garden, an illustration for "The Quick and the Dead;" it reminds me a bit of the Suzan Lovett Blake/Bodie that was in, I think, an issue of No Holds Barred. I also particularly like the pretty young Avon with the sly sidelong glance at the end of "Stripping the Scales"-- just perfect for that story, IMO.

A/B fans will be very happy with this zine, which maintains the high standards set by its predecessors.[12]

[zine]: The backbone of F&I IV was Willa Shakespeare's stories, and of this is Julia Stamford's (two long related stories). And very excellent too (and I'm not just saying that because she's a friend and these stories started out as a 5000 word PWP for me before growing to epic size)! I'll also note the art work (Val W's work is *still* keeping the fandom afloat despite being almost criminally neglected by FanQ/Stiffie/whatever award givers). The cover is superb--Avon holding a knife on a totally-unimpressed Blake: the canonical inspiration being the scene in *Spacefall* where Avon pulls the gun on Blake to be greeted with that "Oh, put it *away,* Avon!" expression. Highly recommended.

Unusually for me, I don't have any pure-erotica picks from this issue, but there's a nude cuddle scene somewhere where the expression of pure love on each of their faces is so, so touching.... Aaaaah!

Anyway, to the stories.

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the individual stories on their pages on Fanlore]

[13]

[zine]: Ok, so this one is a lot shorter. Hopefully it will take me less time to write about it....

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments regarding individual stories on their Fanlore pages.] [14]

Issue 6

cover of issue #6, Whitby27 -- "While we're talking of covers, it's maybe worth noting that I took F&I6 (far right) on holiday to Amsterdam in my hand luggage and as we went through security I thought 'holy shit, what if they open that bag?? How will I explain this romance-novel cover and all the porn contained within????' Fortunately, they did not open that bag. They opened the bag I'd been thinking of moving the zine into in order to protect it from innocent aiport security eyes. So, I'm glad I didn't do that." -- from a review by Aralias below

Fire and Ice 6 was published in October 2000 and is 205 pages long. Art is by Whitby27. There's a lot of nude art in this one, far more than is usual for Fire and Ice.

Non-explicit art sample:

  • Fireandice6art5.jpg
  • Fireandice6art6.jpg
  • Fireandice6art7.jpg
  • Fireandice6art8.jpg

Explicit art sample: Note: Marked as sexually explicit; minimized

  • Fireandice6art1.jpg
  • Fireandice6art2.jpg
  • Fireandice6art3.jpg
  • Fireandice6art4.jpg

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 6

See reactions and reviews for Touching Life.

See reactions and reviews for A Dangerous Concept.

See reactions and reviews for A Friend in Need.

See reactions and reviews for Is a Friend Indeed.

See reactions and reviews for Rhetorical Questions.

See reactions and reviews for Mastery.

See reactions and reviews for Window Shopping.

See reactions and reviews for To the Victor.

See reactions and reviews for The Biter Bit.

See reactions and reviews for Hostage Situations.

See reactions and reviews for None So Blind.

See reactions and reviews for The I-Lab of Doctor Moro.

See reactions and reviews for Midnight Blue.

See reactions and reviews for And They Lived Happily Ever After?.

See reactions and reviews for Why I Can't Stand Vila Restal.

See reactions and reviews for Black Velvet Band.

See reactions and reviews for Desire. (by Linda Norman)

See reactions and reviews for Desire. (by Ravenschild)

[zine]:
I should have guessed. It caught me on the hop.
I thought of blood or agony or hate.
Not of his taking off his clothes to--stop
And illustrate a talk, and contemplate.
Putting the clothes back on, he touched Blake's face,
Blake touched his arm. A start. Or perhaps an end.
If rapes in mind or body leave a trace,
If they can't find each other more than friend.
B pities A -- for being really raped.
A pities B -- not knowing false or real.
Both think the other suffered, not escaped
Past wounds, and they themselves don't need to heal.
What next, if anything? Is that the end
Of sonnet, story? Do I dare press "Send"? [15]

[zine]: First, general comments on the zine: I *love* A/B, and I've greatly enjoyed the past issues of F&I, so I was *really* looking forward to this one (and not just because my first zine-published story is in it, either!). And, overall, I'm quite pleased. To begin with, there's quite a lot of artwork this time -- not too many illos for particular stories, unfortunately (although mine got two, so I'm definitely not complaining!), but there is a multiple-page "art portfolio" section, and some of the illos (both there and in the rest of the zine) are quite yummy. But then, I never get tired of looking at Blake and Avon wrapped around each other. :)

If I have any complaint about the zine, it's to do with the order in which the stories are presented... Several of the stories deal (in whole or in part) with very similar themes: for instance there are several stories that feature Blake angsting about the child-abuse charges and wondering if he might actually be capable of such a thing, and several stories (some of them the same ones) in which Avon's been the victim of prison rape and is angsting about *that*. And, unfortunately, those stories are clustered together at the beginning of the zine, in a way that makes things start to feel a bit repetitive after a while. It would have been a better idea, I think, to have spread them out more. But that's a pretty minor complaint. (I get the feeling that maybe there was some attempt to order the stories by tone: the first few at the beginning of the zine generally feature positive, fairly conflict-free A/B relationships with optimistic endings, and the proportion of darker stories gets higher as you get towards the end of the zine. I might suggest skipping around, if you like variety.)

On to the stories, themselves:

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore] [16]

[zine]: Like all Fire & Ice, this focuses exclusively on Blake/Avon slash. The physical relationship is depicted though most of the stories are primarily focused on the emotional aspects. There is remarkable consistency throughout the fanzine; though I preferred some stories to others, it was generally due to personal preference rather than the quality of writing. Many slash stories use plot as an excuse, but I found enough action and intrigue within Fire & Ice 4 to satisfy my craving for a good story where the outcome involves something more than whether or not Blake and Avon resolve their differences. I'd recommend it slash fans and to gen fans who do not dislike slash.[9]

[zine]: Fire and Ice 4-6. Which I liked a lot more than F&I 1 or 2, although possibly not as much as 3 or 7, though to be fair 4 and 6 have some cracking stuff.

To my slight shame, I legit like the cover of F&I 4. The others do nothing for me. While we're talking of covers, it's maybe worth noting that I took F&I6 (far right) on holiday to Amsterdam in my hand luggage and as we went through security I thought 'holy shit, what if they open that bag?? How will I explain this romance-novel cover and all the porn contained within????' Fortunately, they did not open that bag. They opened the bag I'd been thinking of moving the zine into in order to protect it from innocent aiport security eyes. So, I'm glad I didn't do that.

Even though I regret the loss of the frontispieces that appeared in F&I 1, the zine series continues to be one of the best, presentation wise. Partly, I assume, because it's relatively late in terms of zines. All of these come from at least the late 1990s, with F&I6 hailing from the year 2000. Good presentation is nothing to knock, though. That's a very attractive font and layout choice. Very easy to read.

These three issues of F&I have far more art than any others I've seen (and I'm getting to the point where I've almost seen them all). It's as if that suddenly became a thing.

As I mentioned in my Avon Calling 3 review, a lot of this art is of Avon naked, no Blakes in sight (there are none of Blake in a similar state, and apart from the satyr one I can't think of any other naked Blake ones in any zines) and a lot of the art depicts sex. I think I've said before that that I find it something of a shame that (from my experience as a reader, and obviously correct me if I'm wrong) it seems like there used to be a much wider barrier between slash and gen than there is today. As in - you either get one (gen - has plot) or the other (slash - has hardcore sex), and I'd like more fics that were heavily plotty but also had lots of sex and kissing and bits of angst etc, and I'd like more art that was obviously shippy but didn't involve them being naked. There's some slash fic with plot, but there could be more. I'm greedy.

Actually having said that, it is worth noting that by this point 1998-2000, there is a lot more extraneous plot in the slash, and I generally like it a lot. But the art is still all penises, all the time, and I don't like Paul Darrow for what he looks like naked.

Anyway, to bring that detour to a close:

All the art is by one person, and I either sort of like it or mostly don't like it. The art-reproduction is much better in four than it is in either five (really bad) or six (not as bad, but still not great). This does massively affect how I feel about the pictures. They're drawn in soft pencil (I assume) and it looks nice and soft in four, and stark and scary in the later issues. Something to bear in mind, even in this age of easily accessible photocopiers and scanners. And no zines.

Anyway - onto the fics.

[snipped]

Which means that, in conclusion, I largely think volume six is excellent! Four is also very good, with five dipping a bit in quality for me, partly because it's shorter than the others and is largely filled with two long fics that I don't dig. Also - I wish there was less weird D/s in this pairing, and that everyone had taken a long hard look at the BBC prisons Avon was holed up in and considered whether he was raped or not, because my instinct says no - the drugs kept those prisoners docile. Commander Raper Raiker seems to want Jenna to agree to fuck him, for goodness sake. And also - we're in the world of slash fic, so you don't need to justify men fancying each other, even if one of them has at least two canonical female love interests and the other one kisses his cousin in a dubious way. I will buy it if you tell me they fancy each other, because I already think they do - that's why I'm reading this zine.

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore] [17]

Issue 7

Fire and Ice 7 was published in May 2002 and has 204 pages. All "handart" is by Whitby27. All "photo art" is by Pat Fenech.

cover issue #7, Whitby27

You can read the flyer here.

From the editorial: "Fandom suffered a loss last year with the passing of "Pat Jacquerie" on June 5, 2001. Pat was well known in B7 fandom and had quite a number of stories published in various zines over the years. Some of Pat's stories can be found at www.tarrantnostra.com. I included her story "In Way of Farewell" in "Fire and Ice [issue #4].""

Non-explicit art sample:

  • inside issue #7, Whitby27

    inside issue #7, Whitby27

  • inside issue #7, Whitby27

    inside issue #7, Whitby27

  • inside issue #7, Whitby27

    inside issue #7, Whitby27

  • inside issue #7, Pat Fenech

    inside issue #7, Pat Fenech

  • inside issue #7, Pat Fenech

    inside issue #7, Pat Fenech

  • inside issue #7, Whitby27

    inside issue #7, Whitby27

Explicit art sample: Note: Marked as sexually explicit; minimized

  • inside issue #7, Whitby27

    inside issue #7, Whitby27

  • inside issue #7, Whitby27

    inside issue #7, Whitby27

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 7

See reactions and reviews for Half a Loaf.

See reactions and reviews for Groundhog Lay.

See reactions and reviews for Playtime.

See reactions and reviews for Strict Protein Diet.

See reactions and reviews for As Easy as Falling Off a Bike.

See reactions and reviews for Hot Tub.

See reactions and reviews for Conversion to the Faith.

See reactions and reviews for Sleeping Arrangements.

See reactions and reviews for Three's a Crowd.

See reactions and reviews for In the Night.

See reactions and reviews for Stuff and Nonsense, or L'Austen Space.

See reactions and reviews for Persuasion.

See reactions and reviews for Night Blake, Day Blake.

See reactions and reviews for Black Leather Rose.

See reactions and reviews for Pecking Order.

See reactions and reviews for The Other Side of Heaven.

See reactions and reviews for Things We Said Today.

See reactions and reviews for Time and Fevers.

See reactions and reviews for Outlaws and In-Laws.

[zine]: OK, here goes. Will try to not actually give away anything which would ruin the pleasure, also, if I don't go for something, to try and work out if that's because I didn't think it was written right or just that the author's take on the characters isn't mine. Everything IMO, no offence, naturally.

Appearance: classy, with a pretty front cover which makes A look awfully young. There are a few typos but nothing too major (except one thing which actually works so well I wondered if it was intentional).

The art inside is also fine, as art. Some of it did take me by surprise, because like an idiot it hadn't occurred to me that a zine with all-adult verbal content would also have adult art. Why I should have been taken aback by pictures of thingies I can't think, it isn't like I never saw one in RL. I feel daft about it and no doubt it sounds daft to anyone who isn't such a novice with paper zines, but in case there are more novices out there they might want to be prepared I did get used to it, once I persuaded myself it was all right to look.

The stories: some I knew from the mailing list or elsewhere, many I didn't, nor their authors.

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore]

In fact I don't think you'd have to be a rabid RA/BSH to enjoy a lot of what's in here though it would certainly help! [18]

[zine]: Another excellent edition of 'Fire & Ice'. There were a few stories that I disliked, but mostly it made me very happy indeed. Plenty of authors with more than one story, but that just meant I was beginning each story thinking 'hooray! Another story by [insert name of now very trusted author]! My cup runneth over.' It does surprise me to realise (thanks fanlore) that Julia Stamford and Helen Patrick are the same person but only because I don't really understand why it would be necessary to adopt a pseud when they write similar fic... (ah AO3 has just informed me it's a print/online thing). They 'both' write fic I really like anyway.

Issue 3 (the only other F&I I've read) had no art, which I found disappointing. This one does have art! I don't like it that much... but it's OK. And I like that it is there. Lots of it is explicit, but not all of it is. Some of the photo manips seem incredibly bizarre (why have we superimposed fireworks), but the simpler ones where it's basically just their faces do genuinely add something to the reading experience.

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore]

In conclusion, this is an excellent zine with many lols and heartwarming moments from some excellent authors. Do definitely recommend.[19]

Issue 8

cover of issue #8

Fire and Ice 8 was published in April 2005 and contains 164 pages. It has art by Whitby27 and Snowgrouse.

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 8

See reactions and reviews for Rings.

See reactions and reviews for Falling.

See reactions and reviews for Incandescent.

See reactions and reviews for Forgiveness.

See reactions and reviews for Silver Tongued Orator.

See reactions and reviews for Nowt as Queer.

See reactions and reviews for Goes Without Saying.

See reactions and reviews for Family Men.

See reactions and reviews for The Political Education of Kerr Avon.

See reactions and reviews for Nothing I'd Rather Do.

See reactions and reviews for Tanked.

See reactions and reviews for Counterfeit Lives.

See reactions and reviews for Winning Hand.

[zine]: Fire and Ice 8 is a 2005 A/B zine published by Kathy Resch. It is available from both Resch and Judith Proctor's Hermit website. Resch keeps almost all her zines, including Blake's 7 zines, in continuous reprint so it should be available for buying no matter how much later you read this review.

There is art in this by both Whitby27 and Snowgrouse. I personally don't care for Avon who is [Whitby27's] favorite, so the two pieces of art that I like in the zine are the front cover by [Whitby27], a colored pencil gen Blake and Avon, and an interior B & W photo manipulation by Snowgrouse, a romantic embrace between Blake and Avon. Overall, there is nudity in the art but nothing full frontal. The slashiness in some pieces is subtle and nothing sexually explicit.

This zine is 164 pages long and mainly has stories by established people who have been in the fandom for some time now. I believe Snowgrouse is the newest writer. There are nine different writers involved with this production even though there are ten pen names.

This review for the most part follows the order in which I read the stories, not their order in the zine.

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore]

Taking my story "Rings" out of the running, today here is how I would rank the remaining twelve stories from being my favorite to my least favorite. In time my rankings might change. Some stories will probably wear better than others.

  • Falling
  • Tanked
  • Counterfeit Lives
  • Winning Hand
  • The Political Education of Kerr Avon
  • Incandescent
  • Forgiveness
  • Family Men
  • Nothing I'd Rather Do
  • Goes Without Saying
  • Silver Tongued Orator
  • Nowt as Queer

On a final note, I read Fire and Ice 8 cover to cover the day it arrived, staying up until 1 AM, something that is rare for me to do these days-find a zine that is so truly engrossing that it makes me want to read it all in one day. I think this is a great zine for someone who likes A/B or B/A-whichever way you "spell" it.

Except for two stories in Fire and Ice 7, I have read every Fire and Ice cover to cover and enjoyed them greatly. I still have them all saved and reread them from time to time. And considering the hundreds of B7 zines I have resold, given away, or gutted, that is a great compliment. All eight are available from Resch or Proctor. And Fire and Ice 9 is soon to come in 2005. Yah! I'm looking forward to that one a lot. Also from Resch or Proctor there is the general B7 slash zine No Holds Barred 26 which I highly recommend for those people who like pairings other than A/B. There is a nice amount of Blake in that zine so I enjoy that one almost as much as I like Fire and Ice in general.[20]

[zine]: For some reason 8 and 9 are not available to buy new from Agent With Style - thank goodness, then, for the zine library.

I don't know why Fanlore arranged the fics in such a weird order. This is the order they should be in.

Also, no offence to Jade Day - who was previously the only reviewer of this zine - but pretty much every opinion I have is the opposite to hers. So - strap in, and let's prepare to rock the boat....

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore]

In summary - Fire and Ice 8 is really good. Unfortunately it is, in general, much better than Fire and Ice 9. But there are some gems to be had in that one too.[21]

Issue 9

cover of issue #9, Snowgrouse -- "The cover is sexy so it has to be covered if like me you are not comfortable sharing your slash interests with your family...." [22]

Fire and Ice 9 was published in May 2005 and contains 200 pages. It has art by Snowgrouse, Pat Fenech, Spacefall and Whitby27.

  • inside issue #7, Spacefall

    inside issue #7, Spacefall

  • inside issue #7, Snowgrouse

    inside issue #7, Snowgrouse

  • inside issue #7, Pat Fenech

    inside issue #7, Pat Fenech

  • inside issue #7, Whitby27

    inside issue #7, Whitby27

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 9

See reactions and reviews for Leaving Room 101.

See reactions and reviews for Too Many....

See reactions and reviews for On Trial, Basis.

See reactions and reviews for Just Another Cliché.

See reactions and reviews for Lowered Inhibitions.

See reactions and reviews for Party Line.

See reactions and reviews for Dressing Right.

See reactions and reviews for Bored to Tears.

See reactions and reviews for Town Mouse, Country Mouse.

See reactions and reviews for Kerrano.

See reactions and reviews for Love is a Battlefield.

See reactions and reviews for If Only.

See reactions and reviews for Not Dead Yet.

See reactions and reviews for Understood.

See reactions and reviews for Prime Suspect.

See reactions and reviews for Looking for Gold.

[zine]: I'll be vague in this review. I really hate it when reviews spoil all the suspense and tell you too much about the stories. I'm going to list the stories in the order that I liked them, but that doesn't mean all that much since I liked all the stories to some degree. The zine is 197 pages long with sixteen stories, all B7 newish writers, except for Willa Shakespeare who has been writing B7 the longest. And by newish, I mean writers who have only been writing B7 for the last ten or so years. The art - both drawings and photo manips - is by Snowgrouse, Pat Fenech, Spacefall and [Whitby27]. [Whitby27] has been doing art the longest of the four. The cover is sexy so it has to be covered if like me you are not comfortable sharing your slash interests with your family....

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore]

...As I said before, I recommend both Fire and Ice 8 and 9. I think I liked Fire and Ice 8 slightly better than 9.[22]

[zine]: For some reason 8 and 9 are not available to buy new from Agent With Style - thank goodness, then, for the zine library...

[snipped]

[See this fan's comments on the fiction on each of those individual pages on Fanlore]

In summary - ...[Fire and Ice 8] is, in general, much better than Fire and Ice 9. But there are some gems to be had in that one too.[23]

References

  1. ^ Aralias reviewed this zine in 2013 on Dreamwidth, Archived version
  2. ^ a b Predatrix. Fire and Ice 2 - Review. (Accessed 03 February 2013); WebCite.
  3. ^ review by Predatrix at Judith Proctor's Blake's 7 site; Wayback link, Archived version
  4. ^ Aralias reviewed this zine in 2013 on Dreamwidth, Archived version
  5. ^ Subject: Zine review: Fire and Ice 2 (slash) by Sue C. dated July 29, 1993.
  6. ^ In 2007, Judith Proctor reviewed the zine here, Archived version
  7. ^ In 2013, aralias reviewed the zine on Dreamwidth, Archived version
  8. ^ from Sally Morton here, Archived version
  9. ^ a b from Morrigan here, Archived version
  10. ^ aralias reviewed this zine in November 2013 on Dreamwidth, Archived version
  11. ^ comment by Joyce Bowen [members.aol.com/erikaf/su/b7zinerev.htm here], Archived version
  12. ^ from Sarah Thompson at Judith Proctor's Blake's 7 site, Archived version
  13. ^ from Predatrix at Judith Proctor's Blake's 7 site, Archived version
  14. ^ aralias reviewed this zine in November 2013 on Dreamwidth, Archived version
  15. ^ a review in sonnet-form by Predatrix at Judith Proctor's Blake's 7 site, Archived version
  16. ^ a review by Belatrix Carter at Judith Proctor's Blake's 7 site, Archived version
  17. ^ aralias reviewed this zine in November 2013 on Dreamwidth; WebCite
  18. ^ a review by Hafren at Judith Proctor's Blake's 7 site
  19. ^ aralias reviewed this zine in July 2013 on Dreamwidth, Archived version
  20. ^ a 2005 review by Joyce Bowen at Judith Proctor's Blake's 7 site, Archived version
  21. ^ 2014 review by Aralias, Archived version
  22. ^ a b a 2005 review by Joyce Bowen at Judith Proctor's Blake's 7 site, Archived version
  23. ^ 2014 comments by Aralias, Archived version
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