Fumbling Towards Ecstasy (Fugitive zine)

Zine
Title:	Fumbling Towards Ecstasy
Publisher:	Dog House Press
Editor:
Author(s):	HG and Cherilyn
Cover Artist(s):
Illustrator(s):
Date(s):	September 1997
Medium:	print zine
Size:	epic (132,000+ words)
Genre:
Fandom:	Fugitive
Language:	English
External Links:	Online version here
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Fumbling Towards Ecstasy is a slash 159 page Fugitive novel by HG and Cherilyn.

It has a sequel called Rhythm and Blues.

flyer

Author's Note

After reading two books about Federal employees our confusion increased; we've worked on the assumption that Gerard is God.

Apologies for any inaccuracies, they aren't included to irritate, we just wanted to play with Kimble and Gerard.

A short story zine based on the characters in "Fumbling Towards Ecstasy" is planned for next year.

[...]

FUMBLING TOWARDS ECSTASY is an amateur fan publication and is not intended to infringe any rights of any individual or organisation. The original material within this publication is copyrighted to the authors.

FUMBLING TOWARDS ECSTASY will remain in print.

We can state with total confidence that this zine will never recover its production costs, let alone make a profit. But we've had a lovely time.

Anyone wishing to visit Messrs. Gerard and Kimble should try North Chicago look for the driveway that matches the cover.

Excerpt from the Flyer

Kimble could hear the calm voice of the instructor from the shooting gallery as he released the safety catch and brought up the automatic, aiming for the largest target. As he fired off four rounds he heard two shots come from the doorway and he swung the automatic over to meet this new threat, firing once more. He managed to pull the shot when he realized the other gunman was Deputy Samuel Gerard. For a split second after Kimble had fired Gerard's gaze locked with the doctor's. Gerard's eyes were wide with shock, his mouth open with disbelief that the doctor had fired at him.

Reactions and Reviews

1997

(I didn't buy it, I just borrowed it, so I even have an *excuse* this time for not remembering things like price and ordering info! Oh, and there's absolutely no address listed in the zine. It's from England, that's all I can tell you. Hey, it's not *that* big of an island...)

It's sometimes interesting when I think how far inside slashslutdom I live: I was extremely eager to read this novel and I don't see *any* slash in the movie! (Well, unless you count my belief in Gerard/Noah, but I don't think you will.) Loved the movie, but as far as Gerard and Kimble actually doing it? Well, not really. However, since I am always willing to be convinced--or hung up by the hormones until slashed--and this was written by HG, who produced my absolute favorite Pros novel, I was more than happy to throw little things like 'didn't buy it for a second' out the window. And it really does work--for the most part.

The novel opens two years after the end of the movie. Richard Kimble, the US Marshall's Office, and the rest of the world have all gotten on with their lives--everyone except one Samuel Gerard. Gerard has been increasingly interested in investigating several attacks and crank letters Kimble has been recieving in the last year or so. Theories abound about what it could be--is it an attempt by Devlin-McGregor at revenge? Or is it something more personal? At the insistence of Gerard, the Marshall's office decides to investigate and over much protest from Kimble, he is placed in protective custody, which just so happens to be at Gerard's home. Sexual tension, misunderstandings, miscommunication, jealousy, and fucks against various walls ensue. In other words, all the things that for which I love fandom.

Overall, the whole thing is put together rather well, the plot no more far fetched than most movies and the reasoning and reactions from various people much better thought out. I liked the fact that Kimble, while not living in a shrine to her, is still partially mourning for his wife--and hiding behind her. I also liked the fact that his little adventure is not something that has left him unaffected, though I thought his hostile reaction to Gerard initially seemed out of place with the ending of the movie.

Most of the characters are used very well, including the supporting cast. All of Gerard's team is shown here, no matter how briefly, but with special attention played to Cosmo (very well done), Noah and Poole. Biggs (Mr. 'Hinkey', I believe) makes an appearance, but his is rather disappointing as his main purpose seems to have been just so he can be a name in one particular discussion between Kimble and Cosmo. Everyone else seems to be used to good effect, though, which is pleasantly surprising in a slash novel. Most slash stories use supporting characters either far too sparingly or far too badly. No one's a yenta and they all seem to have a purpose. Hallelujia.

Aside from the fact that not all of the dialogue seemed to ring true for me for Kimble and Gerard (which wasn't a major problem, but was noticeable to me), I was more effected by the ease with which they eventually settle into their relationship. While there is plenty emotional angst before they finally get together and there are a couple of initial 'should we really have fucked?/I love him, but he doesn't love me' scenes (which are, incidentally, my favorite parts), they seem to finally settle on 'you love me, I love you, lets settle down' rather abruptly. There is no discussion and worse yet, little to no transition of any kind between the two. I think the whole thing should have been drawn out for a little longer and it wouldn't have been as noticeable to me, but then again, we're dancing on my kinks here.

Technically speaking, the zine looks very nice with a clean, very readable single-column format. I think the whole thing could have used at least one more run-through with the editor(s), though: There are several grammatical hiccups throughout and some places which could have used some evening out. There will be something mentioned at the top of the page, other things talked about, and then the original thing referred to at the bottom of the page in such a way that it takes me a bit to figure out what they're talking about.

And this is a zine, once again, about American characters written by non-Americans. Actually, I think they did a pretty good job overall--only one or two non-Americanisms that I noticed, but the main problems I saw were not words which Americans would not use, but phrases. But none of these were really enough to through me out of the story, so nothing severe. Just a quick reminder, though: For all our tendancy to fold, spindle, and mutilate them pronunciationwise, we Americans like our articles most times--someone would never go 'to hospital', but 'to *the* hospital' or 'into *the* hospital'.

Overall, a well done novel. I definitely recommend it, though possibly more for those who want more comfort than hurt. They didn't suffer sufficiently for me before the final consummation, as it were, to make me totally happy, but there was enough to make me smile a bit.

1998

Set two years after the events of the film, it ... No, I won't give away any of the plot (yes, there is a plot). I will say though that the characterisations are spot on and best of all (and my personal yardstick for measuring a good story), I can just hear Tommy Lee Jones' voice saying the words in that beautiful voice of his. When Richard Kimble smiles his adorable lop sided smile, it's Harrison Ford that I see. If anyone saw the film and didn't think these two men were made for each other then there's something wrong with them. This story just finishes off the film (oh, boy, I wish!). It is also a beautiful story and beautifully written. At times I wanted to slap the pair of them - I'm sure the fact that everything turns out all right in the end will not be a surprise - however long they take to get there.

2003

Richard Kimble and Sam Gerard from ‘The Fugitive’ (film). This is state of the art slash fiction with careful characterisation, believable plot, all the romance you could possibly want and enough sex to keep the most demanding reader happy. The research is immaculate, the quality of the writing is first-rate, and the authors have obviously studied their characters and their source material in great detail. If you ever thought there was more to Gerard's "I know it, Richard" and the crinkly smile as he takes the handcuffs off Kimble at the end of the film this is undoubtedly the zine for you.

2010

Deputy Marshal Sam Gerard crosses paths with Dr Richard Kimble once again when Kimble receives a number of mysterious threats and ends up obliged to share a safe house with Gerard and his 'kids'. It's the beginning of a process in which Kimble and Gerard discover one another as individuals, as colleagues, as friends and ... gradually, and not without incident ... as lovers. We are treated to in-depth portraits of both men, and learn a lot about their back-stories and relationships, their attitudes and aspirations; they are so obviously suited to one another that the few practical difficulties standing in the way of their relationship seem almost inconsequential, and it is plain that once they are together they will stay together for the rest of their lives. [...] In my opinion this is one of the best-written pieces of fan-fiction in existence anywhere. It first appeared in zine form back in 1997 and was in an all-time 'Top Ten' I prepared some years ago, and it would be there again today; simply speaking, work this good stands the test of time and transcends the fashionability or otherwise of the fandom it represents.

2013

Seriously one of my favorite fanfic novels of all time; it's post-movie, with emotional and physical h/c all over, a plotty case, great secondary characters, you name it.