Hanged Man
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| Fraser/Kowalski Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Hanged Man |
| Author(s): | Speranza |
| Date(s): | 2004-09-28 |
| Length: | 33,395 |
| Genre: | slash |
| Fandom: | due South |
| External Links: | at Speranza's site, Archived version[7] (Speranza's Fiction) on AO3, Archived version[8] |
Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Hanged Man is a Fraser/Kowalski story by Speranza. The story includes several images integrated into the text that show the word game Hangman that Fraser and Ray are playing in two key scenes.
It was podficced, Archived version[9] by nos4a2no9 in 2007.
Fan Art
cover for this story by LauraKaye
Reactions and Reviews
rec at Crack Van (2005):
The hanged man in tarot cards is suspended, waiting for his fate to change. Of course, the title isn't merely referring to that. It's also referring to the word game. Which Fraser and Ray play at various times in the stories.In this one Fraser and Ray enter into a relationship. They are secretive at first not wanting to endanger Ray's undercover assignment. They both well understand the necessity of lying and being discrete, of pretending they aren't in love with one another, for the safety of all involved. They know it, but it's hard to explain something like that to the heart. It's damn near killing them to be stuck in such a holding pattern. They don't want to go back, but moving forward isn't something they can do just yet.
I love the emotions of this piece. Everything so hidden, but not really. Even a blind man could see what they feel for one another. It's constantly threatening to boil over the surface. A fabulous read. As with all Speranza's stories I love it more than I could ever say. [1]
Mog Recs (2005):
Oh, I love it when they're fucked up. Fraser and Ray start a hidden relationship that revolves around a particular room at a hotel. As they get more and more desperate, everything starts to fall apart around them, leading them to try and patch up their relationship as best they can. I'm not sure I liked the epilogue as much as the fic in general, but it deals with the problems of coming out in Chicago, and the difference between Canada and the USA. [2]
thefourthvine's rec (2005):
Best FF That Features a Bonus Photo of an Ice Monster. Or a Sea Goat. Or a Whistling Tentacular Male Naga in Ritual War Paint. I Look at It Often, and I Have No Clue What It Is. Hanged Man, by Speranza, aka cesperanza. Due South, Ray Kowalski/Benton Fraser.
And, yeah. Today I'm recommending stories everyone's already read. Next time I'll go for some that more than one person out there hasn't already heard of, OK? But, see, certain people have to be reminded to read the famous stories, and of course some folks have to be poked to read the great stuff in fandoms they don't know. All of which is a long way to say: I refuse to feel bad about recommending these stories, including this one. Because it is great, my friends. It's about the fear of coming out; it makes the interesting point that you can come out to yourself while still totally being in denial, and you can avoid coming out to everyone else so hard, work so much to preserve Life As You Know It, that you end up making that life - well, fairly sucky. This is totally true. It also, yes, makes the first part of the story a wee bit rocky. But not kill-me-now rocky or anything. And the ending is totally happy - hell, there's four happy endings. Which, predictably, I read twice for every once that I read the whole story. (OK, yes, I'm a happy ending junkie. But that's why I'm this in love with due South in the first place, so I feel entitled to enjoy my fix in this fandom.) And if it always leaves me desperately wanting to hear all about the Basmati rice incident? Small price to pay, really.[3]
Epic Recs (2006):
This is one of my favorites. First of all, it’s Speranza, so it’s well-written and wonderful. Secondly, I love watching Ray and Fraser’s very quick and sudden epiphany, and then a whole lot of them not being able to figure their shit OUT. In the meantime, they have lots of very hot sex, which makes it only a little bit easier to watch them destroy their relationship. No worries, they’ll figure it out, but it hurts a little to get there. Flawless characterization, heartbreaking and hot and wonderful, then happy.[4]
nos4a2no9's reader comments (2007):
This is one of my favorite cesperanza stories. It's a moving and well-observed character study of both Ray and Fraser, and the way Ces crafts the burgeoning sexual relationship between the two men (which comes at the expense of their partnership) is, yes, full of porny goodness, but it's also one of the best examples I've seen of the "show don't tell" principle. Hanged Man is mainly a story about what goes unsaid between Ray and Fraser, and how they learn to find their voice together.[5]
Well, it's a long and plotty fandom classic by Speranza. What more a reader could ask for? :D Seriously, it's one of my favourite dS stories EVER, I've read it about 5 or 6 times. The angst is delicious and the sex is MINDBLOWINGLY HOT.[6]
2018
A first-time story with show-appropriate angst but a happy ending—my fave combination, especially for this pairing. I think anything from Speranza’s due South writings could be filed under “that one fic” but this is the one I most often return to when I need a comfort read.[7]
References
- ^ ladyclio16 (29 Jan 2005). "Hanged Man by Speranza (NC-17)". LiveJournal (Community Post at Crack-Van). Archived from the original on 02 Jul 2023.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help)[1] - ^ mog_reads (16 Oct 2005). "Due South: Fic Recs". LiveJournal (Post). Archived from the original on 27 Jul 2021.[2]
- ^ thefourthvine (24 Feb 2005). "Slashy Nominations 108: The Deadliest Foe to Virtue Would Be Complete Self-Knowledge". LiveJournal (Post). Archived from the original on 21 Jul 2015.[3]
- ^ justbreathe80 (23 Jun 2006). "Consider the Lilies of the Goddamned Field, Hanged Man". LiveJournal (Post at Rec50). Archived from the original on 22 Feb 2023.[4]
- ^ nos4a2no9 (09 Dec 2007). "New Podfic!". LiveJournal (Post). Archived from the original on 02 Jul 2023.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=and|archive-date=(help)[5] - ^ viciouscats (20 Apr 2007). "dS recs: Fraser-gets-tied-up". LiveJournal (Post). Archived from the original on 04 Jan 2023.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help)[6] - ^ "The Rec Center #107". Archived from the original on 2024-07-21.