You Watch the Hippy, I'll Take Goldilocks

Fanfiction
Title:	You Watch the Hippy, I'll Take Goldilocks
Author(s):	Gil Hale
Date(s):	29 June 2001
Length:	271 K
Genre:	gen
Fandom:	Professionals/Sentinel
External Links:	online here.
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You Watch the Hippy, I'll Take Goldilocks is a Professionals/Sentinel crossover by Gil Hale.

It was the winner of a Cascade Times Award in 2005.

This story was printed in Knitted Souls and is online. It is the first in "The Hippy-Goldilocks Universe" and has two sequels: Rogues and Fear.

The series borrows elements of The GDP Series, with permission from Susan Foster.

Reactions and Reviews

Unknown Date

Her enjoyable "Hippy and Goldilocks" stories were my introduction to The Pros.

2001

I stayed up far too late reading this story, I just couldn't put it down. This being a Sentinel/Professionals crossover, it's definitely AU for both series. It is set in a universe reminiscent of Susan Foster's GDP series or CiceroCat's "Bright New Future" -- Guides are empathic, Sentinels and Guides have a psychic bond, and Guides are second-class citizens who need medication to suppress their empathy or they can't cope. Unfortunately, we got all this information at the start in an info-dump disguised as Jim's musings. There was too much telling and not enough showing. But once we got past the introduction, and into the section where unbonded Sentinel Jim Ellison was working with unbonded Sentinel Bodie, things picked up. I love the title of the story -- it's very Bodie.

Jim rammed his fist into the ground in frustration. "Do you think I haven't tried everything?"

"Not everything," Bodie said, looking irritatingly in control. "I'd say you haven't tried subtle."

The use of some familiar names alerted us to who the Evil Gad Buy of the story would be... I'm not sure whether that was a good idea or not. But I liked how the two pairs were working on different ends of the problem, though they knew it not. I liked the way the author was subtle (there's that word again!) in the way that the attraction (and mutual assistance) between Sentinel and Guide pairs was manifesting without either party being aware of it (except the one party who'd had some little experience of it). And I liked some of the parallels between Jim + Bodie and Blair + Doyle. I feel that the characterisation of Bodie and Doyle was actually better (deeper) than that of Jim & Blair, which isn't that surprising since the author has written more Professionals stories than Sentinel ones. I can't say more for fear of spoilers, but let's say that I found certain events more emotionally satisfying and plausible when they happened to Bodie and Doyle than with Jim and Blair, and maybe that was because they were more plausible, and maybe that was because we saw more of Bodie's thought-processes than Jim's, I'm not sure. Be that as it may, I like this Bodie and Doyle muchly, and I want to see more of them.

2003

[Fear]: This is the third story in the "Hippy and Goldilocks" AU crossover series, and continues on just as well as the other two. This time most of the action takes place in England, and, naturally, this does end up feeling rather more like a Profs story than a TS story, in the style of its plot -- nicely so. Bodie and Doyle are themselves, even in this odd universe; and Jim and Blair and Simon open the proceedings in style.... A few things tie in from the previous story, but one doesn't need to go and re-read it to refresh one's memory; they aren't *that* tightly tied. This one is strong on the plot, and doesn't have so much character development as the previous stories. But it's a good plot with action and twists and things to make one uneasy. I loved the way that the title ended up meaning more than it seemed on the surface. So... what do *you* think?

2012

Summary: An alternative universe, somewhat timewarped, where Sentinels are known of, Guides are oppressed empaths, and Sentinels and Guides are bound for life. Jim Ellison (unbonded Sentinel) of Cascade PD, is asked to work with an investigator from CI5 -- Bodie (another unbonded Sentinel) -- to look for two Guides who escaped custody. But something else fishy is going on... and orders won't stop them finding out.

Reccer's Notes: This is one of those one-step-sideways universes where Sentinels and Guides are well known, but everything else is fairly similar. What's great about this one is the characterisation of all the main characters, especially Bodie and Doyle. I also like how the author doesn't hit you over the head with things, but is more subtle.

And I simply adore the title.