misachan: (Tony/Rhodey)
misachan ([personal profile] misachan) wrote2012-06-11 07:17 pm

Rant + Recs Request

(That is one alliterative header.)

So earlier today I rage tweeted my timeline about...

Well here, I'll reproduce it:

@Gambling4Kitten: If I find one more thing claiming Tony never had a true friend before joining the Avengers my brain will leak out of my ears. #hatedtropes

I hate this trope. Haaaaaaaate it. It was around before Avengers came out but I keep finding stories where joining the Avengers and meeting Steve or Bruce taught Tony the power of friendship and let him finally open up to another human being and then I have to close my laptop before I actually bang my head against the keyboard. How can you watch Iron Man 1&2 and come away with that.?! Even putting Pepper aside, who also seems to be forgotten half the time, Rhodey loves the hell out of Tony Stark (and I don't necessarily mean in a shipping way, either.) Look at that scene in the first movie on the jet, where Tony's gotten Rhodey drunk and he's rambling on about how Tony's better than all this and he wants Tony to find a higher meaning for his life! The man is not a lost puppy who never knew a kind word before hearing the word Avengers, okay?

(Hilariously, this trope actually works with everyone except Tony and Steve (although no one seems to erase Bucky from Steve's backstory the way they do Rhodey from Tony's) - Bruce has been on the run and isolated since becoming the Hulk, and Clint and Natasha's lives clearly weren't rainbows and puppy kisses before joining SHIELD.)

Anyway, last night I stumbled over someone defending this trope, saying that since Rhodey's (and Pepper until the end of IM2, which is another level of wha?) job is handling Tony it means that he was never really Tony's friend. And that in fact, Tony acting like an ass toward him is proof Tony never really thought of him as a friend. And then my brain spun around in my head and I had to recuse myself from the internet for a while.

So! I am begging all of you lovely people for recs. I don't care about ships - ship Tony with Rhodey, Steve, Bruce, whatever. Hell, put him Jarvis, which with LMDs can totally be a thing. Just make it Avengers-era fic that acknowledges that Tony had important, semi-functional adult relationships before encountering Bruce's hot ass (or Steve's abs. Whatev.)

Please?
ext_120093: (Avengers Pepper by inkvoices)

[identity profile] morganoconner.livejournal.com 2012-06-11 11:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh! This one! Semaphore by DevilDoll has exactly what you're looking for. It's long, Steve/Tony, but there are plenty of mentions of Rhodes (and Happy and Pepper) as constants in his life. :D

Sadly...that was the only one I could think of, even after scouring my favorites list. Um. :\

[identity profile] misachan.livejournal.com 2012-06-14 09:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Excellent. Bookmarked for my kindle.:)

[identity profile] triedunture.livejournal.com 2012-06-12 12:53 am (UTC)(link)
Just finished reading one last night. It's Bruce/Tony and deals with Tony's alcoholism (not sure if I like the interpretation of that BUT it has a kickass Rhodey being all protective and eventually saving the day because soooooomeone is too drunk to do it properly): http://archiveofourown.org/works/429711

[identity profile] misachan.livejournal.com 2012-06-14 09:13 pm (UTC)(link)
Yay, Science bros! *bookmarks*
ext_301790: (amy farrah fowler)

[identity profile] peachpai.livejournal.com 2012-06-12 02:04 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, I am not a fan of that trope either. I ♥ Rhodey and it makes me happy to see him included in fics. I read Situation Normal: All Fucked Up by [livejournal.com profile] gyzym recently, which is a Steve/Tony fic with wonderful Tony & Rhodey bro-ness. Seriously, they are so funny together in this story and Tony is so excited to see him. Added bonus: Bucky!

[identity profile] misachan.livejournal.com 2012-06-14 09:15 pm (UTC)(link)
Bucky is always an added bonus.:) Bookmarked!

[identity profile] aerilex.livejournal.com 2012-06-13 12:57 pm (UTC)(link)
Heh I tend to try and avoid that trope like the plague. It doesn't make any sense.

Oooh recs. I'll try to dig up some of my favorites. (goes to do so)

[identity profile] aerilex.livejournal.com 2012-06-13 01:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Ooh ooh I just remembered one of my favorite ones that showed Rhodey and Tony being hilarious besties together...it's a sequel to one but I guess it can also be read as a standalone too...and it's Steve/Tony...and I guess none of that matters to me because my favorite parts are where Tony hangs out with Rhodey and Rhodey laughs at him. (And Tony fixing microwaves and the results thereof...that is also my favorite.) So!

http://archiveofourown.org/works/351786

ETA: Just noticed that peachpai recced this above too lol.
Edited 2012-06-13 13:04 (UTC)

[identity profile] misachan.livejournal.com 2012-06-14 09:18 pm (UTC)(link)
It was too much to hope there'd be more than one! :(

(Did you get the big bang okay? And could I shoot you some fic this weekend? I'm determined to Finish Something.:)

[identity profile] aerilex.livejournal.com 2012-06-14 09:20 pm (UTC)(link)
Right?

I'll be sending it back to you in the next few days :) I wanted to give it a last sweep-through to double-check all my notes. And of course! :D

[identity profile] misachan.livejournal.com 2012-06-14 11:16 pm (UTC)(link)
Kewl.:) I think I forgot to ask, but if you could help me divide it into chapters, that would be awesome.