Title: Cutting Ties.
Author: Harbin.
Rating: T.
Genre: Alt!Power.
Status: Complete.
Fandom: Worm.
Pairings: None.
Summary: Jack Slash used his power to lead one of the most depraved gangs in America; Taylor just wants to make friends.
Link: https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/cutting-ties-worm-altpower-complete.420239/

This just finished so I thought it was time to make a thread.

By the writer of Twinnings, this fic continues and fulfills the theme of Taylor growing as a person under the backdrop of cape politics. Unlike Jack Slash, Taylor doesn’t have grand ambitions and there are no world-ending events or anything bigger than street-level politics here, so don’t expect any. Taylor doesn’t really consider herself as a hero/villain/rogue, just a girl with a lethal power that happens to be good at making friends.

Spoiler

Therefore, Taylor’s distress is evident when she realizes she may have a Master power and that none of her friends may be ‘real’.

The story leaves a lot of plotpoints a mystery, such as Taylor's trigger event (that's hinted at and apparently doesn't involve a locker). The only big drawback that can be made about this fic (aside from the focus that some people may not enjoy), is that the ending is abrupt, but there’s a sequel in the works, so it could be worse.

And it’s complete. That’s a miracle in and of itself.

4/5.

 

I liked it and what I think I liked the most about it was that it wasn't a story set out to change BB massively. From the start of the story to the end, BB does't change all that much if at all. The biggest change is that Faultline has one more cape, maybe 2, and the Empire lost one cape.

I also really liked the 'word battles' especially the very last one. I don't know if I liked them because they were really well done or because they were novel, but I enjoyed them none the less. I liked how the author also escalated the difficulty of the word battles with the different targets: Nazi girl -> Glory Girl -> Tattletale -> Kaiser/Purity. It made sense in a way of escalating difficulty in using her powers on. Again, something that was 'neat.'

Overall, I liked it. It was chill, nice and fun enough to read. 4/5. If the ending wasn't so abrupt and he tied everything up neatly, I could see the story be even better.

 

LOL, until I saw this thread, I had no idea it was completed and I read the last chapter yesterday.

Generally speaking, it was pretty solid, however the whole Coil and Tattletale parts felt unnecessary and a bit contrived and her reconnecting with Danny was unsatisfying and I honestly think the story would have been stronger with his death (but then again, I think every Worm story is stronger with Danny's death).

But I did love Taylor reaching out a hand to Rune and redeeming her and her striking up a friendship with Victoria and even Sophia in a way. I wished we'd have more of that. The Rune parts were my absolute favourite scenes though.

As to the ending, well, all I can say is that the story doesn't really conclude or end but rather just stops. It honestly didn't feel like an ending at all.

3.5/5

 

Wait, it's done? I feel like there's a pretty big thread left hanging. Definitely enjoyed it while it lasted.
4/5

 

I enjoyed the character interactions and the style. The fight against the Travellers was a high point as was the confrontation with Lisa.

The narrative structure feels quite weak because the climactic encounter fell flat. The final confrontation was just three people negotiating and it didn't feel especially perilous or climactic for the protagonist. Taylor's victory didn't much feel like one. It wasn't a satisfying fight or win. She needs to struggle and overcome.

The final opponents weren't characters we'd seen before in the story and had nothing to do with Taylor, not even as a looming background threat (which would've been one way to introduce them earlier), until the very end. Taylor playing her opponents off against each other should have been more than it was.

The denouement after the climax was neat. It tied the story together, resolving Taylor's character arc. Taylor's interactions with capes is usually great. Labyrinth is a woobie, but the occasional daaawww moment is welcome.

The characters and situations in Cutting Ties are pleasing, but it's let down by poor planning of the narrative structure and the execution of the climax.

4/5. Just barely.