Date: September 05, 2021 07:04 pm Title: Chapter 24
These two finding each other outside of the pressure of an adventure across the stars is a very sweet moment. And I'm glad we managed to avoid Pam's crisis of confidence this time around.
I love the throwback to the Michael Scott Paper Company arc and Michael's immediate nostalgia for days not really that long past.
And their romantic getaway on another planet is that much sweeter with the knowledge that this time they get to go back to Earth when it's over. And hey! We found the aliens who kept Jim and Pam as pets again! That's fun.
Ah. This was totally unintentional, but I'm kind of glad this is where I'm wrapping up. This feels like the ending of all endings here.
As noted, this is a heck of an accomplishment of a fic. I'd actually kinda love to see you expand on it - add new endings in future missions, allow them to solve the mystery of the signals - but putting together a story like this was a heck of a challenge, and you rose to it well. AND found some very charming opportunities for fluff amid the stars. Really fun work here. (11)
Date: September 05, 2021 06:52 pm Title: Chapter 23
And for our final trick... we do what we probably should've done in the first place and go join Dwight to try to communicate with these extraterrestrial creatures.
I love you working in the Michael dialogue here, and in a totally organic way, and the description of the creatures. Before, of course, we get stuck in this SAME FREAKIN' ANTIMATTER STORM. *shakes first at the antimatter*
In general, this is just an impressive accomplishment of a fic, especially keeping track of common events across all timelines, but I especially like the touch of the rejoining timelines and the way that things that their decisions won't affect, like the way they're received in Houston, mainly stay the same.
I'm glad NASA, at least, is excited about all the alien life they're encountering - feels like Jim got a little caught up in the mystery of the signals and didn't quite take in what was happening.
I appreciate these crazy kids bantering in front of an international media audience. And the way NASA is clearly shipping them. (11)
Date: September 05, 2021 06:37 pm Title: Chapter 17
Awwww. Dwight! He's an old romantic at heart. Although this makes me feel kinda sad for Space!Angela. And VERY curious as to where he *did* get the material for those rings.
This entire chapter is ridiculously sweet. And the way you've paired it with the two of them growing in their comfort with the life they're going to live is a nice touch. (10)
Date: September 05, 2021 06:28 pm Title: Chapter 16
Hmmmm. You know, if they ARE ever found, they're going to have a lot of cool discoveries to share about their discoveries on other planets.
Ooooof. It really does raise the stakes of this knowing they're going to be trapped like this forever. And with Michael and Dwight, no less, awkward. (Love how much fun the two of them are having here.)
You do wonder how they're going to fill the time, don't you. I mean... unlike most subsistence societies, they actually don't have to put all that much work into surviving. They're going to have to find ways to fill the hours.
Like, you know, that. (10)
Date: September 05, 2021 06:15 pm Title: Chapter 15
Okay, well. Since playing it according to procedure accomplished nothing, I guess it's time we get creative. *cracks knuckles*
This damn antimatter storm really screws us up whichever way we turn, doesn't it? *sigh* So I guess it didn't necessarily matter which decision we made about the jetpacks, at least for Jim and Pam's sake. And maybe even for Dwight and Michael's.
I do think that *eventually* they might send someone else to track down the signals? But I guess there's not much hope of actual rescue.
“That being said, I forgot to bring enough razors for a lifetime away from home. So, I’m adjusting to that.” Oh, Dwight. This is the rare scenario where you might want Dwight in your corner.
Okay, ow? Did you have to make Booze Cruise somehow more painful? "Booze Cruise, except they're stranded on an alien planet FOREVER." (10)
Date: September 05, 2021 06:02 pm Title: Chapter 13
Hey! I've been here before... (9)
Date: September 05, 2021 05:59 pm Title: Chapter 9
Rough times for Jim. Not much time left on this planet and he can't even reap all the joy out of it he should. Poor guy.
WHOA. TWIST. A lovely kiss between Jim and Pam here... and of course Michael interrupts it. *grumbles* Would have loved to hear more of what happened since the end of the mission that turned things around for Pam, her Space!Season 3, but I'm glad these crazy kids are going to have each other on their next adventure. (8)
Date: September 05, 2021 05:44 pm Title: Chapter 8
Okay, well. This... probably can't end worse than being stranded as alien housepets forever.
Okay, so the antimatter storm seems to be one of the big pivot points across all timelines... and apparently being in touch with Dwight is life-saving. Which, you know. Duh.
Tough on Pam. But this feels like it's mainly just a consequence of the dangers and unpredictability of interstellar travel, rather than being on a mistake anyone made. Including anyone making decisions on Jim's behalf, by the way. And I suppose Pam might be comforted to know that in a world where she wasn't there, Jim also managed to accomplish little to nothing.
It looks like Pam *is* making the most valuable contribution she could - the insufficient protection against antimatter storms was a problem from the beginning, and clearly needs to be corrected if they intended to accomplish anything out there.
Ugh. This is heartbreaking. Both with Pam's sense of her own failures and with Jim's sense of loss, both of Pam and his sense of importance to Pam. (8)
(8)
Date: September 05, 2021 04:25 pm Title: Chapter 20
How is it that you managed to turn Jim and Pam being stranded forever as housepets to aliens into fluff? (7)
Date: September 05, 2021 04:22 pm Title: Chapter 19
Hmmm. There's a LOT of commonalities between these two very different species that allow them to make even these basic communications. Like, it feels like they're having about as easy a time as they would with another kind of primate. That's pretty fascinating. Really lucky for Jim and Pam, but also feels telling of a broader mystery to solve.
'“You don’t want to live out a centuries-old fanfiction trope?” she asks, her twitching smile working against her deadpan delivery.' BEESLY.
I wonder what the aliens DO make of all of this? They're probably studying Pam and Jim in their own way... (7)
Date: September 05, 2021 04:17 pm Title: Chapter 18
You know what? I would not be a good interstellar explorer. (Although *I* might have put in a few more hours in the simulator learning how to fly the Cygnet, JIM.)
Okay, so. Not in a good situation with physical health. But we're now about to make contact with semi-humanoid creatures on another planet. So we've got that going for us! Let's hope Jim's prairie dog experience comes in handy... (7)
Date: September 05, 2021 04:11 pm Title: Chapter 14
These *are* fascinating creatures. I'm glad we got to observe them. (Honestly, they're gonna need to send another expedition back here with some biologists and animal behavior specialists who can better document this stuff.)
You know, I didn't see this accident coming, but honestly the moment Michael started talking about how easy the Cygnets were to fly, I should have known disaster was going to happen somewhere down on the timeline.
So. Feels like maybe we should try the intended emergency plan before getting creative. (7)
Date: September 05, 2021 04:06 pm Title: Chapter 7
HA. *DWIGHT* gets stuck with the water moon! SUCKAAAAAAAAAA.
Again, the similarity of Altair's third planet and our own (between the environment and even the creatures) really makes me wonder about the connections between humanity and these aliens and how deep they run.
Look, I get that this is a scary situation, but could you please take five seconds to marvel about having discovered LIFE ON OTHER PLANETS! And not just life, but sentient life! And then possibly sentient PLANT life! Come on, man. *grumbles*
Look, this is a romance. I get it. It's JAM fanfic. But gosh darn it I want to explore a new planet and find more aliens! (7)
Date: September 05, 2021 02:16 pm Title: Chapter 22
I get that it's not first contact, but finding trees on another world is still a pretty big deal. So maybe the water moon was the right choice after all. Maybe. Buck up, Jim.
Oh, the anti-matter storm that kept causing problems earlier. Great. Awesome. Well chosen, Jim. (6)
Date: September 05, 2021 02:10 pm Title: Chapter 21
Or, and hear me out on this: maybe the mistake was exploring the water moon in the first place. Seems very clear The Third Planet is really where the action is. Ugh. Well. I feel committed to this course of action now, too soon to bail on it. (6)
Date: September 05, 2021 02:00 pm Title: Chapter 28
I *thought* those cave drawings might be of what they could observe of our solar system!
"Pam ends up falling asleep on your shoulder about two hours in. So, you know. Not a bad flight." Oh, I see you.
THEY WENT TO BENIHANA AND SANG KARAOKE. Lot of good reference work in this chapter. Not a great first date for Jim and Pam, but those crazy kids worked it out in the end. Actually kind of a sweet gesture to get Dwight out of the way... he did some good work on this expedition, he deserves the hike to Mordor. And their first kiss! SO SWEET. And the callback to the cosmology/cosmetology joke!
Okay. This ending is DELIGHTFULLY smuffy.
Well. I'm glad Jim and Pam fell in love, because I feel like Dwight did most of the scientific heavy-lifting on this particular journey. Although I guess Jim did still observe the giant underwater creatures on the water moon, that's pretty cool. Either way... I think my next step is to bring Pam to the water moon. (5)
Date: September 05, 2021 01:41 pm Title: Chapter 27
“Dammit Jim, I’m a doctor.” LOLLLLLLLL.
"I understand lucky guesses. I couldn’t understand anything you explained to me about where we needed to look for Jim.” DOUBLE LOL. Love the dialogue in this chapter.
AND YOU REPURPOSED THE DIALOGUE FROM THE JOB. Awesome.
Still wish I had just brought Pam. (5)
Date: September 05, 2021 01:35 pm Title: Chapter 26
You know, I find this *extremely* stressful. I think I might not be be cut out for space travel.
MORE CREATURE DRAWINGS. I wonder if we're going to get to actually meet the aliens at some point... whatever the drawings might be of, it feels like the creatures that are CREATING them have a lot in common with us.
*sighs* I shoulda just brought Pam. (5)
Date: September 05, 2021 01:15 pm Title: Chapter 31
“I think we should get off.” “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” THAT'S. WHAT. SHE. SAID.
So... thus far I feel like Pam. Four adventures and we haven't gotten much in the way of answers... even taken all together. Why are they contacting us? Where did they go? What are they really like? What were those mysterious creatures that killed poor Samuel L. Chang? *sigh* At least we've only all died the once. AND Jim and Pam have a happy ending.
I'm also curious knowing how this all ended in the other scenario if anyone ever found that ship they sent back to Earth. Hmmmmm. (4)
Date: September 05, 2021 01:10 pm Title: Chapter 33
Okay, now THAT'S more like it, Jim. Don't die (or go to Stamford, whatever) without letting her know how you feel!
HUH. Okay. Definitely want to know more about this ending. What happened to Michael and Dwight? And does this imply the aliens colonized Earth, or have landed on it, Prometheus-style? Is this Earth like a month after they left, or is the Coca-Cola label a relic of a long-dead civilization like the Statue of Liberty in Planet of the Apes? I guess the implication is probably they're safe now, but still. I want an epilogue!
I guess I should just be happy this insane "stay on the alien ship" call worked out at all. Now, to go back and see how else it might have worked out... (3)
Date: September 05, 2021 01:05 pm Title: Chapter 32
Well, I guess they identified the cave well, anyways. Y'all literally found the alien version of Cape Canaveral.
I know things are dire right now, but the image of Jim and Pam just kinda floating around this alien spaceship tickles me.
Yeah. I don't know quite what made us think we could operate this spaceship. But at least we pressed the warp speed button and not the "open the doors to the ravages of the vacuum of space" button. Well. I wanted to make the interesting choice.
Oh, Jim. Willing to take risk in space exploration, but not in the matters of the heart. You may end up wishing you'd put a little more onto the space version of the teapot note... (3)
Date: September 05, 2021 12:58 pm Title: Chapter 30
This is an interesting point about the similar atmospheres - kind of a counter-point to the argument that we probably wouldn't be able to find common ground with alien species, an alien species that purposefully contacted us might be looking for just that common ground.
THEY FOUND MORE EVIDENCE OF INTELLIGENT LIFE ON EARTH! Awesome.
UM. HMM. Uh. Shucks. I. Uh. I mean. My head says "get off the alien ship before it takes me heaven knows where." My heart says "I've made a series of kind of boring and safe decisions in this story." What to do, what to do... (3)
Date: September 05, 2021 12:52 pm Title: Chapter 29
*sigh* So, not only have I clearly made some poor choices here, I *also* don't get to know why Samuel L. Chang is the robot's name. *grumbles* (3)
Date: September 05, 2021 12:50 pm Title: Chapter 25
Look, returning to the Sebring is clearly the more embarrassing call. But you know what? I'm not messing around with whatever just disabled my robot butler (3).
Date: September 05, 2021 12:47 pm Title: Chapter 6
Hmmmm. You know... I feel like bringing Pam is the right choice for romance. This also feels pretty dangerous, and I'd rather the robot butler get hurt than her. So. (3)