The era of the fanzine, it turns out, is far from over.
Zines have come a long way since the black and white xerox days of the ‘80s and ‘90s. Rather than just being a printed collection of fanfic and art, Teen Wolf’s fandom’s latest project resembles nothing less than a professionally-made glossy magazine.
Featuring interviews, advice columns, fake adverts and photoshoots, Neckz‘n Throats provides an intriguing glimpse into a fan-created alternate universe. The zine itself isn’t about Teen Wolf—that’s what Tumblr is for. Instead, it’s a “real” magazine, set in a world where werewolves are an accepted part of normal society, and the characters of Teen Wolf are all models, photographers, and journalist. Basically, it’s a werewolf lifestyle magazine.
The idea came about from a casual snippet of Sterek fanfic where Stiles works as a model for werewolf fashion magazine Neckz’n Throats. The idea quickly snowballed into a vast web of stories incorporating all the characters from the show—including some who won’t arrive until later in season 3. Eventually, people decided they wanted the magazine to exist in real life, and rather than dismissing the idea as a pipe dream, they went ahead and made it.
Edited by Tumblr user Trilliath, the first issue came out this week, coinciding with the start of Teen Wolf’s third season. It includes werewolf-themed recipes, fan art, Cosmo-style articles like “10 signs your Alpha is into you”, and interviews with Stiles Stilinski and Teen Wolf’s main character Scott McCall. “I have a problem,” one reader explains to the magazine’s advice columnist. “I’m the Alpha of my pack, but at work I’m the new girl and I don’t know how not to be in charge. How do humans handle that?” This is probably what the world would look like if we all lived in an MTV teen show.
Neckz’n Throats is one of those things where you just have to sit back and say, “Holy shit, fans are awesome.” The premise may be kind of cheesy (Teen Wolf heartthrob Stiles Stilinski is so attractive to werewolves that he’s hired as a model for a werewolf magazine), but it’s evolved into something genuinely impressive. At a glance, the only thing that sets it apart from the real thing is the fact that the ads are for werewolf TV shows that don’t exist (but probably should. Get on that, MTV).
The magazine has already caught the attention of Teen Wolf’s publicity people, who are stepping up their engagement with fandom this season. As well as having their season 3 premiere party hosted by fan contest winner Shantal Rhodes (whose walk-on role in the show has now been bumped up to a recurring character), they’re showing fan-made GIF art during each episode’s first airing on MTV.
Even if you don’t know the first thing about Teen Wolf, Neckz’n Throats is worth a look—if only to be reminded of the community power of fandom.
Photo via neckznthroats /Tumblr