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gracerene
gracerene
21 August 2014 @ 01:08 pm
characters  
In fanfic, are there just certain characters that you just don't like? Maybe you don't like who they tend to be paired with, or the story-lines they usually get, or you don't even know why but they just rub you the wrong way?

For example, I've been reading a lot of Star Trek Kirk/Spock fanfic recently, mostly from the more recent movie verse, as I'm not super familiar with TOS. Anyways, I really just do not like Spock Prime (or Ambassador Spock aka the older AU Spock) as a main character. I don't mind him acting as a side character/mentor etc. But I just don't like him when he become integral to the story.


I think this is mostly because, if he is a big part of the storyline, it is almost always because he had a romantic bond with his Kirk, which then cause all kinds of complicated feeling for this Kirk and Spock. And with my OTP, I just don't want them to have strong emotional romantic attachments to anybody else, even if it is and AU version of themselves. But even if the attachment is subtle and not physical, it oftentimes takes an amazing story, and makes it just okay for me.

And this happen to varying degrees in other fandoms too. In Harry Potter fics, I just cannot get behind Scorpius, as a character, but especially in a pairing. I can handle him in H/D kid!fics, but I prefer him to be younger. I've read a few Albus/Scorpius fics, but I've just never been able to get into them. I LOVE Draco/Albus, but I've tried reading Harry/Scorpius and it almost actively bothers me (which is super rare for a pairing). And I thought maybe I just don't like the taboo of Harry being with a younger somewhat forbidden character. But I am all about Harry with pretty much any of his children, so it's not like I'm putting Harry on a pedestal.


And I just can't even at all read Scorpius with James or Teddy. Probably because James/Teddy is my next gen OTP and if they are going to be with a guy, they are going to be with one another. Maybe that's my problem. My headcanon for Scorpius is that he is straight (or mostly straight) and he is so often written with guys, even as a side pairing in fics, that I just would rather not read about him at all. I feel bad, because he hasn't really done anything to deserve my dislike.

In Teen Wolf fic, it's Laura. I think this is because she is almost neevr characterized the way I see her, and she just comes across as really bitchy and pushy and selfish.

IDK. I've just noticed my intense dislike of certain side characters cropping up in stories a lot lately. Sometimes it's honestly to the point where I almost don't even want to rec the fic, because the character and/or their story arc totally ruined things for me. But I feel like oftentimes, my dislike of characters is not at all in line with fandom's general view of them.

~thoughts~
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gracerene: HP: Teddy Lupin[personal profile] gracerene on August 22nd, 2014 02:51 am (UTC)
Oo, interesting...See I'm basically the exact opposite with that ship, because I see Harry's hunger for adult guidance getting confused with his teenage hormonal development. And then it's just this jumbled confused mess of all the feelings for Sirius. But that transitions into the dirtyhotwrong for me.

BUT I can totally see where you are coming from. Because I definitely agree that Sirius really isn't necessarily a fully developed adult, and I can definitely see the whole "sexy older man seduces his best friend's son" thing isn't as hot when the "sexy older man" has the kind of baggage that Sirius does.

Man, I love how varied my f-lists interests are. I mean, I have likes in common with everybody, but I kind of love learning where our interests differ. :)

And I really feel you with young Teddy as well. It might just be that I tend not to love kid!fic, but young Teddy tends to bother me more than the other children. Older Teddy on the other hand...
[identity profile] dicta-contrion.livejournal.com on August 22nd, 2014 03:06 am (UTC)
I can totally see where you're coming from with Harry/Sirius, too. The whole "do I need a firm hand or doing I need a firm hand" type confusion makes lots of sense, and I can definitely see where it would be dirtyhotwrong. I think I overthought that one real hard at some point and it just lost its luster, which maybe is just sad for me.

But YES on Teddy and YES on that icon! Young Teddy bothers me more too; I always think of him as extra cloying and naïve and very plot devicey. But older Teddy? In full possession of his metamorphmagus abilities and his sexuality and maybe a little bit of a punk rock vibe and a little bit of sullen sensitivity and a little bit of humor and the kind of sex drive that involves snogging in every free corner...yeah. Yeah. That.
gracerene: HP: Sirius Black[personal profile] gracerene on August 22nd, 2014 02:51 pm (UTC)
Yeah, there are defintiely a few ships that I've sort of "thought" my way out of getting into. And once that happens, it's a bit hard to "unthink" it.

But 100% yes on all of that Teddy paragraph!
Keeper of the Cocks: Teddy Lupin[personal profile] torino10154 on August 22nd, 2014 03:34 pm (UTC)
Butting in here, sorry everyone, LOL but I think some people really struggle to write kid!fic at all. Either their 10 year olds sound 3 or their 3 year olds sound 10. I think with Teddy especially, he is used in a way Harry and Draco's children can't be because for them to have children, they have a certain maturity level but Teddy can be around when Harry is 18 or 22.

When people choose to write an H/D where they've both been married and probably divorced, the sickly sweet fluffy kid fic just doesn't tend to work as well. Harry knows what it's like to be thrown up on by then. Draco has changed nappies. Kids aren't mysterious anymore once you've had them. But Teddy is a "safe" kid when you don't want to deal with that baggage (and possibly have no idea what kids are really like).

TL;DR sort of rant. *blushes*
gracerene[personal profile] gracerene on August 22nd, 2014 03:58 pm (UTC)
You know, I hadn't ever thought of it that way, but that really makes a lot of sense! I really do think that's probably why I don't usually enjoy Teddy.
[identity profile] dicta-contrion.livejournal.com on August 22nd, 2014 07:42 pm (UTC)
Totally agree! That makes a lot of sense, and I think is part of why Teddy's presence often feels forced to me. Good call!