Cats on Fire! A Fandom Rant

[seventhe]

And now a fandom question:

OK, guys, what's up with the not being able to interestingly write certain pairings? Where is the goodfic, and moreover, why is there so much clichefic? Can't a girl get a genuine take on anything anymore - especially on pairings that aren't crack?



This was spurred by me reading bottle_of_shine's discussion thread on Rinoa-haters, but it's been coming for a while - because it bothers me, immensely. And so I ramble.

Why's there no so little goodfic for certain pairings?

Like, let's say, Cloud/Tifa. As harsh as the CloudAeris vs CloudTifa wars were, I am amazed at the lack of fic on both sides. Every Cloud/Aeris I find has pining!Cloud, resurrected!Aeris, and true!love!immediately!and!for!fucking!ever!. And I'm sorry to say it, but I have yet to find a decent fic showing Cloud and Tifa getting together. Especially now, after AC, when it's been shown that Aeris and Zack are both definitely hella-gone and totally getting it on up in the Lifestream - I'd expect Cloud/Tifa to be appearing all over the place. BUT NO.

There's plenty of fic about them together, really, but I want to read about how the relationship develops, not just your squicky-twu-lurve vignette about how happy they are in Edge City or some shit. I want to see them getting together - how people think it would happen. Because, frankly, I'm not convinced that it would. I want to see Cloud and Tifa dealing with their past and their present and Cloud's angstastic angstathon from AC and their personalities - Cloud's fuckedupness along with his loner streak and his desire to please; Tifa's caring, loving, almost doormatlike motherly concern; plus, their almost-siblingly regard for one another - and how someone thinks it would work out. Slowly. Not involving a one-shot where they fall into bed and get up married. FUCK, PLOTBUNNIES.

Please, someone write me a realistic Cloud/Tifa. Please.

And another thing! Squall/Rinoa, why dost thou suck so much badly?

GOOD SQUALL/RINOA FIC. WTF. It's as canon as canon gets, as much as I hate it. In fact, it's because I hate it so badly that I'm looking so hard for goodfic. It makes me hurt because I find them both annoying, and yet I want to read it so much.

Which makes no sense, I know, but: My relationship with the Squall/Rinoa pairing is like that song you hear on the radio, where the first couple times you hear it you like it - you may be jamming along with it - it may even get stuck in your head for a day - but then, after the radio stations sieze it and jam it down your throat every twenty minutes you get completely turned off on it, and every possible good thing you may have seen in the song completely vanishes from your mind, replaced with the sudden urge to retch all over someone's shoes and/or turn off the radio and/or retch all over the radio, breaking it in the process? That's me with Squall/Rinoa. If I see one more flowery S/R fic called "I'll find you" or "Waiting for you" in which they have a fake fight and are drawn back together by flowery feathery happy true love, I WILL retch all over this radio, and it'll be YOUR FAULT.

Can I have a Squall/Rinoa fic not full of flowery romance? As much as Squall changes in the game, I don't think he's the flowery romance type, unless Rinoa is That Bitchy Girl that dated the guy you liked in high school and always made him plan fancy candlelit dinners and buy flowers and made you scream Date me! Date me! I won't make you wear a collared shirt!! And yet every Squall/Rinoa I find is full of candles and flowers and declarations of true love. Either that, or one of them turns PLOT DEVICE nasty (Squall --> dick / Rinoa --> bitch) so that the other one can hook up with Seifer/Quistis/man!slut!Irvine. WTF.

Please. I want Squall/Rinoa dealing with the issues they will VERY OBVIOUSLY have between them. Not pink romance. I hate pink and I hate romance. And I don't want angst either, really, because Squall has enough angst to fill four Gardens.

Why's it so hard to find good pairing fic that's not stuffed with crap?

And another thing! Cecil/Rosa! They've got angst (hlo Cecil's bro, Kain, the past kthx), they've got issues (Kain), they've got a potential threesome (Kain) - where's the goodfic? Hells, where's the fic?



It seems to me that it's incredibly hard to find and/or write more "standard" pairings. People seem drawn to the "opposites attract" thing (I cite very many Seifer/Quistis, Seifer/Squall, Rikku/Auron, Yuffie/Vincent fics). Or they seem drawn to characters with snark and/or spunk to them. And most of the good writers I know (here and on ff.net) tend to be experimental with their pairings and their writing and their crack. Not that crack is bad -- I love it -- I'm writing a Quistis/Rinoa story with sorceress powers -- but -- hey guys, how about a new twist on the old standard?

Is it because the standard is "boring" and/or "lame"? Is it just because it's overdone and crackalicious pairings are more fun? Why is most "standard" fic such utter shite?

Just because a relationship/attraction may already exist doesn't necessarily mean that there's less for an author to play with. And hi, plot. There are probably things going on in these people's lives other than OMG IM DATIN U, so where is it? How will the relationship form around already-existing lives?

C'mon, let's make boring sucky pairings not boring and/or sucky!

Eeeeeeee.
[/rant]

In conclusion, fandom(s), please. I'd issue a challenge for good Cloud/Tifa or Squall/Rinoa fic, but I want longer fics that show development, so I'm not going to challenge anyone and be like "WRITE ME 50K WORDZ ON THIS PAIRING, GO". But --

But why? Why is the rum gone, fandom? Why?


[EDIT] Sadly, after re-reading this rant, I also want to humbly request Rinoa/Irvine, which is crack and goes completely against my point. WTF IS WRONG WITH ME.

Comments

[deadshrimpblues.livejournal.com]

I've written two or three Cid and Shera pairings, which is pretty damned ... well, normal. I guess it could fit into the 'opposites attract' bracket but I've never seen it that way, really.

Then again I like the idea of Rude and Elena and have thought of doing a Barret/Tifa just to be obstinate, so take my opinions with a grain of salt.

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

Cid/Shera is a canon couple, but they're hardly a major one, so I exclude them from my rant. They are pretty normal, but not as much a "main focus" in the game...

Plus for some reason I find a lot of very enjoyable Cid/Shera pieces, so I have nothing to rant about there!

P.S. Barret/Tifa = GO. PLEASE.

[deadshrimpblues.livejournal.com]

Hey, this one is doing the Barret/Tifa thing in a very subtle fashion. Then again Guardian/Spider's capable of making pretty much anything good, so that might not be the best example. Hrm.

on that topic, know what I'd really like to see? A story about Barett and his wife. Has that ... well, ever been done?

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

I LOVE THAT STORY, really, even though I know nothing about Kingdom Hearts and probably never will.

And YES, Barret needs more love period. I'd love to see a Barret-fic in Marlene's early days, before his wife died, back when they hung out with Dyne, before everything went to pot. Perhaps while everything went to pot, so we can see how he became his angry Mr T self.

[deadshrimpblues.livejournal.com]

Same here. I only played Kingdom Hearts up to Atlantica before the music (and terrible controls in that level) started driving me batshit and I had to stop. The good thing about 'Another Country' is you only need to know a little about KH; it's basically a FFVII fic, and one of the best I've ever read characterization-wise. Everybody is just ... themselves.

I actually wrote a little Barett piece about his childhood, but it's tiny like a bean and not all that well-written. I'd really like to see more on him and his past from some good writers out there, IF ANY ARE READING THIS (HINT HINT).

Maybe when I get done with my Contest entry I'll try myself. I was really wanting to write a story where Clyde/Shadow has to dress as a woman to help Baram with a bank robbery next, though. :(

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

I just have no desire to play KH, mostly because I heard gameplay is suck and I really, really like my menu-based RPGs because I am suck at gameplay!

If I thought I could write Barret well enough I'd suggest we do a low-pressure fic tradeoff and try to pull together a fic on his past in Corel. But I'm kind of suck at writing men. Although that's probably a better reason for me to do more of it.

P.S. LOL @crossdressing. Always funny.

[heyheyrenay.livejournal.com]

I'm sort of writing Irvine/Selphie. WHAT DON'T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT OKAY?

I don't write in the FFVII fandom anymore. After I wrote my Barret/Cloud fic for firefly99 and posted it off LJ and got told constantly, "WOW THIS IS OOC!!!" I was like, FFVII fandom, you can fuck off, I am SO SORRY I wrote Cloud in a situation other than hot sweaty sex with Zack/Sephiroth/Reno/Vincent. HOW DARE I. I admit, my decision might have been hasty, but FFVII scares me. I agonize. I CAN'T HELP IT.

Uh, I'm pretty sure you know my feelings on Squall/Rinoa. *sporfles*

...if I somehow magically was able to find AND/OR produce these things, would you become a Seifer/Zell fangirl? ZOMG PLZ? >> *is never ever subtle*

[venefica-aura.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry FFVII scared you. This is why me and Rene and them give them the finger and just write what we want.

But ya, I get annoyed with that too. I like to write Cloud with Yuffie. Seriously. Barret is cool too, but I still love the Cloud/Yuffie dorky and "omg we have no fucked up history yey!" dynamic.

Most of fandom involving Cloud though, annoys me so so much. Cloud/Sephiroth in particular makes me want to gag. I mean, WTF? So what, Seph's pretty. He's also BATSHIT INSANE. And likes having PUPPETS. THIS DOES NOT A RELATIONSHIP MAKE. I'm equally getting annoying with Cloud and Vin because OMG THE ANGST. *facepalm*

I'm just lucky I've become obsessed with backstory characters. No one bothers me because they're too busy with ENTIRELY UNREALISTIC SOLDIERSEX.

I love the game(s), I love writing in there, I just hate the fandom. XD I used to have fans, but they left me when I decided I liked having one slash pairing (seriously, I only really have one. god, stupid people) and thought I was suddenly OMG A YAOI FANGIRL.

But yes. FFVII fandom is scary. You just have to give them the finger. XD

~Cendri

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

FFVII fandom is totally scary! Do not feel bad. But do not stop writing, they need more good writers that aren't obsessed with Sephiroth and buttsecks.

AND I HAVE TO CONFESS I THOUGHT ABOUT SEIFER/ZELL YESTERDAY. I realized that I am basically crap at writing men, and wondered where would be a good place to start. And I kind of maybe sort of figured that if I tried Seifer/Zell I might be able to get you to fangirl me just on that principle.

Then what stopped me was the thought that I might totally bung it up. XD

BUT! I will trade you Seifer/Zell for Squall/Rinoa!

[venefica-aura.livejournal.com]

Heh. I think I wrote a Squall/Rinoa that wasn't cutter fic but not entirely fluffy. Just a little vignette sort of cross-section thing.

But after marrying a similar personality to Squall's and thus having it blow up in my face, I'm more of the thought poor Rinoa (whom I don't find annoying, despite all rules of logic. I'll never understand this) is going to have to deal with his sort of psychotic episode and then likely become evil because her knight is fubar.

And I don't want her to become evil.

Cloud/Tifa. Well. Considering that is my mother fandom... I actually almost started writing that. Then I realized they had so many issues that I just didn't want to touch them with a ten foot pole. But a friend of mine who is sweet is a big big fan and I do owe her one. But I've discovered I like her with Cid (sometimes with Shera too... SCANDALOUS) because Cid's like Cloud growed up and only slightly less fucked up. And I have the Audrey Hepburn/any older actor of the time syndrome. May/December is just CUTE sometimes.

And Cloud/Aeris. Well, if we disregard AC (which despite an honest portrayal of Tifa that made me want to marry her, I always ignore) it could be nice. But she's also dead. I wouldn't mind some good ingame fic of the two, because despite her subsituting him for Zack (though she apologies, good girl) and him just wanting attention (it's Cloud. the little boy in him just wants attention) it's pretty interesting. But I'm pretty sure Aeris with her hippy ways could get ANY guy if she tried. (which reminds me of a beef I have with FF8 fandom again. most Rinoa-haters tend to like Aeris. Do they not realize they're mutations of the same character? Aeris is twenty-two. I can see Rin growing up a bit like that. LOGIC PEOPLE. God.) And I seem to find myself more curious about her and Tseng. Because I ignore Tseng's characterization in BC (he's a fucking FANBOY. WTF. YOU HAD A SPINE IN THE GAME!) and find them to be an interesting sort of mix. Besides, it's canon that he had a thing for her.

I just realize I'm horrendously in love with backstory characters. Edea, Cid, anyone who's old in BC, Ifalna...

I guess it's because I'm sort of shifting to originalfic and can fudge things better with characters that have five seconds of screen time. And I love making up histories like so much.

And god, don't even get me started with those "secodary standards". I've never been able to stand those. Opposites attract is a horrible, HORRIBLE thing to use as a basis of a relationship. Trust me, I've done it in REAL LIFE far more than I can count.

Yes, I base my fanfic relationships off my own, how can you tell?

But seriously. Unless the opposites attract involves them FIGHTING LIKE CATS AND DOGS (which I did see a Quistis/Seifer that can close to that once and hence I didn't mind it) and having good sex but likely not staying together unless one or the other has some BIG CHANGES I don't buy it.

You need to read this Squall/Rinoa by the way. It's fucked up and wonderful thus far. But long. I'm still not done. XD I want to hug Rinoa.

But yes, to condense my rant in case it's tl;dr:

1. Canon is great. I personally like Squall/Rinoa, but after some RL experiences am afraid to say the future is going to suck for them. Cloud/Tifa and Cloud/Aeris are almost too complicated for me.

2. I want to stab "secondary standards". Opposites attract is a dumb reason to make people mushy over each other. They would KILL each other. Say it with me now.

3. My issue is I love overlooked and backstory characters. Because I like to invent things. Because really I should be writing originalfic, but you all like my fanfic and apparently my originalfic sucks. So I do half and half.

4. I recced you something. XD

~Cendri

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

Eeeeee long dorky comment to respond to (there is no such thing as tl;dr!)

Squall/Rinoa -- yeah, see, I think that's the point - they're gonna have issues. It doesn't mean they're not going to last, it doesn't mean they're doomed and Squall has to run off to bonk Seifer, it just means they're not going to be happily romantic, at least not at this point in their lives.

THANK YOU FOR THE REC. You realize I am now doomed to not do ANYTHING at work this afternoon.

Cloud/Aeris, Cloud/Tifa -- I said to myself, OK Sev, if you were going to write Cloud/Tifa how would you do it? AND MY BRAIN DIED. There are just SO MANY steps to take for them - complicated is a good way to put it. As for Cloud/Aeris, well, you know my feelings on resurrection-fic, so that about squashes that right there. Although Aeris is growing on me, for some strange reason.

*knows no BC canon and is happy with that*

"Opposites attract" is always used as a way to JUSTIFY something like Yuffie/Vincent that, let's face it, I find TOTALLY unrealistic. It's not a law of life (except in science). It isn't a law that can be used to justify anything you want. I can like anything if well-done (I've even liked Auron/Rikku at times), but - argh.

Also, on a random note, I have NO COMPLAINTS with your writing, keep on pumping out that gorgeous Yuna-fic and I will love you forever.

[venefica-aura.livejournal.com]

Yes, you augmented my Squall/Rinoa rant nicely. I fully see them getting married, for instance, because I seriously doubt Squall's going to be able to find anyone that will put up with his mood swings (or lack thereof) like Rinoa does. And I think despite being the "princess" she's got self-esteem issues that would make her feel like Squall's the only thing going for her.

Awww, that's so sad that I might just write it. XD

And yes, Aeris just popped into my brain and said, "you know, when people stop turning me into a damn martyr symbol, I'm pretty damn cool". I think we should both try a Cloud/Tifa and an INGAME (you know, no resurrection) Cloud/Aeris fic. I DARE YOU.

*you're lucky not to know that canon. I essentially steal Veld from it and ignore it. Because it makes me CRY sometimes.*

AND YES. YOU GET MY OPPOSITES ATTRACT ARGUMENT! <33333!

I kinda signed up for some more claims (under my new name,I'll just finishe this claim under my old one so as not to cause complications), but they're only ten stories each and I REALLY want to finish the Auron and Yuna continuum. Because I love having an excuse to write genfic. And Yuna never gets enough love outside of with Tidus. And that sucks. Because she's so the hero in my mind.

SCANDAL.

Anyway, I'm going to attempt to finish this crazy backstory fic about being Catholic before it leaves my brain. Then we'll see about some Yuna, and maybe some Barbossa (yes, I made a claim on a character FROM A MOVIE. KILL ME.).

I'm going to be PRODUCTIVE TODAY!

~Cendri

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

That's a very good (if somewhat sad) picture of the Squall/Rinoa relationship -- and I don't mean that they'll never be happy, but it does kind of seem like they're made for each other in that aspect. They're both loners of a different kind, methinks.

I'd attempt to write them, but I KNOW FOR A FACT I'd go off the deep end with Sorceress-y stuff.

I should write it anyway.

I think after all this discussion/ranting I may have to attempt Cloud/Tifa just to spectacularly fail like everyone else and it will be awesome. And sure, in-game Cloud/Aeris, WHY NOT. She is more fun to write when she's a silly loving hippie than when she's an angel coming back from the dead, really. I'll write it if you do. XD

Also, YUNA. OMG. I almost claimed her for pyre_flies, but Rikku was bouncing around my head at the time. I adore Yuna's entire character and she is basically untouched in fic except for (1) sweet romantic Yuna/Tidus or (2) creepy Yuna/Seymour. I LOVE YUNA.

And I hate what they did to her in X-2. It's like, a tragedy. On the highest scale.

...I'd be productive but I am still reading that fic you sent me

[deadshrimpblues.livejournal.com]

DK is pretty much the textbook definition of 'awesome, awe-inspiring fic author.' If you want a really fucked up treat, read this one of his. It is severely fucked up, gory as hell, and possibly the best and only FFVIII horror fic I've ever come across. Wonderful stuff.

[xerne.livejournal.com]

I was going to recc you the fic Cendri posted. *pouts*

Instead, I'll point to Misfire for something R/I-ish.

And if you ask really nice, I'll add a canon-pairing fic dedicated to you to my to-do list. Who do you want? XD

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

Ooh, oooh. Thanks for the rec, I am devouring these today. (Very boring day at work.)

And if you could come up with a Squall/Rinoa that doesn't make me want to vomit, I'll be your best friend. And you can back-request, I always enjoy that.

[venefica-aura.livejournal.com]

HA HA BEAT YOU.

~Cendri

[xerne.livejournal.com]

Darn me and my silly going to class and all that, right?

[lassarina]

Ohboy, here we go! Fun rants ahoy!

Canon pairings I love: Celes/Locke (all with the fucked up), Zack/Aeris (so much angst), Edge/Rydia (snark!), Zidane/Garnet (so. much. love), and Delita/Ovelia.

That being said.

I find Cecil and Rosa painfully boring without the addition of Kain to fuck things up six ways to Solstice. They're just so damned GOOD. katmillia is writing a very interesting epic called What I Can Be that I'm loving (FF.net, same authorname). I hate goody characters. Paladins and white mages do not interest me. I like my angst and I like it good and strong. I like the sparks-flying nature of opposites attract and I like the snark of a good sassy pairing. Cecil and Rosa are happily-ever-after, and I don't like it, so I don't write it. Or read, usually, for that matter.

On Squall/Rinoa: I rambled on bottle_of_shine's LJ about how I find Rinoa very annoying. Also, I kind of dislike her forcibl changing of Squall, dragging him out of himself. Granted he'd have no sympathy factor if she didn't and he is an uptight repressed icebitch without it, but the Squall/Rinoa pairing just doesn't push my buttons the way the hate/love/balance/struggle of Seifer/Squall.

On Cloud/Tifa: I dislike FF7 and generally read fic only for the pretty slash, although I'm very much falling totally in love with Zack/Aeris and I hate Aeris. So that's a whole other thing, and a general dislike of the source rather than the particular pairing.

I hope this made sense; my brain's a little fried from another 30 fics to read today.

[katmillia.livejournal.com]

It's true, though. It really is. Oh, and I am totally now stalking you because you requested a KxR drabble from lassarina who totally is the beta reader for my KxR fics... therefore, you are going to get lots and lots of messages from me talking about FF4 and cool stuff like that because finding other fans of the game is hard enough! (Let alone people who request KxR drabbles)

Oh right so enough with teh!stalking... I agree with you. Well, not on the FF7 stuff, because I have never played FF7, but the other two. I find Cecil/Rosa hard to write because the FUN is gone from it... they are already together. Sure, you could write a pre-game!fic, but everyone knows how it is going to turn out- they get married. For me, romance fics are all about HOW it happens. I like seeing how people fall for each other and how the romance actually happens- which is probably why I tend to milk romantic tension in things for as long as I can. It's what makes it interesting, methinks.

Hm. Long response. My apologies. ;) Stalking commencing.

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

OMG SO TOTALLY FRIENDING YOU OVER FFIV ALONE.

AND K/R. I am secretly becoming a huge fan of it. It's so hot, really. Are you katmillia on ff.net as well? I think I might remember you. (I go by seventhe.)

I think I do agree with your take on the romance-fic, too. It's a lot of my problem with Squall/Rinoa as well - jumping into an established relationship without showing all the bumps and bruises.

I also find writing about Cecil kind of boring. I did a script parody of FFIV that got deleted where Cecil just had no personality whatsoever. Don't shoot me

[katmillia.livejournal.com]

OMG SWEET FRIENDED BACK.

I get way too excited about my new FFIV friends. And keep becoming a huge fan, cause I'm constantly churning out crap that I need R/R on!! And yup, I'm Katmillia over at ff.net.

Hahahahaahahaha Cecil sometimes = teh suck. It's funny.

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

HOORAY. We can trade crit. FFIV is such a small fandom, no wonder it churns out such die-hard fans XD

And yeah, for being the main character of the game, Cecil ... doesn't have much personality going for him, does he? ^^