These are some of the reasons I shunned fanfiction for so long. It doesn't matter how well it was written otherwise; a self-insert or Mary Sue can completely ruin a story. I agree 100% on everything you said, and I know exactly which fic you're referring to.
Honestly? I don't mind too much when Arashi is written out of character - you can make Nino a huge jerk, fine, go ahead. Based on real people or not, this is fiction, after all. And, such as in some AUs, sometimes creative liberties in the Arashi personalities can be a good thing. WITHIN LIMITS. Very, very strict limits, and never without good reason. Making Nino a jerk, or even unreasonably jealous, isn't the problem: using it as a plot device is the problem. Doing so to make your OTP seem wonderful in comparison is the problem.
Because you NEVER justify character bashing, and canNOT say that your OTP lives happily ever after, so everything else is excused. Arashi loves each other. Do you (and I don't mean you - I'm speaking generally) think that either Ohno or Jun would be able to watch Arashi fall apart calmly, thinking it's okay since they're together? Do you think Nino, the guy who was indifferent towards bullies as a kid because he didn't want to cause others trouble, would tear apart Arashi and be physically aggressive because he was jealous?
This is one of my biggest pet peeves in writing - you can't just have your characters act irrationally and do things they would never do for the sake of moving your plot along. Can't find a way to write Ohno and Jun together? I know! Let's make Nino cold and neglecting, then a freakishly jealous bastard! Sure, it doesn't make sense, doesn't fit Nino's personality, and doesn't give any depth to his character, but I wanted a plot. Love triangles are plots, right? And hm, it seems we've made Jun look like a jerk, instead. Solution: he may mistreat almost everyone in humanity (and maybe mistreating ohno, too), but he's doing it for Ohno. And when Nino explodes in his face, he's so understanding. Wow, he's so perfect and romantic!
Of course, there are always people like this, who act like OTP > group, and all of the other fandom horrors. I usually tuck away my inner critic, but... I used to hate groups like Arashi because of those kinds of fans.
Oh. Um. We've never talked before. Uh... hi? Not the best post to reply to as a hello how did this reply get so long?, but you've unleashed the aspiring English professor in me *chains it back down*. So, nice to meet you. And thank you for writing fanfiction that reminds me that I love this fandom, despite the moments of wanting to bash my head into my desk XD
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Date: 2009-04-06 09:45 pm (UTC)Honestly? I don't mind too much when Arashi is written out of character - you can make Nino a huge jerk, fine, go ahead. Based on real people or not, this is fiction, after all. And, such as in some AUs, sometimes creative liberties in the Arashi personalities can be a good thing. WITHIN LIMITS. Very, very strict limits, and never without good reason. Making Nino a jerk, or even unreasonably jealous, isn't the problem: using it as a plot device is the problem. Doing so to make your OTP seem wonderful in comparison is the problem.
Because you NEVER justify character bashing, and canNOT say that your OTP lives happily ever after, so everything else is excused. Arashi loves each other. Do you (and I don't mean you - I'm speaking generally) think that either Ohno or Jun would be able to watch Arashi fall apart calmly, thinking it's okay since they're together? Do you think Nino, the guy who was indifferent towards bullies as a kid because he didn't want to cause others trouble, would tear apart Arashi and be physically aggressive because he was jealous?
This is one of my biggest pet peeves in writing - you can't just have your characters act irrationally and do things they would never do for the sake of moving your plot along. Can't find a way to write Ohno and Jun together? I know! Let's make Nino cold and neglecting, then a freakishly jealous bastard! Sure, it doesn't make sense, doesn't fit Nino's personality, and doesn't give any depth to his character, but I wanted a plot. Love triangles are plots, right? And hm, it seems we've made Jun look like a jerk, instead. Solution: he may mistreat almost everyone in humanity (and maybe mistreating ohno, too), but he's doing it for Ohno. And when Nino explodes in his face, he's so understanding. Wow, he's so perfect and romantic!
Of course, there are always people like this, who act like OTP > group, and all of the other fandom horrors. I usually tuck away my inner critic, but... I used to hate groups like Arashi because of those kinds of fans.
Oh. Um. We've never talked before. Uh... hi?
Not the best post to reply to as a hello
how did this reply get so long?, but you've unleashed the aspiring English professor in me *chains it back down*. So, nice to meet you. And thank you for writing fanfiction that reminds me that I love this fandom, despite the moments of wanting to bash my head into my desk XD