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Fanfiction (What else?) and RPG (Why?)
Nov. 6th, 2004 04:33 pmJust had a bunch of emails with someone, and I'm still sorta boggling at it.
Okay, the person, heathah wrote a whiny Domino story called Why?, and I, being, as I usually am, myself, was intrigued.
Because you see, the summary was Domino, earlier confronted (and kissed) by Alex (a made up character from EVIL:Denounced! [look to my profile for details]), now finds herself confronted with what else but more doubts? Typical Domino angst- unable to cope with what she considers a 'we
Just as I'm seized by the desire to review anything that mentions flames in the summary, anything that indicates a story requires sustainable backstory to understand is a big, red flag. Glowing. While it sings at the top of its lungs and tap-dances.
First, we see reference to an 'Alex', and we're immediately told he's a made up character from something else. This means the story will suck. Seriously, there's just no other option. Kiddies, don't post a one-shot that makes no sense without the backstory that doesn't exist. I guessed (correctly, as a look at the author's profile shows) that this was an RPG-based thing. Also, there's apparently some sort of unwritten rule that if an unknown character is important enough to list in the summary as if they're not unknown (Aragorn thinks about his feelings for Sparkle Moonbeam Fairy by the lake), they're going to be a sue.
I enter the story. Domino is...very not-Domino. There seems to be some sort of rule that Domino's character must be mutilated when she appears in fanfics. Domino is thinking about Alex. He kissed her. Now she's having a breakdown (No! No one can love me! I am a machine! I am hate! I have no emotion! Why? Why? I must run to my bed and yell at my pillow while crying!!!) over this.
I kid you not. "This is not how I was raised to be. I thought I knew my programming. I'm supposed to be a machine..."
"How else could he... completely forget the horrible things I say to him the second after they leave my mouth? He's crazy. He says he loves me."
"Machines cannot love. I've been raised mechanically. Hatred is the only thing I know, and it is that which gives me my strength where mere humans would falter.
... So why did I fail?"
"... but how can he want me? How can he love me?"
""You can't have me. You can't BREAK me!" My voice grows louder, and before I know it, I am screaming into my pillow. Hot tears... searing with hate stain its crimson cover."
"But maybe that was only to find his way deeper... to fill me... and rid me of my hatred. Perhaps I am not meant to be machine..."
"When he kissed me, he made me bleed. But now I know I am human. I can no longer function by myself."
What's wrong with this picture, readers?
That's not Domino, basically. Disturbingly, after I reviewed, the author emailed me justifying Domino's character differences by her being *older*. "...she's several years older here. Of course, things have had time to cook, and teenage angst is beginning to leave her as she slows into maturity."
Yet Domino is acting younger than she did in the special. Then, she acted like a mature adult. No teenage angst. (I'm also amused by the concept Domino's insane level of angst is explained by the fact she's losing her angst). Domino also acted like a rather sane, composed adult - cruel and not good, yes, but she didn't seem like someone who had never experienced anything but hate. The very fact she can pretend to be a nice childish girl at the start of the special shows she can't have been living in emotional isolation. And the fact she easily betrays everyone shows she's not going to short-circuit at the thought someone might (gasp!) be nice to her. If she was, she's have had that breakdown well before they even got to the mountain, wound up renouncing Team Rocket, and then there'd probably have been some sort of 'oh no I am pursued by Team Rocket woe is me woe!' thing instead of Mewtwo.
Basically, Domino's a pretty composed person. Not good, but there's no sign she's emotionally fragile and several signs she isn't. Personally, I see the whole 'I've been raised to be heartless' thing as a cop-out. It's done to deflect any blame over the character's immoral actions (and give an easy way of explaining why they now spend their days cuddling lost puppies).
Could Domino have emotional problems? Yes. Over a kiss? Hell no.
Why does the author think Domino's like this? Because she's part of an RPG.
The author warped Domino's character when playing her, and warped it rather severely. I don't particularly care - it's an RPG, certain liberties can be taken. It's not meant for other people's enjoyment (baring those one's playing with), it's meant for your own. The problem comes when someone thinks that everyone else cares about their RPG, and posts random one-shots based on events that happen in the middle of their RPG, using their version of the canon characters and unintroduced original characters. (And then say it's their interpretation of the character so it can't be wrong).
Remember, everyone, Just Say No to RPG-Based Fanfic™.
Okay, the person, heathah wrote a whiny Domino story called Why?, and I, being, as I usually am, myself, was intrigued.
Because you see, the summary was Domino, earlier confronted (and kissed) by Alex (a made up character from EVIL:Denounced! [look to my profile for details]), now finds herself confronted with what else but more doubts? Typical Domino angst- unable to cope with what she considers a 'we
Just as I'm seized by the desire to review anything that mentions flames in the summary, anything that indicates a story requires sustainable backstory to understand is a big, red flag. Glowing. While it sings at the top of its lungs and tap-dances.
First, we see reference to an 'Alex', and we're immediately told he's a made up character from something else. This means the story will suck. Seriously, there's just no other option. Kiddies, don't post a one-shot that makes no sense without the backstory that doesn't exist. I guessed (correctly, as a look at the author's profile shows) that this was an RPG-based thing. Also, there's apparently some sort of unwritten rule that if an unknown character is important enough to list in the summary as if they're not unknown (Aragorn thinks about his feelings for Sparkle Moonbeam Fairy by the lake), they're going to be a sue.
I enter the story. Domino is...very not-Domino. There seems to be some sort of rule that Domino's character must be mutilated when she appears in fanfics. Domino is thinking about Alex. He kissed her. Now she's having a breakdown (No! No one can love me! I am a machine! I am hate! I have no emotion! Why? Why? I must run to my bed and yell at my pillow while crying!!!) over this.
I kid you not. "This is not how I was raised to be. I thought I knew my programming. I'm supposed to be a machine..."
"How else could he... completely forget the horrible things I say to him the second after they leave my mouth? He's crazy. He says he loves me."
"Machines cannot love. I've been raised mechanically. Hatred is the only thing I know, and it is that which gives me my strength where mere humans would falter.
... So why did I fail?"
"... but how can he want me? How can he love me?"
""You can't have me. You can't BREAK me!" My voice grows louder, and before I know it, I am screaming into my pillow. Hot tears... searing with hate stain its crimson cover."
"But maybe that was only to find his way deeper... to fill me... and rid me of my hatred. Perhaps I am not meant to be machine..."
"When he kissed me, he made me bleed. But now I know I am human. I can no longer function by myself."
What's wrong with this picture, readers?
That's not Domino, basically. Disturbingly, after I reviewed, the author emailed me justifying Domino's character differences by her being *older*. "...she's several years older here. Of course, things have had time to cook, and teenage angst is beginning to leave her as she slows into maturity."
Yet Domino is acting younger than she did in the special. Then, she acted like a mature adult. No teenage angst. (I'm also amused by the concept Domino's insane level of angst is explained by the fact she's losing her angst). Domino also acted like a rather sane, composed adult - cruel and not good, yes, but she didn't seem like someone who had never experienced anything but hate. The very fact she can pretend to be a nice childish girl at the start of the special shows she can't have been living in emotional isolation. And the fact she easily betrays everyone shows she's not going to short-circuit at the thought someone might (gasp!) be nice to her. If she was, she's have had that breakdown well before they even got to the mountain, wound up renouncing Team Rocket, and then there'd probably have been some sort of 'oh no I am pursued by Team Rocket woe is me woe!' thing instead of Mewtwo.
Basically, Domino's a pretty composed person. Not good, but there's no sign she's emotionally fragile and several signs she isn't. Personally, I see the whole 'I've been raised to be heartless' thing as a cop-out. It's done to deflect any blame over the character's immoral actions (and give an easy way of explaining why they now spend their days cuddling lost puppies).
Could Domino have emotional problems? Yes. Over a kiss? Hell no.
Why does the author think Domino's like this? Because she's part of an RPG.
The author warped Domino's character when playing her, and warped it rather severely. I don't particularly care - it's an RPG, certain liberties can be taken. It's not meant for other people's enjoyment (baring those one's playing with), it's meant for your own. The problem comes when someone thinks that everyone else cares about their RPG, and posts random one-shots based on events that happen in the middle of their RPG, using their version of the canon characters and unintroduced original characters. (And then say it's their interpretation of the character so it can't be wrong).
Remember, everyone, Just Say No to RPG-Based Fanfic™.
