What kind of fanfics do you hate?

[Staren]

I should really learn not to post right after classes one of these days. I was picking through all the interwoven parts of the 3 stories since I just finished reading Girl Talk and I kind of had it on my mind. Do'hy.

[Lioconvoy]

The same could be said for almost any of this.

I mean, Ranma-as-girl fics suck- but it's almost a rule that you dont hang out here unless you liked at least one of Sunny's fics.

Does that mean I have to go? I haven't read any of her fics, but I'm not a fan of Ranma stuck as a girl. I came hear cuase one of my fics made the list.

I don't mind Ranma spending time as a girl, balancing out his male and female side, but personlly if the fic has Ranma choosing to be a girl of his own free will I won't read it. I really can't see him doing that.

Other fics I won't read are ones that pair Ranma with another male character, "Of Curses and Odd Hair Colors" being the one exception.

[WG_Writer]

Fics I classify as Ranko-chan fics (new personality and locked), Ranko-kun (just a new personality, and usually for no reason) (new personality means too no character growth into it)

fics with repeated misspellings that show that they weren't spell checked.

The following typo's almost always cause me to stop reading immediately:
Nadaka, Nadako, Nadoko, or any other butcher of Nodoka's name
Barrowed instead of borrowed (this one really burns me)

General typos can be overlooked but if they are too much...

Usage of North American or other non-Japaneses names without reason, its Ami, not Amy, Makoto, not Lita, and so on, some like Amy instead of Ami can be forgiven for similarity, Lita is not forgivable.

the ultimate problem, and hate inducer though is subversion into a mary/gary sue.

[crystlshake]

Yeah 'barrowed' is almost like short hand for 'May be lacking in English language approved levels of spell check, grammar and plot'.

When I first started reading fanfiction, my introduction to SM was the english dub, consequently I used to favor the English version of the Scout's names. Reading some of Skysaber's new work (which is still filled with lots of humor and goodness) I was kind of supprised when his use of the English names started to bother me. I guess Ive just become a bit more exposed and relate the names to the original more naturally now (though I used to have to read slower to catch the difference between Makoto and Minako).

One of the things that Ive found that bothers me is when a story seems to read at 'a low grade level'. I havent been able to exactly pinpoint the traits that seem to give something that feel, but I think its a combination of simple word choice (the thesaurus is your friend), poor pacing, and lack of attention to detail (as it pertains to the description of the environment and scene in particular are where the deficits seem to crop up the worst).

Anouther facet that needles me a bit is when 'the Enemy' or 'Bad Guys' lack in detail or development of even a pale shade of what the Good Guys get. I can buy the more or less non-descript fodder minnion later in a story, but I want enough development on the opposition to at least give allow a casual glance to garner something more than a cardboard cutout with a small list of identifying features. Youma and their like especially tend to fall into this category. Its too easy to just say 'Vaguely female humaniod thing with big claws and teeth attacks!'. Its to easy to forget that theoreticaly that same said creature may fit a role in an ecological system, have some kind of behavioral or thought processes and just have it attack mindlessly.

It happens a lot. Even spending an eigth to a quarter of the background development time on the MC's opposition can turn a huge profit in the story's immersive depth. Remembering that the monsters, even if 'mindless', have some kind of motivation and hopefully survival insticts of some kind makes them all that much more real. Which is good when they are a tool for creating suspense and danger.

Its not enough to sink a fic, but some of the authors do a wonderful job painting the enemy in more colors than just black, and it makes me just a little bit more inclined to re-read and enjoy the stories by those authors 'just one more time' every time I run into the 'generic random encounter' in a story. Heck, some of you guys are so good I become just as attached to the bad guys as the good. If you pull that off I can gaurantee that Ill be reading your fic. Of course assuming that it doesnt fail on merits of illegible spelling and grammar before I get there. But you wouldnt do that to me would you.

[TerraEpon]

Actually that reminds me of one of my biggest pet peeves, well, two or three really.

One is when the enemy is overpowered for no reason (like Beryl's forces being much harder to deal with) to balence out the divergence of someone new on the team/helping them, or whatever.

There's also introducing an "enemy" at ALL when it seems unneeded, especially in Ranma fics. I mean, Ranma's not about fighting the evil badguy, most of the "bad guys" (except maybe Saffron) are more of the nusence sort than "big evil".

On that note, I also hate when authors for romance/"pairing" where it's uneeded as well. When I used to actually read a lot and review on FF.net this was WAY too prevelent, people would always ask about/ask for this or that pairing.

-Joshua

[runnerz]

Does that mean I have to go? I haven't read any of her fics, but I'm not a fan of Ranma stuck as a girl. I came hear cuase one of my fics made the list.

I don't mind Ranma spending time as a girl, balancing out his male and female side, but personlly if the fic has Ranma choosing to be a girl of his own free will I won't read it. I really can't see him doing that.

Other fics I won't read are ones that pair Ranma with another male character, "Of Curses and Odd Hair Colors" being the one exception.

One of the major things we need to realize is that most fukufics are intended as divergences, although they often come about because Ranma is written in as a Saint and not his canon self. Obviously, most of these fics roll about because the authors want to use the senshi as a catalyst to solve Ranma's problems. What no one seems to realize is that the senshi are hardly able to solve some of their own problems. The major problem I see with most fukufics is that they never seem to progress past the point where turning Ranma into a senshi and making himself incredibly superpowered. Some of these stories do turn out well, and most of them end up having been written with the help of the posters on this website. I feel lucky that you guys are here to help me with my fic, and I never realized some of the problems that have been stated in this thread. I do like Ranma-chan stories, although they really have to be well-written and fit within my interests (this is one of the reasons I don't really read Return). What I don't like is when Ranma becomes incredibly super-powered or really OOC. I also don't like it when the author causes the main character to be impacted in such a way that he or she becomes totally different, even if they aren't a Mary-Sue type. Or actually, scratch that. I don't mind it if the main character changes significantly, provided it's done over a long period of time and not based on one event.

[rmt]

On that note, I also hate when authors for romance/"pairing" where it's uneeded as well. When I used to actually read a lot and review on FF.net this was WAY too prevelent, people would always ask about/ask for this or that pairing.

On the same note, I hate when the authors insist on putting the pairing in the summary. I've seen countless fics where the summaries basically consist of: Shampoo / Ukyou hatch a cunning plan in order to get Ranma, but will it work? RanmaxAkane.

[Metroidvania]

Watch the nested quote, Runnerz.

Or actually, scratch that. I don't mind it if the main character changes significantly, provided it's done over a long period of time and not based on one event.

In my experience, a significant change is always based on at least _one_ crucial change to canon, whether it's the introduction of one of the Senshi into Nerima, a youma sucking Akane dry....or a simple little spring called Jusenkyo.

On the same note, I hate when the authors insist on putting the pairing in the summary. I've seen countless fics where the summaries basically consist of: Shampoo / Ukyou hatch a cunning plan in order to get Ranma, but will it work? RanmaxAkane.

Indeed. It basically gives almost all the element of surprise away from anything in the story.

[bissek]

Putting the pairing in the summary isn't always a bad thing, but if resolving the pairing is the point of the story, like in the example just given, then I agree, it's just a pointless spoiler.

Creating a pairing that makes no sense. If you're going to have a pairing between two people who can't even speak civilly to each other in canon, you'd better do a very impressive job of finding a way to make it plausible.

Fics that introduce an OC and end up being almost entirely about the OC. If you want to make a story that's entirely about a totally original character, just write a story from scratch. Having the normal cast of the series be reduced to bit characters in a story that's supposed to be about them is just dumb.

[Southern Cross]

Actually,there's one type of fanfic that I despise,and that hasn't been mentioned here - "Akane is actually a lesbian".
For a start,it seems to be the typical excuse of guys when a girl refuses thir attentions. "She's actually a lesbian" when the guy is actually a creep.
Furthermore,there's no real supporting evidence in the manga for this.Her hatred of boys can be explained by Kuno and the hentai horde's dishonorable actions,after all.
The only real reasons for using this dumb idea are (a)having Akane and Ranma-chan indulge in hot lesbian sex or (b) breaking up Ranma and Akane.

[crystlshake]

I think anouther part that propogates that mindset is Akane's violent (pun partially intended) shift in behavior toward Ranma at the introduction scene. Granted, in context its not to hard to understand a strong reaction due to a combination of shock, the engagement announcement and the powder keg at the school but yeah. Id place her as being conflicted with being attracted to men (due to bad experiences) but Id also need to see some groundwork on the fic authors part to shore up a 'no boys allowed' stance for her.

I have to agree with disliking pairing disclosure as well. As far as Im concerned the author shouldnt tell the reader that information. Let them figure it out themselves. The most important reason is it prevents you from possibly looking like an idiot to your readers if your promise/market isnt met. Aside from the killing blow it gives your suspense and development, if you change the direction of the fic the readers could become upset if they dont get what you 'promised', or it looks like you havent planned very far ahead in the fic. The second one can be nasty as some readers dont like to start a great fic only to be left indefinitely hanging. The more a writer has planned, even vaugely the more likely they are to continue.

There is also the aspect that disclosing pairings can effect your readership. A double-edged sword if I ever saw one. You may pull in more interest from one market but at the loss of some from anouther. Statistically for Ranma, and only counting Shampoo, Akane, and Ukyo, that has the potential of cutting out as much as 2/3 of your readers before they even start to read. Personally Im not a fan of Akane. If a story has the Ran+Ak or something similar in the summary i probably wont give it much more than a second glance.

Cant discredit the steep loss on a story's power of delivery when a likely large plot point is pretty much confirmed before the reader even starts. More or less Garanteeing a major plot point resolution is NEVER a good idea in your summary. Considering that the course and resolution of interpersonal relationships and conflicts is one of the major draws for Ranma, a writer shouldnt hamstring themselves so early in the game. Even a story with a favored pairing looses some of its power when the 'mystery' is unvieled from the get go. People like to puzzle and mull over things and wonder 'what if'. Let them have that. Temptation of the unknown is the driving power behind the lingere buisiness, and just as strong in literature. Remember build, dont destroy (the mystery that is).

[lwf58]

The same could be said for almost any of this.

I mean, Ranma-as-girl fics suck- but it's almost a rule that you dont hang out here unless you liked at least one of Sunny's fics.

Does that mean I have to go? I haven't read any of her fics, but I'm not a fan of Ranma stuck as a girl. I came hear cuase one of my fics made the list.

I certainly never heard of any such rule. You don't have to read Sunny's stories to hang out here.

Of course, I happen to think that they are mostly very good, with the exception of Windborne. Windborne wasn't to my liking simply because of that bit about Ranma suddenly becoming attracted to Kuno. Other than that, though, the rest of the story was well-written and funny.

BTW, Sunny isn't a girl. "Sunshine" is just a persona used for this forum by Josh Temple. While we do indeed have a number of girls who hang out here, most of the "female" pen names are really guys.

Which is fair. One of the women I know who hangs out here on occasion uses a male persona for the forum.

[Dumbledork]

I happen to think that they are mostly very good, with the exception of Windborne. Windborne wasn't to my liking simply because of that bit about Ranma suddenly becoming attracted to Kuno. Other than that, though, the rest of the story was well-written and funny

If you don't like windborne I'd advise you to read "A New Awakening" by Dani Yanega. A really excellent fic where Ranma is changed into a fairy. ("Ranma of Grayskull" by the same author is great too; a Ranma/Master of the Universe crossover).

You can find Dani's writings here (and at the ladycosmos archive)

http://dani.sanjiyan.co.uk/fanfics.htm

[Rei-chan]

Hm.. well I am not a person who hates much since I will consume just about anything fictional in the intrest of keeping myself awake and aware enough to function. What can I say, reality puts me in a near narcaleptic state.

That being said, there are a few fanfictions I have read that I rather hated certain aspects of. I dislike where a character isn't even a shade of themselves or in a completely different location than they are supposed to be. Exceptions are made for alternate universe fiction as long as character traits for most of the cast persist. For instance, as much as I will admit Black Dragon's Guardian is humourous from what I have read I dislike the fact that we pretty much have a Ranma that is only slightly the character from the series. Same reason I am not a fan of Sunny's The Return to be truthful, I can't really figure out why they are suddenly in Canada/America.

Second thing I hate is crack fictions. The ones that are nothing more than simply making fun of either fans of the series or ones that make fun of the characters for being so lame, only exception being for Naruto simply because the characters in that series are way too serious.

I have no problem with couples in a fic, but I can do without graphic descriptions of what they get up to. This also will put me off a story that was otherwise amusing. I really don't want to know what bedroom games Haruka and Micheru get up to thank you very much.

I do prefer a story to be somewhat readable, but I consider that a lot of the authors out there currently are mostly younger and are writing fanfiction simply to get the hang of writing. As such, I won't hold this against them too much if they fail to do a spectacular job. Still, I dislike a story where 'teh' or the like occurs every time.

Journal style fics. Just ugh.. I hate journal entries and diaries with a passion.

Last thing I hate, a fiction that is about the normal guy. I am certain that Daisuke's or Sayuri's day is just as interesting as Akane's but I really don't care what the background people have to think about everything. There are exceptions, like to everything I have already mentioned, but really who cares that today on July 23rd Naru ate breadfast and went to school to sit there and fume about Usagi ignoring her? Unless it leads to Naru becoming the next chosen of Chaos to cause havoc anyway.

[Cyber_Skaarj]

Thinks I hate in fics, eh? OK.

Number one; Bad grammar/spelling. Would it kill the people writing these things to read each sentence as they write it and see if it's something they would actually say that way? And would it hurt for them to put a damn fic through MS Word to erase all those oh-so-damn-obvious spelling mistakes that they seem to miss even though it is obvious?

Number two; Tense issues. Slightly related to grammar, but I feel that it's a large enough issue to have it's own comment. See, the thing is, unless you're writing a story in either script format or in first person perspective from one of the characters as they experience things, you should never write a fic in present tense! You are telling a story here, and as such you are recounting events that have already happened!!! Ye Gods, that pisses me off so much...

Number three; Darkfics. I hate reading things where characters are used, abused, then tossed out into the trash. And people actually like that kind of stuff? What kind of sick world do we live in?

Those are my biggest hates in fics.

Really hate dumb character bashing and OOC. Reading in hell know how many time about "Devil Genma that torture poor Ranma" kinda... annoying... Same for "Super-bitch Akane". Also "Saint Nabiki that earn money for family".

I can put up with most of the stereotypes, but the two I can't stand are Uber-bitch Akane and Evil-bastard Ryoga. Those two are by far the most common. Would it hurt anyone to write a story that doesn't smash those two characters into oblivion for once?

Cured Ranma fics. You take out a lot of the fun.

Or fics where he never had the curse in the first place. How can you have a Ranma fic if he never visits Jusenkyo?

Also, dark = no, and overly dramatized for the sake of "omg conflict!" -- I much prefer things to be at least somewhat light hearted.

You are not alone in that regard. I share that exact same opinion.

course with the specific genre... ranma/sm i think that most fukufics tend to over power the enemies and rarely actually come up with well thought out bad guys... (or rather bad guys that do something other than randomly send youma) course i can't recall many fukufics where a new villian comes into play

Totally agree. It's even worse when the new enemy totally owns the Senshi in each fight and they only manage to scrape by with luck. I can understand this if it's set really early in the series, but by the latter half they're damn powerhouses! (unskilled powerhouses yes, but powerhouses none the less). And even worse than that is when said new enemy is turned into a manipulating scheming bastard and the fic becomes a Darkfic. I tend to leave the fic and never return to it at that point.

"ZOMG! Curse Split! Ranma-chan decides she is in love with Ranma-kun! Angst fest due to Identity Crisis! No wai! Ranma-kun and Ranma-chan run away! They live happily ever after! Yay!"

I sense spamfic material here

God, can't these people think of an original name for anything besides the fanon Kimiko too?

You said it. Just about the only female name I've seen an author use for Ranma is Ranko (there are very rare occasions when they use something else). And also; Ichiro, Jiro, Sakura, Kimiko... doesn't anyone bother to try and come up with (read: research) anything other than bog-standard names for new or minor characters these days?

But I digress, it's usually a mirror, gem, or spell and usually Mousse uses it against Ranma and "accidentally" someone else, and so in one paragraph, Ranma magically returns with that person completely different, married, with 30 kids and with nothing to back up this dramatic change besides him being able to tear dimensions with his mere acts of flatulence.

Someone write this as a spamfic! Just reading that little description cracked me up!

Heh, for YEARS I actually thought it WAS Nermia. I just somehow read it as that each time. Though worse is the constant "Nodoko" misspelling. Or Katsumi.

Oh no, no... the worst ones have got to be things like Nodaka, or Uk-chan (despite the sign on her shop in both anime and manga reading Ucchans).

Not quite the same, but one thing that REALLY annoys me is an exact retelling on canon moments, especially when they are unnessesary. HOW many fics out there have the "FIANCE?!" scene?

Half of them. And I doubt that that little guess is that far out from the exact amount.

The following typo's almost always cause me to stop reading immediately:
Nadaka, Nadako, Nadoko, or any other butcher of Nodoka's name
Barrowed instead of borrowed (this one really burns me)

Or conscious instead of conscience. Or wondered instead of wandered.

Usage of North American or other non-Japaneses names without reason, its Ami, not Amy, Makoto, not Lita, and so on, some like Amy instead of Ami can be forgiven for similarity, Lita is not forgivable.

This one is just completely unforgivable. It just leaves you to wonder why the dubs changed the names in the first place when a) the Japanese names sounded perfectly fine in the first place, b) they are totally out of place with the setting (Japanese born characters living in Japan that all have English names? wtf?), and c) it just serves to make fic authors make such stupid mistakes themselves...