>You've admitted Suki is 'thinly' characterized. What about Katara or Azula? Not accusatory as a I agree on a level just makesthe best comparison.
I'd say that neither Katara or Azula are thinly characterized. Katara's a main character and has clear character development over the course of the series (basically, from an idealistic Wannabe Messiah to a slightly ruthless Knight Templar). Azula doesn't get as much characterization as Katara, mostly due to her being involved in fewer episodes, but the viewer at least gets a sense of Auzla's relationships, personal ticks, and insecurities.
If I was going to find a comparably thinly characterized supporting character, I guess I'd pick someone like Hakoda or Ty Lee. But that's the nature of supporting characters; we only need to know enough about them so that they can provide useful scaffolding for building up the main characters.
>Why do you think people like Toph so much and are divided on Aang? Given their similar violations of common sense and all...
>Is there a way to portray Crystal Tokyo and the Dark/Nemesis Moon without going the utopia is a sham or dystopic evil?
Certainly! There have been plenty of fics that avoid the cliche of the "false utopia Crystal Tokyo" route. At least there were when I was into the SM fandom, which was admittedly several years ago...
>Have you ever been able to enjoy Usagi/Mamori?
Yes, I guess? I never really sought it out. The only time I've gotten into shipping fic is in the AtLA fandom. I rarely read 'pure' ship fic, however, because it tends to be fairly cookie cutter. I like my shipping paired with plotting.
>Ever tried Inuyasha?
I haven't. I probably won't, either. Getting into fandoms with a huge backlog of canon material to catch up on is a major time investment for me. Also I got my fill of Rumiko Takahashi with Ranma 1/2.
> Sailor Moon tends to veer to despair and Twilight-esque implications and issues with romance until you inject or make explicit more lesbianism.
Wow. Really? It's been years since I was really into SM. Like, we're talking pre-FF.net era. I hadn't realized the fandom had changed so much. I'm old.
>EVA is well... [I] guess making Shinji into a badass, pairings, and philosophical wankery
There's actually very little philosophical wankery in Eva fic these days compared to the late 90s/early 2000s. It's one of the things that really surprised me when I got back into fanfic after I left fandom for a few years. But yeah, badass!Shinji is a trope that needs to be burned and the ashes salted.
The most old school Eva-ish fic I've read lately was actually a Harry Potter one. It basically rewrote Year 5 from Luna's POV, and the author was clearly invoking Eva's tropes with how he/she wrote of Luna's odd way of looking at the world.
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branchandroot
Response 1/2
Date: 2011-02-12 03:28 pm (UTC)I'd say that neither Katara or Azula are thinly characterized. Katara's a main character and has clear character development over the course of the series (basically, from an idealistic Wannabe Messiah to a slightly ruthless Knight Templar). Azula doesn't get as much characterization as Katara, mostly due to her being involved in fewer episodes, but the viewer at least gets a sense of Auzla's relationships, personal ticks, and insecurities.
If I was going to find a comparably thinly characterized supporting character, I guess I'd pick someone like Hakoda or Ty Lee. But that's the nature of supporting characters; we only need to know enough about them so that they can provide useful scaffolding for building up the main characters.
>Why do you think people like Toph so much and are divided on Aang? Given their similar violations of common sense and all...
Because Toph is a badass.
If you're snarky and you can kick ass, people will fall for you and forgive all your faults.
>Is there a way to portray Crystal Tokyo and the Dark/Nemesis Moon without going the utopia is a sham or dystopic evil?
Certainly! There have been plenty of fics that avoid the cliche of the "false utopia Crystal Tokyo" route. At least there were when I was into the SM fandom, which was admittedly several years ago...
>Have you ever been able to enjoy Usagi/Mamori?
Yes, I guess? I never really sought it out. The only time I've gotten into shipping fic is in the AtLA fandom. I rarely read 'pure' ship fic, however, because it tends to be fairly cookie cutter. I like my shipping paired with plotting.
>Ever tried Inuyasha?
I haven't. I probably won't, either. Getting into fandoms with a huge backlog of canon material to catch up on is a major time investment for me. Also I got my fill of Rumiko Takahashi with Ranma 1/2.
> Sailor Moon tends to veer to despair and Twilight-esque implications and issues with romance until you inject or make explicit more lesbianism.
Wow. Really? It's been years since I was really into SM. Like, we're talking pre-FF.net era. I hadn't realized the fandom had changed so much. I'm old.
The only SM fanfic I follow these days is Hands Fall Together.
>EVA is well... [I] guess making Shinji into a badass, pairings, and philosophical wankery
There's actually very little philosophical wankery in Eva fic these days compared to the late 90s/early 2000s. It's one of the things that really surprised me when I got back into fanfic after I left fandom for a few years. But yeah, badass!Shinji is a trope that needs to be burned and the ashes salted.
The most old school Eva-ish fic I've read lately was actually a Harry Potter one. It basically rewrote Year 5 from Luna's POV, and the author was clearly invoking Eva's tropes with how he/she wrote of Luna's odd way of looking at the world.