_{Format is kind of screwy. You can always read the neater version of this at my LJ: [link]}

On the subject of fanfic. You know what sucks? Being unable to wrap your mind around popular fandom pairings that everyone goes 'omgCANON' and 'They're so meant for each other - look at all the subtext!' over and you just sit there LOOKING and trying and FAILING to see what they're getting at and thinking 'Ok WTF, am I missing something here...?' I'd name names but I don't want to offend anyone's ships. I let them grate my nerves in private haha

I swear the older I get the more I appreciate the pairings that AREN'T so popular. Because they usually aren't so fantarded...and I swear there's nothing more perplexing than ship wars. I mean god Narnia fandom, you're the last I'd expect to see such a massive slash fanbase of all things and there you are debating over whether Peter/Edmund is more OTP than Caspian/Peter. WTF people. WTF. Ship wars are ridiculous. And why do I get the feeling they're usually started by preteen (both physically AND mentally) fanbrats...|D What else is there...oh yeah.

Harry/Hermione vs Ron/Hermione - Harry Potter
Zutara vs Kataang - Avatar
Remus/Sirius vs Remus/Tonks - Harry Potter

Of course the latter are proven canon, and I have nothing against the former...except that they're usually the ones with the whiny, defensive fanbrats, which is a real turn off when you're trying to like a pairing. If the subtext is all over the place for both sides I usually support whatever ship gives "canon evidence" aka a KISS. I never really liked Remus/Sirius but just when I wanted to give it a chance R/S fangirls were bashing how 'fake' Remus/Tonks was. Fake right. So I guess I'm missing something because when did R/S ever become 'real'? Fandom, remember the word. Just because you don't like canon doesn't mean it's going to up and disappear.

In the Animorphs fandom I've really grown to dislike Jake/Cassie because it feels boring and forced and Cassie seems content to keep to her moralistic values while Jake is just trying to survive and spiralling into a dark pit of despair while doing so. But they ARE a canon couple and as much as I don't like it, I accept it. Though I prefer Marco/Jake by a long run because pairing aside they understand what the other is going through and run with it, not ditch each other. But then they ARE best friends.

As abrupt and WTF as Remus/Tonks was for me too, in the ship's defence the story is from Harry's POV, so for all we know Remus and Tonks might have been dancing around each other for months. It's not like we could SEE it because Harry wasn't THERE half the time and he wasn't really concentrating on looking for hints was he? Logic...sad that ship wars often lack this. XD

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I think what grates me the most though...are people who ship a pairing in a fandom without EVER reading/playing/watching it, and are just basing it off some good fic they read god knows where. As a person who has made that mistake in the past I have to say BAD IDEA. VERY BAD IDEA. Don't EVER do that because as nice as fandom is you're really going to be let down once you see the canon and realize it's not what you imagined.

For example you've never in your life played FVIII but you see a fanart of Squall/Rinoa and think they are goddamn adorable together. Fair enough. But you might be let down playing the game...their romance wasn't exactly 'a love of the ages'. I learned that the hard way unfortunately. BD That's why I'm not surprised when I see people shipping Seifer/Squall because honestly, their rivalry was far more interesting than the slipshod romance that just HAPPENED out of the blue. It's a shame: at face value I quite like Squall/Rinoa, though it takes some really good fanfic for me to like the pairing after playing the game.

But man, if you don't know squat about the game and go off saying that Seifer became Squall's rival because he was jealous that Squally-boy stole his girlfriend Rinoa then...geez. WTF. If you're trying to prove their straightness, wow, that was a really bad way of doing it and just shows how LITTLE you know about the characters. Seifer has been Squall's self-appointed rival since they were kids, WAY before Rinoa was there. You don't ever see him hounding Squall for getting close to Rinoa do you? He's focused more on his 'romantic dream'. And so then you get Seifer/Fuujin, which quite frankly makes me laugh because I think it would NEVER work out - Fuu would kick Seifer's ass long beforehand. XD

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Growing out of a pairing. I've done a lot of that recently. It feels good. You know, when you look back at a pairing and think 'dear god how the hell did I even LIKE that pairing?' I realized this as I was cleaning out my room (going to renovate it w00t!) and throwing out old manga I didn't want anymore. Of course I'm a sentimental idiot...which means I read through everything before deciding to dump it. XD Gravitation. [link] Practically every yaoi fangirl loves it. It's what people always recommend to fans wanting to get into BL. Well I read through it again and HATED it. XD Shuichi was a whiny, bitchy little uke. I don't remember that being the case when I was...what, 15? Ha, I'm a slash fan that hates Gravitation, wow. BD I like my slash with men behaving and looking more or less like men thanks very much. These girls with dicks kind of defeat the purpose. Read Under Grand Hotel, it's manly and fucking hot. That's why I kept my FAKE manga [link] , because geez Ryo might be an uke but he's got balls and is pretty damn good at kicking Dee's ass if he deserves it.

So yeah, we grow up, we move on. And a good thing too. Some of the stuff I used to ship was bland and embarrassing. XD

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There's something else that doesn't make sense. Het shippers who think they can go crazy and deal crack on all of their fandom's characters and create the most insane ships and have a huge laugh about it but when slash shippers do the same thing it's suddenly disgusting and gross and they rant for hours about it. That's kind of unfair to judge isn't it guys? Oh please like we all haven't made up some WTF pairing, regardless of the gender of WHO was involved. Seeing as I like both slash AND het I often fail to see what the problem with either is.

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I think it's totally fine if you don't like slash, or het for that matter. It doesn't make you whatever-phobic until you rant about it to the person who did it and tell them it's 'fucking wrong' or crap. I notice people who do this usually leave Anonymous reviews if a site allows it because yeah they have opinions, but they're too scared to give their identity along with it. |D Cowardice is SO in.

No one can make you like something. Well they can TRY, but it might not be pleasant. I can understand where people are coming from because yeah, I agree there ARE ships out there that shouldn't even EXIST because OHGODMYEYES. XDDD But what can you do? Seriously: grow up, grit your teeth and bear it. Don't go flaming every poor sod you come across. If you have issues rant about them in you LJ or listen to emo music or some crap. Don't take it out on other people. I mean guys come on, it's sad you know...Seeing people fighting about who's fucking who. They're FICTIONAL characters. Get over it. The sooner you realize that the better.