Fannish rambling. Yes. Again.

[castalie]

Alright, so I was taking a break from my books after coming back from school and I was - as I'm wont to do - reading my flist when I saw fluterbev's query about fanfic in general and Jim/Blair in particular. Since I apparently love the sound of my fingers typing on the keyboard I decided to grant her wish and reply to her, only, well it sorta ended up being a tad long for a comment, so I thought, hey! I'm gonna turn it into a post! So you have Bev to blame for that one *nodnod*

What are the essential qualities that fanfic has, that make it so incredibly compelling, addictive and satisfying?

Okay so first, I have to say that I always have a lot of difficulties explaining why I love fanfic - I love fanfic because I do, really. Like, I like vanilla because I love its taste, I love fanfic because I love its flavour too - so to speak - and I never really know how to explain why exactly. Having said that, and because it's not the first time people ask Why, I can try to develop *g* Bear in mind though - this is nothing new. But obvious is lovely too sometimes, so there *g*

So, I'm a tv addict - I think we established that already - and by definition fanfic is but an extension of my favourite shows, only it goes so much further. When I love something in a show and/or in an episode - fanfic goes back to it, only adds more and usually hits all my hot buttons in the process - be it for the sap, the mush, the sweet or the kinky and the dark, I'm speaking in general. It just gives me moremoremore - if fulfills a need I might not have been conscious I even had, or it'll fill a blank I really wanted to see filled and it'll give me a nice sense of closure - except this closure will have many flavours itself and then, it becomes the gift that keeps on giving. I'm talking in particular about those Episodes That Make Fandom, you know, the likes of "The Sentinel by Blair Sandburg" or "Sentinel Too" in The Sentinel for instance - just to name a very selected few. Likewise with the Themes That Make Fandom. The whole purpose of fanfic is - well, okay, among other things, maybe - to go where no tv writers have gone before and run with the already existing source and Make It More. All those things of which we only get a glimpse in the original source, fanfic will turn it into the norm and satisfy all the needs the deprived and/or greedy viewers had.

I have some darker tastes and considering those, well apart from rare shows like, say Oz, you can safely say that those needs aren't usually satisfied with mainstream tv. Not that I'm complaining about it, it's just a fact. But fanfics? Satisfy all my needs and then some, what more could I ask for? *g*

As previously established, my addiction love for h/c goes back to when I was a little kid - I have no idea where it comes from, I had a happy childhood - there's no other word for it - and though there was one aspect of it that made it different from most of the kids around me, it never traumatised me because I - literally - didn't know any different and that's how it had always been for me and it never made sad or feel ostracised or whatnot - so I truly can't pinpoint a reason why I've always been so attracted to angst and h/c and dark, that's just how it is - and maybe this is also why I think that there's not always a reason for anything. Sometimes you like something just because you do *shrug* Consequently, my love for h/c and such is the reason why I've been attracted to some kind of shows, characters - and ultimately to fanfic and to some particular pairings - sounds logical, all right. And Jim/Blair just fits the bill perfectly.

I never loved macho characters - the heroes who didn't feel the slightest emotions never did it for me. The manly man type always had me roll my eyes or cringe at the screen - I thought they were boring and just... they didn't make me feel anything. I loved Kirk not for his hero status exactly, but because he cared for - in particular - Spock and McCoy - and he showed it on a regular basis and in return, Spock and McCoy showed their affection and friendship for him on a regular basis. He was taken care of by them a lot and it just worked.

All my other characters were like that - they felt things deeply, they usually had a difficult past, they hurt a lot, they made me feel. See, I never identified with any fictional characters - neither in books nor on tv - but it doesn't change a thing about how I felt toward them. I loved - still do, obviously - seeing them angst, period. I've also always loved when they had a solid and deep friendship with another character - and here again, the more friendly and tactile, the better. If I could see the bond between them, it was okay for me and I enjoyed the ride. If I had one stronger/taller/older character paired with a smaller/younger one - in general, not even 'slashed' as such, I mean - I was in heaven. Friend-friend, brother-brother - it all worked as long as I saw something.

And fanfic just gives me everything I crave - sometimes even exceeding my expectations - and miracle of miracle, it never stops. It's like a dealer with an endless supply.

So, back to Jim/Blair, well it's like they're the perfect combination for me. I could practically check all my kinks with them - from the difference between the two, to the deep friendship they have together, passing by the tactile and visible affection for another to the h/c angle.

No matter the land you belong to, Genland or Slashland, the love and friendship they have for one another is undeniable. It's there - displayed for all to see. They make The Perfect Team and it shows - sure, it's flawed sometimes and they definitely have the power to hurt each other - boy do they ever, and they do, sometimes, but it just makes them more human and when it comes down to it, it's all about friendship anyway and that's what matters - it's like the core of their relationship, you know? Let's be honest here, there's not that many shows when you can say stuff like "And then this Ellison guy goes batshit because his best friend is lying dead on the ground and the medics have given up on him - but this guy? He refuses to let the little guy go, and know what? He actually brings him back to life - their spirit animals merge and - no I'm not kidding they do! Then later on, the little guy? Actually sacrifices his career, destroys pretty much everything he worked for all his life and lies to the world and calls himself a fraud just to protect his friend" and be serious, ie talk about the canon source. I mean come on!

Then there's the little things like the domesticity and here again, few shows really take the time to show you two guys - living together, may I add - doing stuff as mundane as making dinner or eating breakfast and being so comfortable around one other in such an intimate setting - they work together, they live together, they even go on vacation together - seriously, there's no wonder why everyone see them as married. In canon. You can't blame us for that - the writers made it real easy for us. Now that I think of it, maybe Jim/Blair slashers are the laziest slashers around because it's almost as if the subtext had already been officially turned into text and we just followed the writers' lead *snicker*

Yeah anyway... add all those factors and bring Jim/Blair to another level of affection and it just feels like they reached the next logical step. So I still have everything I need - friendship, love, affection, h/c, angst - but fanfic gives it another intensity somehow. Yes, that would definitely appeal to me, all right.

Having said that, TS is one of the two only fanfoms - the other is SG - where I enjoy gen as much as slash. Or okay slash is 98% of my reading, but those 2% definitely count because the gen with those two give me all the things I want, anyway. Only, without the sex. And sometimes... you're not even that certain about it, but that's not the point *cough*

And technically, I should love Blair the most and appreciate Jim only because they're so good together, but truth is, though yes, Blair is always #1 [he's just the kind of character I'm attracted to, period] Jim is really following close - so close that they're, well, touching each other really and then snogging, and maybe shagging too - because Jim Ellison, for all ex-ranger badass cop that he is, with all his repressing and his being a jerk sometimes truly is a character I love because a) I always thought he was a deep character with lots of layers and b) he does angst beautifully too. So it's even a pair I can appreciate to the fullest, ie for the both of them, not just because of one half only and the other by proxy, so to speak. If that's not wonderful, I don't know what it is *g*

Hmm, I think the prospect of not writing a Numb3rs review on Saturday, nor a Lost one before at least a week made me rambly... then again, when do I need an excuse to indulge in some heavy rambling, right? Right.

Oh and catiadoodle? I received the CDs!! Veronica Mars S1 is now mine and I'll finally see what the fuss is about, thank you so much *hugs* Between that, Desperate Housewives and Lost, as well as all the anime I downloaded lately, once my finals and my concours will be over, I have the feeling I'll just let myself OD on tv, yay!

Comments

[porntestpilot.livejournal.com]

*claps* That was brillant Mouse!

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Hee thanks *blushes*

*bows*

[porntestpilot.livejournal.com]

*molests*

[castalie.livejournal.com]

*purrs*

[catiadoodle.livejournal.com]

Wow, that was fast ! I only posted it yesterday after I went to see Star Wars. I was all dazed by the movie and wondered if I posted it right. :p

I hope all the CDs are not crushed or anything, and that you'll have a good time !! *g*

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Seriously, yesterday? That was fast, all right. And they all arrived in one piece, no worries lol Thanks again *g*

[ginalin.livejournal.com]

For me it was Kirk/Spock, then Starsky/Hutch, then Jim/Blair.

You're right, it's the same dynamic. Gen or Slash, it's all about them willing to sacrifice everything for the other guy.

[castalie.livejournal.com]

I thought of adding Starsky/Hutch as reference too because they're like the epitome of everything that is slashy but even though I did watch the show when I was a kid and I did love it, I wasn't obsessed with it so it skipped my mind. But yeah, they definitely belong to the group *nodnod*

[ginalin.livejournal.com]

I was at the right age, about 17, to be a little more intrigued by the Starsky and Hutch thing.

I always say that they introduced me to my hormones. I'm surprised at how much that influenced my future forays into romance. I was always looking for a guy like Starsky(when I was looking for a guy), and I'll be damned if I didn't end up marrying one.
It was because I modeled on the kind of relationship those two guys had, and it's interesting that I didn't care that it was a relationship between two guys that I saw as venturing into the romantic at times. But, I identified with Hutch and thought, "Damn, I need a Starsky!" (it works too, we're opposites and have a similar relationship dynamic)

It's scary that TV has that kind of influence on us, when you think about it. As long as it's positive, I guess it's okay. *G*

[castalie.livejournal.com]

That's actually a sweet story *g*

It's scary that TV has that kind of influence on us, when you think about it. As long as it's positive, I guess it's okay.

*seconds that*

[ginalin.livejournal.com]

Re-reading that, I'm kind of glad I didn't focus on Gilligan's Island for my relationship dynamic.

*snicker*

It's true, though, I married a Starsky clone. Right down to the half unbuttoned shirts, love of hot cars, cocky/goofy attitude and curly dark hair.

[castalie.livejournal.com]

LOL I really love all those pictures your draw of Phil *g*

[fluterbev.livejournal.com]

Wow, it's so great that people have taken my question and run with it - I am finding everyone's responses fascinating :-)

fanfic... adds more and usually hits all my hot buttons in the process - be it for the sap, the mush, the sweet or the kinky and the dark

Yes! That's it, isn't it? Our hot buttons are explicitly pressed in fanfic. Fanfics are hedonistic by nature - we can, effectively, write whatever we want, to satisfy our own desires, without worrying about the demands of publishers or anyone else who might have a stake in a commercial product. Fanfic is written for us, by us :-)

I never loved macho characters - the heroes who didn't feel the slightest emotions never did it for me. The manly man type always had me roll my eyes or cringe at the screen

Oh, me too! I remember in my childhood, watching programmes like Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and others of that ilk. Whenever one of the heroes got hurt, they would be all stoic and not utter a sound, and there'd be no comfort - it was so disappointing, and always felt unreal, as if a huge part of it was missing. How great that things like Starsky and Hutch came along - they made it okay for heroes to have human weaknesses and to need care. So much more satisfying - and fanfic focuses on that too - balancing the strong with the weak. It makes the characters much more rounded, much more real.

I see where you're coming from with the Jim and Blair love - their canon relationship is so complete, compared to many others. The domesticity, the evidence that they care for each other, and the fact that they are prepared to do such extreme things for each other (I'm referring to what you say about Jim going after Blair in death, and Blair sacrificing his life's work and good name). It is the ultimate love affair, really, but with enough elements of non-perfection in it to make it ring true. Fanfic takes that basis and runs with it. There is so much to work with, in the case of TS!

This is a long winded reply, I know, but I loved reading your musings :-)

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Fanfics are hedonistic by nature

Nice definition, all right *g*

It is the ultimate love affair, really, but with enough elements of non-perfection in it to make it ring true.

Exactly. I know sometimes even fans mock - albeit gently - the show because it has so many flaws and all but character speaking? They did such a wonderful job - those characters, they're a joy to see and follow. No wonder we're still reading and writing about Jim and Blair - and the others - years after the show has died...

I love long winded replies - and thanks for the compliment *g*

[gardendoor.livejournal.com]

Lovely!

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Why, thank you kindly *g*

[turps33.livejournal.com]

That was awesome!

I think I should have just lifted your Jim/Blair answer for the fandom meme I just did ;)

But no, I totally agree with you. *applauds*

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Thanks *g* Jim/Blair is quite inspiring *nodnod*