First Entry
Reading up on the latest FAP threads, I saw that someone had just reread the Draco Trilogy and had remarked, "Someone has to tell somebody how bad that fanfiction is."
The Draco Trilogy has created a camp of smarter-than-thou geeks who write off anyone who dislikes the fic as simply not "getting" it, and there's going to be a contingent of those who write off the smarter-than-thou geeks as hopelessly trying to be avant-garde by clinging to a second-rate fic surrounded by endless fandom attention. It's going to make people of average or below average intelligence feel like geniuses.
I didn't read the trilogy with a chip on my shoulder, nor did I go in wanting to read the "best Harry Potter fic ever ... really." I went in wanting to be entertained.
I didn't want to taint the reading experience. I didn't know the fic's background. I didn't buy into the fandom's review of the trilogy. I only read snippets of reviews, and I wrote off the "reason FA exists" as a short insult. I expected to be entertained in an enjoyable way -- a type of fun and passion that stems not from the action in the fic but from the depths of the writer's own warped imagination, and there aren't many imaginations as warped as mine.
I don't need endless wit and banter to be entertained, but this fic had nothing. Not a goddamn thing. I'd expect an "A" on this fic if it were on ff.net, but I wouldn't expect anyone to sit through hours to read it all. It's a jerk-off fic.
If you were not rooting for Draco's brutal demise by the third Buffy reference, you have my sympathies.
The popularity of this fic is proof that fandom cliche writers routinely get their dicks licked, sucked and caressed by raving fangirls, and that Draco-butt kissers will buy into any version that generates enough hype.
Rowling's fans are so desperate for a product that feels fresh, they'll latch on to the first inferior fic to come their way.
TDT will be the HP genre's "Star Wars." Everyone knows it's bad, but no one wants to admit it for fear of being looked at as a fandom illiterate. It has redeemed Draco sap and fluff. It's of the time. It's not original. How can anyone not like it?
It's the Ayn Rand Syndrome all over again. Claiming to be a devotee of Ayn Rand is hip, but reading her books is the ocular equivalent of ripping out one's fingernails. Few people read Rand's books cover to cover as it's tedious, and it's easier to say one devoured their contents than to actually do so. Reading the Trilogy is more tiresome than "Atlas Shrugged," but it's just as easy to claim one enjoyed the fic than to actually do so.
In the fandom, what it boils down to is: You're an idiot with no imagination if you don't like it, so shut up and pretend that you do.
When the characters quote another 'witty' response to a scenario, I didn't envision Buffy. I didn't really care. I didn't ponder any possible symbolism. I sighed, prayed a Voldemort on loan from Arkady was around, and considered various ways I could skewer this movie on my journal.
Reading the predictable plots and dead Hogwarts founders turned my stomach, and there was no need for it. I get it. It's a B-list fic. Cassie Claire is not a professional. It's a straightforward fic with by 'witty', arrogant Hogwarts pukes who get knocked down a notch due to amateur stunts. Point made. Stop with the vomit-inducing repartee.
It'd be cliché to say one could fit a truck through the holes in the plot, but my mind is so numb after reading that fic, I'll go with it. The plot - for the sake of argument, we'll call it a "plot" - lacks continuity.
The writer of this fic wants the readers to create their own version of it. She was too lazy to invent a plot -- the fic has large, gaping holes that rival those of any repeat mothers, and the trilogy was so wretched, I use the gaping hole cliché twice -- and she forced the readers to do her jobs for her. Instead of being insulted, people are lapping it up. We should be paid for making our own Draco Trilogy.
To be popular, a fic must place various pairings all throughout the fic and make the reader care about the action. I could see myself falling for Draco-lite, but I didn't give a shit if he died at the end or not. I didn't connect with any of the characters. Their personalities didn't allow one to be connected with them. As fascinating as the Harry Potter books are, they wouldn't be so addicting where it not that the reader actually gives two cents worth what happens to Harry. This fic does not do justice to anyone or anything. In fact, it could stand alone as it's own story apart from anything resembling canon.
Lines stolen from a tv show, plots recycled from one part of the trilogy to another, characters warped to the point of being nauseating and a mixture of cliche pairings don't add up to a great fic. A good idea that wasn't developed, maybe.
And if you think TDT is great, what the fuck is wrong with you? Do you sleep with a cute teddybear plushie under your arm at night while dreaming of the cute boy who sits two seats in front of you in maths?
Then again, you should probably ignore my review. I'm not big on fics. I'm not the person who can name every important 'BNF', and I've never tried to analyze scenes; my finger is forever pressing down on the scroll key.
But I do occasionally like fics. Arkady gives me new perspective on Tom Riddle. Libertine gives me a new perspective on Neville. Snaples gives me a new perspective on Snape. The Draco Trilogy and Cassie Claire made me grateful that Draco Malfoy will never become the slush bucket in canon as he is for his insipid fangirls.
Look. I barely touched on the plagiarism issue.
The Draco Trilogy has created a camp of smarter-than-thou geeks who write off anyone who dislikes the fic as simply not "getting" it, and there's going to be a contingent of those who write off the smarter-than-thou geeks as hopelessly trying to be avant-garde by clinging to a second-rate fic surrounded by endless fandom attention. It's going to make people of average or below average intelligence feel like geniuses.
I didn't read the trilogy with a chip on my shoulder, nor did I go in wanting to read the "best Harry Potter fic ever ... really." I went in wanting to be entertained.
I didn't want to taint the reading experience. I didn't know the fic's background. I didn't buy into the fandom's review of the trilogy. I only read snippets of reviews, and I wrote off the "reason FA exists" as a short insult. I expected to be entertained in an enjoyable way -- a type of fun and passion that stems not from the action in the fic but from the depths of the writer's own warped imagination, and there aren't many imaginations as warped as mine.
I don't need endless wit and banter to be entertained, but this fic had nothing. Not a goddamn thing. I'd expect an "A" on this fic if it were on ff.net, but I wouldn't expect anyone to sit through hours to read it all. It's a jerk-off fic.
If you were not rooting for Draco's brutal demise by the third Buffy reference, you have my sympathies.
The popularity of this fic is proof that fandom cliche writers routinely get their dicks licked, sucked and caressed by raving fangirls, and that Draco-butt kissers will buy into any version that generates enough hype.
Rowling's fans are so desperate for a product that feels fresh, they'll latch on to the first inferior fic to come their way.
TDT will be the HP genre's "Star Wars." Everyone knows it's bad, but no one wants to admit it for fear of being looked at as a fandom illiterate. It has redeemed Draco sap and fluff. It's of the time. It's not original. How can anyone not like it?
It's the Ayn Rand Syndrome all over again. Claiming to be a devotee of Ayn Rand is hip, but reading her books is the ocular equivalent of ripping out one's fingernails. Few people read Rand's books cover to cover as it's tedious, and it's easier to say one devoured their contents than to actually do so. Reading the Trilogy is more tiresome than "Atlas Shrugged," but it's just as easy to claim one enjoyed the fic than to actually do so.
In the fandom, what it boils down to is: You're an idiot with no imagination if you don't like it, so shut up and pretend that you do.
When the characters quote another 'witty' response to a scenario, I didn't envision Buffy. I didn't really care. I didn't ponder any possible symbolism. I sighed, prayed a Voldemort on loan from Arkady was around, and considered various ways I could skewer this movie on my journal.
Reading the predictable plots and dead Hogwarts founders turned my stomach, and there was no need for it. I get it. It's a B-list fic. Cassie Claire is not a professional. It's a straightforward fic with by 'witty', arrogant Hogwarts pukes who get knocked down a notch due to amateur stunts. Point made. Stop with the vomit-inducing repartee.
It'd be cliché to say one could fit a truck through the holes in the plot, but my mind is so numb after reading that fic, I'll go with it. The plot - for the sake of argument, we'll call it a "plot" - lacks continuity.
The writer of this fic wants the readers to create their own version of it. She was too lazy to invent a plot -- the fic has large, gaping holes that rival those of any repeat mothers, and the trilogy was so wretched, I use the gaping hole cliché twice -- and she forced the readers to do her jobs for her. Instead of being insulted, people are lapping it up. We should be paid for making our own Draco Trilogy.
To be popular, a fic must place various pairings all throughout the fic and make the reader care about the action. I could see myself falling for Draco-lite, but I didn't give a shit if he died at the end or not. I didn't connect with any of the characters. Their personalities didn't allow one to be connected with them. As fascinating as the Harry Potter books are, they wouldn't be so addicting where it not that the reader actually gives two cents worth what happens to Harry. This fic does not do justice to anyone or anything. In fact, it could stand alone as it's own story apart from anything resembling canon.
Lines stolen from a tv show, plots recycled from one part of the trilogy to another, characters warped to the point of being nauseating and a mixture of cliche pairings don't add up to a great fic. A good idea that wasn't developed, maybe.
And if you think TDT is great, what the fuck is wrong with you? Do you sleep with a cute teddybear plushie under your arm at night while dreaming of the cute boy who sits two seats in front of you in maths?
Then again, you should probably ignore my review. I'm not big on fics. I'm not the person who can name every important 'BNF', and I've never tried to analyze scenes; my finger is forever pressing down on the scroll key.
But I do occasionally like fics. Arkady gives me new perspective on Tom Riddle. Libertine gives me a new perspective on Neville. Snaples gives me a new perspective on Snape. The Draco Trilogy and Cassie Claire made me grateful that Draco Malfoy will never become the slush bucket in canon as he is for his insipid fangirls.
Look. I barely touched on the plagiarism issue.