Sakura Kinomoto: why does no one hate her?

[khym_chanur]

No, I don't hate her (points to the Sakura figure perched on his computer monitor), so put away the thumb-screws and napalm. It's just that Sakura seems like she'd be a candidate for bashing, yet I've never come across even a hint of her being hated.

Comments

[avianthropy]

I have seen Sakura bashed, but not for getting in the way of Shaolan/Eriol. No, she's bashed for being too sweet and "perfect." I remember when there was a CCS discussion at an message board I used to post at, nearly everyone said they disliked her for that reason. (I'd say if that's a reason not to like Sakura, then Tomoyo's even worse, but nobody said anything against her. Maybe it's because she's not the main character and doesn't have any powers to add to her "extra-speshulness!")

I do wonder about the lack of Shaolan/Eriol rabidshippers, and if I had to come up with a theory it would be that they're seen as too young (well, young-looking at least) to be yaoified. That doesn't usually stop characters in other fandom from being slashed, though, so it's iffy. As for the ten-year-old Cardcaptors fangirls, it seems when girls that age have a crush on a fictional guy, it doesn't occur to them to hate the girl he's with. They're more likely to worship her as well and play/imagine being her. That's what my friends and I were like... I think the concept of "since I can't really be her, I'll be jealous and hate her instead" tends to not kick in until the early teens.

[avianthropy]

I forgot to say: Another thing about Cardcaptors is that it was so heavily edited that any hints of Sakura+Shaolan can't really be seen in it, and of course it never reached the part where they become a definite canon couple. People watching that version probably wouldn't see any reason to be jealous of Sakura for her relationship with Shaolan -- oops, I mean, "Showron" -- since it essentially never happens.

[khym_chanur]

Too sweet? Huh. "Yeah, I really hate it when people are nice, understanding and supportive." Makes no sense.