Here's something I don't get...
Love triangles.
Almost at all.
Now, to clarify, I don't mean cases where a third party is interested but the object of affection doesn't reciprocate at all, or where a person initially thinks they like one person, but it's blatantly obvious, to both the audience every other character, they like someone else almost from the start.
I mean where a character seems to like one person for a long time and then suddenly likes another, or seems to like two characters at once, or flipflops, or whatever. I don't know how many book and shojo series have turned me off by dragging out a triangle. I honestly think it's part of why I'm consistently gravitating towards shonen and seinen...there's no romance at all, or it's pretty clear cut who likes who, even if the characters are utter idiots about it or don't get their acts together by the end of the series. (Plus, shojo tends to say "I love you" as "I will fret and dither about sex, secrets and your and my feelings for endless volumes," while shonen tends to say "I love you" as "I will tear the world apart/cross dimensions/fight 5000 people with my sword/gun/fists/brain to save you even if it takes 10 volumes of incredibly long fights, and if someone tries to question me about my feelings, I'll either be rescued by a random fight or suddenly realize how very very urgent finding you is." I find the latter to be vastly more entertaining.)
Every once in a while, there'll be a really well done triangle and I'll get it, but for the most part, they're just so very unattractive. Take Fullmetal Alchemist as an example. In the manga, Ed likes Winry and...Winry. But then you have the anime where Ed seems to like Winry for the first two thirds of the series, then suddenly there's a triangle involving Rose and he seems to like Rose more than Winry all of a sudden, and then in the movie, he seems to fall for Noa. Ignore whether or not you like Winry at all, that's not what I'm talking about. Seriously, how is that attractive in character? Like, at all? The Love Hina anime did the same thing, pretty much going "Ok, Keitaro likes Naru, but maybe he also likes *insert every female cast member at various stages*"(as compared to the manga, where it's pretty clear he only likes Naru from start to finish, he's just overwhelmed by all these insane women in his life.)
For that matter, how is it INTERESTING? I find three volumes of "oh no, I can't decide who I like" about as captivating as "oh no, I can't decide if I'm ready for sex yet"(the other thing that has led to my dropping countless titles...actually, I think Mars is the only real exception to that storyline not annoying me...probably because it's the only shojo I've read where sex has actually been crucial to the plot and character relationship and development.) That kind of conflict is just boring in the extreme to me, and the more attention it gets, the more I have to wonder whether the character REALLY cares the most about the one they end up with, or if they decided that person was the better choice.
Plus, it usually feels like such a crutch to me. "Hmm...we need conflict...I KNOW! Let's throw in a love triangle. Doesn't matter if we're at the start, halfway through or near the end...it always make for good conflict." I'm pretty sure I'm expected to be drawn in by the character's introspection and concern and worry that whatever I prefer won't happen, but usually I just grit my teeth and tell them to make up their mind already.
(for the record, it's also one of the main reasons I'm so incredibly picky about kdramas, and romance doramas in general.)
All that said...I know a lot of people adore love triangles, and get giddy at the idea of them, and even hunt down things with triangles. So...what's the big draw? Because I really don't get it and I've never really had anyone explain the big draw.
This...was far longer than intended.
Almost at all.
Now, to clarify, I don't mean cases where a third party is interested but the object of affection doesn't reciprocate at all, or where a person initially thinks they like one person, but it's blatantly obvious, to both the audience every other character, they like someone else almost from the start.
I mean where a character seems to like one person for a long time and then suddenly likes another, or seems to like two characters at once, or flipflops, or whatever. I don't know how many book and shojo series have turned me off by dragging out a triangle. I honestly think it's part of why I'm consistently gravitating towards shonen and seinen...there's no romance at all, or it's pretty clear cut who likes who, even if the characters are utter idiots about it or don't get their acts together by the end of the series. (Plus, shojo tends to say "I love you" as "I will fret and dither about sex, secrets and your and my feelings for endless volumes," while shonen tends to say "I love you" as "I will tear the world apart/cross dimensions/fight 5000 people with my sword/gun/fists/brain to save you even if it takes 10 volumes of incredibly long fights, and if someone tries to question me about my feelings, I'll either be rescued by a random fight or suddenly realize how very very urgent finding you is." I find the latter to be vastly more entertaining.)
Every once in a while, there'll be a really well done triangle and I'll get it, but for the most part, they're just so very unattractive. Take Fullmetal Alchemist as an example. In the manga, Ed likes Winry and...Winry. But then you have the anime where Ed seems to like Winry for the first two thirds of the series, then suddenly there's a triangle involving Rose and he seems to like Rose more than Winry all of a sudden, and then in the movie, he seems to fall for Noa. Ignore whether or not you like Winry at all, that's not what I'm talking about. Seriously, how is that attractive in character? Like, at all? The Love Hina anime did the same thing, pretty much going "Ok, Keitaro likes Naru, but maybe he also likes *insert every female cast member at various stages*"(as compared to the manga, where it's pretty clear he only likes Naru from start to finish, he's just overwhelmed by all these insane women in his life.)
For that matter, how is it INTERESTING? I find three volumes of "oh no, I can't decide who I like" about as captivating as "oh no, I can't decide if I'm ready for sex yet"(the other thing that has led to my dropping countless titles...actually, I think Mars is the only real exception to that storyline not annoying me...probably because it's the only shojo I've read where sex has actually been crucial to the plot and character relationship and development.) That kind of conflict is just boring in the extreme to me, and the more attention it gets, the more I have to wonder whether the character REALLY cares the most about the one they end up with, or if they decided that person was the better choice.
Plus, it usually feels like such a crutch to me. "Hmm...we need conflict...I KNOW! Let's throw in a love triangle. Doesn't matter if we're at the start, halfway through or near the end...it always make for good conflict." I'm pretty sure I'm expected to be drawn in by the character's introspection and concern and worry that whatever I prefer won't happen, but usually I just grit my teeth and tell them to make up their mind already.
(for the record, it's also one of the main reasons I'm so incredibly picky about kdramas, and romance doramas in general.)
All that said...I know a lot of people adore love triangles, and get giddy at the idea of them, and even hunt down things with triangles. So...what's the big draw? Because I really don't get it and I've never really had anyone explain the big draw.
This...was far longer than intended.