Torchwood Fic Reading, Musing 1
Thoughts and questions have run through my head while I've been gorging myself on Torchwood fic this past month. Here's one of them:
If a writer chooses to emphasize a character's negative traits, is it really character bashing? Well written characters should have both good and bad qualities, and if a writer uses a character's lesser attributes -- especially those established in canon -- to help make the reader feel more sympathetic toward another character, isn't that just a regular old every day plot device? It seems extreme to label any less than positive portrayal of a character as character bashing.
It may be tempting to do so when the writer creates additional (off-canon) negative traits/motivations/feelings for an established character (again, read 'canon'), or when a writer seems to be using the piece solely as a way to vent frustrations over canon events. I get that, I really do. There are many instances in modern television when it seems the writers have lost their character sheets and have written without regard to past storylines and established character development. Whether a means to "shake-up" a storyline or not (as I have seen claimed by such writers), it just smacks of poor continuity, and disorganized/lackadaisacal writing when it doesn't work. And, man -- that is frustrating!
And maybe it does help fans feel better if they can get their revenge out against such happenings on paper/screen. I certainly won't be one to tell someone they can't do that. But -- I also won't read further into a story if I begin to suspect that that is the main point of it, because that's just boring, and most times, takes the character completely off-canon. If there is a reason for the character's behavior, if it enhances the storyline, if it is used as a device to further other character development, is it really bashing?
I've started many fics in this fandom that only seem to be an excuse to explain away the onscreen whatever-the-heck the show runners have tried to establish between Jack and Gwen. As someone who doesn't quite buy it completely (blame writing or acting or poor editing or the wrong kind of chemistry), and is often frustrated by Gwen's behavior, I'm all for that -- as long as it makes sense, and is supported by canon (even if one does have to squint to blur a few lines -- this is fanfic, after all). There have been many instances when the story just seems to morph into a ill-concealed, poorly written rant, and that is when I click away to find something else.
So, the point of this musing? I don't know, really. Just a reaction to seeing a tag of "gwen-bashing" on a fic site, and finding myself clicking on it. Of the stories I found and read, very few seem to be out-and-out character assasinations, which is how I define character bashings. Mostly, it was just showing how Gwen's less-than-loved traits can have a negative impact in the Torchwood 'verse. I understand there are other TW viewers out there that love her for her tenacity and stubborness, and I'm sure they would have a different opinion of the level of bashing in those very same fics.
I guess what one reader interprets as character development, may be interpreted by another as character attack. And I might as well confess to being a wishy-washy reader and say that as long as it is well-written (not always the case in fanfiction), I'll take either one.