The True Love Of Lightning And That Guy On The Left.
Here is a summary I saw when I was amusing myself by glancing at the Final Fantasy XIII section of fanfiction.net (for those who don't know, Final Fantasy XIII is a videogame that is not coming out in Japan for some months and won't be available in English-speaking countries until some time next year):
She could almost feel his death racing her, could hear the jagged breathing of Death, its cold breath raising the hairs on her neck, but where many people would’ve slowed down in complete fear, that only spurred her to run faster... ShotgunGuy/Vanille
OH, NO, NOT SHOTGUN GUY.
Of course, I am an enormous hypocrite for poking fun at people who write fanfiction for Final Fantasy XIII based on what can be gleaned from a few trailers, given that I've had a Final Fantasy Versus XIII icon for months. It still strikes me as a bit odd, though. (Even more odd: this is not the only 'Vanille/Shotgun Guy' story in the section.)
What really confuses me, though, is the bashing of Stella from Final Fantasy Versus XIII.
That's right: people are bashing a character from a game that hasn't been released. How can you hate her just from some trailers in which, if I recall correctly, she doesn't even speak? How can you describe her as a 'waste of gameplay' if you have not played the game? The only solid reason for dislike I've seen given is 'her clothes are impractical', which can be applied to, er, more or less any Final Fantasy character ever. For all I know, Stella could end up being incredibly annoying, but I can't judge her character before I've actually seen her.
(I'll confess to pre-emptively deciding that I like Sazh Katzroy, but, come on (spoiler blackout, highlight to read if you don't mind knowing minor details about a Final Fantasy XIII character):
Described as a sympathetic and kind man who is easily moved to tears, he is accompanied by a baby Chocobo named Hina that lives in his afro. (source)
He has a baby bird living in his afro. He has a baby bird living in his afro. Perhaps it is possible for a man who keeps a baby bird in his afro not to be amazing, but I doubt it.
Wow, I am being such a hypocrite today! Soon I shall even be 'shipping pairings involving characters about whom I know nothing. (Actually, I've seen Lightning's name shortened to 'Light' in some of this inexplicable fanfiction. Given that Light/Light is my Death Note OTP: Lightning/Light? ...perhaps not.))
Not really speaking of Lightning/Light, I think I might like to attempt Death Note fanfiction. However, there are two major problems with this:
- I am not as intelligent as many of the Death Note characters. How am I supposed to adequately place myself inside a character's head if that character is smarter than me? Had I been Kira, I would have been caught in seconds.
- I watched the series in Japanese, with English subtitles. I don't know whether I can translate the characters' voices into English in my writing. Thinking 'does this sound like something the character would say?' is so much more difficult when I've heard the character saying things only in a language I don't speak. How do I know exactly how Light would phrase things were he speaking English? Perhaps it would be best if I were to buy the manga and get some idea of how his speech is conveyed in the official translation.
A third, more minor problem is the fact that the fanfiction would, of course, be Light/himself, and I'm not sure the world needs that pairing as much as I do.
Perhaps I should just write about Derren Brown being a shinigami. Or a Death Note owner. I think he would pull off either role marvellously. (I've also been meaning for a while to write fanfiction in which Derren Brown is Lucifer, because he would be alarmingly good at it. And, of course, there's andtimetravel.
All right, Riona, let's get through your last exam first. You can write to your heart's content about narcissism taken to its ultimate limits and Derren Brown being pure evil after Tuesday.)
She could almost feel his death racing her, could hear the jagged breathing of Death, its cold breath raising the hairs on her neck, but where many people would’ve slowed down in complete fear, that only spurred her to run faster... ShotgunGuy/Vanille
OH, NO, NOT SHOTGUN GUY.
Of course, I am an enormous hypocrite for poking fun at people who write fanfiction for Final Fantasy XIII based on what can be gleaned from a few trailers, given that I've had a Final Fantasy Versus XIII icon for months. It still strikes me as a bit odd, though. (Even more odd: this is not the only 'Vanille/Shotgun Guy' story in the section.)
What really confuses me, though, is the bashing of Stella from Final Fantasy Versus XIII.
That's right: people are bashing a character from a game that hasn't been released. How can you hate her just from some trailers in which, if I recall correctly, she doesn't even speak? How can you describe her as a 'waste of gameplay' if you have not played the game? The only solid reason for dislike I've seen given is 'her clothes are impractical', which can be applied to, er, more or less any Final Fantasy character ever. For all I know, Stella could end up being incredibly annoying, but I can't judge her character before I've actually seen her.
(I'll confess to pre-emptively deciding that I like Sazh Katzroy, but, come on (spoiler blackout, highlight to read if you don't mind knowing minor details about a Final Fantasy XIII character):
Described as a sympathetic and kind man who is easily moved to tears, he is accompanied by a baby Chocobo named Hina that lives in his afro. (source)
He has a baby bird living in his afro. He has a baby bird living in his afro. Perhaps it is possible for a man who keeps a baby bird in his afro not to be amazing, but I doubt it.
Wow, I am being such a hypocrite today! Soon I shall even be 'shipping pairings involving characters about whom I know nothing. (Actually, I've seen Lightning's name shortened to 'Light' in some of this inexplicable fanfiction. Given that Light/Light is my Death Note OTP: Lightning/Light? ...perhaps not.))
Not really speaking of Lightning/Light, I think I might like to attempt Death Note fanfiction. However, there are two major problems with this:
- I am not as intelligent as many of the Death Note characters. How am I supposed to adequately place myself inside a character's head if that character is smarter than me? Had I been Kira, I would have been caught in seconds.
- I watched the series in Japanese, with English subtitles. I don't know whether I can translate the characters' voices into English in my writing. Thinking 'does this sound like something the character would say?' is so much more difficult when I've heard the character saying things only in a language I don't speak. How do I know exactly how Light would phrase things were he speaking English? Perhaps it would be best if I were to buy the manga and get some idea of how his speech is conveyed in the official translation.
A third, more minor problem is the fact that the fanfiction would, of course, be Light/himself, and I'm not sure the world needs that pairing as much as I do.
Perhaps I should just write about Derren Brown being a shinigami. Or a Death Note owner. I think he would pull off either role marvellously. (I've also been meaning for a while to write fanfiction in which Derren Brown is Lucifer, because he would be alarmingly good at it. And, of course, there's andtimetravel.
All right, Riona, let's get through your last exam first. You can write to your heart's content about narcissism taken to its ultimate limits and Derren Brown being pure evil after Tuesday.)