Fanfic trope Grading

[galadhir]

stolen from dragongirlg, ask me about tropes!

Give me a fanfiction trope and I’ll grade it:

A: Love it. Spend my time combing AO3 for it.
B: Like it. Not one of my bigger cravings, but it can scratch a certain itch if I’m in the right mood.
C: Neutral. A good author might be able to sell it, but a bad one will kill it deader than dead.
D: Not my favorite. I avoid it if I can, but it won’t necessarily put me off reading something.
F: Hate it. Will immediately make me nope out of a fic.

Comments

[sunshine304]

Friends to lovers

Huddling for warmth

a/b/o / omegaverse

[galadhir]

Friends to lovers - B. I like the people in my pairings to respect each other and appreciate each other's good qualities, so it's a good start. OTOH, as a person who is vaguely aroace, I'm also quite happy to settle for friends to better friends :)

Huddling for warmth - B. I like it because it usually means that they're in peril together and their closeness feels more intense for being contrasted against the bleakness of the surrounds. Would probably want it to be part of a longer fic with plot.

a/b/o - D. I have read some great omegaverse fics but they were all subversions of the trope. I like my ships to be partnerships of equals so a/b/o tends to be the exact opposite of what I want. I would give it a try but I would expect not to finish it.

[sunshine304]

Yes, I also enjoy huddling for warmth if it’s included in some plot with some drama / case / mishap going on. It’s usually quite the treat then. :D

Had to ask omegaverse because it’s usually so divisive. XD I’ve read quite a few (there were so many in Teen Wolf fandom…) but I’m also quite picky about them and usually can’t get into them if they’re really just about “marathon sex with lots of body fluids”. I enjoy some kind of world building around them, especially if it’s played around with or if there is actual social commentary on omegas being either considered “lesser” or rare so that they are protected in a way that makes them feel like prisoners. There have been some interesting deconstructions about the trope over the years!

[galadhir]

Yes, I'm firmly in the camp of 'there isn't anything I wouldn't read out of curiosity' and also 'well, I may not like this kink myself but isn't it interesting that there are lots of people out there who do.' So I'm not sure I have anything that I feel strongly enough about to be on one side or another of a divide.

But yes, one of my favourite fics ever is a Kylux omegaverse which is basically social commentary and a romance that is about how to reconcile with your own sex and that of someone you're attracted to despite a social script that makes the other person repugnant and/or dangerous to you. So although I don't particularly like a/b/o as a trope in general, I would never deny that they could produce some great stories :)